Huskers Defeat Black Nights in Home Opener

Lincoln - The No. 2 Nebraska wrestling team won nine straight bouts to rout No. 23 Army West Point, 33-3, in front of a home crowd of 4,396, the sixth-highest all-time home attendance at the Bob Devaney Sports Center on Friday night. 

Beginning in the 125 class, No. 32 Kael Lauridsen, the Bennington, Neb. native, took on No. 25 Charlie Farmer. Farmer held Lauridsen through one escape to send Army to a 3-0 start against the Big Red. 

Next on the mat was No. 11 Jacob Van Dee and No. 23 Ethan Berginc, where Van Dee came out 8-1. Through a three-second near fall, escape, takedown and 2:20 ride time, the junior from Union City, Pa., evened out the team score, 3-3.

The second-ranked 141-pound wrestler, Brock Hardy, enjoyed an 18-2 victory over No. 25 Braden Basile, giving the Big Red five points. Hardy found his way to four takedowns, a near fall and an escape. The senior from Brigham City, Utah, found his last point with a 1:23 ride time. 

At 149, Nikade Zinkin kept it going for Nebraska with a 4-1 decision over Ryan Franco. The true freshman added an escape early in the second period. Franco battled back for one, going into sudden victory, where Zinkin collected a takedown to clinch the win. 

The top-ranked Antrell Taylor found a 5-1 victory over Joseph Antonio in the 157 weight class. Taylor started with an early takedown in the first round. He went on to an escape and a ride time of 1:11, extending Nebraska’s lead to 14-3 with the decision.

Following intermission, No. 22 LJ Araujo battled early on with two escapes and a one-point penalty to go up 3-0 in the first period against No. 16 Gunner Filipowicz. Filipowicz evened it out with a takedown at the end of the first period, taking it 3-3 until the third. Araujo used an escape and riding time to claim the 5-3 victory. 

Army’s Andrew Christie held No.4 Christopher Minto with several escapes, but the Cape Coral, Fla., 174-pounder recorded four takedowns and over a minute of ride time in each round. This gave him a 16-4 advantage, pushing the Huskers' lead to 21-3. 

Igniting the crowd, No. 6 Silas Allred secured a pin over David Barrett in the first period. Allred recorded two take-downs and a four-second near fall to record six immediate points for the Big Red. 

On the mat for the 197 class, No. 6 Camden McDanel hoisted Nebraska to 30-3 with a win over No. 27 Wolfgang Frable. With a late takedown, McDanel closed the match 6-1. 

To close out the dual, No. 2 AJ Ferrari made his Nebraska debut against No. 13 Brian Colbert. The two fought evenly in the first period, but Ferrari collected an escape in the second period to take the lead. Ferrari recorded a takedown late in the third period to go up 4-0 and claim his first dual win in red. 

The Huskers head on the road to Tulsa, Okla. to compete at the National Duals on November 15-16. The first NU match is set to start at 11 a.m. (CT) on Saturday the 15th. Matches will be streamed on FloWrestling, with championship bouts also available on ESPN.  

No. 2 Nebraska 33, No. 23 Army West Point 3
125: No. 25 Charlie Farmer dec. No. 33 Kael Lauridsen 3-0 (ARMY 3, NEB 0)
133: No. 11 Jacob Van Dee dec. No. 23 Ethan Berginc 8-1 (ARMY 3, NEB 3)
141: No. 2 Brock Hardy tech fall No. 25 Braden Basile 18-2 (NEB 8, ARMY 3)
149: Nikade Zinkin dec. Ryan Franco 4-1 (NEB 11, ARMY 3)
157: No. 1 Antrell Taylor dec. Joseph Antonio 5-1 (NEB 14, ARMY 3)
165: No. 22 LJ Araujo dec. No. 16 Gunner Filipowicz 5-3 (NEB 17, ARMY 3)
174: No. 4 Christopher Minto major dec. Andrew Christie 16-4 (NEB 21, ARMY 3)
184: No. 6 Silas Allred fall David Barrett (NEB 27, ARMY 3)
197: No. 6 Camden McDanel dec. No. 27 Wolfgang Frable 6-1 (NEB 30, ARMY 3)
HWT: No. 2 AJ Ferrari dec. No. 13 Brady Colbert 4-0 (NEB 33, ARMY 3)