The Raider wrestling team traveled to Marshall, MO., last weekend and competed in a very tough Missouri Valley Invite. NW brought 11 men down to an event that housed 14 top-20 teams and over 130 ranked wrestlers. Overall, the Raiders placed 12th out of 35 teams and were only nine points behind 10th place.
Four Raiders found the podium and placed in the top 8. Senior Jake Hergott and Sophomore Dante Preciado both placed eighth in the 133 and 149 weight classes, respectively. Brandon Shuler at 174 pounds was able to snag a fifth-place finish.
Sophomore Andrew Null also had a great weekend as he went 4-2 on the day. He pinned his first opponent and then went on to beat the sixth ranked wrestler in the NAIA. He secured a spot in the semifinals after he earned a major decision against a Campbellsville wrestler. In the semifinals Null dropped a close match 5-3 to the fourth ranked wrestler from Lindsey-Wilson. He received a forfeit and then lost another close match to another ranked wrestler to earn a fourth place finish. It was overall a fantastic tournament for the sophomore Raider.
The other seven Raider wrestlers also contributed to a fantastic team effort to earn the 12th-place finish.
About the weekend coach Rik Dahl said, “I am really proud of the way we competed over the weekend. We showed up for big matches and we were aggressive and we battled. Drew, Dante, Jake and Brandon obviously had great days but nine of our 11 guys won a match and several of those winners won by bonus points. It was a total team effort.”
The Raiders travel to Fremont, Neb., January 27 to wrestle in the GPAC duals. They will have three matches against Dakota Wesleyan University, Midland University and Morningside College. This is a big event for the team as they make a run at winning the GPAC.
