October 25, 2011
For Immediate Release
Fort Wayne, IN – History will be made on Thursday, November 3rd when Indiana Tech wrestling Head Coach Mike Ester will lead his Warriors onto the mat for their debut season in the first ever college meet hosted in the city of Fort Wayne. Tech will face off against No.3 Lindsey Wilson College, who brings in 10 ranked individual wrestlers, while the Warriors received votes in the NAIA Wrestling Coaches' Preseason Top 20 Poll.
The Warriors’ schedule is packed full of quality NCAA, NJCAA, and NAIA opponents in preparation for the opportunity to compete in a regional qualifier as well as the NAIA National Championship in 2011. Coach Ester has brought in several of the nation’s top notch high school recruits and transfers who will make an immediate impact., including freshmen Brett Yarbrough (McDonough, GA/Henry County), Travis Barroquillo (Wolcottville, IN/Prairie Heights), Alex Gregory (South Bend, IN/Penn), and Conner Lefever (Ft. Wayne, IN/Carroll) and juniors James Bennett (Bowden, GA/Darton) and Andre Dunn (Kewanee, IL/Lincoln).
Yarbrough, who will compete at 125 pounds, was a 2011 Georgia State Champion and a USA Wrestling Honorable Mention for top senior prospects at 119 lbs. At 133 pounds, Barroquillo was an IHSAA 3-time state qualifier and was a Flo Nationals All-American at 135. Lefever will wrestle in the 165-pound division. He was a two-time IHSAA place winner and a Junior National Greco All-American at 171.
Bennett transfers in from Darton Community College will compete in the 157-pound weight class. He was a two-time Junior College national qualifier, and just missed being an All-American last year. In the heavyweight division, Dunn comes to Tech from Lincoln Community College where he was a 2011 National JUCO qualifier.
“We feel we have put together a schedule that will challenge us to perform at our best every time we step on the mat,” Coach Ester said. “We are looking forward to competing this year and feel that by the end of the season we will be battle tested enough to make a run at putting All-Americans on the podium.”
In preparation for their showdown with Lindsey Wilson, the Warriors will have the first annual wrestling Intra-Squad dual meet on Saturday, October 29 in the Warrior Athletic Center and will be open and free for all to attend. JV and exhibition matches begin at 4:30 p.m. The Varsity will be competing for 10 varsity weight classes beginning at approximately 5:30 p.m.
JV and Exhibition Matches
125# Kris McKinley vs. Andre Sanders
152# Tim Scott vs. Grayson Smith
174# Jeff Enrietto vs. Jeremy Haskett
Exhibition: Dalton Sparks vs. Ladarious Jackson
Exhibition: Dominic Diaz vs. Tim Scott
Exhibition: Kris McKinley vs. Nico Hensley
Exhibition: Mike Smith vs. James Bennett
Varsity Matches
197# Ashton Brierly vs. Dustin Boyd
125# Connor Hughes vs. Brett Yarbrough
133# Travis Barroquillo vs. Jordan Bosma
141# Alex Gregory vs. TBD
149# Reece Lefever vs. Drake Meska
157# Conner Lefever vs. Tiandre Edwards or Grayson Smith
165# Kyle Long vs. Kafuba Donzon
174# Jeff Enrietto vs. Ben Wines or Jeremy Haskett
184# Tanner Martin vs. Dustin Boyd
285# Andre Dunn vs. Carlos Harbin
To see the complete NAIA preseason rankings please visit http://naia.cstv.com/sports/m-wrestl/spec-rel/101911aaa.html
For more information on Indiana Tech athletics please call the Athletic Office at 260-422-5561 ext. 2262 or visit our website at http://www.indianatech.edu/athletics
