Dec. 10, 2001
Three Bulldogs Win at MacMurray Wrestling Invitational
The Truman wrestling team came up with three first-place finishers at the AmeriHost Inn Invitational held at MacMurray College (Ill.) this past Saturday. It was the most first-place finishes by a team at the meet as the Bulldogs came in fourth out of 11 teams.
Freshman Merrick Meyer (St. Charles, Mo./Francis howell North) won the 141-pound weight class with a 4-0 record, as did Kelley Latting (St. Anne, Ill./Bishop McNamara) at 149 pounds and Corey Crandall (Buckner, Mo./Fort Osage) at 157 pounds.
Meyer won all of his matches by decision, while Latting had one major decision and won his other three by decision. Crandall pinned his first opponent in 59 seconds and pinned Charlie Bishop of Mt. St. Clare College (Iowa) in 3:24 in the 157-pound championship tilt.
Other Truman place finishers included Allen Stokes (Kansas City, Mo./Hickman Mills) at 133 pounds and Gregg Nurrenbern (Fulton, Mo.) at 174 pounds who came away with fifth-place finishes. Nate Kessen (Rochelle, Ill.) was sixth at 184 pounds and freshman Tom Tajkowski (St. Peters, Mo./DeSmet) placed eighth in the 174-pound weight class.
Stokes was 3-2 with one fall (3:47) and Nurrenbern went 2-2 for the meet.
Kessen was 1-3 with a major decision in his win and Tajkowski was 2-3 for the day, pinning his first opponent in 3:16.
Other 'Dogs who participated in the invitational included 125-pounder Grant Strickland (Wagnoer, Okla.) who was 1-2; David Buhler (Liberty, Mo.) who went 0-2 at 149 pounds; Bo Rinehart (Maysville, Mo.) who posted an 0-2 mark in the 165-pound class; 197-pounders Marc Heinecke (Colorado Springs, Colo./Air Force Prep) and Matt Sonn (St. Louis/Horton Watkins) who were 1-2 and 0-2, repectivley; and heavy weight Bryan Jovick (St. Louis/CBC) who went 0-2.