Wrestling

Huskies Lead the MAC in Fourth-Place at NWCA National Duals

Saturday Wrestling results
#17 Northern Iowa 42, Bloomsburg 6
Central Michigan 26, Harvard 10
#8 South Dakota State 28, Central Michigan 10
Central Michigan 23, Ohio 15
Ohio 31, Bloomsburg 13
Northern Illinois 53, Campbell 0
Drexel 21, Northern Illinois 12
SIUE 27, Edinboro 5
#14 Little Rock 23, Edinboro 16
SIUE 23, #14 Little Rock 16
 
Recaps courtesy of Athletic Communications Departments

FLY THE FLAG: SIUE Wrestling Downs Edinboro, No.14 Little Rock

Central Michigan Downs Ohio to Finish 5th at NWCA National Duals | Results
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – The Central Michigan wrestling team won two of three duals on Saturday to finish 3-2 and in fifth place in the National Wrestling Coaches Association National Duals at the UNI Dome on the campus of the University of Northern Iowa.

The Chippewas, who went 1-1 on Friday, opened on Saturday with a 26-10 over Harvard and then fell, 28-10, to eighth-ranked South Dakota State. They closed with a 23-15 win over Ohio in the fifth-place match.

"We come to this event because we know we're going to get some good competition and see some good, quality teams," CMU coach Ben Bennett said. "At this time of the season, that's what you're looking for. We need to figure out what we've got to continue to improve on."

The Chippewas (6-3) got off to a fast start against Ohio, winning the first five matches and scoring bonus point in four of them in building a 20-0 lead.

"Momentum is a real thing in duals," Bennett said. "And when you see guys on your team that are doing out there and dominating, it gives everyone confidence."

The Bobcats responded with four consecutive wins, one a tech fall and one a major decision, to draw to 19-15 heading into the final bout at 285 pounds. CMU's Bryan Caves posted a major decision victory to seal it.

CMU won seven of the final eight bouts against Harvard. Down 6-0 after dropping a pair of decisions to open the dual, the Chippewas got a major decision win from Nick Blackburn at 141 to cut Harvard's lead to 6-4 and then Jimmy Nugent (149) held on for a 20-17 victory to put CMU in front for good, 7-6.

Against the eighth-ranked Jackrabbits, the Chippewas got a major decision victory from Jimmy Nugent (149) and wins from Adrien Cramer (184) and Luke Cochran (197).

Among the many individual highlights in the tournament for the Chippewas was a huge win from freshman Archer Anderson on Friday over Northern Illinois' Blake West, the defending Mid-American Conference champion at 125 pounds.

"I think Archer is showing flashed that he can wrestle," Bennett said. "There's a lot to clean up, technically, but he's a competitor, has a great attitude, and you know when he goes out there there's going to be fireworks."

Nugent, a redshirt junior, won all five of his bouts on the weekend, one by pin and three by major decision.

CMU's Mason Shrader (157) did not wrestle on Friday and went 2-1 on Saturday, splitting a pair of matches against ranked opponents.

Shrader, who is ranked 30th nationally by InterMat, dropped a tough 4-2 decision to South Dakota State's Cael Swenson and defeated Harvard's Jimmy Harrington, 4-1. Swenson is ranked 18th and Harrington is 22nd.

CMU's Luke Cochran (197) finished 4-1 in the tournament with three of his wins coming by major decision. His lone loss came to Ohio's Zayne Lehman, who is ranked 25th.

"I just feel like a lot of the guys on the team had some moments where you can see it," Bennett said. "You can see it; it's like, hey, you're not that far off, we've just got to keep improving.

"And that's what we tell these guys: Just wrestle, score the next point, focus on scoring the next point, get another takedown, get your riding time, get your escape, just keep wrestling and don't worry so much about winning."

The tournament gave the Chippewas an opportunity to see two MAC opponents that they will face in duels later this season. They go to NIU on Friday, Jan. 16, and entertain Ohio on Jan. 30.

"Obviously, it's nice to win duels here, but at the end of the day, this isn't the biggest thing in our season," Bennett said. "We've got to be back to work, watch film, make some adjustments, and keep making improvements. That's the most important thing at the end of the day."

The focus now is on the rematch with NIU, just five days away, and the start of league duals.

"Sometimes losing is the best thing that can happen to you," Bennett said. "You need a little kick in the but to say, 'Hey, we've got to get going a little bit.'

"That's always a good duel with (NIU). They wrestle tough, and we know they're going to bring it every time we wrestle; they always do, and that's what you want."


Northern Illinois Finishes Fourth at NWCA National Duals | Results 
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa— Taking fourth place at the 2026 NWCA National Duals, the Northern Illinois University Huskies (4-5) competed against Campbell University and Drexel University inside the UNI-Dome on the campus of the University of Northern Iowa. The Huskies were victorious against the Camels of Campbell, winning 53-0. In the third-place match, the Huskies and Dragons of Drexel met with the Dragons winning 21-12.
 
Markel Baker remained undefeated, collecting a 19-6 major decision win over Logan Heil (Campbell) and a 5-1 decision over Kyle Waterman (Drexel). Landen Johnson went 2-0 on the day with a pin over Campbell's Kendrick Hodge and an 8-3 decision over Drexel's Luke Nitcher.
 
Caleb Roe was undefeated on the day, winning his first match against Brant Cracraft via major decision. Against Drexel's Ethan Wilson, Roe earned a 5-3 decision. Devon Dawson pinned Campbell's Sawyer VanRider before getting an 8-5 decision over Drexel's Nate Schon.
 
"We are building toward where we want to be," said NIU head coach Ryan Ludwig. "These guys are wrestling hard. It was fun to be immersed in that team-first environment."
 
In the dual against Campbell, Baker and Charles Curtis opened action with back-to-back major decisions. Lucan O'Brien earned the first tech fall of the match as Roe added a third major decision for the Huskies. Dawson, Johnson, and Tommy Bennett recorded three falls for NIU in the victory.
 
Baker claimed the first win for NIU against Drexel as the Dragons took three of the first four bouts. Johnson claimed victory at 157 pounds for the Huskies before Roe got the third win of the dual. Dawson grabbed an early lead at 285 pounds as the Huskies dropped the contest to Drexel.
 
NIU Wrestling returns to Victor E. Court as they start Mid-American Conference action on January 16 at 7 p.m. The Huskies will play host to the Chippewas of Central Michigan University, with the match streamed on ESPN+.


Ohio Wraps Up Weekend at NWCA National Duals
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – The Ohio wrestling team concluded day two of the NWCA National Duals this afternoon (Jan. 10). Ohio defeated Bloomsburg 31-13 in Pool B competition, before dropping their second match of the day to Central Michigan, 23-15.
 
Redshirt Junior Jack Lledo (Penn Valley, Pa.)  won both of his matches at 165 lbs, defeating Bloomsburg's Vasilious Dimou by technical fall and Central Michigan's Chandler Amaker by 7-2 decision. At 184 lbs, redshirt Senior Sal Perrine (Northfield, Ohio) won both of his matches, defeating Bloomsburg's Connor Hudak by technical fall and Central Michigan's Adrien Cramer by sudden victory. Redshirt senior Zayne Lehman (Akron, Ohio) went 2-0 on Saturday at 197 lbs, defeating Bloomsburg's Chris Neal by technical fall and Central Michigan's Luke Cochran by major decision. Lehman finished the weekend with a 4-0 record at the duals.
 
The Bobcats will return to action on Friday, January 16 when they host SIUE in a MAC dual meet at The Convo. The dual is set to begin at 7 p.m. and can be viewed on ESPN+.