ARKADELPHIA, Ark. - Depsite suffering back-to-back home dual losses, the Ouachita Tiger men's wrestling team continues to show improvement as they prepare themselves for regionals. Injuries have forced coach
Todd Allen to rely on a roster heavy with freshman and sophomores. Despite the growing pains, the young Tigers have shown that the future remains bright for Ouachita wrestling.
On Wednesday night (Jan. 20), sophomores
Connor Loderhose and
Blake Clevenger scored individual wins versus Oklahoma City University. Loderhose's dominate 8-2 decision win was his eigth of the year. On Sunday (Jan. 24), Loderhose faced Central Oklahoma's Spencer Rutherford, who entered the match 24-8 on the year. Down 10-6 in the final minute of the third period, Loderhose scored a four-point flurry, including a two-point take down at the final buzzer. Rutherford was awarded one point for riding time and escaped with an 11-10 win over the Ouachita 149-pounder.
Blake Clevenger's 10-4 decision win over Oklahoma City's Brok Williams was his fifth straight dual win and his thirteenth of the year. The sophomore 157-pounder next faced Central Oklahoma's Jeromy Davenport. Clevenger and Davenport battled back and forth for the full three rounds, but in the end Clevenger would get his first loss of 2016, losing a 3-2 decision.
Freshmen Izzak Simar and
Austin Hailey had breakout performances on Sunday versus Central Oklahoma. Simar, a 184-pounder out of Kenosha, Wisconsin, scored a dominate 12-6 decision win over Brock Warren. It was Simar's ninth win on the season. Simar scored two consecutive take-downs in the final period to seal the victory and give the Tigers their first points versus the Bronchos.
Austin Hailey's 4-1 decision win over Jadon Davenport improved his individual record to 10-9. Hailey's early take down allowed him to control the tempo the remainder of the match. Hailey earned his second win of the season over a Central Oklahoma wrestler.
Ouachita closes out its dual season this Saturday, Jan. 30 at the Sturgis Physical Education Center where they'll face the University of Central Missouri. The dual is scheduled to begin at 10:00 a.m.
