#5 UW-La Crosse 34, UW-Oshkosh 6
Oshkosh, Wis. - The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse wrestling team, ranked fifth in the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA), improved to 2-0 overall and 2-0 in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) with a 34-6 victory at UW-Oshkosh Tuesday night in Kolf Sports Center. The Titans drop to 1-1 overall and 1-1 in the WIAC.
It is UWL's 31st straight dual win over UW-Oshkosh. The Eagles now lead the all-time series, 41-11, with the Titans. UW-Oshkosh has not defeated UWL since the 1989-90 season.
UWL has won 21 of its last 22 conference duals overall.
Teams in the WIAC are competing in a dual-meet schedule until February 19. The WIAC Championship, originally scheduled to be hosted by UW-Oshkosh on February 13, has been canceled. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III Upper Midwest Regional scheduled for February 26-27 at UW-Eau Claire and the NCAA Division III Championships scheduled for March 12-13 at the La Crosse Center and hosted by UWL were canceled February 3. UWL will host one regular-season dual versus UW-Stevens Point February 19 in Mitchell Hall Fieldhouse.
"So proud of our guys as they continue to battle adversity and challenges daily," said UWL head coach
Dave Malecek. "They care for one another and they showed it tonight."
UWL won nine of the 10 matches in the dual Tuesday night. The Titans took a 6-0 lead as Beau Yineman won by fall (6:09) over the Eagles'
Isaac Lahr at 197-pounds. Lahr is ranked first on d3wrestle.com. UWL took the next five matches.
Konrad Ernst got the team on the board with a win by decision (2-1) over Jordan Lemcke at 285-pounds to cut UW-Oshkosh's lead to 6-3. Ernst is also ranked number one in NCAA Division III while Lemcke is ranked 10th on d3wrestle.com.
The Eagles took a 9-6 lead at 125-pounds with
Josh Stenger winning by fall (1:34) over Denis Murphy. Stenger is listed as a contender at 133 while Murphy is a contender at 125.
Sawyer Sarbacker won by decision (4-1) at 133-pounds to give UWL a 12-6 lead.
Tyler Shackle followed with a technical fall (18-2, 4:46) over UW-Oshkosh's Cade Schmitz at 141-pounds for a 17-6 lead.
Sam Wenzel, the WIAC Wrestler of the Week, gave UWL a 20-6 advantage with a win by decision (7-6) over Wesam Alabed at 149. Wenzel is a contender on d3wrestle.com.
UWL's
Nolan Hertel, ranked eighth, won by major decision (10-2) at 157-pounds to make it 24-6.
Grant Zamin followed with a win by decision (7-5) at 165-pounds for a 27-6 lead. Zamin is currently ranked second on d3wrestle.com.
Reed Williams gave UWL a 31-6 advantage with a major decision (11-0) over Devin Keast at 174-pounds.
Connor Williams ended the dual with a win by decision (10-8 in overtime) over Josh Te Stroete at 184. Williams is listed as a contender at 174-pounds on d3wrestle.com.
"Our guys are tough and won nine of the 10 matches against a good Oshkosh team," added Malecek. "They are eager to get to the next match as they want to continue to improve."
In the extra matches Tuesday, UWL won nine of 13 matches.
Tristan Jenny (125),
Leo Draveling (157) and
Nolan Paar (174) won by fall. Jenny is ranked sixth on d3wrestle.com. The Eagles'
Noah Leisgang (149),
Nick Fetzner (157) and
Tyler Zeman (165) won by technical fall.
Dawson Dembroski (157),
Kaleb O'Reilly (165) and
Kyle Plank (174) won by decision.
UWL returns to action Friday, February 12 with a pair of matches at UW-Whitewater. UWL faces UW-Whitewater at 3 p.m. and UW-Platteville at 5 p.m.
