Elijah Villegas neutral stance vs. Millikin 11/15/24

ASHTIN ELDER PHOTO

Wrestling Treks to Eau Claire for 8-Man and 8-Woman Battles

First tournament both men’s and women’s teams will compete

11/21/2024 10:15:00 AM

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – For the first time in program history, the Illinois Wesleyan University men's and women's wrestling teams will compete at the same tournament as the Titans head to Eau Claire, Wis. for the 8-Man and 8-Woman battles Saturday, Nov. 23. Competition in University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire's McPhee Center will kick off at 10 a.m. for the men and 11 a.m. for the women.

The IWU men are coming off of hosting their first-ever dual meet, Friday, Nov. 9. The Green and White battled College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin foe Millikin University. Freshman Ameer Alamawi (New Lenox, Ill.-Lincoln-Way Central) picked up a win against Millikin's secondary at 149 pounds in an exhibition match, defeating Trevor Schoonover in a 7-4 decision.

The women's squad has been on an extended break from competition since Nov. 2 when freshman Sifa Feruzi (Denver, Colo.-Macomb Senior) wrestled her first collegiate matches at the Pointer Open.

IWU will wrestle six Titans in the men's gold division on Saturday with senior Leonardo Reyes (Manteno, Ill.-Manteno) at 133 pounds, sophomore Austin Johnston (Normal, Ill.-Normal West) at 141, Alamawi at 149, senior Omar AlQammaz (Orland Park, Ill.-Victor J. Andrew) at 157, freshman Noah Passoni (Normal, Ill.-Normal West) at 174, and senior Bobby Conroy (St. Louis, Mo.-St. Louis University High) rounding out the gold squad at 184.

Six additional Titans will wrestle in the round robin flights bracket including freshmen Chandler Gardner (Marengo, Ill.-Marian Central Catholic), Evan Carel (Hamilton, Ill.-Hamilton), Jackson Castaneda (Oak Forest, Ill.-Oak Forest), Ash Hinman (Springfield, Ill.-Springfield Southeast), Lucas Blanton (Dixon, Ill.-Amboy), and Elijah Villegas (Chicago, Ill.-Wells Community Academy).

On the women's side, freshman Jurdan Tyler (Champaign, Ill.-Urbana) will join Feruzi in Eau Claire this weekend.

Over 140 men and almost 100 women are expected to compete at the 8-Man and 8-Woman Battles, spanning to schools in Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Wisconsin. The weekend will feature ranked opponents in meet host UW-Eau Claire at No. 5 on the men's side and 17th-ranked UW-Stevens Point and No. 23 Simpson on the women's side according to the latest installment of The Open Mat tournament rankings.

Final results of the tournament will be posted to the men's and women's wrestling schedule page of iwusports.com upon the conclusion of the meet.

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