Three members of the Case Western Reserve University wrestling team advanced out of the first day of the NCAA Division III Region V Tournament hosted by Wabash College inside Knowling Fieldhouse in Crawfordsville, Indiana, on Friday.
Senior Calvin Cai and juniors Art Martinez and Thomas Wagner will wrestle on Saturday for CWRU after going 2-1 on the first day of competition.
Martinez, seeded fifth at 133 pounds, won by technical fall, 19-1, over Albion's Cade Odrobina before dropping his quarterfinal match to fourth-seeded Ethan Spacht of North Central. He responded with another technical fall, 17-2, over Jorden Zigo of Mount St. Joseph to reach the consolation quarterfinal. Martinez will face Olivet's Robert Davids with the winner taking on either second-seeded Coby Haney of Millikin or third-seeded Anthony Zamora of Wheaton in the consolation semifinal.
Wagner was seeded seventh at 157 pounds and also began his day with a technical fall, defeating Lakin Webb of Trine 20-4. Following a loss to second-seeded Rhenzo Augusto, Wagner earned a major decision, 18-4, over Millikin's Michael Hutchison to secure his spot on the second day. He will face Ayden Lutes of Wabash in the consolation quarterfinal with the winner set to face either top-seeded Aiden Smith from Adrian or fourth-seeded Luke Swan from Wisconsin-Whitewater.
At 149 pounds, the unseeded Cai lost in the first round before responding with a technical fall, 17-1, over Cahiel Linton from Mount St. Joseph. He then upset sixth-seeded Max Honiss (Albion) by major decision, 13-4, to stave off elimination. On the second day, Cai will face Chicago's Brendan Connelly with the winner of that matchup set to face either top-seeded Daniel Uribe of Wabash or fifth-seeded Tyler Staff of North Central.
Four additional Spartans picked up wins on the first day of the regional. In the 165-pound bracket, sophomore Marty Landes upset fourth-seeded Joey Jens in the opening round, sealing the victory with a takedown with 17 seconds remaining. Junior E.J. Alizio won a thrilling 7-4 sudden victory at 125 pounds, defeating Karrington Cooper nine seconds into the overtime period with a takedown. First-year Chase Crutchley earned his seventh technical fall of the season, 18-2, in the 174-pound consolation round, and sophomore Mathew Gummere picked up a win by sudden victory at 184 pounds.
The two-day tournament concludes on Saturday with the championship semifinals and consolation quarterfinals scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. The top three wrestlers in each weight class will qualify for the 2025 NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships.
Spartan Notes
- Martinez secured his ninth and 10th technical falls this season and the 23rd and 24th of his career, tying him for the team lead
- Wagner earned his sixth technical fall this season and the 12th of his career, and Cai won his second match by technical fall in 2024-25
- After one day of competition, the Spartans are 13th out of 17 teams in the overall standings with 25.0 points. North Central leads with 99.0 points
