On Friday, Feb. 5, the 16th-ranked UNI Panthers wrestling team traveled to the Convocation Center in DeKalb, Illinois for a dual wrestling meet against the Northern Illinois University Huskies. The Panthers put together a very strong meet, coming out on top, 27-9.

UNI got off to a fast start, winning their first two matches of the night by pinfall. At 125 lbs, Brody Teske stayed undefeated with a dominant victory over NIU’s Lucian Brink. Teske, a redshirt sophomore, picked up five takedowns as well as a four-point near fall before finally getting the pinfall victory 2:33 into the third period. At 133 lbs, Kyle Biscoglia started slow, falling behind 4-2 at the end of the first period. However, he followed that up with a couple takedowns and a four-point near fall of his own, eventually picking up a pinfall 1:57 into the third period. This gave the Panthers a 12-0 lead just two matches in.

UNI kept up the momentum, with Drew Bennett and Triston Lara picking up decision victories at 141 lbs and 149 lbs respectively. Bennett won his match 6-2, while Lara won his match 7-4. The Panthers led 18-0 before the Huskies went on a hot stretch of their own. The Huskies were victorious in the matches at 157, 165, and 174, winning all three by decision. This stretch of victories drew the Huskies closer, with the Panthers leading 18-9.

The Panthers got back on track after this in their match at 184 lbs. Parker Keckeisen, fresh off his upset victory last weekend over Oklahoma State’s 9th-ranked and previously unbeaten Dakota Geer, pulled off another upset win, this time defeating NIU’s reigning MAC champion Brit Wilson. It was a close match, with Wilson leading 5-4 after the second period. Keckeisen managed to put together a strong third period, earning an escape and a takedown while also receiving an additional point for ride time, winning the match by decision, 8-4.

At 197 lbs, Keegan Moore had a good first period, recording two takedowns, before putting together a dominant third period, scoring seven points in the period and winning the match by major decision, 11-3. In the final match of the dual, Carter Isley remained undefeated in the 285 lb heavyweight category, getting a victory by decision over Max Ihry, 4-1. All told, the Panthers won seven of the 10 matches in the dual, and won in the team score, 27-9.

In exhibition matches after the dual concluded, three Panthers picked up victories. Derek Holschlag won by decision, 10-6, Jack Skudlarczyk got a victory by tech fall, winning 20-2, and Ethan Basile picked up a major decision victory, winning 8-0.

With the victory, the Panthers move to 4-2 on the year. UNI will conclude their regular season on Saturday, Feb. 14 when they travel to Ames for duals against Arizona State, Northern Colorado, and Iowa State.