WASHINGTON, Pa. (Jan. 18) – The Washington & Jefferson College men's wrestling team put together a 2-1 record at the annual Jim White Duals hosted at Salvitti Family Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon.

The Presidents used strong performances from Casey Smith, Hunter Swedish and Jiovanni DeChicchis to secure dual wins over Presidents' Athletic Conference foe Hiram College (47-0) and non-conference opponent Mount St. Joseph University (32-13). W&J dropped the middle match on Saturday by a 33-14 score to Marymount University.

W&J 47, Hiram 0
The Presidents rolled to a dominant 47-0 shutout victory over Hiram in a conference matchup. The shutout was W&J's first since Jan. 22, 2022 when they also blanked the Terriers at the Jim White Duals. 

W&J opened the match with a major decision from Michael Cruz at 125 pounds to take an early advantage. Holden DuBois received a forfeit win at 133 pounds to move its lead to 10-0.

Swedish won by a lopsided 19-3 margin for a tech. fall victory at 141 pounds. Taylor Smith followed with a dramatic 14-11 win, using a takedown to claim a sudden victory at 149 pounds. Those wins stretched the W&J lead to 18-0.  

Casey Smith rolled to an 18-2 tech. fall victory at 157 pounds. DeChicchis pulled out a 3-2 decision at 165 pounds. John Starusko gave W&J another narrow victory, as the freshman secured a 4-3 victory by decision at 174 pounds. Jaden Fields claimed six more team points for W&J with a forfeit win at 184 pounds.

The Presidents picked up wins by fall at 197 pounds by Logan Smith and Trevor Manley at 285 pounds to cap the match.

Marymount 33, W&J 14
The Presidents fell behind early against Marymount. Despite making some noise in the middle weights, the Saints were able to pull away down the stretch to secure the victory.

Swedish continued his dominant day with a win by tech. fall at 141 pounds. Swedish rolled to victory by a 19-4 margin.

After dropping a match at 149 pounds, W&J added victories at the next two weights. Casey Smith won by a 10-5 score at 157 pounds to give the Presidents three more team points. DeChicchis won by a slim 3-2 margin at 165 pounds to cut the Marymount lead to 15-11 in the team standings.

Marymount responded with three-straight wins to wrap up the team victory. The Saints won by fall at 174, 184 and 197, respectively.

W&J closed the match with a strong effort from Christian McChesney. The sophomore picked up a 2-0 win at 285 pounds.

W&J 32, Mount St. Joseph 13
The Presidents earned bonus points in five of their six victories against Mount St. Joseph.

Michael Cruz opened the match with an 11-2 major decision victory at 125 pounds. After MSJ evened the team score with a major decision win at 133 pounds, Swedish won by major decision (11-2) at 141 pounds. The victory allowed Swedish to complete a 3-0 effort on the day.

Taylor Smith and Casey Smith registered wins by fall at 149 pounds and 157 pounds, respectively. The duo combined to go 5-0 on the day with the latter securing wins in all three matches.

DeChicchis finished off a perfect day on the mats with a 5-1 win by decision at 165 pounds.

The most contested battle of the W&J-MSJ match came at 184 pounds. Jaden Fields held on for a narrow 5-4 victory at 184 pounds. Two bouts later, McChesney won by fall at 285 pounds to close out W&J's victory.

W&J will welcome Waynesburg University to Salvitti Family Gymnasium on Thursday, Jan. 23. Start time is scheduled for 7 p.m. The Presidents will recognize members of their senior class prior to the conference matchup.
 
Match By Match Results
W&J 47, Hiram 0
125 – Michael Cruz (Washington & Jefferson) over Ian Fuentes (Hiram College) (MD 13-3)
133 – Holden DuBois (Washington & Jefferson) over Unknown (For.)
141 – Hunter Swedish (Washington & Jefferson) over Will Brodbeck (Hiram College) (TF 19-3)
149 – Taylor Smith (Washington & Jefferson) over Jackson Bowers (Hiram College) (SV-1 14-11)
157 – Casey Smith (Washington & Jefferson) over Kaelon Lawson-West (Hiram College) (TF 18-2)
165 – Jiovanni DeChicchis (Washington & Jefferson) over Seth Holt (Hiram College) (Dec 3-2)
174 – John Starusko (Washington & Jefferson) over Jimmy Thomas (Hiram College) (Dec 4-3)
184 – Jaden Fields (Washington & Jefferson) over Unknown (Forfeit)
197 – Logan Smith (Washington & Jefferson) over Jaden Bell (Hiram College) (Fall)
285 – Trevor Manley (Washington & Jefferson) over Edward Powers (Hiram College) (Fall)
 
Marymount 33, W&J 14
125 – Ian Morales (Marymount) over Michael Cruz (Washington & Jefferson) (Fall)
133 – Joseph Custodio (Marymount) over Holden DuBois (Washington & Jefferson) (TF 15-0)
141 – Hunter Swedish (Washington & Jefferson) over Temuujin Erdenetuya (Marymount) (TF 19-4)
149 – Mateo Hernandez (Marymount) over Jackson Sandor (Washington & Jefferson) (MD 13-3)
157 – Casey Smith (Washington & Jefferson) over Tallion Elliott (Marymount) (Dec 10-5)
165 – Jiovanni DeChicchis (Washington & Jefferson) over Xavier Castaneda (Marymount) (Dec 3-2)
174 – Julian Schott (Marymount) over John Starusko (Washington & Jefferson) (Fall)
184 – Rylan Moose (Marymount) over Jaden Fields (Washington & Jefferson) (Fall)
197 – Mohammed Fofana (Marymount) over Connor Garren (Washington & Jefferson) (Fall)
285 – Christian McChesney (Washington & Jefferson) over Brey Loving (Marymount) (Dec 2-0)
 
W&J 32, Mount St. Joseph 13
125 – Michael Cruz (Washington & Jefferson) over Dakota Phillips (Mount St. Joseph) (MD 11-2)
133 – Jorden Zigo (Mount St. Joseph) over Holden DuBois (Washington & Jefferson) (MD 23-9)
141 – Hunter Swedish (Washington & Jefferson) over Desmond Diggs (Mount St. Joseph) (MD 11-2)
149 – Taylor Smith (Washington & Jefferson) over Javon Harrison (Mount St. Joseph) (Fall 0:00)
157 – Casey Smith (Washington & Jefferson) over Rylee Nealeigh (Mount St. Joseph) (Fall 0:00)
165 – Jiovanni DeChicchis (Washington & Jefferson) over Dylan Fritz (Mount St. Joseph) (Dec 5-1)
174 – Roger Deck (Mount St. Joseph) over John Starusko (Washington & Jefferson) (TF 19-4 0:00)
184 – Jaden Fields (Washington & Jefferson) over Alec Hall (Mount St. Joseph) (Dec 5-4)
197 – Jermaine Poynter (Mount St. Joseph) over Connor Garren (Washington & Jefferson) (MD 11-2)
285 – Christian McChesney (Washington & Jefferson) over Randall Wilson (Mount St. Joseph) (Fall)