CHADRON, Neb. (February 25, 2023) - Colorado State University Pueblo redshirt-freshman Michael Atencio (Rye, Colo.) had a strong day at the NCAA Division II Super Regional VI and went 2-2 on the day, finishing in fourth place in the 141 pound bracket, leading four Pack players who finished in the top six on Saturday inside Chicoine Center on the campus of Chadron State College.

Along with Atencio, Cyruss Meeks (So., Casper, Wyo.) finished in fifth at 157 pounds, Ben Gould (R-Jr., Canyon Country, Calif.) ended in fifth place at 285 pounds and Elijah Valdez (R-Jr., Colorado Springs, Colo.) finished in sixth place at 165 pounds.

In his first match against Kieran Thompson of Adams State, Atencio scored a win by fall at 5:58 to remain in the championship side of the bracket.

During his next outing versus Dean Noble of Western Colorado, Atencio dropped an 8-2 decision, putting him in the backside in the field.

He responded in the consolation semifinal round versus Alex Castaneda from Colorado Mesa and secured an 11-7 victory, to advance to the third place match.

Pitted against Nick James from Nebraska-Kearney, Atencio was unable to get the upper hand and fell by tech fall 19-4.

On his journey to his fifth place finish at 157 pounds, Meeks won in sudden victory-1 over Brody Lamb from Chadron State, advancing to a semi-final match-up against Ryan Wheeler from Colorado Mesa.

In a re-match from a dual on Feb. 2 where Wheeler won by fall, Meeks battled in his time on the mat and took a tied 2-2 match into a tiebreaker that Wheeler scored the go-ahead point for the one point victory.

In the next match against Ryan Wilson from Western Colorado, another re-match from a dual earlier in the season, Meeks held strong in a 3-2 loss, falling to the fifth place match.

Facing Cody Hicks from Fort Hays State, Meeks won a 9-3 decision to take home fifth place.

At 285 pounds, Gould went 2-2 on the day and wrestled in two heartbreaking losses, resulting him to compete in the fifth place bout.

Gould lost in sudden victory-1 versus Anthony Caldwell from Fort Hays State 3-1 and he would bounce back in his next match with a 8-0 major decision win against Ruben Samuelson of Colorado Mesa.

In the consolation semifinal match,  against Taniela Feliciano-Takafua from Simon Fraser, Gould lost in double overtime, putting him in the fifth place match.

During his final match, Gould beat Zach Schraeder of Western Colorado 4-2 to cap his fifth place finish.

For Valdez at 165 pounds, he finished 2-3 on the day and picked up wins over Preston Renner of Chadron State 3-1, and San Francisco State's Boltyn Taam by a 11-2 major decision.

In his last match of the day against Augustus Dalton of Colorado Mesa, Valdez was taken down by fall at 1:57, earning a sixth place finish.

In other outings for the Pack, Conor Goucher R-Fr., Orting, Wash.), Cameron Nesbitt (Jr., Champaign, Ill.), and Donn Greer (Fr., King City, Calif.) each picked up single wins on the day.

Adams State took home the team regional title with 114 points, followed by Nebraska-Kearney (110.5) and Colorado Mesa (101.0) round out the top three.