Minnesota goes 0-3 at Northeast Duals

Minnesota falls to three ranked foes in New York

The Gophers spent Sunday in Troy, N.Y. wrestling arguably the most difficult schedule of any of the 20 teams participating in this year’s Northeast Duals, a run of three consecutive matches against top-15 opponents. The Gophers fell in all three contests, dropping duals to No. 13 North Carolina (20-17), No. 5 Lehigh (22-12) and No. 12 NC State (31-3). Those losses even Minnesota’s record on the season at 3-3.

No. 6 Brett Pfarr continued his undefeated season and improved to 9-0 with three victories on Sunday at 197. Sam Brancale also turned in a strong performance from the Empire State, a 2-1 day during which he upset ninth-ranked Mason Beckman, a two-time All-American for Lehigh, during their 133-pound match.

Brancale’s victory was one of three upsets Gopher wrestlers orchestrated on the day, all against the Mountain Hawks. In the match immediately following Brancale’s, No. 20 Tommy Thorn (141) upended No. 10 Randy Cruz, a two-time Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association champion. Later in the dual, Nick Wanzek (174) earned his first victory over a ranked opponent since bumping up a weight class this season when he edged No. 12 Elliot Riddick, 3-2.

Minnesota opened the event with its first-ever match against North Carolina. Through five matches, the Gophers found themselves trailing the Tar Heels by a single point, 9-8, thanks to major decisions from Brancale and Brandon Kingsley (157). Three straight wins for UNC after the dual’s midway point opened up what proved to be an insurmountable lead. Decisions for Brett Pfarr and Michael Kroells (285) brought Minnesota to within three points, 20-17, by the match’s end.

Three bouts into its dual with Lehigh, Minnesota found itself tied with the favored Mountain Hawks, 6-6. After a pin at 125, Brancale and Thorn’s upset wins leveled the team score. As happened during their previous dual, a three-match skid ultimately put the Gophers too far behind their opponents. Wanzek’s upset at 174 brought the Gophers to within seven points, 16-9, with three matches remaining, but a 1-2 performance at the three remaining weights left the Gophers short on points in the 22-12 defeat.

To wrap up the day’s action, Brett Pfarr earned the lone victory for the Gophers against an energetic NC State team. Five Minnesota wrestlers lost matches by four points or fewer to Wolfpack wrestlers, including three of the first four (125, 133 and 149) to begin the dual. Those close losses proved to be too much for the Gophers to overcome as the Wolfpack earned a victory in its first match against Minnesota in 27 years.

Sunday was Minnesota’s third trip to the Northeast Duals and its first since 2006. The program is now 7-4 all-time in the event. With its duals against UNC and NC State, Minnesota has now wrestled three different ACC schools this year, the most of any season in program history. The Gophers defeated Virginia, 19-15, at the Gopher Duals on Nov. 7.

There is little time for rest as the Gophers tackle an eight-dual November schedule. Minnesota returns to action this Saturday at the Sports Pavilion when the team hosts the Air Force Academy for a 6:30 p.m. dual. That contest will be streamed live on BTN Plus.

Fans who want to stay up-to-date on the latest news around the program should not only regularly check on GopherSports.com, but also follow Gopher Wrestling on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

No. 21 Minnesota 17 – No. 13 North Carolina 20
125: Tyrone Klump (UNC) dec No. 17 Skyler Petry (Minn), 7-5 / Minnesota 0 — UNC 3
133: Sam Brancale (Minn) maj dec A.C. Headlee (UNC), 11-3 / Minnesota 4 – UNC 3
141: No. 5 Evan Henderson (UNC) dec No. 20 Tommy Thorn (Minn), 5-2 / Minnesota 4 — UNC 6
149: Christian Barber (UNC) dec Miles Patton (Minn), 5-1 / Minnesota 4 — UNC 9
157: Brandon Kingsley (Minn) maj dec Robert Henderson (UNC), 12-2 / Minnesota 8 — UNC 9
165: No. 3 Ethan Ramos (UNC) tech fall (5:59) Dylan Urbach (Minn), 20-4 / Minnesota 8 — UNC 14
174: John Michael Staudenmayer (UNC) dec Nick Wanzek (Minn), 6-3 / Minnesota 8 — UNC 17
184: No. 20 Alex Utley (UNC) Chris Pfarr (Minn), 6-3 / Minnesota 8 — UNC 20
197: No. 6 Brett Pfarr (Minn) dec Chip Ness (UNC), 11-5 / Minnesota 11 — UNC 20
285: No. 6 Michael Kroells (Minn) fall (3:34) Cory Daniel (UNC) / Minnesota 17 — UNC 20

No. 21 Minnesota 12 – No. 5 Lehigh 22
125: No. 15 Darian Cruz (Lehigh) fall (1:43) No. 17 Skyler Petry (Minn) / Minnesota 0 — Lehigh 6
133: Sam Brancale (Minn) dec No. 9 Mason Beckman (Lehigh), 4-1 / Minnesota 3 – Lehigh 6
141: No. 20 Tommy Thorn (Minn) dec No. 10 Randy Cruz (Lehigh), 3-0 / Minnesota 6 — Lehigh 6
149: No. 20 Laike Gardner (Lehigh) maj dec Miles Patton (Minn), 12-3 / Minnesota 6 — Lehigh 10
157: No. 5 Mitch Minotti (Lehigh) dec Brandon Kingsley (Minn), 4-2 / Minnesota 6 — Lehigh 13
165: Ryan Preisch (Lehigh) dec Dylan Urbach (Minn), 5-2 / Minnesota 6 — Lehigh 16
174: Nick Wanzek (Minn) dec No. 12 Elliot Riddick (Lehigh), 3-2 / Minnesota 9 — Lehigh 16
184: No. 4 Nathaniel Brown (Lehigh) dec Chris Pfarr (Minn), 9-5 / Minnesota 9 — Lehigh 19
197: No. 6 Brett Pfarr (Minn) dec John Bolich (Lehigh), 7-3 / Minnesota 12 — Lehigh 19
285: Max Wessell (Lehigh) dec No. 6 Michael Kroells (Minn), 10-9 / Minnesota 12 — Lehigh 22

No. 21 Minnesota 3 – No. 12 NC State 31
125: Sean Fausz (NC State) dec No. 17 Skyler Petry (Minn), 8-6 / Minnesota 0 — NC State 3
133: Jamal Morris (NC State) dec Sam Brancale (Minn), 5-2 / Minnesota 0 — NC State 6
141: No. 3 Kevin Jack (NC State) dec No. 20 Tommy Thorn (Minn), 10-4 / Minnesota 0 — NC State 9
149: Beau Donahue (NC State) dec Miles Patton (Minn), 8-4 / Minnesota 0 — NC State 12
157: No. 9 Tommy Gantt (NC State) maj dec Brandon Kingsley (Minn), 12-3 / Minnesota 0 — NC State 16
165: No. 7 Max Rohskopf (NC State) dec Dylan Urbach (Minn), 6-0 / Minnesota 0 — NC State 19
174: Nicky Hall (NC State) dec Nick Wanzek (Minn), 8-6 / Minnesota 0 — NC State 22
Click Here: cheap INTERNATIONAL jersey 184: No. 17 Pete Renda (NC State) fall (5:35) Chris Pfarr (Minn) / Minnesota 0 — NC State 28
197: No. 6 Brett Pfarr (Minn) dec Michael Boykin (NC State), 7-3 / Minnesota 3 — NC State 28
285: No. 1 Nick Gwiazdowski (NC State) dec No. 6 Michael Kroells (Minn), 10-6 / Minnesota 3 — NC State 31

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