Tiffin University made its mark on the first day of the Midwest Classic, as four grapplers reached the Semifinals unbeaten.

Tiffin trailed only Central Oklahoma in the 37 team field by a 70-69 margin, while McKendree was also in the hunt with 61.5 points. The Midwest Classic is one of the premier wrestling tournaments in the country, with 16 of the top 25 teams present.

Christopher Donathan reached the semis at 149 pounds, posting wins over Mercyhurst 19-4, Colorado Mines by fall in 2:35, and Central Oklahoma even faster via fall in 21 seconds.

Trey Grine (157) was also unbeaten, beating Davenport in the prelims 16-0, then dispatching Queens 16-1, CSU-Pueblo 9-4, and Indianapolis by a narrow 2-1 margin.

Hayden Bronne (174) had a powerful showing, downing Gannon 15-2, then flattening UNC-Pembroke in 2:44 and Western Colorado in 58 seconds.

Nick Mason (197) gave TU its fourth semifinal qualifier with a dominating performance, pinning Fort Hays State in 26 seconds, Colorado Mines in 2:20, and Mercyhurst in 1:13.

Two other Dragons remained alive in the consolation rounds. Dylan Mansor (141) opened with a narrow 5-1 loss to Ashland, then posted wins over Ouchita Baptist by fall in 2:55, Indianapolis 8-4, and Mercyhurst 4-1. Bryan LaVearn (165) followed his opening round 13-0 win over Queens with a tough 14-2 loss to Mary. He then rebounded with two wins over Davenport in 3:17 and UNC-Pembroke 10-2.

Also posting wins on the day were Richard Screptock (184) over Minnesota State Moorhead 9-4 and Colorado Mines by fall in 31 seconds; and David Henson (285) over Wisconsin-Parkside 4-3 and Seton Hill 8-5.

The Classic concludes on Dec. 15.