This weekend, the wrestling team heads to the EIWA Championships hosted at Rutgers University.“The atmosphere of the EIWA tournament is very exciting — the team race can get really competitive, so the fans really get into every match. We have a lot of guys that should do very well and we are looking to qualify all 10 guys for the NCAA tournament,” junior Mike Nevinger said. “Personally, I am looking to win the tournament. Last year I came up a little short and took second, so this year I am looking to win the EIWA tournament and keep that momentum going into nationals.”The team will send six wrestlers ranked in the top 20 of their respective weight classes to compete against some of the best wrestlers in the country.“Hopefully, the atmosphere of the tournament will be exciting. I personally enjoy a packed house, whether they’re Cornell fans or This weekend, the wrestling team heads to the EIWA Championships hosted at Rutgers University.“The atmosphere of the EIWA tournament is very exciting — the team race can get really competitive, so the fans really get into every match. We have a lot of guys that should do very well and we are looking to qualify all 10 guys for the NCAA tournament,” junior Mike Nevinger said. “Personally, I am looking to win the tournament. Last year I came up a little short and took second, so this year I am looking to win the EIWA tournament and keep that momentum going into nationals.”The team will send six wrestlers ranked in the top 20 of their respective weight classes to compete against some of the best wrestlers in the country.“Hopefully, the atmosphere of the tournament will be exciting. I personally enjoy a packed house, whether they’re Cornell fans or not — preferably Cornell fans,” junior Chris Villalonga said. “And plus, a crazy environment at EIWA’s will help prepare some of the guys who aren’t familiar with the atmosphere at NCAA’s, because it gets crazy out there.”The team will send freshman Nahshon Garrett at 125, sophomore Bricker Dixon at 133, Nevinger at 141, Villalonga at 149, junior Jesse Shanaman at 157, senior Kyle Dake at 165, junior Marshall Peppelman at 174, senior Steve Bosak at 184, sophomore Jace Bennett at 197 and senior Stryker Lane at heavyweight.“Not to sound over-confident, but we all expect to do exceptionally well at the tournament because in order to win the national title, which is the team’s, as well as my, ultimate goal, we need to qualify all 10 weights on our team,” Villalonga said.This past week, the Red was also honored with multiple All-Ivy titles, including Dake being named the Ivy League Wrestler of the Year, along with Garrett being named Ivy League Rookie of the Year. Additionally, Villalonga and Lane earned second team honors.“It’s definitely nice to be recognized as one of the best in the Ivies. I would’ve liked to have a chance to face the guy who was first-team All-Ivy, but unfortunately I was unable to face him during the year,” Villalonga said. “However, I will most likely see him this weekend at EIWA’s, so I’m pretty excited about that.”Dixon, Nevinger, Shanaman and Bennett all earned honorable mention All-Ivy.“It is an honor to be selected by the league,” Nevinger said. “This year my weight class is pretty deep in the Ivy league, so to be recognized is great.”This season has been a successful one to date as the Red won its 11th consecutive Ivy League title. Cornell’s 11 Ivy titles comprise the longest current streak of any Ivy team in any sport.After the completion of the EIWA Championships, those who qualify from Cornell will head to the NCAA Championships in Des Moines, IA. on March 21-3.“Keeping the [Ivy League title] streak going does mean a lot to the team, though it isn’t the highlight of our season,” Villalonga said. “We face the top competition in the nation throughout our schedule, so when it comes to our Ivy League portion of the season, we expect to dominate and use it more as training for when it comes time to face the top ranked teams in the country.”
Original Author: Haley Velasco