Wheeling, W. Va. - As they head down the final stretch towards the 2026 Mountain East Conference (MEC) Championships, the Wheeling University Wrestling team (5-1, 3-1) has put a heavy emphasis on dual meet action. They continue their run of Tri-Match action on Tuesday, when they travel to the Seton Hill Tri-Match, where they will take on Seton Hill and Shippensburg at 6 PM. Wheeling is running a three-dual meet win streak heading into Tuesday's match-up, and look to continue that success against a pair of strong Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) opponents.
Last time out, the Cardinals brought the tri-match action to their home mat when they took on Davis & Elkins and Waynesburg University. The night began with a non-conference match between the Senators and Yellow Jackets, before Wheeling took the mat for an MEC clash. They battled Davis & Elkins in the first of two dual meets and, after a forfeit win to start things off, a Tech Fall victory at 133 would have them off and running. It was the first of five tech falls in the dual meet, and the Cardinals would earn a 40-12 victory. They would end the night with a non-conference battle against Waynesburg, and the Cardinals would come out with the same fire. They scored 29 of the first 35 points in the dual, and would ride that momentum to a 41-15 victory to cap off the 2-0 night.
Leading the charge for the Cardinals was freshman Bradley Spencer, who finished 2-0 in the 157-pound weight class. Spencer entered the night sitting at 6-8 overall and battled Davis & Elkins's Jeston Showalter in his opening match. He would earn a 19-6 Tech Fall victory, the second of the dual for the Cardinals, as he finished the match in 6:25. However, it was his second match that was the most impressive, when he battled Waynesburg's Kaleb McCamick. He would need just 19 seconds to complete the pinfall victory, rounding out a 2-0 day on the mat. It was the fastest pinfall of his career, and his second of the season, as he helped propel the Cardinals to the early lead. The effort improved his season record to 8-8 across 16 matches, and he looks to keep building the momentum down the stretch.
Before the match, the Cardinals honored their senior Gavin Harper, and he would finish his home career strong. Like Spencer, he would also finish his night with a tech fall and a pin, going 2-0 across the two matches. He racked up a bunch of early takedowns in his opening match against the Senator's Aidan Maldonado, wrapping up a 19-2 victory in 1:24. His second match took slightly longer, with Harper pinning Waynesburg's Boastas Kwabiah in 2:30 to round out the night. Jack Dinwiddie would be the other Cardinal to go 2-0 with two matches, and he started his night battling in a 6-2 decision against Davis & Elkins's Benjamin McComas. However, he rounded his night out strong, picking up a tech fall against Waynesburg's Brayden Barbao, needing just 2:13 to finish the match.
Tuesday's match will be the final tune-up for the Cardinals before they head to the MEC Wrestling Championships on January 31st. The Cardinals had to pull out of the Purple Raider Open on Sunday due to injury, and will look to use the rest to recover as a team. With both their 149-pound and 184-pound wrestler out due to injury, the Cardinals will look to gain some of those points back across the rest of their team. Their 5-1 dual meet record is their best performance sine the 2018-19 season, when the team went 14-3, and equals their dual meet win total over the last four seasons. They currently sit second in the conference in dual meet record behind Glenville State, who leads the conference at 9-4, and Wheeling looks to keep that success going in this final tune-up.
The Matchups
Seton Hill: The Cardinals and Griffins are meeting for the fifth time in program history, with Wheeling leading the all-time series at 3-1. It is a renewal of the rivalry between the two teams, with Tuesday marking the first meeting since the 2018 season. The Cardinals are 2-1 all-time in Greensburg, and average 20-points per dual in the series. The last meeting between the two teams came on February 10th, 2018, when Seton Hill earned a 24-18 victory. Former Cardinal Terrance Fanning led the way with a 16-1 Tech Fall win, while former Cardinal Connor Craig added the second tech fall win (16-1) of the day.
Shippensburg: The Cardinals and Raiders are meeting for the third time in program history, with the series tied at one win a piece. This will be the first neutral site meeting between the two teams, with Wheeling going 1-1 in road matches against the Raiders. The teams are meeting for the first time since the 2016-17 season, with the Cardinals averaging 27.5 points per dual meet. The last meeting between the two teams came on February 4th, 2017, in a meet Wheeling would win 37-4. Former Cardinal Maxwell Lacey led the way with a pinfall victory, while former Cardinal Nolan Whitely added a Major Decision to lead the way.
The Details
The Seton Hill Tri-Meet is scheduled to begin at 5 PM inside the Katherine Mabis McKenna Center on the campus of Seton Hill University. You can watch the matches live by clicking HERE.
