Schiller’s win leads into a Sunday where several Gophers perform well at Daktronics Open
A week prior to the official start of the 2014-15 season for No. 1 Minnesota, 20 Gophers competed in a pair of early season events this past weekend.
On Saturday night, second-ranked Scott Schiller took the mat at the National Wrestling Coaches Association’s All-Star Classic in Philadelphia against defending National Champion and top-ranked J’Den Cox of Missouri in the showcase’s 197 bout. Cox built a 3-0 early in the second period, but Schiller would rally to score two on a single-leg takedown late in the second and then pull even with a point in the third. In sudden victory overtime, Schiller scored his second takedown of the match to win, 5-3.
“I was excited to go out there and wrestle such a great opponent,” said Schiller after the victory. “It’s always exciting when you get to wrestle a guy of that caliber. I’m just thankful for the win.”
On Sunday, 19 Gophers – wrestling unattached – competed in the 22nd annual Warren Williamson Daktronics Open in Brookings, S.D. Nine of those grapplers advanced to the quarterfinals at their respective weights, setting up the Gophers for six top-five finishes at four different weights.
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Collectively, the Gophers performed the best at 125, where three different Minnesota wrestlers advanced to the semifinals. Steve Polakowski defeated teammate Ethan Lizak in the semifinals, setting up an all-Gopher final against Skyler Petry. Polakowski took that bout 6-2 to win the tournament’s championship, while Petry took second. Through consolation matches, Lizak took fifth.
At other weights, Ben Morgan placed third at 133 by pinning Kyle Gliva of North Dakota State 3:58 into their match, Tommy Thorn placed third at 141 after scoring a major decision (8-0) over Demechino Spraggins of Arizona State and Colin Carr placed fourth at 174.
The Gophers return to action this coming Saturday (Nov. 8) at the Bison Open in Fargo, N.D.
SDSU Warren Williamson/Daktronics Open results
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