DIII Report: St. John’s Upsets No. 1 Wartburg, No. 3 Coe at Desert Duals

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – No. 5 Saint John’s upset No. 1 Wartburg (Iowa) and No. 3 Coe (Iowa) to go 3-1 at the Vegas Duals held Monday, Dec. 20, at the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas. The Johnnies posted a 44-3 win over the University of Chicago, and sandwiched an 18-13 loss to No. 27 Olivet (Mich.) with tough wins over Wartburg (21-15) and Coe (18-17).

The Johnnies (8-1 dual record) started the day with a 44-3 win over Chicago. SJU posted three pins, one technical fall and inherited two forfeits in the victory.

In the second dual of the day, Wartburg jumped out to a 6-0 lead with a pair of decisions from nationally-ranked wrestlers. Senior Chris Sandy (Spirit Lake, Iowa) posted an 8-6 win in overtime at 141 pounds and fellow senior Minga Batsukh (Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia/St. Benedict’s Prep, N.J.) pinned his opponent in 3:38 to give SJU a 9-6 lead.

The Knights’ Carrington Banks, ranked No. 1 at 157, tallied a 7-2 decision over senior Drew Larson (Willmar, Minn.) to tie the dual at 9-9 before SJU rattled off two one-point victories to take a 15-9 lead. Senior Matt Baarson (Brooklyn Park, Minn./Champlin Park) held on for a 10-9 decision at 165 and junior Matt Pfarr (Le Sueur, Minn./Le Sueur-Henderson) followed with a 4-3 win at 174. Baarson, ranked fifth nationally, gained leads of 7-2 and 9-4 and held on for a one-point win due to riding time. Pfarr, meanwhile, was down 3-1 before he was awarded a stalling point and recorded a takedown with 10 seconds remaining for the win. He is currently ranked ninth at 184 pounds.

Senior Dustin Baxter (Fairbanks, Alaska/West Valley) lost a tough 3-1 decision in overtime to All-American Dylan Azinger, who is ranked fifth nationally at 184. Byron Tate, the defending national champion at 197, tied the dual at 15-15 with a 12-6 decision over senior Tony Willaert (North Mankato, Minn./Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial).

Top-ranked John Helgerson, last year’s national runner-up, was ahead 2-0 on junior John Linn (Foley, Minn.) but was disqualified when he slammed Linn to the mat. The loss snapped Wartburg’s 29-match win streak at the Desert Duals. The Knights have won seven of the last 16 NCAA Division III national championships.

The Johnnies dropped an 18-13 decision to Olivet in their third consecutive dual without a break. SJU and Olivet alternated wins from 125 thru 165 before the Comets took control with a pair of close wins. Pfarr lost a close 11-9 decision at 174 and sophomore Mitch Hagen (Sunburg, Minn./Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg) suffered a one-point loss, 7-6, to No. 10 Jim Neal. Baxter bumped up to 197 pounds and earned a 6-4 win to cut the deficit to two, 15-13. Willaert jumped up to heavyweight but lost, 8-4. Freshman Ryan Arne (Orono, Minn.) gave Batsukh a rest at 149 and lost by two, 6-4. Senior John Vaith (Hastings, Minn.) wrestled his first match since cutting down from 165 and lost a close match of his own, 10-6. Batsukh went 3-0 on the day, including two pins and one major decision, with two wins against Nos. 6 and 7 in the nation.

SJU wrapped up the Vegas Duals with a big 18-17 win over Coe. The Johnnies erased an early 5-0 deficit with three straight wins to take a 10-5 lead. Junior Chad Henle (Spicer, Minn./New London-Spicer) posted a 4-2 win at 133 to go 3-1 on the day. Sandy tallied an upset win, 8-5, over No. 6 Chris LeClere to give SJU a 6-5 lead. Batsukh padded the lead to 10-5 with a major decision over No. 6 James Locke. The Kohawks clawed back to take a one-point lead with wins from nationally-ranked wrestlers at 157 and 165.

The resilient Johnnies answered with major decisions from Pfarr and Baxter to take an 18-11 lead. Pfarr posted a 15-3 win, while Baxter recorded a 12-4 win over No. 6 Seth Rehn. Both Pfarr and Baxter went 3-1 on the day. Coe net a pair of decisions in the final two weights, including a high-scoring 19-14 win at heavyweight, but SJU held on for the one-point victory.

Comparative scores out the window, Coe defeated Olivet 28-9 earlier in the day.

SJU returns to action Jan. 8-9 at the prestigious NWCA/Cliff Keen Division III National Duals on the campus of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, Iowa. With today’s performance, the Johnnies are in line for a high seed in the tournament and a climb in the national rankings, which are scheduled to be released Dec. 22.

No. 5 Saint John’s University (SJU) 44, University of Chicago (UC) 3
125 – Junior Scott Padrnos (SJU) dec. Jake Schramm (UC), 10-4 [3-0]
133 – Junior Chad Henle (No. 6, SJU) won by forfeit [9-0]
141 – Senior Chris Sandy (No. 8, SJU) tech. fall Matt Hart (UC), 6:40 [14-0]
149 – Senior Minga Batsukh (No. 3, SJU) pinned Joey Ruettiger (UC), 3:38 [20-0]
157 – Senior Drew Larson (SJU) dec. Jim Layton (UC), 2-0 [23-0]
165 – Senior Matt Baarson (No. 5, SJU) pinned Josh Lowy (UC), 2:05 [29-0]
174 – Junior Matt Pfarr (No. 9 at 184, SJU) dec. Takumi Mihama (UC), 6-0 [32-0]
184 – Junior Dustin Baxter (SJU) pinned Sam Pennisi (UC), 2:16 [38-0]
197 – Senior Tony Willaert (No. 10, SJU) won by forfeit [44-0]
Hwt – Steve Sunderman (UC) dec. junior John Linn (SJU), 4-2 [44-3]

No. 5 Saint John’s University (SJU) 21, No. 1 Wartburg College (WC) 15
125 – Mark Kist (No. 3, WC) dec. junior Scott Padrnos (SJU), 10-4 [0-3]
133 – Mike Kremer (No. 9, WC) dec. junior Chad Henle (No. 6, SJU), 10-3 [0-6]
141 – Senior Chris Sandy (No. 8, SJU) dec. Tommy Mirocha (WC), 8-6 (OT) [3-6]
149 – Senior Minga Batsukh (No. 3, SJU) pinned Jacob Groth (No. 7, WC), 4:25 [9-6]
157 – Carrington Banks (No. 1, WC) dec. senior Drew Larson (SJU), 7-2 [9-9]
165 – Senior Matt Baarson (No. 5, SJU) dec. Landon Williams (No. 10, WC), 10-9 [12-9]
174 – Junior Matt Pfarr (No. 9 at 184, SJU) dec. Bradley Banks (WC), 4-3 [15-9]
184 – Dylan Azinger (No. 5, WC) dec. junior Dustin Baxter (SJU), 3-1 (OT) [15-12]
197 – Byron Tate (No. 1, WC) dec. senior Tony Willaert (No. 10, SJU), 12-6 [15-15]
Hwt – Junior John Linn (SJU) won by disqualification over John Helgerson (No. 1, WC) [21-15]

No. 27 Olivet College (OC) 18, No. 5 Saint John’s University (SJU) 13
125 – Justin Fleeson (OC) dec. junior Scott Padrnos (SJU), 6-3 [3-0]
133 – Junior Chad Henle (No. 6, SJU) dec. Adam Wilson (No. 8, OC), 3-1 [3-3]
141 – Senior Chris Sandy (No. 8, SJU) dec. Vince Lahar (OC), 4-3 [6-3]
149 – Steve Mena (OC) dec. freshman Ryan Arne (SJU), 6-4 [6-6]
157 – James Myers (No. 6, OC) dec. senior John Vaith (SJU), 10-6 [9-6]
165 – Senior Matt Baarson (No. 5, SJU) major dec. Justin Jaynes (OC), 9-0 [9-10]
174 – Trevor Tyler (OC) dec. junior Matt Pfarr (No. 9 at 184, SJU), 11-9 [12-10]
184 – Jim Neal (No. 10, OC) dec. sophomore Mitch Hagen (SJU), 7-6 [15-10]
197 – Junior Dustin Baxter (SJU) dec. Justin Leonard (OC), 6-4 [15-13]
Hwt – Logan Renas (OC) dec. senior Tony Willaert (No. 10 at 197, SJU), 8-4 [18-13]

No. 5 Saint John’s University (SJU) 18, No. 3 Coe College (COE) 17
125 – Clayton Rush (No. 1, COE) tech. fall junior Scott Padrnos (SJU), 3:31 [0-5]
133 – Junior Chad Henle (No. 6, SJU) dec. Drew Hinschberger (COE), 4-2 [3-5]
141 – Senior Chris Sandy (No. 8, SJU) dec. Chris LeClere (No. 6, COE), 8-5 [6-5]
149 – Senior Minga Batsukh (No. 3, SJU) major dec. James Locke (No. 6, COE), 20-9 [10-5]
157 – Dale Handley (No. 3, COE) dec. senior John Vaith (SJU), 5-1 [10-8]
165 – Nick LeClere (No. 2, COE) dec. senior Matt Baarson (No. 5, SJU), 9-3 [10-11]
174 – Junior Matt Pfarr (No. 9 at 184, SJU) major dec. Scott King (COE), 15-3 [14-11]
184 – Junior Dustin Baxter (SJU) major dec. Seth Rehn (No. 6, COE), 12-4 [18-11]
197 – Ethan Ball (COE) dec. sophomore Mitch Hagen (SJU), 5-2 [18-14]
Hwt – Alex Burkle (No. 7, COE) dec. senior Tony Willaert (No. 10 at 197), 19-14 [18-17]