Wrestling team goes 2-1 at first day of NWCA Multi-Divisional National Duals

FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Olivet College wrestling team had a 2-1 record at the first day of the 2017 National Wrestling Coaches Association Multi-Divisional National Duals, held inside the War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The Comets started the day with a 42-4 win over University of Wis.-Oshkosh in a preliminary match. Olivet then fell to Wabash (Ind.) College, 26-19, before bouncing back to beat North Central (Ill.) College, 27-9.

HOW IT HAPPENED VS. WIS.-OSHKOSH

• The Comets won nine-of-10 bouts, and scored bonus points in six of the wins.
• Olivet wasted no time in jumping out to a 23-0 lead. At 125 pounds, senior Michael Schmidt picked-up a forfeit victory. At 133 pounds, junior Jared Brickley pinned his opponent with 40 seconds left in the second period. At 141 pounds, senior Curtis Blackwell recorded a pin one minute and 37 seconds into the bout. At 149 pounds, senior Austin Kelley earned a 16-1 technical fall win.
• Following a loss at 157 pounds, the Comets won the final five bouts.
• At 165 pounds, junior Davon Jackson got the streak started with a 12-3 major decision. Olivet then won three straight matches by decision – 9-6 by sophomore Tyler Grimsley at 174 pounds, 2-0 by senior Rodney Harvey at 184 pounds and 5-3 by senior Kyle Carter at 197 pounds.
• At 285 pounds, senior Jesse Judge capped the win with the quickest pin of the match at the 1:23 mark.

HOW IT HAPPENED VS. WABASH

• The Little Giants and Comets split the 10 bouts, but Wabash pulled out the win by scoring bonus points in four of the bouts compared to only two for Olivet.
• The teams split the first two bouts, with Schmidt picking-up an 8-5 decision.
• The Comets surged ahead 12-3 on a pin by Blackwell and a 6-1 decision by Kelley.
• The Little Giants sandwiched two pins around a technical fall to go up 20-12.
• Harvey used the riding time point to slip past his opponent, 3-2, to make the score 20-15.
• Riley Lefever, a three-time defending NCAA champion, sealed Wabash's win with a pin in the first period of the 197-pound bout.
• Judge ended the bout with a 10-1 major decision.

HOW IT HAPPENED VS. NORTH CENTRAL

• The Comets claimed wins in seven of the 10 bouts. Two of the wins were falls and the other five were decisions.
• Junior Trever Skinner started the bout with a first-period pin (2:23) at 125 pounds.
• Brickley scored two takedowns in the third period and picked-up the riding time point at the end to win 5-3.
• After Olivet suffered a narrow defeat at 141 pounds, Kelley got those three team points back with a 7-2 decision.
• Jackson wasted no time in putting six team points on the scoreboard, as he registered a pin one minute and 14 seconds into the bout.
• Three wrestlers – senior Kevin Papak at 157 pounds, Grimsley at 174 pounds and junior Ryan Clark at 184 pounds – used a takedown in the first overtime period to win their bout and all three by a different score – Papak, 5-3; Grimsley, 6-4; and Clark, 3-1.

UP NEXT

• Day two of the national duals continues tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. Olivet will face University of Wis.-Whitewater in the fourth round of the consolation bracket. The winner of that match is guaranteed at least an eighth-place team finish.