California Baptist University
CSU Bakersfield
Early Momentum Helps CBU Dominate CSUB in Final Dual of the Season
2/21/2025 8:45:00 PM | Wrestling
BAKERSFIELD, CA--- The California Baptist University wrestling team finished off the 2024-25 regular season in dramatic fashion, dominating their in-state foes of Cal State Bakersfield 30-11 on the road on Friday evening.
CBU gained momentum early with bonus points in two of their first three matches and would ultimately win seven of the ten matches to claim their third straight victory over the Roadrunners. The Lancers finish the season with a 6-9 dual record and will have bragging rights over their SoCal neighbors, going 2-0 against Cal Poly and Cal State Bakersfield this season.
The dual began at 157lbs with Drayden Morton facing off against Jose Fairas of CSUB. Morton was dominant from the start, utilizing an array of moves to put the Bakersfield wrestler in a 14-2 hole in the second period. Morton would register the fall toward the end of the second period to give CBU six early points and momentum out of the gate. Daniel Manibog would keep the momentum alive at 165lbs as he would earn a late third-period takedown to secure a gritty 4-2 decision over Guillermo Escobedo. The momentum continued rolling for CBU into the 174lbs bout, where Carter Schmidt would score seven takedowns on Chris Neal en route to earning a technical fall and building the Lancers an early 14-0 lead at the Icardo Center.
Bakersfield would get on the board at 184lbs with a decision and build some momentum with bonus points at 197lbs from 2021 National Champion #2 AJ Ferrari. Ferrari earned the Roadrunners a technical fall in his bout to cut the Lancer lead down to 14-8 as the two teams headed to intermission. After the break, Tristan Kemp would halt the CSUB momentum with a scrappy 3-1 decision win at heavyweight. Kemp would force multiple stall calls against his opponent to help ride out the victory for the Lancers. CSUB got back on the board at 125lbs with a low-scoring decision win but would have to forfeit the 133lb bout due to injury.
The forfeit gave CBU a commanding 23-11 lead with just two bouts remaining. In his first dual of 2025, Elijah Griffin would stomp out any remaining hope the Roadrunners had of mounting a comeback with a shutout win at 141lbs. Griffin would secure two takedowns and build up significant riding time to secure an 8-0 major decision over Hayden Zinkin. Griffin had not competed for CBU since the Midlands Invitational in December due to injury, and his return sparked momentum for CBU heading into postseason competition. Freshman Paul Kelly would add to the final score with a 6-0 decision to finalize the 30-11 road victory for the Lancers.
RESULTS:
CBU 30 CSUB 11
157: Drayden Morton (CBU) pins Jose Farias (CSUB) (FALL 4:31)
165: Daniel Manibog (CBU) over Guillermos Escobedo (CSUB) by decision 4-2
174: Carter Schmidt (CBU) over Chris Neal (CSUB) by technical fall 22-6 (6:28)
184: Gerrit Nijenhuis (CSUB) over Mason Espinoza (CBU) by decision 12-7
197: #2 AJ Ferrari (CSUB) over Eli Sheeren (CBU) by technical fall 20-4 (6:45)
HWT: Tristan Kemp (CBU) over Eric Mittlestead (CSUB) by decision 3-1
125: Richard Castro-Sandoval (CSUB) over Mitchell Neiner (CBU) by decision 4-2
133: Damian Alvarez over CSUB (Forfeit)
141: Elijah Griffin (CBU) over Hayden Zinkin (CSUB) by major decision 8-0
149: Paul Kelly (CBU) over Brock Rogers (CSUB) by decision 6-0
NEXT: CBU will turn its eyes toward the postseason as they prepare to compete in the BIG 12 Championships beginning on March 8 in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Players Mentioned
