With the season coming to an end, Mercer University’s Wrestling Club had a strong finish to a good year. Along with breaking several personal records, the team ended their season with numerous wins and achievements.
The NCWA National Duals were held at the Northwest Georgia Convention Center in Dalton, Ga. on January 18. After beating Middle Tennessee State University, Auburn University, and East Tennessee State University, Mercer once again faced off against MTSU in a final match to determine which team would place ninth in the nation. In the end, Mercer beat out Middle Tennessee State University for ninth, with a 4-1 record in the overall tournament.
On March 2, Mercer attended the Southeast NCWA Conference Championship at Georgia Southern University, in Statesboro, Ga. The SEC is one of the biggest, and most challenging conferences in the National Collegiate Wrestling Association. Only the top six wrestlers in each weight class qualify for Nationals.
At Conference, Charlie Farr, Chris Murdock, and Jeffrey Holmes all took first place in their weight class, with Nick Wright taking second.
Several other wrestlers placed in the top six, giving Mercer 14 national qualifiers, and making this the most individual qualifiers Mercer University’s wrestling team has ever had.
Along with a record breaking number of national qualifiers, the team took second at Conference, behind the University of Central Florida. This is the highest Mercer has ever placed as a team.
On March 11, the team began their 13 hour bus ride to Allen, Texas for the 2013 NCWA National Championship. The tournament began on March 14 and after three full days of wrestling, Mercer University placed 10th in the nation. Along with this top national rank, three of Mercer’s wrestlers placed in the top eight, earning themselves the title of All-Americans. Charlie Farr placed fourth, Chris Murdock placed fifth, and Nick Wright took sixth place.
Returning All-American, Charlie Farr was the team’s lead point scorer for Mercer University, with 185.25 points. Jeffrey Holmes was in close second with a total of 179.90 points this season.
Coach Kevin Andres said the team had a great season, and he is proud of their hard work. He has high expectations for next year. “Our goal is to be top five in the nation, and to have more All-Americans.”
Overall, the team was pleased with their performance this 2012-2013 wrestling season. They performed well, and they are optimistic for next year‘s season. Sophomore, Jeffrey Holmes said, “We had a good season, and we are only going to continue to grow as a team, and improve by next fall. Next year is going to be our year.”
With a majority of the wrestlers being freshmen and sophomores this year, the team was made up of mainly underclassmen.
By next year, they will have several juniors and seniors, bringing that much more experience to the mat. The team is confident that with their continuous hard work and dedication, they will reach their goals, as well as set many new records.
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