UTC’s Niko Brown looks to referee Steven Curtis just before pinning Alan Yen of Samford at the Maclellan Gym on Sunday.The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga took a step forward but then stumbled and lost that step in the same afternoon.
The wrestling Mocs bested No. 12 Stanford 22-15 but then fell to unranked-but-should-be Central Michigan 24-8. In the opener Sunday at Maclellan Gym, Central Michigan bested Stanford 22-13.
“We have to continue to step forward. I think we got better today and took a few more steps forward. We had a good day. With a couple more steps it could’ve been a great day,” coach Heath Eslinger said.
The Mocs got a boost in their opener when senior Bucky Johnson returned to the lineup and opened the Stanford meet with a 5-1 victory over the Cardinal’s Matt Sencebaugh. The Mocs followed with wins from Shawn Greevy (141), Kelly Felix (149), Dan Waddell (157) and Brandon Wright (165) before Niko Brown (197) put the match out of Stanford’s reach with a pin in 1:55.
“I’m really proud of Bucky. I think his win set us up for the [team] win,” Eslinger said.