BRISTOL, R.I.- The Wrestling Team totaled 75.5 points to take third place Tuesday at the Williams College Invitational in Williamstown, Mass. The hosts took the title with 144.5 points while the University of Southern Maine finished second with 83 points.
Three Hawks reached the finals of their respective weight classes, including junior Nick Cambi wrestling at 197. The Cohasset, Mass. native earned a bye into the second round where he dispatched his opponent, 5-1, before earning a 1-0 win to reach the championship match. A battle of nationally-ranked wrestlers ensued, as Cambi, ranked 8th, met 2nd-ranked Ryan Malo (Georgetown, Mass.). The junior from Williams earned the higher ranking in the end, defeating Cambi with a win by fall at 4:11.
In the 165 weight class, RWU senior Kyle Rodgers (Danbury, Conn.) also fell to a nationally-ranked opponent in the championship match. Rodgers posted three wins, outscoring his opponents 18-4 along the way, to reach the finals where USM's Mike Morin (Fryeburg, Maine) took the victory with the 8-2 decision.
RWU freshman Philip Ernst (Succasunna, N.J.) wrestled well on the day at 184. Ernst dominated his opponents with two pins and a 10-0 victory to reach the finals where a tight battle was won, 4-0, by Williams senior Nathan Shippee (Bolton, Conn.)
The 149 weight class saw two Hawks perform well as Nicholas Herrick (Paramus, N.J.) pinned his first opponent and won 7-4 in his next match before falling to the eventual champion, 5th-ranked John Marsh (New Bedford, Mass.) from Bridgewater State College. Moving into the consolation bracket, he was matched against freshman teammate Jack DiBurro (Haverhill, Mass.) who stood at 3-1 on the day at that point. DiBurro took the decision by injury default before earning third place with an exciting 4-3 victory over freshman Joey Eon (Massebesic, Maine) of Norwich.
RWU junior Jonathan Lemoine (Trumbull, Conn.) won his first match of the day, 4-2, before falling to the eventual 125 champion and moving to the consolation bracket. There he earned a win by fall at 1:15 to advance to the third-place match where a strong Wilkinson from Plymouth State earned the 14-5 win.
Both Bennett Kissane (Tranquility, N.J.) and Chris Nadeau (Granby, Conn.) posted records of 2-2 on the day, falling only to the eventual 2nd and 3rd-place finishers in the 285 and 174 weight classes, respectively. Meanwhile Jeremiah Mahoney (Madison, Conn.) recorded a 3-2 record wrestling at 133.
Listed below are the final team scores of the eight-team tournament. For complete brackets, click here (and scroll down). The Hawks have only a few days to prepare for their trip Saturday to Elizabethtown, Pa., where they'll compete in dual matches against Elizabethtown College and the University of Scranton.
Team Scores:
1st: Williams College 144.5
2nd: USM 83
3rd: Roger Williams 75.5
4th: Bridgewater State 72.5
5th: AIC 68.5
6th: Plymouth State 53.5
7th: Simpson 32
8th: Norwich 31.5
