Wrestling team takes third-place at North Central Invitational

NAPERVILLE, Ill. – The Olivet College wrestling team took third-place at the 50th Annual North Central College Invitational today at Gregory Arena in Naperville, Illinois. The Comets totaled 124 points to finish behind team champion Wabash (Ind.) College (147 points) and second-place Augustana (Ill.) College (127 points).

Olivet crowned one weight class champion and four others finished in second-place. Senior Gage Pederson (Hastings) won his second straight tournament at 149 pounds. As the top seed, he pinned his first two opponents and then beat Nick Bova from Wabash, 7-4, in the semifinals. Pederson edged second-seed Nathan Segal from North Central, 4-3, in the championship match.

Senior Henry McKeown (Bellevue/Olivet) placed second at 125 pounds. He started the day with a pin, won an 8-0 major decision and then pinned Nicolas Santos from North Central to advance to the finals. McKeown fell to Jimmy Panozza, 8-4, in the finals.

Senior Justin Holm (Battle Creek/Harper Creek) finished second at 141 pounds. He also had two straight pins and then defeated Andrew Rodawold from North Central, 14-2, in the semifinals. He lost 8-5 to Isaiah Schaub from Augustana, 8-5, in the championship bout.

Senior Jeff Holm (Battle Creek/Harper Creek) was second at 184 pounds. After receiving a bye in the first round, he won 6-2 and then slipped past No. 2 seed Thomas Revhons from Augustana, 3-2, in the semifinals. Holm dropped a 7-1 decision to No. 1 seed Riley Lefever from Wabash in the finals.

Wrestling as the No. 5 seed at 285 pounds, junior Trevor Timmreck (Birch Run) had a 3-1 record to place second. He pinned Brock Neeson from Alma in the first round, beat No. 4 seed Tre Taylor from Wabash, 4-3, in the quarterfinals and then pinned No. 1 seed John Schraidt from Augustana in the semifinals. Timmreck lost a 7-6 decision in the championship match to No. 2 seed Dylan Mahler from North Central.

Junior Kyle Witgen (Romeo) finished in third-place at 157 pounds. He won by pin in the first round and 6-4 decision in the quarterfinals, and then lost 6-3 in the semifinals. Witgen earned a medical forfeit win in his first consolation bracket match and then beat Kevin Sundberg from Augustana, 10-6, in the third-place match.

Junior Nick Allen (Scotville/Mason County Central) battled his way to a third-place finish at 174 pounds. He claimed a 16-0 technical fall win and 10-1 major decision before losing to top seed Conner Lefever from Wabash in the semifinals. Allen pinned his first opponent in the consolation bracket and then edged No. 3 seed Jordan Richardson from Augustana, 6-2, in the third-place match.

For Olivet's "B" team, senior Jeremy Ward (Washington Twp./Romeo) placed third at 141 pounds. He won by technical fall (15-0) in the first round and upset the No. 1 seed 6-2 in the quarterfinals before losing 5-3 to Schaub in the semis. Ward earned a 14-2 major decision victory in the first consolation bracket match and then pinned Rodawold in the third-place match.

The Comets travel to Ypsilanti next Tuesday, Dec. 17, for a dual match against Eastern Michigan University, starting at 7 p.m.