The No. 23 Colorado Mesa men's wrestling team will take the team to the mountains this weekend for a pair of competitions in Gunnison. On Friday, a large portion of the team will compete in the Western Colorado Open before the remainder of the team competes in the Tracy Borah Duals on Saturday in Mountaineer Fieldhouse.
FRESH RANKINGS
A fresh set of NWCA National Rankings were released after the Midwest Classic which saw the Mavericks fall to No. 23 as a team but maintain six wrestlers amongst the top-15 at their respective weights.
125-pounder Dayson Torgerson is ranked No. 7 at the weight after a fifth-place finish at the Midwest Classic. Ryan Wheeler is ranked No. 8 at 157 pounds following a sixth-place finish after injury defaulting out with an injury.
Oran Huff and Jason Bynarowicz are ranked No. 15 at 133 pounds and 184 pounds respectively. Both wrestlers went 4-2 at the Midwest Classic.
Gabriel Carranza is ranked No. 13 at 197 pounds while Tyler Doyle rounds out the group ranked No. 11 at 285 pounds. Carranza and Doyle each placed seventh at their weight at the Midwest Classic.
THE BOOK ENDS
The Mavericks have a relatively strong dual team this season and a big reason why is the start they have been getting along with the finish.
Sophomore Dayson Torgerson, ranked No. 7 by the NWCA, leads off during duals at 125 pounds. He is 11-4 on the season and an even more impressive 4-0 in duals. He has recorded a pair of decision victories along with a pin and a technical fall in his four wins.
The Mavericks also have a pretty good closer in 285-pound junior Tyler Doyle. The Highlands Ranch native is 12-4 on the season and 4-0 in duals thus far. He has recorded a pin, a major decision, a forfeit and a tech fall in his four dual wins.
NEXT MAN UP
Both Ryan Wheeler and Alex Holguin are likely out this weekend which gives a trio of other wrestlers an opportunity to compete in duals and gain more experience.
Owen Cline will likely step in for Ryan Wheeler at 157 pounds this season. He was a regular in the lineup at the weight last season and is just 1-0 this year after coming off of injury.
Wil Moneypenny and Will Alvarado will likely split the action at 165 pounds on Saturday with each competing in a match. Moneypenny is 3-5 on the season, 0-1 in duals while Alvarado is 1-7 on the season and 0-3 in duals.
SCOUTING THE TRACY BORAH DUALS
The Mavericks will take on a pair of opponents during the 34th annual Tracy Borah Duals on Saturday. After a couple of shifts in the schedule, they are now scheduled to take on NCAA Super Region VI foe Fort Hays State and an RMAC contest against Simon Fraser.
The Tigers come into the Tracy Borah Duals with a 3-1 dual record with a win over No. 25 Ouachita Baptist 26-16 and a loss against conference opponent Colorado School of Mines 37-4. Tereus Henry is their top wrestler as he is ranked No. 12 at 197 pounds and earned All-American honors as a sophomore, placing third at the NCAA National Tournament.
The Red Leafs went 3-0 at the New Mexico Highlands duals as their only dual competitions of the year thus far. They have competed in the SFU Open, Mike Clock Open, Spokane Open, and the Reno Tournament of Champions. Simon Fraser doesnt have anyone ranked in the NWCA poll but feature several wrestlers with RMAC and NCAA Regional experience.
The Mavericks will also have a 'B' Team compete in a pair of duals during the event. The 'B' Team will compete against Western Colorado's 'B' Team and New Mexico Highlands during the day.
SCOUTING THE WESTERN COLORADO OPEN
The Western Colorado Open will take place on Friday afternoon in Mountaineer Fieldhouse with a majority of the wrestlers either redshirting this season or a reserve for the starters who will compete on Saturday in the Tracy Borah Duals.
Roughly 100 wrestlers are currently scheduled to compete in the tournament.
COACHING STAFF
Head coach Mike Mendoza enters his sixth season with the program and third year as the head coach of the Mavericks. Mendoza was named the RMAC Coach of the Year and the Super Region VI Coach of the Year in his first year as the head coach of the program while in his second season he coached the Mavericks to a third-place finish at the NCAA Super Region VI meet and sent six wrestlers to the NCAA National Championship meet.
Mendoza has been with the program since 2019 after making stops at Northeastern Junior College, Boise State, Cal State Bakersfield, and Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference foe Adams State. He spent time as the head coach at Northeastern JC where he elevated the program from an 0-6 dual record when he took over to an 11-3 mark in his final season. He was also the head coach at Boise State the year prior to the school dropping the program.
Kyle Greenwald is now the head assistant at Colorado Mesa after spending last season as one of the lead assistants at former Division II school Mercyhurst. He wrestled for Division I Clarion from 2014-18 and spent time coaching for NAIA power St. Thomas University in Florida.
Bo Pipher is still an assistant for the program but is now in a lesser role with the program focusing more on the practice plans and training. This will be his fourth season with the program. Pipher, a three-time Colorado State Champion, wrestled for Cael Sanderson at Penn State for four seasons before graduating.
Donnie Negus, Tim Romero, Joe Ritzen, Collin Metzgar, Jacob Seely, Jared Johnshoy, and Konnor Schmidt are all assisting with the program as well.
WHAT'S NEXT
Colorado Mesa will make the journey to Nebraska next Friday for a bout with Chadron State in their lone dual of the week. Chadron State is fresh off the RMAC regular season title a year ago and have yet to compete in a dual to date. They are scheduled to face Colorado School of Mines on Friday.
COLORADO MESA PROJECTED LINEUP
125: #7 Dayson Torgerson, So., Aurora, Utah (11-4 overall)
133: #15 Oran Huff, RJr., Lyons, Colo. (10-6 overall)
141: Denim Torgerson, RJr., Aurora, Utah (5-5 overall)
149: Alex Castaneda, RSo., Eaton, Colo. (13-7 overall)
157: Owen Cline, So., Orting, Wash. (1-0 overall)
165: Will Alvarado, RFr., Fort Lupton, Colo. (1-7 overall)
165: Wil Moneypenny, RFr., Berthoud, Colo. (3-5 overall)
174: Gus Dalton, RJr., Emery, Utah (5-6 overall)
184: #15 Jason Bynarowicz, RSr., Broomfield, Colo. (11-4 overall)
197: #13 Gabe Carranza, RSr., Victorville, Calif. (6-6 overall)
285: #11 Tyler Doyle, Jr., Littleton, Colo. (12-4 overall)
