Simpson takes down Buena Vista

 Postdual Interview - Head Coach, Clint Manny

INDIANOLA, Iowa - It had been a long time coming for head coach Clint Manny and the Simpson wrestling team.

Simpson carried the weight of 19 consecutive Iowa Conference loses into Tuesday's dual, but emphatically snapped the streak with a convincing 27-12 win over Buena Vista in the home finale at Cowles Fieldhouse.

The Storm (6-10, 1-3 Iowa Conference) won 7 of 9 contested matches and earned bonus points in three wins against the Beavers (3-6, 0-4), en-route to their first win against a conference foe since February of 2009.

"It's been a long time coming," Manny said. "It doesn't mean a whole lot to the young guys, but to the lone senior and juniors, those guys have been through a battle the last few years. It's a huge starting point to future success."

The match turned in Simpson's favor early on. After surrendering six points due to a forfeit at 125 pounds, Devin Rausch pinned Mike Beradesco in the second period at 133, tying the dual.

"That's a huge game-changer as far as a dual meet is concerned," Manny said. "He was down in that match when he got the reversal for the pin. It got everyone fired up and got the crowd involved."

Rausch's pin sparked a string of six-straight wins for the Storm. Spencer Courier and Cory Stratton provided the team with bonus points as Courier won by a 16-0 technical fall over Steve Gutchenritter at 141 and Stratton earned a 13-4 major decision over Seth Shatto at 165.

With the outcome still in doubt, Justin Bruce all-but put it out of reach when he turned a 4-4 tie at the end of the second period into a 7-4 win with an escape and a takedown in the third period agaisnt Casey Paprocki at 174.

"[That win] didn't quite seal the deal but put us in the driver's seat for the remainder of the dual," Manny said. "We knew coming in it was going to be a fight. Justin did a good job, stuck to the game plan, worked his offensive shots and put himself in a position to win. I feel confident in his ability when its tight ... the third period is his best period."

Simpson's final win of the night came courtesy of Ethan Calvert. Calvert, who also plays football for the Storm, beat Joe Klinkel at 197 pounds in his first match of the season after joining the squad early in the second semester.

Ryan Haworth, the team's only senior, got an opportunity to wrestle at heavyweight. Despite a 5-0 loss to Matt Sefcik, Manny was happy to give his senior a chance to perform in his last home match.

"He's been through it all for us the last three years," Manny said. "To be able to reward him with an opportunity to wrestle in front of his home crowd in the last home dual, I take a lot of pride in us being able to do that."

Simpson travels to Cedar Rapids for the Iowa Conference duals this weekend, where it will face No. 1 Wartburg, No. 4 Coe and No. 20 Dubuque.