Red Devils Dominate in First Home Wrestling Meet Against Morton, 52-3

EUREKA – The Eureka men's wrestling team was dominant in its first home dual in program history.

The Red Devils won all but one match on the mat and claimed five pins en route to a 52-3 victory over Morton College at Christine Bonati Bollwinkle Arena and Convocation Center on Wednesday evening.

"I think it went really well," EC coach Eric Biehl said. "I loved the energy of the crowd that we had here; it was awesome. We won every match but one, so that's hard to beat. I think the guys wrestled well and there are some little things we've got to tighten up, but we cheered each other on well. We were in every match, and it was just exciting."

Sophomore Thomas Culp (Quincy, Ill./Quincy/Lincoln) kicked the night off with an 18-0 technical fall over Morton College's Isaac Albor at 197 pounds in the first-ever wrestling match at Eureka College.

Morton College came back with its lone win of the dual at 285 pounds. Victor Vargas bested junior Robert Castellano (Galesburg, Ill./) in a 5-3 decision. The Red Devils didn't lose another match the rest of the way.

At 125, junior Jake Jozwiak (Lake Vila, Ill./Grayslake North/Lincoln) delivered the first home pin in program history over Joshua Kwiatowski to make it 11-3.

Gaige Owens (Marion, Ill./Marion/Iowa Wesleyan) followed it with the Red Devils' second tech fall of the night, racking up 16 points in a 16-1 win over Cole Guerrero at 133. Then, Eureka notched four straight pins.

Nathan Berta (Channahon, Ill./Minooka/Calumet St. Joseph) started the streak, besting Anthony Rivera in 1:14 . Bradden Davis (Mount Vernon, Ill./Mount Vernon) stopped Aidan Baker in the second period. Dominic Tenayuca (Algonquin, Ill./Jacobs/Lincoln) followed suit in the first period against Emmanuel Oliver, and Brock Neill (Oglesby, Ill./La Salle, Ill./La Salle-Peru/Lincoln) quickly ended the last match on the mat against Julio Espinal in the first period.

Tenayuca wrestled up a weight class at 157 to take on the Panthers' top wrestler and delivered one of the Red Devils' biggest wins of the night. Oliver is a former state champion in high school and he was coming off a tournament win over the weekend. Tenayuca came up with the pin after conceding the first takedown of the match.

(The) kid was strong at first," he said. "He got the first takedown. I've been working at practice with my coach to not let that affect me and work on my bottom.

"Even though I was giving up a little bit of weight, I knew that if I stayed in a good position, stayed in the right spot, I'd come out on top, and that's what happened today."

Eureka won by forfeit at 165 and 184, respectively, to tack on 12 extra points.

With the team's first dual victory under its belt, the EC men's wrestling team, as well as the EC women's wrestling team, will compete at the Luther Open in Decora, Iowa, on Saturday.

Both squads will be back at the Reagan for a home tri-meet against Fontbonne and Carthage on Sunday, Jan. 22. 

"We're just pumped to be back here again in January," Biehl said, "with the same kind of fan base and same energy."