SDSU BACK AT HOME AGAINST UTAH VALLEY, WYOMING

Friday, January 31

Brookings, S.D.

7 p.m.

South Dakota State University

Utah Valley

Tickets

Photo by: Evan Patzwald

1/30/2025 10:08:00 AM | Wrestling

#11 South Dakota State vs. Utah Valley, Wyoming

Date

Fri. Jan. 31 (Utah Valley), Feb. 1 (Wyoming)

Time (CT)

7 p.m.

Location

Brookings, S.D.

Site

First Bank & Trust Arena

TV / Stream

Midco Sports Plus

Live Stats

TrackWrestling (UVU), TrackWrestling (Wyoming)

South Dakota State

Game Notes | Home Page

Brookings, S.D. - The Jacks are back home for the first time since December 1st as they take on Utah Valley and Wyoming for the first Big 12 duals of 2025 in First Bank and Trust Arena. The Jacks are coming off a bye week, but before that, they went 2-0 against Cal Baptist and Air Force by a combined score of 76-6.

THE LINEUP: This is the probable lineup against Utah Valley, Wyoming:

125 - No. 15 Tanner Jordan

133 - No. 25 Derrick Cardinal

141 - No. 21 Julian Tagg -or- Caleb Gross

149 - Colin Dupill -or- Avery Allen

157 - No. 18 Cobe Siebrecht -or- Moses Espinoza-Owens

165 - No. 11 Drake Rhodes -or- Marcus Espinoza-Owens

174 - No. 9 Cade DeVos

184 - No. 6 Bennett Berge -or- Brock Fettig

197 - Thomas Dineen

285 - No. 24 Luke Rasmussen

*Flo Rankings used

LAST TIME OUT: Cal Baptist, Air Force Recap

The Jacks scored two wins by fall in the first period on Thursday night as they handled Cal Baptist, 38-3.

In the Jacks' first Big 12 dual of 2025, Tanner Jordan and Cade DeVos came out strong. DeVos gave up an early takedown to David Alonso before scoring a reversal and turning Alonso on his back to score a pinfall win. Jordan broke Kainoa Medina down from a front headlock position, rolling him onto his back for the pin at 1:30.

The dual started at 157 pounds, where No. 20 Cobe Siebrecht stepped up against Cal Baptist's Darren Green for the Jacks for the first time since the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Siebrecht looked strong throughout the match, defending several shots from Green and scoring two takedowns to win, 8-2. This put the Jacks up 3-0 to start the dual.

Marcus Espinoza-Owens took on Daniel Manibog at 165 pounds. Espinoza-Owens scored takedowns at will throughout the match and finished the match by scoring a major decision over Manibog.

Bennett Berge competed in the only ranked matchup of the day, taking on No. 33 Nathan Haas. Berge controlled the match from the first minute, scoring two takedowns in the first and continuing that pace throughout the match, taking a major decision, 14-4.

Thomas Dineen once again stepped up for the Jacks at 197 pounds against Eli Sheeren. He stifled Sheeren's offense and was able to score several takedowns throughout the match, scoring a major decision 15-2.

No. 28 Luke Rasmussen had a back-and-forth match with Tristan Kemp. Rasmussen scored a takedown early before giving up a reversal. Rasmussen took control in the second, scoring four points on a near fall. He wouldn't look back, finishing the match with a 10-5 decision.

At 133 pounds, Derrick Cardinal took on NCAA qualifier Hunter Leake. Cardinal scored an early takedown, controlling the match from start to finish, taking home an 8-2 decision over Leake.

At 141 pounds, No. 24 Julian Tagg made short work of Brady Hoshino scoring an early takedown and getting two more near falls to score a technical fall in the first period.

The Jackrabbit's lone loss came at 149 pounds, where Avery Allen took on Paul Kelly. After each wrestler scored an escape, Kelly scored a late takedown on a scramble, taking the match 4-1.

The Jacks then took care of business Saturday night against the Air Force Falcons, putting together an impressive dual victory, 38-3. SDSU put together four technical falls in a row ranging from 157 to 184 pounds.

No. 15 Tanner Jordan started the match off right for the Jacks. After a scoreless first, Jordan scored a reversal in the second before taking control of the match in the third, with a takedown and a near-fall to secure a major decision for the Jackrabbits.

Derrick Cardinal followed suit against Gavin Caprella. Cardinal scored an early takedown and denied Caprella any chance to put up offense in the match, stacking up ride time and taking home a 4-0 decision.

Julian Tagg scored a takedown in the first at 141 pounds against Carter Nogle which was enough to take a decision victory, 4-0. It was the last match of the night where the Jacks would not score bonus points.

Colin Dupill got the start at 149 pounds and made the most of his opportunity. He scored an early takedown in the first and grabbed a reversal in the second but found his footing in the third, piling on the takedowns and scoring a 15-3 major decision.

No. 20 Cobe Siebrecht stepped up against Joshua Palacio at 157 pounds. Siebrecht came out strong right from the start, putting up a 10-1 lead after the first period. Palacio was never able to recover and Siebrecht was able to put away a 19-3 technical fall victory, the first of the night for the Jacks.

Marcus Espinoza-Owens gave up an early takedown to EJ Beloncik but recovered nicely by scoring three takedowns in the first period. Espinoza-Owens scored takedown after takedown, pushing the pace of the match and dominating a 24-8 tech fall.

No. 11 Cade DeVos followed Espinoza-Owens up by scoring a tech fall of his own. After scoring three takedowns in the first, DeVos gave up a takedown to start the second. DeVos recovered and piled on the points, putting together a 26-8 tech fall victory.

No. 6 Bennett Berge took on Gage Musser at 184 pounds. Berge only allowed Musser to score on escapes as he racked up several takedowns on his way to a 19-4 tech fall.

No. 28 Luke Rasmussen finished the night for the Jacks, putting away Antonio Ramos with a 9-0 major victory.

WRESTLERS TO WATCH: Cobe Siebrecht, Drake Rhodes

Both Cobe Siebrecht and Drake Rhodes will have interesting matchups as we look toward the duals with Utah Valley and Wyoming.

Drake Rhodes faces a tough challenge at 165 pounds as he takes on No. 4 Terrell Barraclough. Barraclough, a transfer from Penn State, is 17-1 on the year, with his only loss in an opening-round upset at CKLV. Rhodes's last competition was a 3-0 day at the Rider Quad duals. He'll be one to watch this week.

Likewise, Cobe Siebrecht has an interesting matchup against Wyoming at 157 pounds in No. 15 Jared Hill. After returning to the starting spot at 157 pounds, Siebrecht scored a decision win, and a tech fall win against Cal Baptist and Air Force in his return to action. He is 1-0 against Hill in his college career and will look to improve his record on Saturday.

Jackrabbit Summary

The South Dakota State Jackrabbit Wrestling program is looking to capitalize on a successful 2023-24 season as they return to action in 2024-25 under head coach Damion Hahn.

The return of three All-Americans highlights the squad: Tanner Jordan (125), Cade DeVos (174), and Bennett Berge (184). They return alongside NCAA qualifiers Derrick Cardinal (133), Alek Martin (149), and Cael Swensen (157).

SDSU returns to the mat in 2024-25 after finishing third in the Big 12 Championships and 13th at the NCAA Championships in 2023-24. The Big 12 Championships were highlighted by the crowning of Cade DeVos (174) and Tanner Sloan (197) as champions in their respective weight classes.

The Jacks are coming off a season in 2023-24 where they had a program-record four All-Americans and a program-record-tying eight NCAA Qualifiers. The Jacks went 13-4 in dual meets and 7-2 in conference duals. This is highlighted by a 7-1 home record for South Dakota St. with wins over Air Force and Wyoming.

SDSU is full of new faces, as the program brought in 12 newcomers in the offseason. Six of the newcomers are freshmen. This includes Burk Blasius, Kenton Cooke, Shane McConville, Logan Swensen, Tyson Peach, and Quin Morgan. Sophomore Jacob Fistler wrestled with the JWC last year but has now been added to the 2024-25 squad.

In September, the Jackrabbits announced the addition of four transfers from the University of Iowa. Those include Zach Glazier, Cobe Siebrecht, Cade Siebrecht and Drake Rhodes.

Glazier was the runner-up at 197 pounds at the Big 10 Championships for Iowa in 2023-24. He put together a 37-9 record over 4 years with Iowa, including a 9-4 record against ranked opponents in 2023-24.

Cobe Siebrecht sat out of competition in 2023-24, but in 2022-23, Siebrecht was an NCAA Qualifier at 157 pounds and finished seventh at the Big 10 Championships. He put together a 21-11 record over three years of competition at Iowa.

The Jacks are led by head coach Damion Hahn, who is in his seventh year at the helm of SDSU. Hahn holds a record of 58-34 overall and a Big 12 dual record of 28-21. The 2023-24 season was his best mark by far as the leader of the Jackrabbit wrestling program, as the team went 13-4 in duals. SDSU received their highest preseason ranking from InterMat under Hahn as they are ranked No. 9 to start the season, and are No. 10 and No. 12 in the FloWrestling and NWCA Coaches polls, respectively. He is joined by Cam Simaz, Cody Caldwell, and Clay Carlson as his assistant coaches.

Key Storylines

The New: South Dakota State added four transfers in September from the University of Iowa: Zach Glazier, Cobe and Cade Siebrecht and Drake Rhodes. The transfers come in alongside six freshmen.
The Old: SDSU returns seven of its 10 starters from last year, including All-Americans Tanner Jordan, Cade DeVos and Bennett Berge. The team also returns NCAA Qualifiers Derrick Cardinal, Alek Martin and Cael Swensen.
Program Records: The Jacks brought home a program record four All-Americans in 2023-24 with Tanner Jordan, Cade DeVos, Bennett Berge and Tanner Sloan. The Jacks tied their program record of eight NCAA Qualifiers by sending Cardinal, Martin, Swensen and Clay Carlson.
Experience Matters: The projected starting lineup for the Jackrabbits this year includes five athletes in their sixth year of collegiate eligibility. Amongst those five athletes, they total eight NCAA Qualifications, 1 Big 12 Title and two All-American honors.
In the Rankings: SDSU is ranked No. 11 in the NWCA Coaches Poll this week. They are up one spot from last week when they were ranked No. 12. The Jacks are ranked at No. 3 in the NWCA Coaches Mid-Major Poll. Both Wyoming and Utah Valley are receiving votes in the coaches poll.
Home Mat Advantage: The Jackrabbits put up a home record in 2023-24 of 7-1. Their only loss came to fellow ranked program Missouri, only losing the dual 19-21. SDSU scored over 30 points in six of their eight home duals.
In the Classroom: The SDSU wrestling program had the fourth-highest team GPA in the country amongst wrestling programs last year, according to NWCA. The Jackrabbits compiled a 3.5416 team grade-point average to receive the team recognition for the fourth season and were the highest-ranking Big 12 Conference school.
New Staff, Familiar Faces: Two-Time All-American Clay Carlson was added to the wrestling coaching staff in the offseason as an assistant coach. Carlson wrestled at SDSU for six years and was a four-time NCAA qualifier, two-time All-American and two-time Big 12 Wrestling scholar athlete of the year. Brady Berge was also promoted from volunteer assistant coach to the head coach of the JWC regional training center.
Individual Rankings: The Jacks have a wrestler ranked in nine of 10 weight classes as we hit week 13 of the college wrestling season. Drake Rhodes, Luke Rasmussen, Julian Tagg and Derrick Cardinal have been the biggest movers, going from unranked in the pre-season to ranked in FloWrestling's polls as of week 13.
Series vs. Utah Valley, Wyoming: The Jacks are 10-8 all-time against Utah Valley; in their last meeting, they scored a dominant 33-3 win over the Wolverines. The Jacks ride a nine-match winning streak against the Wolverines coming into this weekend's dual. The Jacks are 7-11 against Wyoming in the all-time series. But the Jacks have recently taken control of the series with three straight wins, with the most recent meeting ending in a 33-3 Jackrabbit win.
Offseason work: Cael Swensen finished second at the U23 National Duals in Geneva, Ohio, over the summer in the 74-kilogram division. Fellow Jackrabbits Marcus Espinoza Owens, Thomas Dineen, Derrick Cardinal and Brock Fettig competed at the event, with Dineen placing fourth in his division