Triton Comes Away from Muskegon with First Dual Win and Tournament Placewinners

[Triton College Wrestling]

Triton Comes Away from Muskegon with First Dual Win and Tournament Placewinners

Injury slows results, but does not dim spirits

River Grove, IL--The Triton Trojan wrestling team came returned home this past weekend with their first dual meet win of the season on Friday night, while placing four wrestlers at Saturday’s Ben McMullen Open.

A “light” Trojans squad opened their dual meet season this past Friday with a 31-14 win against National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) foe, Jamestown. While traveling without four of their starters, Triton’s reserves, including Travis Fuller (Sandwich) and Jason Dalessandro (Fenwick), stepped up to earn big wins for the Trojans.

125: Jose Torres (T) won by 9-4 decision over Victor Guariello
133: Lance Zerniak (J) won by 12-10 sudden victory decision over Devante McCloud
141: Travis Fuller (T) won by fall at 4:12 over Ryan Guynup
149: Jose Mariscal (T) won by 11-0 major decision over David Devaughn
157: Jeremy Walters (T) won by fall at 4:30 over Nicholas Bennett
165: Chris Chapek (J) won by 18-8 major decision over Michael Murray
174: Frank Sterlace (J) won by 5-0 decision over Rashad Matthews
184: Dominick Lisek (J) won by 16-8 major decision over Boyan Savici
197: Scott Ammons (T) won by forfeit
285: Jason Dalessandro (T) won by fall at 1:19 over Josh Ramirez

Following the win, the Trojans then lined up against the current #3 team in the NJCAA and tournament host, Muskegon. Unfortunately, the Triton wrestlers fell 27-16 in their bid to upset the Jayhawks and earn two dual victories on the night.

125: Devante McCloud (T) won by 8-4 decision over Jarred Lilyhorn
133: Jose Torres (T) won by fall at 6:14 over Michael Lackney
141: Jarrud Ellicott (M) won by 8-5 decision over Travis Fuller
149: Jose Mariscal (T) won by 9-1 major decision over Jacob Parsons
157: Eric Telford (M) won by 11-4 decision over Jeremy Walters
165: Lenny Kuspa (T) won by 9-7 decision over Jamie Spencer
174: Trevor Curtice (M) won by 8-2 decision over Rashad Matthews
184:Cody Stewart (M) won by fall at 2:17 over Boyan Savici
197: Mathew Henry (M) won by fall at 2:43 over Scott Ammons
285: Cody Wolever (M) won by fall at 1:32 over Jason Dalessandro

On Saturday morning, the Trojans returned to Muskegon CC to compete in the Ben McMullen Open.

Of the 11 wrestlers the Trojans traveled with on the weekend, the Tritons placed four at the open.

Jose Torres (Cicero Morton) finished third at 125, while Devante McCloud (Rich Central) came in fourth at the same weight. Lenny Kuspa (Oak Forest) earned a fourth place finish at 165, while Jeremy Walters (Crete Monee) placed eighth.

149 pounds starter Jose “Chepe” Mariscal (Cicero Morton) was in a tightly contested match against #3 ranked Sean Turner from Muskegon when he fell to injury and defaulted from the tournament.

Hall of Fame Head Coach Harry McGinnis was no concerned about the low numbers.

“It’s never easy to win duals against solid teams like Muskegon or to place more student-athletes in a tournament like the McMullen Open when your own team is experiencing injury,” McGinnis said. “When this [Triton] team is at full strength, we’re going to be very tough to beat.

We’ll be hard at work back on the mats again on Monday, reviewing tape and making the necessary adjustments with placing at the National Tournament in February, both individually and as a team, as our ultimate goal.”

The Trojans will travel again this coming Friday to Mequon, Wisconsin to face the Concordia University Wisconsin (CUW) team for a dual meet. The following morning the Triton team will take part in the CUW Open at Concordia. The CUW Open is Wisconsin’s largest collegiate wrestling tournament, featuring more than 20 teams, including many of the nation’s top ranked NJCAA and Division-III teams.

Go Trojans!