Wrestling team ties for fifth-place at ONU Invitational

The Olivet College wrestling team tied for fifth-place at the 26th Annual Ohio Northern University Invitational today at the ONU Sports Center in Ada, Ohio. The Comets, ranked 25th in the latest national rankings, was first among 11 NCAA Division III schools.

Olivet scored 90 team points to tie West Liberty (W.Va.) State College. Mercyhurst (Pa.) College was first with 162.5 points, followed by University of Indianapolis, 131.5; Campbellsville (Ky.) University, 110.5; and University of the Cumberlands (Ky.), 108.

Leading the way for the Comets was sophomores Jason Brew (Sparta) and Kyle Vanderhyde (Sparta) at 157 and 174 pounds, respectively. Brew and Vanderhyde each had a 4-1 record to finish in second-place.

Brew began his day with back-to-back minor decision wins, 6-0 and 6-1, followed by a technical fall victory, 17-2, in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, he defeated Mercyhurst’s Andy Lamancusa, 4-3. Brew lost the championship match by a 13-3 score.

Vanderhyde pinned his first-round opponent in 3:53 and followed that with a 22-6 technical fall victory. A 9-0 win the quarterfinals and a 11-4 win the semifinals propelled him into the championship match. Vanderhyde dropped a 13-4 decision in the championship bout.

Olivet also had a pair of third-place finishes in junior Daron Cruickshank (Inkster/ John Glenn) at 184 pounds and senior Jeff Wright (Escanaba) at 197 pounds. Cruickshank and Wright each finished with 4-1 records. In the championship bracket, Cruickshank won 11-3 and 3-2 before losing 6-2 in the semifinals. Dropping down to the consolation bracket, he picked-up a 1-0 victory and won the third-place match by medical forfeit. Wright pinned his first-round opponent in 1:05, won 5-4 and was pinned in the semifinals. He bounced back to win 1-0 in the consolation bracket semis and 6-2 in the third-place bout.

Also placing in the top eight for the Comet first-team lineup was sophomore Kyle Labrecque (Battle Creek/Lakeview) at 125 pounds. After losing in the first round, he won five-of-six bouts to finish in seventh-place. His wins were two by minor decision (3-1 and 6-4) and one each by major decision (15-4), pin (1:48) and medical forfeit.

Olivet is back in action Thursday, Dec. 14, when it hosts the University of Chicago (Ill.) for a dual meet. Action from MacKay Gym gets under way at 7 p.m.