South Dakota State ranked wrestlers Nate Rotert and Seth Gross each recorded falls and two other Jackrabbits scored major decisions as the 19th-ranked Jackrabbits capped a successful weekend with a 29-10 dual victory over Utah Valley Saturday night at Frost Arena.
The Jackrabbits improved to 12-3 overall in duals and 6-1 against Big 12 Conference opponents. Utah Valley, which opened its weekend road trip with a win Friday at North Dakota State, dropped to 5-4 overall and 2-2 against Big 12 foes.
Luke Zilverberg got SDSU off on the right foot with a 12-4 major decision over Koy Wilkinson in the 165-pound match. With the win, Zilverberg improved to 18-6 overall and 11-3 in duals.
The Jackrabbits gained control of the dual with wins by Martin Mueller at 184 pounds and Rotert in the 197-pound division. Mueller turned in a 7-4 decision over Will Sumner, while the seventh-ranked Rotert posted three first-period takedowns before pinning Tanner Orndorff in 2 minutes and 38 seconds.
UVU and SDSU split a pair of one-point decisions as the dual moved from the upper weights to the lower weights. The Wolverines’ Dustin Dennison earned a 6-5 decision over Alex Macki at heavyweight, while SDSU’s Ben Gillette recorded a takedown with five seconds remaining to pull out a 7-6 decision against Mitchell Brown in the 125-pound match.
Gross, ranked second at 133 pounds, led Jarod Maynes 14-1 through one period before racking up the pin in 4:28. Gross upped his season mark to 23-1 and remained unbeaten in duals at 13-0 with his 10th pin of the season.
After Trevor Willson notched a 14-5 major decision for Utah Valley over the Jackrabbits’ Isaac Andrade, SDSU closed out the dual with two more victories. Alex Kocer and Grant LaMont battled through two scoreless periods in their 149-pound match before the 19th-ranked Kocer countered from the bottom with a reversal early in the third period and added six back points en route to a 9-2 decision.
At 157 pounds, SDSU’s Logan Peterson avenged a loss to Raider Lofthouse of Utah Valley earlier this season at the Cyclone Open with a convincing 12-4 major decision. Peterson did not allow a takedown by his opponent in the match.
SDSU will be on the road for a pair of duals next week, wrestling Thursday (Feb. 9) at West Virginia and Feb. 12 at nationally ranked Virginia Tech.
No. 19 South Dakota State 29, Utah Valley 10
165: Luke Zilverberg (SDSU) major dec. Koy Wilkinson (UVU), 12-4
174: Kimball Bastian (UVU) dec. #15 David Kocer (SDSU), 3-1 [SV-1]
184: Martin Mueller (SDSU) dec. Will Sumner (UVU), 7-4
197: #7 Nate Rotert (SDSU) def. Tanner Orndorff (UVU) by fall 2:38
285: Dustin Dennison (UVU) dec. Alex Macki (SDSU), 6-5
125: Ben Gillette (SDSU) dec. Mitchell Brown (UVU), 7-6
133: Seth Gross (SDSU) def. Jarod Maynes (UVU) by fall 4:28
141: Trevor Willson (UVU) major dec. Isaac Andrade (SDSU), 14-5
149: #19 Alex Kocer (SDSU) dec. Grant LaMont (UVU), 9-2
157: Logan Peterson (SDSU) major dec. Raider Lofthouse (UVU), 12-4
In other action Saturday, freshman Justin Portillo claimed the 125-pound title and seven other Jackrabbit wrestlers turned in top-four finishes at the Sioux City Dave Edmonds Open hosted by Morningside College.
Justin Portillo was scheduled to square off against his twin brother, Josh, in the 125-pound championship match, but Josh Portillo withdrew from the match due to injury, resulting in a medical forfeit. Justin recorded falls in each of his first bouts, while Josh won each of his first two matches by technical fall. Justin advanced to the championship with a 14-7 decision over Kris Williams of Nebraska, with Josh winning his semifinal match, 8-3, over Joel Timmons of Grand View.
Two other SDSU wrestlers reached the title bouts of their respective weight classes. At 149 pounds, freshman Michael Prieto fell in a 13-3 major decision to Jordan Shearer of Nebraska in the championship. Prieto breezed into the title tilt with a pin and three wins by technical fall in which he outscored his opponents, 52-5.
In the 165-pound weight class, redshirt freshman Kasey Klapprodt lost by fall to Justin Arthur of Nebraska in the title match. Klapprodt began his tournament run with a 3-2 decision over another Cornhusker, Corey Sornson, then reeled off three more wins by major decision, technical fall and fall.
Earning third-place finishes for the Jackrabbits were 141-pounder Jaxon Fitzgerald, Colten Carlson at 157 pounds and 184-pounder Brady Ayers. Fitzgerald lost his first match of the day, 9-7 to eventual runner-up Chase Clasen of Iowa Western, then won six matches in a row in the consolation bracket.
Carlson ended the day with a 5-1 record, including a pin in 36 seconds over Paul Longshore of Midland in the third-place match.
Ayers, meanwhile, dropped his first match of the day to champion Taylor Venz of Nebraska, then won five in a row in the consolation rounds — one by pin and four more by a combined 30-1 margin.
Rounding out the Jackrabbits’ placing finishes was a fourth-place finish by freshman heavyweight Blake Wolters. The Pipestone, Minnesota, native posted a 4-2 record on the day.