Wrestling Dominates Day One of MAC Championships

March 4, 2005

KENT, Ohio - The Central Michigan University wrestling team sits in first place after a dominating performance on day one of the Mid-American Conference Championships.

The Maroon and Gold have 58.5 team points and hold a 22-point lead over host Kent State, who has 36.5 points. Third is Northern Illinois (34 points), fourth is Ohio (27.5 points), Eastern Michigan (21 points) sits fifth whileBuffalo (16 points) is sixth.

The tournament is being held at Kent State University in Kent, Ohio. The first round and semifinals were held today, March 4, with the finals going tomorrow, March 5, beginning at 11 a.m.

Nine Chippewas will be competing in those finals. CMU's wrestlers cumulated a total record of 12-2 in day one competition with 141-pounder Brandon Carter losing those two matches and being the lone Chippewa not to earn a spot in the finals.

Two matches of note were the first round contest for 125-pounder Luke Smith and Alex Lammers' semifinal match at 184 pounds. Smith kicked off the tournament for CMU will a pin in just 14 seconds over Caleb Metcalf of Ohio. The fall is the sixth fastest in CMU history. Lammers, who came in the fourth seed, defeated top-seeded Ed Magrys of Eastern Michigan, 6-4 in double overtime, to avenge a loss earlier this season.

Team Scores
1. CMU - 58.5 points
2. Kent State - 36.5 points
3. Northern Illinois - 34 points
4. Ohio - 27.5 points
6. Eastern Michigan - 21 points
5. Buffalo - 16 points

125 - Luke Smith (ranked 18th national, seeded first)
First round - W, fall Caleb Metcalf (Ohio), 0:14
Champ. Semifinals - W, dec. Chad Vandiver (Northern Illinois), 5-1

133 - Jason Borrelli (ranked eighth national, seeded first)
Champ. Semifinals - W, dec. Matt Smith (Ohio), 10-6

141 - Brandon Carter (seeded fourth)
First round - W, dec. Nick Conklin (Eastern Michigan), 8-7
Champ. Semifinals - L, dec. Josh Wooton (Northern Illinois), 5-4
Consol. Semifinals - L, fall Dana Gingerich (Buffalo), 6:29

149 - Mark DiSalvo (ranked 10th national, seeded first)
Champ. Semifinals - W, dec. Mike Grimes (Northern Illinois), 3-2

157 - Eric Neil (seeded second)
Champ. Semifinals - W, fall Kurt Gross (Kent State), 2:00

165 - David Bolyard (ranked ninth national, seeded first)
First round - W, fall Ben Best (Eastern Michigan), 6:06
Champ. Semifinals - W, tech. fall Jake Blowers (Buffalo), 19-3

174 - Mitch Hancock (ranked seventh national, seeded first)
Champ. Semifinals - W, dec. Danny Burk (Northern Illinois), 10-4

184 - Alex Lammers (seeded fourth)
First round - W, fall Tyler Bruesewitz (Northern Illinois), 2:11
Champ. Semifinals - W, dec. Ed Magrys (Eastern Michigan), 6-4 2OT

197 - Wynn Michalak (ranked 11th national, seeded second)
Champ. Semifinals - W, Ben Rings (Kent State), 8-1

285 - Bill Stouffer (ranked sixth national, seeded first)
Champ. Semifinals - W, dec. Jeremiah Beltran (Ohio), 4-1