Courtesy of Newberry College Athletics
COLUMBIA — Newberry wrestling (10-5, 8-2 South Atlantic Conference Carolinas) victoriously took on Allen University and University of South Carolina’s club team prior to the Super Region II Championships.
Kicking the action off against the University of South Carolina, 125 lbs Christian Decatur (Goldsboro, N.C.) had his easiest match of the night with a forfeit in the initial bout. JP Gamez (Dade City, Fla.), 133 lbs, started things right for Newberry with a pin over Will Vaporis at 2:04, followed by a forfeit win for 141 lbs Fletcher Swindall (Alexandria, Ala.).
Marcus Johnson (Columbia), 149 lbs, was defeated in the following match by Rob Gemerelli via pin, but 157 lbs Will Evans (Richmond Hill, Ga.) followed the match by getting back points lost, pinning Connor Leister at 1:10. P.J. Wunderlich (Myrtle Beach), 165 lbs, won his match over Garrett Rohmeyer by fall at 3:45, extending the lead even further, and 174 lbs Asa Walton (Buena, N.J.) won his match as well, securing a major decision over Norman Cella by a score of 10-1.
Armando Acosta (Gainesville, Fla.), 184 lbs, claimed a 15-6 major decision win over Denton DiCarlo, but the Gamecocks were able to get another win with Zach St. Thomas beating 197 lbs Andrew Annand (Crawfordville, Fla.) by fall (4:48). John Parker (Temecula, Calif.), 285 lbs, going up a weight class, proved size doesn’t always matter in wrestling, pinning Cap Holley at 4:05 to cap off the first action of the night for the Wolves.
Getting down to business against Allen shortly after, Decatur earned his first win in match action with a major decision over Reco Robinson, 13-5. Nyshaad Hannon got on the board for Yellow Jackets with a pin of Newberry’s Swindall at 4:12, but Gamez answered back with a win of his own by a 4-0 decision over Quincy Gash. Drevon Wallace came back to match Gamez by tech falling Johnson 16-0 at 4:30, but just like the previous Allen win, the Wolves responded in the form of Will Evans. His 3-2 decision trimmed the Yellow Jacket’s lead to one point.
Newberry got going as the dual went on, with Wunderlich and Walton securing wins in their matches by decision and tech fall, respectively. Allen’s Michael Jackson showed the home team would not go away quietly, beating Armando Acosta by a 10-5 decision. A forfeit at 197 lbs put Allen up 20-18 going into the last match of the night, but John Parker showed his clutch gene by securing a pin against D`Andre` Wilkerson at 4:20 to clinch a 24-20 win.