LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The No. 17 Castleton University wrestling team placed 11th overall at the NWCA National Duals in a field of 24 programs, going 3-3 over the two-day event with two wins over top-15 opponents.
The Spartans went 2-2 on the first day of competition to seed into the 9th-through-12th-place bracket on Saturday. The day began with a 28-11 loss to No. 9 Wisconsin-Whitewater before the Spartans capped the tournament with a 26-15 win over No. 7 Wabash—the runner-up at the 2022 NCAA Championships last March. Castleton also logged a win over No. 14 Wisconsin-Platteville in Friday's action.
Castleton was one of only two teams in the New England Wrestling Association to make the tournament, with Johnson & Wales competing as well. The Wildcats placed second at the event.
The Spartans also had four wrestlers compete in NWCA Men's Extra Matches on Saturday, a four-man bracket-style event to allow more competition for wrestlers who did not appear in a majority of their teams' duals at the event.
Gavin Bradley,
Desmond McLaughlin and
Abbas Abdulrahman were all victorious in their four-man brackets, while
Drew Marchese finished second in his bracket.
No. 9 UW-Whitewater 28, No. 17 Castleton 11
Kaya Bogle continued to impress at the event to start the day for Castleton, winning an 8-0 major decision for a 4-0 Spartan lead. Bogle went an impressive 5-0 over the two days, including a win over a top-10 ranked wrestler on Friday.
Michael Gonyea dropped a tight decision at 133, 5-2, but
James Rodriguez was a 10-5 winner via decision over 13th-ranked Dakarai Clay. Rodriguez is currently ranked fourth in the nation at 141.
Elijah Cyr was on the wrong end of a 10-0 major decision against fourth-ranked Jake Burford, and
Jashon Holmes fell in a 9-5 decision at 157. Ninth-ranked Ryan Vedner topped
Michael Angers 3-2 at 165, but
Cooper Fleming took care of business for Castleton at 174 with a 16-4 major decision to bring Castleton within two in the team scoring, 13-11.
Sampson Wilkins got pinned by the second-ranked 184-pounder in Division III Jarritt Shinhoster, giving UWW a 19-11 edge. Another pin at 197 gave Whitewater a 25-11 lead before
Shea Garand dropped a tight match in the first sudden-victory period to give the matchup its 28-11 final.
No. 17 Castleton 26, No. 7 Wabash 15
The 11th-place match began with six points for the Spartans by way of forfeit from Wabash, and the lead grew to 11-0 when Marchese dominated Arlie Benson to the tune of a 20-0 technical fall. Rodriguez won again at 141 with a 5-4 decision to extend the gap to 14-0 in favor of Castleton. Wabash got on the board at 149 when Daniel Uribe bested Cyr in a narrow 5-3 decision, but Holmes got the points right back for Castleton with a 5-2 decision over Tim Smith—the 10th-ranked wrestler in Division III. Angers was victorious 4-2 at 165 to make it 20-3 before 11th-ranked Raymond Arebalo won a 6-3 decision against the 12th-ranked Fleming to make it 20-6. Wilkins pinned Sammy Saunders in 1:49 to make it 26-6. Wabash won the final two bouts at 197 and 285, but Castleton was firmly in control as the dust settled with a 26-15 score.
The Spartans are off until January 18 when they host New England College in a dual meet in Glenbrook Gym at 6:30 p.m.
