MOUNT VERNON – Cornell's No. 24 nationally-ranked men's wrestling team finished with a flurry of bonus points in the final three matches, although No. 11 Loras took Thursday's dual meet, 26-18, inside the Small Athletic and Wellness Center.
 
The Rams (4-4) came on strong late in the Top 25 matchup, after Loras (3-1) built a 26-3 cushion through seven bouts.
 
Cornell's senior fourth-ranked 184-pounder Cael McLaren registered five takedowns in a 17-3 major decision over Landry Barker. The dominant win moved the 2024 NCAA qualifier to 12-1 on the season.  
 
At 197, 11th-ranked Treyten Steffen handled Loras' Alex Watson with a 16-0 technical fall in 5:56. Steffen (9-3) tallied seven points in the final period to end the match early.
 
Cornell's 12th-ranked heavyweight Jackson Brinker brought the home fans to their feet with a third-period pin in 5:51 over Jackson Van Keuren. Brinker (5-5) trailed 7-3 before his big move in the final period.  
 
The Rams received a 7-4 upset win from junior 133-pounder Eli Sneed over 14th-ranked Aiden Evans. Sneed (9-7) broke a 4-4 score on a takedown with 32 seconds remaining, tying the meet at 3-3.
 
Loras prevailed in six of the 10 matches, which included a pin from fourth-ranked Eric Kinkaid at 157 (:45 over AJ Parrish) and technical falls from eighth-ranked Dustin Bohren at 165 (16-1 over Brian Petry) and third-ranked Zeb Gnida at 174 (15-0 over Logan Pausch).
 
At 125, Cornell's Jase Van Pelt dropped a 4-1 decision to Connor Fiser. Cornell's 12th-ranked Landon Card fell 10-4 to Chase Fiser at 149. Loras' Nosa Egbon scored a 15-4 major decision over Christian Diaz at 141.
 
The meet featured eight nationally-rated individuals.
 
The Duhawks held a 17-12 advantage in total takedowns and posted 14 near-fall points, to Cornell's four.   
 
Coming up – The Rams compete at the Luther duals Saturday in Decorah. Cornell faces UW-Stevens Point at 1 p.m., followed by a 4 p.m. dual against 23rd-ranked Luther.