Men's Wrestling | 1/30/2021 6:07:00 PM

    WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – The No. 6-ranked West Liberty University wrestling team turned in yet another dominating performance here Saturday in an Open format event featuring Mountain East Conference rivals Alderson Broaddus and No. 25 Notre Dame inside the ASRC.
    There was no team scoring but at the end of a long afternoon, Coach Danny Irwin's Hilltoppers had wrestled 36 matches and won 28 of them. Irwin was pleased with what he saw from his team but above all else, he was just happy to see his guys back on the mats in a competitive environment.
    "I thought it was important for our guys to get this opportunity to wrestle today," Irwin said. "We had some very competitive matches that will serve us well, not just preparing for next week's (Mountain East) conference tournament but looking down the road at regionals and nationals."
    A number of West Liberty wrestlers came up big on Saturday.
    Junior Cole Laya, ranked No. 5 nationally and already a 2-time All-American at 125 pounds, went 3-0 on the day with a first-period fall and two technical falls. Corey Secrist (133), Marcus Jean-Baptiste (141), Matt Simpson (141) and Jacob Simpson (149) all won both of their matches as did senior All-American Connor Craig. The No. 2-ranked 184-pounder in the nation, Craig made short work of his two opponents with a first-period fall and a first-period technical fall.
    Logan Kemp, ranked No. 6 nationally at 197, breezed with a second-period fall and a shutout decision in his two matches while Francesco Borsellino, the nation's No. 12-ranked 285-pounder, rolled with a first-period fall and a major decision.
    Irwin was pleased to see his nationally-ranked veterans leading by example.
    "You have to love having a guy like Cole Laya coming out of the blocks first," Irwin said. "He brings terrific energy and passion to the mat for every match and has zero give. He gets the coaches excited and gets his teammates fired up right from the start. Having a tone-setter like that really sets you up for a great afternoon."
    Irwin also noted that Kemp seemed to be rounding into form.
    "Logan had a good day today and it looks like he's starting to find his rhythm again," Irwin said of the 2-time national qualifier. "He put some complete matches together this afternoon. After getting these quality reps today, we're excited to see what he can do next week."
    Next up for the Hilltoppers is the second annual MEC Tournament, scheduled for Feb. 6 inside the ASRC. West Liberty settled for runner-up honors a year ago but Irwin and his troops have their sights set a little higher this time around.
    "We're excited to have the opportunity to host the MEC Tournament again," Irwin said. "We felt like we kind of let one get away last year but our team's wrestling style is much better than it was last year. If we can put together another good week of practice, winning the MEC is definitely within our reach."
  125
#5 Cole Laya (WL) over Jake Arnold (ND) - TF 17-1 (3:19)
#5 Cole Laya (WL) over Donovan Marriot (ND) – Fall 2:14
#5 Cole Laya (WL) over Noah Hodges (AB) – TF 18-2 (4:57)
Kade Zadylak (WL) over Donovan Marriot (ND) – Fall 1:50
Kade Zadylak (WL) over Jake Arnold (ND) – TF 20-5 (6:51)
Kade Zadylak (WL) over Noah Hodges (AB) – Fall 7:00
133
Corey Secrist (WL) over Sean Vosburgh (AB) – Fall 1:53
Corey Secrist (WL) over Blake Jury (AB) – Dec 9-2
Matthew Kaufman (ND) over Blake Jury (AB) – Dec 3-2
Matthew Kaufman (ND) over Sean Vosburgh (AB) – Fall 3:51
141
Marcus Jean-Baptiste (WL) over Jordan Watters (WL) – DEC 3-2
Marcus Jean-Baptiste (WL) over Jerome Vonziah (AB) – MD 13-5
Matt Simpson (WL) over Chris Barthelemy (AB) – Dec 7-0
Matt Simpson (WL) over Jerome Vonziah (AB) – MD 13-4
Jordan Watters (WL) over Chris Barthelemy (AB) – Fall 4:43
#4 Kelan McKenna (ND) over Jerome Vonziah (AB)- MD 13-2
149
Jacob Simpson (WL) over Darese Sparkman (ND) – MD 11-2
Jacob Simpson (WL) over Chad Miller (AB) – Fall 1:11
Darese Sparkman (ND) over Carter Winegardner (WL) – Dec 6-5
Carter Winegardner (WL) vs Chad Miller (AB) – Fall 2:59
Jamie Ward (WL) over Chad Miller (AB) – Fall 0:34
157
Joshua Laubach (AB) over Michael Garcar (ND) – Fall 5:46
165
#14 Chase Morgan (WL) over Justin Crawford (ND) – Dec 12-5
Jamar Williams (AB) over #14 Chase Morgan (WL) – Dec 8-4
Jamar Williams (AB) over Miles Mazik (WL) – TF 22-6 (6:04)
Justin Crawford (ND) over Miles Mazik (WL) – Dec 10-8
174
#15 Chance Morgan (WL) over Andrew Gorto (AB) – Fall 4:11
Logan Hall (ND) over #15 Chance Morgan (WL) – Dec 3-2
Logan Hall (ND) over Ty McGeary (WL) – Dec 6-3
Ty McGeary (WL) over Andrew Gorto (AB) – TF 19-4 (4:11)
184
#2 Connor Craig (WL) over Chiedu Chika (AB) – TF 16-0 (1:59)
#2 Connor Craig (WL) over Ryan Weitz (AB) – Fall 3:33
Ryan Weitz (AB) over Anthony Marra (ND) – Med. Forfeit
197
#6 Logan Kemp (WL) over Dakota Cram (AB) – Fall 4:18
#6 Logan Kemp (WL) over Mike Viramontes (ND) – Dec 4-0
Drake Kendrex (WL) over Dakota Cram (AB) – Dec 7-3
Mike Viramontes (ND) over Drake Kendrex (WL) – Dec 8-5
285
#12 Francesco Borsellino (WL) over Demetrius Daniels (AB) – MD 10-2
#12 Francesco Borsellino (WL) over Kourdell Todd (AB) – Fall 1:33
Ronnie D'Amico (WL) over Kourdell Todd (AB) – TF 17-0 (4:44)
Demetrius Daniels (AB) over Jamie Kilmer (WL) – Dec 3-2
Jamie Kilmer (WL) over Kourdell Todd (AB) – Fall 2:41
Jamie Kilmer (WL) over Omari Green (WL) – Dec 2-1
Demetrius Daniels (AB) over Omari Green (WL) – Dec 3-1
Omari Green (WL) over Wennds Mytril (ND) – Fall 0:24