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.

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

Defense on the road.

That combination has eluded SDSU of late, none more evidenced then a 105-95 win against Southern Utah on New Years Day.

But that combination appeared barefaced Jan. 13 as the Jackrabbits trounced Western Illinois in Western Hall, 81-50. The same building SDSU has went 1-1 the past two seasons outscoring the Leathernecks by a combined three points.

“We’ve been talking to our players about they have to play good defense,” said SDSU head coach Scott Nagy in his postgame radio interview. “They know what they have to do, but it’s got to go from their head to their heart.”

While that defensive belief system remains in limbo overall, the Jacks’ offensive belief system and skill set continues to appear rampant. SDSU shot better from three-point range than from any other part of the floor (69 percent) and saw a near triple-double from standout guard Nate Wolters, who finished with 18 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.

Not that SDSU needed 18 points from Wolters, the Leathernecks couldn’t – or simply chose not to – contain junior and Illinois native Griffan Callahan. He finished with 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting while missing only his second free throw this season.

While not a striking defensive performance (SDSU allowed 49 percent shooting in the first half and 43 percent three-point shooting for the game), the 50 points allowed are the second lowest point total SDSU has allowed and the best on the road.

“Coach preached defense all week,” said Wolters, who posted his second double-double in the win. “It really paid off in the second half, we didn’t give them any easy buckets.”

Disallowing easy buckets has not come easy for an SDSU team that have scored more points per game than all but 12 teams in the country, one of those teams being conference foe Oakland. But the Jacks allowed a combined 18 buckets to the Leathernecks, playing without pre-season first-team all-conference selection Ceola Clark III.

The 31-point win also indicates a reversing trend in which the Jacks play well on the road – in fact, better than at home. With a now 6-2 record on the road, SDSU has matched its win total on the road from the two previous seasons combined. In those two years, the Jacks went 6-22 in true road games.

“We’re pretty comfortable on the road right now,” Wolters said.

Drue also live blogs SDSU home games at sdsucollegian.com/sports

#1.1898230:370807247.png:wrest-Kelly-01-ELAND.png:Kevin Kelly converges with Northern Iowa?s Christian Brantley in the heavyweight match of the Panthers? 38-9 victory over SDSU on Jan. 15.:Submitted Photo by Eric Landwehr

The Jackrabbit wrestling team showed their youth last Saturday night at Frost Arena as they fell to the University of Northern Iowa 38-9. UNI came in to the contest ranked 43rd in the Intermat polls, and had several wrestlers ranked in multiple polls.

“We have so many young kids that aren’t as physical as their opponents and I was a little disappointed in our overall aggressiveness,” said SDSU head coach Jason Liles

Freshman John Nething III notched the only victory not by forfeit for the Jacks, as he defeated UNI’s John Simon in the 165 pound match. Nething III was down 0-2 after the first period, but came right back in the second period and tied things up with a two-point takedown. UNI’s Simon recorded an escape to close out the second period ahead 3-2. Nething III added an escape and two takedowns in the third period, the last with eight seconds left in the period, to win 7-4.

“I just used my speed and quickness, [Simon] took some bad shots, and I got some points off of him” Nething III said.

Coach Liles was pleased with Nething’s match, saying that it was good to see because Nething III had been banged up the last few weeks.

“For him to come out, forget about [the injuries], and get a win for us, that showed his maturity even as a true freshman” Liles said.

SDSU forfeited the first two matches of the night at 125 and 133 pounds and saw UNI’s Joey Lazor pin Tyler Johnson in 2:08 at 141 pounds, and the Jacks were quickly down 18-0.

The only other points for the Jacks came from a win by forfeit for sophomore Cord Willers. SDSU did have a few opportunities to put some more points on the board with sophomore Joe Rasmussen at 184 pounds and senior Kevin Kelly at 285 pounds.

Facing ranked opponents, Rasmussen dropped his match to #13 Ryan Loder by technical fall and a 17-1 final. The big boys at 285 pounds were the last match of the night, and Kelly kept things close.

The first period was scoreless as Kelly squared off with # 15 Christian Brantley. The second period was more of the same until Brantley was rewarded an escape that put him in the lead heading into the third period. With 28 seconds left in the match, Kelly scored an escape to tie things up at 1-1. The third period was as much of a stalemate as the first two, but with two seconds left, Brantley recorded a takedown and added another point for riding time. The final was 4-1 in favor of Brantley and UNI.

“Right now, we got so many young kids, and we’re beat down a little bit and it shows in performances like this,” Liles said.

After opening the Western Wrestling Conference schedule with a loss, the Jacks will be looking to rebound on Friday at Frost Arena where they’ll face fellow WWC member Northern Colorado at 7 p.m.

The first home duals of the season for the Jackrabbits also marks the Jackrabbit Wrestling Endowment meet, with all proceeds directly benefiting the SDSU wrestling team.

“This endowment match shows how much (SDSU) is behind us and supports us,” said head wrestling coach Jason Liles. “Other wrestling teams have done this and now it’s our turn.”

The endowment match will feature three duals on Sunday, Dec. 12. SDSU will start the day by taking on Northern State at noon, which will be followed by Northern State going against Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville at 2 p.m. The final match of the day will feature the Jackrabbits facing SIU-Edwardsville at 4 p.m.

Liles has high hopes for the day and would like to see the program set a new record for attendance.

Everyone who attends the meet will not only be treated to a great day of Jackrabbit wrestling, there will also be other perks for all the fans. The first 500 people through the door are set to receive an official SDSU “Get Jacked” t-shirt. Fans are also welcomed to attend a meet and greet with all Jackrabbit wrestlers along with an autograph session. The SDSU drumline will also be performing the entertainment during the matches.

“This match is really going to go a long way to helping ensure the future of SDSU wrestling,” said coach Liles. “We get 100 percent of all the money and that is going to go right back to us (the wrestling program). The money is going to help us with scholarships, travel costs, everything really.”

The day is not all about fun and games for the Jacks though; they still have winning on their minds.

“The endowment meet is a good thing for us and the fans, but we still have to go out there and win to make the fans want to come back,” said assistant coach Zach Schafer. “If we don’t perform up to our abilities then the fans will not have a very good time.”

“They are coming to see high level wrestling and that’s what we plan on giving them.”

With two teams looking to pick up their first wins of the season in Brookings, Dec. 12 is looking like a good day to see quality wrestling matches at Frost Arena.

Doors open at 11 a.m. and tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children K-12. The Jacks would like anyone who can attend to come and join in on a exciting day with the SDSU wrestlers.

“We are hoping to get as many people into the arena as possible,” said Liles, “the more fans we have, the harder our guys compete on the mat.”

#1.1825389:1535941819.jpg:Wrestling.jpg:Dusty Walraven wrestles NDSU?s Joe Garner on Nov. 6.:Collegian Photo by Robby Gallagher

anksgiving weekend meet in Lincoln, Neb.

Senior Kevin Kelly posted the only win in a 38-3 dual loss to Bucknell (Pa.), while sophomore Aaron Pickrel and freshman Tony Vaske won against No. 22 Nebraska giving the Jacks their only points in the 36-6 loss.

The Jacks matched up first against Bucknell. SDSU came into the day with three open weights, at 133, 184 and 197. The dual began at 125 with Pickrel taking on 2010 national qualifier Derek Reber. Pickrel took an early lead in the match, opening with a takedown. After that it was all Reber, as he scored a reversal and racked up points on his way to a 10-4 victory.

At 141, Vaske faced Zac Hancock. Vaske would not fare well in the match, losing by 10 points, 16-6. Next up was another freshman, Jimmy Hamilton (149). Hamilton took on No. 5 Kevin LeValley. The match was one-sided from the start as LeValley jumped to an early lead and never looked back, winning by technical fall, 17-0.

The Jacks next two matches saw Nick Flynn (157), and John Nething II (165) lose close decisions, 6-3 and 8-5.

At 174, Seth Moe, bumped up two weight classes, but battling the difference proved to be too much, and he lost 11-0. The next weight also saw the Jacks move a wrestler up as David Michaud went from his spot at 174, up to 184. Michaud went on to lose 12-5.

The next weight, 197, was open for the Jacks, leaving only the heavyweight match remaining. At heavyweight Kelly went on to pick up SDSU’s only win in the dual, a 6-3 decision, giving the Jacks their only team points.

The Jacks competed next against No. 22 Nebraska. This dual began differently for the Jacks with Pickrel picking up the first win, giving the Jacks a 3-0 lead with his 3-0 win over Shawn Nagel.

“It was nice to pick up a win to start the dual and get us going. We wrestled very competitively against a top 25 school,” said Pickrel.

The lead would be short-lived for the Jacks, as 133 was forfeited, putting Nebraska up 6-3. The next wrestler for was Vaske (141). Vaske battled back from an early deficit to beat Mike Koehnlein 13-8, tying the dual at six.

“We came out and wrestled Nebraska very tough,” said Assistant Coach Zach Schafer. “Pickrel wrestled a smart match to open the dual and then Vaske came out and wrestled great, showing a lot of poise and toughness for a true freshman. The rest of the team battled hard after the great start from those two.”

The Jacks went on to lose their next four matches as Andrew Youngblom (149), Flynn (157), Nething (165) and Michaud (174) all recorded losses.

In the final match, SDSU’s Kelly was pitted against No. 7 Tucker Lane. Lane took the lead and posted a 4-0 win over Kelly.

The Jacks next action is a home triangular against Northern State and University of Southern Illinois-Edwardsville on Dec. 12.

The Jackrabbit wrestling team opened their season at the Warren Williamson/ Daktronics Open on Nov. 6 with 19 wrestlers competing.

The tournament, which featured over 10 teams, was the first of the season for wrestlers in our area, with all of the SDSU freshmen making their college wrestling debuts.

SDSU head wrestling coach Jason Liles felt good about the team’s performance.

“Overall it was good, we had some good showings, we had some not so good showings,” Liles said. “In an early tournament like that you can count on that to happen.”

On the mat, SDSU had its strongest finish from redshirt and junior, David Michaud, at 174. Michaud finished the day with the Jacks’ only first place finish, while recording four pins and receiving the Outstanding Wrestler award and Most Pins award.

Dustin Walraven, moving up to 149 this year, also put out a strong performance for the Jacks, placing third. On the way to his third place finish, Walraven defeated the No. 3 ranked wrestler in Division II, Augustana’s Nate Herda 7-3 in a thriller match that featured several overtimes.

In his semi-final match Walraven would lose to Division II’s top wrestler at 149, Esai Dominguez from University of Nebraska-Omaha. He would then battle his way through wrestle backs to take home third.

Another Jackrabbit wrestler took third as Aaron Pickrel came back from a quarterfinal defeat and made it to the consolation finals at 125. Pickrel lost to Josh Heinzer of Iowa Central, in a tight 6-5 match before rattling off four consecutive wins to take home third place. In the third place match Pickrel downed Al Meger of Augustana College, winning by a 4-1 decision.

Two Jackrabbit wrestlers placed fifth in SDSU’s home tournament. Senior heavyweight, Kevin Kelly, and junior 157 Nick Flynn, both won their final matches of the day, giving SDSU more placers in the Daktronics Open.

Kelly lost his second match of the day to Northern State’s Matt Meuleners 4-2 before reeling off two more wins. He then would fall into the fifth place match where he picked up the win via injury default.

Flynn got his day started with two wins, his first by pin over Ian Mills who was wrestling unattached. He would make it to the semi-finals before losing to NDSU’s Vince Salminen, who went on to take first.

His next match was against another Bison, Steven Monk, and the result was the same as Flynn dropped the match 15-3. Flynn’s final match of the day came against Austin Carmichael from Augustana. Flynn posted his second pin of the day to take the fifth place prize.

The Jackrabbit upperclassmen were not the only ones who placed for SDSU, freshman Tony Vaske and Chris Pilot both placed sixth in their first ever college tournament. Vaske and Pilot both finished the day 2-3, with Pilot injury defaulting out of his final match due to an ankle injury.

“The young guys competed well for their first competition. We definitely have some things to work on, but we’re focusing on the positives,” Schafer said.

There were several other freshmen competing for SDSU as well, and the coaches were pleased with what they saw.

“We learned how the young guys compete and how they battle on the mat,” said Liles. “We liked some of what we saw and we saw some things that we will need to change. We’re just going to keep working and getting better from here.”

SDSU will next travel to the Northwestern Duals on Sunday, Nov. 14 at Evanston, Ill.