Cobras Drop Heartbreaker to Belmont Abbey

HARTSVILLE, S.C. - The Coker College wrestling team fell to Belmont Abbey in South Atlantic Conference Carolinas action on Friday (Jan. 25) night, losing by tiebreaker after ending the match tied 25-25.

The Cobras jumped out to an early lead thanks to victories by forfeit for both John Watts and Frank Velez at 125 and 133 pounds, respectively. Chris Poland, who is coming off of a solid month of December, fought hard at 141 pounds but got down early and was unable to recover. Ayush Patel picked up six more points at 149 pounds due to a forfeit before Alex Braden extended the Coker lead to 12. Braden, wrestling at 157 pounds, grabbed an early takedown and was in complete control when he got another takedown in the second period and picked up four back points along the way. Braden would ride it out strong, accumulating just over four minutes of riding time and picking up the 11-1 major decision.

Following a forfeit from Coker, Corey Christie stepped onto the mat at 174 pounds and put up a strong fight right until the very end. Over the final two periods Christie saw made a pair of nice takedown attempts but could not fully finish and pick up the two points, thus dropping a 7-3 decision. With the Cobras up by just three, Marco Mason Jr. put on a solid performance at 197 pounds, looking dominant for the majority of his matchup. Mason picked up an early takedown and in the final seconds of the second period he grabbed another to put him on top 5-0 heading to the final period. He would be docked a pair of points for stalling, but Mason outmuscled his opponent to secure the 5-2 win. In the final matchup of the night Dalton Haywood wrestled in a 285 pounds match looked like it would be a low-scoring battle between the two heavyweights. The two wrestlers seemed fairly even before a takedown and pin of Haywood tied the match at 25. Belmont Abbey would go on to take the win by way of a tiebreaker.

The Cobras will be back in action on Wednesday (Jan. 30) when they welcome Newberry to town for a 7:00 PM dual.

Coker 25 Belmont Abbey 25