Mines vs. Simon Fraser, Thursday, 7 p.m. [RMAC Network] [Live Results]
Mines at the Hastings Cusatis Open, Saturday, 9 a.m. [Live Results]
 

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THE WEEK AHEAD
Mines returns to action this weekend after more than a month off, hosting Simon Fraser for a dual on Thursday before heading to Hastings, Kan. for the Cusatis Open tournament. Mines has not wrestled since Nov. 27 when they took on Chadron State.

HISTORY VS. SIMON FRASER
This will be Mines' third meeting with Simon Fraser, with the Orediggers holding a 2-0 series lead. Mines won 34-8 in 2012-13 at the Grand Canyon Duals, and 35-13 last year. SFU is the NCAA's only Canadian member, located in Burnaby, British Columbia.

LAST YEAR VS. SIMON FRASER  
Mines beat the Clan 35-13 at Volk Gym with seven wins, punctuated by Ian Cheatum's seven-second pin of Sean Molle at heavyweight, the fastest in program history. Matthew Lavengood majored Oscar Bulaqui at 125, Ethan Ruby beat Tanner Spray at 157, Rocky Michaelson majored Alex Berfanger at 174, and Paul Wilson pinned Ciaran Ball at 197 while Lukas Erickson and Jacob Gerken picked up forfeit victories at 141 and 149. For SFU, Cruz Velasquez majored Caleb Micho at 133, Tyler Mclean won over John Crowley at 165, and Morgan Smith pinned Karl Breidenbach at 184.

LAST YEAR AT HASTINGS  
John Crowley won the 165-pound bracket and Mines had six other top-four finishes at the 2016 Hastings College Cusatis Open. The lower weights led the way for Mines as Matthew Lavengood, Noah Au-Yeung, and Lukas Erickson were runners-up at 125, 133, and 141, respectively. Zach Gracia (125) and Travis Torres (141) snagged third-place finishes, and Caleb Micho finished fourth at 133 pounds.

LEADING THE WAY
Mines has been led this season by Robert Gambrell, who is a team-best 12-2 at 174 pounds. Rocky Michaelson is 11-4, and Ethan Ruby is 7-1 with a 2-0 dual mark. Jacob Gerken is also 2-0 in duals and 7-4 overall, while Noah Au-Yeung is 9-5 at 133. Matthew Lavengood and Brandon Saunders are the team's pin leaders with five each.

OREDIGGERS SIGN THREE
Mines Wrestling signed three high schoolers during November's early signing period. Mines will add Pueblo West heavyweight Weston Hunt, Del Oro (Calif.) 141-pounder Chase Patterson, and Smithville (Mo.) 157-pounder Austin Purtle in 2017-18. In addition, Skyler Lykins will rejoin the team in fall 2017 after serving two years on a mission to Brazil. Lykins was one of the RMAC's best freshmen in 2014-15 for Mines, going 25-11 with 12 falls at 149 pounds to lead the team in dual and tournament points.
 
PROJECTED LINEUPS - MINES VS. SIMON FRASER
125 - Matt Lavengood (6-5) vs. Oscar Bulaqui  
133 - Noah Au-Yeung (9-5) vs. Cruz Velasquez
141 - Lukas Erickson (7-4) vs. Taber Spray 
149 - Jacob Gerken (7-4) vs. open 
157 - Ethan Ruby (7-1) vs. Tanner Spray
165 - Keenan Willits (1-0) vs. Graham Fader  
174 - Robert Gambrell (12-2) vs. Reid Watkins or Nolan Badovinac
184 - Ben Krantz (7-4) vs. Josh Kim   
197 - Brandon Saunders (6-5) vs. Morgan Smith
285 - Jake Feldman (0-2) vs. Sean Molle