LINCOLN, Neb. (Nov. 17, 2017) – The 20th-ranked Wyoming Cowboys fell to No. 15 Nebraska at the Bob Devaney Sports Center in Lincoln, Neb., on Friday night. In its first dual of the season, UW was able to make noise early but the Huskers pulled away for the 25-10 victory.
“I thought we started well tonight, especially with two redshirt freshmen competing right away,” Cowboy head coach Mark Branch said. “We should have won the first three matches, which would have been big for us. We had a number of positives, and our guys were wrestling hard. But for these types of duals it’s tough to be competitive when you give up bonus-point wins. We can’t get turned multiple times and need to show a little more fight.”
Redshirt freshman Montorie Bridges and seniors Bryce Meredith and Kyle Pope earned wins in their respective matches for the Brown and Gold, but the Huskers won six of the last seven matches, including three bonus-point wins to seal the victory.
Starting at 125 pounds on Friday night, redshirt freshman Trent Olson competed in his first dual as a Cowboy. Nebraska’s Kris Williams scored first with a takedown in the opening period, but Olson cut the lead in half with an escape before time ran out. It wasn’t until the final period when most of the action started as Olson earned an escape and reversal. Williams ultimately picked up the 9-4 decision.
Redshirt freshman Montorie Bridges made a statement with an 11-5 decision over Brian Peska. Three immediate takedowns from Bridges set the tone early in the contest. He would then add a takedown in the second period and ultimately cruised to what was his first dual win while wearing the Brown and Gold.
In the top matchup in all of NCAA wrestling on Friday night, No. 3 Bryce Meredith took on No. 8 Chad Red at 141 pounds. Meredith scored a takedown early and then an escape at the beginning of the second period for a 3-0 advantage. The experienced senior added to his lead with another takedown at the end of the middle period. Staying aggressive in the final frame, Meredith tacked on one more takedown before eventually earning the first victory (10-5 decision) of his season.
“I thought Trent (Olson) was strong and did well early on. He knows that third period could have been better and was the difference maker. With experience he’ll learn from that. Montorie (Bridges) came out and didn’t let the first match affect him. For him and Bryce (Meredith), its great to see them succeed early in the season, but I do want to see them finish stronger. I thought they both could have capitalized tonight with bonus-point wins.”
Redshirt freshman Sam Turner came out strong in his first dual for Wyoming. Turner took on sixth-ranked Colton McCrystal and closed the first period scoreless. McCrystal scored two takedowns in the second period, only to be followed by two escapes from Turner. Turner earned one final escape in the final frame but McCrystal came out on top, 7-3.
No. 17 Archie Colgan faced No. 4 Tyler Berger at 157 pounds and they didn’t disappoint. Colgan took to scoring first with a takedown in the opening frame. Berger followed with a takedown of his own and the two then went into the second period tied at three. Berger picked up an escape before moving to the third up, 4-3. Colgan tied it at four with an escape but riding time for Berger gave him the win, 5-4.
At 165 pounds, No. 12 Branson Ashworth faced No. 16 Isaiah White for another highly anticipated match. A takedown and four-point nearfall in the first period gave White the early advantage. With two escapes already, Ashworth would score himself a takedown in the third period and then add a riding time point. He ultimately dropped his first match of the season, falling to White, 7-5.
At 174 pounds, senior Kyle Pope came out all fired up for the Pokes. Four takedowns in the opening period, and two in the second to further his lead helped him solidify the first dual win of his senior season. He picked up the 15-6 major over Eric Engler for Wyoming and cut Nebraska’s lead to two, 12-10 with three matches left.
“Sam (Turner) had a tough matchup but he definitely battled tonight,” Branch mentioned. “I thought Archie (Colgan) did well early on, and then was maybe too deep in his shot and was unable to finish. I know he’ll correct that. Branson (Ashworth) got caught in a wild first period. He was in control after that, but simply waited a little too long to put points on the board. Kyle (Pope) came out and took charge, which was great to see. One of our positives, he looked very sharp tonight.”
At 184 pounds, Chaz Polson was able to score two escapes in the first period against Nebraska’s Taylor Venz, but the senior didn’t have much luck after that. Venz picked up the tech fall 18-2 to move Nebraska’s lead to 17-10 before the 197 pounds match.
Sophomore Cody Vigoren took to the mat for the first time this season against Eric Schultz at 197 pounds. Vigoren gave up an early takedown and another in the second period to fall behind 1-5 after two periods. Two escapes in the final period put Vigoren in position to score, but Schultz held on for a 7-3 decision.
At 285 pounds redshirt freshman Hunter Mullins took on David Jensen for the final match of the night. A takedown and four-point nearfall for Jensen put Mullins in an early hole after the first period. Another four-point nearfall further distanced the two, but Mullins scored a reversal for his first match points. Jensen would go on and take a 17-2 tech fall over Mullins to complete the dual.
The weekend continues on the road for the Pokes, as they take to the UNK Holiday Inn Open tomorrow. The tournament is set to begin at 8 a.m. MT from the Buffalo County Fairgrounds in Kearney, Neb.
Match-By-Match Results
125: Kris Williams dec. Trent Olson, 9-4 | NEB 3, UW 0
133: Montorie Bridges dec. Brian Peska, 11-5 | NEB 3, UW 3
141: Bryce Meredith dec. Chad Red Jr., 10-5 | UW 6, NEB 3
149: No. 6 Colton McCrystal dec. Sam Turner, 7-3 | UW 6, NEB 6
157: No. 4 Tyler Berger dec. No. 17 Archie Colgan, 5-4 | NEB 9, UW 6
165: No. 16 Isaiah White dec. No. 12 Branson Ashworth, 7-5 | NEB 12, UW 6
174: Kyle Pope major Eric Engler, 15-6 | NEB 12, UW 12
184: Taylor Venz tech. fall Chaz Polson, 18-2 (5:29) | NEB 17, UW 10
197: Eric Shcultz dec. Cody Vigoren, 7-3 | NEB 20, UW 10
285: David Jensen tech. fall Hunter Mullins, 17-2 (7:00) | NEB 25, UW 10