Ohio traveled to the 2023 Mid-American Conference Championships, hosted by George Mason in Fairfax, Virginia, this weekend. Ohio earned fourth place overall with 87.5 team points while four wrestlers automatically qualified for the NCAA Championship.
Here is a rundown of how the weekend went for all of the Bobcats:
125 pounds
Oscar Sanchez took turns being the hammer and the nail throughout the season. In his first match of the weekend, he appeared to be the hammer. Sanchez advanced to the second round via fall at the five-minute mark.
He returned to the mats Friday and lost to Jake Ferri of Kent State, the eventual second-place finisher. Sanchez lost by a 5-3 decision to Cleveland State’s Ben Aranda in the consolation bracket.
133 pounds
For the majority of the season, Gio DiSabato was nowhere to be found. Paul Woo and Mason Brugh tried to fill DiSabato’s shoes, but no one could imitate the senior’s finesse.
On Friday, the spark Ohio was lacking at 133 pounds returned. DiSabato announced his presence with an emphatic 11-3 major decision victory over Cameron Soda of Edinboro. However, like Sanchez, DiSabato was defeated in the second round by the eventual champion. Nonetheless, DiSabato made a run in the consolation bracket.
On Saturday, DiSabato lost to Vincent Perez of Central Michigan to move into the seventh-place match against Northern Illinois’ Lucian Brink. DiSabato won that match to become the first Ohio wrestler to place.
141 pounds
Kyran Hagan picked up a win over Caleb Rea of Cleveland State to keep Ohio on a three-bout win streak. However, the rest of the tournament was not quite as kind to him. He suffered two straight losses to cap off his career. The last loss ended in heartbreaking fashion as he lost against George Mason’s Anthony Glasl via sudden victory 6-5. He finished his career with a 58-43 record.
149 pounds
In his first match against George Mason’s Nate Higley, Alec Hagan was outdueled by his opponent. However, after receiving a bye in the consolation bracket, Hagan rebounded with a 7-4 decision over Nick Stonecheck of Lock Haven to keep his season alive for at least another day.
Saturday was far preferable for Hagan, at least to start. A late flurry against Clarion’s Kyle Schickel tied the score as time expired, but a subsequent injury to Schickel during Hagan’s push allowed Hagan to advance. In the next consolation match, Hagan was unable to overcome Ryan Burgos from Edinboro.
At that point, Hagan had advanced far enough in the consolation bracket to make the fifth-place match. That match determined who would advance to the NCAA Tournament, as the MAC was allocated five berths for 149 pounds. Hagan rose to the occasion, claiming a dramatic 4-3 decision to continue his season.
157 pounds
Peyten Kellar had a tremendous weekend; he suffered one loss in close fashion. After dispatching his opponent in the first round, Kellar was bested by Lock Haven’s Ashton Eyler by a 2-0 decision.
In his first consolation bout, Kellar regained his rhythm. He swatted away Noah Reho by way of a pin to end the day. Saturday, Kellar came out determined to place. He won all three of his matches, none of which were particularly close. The redshirt freshman earned his first NCAA Tournament appearance by capturing third place in the MAC Championships.
165 pounds
A first-round bye meant that Jordan Slivka was set to face Tracy Hubbard of Central Michigan in his first match of the postseason. The extra rest may have done Slivka more harm than good as Hubbard defeated Slivka. However, like Kellar, Slivka rebounded from his loss and ended his day with a pin against Edinboro’s Alex Garee.
Slivka started Saturday with a major decision victory over Buffalo’s Michael Petite. That sense of a resurgence and hope for a top-three finish was squashed by Lock Haven’s Avery Bassett. Although Slivka’s day was not over, his chances of grabbing a guaranteed berth might have been. However, it did not appear to affect Slivka as he won his final match of the day to take home a fifth-place finish.
174 pounds
After an injury sidelined Sal Perrine for the majority of the MAC schedule, Perrine had a lot to prove. As a true freshman last season, Perrine earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. He had the chance to do the same for the second consecutive season. Those aspirations seemed viable after he defeated Northern Illinois’ Hayden Pummel. However, Perrine lost in the second round before capturing a win in the consolation to cap off his day on Friday.
To start the day on Saturday, Perrine picked up a pair of close victories before he was defeated in a tight 4-2 decision. However, in order to determine who would receive the fourth and final spot in the weight class for the NCAA Tournament, Perrine had to wrestle. Perrine got the win via a sudden victory takedown of Rider’s Michael Wilson.
184 pounds
Zayne Lehman was in a situation that forced him to emerge with one of the two top spots in order to get into the NCAA Championships. Lehman entered the weekend ranked No. 3 in his class, and coasted to the first-place match against Clarion’s Will Feldkamp, the No. 1 wrestler in the class. Lehman ultimately lost to Feldkamp but was given another opportunity to punch his ticket to Nationals against Cleveland State’s DeAndre Nassar. Lehman dominated the bout and left no doubt, earning a trip to the Championship and second place in his class.
197 pounds
Carson Brewer was an underdog in his weight class. The redshirt junior dug deep and won all three of his bouts. His path to victory seemed clear until he ran into Rider’s Ethan Laird, who had lost just one time over the course of the season, on Saturday. Brewer fell in the championship round but earned his best finish in the MAC Championships.
Unfortunately, there was a single berth to be given out this weekend to the 197-pound weight class. Brewer has a chance to still make the NCAA Tournament if he receives an at-large bid.
285 pounds
Jacob Padilla, who is 1-13 on the season, was pinned 25 seconds into his first match by Rider’s David Szuba, one of the fastest the MAC Championships has ever seen. Padilla’s second match went better but still did not result in a victory as he lost to Buffalo’s Eli Sherren by way of a 7-0 score.
