With a new head coach at the helm, Simpson College wrestling has set a goal to improve at each and every match this season. 

The team is 2-6 in duals and placed 10th in a 12 team field in the Under Armour Invitational. They have yet to win against a conference opponent this year. Head coach Dylan Peters said he has seen a lot of improvement from his team and is excited to see what is to come.  

Peters inherited a young team with 23 freshmen on the team. 

“The sophomore class has done a great job stepping up and helping the young guys and we have one lone senior in Sam (Mathis) who has taken it upon himself to help the upper weights,” Peters said.

Entering his first year, Peters was looking to build a culture where his team is willing to embrace the process and willing to grind all season.

“Our dual record is not what we are focusing on, just getting better every day,” Peters said.

The future is promising for this young team with the young leadership that it has.

One of these freshman standouts has been Dalton Cockman, who has an overall record of 11-8 and a dual record of 3-4 at 165 lbs. Cockman has three pins and five major decisions.

“He’s placed at every open we have sent him to. His skills we’ve been working on, and you can see them in competition,” Peters said.

Another standout on the team is sophomore Dylan Mchesney who sits at a 10-8 record and 5-3 in duals. He has four wins by pins and now sits at 22 wins on his career.

The team is getting into the point of the season where they get into the American Rivers Conference duals.

“It’s getting down to where everything counts. We’ve been building for March and building for the region at the end of February and it’s about that time all that hard work you put in, it’s time to cash in,” Peters said. 

Growth is the mantra of the team moving forward into this tough conference stretch. They are trying to make it to the Lower Midwest Regionals in Dubuque at the end of February and then the NCAA Division Championships in March.

To start off this back stretch, the Storm are going to Lincoln, Neb. on Jan. 25 to face Nebraska Wesleyan, No. 3 ranked Loras, No. 17 Luther and No. 5 Coe in the A-R-C duals. 

The duals start at 9 a.m. against the Prairie Wolves. The Storm will return home on Jan. 31 in Hopper Gymnasium to face the Dubuque Spartans.