Continued Success In The Desert
LAS VEGAS, Nev. (12/19/16)---No.7-ranked Concordia posted wins over both NCAA Division III teams they faced at the Desert Duals in Las Vegas and came away with a 2-1 record for the day. The Cobbers' only loss came against NAIA opponent Menlo College (Calif.).
Concordia started the annual Christmas break trip by falling 26-14 to previously unbeaten Menlo. The Cobbers then responded by rolling over Wis.-Oshkosh 34-6 and then beating Coe (Iowa) 25-19.
The 2-1 record pushes the Cobbers' dual-meet mark to 6-3 for the season as they head into the Christmas break.
Concordia had a pair of wrestlers go undefeated on the day. Blane Tschida won all three of his matches at 149 while Joe Heinz was 2-0 at 157 and 165. Heinz turned in the most impressive win of the tournament for CC as he outdueled the No.2 wrestler in Division III at 165 in the Cobbers' win over Coe.
Concordia had three other wrestlers with two wins for the three matches. Jakob Stageberg went 2-1 at 125 while Adam Presler lost his opener at 141 and then won the last two matches. Senior Justice Davis also followed Presler's path as he lost his first match against Menlo at 285 and then came back to win against Oshkosh and Coe.
The Cobbers fell behind 11-0 at the start of their match with Menlo. After dropping the first three bouts, Tschida got CC on the board with a pin fall at 5:48 of his match at 141. Heinz would follow with a 14-2 major decision to cut the lead to 11-10 halfway through the dual. The Oaks won the next match with a 13-9 decision at 165 before Parker Jackson squared the team score at 14-14 with a 9-0 major decision at 174. Concordia then lost two straight to fall behind 20-14 before Davis lost his only match of the day as he tried to go for the pin fall to tie the score in the final match.
It was all Cobbers in the match against Oshkosh. Concordia won the first six matches to take a 27-0 lead and then claimed two of the final three bouts to win by 28.
CC had five bonus-point wins in the match. Stageberg started the second dual of the day by recording an 18-4 major decision. Aaron Dick got a technical fall at 133 and then Tschida and Nick Gravdahl scored pins to push the lead to 27 points. Ricky Briggs had a 10-1 major decision at 184 while Presler, Jacob Johnson and Davis all won by decision.
The final match turned out to be closer than it started. Concordia bolted to a 19-6 lead over the Kohawks after wins by Stageberg, Presler, Tschida, Cole Sladek and Heinz. Heinz' win over No.2-ranked Ryan Harrington brought the lead to 13 points. Coe then rattled off three straight wins to the team score at 19-19. Davis then accepted a forfeit win to give the Cobbers the overall team win at 25-19.
DESERT HEAT: Concordia has now posted winning records in each of the last three trips to Las Vegas. The Cobbers are a combined 8-2 at the Desert Duals in the past three seasons.
MORE COBBER SUCCESS: Concordia brought a second team to Las Vegas. The "baby" Cobbers also went 2-1 on the day with wins over North Central and Iowa State's club team. The lone loss for the second Concordia team came against No.1-ranked Wartburg's second team. CC barely lost to the #1 Knights, falling 25-19.
MORE COBBER SUCCESS 2: Ty Johnson and Kody Van Den Eykel both went 3-0 for the Cobber second team. John's biggest win came against Wartburg where he scored a 12-2 major decision at 149. VanDenEykel recorded pin falls in his final two matches including a ridiculously fast 14-second pin against Iowa State.
WHAT'S NEXT: Concordia will have a 12-day break for Christmas but will then finish off the 2016 portion of their schedule with a New Year's Eve dual at St. Cloud State. The Huskies are the defending Division II national champions and are also currently ranked No.1 in the latest InterMat Division II rankings. SCSU is 1-0 in dual meets this year.