FINAL RESULTS
GREAT FALLS, Mont. - The Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Eagles captured their first Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) Team Championship, presented by U.S. Bank, in program history on Saturday evening in the McLaughlin Center, after compiling a team score of 136 points.
Menlo College, defending 2018 CCC Co-Champion, finished runner-up with a team total of 131.5 points, while tournament host, the University of Providence, and MSU-Northern finished third and fourth for the second-straight year with 128 points and 104.5 points, respectively.
Although Embry-Riddle captured the team title, they were not able to capture any individual championships. Life Pacific, Menlo, MSU-Northern, Providence, and Southern Oregon all secured two individual championships apiece.
Life Pacific's Alexander Nunez, the 125-pound champion, was named Outstanding Wrestler of the Tournament, while Embry-Riddle's KC Rock was voted CCC Coach of the Year, and the Warner Pacific Knights were named the Team Sportsmanship recipients of the tournament.
The top-three placers in each weight class were considered all-conference.
Unranked Nunez captured the 125-pound title in dominating fashion. He opened the tournament with arguably the biggest upset of the tournament as he defeated the No. 1-seed and No. 4-ranked wrestler in the nation, Mhar Caballa, by fall in the opening round of the tournament. Following a decision and major decision victory to place himself in the championship match, Nunez claimed a decisive 16-7 major decision over Menlo's No. 10 Riley Siason to take home the trophy.
The 133-pound title was claimed by No. 1-seed and No. 15-ranked Blaysen Terukina of Menlo. Following his first-round bye, Terukina picked up a pin and decision victory to vie for the conference championship. In the championship bout, Terukina defeated Southern Oregon's Justin Coon to seal the title.
Devin Poppen of Southern Oregon was crowned the 141-pound champion. Poppen had a first-round bye, but followed it with two first-round pins, including a victory over No. 7-ranked David Salazar of Embry-Riddle, to face No. 13-ranked Joseph Dominquez in the championship bout. Poppen earned a 11-1 decisive victory to win the weight class.
Southern Oregon's No. 4 Chandler Michael earned the 149-pound championship. Following a major decision to open the tournament and a pair of falls, Michael had Menlo's No. 6 Terrill Sidner as the only thing between him and the championship title. Michael was on a roll as he had tallied an 11-4 lead before sealing the victory with a 5:40-pin.
No. 3 Brandon Weber of MSU-Northern was named the 157-pound champion. Weber claimed two first-period pins and a decision to place himself in the championship bout. After falling down 2-0 to No. 4 James Williams of Embry-Riddle, Weber scored four unanswered points to capture the conference championship title.
Providence's No. 1-ranked Adrian Lyons-Lopez secured the 165-pound championship over Eastern Oregon's No. 4 Drake Randall. Following his first-round bye, Lyons-Lopez garnered a 13-3 major decision and a 3-1 overtime victory to face Randall in the championship. Randall captured a 4-2 lead headed into the final period, however Lyons-Lopez earned a reversal in the final period to send things to overtime and found success in the second overtime period by earning a pin to claim the title.
Gerardo Hernandez of Life Pacific earned the 174-pound title. Hernandez earned a major decision and a 6-4 overtime victory to claim his spot in the championship bout against MSU-Northern's Chase Short. Hernandez claimed the title in strong fashion as he claimed a 16-9 decision.
Top-seed at 184 pounds, No. 2 Anthony Orozco, claimed the 184-pound championship. A first-round pin and a 13-5 major decision sealed his spot in the finals. Against Embry-Riddle's No. 18 Tyler Hall, Orozco showed why he is second in the nation as he claimed a 12-3 major decision to seal his championship claim.
Second-ranked Isaac Bartel of MSU-Northern was crowed the 197-pound champion. After his first round by, Bartel was able to claim a pair of major decisions to place himself against No. 8 Elias Mason of Embry-Riddle. Bartel earned his third major decision of the tournament as he defeated Mason, 13-2, to earn the championship title.
No. 3 Matt Hopkins of the University of Providence was crowned the heavyweight champion. Hopkins earned two dominant pins in the opening rounds, before earning a second-round pin to claim a spot in the championship bout. Against MSU-Northern's Jase Stokes, Hopkins finished the tournament with one final first-round pin to seal his championship claim.
Due to automatic qualifications on the line in some weight classes, the CCC introduced true-place matches for the first time.
Daniel Butler of Embry-Riddle claimed the true second-place finish after defeating Chase Short in the 174-pound weight class. Nick Kunz of MSU-Northern claimed the true sixth-place finish at 125 pounds as he defeated Francisco Barrera of Southern Oregon. Menlo's Bruce Valdez claimed a sixth-place qualification in the 197-pound weight class after falling to Harley Dilulo of Eastern Oregon by a 9-3 decision.
CCC Wrestling Championships Individual Awards
Outstanding Wrestler of the Tournament: Alexander Nunez, Life Pacific
Coach of the Year: KC Rock, Embry-Riddle
Team Sportsmanship Award: Warner Pacific
Individual Results
First-Place Matches
125 lbs. - Alexander Nunez (Life Pacific), major dec. over Riley Siason (Menlo), 16-7
133 lbs. - Blaysen Terukina (Menlo) dec. over Justin Coon (SOU), 5-4
141 lbs. - Devin Poppen (SOU) major dec. over Joseph Dominguez (Menlo), 11-1
149 lbs. - Chandler Michael (SOU) fall over Terrill Sidner (Menlo), 5:40
157 lbs. - Brandon Weber (MSUN) dec. over James Williams (ERAU), 4-2
165 lbs. - Adrian Lyons-Lopez (UP) fall over Drake Randall (EOU), 8:23
174 lbs. - Gerardo Hernandez (Life Pacific) dec. over Chase Short (MSUN), 16-9
184 lbs. - Anthony Orozco (Menlo) major dec. over Tyler Hall (ERAU), 12-3
197 lbs. - Isaac Bartel (MSUN) major dec. over Elias Mason (ERAU), 13-2
285 lbs. - Matt Hopkins (UP) fall over Jase Stokes (MSUN), 2:17
Team Results
Embry-Riddle - 136 points
Menlo - 131.5 points
Providence - 128 points
MSU-Northern - 104.5 points
Southern Oregon - 101.5 points
Eastern Oregon - 74.5 points
Life Pacific - 57.5 points
Simpson (Calif.) - 27 points
Warner Pacific - 20 points
NAIA Championship Automatic Qualifiers
125 lbs. - Alexander Nunez, Life Pacific (1
st); Riley Siason, Menlo (2
nd); Mhar Caballa, EOU (3
rd); Ian Morken, Menlo (4
th); Joshua Nira, ERAU (5
th); Nick Kunz, MSUN (6
th)
133 lbs. - Blaysen Terukina, Menlo (1
st); Justin Coon, SOU (2
nd); Blake McNall, EOU (3
rd); Collin Anderson, ERAU (4
th); Anthony Vargas, Life Pacific (5
th)
141 lbs. - Devin Poppen, SOU (1
st); Joseph Dominguez, Menlo (2
nd); David Salazar, ERAU (3
rd); Armand Molina, Simpson (4
th); TJ Baun, Providence (5
th)
149 lbs. - Chandler Michael, SOU (1
st); Terrill Sidner, Menlo (2
nd); Shonn Roberts, Providence (3
rd); Aaron Mora, Life Pacific (4
th); Berit Sturgeon, ERAU (5
th)
157 lbs. - Brandon Weber, MSUN (1
st); James Williams, ERAU (2
nd); Kevin James, Menlo (3
rd); Casey Dobson, Providence (4
th)
165 lbs. - Adrian Lyons-Lopez, Providence (1
st); Drake Randall, EOU (2
nd); Andrew Bartel, MSUN (3
rd); Carlos Apodaca, ERAU (4
th); Alejandro Garcia, Menlo (5
th)
174 lbs. - Gerardo Hernandez, Life Pacific (1
st); Daniel Butler, ERAU (2
nd)
184 lbs. - Anthony Orozco, Menlo (1
st); Tyler Hall, ERAU (2
nd); Ryan Redford, EOU (3
rd)
197 lbs. - Isaac Bartel, MSUN (1
st); Elias Mason, ERAU (2
nd); John Hensley, Providence (3
rd); Tanner Fischer, SOU (4
th); Harley Dilulo, EOU (5
th); Bruce Valdez, Menlo (6
th)
285 lbs. - Matt Hopkins, Providence (1
st); Jase Stokes, MSUN (2
nd)