2006-2007 Wrestling Roster
Name - Wt. - Yr. - Hometown (Previous School)
Trevor Richard - 125 - Fr - St. Francis, Kan. (St. Francis HS)
Blake Fisher - 125 - Fr - Garden Plain, Kan. (Andale HS)
Kyle Patton - 125 - Jr - Wellsville, Kan. (Colby CC)
Kory Lira - 125 - Sr - Ulysses, Kan. (Ulysses HS)
Devin Schwartz - 125 - Sr - Great Bend, Kan. (Great Bend HS)
James Annon - 133 - So - Norton, Kan. (Norton Community HS)
Dylan Loyd - 133 - Fr - St. Francis, Kan. (St. Francis HS)
Kyle Cook - 133 - Fr - Great Bend, Kan. (Hoisington HS)
Derek Patterson - 133 - Sr - Wichita, Kan. (Labette CC)
Josh Peterson - 141 - R-Fr - Abilene, Kan. (Abilene HS)
Bryce Bahe - 141 - Jr - Goodland, Kan. (Minnesota State-Mankato)
Heath Meder - 141 - So - Hays, Kan. (Hays HS)
Casey Hudson - 141 - Fr - Security, Colo. (Widefield HS)
Mikel Delk - 149 - Sr - Skiatook, Okla. (Labette CC)
Patrick Keane - 149 - So - Lansing, Kan. (Leavenworth HS)
Josh Pfannenstiel - 149 - Jr - Hays, Kan. (Hays HS)
Danny Grater - 157 - R-Fr - Green, Kan. (Clay Center HS)
Troy Lussenhop - 157 - So - Loveland, Colo. (Loveland HS)
Shawn Kuhlman - 165 - R-Fr - Oakley, Kan. (Oakley HS)
Phil Hart - 165 - Jr - Jefferson City, Mo. (Shawnee Heights HS)
Blake Malloy - 174 - So - Topeka, Kan. (Shawnee Heights HS)
Nick McGovern - 174 - Jr - Lawrence, Kan. (Lawrence Free State HS)
Troy Medill - 174 - Jr - Lansing, Kan. (Lansing HS)
Justin Stevens - 184 - Sr - Lawrence, Kan. (Lawrence Free State HS)
Justin Hall - 184 - R-Fr - Stockton, Kan. (Stockton HS)
Mike Howell - 184 - Sr - Nickerson, Kan. (Coffeyville CC)
Tyler Gonzales - 197 - R-Fr - Topeka, Kan. (Shawnee Heights HS)
Dustin Trego - 197 - Sr - Haven, Kan. (Haven HS)
Andrew Ubben - 285 - Sr - Phillipsburg, Kan. (Phillipsburg HS)
Chris Eberwein - 285 - So - Alma, Kan. (Alma-Wabaunsee)
Dustin Martin - 285 - Sr - Nixa, Mo. (Labette CC)
Lyndon Wagner - 285 - Jr - Holly, Colo. (Holly HS)

2006-2007 Wrestling Schedule
Date - Opponent - Location - Time/Result
Nov, 02 - Black & Gold Scrimmage - Hays, Kan. - 7 p.m.
Nov, 12 - Central Missouri State Open - Warrensburg, Mo. - TBA
Nov, 19 - University of Northern Colorado Open - Greeley, Colo. - TBA
Dec, 02 - FHSU-Bob Smith Open - Hays, Kan. - TBA
Dec, 09 - University of Nebraska-Kearney Open - Kearney, Neb. - TBA
Jan, 05 - Colorado School of Mines* - Fort Morgan, Colo. - 8 p.m.
Jan, 09 - Newman University - Hays, Kan. - 7 p.m.
Jan, 13 - NWCA II National Duals - Cedar Falls, Iowa - TBA
Jan, 14 - NWCA II National Duals - Cedar Falls, Iowa - TBA
Jan, 18 - Adams State College* - Hays, Kan. - 7 p.m.
Jan, 25 - Chadron State College* - Hays, Kan. - 7 p.m.
Jan, 27 - University of Central Oklahoma - Edmond, Okla. - 7 p.m.
Feb, 01 - New Mexico Highlands* - Hays, Kan. - 7 p.m.
Feb, 02 - Central Missouri - Hays, Kan. - 7 p.m.
Feb, 09 - Western State College* - Gunnison, Colo. - 8 p.m.
Feb, 10 - Mesa State College* - Grand Junction, Colo. - 2 p.m.
Feb, 15 - University of Nebraska-Kearney* - Kearney, Neb. - 7 p.m.
Feb, 25 - NCAA II West Regional (RMAC Championships) - Golden, Colo. - TBA
Mar, 09 - NCAA Division II Championships - Kearney, Neb. - TBA
Mar, 10 - NCAA II Championships - Kearney, Neb. - TBA

Black Edges Gold In Wrestlling's Black and Gold Scrimmage
Nov. 2, 2006

The Fort Hays State wrestling squad held their annual Black and Gold Scrimmage Thursday night at Gross Memorial Coliseum. A nice crowd was on hand to see some of the wrestlers in action for the first time this year. The Black team would edge the Gold team in the final match-up of the evening by a final score of 16-15.
The event got started with the 125-pound weight class with pitted the Black's Kory Lira against the Gold's Devin Schwartz. Both individuals are seniors on this year's squad. The match was tight throughout as the wrestlers found it hard to score points on each other early. Lira had a 2-1 lead with just over 30 seconds remaining when Schwartz managed to reverse control in his favor taking a 3-2 lead. Schwartz took the match by that score giving the Gold team an early 3-0 lead.

The 133-pound match would be tight throughout as well as the Black's Derek Patterson met the Gold's James Annon. Patterson would slowly gain control of the match and held Annon off down the stretch winning 5-3. The win evened the team scores at 3-3.

At the 141-pound weight class, the Black's Bryce Bahe met the Gold's Josh Pfannenstiel. Bahe got out to an early lead in this match but Pfannenstiel would chip away at his lead and finally overtake him in the third period by a score of 8-7. This put the Gold in favor by a count of 6-3.

The 149-pound match pitted the #1 pre-season ranked wrestler at this class, Mikel Delk of the Gold, against Josh Peterson of the Black. Delk would score three takedowns before pinning Peterson in a time of 2:35. The fall gave the Gold a commanding 12-3 lead at that point.

At 157 pounds, the Black's Danny Grater matched up against the Gold's Patrick Keane. Both wrestlers had a difficult time scoring any points in this match as both scored an escape point from the other after each had control at the beginning of the second and third periods. Grater would get the deciding point in this match after scoring a caution point off of Keane with only about 20 seconds remaining in the third period. Grater won 2-1 pulling the Black back within six points.

The 165-pound weight class was open for both squads on the evening, making only a total of nine matches wrestled out of the possible 10.

At 174 pounds, the Black's Blake Malloy matched up against the Gold's Nick McGovern. Both picked away at each other throughout the match, but Malloy would come away with a 7-4 win. It pulled the Black within three points of the Gold.

In the 184-pound match, the Black's Troy Medill met the Gold's Justin Stevens. Medill was dominant throughout this match as he scored the go ahead point for his team with an 11-3 major decision. This made the score 13-12 in favor of the Black.

At 197-pounds, the Black's Tyler Gonzales met the Gold's Dustin Trego. Gonzales was in control of the match at 3-2 from midway through the second period all the way through to late in the third period when Trego reversed Gonzales' advantage and then scored three back points on top of the reversal. Trego would win the match 7-3, giving the lead back to the Gold 15-13.

In the final match of the evening at heavyweight, the Black's Andrew Ubben, ranked #3 in the pre-season national poll, matched up against Lyndon Wagner of the Gold squad. Ubben was controling the match fairly well, racking up riding time througout, but Wagner would not give up without a fight in the third period. Ubben led 6-3 when Wagner scored an escape point making it 6-4, and then scored two takedown points evening the match at 6-6. As time expired though, Ubben had more than two minutes of riding time in his favor giving him the 7-6 win.

Ubben's decision put the Black over the top of the Gold by one point at 16-15. The Black won five of the nine matches on the evening, but the Gold made it close mainly thanks to Delk's fall at 149 pounds.

FHSU gets its tournament season started at the University of Central Missouri on November 12.

Close matches in Tiger scrimmage
Close matches in Tiger scrimmage

By NICK McQUEEN

Hays Daily News

In terms of lineup-altering upsets, there weren't too many big shockers for the Fort Hays State University wrestling team in Thursday night's Black and Gold scrimmage at Gross Memorial Coliseum.

If anything, the close matches fans saw in their first look at the No. 9 ranked Tigers was an indication of the depth the Tigers will need to uphold or improve that ranking as the season progresses.

"These are always tough," Tiger coach Cody Bickley said. "It's never as offensive as you would like it to be and there is never as much action as you would like there to be."

Though not much action, the scrimmage didn't come without its surprises.

In the first match of the evening at 125 pounds, senior Devin Schwartz of Great Bend defeated senior Kory Lira, the Tiger veteran from Ulysses, 3-2. With just over a minute to go in the third period, Schwartz recorded a takedown for the win.

"There were some surprises, there's no doubt about that and I think that shows a little bit more depth, so we've got a good squad," Bickley said. "We have a pretty solid lineup."

That lineup, ranked No. 9 in the National Wrestling Coaches Association Division II preseason poll, will see its first action against other competition Nov. 12 at the University of Central Missouri Open in Warrensburg, Mo.

Thursday's scrimmage gave Bickley an indication of a few things the Tigers will need to work on in preparation for the opener.

"These guys work out with each other every day and they know each other very well, so that's to be expected," Bickley said of the lack of offense. "They did a good job and it's a start. We have some work to do."

One Tiger who didn't miss a beat was senior Mikel Delk, the preseason ranked No. 1 wrestler at 149 pounds. Delk pinned redshirt freshman Josh Peterson from Abilene with 2:35 left to give the gold team a 12-6 lead.

At 285 pounds, senior two-time All-American Andrew Ubben was nearly defeated by junior Lyndon Wagner.

Wagner scored a takedown late, but Ubben, the No. 3-ranked preseason wrestler, escaped for a 7-6 win as time expired.

"There were some last-minute things. A lot of that is just mistakes on their part," Bickley said. "There are some things you can do different."

Junior Josh Pfannenstiel, a Hays High School product, was able to come away with an 8-7 victory over junior Bryce Bahe of Goodland at 141 pounds.

At 157, redshirt freshman Danny Grater, who looks to replace two-time All-American David Nordhues, was a 2-1 winner over sophomore Patrick Keane.

"We have some guys that I think should be ranked up there," Bickley said. "Once we get in some competition and seeing other people, they'll be able to prove they should be up there."

At 184 pounds, senior Mike Howell, the No. 6 ranked preseason wrestler, was held out of the lineup. In the 184-pound match, junior Troy Medill won by major decision over senior Justin Stevens.

"It's a type of deal where it's hard to get their offense going," Bickley said of the scrimmage. "It's the guys they see every day. It's hard out there doing this, but it makes them focus on their technique a little bit more."

Other than Medill's major decision and Delk's pin, every match was within four points, showing some depth at most weight classes, with the exception of 165 pounds, which was open with only junior Phil Hart in the class.

Sports reporter Nick McQueen can be reached at (785) 628-1081, ext. 128 or by e-mail at nmcqueen@dailynews.net.

Wrestling
Ubben Champion; Grater & Malloy Place At UCM Open
Nov. 20, 2006

The Fort Hays State wrestling team competed in the Central Missouri Open on November 12th in Warrensburg, Missouri. FHSU had three individual placers. Senior Andrew Ubben, ranked preseason #3 in the 285-pound division went 5-0 and was champion of his weight class. Freshman Danny Grater at 157 pounds and sophomore Blake Malloy at 174 pounds both finished in sixth place in their respective weight classes.

Ubben began the day winning by fall at 1:22 over Mark Lang of Northwest Missouri State. Ubben next defeated Loyde Braidlow of Truman State by a 7-2 decision. He then defeated Landon Harris of Oklahoma State with a 10-3 decision. Ubben’s next opponent was Cedric Powell of Meramec Community College and Ubben won the match with a 7-2 decision. In the championship match, he defeated Josh Leadingfox of Central Oklahoma with a 3-2 decision.

Grater went 5-3 on the day and finished in sixth place at 157 pounds. He won his first three matches over Kyle O’toole from Eastern Illinois by a 7-2 decision, Nick Hanify from Meramec Community College by technical fall at 3:30, and Tyler Woods from Campbellsville University by technical fall 16-1. Grater then lost his first match to Emmanuel Brooks from Missouri by a 4-9 decision, before winning his next two matches over Luke Elmore of Central Oklahoma by fall at 0:56 and Brandon Benson of Oklahoma Christian by a 4-1 decision. He then lost to Jason Leavitt of Cental Oklahoma by a 5-8 decision and lost the fifth place match to Shane Vernon of Oklahoma by a 4-7 decision to finish sixth.

Malloy finished the tournament with a 4-3 record to finish sixth at 174 pounds. He won his first two matches over Taylor Hosick of Oklahoma State by a 4-3 decision and Neal Kemp of Lindenwood with a 2-1 decision, then lost his first match to Joey Garrity of Missouri by a 2-3 decision. Malloy then won his next two matches over Joey Sheets of Central Missouri by a 4-3 decision and Daniel Morrison of Central Oklahoma by a 8-3 decision. He then lost to Jeff James of Oklahoma by a 0-1 decision and lost the fifth place match to Travis Barbarick of Central Missouri by a 3-4 decision to finish sixth.

The Tigers had a total of 17 wrestlers who competed in the tournament. Up next for the Tigers is the Northern Colorado Open in Greeley, Colorado, on November 19th. The next home action for the Tigers will be the FHSU-Bob Smith Open on Saturday, December 2nd.

Wrestling
Five Tigers Place At Northern Colorado Open
Nov. 20, 2006

The Fort Hays State wrestling team competed in the Northern Colorado Open on November 19th in Greeley, Colorado. FHSU had three runner-up finishes in James Annon at 133 pounds, Tyler Gonzales at 197 pounds and Chris Eberwein at 285 pounds. FHSU also had two third-place finishers in Danny Grater at 157 pounds and Dustin Trego at 197 pounds. Four members of the Tiger wrestling team also wrestled in the Kaufman/Brand Open in Omaha, Nebraska, with Andrew Ubben being the highest finisher making it to the quarterfinals of the backside bracket before being eliminated.

Annon finished the day with a record of 4-1 at 133 pounds. He began by defeating Ben Lockett of San Francisco State with a 9-2 decision, then defeated Kyle Oyler of Newman University with a 3-1 decision, Tyler Baker of Colby CC with a 6-3 decision, and Marques Bravo of Western State with a 4-3 decision. He then lost to Kyle Kaiser of Northern Colorado in the championship match by an 8-9 decision.

Gonzales went 3-1 on the day, finishing second at 197 pounds. He won his first three matches over Copper Still of Western Wyoming CC by fall at 2:33, Nathan Barzee of Northwestern College with a 4-3 decision and Jake Wamsher of Montana State-Northern with a 4-2 decision. In the championship match, he lost to #1-seed Casey Woodall of Adams State by a 1-3 decision.

Eberwein went 4-1, finishing second at 285 pounds. He won his first four matches over Gabe Walz of Colby CC by fall at 3:09, Andrew Skinner of Western State by fall at 3:06, Charles Saguil of New Mexico Highlands with a 8-3 decision and Josh Robinson of Montana State-Northern by a 7-3 decision. He lost in the championship match to top seeded Reece Hopkin of Northern Colorado by a 3-7 decision.

Grater had an impressive performance to take third at 157 pounds. After receiving a first round bye, he lost to Taylor Torisk of Mesa State by fall at 2:35, then he won his next five matches through the backside bracket to get into the third place match, which he won by default over Jason Nichols of Pratt CC.

Trego finished the day with a 4-1 record to take third at 197 pounds. He won his first two matches over Eric McCallister of Utah Valley State with a 12-9 decision and then over Andrew Robarge of James Madison by fall at 3:07. Trego lost his only match of the day to top-seeded Casey Woodall of Adams State by a 4-7 decision, then defeated Nathan Barzee of Northwestern College by a 10-8 decision to get into the third place match. He then defeated Marcus Bartley of James Madison with a 2-1 decision to finish third.

The Tigers had a total of 19 wrestlers who competed in the tournament. The next action for the Tigers will be the FHSU-Bob Smith Open on Saturday, December 2nd at Gross Coliseum.

Ten Tigers Place At FHSU-Bob Smith Open
Dec. 2, 2006

The Fort Hays State wrestling team hosted the annual FHSU-Bob Smith Open Saturday, December 2 at Gross Memorial Coliseum in Hays. FHSU had 21 of its wrestlers compete in the tournament. The Tigers had a great showing in the tournament having one champion, three second-place finishers, three third-place finishers and three fourth-place finishers.
Senior Mikel Delk proved his #1 ranking in the nation at 149 pounds as he won his weight class. He defeated Matt True of Nebraska-Kearney, a two-time champion at the FHSU-Bob Smith Open, with a 4-2 sudden victory in overtime. Delk won five matches in the bracket on his way to the title. Delk was named the Most Valuable Wrestler of the tournament as voted on by the coaches of the teams participating in the open.

Finishing second for the Tigers were freshman Danny Grater, junior Troy Medill and senior Andrew Ubben.

Grater took second in the 157-pound weight class, going 4-1 in the tournament. He defeated Jared Webster of Chadron State College in the semifinals by a score of 4-2. He faced Jason Leavitt of Central Oklahoma in the finals and lost a very tight match by a 3-2 decision.

Medill finished second at 174 pounds by going 3-1 in the tournament. He reached the finals by defeating Jon Montgomery of Northern Colorado in the semifinals by a 9-4 count. He also lost a tight battle in the championship, falling 3-2 to Jason Green of Neosho Community College in the finals. He recorded one fall in the tournament.

Ubben finished second in the 285-pound weight class. He is currently ranked #3 in NCAA Division II. He defeated Dustin Finn of Central Oklahoma in the semifinals 3-1 to meet another Central Oklahoma nemesis, Josh Leadingfox in the finals. Leadingfox won the championship in overtime by sudden victory 3-1. Ubben defeated Leadingfox earlier in the year, but came up on the short end in this battle.

Taking third place for FHSU in the tournament were junior Kyle Patton at 125 pounds, sophomore James Annon at 133 pounds and Tyler Gonzales at 197 pounds.

Patton reached the semifinals of the championship bracket before falling to eventual champion Michael Martinez of Wyoming by a 3-2 decision. He defeated Devlon Webb of Chadron State in the consolation semifinals 3-1 and then defeated Geoff Meng of Colorado Mines in the third-place match by fall in 58 seconds. Patton went 4-1 in the tournament.

Annon reached the semifinals of the championship bracket at 133 pounds before falling to Isaac Wall of Newman University 15-4. He came back to defeat Garrett Eller of Colorado Mines in the consolation semifinals 3-1 and then beat Jimmy Savala of Chadron State in the third-place match 1-0. Annon went 5-1 in the tournament.

Gonzales reached the championship bracket semifinals at 197 pounds and nearly upset Heath Jolley of Central Oklahoma, falling in a tight battle 4-3. He defeated Grant Reichert of Kansas State University in the consolation semifinals 3-2 and defeated teammate Dustin Trego by the same score in the third-place match. He went 4-1 in the tournament.

Also having a great tournament and finishing in fourth place for the Tigers were Phil Hart at 165 pounds, Dustin Trego at 197 pounds and Dustin Martin at 285 pounds. Martin is redshirting this season for the Tigers after qualifying for nationals last year at 197 pounds.

The Tigers will be in action next at Nebraska-Kearney next weekend before gearing up for their dual season after the holiday break.

FORT HAYS STATE 33, COLORADO SCHOOL OF MINES 7
Friday, January 5, 2007
Fort Morgan, Colo.

WEIGHT WON LOST SCORE
125 Kory Lira (FHSU) -- FORFEIT
133 #8 James Annon (FHSU) Garrett Eller (CSM) 7-5
141 Josh Pfannenstiel (FHSU) Cody Weitzel (CSM) 6-2
149 #1 Mikel Delk (FHSU) Tony Gallegos (CSM) Fall, 6:34
157 Danny Grater (FHSU) Nathan Pilcher (CSM) 7-1
165 Erik Brennan (CSM) Phil Hart (FHSU) 14-4
174 Zac Cornett (CSM) Blake Milloy (FHSU) 2-0
184 #5 Mike Howell (FHSU) Patrick Ryan (CSM) 13-4
197 Tyler Gonzales (FHSU) Brennen Knerr (CSM) 6-0
285 #4 Andrew Ubben (FHSU) Andrew Skinner (WSC) 18-1

#7 Ranked Tiger Wrestlers Move To 2-0 With Win Over Newman
Jan. 9, 2007

The Fort Hays State wrestling team hosted Newman University Tuesday night at Gross Coliseum in Hays in their first home dual of the season. The Tigers won the match 39-6 over a banged up Newman squad which was only able to wrestle six of the 10 weights in the match.

Four open weights, at 125, 174, 184 and 285 pounds, spotted the Tigers 24 points in the match. Of the six matches that were wrestled, four of the matches went in Fort Hays State's favor.

The action opened at 133 pounds after FHSU's Devin Schwartz was declared the winner at 125 pounds. Isaac Wall of Newman University dashed the hopes of FHSU winning all their matches early with a 9-2 decision over Derek Patterson. Wall ran his overall record to 13-6 and was the only Jets wrestler in action with a winning overall record. Patterson fell to 4-5 overall with the loss.

At 141 pounds, the Tigers' Josh Pfannenstiel took on Aeron Hill. The match was tight throughout, but Pfannenstiel would hold off Hill in the end by a 4-3 decision. The win put the dual score at 9-3 in the Tigers' favor. Pfannenstiel is now 8-4 this season.

FHSU would build to their lead in the dual when Bryce Bahe defeated Isaac Cervantes by a 9-0 major decision in the 149 pound match. It was Cervantes' first match of the season and Bahe improved his record to 2-4 on the year with the win. Bahe had a scare in the first period when his leg was tweaked by an awkward position. Bahe battled through the pain though to blank Cervantes in the match. FHSU moved to a 13-3 lead with Bahe's win.

In the 157-pound match, FHSU's Danny Grater picked apart Andrew Nash of Newman to score a 14-3 major decision. Grater picked up several takedown points throughout the match, running his record to 17-5 overall this season. Grater's 17 wins leads the team this season. That made the score 17-3 in FHSU's favor at intermission.

In the 165-pound match, FHSU's Patrick Keane faced off against Nate Alvarez. The match was tight throughout but Alvarez came back from a deficit scoring takedown points twice in the third period which put him ahead 8-7. In Keane's last ditch effort to score an escape point, Alvarez was able to get three back points just before the buzzer sounded. Alvarez won the match by an 11-7 decision, making the score 17-6 in FHSU's favor. Keane is now 3-8 overall this season.

The 174 and 184 pound weights were open, giving wins to Blake Malloy and Nick McGovern of FHSU. It ran the FHSU lead to 29-6 before the final match of the evening was wrestled at 197 pounds. Tyler Gonzales of FHSU matched up against Florian Temengil of Newman University. Gonzales turned in a dominating performance and almost shutout Temengil, grabbing a 10-1 major decision. Gonzales, a redshirt freshman, moved to 11-4 with the win giving FHSU a 33-6 advantage.

Andrew Ubben, ranked #4 in the nation, was declared the winner at 285 pounds to make the final 39-6 in favor of Fort Hays State. The Tigers sit at 2-0 overall and 1-0 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference as they resume action at the NWCA Division II National Duals this coming weekend in Cedar Falls, Iowa. The Tigers will take on Shippensburg (Pa.) in the first round of the tournament. The Tigers have been placed as the #6 seed in the bracketing. The event will last two days, January 13-14. Brackets are available on the "schedule" link of the http://www.fhsuathletics.com wrestling menu.

NWCA
Cliff Keen National Duals 2007
NCAA Division II
1/13/2007
Preliminary Championship
Round 1


Fort Hays State University (Ft Hays) 27
Shippensburg University (Ship) 12

125 Kory Lira (Ft Hays) WBF FORFEIT F FOR
133 James Annon (Ft Hays) WBD Darren Murray (Ship) M 11-2
141 Steve Fittery (Ship) WBF Josh Pfannenstiel (Ft Hays) F 4:02
149 Mikel Delk (Ft Hays) WBD Dan Nauman (Ship) M 12-3
157 Danny Grater (Ft Hays) WBD Jake Wilson (Ship) D 7-2
165 Derek Deutsch (Ship) WBD Phil Hart (Ft Hays) D 7-3
174 Blake Malloy (Ft Hays) WBD Rick Mascino (Ship) M 16-4
184 Mark Murphy (Ship) WBD Mike Howell (Ft Hays) D 3-1
197 Tyler Gonzales (Ft Hays) WBD Pete Grodziak (Ship) D 4-2
285 Andrew Ubben (Ft Hays) WBD Jason Groller (Ship) D 6-1

Great showing by the Tigers! Thanks for the updates Richard!!

NWCA
Cliff Keen National Duals 2007
NCAA Division II
1/13/2007

Championship Quarter Finals

Minnesota State University - Mankato (MN-Man) 33
Fort Hays State University (Ft Hays) 6

125 Kory Lira (Ft Hays) WBF FORFEIT F FOR
133 Jeff Pfaffinger (MN-Man) WBD James Annon (Ft Hays) D 9-3
141 Travis Elg (MN-Man) WBF Josh Pfannenstiel (Ft Hays) F 4:20
149 Jason Rhoten (MN-Man) WBD Mikel Delk (Ft Hays) D 4-1
157 Brandon Girtz (MN-Man) WBD Danny Grater (Ft Hays) D 2-1
165 Andy Pickar (MN-Man) WBF Phil Hart (Ft Hays) F 1:46
174 Tim Matheson (MN-Man) WBD Blake Malloy (Ft Hays) D 8-7
184 Travis Krinkie (MN-Man) WBD Mike Howell (Ft Hays) D 10-8
197 Ben Janike (MN-Man) WBD Tyler Gonzales (Ft Hays) D 10-3
285 Brady Wilson (MN-Man) WBD Andrew Ubben (Ft Hays) D 3-2

NWCA
Cliff Keen National Duals 2007
NCAA Division II
1/13/2007

Consolation Second Round

University of Wisconsin - Parkside (Park) 20
Fort Hays State University (Ft Hays) 18

125 Brandon Kircher (Park) WBF Kory Lira (Ft Hays) F 1:33
133 Craig DeGreef (Park) WBD James Annon (Ft Hays) D 9-7
141 Brad Becker (Park) WBD Josh Pfannenstiel (Ft Hays) D 8-3
149 Mikel Delk (Ft Hays) WBF FORFEIT F FOR
157 Danny Grater (Ft Hays) WBD Brad Becker (Park) D 8-3
165 Kyle Becker (Park) WBD Phil Hart (Ft Hays) TF-5 17-0; 5;16
174 Albert Morgan (Park) WBD Blake Malloy (Ft Hays) D 5-3
184 Mike Howell (Ft Hays) WBD Luke Haag (Park) D 9-4
197 Tyler Gonzales (Ft Hays) WBD Jon Treml (Park) D 9-4
285 Andrew Ubben (Ft Hays) WBD Joe Dhein (Park) D 8-2

Mankato must be tough as nails!

Minnesota State-Mankato placed fourth (4th) behind
1. Univ. Nebraska-Kearney,
2. Univ. Nebraska-Omaha, and
3. Univ. Central Oklahoma.

Even though FHSU didn't place at the duals, it was a great weekend of wrestling for all of them. I'd like to say a special congratulations to Danny!!! From what the coaches told me, he beat the National Champion from last year!!

157 Danny Grater (Ft Hays) WBD Brad Becker (Park) D 8-3

Just a proud parent,
Leanna

... and proud ... you should be!

I do not wish to offend any of the other Ft. Hays wrestlers however I always pay particular attention to Danny and Tyler and was quite pleased with their individual accomplishments.

I know Greg is smiling from above and proud of Danny as well, and of course Coach Gonzales is equally proud.

Congratulations to all!

Wrestling
Grizzlies Clip Tiger Grapplers In RMAC Tilt
Jan. 18, 2007

The Fort Hays State wrestling team hosted Adams State College in a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Dual on Thursday night in Hays. The match lived up to its billing as the #6 ranked Grizzlies battled the #7 Tigers tough. The dual came down to the last match of the night and the Grizzlies prevailed with a 21-18 win.

The matches began at 141 pounds for the evening and the Grizzlies were open at 133 pounds, which meant the Tigers were going to gain six points at the end of the match.

In the 141-pound match, the Grizzlies got out to a hot start with #8 ranked Joey Deaguero scoring a fall at 4:15 over James Annon, who wrestled up a weight from his normal class of 133. The pin gave Adams State a quick 6-0 lead to begin the match. Annon dropped to 11-5 overall this season.

The Tigers would cut the lead in half at 149 pounds as #1 ranked Mikel Delk defeated Noomis Jones by an 8-1 decision. The win improved Delk's record to 9-2.

The Tigers' Danny Grater, who defeated last year's national champion at the NWCA Division II Duals this past weekend, got a shot at another highly ranked wrestler in #3 Mike Gallegos of Adams State at 157 pounds. Grater battled Gallegos tough throughout the match, but Gallegos scored a takedown late in the third period, breaking a 1-1 tie. Gallegos picked up an extra point off riding time, making the final 4-1. The loss took Grater's record to 19-7 this season.

At 165 pounds, Phil Hart continued his recent struggles as he fell to Evan Copeland of Adams State by an 11-4 decision. With the two consecutive wins after the Delk win for FHSU, Adams built there lead to 12-3. Hart's record fell to 4-6 for the season.

The most exciting match came at 174 pounds with FHSU's Blake Malloy going up against James Reynolds of ASC. Malloy and Reynolds had a tough time scoring on each other throughout the match, so the two went to overtime tied 1-1. Malloy scored a 4-3 sudden victory in the second overtime, after each picked up two points in the first overtime session. That made the score 12-6 in favor of Adams State heading into the brief intermission. Malloy is now 11-8 overall this season.

The 184-pound match matched two ranked wrestlers, with #8 Mike Howell of FHSU going up against #5 Jared Deaguero of Adams State. Deaguero and Howell also had a nailbiter for a match, as they were tied 4-4 with less than 30 seconds remaining in the third period. Howell tried to make a quick move to score, but Deaguero took advantage of the move and scored two takedown points of his own to give him a 6-4 edge in the match. The loss put Howell at 6-5 this season. The win gave ASC a 15-6 advantage.

At 197 pounds, Adams State's Casey Woodall, the #1 ranked wrestler in Division II, had his hands full with FHSU's Tyler Gonzales. Gonzales gave Woodall a scare as the match was tight in the third period, but Woodall would prevail 5-3. Gonzales moved to 13-6 overall with the loss. Adams State moved ahead 18-6 with the decision.

FHSU's Andrew Ubben, ranked #4 in the nation, would pull FHSU back into the dual quickly with a fall over Jeff Schossow at 1:53. Ubben's pin at the heavyweight class brought the Tigers back within six points of Adams State in the dual. The win put Ubben at 16-4 and gave the Tigers in a position to win the dual if they could pick up a win in the 125 pound match. With the 133-pound class being open for Adams State, the score theoretically was tied at 18-18 heading into the final match, even though the scoreboard said 18-12 in favor of Adams State.

Kory Lira, ranked #8 in NCAA II, gave the fans plenty of excitement in the deciding match against Arsenia Barksdale at 125 pounds. Lira and Barksdale each scored one escape point, and the two were deadlocked at 1-1 in the third period. Lira tried to make something happen with about 40 seconds to go, being the aggressor trying to get a takedown on Barksdale. Barksdale took advantage of Lira's body position and picked up two points of his own with a takedown. Barksdale was able to score three back points right at the end of the match, giving him three more points. Lira picked up a point from Barksdale for unnecessary roughness at the end of the match, making the final score 6-2 in favor of Barksdale. The win for Barksdale gave Adams State a 21-18 win in the dual.

The Grizzlies stay perfect on the season in duals with the win. They are now 3-0 overall and 3-0 in the RMAC. The Tigers are now 3-3 overall and 1-1 in the RMAC. They are currently riding a three-dual losing streak. FHSU will wrestle #20 ranked Chadron State at home next Thursday in Hays. It will be another RMAC showdown for the Tigers.

Those are the two I follow quite a bit as well, just great guys on and off the mat, as are many of their teammates and coaches.