Air Force Academy
Rocky Mountain Collegiate Open
Air Force Places 12 at Rocky Mountain Collegiate Open
1/30/2010 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Jan. 30, 2010
GOLDEN, Colo. - Led by champions Ethan Martinez (Fr., Colorado Springs, Colo.) and Josh Mohr (Fr., Pewaukee, Wis.), the Air Force wrestling team finished with 12 placewinners Saturday at the Rocky Mountain Collegiate Open, hosted by Colorado School of Mines. Martinez won the 125-pound weight class, while Mohr took the title at 184 pounds.
Martinez compiled a 3-0 record en route to his title at 125 pounds, beginning with a 14-2 major decision over Jeremy Robledo of Adams State. Following a 19-4 tech fall over Aaron Gray of Colorado State, Martinez captured the championship with a 4-0 decision against Western State's Kyle Johnshoy.
Mohr rattled off four victories to earn the championship at 184 pounds. After winning a 3-2 decision against CSU-Pueblo's Adam Carey, Mohr pinned Colorado State's Kody Schmidt in a time of 1:06. With a 13-2 major decision over Adams State's Paul Cabbage, Mohr earned a spot in the title bout, where he captured a 4-1 decision against Jesse Amos of Adams State.
Freshman Tyler Spangler (Midlothian, Va.) finished as the runner-up at 133 pounds, posting a 3-1 record on the day. He opened with a close 6-5 decision over Chadron State's Josh McCance, followed by a 4-1 decision against Corey Johnson from Adams State. He added an 8-6 against Paul Johnson from Utah Valley before falling to host CSM's Chad Lousberg in the title match.
Brandon Mueller (Fr., Greenleaf, Wis.) also posted a 3-1 record on Saturday to claim second place in his weight class. Wrestling at 141 pounds, Mueller picked up three decisions to start the day, defeating Utah Valley's Sean Porter, 9-4, CSU-Pueblo's Nick Stahler, 6-3, and CSM's Mike Burgess, 6-1. However, Mueller suffered his first loss of the day in the championship bout, dropping a 7-0 decision to Mitch Newcomer of Embry-Riddle.
Freshman Clayton Gable (Dallastown, Pa.) added another runner-up finish for Air Force, placing second at 165 pounds. He posted an 18-2 technical fall over CSU-Pueblo's Trevor Grant in the first match of the day before pinning Jake Wilson of Colorado School of Mines in a time of 1:44. In his next bout, Gable defeated Western State's Jorge Benitez, 5-2, in the first tiebreaker, but came up short in the title match, dropping a 4-0 decision to Justin Grant of CSU-Pueblo.
Three other Falcons also finished with just one loss on the day. Steven Joseph (Fr., Middleburg, Fla.) posted a 3-1 record at 125 pounds to take third place. Winning three decisions on the afternoon, Joseph's lone loss was a one-point decision to runner-up Kyle Johnshoy.
At 197 pounds, Kazden Ikehara (Jr., Mililani, Hawaii) also compiled a 3-1 ledger to place third. After winning his first match by decision, Ikehara suffered his lone defeat coming at the hands of champion Tony Chavarria, a 5-4 decision that was decided in the second tiebreaker period. Ikehara responded by pinning his next opponent, Ryan Bok of Colorado State, before winning a 2-0 decision over teammate Karl Oeser (So., Wichita, Kan.) in the third-place match.
Also placing third for Air Force was freshman heavyweight Jared Erickson (Newton, Utah). He opened the day with his first fall of the season, pinning CSU-Pueblo's Moises Alcala in a time of 1:05, before registering a 20-4 tech fall against CSU's Enes Ozekin. Despite falling to CSM's Bryan Stansbury to drop into the consolation bracket, Erickson ended the day with a pair of decisions, including a 3-2 win over Ryan Tucker of Colorado School of Mines in the third-place match.
Also placing for the Falcons on Saturday were Tanner Weltzin (So., Alexandria, Minn.), Daniel Nissen (Fr., Denver, Colo.) and Oeser, who placed fourth at 149, 174 and 197 pounds, respectively, while sophomore Caleb Egli (Colorado Springs, Colo.) took fourth place at 197 pounds.
The Falcons return to action next weekend, Feb. 6, when they head to Annapolis, Md., for the annual All-Academy Championships.
Players Mentioned
