MARSHALL, Mo. – Four Bulldogs placed at the illustrious Missouri Valley Invite at the two day tournament on Saturday (Jan. 25). Over 50 teams showed at the Burns Athletic Complex as Head Coach Josh Watts’ squad claimed a sixth place finish with 100 total points. Creighton Baughman (second), Hunter Weimer (fifth), Hagen Heistand (sixth) and Torrance Keehn (seventh) all finished with placements in the major NAIA tournament.
The Missouri Valley Invite was the seventh tournament of the 2024-25 campaign for Watts’ crew. The team continues to get better with every tournament it enters.
“I’m really proud of how we performed,” said Coach Watts. “Overall, we wrestled well. I think we are trending in the right direction late in the season. We still have to keep getting better and keep working. He (Baughman) got better every match that he wrestled. In the semifinals, He beat the No. 6 kid in the country and Creighton is ranked No. 7. We had opportunities to win the match (championship) but couldn’t finish when we were there. A couple of tweaks and it is definitely a winnable match. Hunter lost in the first round and came back and placed. That is a hard thing to do. Torrance took seventh and he had some ranked wins.”
The Bulldogs would combine for 41 triumphs and compiled 12 by fall.
The Papillion, Neb., native, Baughman, knocked down No. 16 Randy Frailey (ranked at 133) and No. 6 Thomas Williams of St. Thomas University on his way to five straight wins and the invite championship. Matched up against the defending NAIA national champion Hartwell Taylor, the two battled it out as Taylor escaped with a 3-2 decision victory.
Weimer, a Monache High alum, fell in his first match to the eventual runner up and responded in dominant fashion by rattling off seven straight wins (eight total). The 184-pounder defeated No. 24 Malaki Owens of Wayland Baptist (Texas) and No. 20 Trevor Stuyvenberg of Indiana Tech. The Bulldog defeated Justin Bartee (University of Rio Grande) for 5th place by decision (7-3).
Heistand, took four straight matches including a victory over No. 16 Jalen Vladic of University of Providence (Mont.). In the semifinal match, Heistand bowed out via forfeit and his other two bouts, taking sixth. Keehn, won three straight including a victory over No. 8 Austin Vanek (Fall 1:07). The Beatrice, Neb., native won five total, three by tech fall, and defeated Jake Henson (Fall 2:41) for his seventh place finish.
Mason Garcia tallied five wins and four were by fall but fell just shy of the placed matches. Transfer Cole Price defeated his first three opponents including a ranked win over No. 18 Ryan Bennett of Southeastern University (Fla.). The following Concordia competitors earned two wins at the Missouri Valley Invite: Grant Wells, Bryce Karlin, Cal Price and Barret Brandt.
Grand View finished at the top with 248 points and GPAC rival Doane grabbed third.
Next up Concordia University, Nebraska Wrestling will travel to the Northeastern Oklahoma A&M Golden Norsemen Open on Saturday (Feb. 1). The following weekend, the Bulldogs will jump back into GPAC Day of Duals No. 2, set to be in Mitchell, S.D.