Feb. 6, 2007

Marshall, Mo. - Wrestling unattached, 15 Tiger grapplers competed in the Missouri Valley College Open on Feb. 3, with nine placing in their respective weight classes. Freshman Tony Pescaglia (Columbia, Mo.) and sophomore teammate Marcus Hoehn (Farmington, Mo.) took top honors at 125 pounds and 141 pounds, respectively. Seeded No. 1 at 125 pounds, Pescaglia defeated second-seeded Dennis Kakrah (Lindenwood) for the title with a 4-1 decision. Pescaglia, who pinned Kaz Hastionotto (Truman State) in the quarterfinals, did not allow an opponent to score against him until the championship bout. Also seeded No. 1, Hoehn earned top honors at 141 pounds, a bracket dominated by Tiger wrestlers. Three of the final four top finishers were Missouri grapplers. Hoehn held off freshman teammate Willie Saxton (Rayland, Ohio) with a 3-2 decision in the finals. Also advancing in the bracket was freshman Vince Hannon (Plainfield, Ill.) After dropping a bout to Hoehn in the semifinals, Hannon wrestled his way back to a fourth place finish. Freshman Luke Cherup (Naperville, Ill.), the only Tiger wrestling at 133 pounds, lost an early bout to No. 1 seeded Ryan Moyer (Lindenwood), but showed plenty of composure in the wrestlebacks. Cherup won three bouts before falling in the third place match to third-seeded Jason Moreno (Lindenwood) by a 9-3 decision. The 157 pound bracket featured two Tigers who have grown accustomed to tournament action, freshman Zack Schuller (St. Clairsville, Ohio) and redshirt freshman Dane Espinosa (Neosho, Mo.). Schuller and Espinosa met in the wrestleback bracket, with Schuller earning the victory, 7-2. Schuller went on to wrestle his way to fourth place. The heavyweight bracket saw more success for the Tigers. Freshman Tyler Perry (Hannibal, Mo.) advanced to the semifinals before dropping a 3-1 decision to second-seeded Lance Shunia (Lindenwood) for a fourth place finish. Sophomore teammate Sean Connole (Erie, Penn.) dropped an early round bout to No. 1 seeded Nathan Fernandez (Oklahoma) but won four matches on his way to a sixth place finish. Also placing for the Tigers at 174 pounds was sophomore John Andrews (McLean, Va.). Andrews won a 4-3 decision over Shawn Kuhlman (FHSU) to earn fifth place honors. For complete results and brackets, visit www.moval.edu/athletics/indes.asp