Louisville, KY – The fifth-ranked University of the Cumberlands men's wrestling team opened the NWCA National Duals with a pair of wins to advance to the semifinals Friday afternoon.  The Patriots opened the day with a 41-4 win over 16^th-ranked Williams Baptists, before knocking off Mid-South Conference rival and 19^th-ranked Campbellsville 19-12 in the quarterfinals.

Against Williams Baptist the Patriots won nine of the ten matches with four pins.  Hayden Lee, Jacob Seto, and Tres Leon all tallied falls in their respective matches to give UC an 18-4 lead.  At 157 lbs., Jacob McNutt won his collegiate opener with an 8-5 decision over 20^th-ranked Tristan Kole Meador to extend the lead to 21-4.  Ninth-ranked Tristan Macri followed with an 17-10 decision, while 20^th-ranked Jarod Swank notched his first tech fall of the season with a 17-2 win over Christian Cara.  Max Emerson and Quandre Chisolm both added wins as sixth-ranked Eric Deluse defeated eighth-ranked Benjamin Turnbough in a 10-3 decision at the 197 lbs. class for the 41-4 final.

That win advance UC to the quarterfinals where they faced Campbellsville, who knocked off Lindsey Wilson in the first round. Lee and Seto posted back-to-back decisions over ranked opponents to put the Patriots in front 6-0.  Lee defeated 11^th-ranked Jordan Martinez 6-2, while Seto knocked off tenth-ranked Marvin Galette 9-5. After Campbellsville cut the lead to 6-3, Leon defeated 12^th-ranked Jaedin Sklapsky in a 10-1 major decision to extend the lead to 10-3.  The Tigers took three of the next four matches to cut UC's lead to 13-12, however Deluse posted a 2-0 decision to extend the lead to four points 16-12.  12^th-ranked Aaron Johnson closed out the match with a 3-2 decision over tenth-ranked Ashton Mutuwa at the 285 lbs. class to clinch the win for the Patriots.

The Patriots will return to the mat Saturday, January 5, when they face top-seed and defending NAIA national champions Grand View in the semifinals.  The match is scheduled for 9 a.m. with live stats available here.

For the latest and most up-to-date information on University of the Cumberlands Athletics, please visit www.cumberlandspatriots.com. Follow us on Twitter - @UC_Patriots, Instagram - @UCPatriots, SnapChat - @UC_Patriots, YouTube – Cumberlands Patriots, and Facebook by searching University of the Cumberlands Athletics.