GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – The Colorado Mesa wrestling team welcomed in the No. 2 ranked Nebraska-Kearney Lopers to Brownson Arena for the Mavericks first Division II dual of the season. The Mavericks won seven of the nine contested duals in a 24-13 win over the Lopers.
 
For the second straight night, Colorado Mesa forfeited at 125 pounds and fell behind 6-0 in the dual score.
 
After falling behind 5-1 at 133 pounds, Tim Romero was able to tie the score at 7-7 to send his bout with JD Rader to overtime. Romero was able to secure a takedown on the edge of the mat to give he and the Mavericks their first win of the evening.
 
In the next bout, the Mavericks would find themselves behind in the bout once again. Eduardo Penha trailed 5-1 in the early stages of the third period before taking down Wesley Dawkins and securing the pin at the 6:15 mark of the bout. The pin gave the Mavericks the 9-6 lead in the dual.
 
The Lopers would knot the dual at 9-9 following a win at 149 pounds.
 
In what was the anticipated bout of the night, Nebraska-Kearney's Matt Malcolm entered the dual ranked No. 1 nationally went up against No. 11 ranked Maverick Payton Tawater.
 
This bout was all Tawater. The Arvada native led 8-1 after the first period of action and cruised to a 16-11 win over Malcolm. Tawater moves his season record to 2-0 and his mark against Malcolm to 2-0 as well.
 
Senior Jason Buhr earned a 12-5 win over Terrell Garraway at 165 pounds to give the Mavericks a 15-9 lead in the dual.
 
In what would be deemed as the biggest upset of the night, Colorado Mesa freshman Seth Latham defeated No. 5 ranked Zach Stodden 3-1 at 174 pounds. The two traded one-point escapes until Latham took down the two-time all-american with about three seconds left in the bout to give the Mavericks the 18-9 advantage in the dual.
 
Redshirt freshman Nolan Krone ended up sealing the win for Colorado Mesa with an 8-1 win over JJ Clark at 184 pounds to move his record to 5-2 on the season.
 
Senior TJ Lodermeier earned a win at 197 pounds, 8-4 over Jace Lacaille.
 
Nebraska-Kearney's Jarrod Hinrichs gave the Lopers the final win of the night at 285 pounds, a 12-2 major decision victory over Clayton Voytilla.
 
The win was the Mavericks first over the Lopers in Brownson Arena and the second win all-time over the perennial national power.
 
Colorado Mesa will now travel to Kearney next Saturday for the UNK Holiday Inn Open.
 
 
Bout-by-Bout Results
125 – #3 Josh Portillo (UNK) wins by forfeit
133 – Tim Romero (CMU) dec JD Rader, 9-7 (SV1)
141 – Eduardo Penha (CMU) pins Wesley Dawkins, 6:15
149 – Jonathan Killingsworth (UNK) dec Daniel Van Hoose, 11-4
157 – #11 Payton Tawater (CMU) dec #1 Matt Malcolm, 16-11
165 – #12 Jason Buhr (CMU) dec Terrell Garraway, 12-5
174 – Seth Latham (CMU) dec #5 Zach Stodden, 3-1
184 – Nolan Krone (CMU) dec JJ Clark, 8-1
197 – TJ Lodermeier (CMU) dec Jace Lacaille, 8-4
285 – #3 Jarrod Hinrichs (UNK) maj dec Clayton Voytilla, 12-2