Many of the matches were hard-fought, went to the very last seconds and could have gone to either teams. One such match was that of 149-pounder Josh Wilson.
Wilson started off the match explosively. He couldn’t quite outlast his opponent and was taken down late in the third period, which almost got him pinned, and took the match into overtime.
The battle continued to be taxing for both two wrestlers. In the closing seconds of the match, Wilson was taken down by a quick last-second takedown and defeated 6-4. Wilson wasn’t the only one defeated in the closing moments of a match. Many of the team lost by one to two points, and to some, that might be a little discouraging, but for Coach Greg Williams, it was a huge improvement.
“I thought we could have beaten them,” Williams said. “The matches we lost tonight, for the most part, were close matches. I feel like we lost this dual in the third period. Wyoming is a great team, and they’re going to fight all the way through. They beat us in the third period, and that’s what cost us the match, but I’m proud of the guys and I think the lessons they learned tonight will pay off later in the year.”
Abner Cook, 165 pounds, was one of the more impressive wrestlers of the night. Cook wrestled well the entire match and had a three-point advantage going into the final period. He gave up points that tied it up in the third period as the match was going back and forth. He wrestled hard and reversed a takedown attempt, sealing the victory 7-4.
Heavyweight Adam Fager also showed his impressive skillset, taking down his opponent several times and winning the match 9-4. Fager continued his success as he won the heavyweight bracket in the UVU open held Jan. 5, posting a 3-0 record.
The Wolverines look to bounce back from the tough loss against Wyoming when they take on Arizona State at home Jan. 18. Coach Williams feels his team will be prepared for another great dual.
“We’ve got to finish in the third period,” Williams said.” If we start winning some of these matches, we will start winning duals. Arizona State might be favored in the higher weights, and they might be evenly matched where we have an advantage. It’s going to be another close dual.”
