UNCP Athletics

Three Wrestlers Advance To Semifinals At Midwest Classic

December 15, 2018

INDIANAPOLIS – Brandon Sloop (184 pounds) tacked up a quartet of victories, while all-Americans Nick Daggett (125) and Rodney Shepard (165) ran the table on day one as well, to highlight action for the UNC Pembroke wrestling team on opening-day action at the 40^th Annual Midwest Classic on Saturday.

All three wrestlers advanced through to Sunday's semifinal round at the prestigious event. The trio will be joined by redshirt junior Tyler Makosy who was relegated to the consolation bracket via a tough loss to fifth-ranked George McGuire of Gannon in the quarterfinals of the 157-pound tournament.

The opening-day performance left the Braves in eighth place among the impressive field at the prestigious event. Sixteen squads in the 39-team field entered the event boasting national rankings. The Black & Gold is tops among the six teams from the southeast region that made the trek to the Midwest.

Daggett breezed through his first two matchups of the day, registering a 19-1 technical fall over Seton Hill's Derrick Chandler-Christie, before pinning Central Oklahoma's Noah McQuiqq with 29 seconds left in the second period. Daggett rode Northern State's Dayne Morton for the entirety of the third period in the quarterfinals of the 125-pound tournament to pick up a clutch riding time point and advance with a 2-1 decision.

Shepard had little trouble as well in his first two bouts of the day in the 165-pound tournament, retiring Marian's Trezdon O'Neal via injury default just 15 seconds into the first period, and then delivering an 18-7 major decision over Augustana's Jackson Sweeney. Shepard built a 3-0 advantage midway through the third period of his quarterfinal matchup with Central Oklahoma's Wyatt Jordan before surrendering an escape and a stalling point, but still advanced with a 3-2 decision.

Sloop won his opening match of the day with Adams State's William Tyler via an 18-9 major decision, and then nearly majored Minnesota State Moorhead's Evan Foster nearly an hour later as well. He would pick up UNCP's biggest victory of the day with a 4-2 overtime victory over seventh-ranked Billy Bowlen of Seton Hill later in the day, and then erupted for six points in the second period to fuel his 7-1 decision over Findlay's Armani Robinson in the quarterfinal round.

Sunday's action at the 40^th Annual Midwest Classic is expected to get underway at 9 a.m. ET inside the University of Indianapolis's Nicoson Hall.

125 Pounds
No. 6 Nick Daggett (UNCP) tech. fall Derrick Chandler-Christie (Seton Hill) TF 19-1; 4:22 No. 6 Nick Daggett (UNCP) pinned Noah McQuigg (Central Oklahoma) F 4:31 No. 6 Nick Daggett (UNCP) dec. Dayne Morton (Northern State) D 2-1

133 Pounds
Rio Zamora (Central Oklahoma) dec. Ronnie Pietro (UNCP) D 3-1 Ronnie Pietro (UNCP) maj. dec. Asher Meekhof (Davenport) M 13-5 Alexis Soriano (Mercyhurst) dec. Ronnie Pietro (UNCP) D 4-3

141 Pounds
Mason Schulz (Minnesota State Moorhead) dec. Jonathan Miller (UNCP) D 13-7 Jonathan Miller (UNCP) tech. fall Ryan Schmalen (Upper Iowa) 20-3; 7:00 Peter Kuster (Drury) dec. Jonathan Miller (UNCP) SV 6-4

149 Pounds
No Entry

157 Pounds
Tyler Makosy (UNCP) dec. Braydon Ortloff (Minnesota State Moorhead) D 5-2 Tyler Makosy (UNCP) dec. Chance Esmont (Ashland) D 2-1 No. 5 George McGuire (Gannon) dec. Tyler Makosy (UNCP) D 8-2

165 Pounds
Rodney Shepard (UNCP) inj. default Trezdon O'Neal (Marian) INJ 0:15 Rodney Shepard (UNCP) maj. dec. Jackson Sweeney (Augustana SD) M 18-7 Rodney Shepard (UNCP) dec. Wyatt Jordan (Central Oklahoma) D 3-2

174 Pounds
Jordan Gundrum (Upper Iowa) dec. Rahsaan Vereen (UNCP) D 7-2 Andrew Sams (Bellarmine) dec. Rahsaan Vereen (UNCP) D 11-5

184 Pounds
Brandon Sloop (UNCP) maj. dec. William Tyler (Adams State) M 18-9 Brandon Sloop (UNCP) dec. Evan Foster (Minnesota State Moorhead) D 16-9 Brandon Sloop (UNCP) dec. No. 7 Billy Bowlen (Seton Hill) SV 4-2 Brandon Sloop (UNCP) dec. Armani Robinson (Findlay) D 7-1