It is Augustana's first regional title since 2005 when the Vikings went on to finish second in the nation.
Laramie Shaffer (133 pounds), Nate Herda (149 pounds), Marcus Edgington (157 pounds) and Ty Copsey won regional titles, while Jay Sherer (141 pounds) finished second. In addition, Al Meger (125 pounds) and Gavin Nelson (165 pounds) finished third. These seven wrestlers will advance to the NCAA Division II National Championships March 12-13 in Omaha, Neb.
The Vikings gained additional honors when head coach Jason Reitmeier was named the Super Region #3 Coach of the Year. It is Reitmeier's second Region Coach of the Year Award. He won the award in 2005.
The top seed, Shaffer, a transfer from Iowa State, scored first and maintained a 5-4 lead late in the match against Upper Iowa's Kyle Pedretti. In the final seconds, Shaffer countered a shot attempt by Pedretti and scored a late takedown to secure the 7-4 win.
Herda, the top seed as a redshirt freshman, put together a workmanlike performance in defeating third-seeded Derek Bomsted of MSU Moorhead 12-7. After trailing early, Herda strung together a series of takedowns to pull away for the victory.
Edgington, also seeded first, used a flurry of points in the final minute to rally for a 9-6 win over over No. 2 seed John Sundgren of St. Cloud State. Edgington trailed 5-4 before getting an escape with 23 seconds left. However, Sundgren still had over a minute of riding time accumulated. Needing a takedown, Edgington was successful on a shot and took Sundgren down to his back and managed to get a 2-point near fall in the process to seal the win.
Copsey had an equally tough time in winning his second regional title. Seeded No. 1, Copsey edged No. 2 seed Lucas Munkelwitz of St. Cloud State. After a scoreless first period, Copsey scored an escape in 1 second to start the second period. Leading 1-0 heading into the final period, Copsey managed to ride Munkelwitz until the last 37 seconds of the period before surrendering the escape. With a riding time point secured, Copsey staved off late shots by Munkelwitz.
The Vikings nearly went 5-0 in the finals. However, Sherer was the victim of a defensive pin against MSU Moorhead's Brady Schneeberger at the 6:45 mark. Sherer got a late takedown to tie the score at 7-7. With less than 30 seconds remaining, Sherer attempted to turn Schneeberger to get back points. However, in the process he rolled too far and had both of his shoulders on the mat.
Nick Henning (184 pounds) almost advanced to nationals, however he lost a 6-4 decision to SMSU's Craig Draper-Johnson in a true fourth place match. Carl Serck (174 pounds) and Lance Peters (285 pounds) each finished in fifth place but had faced the fourth-place finisher earlier in the day.
Copsey, a regional champion in 2008 and a runner-up in 2009, will be making his third appearance at nationals, as will Sherer. Meanwhile, Meger will make the trip to nationals for the second-straight year. The remaining four national qualifiers will be making their first trip to nationals.
Team Scores - Final
1. Augustana – 120.5
2. St. Cloud State – 108.5
3. Upper Iowa – 95
4. Minnesota State – 84.5
5. MSU Moorhead – 73
6. Southwest Minnesota State – 53.5
7. Northern State – 46.5
8. U-Mary – 43
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