The MSU-Northern Lights wrestling team hosted Southern Oregon Friday night at the Armory Gymnasium in Havre. Coming into the dual, the Lights were ranked 20th and the Raiders were ranked 15th in the latest NAIA Coaches Poll.
In a dual that featured 8 nationally-ranked wrestlers, the Raiders defeated the Lights 25-10.
The night also marked senior night for three Northern Wrestlers. NaKoda Siegel (Colstrip, MT) and Carl Hansen (Elko, NV) were recognized before the dual.
In addition, MSU-Northern recognized the passing of Dr. David Greenwood, fondly known as “The Father of Northern Wrestling”. Greenwood was instrumental in the establishment of wrestling at Northern Montana College in 1970. He coached eight All-American wrestlers during his tenure and led them to Frontier Conference titles in 1976 and 1984 and led the Lights to a perfect 10-0 dual meet season record in 1984.
With wins for the Lights:
At 165 pounds, Northern’s Devin Crawford (#15 in NAIA) defeated Southern’s Dylan Staley 4-1.
At 184 pounds, a pair of nationally-ranked wrestlers clashed as Northern’s Austin Vanek (#15 in NAIA) defeated Southern’s Adrian Chavez-Morales by major decision 8-0. In the final match of the night at 285 pounds, Northern’s Shane Mattson met Southern’s Sebasstian Echeverria. Mattson won by a score of 6-1.
The Lights will take to the mat all day on Saturday, as the participate in the Tyler Plummer Classic in Dickinson, ND.
