OREM, Utah — Utah Valley celebrated four senior victories on Senior Night, but North Dakota State secured a 19-15 dual win in Big 12 wrestling Friday at Lockhart Arena in front of 1,482 fans.
No. 30 Bridger Ricks, No. 15 Haiden Drury, No. 8 David Evans and No. 27 Jack Forbes earned wins for the Wolverines. Ricks highlighted the night with a 4-2 upset of No. 19 Ezekiel Witt at 125 pounds. The Bison won six of 10 matches, including five straight to clinch the dual before the final bout.

"I'm happy for the four guys that won matches tonight. Dave and Haiden looked great, were aggressive, and got rewarded with bonus-point victories. Bridger found a way to win against another top 20 opponent and Jack was very workmanlike tonight in his win," head coach Adam Hall said. "However, I will not get over the fact that we let several close matches slip away. We will be correcting our mistakes immediately and preparing these guys better for a road trip to Colorado next week. I appreciate the crowds that have shown up to support us and look forward to seeing them one last time this season against Nebraska in the UCCU Center."

Tied 1-1 with Witt in the third period, Ricks scored a takedown on the edge of the mat with less than a minute remaining. The call was challenged and upheld. Ricks absorbed a stalling call but held off Witt to open the dual with a decision.

North Dakota State tied the score at 133 when Tristan Daugherty defeated Geronimo Rivera in sudden victory. Utah Valley regained momentum with bonus-point wins from Drury and Evans.
Drury posted an 11-2 major decision over Michael Olson at 141, recording a takedown in each period for his 78th career win in a Utah Valley singlet. He improved to 18-5 overall, including 9-1 in duals and 5-0 in Big 12 action.

Evans controlled his 149-pound bout against Devon Harrison, with 16th-ranked Max Peterson not in the lineup for the Bison. Evans built a 6-1 lead with two first-period takedowns, extended it to 9-1 after two periods and added two near falls in the third. With riding time, he secured an 18-3 technical fall. Evans moved to 12-4 on the season, 6-1 in duals and 4-1 in conference matches.

From there, North Dakota State won five consecutive matches. Gavin Drexler edged Mark Takara 11-8 at 157, and Boeden Greenley followed with a 15-3 major decision over Zyon Trujillo at 165.
At 174, Max Magayna defeated Hudson Rogers 4-2 behind a first-period takedown. No. 28 Aidan Brenot then slipped past No. 31 Caleb Uhlenhopp by the same score at 184, scoring the decisive takedown midway through the third period. At 197, No. 33 Devin Wasley recorded the only takedown of the match in a 5-3 decision over No. 28 Kael Bennie to clinch the dual for the Bison.

Forbes closed the night with a 7-2 win over Shilo Jones at heavyweight, scoring takedowns in each of the first two periods. He improved to 17-9 overall, including 8-2 in duals and 4-1 in Big 12 competition.

The Wolverines will travel to Colorado next week where they'll face Air Force (Feb. 13) and Northern Colorado (Feb. 15) in the final Big 12 duals of the season. UVU will wrap up the regular season with a non-conference home dual against No. 5 Nebraska on Saturday, Feb. 21 in the UCCU Center.

Final Results
125 | #30 Bridger Ricks (UVU over #19 Ezekiel Witt (NDSU), dec. 4-2 | UVU 3-0
133 | Tristan Daugherty (NDSU) over Geronimo Rivera (UVU), dec. 4-1 (SV-1) | Tied 3-3
141 | #15 Haiden Drury (UVU) over Michael Olson (NDSU), major dec. 11-2 | UVU 7-3
149 | #8 David Evans (UVU) over Devon Harrison (NDSU), tech fall 18-3 (7:00) | UVU 12-3
157 | Gavin Drexler (NDSU) over #32 Mark Takara (UVU), dec. 11-8 | UVU 12-6
165 | Boeden Greenley (NDSU) over Zyon Trujillo (UVU), major dec. 15-3 | UVU 12-10
174 | Max Magayna (NDSU) over Hudson Rogers (UVU), dec. 4-2 | NDSU 13-12
184 | #28 Aidan Brenot (NDSU) over #31 Caleb Uhlenhopp (UVU), dec. 4-2 | NDSU 16-12
197 | #33 Devin Wasley (NDSU) over #28 Kael Bennie (UVU), dec. 5-3 | NDSU 19-12
285 | #27 Jack Forbes (UVU) over Shilo Jones (NDSU), dec. 7-2 | NDSU 19-15

Officials: Donald Wiener, Kevin Looper
Attendance: 1,482