The UW-Platteville wrestling team enjoyed back-to-back successful weekends winning the Spartan Matmen Invite hosted by Manchester College on Jan. 19 and dominating Lawrence University the following weekend on Jan. 26 in a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference dual meet.

The tournament on Jan. 19 showed off the depth of UW-P. Pioneer wrestlers advanced to the tournament semifinals in eight of the 10 weight classes, winning three weight classes. Senior Ryan Higgins at 149 pounds, sophomore Jesse Milks at 157 and senior Corey Zuberbier at 174 won their respective weight classes, while sophomore 184-pounder Brad Zellner and senior 197-pounder Mike Jackowski also reached the finals and finished second.

“I was really happy with Corey Zuberbier,” head coach Chris Walter said, “He won his first college tournament and he is wrestling really well right now. He finished third last week at the North Central Tournament. He also beat a kid from Lawrence who beat him twice last year.”

“The Manchester tournament was a tough one,” Higgins said. “It’s a two-day tournament, and you have to battle to make weight and beat tough competition.”

“It felt good to beat a kid who beat me the previous week,” Higgins said. “I knew I could do it because I beat him twice last year. This break was really good for me, I was able to concentrate on wrestling, and right now, I’m really wrestling my best.”

The Pioneers finished ahead of second place Heidelberg College by 38 points in the 11-team tournament. The team’s effort lead well into the next weekend’s dual against Lawrence University.

The Pioneers jumped out to an early lead and never looked back against the Vikings of Lawrence, who were forced to forfeit three weight classes. The Pioneers won seven of the 10 weight classes, aided by pins from Jesse Milks and Carsten Carlsen.

The Pioneers were able to pull out victories in close matches, something that has been difficult for the young squad during this season. The team also avoided injuries over break, which was key going into the break.

With the dual win, the Pioneers improved to 4-5 overall with a 2-3 record in conference matches. Their upcoming schedule features back-to-back trips to Dubuque, Iowa, for a duel against Loras College on Feb. 1 and the Loras Open on Feb. 2.

“Loras will be a good test for us,” Walter said. “We have a chance to prove what we are as a team. We have been hot and cold in a lot of duels. They are the 18th-ranked team in the country and we are looking for a ranking, so we have to win this dual.”

Traveling to the Loras Open this weekend will be a lot of Pioneer wrestlers who haven’t seen a lot of action this semester. “There will be mostly backups, young guys who have worked hard all year and have a chance to prove themselves against a lot of good Division I and II wrestlers,” Walter said.

“I’m really looking forward to wrestling at Loras,” senior Kyle Luedtke said. “This will be my last tournament, and I’m looking to wrestle well.”

“I’m pumped up to beat Loras,” Higgins said, “We need this win to start rolling towards Whitewater in two weeks and then conference two weeks after that. Nationals are around the corner, and we need to wrestle our best.”