Bulldog Wrestlers Cap Off Senior Night with Big Wins

Photo credit to Kayla Korb
By Darien Semedo

The Concordia wrestling team on Thursday defeated Colby Community College 49-4 and York University 44-6, as the Bulldogs celebrated Jose Sanchez, Brandon Gonzalez and Tavoris Smith on Senior Night.

The Bulldogs tied the record for duels won in a single season and moved to 14-2 this season for Coach Chase Clasen’s first year at Concordia.

Sanchez added eight points in two matches to finish his career at Friedrich Arena. Concordia has meant a lot to him, because after his last school closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, CUNE became his home during a time of hardship.

“Concordia really means everything to me. For a long time in my life it meant having a place to be,” Sanchez said. “Between that, my mother had a heart attack and was in government housing, and I couldn’t live with her. Concordia turned into a family culture and it’s meant everything to me.”

Sanchez’s favorite time as a Bulldog was last year’s Great Plains Athletic Conference tournament, where he fought back from a torn meniscus and placed fifth.

“With my meniscus still torn, my first tournament back was the GPAC tournament, and I ended up taking fifth that year,” he said. “That showed me that my hard work is what is going to decide if I’m going to win, because I’ve never given up.”

Smith and Tommy Wentz split the night for the 157 class, with Smith closing his competition at Friedrich arena with a first-minute pin.

Smith described his time as a Bulldog as a blessing and pointed out how supportive and interactive campus Pastor Ryan Matthias is for the team.

“Honestly, it’s been a blessing all together being at Concordia. My favorite moment as a Bulldog is any time I interact with Pastor Matthias,” Smith explained. “He’s one of those guys that you can come to about anything, and he has a wealth of knowledge about wrestling, so it’s always good to talk with him.”

Bryce Karlin represented the 125-pound class, and scored a quick six points for the Bulldogs with a pin in the first minute of his match against Colby Community. Creighton Baughman, 141, and Jeaven Schdoris, 149, dominated their matches, finishing with 11 points for the match as each had a tech fall and pin for the Bulldogs. Schdoris tallied 10 takedowns, including seven in his match against York.

Issiah Burks only had one match on the night against Colby Community College but was in full control, winning on a tech fall over three minutes of advantage time in the match.

Heavyweight Cy Renny finished both duels in style, including two dominating pins in the first period.

Clasen has the Bulldogs poised for the GPAC Tournament and is excited about the way that his team has performed.

“I think our guys are really starting to get the dominant mindset in their heads, and I think that is a good mindset to have,” said Clasen. “We are third in the GPAC, but we want to win the tournament. That is going to take a lot of guys to dominate and score as many points as possible, and if the guys keep the mindset they had tonight, good things are going to happen.”