CEDAR FALLS, Iowa. – 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

UP NEXT
Saints look to return to the win column tomorrow, battling the West Liberty Hilltoppers at 9 a.m. from the UNI Dome.