Wrestling competes at 21st Annual CUW Open

MEQUON, Wis. – Junior Casey Kenealy earned a sixth-place finish as he was the top finisher for the Concordia University Wisconsin Wrestling team in its home meet. The Falcons hosted the 21st Annual CUW Open at the R. John Buuck Field House, which featured several of the top wrestlers and teams across the Midwest.

Kenealy wrestled his way to a 4-3 record over seven matches to earn the sixth-place finish in the 165 pound bracket. He started his day with a 17-0 technical fall victory over Jordan Furioso of Augustana College. Kenealy then won his next match by a 10-3 decision before falling to the eventual 165 pound champion, Cedric Gibson of UW-Whitewater. He earned two more wins after his first defeat, by 12-6 and 3-2 decisions.

Kenealy was the only CUW wrestling to place on Saturday, although CUW got some strong performances in other brackets. The Falcons had two compete in the 157 pound weight class in freshman Mason Mergener (Crivitz, Wis.) and sophomore Pierce Holtfreter (Las Vegas, Nev.). Mergener posted a 3-2 record, gaining one win by fall and two wins by decision, 4-2 and 7-3. Holtfreter won one match by technical fall, 17-2.

The Falcons also got a strong performance from senior Seth Kilkelly (Barneveld, Wis.) in the 285 pound bracket. Kilkelly dropped his opening match before winnings three straight and finishing with a 3-2 record. He gained his first win via a pin (2:54) and then gained 3-1 and 4-1 decisions in his next two matches.

Four other wrestlers competed for CUW on Saturday, three in the 174 pound bracket and one in the 197 pound weight class. The Falcons were unable to pick up wins in those weight classes, as all four wrestlers went 0-2.

CUW will next compete two weeks from today in the MSOE Invitational. Full brackets of Saturday's CUW Open can be found here. After clicking the link, browse for the CUW Open to find all the brackets.