STEVENS POINT, Wis. -- Collecting wins in seven of 10 bouts, including three pins and two major decisions, the top-ranked Augsburg College wrestling team finished its regular season with a 35-10 victory over the No. 10-ranked University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point on Friday night at UWSP's Berg Gymnasium.
Augsburg (11-2 in dual meets), the top-ranked team in Division III wrestling, improved to 16-1 in the all-time series with Wisconsin-Stevens Point (15-4-1 in dual meets), dating to the 1992-93 season. Augsburg is now 238-21 against Divisions II and III teams since the 1989-90 season, losing just 16 matches to non-Division I opponents since the 1995-96 season. Against strictly Division III opponents, Augsburg is 242-23 since the 1979-80 season and 166-13 since the 1989-90 season.
Seth Flodeen (SR, Cannon Falls, Minn.), ranked No. 5 nationally at 125, opened the match with a third-period pin for the Auggies, and the Auggies closed the match with two pins -- a 1:15 match-ender by No. 2-ranked Jared Massey (JR, Circle Pines, Minn./Centennial HS) at 197, and a 5:38 win by Andy Witzel (JR, Fulda, Minn.), ranked No. 7 at heavyweight. Massey improved to 22-1 on the season with his 12th pin. Witzel is now 28-6 on the season, while Flodeen is now 16-4.
Willy Holst (SR, Prescott, Wis.), ranked No. 1 nationally at 149, collected a 12-3, major-decision win to improve to 21-1 on the season, while Zach Molitor (SO, Cambridge, Minn./Cambridge-Isanti HS), ranked No. 7 at 174, scored a 13-1, major-decision win to improve to 26-7 on the year.
Jason Adams (JR, Coon Rapids, Minn.), ranked No. 4 nationally at 157, improved to 32-5 on the year with a 6-2 win, and top-ranked Travis Lang (SR, Bismarck, N.D.) improved to 29-0 with a forfeit win at 133. Lang collected his 26th bonus-point victory with his second forfeit of the year; he also has 17 pins, three technical falls and four major decisions.
Wisconsin-Stevens Point's wins came at 141, as Chase DeCleene claimed a 9-6 win over Augsburg's No. 4-ranked Tony Valek (FY, Belle Plaine, Minn./Scott West), and from two nationally-ranked wrestlers -- a 9-2 win by No. 7-ranked Chase Wozniak at 165 and a 14-4, major-decision win by No. 6-ranked Ben Engelland at 184.
Augsburg is idle until competing at the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional next Saturday (2/21) at Concordia University-Wisconsin in Mequon, Wis. Wisconsin-Stevens Point hosts Wisconsin-Eau Claire this Saturday (2/14) at 1 p.m., in its final home dual meet of the regular season.
