Louisville, KY – Cumberlands men's wrestling went 1-2 at the NWCA National Duals, falling out of the consolation bracket on day one. Two Patriots went undefeated through three bouts while
Charlie Friedenreich claimed his first dual victory.
#4 CUMBERLANDS DEFEATS CUMBERLAND, 33-17 (RESULTS)
Cumberlands took charge of MSC-foe Cumberland in the consolation meeting, overpowering the Phoenix by a 33-17 margin.
Friedenreich claimed his first collegiate duals victory against the Phoenix with the 9-1 major performance. Having rested since the Patriot Open, the sophomore tallied the first take down of the bout, later tallying two more against his opposer.
Tres Leon, first in the NAIA at 149, tallied his 20th win of the season against Cumberland's Esteban Remilliard with a second period pin. In the first period alone, the senior dominated with five takedowns, looking for the tech fall. Leon later exploited his opponent with his 10th pin of the year registering at 4:32.
Jacob Seto and
Eric Deluse both blanked their opposers in their respective bouts, tallying 34 match points combined in their first period wins. Seto, seventh at 133, powered up four four-point nearfalls in the opening minutes for the tech victory. Meanwhile, the fourth-ranked 197-pounder bullied his Phoenix opponent with three four-point and one two-point nearfalls.
Bryce Nickel claimed the first Patriot victory in the MSC match-up at 141, working toward the 11-5 verdict against Cumberland's Keshawn Laws. The Phoenix wrestler recorded the first takedown in the bout before Nickel bounced back to finish the period even. The eighth-ranked Patriot went on to overwhelm his opponent with complete control through the match with three more takedowns of his own.
At 165,
Jacob McNutt did not allow himself to be taken down in his match-up en route to a 12-4 major decision. The sixth-ranked man brought his opponent down to the mat five times to give him the edge in every period, collecting another point on riding time.
#4 CUMBERLANDS FALLS TO #7 LINDSEY WILSON, 22-19 (RESULTS)
With the dual tied at 19 between the Patriots and Blue Raiders, Lindsey Wilson came away with the win after a heavyweight victory in the third period. Cumberlands'
Aaron Johnson was taken down twice by the number-one wrestler in the country for the weight class after holding onto a 1-1 margin for six minutes of action.
Deluse got the credit for closing the score margin and tying up the dual with a major decision at 197. Fourth in his class, the senior took down his 20th-ranked opponent three times as well as worked in a reversal en route to the 10-1 verdict.
Leon notched his second pin of the day, needing only 1:51 to do so, the fall came on the second takedown of the match by the senior.
The Patriots also notched three decision wins in the dual loss behind Seto, Nickel and
Brady Emerson. Emerson fought back from a 2-1 deficit through two periods of action, getting the reversal 17 seconds into the third to come out on top.
The Patriots will face off against the Blue Raiders again later this season, next time taking them on with home advantage in the O. Wayne Rollins Center. The Senior Night dual is set for 7 PM on February 7.
#4 CUMBERLANDS FALLS TO #15 LIFE, 30-16 (RESULTS)
Patriots fell to the Running Eagles of Life University in the opening round of the NWCA National Duals Friday morning. Cumberlands was only able to claim wins in four of the 10 weights in their second duals loss of the season.
Leon picked up the first win of the day for the Patriots against Life at 149-pounds. The number-one wrestler in the class outscored #11 Marcelo Sierra 19-4 for the tech fall. After three takedowns and a four-point nearfall, Leon took the 10-2 edge into the second period. Nine points later, Leon offered five team points with the win.
McNutt, sixth in the NAIA, downed Life's top-10 wrestler in a grueling 5-2 bout. Mason McDaniel had the 2-1 margin over the 165-pounder after the first period before McNutt came out of the break with a reversal to take back the match in favor of the Patriots.
Deluse and Johnson rounded out the match with major decisions for the Patriots. The 197-man blanked Life's Diallo Matsimella in a 9-0 verdict with a takedown, reversal and four-point nearfall. Johnson, meanwhile, took an early lead out of the gates before exhausting Bret Winters 11-3.
UP NEXT
Cumberlands is set to take action at the Missouri Valley Invite next weekend, January 17 and 18. The Vikings host the individual tournament, beginning at 2 PM in Marshall, MO.
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