CHADRON, Neb. – After a successful start to the year two weeks ago, the Chadron State men's wrestling program will compete at the premier open tournament in college wrestling this Saturday in Kearney.

The Eagles will attend the Younes Hospitality Open, hosted by the University of Nebraska-Kearney at the Buffalo County Fairgrounds. The massive tournament, considered the largest college tournament in the country, will feature up to 18 mats in action with 750 total entries and 54 competing teams from Division I, Division II, Division III, NAIA and junior college. 

The open will feature "Elite" and "Amateur" brackets at each weight class. No team scoring will be kept.

Fans can access brackets, entries and results on Trackwrestling. Video streams will be available with a FloSports subscription. 

Looking Back
Chadron State wrestling opened its season by competing at the DWU Open hosted by Dakota Wesleyan University on November 9.

RECAP: Heavyweights Lead CSC At Opening Tourney

The Eagles won the 285-pound weight class courtesy of junior transfer Cody Pinkerton, who won all four of his matches. Torry Early finished second at 149 pounds and Brandon Paredes placed second at 157 pounds. 

RMAC Award
After winning the DWU heavyweight title, Pinkerton was named the RMAC's Wrestler of the Week back on November 13. 

NEWS: Pinkerton Wins RMAC Wrestler of the Week

Pinkerton defeated South Dakota State's Regan Bollweg by fall in 2:59 in the first round, won his second-round match 16-1 by tech fall over Ridgewater College's Tucker Hugg, beat Northern State's Ayden Viox by 9-3 decision in the quarterfinal and defeated Iowa Western's Orion Parker by fall in 2:10 in the semifinal. 

He was scheduled to face freshman teammate Mason Villwok in the championship bout, but Villwok medically forfeited and the two did not wrestle one another in the open. 

Pinkerton, a native of Douglas, Wyoming, is a first-year Eagle, coming to CSC from Northwest College, a junior college in his home state. While at Northwest, Pinkerton took fifth place at the NJCAA National Tournament.

National Rankings
Chadron State currently has three wrestlers who are ranked nationally in their respective weight classes, according to The Open Mat's NCAA Division II Wrestling Rankings. 

Redshirt senior Quade Smith is ranked No. 20 in the country at 133 pounds, graduate student Torry Early is ranked No. 19 nationally at 149 pounds and redshirt junior Keegan Gehlhausen is ranked No. 14 nationally at 184 pounds. 

This weekend provides an opportunity for Chadron State wrestlers to either rise or enter the rankings with a good performance, as many of the nation's top wrestlers will be competing in Kearney. 

In the team tournament rankings, RMAC schools Adams State (No. 9), Western Colorado (No. 15), Colorado School of Mines (No. 21) and Colorado Mesa (No. 22) are nationally ranked. 

Those same four schools appear in the national dual rankings, with Colorado Mesa at No. 11, Adams State at No. 14, Mines at No. 21 and Western Colorado at No. 22. 

Entry List
Chadron State will be bringing 10 wrestlers to compete in the "Elite" brackets at the UNK open and nine wrestlers to compete in the "Amateur" brackets, in addition to some unattached wrestlers who are competing unofficially. 

Here are the attached Eagles scheduled to compete, sorted by weight class:

Elite
133 pounds – Colter Julian
149 pounds – Torry Early
157 pounds – Hunter Gilmore, Brandon Paredes 
165 pounds – Tayten Gillette, Jaziah Whaley, Dylan White
174 pounds – Logan Berger 
184 pounds – Keegan Gehlhausen
285 pounds – Cody Pinkerton

Amateur
125 pounds – Yusef Nelson
141 pounds – Skyler Geier-Dodson, Kyle Lewis, Cyrus Wells
149 pounds – Grady Fox, Caleb Nadig
157 pounds – Adam Kruse, Tate Rusher
197 pounds – Dominic Joyce

Coach's Corner
Chadron State coach Brett Hunter is entering his 14^th season as the head coach at his alma mater. Hunter is the reigning RMAC Coach of the Year and NWCA Region VI Coach of the Year.

Hunter and the Eagles are coming off a landmark 2024 season that saw the Eagles win their first RMAC wrestling title since 1995. The Eagles finished with a 10-1 overall dual record, including an undefeated 8-0 mark in RMAC duals, with two national tournament qualifiers. At CSC, Hunter has coached five All-American wrestlers and three individual regional champions. 

As a Chadron State student-athlete, Hunter holds the program record for most wins, finishing with a career record of 133-32. He is the school's only repeat national champion, winning NCAA titles at 165 pounds in 2007 and 174 pounds in 2009. Hunter was inducted into the Chadron State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2024.