Saturday, November 12
Boone, NC
9:00 AM
Air Force Academy
vs
Mountaineer Invitational
Falcon Wrestling Knocks off Top Guys to Win Titles at the Mountaineer Invite
11/12/2022 6:36:00 PM | Wrestling
BOONE, N.C. – Air Force was in midseason form at Appalachian State's Mountaineer Invite, battling to a stellar finish in their first all-Division I competition of the season. Falcons knocked off five nationally ranked wrestlers to win three titles and finish with nine placers on the day.
"For our first Division I competition of the season, we're very pleased with the team up-and-down the lineup from our 125 to heavyweight," Head coach Sam Barber said. "We showed up with an extreme amount of effort and competed hard all day long."
Senior 133-pounder Cody Phippen was the talk of the tournament as he knocked off No. 31 Jackson Disario of Stanford by fall (4:00) and continued his roll into the finals where he bested No. 14 Sean Carter of App State, 9-3. Phippen went 3-0 on the day, adding a major decision to his jacket in his opening bout.
Junior team captain Sam Wolf battled his way to the title in the 174 class with three decision wins and a major decision in the opening round. Wolf met with Stanford's 11th-ranked Tyler Eischens in the title bout, outscoring the Cardinal wrestler, 5-3.
Air Force heavyweight standout No. 6 Wyatt Hendrickson continued his dominant ways, posting three falls en route to the title. Hendrickson, the 2021-22 national pins leader, spent 6:32 total time on the mat during the tournament.
"It's great to see Wyatt Hendrickson back on the mat and continuing to do what he does. He's still pinning guys and winning titles, but he is executing it in a different and more effective way— you can see a noticeable difference from the Wyatt he was last season."
Another Falcon standout performance came from senior Dylan Martinez who upended a pair of nationally ranked wrestlers en route to second-place finish in the 149 class. In his opening bout, Martinez battled from behind to outscore No. 30 Jarod Verkleeren of Virginia, 7-5. In the semifinals bout, Martinez squared off against returning All-American No. 9 Jaden Abas. Martinez found himself in an opportune position to pin the Cardinal wrestler, sealing the deal 2:44 into the match. Martinez ultimately placed second after dropping the finals bout, 8-0, App State's two-time All-American Jonathan Milner who is ranked fourth in the country.
Other placers included Tucker Owens (125) and Garrett Kuchan (141) who finished fourth in their respective classes. Owens went 3-2 on the day with a pair of decisions and one major decision. Kuchan went 3-1 with a major decision and a pair of decision wins.
At 165, junior Falcons Giano Petrucelli went 2-2 on the day to finish fifth place. Petrucelli showed a lot of promise, coming up short by narrow margins in overtime to nationally ranked opponents. Teammates Noah Blake (184) and Cal Sund (197) also finished fifth in the respective divisions with 2-2 records on the tournament. Sund won his fifth-place bout over Blake Schaffer by fall (2:44).
"We're leaving this tournament with three champs and nine placers after knocking off five nationally ranked wrestlers, some of which in the top-10 in the nation. It's testament to the progress our guys have made since just last year. We're looking forward to carrying this momentum to the Navy Classic next week and Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invite after that. We're always grateful but never satisfied and we're looking forward to continuing our growth and development individually and as a team."
On a second battlefront, Air Force saw five place winners at the Cowboy Open in Laramie, Wyoming. Senior 125-pounder Quinn Melofchik finished second while teammate Nick Gonzalez finished fourth in the same division. Freshman Seamus Casey showed promise with a third-place finish at 165. Freshmen teammates Bryce Shelton (141) and Reagan LeFevre (157) finished fourth and sixth, respectively.
Next up, the Falcons split the team for the second-consecutive week as one contingency travels to Annapolis, Maryland, for the Navy Classic and the other travels to Kearney, Nebraska, for the Younes Hospitality Open. Action is slated for Saturday, November 19.
"For our first Division I competition of the season, we're very pleased with the team up-and-down the lineup from our 125 to heavyweight," Head coach Sam Barber said. "We showed up with an extreme amount of effort and competed hard all day long."
Senior 133-pounder Cody Phippen was the talk of the tournament as he knocked off No. 31 Jackson Disario of Stanford by fall (4:00) and continued his roll into the finals where he bested No. 14 Sean Carter of App State, 9-3. Phippen went 3-0 on the day, adding a major decision to his jacket in his opening bout.
Junior team captain Sam Wolf battled his way to the title in the 174 class with three decision wins and a major decision in the opening round. Wolf met with Stanford's 11th-ranked Tyler Eischens in the title bout, outscoring the Cardinal wrestler, 5-3.
Air Force heavyweight standout No. 6 Wyatt Hendrickson continued his dominant ways, posting three falls en route to the title. Hendrickson, the 2021-22 national pins leader, spent 6:32 total time on the mat during the tournament.
"It's great to see Wyatt Hendrickson back on the mat and continuing to do what he does. He's still pinning guys and winning titles, but he is executing it in a different and more effective way— you can see a noticeable difference from the Wyatt he was last season."
Another Falcon standout performance came from senior Dylan Martinez who upended a pair of nationally ranked wrestlers en route to second-place finish in the 149 class. In his opening bout, Martinez battled from behind to outscore No. 30 Jarod Verkleeren of Virginia, 7-5. In the semifinals bout, Martinez squared off against returning All-American No. 9 Jaden Abas. Martinez found himself in an opportune position to pin the Cardinal wrestler, sealing the deal 2:44 into the match. Martinez ultimately placed second after dropping the finals bout, 8-0, App State's two-time All-American Jonathan Milner who is ranked fourth in the country.
Other placers included Tucker Owens (125) and Garrett Kuchan (141) who finished fourth in their respective classes. Owens went 3-2 on the day with a pair of decisions and one major decision. Kuchan went 3-1 with a major decision and a pair of decision wins.
At 165, junior Falcons Giano Petrucelli went 2-2 on the day to finish fifth place. Petrucelli showed a lot of promise, coming up short by narrow margins in overtime to nationally ranked opponents. Teammates Noah Blake (184) and Cal Sund (197) also finished fifth in the respective divisions with 2-2 records on the tournament. Sund won his fifth-place bout over Blake Schaffer by fall (2:44).
"We're leaving this tournament with three champs and nine placers after knocking off five nationally ranked wrestlers, some of which in the top-10 in the nation. It's testament to the progress our guys have made since just last year. We're looking forward to carrying this momentum to the Navy Classic next week and Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invite after that. We're always grateful but never satisfied and we're looking forward to continuing our growth and development individually and as a team."
On a second battlefront, Air Force saw five place winners at the Cowboy Open in Laramie, Wyoming. Senior 125-pounder Quinn Melofchik finished second while teammate Nick Gonzalez finished fourth in the same division. Freshman Seamus Casey showed promise with a third-place finish at 165. Freshmen teammates Bryce Shelton (141) and Reagan LeFevre (157) finished fourth and sixth, respectively.
Next up, the Falcons split the team for the second-consecutive week as one contingency travels to Annapolis, Maryland, for the Navy Classic and the other travels to Kearney, Nebraska, for the Younes Hospitality Open. Action is slated for Saturday, November 19.
Players Mentioned
174
/ Wrestling
165
/ Wrestling
HWT
/ Wrestling
133/141
/ Wrestling
/ Wrestling
149
/ Wrestling
125
/ Wrestling
/ Wrestling
157/165
/ Wrestling
125/133
/ Wrestling
/ Wrestling
174
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