Northwestern University Athletics
Friday, December 19
Evanston, Ill.
6 p.m. CT
Northwestern
19
vs
13
Lock Haven
'Cats Top Lock Haven, 19-13, in Home Opener
12/19/2025 9:21:00 PM | Wrestling
EVANSTON, Ill. - Northwestern wrestling came out victorious in its home opener on Friday, defeating Lock Haven (2-3) by a final score of 19-13. The 'Cats won six of ten weight classes to improve to 2-1 this season in dual action.
Wrestling first at 125 lbs, No. 21 Dedrick Navarro put Northwestern on top with a 12-5 decision over Lock Haven's Curtis Nelson. Nelson struck early with the bout's first takedown, but Navarro used an escape and a takedown of his own to flip the scoreboard, 4-3, before notching two nearfall points to extend his lead. Following a scoreless second period, the wrestlers traded reversals to start the third. A second third-period reversal and a point for stalling for Navarro wrapped up the bout and secured his victory by decision, giving Northwestern a 3-0 team lead.
Making his Welsh-Ryan debut, graduate transfer Sean Spidle doubled up the 'Cats' advantage with a 4-2 decision at 133 lbs. The match was neck-and-neck through the first two periods, with Lock Haven's Gable Strickland holding the narrow 1-0 lead following a stalling penalty on Spidle. In the third, Spidle notched a reversal to take his first lead of the match, and after a penalty point for each wrestler and the riding time point secured by Spidle, he collected Northwestern's second win of the match.
The 'Cats' next victory came at 149 lbs, where Sam Cartella defeated Hunter Gould by decision, 8-3. Cartella put points on the board first with a takedown a minute into the match - a lead he would never surrender. Four nearfall points in the second were enough to boost Cartella to victory, as Gould's only points came on a first-period escape and a pair of stalling points in the third.
The teams entered the intermission just two points apart, 9-7 in Northwestern's favor, but the 'Cats came out of the break ready, running off three straight victories to extend their lead to 12 points, 19-7. First up in the second half was Jacob Bostelman, who used a clutch takedown with just 30 seconds left in the bout to win his match, 4-1.
At 174 lbs, No. 27 Eddie Enright picked up his second dual win of the season with a ranked win over No. 32 Avery Bassett. Enright led from start to finish, taking the lead on a first-period takedown, adding on with a reversal in the second, and closing it out with another reversal in the third to lock up an 8-3 victory by decision.
Northwestern's sixth and final win of the evening came in style, with graduate transfer J.D. Perez picking up bonus points at 184 lbs. After Lock Haven's Sam Gautreau took an early shot just five seconds into the match, Perez turned the tables with a reversal, then converted that to four nearfall points to take a 7-0 lead out of the gate. He would notch another takedown before the period expired, putting him up 10-0 after the first three minutes. The second period slowed down, with Gautreau gathering the only point on an escape, but Perez pushed the pace again in the third to close things out. Two more takedowns in the third and over two minutes of riding time in the match lifted Perez to a major decision, 17-3.
Despite setbacks in the final two weight classes, the 'Cats took home a 19-13 win in their first home dual of the season. They will look to carry the momentum forward as they prepare for the 61st Annual Ken Kraft Midlands Championships, hosted in Ryan Fieldhouse on December 29-30.
Northwestern 19, Lock Haven 13
125: #21 Dedrick Navarro (Northwestern) over Curtis Nelson (Lock Haven) (Dec 12-5)
133: #24 Sean Spidle (Northwestern) over Gable Strickland (Lock Haven) (Dec 4-2)
141: #22 Wyatt Henson (Lock Haven) over #27 Billy Dekraker (Northwestern) (MD 13-4)
149: Sam Cartella (Northwestern) over Hunter Gould (Lock Haven) (Dec 8-3)
157: Nick Stampoulos (Lock Haven) over Gunnar Myers (Northwestern) (Dec 5-2)
165: Jacob Bostelman (Northwestern) over Ousamane Duncanson (Lock Haven) (Dec 4-1)
174: #27 Eddie Enright (Northwestern) over #32 Avery Bassett (Lock Haven) (Dec 8-3)
184: J.D. Perez (Northwestern) over Sam Gautreau (Lock Haven) (MD 17-3)
197: Tucker Hogan (Lock Haven) over Alex Smith (Northwestern) (Dec 13-10)
285: Kade Sottolano (Lock Haven) over Gabe Christenson (Northwestern) (TB-1 3-2)
* All individual rankings courtesy of InterMat (December 16)
Wrestling first at 125 lbs, No. 21 Dedrick Navarro put Northwestern on top with a 12-5 decision over Lock Haven's Curtis Nelson. Nelson struck early with the bout's first takedown, but Navarro used an escape and a takedown of his own to flip the scoreboard, 4-3, before notching two nearfall points to extend his lead. Following a scoreless second period, the wrestlers traded reversals to start the third. A second third-period reversal and a point for stalling for Navarro wrapped up the bout and secured his victory by decision, giving Northwestern a 3-0 team lead.
Making his Welsh-Ryan debut, graduate transfer Sean Spidle doubled up the 'Cats' advantage with a 4-2 decision at 133 lbs. The match was neck-and-neck through the first two periods, with Lock Haven's Gable Strickland holding the narrow 1-0 lead following a stalling penalty on Spidle. In the third, Spidle notched a reversal to take his first lead of the match, and after a penalty point for each wrestler and the riding time point secured by Spidle, he collected Northwestern's second win of the match.
The 'Cats' next victory came at 149 lbs, where Sam Cartella defeated Hunter Gould by decision, 8-3. Cartella put points on the board first with a takedown a minute into the match - a lead he would never surrender. Four nearfall points in the second were enough to boost Cartella to victory, as Gould's only points came on a first-period escape and a pair of stalling points in the third.
The teams entered the intermission just two points apart, 9-7 in Northwestern's favor, but the 'Cats came out of the break ready, running off three straight victories to extend their lead to 12 points, 19-7. First up in the second half was Jacob Bostelman, who used a clutch takedown with just 30 seconds left in the bout to win his match, 4-1.
At 174 lbs, No. 27 Eddie Enright picked up his second dual win of the season with a ranked win over No. 32 Avery Bassett. Enright led from start to finish, taking the lead on a first-period takedown, adding on with a reversal in the second, and closing it out with another reversal in the third to lock up an 8-3 victory by decision.
Northwestern's sixth and final win of the evening came in style, with graduate transfer J.D. Perez picking up bonus points at 184 lbs. After Lock Haven's Sam Gautreau took an early shot just five seconds into the match, Perez turned the tables with a reversal, then converted that to four nearfall points to take a 7-0 lead out of the gate. He would notch another takedown before the period expired, putting him up 10-0 after the first three minutes. The second period slowed down, with Gautreau gathering the only point on an escape, but Perez pushed the pace again in the third to close things out. Two more takedowns in the third and over two minutes of riding time in the match lifted Perez to a major decision, 17-3.
Despite setbacks in the final two weight classes, the 'Cats took home a 19-13 win in their first home dual of the season. They will look to carry the momentum forward as they prepare for the 61st Annual Ken Kraft Midlands Championships, hosted in Ryan Fieldhouse on December 29-30.
Northwestern 19, Lock Haven 13
125: #21 Dedrick Navarro (Northwestern) over Curtis Nelson (Lock Haven) (Dec 12-5)
133: #24 Sean Spidle (Northwestern) over Gable Strickland (Lock Haven) (Dec 4-2)
141: #22 Wyatt Henson (Lock Haven) over #27 Billy Dekraker (Northwestern) (MD 13-4)
149: Sam Cartella (Northwestern) over Hunter Gould (Lock Haven) (Dec 8-3)
157: Nick Stampoulos (Lock Haven) over Gunnar Myers (Northwestern) (Dec 5-2)
165: Jacob Bostelman (Northwestern) over Ousamane Duncanson (Lock Haven) (Dec 4-1)
174: #27 Eddie Enright (Northwestern) over #32 Avery Bassett (Lock Haven) (Dec 8-3)
184: J.D. Perez (Northwestern) over Sam Gautreau (Lock Haven) (MD 17-3)
197: Tucker Hogan (Lock Haven) over Alex Smith (Northwestern) (Dec 13-10)
285: Kade Sottolano (Lock Haven) over Gabe Christenson (Northwestern) (TB-1 3-2)
* All individual rankings courtesy of InterMat (December 16)
Players Mentioned
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