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    Wartburg tops Augsburg in battle of Division III powers

    MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. –- Wartburg junior 133-pounder Jake Helvey said what his Knights teammates were thinking after the Orange and Black, ranked No. 2 in the country, toppled top-ranked Augsburg 19-13 in front of a capacity crowd at Si Melby Hall Thursday, Feb. 1.

    "I just wanted to stay in good position and out-fight my guy," he said in response to strategy used to upend top-ranked Jafari Vanier 5-0.

    For six of the 10 individual matches, Wartburg did just that. Head coach Jim Miller's squad, reaching 20 wins for the third consecutive season, scored upset wins at 125, as No.7-ranked Robert Struthers upended No. 3-ranked Seth Flodeen 6-2, Helvey turned the tables on Vanier, and sophomore 157-pounder Aaron Wernimont, ranked No. 4, stopped top-ranked Jeremy Anderson 4-2.

    Miller knew the importance of the win, but also understood what lies ahead.

    "It's a big momentum boost for us," he said. "It shows we're progessing which is what you want at this time of the season.

    "Hey, there's still a lot ahead of us," he added. "We know that (Augsburg) will come back strong in the national tournament. We just need to take what happened tonight and build off of it for our remaining schedule."

    Wartburg (20-1) trailed the Auggies (10-1) 13-9 after third-ranked 174-pounder Robbie Gotreau major decisioned Jason Zastrow 14-2. However, the talented trio of sophomore Romeo Djoumessi, junior 197-pounder T.J. Miller, and senior heavyweight Blake Gillis produced three consecutive wins, including a major from Gillis, to take the dual.

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