ALAMOSA, Colo.  Mountaineer wrestling travels to Adams State University for Thursday's Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference dual, looking to regain the upper hand after the Grizzlies' win last season ended an eight-year Western Colorado win streak.

WESTERN COLORADO HEADING INTO THE MATCH

• The Mountaineers are 10-4 overall and 5-1 in RMAC action, most recently coming out of a dominating 36-10 victory one week prior at New Mexico Highlands.
• Western's lone conference defeat came on Jan. 27 in a tight 22-16 loss to No. 15 Chadron State, during which the Mountaineers battled back from a 16-0 deficit to tie the match with the final two weights remaining.
• Cole Hernandez, voted the RMAC's wrestler of the week over three consecutive weeks earlier this season, is ranked third in the 174-pound weight class according to the National Wrestling Coaches Association's Jan. 22 rankings. Hernandez is 24-2 this season and is riding a 14-match win streak that includes 2 major decisions, 2 technical falls, and 5 falls.
• Dean Noble at 149, Ryan Wilson at 157, Walker Heckendorf at 165, and Cole Gray at 184 are also carrying win streaks into the Adams State match. Noble (16-7) has won four straight; Wilson (19-4) has won 10 in a row; Heckendorf has won his last 5 and 7 of his last 8; and Gray (15-7) has won 4 straight and 11 of his last 12.

ADAMS STATE HEADING INTO THE MATCH

• The Grizzlies are 4-4 overall and 2-3 in RMAC duals this season. They and Western both competed in the Dec. 16-17 Midwest Classic, Adams State finishing in 16th place while the Mountaineers were 18th.
• Like Western, Adams State has one wrestler within the individual NWCA Division II rankings – Ben Tonnessen at No. 12 at 197.
• In common opponents between Western and ASU, both have defeated University of Findlay (Ohio), Minot (N.D.) State, and Simon Fraser University. The Grizzlies have a win over Colorado Mesa, a team that downed the Mountaineers in a non-conference late-November match.
• Western wins and Adams State defeats have come against San Francisco State and Colorado School of Mines, and both have suffered losses to Chadron State and top-ranked University of Central Oklahoma.

LOOKING AHEAD
The Mountaineers have one more dual meet on the regular season schedule, an RMAC match against visiting Colorado Mesa on Tue., Feb. 13 at 6 p.m. in Paul Wright Gym.