Wheeling, W. Va. - After a week off to rest and recover following the Storm Open on December 5th, the Wheeling University Wrestling team is back on the mat to close out the 2021 portion of their schedule. They will be hitting the road to the University of Indianapolis, where they will compete in their biggest event of the year at the Midwest Classic. Forty-three of the top Wrestling Programs across Division II, including four schools out of the Mountain East Conference (MEC), will meet at the event, which is currently in its 42nd year running.
Last time Wheeling hit the mat, they were led by Heavyweight Clarouly Meca, who placed seventh overall at the Lake Erie Storm Open in the 285-pound weight class. Things didn't start out going his way, when he dropped his first-round match 4-1, but once he got into the consolation bracket, he went off. He picked up back-to-back pins in his first two matches of the bracket and made it to the seventh-place game. He would end his night with a win by medical forfeit that earned him seventh place in the tournament.
In total, Wheeling racked up four pins on the day, the most they have produced as a team in any tournament this season. To go along with Meca's two pins, freshman Julius Hobbs also picked up two pins on the day both of which came in the consolation bracket. While Wheeling only had one placer on the day, they had success throughout the day, and even had one wrestler reach a career milestone at the meet.
That wrestler was freshman Joshua Sharron, who earned his first collegiate win in the 141-pound weight class. Sharron lost his first match of the day, but bounced back nicely, earning a 19-7 Major Decision over Tiffin's Cole Byson. He would end his first collegiate event 1-2 but put on a strong showing that he can build off for the rest of the season. Overall, all five of Wheeling's wrestlers put together a good tournament and will use that momentum to propel themselves through the rest of the season.
The two-day Midwest Classic will begin on Saturday with the start of the championship bracket. There will be both a winner's and a consolation bracket at each weight class, with a double elimination in place. The winners will move on to day two of the event on Sunday where places will be decided and the overall champion in each weight class will be crowned. For a young Wheeling program, it is a chance for them to test themselves against some of the best competition that Division II has to offer as they continue to progress as a program.
The Match-up
Even though it is the 42nd year of the Midwest Classic, Saturday will mark the first time that the Wheeling University Wrestling program has competed at the event. They will be joined by fellow MEC programs Alderson Broaddus, Glenville State, and Frostburg State at the event. They will compete against 42 schools around Division II Wrestling on the campus of Lake Erie College.
The Details
The Storm Open will be an all-day event on Saturday, beginning at 9 AM at Lake Erie College. You can follow along with the brackets throughout the event by clicking HERE.
