MONTGOMERY, Ala.— The Montreat College men's wrestling team wrapped up its weekend trip to Huntingdon College on Sunday with the Hawk Classic Open. Signing up eight of its student-athletes for bracketed competition, the Cavaliers came away with three individual placements, 50.5 team points and a ninth-place team finish.
Josh Mojica-Smith carried the banner for the Cavs at the Hawk Classic Open. Participating in the 174-lb weight class, Mojica-Smith notched third place overall while scoring 19.5 team points, both best on the squad. The senior from Evans, Ga. went 4-1 during his tournament journey, and his lone loss came at the hands of the NAIA's No. 6-ranked wrestler. Two tech falls, one against a competitor from the University of Central Florida, and two pins lifted Mojica-Smith to his four triumphs. Mojica-Smith ended his run by pinning his opposition in the third-place bout.
Canton, N.C. native
Louis Mehaffey went 4-2 at 141 over the weekend, tallying 15.5 points for his team. Following a 13-6 decision loss to begin the day, Mehaffey won four straight bouts en route to the third-place matchup. Mehaffey's four triumphs came in four different fashions: fall, major decision, tech fall and medical forfeit. In the end, Mehaffey appeared on the wrong side of a 10-2 major decision to conclude the tournament.
Montreat's third and final placer on Sunday proved to be
Bryson McCraw, who ended up sixth in the 165-lb weight class. A senior from Columbus, N.C., McCraw kicked off his performance with a 7-2 decision triumph. While McCraw dropped a 13-7 decision to an NCAA Division I wrestler from Louisiana Tech University in the quarterfinals, he rebounded in the consolation bracket with a 4-2 victory. Ultimately, McCraw lost his final two matches to round out Sunday's action with a 2-3 individual record.
Four other Cavaliers picked up at least one win on Sunday.
Sam Gosnell,
Reese Ferm and
Grayson Burleson each went 2-2, with the former doing so at 125 and the latter two in the 285-lb weight class. Gosnell added 4.0 points to the team's score, while Ferm and Burleson tacked on 5.5 points and 4.0 points, respectively. Meanwhile,
Johnatan Argueta went 1-2 and registered 1.0 team points at 285.
For a complete look at results from the Hawk Classic Open, click
here.
The Montreat College men's wrestling squad hosts its initial home dual of the campaign on Friday when it welcomes the (RV) Keiser University Seahawks to town for an Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) showdown. Bouts are slated to begin at 1 p.m. inside McAlister Gymnasium.
