The American University wrestling team (6-11) defeated the Morgan State Bears (1-17) on Feb. 4 by a score of 29-13. This dual was the third in a day that saw Drexel defeat both Morgan State and American in Bender Arena earlier.
American lost the dual to Drexel 31-6 with only two wins from the Eagles. Freshman 157-pounder Kaden Milheim and graduate student heavyweight Will Jarrell, who won against Drexel also wrestled against Morgan State, along with eight other wrestlers. Redshirt junior 149-pounder Ethan Szerencsits and freshman 197-pounder Caleb Beaty were the only two who participated in just the Morgan State match.
After American’s dual with Drexel concluded, high school wrestlers from Beat the Streets D.C. took to the mat for a couple of exhibition matches. High school girls competed fiercely on the Bender Arena mat while the Eagles and Bears prepared for their second duals of the day.
As always, the 125-pound class started off the dual. Junior Shamil Kalmatov took the mat for American against Morgan State’s Julian Dawson. Save for one restart for a potentially dangerous hold by Dawson, the bout was typical. Dawson won the bout 8-6 to earn 3 points for his team. The loss put Kalmatov at 0-2 on the day.
In the second bout, #31 junior Maximilian Leete and Kevin Lopez competed at 133 pounds. The bout was relatively uneventful, as Leete gained control early and pinned Lopez in 1:18.
Next up at 141 pounds, freshman Cael McIntyre and Tommy Fierro faced off. McIntyre almost immediately pinned Fierro, getting the job done in just 12 seconds, one-upping Leete.
“That was pretty awesome,” head coach Jason Borrelli said. “It was a good way to rebound, he lost a tough match against Drexel. And I said, ‘Hey, you know, start fast, finish strong’ and he went out and boy, he started fast.”
At 149 pounds, Szerencsits and Aaron Turner clashed in Szerencsits’ first appearance of the day. Szerencsits had a 3-1 lead in the second period and got his choice of position. Afterwards, Turner received a caution for a false start and Szerencsits got the 3-point takedown. Thanks to more takedowns and built-up riding time, Szerencsits won the bout with an 11-2 major decision.
In the 157-pound bout, Milheim took on Morgan State’s Josh Greenwood. Early on, Greenwood attempted a takedown but the officials waved it off. Morgan State challenged the call, but it was confirmed and MSU had no challenges remaining. Milheim earned the first points of the bout through a couple of takedowns and a penalty point, among others. Milheim led the bout 10-0 until Greenwood finally got on the board with an escape. It was too little too late, however, and Milheim won with a 10-1 major decision, bringing AU to a 20-3 lead.
American’s redshirt junior Ryan Zimmerman and Morgan State’s Jake Marsh took to the mat for the 165-pound bout. Marsh was penalized for putting Zimmerman in headscissors, though the penalty points would not help much as Marsh earned a 7-1 decision.
At 174 pounds, redshirt sophomore Lucas White took on Cortilius Vann. The two remained locked at a 0-0 tie after the first period, but White stormed ahead in the second. He got a 2-point reversal and a 3-point takedown. White also earned a penalty point after Vann was penalized for stalling. By the end of the bout, White earned a 7-1 decision.
Graduate student Brad Kata took on Kyle Grey at 184 pounds. Grey earned the first points with a takedown. Kata also received a caution for a false start, which Grey followed up with an escape. After that, the two began trading points: Grey earned a 3-point takedown, then Kata got a 1-point escape. They did this exchange three more times, and by the end, with the addition of riding time, Grey won 17-4.
Even though Grey won with a major decision, he needed a technical fall or pin to keep Morgan State’s chances of winning the dual alive. So the subsequent two bouts did not affect the outcome of the overall dual.
In the penultimate bout, Beaty matched up with Nathanic Kendricks at 197 pounds. Kendricks led early by a score of 3-1, which quickly doubled to 6-2. Beaty then earned an escape and was awarded a point for stalling, but it would not be enough to overcome Kendricks, who got the decision.
The final bout of 30 official that day saw heavyweights Jarrell and Tyler Stewart face off. Stewart got a stalling warning early and Jarrell amassed a 9-1 lead before pinning Stewart in 3:52. The 6-point pin put the exclamation mark on AU’s 29-13 win.
On their next home duals being senior day, Borrelli said, “We have seniors you don't want to leave your program and we have some guys that have done a lot for the program. And so it'll be a bittersweet day, but you know, it's good.”
The Eagles return to Bender Arena for duals against Queens University and Lindenwood on Feb. 18 when they will celebrate their alumni and seniors.
This article was edited by Delaney Hoke and Abigail Pritchard. Copy editing done by Luna Jinks, Liah Argiropoulos and Ariana Kavoossi.
