Falcons Wrap Up Competition at Glen Brand Open

Jan. 16, 2010

OMAHA, Neb. - Led a pair of runner-up finishes, the Air Force wrestling team finished with nine placewinners Saturday at the annual Glen Brand Open, hosted by Nebraska-Omaha. Placing second in their respective weight classes were Samuel Sheppard (Sr., Ramstein AB, Germany) at 125 pounds and Joseph Stafford (Jr., Loomis, Calif.) at 165 pounds.

In his first bout of the day, Sheppard pinned opponent Cody Tyler of Nebraska-Omaha with just two seconds remaining in the match. He then picked up an 8-5 decision over Iowa State's Dallas Collier. Sheppard's lone loss of the day came in the championship bout, where he dropped a close 3-2 decision to conference rival Cruse Aarhus of Northern Iowa.

Meanwhile, Stafford picked up a 16-8 major decision against Lindenwood's John Murray in his first match of the day. After pinning Dana's Kyle Conley in a time of 6:50, Stafford moved into the championship bout versus Nebraska's Jerad Gubbels, but came up short in a 9-4 decision.

Freshman Brandon Mueller (Greenleaf, Wis.) posted a 2-1 record on Saturday to claim third place at 141 pounds. After dropping a close 8-6 decision in the first round, Mueller posted two wins in the consolation bracket, including a fall in a time of 4:45.

Tyler Spangler (Fr., Midlothian, Va.) placed fourth at 133 pounds with a 3-2 record on Saturday. After recording wins in his first two matches, Spangler fell to eventual champion Cody Garcia of Nebraska-Omaha to move into the championship bracket. Following a win by major decision, his second of the day, Spangler dropped the third-place match to Nebraska's Ridge Kiley.

Junior Kazden Ikehara (Mililani, Hawaii) registered a team-high four wins on Saturday before placing fourth at 197 pounds. Ikehara shut out his first opponent, 6-0, but dropped into the consolation bracket with a loss to Grant Haschak of Cal Poly. Following three straight wins, including a major decision, Ikehara faced Haschak in the third-place contest, but dropped a close 1-0 contest.

Also placing for the Falcons were Steven Joseph (Fr., Middleburg, Fla.), Tanner Weltzin (So., Alexandria, Minn.) and Jared Erickson (Fr., Newton, Utah), who finished fifth at 125, 149 and 285 pounds, respectively, while senior James Ciccone (Mentor, Ohio), took sixth place at 184 pounds.

The Falcons are back in action next weekend, Jan. 23, when they head to Gunnison, Colo., for the Borah Duals, hosted by Western State.

Complete Brackets in PDF Format

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