Mike Kirk
Top-ranked Central Oklahoma wraps up its home schedule Sunday when the unbeaten Bronchos host Drury for a 2 p.m. contest at Hamilton Field House on Senior Day.
UCO is 12-0 on the season and riding a 19-match winning streak. The Panthers from Springfield, Mo. are 2-4 headed into home duals Friday against Newman and Ouachita Baptist.
The Bronchos will recognize five seniors before the dual – Dalton Abney, Anthony DesVigne, Antonio George, Braden Morgan and Shawn Streck.
“It’s hard to believe we’re getting toward the end of the season,” said head coach Todd Steidley, who is 98-12 in his eighth year at the helm. “The team has worked really hard all year and this is the last chance to be in front of our fans, so I know the guys are excited about that.
“We had a great crowd last week (against Central Missouri) and hopefully we can do that again to send our seniors out on a good note. Drury has a solid team and they’re in our region, so every match will be important.”
UCO finishes the regular season next week with back-to-back MIAA matches at No. 7 Nebraska-Kearney and Fort Hays State. The Bronchos will then have two weeks to prepare for the NCAA Division II Regional IV Tournament, which is set for March 2 in Indianapolis, Ind.
The top-three finishers from each weight at the regional qualify for the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships that will be held March 15-16 in Wichita, Kan.
ABOUT THE BRONCHOS: UCO racked up six bonus-point wins in Sunday’s 41-11 romp over Central Missouri for its 20th straight home win, highlighted by three straight first-period falls from 141 Dylan Lucas, 149 Dylan Brown and 157 Gabe Johnson.
The Bronchos, who have won 44 of their last 45 duals, also got technical falls from 174 Anthony DesVigne and Hvy Shawn Streck along with a major decision from 197 Dalton Abney.
Garrett Wells continues to lead the team in wins with 24. The redshirt freshman 184-pounder is 24-6 with 12 bonus wins and has won seven of his last eight matches.
Lucas is right behind with 23 victories (23-4), including a team-best 16 bonus wins. He’s also won seven of his last eight, scoring bonus points in five of those.
Guy Clevenger is the only other individual with 20-plus wins at 21-8, collecting bonus points in 12 of those. Johnson ha
