CRETE, Neb. – Stevie Barnes, Cole Price, Torrance Keehn and Gabe Kant each earned victories as Concordia University, Nebraska Wrestling went up against reigning GPAC champion Doane in Crete, Neb., on Friday (Nov. 21). The NAIA eighth-ranked Tigers countered with bonus points in each of their six victories and won the conference dual, 33-17. Only four of the 10 matches on Friday went the full seven minutes.
Head Coach Josh Watts’ squad stands at 1-1 in GPAC duals having also earned a 32-18 win over Hastings on Nov. 13. Six more conference duals remain on the 2025-26 slate.
“I felt pretty good about those four matches,” Watts said. “There were another couple matches maybe we could have gotten if we had wrestled really well. At the end of the day, we’re making progress. We’re going in the right direction. Our first couple competitions were definitely a work in progress. There are things we need to work on. We have to wrestle better though situations. We need to learn to die a slow death sometimes. Meaning, if we’re losing a match, we’ve got to hang in there to give ourselves a chance in the later periods. We put ourselves in some bad situations and it cost us.”
Doane led the team scoring the entire way, but the Bulldogs managed to split the final eight matches of the night. Ranked 20th in the NAIA at 141, Barnes got Concordia on the board with a first-period pin of Shane Sherrill. Barnes earned a takedown and four near-fall points before finishing off his counterpart in 2:22. Doane then claimed back-to-back pins before Cole Price went to work at 165 pounds. The returning national qualifier used three takedowns as part of his 12-2 major decision over Cooper Spaulding.
The team outcome had been decided by the time the 17th-ranked Keehn stepped to the mat at 197 pounds, which featured the only ranked versus ranked matchup of the night. The Beatrice, Neb., native Keehn improved to 2-0 on the season as he took out No. 25 Chase Stieb by major decision, 16-4. Keehn notched four takedowns and collected two back points. To close the night, No. 19-ranked Kant held Colton McCutcheon without an offensive point in a 7-1 win. Kant owns a Bulldog best eight wins on the season.
A perennially mighty squad under Head Coach Dana Vote, Doane rolled out a lineup complete with seven nationally ranked competitors on Friday. The Tigers recorded pins at 149, 157 and 174, and emerged with technical falls at 125, 133 and 184. Benjamin Miller (157) and Tyson Beauperthy (184), both part of the season opening dual lineup for Doane, are returning GPAC champions. The Tigers went a perfect 8-0 in conference duals last season and went on to place fourth at the 2025 NAIA National Championships.
A select group of Bulldogs will be in action on Saturday at the Younes Hospitality Open hosted by the University of Nebraska Kearney. Wrestling is scheduled to get underway at 9 a.m. CT from the Kearney SportsPlex in Kearney, Neb. Live results can be followed via Track Wrestling.