COLUMBIA, S.C. — Just two days removed from a convincing 34-11 win over the Mount Olive Trojans on Senior Night in Eleazer, Newberry Wrestling (10-5, 8-2 South Atlantic Conference Carolinas) took the short trip to the capital looking to claim another victory on the road. The opponent for this away dual would come in the form of the Allen Yellow Jackets, a team that is 13-4 on the year while 3-1 in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Also, to make things more interesting, the University of South Carolina's Club Wrestling team would make the trip to Allen, making the trip to Columbia into a tri-meet. With this being the last dual before Newberry shifts their attention towards the Super Region II Championships in two weeks, the Wolves needed to come out strong against a quality opponent while getting ready for postseason action.
Kicking the action off against the University of South Carolina, 125 lbs Christian Decatur (Goldsboro, N.C.) would have his easiest match of the night with a forfeit in the initial bout. 133 lbs JP Gamez (Dade City, Fla.) 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.).
149 lbs Marcus Johnson (Columbia, S.C.) 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. 165 lbs P.J. Wunderlich (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) won his match over Garrett Rohmeyer by fall at 3:45, extending the lead even further, and 174 lbs Asa Walton (Buena, N.J.) would win his match as well, securing a major decision over Norman Cella by a score of 10-1.
184 lbs Armando Acosta (Gainesville, Fla.) 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). 285 lbs John Parker (Temecula, Calif.), going up a weight class, would prove 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 would show his clutch gene by securing a pin against D`Andre` Wilkerson at 4:20 to clinch a 24-20 win.
With regular dual action coming to a close, Newberry shifts their attention towards the Super Region II Championships in two weeks in Pembroke, N.C. With the date set for February 25 at 9 AM, the road to Iowa for the DII National Championships starts now.
NEWBERRY 24, Allen 20
125: Christian Decatur (NC) over Reco Robinson (AU) (MD 13-5)
133: Nyshaad Hannon (AU) over Fletcher Swindall (NC), Fall (4:12)
141: JP Gamez (NC) over Quincy Gash (AU), Dec. 4-0
149: Drevon Wallace (AU) over Marcus Johnson (NC), TF (16-0 [4:30])
157: Will Evans (NC) over Ya`Donnis Hardaway (AU), Dec. 3-2
165: P.J. Wunderlich (NC) over Terrence Mills (AU), Dec. 4-2
174: Asa Walton (NC) over Jordan Bowser (AU), TF (16-1 [2:59])
184: Michael Jackson (AU) over Armando Acosta (NC), Dec. 10-5
197: Christian Poplous (AU) wins by forfeit
285: John Parker (NC) over D`Andre` Wilkerson (AU) Fall (4:20)
NEWBERRY 44, South Carolina 12
125: Christian Decatur (NC) won by forfeit
133: JP Gamez (NC) over Will Vaporis (USC), Fall (2:04)
141: Fletcher Swindall (NC) won by forfeit
149: Rob Gemerelli (USC) over Marcus Johnson (NC), Fall (2:44)
157: Will Evans (NC) over Connor Leister (USC), Fall (1:10)
165: P.J. Wunderlich (NC) over Garrett Rohmeyer (USC), Fall (3:45)
174: Asa Walton (NC) over Norman Cella (USC), MD 10-1
184: Armando Acosta (NC) over Denton DiCarlo (USC), MD 15-6
197: Zach St. Thomas (USC) over Andrew Annand, Fall (4:48)
285: John Parker (NC) over Cap Holley (USC), Fall (4:05)
