Men's Wrestling 2/5/2026 12:50:00 AM

No. 18 Men’s Wrestling Splits Triangular Duals Against No. 5 Oklahoma City and Avila (RV)

Credit: Kortney Schutt

Wichita, Kan. – Friends University men's wrestling was back in the Garvey Center for two action-packed duals against competitive programs. The Falcons first went up against KCAC conference opponent Avila, looking to remain undefeated in conference play.

The dual started with the Falcons' 1-2 punch at 125 and 133 lbs. No. 13 Braydon Pacheco and Braden Ledford led off with back-to-back technical falls to give Friends an early 10-0 lead.

Shortly after, three consecutive falls by the Duling brothers and No. 12 Cayleb Atkins extended the advantage, as Friends built a commanding 28–6 lead.

Three of the next four matches also ended in wins for the Falcons. Friends dominated the Eagles from start to finish, earning a 42-9 victory and securing bonus points in all but three matches. The performance gave the Falcons a boost of confidence heading into their next dual against a top-five opponent.

The Falcons then took on the No. 5 Oklahoma City Stars, a dominant wrestling program in the Sooner Athletic Conference / American Midwest Conference.

The dual opened with a top-15 matchup at 125 lbs, the match of the night between No. 11 Cash Donnell and No. 13 Braydon Pacheco. It was a true test for the brilliant freshman from Garden City.

The first period looked bleak for Pacheco, as he gave up two takedowns and struggled to escape from bottom position, trailing 6-1 heading into the second period.

Pacheco had the choice to start the second period and selected neutral. He quickly secured a takedown to spark his offense. Seconds later, he scored a four-point near fall off a tilt. Donnell scrambled on his back in an effort to avoid the pin, but Pacheco did not let up, securing a huge pinfall that erupted the Garvey Center. Braydon flexed to the crowd and shouted, "This is my house." The hard-fought comeback victory from the freshman gave the Falcons an early 6-0 lead.

That momentum shift was short-lived, however, as Oklahoma City rattled off six consecutive wins over Friends, four of which came by way of bonus points.

At 184 lbs, No. 15 Jason Bowers faced No. 21 Cole Olguin. Bowers controlled the match early, grabbing a first-period takedown and holding the lead throughout. He was tested in the third period after surrendering an early takedown, but strong head-and-hands defense allowed Bowers to hang on for a 5–3 ranked victory.

No. 16 Logan Davidson continued his dominance at 197 lbs with a quick pinfall in just 1:28. Despite the late surge, it was not enough for Friends, as they fell to Oklahoma City by a final score of 34–12.

It proved to be a challenging dual for the Falcons, as Oklahoma City boasts nine ranked wrestlers across 10 weight classes, including two ranked No. 1.

Men's wrestling will travel to Missouri for the Missouri Valley Open on Saturday, Feb. 7. Women's wrestling will also be in action, competing at the Grand View Open in Des Moines, Iowa, on Saturday.

Full Results of the Triangular Duals below:

125 - Braydon Pacheco (Friends) over Raul Romero (Avila) (TF 19-3 4:40)

133 - Braden Ledford (Friends) over Aiden Pina (Avila) (TF 16-1 5:00)

141 - Daniel Vines (Avila) over Brad McAlister (Friends) (Fall 5:43)

149 - Brady Duling (Friends) over Dru Thomas (Avila) (Fall 2:49)

157 - Cayleb Atkins (Friends) over Kristjan Marshall (Avila) (Fall 0:32)

165 - Sam Duling (Friends) over Keenan Tumbarello (Avila) (Fall 4:22)

174 - Benedict Holthaus (Friends) over Cam`ron Morris (Avila) (TF 17-2 6:30)

184 - Jason Bowers (Friends) over Nicholas Oji (Avila) (Dec 9-5)

197 - Logan Davidson (Friends) over Rodney Trotter (Avila) (Fall 1:28)

285 - Gavin Howes (Avila) over Mencali En (Friends) (Dec 3-2)

125 - Braydon Pacheco (Friends) over Cash Donnell (OCU) (Fall 4:07)