The Citadel
Southern Conference Championships
Bulldogs Take Sixth at SoCon Championship
3/4/2017 9:41:00 PM | Wrestling
CHARLESTON, S.C. – The Citadel wrestling team finished sixth at the 2017 Southern Conference Wrestling Championship held inside McAlister Field House on Saturday.
Sophomore Sawyer Root, graduate student Aaron Walker and junior Ty Buckiso all advanced to the semifinals for the Bulldogs in their respective weight classes.
Root took second place overall in the 197-pound weight class. The Saint Cloud, Florida, native had a hot start with a pin in 5 minutes, 24 seconds in the first round and a 13-1 major decision in the second round. Root eventually fell to SIU-Edwardsville's Jake Tindle in the first-place bout by an 11-4 decision.
Walker dropped his match in the semifinals to Gardner-Webb's Ryan Mosely in a sudden victory 3-1 decision. Walker then went undefeated in the consolation bracket to take third place at 157 pounds. The San Antonio, Texas, native later competed in a wrestle-off against the No. 2 seed, and won the conference's second automatic bid to the NCAA Wrestling Championship.
Buckiso fell in the 149-lb. semifinal to John Fahy from SIU-Edwardsville in a sudden victory with a 10-8 decision. He then earned a 9-1 major decision over Gardner-Webb's Joby Armenta in the consolation semifinal before falling to Campbell's Benjamin Barton in the third-place bout.
Senior Joe Bexley, a 285 pounder, also had an impressive day in the consolation bracket with an 11-3 major decision in the first round and a 6-4 decision in the semifinal. Bexley then dropped the third place match to Chattanooga's Jared Johnson in a 6-1 decision.
Freshman Douglas Gudenburr was also productive in the 141-lb. consolation bracket. He earned a pin in 1:23 and a 6-2 decision before falling in the third-place match by an 11-3 major decision.
The Campbell Fighting Camels won the championship with a total of 89.5 points, and Appalachian State finished a close second with 86.0 points. The Bulldogs finished sixth at the championship with a score of 33.5.
The NCAA Wrestling Championships are scheduled for March 16-18 at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri.
For more information on The Citadel wrestling follow @CitadelWrestle or visit CitadelSports.com.
