The South Dakota State University wrestling team will host its first home dual of the season, welcoming nationally-ranked Minnesota to Frost Arena Friday night.
Start time is set for 7 p.m. Prior to the dual, Jackrabbit wrestlers and coaches will conduct a youth clinic, starting at 5 p.m. Friday’s dual also will feature the annual Teddy Bear Toss during intermission, with gifts being distributed at Sanford Children’s Hospital during the holiday season.
Friday’s dual will be available for viewing through FloWrestling.org (subscription required).
The Jackrabbits enter Friday’s dual with a 1-1 overall record. SDSU last wrestled a dual Nov. 22 at Utah Valley, winning 24-12 in the Big 12 Conference opener for both squads.
Minnesota, which is ranked 13th by FloWrestling and 15th in the NWCA Division I Wrestling Coaches Poll, has turned in a 1-2 record in duals so far this season. In their last action, the Golden Gophers dropped a 21-12 decision Nov. 24 at Oklahoma State.
THE SERIES: Minnesota has held the upper hand over the Jackrabbits in dual action, leading the all-time series, which dates back to the 1949-50 season, by a 25-4 count.
SDSU’s last victory over the Golden Gophers was a 23-18 triumph during the 1974-75 campaign.
In last season’s dual matchup, Nov. 25, 2018, in Minneapolis, 10th-ranked Minnesota posted four wins by technical fall and another by pin en route to a 35-6 victory.
Minnesota raced out to a 19-0 lead by dominating the lower weights. Eighth-ranked Sean Russell scored a second-period, 18-3 technical fall over SDSU’s Gregory Coapstick at 125 pounds, while seventh-ranked Ethan Lizak followed with a 16-0, first-period technical fall over Spencer Huber.
The Golden Gophers’ fifth-ranked Mitch McKee ran the Minnesota advantage to 16-0 by pinning Rylee Molitor in the first period of their 141-pound bout.
In the only matchup of the afternoon between ranked opponents, 13th-ranked Tommy Thorn of Minnesota avenged a loss earlier in the season at the Daktronics Open to 16th-ranked Henry Pohlmeyer of SDSU. Pohlmeyer got out to a quick 4-0 lead in their 149-pound matchup with a takedown and two-point near-fall before Thorn countered with a reversal and four-point near-fall to close out the first-period scoring. After taking Pohlmeyer down early in the second period, Thorn maintained a lead of four points or more the rest of the way in notching a 10-6 decision.
Colten Carlson put the Jackrabbits on the board with an 11-5 decision over Miles Patton in the 157-pound matchup. Tied at 3-all after one period, the sophomore from Willmar, Minnesota, gained control of the match in the second period with an escape and takedown en route to an 11-5 decision.
Zach Carlson accounted for the other SDSU victory on the afternoon as he knocked off 18th-ranked Owen Webster for the second time this season at 184 pounds. Carlson tallied a takedown late in the first period for a 4-3 lead and held off Webster for an 8-6 victory to improve to 5-1 on the season.
Minnesota received technical falls from Devin Skatzka at 174 pounds and third-ranked Gable Steveson at heavyweight in the second half of the dual to close out the victory.
#10 MINNESOTA 35, SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 6
125: #8 Sean Russell (MINN) tech. fall Gregory Coapstick (SDSU), 18-3 [3:45]
133: #7 Ethan Lizak (MINN) tech. fall Spencer Huber (SDSU), 16-0 [5:22]
141: #5 Mitch McKee (MINN) def. Rylee Molitor (SDSU), by fall [2:30]
149: #13 Tommy Thorn (MINN) dec. #16 Henry Pohlmeyer (SDSU), 10-6
157: Colten Carlson (SDSU) dec. Miles Patton (MINN), 11-5
165: Carson Brolsma (MINN) dec. Logan Peterson (SDSU), 10-3
174: Devin Skatzka (MINN) tech. fall Brett Bye (SDSU), 16-0 [3:48]
184: Zach Carlson (SDSU) dec. #18 Owen Webster (MINN), 8-6
197: Dylan Anderson (MINN) dec. Samuel Grove (SDSU), 8-2
285: #3 Gable Steveson (MINN) tech. fall Blake Wolters (SDSU), 18-3 [3:24]
RABBITS RANKED: Following their performances in the first two months of the season, four South Dakota State wrestlers appear in the NCAA Division I rankings compiled by a variety of media outlets.
Ranked throughout the season have been Henry Pohlmeyer at 149 pounds and Tanner Sloan at 197 pounds. A two-time NCAA qualifier and a senior from Johnston, Iowa, Pohlmeyer’s highest ranking is 15th by FloWrestling. Pohlmeyer also is currently ranked 18th by TrackWrestling.
Sloan, a redshirt freshman from Alburnett, Iowa, was ranked in the top 10 by three media outlets earlier in the season. He is currently ranked 14th by Intermat, 18th by TrackWrestling and 19th by FloWrestling.
At 184 pounds, Zach Carlson has moved into all three rankings, holding spots of 16th by Intermat, 17th by FloWrestling and 24th by TrackWrestling.
Also appearing in the rankings is 141-pounder Clay Carlson, who is ranked 33rd by TrackWrestling.
A LOOK AHEAD: The Jackrabbits are scheduled to compete at two different tournaments during the holiday break.
SDSU will head to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for the South Beach Duals Dec. 29-30. The Jackrabbits are scheduled to wrestle four duals; pairings and times will be announced at a later date.
Also on Dec. 29-30, a contingent of Jackrabbit wrestlers will compete at the 57th Annual Ken Kraft Midlands Championships in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. That individual tournament begins at 9:30 a.m. on Dec. 29, with Dec. 30 action starting at noon.
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