Men's Wrestling Wednesday, October 26, 2022 NWC Athletic Communications

2022-23 Wrestling Season Preview

ORANGE CITY, Iowa – Following a season that saw two Raiders compete on the national stage, (RV) Northwestern gets set to open the 2022-23 wrestling season this Saturday, October 29 at the York (Neb.) Open.

2021-22 IN REVIEW
The Raiders held an 8-5 record in their duals last season and finished 5-3 in conference matches for a fourth-place finish in the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC). The season saw the Raiders go 3-0 at the GPAC Duals in January and had an individual GPAC champion in Luke Jenness (Primghar, Iowa) at the 184-weight class. Jake Francksen-Small (Merrill, Iowa) also went 4-1 at the GPAC Championships for a third-place finish. Both Francksen-Small and Jenness qualified for the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Championships last season in Wichita, Kansas.

"Jenness and Francksen-Small are our standard-bearers and they know what it takes to get down to the Show in Wichita in March," said head coach Rik Dahl of his returning NAIA qualifiers. "Both are ranked No. 13 in the preseason polls, but that is not where they want to end up. If their offseason and preseason workouts tell us anything, it is that they are hungry to improve upon their finishes last year and hope to bring a few other Raiders along for the ride."

As a team, Northwestern won six of their final seven duals in the regular season, including a 30-22 win against No. 14 Hastings and two wins over Briar Cliff and Midland, both receiving votes in the NAIA poll.

Individually, Jenness led the team in match wins (29) and fall victories (12), while Francksen-Small led in major decisions (5) and match points (192). Manuel Jaramillo (Selma, Calif.) led the team in technical falls (2).

2022-23 SCHEDULE
The Raiders are set to open the year on October 29 at the York Open in York, Nebraska, as the team's freshman and sophomore wrestlers take the mat. Northwestern then begins the month of November at the Friends (Kan.) Invite before traveling to Buena Vista (Iowa) and to Mitchell for the Dakota Wesleyan Open. The first conference dual will be hosted at the Bultman Center where Northwestern welcomes Dakota Wesleyan on November 16, while the Raiders close their pre-Christmas schedule at the St. Mary's (Kan.) Duals and against Doane at the GPAC Duals in Sioux City on November 19 and 22, respectively.

The new year will begin with the Hastings Open on January 7 before hitting the road for duals at Briar Cliff on January 11 and heading to Jamestown for a battle with the Jimmies and Dickinson State (N.D.) on January 13. After competing at the Missouri Valley Invite the following weekend, Northwestern will return home for a matchup with the Mustangs of Morningside in the Bultman Center. The remaining GPAC Duals are set for January 28 against Concordia (Neb.), Hastings, and Midland in Sioux City while a home non-conference set with Waldorf (Iowa) on February 3. The Raiders close the regular season on February 4 at the Sioux City Open ahead of the GPAC Championships on February 17 and 18.

"We're pretty excited about the upcoming season," Dahl noted. "We have a healthy mix of seasoned veterans and talented new Raiders to make a run this season. Our goal is to strive to be the best versions of ourselves in all aspects of life and that is what we are training. We firmly believe that if we commit to that endeavor, we can challenge for a GPAC title."

ROSTER CONSTRUCTION
Northwestern enters the year with a freshman- and sophomore-laden group, led by three seniors in Samuel Copley (Denton, Neb.), Jaramillo, and Jenness and two juniors, Kory Van Oort (Ireton, Iowa) and Sean Heeney (Sioux City, Iowa). 15 freshmen enter the program this year, while the sophomore class saw NAIA qualifier Francksen-Small and Trey Schuck (Sibley, Iowa) record double-digit wins. Eli Leonhardt (Sioux Falls, S.D.) led the team in near falls (12) and Trevor Sagness (Sioux Falls, S.D.) was the team leader in reversals last season.

In addition to their returners, the Raiders add 15 freshmen to this year's squad.

"We are very pleased with our recruiting class coming this fall," said Dahl. "We were able to get some quality standouts from around Iowa and around the country. Johnny Burnette (Spirit Lake, Iowa), Noah Parmelee (Sergeant Bluff, Iowa), and Brody Hoversten (Alden, Iowa) tore it up at the high school level and will add some great depth to our lineups. In addition, guys from the West Coast such as Donovan Johnston (Holtville, Calif.) and Devin Padilla (Camas, Wash.) have the tools to crack the lineup and make a splash in the conference."

THE DAHL FILE
Head coach Rik Dahl enters his 15^th season at the helm of the Raider wrestling team in 2022-23. A former All-American at Northwestern, Dahl was a team captain on the 1997 wrestling team that finished eighth at the NAIA Championships and a semifinalist under NAIA Hall of Fame Coach Paul Bartlett. Under Dahl's leadership, the Red Raiders have sent 57 wrestlers to the NAIA Championships and crowned nine All-Americans. His 83 dual wins sits second in program history, 15 wins behind Bartlett. Additionally, Dahl serves as Assistant Athletic Director at Northwestern.

FOLLOW THE RAIDERS
Schedules and results are subject to change. For up-to-date information on the upcoming wrestling season, stay tuned to nwcraiders.com and our social media channels. Weekly match/dual notes will be available on the wrestling schedule page on our website.

Don't forget to follow Northwestern College Athletics on Facebook @nwcraiders, Twitter @nwcraiders, and Instagram @nwcraiders! #RaidersStandOut

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

Samuel Copley: 165; Senior

Jake Francksen-Small: 174; Sophomore

Sean Heeney: 133; Junior

Manuel Jaramillo: 133; Senior

Luke Jenness: 184; Senior

Eli Leonhardt: 141; Sophomore

Trevor Sagness: 184; Sophomore

Trey Schuck: 141; Sophomore

Johnny Burnette: 141; Freshman

Brody Hoversten: 157; Freshman

Players Mentioned

Samuel Copley
: Senior
: 165

Jake Francksen-Small
: Sophomore
: 174

Sean Heeney
: Junior
: 133

Manuel Jaramillo
: Senior
: 133

Luke Jenness
: Senior
: 184

Eli Leonhardt
: Sophomore
: 141

Trevor Sagness
: Sophomore
: 184

Trey Schuck
: Sophomore
: 141

Johnny Burnette
: Freshman
: 141

Brody Hoversten
: Freshman
: 157