The Citadel tops VMI
LEXINGTON, Va. – The Citadel wrestling team took sole possession of third place in the Southern Conference standings on Thursday night following a 23-18 victory over VMI at The Thunderdome inside Cocke Hall.
The Citadel (6-5, 4-2 SoCon) assumed an early 3-0 lead to open the match when Marshall Haas posted a 5-3 decision over VMI's Urayoan Garcia in the 197 bout.
The Keydets (6-7, 3-3 SoCon) answered with a resounding win in the heavyweight match as Juan Adams collected six points with a fall at the 3:48 mark over Joseph Bexley.
Head coach Rob Hjerling's squad triumphed in the next five matches, beginning with a 4-0 decision by Joaquin Marquez in his victory over Dalton Henderson in the 125-pound classification.
That win was followed by Clarence Arrington's 3-1 victory over Hunter Starner in the 133 bout. The momentum gained steam when Tyler Buckiso posted a 4-2 decision over Emmitt Kelly in the 141-pound match that provided The Citadel with 12-6 advantage.
Matt Frisch pushed the lead to double figures for The Citadel when he earned a win by technical fall, at the 5:57 mark, over the Keydets' Jack Krall in the 149 showdown.
Sophomore Aaron Walker continued his dominance of SoCon opposition when he posted a win by fall against Jedediah Harris at 1:39. That victory provided the Bulldogs with a 23-6 edge with three matches remaining.
VMI halted the five-match winning streak for the Dogs with Shabaka Johns' 18-1 technical fall win over Andrew Lock at the 6:43 mark of the 165-pound match. Teammate Mark Darr continued the momentum swing with a 7-6 decision over Kenneth Radford, closing the team score to 23-14 heading into the 184-pound match.
The Keydets won the final match of the dual as Derek Thurman posted a 10-2 major decision against Kendall Hemmings.
The Citadel and VMI will both head to the All-Academy Championships, hosted by the Merchant Marine Academy, in Great Neck, N.Y. The competition begins on Saturday, Feb. 7.
The Citadel 23, VMI 18
197: Marshall Haas (CIT) DEC Urayoan Garcia (VMI) 5-3 (3-0)
285: Juan Adams (VMI) WBF Joe Bexley (CIT) 3:48 (3-6)
125: Joaquin Marquez (CIT) DEC Dalton Henderson (VMI) 4-0 (6-6)
133: Clarence Arrington Jr. (CIT) DEC Hunter Starner (VMI) SV-1 3-1 (9-6)
141: Tyler Buckiso (CIT) DEC Emmitt Kelly (VMI) 4-2 (12-6)
149: Matt Frisch (CIT) TECH FALL Jack Krall (VMI) 17-0 (5:57) (17-6)
157: Aaron Walker (CIT) WBF Jed Harris (VMI) 1:39 (23-6)
165: Shabaka Johns (VMI) TECH FALL Andrew Lock (CIT) 18-1 (6:43) (23-11)
174: Mark Darr (VMI) DEC Kenneth Radford (CIT) 7-6 (23-14)
184: Derek Thurman (VMI) MAJ DEC Kendall Hemmings (CIT) 10-2 (23-18)