Wrestling returns to action with impressive performance against Ohio Wesleyan and Manchester

DEFIANCE, Ohio - The Defiance College wrestling team returned from an extended break in peak form on Saturday afternoon against Manchester University and Ohio Wesleyan University. Five Defiance wrestlers won multiple matches in Saturday's round-robin tri-meet, including heavyweight Wes Bok, who went 3-0 on the day. 

Bok recorded a pin over Manchester's Jorge Martinez in 1:21 and won a pair of thrilling sudden victories over Alhaji Sidibe (4-2) and Alessandro Bruni (3-1), both of Ohio Wesleyan. Fellow heavyweight Jonah Schlegel also had a good day, recording a pin over Martinez in 2:10 and picked up another win. 

"Wes had a great day and Jonah did as well! Having two competitive heavyweights is the reason they were 5-0 on the day combined. They push each other each and every day to get the most out of one another. I'm a firm believer you can only be as good as the workout partners you're surrounded with." said Defiance head coach Antonio Guerra. 

In addition to Schlegel, three other Yellow Jacket freshman each went 2-0 on the day. 184-pounder Deontae Davis defeated Ohio Wesleyan's Abraham Spurlock by a 9-3 decision and then routed Spurlock's teammate Lloyd Pinheiro 16-1 for a technical fall. Shamique Bryant recorded a pair of pins on the day, first against Ohio Wesleyan's Tommy Brunty at 165-pounds and then over Christian Tesnow, also of Ohio Wesleyan, at 174-pounds. Jack Minner also had a pair of pins at two different weight classes, first over Tesnow at 184 and then over Pinheiro at 197.

"Deontae Davis is having a great start to his college career. Winning his first 4 matches. He has a great work ethic and is very coachable. This attribute is a big part of his success and making the adjustments needed at the college level," said Guerra. "Shamique is also very coachable and puts a lot of extra work in. These things have really helped him in adjusting from high school to college. Excited for both of these guys' futures.

Mason Morris also won a pair of matches at 197-pounds. The junior pinned Manchester's Kyle Young in 1:48 and also won a hard-fought 3-0 decision over Ohio Wesleyan's Alessandro Bruni.

"Mason is doing a great job for us. He was named team captain this year and has a great gameplan for success each and every time he steps out on the mat." Guerra said. 

Seth Majewski, Alex Smith, Derek Spears, and Keringten Martin also won matches for Defiance. Majewski (6-1 over Donovan Ortiz) and Spears (14-10 over Ethan Laws) both won by decision while Smith (18-7 over Ryan McElwee) and Martin (11-3 over Ross Eggleston) won by way of major decision.

"Overall I was very pleased with our performance today. I didn't really know what to expect after our long layoff. The hard work the guys have been putting in really showed today.' remarked Guerra.

Up next the Yellow Jackets will host Adrian on Saturday, February 20 with the first match scheduled to get underway at noon.