ROCHESTER, N.Y. - The Williams College wrestling team had a complete performance on Saturday at the RIT Invitational, putting wrestlers on the podium at all 10 weight classes and winning four in the 14-team event.
The Ephs who won their classes were Caleb Seyfried at 149 pounds, Peter Kane at 157, Henry Forte and Gage Wiggins shared the title at 174, and Jamie Evarts at 184. Williams finished with a team score of 192, ahead of RIT at 156 and St. John Fisher at 132.
"We are wrestling well, but the hunger for improvement and their love for one another is what sets this team apart," said Head Coach Scott Honecker. "We will have a minicamp in late December and the guys are well poised to make some big gains before we take the mat again at the Williams Open. These guys should take some joy in this outing, and then shift their focus to a strong final exam performance and a brief recovery segment while we wrap up the academic side of things."
For the second consecutive tournament, the Ephs were dominant at the 174 pound weight class, as Forte and Wiggins ran through their bracket to make the final. Forte, the second seed, pinned his first three opponents before earning a 20-5 tech fall in the semifinal. Wiggins, seeded fifth, pinned all four of his opponents, including the number one seed from John Carroll University in the semifinal.Â
At 157, Kane was the top seed and showed his skill, pinning his first three opponents in the first minute of each match. He also won by fall in both the quarterfinal and semifinal against a pair of wrestlers from RIT, and had a 10-1 major decision victory in the final over second-seeded Paul Lichter of St. John Fisher.
Evarts came into the 184 pound bracket as the top seed, and was dominant in his first three matches, winning two by fall and one by major decision. In the final, he captured a tight 4-1 decision over second-seeded Eli Crum of Lycoming.
At 149, Seyfried ran through his first three rounds with consecutive pins, then topped an opponent from St. John Fisher with a 5-0 decision before earning a hard-fought 1-0 decision in the final over Trevor Bishop, also St. John Fisher.
Beyond the four weight classes where the Ephs were victorious, Williams had strong performances throughout. Zach Borzio was third at 184, coming close to joining Evarts in the final before winning the consolation, and Jake Strianese at 133 and Leo Tansey at 165 both captured fourth place. Connor Reynolds at 285, Hayden Haber at 149 and Tylor Stubbs at 141 all earned fifth, and Christopher Colon at 125 and David LaPrade at 197 finished in sixth.
Placing wrestlers on the podium at all 10 weights showed great depth for the Ephs. "I don't know if we've ever done that at a tournament before, certainly not in the last 15 years since I've been here," said Honecker after the event.
Full results from the event can be found here.
The wrestlers have a break from competition until January 3, when the team returns to Lasell Gymnasium to host the Williams Open.
