CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (Jan. 10) – Central Oklahoma bounced back from a quarterfinal loss with two consolation wins to stay alive in the NWCA/Cliff Keen Division II National Duals here Saturday evening.
The No. 5-ranked Bronchos won by criteria over No. 11 Pittsburgh-Johnstown in the consolation quarterfinals after the two had battled to a 21-21 tie and then overwhelmed No. 9 Mercyhurst 31-13 in the semifinals to advance to Sunday's 1 p.m. fifth-place match against No. 6 Western State.
UCO prevailed in the UPJ dual on the first tiebreaking criteria of most wins as the Bronchos won six of the 10 matches.
Mikey Morgan had the biggest win against the Mountain Cats, a 5-4 upset of top-ranked Kyle Keane at 165 pounds. The Bronchos also got a 19-1 technical fall from 125 Tim Elliott and an 11-0 major decision from 174 Tommy McCarty, while 141 Colby Robinson, 149 Luke Elmore and 184 Daniel Morrison all won regular decisions.
UPJ did its damage with three falls and tied the dual with a 10-3 win in the final match where one more point would have given heavyweight Chris Dempsey a major decision and the Mountain Cats the win.
UCO dominated against Mercyhurst, picking up bonus points in six on its seven wins.
Elliott capped off a sensational day with a 16-0 technical fall at 125, giving him three technical falls and a major decision on the day. Berens followed with a 14-4 major decison and Robinson had a 15-1 major decision to give the Bronchos a big 13-0 advantage.
The onslaught continued with Elmore's first-period fall at 149 and Kelly Henderson capped a dual-opening five-match winning streak with a 1-0 win at 157. Mercyhurst won at 165, but UCO came back with a 13-0 rout by McCarty at 174 and a 16-0 technical fall by Morrison at 184 to open up a 31-4 lead.
UCO 21, Pittsburgh-Johnstown 21
125: Tim Elliott, UCO, tech. fall Scott Morgan, 19-1 (6:41).
133: Shane Valko, UPJ, pinned Scott Berens, 2:51.
141: Colby Robinson, UCO, dec. Adam Whetstone, 4-2.
149: Luke Elmore, UCO, dec. Ryan McIntyre, 9-5.
157: Mazen Kholi, UPJ, pinned Kelly Henderson, 4:03.
165: Mikey Morgan, UCO, dec. Kyle Keane, 5-4.
174: Tommy McCarty, UCO, major dec. Steve Makin, 11-0.
184: Daniel Morrison, UCO, dec. Jon Moore, 6-2.
197: Patrick Walsh, UPJ, pinned Zach James, 4:00.
Hvy: Chris Dempsey, UPJ, dec. Cameron Gladd, 10-3.
UCO 31, Mercyhurst 13
125: Tim Elliott, UCO, tech. fall Payne Lint, 16-0.
133: Scott Berens, UCO, major dec. Michael Baxter, 14-4.
141: Colby Robinson, UCO, major dec. James Henderson, 15-1.
149: Luke Elmore, UCO, pinned Lenny Calhoun, 1:50.
157: Kelly Henderson, UCO, dec. Jeremiah Hill, 1-0.
165: Josh Shields, MC, major dec. Cody Rowell, 12-0.
174: Tommy McCarty, UCO, major dec. Pat Carter, 13-0.
184: Daniel Morrison, UCO, tech. fall Bryan Wolff, 16-0 (2:12).
197: Trevor Gallo, MC, pinned Zach James, 0:20.
Hvy: Mike Sullivan, MC, dec. Cameron Gladd, 8-4.
