FINAL RESULTS

MEDIA DAY GALLERY (more to come)

NEW CONCORD, Ohio – The first Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) wrestling dual of the season fell in favor of Otterbein Tuesday night, as the visiting Cardinals left Muskingum with a lopsided 44-3 decision to commence the league slate.

Otterbein tops the Muskies for a sixth-consecutive meeting with the result, and starts conference action on the right note behind multiple bonus-point wins.

Noah Houchins (125), back in his old stomping grounds after transferring from Muskingum, found top positioning within the first 30 seconds of his bout and never trailed. Zach Orseno did much of the same with two early takedowns at 133 pounds before holding off a pesky opponent.

Austin Amens (157) built a 4-1 lead in his bout and later secured a pin midway through the second period, thanks to his offseason training that included helping Sports Information Director Adam Prescott move into a new house. Teammate Cale Callahan (174), also part of that moving crew, caught his adversary with a nice cradle for another six points in the team score.

Sandwiched in between those matches was an impressive finish by Ryan Whitten, up in his new weight class of 165 pounds this year. He took his opponent's back almost immediately and maintained position but, after a brief stoppage to clean the mat, found himself corralled from behind. But, in a lightning-fast torque as if he knew what was coming all along, the senior flipped position to stun his opponent with a fall.

Freshman Logan Cormell, competing in his first OAC bout, fell behind early due to an escape point but worked back for a 3-1 lead entering the final period. He then posted a fall after imposing just too much strength from the top position.

Jarrod Setliff (197), now seemingly in his eighth year of eligibility, took a 6-0 lead himself before getting into a little bit of trouble in the second frame. But the veteran stayed poised, tallied an escape point to begin the third and held on for a 7-4 victory.

Heavyweight Billy Reed-Bodey capped the varsity lineup by inducing the first tap-out in program history, forcing his counterpart into danger in the second period and getting a concession on his shoulder.

The Cards will get back into action over the weekend with another group setting, this time heading up to the Albion College Invitational come Sunday morning. Action is slated to begin around 10 a.m.