MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (Nov. 9, 2019) – Redshirt sophomore Noah Adams captured his second straight tournament championship as the West Virginia University wrestling team continued its 2019-20 campaign at the Mountaineer Invitational in Boone, North Carolina, on Saturday.
In addition to the tournament title by Adams, six Mountaineers earned top-five finishes on the day: Seth Hogue, Alex Hornfeck, Scott Joll, Brandon Ngati, Caleb Rea and Joey Thomas. In total, 13 Mountaineers went a combined 23-21 on the day.
"Overall, I thought our team did well continue and they are continuing to get better each day," second-year coach Tim Flynn said. "We still need to clean up some mistakes and we will win a lot more matches."
Seeded No. 1 in the tournament, Adams, captured the 197-division title after earning two pins, a tech fall, and a major decision. For the second time in as many weeks, he opened the tournament with a bout against Gardner-Webb's Rod Davis. After downing Davis with a 17-2 major decision in the first meeting, Adams pinned his counterpart at the 5:31 mark.
Adams, a native of Coal City, West Virginia, rolled to the championship after earning an 18-3 tech. fall win over Casey Jumps (Air Force) in the second round and an 8-0 major decision against Paul Carson of Appalachian State.
Adams captured the tournament title after earning his second fall of the day against Landon Pelham (Central Michigan) just 40 seconds into the championship match. The tournament win marks his second consecutive title after winning the Southeast Open on Nov. 3. He leads the team with an 8-0 record on the season.
Wrestling at 141, Rea earned his second podium finish of the year with a third-place finish on Saturday. Rea began the tournament with a 7-5 decision over Brandon Bright (Gardner-Webb), before picking up a win over Dawson Bates (Appalachian State) in the second round.
After suffering a setback against Leonard Peterson (Air Force) in the third round, Rea pinned Brad Irwin of Appalachian State in 3:43 to earn a spot in the third-place match. Rea, a Weirton, West Virginia native, earned a 9-2 win over Andrew Marten (Central Michigan) to capture third.
Joey Thomas became the third Mountaineer to place in the top three as he used four decision wins to earn a third-place finish in the 125-pound bracket. Thomas opened the tournament with a pair of wins after knocking off No.3-seeded Earl Blake of Kent State and topping John Jones (Gardner-Webb), 8-2.
Following a loss in the third round, Thomas tallied a 3-1 decision over Graham Shore (Air Force), before defeating Brandon Kaylor (Oregon State) 8-3 in the third-place match.
Ngati (285), Hornfeck (157) and Joll (174) earned fourth-place finishes in their respective divisions, while Hogue placed fifth at 149.
Up next, West Virginia competes in its first dual match of the season on Nov. 16, as it takes on Big 12-foe Northern Colorado in Greeley, Colorado. The Bank of Colorado Arena will host the bout, which is set to begin at 7 p.m. ET.
The match marks the second consecutive season the Mountaineers and Bears have faced each other in the dual-match opener, as WVU topped UNC, 22-14, in Morgantown, last season.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUWrestling on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
2019 Mountaineer Invite Results
125
Joey Thomas (West Virginia) DEC Earl Blake (Kent State), 6-1
Joey Thomas (West Virginia) DEC John Jones (Gardner-Webb), 8-2
Sidney Flores (Air Force) MD Joey Thomas (West Virginia), 8-0
Joey Thomas (West Virginia) DEC Graham Shore (Air Force), 3-1 SV
Joey Thomas (West Virginia) DEC Brandon Kaylor (Oregon State), 8-3
133
Jared Van Vleet (Air Force) MD Lucas Seibert (West Virginia), 13-4
Tim Rooney (Kent State) DEC Wyatt Lutz (West Virginia), 10-4
Lucas Seibert (West Virginia) DEC Wyatt Lutz (West Virginia), 3-2
Brock Bergelin (Central Michigan) MD Lucas Seibert (West Virginia), 12-4
141
Caleb Rea (West Virginia) DEC Brandon Bright (Gardner-Webb), 7-5 SV
Caleb Rea (West Virginia) DEC Dawson Bates (Appalachian State), 3-1
Leonard Peterson (Air Force) F Caleb Rea (West Virginia), 1:28
Caleb Rea (West Virginia) F Brad Irwin (Appalachian State), 3:43
Caleb Rea (West Virginia) DEC Andrew Marten (Central Michigan), 9-2
149 Wade Unger (Duke) F Seth Hogue (West Virginia), 6:10
Seth Hogue (West Virginia) F Luke Raczkowski (Central Michigan), 4:07
Corbyn Munson (Central Michigan) DEC Seth Hogue (West Virginia), 9-8
Seth Hogue (West Virginia) M FOR Alec Opsal (Air Force), 0-0 0:00
157
Alex Hornfeck (West Virginia) MD Eric Carter (Duke), 14-0
Logan Parks (Central Michigan) DEC Alex Hornfeck (West Virginia), 6-3
Alex Hornfeck (West Virginia) F Taylor Parks (Gardner-Webb), 3:52
Brady Chrisman (Kent State) DEC Alex Hornfeck (West Virginia), 6-5
174
Andrew McNally (Kent State) MD Tucker Nadeau (West Virginia), 10-1
Scott Joll (West Virginia) DEC Thomas Flitz (Appalachian State), 14-9
Mason Eaglin (Duke) DEC Tucker Nadeau (West Virginia), 7-2
Cody Surratt (Air Force) TF Scott Joll (West Virginia), 18-2 3:53
Scott Joll (West Virginia) F Mason Eaglin (Duke), 4:13
Tyler Wiederholt (Air Force) DEC Scott Joll (West Virginia), 9-5
184 Colt Doyle (Oregon State) DEC Hunter Delong (West Virginia), 5-1
Ben Cushman (Central Michigan) DEC Jackson Moomau (West Virginia), 4-2
Jackson Moomau (West Virginia) DEC Jackson Mckinney (Oregon State), 3-2
Shane Mast (Kent State) MD Hunter Delong (West Virginia), 10-1
Jacob Gray (Central Michigan) DEC Jackson Moomau (West Virginia), 9-8
197 Noah Adams (West Virginia) F Rod Davis (Gardner-Webb), 5:31
Noah Adams (West Virginia) TF Casey Jumps (Air Force), 18-3 4:13
Noah Adams (West Virginia) MD Paul Carson (Appalachian State), 8-0
Noah Adams (West Virginia) F Landon Pelham (Central Michigan), 0:40
Brandon Ngati (West Virginia) DEC Jamarcus Grant (Oregon State), 3-2
Matt Stencel (Central Michigan) F Sean Mullican (West Virginia), 0:52
Brandon Ngati (West Virginia) DEC Drake Pauwels (Central Michigan), 6-1
Sean Mullican (West Virginia) F Gabriel Pickett (Gardner-Webb), 3:40
Cary Miller (Appalachian State) DEC Brandon Ngati (West Virginia), 7-0
Jamarcus Grant (Oregon State) DEC Sean Mullican (West Virginia), 9-4
Brandon Ngati (West Virginia) DEC Jamarcus Grant (Oregon State), 4-1
Kayne Hutchison (Air Force) DEC Brandon Ngati (West Virginia), 6-2
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