Central was out to a 12-0 lead before any matches even took place, courtesy of two Storm forfeits. Jahleel Vester (freshman, Oak Harbor, Wash.) found himself down two points at 141 pounds before turning Simpson’s Devan Berrian and earning a fall at 3:37.
Mike O’Connor (sophomore, Lockport, Ill., St. Rita HS) was in an even more precarious position at 157 pounds. Down 7-0 at the start of the third period, O’Connor made the choice to start on top. Sixteen seconds later his decision paid off by pinning Jake Mize, earning his team-leading 11th fall of the season.
“Both of those are younger guys who exemplify the heart and determination of our team,” coach Eric Van Kley said. “One was down by two and the other was done by seven and they both believed that the match wasn’t over. They kept battling and not only got wins, but got pins. That really set the tempo for the night and got a lot of momentum behind us.”
Simpson earned victories at 165 and 175 pounds to close the gap to 27-9 before Tyler Lowy (senior, Phoenix, Ariz.) and Matt Seabold (sophomore, Burlington) slammed the door shut on the Storm. Lowy fought for a technical fall and Seabold used a late flurry to take a major decision. The nine-point swing ended any thoughts of a Simpson comeback.
“It was good to see them open it and score a ton of points. It was a great way for Lowy to wrap up his dual career with a tech fall on the road. Seabold did a nice job of breaking the match open at 197. It was a 4-2 match at the start of third period before he finished it out with a major decision. Those are the bonus points that we’re looking for.”
Central’s victory over the storm is the seventh-straight in the rivalry for the Dutch. The match also marked the end of the Iowa Conference dual season.
Pending the results of tomorrow night’s dual between Loras and Wartburg, Central will likely finish in a three-way tie with Loras and Dubuque for fourth place. A fourth-place finish would be the highest finish for the Dutch since a third-place finish in 1995.
A contingent of Dutch wrestlers will wrestle at the Jim Fox Invitational in Dubuque on Saturday in the final action of the regular season. The Dutch will then be off from competition for two weeks in advance of the NCAA Division III Central Regional in Dubuque on February 27 and 28.
Results:
125— #7 Daniel Page (CEN) won by forfeit (CEN, 6-0)
133—Aaron Anderson (CEN) won by forfeit (CEN, 12-0)
141— Jahleel Vester (CEN) won by fall over Devan Berrian, 3:37 (CEN, 18-0)
149—Ryan Vandall (CEN) won by decision over Jonathan Melton, 3-2 (CEN, 21-0)
157—Mike O’Connor (CEN) won by fall over Jake Mize, 5:16 (CEN, 27-0)
165—Bryce Wignall (SIM)) won by fall over Cory McCleary, 5:32 (CEN, 27-6)
174—Brett Roberts (SIM) won by decision over Sam Apland, 12-5 (CEN, 27-9)
184— Tyler Lowy (CEN) won by technical fall over Spencer Ward, 18-2 (6:40) (CEN, 32-9)
197— #10 Matt Seabold (CEN) won by major decision over Ethan Calvert, 15-6 (CEN, 36-9)
285— Colby Vileger (SIM) won by decision over Jay Pike, 3-2 (CEN, 36-12)
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