Roanoke College wins Division III Region 4 Title

ADA, OHIO – The Roanoke College wrestling team won the Division III Region 4 Championships Friday and Saturday, hosted by Ohio Northern University, and had nine Maroons qualify for national competition.

Mac Cafurello (125 pounds), Jude Robson (133), Mark Samuel (141), Taylor Smith (149) and Hunter Moore (184) each won regional titles and Nate Yetzer was named the Region 4 Coach of the Year (regular season) for the third-straight year. The RC coaching staff of Blake Rosenbaum and Collin Gerardi earned Region 4 Staff of the Year. 

Those five regional champions will be joined by Cade Parent (165), Xavier Preston (174), Lorenzo Pellot-Vazquez (197) and Nicholas Cook (285) at the NCAA Division III Championships in Cedar Rapids, Iowa March 13-14. The top three finishers in each weight class earn a trip to Nationals.  

Regional Champions:
*125 – Cafurello had a technical fall and two decision victories to make his way to the finals. He scored an 8-1 decision victory over his foe from Averett to capture the regional title.
*133 – Robson reached the finals after two technical falls and a decision win. He won 7-2 in the championship.
*141 – Samuel cruised on his way to the finals with a pin, two technical falls and a major decision. He defeated his opponent from Washington & Lee 2-0 to earn the regional crown.
*149 – Taylor Smith had a pair of pins and a tech fall to earn a spot in the finals. He won 4-2 in his final match. 
*184 – Hunter Moore had one pin, one technical fall and two decisions to make it to the finals, and was a 4-1 winner to earn the 184-pound title.

National Qualifiers:

*165 – Parent had two pins and a technical fall to reach the finals but fell to the top-seed from Baldwin Wallace.
*174 – Preston had a technical fall, a major decision and a decision, but did not compete due to a medical forfeit in the finals and took second.
197 – Pellot-Vazquez had an easy time reaching the finals with a pin, a technical fall and a major decision but was defeated in the final match at 197 to take second.
*285 – Nicholas Cook fell to the consolation bracket after dropping a decision in the sudden victory session, but bounced back with a major decision and a decision. He won 3-2 in a tie breaker to earn third place and an NCAA bid.

Placewinner:
*157 – Casey Smith won by pin, technical fall and major decision but dropped a tough 8-7 decision to send him to the consolation finals and was defeated to take fourth.

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