CHICAGO, Ill. – The Saint John’s wrestling team recorded 11 pins to go 2-1 at the Chicago Duals on Saturday, Jan. 3.
The Johnnies sandwiched a 38-18 loss to No. 2 Wabash (Ind.) with wins against Dubuque (30-21) and Manchester (27-18). Eleven of SJU’s 14 wins on the day were via pin.
Down 21-6 through six matches to Dubuque (Iowa), SJU (3-8 dual record) battled back with four pins, including three in the first period, to earn the 30-21 win. The win avenged a 24-18 loss to the Spartans at last year’s Chicago Duals.
Eight of the 10 matches against second-ranked Wabash were decided by a pin. The Little Giants built a 38-6 lead before senior Ryan Michaelis (Monticello, Minn.) and sophomore Colin Fisher (Eagan, Minn.) tallied pins at 197 pounds and heavyweight, respectively.
Back-to-back pins gave Manchester an 18-12 lead before a pair of freshmen, Nick Hoff (Rushford, Minn./Rushford-Peterson) and Nick Pegelow (Eagan, Minn./Eastview), recorded pins for SJU at 184 and 197, respectively. Fisher wrapped up the victory with a 2-1 decision. He posted a 3-0 record on the day and is now 5-0 this season.
A two-time national entrant who is ranked as high as ninth nationally at 197 pounds by D3wrestle.com, Michaelis registered two more pins on the day and is now 4-0 this season (a major decision and three pins). The return to the mat by both Fisher and Michaelis was delayed due to SJU football’s postseason run. Michaelis appeared in all 12 games for the Johnnies and tallied 19 tackles (11 solo), including 3.5 tackles for a loss, 2.5 sacks and three fumble recoveries at defensive end, while Fisher was a backup offensive lineman.
Junior Ben Henle (Spicer, Minn./New London-Spicer) ran his win streak to 11 with three more wins on the day at 141 pounds. He is ranked seventh nationally by D3wrestle.com and is 17-4 on the year, with all four losses against Division I or Division II student-athletes.
The Johnnies travel further east for the NWCA/Cliff Keen Division III National Duals next Friday and Saturday, Jan. 9-10, in Fort Wayne, Ind. SJU’s first-round opponent, as well as the rest of the 16-team bracket, will be released early this week.
Saint John’s (SJU) 30, Dubuque (UD) 21
125: Joey Cisneros (UD) pinned Ben Kollaja, 2nd per. [0-6]
133: Nick Rivera (UD) major dec. Evan Guffey, 11-2 [0-10]
141: Ben Henle (No. 7, SJU) pinned Stephen Rosenburg, 1st per. [6-10]
149: Kody Krenz (UD) tech. fall Jesse Rogers, 17-2 [6-15]
157: Adrian Collier (UD) dec. Brian McCann, 5-4 [6-18]
165: Manny Mendoza (UD) dec. Ochirbat Bayanjargal, 4-1 [6-21]
174: Teddy Erickson (SJU) pinned Elton Turnage-Manuel, 1st per. [12-21]
184: Aaron Baker (SJU) pinned Joseph Shue, 1st per. [18-21]
197: Ryan Michaelis (No. 9, SJU) pinned Nathan Cristion, 1st per. [24-21]
285: Colin Fisher (SJU) pinned Dan Howell, 3rd per. [30-21]
No. 2 Wabash (WAB) 38, Saint John’s (SJU) 18
125: A.J. Belden (WAB) pinned John Wells, 2:47 [0-6]
133: Chandler Moore (WAB) pinned Evan Guffey, 5:50 [0-12]
141: Ben Henle (No. 7, SJU) pinned Michael Venezia, 6:28 [6-12]
149: Nick Bova (WAB) pinned Jesse Rogers, 1:24 [6-18]
157: Reece Lefever (No. 4/5, WAB) pinned Branden Schorr, 1:34 [6-24]
165: Chanc Ravish (WAB) pinned Ochirbat Bayanjargal, 3:17 [6-30]
174: Conner Lefever (No. 2, WAB) major dec. Teddy Erickson, 12-3 [6-34]
184: Riley Lefever (No. 1, WAB) major dec. Robert Tait, 17-3 [6-38]
197: Ryan Michaelis (No. 9, SJU) pinned Ben Farmer, 4:23 [12-38]
285: Colin Fisher (SJU) pinned Connor Smith, 3:57 [18-38]
Saint John’s (SJU) 27, Manchester (MAN) 18
125: Ruben Rodriguez (MAN) dec. John Wells, 6-5 [0-3]
133: Chase Wilson (MAN) dec. Evan Guffey, 5-4 [0-6]
141: Ben Henle (No. 7, SJU) dec. Josh Juarez, 7-5 [3-6]
149: Adam Sutlief (SJU) pinned Paul Mikesell, 4:47 [9-6]
157: Brian McCann (SJU) dec. Alexander Arney, 3-2 [12-6]
165: Matt Ruddick (MAN) pinned Ochirbat Bayanjargal, 0:46 [12-12]
174: Dylan Lauffer (MAN) pinned Teddy Erickson, 1:42 [12-18]
184: Nick Hoff (SJU) pinned Alex Roberts, 1:51 [18-18]
197: Nick Pegelow (SJU) pinned Brian Clark, 5:44 [24-18]
285: Colin Fisher (SJU) dec. Dustin Kult, 2-1 [27-18]
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