SIOUX CITY, Iowa – It was an impressive close to the GPAC dual season on Saturday (Jan. 28) for the Concordia University Wrestling program. The Bulldogs showed the arrow is pointing skyward while going 3-0 at the GPAC Day of Duals that took place in Sioux City, Iowa. With the help of three wins apiece by the likes of Creighton Baughman, Issiah Burks and Stephen Duffy, Concordia defeated Northwestern, 21-15, Briar Cliff, 19-17, and Jamestown, 37-12.
Those results leave Head Coach Chase Clasen’s squad at 6-2 in GPAC duals, putting the Bulldogs in third place in the final conference regular season standings. It’s a major improvement from the 2021-22 season when Concordia went 3-5 in conference duals.
“The improvement over last year has been significant,” Clasen said. “We’ve won almost double as many duals. We’re just getting better.
“Our team really showed out. The emphasis today was about having fun and scoring points, and our guys went out there and did that. That’s what won us those duals – those matches where we decided to score one more point and get the major or the tech or finding a way to get the fall. Even some of the matches we lost, they helped us win the dual because they refused to get turned. It was really a team, collective effort. It was one of our best days of the entire season in the way we looked.”
The duals with Northwestern and Briar Cliff could have gone either way. In the first matchup of the day, the Bulldogs defeated the Red Raiders (5-7, 4-4 GPAC) while taking six matches, including three by major decision. Those major decisions came courtesy of Baughman (141), Burks (165) and Duffy (184), three individuals who set the tone for the day. At 197, Logan Davidson clinched the day’s first team victory with his 5-0 blanking of Kaleb Lind, ranked third in the GPAC in that weight class. Bryce Karlin (125) and Tommy Wentz (157) also picked up wins over their Northwestern counterparts.
In dual No. 2, Concordia split the 10 matches with the Chargers (4-4, 4-4 GPAC), who placed second in the GPAC last season. Briar Cliff owned an 11-3 advantage after the first four weight classes. That’s when the Bulldogs got on a roll with wins from Wentz (decision at 157), Burks (pin at 165), Jose Sanchez (decision at 174) and Duffy (major at 184). Notably, Sanchez upended the conference’s third-rated competitor at 165 (moved up a weight in the dual). Briar Cliff won by decision at 197 and 285, but it wasn’t enough to erase what had been a 19-11 team deficit.
There was much less drama in the final clash of the day in Sioux City. Concordia triumphed in eight matches over Jamestown (6-11, 3-6 GPAC) while getting a pin from both Karlin (125) and Baughman (141). Contested wins were also claimed by Grant Wells (decision at 133), Sanchez (decision at 174), Duffy (decision at 184) and Davidson (major at 197). The Bulldogs were the beneficiary of two forfeit wins as well. The Jimmies did manage to notch two pins (at 149 and 285).
Of the 11 Concordia wrestlers to compete on Saturday, nine walked away with at least one victory. Two apiece were recorded by Davidson, Karlin, Sanchez and Wentz.
Said Clasen, “We finally got that Christmas break slump out of our system. If we continue to wrestle like we did today, good things are going to happen for us ... Issiah Burks looked amazing today. He was getting quick takedowns and locked up some great cradles. He looked phenomenal. Overall, it was a team effort. Everyone contributed to our three wins.”
The 11 overall dual wins ties the 2022-23 Bulldogs for third most in a single season in program history. The record of 13 wins is held by the 2015-16 and 2019-20 squads. The current team became the fifth in school history to reach double digits for dual wins.
The Bulldogs will polish off the 2022-23 dual schedule this coming Thursday (Feb. 2) when they are set to welcome Colby Community College and York University to Friedrich Arena. Action is slated to get started at 6 p.m. CT. Prior to the duals, Concordia will honor its senior class.