West Liberty Has Two Champions at ONU Invitational
December 3, 2011
ADA, Ohio – Two West Liberty University wrestlers won individual championships and five other Hilltoppers placed as Coach Brian Davis's Hilltoppers turned in a strong performance at Saturday's 31st annual Ohio Northern Invitational.
Art Hobley was the 149-pound champion and J.D. Ramsey won the 285-pound division for a West Liberty squad which placed fifth in the team standings at the mammoth event featuring hundreds of wrestlers from 17 NCAA and NAIA programs.
Olivet (Mich.) took the team title with 147 points with Campbellsville (Ky.) claiming runner-up honors at 138. Mercyhurst was third at 135.5, Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) fourth at 125.5 and the Hilltoppers rounding out the top five at 120.
Hobley, a redshirt freshman from Steubenville, remained unbeaten on the season by rolling through the 149-pound division. He improved to 12-0 on the year with a 7-3 victory against Joe Conrad of Mount St. Joseph in the championship match.
Ramsey, a senior standout from Milton, W.Va., was just as impressive in the heavyweight division. Ramsey, the No. 7-ranked 285-pounder in the NCAA Division II ranks, improved to 12-2 on the season with a 5-2 win against Mercyhurst's Fred Hale in the championship match. Hale entered the match ranked No. 6 nationally at 285 pounds.
Nick Wykoff (141) and Jarrod Shaw (165) earned third-place finishes for the Hilltoppers while Dillon Nolte (133) and Derrick Williams (184) padded the team point total with seventh-place finishes.
Mike Carpenter, another standout heavyweight in Davis's stable, took home fifth-place honors at 285. His team points were awarded to the West Liberty (2) entry, which finished 17th in the overall standings.
The Hilltoppers will take a break from the mats for semester exams this week but return to action on Dec. 14 with a dual meet at Lake Erie (Ohio) College.
OHIO NORTHERN INVITATIONAL
Team Standings
1. Olivet 147;
2. Campbellsville 138;
3. Mercyhurst 135.5;
4. Lindsey Wilson 125.5;
5. WEST LIBERTY 120;
6. Ohio Northern 106.5;
7. Ashland 99;
8. Thiel 82;
9. Waynesburg 64.5;
10. Olivet (2) 53.5;
11. Tiffin 52;
12. (tie) Mount St. Joseph, Ohio Northern (2) 47;
14. Alma 36.5;
15. Campbellsville (2) 29.5;
16. Cumberland, Tenn. 27.0;
17. WEST LIBERTY (2) 25.5;
18. Alma (2) 24.5;
19. Heidelberg 20.5;
20. Olivet (3) 19.5
Brackets at this EXTERNAL LINK
West Liberty Placers
Championship
149: Art Hobley (WLU) d. Joe Conrad (Mt. St. Joseph), 7-3
285: JD Ramsey (WLU) d. Fred Hale (Mercyhurst), 5-2
Third Place
141: Nick Wykoff (WLU) d. Sean Byham (Thiel), 5-2
165: Jarrod Shaw (WLU) p. Michael Letcher (Ohio Northern), 5:36
Fifth Place*
285: Mike Carpenter (WLU) md. Cody Lovejoy (Ohio Northern), 11-2
Seventh Place
133: Dillon Nolte (WLU) p. Zachary Case (Alma), 1:42
184: Derrick Williams (WLU) by forfeit over Billy Roosa (Thiel)
197: Jacob Donley (WLU) by forfeit over Patrick Morris (Thiel)
*Carpenter's team points were awarded to the West Liberty University (2) team
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