Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
Missouri Open
Precin Wins Third Straight Tournament
11/19/2007 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Nov. 18, 2007
COLUMBIA, Mo.-- Sophomore Brandon Precin eased his way to a Missouri Open championship victory on Sunday, which was his third in three Opens this season.
Precin, wrestling in the 125-lb. division, took a 4-2 victory over Nickelson of Old Dominion for the title.
Freshman Mike Benefiel also continued his successful debut for the Wildcats as he took the 174 lb. title with an 11-3 major decision over Williams of Harper College. On his way to the finals, Benefiel defeated two opponents by falls and got a win by default in the second round.
Freshman Robert Kellogg also picked up his first collegiate victory in the 157 lb. freshman/sophomore bracket with five wins overall. Kellogg collected a major decision, a fall and two decisions on the way to his 8-4 victory in the finals over Hicklin of Lindenwood.
Two more NU freshman wrestled to a third-place finish in their respective weight classes with Robert Joyce collecting five victories and John Schoen six. Joyce competed in the 125 lb. freshman/sophomore division, while Schoen wrestled in the 197 lb. freshman/sophomore draw. Schoen lost his first match then took six-straight on the way to a 6-5 decision over Edison of Central Oklahoma.
"We continue to stay in great shape for the upcoming duals season," head coach Tim Cysewski said. "Technically there are some areas we are looking to improve but overall, we've looked extremely tough so far and I've been impressed with the way our guys have wrestled."
Sophomore Eric Metzler and senior Nick Hayes wrestled, but both bowed out due to injuries before the finish. Metzler went 1-0 and finished sixth place, while Hayes, seeded No. 1 in his division, did not get on the mat.
Coming off two-straight top-two finishes, sophomore Dominic Marella had another strong showing in Columbia with a fifth-place finish after winning four-straight matches in the consolation draw.
NU takes the mats again on Nov. 30 at Northern Illinois.
