Head coach Chris Walter watched intently Sunday as the Pioneer wrestling team hosted its annual Blue/Orange Dual.

“The wrestle-offs are designed to get guys at their weight and used to wrestling at their weight, setting a pecking order in each weight class and getting guys in real match situations,” Walter said.

While the intrasquad dual at Bo Ryan Court played a role in the decisions Walter and his assistant coaches made in the process of cutting the team from the 45 who came out to the final 30 man roster, it was not the only factor.

“We look at things like how the guys’ grades are, how hard they work in the practice room,” Walter said.  “We know guys can have bad days, so wrestle-offs aren’t everything.”

Walter said he was impressed by the efforts of individuals such as sophomore Tyler Henken and freshman Cole Ferguson.

“A lot of the guys who stuck out were young guys, so it was good to see them perform well,” Walter said.

The Pioneers will begin their season Saturday, competing at the Loras Open at the Five Flags Center in Dubuque, Iowa.

“The nice thing about that tournament is that it has a freshman division, so those guys can get their feet wet in college wrestling,” Walter said.

The Pioneers will hold out some starters from the Loras Open, however, because they will have their first dual Thursday, Nov. 8 against No. 5 University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, and then compete in the Knox Tournament in Galesburg, Ill., two days later.