BOONE, N.C. - After taking eight of 10 possible bouts, Appalachian State University wrestling clinched a share of the Southern Conference dual-meet title as the Mountaineers defeated VMI, 37-9, in Varsity Gymnasium on Friday.

With the victory, Appalachian (11-3, 5-0 SoCon) is one win away from its first undefeated league performance since 2002-03; the Apps will take on Davidson in their final match of the season on Feb. 19. League-rival Chattanooga is one match behind at 4-1 in SoCon play and concludes its slate with VMI (5-8, 2-3 SoCon) on Feb. 20.

The evening's action began at 165 pounds, and No. 15 Kyle Blevins (Sapulpa, Okla./Sapulpa) delivered a big 15-2 major decision to put the Mountaineers on the scoreboard first, 4-0. With his 114th career win, the senior is now tied for second on ASU's all-time career wins list.

VMI's Matthew Brock responded with a 6-0 decision at 174, narrowing the ASU advantage to 4-3.

The threat would not last long, as VMI was unable to field a 184-pounder, and No. 12 Austin Trotman (Winston-Salem, N.C./Mount Tabor) earned his 119th career victory by forfeit.

Freshman Paul Weiss (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas) notched a convincing, 10-1 victory at 197 pounds, extending the Appalachian lead to 14-3.

VMI picked up a pin at 285 pounds but failed to present a 125-pound entry, and junior Tony Gravely (Martinsville, Va./Magna Vista) received credit with a win-by-forfeit to advance the score to 20-9.

Appalachian junior Brett Boston (Morganton, N.C./Freedom) earned the Black and Gold's only pin of the match, needing 2:15 to level his Keydet opponent.

The senior trio of Mike Kessler (Bay City, Mich./Western), Savva Kostis (Boone, N.C./Watauga) and Chip Powell (Greensboro, N.C./S.W. Guilford) cleaned up the final three bouts, sealing the 37-9 match victory.

The Mountaineers return to action Saturday at Varsity Gym, when they take on No. 20 Virginia at 6:30 p.m. in the season's final showdown with a ranked opponent.

165: No. 15 Kyle Blevins (ASU) maj. dec. Jonathan Jones (VMI), 15-2
174: Matthew Brock (VMI) dec. Jesse Johnson (ASU), 6-0
184: No. 12 Austin Trotman (ASU) won by forfeit
197: Paul Weiss (ASU) maj. dec. Urayoan Garcia (VMI), 10-1
285: Juan Adams (VMI) pinned Joe Cummings (ASU), 5:54
125: Tony Gravely (ASU) won by forfeit
133: Brett Boston (ASU) pinned Joe Jarrells (VMI), 2:15
141: Mike Kessler (ASU) dec. Zeb Stewart (VMI), 4-1
149: Savva Kostis (ASU) maj. dec. David Yost (VMI), 15-6
157: Chip Powell (ASU) maj. dec. Edward Gottwald (VMI), 16-2

The Citadel 36, Gardner-Webb 10

Boiling Springs, N.C. - The Citadel used pins by Richard Alarcon, Jordan Dix,Josh Tuck and No. 15 Odie Delaney to defeat host Gardner-Webb 36-10 in Southern Conference action Friday evening at Paul Porter Arena. The Bulldogs improve to 6-8 overall and 2-2 in the SoCon and face Davidson Saturday at 2:00 p.m.

The Citadel scored victories in the first three matches of the evening to open a 16-0 lead. Alarcon had posted a 9-3 advantage at 125 pounds before pinning Michael Slaughter at the 6:52 mark for a 6-0 Bulldog lead. Kyle Casaletto dominated his match at 133, scoring a 10-2 major decision over Robert Golde before Dix dispatched Jacob Reinemund with a pin at the 1:50 mark of the 141 bout for the early 16-point lead.

Gardner-Webb got on the board at with a major decision at 149 as Davante Andujar out-pointed Shane Lee 12-2, cutting The Citadel's advantage to 16-4. At 157 pounds, Pierre Frazile and Alex Medved each scored a takedown and an escape to finish the first period at 3-3. Frazile notched an escape in the second and Medved grabbed a point off one in the third to send the match to overtime tied 4-4. Medved edged ahead with a point off an escape in the second overtime period and Frazile was unable to score a takedown, falling 5-4. Justin Guthrie picked up an 8-3 decision over Mike Harper to cut the Bulldogs' lead to 16-10.

The Bulldogs swept the final four matches of the evening to pull away for the final 36-10 victory. At 174 pounds, Turtogtokh Luvsandorj picked up his first technical fall of the season, opening a 10-3 lead in the first period before stopping Erin O'Dell at the 6:30 mark with a 23-7 score. Tuck's pin of Jason Porter at 2:20 of the 184-pound match increased the Bulldogs' lead to 27-10 securing the team win.Kelby Smith picked up a 10-3 decision over Travis Porter at 197 for his team-high 29th win of the season. Delaney closed out the victory with a pin of Justin Kozera at the 1:20 mark of the heavyweight bout, his 11th win via fall of the season.

Citadel (6-8, 2-2 SoCon) vs. Gardner-Webb (5-10, 1-5 SoCon)
Match Summary
125 Richard Alarcon (Citadel) won by pin over Michael Slaughter (Gardner-Webb) 6:52; CIT leads 6-0
133 Kyle Casaletto (Citadel) won by major decision over Robert Golde (Gardner-Webb) 10-2; CIT leads 10-0
141 Jordan Dix (Citadel) won by pin over Jacob Reinemund (Gardner-Webb) 1:50; CIT leads 16-0
149 Davante Andujar (Gardner-Webb) won by major decision over Shane Lee (Citadel) 12-2; CIT leads 16-4
157 Alex Medved (Gardner-Webb) won in double overtime over Pierre Frazile (Citadel) 5-4; CIT leads 16-7
165 Justin Guthrie (Gardner-Webb) won by decision over Mike Harper (Citadel) 8-3; CIT leads 16-10
174 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (Citadel) won by tech fall over Erin O`Dell (Gardner-Webb) 6:30 23-7; CIT leads 21-10
184 Josh Tuck (Citadel) won by pin over Jason Porter (Gardner-Webb) 2:20; CIT leads 27-10
197 Kelby Smith (Citadel) won by decision over Travis Porter (Gardner-Webb) 10-3; CIT leads 30-10
285 No. 15 Odie Delaney (Citadel) won by pin over Justin Kozera (Gardner-Webb) 1:20; CIT wins 36-10