12/6/07

MSU survives early scare, defeats Northern State

Wilson's pin gives Mavericks spark to get past Wolves in home opener

by Tyler Buckentine
Northern State 13 vs. Minnesota State 33

The Minnesota State wrestling team found itself in an situation Wednesday night at the Taylor Center. The No. 3 Mavericks actually trailed its opponent - No. 19 Northern State - at home.

With MSU up 11-7 going into the 197-pound match (the dual began at 157 pounds), NSU's Todd Naasz - the Wolves' only nationally-ranked wrestler at No. 7 - pinned Tom Block to put NSU on top 13-11.

The Mavericks' deficit was short-lived, because in the following match at heavyweight, it only took No. 3 Brady Wilson 48 seconds to pin NSU's Jared Little and give the Mavericks a 17-13 lead they wouldn't relinquish.

"I was fast and light on my feet," Wilson said. "I got some good angles and hustled and I got on top."

MSU won took the back five matches to win the dual 33-13.

No. 2 Jason Rhoten got MSU out to a six-point lead after pinning Dustin Bonn with 11 seconds remaining in the first period. The Wolves cut the lead in half when Donnie Bowden beat Kevin Wallraff by a 12-10 overtime decision.

Tim Matheson - originally not going to wrestle because of a minor rib injury - routed Rob Grussing 16-0 to win by technical fall in 4:20.

"Tuesday night, he said he was ready," Makovsky said. "We put a lot of trust in these guys. If they can go, we have to make sure they can go."

The Mavericks then lost a pair of matches, giving the Wolves a two-point lead. That's when MSU called on Wilson to step up.

"I had to go out there and change the momentum," Wilson said. "I had to go out there and set the pace for the last five wrestlers."

"For him to come out and turn things around, it was big," Makovsky said. "He just needs to trust in what he's been doing. He's been training really hard."

After Wilson's win, the MSU never looked back. No. 7 Nick Smith put the Mavericks up 20-13 with his 10-4 victory over Corbin Surratt. John Putman beat Rick Shiley by a 15-3 major decision.

MSU got its second fall of the night when sophomore Travis Elg pinned Dave Shiley at 1:18 of the first period. It was Elg's first match of the season.

Tommy Abbott capped the Mavericks' win with a 9-5 desicion over Ryan Larson for Abbott's debut in an MSU uniform.

The Mavericks move to 1-0 overall in duals and return to action Saturday morning when they compete at the St. Cloud State Open in St. Cloud.

MSU will keep busy over winter break, as they travel to Newberry, S.C., for the Newberry Duals on Dec. 15.

The Mavericks will get a few weeks off before hosting Western State Jan. 9, then hit the road again to compete in the National Duals Jan. 13 in Cedar Falls, Iowa. MSU's first action after classes resume next semester will be a home dual against Mary.

Tyler Buckentine is the Reporter assistant sports editor