FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – After day one at the 2022 Citrus Invitational in Fort Lauderdale, the Castleton University wrestling team is in second place with four wrestlers remaining in contention on the championship side of their respective brackets.
Castleton trails only Augsburg, the No. 2 team in the nation in the most recent NWCA Tournament Rankings. The Spartans are ahead of both John Carroll and New York University, both of which are top-10 teams in the same rankings. Castleton has 109.5 points as a team while Augsburg has 124.5. Roanoke College is in third at 89.5 points.
Gavin Bradley (125),
James Rodriguez (141),
Cooper Fleming (174) and
Sampson Wilkins (184) are all through to the semifinals in their respective weight classes after going undefeated on the first day of competition. Another 11 wrestlers are still battling their way through the consolation bracket in hopes of a top-eight finish at the event.
Kaya Bogle (125),
Drew Marchese (133),
Michael Gonyea (133),
Elijah Cyr (149),
Nicholas Roeger (149),
Jashon Holmes (157),
Michael Angers (165),
Josh Negron (184),
Haven Tatarek (197),
Abbas Abdulrahman (285) and
Shea Garand (285) all suffered a loss on the first day but look to bounce back on Friday in the consolation rounds.
Bradley was a force to be reckoned with at 125, winning both of his bouts via fall. His first win came against the third-ranked 125-pounder in the nation according to the NWCA rankings—Augsburg's Derek Steele—whom he pinned in the second period. The match was even at 4-4 when the pin occurred at the 4:26 mark. Bradley followed that up with a first-period pin against Concordia-Wisconsin's Devin Gore in just 2:22 to secure his spot in the semifinals. He will face Liberty's Dante Minnino for the right to wrestle for the 125-pound title.
Rodriguez went 3-0 on the day, winning his first bout via fall in just 1:38. His next win was a dominant 13-0 major decision before he closed out his afternoon with a 9-1 major decision as well. His semifinal bout will be a nationally-ranked showdown, as Rodriguez, the fourth-ranked 141-pounder according to d3wrestle.com, will face off with the No. 8 141-pounder in University of the Ozarks' Jake Dado.
Fleming earned a trio of wins as well, two of them coming via fall at 174 pounds. He topped Williams' Max Hall with a third-period pin at 5:41 before winning a tight decision against NYU's Justin Leonard, 2-0. He then advanced to the semifinals with a pin in 4:50. He will square off with Seth Goetzinger in a nationally-ranked matchup on Friday, with Fleming ranking 12th in the NWCA ranks and Goetzinger ranking 15th.
Wilkins was a three-win wrestler for the Spartans as well on Thursday, winning the first two bouts via fall before advancing to the semifinals with a 1-0 decision. His first pin came in just 1:56 before he notched his second at 3:49. The decision win came on a third-period escape after choosing the bottom position to begin the period. His semifinal opponent will be Mahllic Sallah, the fourth-ranked wrestler in the nation according to both the NWCA and d3wrestle.com. Wilkins earned an Honorable Mention nod from d3wrestle in its most recent rankings.
Action resumes at 9 a.m. Friday morning with eight place finishers awarded at each weight class.
