WHEATON, Ill. (blugolds.com) — The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire wrestling team competed at the opening day of the Pete Willson Wheaton Invitational on Friday at Wheaton College. The Blugolds had four wrestlers reach the semifinals of their weight class and sit in second place in the team standings entering the final day of competition.
Zach Sato (So. – Oswego, Ill.), Tristan Massie (Jr. – Hillsdale, Wis./Barron), Jared Stricker (So. – Ashland, Wis.) and Niall Schoenfelder (So. – Antioch, Ill.) all reached the semifinals and will wrestle for a title on Saturday. The Blugolds accumulated 71 team points, only four behind first-place North Central.
Sato punched his ticket to the 149-pound semifinals in dominant fashion, winning his first two matches by technical fall (16-1 and 19-4) to advance to the quarters. The 12th-ranked sophomore clinched his spot in the semis with a fall over Concordia (Wis.) wrestler Veliko Kochiu. Sato will face North Central's Charlie Dojan with a spot in the finals on the line on Saturday.
Massie advanced to the 165-pound semifinals with three wins on the opening day. The ninth-ranked junior won in a 6-4 sudden victory in his opener, and followed with wins by 4-3 and 7-3 decisions. His 7-3 victory in the quarterfinals came over 14th-ranked Ryan Whitten of Otterbein. Massie will square off with Darian Estevez of the University of Chicago in the semis.
Stricker, ranked fourth in the country, had no problems reaching the semifinals at 174 pounds. The sophomore got three consecutive pins, with the final two coming in the first period. Stricker, the top seed, will wrestle Adrian's Derick Duvall in Saturday's semifinals.
Schoenfelder also took care of business with three victories via fall at 184 pounds. The sixth-ranked sophomore won his first match with a first-period pin, got the second fall in the third period and ended his quarterfinal in the second period. Schoenfelder is the No. 1 seed in his weight class and will take on North Central's Payton Geigner in the semis on Saturday.
The Blugolds also had several wrestlers reach the quarterfinals before falling in their final matches of the day. Jake Matthews (So. – Addison Trail, Ill.) received a first-round bye at 141 pounds, and won his second-round match via fall in the first period. He fell in a 15-4 major decision in the quarterfinals.
Zach Schneider (Sr. – Houston, Minn.) won via fall in the 157-pound opening round and followed with a 12-0 major decision in his second match. He fell in a narrow 5-3 decision in the quarterfinals.
Chase Melton (Sr. – Spooner, Wis.) made a run to the 197-pound quarterfinals. The 10th-ranked senior won by fall in his opener and 11-0 major decision in the second round. A close 3-2 decision defeat in the quarterfinals dropped him into the consolation bracket.
Carter Schulz (Fr. – Rice Lake, Wis.) dropped his opening match at 125 pounds in a 10-2 major decision. He won a pair of consolation matches by 5-1 and 6-0 decisions and still has an opportunity to place on Saturday.
Ryan Goddard (Fr. – Oswego, Ill.) was defeated via fall in his opener at 133 pounds to move into the consolation bracket. He scored a 10-7 decision in his first wrestle-back match, but was defeated by fall in his second.
Sam Melton (Sr. – Shell Lake, Wis./Spooner) won his opener at 285 pounds, taking a sudden victory 4-2. He fell in a 5-0 decision in the second round to move into the consolation bracket, where he picked up a pair of wins. He won his first consolation match 3-0 and his second 2-1, and has the chance to be a placewinner on Saturday.
Wrestling is set to resume at 11 a.m. on Saturday.
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