Men's Wrestling 12-4-16

Men's Wrestling Jordan Alves

Brown wins Ohio Northern title at 174, as Tigers finish fourth

ADA, Ohio — Traveling with 11 student-athletes to the Ohio Northern University Invitational, Campbellsville men's wrestling had eight of them place leading the Tigers to a fourth place finish.

For the second straight year, Justin Brown won the 174 lbs. weight class. Brown received a first-round bye, before pulling four wins in a row. He defeated Eric Murdock (HU) and Austin Farrell (Trine University) with a pair of 4-1 decisions before taking down Chase Boyd (Tiffin University), 5-2, to set up the championship match.

Brown took on Taylor McPahil (Alma College) and pulled out a close match, 7-5.

In addition, Jayce Carr finished runner-up at 141, while Aaron Rugnao was fourth at 133.

Carr, the three-seed at 141 lbs., dominated in the early matches. He pulled out a tech fall win over Alex Pollera from Washington & Lee, 17-1. Then he carded a pair of major decisions over Joseph Damm (Heidelberg University) and Jeffrey Helm (Trine University) to move into the semifinal bout. Taking on Brandon Conrad, Carr shutout his opponent with a 5-0 decision before falling to No. 1-seed Hayden Bates from Heidelberg, 13-1.

Rugnao started as the eighth seed at 133 lbs. and pulled out a second round tech fall over Drew Clark from Trine, 16-0. He then gave No. 1-seed Zach Blylkbashi from Waynesburg University all he wanted in the quarterfinal match but lost, 5-3.

Moving to the consolation bracket, Rugnao pulled out three consecutive victories – two major decisions and a pin over Cameron Gessner from Tiffin in 1:57. Wrestling for third-place, Rugnao lost 7-4 to four-seed Brad Taton from Ohio Northern.

Michael Diemer also had a solid showing this weekend finishing in fifth place at 140 lbs. Diemer, the five-seed at 140, pinned his first-round opponent in 3:34 before getting upset by Morgan Evan from Ohio Northern, 7-5.

But the upset didn't stop Diemer from making some noise in the consolation bracket. He won three consecutive matches before squaring off with Evan once again in the semifinal round in the consolation bracket, falling via 11-6 decision. Diemer then defeated Slade Todd from Heidelberg, 9-5, to place fifth.

In addition, Michael Beats placed sixth at 125 and Lee Johnson finished seventh at 157. Johnson was faced with No. 1 Brock Jones from Ohio Northern in the opening round and had to fight his way through the consolation bracket. He did so with three-straight pins – one of those a pin over No. 7 Nick Miller in 1:01, another over No. 5 Noah Messerall in 3:52 and the last was in the seventh place match over Dustin Funk in 6:13.

In the heavyweight division, Nate Jackson was the final Tiger to place. Coming in as the fourth-seed, Jackson won a pair of matches in the championship bracket before falling to five-seed Gage Archer from Otterbein College, 6-3. Moving into the consolation bracket, Jackson pinned Caleb Fry in 6:41 and later defeated Chase Carter with a 3-1 decision to finish seventh.

Campbellsville will now travel to Truett-McConnell University for a pair of Mid-South Conference duals on Thursday, Dec. 8. The Tigers will face the Bears and also square off with Life University. 

Final Team Scores
  1. Heidelberg University (166)
  2. Tiffin University (145)
  3. Ohio Northern University (144)
  4. Campbellsville University (115)
  5. Waynesburg University (111.5)
  6. Otterbein College (98.5)
  7. Adrian College (85.5)
  8. Alma College (84.0)
  9. Washington & Lee (77.5)
  10. Muskingum (72.5)
  11. Trine University (38)

     
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Players Mentioned

Justin Brown

Justin Brown

Senior
Calaveras High School
Nate Jackson

Nate Jackson

Redshirt Junior
Dayton Christian High School
Jayce Carr

Jayce Carr

Junior
Morganfield, Ky.
Michael Diemer

Michael Diemer

Freshman
Maryville, Tenn.
Lee Johnson

Lee Johnson

Freshman
Louisville, Ky.
Aaron Rugnao

Aaron Rugnao

Freshman
Stockton, Calif.

Players Mentioned

Justin Brown

Justin Brown

Senior
Calaveras High School
Nate Jackson

Nate Jackson

Redshirt Junior
Dayton Christian High School
Jayce Carr

Jayce Carr

Junior
Morganfield, Ky.
Michael Diemer

Michael Diemer

Freshman
Maryville, Tenn.
Lee Johnson

Lee Johnson

Freshman
Louisville, Ky.
Aaron Rugnao

Aaron Rugnao

Freshman
Stockton, Calif.