Lights fall to SOU, place 4 at DSU

After a much too long layoff, the Montana State University-Northern wrestling team finally returned to action this past weekend.

The Lights hosted Southern Oregon Friday night at the Armory Gymnasium in Havre. Coming into the dual, the Lights were ranked 20th and the Raiders were ranked 15th in the latest NAIA Coaches Poll.

In a dual that featured eight nationally ranked wrestlers, the Raiders defeated the Lights 25-10. The Lights won matches at 165, 184 and 285 pounds.

The night also marked senior night for three Northern Wrestlers. NaKoda Siegel, from Colstrip, and Carl Hansen, from Elko, Nevada, were recognized before the dual.

In addition, MSU-Northern recognized the passing of Dr. David Greenwood, fondly known as “The Father of Northern Wrestling.” Greenwood was instrumental in the establishment of wrestling at Northern Montana College in 1970. He coached eight All-American wrestlers during his tenure and led them to Frontier Conference titles in 1976 and 1984 and led the Lights to a perfect 10-0 dual meet season record in 1984.

To open the dual at 125 pounds, Southern’s Vonn Fenn won by a 10-4 decision. The 133 pound matchup saw Southern’s Simon Graeber defeat Northern’s Leo Anderson by a 13-3 major decision. At 141 pounds, Southern’s Evan Potter, the top-ranked wrestler in the NAIA, downed Northern’s Colin Silverthorn 15-4 (major decision). In the 149 pound match, Southern’s Jonathan Hernandez defeated Northern’s Georgino Moraga by a score of 10-4. In the 157 pound tilt, Southern’s Aaron Gandara, No. 7 in NAIA, downed Northern’s Justin Windauer 5-1.

At 165 pounds, Northern’s Devin Crawford, No. 15 in NAIA, defeated Southern’s Dylan Staley 4-1. In the 174 pound matchup, Southern’s Alex Hernandez, No. 12 in NAIA, defeated Northern’s Cade Gubler by technical fall 19-3.

At 184 pounds, a pair of nationally ranked wrestlers clashed as Northern’s Austin Vanek, No. 15 in NAIA, defeated Southern’s Adrian Chavez-Morales by major decision 8-0. The 197 pound match also featured a pair of nationally ranked wrestlers, as Southern’s Andrew Herrera, No. 12 in NAIA, narrowly defeated Northern’s Carl Hansen 7-6.

In the final match of the night at 285 pounds, Northern’s Shane Mattson met Southern’s Sebasstian Echeverria. Mattson won by a score of 6-1.

In a short turnaround, a handful of Lights competed at the Tyler Plummer Classic last Saturday in Dickinson, North Dakota. Rylin Burnes won the 184-pound title at DSU, while Ryan Graves got second at 157. Cael White took fifth at 165, and A.J. Harris took sixth at heavyweight.

The Lights will now head to Arizona to compete in three CCC duals this week.