MINNEAPOLIS -- Claiming seven wins in the 10 bouts, the No. 1/2-ranked Wartburg College men's wrestling team scored a 21-9 dual-meet victory over No. 3/3-ranked Augsburg University in the annual "Battle of the Burgs" meet on Friday at Si Melby Hall.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORES: No. 1/2 Wartburg (Iowa) 21, No. 3/3 Augsburg 9
RECORDS: Augsburg 8-3 overall, Wartburg 13-1 overall
LOCATION: Si Melby Hall, Minneapolis
HOW IT HAPPENED
• Augsburg, ranked No. 3 in the latest NWCA Division III tournament and dual-meet national polls, dropped seven bouts to Wartburg, the top-ranked Division III tournament squad and No. 2-ranked dual-meet team. All 10 bouts were decided by decisions, with three bouts going to overtime.
•
Keno Vanier (SR, Edina, Minn./Richfield HS) kept up his recent run of success, scoring a 9-6 sudden-victory overtime win over Wartburg's No. 9-ranked Brett Birchman. Vanier scored two takedowns, against a takedown and three escapes by Birchman, to force overtime. Vanier scored the decisive points on a double-leg takedown 37 seconds into the two-minute overtime, improving to 13-11 on the season.
• No. 3-ranked 149-pounder
Matthew Randolph (SO, Jordan, Minn./Jordan HS (Scott West)) claimed his 20th victory of the season with a 4-0 win over Wartburg's No. 9-ranked Caleb Olson. Randolph claimed an escape to open the second period, then got a takedown on the edge of the mat with 30 seconds left in the second. Randolph is now 20-2.
•
Cooper Willis (SR, Kansasville, Wis./Union Grove HS), ranked No. 2 at 165, scored an escape in the second period, the only point in a 1-0 triumph over No. 10-ranked Aiden Brosinski. Willis is now 22-3 on the season. and 120-18 in his Auggie career.
FOR THE FOES
• Wartburg scored six victories in matchups of ranked wrestlers, starting at 197 pounds, as No. 10-ranked Cal Dorota scored a 4-2 win over No. 6-ranked Auggie
Ethan Winkelman (SO, Hudson, Wis./Hudson HS). Top-ranked 285-pounder Mitch Williamson improved to 17-0 with a 2-1 tiebreaker overtime win over No. 5-ranked
Tyler Raway (SR, Wyoming, Minn./Forest Lake HS).
• At 133, No. 9-ranked Patrick Blume needed sudden-victory overtime to edge No. 13-ranked
Chance Suddeth (JR, Stoughton, Wis./Stoughton HS) 8-5. No. 5-ranked Kade Blume scored an 8-2 win over No. 10-ranked
Cole Becker (SR, Albertville, Minn./St. Michael-Albertville HS) at 141.
• Top-ranked 157-pounder Charlie Dojan remained unbeaten at 22-0 with a 6-1 win over No. 5-ranked
Karsen Otis (SO, Combined Locks, Wis./Kimberly HS), and the Knights closed the match with two wins -- No. 12-ranked 174-pounder Mike Slade topping
Nick Alexander (JR, Kaukauna, Wis./Wrightstown HS), and No. 2-ranked 184-pounder Kasey Ross beating No. 4-ranked 184-pounder
Brandt Bombard (SR, North Branch, Minn./North Branch HS) 8-2.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
• The Knights broke a three-match losing streak to Augsburg with the "Battle of the Burgs" victory. Wartburg leads the all-time series with Augsburg by a 26-19 margin, dating to the 1990-91 season.
• Against opponents from Divisions II and III, Augsburg is now 395-61-1 in dual meets since the 1989-90 season. Augsburg has lost just 57 matches to non-Division I opponents since the 1995-96 season. Against strictly NCAA Division III opponents, Augsburg is 379-59-1 since the 1979-80 season. Since 1989-90, Augsburg is 304-49-1 against Division III opponents.
• Every NCAA Division III team national championship in men's wrestling since 1995 has been won by either Augsburg or Wartburg, with Johnson & Wales (R.I.) breaking the streak by tying for the national title with Wartburg in 2025. Augsburg finished third in last year's national championships.
• The "Battle of the Burgs" features the annual competition for the "Swens/Milboy Belt" traveling trophy. The trophy, established in 2015, is named for the two coaches who built the Lutheran colleges to national prominence in small-college wrestling -- Augsburg's Jeff Swenson (1980-84, 1986-2007) and Wartburg's Jim Miller (1991-2013). Both coaches led their teams to 10 NCAA Division III national titles during their careers.
UP NEXT
• Augsburg next competes at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Don Parker Open next Saturday (2/7) at 10 a.m. in Eau Claire, Wis.
MEN'S WRESTLING - No. 1/2 Wartburg (13-1) 21, No. 3/3 Augsburg (8-3) 9
Friday, January 30, 2026 - Si Melby Hall, Minneapolis, Minn.
Officials: Gabe Mooney, Spencer Beech
Attendance: 1,000
197 -- No. 10 Cal Dorota (WAR, 18-4) dec. No. 6
Ethan Winkelman (AUG, 24-4) 4-2
(Wartburg 3-0)
285 -- No. 1 Mitch Williamson (WAR, 17-0) dec. No. 6
Tyler Raway (AUG, 22-4) 2-1 (OT-TB1)
(Wartburg 6-0)
125 --
Keno Vanier (AUG, 13-11) dec. No. 9 Brett Birchman (WAR, 12-5) 9-6 (OT-SV1)
(Wartburg 6-3)
133 -- No. 9 Patrick Mullen (WAR, 18-4) dec. No. 13
Chance Suddeth (AUG, 18-11) 8-5 (OT-SV1)
(Wartburg 9-3)
141 -- No. 5 Kade Blume (WAR, 15-2) dec. No. 10
Cole Becker (AUG, 22-6) 8-2
(Wartburg 12-3)
149 -- No. 3
Matthew Randolph (AUG, 20-2) dec. No. 9 Caleb Olson (WAR, 16-6) 4-0
(Wartburg 12-6)
157 -- No. 1 Charlie Dojan (WAR, 22-0) dec. No. 6
Karsen Otis (WAR, 24-5) 6-1
(Wartburg 15-6)
165 -- No. 2
Cooper Willis (AUG, 22-3) dec. No. 10 Aiden Brosinski (WAR, 16-4) 1-0
(Wartburg 15-9)
174 -- No. 12 Mike Slade (WAR, 19-7) dec.
Nick Alexander (AUG, 13-14) 9-4
(Wartburg 18-9)
184 -- No. 2 Kasey Ross (WAR, 19-0) dec. No. 4
Brandt Bombard (AUG, 21-3) 8-2
(Wartburg 21-9)
