Different team from the state of North Dakota, same results.

UND swept the Jacks off the court Halloween night, handing SDSU it’s sixth straight loss by scores of 25-20, 25-23 and 25-22.

“We’ll fight, we’ll push and we’re battling and then something will happen and won’t go our way and I don’t want to say we fold, but we kind of back off,” head coach Phil McDaniel said.

The Jacks jumped to an early 14-10 lead but the offense looked out of sync and SDSU gained most of its early points from UND errors. The UND offense started to roll and ended the set with two kills and two blocks to put SDSU away. The Jacks only notched eight kills in the first set as UND went on a 14-6 run to go up 1-0 in the match.

Set two was highly contested with 16 tie scores and seven lead changes and the Jacks held a 23-22 late advantage but couldn’t close things out as UND ended the match with a kill, a block and another kill to jump out to a 2-0 match lead.

The SDSU offense showed up in the second set but UND’s attack kept the same pace from the first set which had the Jacks off-balance most of the match. UND’s defense was also solid most of the night.

“I think UND’s defense is really good. They had a really strong block and we had some out-of-system balls that we probably could have done better with,” Kaitlin Klingemann said.

Facing the sweep, the Jacks played their best volleyball of the night in set three but it was too little too late. SDSU jumped out to an early 16-13 lead but once again couldn’t take advantage of the opportunity to continue to match.

“When the game starts getting to the end, you’ve got to tighten up, meaning you’ve got to shore up the little mistakes, but you can’t tighten-up,” McDaniel said. “We just get a little timid and when that happens it usually spells bad things for us.”

Klingemann led the Jacks with 10 kills for the limited SDSU attack. Shay Birath continued her outstanding defensive play, tallying 22 digs in the loss.

In volleyball terms, North Dakota universities have owned the SDSU. Monday night’s match was the second time UND has swept the Jacks this season. SDSU also dropped two matches to NDSU in 2011.

The loss drops the Jacks to 12-16 on the season with their last win on Oct. 8 against Southern Utah. Since Sept. 23, SDSU has been swept seven times.

Now SDSU will have to try and regroup on a tough road trip. The Jacks head to Cedar City, Utah, Thursday night for a match with Southern Utah, then head to Tulsa, Okla., for a conference game with Oral Roberts Nov. 5. Both teams the Jacks face this weekend are playing in their final season as members of the Summit League.

“It’s going to be a long weekend but I think we’re all excited to go play against two teams that’ll be out of the conference pretty soon,” Klingemann said. “We’re just hoping to end on a good note.”

Dual threat quarterbacks have been on the rise over the past few years in college football, which can present challenges for any defense. SDSU managed to stop half of UNI quarterback Tirrell Rennie’s game, holding him to just 27 yards on 10 attempts.

So the Panthers went to the air and reaped the benefits of Rennie’s dual threat ability as he went 16-20 for 239 yards and a career-high four touchdowns.

“He made some tough passes in some tight spots. Receivers are making catches for him too. There’s a lot of belief among that offensive group right now,” UNI head coach Mark Farley said.

Rennie made big plays through the air all night on SDSU’s inexperienced defensive backfield, including a 80-yard touchdown strike to receiver Jerred Herring. The touchdown broke a 14-14 tie with four minutes to play in the first half, and UNI played up to their number two ranking the rest of the game.

The Jackrabbit defense has been plagued by big plays all season, but SDSU head coach John Stiegelmeier didn’t place blame on any specific area of his defense after last Saturday’s loss.

“This was a breakdown across the board. More one position than another but all eleven guys have to do their job,” Stiegelmeier said.

Late half letdown
A sequence of plays at the end of the first half could be used as an example of how SDSU’s season has gone thus far.

UNI punted to the Jacks and after a 19-yard return by Brandon Gant, SDSU had the ball at the Panther 35 yard line with 53 seconds remaining in the half with one timeout left.

Given the way SDSU had moved the ball most of the first half and with good field position, chances were high for at least a field goal on the drive.

But Sumner was sacked on first down when the Jacks couldn’t set up a screen, forcing SDSU to burn its final timeout. The play would prove to be costly.

After completing a 15-yard pass to Jason Schneider, Sumner found Brandon Hubert over the middle for a 23-yard catch and run. Hubert was tackled at the three yard line, and with no timeouts, the clock continued to run.

Instead of spiking the ball with roughly 20 seconds to play and having a chance to talk things over in the huddle, SDSU chose to run a play.

The decision was pretty much the nail in the coffin for the Jacks.

Sumner was picked off by UNI’s Varmah Sonie on a underthrown ball while trying to hit receiver Aaron Rollin on a fade route in the back corner of the endzone.

“I’ll take credit for that one. I just gotta put it where my guy can catch it. I feel like that took some wind out of us,” Sumner said.

A touchdown would have kept some momentum on SDSU’s side entering the second half, but instead the Jacks handed UNI a huge boost heading into the locker room with their seven point lead intact.

Inconsistency at it’s finest.

Pass With Care
Whether by choice or necessity, SDSU is turning into a passing team this season.

Outside of the week one win over Southern Utah, the SDSU running game hasn’t seen much success. With running backs Tyrel Kool and Zach Zenner combining for only 88 yards on 25 carries against UNI, the load of the offense fell on the shoulders of redshirt freshman quarterback Austin Sumner.

Sumner completed 37 of 54 passes for 354 yards and two touchdowns, but the UNI defense did what they do best: create turnovers, as they picked off Sumner four times.

“They were just making plays,” Sumner said of the UNI defense. “I just got to do better. I didn’t play my best game tonight and they’re a good team. If you don’t play good against good teams nothing good is going to happen.”

The reason for the suddenly pass-happy Jacks may be due to a banged up offensive line not being able to create holes. It may be that Kyle Minett left a bigger hole than expected in the backfield. More likely, however, is the fact SDSU has been forced to score quickly and play catch-up in most games this season.

Either way, the Jackrabbit offense now relies mostly on Sumner’s right arm, which is a shaky situation to be in for any team starting a young quarterback.

“Tonight was the first time in two weeks I’ve seen my old team back on the court,” head coach Phil McDaniel said.

Heading into the match with Summit-leading Oral Roberts, the Jacks had dropped five straight matches, being swept four times during the losing streak.

The Jacks battled through five sets, but couldn’t overcome another slow start, which has become somewhat of a trend during the six game skid. SDSU couldn’t complete the comeback, falling 3-2 to the Golden Eagles.

ORU came out in set one ready to go to work, pounding out 20 kills as the SDSU defense didn’t have an answer for the ORU attack. The Jacks offense didn’t fare any better, only knocking down eight kills in the first set.

“I don’t know if we get too relaxed at home or what. I haven’t figured it out,” McDaniel said.

Set two was a different story. The Jacks came out firing with a majority of the hitting chances going to Kelly Herrmann on the outside. The teams battled all set long, with 17 tie scores and seven lead changes, before ORU took set two in extra points, 26-24.

With an 0-2 match deficit and facing another sweep, the Jacks kept feeding the ball to Herrmann and things started turning around. In another highly contested set, the Jacks pulled off a 25-23 victory to keep the match alive for one more set.

“We did a lot of things really well that we hadn’t been doing well, especially on blocking,” Herrmann said.

Blocking was the key to the Jacks set three and set four victories, as they registered four and three total blocks in the sets, respectively. SDSU finished with nine total blocks on the night, but none came in the final set.

Herrmann finished with 16 kills and one error in 50 total attacks and also had 14 digs.

“Great night,” McDaniel said. “She did a great job tonight moving the ball around and caught them off guard a bit with her shots down the line, moving the ball across court. Overall just a great job.”

The Jacks now have a 3-5 conference record and find themselves in almost the same circumstances as last year. In 2010, SDSU started the season with a 4-5 record in conference play and sat in the middle of the Summit League standings. Then the Jacks rattled off eight straight conference wins to qualify for the Summit League tournament.

“We tried not to put ourselves in that position again, but we kind of did,” Herrmann said. “We just have to be able to cut down on our errors and try to let the other team make the errors, or at least play the ball, which makes a big difference [turning the season around].”

Does this year’s team, facing the same uphill climb, have enough in them to go on a run and make the tournament?

“We have to play with this type of intensity every night. If we do that, we’ll win more than we lose. The thing is, we’ve been missing [the intensity] for the past two weeks. If we get that back, I’m not worried, but we have to make sure we maintain it. If we play that way, I like our chances,” McDaniel said.

Shakir Bell showed the Jacks that appearances can be deceiving. Indiana State’s 5’8’’ back appeared to be bottled up by the SDSU defense in the first half of last Saturday’s Beef Bowl, as Bell was held to just 38 yards in the first half. Then in the second half, he showed everyone at Coughlin-Alumni Stadium why he was second in the nation in yards per game (142 ypg) heading into the contest.

Bell busted out for 122 yards on only 10 carries and one touchdown in the third quarter to eventually lead the Sycamores to their second conference victory.

“He’s just got that instinct. He’s got ‘it’, whatever ‘it’ is, he’s got it,” ISU head coach Trent Miles said.

When all was said and done, Bell had racked up 199 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries. His offensive line dominated SDSU’s banged up defensive front in the second half. The only reason he didn’t eclipse the 200 yard mark was due to a bad first quarter, in which the Jacks held Bell to -6 yards.

“I really can’t take full credit for what I’m doing back there. It all starts up front…I just do what I do after I get past those guys, and if you look at the film, they make great holes,” Bell said.

Harris out for season
A bizarre play ended in what head coach John Stiegelmeier called “a terrible tragedy” for senior captain and kicker Kyle Harris.

Harris was set to kickoff after nailing a 19 yard field goal in the final minutes of the first quarter. He didn’t even reach the ball.

While running up to kick the ball, Harris’ leg buckled about two steps from making contact and fell over the football. ISU’s Larry King scooped up the ball and ran for six yards as many of the SDSU players looked toward Harris, who was on laying on the grass, clearly in pain.

It turns out Harris broke both bones in his leg and went into surgery Saturday night after leaving the field. He’s done for the season.

“It’s a tough loss. A senior captain, really a leader on our team. We’re going to miss him,” quarterback Austin Sumner said.

Redshirt freshman Justin Syrovatka hit two field goals after the injury and Ethan Sawyer performed well in place of Harris on kickoffs.

Offensive line
There were differing opinions after the game regarding the play of Indiana State’s defense. Quarterback Austin Sumner praised his offensive line, and asked, in almost disbelief, if he had even gotten sacked (he was sacked twice).

“I’d say our line did a good job for the most part. They’re [ISU] an okie team, they like to bring a lot of pressure…[the offensive line] protected me pretty well,” Sumner said.

Surprising, considering Sumner had to avoid a heavy Sycamores pass rush most of the game, often extending plays with his feet and throwing on the run.
Head coach John Stiegelmeier gave credit to the offensive line as well, but had a little different view on how ISU’s defense played. Stiegelmeier was asked if the pressure on his quarterback was due to coverage or not.

“I don’t think he (Sumner) always had guys open, so I would give some credit to their coverage,” Stiegelmeier said. “They didn’t blitz much at all.”

It was a different story in terms of run blocking, as the Jacks failed to get much going on the ground. Tyrel Kool and Zach Zenner combined for 100 yards on 25 rushes, averaging out to four yards a carry as the running game hasn’t progressed much since the SDSU’s lone victory over Southern Utah.

One thing was clear after SDSU swept Western Illinois at Frost Arena last Saturday night: the Jacks will defend home court with everything they have.

“This is our home and teams should not look forward to coming here. It’s just going to be a battle,” Kelli Fiegen said.

Shay Birath celebrates a point during the Jacks' 3-0 win over Western Illinois

After cruising to 25-16 and 25-18 victories in sets one and two, the Jacks found themselves in an up and down battle in the third set that featured eight tie scores, two lead changes and extra points to determine a winner.

The offense sputtered a bit in set three and the Jacks found themselves trailing 21-23. But back-to-back blocks by Ellyce Youngren and Kelli Fiegen tied things up at 23-23. Each team went back and forth, exchanging points and staving off defeat until the Jacks received a Bailey Philippot spike and a Kaitlin Klingemann kill to seal the set 29-27 – a three-set victory to remain undefeated at home on the season.

Philippot and Kelly Herrmann came through with some nice hitting from the outside, slamming 10 and nine kills, respectively. Four of Herrmann’s kills came in the high drama third set.

“Something we’ve really been stressing lately is that we’ve got to get some kills from the outside. We’ve got to be productive out there. Those two really stepped up tonight and we were able to get them in the system enough to get them some quality swings,” head coach Phil McDaniel said.

The win was a team effort. Six players registered kills with setter Lexi Fowler dishing out 40 assists in the match and appearing to have better timing with her hitters than the previous night against IUPUI.

McDaniel also mixed in a few new players in the rotation, as Margit Hansing, Kelsey Hansen and Ashley Bartek each played a set.

“It’s important to get them in … it’s not just a chance for them to see the court, it’s a chance for them to be productive,” McDaniel said.

After a solid weekend, Shay Birath was honored as the Summit League defensive player of the week for the third time in her career. Birath notched 47 digs and three service aces in wins over IUPUI and WIU. She currently leads the Summit League with 5.88 digs per set and only needs 36 more digs to reach 1,000 career digs.

With the sweep of WIU and five set victory over IUPUI, the Jacks sit at 2-0 in the conference and are now 10-4 overall in McDaniel’s first season as head coach. The 2-0 start in conference is especially important because the Jacks won’t be back to Frost Arena until Oct. 1 against NDSU.

“We’re feeling pretty strong. We still have a lot of tough competition in the conference with NDSU and USD, but we look forward to playing at their level and beating them,” Philippot said.

The struggles continued Feb. 11 for the SDSU wrestling team, as the Jacks dropped their dual with NDSU, 43-7. That drubbing marked the seventh straight dual loss for SDSU in the Western Wrestling Conference.

“Depth and balance. We just haven’t had that luxury [this season]” head coach Jason Liles said on a night where three defeats came by fall, two by major decision, and a technical fall piled on the points for the Bison. The night also saw two SDSU forfeits at 125 and 133 pounds.

For a team that is lacking in depth, injuries always seem to sting just a bit more. Sophomore Aaron Pickrel sat out the night with an injury.

Liles did have the luxury of witnessing some fine matches from some of the veteran members of the team: 174-pound junior David Michaud and senior heavyweight Kevin Kelly.

Michaud was up against NDSU’s Tyler Wells. After the two exchanged escapes in the second, Michaud had a two-point takedown to put the score at 3-1. Michaud nearly had a pin, but earned a three point near-fall instead, and with an extra point for riding time, Michaud won the match by decision by a final of 7-1. The victory gave the junior an 8-6 record, 2-2 in the WWC.

“I thought that was one of the better matches that Dave’s wrestled this year. He kept his intensity up and put himself in a position to get the big move he was looking for” Liles said.

Kelly, who will wrestle in his last home match at Frost Arena Friday, picked up the only other points for the Jacks as he cruised to a 18-4 major decision. The senior piled up six takedowns, including a three point near-fall in the second period. Kelly was facing NDSU’s Will Johnson and tallied three minutes and 27 seconds worth of riding time in the match.

“We’re working hard. We’re taking it one day at a time and not giving up. Anyone is beatable, we just need to keep our nose to the grindstone and focus on the little things” Kelly said.

SDSU hosts their final home dual of the season when Utah Valley comes to Frost Arena on Feb. 18.

“We want to improve how we’re competing out there. It might not always show up in the score box, but we want it to show up in effort and attempts. Now we need to try to finish the things that we start” Liles said.

If ever there was a time to use the word rebuilding, you might not find a better case than the SDSU wrestling team.

Toss in some injuries along with the decision to redshirt seven incoming freshmen this year, and that equals a pretty tough season to be a head coach.

In his 18th year at that position, Jason Liles knew coming in to the season that things might get rough.

“We’re trying to build for the future and part of that is taking it on the chin this year,” Liles said when asked about the struggles this season.

Injuries have played a very crucial role in how the season has gone. Junior David Michaud (8-6 overall, 2-2 in WWC) has seen limited action due to various ailments throughout the year. Sophomore Aaron Pickrel (24-8, 2-1) has also battled injuries this year, most recently on Feb. 11, when he sat out the NDSU duel.

“We had guys like Scott Elliot, who just got back for three matches and then found out he had a season ending neck injury” Liles said.

Liles also talked about how, because of injuries, they have had to move wrestlers up as much as two or three weight classes. He went on to say that can lead to “guys being manhandled.”

Manhandled indeed. The Jacks schedule has not helped them out. In the 12 losses this season, SDSU has been outscored 442-88. That includes losses to five ranked teams. The only victory came against UW-Whitewater, a Division III school, and Division II Northern State tied the Jacks at Frost Arena back in December. Plain and simple, the Jacks have been outmanned and outmatched most of the season.

When teams struggle like SDSU has this season, two questions always arise: How is team morale and what does the future hold? Senior Kevin Kelly and Michaud stand out as leaders on the team and have their own beliefs.

“Every week is a new week. We just try to keep the morale high. Come in every day and work hard and try to get the guys to believe they can win” Michaud said.

That includes trustworthiness that current struggles will break away to a better future – paying their dues for retribution down the line.

“I think the future looks good. The kids that came here are buying into the program. It’s a lot of work, a lot of commitment, and I think these guys are committed…that’s what Liles wants” Kelly said.

It is always tough to tell how a college athlete will pan out, but from all accounts, the future is going to be a bright one for SDSU. With decent recruiting classes the past two years, the Jacks are hoping this young batch can take them to the next step in Division I wrestling.

Adding to the promise of the future, SDSU hopes to add a full-time assistant coach this offseason.

“Everybody in our conference has two full-time assistants. We’re fighting to get one … and that’s a step in the right direction,” Liles said.

Liles also talked about the sacrifices his current assistants have made, making note of the little pay they receive due to only being part-time and the hours put in the wrestling room.

“We had a very good recruiting class, and we thought the best option (for the future) was to redshirt everybody, and just do the best we could this year” Liles said.

The Jacks have one more conference match left, as they face Utah Valley at Frost Arena this Friday at 7 p.m. Then it will be on to the NCAA West Regionals in Colorado Springs, Colo. on March 5.

#1.1999909:3491025058.png:ndsu-wrestling-GALLAGHER-2.png:NDSU?s Kenny Moenkedick executes a hold on Joe Rasmussen at 184 pounds in the Bison?s 43-7 victory over SDSU on Feb. 11. Moenkedick defeated Rasmussen by technical fall with a 20-5 score at Frost Arena.:Collegian Photo by Robby Gallagher

Youth and inexperience: two words that come to mind when looking at the roster and the win/loss column for the Jackrabbit wrestling team.

It’s not the team’s fault. After being swept 49-0 by #21 Wyoming last Friday, and with a 38-6 loss last Saturday to Air Force (both matches on the road), the Jacks have now faced five top-25 college wrestling teams.

“I thought the kids competed well,” head coach Jason Liles said. “We shifted some kids around in weight classes, but we were a bit overwhelmed.”

Overwhelmed indeed. The closest chance for victory against Wyoming came from senior Kevin Kelly in the heavyweight class, as he dropped a 4-1 decision to UW’s Matthew McLaughlin.

Against Air Force last Saturday, the Jacks did receive a bit of a spark from 125-pound sophomore Aaron Pickrel, who pinned AF’s Tyler Spangler in two minutes and 45 seconds. That victory pushed his record to 20-8 and was his sixth win by fall this season.

“His take down in the Air Force match was the best he’s had since he’s been here. It’s a shot he normally doesn’t do and he set it up perfect” Liles said.

The Jacks now stand at 1-11-1 overall, with a 0-4 record in the Western Wrestling Conference. With this weekend off, Coach Liles explained what we can see when the Jacks return to wrestling on Feb. 11 against North Dakota State at Frost Arena.

“We’re going to do some wrestle-offs at a couple of weights. We’re just going to break down and simplify some things. Try to refresh everybody as far as the mind and body” Liles said.

Liles also said he was pleased to see Pickrel, who had battled a leg injury in previous weeks, back on the mat.

Junior David Michaud has also battled a few injuries over the course of the season, and that has prompted Liles to possibly enter the two in an open tournament during the “bye” week.

“They (Pickrel and Michaud) haven’t had the number of matches the others have had” Liles said.

The Jacks are set to host two WWC match-ups, with NDSU on Feb 11, and Utah Valley on Feb. 18. Both matches will begin at 7 p.m. at Frost Arena. The two home matches will wrap up the regular conference season for SDSU. Then, on March 5, the NCAA West Regionals will be held in Colorado Springs, Colo. with a chance to advance to the NCAA Championships on St. Patrick’s Day (March 17) in Philadelphia, Penn.

First off, let me get this out of the way before you continue reading: I was born and raised a Vikings fan, so for me to come out and say I’m rooting for the Packers would be considered a sin in my family.

With that out of the way, how excited are you for the big game? No matter what team plays, everyone loves the Super Bowl even if you don’t watch much football. From parties featuring the best beer and munchies, to the commercials, to the endless debate on if the halftime show was bad (The Black Eyed Peas perform this year), we all love the craziness that surrounds the Super Bowl.

This year, I feel that the two best teams from each conference made it, with the Steelers from the AFC and the Packers from the NFC. Here are a few of my observations leading up to the big game.

The Steelers

In the hunt for their third Super Bowl victory in the last six years, the Steelers looked dominant in their handling of the Jets in the AFC championship game. Love him or hate him, Ben Roethlisberger has shown he is a winner in this league, and things have gotten a lot easier with the emergence of Rashard Mendenhall at running back. He carried the ball 27 times for 121 yards and a touchdown against a pretty good Jets defense.

Speaking of defense, I’d like to put in my vote for Troy Polamalu as the best player in the league. Before you get all worked up, let’s look at some numbers.

Over the last two seasons, Pittsburgh was 6-7 when Polamalu didn’t play, and 16-4 when he was in the game. By comparison, the Steelers are 3-2 in that same time span when Big Ben didn’t play.

It amazes me how such a strong safety in the NFL can have such an impact, but Polamalu is the epitome of a playmaker. It seems he is always forcing a turnover or coming up with a big play when the game is on the line. It will be very interesting to see how the Packers’ offense handles this nasty, tenacious, and heavily fined Steelers defense. Is the Steel Curtain back?

The Packers

This took me awhile before my fingers could type it, but Aaron Rodgers is good. Really good. It really pains me to see the Packers playing for a ring, but they deserve to be there. They beat the Falcons, the team many considered to be the best team in the NFC, on the road. If you boil it down, the one reason the Packers are playing in the Super Bowl is because of their elite quarterback (take note Vikings).

Mike McCarthy has built a pretty decent team around Rodgers, including the studs he throws to: Jennings, Driver, and Jones to name a few. Could you imagine if this team still had Jermichael Finley? The third year tight end out of Texas tore up his knee in Week 5, incidentally causing my fantasy team to suffer, but that’s for another day.

Without much of a run game, and an even slimmer chance of running against the Steelers defense, it will be interesting to see how Rodgers does against a fierce Pittsburgh pass rush.

As we look at the Packer defense, I have two words: Clay Matthews. Much like Polamalu, Matthews has become an elite playmaker already in his young career. He can impact the game at any time with the dip of his shoulder and a crunching blow to the quarterback. He will have a big task in trying to take down Roethlisburger (listed at 6’5”, 241 lbs).

This year’s Super Bowl will be a good one. I’m leaning towards the Steelers, though. If the game doesn’t live up to expectations, we at least get the chance to have “I Gotta Feeling” stuck in our heads at halftime. Mazel tov.

Aggression. That’s been one of the key points head wrestling coach Jason Liles has been preaching to his team all year. On Jan. 21 at Frost Arena, the Jacks came out aggressive, but fell just short of picking up a win versus Northern Colorado.

“Much better performance tonight. I think our kids got to the point where, they’re so young and so nervous that they’re going to make mistakes, and weren’t as aggressive as they need to be. Hopefully we can build on this aggressiveness,” Liles said.

The night did feature a pin by junior David Michaud in two minutes and 48 seconds. The victory gives the 174-pounder an 8-5 overall record and 1-1 record in Western Wrestling Conference action.

“I just came out, tried to wrestle smarter and not give up easy take-downs like I did last week. (I) battled everywhere, and it worked out for me” Michaud said.

The match started out at the 141-pound weight class, and after two losses, the Jacks found themselves in a familiar hole. Junior Nick Flynn would try and change that.

The 157-pounder had a nice battle with Northern Colorado’s Tanner Weiks. Flynn recorded a take-down in the first period, and Weiks notched an escape to put the score at 2-1 after the first period. In the second period, the only scoring came from a Weiks escape. The match remained tied throughout most of the third period as well, until Flynn escaped for a point with 40 seconds to go in the match. With the 3-2 victory, Flynn now stands at 8-12 on the season, and 1-1 in WWC action.

“This whole week in practice, we worked really hard on doing the little things right. Whether that be simple wrist control, working up off bottom…all those together are going to win us matches” Flynn said.

The duel ended with three straight forfeits, including victories by forfeit for sophomore Aaron Pickrel at 125 pounds and senior Kevin Kelly at 285 pounds. The forfeits actually gave the Jacks a temporary 21-20 lead, but due to Northern Colorado’s last victory by forfeit, the Jacks ended the night on the wrong end of a 26-21 final score.

With two tough home losses in back-to-back weeks, the Jacks hit the road as they take on Wyoming (Jan. 28) and Air Force (Jan. 29), both WWC members, before heading back to Frost Arena to face another conference foe and rival North Dakota State at 7 p.m. at Frost Arena.

“We have a young team this year, but we have a lot of hard workers. This freshman class keeps putting in the time, and I think you’re going to see SDSU wrestling start to turn the corner real soon” Flynn said.

#1.1918890:1028767839.png:wrest-Nething-ELAND.png:John Nething III controls UNI?s John Simon in the Jan. 21 dual. Nething dropped a 12-5 decision against UNC.:Submitted Photo by Eric Landwher