Jacks lose two on the road
The South Dakota State wrestling team lost a pair of duals this weekend versus North Carolina and at Nebraska. The team also had nine wrestlers compete at the Cobber Open.
The Jacks opened the day versus North Carolina, but was unable to overcome an early deficit. Cody Pack and J.J. Everard scored decisions for SDSU at 157 and 285, respectively, but it was not enough as the Tar Heels pulled away for a 36-6 win.
In its second dual, SDSU faced Nebraska, ranked No. 14 by InterMat and weekend host. The Jacks started fast with a major decision by Aaron Pickrel at 125 and scored a big decision from Dustin Walraven, who beat No. 13 Jake Sueflohn by 3-2 decision at 149, but once again it came up short as the Cornhuskers won 32-7.
“We did not wrestle well and our effort was not there versus North Carolina,” head coach Chris Bono said. “We came back in the second dual and the effort and attitude we are looking for was there, fueled by a great effort from Dustin Walraven. The team as a whole wrestled a lot better versus Nebraska and I was more pleased with the effort. We have a long way to go and we will get back to work tomorrow.”
North Carolina 36, South Dakota State 6
The Jacks and Tar Heels opened the dual at 125 pounds. Aaron Pickrel squared off versus Nathan Kraisser, ranked No. 16 (InterMat). Pickrel fell behind 5-0 in the first period and was unable to recover, dropping a 7-1 decision.
At 133, Brance Simms faced Joey Ward. Simms trailed 2-0 after the first, which proved to be enough. The two wrestled a scoreless second and Simms was only able to score one point in the third, losing by a 2-1 decision.
Ben Gillette faced a tough opponent at 141, No. 17 Evan Henderson. Henderson scored a pin to put the Tar Heels up 12-0.
In the 149-pound match, Dustin Walraven dropped another close decision for the Jacks. Christian Barber came out on top 7-3.
Cody Pack lined up at 157 versus Christopher Mears. Pack started strong, leading 4-0 after two periods. The third period was much higher scoring, but Pack held on for a 12-5 decision to put the Jacks on the board.
At 165, Joe Brewster lost by pin to J.M. Staudenmayer.
Troy Morisette faced Frank Abbondanza at 174 and wrestled to a first-period tie. Morisette trailed by one point entering the third and was unable to mount a comeback, dropping a 4-2 decision.
In the 184-pound match, Shea Nolan faced the third ranked Tar Heel competing in today’s dual, No. 20 Alex Utley. Nolan fell behind 7-0 in the first period and was pinned in the second.
Brandon Ballard also lost by pin at 197 to Antonio Giorgio.
In the final match of the dual, J.J. Everard took on Jake Barnhart. Everard led 2-1 after the first period, but Barnhart wrestled it to an even 2-2 after two. In the final period, Everard wrestled hard and came out on top with a 7-3 decision.
The Tar Heels won 36-6, dropping SDSU to 2-2 on the season.
North Carolina 36, South Dakota State 6
125 – No. 16 Nathan Kraisser decision Aaron Pickrel, 7-1 (UNC 3-0)
133 – Joey Ward decision Brance Simms, 2-1 (UNC 6-0)
141 – No. 17 Evan Henderson pin Ben Gillette, 2:18 (UNC 12-0)
149 – Christian Barber decision Dustin Walraven, 7-3 (UNC 15-0)
157 – Cody Pack decision Chris Mears, 12-5 (UNC 15-3)
165 – J.M. Staudenmayer pin Joe Brewster, 2:36 (UNC 21-3)
174 – Frank Abbondanza decision Troy Morisette, 4-2 (UNC 24-3)
184 – No. 20 Alex Utley pin Shea Nolan, 4:14 (UNC 30-3)
197 – Antonio Giorgio pin Brandon Ballard, 0:55 (UNC 36-3)
285 – J.J. Everard decision Jake Barnhart, 7-3 (UNC wins 36-6)
Nebraska 32, South Dakota State 7
In the second dual of the day, SDSU faced No. 14 and weekend host Nebraska. Aaron Pickrel once again opened the dual, but found more success versus Eric Coufal. Pickrel took advantage of an early lead and won by 12-4 major decision.
Brance Simms wrestled Shawn Nagel at 133, but did not find similar success. Nagel led 2-1 entering the third period, but strung together an escape and takedown to put the match out of reach and win by 8-2 decision.
At 141, Ben Gillette faced Skylar Galloway and kept it close through two periods, but Galloway scored a reversal and two takedowns in the third for a 14-4 major decision.
In SDSU’s most notable win of the day, Dustin Walraven defeated No. 13 Jake Sueflohn at 149 by 3-2 decision. Walraven scored an escape in the second period and, after allowing an escape and stalling point in the third, scored a takedown to win the match.
Nebraska went on a six-match win streak to close out the Jacks, however.
In the 157-pound match, Cody Pack lost to No. 5 James Green by 17-6 major decision. At 165, Joe Brewster wrestled Austin Wilson tough, but dropped a 4-1 decision.
The two other ranked Huskers, No. 7 Robert Kokesh and No. 6 Josh Ihnen, won at 174 and 184. Kokesh defeated John Nething II by 17-1 tech fall and Ihnen pinned Hunter Weddington.
At 197, Brandon Ballard dropped a 13-4 major decision to Caleb Kolb and J.J. Everard came up short in the 285 match to Donny Longendyke, 6-4.
Nebraska 32, South Dakota State 7
125 – Aaron Pickrel major decision Eric Coufal, 12-4 (SDSU 4-0)
133 – Shawn Nagel decision Brance Simms, 8-2 (SDSU 4-3)
141 – Skylar Galloway major decision Ben Gillette, 14-4 (NEB 7-4)
149 – Dustin Walraven decision No. 13 Jake Sueflohn, 3-2 (7-7)
157 – No. 5 James Green major decision Cody Pack, 17-6 (NEB 11-7)
165 – Austin Wilson decision Joe Brewster, 4-1 (NEB 14-7)
174 – No. 7 Robert Kokesh tech fall John Nething II, 17-1 (NEB 19-7)
184 – No. 6 Josh Ihnen pin Hunter Weddington, 1:20 (NEB 25-7)
197 – Caleb Kolb major decision Brandon Ballard, 13-4 (NEB 29-7)
285 – Donny Longendyke decision J.J. Everard, 6-4 (NEB wins 32-7)
Finn Grinaker Cobber Open
The South Dakota State wrestling team sent nine wrestlers to the Cobber Open this weekend, as well. The open was divided into two divisions, Maroon and Gold, with the former set aside for freshmen and the latter set aside for upperclassmen.
Ben Schwery led the way with a second-place finish in the Maroon Division at 165 pounds. Schwery defeated Riley Nagel (Mary) by 15-0 tech fall in the opening round and scored decisions versus TJ Poole (Dickinson State) and Cody Tibbetts (St. Cloud State). In the final, Schwery dropped the narrowest of decisions, 3-2, to finish second.
The Jacks also had a pair of fourth-place finishers in Tyler White (Maroon Division, 174) and Jacob Haydel (Maroon Division, 285).
White opened with a 3-2 decision versus Trey Griffin (St. Cloud State) and a pin in 4:38 versus Tyrell Martin (Ridgewater College). White dropped two close decisions in the semifinals and the third-place match to finish fourth.
Haydel opened with a pin in 1:52 versus Cole Monroe (Mary). After suffering a reversal in fortunes in the semifinals, Haydel dropped a 5-3 decision in the third-place match to finish fourth.
Both Tyler Johnson (141) and Will James (141) won first-round matches in the Gold Division, but were unable to advance further.
Chet Utesch (133) and Nate Harms (157) also scored one pin apiece for the Jacks in the Maroon Divison.
In all, SDSU scored four pins at the Cobber Open and left with three placewinners.
NEXT UP – SDSU closes out its seven-dual road trip in Columbia, Mo., versus Stanford and at Missouri. Duals are scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 24, times to be announced.