University of Minnesota Athletics
Sunday, December 7
1:00 PM
University of Minnesota
vs
North Dakota State
Players Mentioned
157 lbs
/ Wrestling
133 lbs.
/ Wrestling
125 lbs.
/ Wrestling
285 lbs.
/ Wrestling
141 lbs.
/ Wrestling
184 lbs.
/ Wrestling
157 lbs.
/ Wrestling
125 lbs.
/ Wrestling
197 lbs.
/ Wrestling
197 lbs.
/ Wrestling
174 lbs.
/ Wrestling
149 lbs.
/ Wrestling
197 lbs.
/ Wrestling
165 lbs.
/ Wrestling
285 lbs.
/ Wrestling
285 lbs.
/ Wrestling
149 lbs.
/ Wrestling
125 lbs.
/ Wrestling
141 lbs.
/ Wrestling
133 lbs.
/ Wrestling
174 lbs.
/ Wrestling
Photo by: Jamie Bergeland
Gophers Close Out Non-Conferece Slate with Visit from NDSU
12/6/2025 11:30:00 AM | Wrestling
MINNEAPOLIS -- No. 7/12 Minnesota (5-2 overall, 0-0 Big Ten) closes out the 2025 calendar year and the non-conference portion of its schedule Sunday when it hosts North Dakota State (1-2 overall, 0-1 Big 12). Match time at Maturi Pavilion is set for 1 p.m. with streaming coverage on B1G+ and live results on TrackWrestling.com.
PROBABLE LINEUPS
| WEIGHT | MINNESOTA | NORTH DAKOTA STATE |
|---|---|---|
| 125 | #8 Jore Volk (12-2 Overall, 4-2 Dual) | #30 Ezekiel Witt (7-3, 2-1 Dual) |
| 133 | Chris Cannon (3-5, 2-3) or Brandon Morvari (1-5, 0-2) |
#28 Tristan Daugherty (4-3, 0-2) |
| 141 | #11 Vance VomBaur (10-3, 3-3) or Dawson Johnson (7-3, 1-0) |
#33 Michael Olson (4-2, 1-1) |
| 149 | Drew Roberts (4-2, 2-0) or Charles Vanier (6-1, 0-0) |
#29 Max Petersen (1-0, 1-0) |
| 157 | #21 Charlie Millard (11-3, 4-3) | #9 Gavin Drexler (0-1, 0-1) |
| 165 | #9 Andrew Sparks (11-2, 5-1) | Boeden Greenley (5-3, 1-0) |
| 174 | #25 Ethan Riddle (9-4, 3-3) | Max Magayna (4-5, 0-2) |
| 184 | #3 Max McEnelly (8-1, 6-1) | #14 Aidan Brenot (0-1, 0-1) |
| 197 | #19 Gavin Nelson (6-6, 1-5) or Gabe Nagel (4-3, 0-1) |
Devin Wasley (7-2, 2-1) |
| 285 | #13 Koy Hopke (10-3, 3-2) | Drew Blackburn-Forst (2-3, 0-1) |
IN THE RANKINGS
The Golden Gophers enter Thursday ranked seventh in InterMat's dual team rankings and 11th in the NWCA Coaches Poll. The team is also 12th in the InterMat tournament rankings.
Eight Gopher wrestlers are ranked in at least two of the major polls with six appearing in all three: InterMat, Flo and OpenMat. All-American Max McEnelly is the No. 3-ranked wrestler at 184 pounds in all three polls, while Jore Volk (125) appears in the top-8 of each publication, including being ranked seventh by Flo.
Redshirt senior Vance VomBaur (141) and sixth-year senior Andrew Sparks (165) are both 11th or better in all three polls with OpenMat giving VomBaur his highest ranking at No. 8, while Sparks peaks at No. 9 InterMat's rankings. Redshirt freshman Charlie Millard (157) is top-21 in all three, highlighted by a No. 17 ranking from OpenMat. In addition, redshirt freshman heavyweight Koy Hopke is 18th or better with Flo putting him at No. 13.
Redshirt sophomores Ethan Riddle (174) and Gavin Nelson (197) are ranked by both InterMat and Flo, but don't appear in OpenMat's ranking. Riddle is ranked 24th by Flo and 25th by InterMat, while Nelson is 19th by the former and 25th by the latter.
A complete list of rankings can be found on Page 7 of the notes.
NATIONAL STAT LEADERS
Eight Gopher wrestlers are ranked in at least two of the major polls with six appearing in all three: InterMat, Flo and OpenMat. All-American Max McEnelly is the No. 3-ranked wrestler at 184 pounds in all three polls, while Jore Volk (125) appears in the top-8 of each publication, including being ranked seventh by Flo.
Redshirt senior Vance VomBaur (141) and sixth-year senior Andrew Sparks (165) are both 11th or better in all three polls with OpenMat giving VomBaur his highest ranking at No. 8, while Sparks peaks at No. 9 InterMat's rankings. Redshirt freshman Charlie Millard (157) is top-21 in all three, highlighted by a No. 17 ranking from OpenMat. In addition, redshirt freshman heavyweight Koy Hopke is 18th or better with Flo putting him at No. 13.
Redshirt sophomores Ethan Riddle (174) and Gavin Nelson (197) are ranked by both InterMat and Flo, but don't appear in OpenMat's ranking. Riddle is ranked 24th by Flo and 25th by InterMat, while Nelson is 19th by the former and 25th by the latter.
A complete list of rankings can be found on Page 7 of the notes.
NATIONAL STAT LEADERS
Through Thursday's competition, Jore Volk (125) has 12 wins on the season. That leads the Big Ten and is tied for the most in the country. Charlie Millard (157) has 11 to tie for fifth.
Vance VomBaur (141) has five major decision victories to tie for the most in the NCAA along with four other wrestlers. Heavyweight Koy Hopke has four majors, tying for sixth nationally.
Max McEnelly (184) is tied with for second in the nation with six tech fall wins this season. Only Ohio State's Ben Davino has more with seven. In the same category, Millard has four tech fall wins to rank tied for 10th in the country.
Hopke and fellow heavyweight Bennett Tabor are tied for eighth nationally with three falls this year.
Vance VomBaur (141) has five major decision victories to tie for the most in the NCAA along with four other wrestlers. Heavyweight Koy Hopke has four majors, tying for sixth nationally.
Max McEnelly (184) is tied with for second in the nation with six tech fall wins this season. Only Ohio State's Ben Davino has more with seven. In the same category, Millard has four tech fall wins to rank tied for 10th in the country.
Hopke and fellow heavyweight Bennett Tabor are tied for eighth nationally with three falls this year.
FACING NORTH DAKOTA STATE
Minnesota is 22-2 all-time against North Dakota State, including 20 straight wins dating to 1976. The 20-match winning streak is the Gophers' longest active streak against a Division I program. Minnesota has not lost in the series since a 25-10 setback in 1970 in Minneapolis. The .917 all-time win percentage over the Bison is Minnesota's best against DI programs it has faced at least 15 times.
In Minneapolis, the Gophers are 5-2 all-time in the series. Minnesota has won four straight at home over NDSU dating to 1977.
The Bison have nine Minnesota natives on the roster: senior Alex Kowalchyk (Andover; Coon Rapids HS), junior Max Petersen (Byron; Byron HS), redshirt sophomore Adam Cherne (Medina; Wayzata HS), redshirt freshman Michael Olson (Albert Lea; Albert Lea HS) and true freshmen Javier Berg (Chatfield; Chatfield HS), Lawson Eller (New Prague; New Prague HS), Luke Hoag (Hutchinson; Hutchinson HS), Ben Schultz (Maple Grove; Maple Grove HS) and Zytavius Williams (Minneapolis; Eden Prairie HS).
Minnesota has no North Dakotans on its roster. Though sophomore Devin Wasley spent the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons at Minnesota, compiling a 16-11 record.
Gophers Clayton Whiting was teammates with NDSU's Peyton Moore for two seasons at Missouri.
Minnesota's Drew Roberts and the Bison's Porter Craig both attended Coeur d'Alene High School in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.
Gopher freshman Charles Vanier and Bison freshman Zytavius Williams were teammates at Eden Prairie High School.
North Dakota State enters the match with a 1-2 dual record on the season and 0-1 mark in the Big 12. The team's win came over DIII Concordia-Moorhead, 46-0, while the losses have been at Wisconsin, 36-3, and at Northern Iowa, 27-11.
In Minneapolis, the Gophers are 5-2 all-time in the series. Minnesota has won four straight at home over NDSU dating to 1977.
The Bison have nine Minnesota natives on the roster: senior Alex Kowalchyk (Andover; Coon Rapids HS), junior Max Petersen (Byron; Byron HS), redshirt sophomore Adam Cherne (Medina; Wayzata HS), redshirt freshman Michael Olson (Albert Lea; Albert Lea HS) and true freshmen Javier Berg (Chatfield; Chatfield HS), Lawson Eller (New Prague; New Prague HS), Luke Hoag (Hutchinson; Hutchinson HS), Ben Schultz (Maple Grove; Maple Grove HS) and Zytavius Williams (Minneapolis; Eden Prairie HS).
Minnesota has no North Dakotans on its roster. Though sophomore Devin Wasley spent the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons at Minnesota, compiling a 16-11 record.
Gophers Clayton Whiting was teammates with NDSU's Peyton Moore for two seasons at Missouri.
Minnesota's Drew Roberts and the Bison's Porter Craig both attended Coeur d'Alene High School in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.
Gopher freshman Charles Vanier and Bison freshman Zytavius Williams were teammates at Eden Prairie High School.
North Dakota State enters the match with a 1-2 dual record on the season and 0-1 mark in the Big 12. The team's win came over DIII Concordia-Moorhead, 46-0, while the losses have been at Wisconsin, 36-3, and at Northern Iowa, 27-11.
RANKED MATCHUPS
Based on probable lineups and the latest rankings from InterMat, four of the 10 weights Sunday could feature four ranked matchups (125, 141, 157, 184) with Minnesota having the higher ranked wrestler in all of the bouts except for 157.
In the other six matches, the Gophers have the ranked wrestler in four of them (165, 174, 197, 285), while the Bison have the ranked wrestler at 133 and 149.
At 125, No. 8 Jore Volk is slated to face No. 30 Ezekiel Witt for the first time in his career. They have three common opponents this year in Northern Iowa's Trever Anderson, Oklahoma's Sebastian Degennaro and Nebraska's Alan Koehler. Volk defeated all three by decisions, while Witt beat Anderson, 3-1, and lost to the others by decisions.
At 141, No. 11 Vance VomBaur could face No. 33 Michael Olson for the first time. They have two common opponents this year in Northern Iowa's Cory Land and South Dakota State's Julian Tagg. VomBaur lost both matchups by decision, while Olson was 0-2 with a major loss to Land and decision versus Tagg.
At 157, No. 21 Charlie Millard has not faced No. 9 Gavin Drexler before, and they have no common opponents in their careers. Millard is 0-2 against ranked foes this year.
At 184, No. 3 Max McEnelly is set to meet No. 14 Aidan Brenot for the third time in his career. They first met in 2023 at the Bison Open and last year in the dual in Fargo with McEnelly winning both by tech fall.
LAST TIME VS. NDSU
In the other six matches, the Gophers have the ranked wrestler in four of them (165, 174, 197, 285), while the Bison have the ranked wrestler at 133 and 149.
At 125, No. 8 Jore Volk is slated to face No. 30 Ezekiel Witt for the first time in his career. They have three common opponents this year in Northern Iowa's Trever Anderson, Oklahoma's Sebastian Degennaro and Nebraska's Alan Koehler. Volk defeated all three by decisions, while Witt beat Anderson, 3-1, and lost to the others by decisions.
At 141, No. 11 Vance VomBaur could face No. 33 Michael Olson for the first time. They have two common opponents this year in Northern Iowa's Cory Land and South Dakota State's Julian Tagg. VomBaur lost both matchups by decision, while Olson was 0-2 with a major loss to Land and decision versus Tagg.
At 157, No. 21 Charlie Millard has not faced No. 9 Gavin Drexler before, and they have no common opponents in their careers. Millard is 0-2 against ranked foes this year.
At 184, No. 3 Max McEnelly is set to meet No. 14 Aidan Brenot for the third time in his career. They first met in 2023 at the Bison Open and last year in the dual in Fargo with McEnelly winning both by tech fall.
LAST TIME VS. NDSU
Minnesota won all 10 matches, highlighted by the return of Gable Steveson, in a 39-0 shutout of North Dakota State on last season in front of a record-crowd of 1,529 at the Scheels Center in Fargo, N.D.
The dual itself was long decided but the exclamation point came in the final matchup of the evening as Steveson took to the mat 980 days after his last competition. If there was any rust it did not show as he needed only 1:50 to tech fall Drew Blackburn-Forst, 18-3.
The evening started at 125 pounds where No. 14 Cooper Flynn competed against Tristan Daugherty. Both wrestlers recorded escapes to find the match tied at 1-1 in the third, but Flynn scored a late takedown to take the win, 4-1. At 133 pounds, No. 8 Tyler Wells held off a late attack from Kyle Burwick in a 3-2 decision.
The matchup at 141 pounds was all Vance VomBaur in a 22-6 (6:30) tech fall win over Kellyn March.
The lone ranked matchup of the night came at 149 pounds as No. 22 Drew Roberts met No. 32 Gavin Drexler. Roberts set the tone with a takedown mere seconds into the match, though Drexler did reverse before Roberts answered with an escape and a buzzer-beating takedown to lead 7-2. Roberts got the lead up to 8-3 and emerged with an 8-6 decision.
No. 7 Tommy Askey scored a 14-7 decision over Gabriel Schumm at 157, while No. 25 Clayton Whiting earned an 8-3 victory at 174 pounds over former Gopher Devin Wasley.
At 184 pounds, No. 10 Max McEnelly topped Aiden Brenot 22-7 in 5:12. Isaiah Salazar made it two tech falls in a row for Minnesota as the seventh-ranked 197-pounder prevailed over Aiden Hight, 17-0 at the 4:42 mark.
The dual itself was long decided but the exclamation point came in the final matchup of the evening as Steveson took to the mat 980 days after his last competition. If there was any rust it did not show as he needed only 1:50 to tech fall Drew Blackburn-Forst, 18-3.
The evening started at 125 pounds where No. 14 Cooper Flynn competed against Tristan Daugherty. Both wrestlers recorded escapes to find the match tied at 1-1 in the third, but Flynn scored a late takedown to take the win, 4-1. At 133 pounds, No. 8 Tyler Wells held off a late attack from Kyle Burwick in a 3-2 decision.
The matchup at 141 pounds was all Vance VomBaur in a 22-6 (6:30) tech fall win over Kellyn March.
The lone ranked matchup of the night came at 149 pounds as No. 22 Drew Roberts met No. 32 Gavin Drexler. Roberts set the tone with a takedown mere seconds into the match, though Drexler did reverse before Roberts answered with an escape and a buzzer-beating takedown to lead 7-2. Roberts got the lead up to 8-3 and emerged with an 8-6 decision.
No. 7 Tommy Askey scored a 14-7 decision over Gabriel Schumm at 157, while No. 25 Clayton Whiting earned an 8-3 victory at 174 pounds over former Gopher Devin Wasley.
At 184 pounds, No. 10 Max McEnelly topped Aiden Brenot 22-7 in 5:12. Isaiah Salazar made it two tech falls in a row for Minnesota as the seventh-ranked 197-pounder prevailed over Aiden Hight, 17-0 at the 4:42 mark.
Coach's Corner with Brandon Eggum
Tuesday, December 23
Cinematic Recap: Gophers-Little Rock in Mequon
Thursday, December 18
Cinematic Recap: Gophers Beat NDSU
Friday, December 12
The Hot Seat with Andrew Sparks
Friday, December 12