Mitchell, S.D. – Dakota Wesleyan men's wrestling defeated Jamestown in their first and last home dual of the 2022-23 season, winning seven matches; including six in a row from Temuujin Natsagdorj, Zach Zitek, Aric Williams, Tyson Johnson, Kaleb Bigelow, and Trevion Sample.
How It Happened
The Tigers got off to a slow start in the 125 match as Will Farren fell to Elijah Barajas by tech fall, 15-0. Tempka put DWU on the board with five team points after a tech fall of his own 17-2. Zitek grabbed six team points for the Tigers after a pin at the seven-minute mark, putting the Tigers ahead of the Jimmies 11-5 overall. Williams added three more team points in the 149 match, grabbing a 5-2 decision win, adding three more team points for a 14-5 lead over UJ. Johnson made sure he kept the Tigers trend rolling with a major decision win 13-1 of his own giving DWU an 18-5 buffer after five matches. Bigelow grabbed the easiest six points of the night as the University of Jamestown forfeited the 165 match, putting DWU up even more at 24-5. Miller also put together a major decision win, 15-5 in the 174 class, setting the Tigers ahead by 25 points with three weight classes to go. Payton Planansky had a tough match against Trystan Rogers of UJ, giving up a major decision win, 10-1 and allowing the Jimmies to grab four team points. Colten Hink also had a tough match up against Jake Rau, giving up three team points after being defeated by decision 9-3. Sample put on a show in the 285 heavy weight class against Eli Noonan. It was a quick one though, as Sample ended the match with a fall after 3:32 giving the Tigers their final six team points and grabbing the dual win 34-12 over the Jimmies at home.
Mueller's Thoughts
"I'm extremely proud of our guys. The fight is always there with this group, and they have continued to improve all season. When you start seeing improvement on the little things, they begin to add up and turn into big wins. All 10 guys fought hard tonight; and it's always nice to get a win at home too!"
Up Next
Dakota Wesleyan men's wrestling is back in action tomorrow night on the road at 6 p.m. from Sioux City, Iowa. The Tigers will have another tough bout when they take the mat against the Mustangs of Morningside.
The Dual against Briar Cliff that was canceled back in December will not be rescheduled.
