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COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – No. 6 (Division III) Saint John's won a pair of individual upsets but No. 2 (Division II) St. Cloud State earned a 24-12 dual win in front of nearly 1,000 spectators on Friday, Jan. 14, in Collegeville.

SCSU's Zach Stewart started the dual with a 20-5 technical fall of junior Scott Padrnos (Brainerd, Minn.) to give the Huskies a 5-0 lead. The result could have been a lot different, however, as Padrnos nearly pinned Stewart in the first period. Down 2-0, Padrnos scored a reversal, then put Stewart on his back for nearly 15 seconds but could not get the pin called. Stewart then scored a reversal following the three-point near fall and went on to score 16 consecutive points.

Junior Chad Henle (Spicer, Minn./New London-Spicer) cut the deficit to 5-3 with a 5-2 decision at 133 pounds. Gabe Suarez, ranked seventh at 141 in Division II, extended SCSU's lead to 9-3 with a 16-7 major decision over senior Chris Sandy (Spirit Lake, Iowa).

Senior Minga Batsukh (Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia/St. Benedict's Prep, N.J.) brought it to within three points again with an 11-8 win at 149 lbs. Batsukh is currently ranked fourth in Division III.

The Huskies grew their lead to 12-6 with a pair of wins from ranked wrestlers at 157 and 165. No. 6 John Sundgren posted a 7-2 win over senior Drew Larson (Willmar, Minn.) and No. 2 Tad Merritt earned a 12-3 major decision win over sophomore Chris Stevermer (Savage, Minn./Prior Lake). Normally a wrestler at 157 pounds, Stevermer filled in for senior Matt Baarson (Brooklyn Park, Minn./Champlin Park), the third-ranked wrestler in Division III, due to injury.

The Johnnies bounced back with a pair of wins of their own at 174 and 184; the dual's two matches in which both wrestlers were nationally-ranked. Junior Matt Pfarr (Le Sueur, Minn./Le Sueur-Henderson), the fourth-ranked wrestler in Division III, upset No. 6 (Division II) Shamus O'Grady by a 6-5 margin. Fellow junior Dustin Baxter (Fairbanks, Alaska/West Valley), the seventh-ranked wrestler in Division III, followed with a convincing 7-2 upset of No. 5 (Division II) Mic Berg to cut the Huskies' lead to 16-12.

Luke Munkelwitz sealed the dual victory for SCSU with a 10-3 decision over senior Tony Willaert (North Mankato, Minn./Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial) at 197 pounds. Division II's top-ranked wrestler at heavyweight, Jake Kahnke, ended the dual with a 23-8 technical fall of junior John Linn (Foley, Minn.).

The Johnnies return to action next Thursday, Jan. 20, at St. Olaf. The dual is scheduled for 7 p.m. in Northfield.

No. 2 St. Cloud State University (Division II, SCSU) 24, No. 6 Saint John's University (Division III, SJU) 12
125 – Zach Stewart (SCSU) tech. fall Scott Padrnos (SJU), 20-5 [0-5]
133 – Junior Chad Henle (SJU) dec. Eric Ellington (SCSU), 5-2 [3-5]
141 – Gabe Suarez (No. 7, SCSU) major dec. senior Chris Sandy (SJU), 16-7 [3-9]
149 – Senior Minga Batsukh (No. 4, SJU) dec. Jacob D. Horn (SCSU), 11-8 [6-9]
157 – John Sundgren (No. 6, SCSU) dec. senior Drew Larson (SJU), 7-2 [6-12]
165 – Tad Merritt (No. 2, SCSU) major dec. sophomore Chris Stevermer (SJU), 12-3 [6-16]
174 – Junior Matt Pfarr (No. 4, SJU) dec. Shamus O'Grady (No. 6, SCSU), 6-5 [9-16]
184 – Junior Dustin Baxter (No. 7, SJU) dec. Mic Berg (No. 5, SCSU), 7-2 [12-16]
197 – Luke Munkelwitz (SCSU) dec. senior Tony Willaert (No. 10, SJU), 10-3 [12-19]
Hwt – Jake Kahnke (No. 1, SCSU) tech. fall junior John Linn (SJU), 23-8 [12-24]