This week: No. 3 Augustana (7-1, 1-0 NSIC) travels the Dakotas this week to continue Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference action, facing Northern State (3-3, 0-2 NSIC) on Thursday at 7 p.m. and U-Mary (0-4, 0-2 NSIC) on Friday at 7 p.m.
Last time out: Augustana broke away from a 6-6 tie and won the dual’s final seven matches to top Minnesota State Moorhead 29-6 Saturday night in both teams’ NSIC openers in Sioux Falls. The Viking got wins from Jason Jeremiason (133 pounds), Nate Herda (149 pounds), Marcus Edgington(157 pounds), Gavin Nelson (165 pounds), Carl Serck (174 pounds), Tom Davies (184 pounds), Ty Copsey (197 pounds) and Lance Peters (HWT).
Fast fall: Senior Ty Copsey needed less than minute to win his 197-pound match on Saturday against Minnesota State Moorhead. He pinned MSUM’s Brian Woelfel in 49 seconds. Copsey, who is ranked No. 2 in Division II, stretched Augustana’s lead to 26-6 with the win by fall. It was his second win by fall this season.
The opponents: The Vikings made quick work of this week’s opponents when they met last season. Augustana thumped Northern State 34-3 in Sioux Falls on Jan. 30, 2010, while the Vikings beat U-Mary 31-3 at home the day prior.
The standings: After the opening week of NSIC duals, the Vikings are one of three teams tied for first in the latest conference standings. Minnesota State (2-0 NSIC) and Upper Iowa (2-0 NSIC) are also flawless in conference action thus far.
Viking lineup:
| Wt. | Wrestler |
| 125 | Al Meger |
| 133 | Jason Jeremiason OR Cody Lensing |
| 141 | Jay Sherer |
| 149 | Nate Herda OR Chism Fink |
| 157 | Marcus Edgington OR Austin Carmichael |
| 165 | Gavin Nelson |
| 174 | Carl Serck OR Matt Morris |
| 184 | Tom Davies OR Brian Schultz |
| 197 | Ty Copsey |
| 285 | Lance Peters |
Northern Sun honors: Augustana has had two NSIC Wrestler of the Week selections this season. Jason Jeremiason was picked on Jan. 10, whileCody Lensing picked up the accolade on Nov. 29.
Duals to finish: From here on out, the Vikings’ schedule is filled with duals. Augustana has no opens for the remainder of the season.
National news: Augustana retained its No. 3 spot in the NCAA Division II Wrestling Rankings released Jan. 4 by the National Wrestling Coaches Association. The Vikings received 140 points. Nebraska-Omaha remained No. 1 with 159 points, while conference neighbor St. Cloud State again took the No. 2 spot with 153 points.
Who’s ranked: Augustana had six individuals ranked in the latest NCAA Division II rankings. Defending national champion Jay Sherer kept his top spot at 141 pounds. A pair of Viking wrestlers grabbed No. 2 ranking as Marcus Edgington was second at 157 pounds and Ty Copsey earned that spot at 197 pounds. Other ranked wrestlers included Nate Herda (No. 3 at 149 pounds), Al Meger (No. 4 at 125 pounds) and Gavin Nelson(No. 7 at 165 pounds). To view the latest national rankings, click here.
Northern Sun rankings: Augustana is ranked No. 2 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. The Vikings accumulated 61 points in the conference rankings. Individually, Jay Sherer (141 pounds), Nate Herda (149 pounds), Marcus Edgington (157 pounds) and Ty Copsey (197 pounds) each took the No. 1 position. Others in the top five included Al Meger (No. 3 at 125 pounds), Cody Lensing (No. 3 at 133 pounds), Gavin Nelson (No. 2 at 165 pounds), Carl Serck (No. 3 at 174 pounds) and Lance Peters (No. 4 at 285 pounds). To view the complete conference rankings, click here.
Regionally speaking: The Vikings are No. 2 in Super Regional Three after earning 56 points in the inaugural rankings released Dec. 9. Jay Sherer,Nate Herda, Marcus Edgington and Ty Copsey were all ranked No. 1. Others in the top five were Al Meger (No. 3 at 125 pounds), Cody Lensing(No. 3 at 133 pounds), Gavin Nelson (No. 3 at 165 pounds), Carl Serck (No. 4 at 174 pounds) and Lance Peters (No. 4 at 285 pounds). To view the complete region rankings, click here.
According to the coaches: Augustana was been picked to finish second in the 200-11 NSIC Preseason Coaches’ Poll. The Vikings received 64 points—just three behind St. Cloud State.
| No. | School | Pts. |
| 1. | St. Cloud State | 67 |
| 2. | Augustana | 64 |
| 3. | Minnesota State | 37 |
| 4. | Upper Iowa | 24 |
| 5. | MSU Moorhead | 14 |
| Southwest Minnesota State | 14 | |
| 6. | Northern State | 12 |
| 7. | U-Mary | 8 |
| first-place votes in () |
Take me to your leaders: Head coach Jason Reitmeier has announced that Al Meger, Jay Sherer, Gavin Nelson and Lance Peters will serve as his team’s captains for the 2010-11 season.
All-Americans: The Vikings welcome back five individuals who earned All-America status last season. Jay Sherer, a two-time All-American who is the reigning Division II national champion at 141 pounds. Seniors Ty Copsey (197) and Gavin Nelson (165), along with sophomores Nate Herda(149) and Marcus Edgington (157) also earned All-America recognition a year ago.
Freshman phenoms: Augustana’s incoming freshman class was ranked No. 4 nationally in the non-Division I category by Wrestling USA Magazine. The Vikings were the only NSIC team to be ranked. The rankings were based on Dan Fickel’s final rankings of the Best 2010 High School Seniors that appeared on USA Wrestling Magazine’s web site. Augustana had four recruits appear in Fickel’s rankings, including Jayd Docken(No. 28 at 189 pounds), TJ North (No. 2 at 112 pounds), Jeremiah Peterson (special mention) and Jake Miller (special mention).
Roster breakdown: The 2010-11 Vikings feature six seniors, six juniors, five sophomores, five redshirt freshmen and nine freshmen. Team members hail from South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota and Iowa.
New Vikings: Augustana head coach Jason Reitmeier has announced the signing of five outstanding high school wrestlers, who will join the Viking program next season. They are Shawn Hatlestad (New London, Minn.), Garret Heiberger (Hartford, S.D.), JD Herst (St. Louis, Mo.), Taylor Harris (Harrisburg, S.D.) and Bret Johnson (Story City, Iowa).
2009-10 in review: Augustana wrapped up the 2009-10 campaign with an overall record of 11-6 and an NSIC mark of 6-1. The Vikings finished second in the conference, first in Super Region Three and second in the country. Augustana placed six at the national tournament, including a national champion in Jay Sherer at 141 pounds.
Coaches’ corner: Now in his eighth season, Jason Reitmeier has elevated Augustana to a national power. The former Viking wrestler has been honored as a coach of the year at the conference, regional and national level. Reitmemer is assisted by Tom Meester, Nate Buys, Mike Long and Jeremie Degen.
Stay connected: Follow Augustana all season long at www.GoAugie.com. The Vikings are also on Facebook and Twitter; just log ontowww.facebook.com/GoAugie and www.twitter.com/GoAugie. To catch even more Viking action log onto Augustana’s official YouTube channel atwww.youtube.com/GoAugie.