Wrestling:
The Southwest Minnesota State University wrestling Mustangs saw several wins following the NCAA Central Super Regional meet held in Edmond, Okla. Feb. 28-March 1, leading to four wrestlers advancing to the NCAA Tournament.
Day one of the competition saw Justin Reinsma winning 3 of his four meets. Reinsma continued his winning streak the next day with two wins and one loss, taking 4th place overall at the meet with a record of 5-2.
Cole Wilson won 2 of three matches on day one and day two, respectively. Wilson ended the meet with a 4-2 record. Both Reinsma and Wilson lost in the Third Place round, giving them both a 4th place finish.
Jacob Begin also won 2 of three games on day one of competition, turning around on day two with three total wins, giving him a 3rd place finish overall with a final record of 5-1 for the competition.
Kyle Begin placed high with a 2nd place finish, taking the last placement for the SMSU team with a final record of 3-1 for the competition.
Teammates Antonio Miekel, Ethan Hildebrant, Beau Buysse, Codie Lane, Travis Peralta and Micah Larson competed in their final meet of the season.
Reinsma, Wilson, J. Begin and K. Begin all traveled to Cleveland, Ohio March 14-15 for the NCAA Championship meet. Both Reinsma and Wilson lost in the first round of the championship bracket, but went on to win against their respective opponents in the first round of the consolation bracket. Both K. Begin and J. Begin won by major decision in the first round of the championship bracket, but both lost in the quarterfinal round, sending them to the second round of the consolation bracket alongside Reinsma and Wilson. All four Mustangs were eliminated in this round.
Wheelchair Basketball:
The SMSU wheelchair basketball ended their postseason with a win and two losses in the NWBT Championships March 6-8 in Arlington, Texas. Competing against the University of Alabama on day one of competition in the first of 3 games, SMSU lost with a final score of 33-69.
The team went on to compete against Edinboro (Pa.) in the consolation round March 7, taking their first win of the weekend with a final score of 48-31. This win advanced the team to the fifth place game, where they would take on the University of Illinois.
Though with a win earlier on in the day, the Mustangs fell to the University of Illinois with a final score of 31-69, ending their season. The Mustangs had a final season record of 15-17.
Baseball:
The SMSU baseball team improved their season record from 1-3 to 9-7 after an impressive performance in the Tucson (Ariz.) Invitational March 7-15. The team took a win and a loss on the first day of the tournament, taking a 5-3 win over Malone (Ohio) and a 5-10 loss from California State, San Bernardino.
The team continued competition March 8 against Concordia (Neb.), taking another win with a final score of 7-6.
The team saw a sweep against Northern State March 9 and 10, taking all three wins against the opposing team. The team took a 14-9 win over Northern State March 9 and continued their winning streak in a double header the next day with final scores of 7-5 and 4-3, respectively.
After a one day break from competing, the Mustangs returned on March 12 to compete against Bemidji State in a double header, defeating the team in both games. Final scores were 4-2 and 5-0.
The Mustangs 6-game winning streak came to an end against Mayville State (N.D.) March 13 with a 12th inning score made by Mayville, giving them the win with a final score of 5-4.
The Mustangs took a split against Concordia-St. Paul March 14. The team took the first win with 9-4, but lost 4-5 in the second round.
The team ended the Tucson Invitational with a loss against Minot State with a final score of 7-15. The Mustangs will continue their regular season in two double headers against Minnesota State March 22 and 23, respectively. They will continue with another double header against St. Cloud State April 2.
Softball:
The SMSU softball team took some heavy losses in the Rebel Spring Games held in Winter Haven and Auburndale, Fla. March 9-14. The team competed in ten games, with two cancelled, taking home three overall wins.
Coming off two straight losses against Ohio Dominican and Wayne State (Mich.), the Mustangs took their first win against Ferris State (Mich.) March 10 with a final score of 5-0.
The team took another two losses against Glenville State (W. Va.) and Southern Indiana, but were able to take the win against Maryville (Mo.) March 11, 3-2.
Though taking another two losses, the team took one last win against Glenville State with a final score of 8-2. The Mustangs ended the tournament with a loss against Florida Southern March 14 with a final score of 1-4. The team holds a season record of 3-13. The Mustangs continue their season next week in a double header against Sioux Falls March 25.
Tennis:
The SMSU women’s tennis team headed to Mesa, Ariz. March 11-14 for a six-game competition. The team took heavy losses early on in the competition, losing to Arizona Christian University and Dallas Baptist with final scores of 0-9 and 1-8, respectively.
The team took their only win of the visit against Our Lady of the Lake University (Texas) with a final score of 3-0.
The tennis Mustangs ended the visit with a 3-game losing streak. The Mustangs will continue their regular season against the University of Mary March 22 in Bismarck, N.D.
Track and Field:
The men and women’s track and field teams continued their regular season at the NSIC Indoor Championships held in Bemidji, Minn. Feb. 28-March 1.
On the men’s side, O.J. Ojullu placed seventh overall for the men’s 600-meter run while Jay Schneider placed 5th in the 60-meter dash. Alejandro Sanchez placed second in the 800-meter run. SMSU took fifth in the men’s 4×400 meter relay and ninth in the men’s distance medley.
For the women’s team, Rylee Armstrong placed 12th in the women’s long jump and high jump and tenth in the women’s shot put.
Both teams will continue the regular season at the Dakota State Open March 29 in Madison, S.D.
Women’s Golf:
The SMSU women’s golf began the second half of their 2013-2014 season at the SMSU Spring Invite March 13-14. The team resumes playing after ending the first half of their season in October of 2013, where they took fifth place in the NSIC Fall Championship.
The Mustangs took a third place finish at the Spring Invite, held in Daytona Beach, Fla. Trisha Kienitz, Megan Will and Becky Koepp all placed 36th, 32nd, and 25th in the event, respectively. Both Rachel Patnoe and Marissa Campeau tied for 21st with scores of 180 while Abby Gruber tied for tenth place overall with a score of 172. Dana Wagner tied for first place alongside Minnesota State’s Kenya Sethasompobe with a final score of 161, 17-over-par.
The Mustangs performed in Mesa, Ariz. March 17-18, taking a (blank) place finish.
The team will continue their season at the Missouri Western State Spring Invite March 23-24.
