Coe defeats Central in first men’s wrestling dual

CEDAR RAPIDS – Facing a lineup with five wrestlers ranked in the NWCA Division III preseason poll, the Central College men’s wrestling team dropped its season opener 26-9 at Coe College Wednesday night.

It also marked the first dual under new Dutch head coach Landon Williams.

“It was good for a first dual against a tough, veteran Coe team,” Williams said “The biggest thing is we’ve got to find a way to win some of the swing matches we were in. We were in position to score, and they made it a little challenging on us and we didn’t respond in areas.”

Central’s three wins came from the heart of its lineup. Pierre Baldwin (junior, Carol Stream, Ill., West Chicago HS) hung on to a 3-2 win at 141 pounds. Carter Martinson (sophomore, Altoona, Southeast Polk HS) defeated #14 Ty Koedam 16-12 at 157 pounds and Carson Martinson (sophomore, Altoona, Southeast Polk HS) secured an 11-4 decision at 165 pounds.

“They got takedowns right away which is always good,” Williams said. “If you get the first takedown, you start dictating the match.”

In addition to the Martinson twins making their debuts, Central also rolled out freshmen Dominick Marre (Bartlett, Ill., Glenbard North HS) and Carter West (Burlington, Notre Dame HS) at 125 and 133 pounds, respectively.

“I liked the lineup we put out there,” Williams said. “For some of our guys it was their first dual meet. We’ve just got to learn from it.”

The Dutch will bring a contingent of wrestlers to the Augsburg Invitational in Minneapolis, Minnesota Saturday.

“It’s a mixture of some older guys and some freshmen,” Williams said. “They have a good freshman division over there and it’s a good tournament overall. We’ll see some good competition and keep evaluating off of that.”