Nov. 22, 2009
COLUMBIA, Mo. - The Purdue wrestling team capped its weekend in Missouri with an outstanding showing at the Missouri Open, led by junior Luke Manuel's 174-pound tournament title. Nine Boilermakers posted placewinning performances on the afternoon, including three second-place efforts, one bronze medalist, two fourth-place showings and a pair of fifth-place finishes.
Manuel needed just three wins to collect his second 174-pound open tournament title of the season, taking home all three matches by decision. Manuel gave up just two points on the day, with both tallies coming on escapes, not allowing a single takedown. His day ended with his second win of the weekend over No. 16 Dorian Henderson of Missouri, blanking the Tiger sophomore 2-0 in the finals.
Junior Akif Eren came up just short of his second open tournament title of the season, falling to 14th-ranked Boris Novachkov in the finals, 4-1. It took Eren three wins to reach the finals, taking all three bouts by decision, including his second victory of the weekend over Missouri's Nathan McCormick.
Senior Nick Corpe was the tournament runner-up at 184 pounds, going 3-1 on the afternoon, but falling to Missouri Open champion Chris Perry of Oklahoma State in the finals. All three of Corpe's victories came by decision, including a 10-6 win over Oklahoma's John Weekley in the second round.
Junior Logan Brown, ranked 11th in the nation at 197 pounds, fell shy of his second open tournament title and suffered his first loss of the season in the championship bout on Sunday. Brown posted a 12-4 major decision over Illinois' Mario Gonzalez to start the day, and followed up with a 4-1 win over Ryan Smith of Cal Poly and a 5-0 decision over Oklahoma State's Zach White. However, his rematch with No. 17 Brent Haynes of Missouri ended in a 2-0 decision as Brown's near-takedown at the buzzer wasn't awarded the points.
Senior Nick Bertucci put together a 5-1 record at 149 pounds on the day en route to a third-place tournament finish. He pinned a pair of opponents, sticking Central Missouri's William Forrest in the consolation semifinals (2:37) and Lindenwood's Sam Schmitz in the finals (1:51). He also notched a narrow 3-1 victory over senior teammate Sam Patacsil in the consolation quarterfinals, and may have reached the finals of the tournament if it weren't for a questionable defensive pin call from the official in his second-round bout with Cal Poly's Nick Fisher.
Sophomore Matt Fields placed in his second open tournament of the season, taking fourth place at 125 pounds with a 3-2 record. He rolled to the semifinals with a 10-5 decision over A.J. Ciccarelli of McKendree College and a 4:22 fall over Oklahoma State's Andre Taylor, but was upended there Jared Patterson of Oklahoma, 7-3. He bounced back by sticking Cal Poly's Micah Ferguson in the consolation semifinals (3:31), and became the victim of another questionable pin call in a scramble with Oklahoma State's Jon Morrison in the third-place match.
Freshman heavyweight Adam Walls matched Fields' fourth-place effort with his 3-2 mark in the freshman/sophomore division. Walls knocked off Missouri's Glen Kendle, Harper College's Gary Jackson and Indiana's Jowan Gill on the day, sticking Jackson for his third pin of the season.
Junior Juan Archuleta offset his first two losses of the season with a fifth-place effort at 141-pounds, going 3-2 on the day. After winning his first two bouts over Oklahoma's Dillon Dennis (8-1) and Central Missouri's Colin Pierce (8-3), he encountered a rematch with 19th-ranked Todd Schavrien of Missouri. Schavrien avenged Friday night's loss to Archuleta, taking advantage of some late back points, ending Archuleta's nine-match win streak. Fourteenth-ranked Filip Novachkov of Cal Poly topped Archuleta in the consolation semifinals, but the Purdue junior ended his tournament on a good note, blowing out Missouri's Cody Farinella by major decision, 17-7.
Purdue continues tournament action in its next outing, heading to Primm, Nev., for the annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Tune in for this week's Purdue Wrestling Video Blog at PurdueSports.com to hear head coach Scott Hinkel's comments on the weekend and preview for the Boilermakers' next tournament.