The Johnnie wrestling team returns to competition with Wisconsin-Eau Claire's 8-Man Battles at 10 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 22. – Live Results

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's wrestling won six weight classes at its four-team Haws/Elton Rumble two weeks ago (Nov. 8) in Sexton Arena.

Junior Aidan Wayne (Maple Grove, Minn./Osseo) went 4-0 – three pins and a major decision – to win the five-man round robin at heavyweight and is now 9-2 so far this season.

Sophomore Thomas Holmquist (Mendota Heights, Minn./St. Thomas Academy) posted a 3-0 record to win his five-man round robin at 125 pounds, improving to 7-2 on the year, while freshman Isaac Hunter (Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater Area) registered three pins to win the 174-pound bracket in his collegiate debut.

Another freshman, Carson Gellerman (Becker, Minn./Big Lake), collected a technical fall and two pins to claim first place at 197 pounds.

THE NOV. 7 DUAL: The Johnnies recorded four pins in a 32-24 loss to Nebraska Wesleyan the night before the Rumble (Nov. 7) in Collegeville. All 10 matches were decided by bonus points (eight pins and two major decisions).

Holmquist started the home opener with a second-period pin (3:52) after building a 12-1 lead in the first at 125 pounds. 

NWU answered with two falls of its own, but sophomore Dominic Smith (Maple Grove, Minn./St. Michael's, N.M.) turned a 3-1 deficit into a fall in 1:55 at 149 pounds. The Prairie Wolves then built a 32-12 advantage with four-straight victories to clinch the dual win.

SJU closed the dual, however, with two pins. Gellerman won his first collegiate match with a first-period fall (1:29) at 197 pounds and Wayne obliterated the 0-0 score after the first period at heavyweight with an 8-0 lead en route to a pin in 4:43. 

REGIONAL RANKINGS: Four Johnnies were listed in the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Region 7 rankings released earlier today (Nov. 21): Holmquist, No. 5 at 125 pounds; junior Connor Krueger (Superior, Wis.), No. 3 at 133 pounds; Gellerman, No. 6 at 197 pounds; and Wayne, No. 4 at heavyweight.

WHO ELSE WILL BE THERE: The Johnnies and Blugolds are scheduled to be joined Saturday by Augustana (Ill.), Buena Vista (Iowa), Illinois Wesleyan, Lakeland (Wis.) and Nebraska Wesleyan.

LAST YEAR'S TOURNEY: SJU finished third out of six teams at last year's 8-Man Battle held Nov. 23 (2024) in Eau Claire, Wis. The then-third-ranked Blugolds won the tournament with 162.5 points, followed by Concordia-Moorhead (104.5), SJU (92.0) and Augustana of Illinois (90.5).

Six Johnnies, three in the gold brackets and three in the flights, finished second or better on the day. Holmquist led SJU with a 4-0 record in a five-man round robin at 125 pounds. He recorded three close decisions – 8-6, 11-10 and 8-5 in overtime – to start the day before he took the title with a 55-second pin of Nebraska Wesleyan's Julian Long in the championship match.

Sophomore Drew Lange (Albany, Minn./Holdingford) and Wayne collected second-place finishes with a 2-1 record each. Lange started his day with a technical fall and an 8-6 decision, but fell to Wisconsin-Eau Claire's Jared Stricker – the top-ranked wrestler in Division III – via tech fall at 174 pounds.

Wayne, meanwhile, rolled to a 14-0 major decision and an 8-3 decision before suffering his first loss of the year to UWEC's Sloan Welch by major decision in the title bout. Wayne is now 6-1 on the young season.

Senior Marcus Hayes (Katy, Texas/Cypress Lakes) placed first in the flight bracket at 125 pounds thanks to a 3-0 record, a pin and two first-period pins. Junior Bryce Commerford (Minnetonka, Minn./Benilde-St. Margaret's) claimed second with a 3-1 mark in his 197-pound round robin and senior Andy Johnson (St. Cloud, Minn./Tech) was second with a 2-2 mark at 174.