INDIANAPOLIS  Wester Colorado's Dean Noble on Sunday earned a second-place finish and Cole Hernandez a third place as the Mountaineers earned 75.5 points to end the 45th Midwest Classic in a tie for eighth place. 

Noble, ranked fifth nationally, began the day with a quarterfinal match in the 149-pound bracket against No. 7 Wyatt Turnquist of Norther State (S.D.). Noble had surrendered a reversal midway through the third period to tie the match at 9-9. 

With just second to go Noble reversed Turnquist onto his back, with Noble earning the pin at the 6:59 mark of the match. 

His semifinal match pitted Noble against Colorado School of Mines' Cody Thompson, the top-ranked wrestler in the nation. Noble advanced to the final with a first-period injury by Thompson. 

That set up a championship bout with fourth-ranked Jalen Spuhler of eventual team champion Wisconsin-Parkside. Spuhler scored the only takedown of the match, late in the second, to win the bout, 4-1. 

In the 174 bracket, Hernandez – ranked third in Division II – squared off with Clinton Morrisette of King (Tenn.) University. Hernandez dominated the first period, earning a pair of takedowns and a 2-point nearfall for an 8-1 lead over 13th-ranked Morrisette. 

Morrisette would try to rally in the second, but Hernandez piled on points in the third to win by a major decision, 18-6. 

His semifinal match with McKendree's Matt Ortiz went into the third period with No. 5 Ortiz leading 4-0. Hernandez split a pair of escapes around an Ortiz takedown, but could only add one more point in a 7-3 defeat. 

That pushed Hernandez into the consolation side of the bracket where his opening match resulted in a 7-2 win to advance into the third/fourth-place match – against Joshua Kenny, ranked No. 1 in the weight class, of Grand Valley State. 

Neither Hernandez nor Kenny scored in the first, but Hernandez began to take control in the second, registering a pair of takedowns allowing him to enter the final period with a 6-3 lead. 

It was all Hernandez in the third, starting with a takedown and 4-point nearfall. Kenny would earn an escape, but Hernandez was back on top with another takedown. Kenny escaped for one more point, only to surrender a third takedown by Hernandez. 

The extra riding time point earned Hernandez a 20-5 technical fall and a third place finish. 

MAT NOTES 

Following the holiday break, the Mountaineers will host the Western Colorado Open on January 10 followed by the 34th Annual Tray Borah Duals on January 11.