LA CROSSE, Wis. -- WInning six of 10 matches, including two by major decision, the top-ranked Augsburg College wrestling team remained unbeaten with a 20-13 win over the No. 6-ranked University of Wisconsin-La Crosse in a dual meet on Sunday afternoon at UW-La Crosse's Mitchell Hall.
WInning five bouts in the middle of the match to rally from a 9-3 deficit, Augsburg improved to 10-0 in dual meets. Wisconsin-La Crosse dropped to 13-3 on the season.
Jason Adams (SR, Coon Rapids, Minn.) scored a 14-4 major decision victory to start the Auggie comeback at 157 pounds. The No. 5-ranked wrestler nationally in his weight class, Adams is now 30-2 on the season.
At 165, Augsburg's No. 6-ranked
Orlando Ponce (JR, Hialeah, Fla./Hialeah-Miami Lakes HS) scored a 9-4 victory over No. 8-ranked Cory Ferguson, using two takedowns and an escape in the third period to pull away for the victory.
In one of the biggest matches of the afternoon, Augsburg's
Zach Molitor (JR, Cambridge, Minn./Cambridge-Isanti HS), the No. 3-ranked wrestler at 174, broke a 4-4 tie with an escape in the third period, and used 2:01 of riding time to score a 6-4 victory over No. 2-ranked Mike Schmitz.
Brad Baus (SO, Mukwonago, Wis.) scored a 6-2 win at 184 for the Auggies, and top-ranked 197-pounder
Jared Massey (JR, Lino Lakes, Minn./Centennial HS) improved to 16-0 on the season with a 14-2, major-decision win. In his two seasons as an Auggie, the defending national champion Massey is now 46-1.
Cody Hansen (FY, Albert Lea, Minn.) also scored a win for the Auggies at 141 with a 1-0 victory over Alex Dahl.
In a battle of ranked wrestlers at 133, WIsconsin-La Crosse's top-ranked Bebeto Yewah scored a takedown 26 seconds into overtime to top Augsburg's No. 6-ranked
Paul Bjorkstrand (SR, Burnsville, Minn.) 14-12.
No. 3-ranked Matt Mauseth scored a 12-5 win over Augsburg's
Lucas Murray (JR, Anoka, Minn.) at 149, No. 3-ranked Zach Laurent scored a 10-2, major-decision win over Augsburg's
Andy Witzel (SR, Fulda, Minn.) at heavyweight, and Albie McKinney scored a 5-4 win over Augsburg's
Josh Roberts (FY, Grand Forks, N.D./Central HS) at 125.
Augsburg is now 6-1 in the all-time series with Wisconsin-La Crosse. Since 1989-90, the Auggies are now 248-21 against opponents from Divisions II and III, losing just 16 matches to non-Division I teams since the 1995-96 campaign. Against strictly Division III opponents, Augsburg is now 249-23 since the 1979-80 season and 173-13 since the 1989-90 season.
Augsburg returns to action next Saturday (1/30) at 9 a.m., splitting its squad for action at the St. John's North Country Open and the Grand View (Iowa) Open.
No. 1 Augsburg (10-0) 20, No. 6 Wisconsin-La Crosse (13-3) 13
Sunday, Jan. 24, 2010 -- Mitchell Hall, La Crosse, Wis.
Attendance: 425
Referee: Bill Roths
125 -- Albie McKinney (UWL, 11-7) dec.
Josh Roberts (AUG, 12-7) 5-4
(UW-La Crosse 3-0).
133 -- No. 1 Bebeto Yewah (UWL, 17-1) dec. No. 6
Paul Bjorkstrand (AUG, 22-7) 14-12 (OT-SV1)
(UW-La Crosse 6-0).
141 -- Cody Hansen (AUG, 17-8) dec. Alex Dahl (UWL, 8-5) 1-0
(UW-La Crosse 6-3).
149 -- No. 3 Matt Mauseth (UWL, 22-3) dec.
Lucas Murray (AUG, 12-7) 12-5
(UW-La Crosse 9-3).
157 -- No. 5
Jason Adams (AUG, 30-2) maj. dec. Ryan Farwell (UWL, 18-9) 14-4
(UW-La Crosse 9-7).
165 -- No. 6
Orlando Ponce (AUG, 20-8) dec. No. 8 Cory Ferguson (UWL, 15-2) 9-4
(Augsburg 10-9).
174 -- No. 3
Zach Molitor (AUG, 17-3) dec. No. 2 Mike Schmitz (UWL, 18-5) 6-4
(Augsburg 13-9).
184 -- Brad Baus (AUG, 14-9) dec. Mitch Artist (UWL, 16-8) 6-2
(Augsburg 16-9).
197 -- No. 1
Jared Massey (AUG, 16-0) maj. dec. John Poppie (UWL, 12-10) 14-2
(Augsburg 20-9).
HWT -- No. 3 Dan Laurent (UWL, 21-2) maj. dec. No. 7
Andy Witzel (AUG, 15-7) 10-2
(Augsburg 20-13).
