Tigerville, S.C. – The King University men's wrestling team (1-1) split its tri-meet Tuesday evening, rolling to a 31–16 win over Ferrum College before dropping a tight 23–19 decision to the University of Mount Olive inside Hayes Gymnasium. The Tornado picked up bonus points in multiple bouts against Ferrum, showcasing dominance across the lineup, but came up just short in a back-and-forth battle with Mount Olive.
King's victory over Ferrum was highlighted by three technical falls and two pins, while veterans like
Jamarius Koshko, Clinton Morrisette, and
David Bertrand led the charge. Against Mount Olive, King battled through several close decisions, but the Crusaders capitalized on a pair of forfeits and edged out the team score.
King vs. Ferrum
The dual began at 125 pounds, where Ferrum's Riley Conway opened with a major decision over
Phoenix Sandifer (8–0). King quickly responded at 133, as
Gilbert Balbuena pinned Josiah Canales at 4:57 to put the Tornado on the board.
Alex Fernandez III followed with a 9–6 decision at 141, and
Jamarius Koshko delivered a dominant tech fall (17–2, 4:03) at 149.
David Bertrand added a 7–4 decision at 157 before Ferrum regained points with a forfeit at 165.
King answered emphatically at 174, where Clinton Morrisette pinned Genowa Lane in just 55 seconds.
Luke Justice controlled his bout at 184 with a 7–1 decision, and Bertrand returned at 197 to post another tech fall (17–2, 3:43). Ferrum closed with a pin at heavyweight, but King's Josef Pociask capped the dual with a 19–4 tech fall at 2:31 in an extra match.
Final Score: King 31, Ferrum 16
King vs. Mount Olive
Mount Olive struck first at 125, as Christian Luker earned a tech fall (15–0, 1:43) over Sandifer. Eli Pendergrass followed with a 9–3 decision at 133, and Jeffrey Richards added a 4–0 win at 141 to give UMO an early lead.
King stormed back with back-to-back pins: Koshko at 149 (1:07) and
Joe Bertrand at 157 (4:00). Mount Olive regained momentum with a forfeit win at 165, but Morrisette answered with a 9–1 major decision at 174.
UMO's Jack Mackiernan earned a 9–0 major decision at 184, before Bertrand battled to a sudden victory win (4–1) at 197. The dual came down to heavyweight, where John Domencic edged
Nathan Coley 2–1 to secure the team win for Mount Olive.
Final Score: Mount Olive 23, King 19
King 31, Ferrum 16
125: Riley Conway FER maj. dec.
Phoenix Sandifer KING, 8-0 – FER 4-0
133:
Gilbert Balbuena KING fall Josiah Canales FER, WBF (4:57) – KING 6-4
141:
Alex Fernandez III KING dec. Braden Crawford FER, 9-6 – KING 9-4
149:
Jamarius Koshko KING tech fall Cameron Curva FER, 17-2 (TF; 4:03) – KING 14-4
157:
David Bertrand KING dec. Andres Cortes FER, 7-4 – KING 17-4
165: Robert Owens Jr. FER win by forfeit – KING 17-10
174: Clinton Morrisette KING fall Genowa Lane FER, WBF (0:55) – KING 23-10
184:
Luke Justice KING dec. Joseph Toner FER, 7-1 – KING 26-10
197:
David Bertrand KING tech fall Noah Harris FER, 17-2 (TF; 3:43) – KING 31-10
285: Braeden Fluke FER fall
Nathan Coley KING, WBF (1:45) – KING 31-16
Extra: Josef Pociask KING tech fall Grayson Ringwald FER, 19-4 (TF; 2:31)
Mount Olive 23, King 19
125: Christian Luker UMO tech fall
Phoenix Sandifer KING, 15-0 (TF; 1:43) – UMO 5-0
133: Eli Pendergrass UMO dec.
Gilbert Balbuena KING, 9-3 – UMO 8-0
141: Jeffrey Richards UMO dec.
Alex Fernandez III KING, 4-0 – UMO 11-0
149:
Jamarius Koshko KING fall Benjamin Hernandez UMO, WBF (1:07) – UMO 11-6
157:
Joe Bertrand KING fall Christian Orozco UMO, WBF (4:00) – KING 12-11
165: Cameron Hunt UMO win by forfeit – UMO 17-12
174: Clinton Morrisette KING maj. dec. Cole Hivnor UMO, 9-1 – Tied 17-16
184: Jack Mackiernan UMO maj. dec.
Luke Justice KING, 9-0 – UMO 21-16
197:
David Bertrand KING dec. Raife Smart UMO, SV-1 4-1 – UMO 21-19
285: John Domencic UMO dec.
Nathan Coley KING, 2-1 – UMO 23-19
Unsportsmanlike: UMO -1 team point
