JACKRABBITS TRAVEL TO UNC, AIR FORCE

Friday, January 27

Greeley, Colo.

6 p.m. MT/7 p.m. CT

South Dakota State University

Northern Colorado

Photo by: Dave Eggen/Inertia Sports Media

1/26/2023 12:14:00 PM | Wrestling

DUAL 12: #18 South Dakota State (9-2, 3-0 Big 12) at Northern Colorado (10-2, 0-2)

When	Friday, Jan. 27 \| 6 p.m. Mountain Time (7 p.m. Central)
Where	Bank of Colorado Arena \| Greeley, Colorado
TV	FloWrestling.org (subscription)
Live Results	Trackwrestling.com
Match Notes	SDSU \| Northern Colorado
Social Media	Twitter \| Facebook \| Instagram \| #GetJacked

DUAL 13: South Dakota State at Air Force

When	Sunday, Jan. 29 \| 1 p.m. Mountain Time (2 p.m. Central)
Where	Clune Arena \| U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado
TV	FloWrestling.org (subscription)
Live Results	Trackwrestling.com
Match Notes	SDSU \| Air Force
Social Media	Twitter \| Facebook \| Instagram \| #GetJacked

The South Dakota State wrestling team will attempt to stay undefeated in the month of January as it prepares for a pair of Big 12 Conference duals in the state of Colorado this weekend.

The 18th-ranked Jackrabbits, 9-2 overall and 3-0 against Big 12 opponents, open the weekend against a Northern Colorado team that is receiving votes in this week's National Wrestling Coaches Association poll. Action Friday evening is slated to start at 6 p.m. Mountain Time (7 p.m. Central) at Bank of Colorado Arena in Greeley, Colorado.

The Bears enter the week with a 10-2 overall dual mark, including an 0-2 in the Big 12. UNC split a pair of road duals last weekend, dropping a 24-10 decision at league foe Oklahoma State on Jan. 20, before coming back with a 36-3 nonconference win at Little Rock.

Sunday, the Jackrabbits will move on to face an Air Force squad that is scheduled to wrestle three duals this weekend, starting with a triangular Friday against Snow College and Utah Valley in Orem, Utah. The SDSU-Air Force dual is set for a 1 p.m. Mountain Time (2 p.m. Central) start at Clune Arena on the United States Air Force Academy campus outside Colorado Springs.

The Falcons improved to 5-1 overall and 2-1 in the Big 12 with a 38-3 victory at California Baptist on Jan. 21.

SDSU extended its winning streak to eight matches last week with home victories against Big 12 foes Utah Valley (29-12) and Wyoming (42-3). During their current winning streak, the Jackrabbits have outscored the opposition by a 296-42 margin.

Both of this weekend's duals are scheduled to be available for viewing through FloWrestling.org (subscription required).

Also this weekend, the Jackrabbits will send a handful of wrestlers Saturday to Dubuque, Iowa, for the Pat "Flash" Flanagan Open, which is hosted by Loras College. Competition begins at 9 a.m. at the Graber Sports Center.

PROBABLE STARTERS:
125:     #30 Tanner Jordan • Jr., St. Paris, Ohio (13-10 overall, 6-5 duals)
133:     Derrick Cardinal • R-Fr., Forest Lake, Minn. (9-9 overall, 5-5 duals)
141:     #10 Clay Carlson • Sr., Willmar, Minn. (14-5 overall, 8-3 duals)
or        Caleb Gross • Jr., Pound, Wis. (8-5 overall, 1-0 duals)
149:     Alek Martin • R-Fr., St. Paris, Ohio (16-8 overall, 8-2 duals)
157:     #19 Cael Swensen • R-Fr., Plymouth, Minn. (16-5 overall, 9-1 duals)
165:     #14 Tanner Cook • Jr., Ilion, N.Y. (13-2 overall, 8-1 duals)
or        Connor Gaynor, R-Fr., Mokena, Ill. (2-2 overall, 2-0 duals)
174:     #15 Cade DeVos • Jr., Altoona, Iowa (16-5 overall, 8-3 duals)
184:     #17 Cade King • Sr., Waseca, Minn. (13-5 overall, 7-2 duals)
197:     #11 Tanner Sloan • Sr., Alburnett, Iowa (15-1 overall, 9-0 duals)
            Cody Donnelly, R-Fr., Philip, S.D. (3-2 overall, 1-0 duals)
285:     #13 A.J. Nevills • Grad., Clovis, Calif. (14-3 overall, 13-0 duals)
            Note: Rankings listed are highest of either Intermat or FloWrestling rankings as of Jan. 24, 2023

SERIES vs. NORTHERN COLORADO: South Dakota State and Northern Colorado have been members of the same wrestling conference for the better part of 40 years. 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 37 dual meetings since the time the two programs first met during the 1972-73 season, the Jackrabbits hold a 25-12 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 six meetings, including a 29-9 victory on Feb., 11, 2022. Last year's dual marked the first between the two programs since the 2016-17 campaign.

#25 South Dakota State 29, Northern Colorado 9 (Feb. 11, 2022 • Frost Arena)
125: Jace Koelzer (UNC) dec. Tanner Jordan (SDSU), 5-2
133: #33 Gabriel Tagg (SDSU) major dec. Dyson Kunz (UNC), 15-2
141: #8 Clay Carlson (SDSU) dec. #5 Andrew Alirez (UNC), 9-5
149: Chris Sandoval (UNC) dec. Daniel Kimball (SDSU), 4-2
157: Nathan Moore (UNC) dec. Kenny O'Neil (SDSU), 4-2 [SV-1]
165: #33 Tanner Cook (SDSU) def. Nick Knutson (UNC), by fall 1:23
174: #11 Cade DeVos (SDSU) major dec. Damen Pape (UNC), 17-6
184: #30 Cade King (SDSU) dec. Xavier Vasquez (UNC), 6-2
197: #10 Tanner Sloan (SDSU) major dec. #29 Alan Clothier (UNC), 15-6
285: #21 A.J. Nevills (SDSU) def. Robert Winters (UNC), by fall 1:45
Note: SDSU deducted one team point for unsportsmanlike conduct after 133-pound match
Extra Matches
133: Gabriel Tagg (SDSU) major dec. Dyson Kunz (UNC), 11-1
141: Chris Sandoval (UNC) dec. Caleb Gross (SDSU), 6-0
165: Jack Thomsen (SDSU) major dec. Cody Eaton (UNC), 16-7
197: Alan Clothier (UNC) dec. Nick Casperson (SDSU), 3-2
285: Jacob Seely (UNC) dec. Bowen McConville (SDSU), 6-2

SERIES vs. AIR FORCE: South Dakota State and Air Force first wrestled during the 1992-93 season, and the Falcons have gone on to lead the all-time series by a 9-7 count. Air Force won the first two meetings and nine of the first 10 before SDSU began its current six-match series winning streak with an 18-14 home victory during the 2013-14 campaign.

The Jackrabbits and Falcons last wrestled during the pandemic-altered 2020-21 season, when SDSU pulled out a 24-14 victory at the Air Force Academy. SDSU won six of the 10 matchus, including bonus-point victories from Clay Carlson at 141 pounds (major decision), Colten Carlson at 165 pounds (fall) and Tanner Sloan at 197 pounds (technical fall).

Sunday's dual will mark the fourth time in a row the two teams have wrestled on the Falcons' home mat.

South Dakota State 24, Air Force 14 (Jan. 17, 2021 • USAFA, Colorado)
125: Cody Phippen (AF) dec. Tanner Jordan (SDSU), 6-3
133: Jared Van Vleet (AF) major dec. #13 Zach Price (SDSU), 14-4
141: #22 Clay Carlson (SDSU) major dec. Lenny Petersen (AF), 18-6
149: Hunter Marko (SDSU) dec. Dylan Martinez (AF), 5-3
157: #18 Cade DeVos (SDSU) dec. Parker Simington (AF), 7-2
165: Colten Carlson (SDSU) def. Vincent Dolce (AF), by fall 6:04
174: Cody Surratt (AF) dec. Cade King (SDSU), 7-2
184: Nick Casperson (SDSU) dec. Sam Wolf (AF), 5-2
197: #10 Tanner Sloan (SDSU) tech. fall Kayne Hutchison (AF), 21-5
285: Wyatt Hendrickson (AF) major dec. Blake Wolters (SDSU), 9-0

LAST WEEK: The Jackrabbits improved to 3-0 in Big 12 Conference duals and upped their overall winning streak to eight duals with home victories over Utah Valley and Wyoming.

South Dakota State 29, Utah Valley 12
Led by pins from Connor Gaynor and Tanner Sloan, the South Dakota State wrestling team ran its dual winning streak to seven matches with a 29-12 victory over Utah Valley Jan. 20at Frost Arena.

SDSU got out of the gates quickly, building a 14-0 lead through the first three matches. Alek Martin started off with a 9-7, sudden victory over Isaiah Delgado in the 149-pound weight class. Martin trailed 5-2 through two periods before forcing overtime by scoring on a reversal and takedown with the tying point coming on a riding-time advantage. Martin then scored on a takedown 24 seconds into the extra session.

Redshirt freshmen Cael Swensen and Gaynor followed with bonus-point wins for the Jackrabbits. Swensen, ranked 24th at 157 pounds, posted a 15-0 technical fall over Kyler Lake for his ninth win in his last 10 matches.

Gaynor, who was wrestling in a collegiate dual for the first time, needed only 48 seconds to pin the Wolverines' Danny Snediker.

UVU got on the board with a victory between ranked wrestlers in the 174-pound bout as No. 7 Demetrius Romero outlasted 15th-ranked Cade DeVos, 4-2.

After Cade King closed the first half of the dual with a 3-2 decision at 184 pounds, the Jackrabbits put the dual away with victories from Sloan and A.J. Nevills, who both ran their dual records this season to 9-0. Sloan pinned Jack Forbes in 4 minutes, 55 seconds at 197 pounds, while Nevills posted a 2-0 decision over Chase Trussell.

The Wolverines won two of the final three matches, picking up a fall from Kase Mauger at 125 pounds and Ty Smith knocking off ninth-ranked Clay Carlson, 7-6, at 141 pounds.
Derrick Cardinal tallied the final victory for SDSU, notching a 5-0 decision over Kobe Nelms in the 133-pound matchup.

South Dakota State 42, Wyoming 3
South Dakota State recorded four pins, including three in the second half of the dual, in turning in another dominant performance against a Big 12 Conference opponent by downing Wyoming, 42-3, Jan. 22 at Frost Arena.

SDSU won the final nine bouts of the dual after the Cowboys' Jore Volk defeated Tanner Jordan, 7-1, in the opening matchup between wrestlers ranked in the 125-pound weight class.

Derrick Cardinal put the Jackrabbits on the board with the team's first fall of the afternoon with a defensive pin against Garrett Ricks at the end of the second period in the 133-pound matchup.

At 141 pounds, ninth-ranked Clay Carlson overcame a four-point near-fall early in the second period of his match against Job Greenwood. Carlson trailed 5-3 with under 30 seconds to go, but came up with the tying takedown and rode out the remainder of the third period to earn the decisive point via a riding-time advantage of more than a minute.

In another match that went down to the wire, the Jackrabbits' Cael Swensen avenged a loss in the championship of the Soldier Salute to 13th-ranked Jacob Wright three weeks ago with a late takedown for a hard-fought, 3-1 victory. Swensen, ranked 23rd at 157 pounds, has won eight matches in a row and 10 of his last 11 to improve to 16-5 on the season.

Swensen's victory followed Alek Martin's 15-5 major decision over Chase Zollmann in the 149-pound division.

Two of the Jackrabbits' three wins by fall in the second half of the dual were recorded by backups. Connor Gaynor notched his second pin of the weekend, sticking Cole Moody in 2 minutes and 20 seconds. At 197 pounds, another redshirt, Cody Donnelly, made his Jackrabbit dual debut a memorable one as he put Tyce Raddon's shoulders to the mat in 5:33 for another six points.

Heavyweight A.J. Nevills then closed out the dual with SDSU's fourth — and final — pin of the afternoon against Mason Ding.

Cade DeVos added another bonus-point victory for the Jackrabbits with a 19-4 technical fall over Hayden Lieb at 174 pounds, while Cade King turned in a 6-2 decision over Quayin Short in the 184-pound matchup.

RABBITS RANKED: The South Dakota State wrestling team began the season ranked in the top 25 after being included in a pair of national polls and have maintained a national ranking for most of the 2022-23 campaign.

The Jackrabbits checked in at No. 22 in the preseason poll conducted by InterMat and were ranked 25th in the initial National Wrestling Coaches Association survey. SDSU was one of five Big 12 Conference programs ranked in the NWCA top 25, joining No. 4 Missouri, No. 10 Oklahoma State, No. 14 Iowa State and No. 20 UNI.

Following their strong showing at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational in early December, the Jackrabbits climbed seven spots to No. 18 in the NWCA poll for their highest ranking under head coach Damion Hahn. SDSU slipped one spot to 19th after its Dec. 18 dual loss to Nebraska but moved back to No. 18 following another stellar performance earlier this month at the Virginia Duals.

SDSU also has a season-high eight wrestlers ranked individually for the seventh week in a row, with 141-pounder Clay Carlson holding the highest ranking at No. 10 in the InterMat rankings, followed by fellow NCAA qualifier Tanner Sloan in 11th (InterMat and FloWrestling) at 197 pounds.

Cael Swensen, who is ranked 19th in the 157-pound rankings by FloWrestling and Tanner Jordan at 125 pounds (30th by InterMat) each joined the rankings after their outings at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational.

Other returning NCAA qualifiers Cade DeVos (15th at 174 pounds by FloWrestling) and A.J. Nevills (13th at heavyweight by FloWrestling) have maintained top-20 rankings throughout the season, while Cade King (17th at 184 pounds by both FloWrestling and InterMat) rounds out the list of SDSU's ranked wrestlers.

COOK, NEVILLS AMONG PIN LEADERS: Two South Dakota State wrestlers enter the weekend ranked in the top 10 among Division I wrestlers for wins by fall this season.

Jackrabbit 165-pounder Tanner Cook enters the week tied for fourth with nine wins by fall against D-I competition. A junior from Ilion, New York, Cook has needed only 15 minutes and 19 seconds of mat time to post his nine falls, with six of those pins occurring in less than a minute. He added to his total with two pins in action Jan. 13-14 at the Virginia Duals, but sat out the duals against Utah Valley and Wyoming last week.

Cook was honored Dec. 20 as Big 12 Conference Wrestler of the Week after pinning 13th-ranked Bubba Wilson of Nebraska in only 29 seconds in dual action Dec. 18. He brings a 13-2 season record and a 54-17 career mark into competition this weekend.

At heavyweight, SDSU's A.J. Nevills ranks in a tie for seventh place with eight wins by fall. Nevills has recorded his eight pins against D-I opponents in 25 minutes and 38 seconds, adding to his total with a Jan. 22 pin against Wyoming's Mason Ding.

Nevills is poised to face Division I leader Wyatt Hendrickson of Air Force in dual action on Sunday. Hendrickson has recorded 11 wins by fall so far this season.

DUAL-MEET DOMINANCE: South Dakota State has dominated the upper two weights in dual meets over the last two seasons thanks to the contributions of 197-pounder Tanner Sloan and heavyweight A.J. Nevills.

Sloan, a senior from Alburnett, Iowa, is 20-1 in duals over the last two seasons. Since dropping his first dual match of the 2021-22 season to Michial Foy of Minnesota, Sloan has won 20 consecutive dual matchups.

For his career, Sloan has compiled a 44-4 dual record and has yet to drop a home match. He went a perfect 11-0 in duals during the COVID-shortened 2020-21 season after posting a 13-3 mark as a redshirt freshman.

Nevills, a graduate student from Clovis, California, has turned in a 24-3 dual record since joining the lineup at the start of the 2021-22 season as a transfer from Fresno State. Nevills went 14-3 in duals last season en route to a trip to nationals and is unbeaten so far this season at 10-0.

Sloan holds a 9-0 record in duals heading into the weekend.

SILVER MEDALISTS: Two members of the Jackrabbit wrestling team recently earned individual silver medals in international competition.

In August, incoming freshman Bennett Berge earned a silver medal in the 86-kilogram weight class at the 2022 U20 World Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria.

A native of Mantorville, Minnesota, and a member of the Pinnacle Wrestling Club, Berge posted a 4-1 record over two days of competition. He won his first three matches all by technical fall before recording a come-from-behind, 9-7 victory over Ismail Kucuksolak of Turkey in the semifinals. In the championship bout against Rakhim Magamadov of France, Berge lost a 10-5 decision.

Besides his runner-up finish in his weight class, Berge brought home another silver medal as Team USA placed second in the team standings behind Iran. Berge was one of four Americans to medal in the freestyle division.

At the prep level, Berge totaled 241 career victories, posting a 124-1 record over his final three seasons at Kasson-Mantorvile High School. He won five consecutive individual state titles at five different weight classes (138, 160, 170, 182, 195), capping his senior season with a 52-0 record.

In October, Tanner Sloan reached the finals of the 97-kilogram division at the U23 World Championships held in Pontevedra, Spain.

Sloan, a three-time NCAA qualifier at 197 pounds from Alburnett, Iowa, posted a 3-1 record in a two-day span. After winning his first three bouts, Sloan dropped a 5-3 decision to Amirali Azarpira of Iran in the gold medal match on Oct. 22.

Sloan previously competed at the 2019 UWW Junior World Championships in Tallinn, Estonia, after opening international competition by winning the gold medal at the UWW Pan American Championship in Guatemala City, Guatemala.

BIG 12 SUCCESS: Now in its eighth 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 40-20 record (.667 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 and turned in a 5-2 record last season.

The Jackrabbits also turned in back-to-back third-place efforts at the Big 12 Wrestling Championship in 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.

NEW FACILITY OPENS: South Dakota State marked the start of the calendar year by moving into a new home with the opening of the 16,000-square-foot Kurtenbach Family Wrestling Center.

The South Dakota Board of Regents approved plans for the project in December 2020 and ground was broken in September 2021 for the $4 million on-campus training facility, which is located 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 features four competition mats, plus a strength and conditioning area, locker rooms, team room, coaches' offices and spaces for academics and nutrition.

"This 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."

COACH HAHN: Damion Hahn is overseeing a successful rebuilding of South Dakota State University wrestling as he enters his fifth season at the helm of the Jackrabbits' program. Hahn has compiled a 42-28 career dual record and has coached four All-Americans and 14 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.

Highlighting the 2020-21 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, an award he would receive again the following year.

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

The Jackrabbits returned to the winning side of the ledger during the 2021-22 campaign and also cracked the national rankings as a team for the first time since early in Hahn's first season. SDSU compiled a 13-4 dual record that included a 21-12 victory at ninth-ranked Missouri, marking the program's first dual win over a top-10 opponent.

In postseason competition, SDSU placed sixth at the 2022 Big 12 Wrestling Championship and set four wrestlers on to the NCAA Championships in Detroit.

Hahn's teams also have performed well in the classroom, earning Top 30 Scholar Team All-America honors from the National Wrestling Coaches Association each of the past two seasons. The 2021-22 squad ranked seventh among Division I programs with a 3.465 grade-point average and six Jackrabbits were recognized individually as NWCA Scholar All-America honorees.

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 2022-23 South Dakota State wrestling roster is made up of 35 student-athletes from 11 different states from coast to coast. South Dakota and Minnesota have the most wrestlers with eight, while seven hail from Iowa. Three Jackrabbit wrestlers are from Ohio, with a pair from North Dakota and Wisconsin. Five states have produced one wrestler each: California, Illinois, New York, Pennsylvania and Washington.

By class, six are seniors, 11 are juniors and nine are redshirt freshmen. Eight wrestlers are incoming freshman, with one being a graduate student. There are no sophomores on this season's squad.

A LOOK AHEAD: The Jackrabbits will take a week off before closing out the home dual season by hosting the Oklahoma schools in Big 12 action. The Feb. 10 dual against Oklahoma State is slated for a 7 p.m. start at Frost Arena, while the Feb. 12 matchup against Oklahoma is slated for 1 p.m. The Feb. 12 dual also has been designated as Senior Day.

-GoJacks.com-