BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The SIUE wrestling team competed in three dual meets at the Indiana Duals on Saturday, and the Cougars picked up their first conference victory as a member of the Southern Conference.

SIUE defeated SoCon foe Gardner-Webb 24-21 despite being forced to forfeit at two weight classes.  With the win, the Cougars avenged a 32-13 loss to the Runnin' Bulldogs last season.

 "We wrestled well in our first conference match of the year and to get the win was pretty big," Head Coach David Ray said.  "We were able to win three matches with pins, and that's what made the difference."

Senior Kyle Lowman (157 pounds) and juniors Deshoun White (174) and Josh Wood (197) all earned pins against their Gardner-Webb opponents to propel the Cougars to victory.

Also picking up wins against the Runnin' Bulldogs were sophomore Patrick Myers (133) and freshman Jake Residori (165).

"We wrestled better today than we did last weekend (at the Iowa Duals)," Ray added.  "We're very young, but we have to make sure that we're improving every time we step on the mat."

The Cougars lost 33-11 to host Indiana and fell 25-15 to Bucknell.

Myers and Wood both went undefeated in their three matches Saturday.  Myers improved to 9-1 on the season while Wood moved to 6-4.

"We'll improve as the season goes along, and we'll get better every match," Ray said.  "We'll go back to the drawing board, watch the film, and correct our mistakes."

Next up for SIUE is a dual meet at South Dakota State Dec. 8.