CHADRON, Neb. – Chadron State men's wrestling will take a big step towards deciding the RMAC title race with two road duals in the span of three days. 

The No. 17-ranked Eagles (5-2, 3-1 RMAC) have two RMAC duals remaining – both this week against Western Colorado (8-4, 2-1 RMAC) on Thursday in Gunnison at 6 p.m. and No. 22-ranked Colorado Mesa (4-2, 1-2 RMAC) on Saturday at 4 p.m.

The Eagles are one of four RMAC teams with one conference loss entering this week, but the trio of CSC, Adams State and Colorado School of Mines are all 1-1 against one another and unbeaten (so far) against everyone else. The Eagles can secure at least a conference co-championship with a pair of victories this week. 

Both duals will be live-streamed on the RMAC Network, with stats available on Trackwrestling.

Looking Back
Chadron State saw its three-dual win streak snapped as the Eagles fell to No. 15-ranked Adams State 22-10 on January 31 at the Chicoine Center.

RECAP: Adams State

Adams State won the first seven matches to seal the dual, but the Eagles finished strong with wins from Keegan Gehlhausen (184 pounds), Mason Villwok (197) and Eli Reese (285), with Villwok earning a bonus point for a major decision.

RMAC Wrestler of the Week
Despite coming up short in the overall dual, Chadron State sophomore Mason Villwok took home the conference's weekly award for his performance. 

STORY: Villwok Earns RMAC Wrestler of the Week Honor

Villwok, then ranked No. 20 nationally by The Open Mat, cruised to a 16-4 major decision win over then-No. 19 Ben Tonnessen of Adams State. Villwok recorded four takedowns, a three-point near fall and the riding time point while Tonnessen only scored on escapes. 

Chadron State now has three RMAC Wrestler of the Week awards as a program this season after Quade Smith and Hunter Jacobsen won the honor in back-to-back weeks on November 11 and November 18, respectively. 

Villwok has now received a weekly award in both seasons in his career, previously winning during his true freshman season on February 18, 2025.

National Rankings
The Eagles have three ranked wrestlers in the NWCA's latest individual rankings from January 22. Two are ranked No. 4 – Quade Smith at 125 pounds and Keegan Gehlhausen at 184 pounds – while Caleb Chaves checks in ranked No. 14 at 141 pounds.

The Open Mat, which updates weekly and ranks 20 wrestlers at each weight as opposed to the NWCA's 15, has Smith at No. 5, Gehlhausen up at No. 2 and Chaves down at No. 16. Mason Villwok is also ranked No. 16 at 197 pounds, moving up four spots from last week. 

Chadron State is No. 17 overall in the NWCA's team rankings. The Eagles are No. 23 in The Open Mat's dual rankings and No. 16 in The Open Mat's team tournament rankings.

Century Club?
Chadron State head coach Brett Hunter is closing in on a major milestone. 

The Eagles' longtime leader enters this week sitting at 98 career dual victories during his time as CSC head coach. If the Eagles can go 2-0 this week, Hunter will reach the 100-win mark, but with only two duals left, CSC has no margin for error in order for Hunter to reach triple digits during the 2025-26 season.

RMAC Update
Here is how the RMAC standings look entering this week's duals:

Team                                      RMAC Dual Record
Colorado School of Mines  4-1
Adams State                         3-1
Chadron State                     3-1
Western Colorado                2-1
Colorado Mesa                     1-2
CSU Pueblo                          0-3
New Mexico Highlands       0-4

Chadron State beat Colorado School of Mines 20-13 on January 9, but Mines then beat Adams State 26-20 on January 29 before Adams State defeated Chadron 22-10 on January 31, meaning the top three teams in the league are 1-1 against each other and could all share the title if they don't stumble in the final week and a half. 

Here are each team's remaining RMAC duals:
Colorado School of Mines
vs. CSU Pueblo, 2/6

Adams State
vs. Western Colorado, 2/6
vs. New Mexico Highlands, 2/11
 
Projected Lineups
(rankings are NWCA/The Open Mat)

Chadron State
125 - #4/5 Quade Smith (18-3)
133 - Hunter Jacobsen (10-6)
141 - #14/16 Caleb Chaves (13-5)
149 - Aidan Callahan (13-7)
157 - Brandon Paredes (10-7)
165 - Tayten Gillette (11-7)
174 - Logan Berger (9-8)
184 - #4/#2 Keegan Gehlhausen (10-1)
197 - NR/#16 Mason Villwok (13-3)
285 - Eli Reese (10-5)
 
Western Colorado
125- NR/#9 Devin Gomez
133- Zach Bates
141- Celestino Gonzales
149- Eyan Chavez
157- #11/#11 Vinny Cabral
165- Jacob Blandford
174- Hunter Richardson
184- Dante Pallone/Erik Anderson/Gabrial Cox/Miles Harris
197- Sage Harrison
285- Riley Dean-Butt

Colorado Mesa
125- Adonias Cantu (16-7)
133- AJ Hague (12-5)
141- Apollo Cruz (10-8)
149- NR/#19 Alex Castenada (11-7)
157- #7/#5 Owen Cline (6-2)
165- Will Alvarado (12-11)
174- Christian Pebley (11-8)
184- Noah O'Dougherty (10-8)
197- #8/#10 Gabriel Carranza (12-4)
285- Ruben Samuelson (10-5)
 
RMAC Network Reminder
As a reminder, RMAC Network games this season now require a pay-per-view subscription to watch. Revenue generated by the network will be redistributed to the league's membership to enhance their broadcast systems and programs.
 
NEWS: RMAC Network Moves To Pay-Per-View Model
 
RMAC fans can purchase monthly and annual subscriptions that will provide them access to all live and archived broadcasts on the RMAC Network, including both home and away RMAC contests for Chadron State. A monthly subscription costs $25, and an annual subscription (for all sports) costs $130. Single-game passes are available for $10, which grants the viewer access to a single event for 24 hours. Subscriptions can be purchased through Hudl at rmacnetwork.com. 
 
RMAC Network subscriptions apply to any event that is hosted by an RMAC institution, regardless of whether Chadron State is participating. 
 
Fans will technical support issues can contact Hudl, visit the RMAC email the RMAC Network FAQ page, or directly email the RMAC at rmac@rmacsports.org.

Coach's Corner
Chadron State coach Brett Hunter is entering his 14^th season as the head coach at his alma mater. Hunter led the Eagles to its first RMAC championship in nearly 20 years in 2023-24, which earned him the RMAC Coach of the Year and NWCA Region VI Coach of the Year honors.

In that landmark 2024 season, 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 six All-American wrestlers and four 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.