SALEM, Ore. – For all but about five minutes of tonight's dual for the No. 13-ranked Corban University Men's Wrestling team, the Warriors trailed their NCAA DII Cal Poly Humboldt counterparts on the scoreboard, as the early weight classes struggled to get going yet the fear of their first dual loss of the season was erased in a matter of minutes thanks to the work of five student-athletes who won their weight classes and eventually, secured them their 26-23 dual victory over the Lumberjacks.

To view the complete results from today's dual, click HERE or see below for a weight class summary.

"A little bit of a slow start tonight but it was a fast finish," explained Warriors' head coach Nolan Harris. "It was definitely exciting for our fanbase for it to end as it did. After 165lbs, we knew we needed to win out with bonus points in multiple matches. Our guys knew the goal and rose to the occasion. Tyson got it started by putting up a lot of points en route to a tech fall and really got the enthusiasm back on our side. Hunter showed great composure with a big fall after giving up an initial takedown. It set up the great finish by Toni and sealing the dual win with the quick fall. Again, we knew we needed bonus points for the team to win, as if Toni were to win by decision, we would've ended up tied and Cal Poly Humboldt had the criteria necessary to win the tiebreak. Ultimately, Toni's fall sealed the victory. I'm proud of the team effort tonight and look forward to our guys getting through finals this next week and our upcoming match against a tough Southern Oregon squad on Saturday.

The Warriors (4-0) proved tonight that it's not necessarily always how you start a dual that determines the result, but often how you finish them that produce meaningful victories and help set the standard for the rest of the 2024-25 season. After dropping their first four weight classes to the Jacks (0-3) via a technical fall, back-to-back fortfeits, and a decision to trail 20-0 on the scoreboard, redshirt senior David Rubio was able to kick off the team scoring for Corban men's wrestling with a hard fought 6-4 decision over Cal Poly Humboldt's Gil Mossburg that sparked the remainder of the Warriors waiting to face their dual opponents.

The Lumberjacks earned those three points right back at 165lbs as Cole Zoller took a 9-3 decision over sophomore Jesse Rubio, resulting in must-win scenarios for the remainder of the weight classes for Corban. Senior Tyson Stover started that Warrior winning trend with a 21-6 tech fall at five minutes flat, while sophomore Isaiah Twait accepted a forfeit at the 174-weight class to pull the Navy and Gold to within nine points, trailing 23-14.

A quick takedown in the opening period by Humboldt's Abdurrahmann Garner over Corban graduate student Hunter James at 197lbs put Coach Harris and the remainder of Warrior Nation attendees on their heels early, yet James reversed the tides and eventually scored a crafty hold on Garner that flipped him on his backside and vulnerable to a pin, which James took advantage of and secured the six-point fall just seconds after falling behind on the match scoreboard.

Needing at least a major decision to lead the Warriors all the way back to a dual win over an NCAA DII program, redshirt junior Antonio Garcia took to the mats on Tim Hills Court for the first time in his collegiate career after sitting out all of 2023-24 due to an inner conference transfer rule and within seconds, had the entire gym on their feet as he toppled his Humboldt adversary, Carson Hatch, with a hasty two-arm takedown and had Hatch pinned in just 18 seconds from the official's whistle to begin the first period at 285lbs.

No. 13 Corban 26, Cal Poly Humboldt 23

125: Caleb Tatad (Cal Poly Humboldt) over Brayden Boyd (Corban) (TF 15-0 2:44)

133: Josh Neiwert (Cal Poly Humboldt) over Unknown (For.)

141: Nathan Aguilar (Cal Poly Humboldt) over Unknown (For.)

149: Jayson Victoria (Cal Poly Humboldt) over Bo Davis (Corban) (Dec 7-2)

157: David Rubio (Corban) over Gil Mossburg (Cal Poly Humboldt) (Dec 6-4)

165: Cole Zoller (Cal Poly Humboldt) over Jesse Rubio (Corban) (Dec 9-3)

174: Tyson Stover (Corban) over Diego Robles (Cal Poly Humboldt) (TF 21-6 5:00)

184: Isaiah Twait (Corban) over Unknown (For.)

197: Hunter James (Corban) over Abdurrahmann Garner (Cal Poly Humboldt) (Fall 2:04)

285: Antonio Garcia (Corban) over Carson Hatch (Cal Poly Humboldt) (Fall 0:18)

A clan of seven Warriors will stay local tomorrow for the Clackamas Open, hosted by Clackamas Community College, in Oregon City with multiple weight class champions crowned throughout the day.

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