WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. - The Messiah wrestling team opened up the Budd Whitehill Duals with a 1-2 day on Friday in Group D action. The Falcons dropped duals against Washington & Lee (23-19) and Wisconsin-Eau Claire (31-7) to begin their day, but controlled the action in a 35-7 victory against Oswego State in their final dual of the day. Messiah advances to the Ninth-12th place bracket on Saturday. The Falcons will wrestle the Williams Ephs at 9:00 a.m. and Wesleyan at noon as they compete for ninth place.

Washington & Lee defeats Messiah – 23-19
The Messiah wrestling team started their day with a tight match against the Washington and Lee Generals, ultimately falling by a final score of 23-19. Despite the loss, the Falcons had several strong performances throughout the match.
 
Starting off at 125 lbs., the Generals earned a major decision by Riley Parker. However, the Falcons were able to bounce back with a win in the next match, with Asa Brunk (133 lbs.) securing a fall against David Rubin in 4:21. Brunk's victory gave Messiah an early 6-4 lead.
 
Moving up the weight classes, the Falcons continued to put up a strong fight, with notable performances from Camerin Deville, Zach Needles, and John Sumner. Deville secured an injury default win in his match against Jack Roszko at 149 lbs., while Needles and Sumner earned victories in their respective matches. Needles picked up a 14-2 major decision against Mark Troni at 165 lbs. while Sumner earned a 7-5 decision against Jak Krouse.
 
Unfortunately for the Falcons, Washington & Lee won the last three matches with a pair of decisions and a fall to claim the 23-19 victory.
 
Wisconsin-Eau Claire defeats Messiah – 31-7
In their second dual of the day, the Messiah dropped a 31-7 dual against the Wisconsin-Eau Claire BluGolds. Despite the loss, the Falcons had some standout moments throughout the match.
 
One of the highlights of the dual came in the 133-pound match. Trailing late, Asa Brunk put Tyler Fleetwood on his back in the final seconds, nearly earning the last-second fall, but unfortunately ran out of time. Fleetwood hung on for the 15-9 decision.
 
Another notable performance came from Mason Casey at 141 lbs., who secured a hard-fought victory over Lorenzo Diaz with a final score of 7-4. At 157 lbs., Garret Cornell also had a great performance, securing a major decision victory over Colton Sund with a score of 14-4. Cornell almost had a pin in the second period, but had to settle for a dominating major decision.

Messiah defeats Oswego State - 35-7
In their final dual of the day, the Falcons secured a dominant 35-7 victory over the Oswego State Lakers. The Falcons put on a strong performance in nearly every weight class, winning a total of eight of the 10 bouts in the dual. The Falcons rattled off three-straight victories to begin the dual with Asa Brunk (133 lbs.) and Mason Casey (141 lbs.) earning major decisions.
 
Arnold earned a decisive 6-2 decision over John Vicario of Oswego State to begin the match at 125 lbs. Then at 133 lbs., Asa Brunk dominated Michael Santore with a major decision by a score of 11-2. Mason Casey (141 lbs.) also secured a major decision, defeating Billy Piatti 14-3 to lift the Falcons to an early 10-0 lead.
 
The Lakers picked up a tight, 3-2 decision at 149 lbs. before Garret Cornell earned a third-period fall in 6:17. Zach Needles made it two pins in a row for the Falcons with a fall in 4:54 at 165 lbs. Osewego State snagged a major decision at 174 lbs., but Messiah responded with victories in the final three bouts to claim the victory. Ryder Slayton (184 lbs.) earned a close 3-2 decision, Joe Embleton (197 lbs.) picked up a first-period fall in 2:39, and Hayden Benner (285 lbs.) claimed a 14-3 major decision to round out the victory.
 
Messiah will look to take the momentum from the 35-7 victory against Oswego State into Saturday's action when they will take on the Williams Ephs and Wesleyan Cardinals at 9:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m., respectively.­­

Washington & Lee defeats Messiah – 23-19
125 - Riley Parker (Washington & Lee) over Caiden Heller (Messiah) Maj 15-3
133 - Asa Brunk (Messiah) over David Rubin (Washington & Lee) Fall 4:21
141 - Evan Lindner (Washington & Lee) over Mason Casey (Messiah) Dec 8-4
149 - Camerin Deville (Messiah) over Jack Roszko (Washington & Lee) Inj 0:11
157 - Ryan Luth (Washington & Lee) over Garret Cornell (Messiah) Maj 11-1
165 - Zach Needles (Messiah) over Mark Troni (Washington & Lee) Maj 14-2
174 - John Sumner (Messiah) over Jak Krouse (Washington & Lee) Dec 7-5
184 - Cameron Blizard (Washington & Lee) over Ryder Slayton (Messiah) Dec 5-4
197 - John Ryan Sedovy (Washington & Lee) over Joe Embleton (Messiah) Dec 6-2
285 - Matt Majoy (Washington & Lee) over Hayden Benner (Messiah) Fall 4:14
 
Wisconsin-Eau Claire defeats Messiah – 31-7
125 - Carter Schulz (Wisconsin-Eau Claire) over Bryce Arnold (Messiah) Dec 7-2   
133 - Tyler Fleetwood (Wisconsin-Eau Claire) over Asa Brunk (Messiah) Dec 15-9
141 - Mason Casey (Messiah) over Lorenzo Diaz (Wisconsin-Eau Claire) Dec 7-4
149 - Zach Sato (Wisconsin-Eau Claire) over Camerin Deville (Messiah) Maj 8-0    
157 - Garret Cornell (Messiah) over Colton Sund (Wisconsin-Eau Claire) Maj 14-4
165 - Tristan Massie (Wisconsin-Eau Claire) over Zach Needles (Messiah) Dec 9-6
174 - Jared Stricker (Wisconsin-Eau Claire) over John Sumner (Messiah) Fall 4:06
184 - NIall Schoenfelder (Wisconsin-Eau Claire) over Ryder Slayton (Messiah) SV-1 3-1
197 - Sam Melton (Wisconsin-Eau Claire) over Joe Embleton (Messiah) Dec 10-8
285 - Chase Melton (Wisconsin-Eau Claire) over Hayden Benner (Messiah) Fall 3:41

Messiah defeats Oswego State - 35-7
125 - Bryce Arnold (Messiah) over John Vicario (Oswego State) Dec 6-2
133 - Asa Brunk (Messiah) over Michael Santore (Oswego State) Maj 11-2
141 - Mason Casey (Messiah) over Billy Piatti (Oswego State) Maj 14-3
149 - Tyler Rossini (Oswego State) over Clay Gainer (Messiah) Dec 3-2      
157 - Garret Cornell (Messiah) over Logan McGloine (Oswego State) Fall 6:17
165 - Zach Needles (Messiah) over Steven Felice (Oswego State) Fall 4:54
174 - Charlie Grygas (Oswego State) over John Sumner (Messiah) Maj 15-7
184 - Ryder Slayton (Messiah) over Bryce Smith (Oswego State) Dec 3-2
197 - Joe Embleton (Messiah) over Anthony Cascen (Oswego State) Fall 2:39
285 - Hayden Benner (Messiah) over Evan Cataldo (Oswego State) Maj 14-3
* Messiah was deducted one team point for mat control      
 

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