GUNNISON, Colo.  Western Colorado entertains Colorado School of Mines Saturday evening in a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference wrestling match, as the Mountaineer and Orediggers battle to remain unbeaten in league action.

WESTERN COLORADO HEADING INTO THE MATCH

• The Mountaineers improved to 5-2 overall and 2-0 in the conference following the Tracy Borah Duals the weekend prior, with Western claiming three wins at the Duals including an RMAC shutout of Simon Fraser University.
• Leading the way last Saturday was Cole Hernandez – ranked No. 4 at 174 pounds in the most recent NWCA rankings – who went undefeated across team wins against Minot State, Simon Fraser, and the University of Findlay (Ohio). Hernandez pinned each of his opponents in the first period, which led to the redshirt-senior earning the RMAC's wrestler of the week award.
• Outdone only by Hernandez were teammates Dean Noble and Ryan Wilson. Noble, too, recorded three pins over three matches at 149, and Wilson swept his three bouts with two decisions and one major. Two of Nobles pins were first-period finishes, including the fastest fall of the day – in just 20 seconds of his bout in the Minot State match.
• Prior to the holiday break, Western attended the Midwest Classic in Indianapolis, placing 18th as a team and earning an individual podium spot with Hernandez placing third tine 174 bracket.

COLORADO MINES HEADING INTO THE MATCH

• The Orediggers are 4-0 overall with a pair of RMAC wins over New Mexico Highlands and San Francisco State.
• Receiving voting points in the NWCA Division II – as are the Mountaineers as well – Mines has three wrestlers ranked in their individual NWCA rankings. Grayston DiBlasi is eighth at 141, Cody Thompson is 12th at 149, and Wyatt Reisz is 11th at 174.
• The Orediggers were 19th at the Midwest Classic, and on Jan. 5 picked up wins in San Francisco over the host Gators (26-15) as well as against Fort Hays State (33-8).
• The long history between the two schools shows Western owning the overall advantage with a 50-28 record, but Mines in 2018 broke an 18-match losing streak to the Mountaineers and have now won four consecutive matches.

UP NEXT
The Mountaineers will travel to Kearney, Nebraska, for the Jan. 20 Midwest Duals.