PENDLETON, Ore. – The (RV) Corban University men's wrestling team launched the 2022 portion of its 2021-22 schedule on Wednesday evening, facing off with No. 20-ranked Eastern Oregon University in a highly-anticipated bout between Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) foes. The Warriors began their year on a high note, cruising to a comfortable 38-17 victory over the Mountaineers.

"I was really happy with the performance from the guys on the mat tonight," said head coach Keegan Davis. "They all wrestled hard and pushed their opponents to the very end."

After getting into an early 11-0 hole with a forfeit at 125 pounds and a defeat via technical fall at 133, the Warriors got right back into the battle with two-consecutive pins at 141 and 149 pounds.

Kane Nixon accounted for the squad's first triumph of the day, overcoming an early 6-0 deficit and pinning Monte Zufelt at the 6:43 mark to get the Warriors on the board. Impressing in his Navy and Gold debut, Michael Murphy then followed that up with a pin of his own, defeating Vincent Cramer (6:10) to give Corban a 12-11 edge.

That momentum continued in the 157-pound clash, as Yasyf Sorensen edged Malakai Moyer in a low-scoring decision (7-5) to give the squad three more points towards its team score.

Neither No. 11 David Rubio (165 pounds) or Matthew Bartlett (174) were tested, as the Mountaineers were forced to forfeit each of those weight classes. Tyson Stover then put the finishing touches on the triumph, winning by way of technical fall (19-4, 6:04).

The two squads traded forfeit wins in the final two matches of the night, and Macoy Christman went unchallenged at 197 pounds, and No. 2 Noel Orozco earned a forfeit victory for the Mountaineers in the heavyweight class.

It's a strong start to 2022 for the Navy and Gold, which will look to build off tonight's result as it prepares for the season's stretch run.

Corban (4-2) will be back in action this weekend, heading to Forest Grove, Ore. for the Boxer Open—hosted by Pacific University—on Sunday.