ST. LOUIS, Mo. - Missouri Baptist men's and women's wrestling were both handed losses on Wednesday night by the Missouri Valley College Vikings. The Vikings, who are ranked No. 6 in the Women's Collegiate Wrestling Association Top 10, defeated the Spartans 26-19. The men lost narrowly to the NAIA No. 4-ranked MVC 19-16.
On the women's side, the Spartans started in a hole as the team lost by forfeit in the 101lb class, but the team quickly rebounded. A big win from MBU's Caitlyn Chase by fall in the 109lb weight class tied the dual at five-all, putting MBU right back in it.
The dual went back and forth as both teams put together several big performances. In 116lb action, the Vikings went back up by five as Samantha Higa beat Missouri Baptist's Malina Nelson by fall to gain the five-point edge back.
Though the Spartans received back-to-back wins by fall from Karissa Avalone (155lb) and Darcie Manning-O'Brien (170lb) down the stretch, Missouri Valley posted the final win of the night to take the dual. In the 191lb class, the Vikings Tamara Hartfeld beat MBU's Julianna Triplett 5-0 to secure the win for MVC.
On the men's side, the dual came down to the wire yet again. The Spartans started out with three consecutive victories to post an early 9-0 advantage. In a battle of ranked opponents, senior Detorious Prayther (NAIA No. 4-ranked) continued an early strong season with a win by decision over MVC's No. 16-ranked Ryan Stearns 6-4 by decision.
The 133lb match pitted the No. 8-ranked Dennis Welch of Missouri Valley and the unranked Gabe Roman of Missouri Baptist. Roman, currently ranked No. 6 at 125, extended the MBU lead with a 10-8 win by sudden victory. MBU's Chris Padilla then won over MVC's Todd Bracket by decision 8-4, giving the Spartans a distinct advantage in the dual.
After the fourth-ranked Jake Ekster (MVC) won over the No. 15-ranked Esmond Ford at 149lbs, the Vikings were right back in it. Consecutive wins at 165 and 174lbs helped the Vikings to back within striking distance.
Missouri Baptist's Weston Keleher (NAIA No. 2) won his match at 184lbs by major decision over Brett Bader 10-2, forcing MVC to have to win its final two matches to take the dual. That was, however, exactly what the Vikings did.
A Spartan loss by forfeit in the open 197lb class tied the competition at 16, putting the fate of both teams squarely on the shoulders of heavyweight wrestlers Daniel Mueller of Missouri Valley and Julius Anglikas of MBU.
Mueller, the No. 7-ranked wrestler in the heavyweight class was given all he could handle from Missouri Baptist's unranked Anglikas. Mueller, however, had just enough in the tank to pull a 9-8 victory out to give the Vikings the three-point win.
Missouri Baptist will head back out on the road for another early-season dual against Hannibal-LaGrange on Tuesday, No. 27. The dual is set for a 7:00 p.m. start.
