Mike Kirk
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (Dec. 17) – Garrett Wells capped an impressive weekend by capturing the 184-pound championship in leading Central Oklahoma to a third-place finish in the prestigious Midwest Classic that wrapped up Sunday afternoon.
Wells won four one-point matches in going 5-0 in the two-day tournament that attracted 51 teams from around the country. The No. 4-ranked Bronchos also got runner-up finishes from 141 Dylan Lucas and 157 Gabe Johnson, while Hvy Braden Morgan came in sixth and 197 Emmanuel Skillings finished seventh.
Top-ranked Lander won the team title with 126 points, 14 ahead of No. 7 Wisconsin-Parkside. UCO was third with 109 points, followed by No. 9 Upper Iowa (108.5) and No. 5 Mary (98.5).
“We had a good weekend and just came up a little short,” head coach Todd Steidley said. “I’m really proud of Garrett for what he was able to do this weekend. He grinded out some tough wins against a lot of really good guys and did a great job establishing himself on a national level.
“I thought our guys fought hard this weekend. It was a long two days and we did a lot of good things.”
Wells was the catalyst.
The unseeded redshirt freshman opened the weekend with a 7-2 win and then survived a pair of one-point nailbiters in advancing to Sunday before doing the same on the final day in taking the title…
