Play-by-Play
Augustana got big wins from all 4 of its nationally-ranked wrestlers as the 10th-ranked Vikings upended No. 4 Minnesota State University, Mankato, 20-15 Saturday night at the Taylor Center in Mankato, Minn.
The Vikings improved to 7-4 on the season and 3-0 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. MSU slipped to 6-2 overall and 1-1 in the NSIC.
After dropping the first match of the night when MSU's Andy Forstner beat Augustana's
Al Meger 4-1, the Vikings bounced back by winning 5 matches in a row to stake themselves to a 16-3 lead.
Laramie Shaffer got the Vikings rolling with a dominating 11-1 major decision over Matt Nyvold in the 133-pound bout. Augustana then picked up wins by 3 of its nationally-ranked wrestlers. At 141 pounds, eighth-ranked
Jay Sherer got 3 takedowns in the first period en route to a 10-6 win over Robby Fisher.
Nate Herda, ranked seventh at 149 pounds, followed with a 7-4 decision over Travis Elg. Herda led 4-1 after 2 periods and added another takedown and a riding time point to earn the win.
At 157 pounds, Augie's
Marcus Edgington, the top-ranked wrestler in the nation, edged Justin Turek 5-3. Edgington led 4-3 heading into the final period. Turek chose to begin the period in the down position in search of an escape. However, Edgington rode out Turek and collected a riding time point in the process.
The 165-pound match between Augustana's
Gavin Nelson and MSU's Tel Todd was just as close. Each wrestler scored an escape from the down position to make the score 1-1. Late in the third period, Nelson was called for stalling a second time, giving Todd a 2-1 lead. But Nelson had 1:23 of riding time, tying the score 2-2. In sudden victory, Nelson scored a takedown just 12 seconds into the extra session to gain a 4-2 win. The victory gave Augustana a 16-3 lead.
Minnesota State tried to rally in the final 4 matches, winning 3 of the matches. At 174 pounds, No. 8 Ben Becker held off a late rally by Augustana's
Carl Serck to squeak out an 8-7 win. Then at 184 pounds, Aaron Norgren downed
Nick Henning 8-3. That made the score 16-9
However,
Ty Copsey secured the win for the Vikings with a 13-1 major decision over John Makabe. Copsey, ranked No. 2 in the nation, allowed just a first-period escape to Makabe. He amassed 4:04 of riding time to go along with a 2-point near fall and a 3-point near fall.
In the final match of the night, MSU's Brady Wilson, ranked No. 1 at 285 pounds, pinned Augustana's
Lance Peters in 1:09.
Augustana returns home next weekend for the final home duals of the season. The Vikings take on U-Mary on Friday at 7 p.m. and Northern State on Saturday at 4 p.m. Both duals will be held in the Elmen Center.
No. 10 Augustana 20, No. 4 Minnesota State 15
125 pounds: Andy Forstner (MSU) dec.
Al Meger (Augie), 4-1
133 pounds: Laramie Shaffer (Augie) major dec. Matt Nyvold (MSU), 11-1
141 pounds: #8
Jay Sherer (Augie) dec. Robby Fisher (MSU), 10-6
149 pounds: #7
Nate Herda (Augie) dec. Travis Elg (MSU), 7-4
157 pounds: #1
Marcus Edgington (Augie) dec. Justin Turek (MSU), 5-3
165 pounds: Gavin Nelson (Augie) dec. Tel Todd (MSU), 4-2 (SV)
174 pounds: Ben Becker (MSU) dec.
Carl Serck (Augie), 8-7
184 pounds: Aaron Norgren (MSU) dec.
Nick Henning (Augie), 8-3
197 pounds: #2
Ty Copsey (Augie) major dec. John Makabe (MSU), 13-1
285 pounds: #1 Brady Wilson (MSU) pinned
Lance Peters (Augie), 1:09
