CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. – Seven Tiger wrestlers recorded wins Friday night as sixth-ranked Campbellsville University won its first home spotlight dual of the season, 33-12, over No. 15 University of the Cumberlands in Gosser Gym.
"We expected our guys to come out and wrestle hard tonight and be ready for Tuesday night and Friday. Tonight was a good sign that we're going to get through these next two duals and be in good shape for regionals," CU head coach Franky James said. "I thought they wrestled better tonight than we did at Southern Illinois (Edwardsville). We beat Southern Illinois, but we wrestled with a lot more energy tonight. Being at home with the crowd helped."
The night started with possibly the biggest match of them all, as senior 125-pounder Jarvis Elam knocked off first-year Patriot Andrew Tillman, ranked 13th, with an 8-3 decision.
"Jarvis is coming on at the right time. He's probably fought his way into our Top 12 (for nationals). I think he's going to have a real strong finish to his senior year, and that was a good start there," James said.
Tyler Alsip followed with a 16-0 tech fall at 133 pounds to give CU an 8-0 lead, and then Cumberlands forfeited weights 141 and 149, a 12-point swing for the Tigers, that helped break the night open.
Top-ranked Conor Young followed suit with a first period pin in 2:15 over Jacob Stephes, boosting the lead to 26-0.
Cumberlands scored its first points after Joe Whalen was pinned late in the third period by ninth-ranked Zack Barkett and Sean Bateman used riding time to knock off 14th ranked Tiger freshman Michael Johnson, 4-3, at 174 pounds.
Senior Josh Ashbrook took the mat for the first time at home this season to the sound of "Wild Thing" over the gym PA. With chants of "Let's Go Wildcat!", Ashbrook worked his way to a 6-1 lead in the match. He responded to the calls for bonus points late in the third period by slamming Eddie Bernal to the mat and collecting three back points in the final seconds for a 12-1 major decision with riding time. It was his first match since Jan. 12 and only second since getting hurt in the Midwest Classic on Dec. 15.
The win clinched victory in the dual for the Tigers, giving them a 30-9 lead that the Patriots could not come back from.
Third-ranked Allen Scruggs closed out the Tigers' scoring at 197 pounds with a 6-2 victory over Courtney Freeman, his second over Freeman this season.
Cumberlands closed the dual with a win at heavyweight, 7-1, as No. 7 Vince Pezzuto used a reversal and two near fall points in the second period to take the lead over freshman Terrell Moore.
Campbellsville (9-2, 1-0 MSC) is now one win away from clinching at least a share of its fourth straight Mid-South Conference title. The Tigers will host fifth-ranked Lindsey Wilson College (5-6, 1-1 MSC) Tuesday, Feb. 5 at 7 p.m. in Gosser Gym.
Prior to the dual, CU will host a high school dual between Taylor County High School and North Hardin High School, starting at 5:30 p.m. EST. Youth wrestlers will also see action Tuesday at a break during the collegiate dual.
Live video of the events will be streamed on iHigh.com/CampbellsvilleTigers.
RESULTS
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