Wayne State College wrestling took to the mat in the National Collegiate Wrestling Association (NCWA) Western Regional Duals at Dixie State University in St. George, Utah this past Saturday.
 
The Wildcats finished third place overall at the meet, going 4-1 in the dual matchups. Their effort was rewarded with four points towards the national tournament that will take place March 9-11 in Allen, Texas.
 
“It was a total team effort,” Head Coach Greg Vander Weil said. “This is a fun group of kids who give it their all every time they compete.”
 
The dual featured 16 teams from across the nation that are a part of the NCWA. The Wildcats faced off against the University of California-Santa Barbara, Utah State University, Brigham Young University, Montana Tech. and Richland CC-Dallas.
 
WSC defeated U.C. Santa Barbara (52-12), Utah State University, (48-12), Montana Tech (41-16) and Richland CC (31-27). The Wildcats’ only dual loss was to BYU (37-9).
 
Wrestlers going a perfect 5-0 throughout the duals were 125-pound freshman Tommy Nelson, who won by pin fall in round five against Richland CC, and 133-pound sophomore Nicholas Gonzalez, who won via pin fall as well in round five.
 
Junior captain Spencer Trout (184 pounds) went 4-1 on the day, with all four of his victories coming by way of pin fall. Caleb Thomas, a 165-pound sophomore, also went 4-1, pinning his opponent in the fifth round.
 
Senior captain Devon Rupp (149 pounds) and freshman Ethan Fitzler when 3-2 overall. Rupp won by way of pin fall in round two against Utah State, and Fitzler won by pin fall in round one against U.C. Santa Barbara and in round two against Utah State.
 
With the team being recognized as a club sport at WSC, fundraising is the sole means for finances.
 
“We do a lot of moving,” Vander Weil said. “We’ve also done a lot of work for the college during the summer with dorm beds, helping them not go to waste.”
 
The next time the Wildcat wrestlers take to the mat will be in Sioux City on Saturday for the Sioux City Open at the Sioux City Convention Center.