Sophomore wrestler Art Martinez won the 141-pound bracket at the Adrian Invitational as the Case Western Reserve University wrestling team opened the 2023-24 campaign at the Adrian Invitational in Adrian, Michigan, on Saturday.
Overall, the Spartans placed fourth out of nine teams with 128.5 points. Adrian, the invitational's host, placed first with 171 points. In the first-year and sophomore brackets, CWRU earned 38 points to place seventh.
Martinez went 3-0 at the meet to claim the bracket. In the quarterfinals, he defeated Ryan Yocum of Saint Vincent by fall in 4:15. Martinez followed with an even quicker win, pinning Adrian's Sam Ross in 0:46 seconds. In the final bout of the afternoon, he bested Adrian's Tanner Smith by decision, winning 7-2.
Graduate student Mitchell Arch also reached the finals of his bracket, going 3-1 at 165 pounds with three pins. Arch started his day with a 28-second pin of Jacob Orweller from Siena Heights. In the quarterfinal, he bested Justin Smith of Alfred State by fall in 3:34, and in the semifinal, he dispatched Wabash's Jesse Herrera by ball in 3:40. In the final, Arch lost a close bout, dropping a 10-7 decision to Carson Pottenger of Heidelberg.
Sophomore E.J. Alizio recovered from a semifinals loss to place third in the 125-pound bracket. After defeating Sean Cain of Saint Vincent by major decision, Alizio lost by technical fall to fall into the consolation bracket. He pinned Chase Wolfingbarger of Ohio Wesleyan in 6:24 to reach the third-place match and prevailed by a 10-7 decision over Andrew Punzalan of Wabash to receive bronze.
Four Spartans placed fourth in their brackets. Following a loss in the 133-pound division, sophomore Jacob Gregg won his next three matches to reach the third-place match with two of his wins coming by major decisions. In the 174-pound bracket, first-year Mathew Gummere started the day with his first collegiate win and pin, besting Michael Miller of Saint Vincent in 26 seconds. After losing in the semifinal, Gummere secured a 17-2 technical fall in 6:03 to reach the third-place match.
Graduate student Stephen Andryc won a 14-9 decision to reach the semifinals of the 197-pounds bracket. Following a loss, he earned his first pin of the season, defeating Christian DeLuna of Siena Heights in 2:50 to receive a place in the third-place match. At 157 pounds, sophomore Thomas Wagner went 4-2, winning two matches by technical fall and two by decision to reach the third-place match.
First-year Mike Valerino placed first in the first-year and sophomore 133-pound bracket, winning all three of his matches at the invite. He won his first two matches by pin, defeating Jimmy Baumann of Ohio Wesleyan in 3:00 and Miles Eichelberg of Henry Ford College in 1:12. In the final, Valerino faced Ohio Wesleyan's Emmitt Holland. He bested him by decision, winning 12-7.
First-year Louka Babic earned his first collegiate win and pin in the 174-pound bracket, defeating Brady Walsh of Ohio Wesleyan by fall in 4:44 in his opening match.
The Spartans will host their first home meet of the season, the Bob Del Rosa Ohio Intercollegiate Open, next weekend. Action is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. inside the Veale Center on Sunday, November 12.
