Grapplers open season at Southeast Open

Brandon Mendoza placed 4th at the Southeast Open.
Brandon Mendoza placed 4th at the Southeast Open.

A total of 23 Tiffin University men's wrestlers saw action at the Southeast Open in Roanoke, Virginia, with four of them placing in the ultra-competitive open.

Brandon Mendoza had the top finish in the Open Division, placing 4th at 125 pounds. He opened with a pin in 44 seconds over Ferrum before suffering a pin loss to Columbia in 2:51 and a 10-2 loss to Bules Creek.

Nick Mason (197) finished 5th, opening with a narrow 7-5 loss to New York City but then ripping off three straight wins. He pinned Davidson in 6:49, shutout New Jersey 18-0, and then took fifth with a quick pin in 43 seconds over Columbia.

David Henson (285) came in 6th, posting wins over Notre Dame 6-1 and 3-1 along with a win over Virginia 9-4 before falling in the fifth place match to New Jersey via fall in 2:08.

In the Freshmen/Sophomore Division, Casey Barnett (149 pounds) had the best overall finish of the day, taking 3rd. He won four of his five matches, getting pins over Roanoke in 1:25 and Notre Dame in 3:23, posting a tech fall win over Roanoke 21-4 and winning his third place match over Davidson 8-6.

Other wins in the Open Division came from Dylan Mansor (157) with wins over American in 2:22 and Virginia 4-1, and Nicholas Smythe (174) 3-2 over Notre Dame.

In the Freshmen/Sophomore Division, TU got more victories from 125-pound Caden Crawford (16-0 over Roanoke, 5-2 over Virginia Tech, 6-4 over Notre Dame), 133-pound Josh Lyons (6-2 over Roanoke, 16-1 over Emory & Henry), 149-pound Ryan Tucker (16-4 over Emory & Henry), 149-pound Kolby Crowe (win in 4:22 over Emory & Henry), 197-pound Clay Ours (7-2 over Travis Fridley), and 285-pound Jacob Noon (4-3 over Gardner Webb and win by pin in 17 seconds over Gardner Webb).