Nov. 6, 2010

Contact: Dan Carr

YPSILANTI, Mich. - Senior wrestler Robbie Michaels won the 165 weight class at the Eastern Michigan Open on Saturday (Nov. 6), while freshmen Nick Flannery (133) and Ben Willeford (125) placed second and sixth, respectively.

"We had some great performances, especially with this being our team's first competition of the season," head coach Ben Stehura said. "Robbie winning was obviously great, and some of our freshmen also had very good debut performances."

Michaels went 4-0 in competition to win the 165 class. He defeated wrestlers from Eastern Michigan, Navy, Cumberland and Michigan, winning the final match against Michigan's Dan Yates, 10-8.

Flannery was 3-1 on the day, earning major decisions in a 10-0 victory over Michigan's Josh Harper and a 12-3 win over Brockport State's James McCabe. Flannery ultimately took second in the competition after falling to Chester Demanchick of Brockport State, 7-4.

Willeford's sixth place finish came after the freshman went 4-2 on the day.

Brandon Sommers and Corey Carlo also finished the day with winning records. Sommers went 4-2 wrestling at 149, while Carlo ended competition in the 165 with a record of 3-2.

"The guys wrestled well, and it was good to see some of our newcomers get off to such good starts," Stehura said. "The success we had today gives some confidence heading into the season, and I expect us to be even better next week."

Cleveland State will be back in Michigan next Saturday as the Vikings travel to East Lansing to participate in the Michigan State Open. That competition is scheduled to begin at 9:00 a.m.