FAIRFAX, Va. – Six Old Dominion wrestlers placed in the 2019 Patriot Open, hosted by George Mason University on Saturday.
Both Kenan Carter and Alex Cramer placed fourth at 149 and 174 pounds, respectively. Seniors Steven Simpson and Tim Young each placed fifth in their weight classes, while Kellen Ekern and Dean Drugac settled into sixth place in their brackets.
Carter advanced to the semifinals at 149 pounds after pinning Virginia Tech's Caden Darber and earning a 7-4 win by decision over Columbia's Andrew Garr. In the semis, Carter matched up against No. 15 Kizhan Clarke of American, who dispatched Carter in a major decision, 15-4. Carter placed fourth after a medical forfeit in the third-place bout.
At 174, Cramer also went 2-2 on the day for a fourth-place finish, taking down Lance Andriani of NC State, 16-0 in a tech. fall, and earning a 7-1 win by decision over Navy's Shane Finney.
Simpson earned his fifth-place finish at 133 pounds after going 4-1 in the open. After he was pinned in his second bout of the day, Simpson rattled off three consecutive wins, including a 4-1 win by decision in the fifth-place bout over Columbia's Angelo Rini.
At 197 pounds, Young took a similar path as Simpson, winning his final three bouts to earn his fifth-place finish. In his final three matches, Young won by a combined 20-6 margin, including a 9-4 win by decision over Virginia Tech's Cody Howard in his final bout of the day.
Ekern went 4-1 on the day, earning a fall over Sacred Heart's Joe Sacco in his first bout. He and Drexel's Evan Barczak tied for sixth place at 165 after a no-contest in the fifth-place bout at 165 pounds.
After losing his match by a 16-7 major decision, Drugac won three bouts in a row at 184 pounds, pinning two opponents in the stretch. Drugac's run ended in the fifth-place bout to Columbia's Joseph Franzese, and he settled into sixth place in his bracket.
Up Next
The wrestling Monarchs will be back in action on December 18 at 7:00 p.m. ET, when the team competes in its first Mid-American Conference dual meet against SIUE in Edwardsville.
ODU Placed Results
133| Steven Simpson – 5th Place
Round of 32 – BYE
Round of 16 – Steven Simpson (ODU) dec. over Ryan Hetrick (Army) 5-3
Quarterfinals – Shane Metzler (Rutgers) fall over Steven Simpson (ODU) 1:11
Consolation of 8 #2 – Steven Simpson (ODU) MD over Spencer Good (Columbia) 8-0
Consolation of 4 – Steven Simpson (ODU) dec. over Gregg Wert (Army) 5-3
5th Place – Steven Simpson (ODU) dec. over Angelo Rini (Columbia) 4-1
149| Kenan Carter * - 4th Place
Round of 32 – BYE
Round of 16 – Kenan Carter (ODU Unattached) fall over Caden Darber (Virginia Tech) 2:41
Quarterfinals – Kenan Carter (ODU Unattached) dec. over Andrew Garr (Columbia) 7-4
Semifinals - #15 Kizhan Clarke (American) MD over Kenan Carter (ODU Unattached) 15-4
3rd Place – Joshua Finesilver (Blue Blood Wrestling Club) M For over Kenan Carter (ODU Unattached)
165| Kellen Ekern – T-6th Place
Round of 32 – Kellen Ekern (ODU) fall over Joe Sacco (Sacred Heart) 2:59
Round of 16 – Tyler Barnes (NC State) dec. over Kellen Ekern (ODU) 7-2
Consolation Round of 8 #1 – Kellen Ekern (ODU) dec. over Will Lucie (Army) 13-6
Consolation Round of 8 #2 – Kellen Ekern (ODU) dec. over Jacob Curling (ODU) 6-3
Consolation of 4 – Kellen Ekern (ODU) MD over Kyle Mosher (Columbia) 10-2
5th Place – Kellen Ekern (ODU) NC with Evan Barczak (Drexel)
174| Alex Cramer – 4th Place
Round of 32 – BYE
Round of 16 – Alex Cramer (ODU) TF over Lance Andriani (NC State) 16-0 (5:36)
Quarterfinals – Alex Cramer (ODU) dec. over Shane Finney (Navy) 7-1
Semifinals – Ben Harvey (Army) FMC over Alex Cramer (ODU) 18-2 (6:49)
3rd Place – Brad Laughlin (Army) Win by DQ over Alex Cramer (ODU)
184| Dean Drugac * - 6th Place
Round of 32 – BYE
Round of 16 – Leo Tarantino (Boston RTC) MD over Dean Drugac (ODU Unattached) 16-7
Consolation Round of 8 #1 – Dean Drugac (ODU Unattached) fall over Christian Salter (Garnder-Webb) 1:16
Consolation Round of 8 #2 – Dean Drugac (ODU Unattached) fall over Colin Fegley (Lock Haven) 2:21
Consolation of 4 – Dean Drugac (ODU Unattached) dec. over Jha'quan Anderson (Gardner-Webb) 6-0
5th Place – Joseph Franzese (Columbia) dec over Dean Drugac (ODU Unattached) 9-2
197| Tim Young * - 5th Place
Round of 32 – BYE
Round of 16 – Tim Young (ODU Unattached) MD over Michael Waszen (Franklin & Marshall) 12-2
Quarterfinals – Bennett Paulson (Army) fall over Tim Young (ODU Unattached) 4:03
Consolation Round of 8 #2 – Tim Young (ODU Unattached) dec. over Greg Bensley (Pennsylvania) 3-2
Consolation of 4 – Tim Young (ODU Unattached) MD over Gunnar Larson (Army) 8-0
5th Place – Tim Young (ODU Unattached) dec. over Cody Howard (Virginia Tech) 9-4
* - Indicates Wrestled Unattached
Six Monarchs Place at Saturday's Patriot Open
