Viking wrestlers break even
The Portland State wrestling squad played host to Cal State Bakersfield and No. 21 ranked Fresno State this past week. The Vikings split the duals, winning against Cal State and losing to Fresno State, but both duals were hard fought all the way to the end. Portland State improved to 8-11 overall and 3-4 in the Pac-10.
The Vikings defeated the Cal State Roadrunners by a 26-21 margin. This was Portland State’s first win over their Pac-10 opponent since 1976. PSU opened the match with a loss at 157 pounds, but then came back to win five straight.
Junior Shawn Keinonen pulled out a close match at 165 pounds. Keinonen built up a 12-4 lead after two rounds. In the third he got into trouble with his Roadrunner opponent using the cradle to come within two points. Fortunately time ran out with Keinonen on top 12-10, giving PSU its first win.
Junior Quinn Collett and senior Jeremy Wilson followed up their teammate’s performance with two more wins. Collett ran through his match at 174 pounds, winning by technical fall 17-2 at 5:27. Wilson added six more points for the Vikings by tossing his opponent for a fall with 54 seconds left in the first round. Unknown to Wilson, ranked first in the Pac-10 and 14th in the nation, his win over Cal State would be the end of his dual winning streak.
“So far my season has been going pretty good. I just need to peak at the right time,” Wilson said after the win over Cal State Bakersfield.
Junior Randy Davidson and sophomore Eric Mustoe capped off the Vikings’ five straight wins with an injury default win at 197 pounds and a forfeit at 285 pounds.
The Vikings dropped their next and final four matches to win by five points for the first time in a quarter century against Cal State Bakersfield.
After the big win over Cal State Bakersfield the Vikings hosted the Fresno State Bulldogs. The Bulldogs routed the Vikings in team points 33-6, but each match was wrestled tough. Three of the matches were decided by a single point.
Portland State was forced to start out in a hole, as has been the case since the loss of their 149-pounder. The Bulldogs took advantage of the six easy points and added on six more points with two more wins at 157 and 165 pounds. Junior Eric Arbogast led his match going into the third round but allowed two takedowns to lose 7-4. At 165 pounds, Keinonen suffered a loss in a close 7-6 match.
At 174 ponds, Collett put the Vikings on the board with an 8-1 decision over his Fresno State opponent. Collett, ranked fourth in the Pac-10, improved to 14-4 in dual meets and 20-8 overall.
Fresno State pulled out three more points with an upset at 184 pounds when Fresno State’s Eddie Gifford defeated Jeremy Wilson 6-5. This was Wilson’s first dual loss of the season.
Davidson won his match at 197 pounds 8-6 in overtime. Davidson was the only other winner for the Vikings. The Viks dropped the next four matches.
Mustoe had a close match but lost 2-1. Sophomore Casey Kotter had his hands full wrestling Stephen Abas at 125 pounds. Abas is ranked first in the nation and he only lost to the World Champion by one point. Abas pinned Kotter at 5:12.
Portland State hits the road next Saturday to meet San Francisco and Stanford.
