Men's Wrestling | 11/17/2016 9:26:00 AM

WAYNESBURG, W.Va. – The West Liberty University wrestling team battled Waynesburg to the final match here Wednesday night before dropping a 24-19 decision in dual meet action at Rudy Marisa Fieldhouse.
    Coach Mitch Smith's Hilltoppers (1-2) used a first-period fall by Zach Brown at 133 and a forfeit at 149 to take a 12-11 lead near the midway point but back-to-back decisions by the Yellow Jackets (1-1) at 157 and 165 gave the hosts a 17-12 edge with four matches remaining.
    DeMadre Turner trimmed the deficit to 17-16 with a technical fall at 174 but Waynesburg rebounded with a decision at 184 for a 20-16 advantage.
    Logan Kemp kept Hilltopper hopes alive at 197, overcoming an early deficit and coming up with a late takedown and near-fall to seal a 14-8 victory that pulled West Liberty within a point, 20-19, heading into the final match.
    The Black and Gold was unable to complete the comeback as Jake Evans, Waynesburg's nationally-ranked 285-pounder, sealed the victory for the Yellow Jackets with a major decision.
    The Hilltoppers close out the pre-Thanksgiving portion of their schedule on Saturday when they hit the road to compete in the Findlay (Ohio) Open.
 
WRESTLING
Waynesburg 24, West Liberty 19
125: Tristan Buxton (Way) won by forfeit
133: Zach Brown (WLU) p. Brooks Robinson, 2:51
141: Filippo Crivelli (Way) tf. Cameron Zuber, 19-2
149: Josh Spurlock (WLU) won by forfeit
157: Matt Claxton (Way) d. Josh Cornell, 10-4
165: Landon Lohr (Way) d. Cade Bates, 4-1
174: DeMadre Turner (WLU) md. Nick Kusich, 17-4
184: Ryan Shank (Way) d. Nate Dawson, 9-2
197: Logan Kemp (WLU) d. Ken Burrs, 14-8
285: Jake Evans (Way) md. Chris Cook, 10-2