Lights finally get back on the mat

The Montana State University-Northern Lights have been away from competition for a while now. In fact, the Lights haven’t competed on the wrestling mat since Dec. 20.

But Northern will return to the mat this weekend, and they’ll take part in one of the toughest tournaments of the season.

The fourth-ranked Lights are in Marshall, Missouri, this weekend for the annual Missouri Valley Invitational. The tournament will feature most of the ranked teams in the NAIA, including No. 1 Grand View, No. 2 Indiana Tech and No. 3 Missouri Valley. In fact, of the 27 teams in attendance, 17 are ranked in the latest NAIA Coaches Poll, so, this weekend will be as close to a national tournament feel as head coach Tyson Thivierge’s team will get.

But even with the fierce competition, the Lights will certainly be one of the teams to beat. The Lights bring seven ranked wrestlers to the tournament, including top-ranked Garrett DeMers at 197 pounds, as well as Toby Cheff ranked No. 2 and teammate Taylor Kornoely, ranked No. 4 at heavyweight. Senior Willie Miller is also ranked fifth at 174 pounds.

The Lights’ budding young stars will also get a true taste of top NAIA competition this weekend. Matt Weber comes in ranked third at 141 pounds, while Drake Randall is ranked fourth at 149 pounds and Blake Ivie is ranked 12th at 133 pounds. All are part of Northern’s exceptional freshman class, which also includes Quintel Fuchs at 125 pounds, Brandon Weber at 149 and Austin Blaede at 165 pounds.

The double elimination Missouri Valley Invite also marks the start of the home stretch for the Lights. Next weekend, Northern is in Dickinson, North Dakota, for a dual with Dickinson State and the Tyler Plummer Classic. Then, the Lights get to close out the regular season with home duals against Embry-Riddle, UGF and Iowa, all in the first 12 days of February.

The Missouri Valley Invite runs Friday and Saturday in Marshall, Missouri.