ST. CHARLES, Mo. – For the second time in as many duals the result came down to the final weight class as Fort Hays State dropped its MIAA dual with No. 10 Lindenwood by the score of 20-18 on Friday (Jan. 29). Both teams won five bouts, but the Lions scored the only six-point pin fall on the night which was enough to give them a point advantage and the dual win.
The Tigers started the night off strong winning three of the first four matches. Adam Ludwin (125) got the Tigers on the board first with a 4-1 decision. The Lions then knotted the score at 3-3 when No. 4 ranked Hunter Haralson defeated Anthony Calderon at 133 pounds with an 8-4 decision. The Tigers responded with two major decisions by Noah Killip (141) and Bradley Little (149), grabbing a lead of 11-3.
The No.1 wrestler at 157 pounds, Terrel Wilbourn, cut the Tiger lead to 11-7 with a major decision over Joey Dozier by a score of 17-4. Kyle Jolas (165) cut the lead to one with a 5-2 decision over Kregg Clarke and Batchka Zulkhuu (174) gave the Lions the lead, 16-11 when he pinned Dylan Wiesner at 2:26 in the first period.
The Tigers did not go down without a fight and responded with back-to-back wins to take the lead one more time. No. 6 wrestler at 184 pounds, Jon Inman, brought the Tigers within one point on a 9-1 major decision over Jake Landals, and Cash Drylie gave the Tigers an 18-16 lead with one match to go on a 10-5 decision over Dillon Archer.
With a two-point differential in the score, the winner of the 285-pound bout would claim the victory for their team. Dakota Gulley, who has won his last three matches for the Tigers was unable to match the Lions’ Jake Borgmeyer and suffered a 14-3 major decision loss. The Lions came out on top with the 20-18 victory.
Fort Hays State dropped to 5-4 overall on the season and 0-3 in the MIAA while Lindenwood moved to 8-2 overall and 3-1 in the MIAA. The Tigers’ weekend continues on Sunday (Jan. 31) when they head to St. Louis, Mo., to take on No. 4 Maryville at 3 pm.