Eagles edge Fort Hays 22-18 in dual
January 19, 2008

Thanks largely to a pin in overtime by heavyweight Shaine Odell and an 8-7 victory by freshman Max Baker in the final match, the Chadron State College wrestling team opened its Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference schedule with a 22-18 victory over Fort Hays State on Saturday night in Chadron.
With a crowd estimated to be around 300 looking on, the Eagles needed every point they could muster.

�It shouldn�t have come down to needing a win by a true freshman, but it did,� said CSC Coach Scott Ritzen of Baker�s narrow win over Josh Pfannenstiel at 149 pounds. �That shows you what kind of freshman he is. He�s a gamer.�

Now 20-9 on the season, Baker led 7-6 entering the third period and managed an escape early in the frame. Pfannenstiel was awarded a penalty point with about a minute remaining, but Baker held off the Fort Hays State senior and initiated enough action the rest of the way to take the 8-7 triumph and give the Eagles the dual victory.

The heavyweight battle between the Eagles� Shaine Odell and the Tigers� Dustin Martin was another key encounter.

Martin led 3-1 entering the final period. Odell opened the third with an escape, but Martin picked up a penalty point early in the frame. Odell managed a takedown with about a minute remaining to tie the score at 4-4, but Martin regained the lead when he escaped. The score was knotted at 5-5 with about five second left when Odell was awarded a penalty point.

As the first overtime period was winding down, Martin initiated the action, but in the ensuing scramble Odell wound up on top and used a headlock to pin the Fort Hays heavyweight.

Chadron State�s other winners included Josh Majerus, who scored a major decision at 197 pounds while improving his record to 21-4. Three more Eagles, Devlon Webb at 125, Brett Hunter at 165 and Sam Udell at 184, won regular three-point decisions.

The action was the first for Hunter, the defending 165-pound Division II national champion, since he injured his neck in practice 10 days ago. He is now 22-1 for the season.

Fort Hays State�s Danny Grater at 157 pounds opened the dual with a pin in 49 seconds. The Tigers also received a pin from Blake Fisher at 133 pounds with a second left in the opening period and gained decisions from Blake Malloy at 174 and James Annon at 141.

Chadron State now has a 7-6-1 dual record. Fort Hays is 3-4. The Tigers are now 3-2 in the RMAC.

The results:

157�Danny Grater, FH, pinned J.D. Thrall 49 seconds.
165�Brett Hunter, CSC, dec. Troy Lessenhop 13-6
174�Blake Malloy, FH, dec. Willy Jones 7-6.
184�Sam Udell, CSC, dec. Shawn Kuhlman 7-0.
197�Josh Majerus, CSC, major dec. Tyler Gonzales 11-2.
Hwt�Shaine Odell, CSC, pinned Dustin Martin 7:45.
125�Devlon Webb, CSC, dec. Kyle Patton 4-3.
133�Blake Fisher, FH, pinned Ryan Zavala 2:59.
141�James Annon, FH, dec. Brady Shatto 9-5.
149�Max Baker, CSC, dec. Josh Pfannensteil 8-7.