BRISTOL, TENN. - In its first match of the season, the No. 7 ranked Lander wrestling team dominated the King University Tornado 34-9 on the road Wednesday night to begin the 2022-23 season.
Lander begins the season 1-0 overall and 1-0 in the SACC while King falls to 3-3 and 0-1 in the SACC.
The Bearcats would take eight of the 10 weight classes against the Tornado while the Bearcats would win the first four and final four weight classes.
The dual began with back-to-back tech falls for the Bearcats at 125 and 133. Kaiden Fisher began the evening with a 19-2 victory at 125 that featured a pair of four-point near falls and two-point near falls to get Lander in front 5-0.
Elijah Lusk, who ranked No. 8 at the 133-weight class in the NWCA preseason rankings, used three four-point near falls to secure a 20-2 victory to push the Bearcats lead to 10-0.
Zeth Brower, the No. 1 ranked wrestler and defending national champion in Div. II at 141, worked his way to a 9-0 major decision victory to widen the Bearcats' lead to 14-0.
Jack Tangen was next to bring in points for the Bearcats at the 149-weight class. Ranked No. 3 in the Super Region II Preseason poll, Tangen would get the first pin of the night and move Lander's advantage to 20-0
The Tornando would win the 157 and 165 weight classes to make it a 20-9 match.
Jack Bond, the No. 10 ranked wrestler at the 174-weight class in the NWCA Preseason Poll, got the Bearcats back on the scoreboard with a 5-1 win by decision that featured a pair of takedowns to push Lander's advantage to 23-9.
Logan Hall, the No. 7 ranked wrestler at the 184-weight class in the NWCA Preseason Poll, earned a 12-2 win by major decision to keep the points coming in for Lander and give the Bearcats a 27-9 advantage. Hall would tag his opponent with five takedowns along with earning points from riding time and one escape.
The Bearcats would see yet another weight class go their way, with Ashton Hefner winning 12-0 by major decision at 184 to widen the Bearcats' lead even further to 31-9.
Juan Edmond-Holmes, the No. 5 ranked wrestler at the 285-weight class in the NWCA Preseason Poll, finished the night with a 9-4 victory by decision to conclude the Bearcats' 34-9 night.
Lander is back in action on Sunday, November 13 as it competes in the Georgia Open and the Citadel Open.
Keep up to date with your Bearcats and never miss a moment of the action! Follow Lander athletics on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for continued updates! #cLawsUp
