SDSU HOSTS DAKOTA SHOWCASE, DAKTRONICS OPEN

Friday, November 17

Brookings, S.D.

5 p.m.

South Dakota State University

Dakota Wesleyan

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Cade DeVos Action Photo vs Oklahoma State 2023-02

Photo by: Dave Eggen/Inertia

11/16/2023 6:23:00 PM | Wrestling

DUALS 1-3: #12 South Dakota State (0-0) hosts Dakota Showcase

When	Friday, Nov. 17 \| 5 p.m. Central (see schedule below)
Where	Frost Arena \| Brookings, South Dakota \| ORDER TICKETS
TV	Mat 1 \| Mat 2 (free broadcast)
Live Results	GoJacksLive.com
Match Notes	See Below
Social Media	Twitter \| Facebook \| Instagram \| #GetJacked

South Dakota State hosts Daktronics Open

When	Sunday, Nov. 19 \| 10 a.m. Central \| ORDER TICKETS
Where	Frost Arena \| Brookings, South Dakota
TV	FloWrestling.org (subscription)
Live Results	FloWrestling.org
Match Notes	See Below
Social Media	Twitter \| Facebook \| Instagram \| #GetJacked

The South Dakota State wrestling team opens the home portion of its schedule this weekend with a pair of multi-team home events at Frost Arena.

Friday, the Jackrabbits kick off the dual season by hosting the four-team Dakota Showcase. Action across two mats begins at 5 p.m. and will feature SDSU and the three other in-state college wrestling programs from Augustana, Dakota Wesleyan and Northern State competing in a round-robin format.

The Dakota Showcase schedule is as follows:
5 p.m. Matches
• Augustana vs. Northern State – Mat 1
• Dakota Wesleyan vs. South Dakota State – Mat 2
6:30 p.m. Matches
• Northern State vs. South Dakota State – Mat 1
• Dakota Wesleyan vs. Augustana – Mat 2
8 p.m. Matches
• Augustana vs. South Dakota State – Mat 1
• Dakota Wesleyan vs. Northern State – Mat 2

On Sunday, the scene shifts to tournament competition in the form of the Daktronics Open. Wrestlers from SDSU, North Dakota State, Minnesota, Northern Iowa and the University of Sioux Falls are entered in the day-long event, which begins at 10 a.m.

THE LINEUP: Following are the Jackrabbits' probable starters for the Dakota Showcase:
125:     #26 Tanner Jordan, Sr., St. Paris, Ohio (3-0 overall)
or        Brandon Meredith, Sr., Limerick, Pa. (1-2 overall)
133:     Derrick Cardinal, So., Forest Lake, Minn. (3-1 overall)
141:     #6 Clay Carlson, Sr., Willmar, Minn. (0-0 overall)
or         Caleb Gross, Sr., Pound, Wis. (2-1 overall)
149:     Daniel Kimball, Sr., Buckingham, Iowa (3-1 overall)
or         Colin Dupill, Fr., Greeneville, Tenn. (0-0 overall)
157:     #13 Cael Swensen, So., Plymouth, Minn. (0-0 overall)
or         Ryan Dolezal, R-Fr., Marshfield, Wis. (1-2 overall)
165:     Brock Fettig, R-Fr., Bismarck, N.D. (2-2 overall)
or         Connor Gaynor, So., Mokena, Ill. (0-0 overall)
174:     #8 Cade DeVos, Sr., Altoona, Iowa (0-0 overall)
or         Riggin Boger, Fr., Francis, Utah (1-2 overall)
184:     Jaxon Bowes, R-Fr., Brookings, S.D. (1-3 overall)
or         Kalen Meyer, So., Rock Rapids, Iowa (0-0 overall)
197:     #2 Tanner Sloan, Sr., Alburnett, Iowa (0-0 overall)
or        Cody Donnelly, So., Philip, S.D. (1-2 overall)
or        Thomas Dineen, Fr., Hancock, Minn. (0-2 overall)
285:     Bowen McConville, Sr., Renton, Wash. (2-1 overall)
or        Luke Rasmussen, R-Fr., Brookings, S.D. (0-0 overall)
or        Regan Bollweg, So., Harrold, S.D. (0-3 overall)
Notes: Rankings are highest between InterMat and FloWrestling rankings from Nov. 14, 2023; records through competition Nov. 11, 2023.

Additional Jackrabbit wrestlers will be competing Sunday in the Daktronics Open.

BISON OPEN RECAP: Tanner Jordan won the 125-pound title and Bowen McConville added a runner-up finish in the heavyweight division to lead the South Dakota State wrestling team at the season-opening Bison Open Saturday at Scheels Center.

Jordan, a returning national qualifier and senior from St. Paris, Ohio, swept through his weight class with a 3-0 record. Wrestling in a round-robin format, Jordan opened the day with a 15-0 technical fall victory over Brandon Morvari of Minnesota. He then scored a 6-3 sudden victory over North Dakota State's Carlos Negrete in Round 2 before closing out the afternoon with an 11-0 major decision over teammate and third-place finisher Brandon Meredith.

A senior from Renton, Washington, McConville advanced to the championship of the heavyweight division after winning both of his pool matches. Also competing McConville defeated Devon Dawson of North Dakota State, 4-1, then scored a 14-5 major decision over teammate Regan Bollweg. That set up a title match against Minnesota's Bennett Tabor, who tallied a 4-0 decision over McConville.

Fellow Jackrabbit Kail Wynia took third with a 2-1 record that included a 4-1 sudden victory over Dawson in the third-place bout.

Recording third-place finish in the lower weights were sophomore 133-pounder Derrick Cardinal and senior 141-pounder Caleb Gross. Cardinal turned in a 3-1 record on the day with his wins by major decision, technical fall and fall. His lone loss was to champion Tyler Wells by technical fall in the semifinals.

Gross posted a 2-1 mark on the day, winning by fall in the first period against Thomas Moralez of North Dakota State, while dropping a 4-1 decision to Minnesota's Vance Vombaur in pool competition. Gross later tallied an 8-0 major decision over freshman teammate Parker Janssen in the third-place matchup.

At 149 pounds, Daniel Kimball added a third-place finish with a 3-1 record on the day. After dropping a 7-5 decision to Minnesota's Drew Roberts in the semifinals, Kimball notched wins of 8-1 over a pair of NDSU wrestlers in Clay Radenz and Tanner Gerber by respective scores of 8-1 and 11-1. He opened the day with a 7-1 decision over the Bison's Pedro Velazquez.

Returning Jackrabbit wrestlers entered in the tournament competed unattached.

RABBITS RANKED: South Dakota State began the 2023-24 season with its highest preseason ranking ever in the NWCA Division I Wrestling Coaches Poll, checking in at No. 12 in the survey, which was announced Oct. 31.

The Jackrabbits also tied their highest-ever ranking in the national poll. SDSU was previously ranked 12th for five weeks during the 2017-18 season.

SDSU, coached by Damion Hahn, was one of six Big 12 Conference teams to be ranked in the top 25. Missouri was ranked fourth, followed by Iowa State in 10th and Oklahoma State at No. 11. Also ranked were Northern Iowa at No. 17 and Oklahoma, which is tied for 20th. Defending national champion Penn State was a unanimous pick for the top spot in the poll.

Beside Missouri (Feb. 18), Oklahoma State (Feb. 10) and Oklahoma (Feb. 9), the Jackrabbits are scheduled to face at least three other teams in the preseason poll — all from the Big Ten Conference — in dual action this season. SDSU is slated to travel to 14th-ranked Minnesota on Nov. 26, followed by a Dec. 16 trip to ninth-ranked Nebraska. A Jan. 4 date against Michigan at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls further highlights the schedule.

The Jackrabbits have maintained their No. 12 ranking so far this season and seven Jackrabbit wrestlers appear in this week's individual rankings conducted by FloWrestling and InterMat:

125: Tanner Jordan (26^th by InterMat/32^nd by FloWrestling)
141: Clay Carlson (6^th by FloWrestling/6^th by InterMat)
157: Cael Swensen (13^th by InterMat/14^th by FloWrestling)
165: Tanner Cook (14^th by FloWrestling/20^th by InterMat)
174: Cade DeVos (8^th by InterMat/10^th by FloWrestling)
184: Bennett Berge (15^th by InterMat/17^th by FloWrestling)
197: Tanner Sloan (2^nd by FloWrestling/3^rd by InterMat)

CARLSON, SLOAN SELECTED FOR ALL-STAR CLASSIC: Returning All-Americans Clay Carlson and Tanner Sloan have been selected to represent the South Dakota State University wrestling team at the 2023 NWCA All-Star Classic, presented by Cliff Keen, next week.

The exhibition event is scheduled for 7 p.m. Eastern Time (6 p.m. Central) on Tuesday, Nov. 21 at Rec Hall on the campus of Penn State University and will feature matchups in all 10 collegiate weight classes in the men's division, as well as four cross-divisional women's freestyle matches. The event will be available for viewing through FloWrestling.org.

Carlson, a two-time All-American at 141 pounds, is slated to face Lachlan McNeil of North Carolina. A native of Willmar, Minnesota, Carlson placed fifth at 141 pounds at the 2023 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, finishing the season with a 27-10 record. McNeil recorded a fourth-place finish at the national tournament in posting a 27-9 overall record.

Sloan, the 2023 national runner-up at 197 pounds, is scheduled to square off against Aaron Brooks of Penn State. The Alburnett, Iowa, native compiled a 27-3 record in advancing to the national championship bout, while Brooks is a three-time NCAA champion at 184 pounds who is expected to move up a weight class this 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, 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 sixth season at the helm of the Jackrabbits' program. Hahn has compiled a 45-30 career dual record and has coached four All-Americans and 22 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 sent four wrestlers on to the NCAA Championships in Detroit.

The 2022-23 season included a 10-dual winning streak en route to a 12-4 record. The Jackrabbits also were strong in tournament settings, placing third at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational in December and posting a sixth-place finish at the Big 12 Wrestling Championship. SDSU went on to send a program-record eight wrestlers to the NCAA Championships, coming away with a 14^th-place finish and two All-Americans — Clay Carlson, who placed fifth at 141 pounds and 197-pound runner-up Tanner Sloan.

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 three 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.

A LOOK AHEAD: The Jackrabbits resume dual competition with a Nov. 28 matchup at nationally ranked Minnesota. The Sunday matinee is set for a noon start at the Maturi Pavilion on the University of Minnesota campus in Minneapolis.

-GoJacks.com-