NORTHFIELD, Vt. – The Norwich University wrestling team sent members of the squad to the New England Wrestling Association (NEWA) Futures Invitational on Sunday, seeing a member of the squad place first in his weight class.
Sophomore Mason Sprinkel (Bel Air, Md.) placed first at the 285-pound weight class, earning pinfall victories over his opening four opponents, including a win in 1:15 over his semifinal opponent. In the First-Place match Sprinkel battled Abbas Abdulrahman of Castleton to a 9-7 win in sudden victory.
Thomas Barfield (Labelle, Fla.) battled his way to the quarterfinal at 285-pounds, before falling to eventual second place finisher Abdulrahman, but earned a win in the consolation bracket knocking off Lousiandre Padilla with a pin in 3:49.
The Cadets saw Thoren Berg (Holliston, Mass.) fight into the semifinal earning pins against his two opening opponents before losing his match in the semifinal round. Berg eventual earned his place in the third-place match but was unable to defeat his opponent falling in sudden victory.
Michel St. Juste (Atlantic City, N.J.) earned two wins on the day earning pinfall victories over his second opponent of the day in 58 seconds and third opponent in 2:50.
At 184-pounds Norwich saw two members of their team see success with Tyrian Saeturn (Dracut, Mass.) finding a path to the quarterfinals where he eventually fell but rebounded for a win in the consulation bracket, finishing 3-2 on the day. Teammate James Spellman (Norwood, Mass.) found himself earning four wins on the day while dropping two matches at the same weight class.
At 157-pounds Joe Castellino (Natick, Mass.) and Joshua Ducharme (Tyngsboro, Mass.) combined for eight points, while they each went 2-2 on the day.
Thomas Howell (Danberry, Conn.) earned a win over Lucas Huges in 1:56 at 174-pounds, as Norwich finished the day with 17 pins overall. The Norwich wrestling team came into the season with a team-goal of 100 combined pinfall victories, and currently sit at 114 pins on the season after the Futures Invitational.
Norwich will shift focus to the NCAA Division III Northeast Regionals next weekend. The Regional meet will start on Saturday, Feb. 26 and will wrap up on Sunday, Feb. 27.
