GOLDEN, Colo.— The Colorado Mesa men's wrestling team lost their debut dual of the 2026-27 season in a 20-15 nail-biter to Vanguard University on Friday evening in the Colorado School of Mines' Volk Gymnasium.
 
The dual meet was back-and-forth, as Vanguard won six of the ten matches, including the final three to claim the victory.
 
The Mavs countered with major decision wins from AJ Hague, Juan Garcia and Levi DiCugno and had a 4-2 decision from Christian Pebley at 165 pounds in between as the Mavs came from 11-4 down to take a 15-11 edge.
 
The razor-thin dual meet was at 17-15 with the Lions in front going into the final match of the evening at 285 pounds with everything on the line.
 
In that match, Vanguard sophomore David Baxter scored a 7-1 decision from Maverick freshman Xander Rose to give the Lions the win.
 
Action started at 125 pounds as VU's Troy Montero upset CMU's ninth-ranked Dayson Torgerson, who made his return to the lineup after redshirting in 2025-26.  The Maverick senior from Aurora, Utah gave up eight points in the first period and was down 8-2 before forcing three stall calls and two penalty points against the Lion freshman, but fell short 8-5.
 
The Mavericks did get the momentum back in their court at 133 pounds as Hague secured a dominant 14-5 major decision over Lion sophomore Zachary Klarczyk. Hague comfortably controlled this match from the beginning earning eight separate back points from two big turning sequences in the first three minutes. Klarcyzk did not earn a takedown until the last 10 seconds, capitalizing on the Hague's attempt to earn a takedown and secure a technical fall.
 
Lion senior Fernando Barreto then won by a 20-5 technical fall margin at 141 pounds before teammate Hercules Windrath secured a narrow 4-2 victory over Mesa's Alex Castaneda, ranked fifth in Division II, in a tight 4-2 149-pound bout.
 
However, the Mavericks got back on track, winning the next three weights, with two victories coming by way of major decision.
 
Garcia rode out Vanguard's Vince Partington for the entire third period while earning four near-fall points and securing an extra point from riding time, to win the 157-pound match 9-1.
 
Pebley kept the ball rolling at 165 pounds and won his hard-fought match over Anthony Manno, tying the dual at 11.
 
DiCungo did not slow down whatsoever following his first place finish from the Mines Rookie Open on Sunday, posting a dominant 12-4 victory over the Lions' Kelan Stever at 174 pounds. The Maverick sophomore wrestled a complete match, scoring a takedown in each period, including a quick score in the first 40 seconds and is now 6-0 this season.
 
However, the Lions won the final three weights as CMU's Gunnar Neal wrestled his way back from a 7-2 deficit only to lose in a late scramble and give up a takedown in the last 20 seconds, falling 11-6 to Marquize Brown at 184 pounds.
 
197-pounder Devin Kinlicheenie then had his hot start to the season stumped by a 10-4 loss in his Maverick dual debut before Rose also dropped his dual debut to cap the dual.
 
Prior to the official dual, CMU's Teagan Young, Silas Varner and Keyton Young all recorded wins in extra matches.
 
Four different Mavericks wrestlers are slated to compete in Saturday's Cornerman Luke Open in Richfield Utah while a large CMU contingent will return to action next Saturday (Nov 21.) at the Younes Hospitality Open, one of deepest and talent-rich tournaments in the entire country, providing an annual opportunity for the Mavs to compete against a variety of opponents from around the Midwest and Mountain Region portions of the country.
 
Bout-by-Bout Results
125: Troy Montero (VU) dec. #9 Dayson Torgerson (CMU), 8-5
133: AJ Hague (CMU) maj. dec Zachary Klarcyk (VU), 14-5
141: Fernado Barreto (VU) def. Apollo Cruz (CMU), T-Fall (20-5, 6:31)
149: Hercules Windrath (VU) dec. #5 Alex Castaneda (CMU), 4-2
157: Juan Garcia (CMU) maj. dec. Vince Partington (VU), 9-1
165: Christian Pebley (CMU) dec. Anthony Manno (VU), 4-2
174: Levi DiCugno (CMU) maj. dec. Kelan Stever (VU), 12-4
184: Marquise Brown {VU) dec. Gunnar Neal (CMU), 11-6
197: Isaiah Johnson (VU) dec. Devin Kinlicheenie (CMU), 10-4
285: David Baxter (VU) dec. Xander Rose (CMU), 7-1
Extra Matches*
125: Teagan Young (CMU) maj. dec. Jovanni Evangelista (VU), 15-6
141: Silas Varner (CMU) def. Andrew Williams (VU), T-Fall (15-0, 4:54)
149: Keyton Young (CMU) def. Anthony Peraza (VU), Fall (3:57)

*-Held prior to the official dual