Jan. 21, 2023 – It wasn't all easy, but the seventh-ranked Loras College wrestling team made it look that way for parts of the American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) Duals on Saturday as the Duhawks swept all four of their conference matches at the Lillis Athletic and Wellness Center.

The Duhawks improve their conference record to 6-0 after the duals and are now 15-3 in dual action overall in 2022-23. Loras' sweep featured a pair of lopsided wins over Nebraska Wesleyan University and Simpson College to start the day and finished with victories over No. 19 Coe College and No. 9 Luther College.

Loras took down Nebraska Wesleyan 49-3 and followed that up with a 43-3 win over Simpson as the team cruised through the first two rounds. Only two Loras victories during that stretch came by decision as the team racked up points left and right with eight falls and four tech falls.

Only senior Shane Liegel at 184-lbs was active in both of Loras' first two duals. The No. 2 wrestler in his weight class breezed to a pair of wins by fall, each in 1:09 or less, to lead the team through the opening rounds.

Junior Reis Ginter, junior Daniel Meeker, senior Matt Connolly, and junior Charlie Langeberg each tallied falls against the Prairie Wolves before graduate student Mason McMillen and seniors Zeke Smith and Colin Murphy did so against the Storm.

In the second act, Loras took down a pair of ranked opponents to cement themselves as the top team in Dubuque on Saturday. Against Coe, the Duhawks got ahead early as McMillen (decision), freshman Eric Kinkaid (tech fall), and junior Jalen Schropp (decision) helped the Duhawks build a 10-4 lead after four bouts.

Smith, the third-ranked wrestler at 157-lbs, blew the match open with a first-round pin before a major decision for senior Gabe Fiser at 165-lbs pushed the lead to 20-4 past the halfway point.

A major decision for Liegel was the only Loras win over the final four bouts, but it was enough for the Duhawks to claim a 24-16 win over the ranked Kohawks.

In a top-10 showdown to finish the day, the Duhawks and Norse split the first four bouts with McMillen (major decision) and Kinkaid (tech fall) emerging victorious yet again to keep the Duhawks in contention.

A 12-7 decision for Smith moved the Duhawks into the lead at 12-11 and started a run of five straight wins for Loras. Fiser and Liegel each claimed a pair of decisions while senior Tad Griffith was the beneficiary of an injury default before senior Derek Venteicher dominated his 197-lb bout with a 16-0 tech fall to put the finishing touches on a 29-17 victory.

The Duhawks will have just two more duals remaining this season, both likely against ranked opponents in the University of Dubuque and Wartburg College. Before then, they'll host the Pat "Flash" Flanagan Open at 9 A.M. on Saturday, Jan. 28 inside the Graber Sports Center.