South Dakota State at Northern Illinois Huskie Duals

Jacks 2-1 at Huskie Duals

The South Dakota State wrestling team wrestled to 2-1 at the Huskie Duals, including an upset win versus Indiana.

The Jacks opened the duals with a 19-18 win versus the Hoosiers, stumbled at host Northern Illinois 26-12, but rebounded in the final dual versus Tiffin, 32-12.

“The win versus Indiana was a great win for our program,” head coach Chris Bono said. “Brance Simms stepped up and got a fall for us and Brandon Ballard got a major decision to clinch the dual. The win is definitely something we can build on.”

After the win over Indiana, SDSU stumbled at host Northern Illinois.

“We wrestled well versus Northern Illinois, but we gave up too many bonus points,” said Bono. “The guys fought hard, but it is tough to win when you give points away.”

To close out the day and the trip, the Jacks dominated Tiffin.

“In the last match we dominated a Division II opponent, which is exactly what we expect to do,” Bono said.

“Today was very encouraging on many levels,” said Bono. “The freshmen stepped up and got some big decisions for us and the veterans led the team well. Dustin Walraven had a great day for us and put us in a position to win every dual. There were a lot of positives today and things we can build on for the rest of this season.”

SDSU 19 – Indiana 18

The South Dakota State wrestling team opened the Huskie Duals by shocking Big Ten foe Indiana 19-18.

The Hoosiers entered the dual with two ranked wrestlers (InterMat) and a 2-0 record versus the Jacks.

But Indiana is no longer undefeated versus SDSU.

The Jacks entered the dual as underdogs in every match, but once the teams were on the mat, rankings did not matter. In this dual, every match and every point counted.

The dual started at 125 pounds with Aaron Pickrel versus Joseph Duca. Duca led 5-4 after the first period, but Pickrel shutout Duca in the second and posted a riding time advantage of 1:21 for a 7-5 lead. Pickrel limited the scoring in the third for an 8-5 decision.

Next, Brance Simms faced Quinton Murphy at 133 pounds. Simms pinned Murphy in less than one minute to extend the SDSU lead to 9-0. It was the second and fastest pin of the season for Simms, who improved to 6-2 overall with the win.

At 141 pounds, Ben Gillette faced Eric Roach and was down 2-1 entering the third period. He was unable to close the gap in the third and lost by 8-3 decision.

Dustin Walraven battled Geno Capezio at 149. Walraven took an early lead in the first period and held a significant advantage in riding time. He rode out the lead to a 6-1 decision and a 12-3 team lead.

At 157, Cody Pack dropped a tight decision to nationally-ranked Taylor Walsh. Pack wrestled tough in the first period, but fell behind 2-0. The second period was more of the same and Pack was down 5-0 going into the third period. He got on the board, but dropped the decision 6-2.

Joe Brewster lined up at 165 versus Ryan LeBlanc, ranked No. 19 (InterMat). The two were tied after one period, but fell behind 3-0 after two. Brewster was unable to recover, as LeBlanc pulled out a close match by 5-2 decision and narrowed the SDSU lead to 12-9.

Troy Morisette faced Cheney Dale at 174 pounds with the Jacks leading by three points. Morisette led 3-2 after the first period. The second period was rather quiet, but Morisette extended his lead to 4-2. Morisette held on to win by 5-2 decision and put the Jacks in front 15-9.

At 184, Hunter Weddington squared off with Lucas Sheridan. The two were tied after the first period, but Weddington trailed 2-1 after the second period. He was unable to keep pace in the third and dropped a 9-3 decision.

Brandon Ballard faced Tarek Alaruri in the second-to-last match of the dual. Ballard put together a strong effort in the first period and led 6-2 after one. He added to his lead at 10-3, 1:18 riding time advantage entering the third period. Ballard kept pushing and won by 15-4 major decision to put the Jacks up for good.

The Hoosiers scored a pin late in the 285-pound match with nationally-ranked Adam Chalfant versus J.J. Everard, but it was not enough, as SDSU shocked Indiana 19-18.

South Dakota State 19, Indiana 18
125 – Aaron Pickrel (SDSU) decision Joseph Duca, 8-5 (Team score: SDSU 3-0)
133 – Brance Simms (SDSU) pin Quinton Murphy, 0:56 (SDSU 9-0)
141 – Eric Roach (IND) decision Ben Gillette, 8-3 (SDSU 9-3)
149 – Dustin Walraven (SDSU) decision Geno Capezio, 6-1 (SDSU 12-3)
157 – Taylor Walsh (IND) decision Cody Pack, 6-2 (SDSU 12-6)
165 – Ryan LeBlanc (IND) decision Joe Brewster, 5-2 (SDSU 12-9)
174 – Troy Morisette (SDSU) decision Cheney Dale, 5-2 (SDSU 15-9)
184 – Lucas Sheridan (IND) decision Hunter Weddington, 9-3 (SDSU 15-12)
197 – Brandon Ballard (SDSU) major decision Tarek Alaruri, 15-4 (SDSU 19-12)
285 – Adam Chalfant (IND) pin J.J. Everard, 6:27 (SDSU wins 19-18)

Northern Illinois 26 – SDSU 12

In its second of three at the Huskie Duals, SDSU faced a stiff challenge from host school Northern Illinois.

Unfortunately, Northern Illinois was more comfortable on its home mat and bested the Jacks 26-12.

Much like the first dual, the teams started at 125 pounds. Aaron Pickrel lost the opening match by pin in the first period.

Brance Simms responded at 133 with a 4-1 decision versus Thorian Twyner. The two were tied after one, but Simms led 2-0 after two and controlled the third period for the win.

The Huskies scored another pin at 141 from Ethan Davis versus Ben Gillette to extend its team lead to 12-3.

At 149 pounds, Dustin Walraven looked to get the Jacks back on track. Walraven led Robert Jillard 4-3 after the first, the highest-scoring period of the dual thus far. After extending the lead in the second, Walraven closed out a 9-3 decision to bring SDSU within 12-6.

Cody Pack put together a strong first period versus Andrew Morse at 157 to lead 4-1 with 1:54 riding time advantage. After a one-point second period, Pack led 4-2. Pack posted a shutout in the third period to win by 5-2 decision.

In the 165-pound match, Joe Brewster battled Dan Burk to a first-period tie. After an escape in the second, Brewster trailed 1-0 entering the third. In the third, Brewster scored an escape, takedown and three back points to win the match 6-1 and even the team score at 12-12 with four matches left.

At 174, Matt Mougin jumped out to a 4-1 first-period lead on Troy Morisette. Morisette rallied with a two-point second to narrow the deficit to 4-3. After evening the score through three, Mougin won 6-4 in sudden victory.

Hunter Weddington took on Bryan Loughlin at 184 and trailed 2-0 after the first. Loughlin pushed his lead to 5-0 after two and finished with a 10-1 major decision to extend the Huskies lead.

Brandon Ballard took the mat at 197 versus Shawn Scott in need of a win to keep the Jacks alive. Ballard jumped out to a 2-1 lead through one, but fell behind 4-2 after two. He was unable to recover as the Huskies put the dual out of reach.

In the final match, J.J. Everard battled Jared Torrence, but trailed 2-1 after the first period. Torrence expanded his lead to 5-1 after two and won by 8-3 decision.

Northern Illinois 26 South Dakota State 12
125 – Derek Elmore pin Aaron Pickrel (SDSU), 1:38 (Team score: NIU 6-0)
133 – Brance Simms (SDSU)decision Thorian Twyner, 4-1 (NIU 6-3)
141 – Ethan Davis pin Ben Gillette (SDSU), 2:00 (NIU 12-3)
149 – Dustin Walraven (SDSU) decision Robert Jillard, 9-3 (NIU 12-6)
157 – Cody Pack (SDSU) decision Andrew Morse, 5-2 (NIU 12-9)
165 – Joe Brewster (SDSU) decision Dan Burk, 6-1 (12-12)
174 – Matt Mougin sudden victory 1 Troy Morisette (SDSU), 6-4 (NIU 15-12)
184 – Bryan Loughlin major decision Hunter Weddington (SDSU), 10-1 (NIU 19-12)
197 – Shawn Scott major decision Brandon Ballard (SDSU), 11-3 (NIU 23-12)
285 – Jared Torrence decision J.J. Everard (SDSU), 8-3 (NIU wins 26-12)

SDSU 32 – Tiffin 12

In the final dual of the day, SDSU slayed the Dragons 32-12.

Aaron Pickrel started the dual the right way, with a pin at 125 pounds versus Jordan Shoemaker. It was the fourth pin of the season for Pickrel.

At 133, Brance Simms and Michael Screptock wrestled to an even score through three periods. The two wrestled 30-second ride outs to determine a winner and Screptock took the match 4-3 in the third overtime.

In the 141-pound match, Ben Gillette lost a 12-9 decision, which evened the team score at 6-6.

Dustin Walraven, at 149 pounds, put the Jacks back on track with a pin versus Dean Beach II. It was his fourth pin of the season and improved him to 3-0 at the Huskie Duals.

Cody Pack followed suit at 157 with a pin at the end of the second period. It was Pack’s first pin of the season and pushed the team lead to 18-6.

At 174, John Nething II wrestled in his first match of the weekend. Nething II scored a 10-4 decision against a Jake Cramer, a nationally-ranked wrestler in Division II, to push the Jackrabbit lead to 25-6 and put the dual out of reach.

Hunter Weddington scored a 3-2 decision at 184 pounds to extend SDSU’s lead to 28-6.

In the dual’s final match (heavyweight match forfeited by SDSU), Brandon Ballard defeated by 13-5 major decision to give SDSU its final point total of 32.

South Dakota State 32 Tiffin 12
125 – Aaron Pickrel (SDSU) pin Jordan Shoemaker, 2:41 (SDSU 6-0)
133 – Michael Screptock overtime Brance Simms (SDSU), 4-3 (3 OT) (SDSU 6-3)
141 – Ryan McKenzie decision Ben Gillette (SDSU), 12-9 (6-6)
149 – Dustin Walraven (SDSU) pin Lawrence Blackful III (SDSU 12-6)
157 – Cody Pack (SDSU) pin D.J. Beauch, 4:59 (SDSU 18-6)
165 – Joe Brewster (SDSU) major decision Trevor Nickolai, 13-2 (SDSU 22-6)
174 – John Nething II (SDSU) decision Jake Cramer,10-4 (SDSU 25-6)
184 – Hunter Weddington (SDSU) decision Walid Baggio, 3-2 (SDSU 28-6)
197 – Brandon Ballard (SDSU) major decision Alek Hughes, 13-5 (SDSU 32-6)
285 – Kevin Christman wins by forfeit (SDSU wins 32-12)

NDSU Bison Open

Eight SDSU wrestlers competed at the NDSU Bison Open in Fargo, N.D.

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Will James competed at 141 pounds and finished sixth. James opened the day with a first-round win, a 4-3 decision versus Dillon Kifer (Jamestown). He advanced to the semifinals after a 6-2 decision versus Beau Buysse (Southwest Minnesota State). After falling in the semifinals by a tough 3-0 decision, James was a victim of another decision in the consolation semifinals, 8-2. In the fifth-place match, James dropped another close decision to Chase Austvold (Concordia), 6-2.

Shea Nolan also finished sixth, wrestling at 184. Nolan lost his first-round match, but rallied in the consolation bracket. Nolan pinned Adam Lizaola (Minot State) in 3:32, won by 15-12 decision versus Jonathan Volp (Minnesota) and won by 9-1 major decision versus Lucas Moderow (MSU-Moorhead). He was edged by 2-1 decision in the consolation semifinals. In the fifth-place match, Nolan dropped a close decision 11-4 to Matthew Lewellen (MSU-Moorhead).

Ben Schwery was a first-round winner by 10-6 decision versus Dylan Hanson (Concordia).

Ben Fichter won his consolation first-round match at 157 pounds by 14-7 decision versus Caleb Meide (NDSU).

In the consolation first round, Chet Utesch stayed alive in the 125-pound bracket with a 4-3 decision versus Jordan Bremer (Minnesota), but was later eliminated.

Max Malave opened the day at 125 pounds with a preliminary match win by 10-7 decision versus Julian Valhuerdi (Itasca).

NEXT UP – The Jacks travel to Lincoln, Neb., for a pair of non-conference duals. SDSU squares off with the Tar Heels of North Carolina and triangular host Nebraska on Sunday, Nov. 18. Dual times to be announced.