The wrestling team opened its season with a fifth-place finish, out of 12 teams, in the Roger Williams Invitational Sat., Nov. 15. Led by Dan Bloom ’10, who went 4-0 in the 125-pound class, the Cardinals racked up 106.5 team points.
Bloom defeated his first two opponents by fall and earned decisions in the third (10-2) and fourth (10-6) to finish first among 20 entrants in the class. Chris Alvanos ’11 finished fifth in the class, winning four of his final five matches—in addition to a medical forfeit—two by fall, after dropping a 5-4 decision in the opener.
David Bachy ’10 finished fifth in the 149 class with a 4-2 record, including a 16-0 decision in his second match. Ahmad Ismail ’12 finished with a 5-2 record in the same class. In the 165 class, Josh Berkovic ’10 went 5-2 for a fifth-place finish.
Greg Hurd ’10 came in second at 174 pounds with a 3-1 record, but fell 5-4 in the championship bout to All-American Jerome Owens of Johnson and Wales, who is currently ranked fourth nationally. Dan Conroy ’11 finished third at heavyweight with a 3-1 record.
The following Saturday, the Cardinals competed in the Doug Parker Invitational at Springfield College. Wesleyan finished ninth out of 17 teams with 80.5 team points, one shy of eighth-place Bridgewater State.
Bloom continued his dominance from the previous week as he rolled to a 5-0 record and another first-place finish, this time out of 27 entrants. Bloom, who is currently ranked first in the New England Wrestling Association (NEWA), defeated last year’s NEWA champion, Ethan Cohen of Williams, 3-1 in the championship. Alvanos finished fifth in the class with a 3-2 record, including a 1-0 loss to Cohen.
Hurd claimed the title in the 174 class with a 5-0 record, dominating all five opponents he faced. He is currently ranked second in the NEWA behind Owens.
Bachy, who is currently fifth in the NEWA at 149 pounds, repeated as a placewinner with a sixth-place performance, winning three of his six matches. Berkovic, who is also fifth in the NEWA in the 165 class, finished fifth in the field with a 5-2 record.
The team is back in action on Saturday in the Rochester Institute of Technology Invitational, its final action before break. In January, the team will open its NEWA schedule with matches against Trinity and Roger Williams, in addition to the Plymouth State Tournament and NEWA Duals at Roger Williams.
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