Coming off a 21–19 upset of 17th-ranked Olivet Wednesday, wrestling split four matches at UW–Whitewater’s eight-team Border Brawl this weekend as it wound down the regular season. The squad dropped its first two contests before bouncing back to take the next two bouts and stay above the .500 mark in dual matches at 5–4.
A 25–13 loss to host Whitewater opened the day for Chicago. While the Maroons struggled as a whole, first-years David Kneisel and Ryan Hatten took care of business, with Kneisel winning by fall at 174 pounds and Hatten notching a major decision at heavyweight. Third-year Spencer Burns also hurled down his opponent at 157 with a 9–3 win.
Things got worse for the South Siders before they got better Saturday with the team getting flattened 36–9 by 11th-ranked UW–Stevens Point. Second-year Troy Carlson provided the only bright spot in the contest, getting the best of DIII’s third-ranked third-year Jake Wozniak at 165 pounds with a 6–4 edging.
Pulling it together for the next match, Chicago claimed seven of eight bouts with Lakeland College for a 23–16 victory. Kneisel got the job done again for the Maroons and third-year Jeff Harman joined him with a major decision at 149 pounds.
Keeping up the momentum, the squad closed out the day with a 25–10 pounding of UW–Oshkosh. Third-year Lance Contento and Hatten capped off the Brawl for Chicago, notching a major decision and win-by-fall in the final two showdowns.
From here, the Maroons go up against their final opponents of the regular season at the Wheaton Invite this weekend, before spending a week getting ready for the UAA Championships at NYU.
