All-Academy Championship
The Citadel
West Point, N.Y. ? Fifth year senior Darius Caldwell placed second at 184 pounds and six other Bulldogs placed to lead The Citadel to a fourth place team finish at the All-Academy Wrestling Championships on Saturday at the U.S. Military Academy.
Caldwell, who entered the tournament as the second seed, opened the tournament with a 14-6 major decision over the Merchant Marine Academy’s Troy McGuiness. He then defeated Navy’s Casey Caldwell, the eventual third place finisher, with a 3-2 decision. In the championship bout, Army’s top seeded Scott Ferguson took an 8-2 decision to end Caldwell’s title hopes.
At 125 pounds, sophomore Tyler Sim won his first match by pinning the Coast Guard Academy’s Alex Gebhart at 4:08. Sim then lost his second round match to top-seeded Fernando Martinez of Army by a 12-4 major decision. Sim bounced back to defeat Air Force’s Andrew Zwirlein 6-5 and then won the third place match with a 10-5 decision over third-seeded Jeremy Adams of VMI. The victory also avenged Sim’s 2-0 loss to Adams earlier in the season.
Junior Anthony Easter overcame a 3-1 first round loss to VMI’s Tyler Anthony by winning a 4-2 decision to eliminate Norwich’s fourth-seeded Brian Zane. Easter then won the third place match when he took a medical forfeit from Anthony to defeat the two-seed in the pairs’ second match of the day.
At 141 pounds, freshman Kip Thompson lost his opening round match to Merchant Marine’s James Beshada and was eliminated by Navy’s Caleeb Levee in back to back major decision losses, 11-2 and 15-3.
Redshirt freshman Derek Royster won his opening bout at 149 pounds with a 12-3 major decision over Norwich’s Ryan Crosby. Royster then lost a 15-7 major decision to top seed and eventual champion Bryce Saddoris of Navy. Royster was eliminated when Air Force’s Chris Szabolcs pinned him at 3:15 in his third match of the day.
The Bulldogs’ 157 pounder, freshman Keith Koziel, lost his opening match to Army’s Christian Snook by a 13-5 major decision, but bounced back with a pin of Coast Guard’s Fran Obrien at 4:16 and a 6-2 decision over Air Force’s Tony Dorward to get into the third place match. In the consolation final, Merchant Marine’s Scott Lowe edged out Koziel by a 7-6 decision to give Koziel fourth place.
Freshman Brendan Prince opened with a 4-3 loss to Navy’s Jason Coyne at 165 pounds. He then won by a 23-7 tech fall at 7:00 over Norwich’s Matt Valnoski, and won by medical forfeit over VMI’s Jayme Gordon to reach the third place match. Coyne edged Prince by one point for the second time in the tournament to win the third place match, 5-4.
At 174 pounds, freshman Derek Sickel lost his opening match to Air Force’s Tyler French by an 11-2 major decision. Sickel was then eliminated when Coast Guard’s Kevin Robinson defeated him, 4-2.
Fifth year senior John Buck started his day with a 22-5 tech fall over Norwich’s Jordan Ferguson at 6:45. Buck then lost an 11-6 decision to top seeded Matt Parsons of Navy. Buck then won a 10-2 major decision over VMI’s Ronnie Ellsworth to advance to the third place match. In the consolation final, Merchant Marine’s Eric Vincent defeated Buck by a 7-3 decision.
In the heavyweight division, redshirt junior Aaron Brown won his first round match with a 3-2 decision over VMI’s Leon Barrow. Brown was then pinned at 0:38 by eventual champion Ed Prendergast of Navy. Brown came back to record a fall of his own in his third match as he pinned Merchant Marine’s Judson Connell at 0:25. In the third place match, Air Force’s Anthony Stegeman defeated Brown by a 5-1 decision.
Army won the team tournament, followed by Navy, Air Force and The Citadel. Merchant Marine, VMI, Coast Guard and Norwich rounded out the field.
Navy’s Matt Stolpinski was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler after winning his fourth-straight individual title at 174 pounds.
The Citadel will return to the mat on Saturday, Feb. 9 when they host SoCon rival Appalachian State at 2 p.m. in McAlister Field House.
14th-Annual USAA Academy Wrestling Championships
Team Scores
1. Army 111.0; 2. Navy 106.0; 3. Air Force 54.5; 4. The Citadel 49.5; 5. Merchant Marine 43.0; 6. VMI 34.0; 7. Coast Guard 5.0; 8. Norwich 1.0.
Championship Bouts
125 - #1 Fernando Martinez (Army) maj. #2 Joey Boone (Navy), 12-3
133 - #1 Joe Baker (Navy) maj. #3 Whitt Dunning (Army), 10-2
141 - #1 Matthew Kyler (Army) dec. #3 Jake Kriegbaum (Air Force), 10-3
149 - #1 Bryce Sandoris (Navy) dec. #2 Casey Thome (Army), 6-3
157 - #2 Spencer Manley (Navy) dec. #1 Christian Snook (Army), 4-1
165 - #2 Stephen Crozier (Air Force) pin. #1 Vincent Renaut (Merchant Marine) 4:14
174 - #1 Matt Stolpinski (Navy) pin. #3 Ryan Mergen (Army) 2:22
184 - #1 Scott Ferguson (Army) dec. #2 Darius Caldwell (The Citadel), 8-2
197 - #2 Richard Starks (Army) pin. #1 Matt Parsons (Navy) 6:06
285 - #1 Ed Prendergast (Navy) dec. #2 Nathan Thobaben (Army), 5-3 (OT)
(# before each name is seed for the championship)
VMI
WEST POINT, N.Y.- The VMI wrestling team took sixth place at the 14th Annual All-Academy Championships on Saturday, hosted by the U.S. Military Academy at Christl Arena. Seniors David Metzler, Tyler Anthony and Dustin McCabe led the way, placing in the 141, 133 and 174-pound weight classes, respectively.
Metzler (Dayton, Va.) took third place at 141, pinning his first opponent, Jon Egan of Norwich, in 1:48. He then dropped a12-2 major decision to Air Force’s Jake Kriegbaum in the Championship Semifinals, before bouncing back with his second pin of the day, taking down Navy’s Caleeb Levee in 2:06 to advance to the Consolation Finals.
There, Metzler won a major decision of his own, posting a 16-4 win against Merchant Marine’s James Beshada to take the third place match. Anthony (Canton, Ohio) needed extra time in each of his first two matches at 133 lbs., advancing with a 3-1 decision over The Citadel’s Anthony Easter before dropping a 5-3 match to Army’s Whitt Dunning.
Anthony bounced back with a 12-5 decision against Coast Guard’s Andrew Armstrong before withdrawing from the third-place match with a medical forfeit to end his run. McCabe (Gloucester Point, Va.) placed fourth at 174, going 2-2 on the day. McCabe opened things up with a 15-0 technical fall at the 6:21 mark against Norwich’s Silas Bowerman before dropping a 4-2 decision to Ryan Mergen of Army in the Championship Semifinals.
In the consolation bracket, McCabe pinned Coast Guard’s Kevin Robinson at the 4:16 mark, before Air Force’s Tyler French posted a 9-7 decision to claim the third place match. Senior Jeremy Adams posted a pin of Coast Guard’s Alex Gebhart at the 1:12 mark in competition at 125 lbs., while Jayme Gordon pinned his team-leading sixth opponent of the season, taking down Coast Guard’s Colin Boyle in 3:35 at 165 lbs. Freshmen John Held (149), Curtis Moore (184) and Ronnie Ellsworth (197) each went 1-2 on the day, as did junior Leon Barrow (285).
Army claimed the team championship, posting 111 points to Navy’s total of 106. Air Force (54.5pts.), The Citadel (49.5pts.) and Merchant Marine (43 pts.) rounded out the top five, followed by VMI (34 pts.), Coast Guard (5 pts.) and Norwich(1 pt.).
The Keydets return to action on Friday evening, hosting their final Southern Conference dual of the season at the Thunderdome, taking on nationally-ranked Chattanooga at 7:30 p.m.
Chattanooga 40, Davidson 6
DAVIDSON, N.C. --- The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wrestling team won its third straight match and third consecutive Southern Conference dual Sunday with a 40-6 victory over Davidson.
The 19th-ranked Mocs, who have never lost to the Wildcats, recorded two pins, a technical fall and three major decisions to improve to 3-0 in the SoCon and 8-5 overall.
Chattanooga opened the match with back-to-back major decisions for a quick 8-0 lead. Javier Maldonado, ranked 15th nationally at 125 pounds, defeated Ben Altman 16-5, and Steve Hromada outpointed Alex Radsky 21-8 at 133 pounds.
Davidson, 1-9 and 0-3, claimed its only points on the day at 141 pounds. Vitaly Radsky pinned T.J. Hannah in the third period to trim the margin to 8-6 after three matches. Hannah was wrestling in place of Mocs’ regular Cody Cleveland.
The Mocs responded to Davidson’s pin with consecutive pins of their own. Joey Knox and Bond Davis added 12 combined team points to Chattanooga’s total in the following two matchups. Knox, ranked 17th at 149 pounds, pinned Carl Sandercock three seconds before the end of the second period, and Davis recorded a second-period fall on Joe McGinley at 157 pounds. Davis subbed for starter Seth Garvin.
With Chattanooga leading 24-6, 14th- ranked Lloyd Rogers registered a 21-10 major decision over Trebor Clavette at 174 to extend the cushion to 28-6. Josh Edmondson’s 7-1 win over Sam O’Hair at 184 pushed the lead to 31-6.
After Davidson forfeited at 197 pounds, Matt Lettner scored a 4-2 decision over Charlie Wolff to close out the match.
Chattanooga returns to action Friday at VMI in another SoCon dual and stops off at Virginia Tech for a Saturday afternoon match.
No. 19 CHATTANOOGA 40, DAVIDSON 6
125 ? No. 15 Javier Maldonado (UTC) maj. dec. Ben Altman (DAV), 16-5 4-0
133 - Steve Hromada (UTC) maj. dec. Alex Radsky (DAV), 21-8 8-0
141 - Vitaly Radsky (DAV) pins T.J. Hannah (UTC), 5:23 8-6
149 ? No. 17 Joey Knox (UTC) pins Carl Sandercock (DAV), 4:27 14-6
157 - Bond Davis (UTC) pins Joe McGinley (DAV), 3:27 20-6
165 - Nick Davis (UTC) wins by tech fall over Kevin Cook (DAV), 24-9 24-6
174 ? No. 14 Lloyd Rogers (UTC) maj. dec. Trebor Clavette (DAV), 21-10 28-6
184 - Josh Edmondson (UTC) dec. Sam O'Hair (DAV), 7-1 31-6
197 ? No. 18 Matt Koz (UTC) wins by forfeit 37-6
285 - Matt Lettner (UTC) dec. Charlie Wolff (DAV), 4-2 40-6
UNC Greensboro 20, Virginia Tech 18
BLACKSBURG, VA ? The UNC Greensboro wrestling squad held off the Hokies of Virginia Tech to take a 20-18 victory in Cassell Coliseum. With the five-five win split, the Spartans collected their eighth dual victory of the season.
Overall, UNCG is now 8-5 with a 3-1 Southern Conference record. The Hokies drop down to 6-6.
The afternoon began with Virginia Tech taking a three-point lead as Eric Decker (19-8) defeated freshman Mikal McKee (10-14), 4-1, in the 174-pount bout. The Spartans turned the tables in the following match as sophomore Jeremy Cannon (4-3), who normally wrestles at 174, took on Tech’s Tommy Spellman (19-9) in the 184 weight class. Cannon came away with a 1:11 fall victory and brought the team scores to UNCG 6, Virginia Tech 3.
Eleventh-ranked senior Daren Burns (26-5) collected his 98th career win with a 6-2 decision over D.J. Bruce (1-1) in the 197-pound bout. With the win, Burns tied the UNCG career win record of 98 set by Joe Stanton (1993-97).
The Hokies took the following two matches to tie the scores at nine. David Marone (12-10) defeated junior Ryan Hsu (18-9) with a 6-4 decision and sophomore Mitchell Johnson (9-13) dropped a 13-7 decision to Justin Staylor (9-8).
UNCG regained the lead as senior Jeff Hedges (19-9) won a 14-4 major decision over Jared Jones (2-4). The lead was short-lived as the Hokies moved quickly back on top as Chris Diaz (13-12) took a 16-1 over senior Ben Wilmore (4-11) in four minutes, six seconds.
The Spartans brought on another lead change in the 149-pound bout as junior Marcus Hannah (12-5) defeated Matt Rosen (16-12) in a close 4-3 decision to put UNCG up, 16-14.
Senior Mark Ring (7-10) kept the Spartan momentum going as he defeated Andre Johnson (2-15) with a 9-1 major decision. This was Ring’s first major decision victory this season.
The Hokies won the final match at 165 as Matt Epperly defeated redshirt freshman Byron Sigmon, 8-4. The win gave them four team points, but it wasn’t enough as the Spartans won, 20-18
The Spartans are back on the mats Tuesday evening as they take on Liberty and George Mason in Lynchburg, VA. Matches are set to begin at 7:30pm.
For more news on UNCG wrestling, ticket prices, a complete season schedule, and all other Spartan athletic information log onto www.UNCGSpartans.com.
AGATE
UNC Greensboro 20, Virginia Tech 18
174 Eric Decker (VT) def. Mikal McKee (UNCG) Dec, 4-1. UNCG 0, VT 3
184 Jeremy Cannon (UNCG) def. Tommy Spellman (VT) Fall, 1:11. UNCG 6, VT 3
197 No. 11 Daren Burns (UNCG) def. D.J. Bruce (VT) Dec, 6-2. UNCG 9, VT 3
285 David Morone (VT) def. Ryan Hsu (UNCG) Dec, 6-4. UNCG 9, VT 6
125 Justin Staylor (VT) def. Mitchell Johnson (UNCG) Dec, 13-7. UNCG 9, VT 9
133 Jeff Hedges (UNCG) Jared Jones (VT) Maj. Dec, 14-4. UNCG 13, VT 9
141 Chris Diaz (VT) def. Ben Wilmore (UNCG) Tech Fall, 16-1 (4:16). UNCG 13, VT 14
149 Marcus Hannah (UNCG) def. Matt Rosen (VT) Dec, 4-3. UNCG 16, VT 14
157 Mark Ring (UNCG) def. Andre Johnson (VT) Maj. Dec, 9-1. UNCG 20, VT 14
165 Matt Epperly (VT) def. Byron Sigmon (UNCG) Dec, 8-4. UNCG 20, VT 18