Fort Wayne, Ind. - The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse wrestling team placed fifth at the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Multi-Divisional National Duals Saturday afternoon at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. The Eagles, ranked sixth in the NWCA and now 12-3 on the season, opened Saturday's competition with a 29-12 victory over eighth-ranked Coe College (Iowa). UW-L then earned a 19-18 win over 10th-ranked Augsburg College (Minn.) in the fifth-place match. The dual with the Auggies finished in a 18-18 tie, but the Eagles were awarded one team point for winning six of the 10 duals matches.
"Great team effort today with some highs and lows, but we were consistent with our fight and aggressiveness in all of the matches," said UW-L head coach
Dave Malecek. "Not one guy stood out, but a bunch of guys fought together as a team and that's what we need to be successful."
In its 29-12 victory over Coe (Iowa), UW-L took six of 10 matches, including three by fall. The Kohawks took a 3-0 lead at 125-pounds as Jan Rosenburg won by decision (6-5) over the Eagles'
Ryan Weinmann.
Dustin Weinmann came back for UW-L at 133 to tie the dual as he won by decision (13-9) over Coe's Mike Gussarson. Coe (Iowa) retook the lead at 6-3 after Luke Kremer won by decision (6-2) over
Austin Schoen at 141-pounds.
Kasey Einerson and
Derek Weinmann gave UW-L a 15-6 lead recording back-to-back wins by fall. Einerson, ranked fourth in the NWCA at 149-pounds, won by fall (6:32) over Josh Donkle while Weinmann defeated Brody Beck by fall (1:42) at 157.
Coe (Iowa) took the next two matches to cut UW-L's lead to 15-12. Second-ranked Farai Sewera won by decision (6-3) over UW-L's
Tyler Schneider at 165-pounds and fourth-ranked Ryan Harrington won by decision (5-1) over
Sean O'Neil at 174.
In match-up of top-six ranked wrestlers at 184-pounds, UW-L's fifth-ranked
Richard Carlson won by decision (2-0) over Coe's (Iowa) sixth-ranked Ryan Sheldon to give the Eagles a 18-12 advantage.
The Eagles'
Zach Tooley made it 23-12 as he won by technical fall (17-2) over the Kohawks' Donnie Horner at 197-pounds. Horner is ranked ninth in the NWCA. UW-L's
Cody Endres ended the dual with a win by fall (6:42) over Creighton Fox at 285 for the 29-12 final score.
Against Augsburg (Minn.), the Auggies took a 6-0 lead with a pair of wins by decision to start the dual. Top-ranked Mike Fuenffinger won by decision (8-5) over
Ryan Weinmann at 125-pounds while Chad Bartschenfeld won by decision (8-6) over
Dustin Weinmann.
UW-L came back with four straight victories by decision to lead 12-6. Schoen defeated Marcus Harner (4-2) at 141; fourth-ranked Einerson won by decisioin (10-8) over ninth-ranked Will Keeter at 149;
Derek Weinmann defeated Grant Parker (7-2) at 157 and Schneider won by decision (10-4) over Kurt Knutsen at 165.
Augsburg (Minn.) tied the match at 12-12 after Eirc Hensen won by fall (1:55) over O'Neil at 174-pounds. Carlson, ranked fifth at 184, gave UW-L a 15-12 lead with a win by decision (5-4) over Tom Teigen.
The 197-pound match featured a pair of ranked wrestlers as the Eagles'
Eric Twohey, ranked sixth, gave UW-L a 18-12 lead with a win by decision (6-0) over eighth-ranked Matthew Hechsel. The Auggies tied the dual at 18-18 after seventh-ranked Donald Longendyke won by fall (1:35) over Tooley at 285-pounds.
UW-L returns to action Friday, January 16 at UW-Oshkosh at 7 p.m.
