TULSA, Okla. — Three South Dakota State wrestlers have advanced to the semifinals and the Jackrabbits sit in fifth place in the team standings after the opening session of the Big 12 Wrestling Championship Saturday at BOK Center.
The semifinalists each won two matches and have secured berths in the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, which will also be contested in Tulsa March 16-18.
Tanner Sloan lived up to his top billing at 197 pounds in the early going, winning both of his matches by fall in the second period Sloan pinned Caden Gerlach of California Baptist in 3 minutes and 37 seconds, then stuck Oklahoma’s Carson Berryhill in 3:57.
Sloan, 22-1 on the season, will meet fourth-seeded Luke Surber of Oklahoma State in Saturday night’s semifinals.
Redshirt freshman 157-pounder Cael Swensen was the first to earn a berth in the semifinals with a pair of wins by decision. The Plymouth, Minnesota, native downed Nolan Miller-Johnston of California Baptist, 3-0, in the opening round before scoring a 6-3 decision over Oklahoma’s Jared Hill.
Veteran heavyweight A.J. Nevills returned to the semifinals with a pair of hard-fought victories. He outlasted North Dakota State’s Juan Mora, 6-4, in overtime to open the tournament, then notched a 3-2 decision over fifth-seeded Michael Wolfgram of West Virginia.
Both Swensen and Nevills will face No. 1 seeds in the semifinals; Swensen squares off against North Dakota State’s Jared Franek, while Nevills meets Wyatt Hendrickson of Air Force.
Overall, the Jackrabbits won seven of their nine matches in the opening round, then went 3-5 in the quarterfinals. Tanner Jordan and Tanner Cook each won by fall in the first round to go along with Sloan’s two pins.
UP NEXT
Saturday’s evening session begins at 5 p.m. with consolation matches. The semifinals will take place after two rounds of wrestlebacks.
SDSU RESULTS
125 | #6 Tanner Jordan, Jr., St. Paris, Ohio (1-1 record)
• def. Devin Garcia, California Baptist, by fall 4:28
• lost to #3 Noah Surtin, Missouri, by major dec., 13-2
• vs. Corey Cabanban, Iowa State
133 | Derrick Cardinal, R-Fr., Forest Lake, Minnesota (1-1 record)
• dec. #7 McGwire Midkiff, North Dakota State, 4-2
• lost to #2 Kyle Biscoglia, Northern Iowa, by major dec., 12-2
• vs. Garrett Ricks, Wyoming
141 | #5 Clay Carlson, Sr., Willmar, Minnesota (1-1 record)
• dec. Casey Swiderski, Iowa State, 6-3
• lost to #4 Carter Young, Oklahoma State, by dec., 4-2
• vs. Christian Nunez, California Baptist
149 | Alek Martin, R-Fr., St. Paris, Ohio (0-1 record)
• lost to #2 Colin Realbuto, Northern Iowa, by dec., 8-2
• vs. Isaiah Delgado, Utah Valley
157 | #4 Cael Swensen, R-Fr., Plymouth, Minnesota (2-0 record)
• dec. Nolan Miller-Johnston, California Baptist, 3-0
• dec. Jared Hill, Oklahoma, 6-3
• vs. #1 Jared Franek, North Dakota State
National Qualifier
165 | #7 Tanner Cook, Jr., Ilion, New York (1-1 record)
• def. Seamus Casey, Air Force, by fall 3:42
• lost to #2 Keegan O’Toole, Missouri, by major dec., 12-2
• vs. #8 Baylor Fernandes, Northern Colorado
174 | #6 Cade DeVos, Jr., Altoona, Iowa (0-1 record)
• Received first-round bye
• lost to #3 Sam Wolf, Air Force, by dec., 3-2
• vs. Andrew Berreyesa, Northern Colorado
184 | #7 Cade King, Sr., Waseca, Minnesota (0-1 record)
• lost to Noah Blake, Air Force, by dec., 3-1 [SV-1]
• vs. #8 Anthony Carman, West Virginia
197 | #1 Tanner Sloan, Sr., Alburnett, Iowa (2-0 record)
• def. Caden Gerlach, California Baptist, by fall 3:37
• def. Carson Berryhill, Oklahoma, by fall 3:56
• vs. #4 Luke Surber, Oklahoma State
National Qualifier
285 | #4 A.J. Nevills, Sr., Clovis, California (2-0 record)
• dec. Juan Mora, North Dakota State, 6-4 [SV-1]
• dec. #5 Michael Wolfgram, West Virginia, 3-2
• vs. #1 Wyatt Hendrickson, Air Force
National Qualifier
TEAM SCORES
Missouri – 87.5
Oklahoma State – 71.5
Iowa State – 52.5
Oklahoma – 36.5
South Dakota State – 36.0
Northern Iowa – 32.5
Northern Colorado – 22.0
North Dakota State – 22.0
Air Force – 21.0
West Virginia – 16.0
Wyoming – 9.0
California Baptist – 1.0
Utah Valley – 0.0
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