LITTLE ROCK – The Trojans concluded their home schedule in an exciting full day of wrestling, hosting #21 Stanford, #22 Oklahoma, and South Dakota State at the Jack Stephens Center.
Paul Bianchi highlighted the day with a perfect 3-0 record while picking up a ranked win as Little Rock celebrated Senior Day.
"Proud of what they've done in the classroom and on and off the mat," said head coach
Neil Erisman on seniors
Noah Aziere,
Paul Bianchi,
Jose Champagne,
Dylan Johnson,
Hasan Krigger, and
Thomas Lisher. "It's also another first for our program, having some graduates. It'll be cool to have these guys as alumni and start building on that."
Senior
Paul Bianchi started off the day with an 11-4 decision over Stanford, not allowing a single takedown throughout the bout. In the next match, he beat out #19 Anthony Madrigal from Oklahoma with an 8-5 decision, with help from late takedowns in both the second and third periods to counter Madrigal's point for riding time. Bianchi wrapped up his day with a 15-5 major over South Dakota State, once again preventing his opponent from scoring a single takedown.
"Paul needed two hard wins in a row, and he found a way to get that done," added Coach Erisman. "It puts him in a position to have a shot to go to nationals. If you're there and you're in it, you have a chance to win it, it doesn't matter what seed you come in as."
Khyler Brewer also had a strong day following his first career wins last weekend, grabbing two more victories this afternoon over Oklahoma and South Dakota State. Three reversals along with a four-point near fall gave him a strong 14-8 decision against the Jackrabbits, while Brewer's sole takedown in his bout against the Sooners solidified a 3-1 decision.
"We've seen some good things from all the freshmen, but we've got to continue to be consistent and keep fighting and getting tougher," said Coach Erisman. "I was proud of Khyler. I felt like he found ways to win today, so that was good to see."
Also collecting individuals wins today were
Triston Wills,
Tanner Mendoza, and
Gabe Beyer. Wills added his fifth win of the season in a 5-2 decision against Stanford, emphasized by the only takedown in the match plus a point for riding time. Mendoza earned a 4-0 decision right after Wills, tallying a takedown and escape in the second period and holding on for the riding time point as well. All of Beyer's bouts were extremely close, separated by three points or less, but he finally was able to grab a win in overtime against South Dakota State, 6-4.
As a team, the Trojans did show improvement over the past year against both Stanford and South Dakota State, which were each featured in Little Rock's inaugural schedule. Last season the Jackrabbits blanked the Trojans, 42-0 while this time the separation was by a margin of 18 in the 28-10 loss. Meanwhile, Stanford bested Little Rock 38-10 on the road last spring before narrowing the gap by 10 to today's 27-9 defeat.
Moving forward, next weekend, Little Rock will travel to Oklahoma State, competing against the Cowboys for the second time this year in their last regular season appearance.
Making the upcoming match the fifth ranked dual for the Trojans this season, Coach Erisman puts it best: "It's another great chance for us to keep chipping away and improve."
RESULTS
vs #21 Stanford
125: Jackson DiSario (STAN) DEC
Khyler Brewer, 8-4
133:
Paul Bianchi DEC Logan Ashton (STAN), 11-4
141: Luciano Arroyo (STAN) DEC
Conner Ward, 8-1
149: #14 Jaden Abas (STAN) MD
Kyle Prewitt, 10-2
157: Charlie Darracott (STAN) F
Noah Aziere (5:30)
165: Tyler Eischens (STAN) TF
Alex Hernandez, 17-0
174:
Triston Wills DEC Jared Hill (STAN), 5-2
184:
Tanner Mendoza DEC Ethan Woods (STAN), 4-0
197: Nick Stemmet (STAN) DEC
Dylan Johnson, 7-3
285: Nathan Traxler (STAN) DEC
Gabe Beyer, 3-1
vs #22 Oklahoma
125:
Khyler Brewer DEC Mason Naifeh (OU), 3-1
133:
Paul Bianchi DEC #19 Anthony Madrigal (OU), 8-5
141: #7 Don Demas (OU) TF
Jaylen Carson, 16-1
149: #13 Mitch Moore (OU) DEC
Joseph Bianchi, 5-0
157: #11 Justin Thomas (OU) TF
Noah Aziere, 16-0
165: Troy Mantanona (OU) DEC
Alex Hernandez, 6-5
174: #22 Anthony Mantanona (OU) TF
Triston Wills, 15-0
184: Darrien Roberts (OU) TF
Tanner Mendoza, 15-0
197: #12 Jake Woodley (OU) TF
Dylan Johnson, 16-1
285: #24 Josh Heindselman (OU) DEC
Gabe Beyer, 5-2
vs South Dakota State
125:
Khyler Brewer DEC Daniel Vega (SDSU), 14-8
133:
Paul Bianchi MD Trayton Anderson (SDSU), 15-5
141: #22 Clay Carlson (SDSU) TF
Conner Ward, 21-6
149: Hunter Marko (SDSU) DEC
Joseph Bianchi, 6-2
157: #18 Cade DeVos (SDSU) DEC
Kyle Prewitt, 11-4
165: Colten Carlson (SDSU) TF
Alex Hernandez, 17-1
174: Cade King (SDSU) MD
Triston Wills, 13-1
184: Nick Casperson (SDSU) DEC
Tanner Mendoza, 8-1
197: #9 Tanner Sloan (SDSU) TF
Dylan Johnson, 18-0
285:
Gabe Beyer DEC Blake Wolters (SDSU), 6-4
Extra Matches
125:
Hasan Krigger MD Suhas Chundi (STAN), 14-4
125:
Jayden Carson DEC Tanner Jordan (SDSU), 8-5
125:
Josh Sarpy MD Tommy Hoskins (OU), 14-3
125:
Jayden Carson TF Suhas Chundi (STAN), 19-4
125:
Josh Sarpy F Tanner Jordan (SDSU), 1:18
133:
Jaylen Carson DEC Trayton Anderson (SDSU), 8-2
133: Kyle Rowan (STAN) MD
Aidan Campbell, 12-2
133:
Aidan Campbell DEC Logan Ashton (STAN), 4-1
133: Trayton Anderson (SDSU) DEC
Aidan Campbell, 5-2
141: Daniel Kimball (SDSU) MD
Austin Keal, 12-3
141: Caleb Tanner (OU) DEC
Austin Keal, 8-2
157: Jack Thomsen (SDSU) DEC
Tristan Tadeo, 8-2
165: Kenny O'Neil (SDSU) DEC
Zeke Beach, 6-2
174:
Will Edgar DEC Elijah Joseph (OU), 4-3
184: Carson Berryhill (OU) DEC
Zane Davis, SV-1, 12-10
184: Nick Casperson (SDSU) TF
Zane Davis, 18-3
197: Haydn Maley (STAN) TF
Brooks Sacharczyk, 16-0
285: Bowen McConville (SDSU) DEC
Josiah Hill, 7-2
285: Peter Ming (STAN) F
Josiah Hill, 1:15
285: Spencer Trenary (SDSU) F
Caz Grabowski, 1:13
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