Sunday, February 23, 2003
BLAIR WINS HEAVYWEIGHT CLASS AS TRINITY
WRESTLERS FINISH SECOND IN NEW ENGLAND
Bristol, R.I.- Freshman Michael Blair (Plymouth, N.H.) won six out of seven matches and pinned his final two opponents en route to the to heavyweight division title to lead the Trinity College Bantams to second-place finish in the New England College Conference (NECCWA) Wrestling Championships this weekend at Roger Williams University. Trinity, ranked No. 1 in New England and No. 24 in the nation, boasted seven All-New England performances including Blair's which qualifies him for the NCAA Division III National Championships at Ohio Northern on Mar. 7-9. Trinity, coached by Sebastian Amato, enjoyed some post-season accolades on the bench as well, as the team was awarded the NECCWA Sportsmanship Award and Gary Alford was named as the league's Assistant Coach of the Year.
Blair, the top-seeded heavyweight and the No. 7 in his class nationally, pinned his first round opponent and edged the No. 8 seed, 3-1, in the second round before suffering his first loss in three months to Doug Currier (Haverhill, Mass.), of Bridgewater State, in the winner's bracket semi-finals. Currier, seeded No. 5, pinned Blair in 4:40 to send the freshman into the consolation bracket, where he won two matches by decision to reach the finals. In the loser's bracket final, Blair pinned the No. 6-seeded heavyweight, and quickly exerted his revenge on Currier with a pin in 1:28 in the heavyweight championship match.
Trinity junior co-captain and No. 2 seed Wesley Connell (Simsbury, Conn.) reached the finals of the 165-pound weight class, winning four out of five matches on the way, but fell to the top-seeded grappler for the second time of the weekend, 7-3, in the championship match to place second. Fellow Bantam junior co-captain Michael Doros (East Hartford, Conn.) was seeded atop the 184-pound division, but lost to No. 3 seed and eventual champion Nate Kittredge (Vergennes, Vt.), of Plymouth State, 3-2, in the winner's bracket finals. Doros then dropped a 3-1 decision in the loser's bracket finals to place third.
Senior 149-pounder Eric Egolf (Glastonbury, Conn.) finished his career on a high note, winning four out of six matches to finish fourth, while sophomore 197-pounder Matt Webster (Foxboro, Mass.) won two out of four matches and also finished fourth. Freshman Luis Murillo (Meriden, Conn.) went 2-2 to finish sixth at 125 pounds, while classmate Mark Romeo (Ridgewood, N.J.) took three out of four at 141 pounds to place fifth. All seven Trinity wrestlers who finished sixth or bettter earned All-New England recognition for their performances, and Blair was named as the NECCWA Rookie of the Year. Blair earned the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Football Defensive Rookie of the Year in the fall.
TEAM RESULTS
1. Springfield 127
2. Trinity (Conn.) 99
3. Plymouth State 75
4. Worcester Tech 71
5. Norwich 67
6. Wesleyan 64
7. Rhode Island College 62.5
8. Bridgewater State 62
9. Roger Williams 58.5
10. Williams 57.5
11. MIT 45
12. Coast Guard 40
13. Johnson and Wales 39
14. Southern Maine 5
15. Western New England 2
TRINITY MATCH RESULTS (excluding consolations)
125 Pounds
First Round