ATHENS, Ohio – Fourth-ranked Tate Orndorff locked in a late body lock and looked to secure a last-second fall in the final match of the night, but time expired just before the referee could slap the mat as Ohio managed to survive with an 18-17 non-conference victory over Utah Valley on Friday night at the Convocation Center.
 
With UVU trailing 18-10 with two matches to go, 19th-ranked senior Tanner Orndorff pulled out a come-from-behind 5-4 victory over Jake Walker at 197 pounds to give the Wolverines a chance trailing 18-13 entering the final match. Then with his younger brother Tate Orndorff holding to a late 4-1 advantage over No. 32 Jordan Earnest in the final period, the Wolverine sophomore locked in a body lock and took Earnest to the mat for two. With Earnest on his back and just seconds remaining, the referee got in a four-count, but time expired before Tate Orndorff could lock in the fall as Ohio managed to survive in the team score. 
 
The Orndorff brothers, as well as Will Edelblute (125 pounds), No. 11 Taylor LaMont (133) and No. 8 Kimball Bastian (174) all pulled out wins on the night for UVU as the Wolverines and Bobcats split the match at five bouts apiece. Bonus points then proved to be the difference, as a win by technical fall and another by major decision helped propel Ohio to the one-point win.
 
"We knew that we needed Tate to come out and try to get a fall in that final match. I'm proud of him for trying to do what he could for the team," head UVU coach Greg Williams said. "Tanner also did a nice job after falling behind early to give us a chance.
 
"Overall, our ranked wrestlers won again so that is definitely a plus. But some of our wrestlers were sitting too long in ties and we also need to do a better job on bottom." 
 
With the contest opening at 125 pounds on the night, redshirt freshman Edelblute got the Wolverines off to a strong start with a 6-0 decision over Trevor Giallombaro to give UVU a 3-0 lead. Edelblute (8-11) racked up a pair of takedowns, an escape and a riding time point to record his first victory over his last five matches. 
 
The 2018 NCAA qualifier LaMont then followed with a 10-1 major decision over Giovanni DiSabato at 133 pounds to extend UVU's early lead to 7-0. LaMont controlled the bout by recording four takedowns, an escape and a riding time point on his way to earning the bonus-point victory. The win marked LaMont's sixth straight, as he improves to 13-5 on the year. 
 
The Bobcats then responded with wins from No. 16 Shakur Laney (141 pounds), No. 24 Alec Hagan (149), No. 15 Zac Carson (157) and Joe Terry (165) to take an 15-7 lead in the team score. The 16th-ranked Laney led the way during the spurt for Ohio with a win by technical fall, while 2019 NCAA qualifier Carson won by major decision and the other two pulled out decision victories.
 
The two-time NCAA qualifier Bastian then responded for the Wolverines with an 8-2 decision over Logan Stanley to make it 15-10 on the scoreboard. Tied 2-2 in the second, Bastian took control with a pair of takedowns, an escape and a riding time point to pull out the bout by six points. The match marked Bastian sixth straight victory, as the UVU senior improves to 13-6 on the year.
 
Ohio then got its fifth win of the night from Hunter Yeargan with a 6-3 decision over Ashton Seely at 184 pounds to give the Bobcats an 18-10 lead with just two matches to go. 
 
Three-time NCAA qualifier Tanner Orndorff then bounced back for UVU with his hard fought 5-4 win over Walker to make it 18-13 and give the Wolverines a chance. With Tanner Orndorff trailing Walker 3-1 entering the final stanza, the 19th-ranked UVU senior picked up a reversal to tie the match. After an escape again gave Walker the lead, Tanner Orndorff secured a late winning takedown to improve to 12-8 on the season. 
 
With the dual on the line at heavyweight, the 2019 UVU NCAA qualifier Tate Orndorff built a 4-1 lead early in the third period. Then late in the final stanza, the Utah Valley sophomore 285-pounder made his move with the body lock and throw on the edge of the mat to pick up a takedown, a four-point nearfall and riding time to win by major decision, 11-1. Tate Orndorff improves to 16-2 on the season with the victory and he has now won eight consecutive matches.  
 
With the setback, the shorthanded Wolverines drop to 2-11 on the season, while Ohio improves to 7-8 with the win. 
 
The Wolverines will cap the trip and their 2019-20 regular season with a Big 12 Conference contest at West Virginia on Sunday. The dual will be part of WVU's Beauty and the Beast event with its gymnastics team and will begin at 11 a.m. MT/1 p.m. ET. It will be streamed on both WVUSports.com and FloWrestling.
 
FINAL RESULTS
Ohio 18, Utah Valley 17
125: Will Edelblute (UVU) DEC Trevor Giallombaro (Ohio), 6-0
133: #11 Taylor LaMont (UVU) MD Giovanni DiSabato (Ohio), 10-1
141: #16 Shakur Laney (Ohio) TF Kainalu Estrella (UVU), 16-1 (4:54)
149: #24 Alec Hagan (Ohio) DEC Cameron Hunsaker (UVU), 8-2
157: #15 Zac Carson (Ohio) MD Jed Loveless (UVU), 13-5
165: Joe Terry (Ohio) DEC Koy Wilkinson (UVU), 7-4
174: #8 Kimball Bastian (UVU) DEC Logan Stanley (Ohio), 8-2
184: Hunter Yeargan (Ohio) DEC Ashton Seely (UVU), 6-3
197: #19 Tanner Orndorff (UVU) DEC Jake Walker (Ohio), 5-4
285: #4 Tate Orndorff (UVU) MD #32 Jordan Earnest (Ohio), 11-1
 
Athens, Ohio - Convocation Center
 
*Individual rankings listed are the highest ranking taken from the latest InterMat, FloWrestling, TrackWrestling, The Open Mat, WIN Magazine, and NCAA Coaches' Panel ranking.