THIS WEEK IN PEACOCK WRESTLING... No. 20 Upper Iowa will host the Northern State University Wolves to Dorman Memorial Gymnasium this Thursday, Jan. 7 for a 7 p.m. dual to start the 2020-21 season. The dual marks the first action for either program since the NCAA Division II Championships were cancelled in mid-March due to the pandemic. UIU is led by four nationally-ranked wrestlers, while NSU will look to upset the Peacocks behind their three nationally-ranked wrestlers.
NSIC PRESEASON COACHES' POLL… The Northern Sun Conference office released the 2020-21 Preseason Coaches' Poll and Upper Iowa was selected to finish second behind St. Cloud State University, the nine-time defending NSIC Champions. The Huskies were a unanimous choice to win the league with 81 points. Upper Iowa collected 68 points, while Augustana was third with 66 points. Minnesota State was fourth with 61 points and the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, which joined the NSIC this season as an associated member, ranked fifth with 45 points. Northern State was picked sixth in the poll with 36 points.
DUAL FORMAT… The Peacock-Wolves season-opening dual will have a different feel than normal this year. Because NSIC teams are limited to six duals, programs can host extra matches in conjunction with the varsity dual. On Thursday, UIU and NSU will compete in the official dual beginning at 7 p.m. After the completion of the dual (10 matches), the two teams are currently slated to compete in eight extra matches. While the starting weight for the dual is currently not set, the extra matches will begin with the lightest weight available.
LIVE OPTIONS… Because
attendance for the dual is by invitation only this Thursday, both Peacock and Wolves fans can follow the action through live scoring or a webcast online or stream the dual with the
new NSIC Network app on Roku and Fire devices, as well as Apple and Android televisions. The dual will also be broadcast live on KCRG-TV 9.3 across eastern Iowa.
TAKING A LOOK IN THE REARVIEW… UIU's wrestling team went 12-5 including a 5-3 mark in the Northern Sun Conference last season. Upper Iowa finished the regular season ranked No. 8 in the final NWCA Division II Poll and scored wins over No. 24 Gannon University, No. 18 Colorado School of Mines, No. 7 Tiffin University during the campaign. The Peacocks finished as the runner-up at the NCAA Super Region V Tournament in Sioux Falls, S.D. tallying 125.5 team points and sent five wrestlers to the NCAA Division II Championships, which were cancelled the day before competition due to the pandemic.
Nick Baumler (197) and
Triston Westerlund (285) both won regional title bouts to punch their ticket,
Justin Folley (133) finished second to advance, and
Chase Luensman (149) and
Dalton Hahn (184) were victorious in their third place matches to push UIU's national qualifier count to five. Four of the national qualifiers were tabbed as NWCA Division II All-Americans. Seniors
Justin Folley (133),
Nick Baumler (197) and
Triston Westerlund (285), as well as freshman
Chase Luensman (149) were named among the 100 All-Americans by the NWCA. Academically, the NWCA also released the 2020 Division II Scholar All-American Honorees. Twelve Upper Iowa wrestlers earned the honor among the 273 award winners across 50 NCAA Division II institutions. The dozen Peacocks were the third most in the nation; Maryville University claimed 16 places and Colorado School of Mines notched 14 spots on the academic list. Leading the way for Upper Iowa's 12 honorees were
Jamie Gehling and
Mac Spotts, who have earned a spot on the prestigious list for the fourth time.
PEACOCKS IN THE RANKINGS… Upper Iowa is ranked No. 20 in the country in the
2020-21 NCAA Division II Preseason Coaches Poll presented by the National Wrestling Coaches Association. The Peacocks also boast four individuals ranked in the top-12 of their respective weight classes including
Tate Murty (141),
Chase Luensman (157),
Myron Crawford (174) and
Dalton Hahn (184).
Murty is ranked No. 9 in the nation after putting together a solid 30-15 campaign in 2019-20. He racked up 20 bonus-point wins including 15 falls, a tech fall and four majors and placed __ at the NCAA Super Region V Championships.
Luensman registered an outstanding freshman season with the Peacocks posting a 30-9 record and earning an All-American honor. The returning sophomore is moving up a weight class to 157 pounds this season after his __-place finish at the NCAA Super Region V Championships. He is currently ranked No. 8 in the nation.
Crawford, who is nationally-ranked No. 12 at 174 pounds, came on late for the Peacocks and was just a win shy of a berth to the NCAA Championships in 2019-20. He placed fourth at the NCAA Super Region V Championships last season and closed the year with a 16-7 mark that included three falls and three major decisions.
Hahn is back for a fourth season in a Peacock singlet and opens the year ranked No. 8 at 184 pounds. Hahn registered a 27-7 mark last season and placed third at the NCAA Super Region V Championship to earn his second trip to the NCAA Division II Championships. Over his first three seasons, the Loganville, Wis. product has a record of 79-34 with 32 bonus-point wins including 18 falls, a tech fall and 13 major decisions.
UPPER IOWA PROBABLES WITH 2019-20 RESULTS…
NORTHERN STATE PROBABLES…
| 125 |
Michael Bigler |
Fr. |
Pacifica, Calif. |
| 125 |
Landen Fischer |
So. |
Rapid City, S.D. |
| 133 |
Ty Althoff |
Fr. |
Watertown, S.D. |
| 141 |
Kolton Roth |
Jr. |
Graettinger, Iowa |
| 141 |
Caleb Lazure |
Fr. |
Omaha, Neb. |
| 149 |
Wyatt Turnquist |
So. |
Winner, S.D. |
| 149 |
Adam DeBoer |
R-Fr. |
Bismarck, N.D. |
| 157 |
Caden Moore |
Jr. |
O'Neill, Neb. |
| 157 |
Chase Bloomquist |
Fr. |
Prior Lake, Minn. |
| 165 |
James Burks |
So. |
Omaha, Neb. |
| 165 |
Billy Holtan |
Sr. |
Kensal, N.D. |
| 174 |
Cole Huss |
So. |
Gretna, Neb. |
| 174 |
Tanner Wiese |
Jr. |
Forest Lake, Minn. |
| 184 |
Marcus Placide |
Sr. |
Minneapolis, Minn. |
| 184 |
Sam Stroup |
Fr. |
Watertown, S.D. |
| 197 |
Treyton Cacek |
Fr. |
Ruthven, Iowa |
| 197 |
Josh Trumble |
So. |
Springfield, Neb. |
| 285 |
Ali'i (Michael) Loyola |
Gr. |
Independence, Mo. |
LAST YEAR'S MEETING IN ABERDEEN… The No. 8 Peacock wrestling team moved to 4-0 in the Northern Sun Conference and 11-2 overall thanks to a 22-13 win over No. 17 Northern State University last January in Aberdeen, S.D. Upper Iowa won six of the ten matches in the dual including two with bonus points to earn the victory. The Wolves opened the dual with three straight wins at 165, 174 and 184 pounds to build a 10-0 lead. After No. 9 James Burks put together a 16-4 major decision at 165 pounds, Northern State edged Upper Iowa in slim decisions to gain an early advantage. Tanner Wiese got a takedown against
Dalton Nelson to post a 3-1 sudden victory at 174 pounds, and No. 11 Marcus Placide outlasted No. 10
Dalton Hahn for a 3-0 decision fueled by a penalty point, an escape and a ride time point. Trailing 10-0, the Peacocks got on a roll thanks to a major decision from No. 1
Nick Baumler. Baumler scored his 23rd win of the season with a 12-4 major decision over Diego Gallegos on the back of five takedowns for the West Union, Iowa native. One match later, the Peacocks had the score knotted at 10-10 after No. 12
Triston Westerlund posted a win by fall over Caleb Lefferdink just two minutes into the match (2:02). The Peacocks kept the momentum rolling with two more wins at 125 and 133.
Philip Ihde claimed a 5-3 decision behind a takedown in each of the first two periods. No. 4
Justin Folley registered an 8-2 decision over No. 5 Dayne Morton in a matchup of two of the nation's best. Folley took advantage of a second-period takedown and a four-point nearfall in the third. After the four straight victories, the Peacocks held a 16-10 lead with three bouts to go. Northern State pulled within three thanks to a 10-3 win by Kenny Jones over
Tate Murty at 141 pounds. Freshman
Chase Luensman got Upper Iowa back into the win column thanks to a 10-6 win over No. 8 Caden Moore. A pair of takedowns in the first period and two more in the third period fueled Luensman's third win over nationally-ranked foes in the last six duals for the Peacocks.
Mac Spotts toed the line for UIU in the night's final match at 157. Spotts notched a 6-2 decision highlighted by a takedown in the opening frame and two reversals in the final period.
UP NEXT… The Peacocks will take on the No. 25 Dragons of Minnesota State University Moorhead in Moorhead, Minn. next Thursday, Jan. 14. Upper Iowa will return home to Fayette for a dual against the No. 13 Mavericks of Minnesota State University, Mankato on Thursday, Jan. 21 at 7 p.m.
