PRINEVILLE – The No. 8-ranked Eastern Oregon men's wrestling team's highly-touted upperweights delivered in the clutch to give the Mountaineers a 19-18 edge over Southern Oregon on Wednesday night at Crook County High School.

Trailing 18-9, EOU ended the dual with three consecutive wins to avoid being swept in the season series against the Raiders. Kyle Knudton, the NAIA's No. 9-ranked 184-pounder, started the comeback with a 12-6 decision against Kabb Christensen. Marco Retano, ranked No. 6 at 197, gave the Mountaineers the deciding bonus point in a 13-4 major decision over John White. Noel Orozco, ranked No. 8 at 285, finished the job in winning by 2-1 decision against No. 20 Antonio Garcia.

The Raiders put themselves in position for another upset of their rivals with five consecutive wins before the night turned, a run capped by No. 19 Alex Hernandez's second upset of the season of No. 10 Keegan Mulhill – a 3-1 sudden victory at 174.

Decisions for No. 8 Evan Potter (141) and No. 6 Aaron Gandara (149) kept their dual records perfect. Potter, again wrestling up a weight class, defeated No. 9 Jaxon Morlan by 3-0 decision before Gandara dominated Travis Sherman, 7-1. Dylan Straley (157) followed with a 4-2 decision against Vincent Cramer, and Jordan Faifai logged a tiebreaking second-round pin of Parker Robinson at 165. Hernandez then padded the lead.

The Mountaineers had won the first two matches of the night, getting a decision from No. 24 Luciano Fasulo at 125 and a pin from No. 23 Braden Carson at 133.

The teams' two matchups this season were decided by four points combined. SOU has now lost three duals by two points or less.

The Raiders went to 9-4 in dual action heading into Saturday's final home appearance of the year. They'll host Corban at 5:30 p.m. and San Francisco State at 7 p.m. inside Bob Riehm Arena.

EASTERN OREGON 19, SOUTHERN OREGON 18
125 – #24 Luciano Fasulo, EOU, dec. Mikey Ladkani, 7-1. (3-0)
133 – #23 Braden Carson, EOU, p. #20 Simon Graeber, 6:24. (9-0)
141 – #8 Evan Potter, SOU, dec. #9 Jaxon Morlan, 3-0. (9-3)
149 – #6 Aaron Gandara, SOU, dec. Travis Sherman, 7-1. (9-6)
157 – Dylan Straley, SOU, dec. Vincent Cramer, 4-2. (9-9)
165 – Jordan Faifai, SOU, p. Parker Robinson, 4:25. (9-15)
174 – #19 Alex Hernandez, SOU, dec. #10 Keegan Mulhill, 3-1 (SV). (9-18)
184 – #9 Kyle Knudtson, EOU, dec. Kabb Christensen, 12-6. (12-18)
197 – #6 Marco Retano, EOU, major dec. John White, 13-4. (16-18)
285 – #8 Noel Orozco, EOU, dec. #20 Antonio Garcia, 2-1. (19-18)