Top-ranked UCO Hammers No. 6 Lander To Make National Duals Finals

Bronchos Will Take on MIAA Rival and No. 2 Nebraska-Kearney For The Title

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – Josh Taylor's stunning first-period technical fall highlighted a torrid start that carried Central Oklahoma to a 30-6 shellacking of Lander in the semifinals of the NWCA Division II National Duals at the UNI-Dome Saturday afternoon.

The top-ranked Bronchos won the first five matches to seize a 20-0 lead and the No. 6 Bearcats had no answer. UCO improved to 8-1 while handing Lander its first loss after a 13-0 start in the first-ever meeting between the two teams.

Central advanced to the finals for the fifth straight year and will take on No. 2 Nebraska-Kearney at 4 p.m. for the title. The MIAA-rival Lopers routed No. 3 Wisconsin-Parkside 28-6 in the other semifinal.

"We wrestled well," head coach Todd Steidley said. "Our guys came out ready to go and we stayed aggressive for the whole match. We'll need the same kind of effort against a great Kearney team, but we're looking forward to it."

The third-ranked Taylor had the most impressive win in UCO's opening blitz, overwhelming No. 1 Elijah Lusk 18-1 at the 2:50 mark behind a pair of seven-point moves and another four-point near-fall.

The Bronchos also got an opening-match technical fall from 125 Eli Kirk, a major decision from 157 Gabe Johnson and wins from 133 Jason Henschel and 149 Bam West in taking the big lead.

UCO added a major decision from 174 Hunter Jump and hard-fought victories from 184 Branson Britten and 197 Garrett Wells the rest of the way while losing just two matches. And the Bronchos had a chance in both of those before falling short.

Kirk tallied a trio of takedowns and two near-falls in a 15-0 shutout to open the dual, then the top-ranked Henschel followed with a methodical 6-0 blanking of No. 6 James Joplin.

West turned an early takedown into a four-point near-fall and a 7-0 lead after one period in his match before holding on for a 9-5 victory, while Johnson garnered four takedowns in a 13-3 romp for his 21st straight win.

Lander won its first match at 165, but Bryce Dauphin didn't go down without a fight against two-time defending national champion David Hunsberger in dropping a tough 8-6 decision.

Jump got UCO back on track with a 13-1 romp behind a takedown and two near-falls, then Britten and Wells pulled out tight wins.

The second-ranked Britten took his first lead of the match on a takedown with 59 seconds left and controlled No. 8 Dylan Kohn the rest of the way to secure a 7-5 triumph for his 12th straight win.

The fourth-ranked Wells was locked in a 2-2 tie with No. 14 Marvelous Rutledge in the final stages of the third period, but Wells' aggressive takedown tries finally resulted in a second stalling call against Rutledge with 12 seconds left to give Wells the winning point.

Ryan Nichols' upset bid against No. 13 Issac Sheeren fell short in the final match as Sheeren prevailed 5-4 on a takedown with 18 seconds remaining.

UCO 30, Lander 6
125 – Eli Kirk, UCO, technical fall Kaden Kuenzi, 15-0 (5:35).
133 – Jason Henschel, UCO, dec. James Joplin, 6-0.
141 – Josh Taylor, UCO, technical fall Elijah Lusk, 18-1 (2:50).
149 – Bam West, UCO, dec. Isham Peace, 9-5.
157 – Gabe Johnson, UCO, mamjor dec. Reid Noble, 13-3.
165 – David Hunsberger, LU, dec. Bryce Dauphin, 8-6.
174 – Hunter Jump, UCO, major dec. Maxwell Kiel, 13-1.
184 – Branson Britten, UCO, dec. Dylan Kohn, 7-5.
197 – Garrett Wells, UCO, dec. Marvelous Rutledge, 3-2.
Hvy – Issac Sheeren, LU, dec. Ryan Nichols, 5-4.

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

Bryce Dauphin: 5' 9"; Senior

Jason Henschel: 5' 10"; Senior

Gabe Johnson: 5' 8"; Senior

Hunter Jump: 6' 2"; Senior

Eli Kirk: 5' 6"; Sophomore

Josh Taylor: 5' 7"; Junior

Garrett Wells: 5' 11"; Junior

Bam West: 5' 7"; Junior

Branson Britten: 6' 0"; Senior

Ryan Nichols: 6' 0"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Bryce Dauphin
: 5' 9"; Senior

Jason Henschel
: 5' 10"; Senior

Gabe Johnson
: 5' 8"; Senior

Hunter Jump
: 6' 2"; Senior

Eli Kirk
: 5' 6"; Sophomore

Josh Taylor
: 5' 7"; Junior

Garrett Wells
: 5' 11"; Junior

Bam West
: 5' 7"; Junior

Branson Britten
: 6' 0"; Senior

Ryan Nichols
: 6' 0"; Sophomore