Bison Close Strong for Win at Northern Colorado
GREELEY, Colo. – The No. 13/16 North Dakota State Bison overcame an early deficit with a strong second-half performance to defeat Northern Colorado 23-15 Saturday night at the Bank of Colorado Arena.
After #16 Stevo Poulin picked up a tech fall to defeat Carlos Negrete Jr. in the opening match at 125, McGwire Midkiff scored the first points of the evening for the Bison with a 4-1 win over Jace Koelzer at 133 pounds. Midkiff scored a takedown in the first and rode Koelzer for the entire second period to take control. He would add his escape and riding time point in the third for the victory.
The Bears would add another bonus point victory as #1 Andrew Alirez defeated #31 Dylan Droegemueller at 141 pounds with a major decision, 13-5.
The Bison would respond as #16 Kellyn March picked up a win in sudden victory to defeat Chris Sandoval 5-3. March had a takedown in the first and led 3-1, before Sandoval scored a takedown after review as time expired in the third. In the sudden victory period, March fought off an attack and reattacked for the win. March picked up his fifth straight win and his 10th overall in his last 11 matches.
North Dakota State would level the dual at 9-9 in the 157-pound match as #2 Jared Franek picked up a 6-2 decision over #31 Vinny Zerban. Franek scored a takedown in the first and added another in the third to go along with an escape and a riding time point for his 28th career-ranked victory and his 17th straight win.
Coming out of the intermission, #11 Michael Caliendo picked up a tech fall for the Bison, as he defeated Cody Eaton 19-4. Caliendo had three takedowns in the first. He then added a takedown, two-point nearfall and four-point nearfall in the second. He would add two more takedowns in the third.
Following a pin from Northern Colorado at 174 pounds, #28 DJ Parker put the Bison back in front with a 4-1 win in the 184-pound match. Parker had an escape and a takedown in the second period and then rode Andrew Donahue for the duration of the third period to scoop a riding time point.
The Bison would extend the lead in the 197-pound match as #12 Owen Pentz secured a 5-0 victory over Xavier Vasquez. Pentz had a takedown in the first and another in the third to go along with an escape. With the win, Pentz secured his ninth straight victory.
With the dual result still on the line headed to the final match in the heavyweight division, #33 Juan Mora confirmed the Bison win with a victory over Xavier Doolin in sudden victory. Both wrestlers scored a lone escape in regulation, but Mora secured a quick takedown in the extra period to win 3-1.
With the victory, the Bison extended their win streak to six duals, the longest since NDSU won seven straight during the spring of 2020. The Bison also extended their win streak over Northern Colorado to nine straight duals, remaining undefeated in the Big 12 era.
The Bison will return to action next Friday with the first of two home duals to wrap up the dual portion of the schedule. NDSU will welcome in Oklahoma for a 7 p.m. dual on February 10 inside the Scheels Center.
Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023 | Bank of Colorado Arena | Greeley, Colo.
#16 North Dakota State 23, Northern Colorado 15
125: #16 Stevo Poulin (NCO) over Carlos Negrete Jr. (NDSU) (TF 18-3 5:34); NCO 5-0
133: McGwire Midkiff (NDSU) over Jace Koelzer (NCO) (Dec 4-1); NCO 5-3
141: #1 Andrew Alirez (NCO) over #31 Dylan Droegemueller (NDSU) (MD 13-5); NCO 9-3
149: #16 Kellyn March (NDSU) over Chris Sandoval (NCO) (SV-1 5-3); NCO 9-6
157: #2 Jared Franek (NDSU) over #31 Vinny Zerban (NCO) (Dec 6-2); Tied 9-9
165: #11 Michael Caliendo (NDSU) over Cody Eaton (NCO) (TF 19-4 5:43); NDSU 14-9
174: #31 Andrew Berreyesa (NCO) over Gaven Sax (NDSU) (Fall 1:48); NCO 15-14
184: #28 DJ Parker (NDSU) over Andrew Donahue (NCO) (Dec 4-1); NDSU 17-15
197: #12 Owen Pentz (NDSU) over Xavier Vasquez (NCO) (Dec 5-0); NDSU 20-15
285: #33 Juan Mora (NDSU) over Xavier Doolin (NCO) (SV-1 3-1); NDSU 23-15
Extra Matches:
141: Rudy Lopez (NCO) over Walker Bents (NDSU) (Fall 1:30)
174: Derek Matthews (NCO) over Mannix Morgan (NDSU (Dec 8-1)
Check out Bison Wrestling at gobison.com and on Twitter. Buy Bison Tickets