The gym was rocking from the very start as Grizzly redshirt freshman Arsenia Barksdale (Norfolk, Va.) extended his winning streak to 11 with a thrilling 7-6 decision over Mountaineer sophomore Eddie Lopez at 125 pounds. Barksdale, now 17-3 overall and a perfect 6-0 in duals, led 5-4 after a late second period takedown before Lopez tied the match with an escape early in the third. However, Barksdale scored his third takedown of the match to close out the victory.
The Mountaineers then took their only lead of the night as Daren Hockett pinned the Grizzlies' Kevin Schmitt (Arlington, Texas) at the 4-minute, 36-second mark of the 133-pound match, giving WSC a 6-3 lead.
The Grizzlies then won the next three matches, a run started by a 9-0 major decision win by Joey Deaguero over Chris Freije at 141 pounds. Deaguero scored a takedown and ensuing 2-point near fall late in the first period before adding another takedown and near fall while building a 9-0 lead after five minutes. Freije, a returning NCAA Division II National Qualifier, then chose the neutral position to begin the third period but could not do a thing as Deaguero snapped a 3-match slide while putting the Grizzlies up 7-6 with his team-best 24th win of the year.
Leading 4-3 through two periods of his 149-pound match, Noomis Jones (Arvada, Colo.) scored his third takedown while controlling Camille DuPont, a returning All-American, to claim a riding time advantage bonus point in his 8-4 decision that gave the Grizzlies a 10-6 lead. Jones has now won three straight improving to 14-10. DuPont fell to 17-11.
Mike Gallegos (Alamosa, Colo.), ranked fifth in the nation at 157 pounds, then claimed a 7-3 win over Neil Samples as the Grizzlies went up 13-6 at the intermission. Gallegos, now 14-2 overall and 3-1 in duals, led 2-1 after one period before scoring a reversal and near fall in an early second-period flurry He then held Samples down for much of the rest of the match recording nearly three minutes of riding time.
The Mountaineers got back into the dual at 165 pounds as Zach Lee claimed an 11-3 major decision over Grizzly junior Evan Copeland (Las Cruces, N.M.) in what was supposed to be the match of the night. Lee, now 21-5, led 3-1 after two periods before scoring a reversal and two takedowns in the third period alone. Copeland, now 23-8 after seeing his 12-match winning streak snapped, was hit with a second stalling call in the waning seconds, which combined with a riding time point, provided Lee and the Mountaineers with the bonus point.
The Grizzlies then started to salt the dual away as Reynolds wore down Nick Ross for a 15-4 major decision at 174 pounds. Reynolds, victorious for the fourth straight time, was unable to score a takedown in the first period but got up 5-1 through two stanzas before scoring three more takedowns and a 3-point tilt in the third. Now 19-11 overall and 6-1 in duals, Reynolds has won eight of his last nine matches.
Jared Deaguero started slow but erased an early 2-0 deficit in quick order, taking a 6-2 lead after the first period en-route to an 11-3 major decision win over Charlie Pipher at 184 pounds as the Grizzlies went up 21-10. Deaguero, ranked fifth in the nation, is now 11-4 overall and 6-1 in dual meets. Pipher fell to 19-9.
The Grizzlies then clinched victory at 197 pounds as Casey Woodall (Morenci, Ariz.) scored the bout's only takedown in a 2-1 win over Cody Mumma. Woodall, ranked first in the nation, has now won 10 straight matches while improving to 21-8. Mumma slipped to 16-9.
Lars Lueders then closed out the dual with a 9-4 decision over Grizzly redshirt freshman Jeff Schossow (Fort Morgan, Colo.) in the heavyweight match. Lueders led just 4-2 after two periods but got a takedown and WSC's only near fall at the final horn.
The Grizzlies, in sole possession of first place in the RMAC's dual meet standings for at least one day, are now off for a week before hosting 17th-ranked Chadron State next Thursday at 7 p.m. The Grizzlies will then close out the regular season on Saturday, Feb. 10 at top-ranked Nebraska-Kearney, which bested No. 3 Central Oklahoma, 24-9, on Thursday. The Lopers are currently 4-0 in RMAC dual meets and host New Mexico Highlands on Friday night with a chance to tie the Grizzlies once again atop the RMAC standings.
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