Rivalry Time: Lights meet Argos tonight

Wrestling season is underway for the Montana State University-Northern Lights. But even with still winter on the way, and a long season ahead, things heat up for the Lights tonight.

That’s because Northern’s longtime rival, the University of Great Falls Argos are in town for the first of two duals in the annual rivalry clash between the Lights and Argos. The action gets underway at 7 inside the Armory Gymnasium.

And, while fourth-ranked Northern should be a heavy favorite in some eyes tonight, as UGF comes in as an un-ranked, young team with a lot of new faces, Northern head coach Tyson Thivierge expects nothing less than the usual battle.

“We just better start wrestling more physical or its gonna be a very long night for us,” Thivierge said ahead of tonight’s showdown.

On the other side of the coin, longtime UGF head coach Caleb Schaeffer, a former NAIA national champion at Northern, sees the Lights as a strong team, and one that will be contenders come spring, when the NAIA national tournament rolls around.

"Tyson (Thivierge) has been doing a great job the last three years making his team a national power,” Schaeffer said.

In reality, both the Lights and Argos have spent plenty of time being national powerhouse programs. But no matter who has the edge in the rankings, everything pretty much goes out the window when the two bitter rivals take to the mat, and tonight will likely be no different.

“Northern is a tough place to wrestle with the type of program they have, tradition and fan support,” Schaeffer said. “We will have to be ready for a battle come Wednesday night.”

Tonight’s battle will include some great matches and great wrestlers on display. Northern’s lineup starts with Rob Pair at 125 pounds, and he’ll have a challenge against UGF junior Isaac Wilson. MSU-N will also send out true freshman Dylan Lockwood for his first UGF dual at 133 pounds, and Lockwood will have a big task ahead of him when he takes on Clinton Garvin, ranked No. 14 for the Argos.

Northern should have two big guns ready to go at 141 and 149 pounds, respectively. Matt Weber, ranked No. 1 at 141, is expected to make his season debut against Justin Whitman, while the Lights will send out 10th-ranked Drake Randall at 149. He’ll take on UGF freshman Casey Dobson. Veteran Tommy Cooper holds down the 157-pound spot for the Lights and will battle with Arram Price.

The premier match of the night could come at 165, where Andrew Bartel is ranked No. 6 for the Lights and Khaldoon Rashid is ranked No. 7. However, Bartel could also move up to take on UGF freshman Randy Keesler at 174, while Drew Randall will either go at 165 or hold his spot at 174 if Bartel stays at his weight to take on Rashid.

And as usual, the upper weight matches could tip the scale in the dual. Northern has Ben Stroh ranked No. 3 at 184 pounds, though star freshman Steeler French could get the nod there against 16th-ranked Sam Voigtlander, with Stroh bumping up to 197. If Stroh stays at 184, sophomore Dace Fisher will go for the Lights at 197 against talented UGF freshman John Hensley, who comes in ranked No. 11. Northern’s anchor will again be senior Taylor Kornoely, ranked third at heavyweight. He will face Matt Hopkins in the finale.

“It will be a tough dual, it always is,” Thivierge said. “The attitude of our entire line-up is what it will come down to.”

Tonight’s rivalry dual between the Lights and Argos starts at 7 inside the Armory Gymnasium. Northern is also home Friday night to face Eastern Oregon.