Fresno State Athletics

Photo by: Justin Fine - SD Action Photography
'Dogs travel to Colorado for a pair of Big 12 duals on Sunday
11/9/2018 9:00:00 AM | Wrestling
After traveling to the East Coast to open the season last weekend, the Bulldogs stay on the road this weekend for a pair of Big 12 duals at Northern Colorado and Air Force on Sunday.
FRESNO, Calif. - After traveling to the East Coast to open the season last weekend, the Bulldogs stay on the road this weekend for a pair of Big 12 duals at Northern Colorado and Air Force on Sunday.
Fresno State will make its second trip in as many years to Northern Colorado for an 11:00 a.m. PT dual in Greeley before making the 120-mile trip south to the United States Air Force Academy to face Air Force at 6:00 p.m. PT.
Fresno State at Northern Colorado
Nov. 11, 2018 • 11:00 A.M. PT • Bank of Colorado Arena • Greeley, Colo.
Live Scoring: Trackwrestling.com & Takedown Live App
Video: Pluto TV
Twitter:Â @FresnoStateWRES
Series History: Northern Colorado leads 3-2
Last Meeting: W, 20-19 on Jan. 26, 2018 in Greeley, Colo.
Fresno State at Air Force
Nov. 11, 2018 • 6:00 P.M. PT • Clune Arena • USAFA, Colo.
Live Scoring: Trackwrestling.com & Takedown Live App
Video: Trackwrestling Live Stream
Twitter:Â @FresnoStateWRES
Series History:Â Tied 1-1
Last Meeting: L, 24-12 on Nov. 21, 2017 at the Battle on the Midway in San Diego, Calif.
Scouting Northern Colorado
The Bears are coming off a 22-14 loss at Big 12 foe West Virginia on Nov. 1 winning four of the 10 matches with wins at 125, 174, 184 & 197 pounds. Northern Colorado is coming off a 3-10 dual meet season in 2017-18 with a win at home over Cal Poly and Big 12 wins at Iowa State and Utah Valley.
UNC finished 10th at the 2018 Big 12 Championships with 30.5 points and qualified four student-athletes to the NCAA Championships, as 133-pound senior Rico Montoya and 197-pound redshirt junior Jacob Seely return this season. Montoya checks in No. 12 in the Intermat rankings while Seely ranks as high as No. 16 by Trackwrestling.Â
Scouting Air ForceÂ
The Falcons opened the season last weekend at the Cowboy Open hosted by Wyoming in Laramie. Air Force had 12 place winners in the tournament with freshman 125-pounder Sidney Flores finishing first with a 9-5 win over Cole Varner of Wyoming in the finals. Junior Alec Opsal finished second at 149 lbs. with a 3-1 mark and senior John Twomey also placed second at 133 pounds.
Air Force hosts No. 9 Minnesota on Friday night before the 'Dogs come to town as the Falcons are coming off a 8-5 dual meet season in 2017-18 and a 3-4 mark in the Big 12.
The Falcons, who have 19 returners this season, topped the 'Dogs, Utah Valley and Northern Colorado in Big 12 action and placed 12th at the 2018 Big 12 Championships with 22.5 points. Senior 157-pounder Alex Mossing also returns to the Falcon lineup this season after placing sixth at last year's Big 12 Championships.
Fresno State Projected Lineup
125:Â Robert Garcia IV, RFr. (2-0) ORÂ Jeremy Trinh, RFr. (0-1)
133:Â Gary Joint, RFr. (2-1)
141:Â Chris Deloza, So. (2-1)
149: No. -/-/16Â Khristian Olivas, RJr. (2-1)
157:Â Isaiah Hokit, RJr. (1-1) ORÂ Jacob Wright, RFr. (1-0)
165:Â Brandon Martino, RFr. (1-2)
174:Â Ricky Padilla, RJr. (1-1) ORÂ Dominic Kincaid, RJr. (1-0)
184:Â Jackson Hemauer, RFr. (2-1)
197:Â Richie Brandt, RJr. (0-1) ORÂ Danny Salas, RFr. (0-2)
HWT: No. 17/20/16Â AJ Nevills, So. (3-0)
*FloWrestling, Intermat & Trackwrestling rankings
Northern Colorado Projected Lineup
125: Sean Cannon, Jr. OR Michael Johnson, RSo.
133: Chris Sandoval. So. OR No. 14/12/14 Rico Montoya, Sr.
141: Owen Lamb, RSo.
149: Mason Hulse, Fr.
157: Jordan Robison, So.
165: Macoy Flanagan, RSo.
174: Sethan Bogulski, RSo.
184: Dalton Robertson, Jr. OR Trenton Schultz, So.
197: No. -/20/16 Jacob Seely, RJr.
Hwt: Robert Winters Jr., RSo.
*FloWrestling, Intermat & Trackwrestling rankings
Air Force Projected Lineup
125: Sidney Flores, Fr.
133: John Twomey, Sr.
141: Garrett O'Shea, Jr. OR Lenny Petersen, So.
149: Alec Opsal, Jr.
157: Alex Mossing, Sr. OR Trey Brisker, Fr.
165: Tanner Johnson, So.ORÂ Harlan Steffensmeier, Fr.
174: Randy Meneweather, Jr.
184: Tyler Wiederholt, Jr.
197: Anthony McLaughlin, Sr. OR Casey Jumps, So.
HWT: Matt Wagner, Jr. or Kayne Hutchison, Fr.
Fresno State opens 2018-19 season at the Rutgers Quad Meet
Winning two of three duals on the weekend, the Bulldogs defeated a pair of Division III opponents in Johnson & Wales, 38-8 and Centenary, 33-9 while falling to No. 13 Rutgers, 30-6. The 'Dogs won eight matches in both dual wins with six coming by bonus points in each dual.
Sophomore heavyweight AJ Nevills went a perfect 3-0 with a fall, technical fall and a 3-2 overtime win while 125-pound redshirt freshman Robert Garcia IV made his Bulldog debut winning his pair of matches with a 4-3 win over Shane Metzler of Rutgers and a 13-5 major decision over Jacy Jones of Centenary.
Fresno State vs. Northern Colorado/Air Force & Big 12 duals
The Bulldogs enter their second season in the Big 12 coming off a 1-5 record in six Big 12 dual meets a season ago. The 'Dogs first and lone Big 12 win came at Northern Colorado as the Bulldogs won the dual on criteria, total team points (60-57), after the dual ended tied at 19-19 thanks to a 4-3 win by Richie Brandt at 197 pounds over Tanner Davis.
Fresno State met Air Force a year ago at the Battle on the Midway aboard the USS Midway in San Diego with the Falcons winning 24-12 with Khristian Olivas winning by a technical fall at 149 lbs., Greg Gaxiola notched a major decision at 157 lbs. and Nevills notched a 7-2 decision at heavyweight.
The 'Dogs also wrestled road duals at No. 10 Wyoming (6-40) and Iowa State (22-26) and at home against Utah Valley (12-26) and No. 4 Oklahoma State (41-0).
Three 'Dogs claim titles at the Bill Musick Memorial Open
Four Bulldogs competed at the Bill Musick Memorial Open hosted by Fresno City College last weekend, including three who won the titles.
125:Â Joseph Delgado, 6th place; went 2-3 falling to Ryun Ortiz (Sacramento City), 7-6 in the fifth place match.
141:Â Lawrence Saenz, 1st place; went 4-0 with a 12-3 win over Luis Ramos (Fresno City College) in the finals.
184:Â Angel Solis, 1st place; posted a 3-0 record with a 3:30 fall over Tevin Bailey (Lassen) in the finals.
197:Â Isaiah Perez, 1st place; went 4-0 with a 3-2 victory over Brian Horn (Sacramento City) in the finals.
'Dogs in the national rankings
A pair of Bulldogs find themselves in the national rankings as Nevills has moved up to No. 15 by The Open Mat, No. 16 Trackwrestling, No. 17 by FloWrestling & WIN Magazine and No. 20 by InterMat and 149-pound redshirt junior Khristian Olivas is ranked No. 16 by Trackwrestling and No. 20 by WIN Magazine.
New faces in the lineup
Seven Bulldogs coming off redshirt seasons made their official Fresno State debuts this weekend as Jeremy Trinh and Robert Garcia IV at 125 pounds, Gary Joint (133 lbs.), Jacob Wright (157 lbs.), Brandon Martino (165 lbs.), Jackson Hemauer (184 lbs.) and Danny Salas (197 lbs.) all saw action for the first time.
Air Force transfer Ricky Padilla made his debut at 174 pounds as the redshirt junior went 1-1 with a fall in 5:44 of Nick Caracappa of Johnson & Wales and fell 10-0 to Joseph Grello of Rutgers.
Eight newcomers join the 'Dogs this season
In addition to the eight Bulldogs who redshirted last season, the 'Dogs add eight newcomers to the fold in 2018-19, including seven true freshman.
The Bulldogs add four California natives in Clovis native and four-time California High School state champion Justin Mejia along with Isaiah Perez from Turlock, Lawrence Saenz from Vacaville and Joseph Delgado from Gilroy.
The 'Dogs also bring in Air Force transfer Ricky Padilla, a San Dimas, Calif. native, in addition to Adam Kempfrom Illinois, Nick Casperson from South Dakota and Hunter Cruz from Washington.
Home Opener on Nov. 16 vs. North Dakota State
The Bulldogs are one week away from opening their home schedule with Big 12 opponent North Dakota State on Friday, Nov. 16 at the Save Mart Center at 7 p.m.
It will be the 'Dogs first-ever dual against the Bison and will be one of seven home duals in 2018-19. Purchase your season tickets HERE!
Single-Match tickets went on sale on Thursday and can be purchased here.
Second Annual Battle on the Midway set for Nov. 20 - Buy Tickets HERE!
Fresno State will compete in the second-annual "Battle on the Midway" wrestling showcase, presented by Left Coast Wrestling, taking on Stanford on the flight deck of the famed aircraft carrier USS Midway in San Diego on Tuesday, Nov. 20.
This marks the Bulldogs' second-consecutive appearance in the Battle on the Midway after falling to fellow Big 12 opponent Air Force, 24-12, in the inaugural event last November. Gates are set to open at 6 p.m., with preliminary matches set to start at 6:30 p.m. and the main event featuring the Bulldogs and Cardinal will get underway at 7:15 p.m.
Fresno State ranks No. 5 in attendance in 2017-18
After making its return to the Valley in 2017-18, Fresno State Wrestling received a warm welcome as the Bulldogs ranked No. 5 in the nation in Division I in attendance with an average of 4,566 fans for each of the six home duals.
Only passed by Big Ten programs Iowa, Penn State, Ohio State and Rutgers, the 'Dogs had at least 3,700 Red Wave supporters at all six home duals and over 4,000 at four of the six duals. The home opener against No. 14 Illinois was attended by 6,840 people at the Save Mart Center for the third-largest attended dual in Fresno State program history.
Joe Colon earns bronze at 2018 World Championships
Fresno State Wrestling volunteer assistant coach and Valley Regional Training Center athlete Joe Colon earned a bronze medal at the 2018 World Wrestling Championships on Oct. 21.
Competing at 61 kg./134 lbs., Colon went 3-1 in the tournament on his way to earning a spot on the podium. Facing No. 5 seed Mohammadbagher Yakhkeshi of Iran for bronze, Colon used a takedown and a number of gut wrenches to close out the match.
Pledge for Pins
Pledges for pins is designed to help support the Fresno State Wrestling Program. Proceeds will benefit the Fresno State Wrestling Fund for Excellence along with a portion contributing to the Valley Regional Training Center -- a nonprofit organization that supports Fresno State Wrestling.
It works like this, for example, if you pledge $5 per pin and the team accumulates 40 pins during the season, your pledge will be $200. Throughout the season, pins and pledges will be recorded and a letter will be mailed with your pledge amount and payment information.
Levels of Pledges
Cooper - $1-10
Bronze - $11-20
Silver - $21-49
Gold - $50 & Up
"Just the Ticket to Build Our Community" – The Bulldog Scholarship Fund gives Bulldog alumni, fans and friends the opportunity to support Fresno State Athletics and the student-athletes who inspire them. For information about how you can support the Bulldog Scholarship Fund, please visit www.bulldogscholarshipfund.com or call 559-278-7160.
Follow us on:Â
Twitter: @Fresno StateWRES
Instagram:Â fresnostatewrestling
Facebook:Â FresnoStateAthletics
Fresno State will make its second trip in as many years to Northern Colorado for an 11:00 a.m. PT dual in Greeley before making the 120-mile trip south to the United States Air Force Academy to face Air Force at 6:00 p.m. PT.
Fresno State at Northern Colorado
Nov. 11, 2018 • 11:00 A.M. PT • Bank of Colorado Arena • Greeley, Colo.
Live Scoring: Trackwrestling.com & Takedown Live App
Video: Pluto TV
Twitter:Â @FresnoStateWRES
Series History: Northern Colorado leads 3-2
Last Meeting: W, 20-19 on Jan. 26, 2018 in Greeley, Colo.
Fresno State at Air Force
Nov. 11, 2018 • 6:00 P.M. PT • Clune Arena • USAFA, Colo.
Live Scoring: Trackwrestling.com & Takedown Live App
Video: Trackwrestling Live Stream
Twitter:Â @FresnoStateWRES
Series History:Â Tied 1-1
Last Meeting: L, 24-12 on Nov. 21, 2017 at the Battle on the Midway in San Diego, Calif.
Scouting Northern Colorado
The Bears are coming off a 22-14 loss at Big 12 foe West Virginia on Nov. 1 winning four of the 10 matches with wins at 125, 174, 184 & 197 pounds. Northern Colorado is coming off a 3-10 dual meet season in 2017-18 with a win at home over Cal Poly and Big 12 wins at Iowa State and Utah Valley.
UNC finished 10th at the 2018 Big 12 Championships with 30.5 points and qualified four student-athletes to the NCAA Championships, as 133-pound senior Rico Montoya and 197-pound redshirt junior Jacob Seely return this season. Montoya checks in No. 12 in the Intermat rankings while Seely ranks as high as No. 16 by Trackwrestling.Â
Scouting Air ForceÂ
The Falcons opened the season last weekend at the Cowboy Open hosted by Wyoming in Laramie. Air Force had 12 place winners in the tournament with freshman 125-pounder Sidney Flores finishing first with a 9-5 win over Cole Varner of Wyoming in the finals. Junior Alec Opsal finished second at 149 lbs. with a 3-1 mark and senior John Twomey also placed second at 133 pounds.
Air Force hosts No. 9 Minnesota on Friday night before the 'Dogs come to town as the Falcons are coming off a 8-5 dual meet season in 2017-18 and a 3-4 mark in the Big 12.
The Falcons, who have 19 returners this season, topped the 'Dogs, Utah Valley and Northern Colorado in Big 12 action and placed 12th at the 2018 Big 12 Championships with 22.5 points. Senior 157-pounder Alex Mossing also returns to the Falcon lineup this season after placing sixth at last year's Big 12 Championships.
Fresno State Projected Lineup
125:Â Robert Garcia IV, RFr. (2-0) ORÂ Jeremy Trinh, RFr. (0-1)
133:Â Gary Joint, RFr. (2-1)
141:Â Chris Deloza, So. (2-1)
149: No. -/-/16Â Khristian Olivas, RJr. (2-1)
157:Â Isaiah Hokit, RJr. (1-1) ORÂ Jacob Wright, RFr. (1-0)
165:Â Brandon Martino, RFr. (1-2)
174:Â Ricky Padilla, RJr. (1-1) ORÂ Dominic Kincaid, RJr. (1-0)
184:Â Jackson Hemauer, RFr. (2-1)
197:Â Richie Brandt, RJr. (0-1) ORÂ Danny Salas, RFr. (0-2)
HWT: No. 17/20/16Â AJ Nevills, So. (3-0)
*FloWrestling, Intermat & Trackwrestling rankings
Northern Colorado Projected Lineup
125: Sean Cannon, Jr. OR Michael Johnson, RSo.
133: Chris Sandoval. So. OR No. 14/12/14 Rico Montoya, Sr.
141: Owen Lamb, RSo.
149: Mason Hulse, Fr.
157: Jordan Robison, So.
165: Macoy Flanagan, RSo.
174: Sethan Bogulski, RSo.
184: Dalton Robertson, Jr. OR Trenton Schultz, So.
197: No. -/20/16 Jacob Seely, RJr.
Hwt: Robert Winters Jr., RSo.
*FloWrestling, Intermat & Trackwrestling rankings
Air Force Projected Lineup
125: Sidney Flores, Fr.
133: John Twomey, Sr.
141: Garrett O'Shea, Jr. OR Lenny Petersen, So.
149: Alec Opsal, Jr.
157: Alex Mossing, Sr. OR Trey Brisker, Fr.
165: Tanner Johnson, So.ORÂ Harlan Steffensmeier, Fr.
174: Randy Meneweather, Jr.
184: Tyler Wiederholt, Jr.
197: Anthony McLaughlin, Sr. OR Casey Jumps, So.
HWT: Matt Wagner, Jr. or Kayne Hutchison, Fr.
Fresno State opens 2018-19 season at the Rutgers Quad Meet
Winning two of three duals on the weekend, the Bulldogs defeated a pair of Division III opponents in Johnson & Wales, 38-8 and Centenary, 33-9 while falling to No. 13 Rutgers, 30-6. The 'Dogs won eight matches in both dual wins with six coming by bonus points in each dual.
Sophomore heavyweight AJ Nevills went a perfect 3-0 with a fall, technical fall and a 3-2 overtime win while 125-pound redshirt freshman Robert Garcia IV made his Bulldog debut winning his pair of matches with a 4-3 win over Shane Metzler of Rutgers and a 13-5 major decision over Jacy Jones of Centenary.
Fresno State vs. Northern Colorado/Air Force & Big 12 duals
The Bulldogs enter their second season in the Big 12 coming off a 1-5 record in six Big 12 dual meets a season ago. The 'Dogs first and lone Big 12 win came at Northern Colorado as the Bulldogs won the dual on criteria, total team points (60-57), after the dual ended tied at 19-19 thanks to a 4-3 win by Richie Brandt at 197 pounds over Tanner Davis.
Fresno State met Air Force a year ago at the Battle on the Midway aboard the USS Midway in San Diego with the Falcons winning 24-12 with Khristian Olivas winning by a technical fall at 149 lbs., Greg Gaxiola notched a major decision at 157 lbs. and Nevills notched a 7-2 decision at heavyweight.
The 'Dogs also wrestled road duals at No. 10 Wyoming (6-40) and Iowa State (22-26) and at home against Utah Valley (12-26) and No. 4 Oklahoma State (41-0).
Three 'Dogs claim titles at the Bill Musick Memorial Open
Four Bulldogs competed at the Bill Musick Memorial Open hosted by Fresno City College last weekend, including three who won the titles.
125:Â Joseph Delgado, 6th place; went 2-3 falling to Ryun Ortiz (Sacramento City), 7-6 in the fifth place match.
141:Â Lawrence Saenz, 1st place; went 4-0 with a 12-3 win over Luis Ramos (Fresno City College) in the finals.
184:Â Angel Solis, 1st place; posted a 3-0 record with a 3:30 fall over Tevin Bailey (Lassen) in the finals.
197:Â Isaiah Perez, 1st place; went 4-0 with a 3-2 victory over Brian Horn (Sacramento City) in the finals.
'Dogs in the national rankings
A pair of Bulldogs find themselves in the national rankings as Nevills has moved up to No. 15 by The Open Mat, No. 16 Trackwrestling, No. 17 by FloWrestling & WIN Magazine and No. 20 by InterMat and 149-pound redshirt junior Khristian Olivas is ranked No. 16 by Trackwrestling and No. 20 by WIN Magazine.
New faces in the lineup
Seven Bulldogs coming off redshirt seasons made their official Fresno State debuts this weekend as Jeremy Trinh and Robert Garcia IV at 125 pounds, Gary Joint (133 lbs.), Jacob Wright (157 lbs.), Brandon Martino (165 lbs.), Jackson Hemauer (184 lbs.) and Danny Salas (197 lbs.) all saw action for the first time.
Air Force transfer Ricky Padilla made his debut at 174 pounds as the redshirt junior went 1-1 with a fall in 5:44 of Nick Caracappa of Johnson & Wales and fell 10-0 to Joseph Grello of Rutgers.
Eight newcomers join the 'Dogs this season
In addition to the eight Bulldogs who redshirted last season, the 'Dogs add eight newcomers to the fold in 2018-19, including seven true freshman.
The Bulldogs add four California natives in Clovis native and four-time California High School state champion Justin Mejia along with Isaiah Perez from Turlock, Lawrence Saenz from Vacaville and Joseph Delgado from Gilroy.
The 'Dogs also bring in Air Force transfer Ricky Padilla, a San Dimas, Calif. native, in addition to Adam Kempfrom Illinois, Nick Casperson from South Dakota and Hunter Cruz from Washington.
Home Opener on Nov. 16 vs. North Dakota State
The Bulldogs are one week away from opening their home schedule with Big 12 opponent North Dakota State on Friday, Nov. 16 at the Save Mart Center at 7 p.m.
It will be the 'Dogs first-ever dual against the Bison and will be one of seven home duals in 2018-19. Purchase your season tickets HERE!
Single-Match tickets went on sale on Thursday and can be purchased here.
Second Annual Battle on the Midway set for Nov. 20 - Buy Tickets HERE!
Fresno State will compete in the second-annual "Battle on the Midway" wrestling showcase, presented by Left Coast Wrestling, taking on Stanford on the flight deck of the famed aircraft carrier USS Midway in San Diego on Tuesday, Nov. 20.
This marks the Bulldogs' second-consecutive appearance in the Battle on the Midway after falling to fellow Big 12 opponent Air Force, 24-12, in the inaugural event last November. Gates are set to open at 6 p.m., with preliminary matches set to start at 6:30 p.m. and the main event featuring the Bulldogs and Cardinal will get underway at 7:15 p.m.
Fresno State ranks No. 5 in attendance in 2017-18
After making its return to the Valley in 2017-18, Fresno State Wrestling received a warm welcome as the Bulldogs ranked No. 5 in the nation in Division I in attendance with an average of 4,566 fans for each of the six home duals.
Only passed by Big Ten programs Iowa, Penn State, Ohio State and Rutgers, the 'Dogs had at least 3,700 Red Wave supporters at all six home duals and over 4,000 at four of the six duals. The home opener against No. 14 Illinois was attended by 6,840 people at the Save Mart Center for the third-largest attended dual in Fresno State program history.
Joe Colon earns bronze at 2018 World Championships
Fresno State Wrestling volunteer assistant coach and Valley Regional Training Center athlete Joe Colon earned a bronze medal at the 2018 World Wrestling Championships on Oct. 21.
Competing at 61 kg./134 lbs., Colon went 3-1 in the tournament on his way to earning a spot on the podium. Facing No. 5 seed Mohammadbagher Yakhkeshi of Iran for bronze, Colon used a takedown and a number of gut wrenches to close out the match.
Pledge for Pins
Pledges for pins is designed to help support the Fresno State Wrestling Program. Proceeds will benefit the Fresno State Wrestling Fund for Excellence along with a portion contributing to the Valley Regional Training Center -- a nonprofit organization that supports Fresno State Wrestling.
It works like this, for example, if you pledge $5 per pin and the team accumulates 40 pins during the season, your pledge will be $200. Throughout the season, pins and pledges will be recorded and a letter will be mailed with your pledge amount and payment information.
Levels of Pledges
Cooper - $1-10
Bronze - $11-20
Silver - $21-49
Gold - $50 & Up
"Just the Ticket to Build Our Community" – The Bulldog Scholarship Fund gives Bulldog alumni, fans and friends the opportunity to support Fresno State Athletics and the student-athletes who inspire them. For information about how you can support the Bulldog Scholarship Fund, please visit www.bulldogscholarshipfund.com or call 559-278-7160.
Follow us on:Â
Twitter: @Fresno StateWRES
Instagram:Â fresnostatewrestling
Facebook:Â FresnoStateAthletics
Players Mentioned
FB Media Availibility [11/18]: Jadon Pearson, Ryan Wilson, Julian Polendo, Jordan Brown
Tuesday, November 18
FB Weekly Press Conference [11/17]
Monday, November 17
FB highlight vs Wyoming [11/15/25]
Sunday, November 16
Postgame Press Conference [11/16]
Sunday, November 16




























