Minnesota Rolls to 24-9 Victory over the Bison
FARGO, N.D. – The No. 9 University of Minnesota wrestling program continued their hot start to the season, as they defeated the No. 18 North Dakota State Bison by a score of 24-9.
The Gophers’ top work was on full display in the contest as they earned a riding time point in all but one of their victories on Friday night. Minnesota also outscored the Bison 13-3 on takedowns to help the “U” claim seven of the ten bouts on the night.
The dual would kick off at 165 pounds, as Andrew Sparks would drop a 5-2 decision to No. 13 Mikey Caliendo in a rematch of this season’s Bison Open finals.
Bailee O’Reilly got the Gophers going at 174 pounds, earning a 5-2 decision to put Minnesota on the board. O’Reilly would find success in his low single attacks, earning two takedowns throughout the match to help secure the win.
At 184 pounds, it was Isaiah Salazar who had an impressive showing against NDSU’s D.J. Parker with an 18-1 technical fall. Salazar got the job done both on the feet and on top, securing four takedowns and multiple turns in the bout.
After Michial Foy fell via decision at 197 pounds, Garrett Joles displayed another nice performance against Juan Mora, scoring the only two takedowns in the match en route to a 6-2 decision to give the Gophers an 11-6 lead at the break.
Coming out of the break at 125 pounds, Patrick McKee turned in another dominant performance, as he earned an 8-0 major decision over Carlos Negrete Jr. McKee again was the aggressor on the feet with three takedowns and was dominant on top with nearly four minutes of riding time.
Aaron Nagao continued the Minnesota win streak with a 4-2 decision over McGwire Midkiff, then Jake Bergeland impressed with a strong showing over #7 Dylan Droegemueller, getting two takedowns in the match to earn the win and securing the dual for the Gophers.
At 149 pounds, Michael Blockhus earned the final win of the night for the Maroon & Gold with a 2-1 win, while Brayton Lee dropped a decision in tiebreakers to a top-10 opponent.
The Gophers jump to 5-0 on the season after yet another solid team win, while North Dakota State takes their first bump of the season to fall to 2-1.
The Bison will return to action and look to rebound on Sunday as NDSU faces Buffalo at the Scheels Center. The dual match is set to get underway at 12 p.m.
Minnesota continues their road trip on Sunday, December 11, as they travel to San Luis Obispo, California, to participate in a triangular dual with Lindenwood and Cal Poly.
December 9, 2022 | Fargo, N.D. | Scheels Center | Attendance: 1,156
#9 Minnesota (24), #18 North Dakota State (9)
165: #13 Michael Caliendo (NDSU) dec. #19 Andrew Sparks (MINN), 5-2
174: #17 Bailee O’Reilly (MINN) dec. Gaven Sax (NDSU), 5-2
184: #15 Isaiah Salazar (MINN) tech. fall D.J. Parker (NDSU), 18-1
197: #30 Owen Pentz (NDSU) dec. #20 Michial Foy (MINN), 4-3
HWT: #24 Garrett Joles (MINN) dec. Juan Mora (NDSU), 6-2
125: #4 Patrick McKee (MINN) maj. dec. #27 Carlos Negrete Jr. (NDSU), 8-0
133: #18 Aaron Nagao (MINN) dec. McGwire Midkiff (NDSU), 4-2
141: #4 Jake Bergeland (MINN) dec. #7 Dylan Droegemueller (NDSU), 6-2
149: #16 Michael Blockhus (MINN) dec. Kellyn March (NDSU), 2-1
157: #7 Jared Franek (NDSU) dec. #4 Brayton Lee (MINN), 2-1 TB1
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