JACKRABBITS HOST BIG 12 OPENER SUNDAY

Sunday, January 9

Brookings, S.D.

12:30 p.m.

South Dakota State University

Northern Iowa

Buy Tickets

Photo by: Dave Eggen/Inertia

1/7/2022 7:47:00 PM | Wrestling

DUAL 6: #22 Northern Iowa (1-4, 0-0 Big 12) at South Dakota State (4-1, 0-0)

When	Sunday, Jan. 9 \| 12:30 p.m. Note: Extra matches vs UNI and Wyoming to follow dual
Where	Frost Arena \| Brookings, South Dakota
TV	FloWrestling.org (subscription)
Live Results	Trackwrestling.com
Match Notes	South Dakota State \| Northern Iowa \| Wyoming
Social Media	Twitter \| Facebook \| Instagram \| #GetJacked

The South Dakota State wrestling team gets into the heart of the 2021-22 dual season Sunday, hosting Northern Iowa in a Big 12 Conference matchup.

The format and schedule for Sunday's event has changed from what was originally publicized. Instead of a triangular with Wyoming and Northern Iowa, the duals portion of the event will be limited to a single matchup between South Dakota State and UNI starting at 12:30 p.m. at Frost Arena. Wyoming, which is currently unable to field a complete team, will send a small contingent of wrestlers who will compete in extra matches against the Jackrabbits and Panthers at the conclusion of the dual.

The annual Teddy Bear Toss will be held at intermission.

South Dakota State, which is receiving votes in this week's NWCA Division I Coaches Poll, enters their Big 12 opener with a 4-1 overall dual record. Video coverage of Sunday's event will be available through FloWrestling.org (subscription required). In their last dual action, the Jackrabbits won all three of their matches at the Huskie Duals Dec. 18 in DeKalb, Illinois.

Northern Iowa holds a 1-4 dual record, but is ranked 22nd in this week's coaches' poll after wrestling one of the toughest schedules in the country. The Panthers recorded a 33-9 victory over Hofstra at the Collegiate Duals in Niceville, Florida, in their last outing, which was preceded by duals against four teams ranked in the top 11 of this week's NWCA Division I Coaches Poll: No. 11 Missouri (L, 16-25); No. 10 Virginia Tech (L, 3-39); eighth-ranked Cornell (L, 7-29) and second-ranked Penn State (L, 9-29).

PROBABLE LINEUP
125:     Tanner Jordan • So., St. Paris, Ohio (11-9 overall, 3-2 duals)
133:     Caleb Gross • So., Pound, Wis. (8-11, 2-1)
            Trayton Anderson • So., Northfield, Minn. (2-8, 0-2)
            Gabriel Tagg • So., Lodi, Ohio (0-0. 0-0)
141:     #6 Clay Carlson • Jr., Willmar, Minn. (17-1, 5-0)
149:     Zach Price • Jr., Johnston, Iowa (12-7, 1-1)
            Daniel Kimball • So., Buckingham, Iowa (14-9, 3-0)
157:     Kenny O'Neil • Jr., Prior Lake, Minn. (11-10, 2-2)
165:     #29 Tanner Cook • So., Ilion, N.Y. (9-5, 4-1)
            Jack Thomsen • So., La Porte City, Iowa (12-10, 0-0)
174:     #11 Cade DeVos • So., Altoona, Iowa (17-2, 4-0)
184:     Cade King • Jr., Waseca, Minn. (4-4, 2-1)
197:     #21 Tanner Sloan • Jr., Alburnett, Iowa (5-4, 0-1)
            Nick Casperson • Jr., Beresford, S.D. (111-4, 4-0)
285:     #23 A.J. Nevills • Jr., Clovis, Calif. (13-7, 4-1)
            Bowen McConville • Jr., Renton, Wash. (10-8, 0-0)

THE SERIES: South Dakota State has found the going tough in its history against Northern Iowa, with the Panthers holding a 40-5-1 advantage in a dual series that dates back to the 1953-54 season. After a 20-year hiatus, the series resumed during the 2004-05 season, when the Jackrabbits joined UNI at the D-I level as both squads competed in the Western Wrestling Conference.

SDSU's last win in the series came in Cedar Falls, Iowa, during the 2019-20 season, when the Jackrabbits knocked off 16th-ranked UNI, 25-13.

In last season's meeting, Jan. 10, 2021, at Frost Arena, Northern Iowa recorded three pins in the first six matches to propel the Panthers to a 28-13 victory.

After Brody Teske began the competition with a 13-11 victory over the Jackrabbits' Danny Vega at 125 pounds, Kyle Biscoglia gave the Panthers a 9-0 lead with a pin in pulling off the upset over 13th-ranked Zach Price.

The Jackrabbits stemmed the tide momentarily with an 8-2 decision by Carlson in his 141-pound matchup against Drew Bennett, but UNI regained the momentum with pins by Triston Lara (149 pounds) and Pat Schoenfelder (165). All three Panther pins came in the third period.

SDSU closed the dual with decisive victories by Tanner Sloan at 197 pounds and heavyweight Blake Wolters. The 10th-ranked Sloan scored a 14-1 major decision over Tyrell Gordon, while Wolters notched a 13-6 victory.

Also winning for the Jackrabbits was redshirt freshman Cade DeVos, who rallied for a 10-8 decision over Cayd Lara in the 157-pound matchup.

NO. 23 NORTHERN IOWA 28, SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 13 (Jan. 10, 2021)
125: Brody Teske (UNI) dec. Danny Vega (SDSU), 13-11
133: Kyle Biscoglia UNI) def. #13 Zach Price (SDSU), by fall 6:22
141: #22 Clay Carlson (SDSU) dec. Drew Bennett (UNI), 8-2
149: Triston Lara (UNI) def. Hunter Marko (SDSU), by fall 5:42
157: #18 Cade DeVos (SDSU) dec. Cayd Lara (UNI), 10-8
165: Pat Schoenfelder (UNI) def. Kenny O'Neil (SDSU), by fall 5:41
174: Lance Runyon (UNI) dec. Cade King (SDSU), 4-0
184: Keegan Moore (UNI) major dec. Nick Casperson (SDSU), 18-7
197: #10 Tanner Sloan (SDSU) major dec. Tyrell Gordon (UNI), 14-1
285: Blake Wolters (SDSU) dec. John McConkey (UNI), 13-6

SOUTHERN SCUFFLE RECAP: Cade DeVos became the first South Dakota State wrestler to win an individual title at the Southern Scuffle, claiming the 174-pound title to wrap up the two-day event Jan. 1-2 at McKenzie Arena in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

A sophomore, DeVos recorded a 3-2 decision over fourth-seeded Peyton Mocco of Missouri in the championship bout. After a scoreless first period, the second-seeded DeVos took a 1-0 lead early in the second stanza on an escape. Mocco tied the match seconds into the third period with an escape of his own, but DeVos countered with the lone takedown by either wrestler with 45 seconds remaining. Mocco escaped in the closing seconds for the final point.

DeVos advanced to the title tilt with a 6-2 decision over Brennan Swafford of Iowa during the afternoon session in improving to 17-2 on the season.

The Altoona, Iowa, native earned a spot in the semifinals with three convincing wins on New Year's Day. He opened with a 6-2 decision over Andrew Berreyesa of Cornell (N.Y.), followed by back-to-back major decisions against Adrien Cramer of Maryland, 12-4, and Arthur Urias of CSU Bakersfield, 13-4.

At 141 pounds, top-seeded Clay Carlson suffered his first loss of the season, dropping a 2-0 semifinal decision to No. 4 Allan Hart of Missouri. Carlson came back later in the session with a 6-4 victory over Vince Cornella of the Spartan Combat Regional Training Center, but settled for a fourth-place finish after later withdrawing from the tournament.

Carlson posted a 3-0 record on the opening day. A junior from Willmar, Minnesota, Carlson began the day with a second-period fall against Heath Gonyer of Appalachian State, then posted a 25-8 technical fall over Luis Ramos of CSU Bakersfield.

In Saturday's evening session, Carlson tallied a 9-4 decision against Quinn Kinner of Rider.

Tanner Sloan, the fifth-seeded wrestler at 197 pounds, began the day with a 10-4 setback at the hands of top-seeded Rocky Elam of Missouri. He later posted a 4-0 decision over sixth-seeded Alan Clothier of Northern Colorado, and wound up in fourth place after dropping an 8-6 decision to Cam Caffey of Michigan State in the night session.

Sloan outscored his first three opponents by a 26-3 margin en route to the semifinals. A two-time NCAA qualifier from Alburnett, Iowa, Sloan notched a 15-0 technical fall against Ben Stemmet of The Citadel in his opening bout. He then tallied respective 5-2 and 6-1 decisions against Rjaron Smith (Maryland) and Garrett Joles (Minnesota).

Also wrestling on Sunday were 149-pounder Zach Price and 197-pounder Nick Casperson. Both wrestlers lost their consolation-round matches; Price fell 9-5 to West Virginia's Jeff Boyd, while Casperson dropped a 7-3 decision to Andy Smith of Virginia Tech.

As a team, the Jackrabbits ended the tournament with sixth place with 76 points as Big 12 Conference squads held four of the top seven spots in the 30-team field. With five finalists, including two champions, Missouri easily won the team title with 175.5 points, followed by North Dakota State with 109.5.5 points and Michigan State with 94.5. Minnesota (85.5 points) and Cornell (85) rounded out the top five. Next behind SDSU was West Virginia with 69.5 points.

In all, 15 of the 16 Jackrabbits to compete in the meet won at least one match.

RABBITS RANKED: Five Jackrabbit wrestlers remain ranked by at least one major rankings service in the first polls of the new calendar year.

Returning 141-pound All-American Clay Carlson holds the highest ranking by a Jackrabbit after checking in this week at No. 6 in the FloWrestling rankings. The junior from Willmar, Minnesota, also is tabbed seventh by The Open Mat and 11th by both Intermat and WIN Magazine.

After suffering his first loss of the season last weekend at the Southern Scuffle, Carlson brings a 17-1 record into this week's action.

Steadily moving up the charts this season is sophomore 174-pounder Cade DeVos. After wrestling last season at 157 pounds, DeVos has made a successful jump up two weight classes to hold 11th-place rankings from FloWrestling, Intermat and The Open Mat. He also is ranked 13th in the most recent WIN Magazine poll after compiling a 17-2 mark so far this season.

Although he has been sidelined by injury much of this season, two-time NCAA?qualifier Tanner Sloan holds on to a 21st-place ranking from Intermat and also moved up to 24th in the FloWrestling 197-pound rankings after a fourth-place showing at the Southern Scuffle.

Heavyweight A.J. Nevills checks in at No. 23 in the FloWrestling rankings and 24th by Intermat, while Tanner Cook is 29th in Intermat's 165-pound rankings to go along with an honorable mention pick by FloWrestling.

Zach Price (149 pounds) and Cade King (184 pounds) dropped out of the rankings this week.

BIG 12 SUCCESS: Now in its seventh season as an affiliate member of the Big 12 Conference for wrestling, South Dakota State has proven it can contend in one of the top wrestling leagues in the country.

Since joining the league at the start of the 2015-16 season, the Jackrabbits have combined to post a 32-18 record (.640 winning percentage) in duals against Big 12 opponents, with seven of those losses coming during the 2018-19 campaign. SDSU posted an 8-0 mark in Big 12 duals during the 2017-18 season.

The Jackrabbits also turned in back-to-back third-place efforts at the Big 12 Wrestling Championship in both 2017 and 2018, after a fourth-place finish at their inaugural league meet in 2016. SDSU posted another fourth-place finish in 2020, improving six spots in the team standings from the previous season.

TAGG JOINS TEAM: The Jackrabbit wrestling team is expected to receive a boost in the lower weights with the addition of mid-year transfer Gabriel Tagg. The Lodi, Ohio, native, who previously wrestled at North Carolina, has officially been cleared to practice and could compete as soon as this weekend. He is projected to wrestle at 133 pounds and has three years of eligibility remaining.

Tagg posted a 15-5 record at 141 pounds as a freshman during the 2019-20 season at North Carolina. He also has competed in freestyle competition both nationally and internationally, including winning both the U.S. Junior World Championships at 61 kilograms and the Austria Flatz Open at 65 kilograms in 2019.

NEW FACILITY ON THE HORIZON: Ground was broken in September 2021 for a new $4 million on-campus wrestling training facility.

The nearly 16,000-square-foot Kurtenbach Family Wrestling Center is being constructed on the southwest corner of the Sanford-Jackrabbit Athletic Complex. Former SDSU wrestler and coach Frank Kurtenbach provided the lead gift for the facility, which will feature four competition mats, plus a strength and conditioning area, locker rooms, team room, coaches' offices and spaces for academics and nutrition.

"The approval from the Board of Regents to break ground on a state-of-the-art wrestling facility will forever change the landscape of SDSU Wrestling," SDSU head coach Damion Hahn said. "I can't thank our Jackrabbit family enough for the contributions that have been made toward this endeavor. I would like to make a special thank you to the Kurtenbach family for their vision and support of the project."

The South Dakota Board of Regents approved plans for the project in December 2020. The facility is expected to be completed in the fall of 2022.

COACH HAHN: Damion Hahn is overseeing a successful rebuilding of South Dakota State University wrestling as he is in his fourth season at the helm of the Jackrabbits' program. Hahn holds a 24-23 career dual record.

During the 2019-20 season, the Jackrabbits returned to the winning side of the ledger in dual competition by posting a 12-6 overall record, including a 6-3 mark in the Big 12. Included in the dual victories were wins over nationally ranked Northern Iowa and Stanford.

SDSU also improved by six spots in the Big 12 Conference Wrestling Championship, finishing fourth in the team standings at the 2020 competition. Four Jackrabbit wrestlers earned automatic qualifying berths in the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, with another receiving a bid as an alternate. The NCAA Championships were later canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the National Wrestling Coaches Association selected 149-pounder Henry Pohlmeyer, 184-pounder Zach Carlson and 197-pounder Tanner Sloan as second-team All-Americans.

During a pandemic-altered 2020-21 season, Hahn led the Jackrabbits to a 5-6 dual record. Despite slipping to an eighth-place finish at the Big 12 Conference meet, the Jackrabbits qualified five wrestlers for the NCAA Championships, with Clay Carlson earning All-America honors with an eighth-place finish at 141 pounds.

In his first season at SDSU, Hahn faced a rebuilding task as the Jackrabbits featured new starters in six spots in the lineup. SDSU finished with a 3-10 dual mark, including a 2-7 record against Big 12 foes. Pohlmeyer was the lone NCAA qualifier.

Hahn was hired at SDSU on April 9, 2018, following more than a decade of success as a member of the coaching staff at Cornell (N.Y.).

"Damion represents everything we are looking for in being able to take our wrestling program to the next level," said SDSU Director of Athletics Justin Sell in announcing the hire. "His success both as a collegiate wrestler and coach, along with his ability to recruit high-achieving student-athletes on and off the mat, made him the ideal candidate. He is a tremendous ambassador for the sport who will work tirelessly to ensure wrestling thrives both on our campus and across the country."

Hahn spent 12 years as an assistant coach and later the associate head coach at Cornell in Ithaca, New York. During his tenure, the Big Red recorded 11 top-10 team finishes at the NCAA Championships, including consecutive runner-up finishes in 2010 and 2011. He mentored 50 All-Americans, 12 of whom were individual NCAA champs.

Cornell also won 12 straight Ivy League dual championships and 11 consecutive Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association team titles.

In accepting his first head coaching position, Hahn made a return to the Midwest. As a collegiate wrestler at Minnesota, Hahn won NCAA individual national titles as a junior and senior. A four-time All-American, he also was a three-time Big 10 individual champion and was named the Jesse Owens Big 10 Male Athlete of the Year in 2004.

The Golden Gophers won team NCAA championships during both his freshman and sophomore seasons. He finished his collegiate career with a 118-21 record.

Hahn was inducted into the University of Minnesota's M Club Hall of Fame in 2018.

THE ROSTER: The 2021-22 SDSU wrestling roster features 36 student-athletes from 12 different states. Of the 36 wrestlers, 10 are from Iowa, followed by seven from Minnesota and six native South Dakotans. Three Jackrabbit wrestlers hail from Ohio, with two from Wisconsin and California. Six states — Illinois, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington — each are represented by one wrestler.

By class, two are seniors, 10 are juniors, 11 are sophomores, one is a redshirt freshman and 12 are incoming freshmen.

A LOOK AHEAD: The Jackrabbits are scheduled to continue dual action against Big 12 Conference foes, traveling Jan. 15 to Utah Valley. Start time for the dual at Lockhart Arena in Orem, Utah is 7 p.m. Mountain Time (8 p.m. Central).

-GoJacks.com-