MARSHALL, Mo. — CU had eight grapplers still alive in the championship rounds at the Missouri Valley Invitational this weekend but
Justin Brown was the lone Tiger to make a championship bracket run.
The fourth-ranked Tigers fell from eighth to 13
th in the team standings, while No. 1 Grand View University earned the victory with 180.5 team points. CU finished with 71 team points.
Brown led CU and finished fifth at 174 pounds. After earning a bye in round one, Brown won three consecutive matches, including a victory over No. 3 Ricky McCarty from Oklahoma City University, to set up a semifinal bout with No. 8 Dylan Blackford from Grand View. Blackford, the eventual champion, earned a 6-1 decision over Brown sending him to the consolation bracket.
In the consolation semifinal, Joseph Robinson then upset Brown (3-2) to force a fifth place match with Lindsey Wilson's Rhodes Bell, where Brown pulled out a 3-2 victory.
Behind Brown,
Jayce Carr (141) and
Tyler Rowland (197) both finished in eighth place. After falling in the third round to University of the Cumberlands' Tres Leon, Carr won three consecutive matches in the consolation bracket.
He then fell via medical forfeits the final two matches.
Like Brown, Rowland earned a bye and won his first two matches to set up a quarterfinal bout. University of the Cumberlands' Ramsey Bloy then pulled a 6-5 overtime victory over Rowland, pushing him into the consolation bracket.
Rowland defeated Payson Dirk from Dickinson State University (3-2) before Ken Burkhardt, Jr. pinned Rowland in 6:57.
In the seventh place match, Rowland lost via a 10-6 decision to Luis Rivera-Santiago from Northwestern College.
Michael Beets,
Kolten Radaz,
Aaron Rugnao,
Angel Vasquez,
David Sparks,
Michael Diemer,
L.J. Henderson and
Nate Jackson all fell in the consolation bracket over the weekend and did not place.
University of the Cumberlands placed second with 117 team points, while Indiana Tech was third (115.5), Missouri Valley was fourth (105.5) and Montana-State Northern rounded out the Top 5 with 102 points.
Campbellsville will travel to the Cumberland University Open in Lebanon, Tenn. on Saturday, Jan. 28. The Tigers returns home to host Lindsey Wilson and Cumberland in two weeks, Jan. 31 and Feb. 3, respectively.
