Apr. 1, 2003

Charleston, SC - Rob Hjerling's squad finished the regular season 13-3 and 3-2 in the Southern Conference marking the most prosperous season in Citadel wrestling history with a winning percentage of .813.

Bulldog's Keith Clifton (184) and Billy Linane (Hwt) won the SoCon Championship earning themselves a trip to NCAA's Nationals in Kansas City, MO, while Ryan McClester (125) and Sean Markey (133) earned at-large bids and Travis Piccard received a first alternate wild card.

Eight Bulldog grapplers finished in the top three at the SoCon Championships. Ryan McClester, Sean Markey, Travis Piccard and Jordan Everett all received second place honors for The Citadel. Dan Thompson and John Dickerson placed third.

This season the Bulldogs outscored their opponents, 433 to 176. The Citadel finished third in the SoCon regular season by a total of four points losing by three to Appalachian State and one point to VMI. Appalachian State won the SoCon Tournament with 97.5 total team points. VMI finished second with 80 and The Citadel took third with 76 followed by UTC with 51.5.

Ryan McClester (33-12), who was slotted at the 125-pound weight class, ended the season ranked 14th nationally. Sean Markey, ranked 15th nationally, (36-9) wrestled at 133-pounds and Mike Martinez (12-20) wrestled at 141-pounds. Dan Thompson (19-10) handled the duties at 149-pounds, while nationally ranked (20th) Travis Piccard (31-13) wrestled at the 157-pound weight class. James Rose (11-23) competed at the 165-pound weight class. John Dickerson (18-19) grappled at 174-pounds and Keith Clifton (27-8) bumped up in weight to be The Citadel's 184-pounder. Jordan Everett (21-14) represented the Bulldogs at 197-pounds and at the 285-pound weight class was Billy Linane (23-14).

"This year I feel like we've proven we can take it to another level," stated head coach Rob Hjerling. "With our youth, work ethic, coaching and this year's recruiting class I believe next year we will accomplish even greater things. A lot of milestones were achieved and with that youth we are just beginning to show the potential this group is capable of."

The Bulldogs were led in wins by Markey (133) with 36, marking the most wins in Citadel wrestling history. He ranks number three in the nation at his weight class. McClester tallied 33 wins, fourth in the nation at the 125-pound weight class. Number four in the nation at 157-pounds was Piccard with 31 wins. Piccard's wins set another Bulldog record for most wins by a freshman, placing him ninth in the nation. Clifton marked 27 in the win column. Linane (25), Everett (21) and Thompson (20) round out the leaders in wins for the Bulldogs.

Leading The Citadel and the nation at the 133-pound weight class in falls was Markey with 19 (18 pins). Half of Markey's 36 wins were won by him pinning his opponent, the quickest came in a mere 28 seconds. Everett (197) compiled nine falls positioning him number two in the nation at his weight class. Linane (6 & 1 TF), Thompson (5 & 2 TF) and McClester (5 & 1 TF) finalize the leader list for falls.

In the category of major decisions, McClester and Piccard led the team with 11 and 10 respectively. Markey (9), Clifton (6) and Linane (5) complete the leader board.

Three seniors depart The Citadel's squad.

"Troy, Vince and Andrew came in here when I was beginning my first season," commented Hjerling. "We talked about the program's future and they were instrumental in us reaching our goals. All three are great individuals and have prosperous futures."