BEREA, Ohio – The Washington & Jefferson College wrestling wrapped a successful showing at the 38
th annual John Summa Invitational, hosted by the Baldwin Wallace University Yellow Jackets.
The Presidents finished fifth of the 13 total teams competing in the invitational with a team score of 76.
The Smith brothers each finished in second-place in their respective brackets as the Presidents' top wrestlers.
Taylor Smith (Mifflintown, Pa./Juniata) placed second in the 149-pound bracket with a 4-1 record on the day. Smith took respective victories by tech fall and major decision over Dillon O`Keefe of Case Western Reserve ((TF 4:51, 21-6) and Antonio Shelley of host Baldwin Wallace (MD 17-6). Smith logged two victories by fall over Aaron Turner of Ohio Northern (Fall 2:18) and Robert Minden of Case Western Reserve (Fall 4:16). His win over Minden advanced the sophomore wrestler to the first-place match. Smith dropped the first-place bout by a slim 2-1 decision to Emmanuel Scordos of the Yellow Jackets.
Teammate and sibling,
Casey Smith (Mifflintown, Pa./Juniata), finished second in the 157-pound bracket with a 3-1 record. Smith kicked off his day with wins by tech fall over Sam Zeigler of Brockport (TF 1:39, 16-1) and Michael Syposs of Niagara Community College (TF 4:32, 20-2). In the semifinal round, Smith was victorious by decision over Robert Minden of Case Western Reserve (9-6). Smith was bested by fall in the first-place match by Michael Petrella of Baldwin Wallace (Fall 2:51).
Brayden Roscosky (Vandergrift, Pa./Kiski Area) led the Presidents in the 184-pound bracket, placing third with a 4-1 record. Roscosky opened the day with two victories by tech fall and fall over Brady Walsh of Ohio Wesleyan (TF 7:00, 22-6) and Cade Holmes of Otterbein (Fall 4:09), respectively. Following a loss in the semifinal round, Roscosky bounced back with a victory by major decision over Charlie Rossner of St. John Fisher (MD 14-5). In the third-place match, Roscosky won his fourth match of the day by major decision over Caiden Hooks of Otterbein (MD 21-7).
Zane Garner (Washington, Pa./Trinity) and
Connor Garren (Columbus, Ohio/Olentangy Orange) each finished seventh in their respective brackets. Garner took seventh in the 133-pound bracket with a 2-2 record. Garren placed seventh in the 197-pound bracket and 3-2 record.
John Starusko (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin) also contributed to the Presidents' scoring with a 2-2 record in the 174-pound bracket, adding 3.5 points to the Presidents' team total.
The W&J wrestling team returns to action on Saturday (Feb. 15) for the annual PAC Championships. First bouts are scheduled to kick off at 11:00 a.m.
