No. 1 UCO Hits The Road For Two Duals

Central Oklahoma makes its final road trip of the regular season this weekend when the top-ranked Bronchos journey north for a pair of Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association duals.

UCO, 10-0 on the season and 1-0 in the league, goes to Hays, Kan. Saturday for a 7 p.m. meeting with Fort Hays State (4-5, 1-0) before moving on to Kearney, Neb. Sunday for a 2 p.m. showdown against No. 3 Nebraska-Kearney (9-3, 1-0).

"It's going to be a challenging weekend, especially with it being on the road" said head coach Todd Steidley, who has a 70-11 record in his sixth year at the helm. "We've had a lot of battles with Fort Hays over the years and UNK obviously has one of the best teams in the country, so we'll need to be at our best.

"But our guys are competitors and I know they'll be ready. We've put a lot of work in this season and the goals we set for ourselves are still in front of us."

The Bronchos wrap up the regular season Feb. 13 at home against MIAA foe Newman.

Postseason action begins Feb. 26 at the NCAA Division II Super Regional IV Tournament in St. Charles, Mo. The top-three placers from each weight at that event qualify for the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships, set for March 11-12 in St. Louis, Mo.

ABOUT THE BRONCHOS: UCO is riding a 16-match winning streak that dates back to a 20-12 loss to McKendree on Feb. 12, 2020. The Bronchos won their last match that season, went 5-0 in the COVID-shortened 2020-21 campaign and are 10-0 so far this season.

UCO blasted Central Missouri 38-6 in its last outing on Jan. 30, winning eight of 10 matches with a trio of first-period falls.

Making up the lineup this weekend is: 125 – Paxton Rosen, Jr. (20-4); 133 – Studd Morris, So. (11-4); 141 – Nate Keim, Jr. (18-4); 149 – Brik Filippo, Jr. (19-2); 157 – Ty Lucas, Jr. (13-2); 165 – Hunter Jump, RS Fr. (17-4); 174 – Tre'Vaughn Craig, Jr. (10-2); 184 – Heath Gray, Sr. (8-0); 197 – Dalton Abney, So. (16-0); Hvy – Shawn Streck, Jr. (3-0).

The Bronchos will once again be without two starters in 133 Tanner Cole and 174 Kalin Winkler, both out with injury.

Cole is one of three No 1-ranked individuals for UCO, joining Gray and Abney. Filippo and Lucas are rated third, while Keim is fourth, Rosen sixth and Jump 12th.

Central's lineup for the weekend is a combined 135-22 with 75 bonus-point wins this season.

Rosen's 20 wins leads the starters and he's earned bonus points in 12 of those with six falls, four technical falls and two major decisions.

Gray, Abney and Schreck are all unbeaten in anchoring the lineup. Gray has six bonus wins, Abney 10 with eight falls – seven coming in the first period – and Schreck has pins in all three of his matches so far.

Gray is now 86-3 for his unparalleled career and is riding a 49-match winning streak that is second-best in school history behind only Cory Dauphin's 54 from 2012-14. He's also third in technical falls (19) and fourth in major decisions (31) on UCO's career lists.

Abney has a 39-4 career record with 18 falls.

ABOUT THE TIGERS: FHSU ended a three-match losing streak with a 24-21 win over Newman in its last outing.

The Tigers have two ranked individuals in 184 Marty Verhaeghe (eighth) and 197 Tereus Henry (12th). Verhaeghe was a national qualifier at 174 last year and is 30-5 this season, while Henry is 19-6 and Hvy A.J. Cooper 23-7.

UCO owns a big 35-4 series lead and has won the last five meetings between the two. Last year's dual was canceled due to health and safety reasons.

ABOUT THE LOPERS: UNK features nine ranked individuals and eight returning All-Americans in its lineup. The Lopers finished third at the NWCA Division II National Duals in early January, bouncing back from a 19-14 semifinal loss to St. Cloud State to rout Newberry 45-3.

The ranked individuals are 125 Josh Portillo (eighth), 133 Wesley Dawkins (second), 141 Nick James (11th), 149 Sam Turner (first), 157 Jacob Wasser (fifth), 165 Matt Malcom (second), 184 Austin Eldredge (fifth), 197 Hayden Prince (11th) and Hvy Lee Herrington (seventh). Eldredge has dropped down to 174 since the last ranking.

Malcom is a four-time All-American and was national champion in 2019, while Portillo and Dawkins are both three-time All-Americans. James, Turner, Wasser, Eldredge and Herrington all placed in last year's national tournament to earn All-America recognition.

The Bronchos have a 21-12 advantage in the series and have won the last two encounters. The teams didn't meet last year.

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Players Mentioned

Dalton Abney: 6' 1"; Redshirt Freshman; 197

Tanner Cole: 5' 6"; Sophomore

Brik Filippo: 5' 8"; Sophomore; 149

Heath Gray: 5' 11"; Junior; 184

Nate Keim: 5' 7"; Sophomore; 141

Ty Lucas: 5' 9"; Sophomore; 157

Hunter Jump: 6' 2"; Freshman

Studd Morris: 5' 0"; Freshman

Kalin Winkler: 6' 0"; Junior

Tre'Vaughn Craig: 5' 11"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Dalton Abney
: 6' 1"; Redshirt Freshman; 197

Tanner Cole
: 5' 6"; Sophomore

Brik Filippo
: 5' 8"; Sophomore; 149

Heath Gray
: 5' 11"; Junior; 184

Nate Keim
: 5' 7"; Sophomore; 141

Ty Lucas
: 5' 9"; Sophomore; 157

Hunter Jump
: 6' 2"; Freshman

Studd Morris
: 5' 0"; Freshman

Kalin Winkler
: 6' 0"; Junior

Tre'Vaughn Craig
: 5' 11"; Sophomore