There was Central Michigan University, and then there was everybody else Saturday at the Citadel Invitational. The Chippewas, who were ranked 29th by Wrestling USA in the preseason polls, had all 10 wrestlers in the finals and won nine weight classes. Only host Citadel's 174-pound Mike Regner topped Central Michigan from going a perfect 10-0 in the championship round. Regner beat CMU's Russ Vanderheyden 5-2.
"Central Michigan was tough [winning nine of 10 weight classes]," Duke coach Clar Anderson said. "They were pretty dominant."
While the Chippewas walked away with the team title after registering 181 points, more than 80 points ahead of second-place host Citadel, the Blue Devils had five wrestlers place in the top five of their respective weight classes en route to garnering 66 team points to finish sixth.
Bothered by injuries after a grueling preseason tournament schedule, Duke sent less than a full lineup to Charleston, S.C., over the weekend.
"I was pretty pleased with the effort of the guys who were there," Anderson said of wrestling only seven Blue Devils Saturday. "This has probably been one of the worst years [injury-wise]. They weren't prone [to injuries] last year."
Junior 165-pounder Mike Mitchell set the pace for the Blue Devils, finishing second behind CMU's Kevin Carr. The Central Michigan redshirt sophomore, scored a 13-5 major decision in the championship bout. Mitchell's second-place finish comes a week after winning the Oklahoma Open as an individual over Thanksgiving break. Mitchell finished in the top four in a tournament for the third time this season.
Another Blue Devil placing for the third time this season was Daegan Smith. Smith, Duke's 197-pounder, pinned the Citadel's Jordan Everette for third-place 2:50 into the match.
"[Mitchell and Smith] had some pretty darn good competition," Anderson added. "They wrestled well."
Senior 141-pounder Harry Clarke also took third, while senior Stuart Holzer (133) and sophomore Frank Cornely (184) both took fifth. Holzer suffered a high ankle sprain during the tournament, but fought back to place.
Noticeably missing from the Blue Devils' lineup were national qualifier Tommy Hoang (125) and sophomore Tim Marcantonio (174). Hoang has been nursing a stress fracture in his back for the past two weeks, while Marcantonio was kept out of the lineup this weekend to let his ribs heal. Both should be back after New Year's in time for the dual meet season to commence.
"With break coming up, it's a pretty good time for us to start slacking off because so many guys are getting banged up," Anderson said.
The Citadel Invitational ends a brutal preseason for Duke. The team has already faced its toughest competition of the season with teams such as Iowa State, Pennsylvania and Central Michigan and will be ready for ACC competition.
"I'm pleased; I think we accomplished what we wanted to with this preseason," Anderson said. "We wrestled a lot of nationally ranked teams, a lot of recognizable wrestlers.... We look forward now to making some adjustments so when January comes around, with conference time, we'll be stronger."
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