EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (blugolds.com) – The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire wrestling team hosted their annual 8 Man Battle tournament on Saturday as Cornell College, Buena Vista University, St. John's University, and Lakeland University were in town for the two-division tournament. UW-Eau Claire took 1st place out of the five teams after 11 Blugolds were crowned champions in their respective weight divisions.
With a team total of 165.5, the Blugolds dominated all afternoon with at least one top three finisher in all but one division. Tyler Fleetwood (Jr. – Fulton, Ill.) earned a 1st place finish in the Gold 133-division with three pins and a technical fall on the day. Zach Sato (So. – Oswego, Ill.) also earned a first-place finish as he tallied one pin and one major decision victory. Sato earned the top spot over fellow Blugold, Markus Brown (So. – Iron River, Wis./Northwestern), after a medical forfeit in the first-place match. Brown earned a fourth-place finish in the Gold 149-division.
Jan Hernandez-Soto (So. – Minneapolis, Minn./Patrick Henry) took second place in the Gold 157-division with two pins and a 4-3 decision victory in the semifinals. A tough 13-12 decision defeat in the championship match earned Hernandez-Soto the runner-up placement.
Tristan Massie (Jr. – Hillsdale, Wis./Barron) took the first-place spot in the Gold 165-division with a technical fall win and a win by medical forfeit. Also placing in the Gold 165-division was Jon Harvey (Fr. – Lake City, Minn./Lincoln) who earned a technical fall win in round one and a competitive 3-2 decision victory in the semifinals.
Jared Stricker (So. – Ashland, Wis.) earned a first-place finish at the Gold 174-division with a 18-1 tech fall win and a 7-1 victory in the championship. Niall Schoenfelder (So. – Antioch, Ill.) also finished at the top of his division with a major decision win, a win by medical forfeit, and a 5-3 decision victory in the championship match.
Chase Melton (Sr. – Spooner, Wis.) won the Gold 197-division defeating the top seeded T. Steffen (CC) with a pin in 2:52. Melton also tallied a 12-0 major decision victory in round one and a 11-4 win in the semifinals.
In the open divisions, Ty Peterson (So. – Delavan, Minn./Blue Earth), Luke Krier (So. – Mazeppa, Minn./Zumbrota-Mazeppa), Terry Smith (Fr. – Tacoma, Wash./Curtis), Preston Carlisle (Fr. – Red Wing, Minn./Cannon Falls), and Marcus Hankins (So. – Sauk City, Wis./Sauk Prairie) all placed first in their respective divisions.
The Blugolds will hit the road on Wednesday, November 23rd when they travel to Augsburg University for a nonconference duel against the Auggies. The contest is scheduled to begin at 3PM at Si Melby Hall.
Follow the Blugolds all season long at Blugold Game Day or on our app, UWEC Blugolds.
