Full results listed below.

DeKALB, Ill. – Four Huskies recorded individual victories, but the Northern Illinois University wrestling team was unable to knock off No. 25 Northern Iowa on Friday night in a Mid-American Conference dual as the Huskies were defeated by the Panthers, 24-12, in front of a raucous Victor E. Court crowd in DeKalb.

Six individual victories, including two pins, made the difference for the Panthers (2-4, 1-2 MAC), despite some impressive performances from the Huskies (3-4, 0-2 MAC) in the 28th all-time matchup between the two programs.

Following the dual, NIU wrestling head coach Ryan Ludwig rued his team’s slow start after seeing the Huskies fall behind 12-3 through four bouts, but he was pleased with how his wrestlers finished the contest and emphasized how great of an atmosphere the fans created at Victor E. Court.

“We got off to a bad start and didn’t get the ball rolling like we needed. You have to come out strong, come out fighting and come out aggressive. If you don’t, bad things happen. But I was much more pleased with the energy we showed after the intermission against a really good team,” Ludwig said. “There was unbelievable energy in this place tonight, and we appreciate all the local youth wrestlers that were here to make it a great atmosphere for college wrestling.”

The noise volume reached its peak on Friday night when Trace Engelkes (Winnebago, Ill./Winnebago) pulled off an incredible late comeback in the best contest of the night at 174 pounds. Trailing 8-4 and on bottom with less than a minute remaining, Engelkes got a reversal and followed with four nearfall points to emerge victorious by 10-9 decision over Kyle Lux and earn a standing ovation from the Huskie faithful.

The NIU fans were on their feet again after No. 16 Shawn Scott (Holly, Mich./Holly) improved to 2-0 in MAC matches this season at 197 pounds with a 3-1 sudden victory decision thanks to an overtime takedown against Jared Bartel. Gabe Morse (Alto, Mich./Lowell) at 149 pounds and Alijah Jeffery (Marion, Iowa/Linn-Mar) at 125 pounds also received the praise of their coach after recording multiple takedowns on their way to nice victories on Friday.

“Gabe wrestled a really strong match and showed good control throughout. Trace’s win was incredible with the grit and determination he displayed against the odds. That win was a huge testament to what he’s all about. Shawn had a tight battle, but he showed great leadership in winning an outstanding wrestling match. And Alijah was awesome tonight with his offensive attacks and ability to score on top,” Ludwig said of his team’s winning wrestlers.

The Huskies were unable to upset any of Northern Iowa’s three ranked wrestlers that appeared in the contest, with No. 20 Bryce Steiert at 157 and No. 7 Blaize Cabell at heavyweight recording pins and bonus points for the Panthers to extend their lead during the dual.

The NIU wrestling team faces another ranked opponent next time out, when the Huskies host No. 10 Illinois from the Big Ten on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. at Victor E. Court in a nonconference dual in DeKalb. Admission is FREE for all fans on Sunday. The dual will also be broadcast live on ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app.

#25 Northern Iowa 24, NIU 12
141: Jake Koethe (UNI) dec. #12 Steve Bleise (NIU), 8-4
149: Gabe Morse (NIU) dec. Jake Hodges (UNI), 5-3
157: #20 Bryce Steiert (UNI) pins Austin Culton (NIU), 2:12
165: Taylor Berger (UNI) dec. Shaun’Qae McMurtry (NIU), 6-5
174: Trace Engelkes (NIU) dec. Kyle Lux (UNI), 10-9
184: Cody Caldwell (UNI) dec. Quinton Rosser (NIU), 9-5
197: #16 Shawn Scott (NIU) dec. Jared Bartel (UNI), 3-1 SV
285: #7 Blaize Cabell (UNI) pins Arthur Bunce (NIU), 2:27
125: Alijah Jeffery (NIU) dec. Leighton Gaul (UNI), 10-3
133: #18 Josh Alber (UNI) dec. Austin Eicher (NIU), 9-3

--NIU--