MOORHEAD, Minn. (MSUM Dragons) — The Minnesota State University Moorhead wrestling team held an 16-6 lead after six matches but Southwest Minnesota State rallied with four straight wins to earn an 18-16 win over the Dragons in a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference dual Thursday night in Moorhead, Minn.
MSUM fell to 0-1 overall and in the NSIC while SMSU improved to 1-0 overall and in the league.
Welcome Back Cole
Junior Cole Jones, an All-American in 2018-19 at 125, missed the 2019-20 season recovering from an injury but looked strong in his first competition in almost two years. He recorded an 8-0 major decision win over SMSU’s Ben Emrich at 125 to give MSUM an early 4-0 lead.
Ortloff Picks Up Where He Left Off
Junior Braydon Ortloff was a national qualifier at 165 for MSUM last winter before the Covid-19 pandemic caused the cancelation of the national meet. The Detroit Lakes native recorded the only pin of the dual on Thursday, pinning Carter Marx in 5:54 to push the Dragon lead to 16-6.
Wins for Schulz and Ward
Junior Mason Schulz had a solid sophomore campaign for MSUM, going 20-17 at 141. He started off the 2020-21 season strong with a 4-1 win over SMSU’s Justin Sampson at 141 on Thursday.
Senior Tell Ward also picked up a hard-fought win for the Dragons, toppling SMSU’s Sean Howk by a 6-4 decision at 157.
Momentum Switch
After Ortloff’s pin at 165, the Mustangs rattled off four straight wins to rally for the two-point dual win.
Up Next
MSUM hosts Upper Iowa at 7 p.m. on Jan. 14.
SMSU 18, MSU Moorhead 16
125-Cole Jones (MSUM) maj. dec. Ben Emrich, 8-0
133-Jackson Stauffacher (SMSU) dec. Joey Nerdahl, 10-5
141-Mason Schulz (MSUM) dec. Justin Sampson, 4-1
149-Robert Shields (SMSU) dec. Angel Rios, 5-1
157-Tell Ward (MSUM) dec. Sean Howk, 6-4
165-Braydon Ortloff (MSUM) pinned Carter Marx, 5:54
174-Hayden Voxland (SMSU) dec. Evan Foster, 11-4
184-Caden Steffen (SMSU) dec. Steven Abbott, 11-5
197-Jackson Ryan (SMSU) dec. Jake Erckenbrack, 5-3
285-Jacob Dykes (SMSU) dec. Jaden Oestren, 4-1
