Busy Lights look to keep rolling on the mat

The Montana State University-Northern Lights are in the stretch run of the 2021-22 wrestling season, and this weekend will be another key one for the Lights.

Northern, ranked No. 8 in the NAIA, is coming off a stellar showing at last weekend's Missouri Valley Invitational, where the Lights finished fourth out of more than 30 teams. MSU-N also sent four grapplers to the podium on its way to the outstanding finish.

Now, the Lights will get right back to tournament action when they head to Dickinson, North Dakota, for Saturday's Tyler Plummer Classic, a tournament the Lights have dominated in the past. The trip to Dickinson will also be Northern's last tournament of the regular season.

To finish the year, the Lights have Cascade Conference duals at Arizona Christian Feb. 4 and Embry-Riddle the following night. Then, MSU-N will come back to Montana for its highly-anticipated rematch with the University of Providence. That dual will take place in Billings Feb. 10, on the eve of the All-Class State Tournament.

The three duals are the final buildup to the postseason, which starts with the Lights hosting the Cascade Collegiate Championships Feb. 18-19 in the Armory Gymnasium.

Heading into this weekend's tournament, Northern is led by senior Isaac Bartel, who is ranked No. 1 at 197 pounds, and is undefeated once again against NAIA competition. Carl Hansen sits at No. 8 for the Lights at 184 pounds, while NaKoda Siegel has risen to No. 6 at 174 and Chase Short is No. 6 at 164, giving longtime head coach Tyson Thivierge a very powerful lineup in the upper weights.

Of course, former Havre Blue Pony Martin Wilkie, who is ranked No. 12 at 141 pounds and former NAIA national champion Nick Kunz, ranked 15th at 133 pounds, anchor an equally tough lower weight portion of Northern's lineup.

The Lights begin the final push of their regular season with this weekend's Tyler Plummer Classic in Dickinson, North Dakota.