Warriors Gain Valuable Experience at Grand View Open

GRIMES, Iowa – Midland University sent seven wrestlers to the mats at the Grand View Open on Saturday at the Ignit Sports Complex. The first open tournament of the year for the Warriors saw them going up against a field of 45 teams comprised of some of the best wrestlers in the Midwest. The event was split into two divisions, a freshman/sophomore competition and an open competition.

Janson Pilkington wrestled for the Warriors in the fresh/soph. 125-pound division. Pilkington (0-4) lost his opening round match to Grady Romshek (Benedictine College) by technical fall, 17-0. After receiving a bye in the consolation first round, Pilkington was defeated by John Davis (Missouri Baptist) in the second round by fall in 16 seconds.

Having the most success for Midland on the day was Trevin Arlt. In the fresh/soph. 141-pound division, Arlt (2-4) earned a pair of victories. In the first round, Arlt won by decision over Drew Willis (Marian), 7-3. In round two, Arlt earned his first pin of the year, over Hudson Karr (William Woods), in 1:14. In his third match of the day, Arlt was defeated by Jazen Brown (Labette CC) by fall in 2:04. In the consolation fourth round, Trevor Reinke (Southeast CC) defeated Arlt by major decision, 10-0.

Trey McDougald represented the Warriors in the fresh/soph. 165-pound class. McDougald (0-3) received a first-round bye before suffering a 26-6 technical fall loss at the hands of Jimmy Lacey (Marian University). After receiving a bye in consolation round two, McDougald lost to Barret Brandt (Concordia) in consolation round three, by fall in 1:37.

In the 174-pound fresh/soph. class, Nate McDonald wrestled for Midland. McDonald (0-4) received a first-round bye, then dropped a major decision, 9-0, to Peyton Besco (Pratt Community College). After a consolation round two bye, McDonald was pinned by Isaac White (Southeast CC) at 1:36 of consolation round three.

The final Warrior to wrestle in the fresh/soph. division was Ryan Kocovsky at 285 pounds. Kocovsky (2-3) opened the day with a victory by fall over Marques Lewis (Marian University) in 4:57. In round two, Kocovsky was pinned late in the third period by Nathan Agudzi-Addo (Barton CC), at 6:32. Kocovsky's day concluded with a consolation round two loss to Roman Torres (Vanguard University) by a 5-0 decision.

Midland had two wrestlers compete in the open division. Connor Rinn and Colton Horne both battled in the 184-pound class. Rinn (2-3) dropped his first match, an 8-3 decision at the hands of Gus Davis (Grand View). In the consolation first round, Rinn earned a 10-4 victory over Trystan Rogers (Jamestown). In the consolation second round, Rinn was pinned by Caleb Werner (Providence) at 2:02. Horne (1-3) dropped his two matches on the day. In the first round, Daryus Webb (Avila) pinned Horne in 39 seconds. In the consolation first round, Horne was pinned by Trey Duhon (Central Methodist) in 1:21.

"Some positives I saw were we made some improvements in some of the areas that we struggled with the first two duals," commented head coach Doyle Trout. "I'm excited to see us make other adjustments throughout the year and see the guys learn and grow. Another positive I saw was our team dynamic. All the guys on the team were mat side supporting their teammates. It is really awesome to see and it benefits the guys out on the mat wrestling when they hear their teammates' support."

"We are definitely young this year so the focus right now is still continuing to focus on our foundation," added Coach Trout. "Good position is something we constantly preach as well as doing the little things right. Every day our focus is on those things and making the right choice. We will be a different team at the end of the year compared to where we started this year. We are ready to put in the work."

The Warriors return to action next weekend, Saturday and Sunday, November 17-18 at the Missouri Valley Open, in Marshall, Missouri.