The No. 6 Peacock wrestling team claimed a tight 20-19 victory in their Northern Sun Conference opener against Minot State University on Friday evening. Both teams won five matches on the night, but the Peacocks notched an extra bonus-point win to come out on top and improve to 1-0 on the season. Minot State falls to 1-1 with the loss.
The dual opened at 125 pounds with UIU's Jared Hensley lining up against Dean Arevalo (No. 11) in a match that ended in favor of Arevalo, 17-5.
Justin Folley (No. 4) tied things up at 4-all with a 14-3 major decision over Oscar Nellis. The senior tallied six takedowns including three in the first period to control the match early and cruise through the second and third legs for the Peacocks' first win of the night.
In the next match, Marco Ramirezlazos was able to come from behind to edge Connor Manderfeld 5-4 at 141 pounds. Manderfeld led 4-2 midway through the third period but Ramirezlazos tied the match with an escape and late stalling penalty before coming away with the win thanks to the riding time advantage.
At 149 pounds, Shadi Mitwalli gave Minot State a second-straight victory thanks to a takedown and near fall late in the third that broke a 4-4 tie and ended the match by decision, 10-4.
Mac Spotts got UIU back on track with a 10-3 decision over Zachary Berry in the following match. Berry started the scoring with an early takedown but Spotts responded with a reversal and six near fall points to capture an 8-2 lead going into the second period. The wrestlers each traded a point in the second, and Spotts held on in the final two minutes to cut the Peacocks' deficit to 10-7.
Nathan Baca then recorded the first pin of the night against Brock Benitz (No. 4) in the 165-pound match to extend the Beavers lead to 16-7. Benitz controlled the first period with a pair of takedowns and later pushed his lead to 6-4. Baca then managed to tie the score with a reversal in the third period, which sent the match into overtime where Baca set up a quick takedown that resulted in a fall.
Dalton Nelson ignited the Upper Iowa rally at 184 pounds with a 7-4 decision over Joey Lopez. The Peacock got ahead 6-0 in the first stanza and outlasted a late rally by Lopez for the win.
Dalton Hahn (No. 11) tied the dual at 16-16 in the following match thanks to a much-needed pin over Dustin Swisher in just over four minutes. Hahn dominated the match from the get-go with an impressive five takedowns in the first period. He then moved the score to 19-5 with a penalty point, two more takedowns and a four-point near fall prior to ending the match via fall.
In what ended up being the deciding match of the night, Nick Baumler (No. 1) defeated Matthew Rabe 17-5 to give the Peacocks the four points they needed to eventually win the dual. Baumler recorded seven takedowns to fuel the win.
Triston Westerlund suffered a loss to Jordan Will (No. 10) in the final bout of the night, but managed to keep the margin to just three points, 4-1, to limit Will to a decision in his first match of the season, which preserved UIU's lead for the victory.
The Peacocks will be back in action on Saturday afternoon against the University of Mary Marauders. The dual is slated for a 2 p.m. start time in Bismarck, N.D.
No. 6 Upper Iowa 20 - Minot State 19
125: Dean Arevalo (MiSU) over Jared Hensley (UIU) (MD 17-5)
133: Justin Folley (UIU) over Oscar Nellis (MiSU) (MD 14-3)
141: Marco Ramirezlazos (MiSU) over Connor Manderfeld (UIU) (Dec 5-4)
149: Shadi Mitwalli (MiSU) over Tate Murty (UIU) (Dec 10-4)
157: Mac Spotts (UIU) over Zachary Berry (MiSU) (Dec 10-3)
165: Nathan Baca (MiSU) over Brock Benitz (UIU) (Fall 7:00)
174: Dalton Nelson (UIU) over Joseph Lopez (MiSU) (Dec 7-4)
184: Dalton Hahn (UIU) over Matthew Rabe (MiSU) (Fall 4:09)
197: Nick Baumler (UIU) over Dustin Swisher (MiSU) (MD 17-5)
285: Jordan Will (MiSU) over Triston Westerlund (UIU) (Dec 4-1)
