CEDAR FALLS, Iowa. – Maryville wrestling wrapped up its two-day stay in Cedar Falls, Iowa, battling West Liberty and King on day two of the NWCA National Duals. The Saints dropped their dual against the Hilltoppers, 31-9, before rebounding against the Tornado, scoring a ##-## victory to leave the UNI-Dome with a 1-3 record.

VS. WEST LIBERTY
The highlight of the dual for the Saints came just two matches in. JP Homfeld battled No. 13 James Armstrong Jr. and was dominant defensively throughout the bout. After fending off multiple first-period shots, Homfeld chose bottom in the second and grabbed a key reversal. He held on from there, earning the riding time point at the end of the third to secure a 3-0 decision.

That was one of the lone bright spots for the Saints, as the Hilltoppers claimed the remaining bouts, aside from a forfeit at 197 in Maryville's favor. Freshman Caleb Carter nearly pulled his own upset at 141 against No. 14 Khyvon Grace, but a second-period escape proved to be the only scoring in a 1-0 decision.

WEST LIBERTY 31, MARYVILLE 9
125 - #13 Logan Davis (West Liberty) over Elijah Almarinez (Maryville) Dec 16-9
133 - JP Homfeld (Maryville) over #13 James Armstrong Jr (West Liberty) Dec 3-0
141 - #14 Khyvon Grace (West Liberty) over Caleb Carter (Maryville) Dec 1-0
149 - Anthony Wood (West Liberty) over Leo Buchheit (Maryville) TF 18-0
157 - #8 Nico Taddy (West Liberty) over Nicolas Zamora (Maryville) Fall 0:57
165 - Bodie Morgan (West Liberty) over Javier Gutierrez (Maryville) Maj 13-4
174 - Carter Winegardner (West Liberty) over Mustafa Salimi (Maryville) Maj 14-4
184 - Gabe Blissenbach (West Liberty) over Evan Morris (Maryville) Dec 5-4
197 - Jeremiah Larson (Maryville) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf
285 - Parker Bentley (West Liberty) over John Gholson (Maryville) Dec 6-4

VS. KING
Elijah Almarinez set the tone for the Saints in their win over King. The true freshman was electric, using four near-fall sequences to post a 19-0 technical fall in the second period.

Homfeld kept his strong day rolling, earning a 9-6 decision to finish 2-0 on the day. King responded with two decision victories to narrow the margin to 8-6, but Nick Zamora swung momentum back in Maryville's favor with a first-period fall off his opening takedown. The dual continued to go back and forth, as King picked up a major decision at 165 before being awarded six points following a forfeit at 174.

At 184, Evan Morris kept it close until the third period, snagging a clutch takedown with a minute left to earn the 4-2 win and put Maryville back in the lead. Jeremiah Larson, with fresh legs after his win-by-forfeit against West Liberty, battled into an extra period after neither wrestler could score after three. Larson needed very little time in the bonus time to earn his win, taking a fast shot and scoring for the win in just 25 seconds. 

Rounding out the day, Orest Nazarchuk at 285 grabbed a pair of takedowns, one in the first and one in the third to win and put a stamp on the Saints victory.

MARYVILLE 23, KING 16

125 - Elijah Almarinez (Maryville) over Roberto Garcia (King) TF 19-0
133 - JP Homfeld (Maryville) over Cayden Glass (King) Dec 9-6
141 - Ashtan Hendricks (King) over Caleb Carter (Maryville) Dec 6-3
149 - Brennan Watkins (King) over Leo Buchheit (Maryville) Dec 5-4
157 - Nicolas Zamora (Maryville) over Elijah Brown (King) Fall 2:20
165 - Joe Bertrand (King) over Javier Gutierrez (Maryville) Maj 9-0
174 - Clinton Morrisette (King) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf
184 - Evan Morris (Maryville) over Luke Justice (King) Dec 4-2
197 - Jeremiah Larson (Maryville) over David Bertrand (King) SV-1 4-1
285 - Orest Nazarchuk (Maryville) over Nathan Coley (King) Dec 8-3

UP NEXT
The Saints are back at it on short rest, sending a contingent tomorrow to the Tom Smith Open, hosted by Missouri Baptist in St. Louis. 

DAY 1 
Maryville wrestling endured a challenging opening day at the UNI-Dome during the 2026 NWCA National Duals. The Saints opened the tournament against No. 13-ranked St. Cloud State, winning the opening and closing bouts but dropping the remaining matches in a 33-6 setback. In the first consolation dual, Maryville fell 31-8 to No. 19-ranked UMary.

Elijah Almarinez, Orest Nazarchuk, Evan Morris, and Jeremiah Larson each picked up a victory on the day. Morris' and Larson's major decisions against UMary accounted for Maryville's lone bonus points.

VS. ST. CLOUD
Almarinez got the Saints off to a strong start, earning a 4-2 decision over Benjamin Aranda, who is ranked No. 13 in the Open Mat rankings. St. Cloud State responded with a 15-0 technical fall at 133 and a pin at 141 to seize momentum. Another Huskies win followed at 149 by way of a 7-0 decision.

True freshman Nick Zamora put together a strong effort at 157, scoring three escapes against No. 2 Joel Jesuroga before falling 8-3. Two major decisions, a technical fall, and a decision widened the Huskies' lead before Nazarchuk closed the dual with a win at heavyweight.

#13 ST. CLOUD 33, MARYVILLE 6
125 - Elijah Almarinez (Maryville) over Benjamin Aranda (St. Cloud State) Dec 4-2
133 - Ethan Bast (St. Cloud State) over Yashua Amen (Maryville) TF 15-0
141 - Jayce Luna (St. Cloud State) over Caleb Carter (Maryville) Fall 5:28
149 - Alyeus Craig (St. Cloud State) over Leo Buchheit (Maryville) Dec 7-0
157 - #2 Joel Jesuroga (St. Cloud State) over Nicolas Zamora (Maryville) Dec 8-3
165 - Derek Johnson (St. Cloud State) over Javier Gutierrez (Maryville) Maj 12-2
174 - #14 Bryce Dagel (St. Cloud State) over Mustafa Salimi (Maryville) Maj 12-2
184 - #4 Cole Glazier (St. Cloud State) over Evan Morris (Maryville) TF 16-1
197 - Tyson Meyer (St. Cloud State) over Jeremiah Larson (Maryville) Dec 7-5
285 - Orest Nazarchuk (Maryville) over Donnie Hidden (St. Cloud State) Dec 4-1

VS. UMARY
Unlike the opening dual, UMary controlled the early portion, rattling off seven straight wins from 125 through 174. Morris sparked the Saints at 184, earning a 12-4 major decision in his first victory since suffering an injury at last season's NWCAs. Larson followed with a dominant performance at 197, scoring four takedowns in a major decision win.

#19 UMARY 31, MARYVILLE 8
125 - Ben DeForest (UMary) over Elijah Almarinez (Maryville) Dec 4-2
133 - #7 Jacob Strausbaugh (UMary) over JP Homfeld (Maryville) Dec 6-4
141 - #11 Sean Solis (UMary) over Caleb Carter (Maryville) TF 23-7
149 - Kale Baumann (UMary) over Leo Buchheit (Maryville) Fall 4:31
157 - #15 Kaden Renner (UMary) over Nicolas Zamora (Maryville) Dec 12-8
165 - Lane Ewing (UMary) over Javier Gutierrez (Maryville) TF 18-2
174 - Wyatt Elam (UMary) over Mustafa Salimi (Maryville) Dec 4-1
184 - Evan Morris (Maryville) over Sam Bruss (UMary) Maj 12-4
197 - Jeremiah Larson (Maryville) over Ty Wiedrich (UMary) Maj 16-4
285 - #4 Luke Tweeton (UMary) over Orest Nazarchuk (Maryville) Dec 8-3