JACKS HOST UNC, LITTLE ROCK

Friday, February 11

Brookings, S.D.

7 p.m.

South Dakota State University

Northern Colorado

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Photo by: Dave Eggen/Inertia

2/10/2022 4:00:00 PM | Wrestling

DUAL 15: NORTHERN COLORADO (5-4, 1-3 Big 12) at #25 SOUTH DAKOTA STATE (10-4, 3-2)

When	Friday, Feb. 11 \| 7 p.m.
Where	Frost Arena \| Brookings, South Dakota \| ORDER TICKETS
TV	FloWrestling.org (subscription)
Live Results	Trackwrestling.com
Match Notes	South Dakota State \| Northern Colorado
Social Media	Twitter \| Facebook \| Instagram \| #GetJacked

DUAL 16: LITTLE ROCK (1-11) at #25 SOUTH DAKOTA STATE

When	Sunday, Feb. 13 \| 1 p.m. (note time change)
Where	Frost Arena \| Brookings, South Dakota \| ORDER TICKETS
TV	FloWrestling.org (subscription)
Live Results	Trackwrestling.com
Match Notes	South Dakota State \| Little Rock
Social Media	Twitter \| Facebook \| Instagram \| #GetJacked

The South Dakota State wrestling team hits the home stretch of the 2021-22 dual season, opening a three-match homestand with a pair of weekend duals.

The 25th-ranked Jackrabbits, 10-4 overall and 3-2 against Big 12 Conference foes, kick off action Friday night by hosting league rival Northern Colorado. Start time is set for 7 p.m. at Frost Arena. UNC enters the matchup 5-4 overall and 1-3 in the Big 12.

SDSU closes out the weekend by hosting Little Rock in a nonconference matinee Sunday. Note that the start time has been moved up one hour to 1 p.m.

Little Rock, which wrestles Friday at North Dakota State, comes into the week with a 1-11 dual record. The Trojans are in their third season as a college wrestling program.

Both of the Jackrabbits' duals this weekend will be available for viewing through FloWrestlling.org (subscription required).

THE LINEUP: Following are the probable starters for the Jackrabbits in this weekend's duals against Northern Colorado and Little Rock.
125:     Tanner Jordan • So., St. Paris, Ohio (17-14 overall, 7-7 duals)
133:     #33 Gabriel Tagg • So., Lodi, Ohio (7-3, 5-3)
or        Caleb Gross • So., Pound, Wis. (10-14, 2-2)
141:     #8 Clay Carlson • Jr., Willmar, Minn. (24-3, 12-2)
149:     Daniel Kimball • So., Buckingham, Iowa (18-16, 7-5)
157:     Kenny O'Neil • Jr., Prior Lake, Minn. (13-18, 5-9)
165:     #33 Tanner Cook • So., Ilion, N.Y. (15-9, 9-5)
174:     #11 Cade DeVos • So., Altoona, Iowa (23-5, 10-3)
184:     #30 Cade King • Jr., Waseca, Minn. (11-7, 8-4)
or        Caleb Orris • So., Clark, S.D. (5-9, 0-0)
197:     #10 Tanner Sloan • Jr., Alburnett, Iowa (14-4, 8-1)
or        Nick Casperson • Jr., Beresford, S.D. (13-8, 4-1)
285:     #21 A.J. Nevills • Jr., Clovis, Calif. (21-9, 11-3)

THE SERIES: South Dakota State holds a combined 26-12 all-time record against its two weekend opponents.

vs. Northern Colorado
South Dakota State and Northern Colorado have been members of the same wrestling conference for the better part of 40 years, but haven't squared off in dual competition since the 2016-17 season. The history between the two programs dates back to when both programs competed at the NCAA Division II level as members of the North Central Conference, followed by membership in the Western Wrestling Conference and Big 12 Conference at the Division I level.

In 36 dual meetings since the time the two programs first met during the 1972-73 season, SDSU holds a 24-12 series advantage. The series has been filled with streaks; SDSU won the first 10 meetings and seven in a row from 1997-2003, before UNC ushered in the current Division I era with eight consecutive wins from 2005-12.

The Jackrabbits have regained the upper hand in the series by winning the last five meetings, including a 34-6 victory on Jan. 8, 2017, at Frost Arena.

#20 South Dakota State 34, Northern Colorado 6 (Jan. 8, 2017 • at Frost Arena)
125: Ben Gillette (SDSU) dec. Trey Andrews (UNC), 3-1 [SV-1]
133: #6 Seth Gross (SDSU) def. Rico Montoya (UNC) by fall 3:28
141: #18 Timmy Box (UNC) dec. Isaac Andrade (SDSU), 9-6
149: Alex Kocer (SDSU) def. Ben Polkowske (UNC) by fall 4:27
157: Logan Peterson (SDSU) dec. Tyler Kinn (UNC), 11-5
165: Luke Zilverberg (SDSU) dec. Keilan Torres (UNC), 5-3 [SV-1]
174: David Kocer (SDSU) tech. fall Tanner Davis (UNC), 16-1 [4:38]
184: Dylan Gabel (UNC) dec. Martin Mueller (SDSU), 7-4
197: #8 Nate Rotert (SDSU) tech. fall Jamarcus Grant (UNC), 19-4 [5:43]
285: Alex Macki (SDSU) dec. Jack Kuck (UNC), 3-1 [SV-1]

vs. Little Rock
South Dakota State has dominated the brief series against Little Rock, outscoring the Trojans, 70-10, in their two previous matchups — both of which were contested in Little Rock. The Jackrabbits claimed last season's meeting, 28-10, behind technical falls from Clay Carlson (141 pounds), Colten Carlson (165) and Tanner Sloan (197).

South Dakota State 28, Little Rock 10 (Jan. 31, 2021, at Little Rock, Arkansas)
125: Khyler Brewer (LR) dec. Tanner Jordan (SDSU), 14-8
133: Paul Bianchi (LR) major dec. Trayton Anderson (SDSU), 15-5
141: #22 Clay Carlson (SDSU) tech. fall Conner Ward (LR), 21-6 [7:00]
149: Hunter Marko (SDSU) dec. Joseph Bianchi (LR), 6-2
157: #18 Cade DeVos (SDSU) dec. Kyle Prewitt (LR), 11-4
165: Colten Carlson (SDSU) tech. fall Alex Hernandez (LR), 17-1 [6:35]
174: Cade King (SDSU) major dec. Triston Wills (LR), 13-1
184: Nick Casperson (SDSU) dec. Tanner Mendoza (LR), 8-1
197: Tanner Sloan (SDSU) tech. fall Dylan Johnson (LR), 18-0 [2:22]
285: Gabe Beyer (LR) dec. Blake Wolters (SDSU), 6-4 [SV-1]

LAST WEEK: The Jackrabbits suffered a pair of dual losses in the state of Oklahoma last weekend against ranked Big 12 opponents.

No. 10 Oklahoma State 29, No. 23 South Dakota State 6
Tenth-ranked Oklahoma State won eight of 10 matches, including four matchups between ranked wrestlers, to record a 29-6 dual victory over No. 23 South Dakota State in Big 12 Conference wrestling action Feb. 4 at Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater, Oklahoma.

The Cowboys improved to 11-2 overall and 5-2 in Big 12 duals. SDSU suffered its first conference loss of the season, falling to 3-1 against Big 12 foes and 10-3 overall.

Oklahoma State, which featured nine ranked wrestlers in its lineup, built an early 9-0 lead behind wins from eighth-ranked Trevor Mastrogiovanni at 125 pounds and second-ranked Daton Fix in the 133-pound bout. Mastrogiovanni held off the Jackrabbits' Tanner Jordan for a 2-1 decision, while Fix recorded a third-period pin against Gabriel Tagg.

Clay Carlson, ranked ninth at 141 pounds, put the Jackrabbits on the board with a 3-1 decision against No. 17 Carter Young. Carlson trailed 1-0 entering the third period, but came up with an escape early in the final stanza before notching the lone takedown of the match with about 30 seconds remaining.

The Cowboys then took control of the dual with five consecutive victories, highlighted by major decisions from Wyatt Sheets (157 pounds) and Dakota Geer (184 pounds). Geer's 16-7 victory over Cade King was the third in a row in which the Cowboys won a matchup between ranked wrestlers.

Eighth-ranked Travis Wittlake won a 3-1 decision over No. 30 Tanner Cook of SDSU in the 165-pound matchup, while a top-10 matchup at 174 pounds between Dustin Plott and the Jackrabbits' Cade DeVos went to Plott, 5-3.

OSU also received an upset win from No. 33 Luke Surber at heavyweight as he knocked off 20th-ranked A.J. Nevills, 6-3, in the final bout of the night.

Tanner Sloan picked up the other Jackrabbit victory as he posted a 3-1 decision over Gavin Stika in the 197-pound matchup.

No. 25 Oklahoma 16, No. 23 South Dakota State 15
All 10 matches in a Big 12 Conference wrestling dual between No. 23 South Dakota State and 25th-ranked Oklahoma went the distance with each team claiming five bouts. However, the Sooners were awarded the decisive point on criteria to pull out the 16-15 victory Feb. 6 at McCasland Field House.

Oklahoma improved to 8-5 overall and 3-4 in the Big 12, while the Jackrabbits dropped to 10-4 overall and 3-2 in conference duals.

SDSU held its only lead of the day after winning two of the first three matches. Jackrabbit newcomer Gabriel Tagg knocked off 15th-ranked Anthony Madrigal, 7-1, in the 133-pound matchup, while ninth-ranked Clay Carlson posted a 9-5 decision over Jacob Butler at 141 pounds.

Oklahoma then put together a four-match winning streak to build a 15-6 lead. After the Sooners' Willie McDougald and Justin Thomas won back-to-back 8-3 decisions in the 149- and 157-pound matches, the next two Oklahoma victories came in matchups between ranked wrestlers.

First, No. 29 Joe Grello outlasted 30th-ranked Tanner Cook, 2-0, in the 165-pound bout. That was followed by 20th-ranked Anthony Mantanona recording a takedown in overtime for a 3-1 victory over No. 9 Cade DeVos at 174 pounds.

The Jackrabbits countered with a three-match winning streak to close out the dual, but couldn't come away with any bonus points. Cade King toughed out a 4-3 victory over Keegan Moore at 184 pounds to start the run and 12th-ranked Tanner Sloan came through with a 2-0 shutout of seventh-ranked Jake Woodley.

That left the fate of the dual in the hands of the heavyweights — SDSU's 20th-ranked A.J. Nevills and No. 28 Josh Heindselman of Oklahoma.

Both wrestlers scored on escapes in regulation to send the match to overtime tied at 1. After an additional two-minute period yielded no points, Nevills earned the 2-1 victory in a tiebreaker after riding out the full 30 seconds in his portion working from the top and then coming up with an escape in the second half.

Oklahoma was awarded the decisive team point on criteria by outscoring the Jackrabbits by a 39-33 count in the 10 matches.

Don Parker Open
In other weekend competition for the Jackrabbit wrestling team, three South Dakota State wrestlers claimed individual titles Feb. 5 at the Don Parker Open in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.

Freshman Alek Martin moved up a weight class to 157 pounds and came away with a 5-0 record, including a pin. Martin claimed the title with an 11-3 major decision over St. Cloud State's Blake Legred.

Also winning event titles were 197-pounder Cody Donnelly and heavyweight Bowen McConville. Donnelly won all four of his matches by fall — three of which were in the first period — while McConville won each of his first three matches by pin before being awarded a medical forfeit for the championship.

Rounding out the Jackrabbit effort was 184-pounder Sam Kruger with a third-place finish. The Winner native posted a 4-1 record on the day with pair of wins by fall.

WRESTLERS OF THE WEEK: South Dakota State 197-pounder Tanner Sloan was honored Jan. 25 as Big 12 Wrestler of the Week, becoming the second Jackrabbit to earn the award this season.

A junior from Alburnett, Iowa, Sloan posted a 3-0 record in dual competition over the weekend, starting with a 5-2 decision over fifth-ranked Rocky Elam of Missouri. The victory helped propel the Jackrabbits to their first-ever dual win over a top-10 team at the Division I level.

Sloan closed with weekend with a pair of first-period pins in a triangular at Southern Illinois Edwardsville and against Central Michigan. With his perfect weekend, the two-time NCAA qualifier improved to 11-4 overall this season, including a 5-1 mark in duals.

Sloan joined teammate Clay Carlson, who earned the honor Dec. 7 after winning the 141-pound title at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Carlson pinned Northern Colorado's Andrew Alirez in the championship bout of the tournament and the two are poised for another top-10 matchup on Friday as Carlson is eighth and Alirez stands fifth in this week's FloWrestling rankings.

RABBITS RANKED: For the first time in three seasons, the South Dakota State University wrestling team is nationally ranked. The Jackrabbits cracked the NWCA Division I Coaches Poll by checking in at No. 24 in the Jan. 11 rankings, then moved up one spot to 23rd after winning twice at the Virginia Duals on Jan. 15. SDSU remains in the poll for the fourth week in a row, slipping to 25th in this week's rankings after a pair of dual losses last weekend.

SDSU was last ranked in the poll in November 2018. The Jackrabbits are one of five Big 12 squads in this week's poll, joining No. 5 Iowa State, No. 10 Missouri, No. 12 Oklahoma State and No. 24 Oklahoma. The Jackrabbits also are ranked in a tie for fifth with Princeton in the latest NWCA Mid-Major Division I Poll.

In addition, seven Jackrabbit wrestlers are individually ranked by a variety of wrestling organizations. Returning All-American Clay Carlson is ranked as high as eighth by FloWrestling at 141 pounds, while two-time NCAA qualifier Tanner Sloan continues his surge up the 197-pound standings with a 10th-place nod from Intermat.

Sloan enters the weekend on a nine-match winning streak.

Cade DeVos slipped out of the top 10 of 174-pound division this week to an 11th-place showig in the FloWrestling rankings, while A.J. Nevills checks in at No. 21 in the heavyweight division.

Tanner Cook remains in the rankings with a 33rd-place showing in the 165-pound division, while Cade King (184 pounds) holds an honorable mention ranking in this week's FloWrestling survey.

Returning to the rankings this week is 133-pounder Gabriel Tagg at No. 33 (Intermat).

20 AND 10: Three Jackrabbit wrestlers have reached the 20-win mark so far this season and all three have also posted 10 or more wins in dual competition.

Leading the way is 141-pounder Clay Carlson with a 24-3 overall record and a 12-2 dual mark, while 174-pounder Cade DeVos is right behind at 23-5 overall. After sitting out the team's opening dual Nov. 19 against Augustana, DeVos has turned in a 10-1 record in head-to-head competitions.

Heavyweight A.J. Nevills reached both progress points in his Jan. 28 victory against West Virginia. Nevills enters the week with a 21-9 overall mark and an 11-3 dual record.

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 35-20 record (.636 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.

COOK AMONG NCAA LEADERS: Jackrabbit 165-pounder Tanner Cook enters the week tied for second place among NCAA Division I wrestlers for falls. Cook has recorded 10 pins against D-I opponents so far this season, tying him with North Dakota State 197-pounder Owen Pentz, Binghamton 133-pounder Anthony Sobotker and Air Force heavyweight Wyatt Hendrickson.

Overall, King has racked up 13 pins this season, with three coming against non-Division I opponents.

Leading the Division I ranks is Maryland 133-pounder King Sandoval with 11 falls.

TAGG JOINS TEAM: The Jackrabbit wrestling team has received 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, was officially cleared to practice in early January and made his Jackrabbit debut by recording a 19-1 technical fall against Darrick Stacey of Wyoming in an additional match Jan. 9.

Tagg holds a 7-3 record, including a 5-3 mark in duals, since joining the lineup.

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 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 has compiled a 30-26 career dual record.

Hahn has coached four All-Americans and 10 NCAA?qualifiers during his tenure in Brookings. During the 2019-20 season, the National Wrestling Coaches Association selected 149-pounder Henry Pohlmeyer, 184-pounder Zach Carlson and 197-pounder Tanner Sloan as second-team All-Americans after the NCAA Championships were canceled at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Also during the 2019-20 campaign, the Jackrabbits turned in their first winning dual season under Hahn by posting a 12-6 overall record, including a 6-3 mark in the Big 12. Included in the dual wins were victories over nationally ranked Northern Iowa and Stanford.

SDSU also improved by six spots in the Big 12 Conference tournament, finishing fourth in the team standings at the 2020 competition.

Last season, Clay Carlson wrestled his way to an eighth-place finish at nationals in the 141-pound division. Carlson also was honored as the 2021 Big 12 Wrestling Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

In all, five SDSU wrestlers earned a trip to the NCAA?Championships in March 2021.

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 33 student-athletes from 12 different states. Of the 33 wrestlers, eight are from Iowa, followed by seven from Minnesota and six native South Dakotans. Three Jackrabbit wrestlers hail from Ohio, with two from California. Seven states — Illinois, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin — each are represented by one wrestler.

By class, one is a senior, eight are juniors, 11 are sophomores, one is a redshirt freshman and 12 are incoming freshmen.

A LOOK AHEAD: The Jackrabbits close out the dual season Feb. 20 by hosting North Dakota State in the annual battle for the Border Bell. Start time is set for 2 p.m. at Frost Arena and Jackrabbit seniors Gregory Coapstick, Dalton Lakmann, Hunter Marko, Rylee Molitor, Kenny O'Neil will be honored during the match.

-GoJacks.com-