Jan. 24, 2007
No. 2 Tigers Dominate Roger Denker Open ...11 Tigers Place with two Taking Home Top Honors...
Warrensburg, Mo. - Two Missouri grapplers took home top honors with nine securing top six finishes at the 2007 Roger Denker Open in Warrensburg, Mo. on Jan. 14. Missouri freshman Tony Pescaglia (Columbia, Mo.) along with junior Tim Kephart (O'Fallon, Mo.) split top-honors at 125 pounds, while sophomore Marcus Hoehn (Farmington, Mo.) took home first place at 141 pounds. Taking home runner-up honors were sophomore Andrew Sherry (Sewickley, Penn.) at 149 pounds and redshirt freshman Nick Marable (Collierville, Tenn.) at 157 pounds.
Pescaglia and Kephart dominated the 125 pound bracket, with both wrestlers advancing to the finals. In order to split the title, both wrestlers elected to take a medical forfeit in the championship match.
Fresh off an appearance in the Dan Gable Open in Oshkosh, Wis., Missouri freshman Luke Cherup (Naperville, Ill.) wrestled unattached on his way to the semifinals in the 133 pound bracket. Despite losing a highly contested 4-3 decision to Jonathan Lloyd (Lindenwood), Cherup wrestled all the way back to fourth-place honors.
Three Missouri wrestlers competed in the 141 pound bracket, and dictated the field. Hoehn squared off against freshman teammate Willie Saxton (Rayland, Ohio) in the finals. Hoehn squeaked out a victory with a 5-2 decision. Sophomore Ryan Joyce (Brandon, Fla.) brought out another bright spot for the Tigers, earning a fifth-place finish. Despite losing his first round match to Bobby Callen (Easter Illinois) in a 3-1 decision, Joyce wrestled all the way back to the fifth place match where he once again met Callen. Earning a 6-3 decision, Joyce topped Callen to finish in fifth place.
Seeded second at 149 pounds, sophomore Andrew Sherry (Sewickley, Penn.) rolled off three straight wins on his way to the finals, setting up a match up against No. 1 seeded Mark Dickman (Lindenwood). Sherry brought home runner-up honors after losing the bout to Dickman, 3-2.
Redshirt freshman Nick Marable (Colleirville, Tenn.), who has seen plenty of tournament action this season, used his experience and earned a shot at the title. Seeded No. 1 at 157 pounds, Marable eased his way to a title bout against Shane Vernon (Oklahoma-UNA). Marable came up just short in a 3-2 decision, but still earned second place for the day.
Proving that there is plenty of depth behind National Champion, senior Ben Askren (Hartland, Wis.), the Tigers showcased their skills in the 174 pound bracket. Sophomore Joey Garrity (Orion, Ill.) placed second, while junior teammate James Williamson (Blue Springs, Mo.) finished fourth. Also wrestling at 174 pounds, sophomore John Andrews finished one win away from the fifth place match, once again displaying the Tigers depth.
Freshman Tyler Perry (Hannibal, Mo.), made the best of his opportunity in the heavyweight bracket. Perry finished in fifth place, rounding out an impressive day for the Tigers. Winning by fall, Perry pinned No. 1 seeded heavyweight Jared Bonnell (Missouri Baptist) in 2:16. For complete results and brackets visit: http://www.cmsu.edu/athletic/wrestling/06-07%20News/Denker%20Open.htm
-MU-