UVU At West Virginia for Final Dual

OREM, Utah — The Utah Valley University wrestling team will conclude the dual portion of its 2021-22 campaign this weekend by heading to Morgantown, West Virginia for a Big 12 Conference clash against the West Virginia Mountaineers.

The Big 12 dual is set for Saturday, Feb. 12 at the WVU Coliseum. Saturday's contest will begin at noon MT/2 p.m. ET and will be streamed live on ESPN+ and the ESPN app (subscription required). Live results will also be available on Saturday by visiting TrackWrestling.com.

UVU will head to the East Coast this weekend with a 5-5 overall record and an 0-4 Big 12 Conference clip. The Wolverines most recently dropped a pair of tightly contested Big 12 duals in the home finale on Jan. 29 to both No. 13 Missouri and Wyoming by respective scores of 18-15 and 23-17.

Both duals came down to the final match of the contest, and Wyoming's Darren Green managed to pull out an overtime battle over the UVU 141-pounder Ty Smith on a technicality to seal the first dual for the Cowboys, but UVU's Smith responded in the nightcap with a last-second takedown to defeat fifth-ranked and two-time NCAA qualifier Allen Hart of Mizzou by decision. But in the end UVU came up just short against the Tigers by falling by just three points. The Wolverines and then-13th ranked Tigers split the nightcap that day at five bouts apiece, but bonus points proved to be the difference as Mizzou managed to pull out the tightly contested contest.

Reigning All-American and 2021 Big 12 runner-up Taylor LaMont led UVU on Jan. 29 by going a perfect 3-0 on the day at 125 pounds with a 5-3 decision over No. 12 Noah Surtin of Missouri and a pair of bonus-point wins over Wyoming's Brendon Garcia. Second-year freshman Haiden Drury was next by going 2-0 at 133, while 2021 UVU NCAA qualifier Smith went 1-1 with the big upset 2-1 victory over No. 5 Hart of Mizzou.

Ranked Wolverines
UVU will enter this weekend's action with six Wolverines ranked in the latest different national polls. The freshman 133-pounder Drury leads the way by being ranked as high as 13th in his weight class, while redshirt junior 125-pounder LaMont is right behind him at No. 14 at 125. Redshirt sophomore 197-pounder Evan Bockman is next by being tabbed 24th, followed by fellow redshirt sophomore Jacob Armstrong at No. 30 at 184. Redshirt freshman Kekana Fouret is next by checking in a No. 33 at 174 pounds and Smith rounds out UVU's ranked grapplers by earning honorable mention accolades from FloWrestling this week at 141. As a team, UVU is ranked as high as 36th on the latest FloWrestling Team Tournament poll.

UVU Leadrs
The freshman Drury leads Utah Valley on the season with a 16-4 overall, which includes a trio of wins over ranked foes. Sophomores Armstrong (10-4), Bockman (10-7) and heavyweight Chase Trussell (10-5), as well as redshirt freshman Fouret (10-8) are next as they all have 10 wins on the year, while LaMont has lost just once and will enter with a 5-1 clip on the season.

Series History
Saturday's contest will mark just the fourth all-time meeting on the mat between UVU and WVU. The Wolverines will enter holding a 2-1 series advantage after winning a hard-fought battle in the last meeting by a score of 20-19 on Feb. 23, 2020 in Morgantown thanks to a overtime victory from UVU heavyweight Trussell in the final bout. UVU also pulled out a 24-9 neutral-site contest on Nov. 3, 2017 in Clarion, Pennsylvania.

One Match to Spotlight
One match to look for on Saturday is slated to take place between a pair of returning All-Americans in UVU's 14th-ranked LaMont (5-1) and WVU's seventh-ranked Cardinale (9-1) at 125 pounds. Each wrestler has lost just once on the season as they will enter with a combined 14-2 win-loss record.

Probable Lineups
Utah Valley (5-5, 0-4 Big 12)
125: #14 Taylor LaMont, RJr. (5-1) OR Yusief Lillie, Fr. (6-10)
133: #13 Haiden Drury, Fr. (16-4) OR Kobe Nelms, So. (9-8)
141: (HM) Ty Smith, RFr. (2-7)
149: Sam Edelblute, RFr. (3-7) OR Cameron Hunsaker, So. (0-0)
157: Jaxon Garoutte, Fr. (5-7) OR Brigg Hoopes, So. (3-5)
165: Danny Snediker, Fr. (6-4)
174: #33 Kekana Fouret, RFr. (10-8) OR Hunter Morse, Fr. (7-6)
184: #30 Jacob Armstrong, RSo. (10-4)
197: #24 Evan Bockman, RSo. (10-7) OR Ashton Seely, RJr. (0-1)
285: Chase Trussell, RSo. (10-5)

West Virginia (5-7, 0-5 Big 12)
125: #7 Killian Cardinale, RSr. (9-1)
133: Garett Lautzenheiser, Fr. (6-11)
141: Caleb Rea, Sr. (9-12)
149: Jeffrey Boyd, RJr. (13-12)
157: Alex Hornfeck, RJr. (12-13)
165: #10 Peyton Hall, So. (20-2)
174: Dennis Robin, So. (11-11) OR Scott Joll, Jr. (16-6)
184: Anthony Carman, RSo. (15-10)
197: Jackson Moomau, Sr. (2-13)
285: #22 Michael Wolfgram, RSo. (16-7)

*Individual rankings listed are the highest national ranking taken from the latest InterMat, FloWrestling and WIN Magazine polls.