After plugging several holes in their starting lineup, the Oxford Wildcat grapplers took first place at the 17th Annual Oxford Wrestling Invitational last weekend with a total of 149 points.
‘There were a lot of kids missing from the lineup because of the holiday,? said Varsity Coach Paul McDevitt.
But missing starters did not keep eight other wrestlers from placing in the finals and contributing to the Wildcats? tournament win.
Because eight Oxford wrestlers qualified for the first and second place finals, McDevitt said it was difficult for the other ten teams to match Wildcats in points, giving Oxford a 22-point lead over second place winner Flint Powers.
‘That put us so far ahead they just couldn’t catch up,? he said.
All eight wrestlers placed in the individual matches including senior Kyle Oliver who took first-place in the 215-pound weight class and sophomore Nathan Musgrove who finished first in the 112-pound match.
Seniors Bryant Vielhaber (135) and Kyle Nieporte (160), junior Nick Murray (171), and sophomores Mike Upshur (103) and John Logan (189) won second place titles in their prospective weight classes while sophomore Bobby Rhodes (119) took fourth in his class.
‘Nathan Musgrove was a great surprise,? said McDevitt, adding that Musgrove came into the tournament unseated (non-ranked) and ended up winning the championship round.
‘John Logan was another surprise,? the coach said.
Logan was a surprise because he was bumped up two full weight classes yet won second place in the 189-pound class.
McDevitt said Logan normally wrestles back-up (junior varsity), but started as varsity wrestler in this tournament, filling in for junior Ken Mueller.
‘This tournament gave me a chance to see a lot of the younger kids wrestle, a chance to see different faces in the lineup,? said McDevitt.
Although there were several holes to fill in last week’s lineup, McDevitt said he will have a full team tonight (Wednesday, Jan. 5) when they host Grand Blanc and New Haven at Oxford High School.
The next tournament will be Saturday, Jan. 8 at Detroit Catholic Central.