Senior Powless places 1st at 197 pounds in 1st event

The wrestling team officially started its season Saturday at the Eastern Michigan Open.

IU was one of 29 teams to compete in the tournament.

The Hoosiers had four wrestlers place in the open division. Four true freshman also placed in the freshman/sophomore division.

Ranked No. 4 nationally, returning All-American Matt Powless (197 pounds) placed first. Powless defeated Andrew Campolattano of Ohio State with a score of 5-2.

Senior Matt Ortega (141 pounds) pinned Arizona State’s Nathan Hoffer two minutes into the first round, earning him third place. Sophomore Ryan Leblanc (174 pounds) placed fifth.

In the freshman/sophomore division, Lucas Sheridan (184 pounds) and Garret Goldman (197 pounds) both placed second in their weight classes.

Eric Roach earned third place, defeating Joey Kielbasa of Central Michigan with a score of 2-1 in overtime. Connor Graves placed fourth.

“Matt Powless looked very All-American in his efforts this weekend,” IU Coach Duane Goldman said. “We also have a lot of youth there. Some of those guys need to work on gaining experience and getting used to their weight.”

The team will travel to East Lansing, Mich., on Saturday to compete in the Michigan State Open.