Michigan State University
Green-White Wrestle Offs
Green Tops White at Green-White Wrestle Offs
10/26/2017 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State wrestling unofficially kicked off the 2017-18 season with the annual Green-White Wrestle Offs on Thursday evening at IM West Sports Arena.
The Green team claimed seven bouts, while the White team tallied two wins for a final score of 21-6 in favor of Green. The Spartan coaching staff looks to continue their team's growth from the first competition atmosphere of the season.
"Like I just told our team in our meeting, there's always room to improve. For the first time in a competitive environment, in front of fans, I thought everybody competed very hard. Last year our motto was `compete for seven minutes,' and I thought all of our guys competed for seven minutes," MSU head coach Roger Chandler said. "I thought their conditioning looked good overall. We've got a young team, 14 of the 18 guys that competed tonight were either true freshmen or redshirt freshmen. They're progressing very well right now."
Showcasing the talented youth from Michigan State, freshmen RayVon Foley and Brad Wilton both took wins in their first action as Spartans. At 125 pounds, Foley defeated redshirt freshman Julian Saldana, 8-3. Wilton, at 197 pounds, topped freshman Cole Nye in a close match, 2-0.
"It was fun and exciting. I had a lot of fun and enjoyed it," Foley said about his first action as a Spartan. "I think I'm ready for other college matches. This was a great experience and I learned a lot. I felt like tonight was just another learning experience for me and I feel that I can always be a better wrestler, so every time I step on the mat, I can wrestle better, whether it was a win or a loss, there's something I need to work on. So tonight was a great learning experience."
At 141 pounds, returning NCAA qualifiers Javier Gasca and Austin Eicher dueled for a chance at the starting spot. Gasca claimed the victory for Team Green, 6-1.
"It was nice to be back out there wrestling after all the work in the offseason. It was good to get this feeling of a match back and get us ready for the season," Gasca said. "I'm looking forward to seeing how our team competes this season. I think this year will be a very big developmental year to see where we go. I think we're going to see some of our guys make bigger jumps than people expect. I'm just looking forward to us doing the unexpected."
Redshirt freshman Jake Tucker captured one of the White team's two victories, defeating freshman Nathan Atienza, 7-2.
"Tonight is symbolic for the beginning of the season, and it shows us where we are and where we need to be. I think we're all just excited to start the season and I know I'm very excited to get going," Tucker said. "I learned that I've got to get in better shape, even though I thought was in pretty decent shape. I also need to go out there with a better mentality, but this is a great starting point."
Up next, the Spartans host the annual MSU Open on Nov. 5 at Jenison Field House.
"I think this is a good stepping stone for us. We do this Green and White meet to get our guys used to a competitive environment before we actually hit the season," Chandler said. "The Michigan State Open is an important event for us and we're excited about hosting a very competitive tournament. We also want to get some titles and out there placing, to represent our program at the regional and national levels."
125: RayVon Foley -- Green vs. Julian Saldana -- White
In the first period of the opening match of the night, Foley took a two-point lead from a takedown but yielded a point to Saldana on a technical violation. Foley jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the second period off a takedown and an escape. Saldana added a point with an escape, but couldn't catch up to Foley, who ended the match with an 8-3 win to put the Green team up by three.
133: Matt Santos -- Green vs. Nate Ellis -- White
Scoreless through the first period, Santos got on the board early in the second period with an escape. In the third stanza, Ellis tied up the match with an escape of his own, forcing overtime. Through the first overtime, Santos and Ellis kept a tight bout, taking a second overtime period where Santos notched an escape with just five seconds left. Ellis came back again with a point to take the match to a third overtime. Santos finished strong with a takedown, winning 4-2.
141: Austin Eicher -- Green vs. Javier Gasca -- White
Gasca collected two points in the first period to take the lead over Eicher, and in the second he added two more with another takedown. Eicher got his first point on an escape, but Gasca sealed the match with a third period escape and the riding time point for a 6-1 victory.
149: Jwan Britton -- Green vs. Jimmy Muscato -- White
In a high scoring, back and forth match, Britton jumped out with a 6-1 lead in the first period on three takedowns. Muscato gained control, notching two escapes and a takedown to bring the gap to 10-7 after two periods. Britton maintained the lead, winning the match 13-8 and putting the Green team up 9-3.
157: Nathan Atienza -- Green vs. Jake Tucker -- White
In the first period, Tucker took a two-point lead on a takedown. Atienza added a point on an escape in the second period, but Tucker ran away with the lead in the third period from a reversal, takedown and riding time point to defeat Atienza, 7-2.
165: Austin Hiles -- Green vs. Logan Ritchie -- White
Ritchie struck first with a takedown in the first, but Hiles responded with two escapes to even the score at 2-2 in the second period. Hiles jumped out with a 4-2 lead in the third after a takedown, and Ritchie added another point off an escape but Hiles held on to win, 4-3.
174: No match.
184: Shwan Shadaia -- Green vs Cameron Caffey -- White
Scoreless through two periods, Shadaia tallied the first point of the match off an escape in the third period. Caffey took a point from a Shadaia stalling penalty near the end of the third, but Shadaia earned the riding time point to take the 2-1 win.
197: Brad Wilton -- Green vs. Cole Nye -- White
Both wrestlers were held without a point through two frames, but in the third period Wilton got on the board with an escape and finished 2-0 with the riding time win.
Heavyweight: Christian Rebottaro -- Green vs. Chase Beard -- White
Rebottaro jumped out with a 1-0 lead in the first stanza on an escape, maintaining the score through the second period. In the third, Beard was awarded a point off a stalling penalty, but Rebottaro claimed the riding time point win to earn the Green team a 21-6 win.
Michigan State Green-White Wrestle Offs
125: RayVon Foley -- Green def. Julian Saldana, 8-3
133: Matt Santos -- Green def. Nate Ellis -- White, 4-2
141: Javier Gasca -- White def. Austin Eicher -- Green, 6-1
149: Jwan Britton -- Green def. Jimmy Muscato -- White, 13-8
157: Jake Tucker -- White def. Nathan Atienza -- Green, 7-2
165: Austin Hiles -- Green def. Logan Ritchie -- White, 4-3
174: No match.
184: Shwan Shadaia -- Green vs. Cameron Caffey -- White, 2-1
197: Brad Wilton -- Green vs. Cole Nye -- White, 2-0
Heavyweight: Christian Rebottaro -- Green def. Chase Beard --White, 2-1
Players Mentioned
