By Boots Gifford
It was another power-play for the Montana State-Northern Lights as they shut out Ricks College, 39-0, in a wrestling dual on Saturday afternoon at the Northern gym.
(Ricks) is ranked No. 5 in the country, said Lights coach David Ray. And were real young. We only had two seniors wrestling. Im really pleased because were going to keep getting better and better as the year goes on cause were young.
Northerns two-time NAIA 197-pound national champion Turk Lords moved up to heavyweight for the dual, stopping 1999 National Junior College champion James Huml, 10-4.
Turk responded well, Ray said. That guy was big and strong. (Lords) wrestled tough.
Northerns Abel Valdez turned Ty Rollins for the pin at 4:41 in the 125-pound match.
Abel looked good, Ray said. He went out there and took care of business.
Light Kurt Lorenz, at 133 pounds, scored a 10-3 victory over Jason Blue.
Kurt is looking better every time he steps on the mat, Ray said. His performance is picking up. Hes adapting to the college style of wrestling.
At 141 pounds, Jessie Schaeffer earned a 14-4 major decision over Andrew Messersmith.
Jessie is just Jessie Schaeffer, Ray said. He goes out there like a bulldog. Just keeps hammering and hammering on the guy til he wears him out.
Northerns Brendan Burns also earned a major decision with a 14-4 victory over Brandon Ripplinger at 157 pounds.
Brendan looked good, Ray said, adding Burns was slightly nervous at the start of the match. But he did a nice job. He just finally relaxed and controlled the guy.
At 165 pounds, Light Chris Hayes got a 19-10 major decision over Nathan Ploehn.
Hes so intense. You could say almost too intense, Ray said, noting Hayes intensity can sometimes cause small mistakes. Hes got to learn to focus it and channel it properly. But I really admire that kind of intensity. If the match was 20 minutes long, I dont think hed ever start wearing down.
Northerns Dane Jacobsen filled the 197-pound slot for the dual, putting away Kent Bowman, 6-1.
The Lights prepare for an extended road trip that will keep them off their home mat until Jan. 13. This weekend they head to Powell, Wyo., for a dual on Friday night with Colby College, then the Sunlight Tool Open on Saturday.
Northern over Ricks College, 39-0
125 Abel Valdez (N) pinned Ty Rollins, 4:41; 133 Kurt Lorenz (N) over Jason Blue, 10-3; 141 Jessie Schaeffer (N) over Andrew Messersmith, 14-4; 149 Lyle Cronk (N) over Jeff Ireland, 2-0; 157 Brendan Burns (N) over Brandon Ripplinger, 14-4; 165 Chris Hayes (N) over Nathan Ploehn, 14-10; 174 Casey Pinion (N) over Shane Wasden, injury default; 184 Tyson Thivierge (N) over Brent Duda, 6-5; 197 Dane Jacobsen (N) over Kent Bowman, 6-1; HWT Turk Lords (N) over James Huml, 10-4.
