Wrestling takes a hit at Wheaton

Ben Webster

The Vikings traveled to Wheaton College of Illinois this past weekend to wrestle in a competitive tournament with a slew of teams from the Midwest. Some of the schools included Elmhurst College, Truman State, Tri-State University, Heidelberg College, North Central University and others.Jack Peters (’08) was Lawrence’s top finisher with a fifth place finish in the 197-pound weight class. He battled for a 3-2 record, and defeated Vinnie Sapienza of North Central 7-4 to win the fifth place match. Chris Gallegos (’11) who wrestled at 141-pounds and finished 0-2. Tony Norton (’09) finished 1-2 in the 149-pound class. Matt Meiselman (’10) lost twice in the 157-pound matches. Sam Laes (’10) battled for a 2-2 record at 174 pounds. Jeremy Reider (’10) went 1-2 at the 285-pound weight division.

Lawrence finished 23rd out of 27 teams. The team with the most first-place winners in the tournament was UW-La Crosse, a score for Wisconsin wrestlers. Other Wisconsin schools were Concordia, with zero wrestlers placing; Knox College, which had first and eighth place finishes and UW-Whitewater, with two wrestlers finishing fourth and two finishing fifth. University of Chicago, Augustana College, and the Milwaukee School of Engineering were all shut out.

The next meet is away at UW-Oshkosh on February 15. Get down there to support the tough guys in tights.