DSU’s Steele wins North Group tourney

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SIOUX CITY, Iowa — Brad Steele came away from the NAIA North Group wrestling tournament Saturday as Dickinson State’s lone individual champion.

The junior, who continues to close in on the season pin record, won at 149 pounds.

“Brad had a good day and he loves to compete,” DSU head coach Thadd O’Donnell said. “He was never worried about what the score was he continued to wrestle in all positions.”

As a team, DSU came in ranked fifth in the North Group, but finished third with 105.5 points. Midland (Neb.) won with 156.2 and Morningside (Iowa) was runner-up at 147.3.

“As a team, I thought we did really well,” O’Donnell said.

Other top finishers for DSU were Jose Lopez (285) in second place, Bryden Lazaro (125) and Jesse Hellinger (184) in third and Adam Orton (141) in fourth.

For many wrestlers this was the last shot to qualify for the national tournament. However, several of the Blue Hawk wrestlers had qualified for the national tournament throughout the year.

DSU plans for the week leading up to the NAIA national tournament starting on March 1 include plenty of relaxation.

“It’s down to the end, so this was icing on the cake right here,” O’Donnell said. “We aren’t going to get in any better shape for next week and they aren’t going to learn anything new. It’s just a matter of relaxing and trust what they’ve done all year long. The biggest thing holding them back right now is their mind.”

NAIA North Group Qualifying Tournament

Team scores: 1, Midland (Neb.) 156.5. 2, Morningside (Iowa) 147. 3, Dickinson State 105.5. 4, Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) 100.5. 5, Concordia (Neb.) 96. 6, Northwestern (Iowa) 64. 7, Jamestown College 41. 8, Briar Cliff (Iowa) 35. 9, Hastings (Neb.) 33.

Individual Results (Top 4 placers)

125: 1, Kory Kistner, Morningside. 2, Aspen Kmiec, Midland. 3, Bryden Lazaro, DSU. 4, Clayden McKim, Midland.

133: 1, Adam Joseph, Concordia. 2, Richard Rios, Dakota Wesleyan. 3, Matt Katusin, Midland. 4, Luis Flores, Briar Cliff.

141: 1, Garet Lambrecht, Morningside. 2, Jake Williams, Concordia. 3, Josiah Simburger, Northwestern. 4, Adam Orton, DSU.

149: 1, Brad Steele, DSU. 2, Zach Fishman, Northwestern. 3, Cody Green, Midland. 4, Connor Blanco, Hastings.

157: 1, Trever DeVestern, Dakota Wesleyan. 2, Kyle Gerlach, Dakota Wesleyan. 3, Sterling Terry, Midland. 4, Jordan Langley, Morningside.

165: 1, Pat Nord, Jamestown. 2, Nick Hutcheson, Dakota Wesleyan. 3, Kyle Conley, Midland. 4, Marlon Branson, Jamestown.

174: 1, Joe Sievert, Morningside. 2, Alfredo Torres, Concordia. 3, Tyler Sarringar, Dakota Wesleyan. 4, Rowen Stander, Midland.

184: 1, Brian Block, Morningside (Iowa). 2, Kody Kersten, Midland. 3, Jesse Hellinger, DSU. 4, Seth Crane, Concordia.

197: 1, Jahsua Marsh, Midland. 2, Julian Silva, Concordia. 3, Nic Leither, Northwestern. 4, Jake Parker, Morningside.

285: 1, Levi Roberson, Midland. 2, Jose Lopez, DSU. 3, Dillon Heesch, Concordia. 4, John Sievert, Morningside.

Tags: dsu blue hawks, blue hawks, brad steele, sports, wrestling