Eureka Men's Wrestling Battles Tough Competition at Regionals
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – The Eureka men's wrestling team competed at the NCAA DIII Region VI Wrestling Regional over the weekend, facing off against the toughest regional field in the nation. Jacob Kaminski (6th place) and Gaige Owens (7th place) highlighted the Red Devils' efforts with top-eight finishes.
At 285 pounds, Jacob Kaminski placed sixth. He opened with an 18-1 technical fall victory, followed by a 13-3 major decision win over ninth-ranked Justin Matson (Dubuque) in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, Kaminski fell just short in a 1-0 decision against top-ranked Walter West (Luther). He then lost the consolation semifinal by major decision (11-3) and forfeited the fifth-place match to Matson.
"Kaminski made the semis and lost 1-0 to the number one guy in the nation," Biehl said. "He was one point away from qualifying and then forced to wrestle back. That's always tough to come back from, and unfortunately, he wasn't able to qualify for nationals this year. He has eligibility left, so I'm excited for his future."
At 141 pounds, Gaige Owens placed seventh. He opened with an 11-4 decision victory before falling to third-ranked Pierre Baldwin (Central) by major decision (8-0) in the quarterfinals. Owens responded with a dominant 19-3 technical fall victory but was edged out in a 10-7 decision against Jalen Schropp (Loras) in the next round. He secured seventh place with a 12-9 decision win.
"I truly believe if Gaige had gotten past his opponent from Loras he would have qualified for nationals," said Head Coach Eric Biehl. "He just had a tough draw, losing to the champ and third-placer on his way to placing seventh. He wrestled extremely well."
At 125 pounds, Jake Jozwiak dropped his opening match by decision (7-0) but rebounded with a fall victory in 1:29 in the consolation bracket. His tournament run ended in the second consolation round after falling in 3:36.
At 133 pounds, Isaac Smith lost his first match by fall (0:58) but advanced in the consolation bracket with a bye. He was later eliminated by fall (2:03).
At 149 pounds, Nathan Berta lost his opening match by fall (4:50) but bounced back with a fall victory in 4:50 in the consolation bracket. His tournament ended after a 16-3 major decision loss.
At 165 pounds, Alex Muhammad lost by fall (0:57) in the opening round. He battled back with an 11-7 decision win in the consolation bracket but was eliminated by fall in 2:35.
At 174 pounds, Tyren Moore suffered a technical fall loss (15-0) in the first round and was eliminated by fall (3:28) in the consolation bracket.
At 184 pounds, Thomas Culp lost his opening match by major decision (11-2) and was eliminated after another major decision loss (13-2) in the consolation bracket.
"We are in the toughest regional in the nation, and our guys competed well," Biehl added. "It was tough to see my seniors' careers end. That's always a heartbreaker. Berta, Culp, Jozwiak, and Gaige have been with the program since the beginning, so having to sit in their corner for the last time was tough to swallow."
Despite not achieving the results they aimed for, Biehl remains optimistic about the future.
"Our guys didn't get the result they were aiming for, but they competed well and remained hopeful and hungry for the offseason and future. We'll be back!"