Air Force Academy

Feb. 20, 2007

USAFA, Colo. - Led by a pair of falls at 141 and 157 pounds, the Air Force wrestling team picked up a 25-20 victory over Western Wrestling Conference foe Northern Colorado Tuesday evening in Clune Arena. The Falcons wrap up their dual slate with a 6-10 overall record and 3-1 mark in the WWC, while the Bears fall to 5-10, 2-3 in the conference.

Northern Colorado jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the match after picking up wins at 125 and 133 pounds. Air Force junior Jake Kriegbaum (Abilene, Kan.) put the Falcons on the board with a win at 141 pounds, getting out to a 10-0 lead before pinning the Bears' Kyle Kaiser in a time of 6:22.

Senior captain Bridger Lord (Missoula, Mont.), wrestling in his final home match as a Falcon, gave Air Force its first lead of the night after registering a 7-2 decision over Richard Lohr at 149 pounds. Fellow captain Zach Lord (Sr., Missoula, Mont.) extended the Falcons' advantage to 15-7 with a pin of his own, getting the fall over Luke Salazar in a time of 5:26.

The Bears came back in the next two bouts, picking up a 5-1 decision at 165 pounds and a fall at 174 pounds to regain the advantage at 16-15. However, Air Force again went on top following the 184-pound bout, when junior Jacob Devlin (Livingston, N.J.) won by injury default with just 46 seconds remaining in the first period.

Sophomore Jordan Tribble (Midwest City, Okla.) helped guarantee the Falcons' victory with a win at 197 pounds, registering an 11-0 major decision over Calen Nicholl. However, the Bears were not finished, getting the 10-0 major decision in the heavyweight bout to make the final score 25-20.

With its dual season complete, the Falcons get the next week and a half to prepare for the NCAA West Regional, slated for March 3, in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Air Force 25, Northern Colorado 20
125  Tony Mustari (UNC) dec. Zach Valdez, 5-0
133  Blayze Bahe (UNC) maj. dec. Stephen Makuka, 15-1
141  Jake Kriegbaum (AF) fall Kyle Kaiser, 6:22
149  Bridger Lord (AF) dec. Richard Lohr, 7-2
157  Zach Lord (AF) fall Luke Salazar, 5:26
165  Devan Lewis (UNC) dec. Tony Dorward, 5-1
174  Chase Walker (UNC) fall Stephen Crozier, 6:06
184  Jacob Devlin (AF) win by inj. def. Shawn Vincent
197  Jordan Tribble (AF) maj. dec. Calen Nicholl, 11-0
HWT  Reece Hopkin (UNC) maj. dec. Anthony Stegeman, 10-0