DECORAH, Iowa -- Claiming two Elite division titles, with nine other wrestlers finishing in the top eight in their weight classes, the top-ranked Augsburg University men's wrestling team opened its 2025-26 season with a strong performance at the Luther College Open on Saturday.

THE BASICS
TEAM SCORES: No team scores
LOCATION: Luther College, Decorah, Iowa

HOW IT HAPPENED
• Matthew Randolph (SO, Jordan, Minn./Jordan HS (Scott West)) claimed the Elite division title at 149 pounds, and Ethan Winkelman (SO, Hudson, Wis./Hudson HS) won the title at 197 pounds to lead the Auggies, the top-ranked team in the National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III preseason national poll.
• Randolph, last season's fourth-place national tournament finisher at 149, opened this season with an impressive run, claiming a pin and major decision in his first two matches, then scoring three wins over ranked wrestlers -- a 6-0 win over Walker Bents of Minnesota State-Mankato, the No. 10-ranked wrestler in Division II, a 4-0 win over Chase Fiser of Loras (Iowa), ranked No. 9 in Division III, and a 4-3 win over Ethen Doty of Upper Iowa, ranked No. 6 in Division II. Randolph enters this season ranked No. 2 in the NWCA rankings at 149.
• Moving into the top spot for the Auggies at 197 pounds after going 22-2 last season, Winkelman also had a dominant performance, going 5-0 with two pins and a 15-0 technical fall to claim the weight-class title. Winkelman enters this season ranked No. 8 nationally in Division III at 197.
• Brandt Bombard (SR, North Branch, Minn./North Branch HS), last season's national runner-up at 184 pounds, opened his campaign with a second-place finish at the Luther meet, going 4-1 with a first-period pin in his opening match. Bombard is ranked No. 1 nationally at 184 in the NWCA poll.
• Top-ranked 165-pounder Cooper Wills (SR, Kansasville, Wis./Union Grove HS), last year's Division III national runner-up, finished second on Saturday, going 4-1 with a pin and a technical fall. He claimed a 5-3 win over No. 14-ranked Aiden Brosinski of Wartburg (Iowa) in the semifinals.
• Tyler Raway (SR, Wyoming, Minn./Forest Lake HS), ranked No. 11 at 285 pounds, went 4-1 to finish second on Saturday, with his lone loss coming in a 2-1 decision to Easton Fleshman of Division I Iowa in the finals.
• No. 5-ranked 141-pounder Cole Becker (SR, Maple Lake, Minn./St. Michael-Albertville HS) finished fourth in his weight class, going 5-1 with a pin, technical fall, and a 4-1 overtime win over No. 11-ranked Talan Schutte of Wisconsin-La Crosse in the wrestlebacks.
• Lucas Jagodzinske (SR, Sherburn, Minn./Martin County West HS) finished sixth at 149, as did Karsen Otis (JR, Combined Locks, Wis./Kimberly HS) at 157.
• No. 3-ranked 133-pounder Chance Suddeth (JR, Stoughton, Wis./Stoughton HS) finished eighth at 133, as did Max Sokolski (SR, Bonduel, Wis./Bonduel HS) at 174 and Keno Vanier (SR, Edina, Minn./Richfield HS) at 125.
• In the Silver division for younger wrestlers, Keegan Kuball (FY, Waterville, Minn./Waterville-Elysian-Morristown HS) made his collegiate debut with the title at 285 points, going 4-0 with two pins. Cole Dummer (FY, Union Grove, Wis./Union Grove HS) and Colton Loween (FY, Roseville, Minn./Mounds View HS) finished second in their Silver divisions at 157 and 165.

UP NEXT
• Augsburg, which finished third in last year's NCAA Division III National Championships, hosts Johnson and Wales University (R.I.), last year's co-national champions, in a dual meet on Friday (11/21) at 6 p.m. at Si Melby Hall. The Wildcats enter the 2025-26 season ranked No. 6 in the NWCA Division III preseason poll.

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AUGSBURG RESULTS BY WEIGHT CLASS
• 125 Elite: Keno Vanier 3-2, 8th place.
• 125 Silver: Treynor Curtin 3-2, 6th place; Tyler Chenevert 1-2.
• 133 Elite: Chance Suddeth 4-2, 8th place; Gavin Hilyar 1-2.
• 133 Silver: Carter Freeman 5-1, 5th place.
• 141 Elite: Cole Becker 5-1, 4th place; Cade Willis 2-2.
• 141 Silver: Devon Lietzau 1-2; Chase Smith 0-2.
• 149 Elite: Matthew Randolph 5-0, 1st place; Lucas Jagodzinske 5-1, 6th place; Karson Casper 2-2; 
• 157 Elite: Karsen Otis 5-1, 6th place; Brady Swenson 4-2; Ethan Ballweber 2-0.
• 157 Silver: Cole Dummer 3-1, 2nd place; Jovan Vukajlovic 2-2.
• 165 Elite: Cooper Willis 4-1, 2nd place.
• 165 Silver: Colton Loween 4-1, 2nd place.
• 174 Elite: Max Sokolski 4-2, 8th place; Apollo Ashby 3-2; Bowen Rothbauer 2-2.
• 174 Silver: Brayden Hilyar 3-2, 5th place.
• 184 Elite: Brandt Bombard 4-1, 2nd place.
• 184 Silver: Owen Griesbach 3-1, 3rd place.
• 197 Elite: Ethan Winkelman 5-0, 1st place.
• 197 Silver: Ethan Swenson 5-1, 6th place.
• 285 Elite: Tyler Raway 4-1, 2nd place.
• 285 Silver: Keegan Kuball 4-0, 1st place.