Morningside battles top competition at NWCA National Duals

LOUISVILLE, Kent. – The Morningside Mustangs men's wrestling program had a busy day at the NWCA National Duals in Louisville, Kent., Friday afternoon, winning two of three duals. The Mustangs took on three ranked teams Friday, all three of which ranked higher than Morningside.

With wins over Ottawa and Lindsey Wilson, the Mustangs remain in play Saturday, but a loss to Life caps Morningside's best possible finish at fifth place.

Morningside is back at it at 8 a.m. Saturday against Marian. Marian is ranked seventh, pitting Morningside against its third top-10 team in two days. Regardless of result, the Mustangs will have a second dual Saturday at noon.

Morningside 25, Ottawa 17

The Mustangs opened the day with a first round win over No. 6 Ottawa. Six Morningside grapplers earned victories over the Braves.

Starting at 125, Evan Shell earned a 9-3 decision to put the Mustangs ahead 3-0. John Diener earned a 12-3 major decision after a pair of Ottawa wins, tying the competition at seven points apiece. 

Noah Styskal followed Diener up with a 21-6 technical fall to give Morningside five more points. After Styskal's win, Zander Ernst earned a 17-5 major decision and the Mustangs led Ottawa 16-7. 

Hayden Wempen earned a 4-3 win and Hunter DeJong picked up a fall in 3:45 to keep the Mustangs comfortably ahead for the win.

Life 37, Morningside 0

After defeating the sixth-ranked team in the NAIA, the Mustangs had a stronger challenge coming in the second round, losing to Life 37-0.

Seven Mustangs grapplers fought their way to close decision losses against the second-ranked team in the NAIA.

Morningside 29, Lindsey Wilson (Kent.) 11

Now in the consolation bracket, the Mustangs were up against their third consecutive ranked opponent, and all three are ranked higher than the Mustangs. 

This time, Morningside took on No. 13 Lindsey Wilson, the team sitting one place ahead of them in the poll.

Taylor Vasquez put the Mustangs ahead early on by earning a late fall (5:42). The result put Morningside ahead 6-3. After Lindsey Wilson tied the competition at six, John Diener earned a 1-0 decision to put the Mustangs back up 9-6. 

Noah Styskal and Zander Ernst followed that with back-to-back major decisions 11-3 and 10-0. The Mustang roll continued as Alex Vandyke earned an 8-7 decision and Hayden Wempen received six points on a forfeit by Lindsey Wilson. Hunter DeJong added a 5-4 decision to cap the day with a win for the Mustangs.