Augustana’s Jay Sherer celebrates his quarterfinal win. Photo by Matt Pfiffner, The Predicament.

KEARNEY, Neb. – The top-ranked Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks saw two top-ranked wrestlers fall on the first day of the NCAA Division II Championships.

But UNO somehow still managed to emerge from Day 1 on Friday with the top spot in the team standings at the halfway mark of the event.

The Mavericks hold a narrow lead, 57.5 points to 54.5, over No. 4 Augustana.

Both teams have seven wrestlers still alive, but Augustana advanced six to the semifinals after a superb day of wrestling. UNO has four in the semifinals among its seven All-Americans.

“We just have to remember, it is four rounds and not two rounds,” said UNO coach Mike Denney, whose teams have won six national titles. “We are OK, we just have to keep wrestling. We weren’t as sharp as we’ve been, but we had some tough draws. We were able to score some bonus points there, and that was a big help.”

The semifinals are set for 10 a.m. Saturday with the finals scheduled for 7 p.m.

Augustana has never won an NCAA Division II title in wrestling. The Vikings were second behind UNO in 2005 and 2010.

Augustana rattled off wins in the first four weight classes of the quarterfinals, including No. 4 Nate Herda’s 6-4 win over No. 1 Esai Dominguez of Nebraska-Omaha at 149 pounds.

“It was a good day, a real good day,” Augustana coach Jason Reitmeier said. “We’ve trained hard the last two weeks. We’ve got some guys peaking at the right time. They’re confident and they’re excited to be here. They were ready to wrestle. We are not going to worry about team standings right now. We are going to worry about matches and trying to get guys in the finals.”

Second-ranked St. Cloud State stands in third place with 47 points and three in the semifinals. Third-ranked Newberry is fourth with 41 points and three in the semifinals. Grand Canyon is fifth with 38.5 points and four in the semis.

Dominguez scored a third-period takedown to lead 4-3, but Herder responded with an escape and takedown to pull out a 6-4 win.

The wrestlers had split matches during the season, with Herder winning at National Duals before Dominguez rebounded to win in a dual meet at Augustana. Dominguez came back to record a pin and clinch All-American honors for the third straight year.

The Mavericks, seeking their third straight title, received a big boost when top-ranked Mario Morgan hit a lateral drop to pin San Francisco State’s Naveed Bagheri at 141. Morgan, second in this event last year, trailed 3-2 late in the match before launching the fourth-ranked Bagheri to his back for the fall.

Morgan has won 26 straight matches after starting the season 2-4.

Top-ranked George Ivanov of UNO was upset in the first round at 157, but he bounced back to win two matches to clinch All-American honors.

Returning national champions Jay Sherer of Augustana (141), Bryant Blanton of Newberry (184) and Donovan McMahill of Western State (197) each advanced to the semifinal round.

Sherer will meet Nebraska-Kearney’s Dalton Jensen in the semifinals. Jensen was an NCAA Division I qualifier for Iowa State last year.

Blanton will battle Charlie Pipher of Western State in the semifinals.

McMahill will meet Augustana’s Tyler Copsey in the semifinals. McMahill beat Copsey in the finals last year.

TEAM SCORING AFTER SESSION II
Nebraska-Omaha 57.5, Augustana 54.5, St. Cloud State 47, Newberry 41, Grand Canyon 38.5, Western State 37, Upper Iowa 35, Nebraska-Kearney 30.5, Wisconsin Parkside 28, Minnesota State Mankato 21.5.

SATURDAY MORNING’S SEMIFINAL MATCHUPS

125 POUNDS
John McDonald (Newberry) vs. Trevor Franklin (Upper Iowa)
Christopher Kochinsky (Shippensburg) vs. Alex Meger (Augustana)

133 POUNDS
Jason Jeremiason (Augustana) vs. Todd Wilcox (Grand Canyon)
Kyle Pedretti (Upper Iowa) vs. William Young (Newberry)

141 POUNDS
Matt Irwin (Indianapolis) vs. Mario Morgan (Nebraska-Omaha)
Jay Sherer (Augustana) vs. Dalton Jensen (Nebraska-Kearney)

149 POUNDS
Mitchell Means (Fort Hays State) vs. Nick Walpole (Indianapolis)
T.J. Hepburn (Nebraska-Kearney) vs. Nate Herda (Augustana)

157 POUNDS
Jordan Shields (Mercyhurst) vs. John Sundgren (St. Cloud State)
Teddy Bristol (Grand Canyon) vs. Dillon Bera (Wisconsin Parkside)

165 POUNDS
Gavin Nelson (Augustana) vs. Michael Lybarger (Findlay)
Zack McKendree (Gannon) vs. Joey Wilson (Nebraska-Kearney)

174 POUNDS
Luke Rynish (East Stroudsburg) vs. Shamus O’Grady (St. Cloud State)
Victor Carazo (Grand Canyon) vs. Ryan Pankoke (Nebraska-Omaha)

184 POUNDS
Bryant Blanton (Newberry) vs. Charlie Pipher (Western State)
Aaron Denson (Nebraska-Omaha) vs. Aaron Norgren (Minnesota State Mankato)

197 POUNDS
Mitch Knapp (West Liberty State) vs. Eli Arizmendez (Grand Canyon)
Tyler Copsey (Augustana) vs. Donovan McMahill (Western State)

285 POUNDS
Taylor Escamilla (Nebraska-Omaha) vs. Jake Kahnke (St. Cloud State)
Charlie Alexander (Western State) vs. Matthew Mueleners (Northern State)