University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Advance Four to Finals at Husky Open
12/13/2015 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
A group of 11 unattached Minnesota wrestlers competed in the Holiday Inn / Husky Open at St. Cloud State on Saturday. One-third of the Gopher contingent reached the championship bout at their weights, led by Steve Polakowski and Brad Dolezal, who won titles at 125 and 157 pounds, respectively.
The tournament was the second of the season for Polakowski, who finished fourth at 133 pounds at the Daktronics Open six weeks ago. On Saturday, he opened the tournament with a pin and a tech fall before earning a hard-fought 1-0 decision in the title match.
Saturday's tournament was also the first action for Dolezal since the Dak. He began the day with a 9-0 major decision before three consecutive decisions, including a 16-10 shootout in the semifinals. Dolezal's 4-0 performance earned him his first tournament title since the 2013-14 season, when he won the 157 title at the Dubuque Open.
Two other Gophers finished as runners-up on Saturday, with Ben Brancale finishing second at 141 pounds and Dylan Urbach taking second at 165. It was the first time in his young collegiate career that Brancale has advanced to the championship bout of a tournament. It was Urbach's second finals appearance. His first came in last year's North Country Open.
Five additional Gophers placed at the Husky Open: Gresh Jones at 141, Tim Christianson at 174, Dalton Lunde at 184 and both Luke Destiche and Rylee Streifel at 285.
Full match-by-match results are below.
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Match Results
125
Steve Polakowski (3-0, 1st Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Bye
Quarters: Steve Polakowski fall (2:22) Cornelious Elliott (St. Cloud State)
Semis: Steve Polakowski tech fall Brandon Briggs (St. Cloud State), 20-3
Finals: Steve Polakowski dec Brett Velasquez (St. Cloud State), 1-0
133
Gresh Jones (2-2, 4th Place)
Quarters: Gresh Jones fall (5:38) Tyler Pasvogel (St. Cloud State)
Semis: Quinten Berres (St. Cloud State) fall (1:24) Gresh Jones
Cons Semis: Gresh Jones fall (0:36) Curt Palodichuk (Rochester Community College)
3rd Place: David Flynn (North Dakota State) dec Gresh Jones, 2-0
141
Ben Brancale (3-1, 2nd Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Ben Brancale dec Daniel Polanco (St. Cloud State), 3-1
Quarters: Ben Brancale fall (2:27) Joe Mosley (St. Cloud State)
Semis: Ben Brancale dec Travis Swanson (St. Cloud State), 7-4
Finals: Tanner Trembley (St. Cloud State) dec Ben Brancale, 6-3
157
Brad Dolezal (4-0, 1st Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Brad Dolezal maj dec Boone Young (Augsburg), 9-0
Quarters: Brad Dolezal dec Coltan Laganiere (Rochester Community College), 2-1
Semis: Brad Dolezal dec Larry Bomstad (St. Cloud State), 16-10
Finals: Brad Dolezal dec Travis Holt (St. Cloud State), 9-7
165
Dylan Urbach (2-1, 2nd Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Bye
Quarters: Dylan Urbach dec Josh Berg (St. Cloud State), 6-2
Semis: Dylan Urbach dec Eric Hensel (Augsburg), 17-11
Finals: Clint Poster (St. Cloud State) dec Dylan Urbach, 9-2
174
Tim Christianson (3-2, 4th Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Tim Christianson dec Austin Rake (St. Cloud State), 13-11
Quarters: Tim Christianson dec Aaron Bates (St. Cloud State), 10-5
Semis: Clayton Jennissen (St. Cloud State) dec Tim Christianson, 7-6
Cons Semis: Tim Christianson dec Austin Rake (St. Cloud State), 10-4
3rd Place: Charley Popp (North Dakota State) dec Tim Christianson, 8-6
Tijani Karaborni (0-2)
Champ Rnd 1: Brady Nelson (St. Cloud State) fall (1:55) Tijani Karaborni
Cons Rnd 1: Todd Fairbanks (Rochester Community College) dec Tijani Karaborni, 7-2
184
Dalton Lunde (3-1, 3rd Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Bye
Quarters: Dalton Lunde fall (5:00) Rob Tait (St. John's)
Semis: Garret Miller (St. Cloud State) dec Dalton Lunde, 7-4
Cons Semis: Dalton Lunde dec Niko Anderson (Augsburg), 8-3
3rd Place: Dalton Lunde dec Sebastian Larson (Augsburg), 6-4
285
Luke Destiche (5-1, 3rd Place)
Champd Rnd 1: Luke Destiche dec Chase Nottestad (Rochester Community College), 6-1
Quarters: Donald Longendyke (Augsburg) fall (1:50) Luke Destiche
Round of 12: Luke Destiche fall (1:07) L Hernandez
Cons Quarters: Luke Destiche dec Cody Linssen (St. Cloud State), 4-0
Cons Semis: Luke Destich med. for. Nate Rose
3rd Place: Luke Destich RULE Rylee Streifel
Rylee Streifel (2-2, 4th Place)
Champ Rnd 1: Bye
Quarters: Rylee Streifel dec Cody Linssen (St. Cloud State), 8-1
Semis: Donlad Longendyke (Augsburg) dec Rylee Streifel, 5-0
Cons Semis: Rylee Streifel dec Colin Fisher (St. John's), 6-0
3rd Place: Luke Destiche RULE Rylee Streifel
Nate Rose (2-1)
Champ Rnd 1: Nate Rose fall (0:18) Robert Caudillo (Augsburg)
Quarters: Nate Rose dec Colin Fisher (St. John's), 6-0
Semis: Austin Goergen (St. Cloud State) maj dec Nate Rose, 14-3
Cons Semis: Luke Destiche med. for. Nate Rose
Players Mentioned
