Air Force Academy
South Dakota St.
Falcon Wrestling Falls to No. 20 South Dakota State
1/15/2017 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, CO - Air Force picked up two wins in the 28-6 loss to Big 12 rival, No. 20 South Dakota State, Sunday afternoon, in Clune Arena. The Falcons, now 0-2 in conference action, hold a 4-3 overall record as they prepare to head back to the road.
South Dakota State came out firing on all cylinders, logging 15 team points in five straight wins from 157 to 197. Logan Peterson edged by Falcon 157-pounder Dane Robbins, 7-6, in the opening bout. Alex Lopouchanski dropped a 5-2 decision to Luke Zilverberg, while Michael Billingsley fell, 6-0, to David Kocer in the 174 bout.
The Jackrabbits continued their roll into the 184 class where Martin Mueller picked up a 7-4 decision over Zen Ikehara, followed by No. 8 Nate Rotert's 10-3 decision over Parker Hines at 197.
Freshman heavyweight, Kerry Powers, registered Air Force's first points of the dual over the Jackrabbit's Alex Macki. The heavyweights met with stubborn defense, holding each other to a scoreless first period. Powers tallied the first point with an escape from the down position at the start of the second period. The Sheridan, Wyoming native held the 1-0 advantage late into the third period where he found a scoring opportunity and capitalized with two-point takedown to seal the deal, 3-1.
In the following match, junior 125-pounder Drew Romero followed up with a decision win over Ben Gillette. Romero took the mat with high intensity, registering three takedowns and two near fall points while allowing Gillette only two escape points. Gillette found some traction in the second period, logging a pair of takedowns to Romero's one escape to narrow the lead, 9-6. In the final period, Romero managed one final takedown to extend to an 11-6 lead. Romero held off Gillette's attack, and with riding time in his favor, added an additional point to finalize the match at 12-6.
With the team score at 15-6 in favor of South Dakota State, the Jackrabbits rallied back determined to stop an Air Force revival. Dylan Hyder took the mat against No. 6 Seth Gross, where he fell in 45 seconds into the second period.
Following their 11-4 decision over John Twomey in the 141 class, South Dakota State capped the dual with an 11-2 major decision over Jerry McGinty at 149. At the final whistle the Jackrabbits outscored Air Force, 28-6.
Next weekend, Air Force travels to California for non-conference dual action against Stanford and Cal Poly. On Friday, Jan. 20, the Falcons take on Stanford in Palo Alto, Calif., at 6:30 p.m. PT. The dual will be broadcast by the Pac-12 Network. On Sunday, Jan. 22, the squad travels to San Luis Obispo, Calif., to take on Cal Poly at 12:00 p.m. PT. Live stream links can be found at goairforcefalcons.com in the schedule drop down.
AIR FORCE (4-3, 0-2 BIG 12) VS. #20 SOUTH DAKOTA STATE (8-2, 4-0)
157: Logan Peterson (SDSU) def. Dane Robbins (AFA) -7-6, SDSU 3-0
165: Luke Zilverberg (SDSU) def. Alex Lopouchanski (AFA) -5-2, SDSU 6-0
174: David Kocer (SDSU) def. Michael Billingsley (AFA) -6-0, SDSU 9-0
184: Martin Mueller (SDSU) def. Zen Ikehara (AFA) -7-4, SDSU 12-0
197: #8 Nate Rotert (SDSU) def. Parker Hines (AFA) -10-3, SDSU 15-0
285: Kerry Powers (AFA) def. Alex Macki (SDSU) -3-0, SDSU 15-3
125: Drew Romero (AFA) def. Ben Gillette (SDSU) -12-6, SDSU 15-6\
133: #6 Seth Gross (SDSU) def. Dylan Hyder (AFA)-F (3:45), SDSU, 21-6
141: Isaac Andrade (SDSU) def. John Twomey (AFA) -11-4, SDSU 24-6
149: Alex Kocer (SDSU) def. Jerry McGinty (AFA) -MD (11-2), SDSU 28-6
FINAL: SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 28, AIR FORCE 6
Players Mentioned
