No. 3 Huskies bounce back, flatten (RV) Augustana 30-3
Head coach Steve Costanzo earns 100th NSIC dual win as SCSU wins nine of 10 bouts
ST. CLOUD, Minn. – No. 3 St. Cloud State Wrestling dominated (RV) Augustana on Sunday afternoon at Halenbeck Hall, earning wins in nine of 10 bouts with two bonus point wins on their way to a 30-3 victory. The win marked head coach Steve Costanzo’s 100th Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference dual victory, earning the conference’s winningest head coach another incredible milestone in his storied St. Cloud State career.
No. 6 Paxton Creese opened the dual at 125 with a key test in No. 5 Jaxson Rohman, a foe he had dropped a title match to at the Yellowjacket Open earlier this season. Creese opened the bout with an early takedown then was dinged for a pair of stall warnings after Rohman trapped his ankle, adding his escape in the second to lead 3-1 entering the third. Rohman scrambled out and managed to snatch a leg for a last-second takedown, sending the bout to sudden victory with Creese’s ride time point. Paxton channeled his Greco skills to work around the hips from standing neutral, covering and dragging Rohman down for the 6-4 decision.
At 133, Sam Spencer met reigning Super Region V Champion Jack Huffman in the latter’s first bout of the year. Spencer gave up an early takedown then got out, giving up an escape in the second before latching on to a single leg to tie it at 3-3 through two. Spencer escaped quick and recognized his opponent wearing down, taking advantage with heavy hands to add one more takedown late for a 6-3 decision.
No. 8 Alyeus Craig added a methodical 8-0 major decision at 141 over Kade Sammons, dragging his opponent down early and leaning on his patented crab ride to churn out nearly 5:00 of ride time. No. 4 Joey Bianchini added a thrilling 7-6 decision at 149 over Connor Simmonds, getting to his offense in the third period for a pair of decisive takedowns.
No. 4 Nick Novak continued his dominant season at 157, earning a 6-1 decision over No. 10 Miles Fitzgerald for his second ranked win of the week. Filling in at 165 for a second straight dual, Jimmy Pierandozzi battled Tyler Wagener shot for shot through a scoreless first before earning his escape in the second. After letting Wagener out in the third, Pierandozzi found an opening and secured the go-ahead takedown late for a 3-2 decision.
At 174, No. 1 Abner Romero piled up a 18-3 tech fall of Kolby Kost with four takedowns, two nearfalls and the ride time point for his second straight tech to open NSIC duals. St. Cloud State suffered their lone loss of the bout at 184 by a 3-2 decision.
No. 4 Dominic Murphy won a 6-2 decision at 197 over Max Ramberg, riding tough while adding two takedowns. Heavyweight Elijah Novak closed out the 30-3 win with a 4-2 decision over Edward Hajas, trading takedowns in the first before earning his escape in the second and riding out the third.
Jan. 15, 2023 | Halenbeck Hall | St. Cloud, Minn.
No. 3 St. Cloud State 30, (RV) Augustana 3
125: No. 6 Paxton Creese (SCSU) dec. No. 5 Jaxson Rohman (AUGIE), 6-4 SV-1
133: Sam Spencer (SCSU) dec. Jack Huffman (AUGIE), 6-3
141: No. 8 Alyeus Craig MD Kade Sammons (AUGIE), 8-0
149: No. 4 Joey Bianchini (SCSU) dec. Connor Simmonds (AUGIE), 7-6
157: No. 4 Nick Novak (SCSU) dec. No. 10 Miles Fitzgerald (AUGIE), 6-1
165: Jimmy Pierandozzi (SCSU) dec. Tyler Wagener (AUGIE), 3-2
174: No. 1 Abner Romero (SCSU) TF Kolby Kost (AUGIE), 18-3 at 7:00
184: Cade Mueller (AUGIE) dec. Shaeden Scheidt (SCSU), 3-2
197: No. 4 Dominic Murphy (SCSU) dec. Max Ramberg (AUGIE), 6-2
HWT: Elijah Novak (SCSU) dec. Edward Hajas (AUGIE), 4-2
Quotables – St. Cloud State head coach Steve Costanzo
“We had a much better effort tonight than we did on Thursday. We had some closely-contested matches, and came out on top in the majority of them. Our guys just looked better today – a whole lot better performance, that’s for sure.”
“The emphasis was just performing better. I thought if we performed well today, we could win all 10 matches. We were close to doing that. If these guys can reach their potential and stay consistent, good things can happen for them. That was evident this match. You can’t take a night off – we certainly did on Thursday.”
On Sam Spencer’s big win at 133… “He wants the job. I’ve got a couple of guys that want the job down there at 133. He wrestled smart – I think he could tell Huffman was getting a little fatigued, and it was good to see him continue to go forward and pressure him. That was the difference in the match.”
“We did a better job controlling tieups. We wrestled better at the edge of the mat, certainly had a lot more energy than we did on Thursday. We just wrestled up to our ability, and it was good to see that.”
Up Next
The Vikings are back on the mat on Friday in Kenosha, Wisconsin, for a matchup against the No. 9 UW-Parkside Rangers. The dual is slated for 7 p.m. On Saturday, Augustana travels to No. 9 Upper Iowa for a 4 p.m. contest.
The Huskies continue their homestand on Saturday, January 21 with a 2:00 p.m. CT match against (RV) Minnesota State-Mankato at Halenbeck Hall.
Information regarding single dual and season tickets can be found at scsutickets.com. For all the latest on St. Cloud State Wrestling, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.