Rinken and Parmely Claim Wins; Peacocks in 13th after Session One

Heading into Session One of the 2016 NCAA Division II, Upper Iowa knew that they would have their hands full as five of their six matches were against NCAA Super Region Champions, but Upper Iowa fought well in those matches and picked up a pair of wins by Jordan Rinken(157) and Ryan Parmely (197).  The Peacocks sit in 13th place at the end of the first session thanks to the wins and the bonus points earned by Parmely with a pin.

Parmely, a true freshman from Delhi, Iowa, trailed Paul Wilson of the Colorado School of Mines 6-0 after a takedown and four nearfall points for the NCAA Super Region 4 Champion.  Parmely slipped out of the control and got a reversal and caught Wilson for nearfall points and the eventual pin with just four seconds to go in the first period.  The loss for Wilson was just his third of the year.  Parmely will face Jake Cramer of Tiffin, who defeated Parmely 5-3 when the teams met at the NWCA National Duals, in the championship quarterfinals in Session Two later this evening.

Rinken wrestled tough against Scott Bosak, the NCAA Region 2 Champion, to earn a 6-4 decision and advance to the championship quarterfinals against Jonathon Rivera of Notre Dame College, who won his opening match 6-3.  Rinken, a senior from Waverly, scored a takedown to open the scoring, but Bosak quickly reversed the control to even the match at 2-2.  UIU’s redshirt senior rode Bosak for the whole second period and scored a four-point nearfall to build a 6-2 lead. Bosak earned one final takedown, but Rinken came away with the 6-4 victory.

Damian Penichet (149) lost his match 6-3 to Isaac Dulgarian of Notre Dame, the NCAA Super Region 1 Champion.  Dulgarian picked up a pair of takedowns and added an escape and ride time point to fuel his win, while Penichet scored his three points with an escape in each period.  The redshirt freshman will now face Michael Screptock of Tiffin University; Penichet won their first meeting of the year 2-0 at the NWCA National Duals.

Matt Paulus (133) scored an early takedown and four nearfall points with a cradle in his opening match against Nick Crume of Indianapolis, the NCAA Super Region 2 Champion.  Unfortunately, the six points were the only scores for Paulus in the bout.  Crume fought back to win 12-6 fueled by two separate nearfall scores and a takedown.  Paulus will now wrestle on the backside of the bracket against Martin Ramirez of Adams State College, who lost 3-2 in his opening round match.

Zak Benitz (165) dropped a 10-5 decision to Devin Aguirre of the University of Nebraska-Kearney, the NCAA Super Region 4 Champion.  Benitz scored the first points of the match with a takedown, but trailed 3-2 heading into the second period.  After falling behind 6-2, a penalty point pulled the redshirt junior within three going to the final frame.  Benitz got an escape and another penalty point due to his opponent stalling, but couldn’t close match out losing 10-5; he will face Nathaniel Ross of Gannon College in Session Two.

Maleek Williams (125) was first on the mat for Upper Iowa against Jacob Goodwin of Notre Dame.  The pair of lightweights didn’t score in the first period, but an early escape and a late takedown in the second period gave Goodwin a 3-0 lead heading into the final period.  Williams scored a quick escape, but surrendered a takedown and four nearfall points to go in the hole 9-1.  The redshirt freshman got a reversal and a final escape, but lost his match by major decision 14-4.  Williams will have to battle on the backside in Session Two against Dustin Reed of Newman University, who lost 5-4 in his opening round match.

Session Two is also called the All-American Round.  Wrestlers in the NCAA Championships that earn two wins earn a spot on the podium and the title All-American.  Wrestlers will either reach two wins or two losses by the end of the second session.  Action is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. at the Denny Sanford Premiere Center in Sioux Falls, S.D.

Special thanks to Upper Iowa Athletics