Round Two: Lights battle Argos in Great Falls

When February rolls around, the wrestling community in Montana gets hyped up for the annual All-Class State Tournament in Billings. But, for years now, before fans get to Billings, there’s a score to be settled between the Treasure State’s only two college wrestling programs.

And that score will get settled tonight in Great Falls when the No. 3 Montana State University-Northern Lights visit the No. 5 University of Great Falls Argos in a showdown of NAIA powers. The dual is the second of the season, and the rematch from what was a thriller back in November in Havre.

In that dual, a short-handed Lights’ team fell behind the Argos 25-0, but, in front of a roaring Armory Gymnasium crowd, the Lights stormed back and nearly pulled off a comeback. But in the end, UGF prevailed in the heavyweight bout, which these duals seem to always come down to, and the Argos beat the Lights 28-21. The win was UGF’s first against Northern in the last six meetings between the two bitter rivals, and now the Argos will look to do something else they haven’t done in a while — beat the Lights on their home mats.

But Northern will certainly have something to say about that. And while the Lights are once again short-handed, as they’re still without second-ranked Jared Miller at 174 pounds and third-ranked Willie Miller at 184, Northern head coach Tyson Thivierge said his team is coming into tonight’s dual hungry, and excited to compete.

“On paper, we look like we are banged up and not 100 percent, but in reality, our guys are hungry, working hard and ready to perform,” Thivierge said. “They know how big this match is, and they want the opportunity to perform.”

“Even though Northern has a couple of injuries in their lineup this weekend, they are never out of a dual with the big points they can get from their upper weights,” added UGF head coach Caleb Schaeffer. “As long as we stay off our backs and don’t give up any big moves we should be in the driver seat in this dual but, knowing how these duals have been going the past three years, don’t count Northern out of this dual.”

The two rivals’ lineups are in stark contrast this season. UGF’s firepower comes at the beginning of its lineup, while the Lights’ big guns are in the upper weights. And that’s what makes this dual so exciting — fans can expect some huge momentum swings.

The match will start with MSU-N’s Riley Miller, ranked No. 14, taking on UGF’s Luke Schlosser, ranked No. 11 at 125 pounds. Schlosser beat Miller in a close 4-2 decision in Havre back in November. At 133 pounds, UGF will go with Clinton Garvin, and sit No. 3 Michael Ruiz, while the Lights will send out Justin Rodgers, who’s been coming on strong of late. At 141, UGF star Kyle Wilson will take on another young Light in Cesar Montes. Wilson is currently ranked No. 3, while No. 9 Ryan Martin will battle Northern’s Logan Foster at 149. And in a very critical match at 157 pounds, Northern’s Tommy Cooper will once again try and beat No. 6 Chad Cebulski. Cooper lost a tough 9-2 decision to Cebulski in November, and that match will be key for the Lights once again.

“UGF poses a lot of problems for us in the lighter weights, but each of our guys that has an opportunity to step on the mat Wednesday night is ready for this match,” Thivierge said.

While UGF has a bevy of top-ranked wrestlers in the lower weights, the Lights are loaded in the upper weights. Miller’s absence will be felt because Northern will forfeit at 184 pounds, but No. 1 Ethan Hinebauch, wrestling his last dual ever against the Argos, will once again lead the Lights in the second half of the dual. Hinebauch has been on a roll much of the season, and he’ll face off against Brock Picard tonight. At 174, the talented Cole McCarthur will see his first action in the rivalry, as he takes on No. 3 Shaun Lau, in what will be another huge match as far as the outcome of the dual is concerned. Then, at 197, No. 3 Garrett DeMers will battle Sam Voigtlaender of UGF, and in the heavyweight bout, No. 9 Toby Cheff takes on No. 15 Dylan Lemery. Cheff missed the first dual between the Lights and Argos, but since he has returned to action, he’s won two individual titles, and has lost just once, and he’ll make a big difference for Northern tonight.

And while tonight’s dual is a big rivalry dual, and will see a big crowd in Great Falls as both UGF and Northern fans always pack the gym for this one, the dual is big for both teams because next week is the Western Regional Qualifier in Havre so, especially for the Lights, this is their last chance to fine-tune things before the postseason.

“As always, this dual is going to be a dogfight,” Thivierge said. “The only thing to do now is wrestle.”

“This is a great event to kick off one of the busiest, most exciting week’s of wrestling with the state tournament going on this weekend,” Schaeffer added. “If you are a wrestling fan, this is the week you have been looking forward to all year.”

Tonight’s dual between Northern and UGF will start at 7 inside the McLaughlin Center in Great Falls. The Western Regional Qualifier is set for next Saturday in the Armory Gymnasium.