USU wrestling team wins opener
Rather than start the season off a little slow and maybe even rusty, the USU club wrestling team decided to bring their ‘A’ game in a dual meet against Weber State in Ogden. The Aggies prevailed with a score of 55-9 and won 13 out of the 15 individual matches.
“The work that everyone is putting in seemed to pay off,” Head Coach Guy Burdette said. I thought we did well tonight.”
USU was led in the meet with three pins from freshman wrestlers Mark Haslam, Tyler Thieson and Jeff Job.
Haslam, from the 149-pound weight category, competed in his first college match and pinned his opponent Brandon Brunson in the third round.
“It always feels good to get a pin, especially when you’re on the road,” he said.
In one of the most exciting matches of the night, freshman Ben Shurtz won in double overtime, 3-2. After trailing 2-0 going into round two of the match, Shurtz tied things up and then got the victory in the second overtime period by earning a point off an escape.
“We were scrambling and were never able to finish on each other,” Shurtz said.
The Aggies’ dominating performance could be contributed to the work ethic and desire that all of the team has.
“Everybody did a good job. Even in our losses I thought that we wrestled really well, and everybody wrestled hard and that, to me, is important,” Burdette said.
USU, which is entering its second season of play, has entered the National Collegiate Wrestling Association this year and will participate in a number of big tournaments.
“Being part of the league gives us regionals and nationals to compete at and gives us the opportunity to compete against more colleges around the nation,” Wrestling Club President Mike Haslam said.
USU looks to build on its performance Jan. 31, when Weber State comes up to Logan to take on the Aggies at 7 p.m. at the Fieldhouse.