Eagles Dominate Twice at OKWU Showdown
BARTLESVILLE, Okla. – The men of (RV) Avila wrestling notched two more victories in an impressive second season of competition, defeating Hastings 36-3 and (RV) Texas Wesleyan 33-14 on Tuesday afternoon at the Oklahoma Showdown, improving the team's dual record to a sparkling 13-3.
Oklahoma Wesleyan's Tuesday tournament had many titles, but in the end it was Avila that earned the distinction of going 2-0 at the event with two more impressive victories. After dropping their first contest at the Eagle Duals against Campbellsville last month, the Avila men, rated as one of the 20 best dual squads in the NAIA by OpenMat, have now won six duals in a row.
The Eagles began Tuesday with about as comprehensive of a team result as possible in the dual format of this sport. Thanks to a double forfeit neither team won any points at 125, Hastings earned a decision at 141, and Avila won the other eight bouts to batter the Broncos 36-3.
Ryan McNeel, Christian Knighton (in a 5-0 shutout), Jett Merlo and Garine Gibson earned decision victories; Jake Callahan and Logan Johnson won by fall; and Daryus Webb and Corbin Katamura took victories via forfeit.
It wasn't long before the Eagles hit the mat one final time Tuesday to face Texas Wesleyan for the first time. The Rams earned a couple of major decisions in the middleweights to make things interesting, but Avila won seven of the 10 bouts, including the final three, to pull away for yet another convincing win, 33-14.
An Eagle forfeit put TWU on the board first, but Avila then reeled off the next four results to gain control. McNeel and Tyler Johnson swapped weight classes from the Eagles' first dual and the move paid dividends: both wrestlers picked up decisions at their new weights to level the score. Logan Johnson then followed by pinning Austin Loza in a dominant 20-second match, and Karter Brink took a forfeit win to put Avila in front 18-6.
Eight straight points for TWU by way of two major decisions made things close, 18-14, going into the final three bouts, but the Eagles closed the door with authority. As he often has, Daryus Webb made the first move by pinning Brahn Howard in less than two minutes; a decision victory for Corey Holmes at 197 sealed the dual, and Griff Qualls added the finishing touch by pinning Kadence Baker in the third period to wrap up the 33-14 team win.
Up next, Avila men's wrestling will hit the road again for their first tournament action of 2023 coming up this Saturday, January 14 at the Central Baptist Invite in Conway, Arkansas. Meanwhile, the Eagle women will travel to Nebraska to compete in the York Open on Saturday. Competition for both events will begin at 9 AM; stay tuned to Avila Athletics on social media and avilaathletics.com for details on how to watch and follow along.
