FEBRUARY 24, 2018

FOUR KING'S GRAPPLERS PLACE AT NCAAS SOUTHEAST REGIONALS

FINAL BRACKETS

ROCKY MOUNT, VA -- A total of four King's College wrestlers were place-winners at the 2018 NCAA East Regional Championships which wrapped up Saturday in Rocky Mount, VA.

Senior heavyweight Ralph Bernardo and 157-pound senior David White both placed fifth, while senior Eddie Merrill and freshman Jake Taylor were both sixth at 197 and 141 respectively.

Bernardo reached the semi-finals where he fell to eventual champion Garrett Wesneski (42-2) of Lycoming by a 4-0 decision. Bernardo fell into wrestlebacks where he dropped a 6-1 decision to Karpontini of York in the consolation semi-finals. Bernardo (26-11) then took home fifth when he was awarded a medical forfeit. 

White was a surprise place winner after entering the event with a 1-7 record but forth the best wrestling of his career at regionals. After losing in the quarterfinals while came back in the consolations and registered two pins Friday night and another Saturday morning to reach the consolation semi-finals. But White dropped an 18-6 major decision to Shane Connors of Washington & Lee. Like Bernardo, White received a medical forfeit to finish fifth.

Merrill reached the Saturday morning semi-finals where he dropped a 15-0 technical fall to second-seeded Antavian Leary of Ferrum. In consolations he was pinned by Jared Mooney of Penn College and was pinned again in the fifth-sixth place match by Jacob Parsons of Penn State Erie. Merrill (13-7) had defeated Parsons 12-6 in the quarterfinals on Friday.

In Saturday's consolations, Taylor (23-7) won his second wrestleback match Saturday morning with a 13-4 major decision before dropping a hard-fought 5-4 decision to second-seeded Matt Grossman of Wilkes in the consolation semi-finals. Taylor then fell in the fifth-place match by fall in 2:59 to Lucas Escobar of Johns Hopkins.

As a team, the Monarchs finished in 10th place among the 18-team field. Messiah College won the team title, followed by York College and host Ferrum College.