The UNI wrestlers opened up their home dual season playing host to North Dakota State last Saturday night in the West Gym. The Panthers were coming off of a strong 27-11 victory on the mats on Jan. 14 against Air Force and looked to keep the momentum rolling. NDSU won their last matchup against Wyoming, 22-14. A strong start from UNI early on proved to be too much for the Bison as the Panther men took the bout in convincing fashion, 29-13.

The Panthers came out of the gates strong, opening up an 18-0 lead after the first four matches in the contest. Brody Teske of UNI, who came into the match ranked No. 11, earned his third fall of the season in the 125 lb weight class with a pin on NDSU’s Lucas Rodriguez. UNI’s Colin Realbuto won his sixth straight match with a 15-5 major decision in the 149 lb weight class over Gaven Sax. Kyle Biscoglia of the Panthers kept his hot streak going with a 8-0 major decision over Kellyn March. This matchup was an upset for UNI, as Biscoglia came in ranked No. 29 while March was ranked at No. 22.

In the 165 lb weight class, UNI’s Austin Yant took home an 8-6 decision over defending Big 12 and No. 13-ranked Luke Weber of North Dakota State. Yant had opened up a 6-2 lead in the match when Weber responded back, closing the score at 7-6 with a pair of takedowns, but Yant held off his foe and earned his fourth straight win. 

Lance Runyon had a strong showing for the Panthers in his season debut. He had not wrestled since March of 2021 after he had to withdraw from the Big 12 championships due to injury. On Saturday, he defeated NDSU’s Austin Brenner, who came in ranked at No. 20. 

The Panthers will head down to Stillwater, Okla. on Jan. 29 for another Big 12 bout against Oklahoma State at 7 p.m. They will return to the West Gym on Friday, Feb. 4 when they host Air Force.