Garry Talbert

Men's Wrestling 1/6/2022 3:16:00 PM Turner Kirby, Athletic Communications Assistant

Wolves Upset Two Nationally Ranked Teams to Secure Semifinal Berth at NWCA National Duals

Will Face Top-Ranked Central Oklahoma Tomorrow for Spot in Finals

Louisville, Ky. - As the snow fell outside the Kentucky Expo Center, the Newberry Wrestling team continued their winning ways inside as they earned two wins over nationally ranked opponents in #3 McKendree and #14 Upper Iowa to send them into Friday's semifinal round at the NWCA National Duals in Louisville. This secures the Wolves best finish at the competition since placing as runner-up in the 2014 edition.

Round 1: Newberry 24 #3 McKendree 16

The Wolves began their run on Thursday morning as they faced the third-ranked McKendree Bearcats and the Wolves would show early on that they were not intimidated by the number in front of their opponent as Evan Carrigan got the match started at 125 with a 13-2 major decision over #1 Christian Mejia to give the Scarlet and Gray the early 4-0. However, the Bearcats would fight back and earn a technical fall at 133 in a bout that would set the back and forth nature that this match would hold and the Bearcats led 5-4. Newberry would strike back at 141 where Devan Moore would earn a 10-8 decision to take the lead back at 7-5 but McKendree would respond with a major decision at 149 to give them a 9-7 lead. The back and forth continued at 157 where Will Evans would earn a 29-10 technical fall to give Newberry the 12-9 lead but the Bearcats would answer right back at 165 with a major decision to give them the 13-12 lead. The teams traded decisions at 174 and 184, with Caleb Spears getting the decision for the Wolves at 174 over #6 Josh Jones, to make it 16-15 McKendree heading into the final two bouts. At 197, Kaleb Haven would land a decisive blow as he pinned McKendree's Max Rinklin to give the Wolves six crucial team points and a 21-16 lead heading into the last bout. Only needing to not get pinned to secure the upset, Devon Rice upset #2 Ian Kuehl to put an exclamation point on the morning session and give the Wolves the 24-16 win.

Quarterfinals: Newberry 25 #14 Upper Iowa 18

In the afternoon session, once again Evan Carrigan would set the tone against the Upper Iowa Peacocks at 125 as he pinned Philip Ihde less than halfway through the first period to give Newberry the early 6-0 lead. However, the Peacocks would respond back with a pin of their own at 133 to tie the match up two bouts in. That's when the Wolves would respond with three straight wins: Devan Moore with a decision at 141 over Conner Manderfeld, Josh Blatt with a dominant 12-1 major decision over #7 Eric Faught, and Will Evans with a first period pin of Chance Throndson to flip the score to 19-6. The Peacocks would not go quietly as they would earn a pin of their own at 165 to cut the Newberry lead to seven. Caleb Spears would respond right back and earn a 6-2 decision to give Newberry a little bit of breathing room and put the Peacocks in must-win situations for the rest of the match with 3 bouts left. Upper Iowa would earn a decision at 184 but Kaleb Haven would seal the match at 197 by wearing down Bodie Garnier and earning a 8-4 decision to give the Scarlet and Gray the three clinching points. The Peacocks would earn a decision at 285 but it was too little too late as Newberry would walk away with a 25-18 win.

When asked about his team's performance, Head Coach Deral Brown said, "Newberry Wrestling had an outstanding day. Our guys showed up with a purpose and that was to show the country that we are contenders for a national title this season."

The Wolves return to the Kentucky Expo Center tomorrow morning to compete in the semifinals of the NWCA National Duals against top-ranked Central Oklahoma. That match is scheduled to begin at 11 AM. Newberry will wrestle twice tomorrow regardless of the result in that match.

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Players Mentioned

Will Evans: Sophomore

Devan Moore: Sophomore

Devon Rice: 6' 0"; Sophomore

Caleb Spears: Senior

Josh Blatt: 5' 5"; Sophomore

Evan Carrigan: Freshman

Players Mentioned

Will Evans
: Sophomore

Devan Moore
: Sophomore

Devon Rice
: 6' 0"; Sophomore

Caleb Spears
: Senior

Josh Blatt
: 5' 5"; Sophomore

Evan Carrigan
: Freshman