Kearney, Neb. – The second-ranked Nebraska-Kearney wrestling team will face tough competition this Sunday when the Lopers square off against the Iowa State Cyclones and Loras College Duhawks.
The duals will take place at fabled Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Ia., and also feature “B” team duals. UNK and ISU begin at 3 p.m. with the Lopers and Loras, from Dubuque, Ia., taking the mats at 5 p.m. The ISU-UNK “A team” dual can be viewed on BIG 12 Now on ESPN +. Live results via track wrestling are also available. Check the UNK Wrestling Facebook page for a live stream of the Loras dual; a track wrestling link for that dual is now available.
Iowa State is ranked ninth in NCAA Division I with Loras coming off a third-place ranking in Division III at the end of the 2019-20 season. They were among the favorites to win the team title before the meet was canceled.
The Lopers bested Western Colorado, 39-13, and Colorado Mesa, 23-21, last month in the Rocky Mountains to starts its short 2020-21 season. The lineup is becoming more settled as seniors Josh Portillo (125 lbs.), Sam Turner (149 lbs.) and Jacob Wasser (157 lbs.) are back with senior Wesley Dawkins (133 lbs.) down to his accustomed weight class.
The newcomers to the lineup at this time are Limestone (S.C.) College transfer Hayden Prince (184 lbs.) and redshirt freshmen Nick James (141 lbs.) and Joseph Reimers (197 lbs.). Prince was a 2020 174 pound national qualifier for the Saints with James and Reimers combining for 43 wins as redshirts last winter.
UNK is scheduled to dual rival Chadron State next Saturday in Cushing Coliseum. The action starts at noon with Loper basketball hosting Northwest Missouri State at 2 p.m. down the hall in the Health & Sports Center.
