HASTINGS, Neb. – The (RV) Northwestern College wrestling team (3-4, 1-2 GPAC) hit the mat for the first time in the new year, scoring a season-high 37 team points and walking away with a dominant 37-10 win over the Avila (Mo.) Eagles (2-6, 0-0 KCAC) behind four fall victories.
“The guys wrestled well. It was good to see them pull the trigger,” noted head coach Rik Dahl. “We left a lot of points on the mat, but that intensity and aggression was missed last semester.”
Case Cauthron (Fr., Spencer, Iowa/Spencer) starts the scoring outburst for the Raiders with a 12-10 decision over Avila’s Ethan Moses at 125 pounds.
“I was really proud of our freshman, Case Cauthron,” said Dahl. “Down 7-2 and a boat load of riding time, he kept coming! His four take downs in the third period lit a fire in our guys and they took it from there!”
The falls would begin in back-to-back fashion at 133 and 141, starting first with a Manny Jaramillo (Jr., Selma, Calif./Selma) fall over Luke Ward (2:47). Following Jaramillo, Trey Schuck (Fr., Sibley, Iowa/Sibley-Ocheyedan) would pick up the fastest Raider fall of the night at 32 seconds to give the Raiders the demanding 15-0 lead.
Leading 15-4, the Raiders hot streak would continue as Breckin Sperling (Fr., Lincoln, Neb./East) would pick up yet another Raider fall at 1:28 to extend the Raider lead to 21-4 at 157. At 165 pounds, Blake Pomajzl (Jr., Sedalia, Mo./Smith-Cotton) also joined the party immediately after Sperling, picking up the fourth and final Northwestern fall at 1:18 to give the Raiders a 27-4 advantage.
The Raiders would go on to win three of the final four matches of the dual, starting with an 8-2 decision by Jakob Francksen-Small (Fr., Merrill, Iowa/Le Mars Community) at 174. Luke Jenness (So., Primghar, Iowa/Sheldon) would dominate Avila’s Daryus Webb for a 12-2 major decision, as Northwestern extends their lead to 34-4. Jose Sanchez (Fr., San Diego, Calif.) would pick up the final Raider victory with an 8-4 decision, picking up the final two points in the final seconds of the third period.
Avila would pick up on two victories on the night, a fall (285) and a major decision (149) to get to their 10 team points.
Dahl concluded, “I’m looking forward to keeping this momentum going tomorrow!”
Up Next: The Raiders will remain in Hastings, Neb. for the Cusatis Open beginning Saturday at 9:00 a.m. inside Lynn Farrell Arena on the campus of Hastings College.
