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Bison head west; take on Utah Valley State and Northern Colorado
February 15, 2005
North Dakota State (7-3-0) is scheduled to travel to Greeley, Colo. on Friday, Feb. 18 to wrestle Utah Valley State (3-10-1) and host Northern Colorado (4-6-0). NDSU will wrestle Utah Valley State at 4 p.m. MT then square off against the Bears for the second time this season at 8 p.m. at Butler-Hancock Hall. The Bison won the first meeting 31-3 on Jan. 22 in Fargo. NDSU will then head to Laramie, Wyo. to take on the Wyoming Cowboys (5-8-0). The opening dual will start at 7 p.m. MT at the MultiPurpose Gymnasium.
THE SERIES: This will be the first ever meeting between North Dakota State and Utah Valley State. The Wolverines competed in their first year as a wrestling program a season ago, wrestling to a 10-4-0 dual record as a Division I Independent. NDSU and Northern Colorado will be meeting for the 27th time, with the Bison holding a 24-1-1 advantage in the series. NDSU's only loss to the Bears came during the 1979-80 season when UNC won 24-18 in Greeley, Colo. The two schools tied 21-21 in Fargo during the 2000-01 season. Wyoming holds a 3-1-0 record all-time against NDSU. The Bison won the last meeting with the Cowboys 27-15 in Laramie during the 1997-98 season.
BISON SEEK 25TH DOUBLE-DIGIT WIN SEASON: With four matches remaining, North Dakota State needs three wins to secure its 25th season with at least 10 wins. The Bison have won at least 10 duals in each of the last four seasons, including an unblemished 14-0 record last year. NDSU's school record for most meet wins in a season is 16, which dates back to the 1991-92 campaign when the Bison finished 16-0.
BISON WRESTLERS CHASING 20-WIN SEASONS: NDSU's Collin Kelly, Adam Dahlstrom and Dustin Benz are each one win shy of 20 victories for the season. Dahlstrom (19-10) and Benz (19-8) are looking for their first 20-win seasons as members of the Bison. Kelly (19-10) is looking for his second 20-win season for the Herd. He went 21-18 during the 2002-02 season. Matt Hermann (18-7) is two wins away from 20 and is looking for back-to-back 20-win seasons after finishing 25-13 last year as the Division II NCAA runner-up at 184 pounds. Andy Pickar (21-7) and Tim Kraemer (27-7) secured their first 20-win seasons for the Bison earlier this season.
HAVEN'T WE MET?: The Bison won nine of ten matches against Northern Colorado on Jan. 22. UNC's only victory came courtesy of a Kenny Hashimoto win over NDSU's Lucas Christianson (5-3) at 141 pounds. NDSU and Wyoming have crossed paths already this season at the Kaufman-Brand Open on Nov. 20. There is a possibility of two potential Bison/Cowboys rematches. Christianson fell to the Cowboys' Carter Downing 18-8 at 141 pounds at the Kaufman-Brand Open. While Andy Pickar lost to Gary Dack 3-1 in their 165 pound matchup.
COACH CODY SANDERSON AND THE WOLVERINES: Second-year head coach Cody Sanderson (13-14-1) guides Utah Valley State College (Orem, Utah) in its second season as a Division I wrestling program. Last year, he led UVSC to a 10-4 dual meet record. This season, with seven starters returning, the Wolverines are 3-10-1 entering the meet with NDSU with two wins over Portland State and a dual victory over Southern Illinois. UVSC fell to Wyoming 33-15 in its last match on Saturday, Feb. 12. Before coming to UVSC, Sanderson served as a volunteer assistant coach at Iowa State; his alma mater. Sanderson was a four-time national qualifier and two-time runner-up at the NCAA Championships for the Cyclones. He is the older brother of Cael Sanderson, who was undefeated as an NCAA wrestler, winning 159 straight matches at Iowa State.
COACH JACK MAUGHAN AND THE BEARS: Northern Colorado improved to 4-6 overall when it recorded a 26-15 win, the team's first over the Air Force Academy since the 1990-91 season, on Feb. 9, in Colorado Springs. Head coach Jack Maughan is 104-128-1 in 18 seasons at UNC. Former Bison four-time All-American George Thompson is in his sixth season as an assistant for the Bears. This will be the 19th meeting between North Dakota State head coach Bucky Maughan and his son Jack. The younger Maughan was not present at this year's first dual on Jan. 22, awaiting the birth of his first child. A Jack Maughan-led Bears' team has never beaten NDSU (0-17-1).
COACH STEVEN SUDER AND THE COWBOYS: Wyoming head coach Steven Suder returns six starters from last year's squad that finished 10-5 in duals and placed 2nd in the NCAA West Regional. The Cowboys finished 38th at last year's NCAA Championships. NCAA qualifiers Sam Wendland (184) and Dusty Hoffschneider (HWT) are back again for the Cowboys. This year's team is 5-8 in dual action after falling 28-15 to Cal State-Fullerton on Feb. 13 in Laramie. Wyoming has scored dual wins over Oregon, Western Wyoming, Dana College, South Dakota State and Utah Valley State.
BISON FALL TO #13 NORTHERN IOWA: Northern Iowa jumped out to a 21-0 lead over North Dakota State after five matches, thanks in large part to pins by Adam Baumgartner at 125 pounds and C.J. Ettelson at 141 pounds, and cruised to a 31-12 victory over the Bison on Thursday, Feb. 10 at the Bison Sports Arena. A season-high 1,015 fans watched as the thirteenth-ranked Panthers snapped NDSU's 20-match home winning streak. The Bison's 12 dual meet points came from a pin by Andy Pickar at 165 and decisions by Matt Hermann at 184 and Tim Kraemer at heavyweight.
LAST TIME VS. THE BEARS: Freshman Andy Pickar picked up his fifth pin of the season at 165 pounds and Matt Hermann notched career win #50 to lead North Dakota State to a 31-3 victory over Northern Colorado on Saturday, Jan. 22, in front of a crowd of 781 at the Bison Sports Arena. NDSU (6-2) won nine of ten matches over UNC (3-4) and extended its home winning streak to 19-consecutive at the Bison Sports Arena.
MAKING THE TRANSITION: NDSU is in its first year of a two-year waiting period for the NCAA tournament. Wrestling received notification of acceptance from the NCAA for multidivisional classification that will provide NCAA Division I postseason opportunities in 2006-07. Originally, NDSU was not eligible for the NCAA national tournament until the 2008-09 season.
HEAD COACH BUCKY MAUGHAN: North Dakota State is coached by a National Wrestling Hall of Famer. Bucky Maughan is in his 41st year at the helm of the Bison. Maughan is only the second full-time wrestling coach in the school's history. He has a 415-114-11 record to date in dual meets and has guided the Herd to 17 North Central Conference titles, four NCAA Division II championships, and 26 top-five national finishes. The Bison won nine straight NCC titles from 1982 to 1990 under his direction. He is a member of five halls of fame after his 2003 induction to the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.
BISON ASSISTANTS: Beginning his fourth year at NDSU, assistant coach Bret Maughan brings a wealth of experience to the Bison program. The two-time All-American on the mat at NDSU had head coaching stints at Moorhead (Minn.) High School and Bismarck State College before returning to his alma mater. Former three-time All-American and national champion Kris Nelson begins his fifth season as an assistant. Fellow NDSU All-Americans Thad Pike, Joe Bryce and Paul Carlson will serve as student assistants this season.