#9 Mines vs. #13 Adams State, Friday, 6 p.m. [RMAC Network] [Live Results]
 

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THE MEET
In what is shaping up to be a tremendous dual between the top two teams in the RMAC, #9 Colorado School of Mines and #13 Adams State clash Friday night at Volk Gym with a share of the RMAC title on the line for Mines. The dual is a fascinating one on paper as Adams State sports three ranked grapplers at 133, 141, and 149, while Mines back-ends its lineup with four ranked individuals at the upper weights of 165, 174, 184, and 285. The Orediggers are 7-2 overall and 5-0 in the RMAC; Adams State is 4-2 overall and 3-1 in the RMAC (their league loss coming to Western Colorado), and they face Chadron State Thursday night before heading to Golden.

THE HUNT FOR RMAC GOLD
A win Friday night would assure Mines of at least a share of the RMAC championship (its second straight). The Orediggers are 5-0 in the RMAC with two duals left; Adams State, Colorado Mesa, and Western Colorado sit at 3-1 as each have three left. Mines can win the crown outright if it beats Adams State and then CSU-Pueblo on Feb. 14.

LAST TIME OUT
Mines survived its toughest conference test of the season thus far, beating Western Colorado 19-13 last Saturday to take over sole possession of first place in the RMAC. Starting at 165, Mines took a commanding 16-0 lead on five straight victories by Skyler Lykins, Robert Gambrell, Anderson Salisbury, Nolan Funk, and Weston Hunt. WCU roared back to win at 125, 133, and 141 to make it 16-10, but Noah Ottum's 7-5 sudden-victory win at 149 sealed the result for Mines.
 
IN THE POLLS
In the last NWCA poll on Jan. 22, Mines cracked the top 10 for the first time in program history with the #9 team tournament ranking. Mines individuals made big jumps in the rankings as well as Robert Gambrell moved up one spot to #2 at 174 pounds, while Weston Hunt went up three places to #4 at 285 pounds and Skyler Lykins had a six-spot leap to #6 at 165. Earning his first career ranking was Anderson Salisbury, who debuted at #12 at 184 pounds. Adams State is tied for #13 in the team poll with three ranked individuals: #5 Jonathan Andretta (133), #4 Noah Hermosillo (141), and #9 Josiah Rider (149).

LAST YEAR VS. ADAMS STATE
Mines made a big comeback to win 21-18 on the road at Adams State last season. Trailing 18-9 after six bouts, Mines won the last four weight classes including Weston Hunt's winner-take-all 7-3 decision over James Romero at heavyweight to secure the dual. Among matches projected to repeat this year, Isaiah DeLaCerda beat Matt Lavengood by fall at 125, Skyler Lykins pinned Ryan Rochford at 157 (both are now 165-pounders), and Robert Gambrell beat Isaac Lopez 8-7.

LEADING THE WAY
This season, Mines has some familiar faces and some new ones leading the way. Anderson Salisbury leads the team in wins at 18-6 with Skyler Lykins second at 16-3. Lykins boasts the team's best dual record (8-1) and has the most wins versus D-II opponents (14-3). He and Jake Woods lead the team with 30 dual points, while Salisbury leads the team in tech falls (4) and co-leads in major decisions with Nolan Funk and Lykins at 4. Woods and Funk co-lead the team with five falls each. Carter Noehre owns the season's fastest fall at 0:23.

COMING UP
Mines will wrap up the regular season on Feb. 14 at home against CSU-Pueblo in Volk Gym, then host the Rocky Mountain Collegiate Open on Feb. 16 at Steinhauer Fieldhouse.

#9 MINES vs. #13 ADAMS STATE
125 - Matt Lavengood (6-1) vs. Isaiah DeLaCerda (10-5)
133 - Jake Woods (11-6) vs. #5 Jonathan Andreatta (14-0)
141 - Wes Rayburn (14-5) vs. #4 Noah Hermosillo (18-4)
149 - Noah Ottum (10-7) vs. #9 Josiah Rider (14-6)
157 - Ryan Fidel (12-7) vs. Natrelle Demison (4-4)
165 - #6 Skyler Lykins (16-3) vs. Ryan Rochford (8-8)
174 - #2 Robert Gambrell (12-1) vs. Isaac Lopez (4-4)
184 - #12 Anderson Salisbury (18-6) vs. Will Tyler (6-7)
197 - Nolan Funk (13-8)  vs. Cole Gustavson (5-5)
285 - #4 Weston Hunt (11-2) vs. Sylvester Montgomery (0-12)