Michigan State University
Michigan State Open
Nine Spartans Place at MSU Open
11/2/2014 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Complete Brackets (Open Division) | Complete Brackets (Freshman/Sophomore)
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Nine Spartans placed in the MSU Open on Sunday in the annual event at Jenison Field House that featured more than 25 teams and 500 wrestlers.
Seven Spartans finished in the top six in the open division, including red-shirt freshman Javier Gasca (133 pounds), junior Nick Trimble (149) and junior Chris Nash (heavyweight), who each took third place in their respective weight classes. Senior John Rizqallah (184) and senior Luke Jones (heavyweight) placed fourth, sophomore Dean Vettese (165) took fifth, and senior Ryan Watts (165) came in sixth.
In the freshman/sophomore division, red-shirt freshman Mitch Rogaliner placed runner-up at 125 pounds and freshman Shwan Shadaia took fifth at 184 pounds.
No team scores were kept in the event.
"I think this might be one of the toughest MSU Opens we've ever had," said MSU head coach Tom Minkel, as several ranked wrestlers and returning national qualifiers competed in the event. "So to put it in that context, this field was particularly tough. The great thing about this tournament is that it's kind of your introduction to the season. No matter how well you practiced and no matter how hard you worked, you get to this tournament and you go `well, there's some stuff I need to work on.' And that applies to every kid in our program. It's a great tournament in that way because it's a great learning tool for our guys."
Gasca cruised into the semifinals at 133 with back-to-back major decisions over West Virginia's Christian Monserrat (18-7) and Purdue's Cody Pae (18-4) followed by a 10-3 win over Ohio's Kagan Squire. Ninth-ranked Rossi Bruno of Michigan ended Gasca's run with a 9-3 decision, but Gasca bounced back with a 5-4 victory over Central Michigan's Tyler Keselring in the third-place match.
"To take third in the open division as a red-shirt freshman is really a pretty significant accomplishment," said Minkel. "Javier is a big-time kid. He's works really hard and is really committed. He'll learn a lot from this event, but he's off to a good start."
Trimble notched wins over Benjamin Villaret of Columbia (8-4) and James Dekrone of West Virginia (5-4) before falling to Purdue's Brandon Nelsen in the semifinals, 4-3. Trimble won the third-place match via medical forfeit.
"Nick wrestled very, very well," remarked Minkel. "He's really matured and gotten better year after year. I was pleased with how hard he wrestled and the improvement that he's shown."
No. 20 John Rizqallah reached the semifinals in the 184-pound bracket with two wins but came up just short to Patrick Kissel of Purdue, losing 4-3 in sudden victory. Rizqallah did not wrestle in the third-place match and claimed fourth.
At heavyweight, teammates Chris Nash and Luke Jones battled for third place, and it was Nash who came away with the win in an 8-4 decision.
"(All-American) Mike McClure is a tough act to follow, but both Chris and Luke are talented heavyweights and I think they'll do well now that they have a chance to be in the lineup," commented Minkel. "Both of them will have an opportunity to get in and compete."
In the 165-pound bracket, Vettese went 4-1 with two falls while Watts also went 4-1 to reach the fifth-place match, but the two did not wrestle; Vettese was awarded fifth and Watts sixth.
Kevin Nash (174), Nick Proctor (174) and Nick McDiarmid (197) were one win away apiece from placing in the top six.
Rogaliner advanced to the championship match in the freshman/sophomore division at 125, but came up just shy of winning the title, dropping a 2-1 tiebreaker to Central Michigan's Brent Fleetwood.
"This freshmen and sophomore group that we have is one of the most committed groups of young men that we've had in quite some time in terms of having a really strong desire to improve," Minkel said. "They come in early and they stay late. It's a group that I'm certain will develop into a fine group of men as they mature and they get the experience. I've been very impressed with them and really enjoy coaching them."
Michigan State returns to action for the Eastern Michigan Duals on Saturday, Nov. 15 in Ypsilanti.
Players Mentioned
