Trio of Wrestlers Win Titles

Results (PDF)

TROY, N.Y. - A trio of Purdue wrestlers won titles at the Journeymen Collegiate Classic on Sunday. A tournament that featured three pools (A, B, C) at each weight, with a 5-6 man round robin bracket in each pool, saw both of the Boilermakers' 133-pounders capture championships. Ben Thornton was the top man in the 133 A pool, while Bjorn Schroeder won the 133 B pool. Parker Filius was the third champ, winning the 149-pound B pool.

Sunday's tournament concluded two days of competition for Purdue at Hudson Valley Community College's McDonough Sports Complex. On Saturday, the 17th-ranked Boilermakers defeated Bloomsburg (35-5) and Drexel (25-14) in the Journeymen Northeast Duals.

Thornton used a 5-1 decision to defeat Lehigh's Brandon Paetzel in the 133-pound A pool title match. The one-point escape by Paetzel was the only point Thornton allowed during the day as he improved to 10-0.

To say the redshirt senior from Stoddard, Wisconsin, has been dominate through 10 matches would be an understatement. Thornton has scored 102 points while holding his opponents to just five points and has not given up a takedown; six of his wins have been shutouts; and seven wins have resulted in bonus points (4 MD, 3 TF). His major decision, technical fall and shutout counts just two weeks into the season are all career highs.

"I have been very impressed with the improvements Ben has made, not only on top, but on his feet," Purdue head wrestling coach Tony Ersland said. "You can see that he has worked hard to correct some things in both areas."

Thornton's counterpart at 133 was equally as offensive en route to the B pool title. Schroeder made easy work of Lock Haven's Brandon Loperfido in his first match with a 12-3 major decision. The redshirt freshman followed with a 16-1 (7:00) technical fall of Trent Olsen of Hofstra. A five-point second period lifted Schroeder to an 8-7 victory in the finals, downing Rutgers' Malcom Robinson.

"Our 133-pounders get the game ball today," Ersland said. "They took care of business."

Filius put a stamp on a stellar weekend by pinning Jon Ross of Lock Haven in 6:46 to capture the 149-pound B pool championship. It was the third pin in five matches for the redshirt freshman hailing from Havre, Montana.

"I think Parker looks like he is getting more and more comfortable competing out there," Ersland said. "It's always fun to watch a guy pin people. He's looking aggressive from the top."

A six-point move in the period separated Filius from Wyoming's Jaron Jensen on his way to a 10-8 win in his first match Sunday.

Although Purdue does not compete again until Nov. 24 in its Big Ten Conference opener at Iowa, one Boilermaker will make history during the upcoming week. Christian Brunner will represent the United States at 92 kg at the U23 Freestyle World Championships in Bucharest, Romania. Stay tuned for feature content throughout the week leading up to Brunner donning a national team singlet with Purdue head assistant wrestling coach Tyrel Todd in his corner on Saturday.