KEARNEY, Neb. – Adams State Wrestling will send five grapplers to the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships after the team put together an all-around performance on Saturday at the West Region Championships.
In all, the Grizzlies had nine of their wrestlers place in the top-eight of their respective classes with five finishing in the top-three to punch a ticket to the National Championships.
Leading the way on the afternoon was senior
Koery Windham who was crowned the Region Champion at 165 pounds for the Grizzlies. He went 4-0 on the day to help the grizzlies finish third as a team in the field of 10.
Those joining Windham as national qualifiers were
Jonathan Andreatta (125),
Dylan Udero (141),
Noah Hermosillo (149), and
Khalil Gipson (197). All four finished in the top three to make the National Championships.
As a team, the Grizzlies scored 102.5 points to earn their third place finish. Helping the team score points to their top-three finish were
Darek Huff (133),
Ryan Rochford (157),
Isaac Lopez (174), and
James Romero (285). Overall, nine of the 10 Adams State grapplers earned a top-eight finish on the day.
Windham's undefeated day started with a pin in his first match at 2:37 against Keenan Willits of Colorado School of Mines. He then scored a tiebreaking match, 5-3, to move to 2-0 on the day. A 7-3 decision victory helped him advance to the championship round and secured his spot for nationals. Windham's last match was the closest as he won 5-4 in a tiebreaker setup to take home the region crown and finish the day 4-0.
Andreatta, the RMAC Freshman of the Year, posted a 2-1 record to earn a runner-up finish and give him his first career bid to the National Championships. After receiving a bye in round one, he downed his first opponent with a 10-4 decision to advance to the semifinals. Andreatta scored another decision, 7-3 to make finals and solidify his chances to make nationals. In the finals, he dropped a tough 7-5 decision for his lone loss of the day.
Hermosillo also picked up a runner-up finish for Adams State going 2-1 as well. He received a bye to start the day and scored a 4-2 decision in his first bout to advance to the semifinals. He scored another two-point win by way of 9-7 decision in the semifinals to advance. In the finals, Hermosillo fell 12-8 to RMAC foe Chase Classen. Despite the loss, he will still wrestle in a few weeks at the National Championships.
Gipson was the third grappler to earn a runner-up finish on the day as he also posted a 2-1 record for the regional. Win No. 1 was a 9-5 decision for Gipson after receiving a bye in the first round. His second match was the closest as he scored a 3-2 decision to advance to the finals. Gipson then fell in a 703 decision to place second.
Udero rounded out the qualifying list after placing third at 141 pounds with a 3-1 record. He started the day with a 3-0 shutout decision. His lone loss was in the next match as he fell in a tight 4-3 decision. Udero bounced back winning his next two to qualify for nationals. He scored a 2-1 decision in the consolation semifinals to stay in the hunt. In the third place match, Udero battled well en route to a 9-4 decision victory to make nationals.
Romero closed his first season with the Grizzlies going 2-2 on the day at 285 pounds. He dropped his opening match, 7-5, but bounced back with a 6-3 decision. Romero then scored an 8-6 decision to make the third place match, where fell by way of a 17-5 major decision to finish fourth.
Rohford posted a 2-3 record for the Grizzlies at 157 pounds. He opened up the regional with a 3-1 decision victory. Match two saw him drop an 11-7 decision to move to 1-1. His final win was a 13-4 major decision. He then dropped a 7-3 decision and was pinned in the next match, respectively to finished fifth.
Lopez posted a 2-2 record to also place fifth at 174 pounds. He was pinned in his opening match in 2:07 but bounced back with an 8-4 decision victory to move to 1-1. Lopez was pinned again in his second loss this time in 2:50. Lopez secured his final win by way of a medical forfeit to finish the day at .500.
Huff was sixth at 133 pounds going 2-3 on the day for the Grizzlies. He scored both wins back-to-back before dropping three straight. He opened up with a 3-1 decision. Match No. 2 was a close one as he scored a 6-5 decision. His first of three losses was an 8-0 major decision. He was then pinned in 5:31 to move to 2-2. His third loss was a forfeit that ended his day with a sixth place finish.
The Five Grizzlies that auto-qualified will not return to the mats until March 8-9. They will head to Cleveland, Ohio for the 2018-19 National Championships that will be hosted by Cleveland State.
