GUNNISON, Colo. The 13th-ranked Western Colorado wrestlers dominated visiting Colorado State Pueblo, 40-6, Saturday evening in Paul Wright Gym, allowing the ThunderWolves just a pair of decisions while the Mountaineers racked up four pins and a major decision to rule the night in a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference dual.

JUST THE FACTS
Final score: Western def. CSU Pueblo, 40-6
Records: Western 6-4 overall (3-2 RMAC), CSUP 8-5 (2-2)
Location: Paul Wright Gym, Gunnison, Colo.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• If ever momentum was evident in a contest, Saturday's dual was a perfect display.
• The ThunderWolves halved an early Western lead – the Mountaineers earning a 6-0 advantage with CSUP's forfeit at 125 pounds – with the first of their two decisions on the night, getting a 13-9 decision at 133 pounds.
• Eyan Chavez quickly charged up the team and the crowd in his match at 141, earning an early takedown in the first period that turned into a pin at the 1:27 mark.
• Building on that momentum was Dean Noble at 149. The third-ranked wrestler at his weight, Noble built a 9-0 lead into the third period, then ended the suspense with a fall at the 6:23 mark for a second consecutive pin for the Mountaineers.
• In an active, exciting but low-scoring match at 157, Vincent Cabral battled with CSUP's Cyruss Meeks. Cabral earned the initial points with a first-period takedown with Meeks chipping back with an escape.
• Meeks selected the down position to start the second and cut into Cabral's lead with an escape for the only point of the period. The third started with Cabral on the bottom and he, too, scored an escape. Both wrestlers were equally careful but also active in attempting to score a deciding takedown over the remainder of the period. Meeks threw one last flurry in the final seconds, but it didn't land and Cabral continued Western's momentum with a 4-2 victory.
• It took less than one period for Walker Heckendorf to inspire his teammates and the crowd at 165 pounds, escaping an early takedown against Aaron Concepcion then closing the match with a takedown that put Concepcion on his back for another Mountaineer pin, taking just 2:24 to register the win.
• Cole Hernandez entered Saturday's dual ranked the No. 1 wrestler in Division II at 174 pounds, and against CSUP's Solomon Arnds-Volcin he showed the worthiness of that ranking. Hernandez led 10-2 after the first, 13-4 after the second, and finished off Arnds-Volcin in the third for an 18-4 major decision.
• The match at 184 had Western's Cole Gray on the mat against the ThunderWolves' Donn Greer. Neither scored in the first and the second period ended with Greer leading 5-4. Greer started down in the third and added an escape for a two-point advantage, but in one exciting attempt Gray took Greer down onto his back and in seconds earned another pin for the Mountaineers.
• Pueblo earned a hard-fought 9-6 decision at 197, but the momentum was still on Western's side of the mat when Riley Butt stepped in against Henry Sturn at 285.
• The two heavyweights pushed, pulled, bullied and hand-fought into the third period with Sturn leading late, 4-2, until Butt scored a reversal late to even the score and send the match into overtime where Butt ended things quickly with a takedown for the 7-4 sudden victory.

UP NEXT
Western is back in action on Feb. 7 with a home RMAC dual against Adams State University on the Mountaineers' Senior Night.