The Snow College men's wrestling team had an impressive showing at the Embry-Riddle Mile High Open over the weekend in Prescott, Arizona. Four athletes placed at the 12-team open event while the Badgers as a team defeated New Mexico Highlands University in a dual, 45-15.
The Badgers were coming off a strong performance against Western Wyoming Community College in its inaugural match as a new program. The Badgers won four matches against the fourth-place finishers from a season ago and a team that is currently ranked inside the top five of the NJCAA Men's Wrestling Rankings.
Snow College carried that momentum into the ERAU Mile High Open. Snow College as a team was third among the 12 teams in most pins. The Badgers finished with 15 total pins, which was only three behind Vanguard University for the lead. The Badgers also finished sixth in winning percentage at just under 50 percent as well as total points with 221.
David Herring led the charge for the Badgers as he finished in fourth place in the 285-pound division. He won his first match before losing in the quarterfinal round, but he would recover by winning three straight matches to enter the third-place match. He won two matches by fall, one of which in just 24 seconds, and another match by decision, 2-1, as he went on to finish in fourth place.
Christian Slack finished in fifth place in the 197-pound division. Despite losing his opening match, he won three consecutive matches to eventually earn a berth into the fifth-place match. He didn't allow his opponent to score a single point as he defeated Michael Moreno of Arizona Christian University by decision, 6-0, to claim the fifth-place spot.
Jacob Waddoups and
Zack Johnson each finished in sixth place for the Badgers. Waddoups won each of his first two matches, one by fall in 6:31 and the other by decision, 6-5, before suffering a loss in the semifinal match. He would go on to finish sixth.
Johnson had a similar path as Waddoups as he also won each of his first two matches, one of which by fall in six minutes. He also was defeated in the semifinal round before going on to finish in sixth place as well.
The Badgers also had a dual with NMHU at the event in which they won 45-15 in dominating fashion. Seven Badgers recorded victories via fall in the dual including
Jaxon Johnson (141),
Xavier Perez (149),
Rhett Miner (157),
Luke Peltier (165),
Kaden Kirk (174), Zach Johnson (174), and
David Herring (285).
Christina Slack also won his match by decision to earn three points for the Badgers.
Snow College will now head to Great Falls, Montana to participate in the Battle of the Rockies at the University of Providence Dec. 2 and 3. For additional information, visit snowbadgers.com.
