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Raider wrestlers stand third ST. CHARLES, Mo . -- The Southern Oregon University wrestling team stands in third place, and four Raiders advanced to the semifinal round Thursday after one day of action at the NAIA Championships. The Raiders, with 59 points, trail only Montana State-Northern (70) and Findlay, Ohio (66.5). Missouri Valley College stands fourth with 58.5. Sophomores Ryan Escobar (125) and Dan Sturgell (184), junior Josh Morton (157) and senior Matt Armstrong (165) all charged into the semifinals. "For us to win the team title, the formula is pretty simple," SOU coach Mike Ritchey said. "We have to keep winning, get all four guys through to the finals, get some help from other schools and rack up points in the consolation rounds. "It's going to be a dogfight. It's nice to be one of the top dogs in the yard, but we're a long ways from the porch." Escobar and Armstrong advanced to the semifinals for the second straight year after each notched falls and major decisions. Armstrong is one bout away from a potential championship rematch with top seed and two-time champion Daniel Igali of Simon Fraser. Morton utilized a last-second reversal to force sudden-death overtime against Embry-Riddle's Derek Sanders in the 157-pound quarterfinals. Morton avoided an upset by taking down Sanders 43 seconds into the extra period. He faces top-ranked Rudy James of MSU-Northern in the semifinals this morning. Only Les Podlog of Simon Fraser separates Sturgell from becoming the youngest wrestler in SOU history to advance to the championship round. "Dan pinned Podlog in an exhibition match two weeks ago, but he'll need another solid performance to beat him again," Ritchey said. "Podlog is a quality wrestler, and he was just coming back from an injury when Dan beat him." Justin Thurman (133), Chris Bettineski (141), Jesse Mindlin (149), Abe Haddon (174), Brad Gray (197) and second-seeded Jamie Haddon (197) remain in contention for consolation titles and All-American accolades. "We've got more guys alive in the tournament (10) than any other team," Ritchey said. "We've got the potential to score a lot more points, and our guys are confident and determined." Among the most determined is Bettineski, who injured knee ligaments during a first-round match against No. 2 seed Jeff Showalter of Missouri Valley. The injury resulted from an illegal hold, and Bettineski was handed the win. The hobbled Bettineski dropped a 7-3 decision to Jim Sanfilippo of Findlay, but later registered a 7-4 victory over Findlay's Ron Birch to stay alive in the consolation bracket. SOU, which led the two-day, 21-team competition after the morning session, is seeking its fourth NAIA title. Today's Sports Index Mail Tribune Copyright� The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, OR U.S.A.