Bears Advance to NWCA Duals Semifinals

Friday, January 10

Cedar Falls, Iowa

9 a.m.

University of Northern Colorado

CSU Bakersfield

1/10/2025 4:56:00 PM | Wrestling

By: Michael High, Assistant Athletics Director for Strategic Communications

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – Northern Colorado advanced to the semifinals of the National Wrestling Coaches Association National Duals Championship, hosted by Northern Iowa at the UNI Dome Friday.

The Bears defeated Cal State Bakersfield 32-10 in the opening round and closed their day with a 22-12 triumph over Big 12 opponent Wyoming in the quarterfinals.

UNC, seeded fourth in the 14-team field meets top-seeded Northern Iowa at 10 a.m. MT Saturday in the semifinals. The winner faces either No. 2 South Dakota State or No. 3 Little Rock in the championship bout at 2 p.m., while the other two teams meet in the third-place match at noon.

Stevo Poulin, Dominick Serrano, Andrew Alirez, Vincent Zerban and Clayton Ulrey each went 2-0 on the day.

Against Cal State Bakersfield, UNC built a 32-0 advantage behind seven consecutive victories, with three technical fall victories, two major decisions and a forfeit.

The Bears jumped out to a fast start in the quarterfinals, winning five of the first six bouts over Wyoming and opening a 19-3 gap. Poulin won a tightly contested match at 125 pounds for the early advantage, while Serrano and Alirez tacked on bonus points with a major decision and a pinfall.

Zerban and Ulrey pushed the margin out to 16 on back-to-back decisions, with Zerban securing a sudden victory takedown. AJ Heeg rounded out the Bears scoring with a 7-4 triumph at 184 pounds.

QUARTERFINALS: UNC 22, Wyoming 12
125 | Stevo Poulin (UNC) over Garrett Ricks (Wyoming) Dec 8-6 | UNC, 3-0
133 | Dominick Serrano (UNC) over Stockton O`brien (Wyoming) Maj 11-1 | UNC, 7-0
141 | Andrew Alirez (UNC) over Cole Brooks (Wyoming) Fall 4:05 | UNC, 13-0
149 | Gabe Willochell (Wyoming) over Benji Alanis (UNC) Dec 8-3 | UNC, 13-3
157 | Vincent Zerban (UNC) over Jared Hill (Wyoming) SV-1 4-1 | UNC, 16-3
165 | Clayton Ulrey (UNC) over Cooper Voorhees (Wyoming) Dec 5-4 | UNC, 19-3
174 | Riley Davis (Wyoming) over Aydin Rix-McElhinney (UNC) Dec 7-3 | UNC, 19-6
184 | AJ Heeg (UNC) over Quayin Short (Wyoming) Dec 7-4 | UNC, 22-6
197 | Joseph Novak (Wyoming) over Andrew Donahue (UNC) Dec 6-0 | UNC, 22-9
285 | Sam Mitchell (Wyoming) over Jose Valdez (UNC) Dec 4-1 | UNC, 22-12

FIRST ROUND: UNC 32, CSU Bakersfield 10
125 | Stevo Poulin (UNC) over Richard Castro-Sandoval (CSU Bakersfield) Maj 9-0 | UNC, 4-0
133 | Dominick Serrano (UNC) over Santino Sanchez (CSU Bakersfield) TF 19-3 | UNC, 9-0
141 | Andrew Alirez (UNC) won by forfeit | UNC, 15-0
149 | Benji Alanis (UNC) over Steve Caday (CSU Bakersfield) Maj 11-1 | UNC, 18-0
157 | Vincent Zerban (UNC) over Jose Farias (CSU Bakersfield) TF 15-0 | UNC, 23-0
165 | Clayton Ulrey (UNC) over Guillermo Escobedo (CSU Bakersfield) Dec 7-5 | UNC, 27-0
174 | Aydin Rix-McElhinney (UNC) over Chris Neal (CSU Bakersfield) TF 19-4 | UNC, 32-0
184 | Gerrit Nijenhuis (CSU Bakersfield) over AJ Heeg (UNC) Dec 9-4 | UNC, 32-3
197 | AJ Ferrari (CSU Bakersfield) over Andrew Donahue (UNC) Maj 17-4 | UNC, 32-7
285 | Jake Andrews (CSU Bakersfield) over Jose Valdez (UNC) 2OT 2-2 | UNC, 32-10

For complete coverage of UNC Athletics, check out the official homepage at uncbears.com.

Next Home Match
The Bears return to Bank of Colorado Arena Friday Jan. 17 at 6 p.m., when they host North Dakota State. To purchase tickets, visit uncbears.com/tickets or call 970-351-4849. Tickets can also be purchased at the Campus Commons Ticket Office, Monday-Friday between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. TicketSmarter is the official resale marketplace of UNC athletics.

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