FORT WAYNE, Ind. – Campbellsville's 11th-ranked men's wrestling team upset sixth-ranked University of Providence, 25-18, to finish off the first day of the NWCA-NAIA National Duals at the War Memorial Coliseum on Thursday.
The Tigers (6-3) won its last two duals to stay alive in the tournament after dropping its first dual of the day to slide into the consolation bracket. Against the Argos (7-5), Campbellsville won six bouts over a seven-match stretch to complete the upset.
Providence got out on the front foot after Isaac Wilson (ranked 10th at 125 pounds) beat
Jordan Martinez in a 10-5 decision. After the 125-pound match, the Tigers won six of the next seven matches.
At 133 pounds,
Kolten Radaz pinned Eli Walston just 1:13 into the match to give Campbellsville its first lead of the night, and it never looked back.
Jayce Carr (ranked No. 8 at 141 pounds) picked up the Tigers' second-straight bonus-point victory with an 11-2 major decision over Jarren Komac.
Shonn Roberts (ranked fifth at 149 pounds) put an end to the Campbellsville run after edging
David Sparks in an 8-6 decision in the 149-pound match. The Tigers got back on track with
Michael Diemer upsetting Casey Dobson (ranked eighth at 157 pounds), 5-3, to put Campbellsville on top, 13-6.
In a tightly contest match at 165 pounds,
L.J. Henderson turned a one-point match in the third period into six points for the Tigers after he pinned Gage Bentley with 1:10 left in the match.
Justin Brown (ranked No. 2 at 174 pounds) faced his second top-five individual of the day in Adrian Lyons-Lopez – who is the No. 4 rated wrestler in the 174-pound weight class. Brown moved to 3-0 on the day after holding off Lyons-Lopez late in the bout to earn a 6-3 decision.
Chuck Sharon (ranked first at 184 pounds) had a top-10 matchup on his hands in Tyler Webley (ranked ninth at 184 pounds). Sharon used an early takedown to seize control of the match en route to a 7-3 decision. Sharon's victory locked up the dual for the Tigers as they led 25-6 with just two matches left.
The Argos controlled the final two bouts of the dual with Justin Harbison pinning
Jacob Franklin at 197 pounds and Mathew Hopkins (ranked ninth at 285 pounds) pinned
Nate Jackson in the 285-pound match. The two late pins from Providence pulled it within seven points, but it was not enough as Campbellsville earned a 25-18 victory to complete the upset.
With the win, the Tigers stay alive in the national duals and returns to action on Friday in the consolation bracket.
Campbellsville takes on No. 3 Indiana Institute of Technology at 9 a.m. ET on Friday morning from the War Memorial Coliseum. The Tigers and Warriors met earlier this season with Indiana Tech winning a 31-12 contest at home.
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