MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE ANNOUNCES WRESTLERS OF THE WEEK
MAC East Division: Wrestler of the Week
DJ Fehlman, Lock Haven—Senior, Warren, Pa. (Warren High School)
Lock Haven senior DJ Fehlman at 133 lbs., enjoyed a busy and perfect weekend for the Bald Eagles. Fehlman went a perfect 4-0 and helped Lock Haven got 4-0 as he recorded a win in each of the four dual victories. With the four wins, Fehlman pushed his career win total to 99. The returning national qualifier will look for win No. 100 this week in MAC Eastern Division action. Fehlman started his week with a huge win vs. Navy on Friday, Dec. 13. After the match started at 141, it was all up to Fehlman in the night’s final bout to seal the team-victory in front of 2,000-plus at Red Lion High School in the 2019 Rumble in the Jungle.
As the Bald Eagles clung to a one-point 16-15 lead heading into the final bout, Fehlman put it away in style, dominating Navy's Casey Cobb, 9-3. Fehlman and Cobb, who was listed in some national rankings this week, were tied 0-0 after one, but Fehlman led 7-2 after an exciting second period, thanks to a six-point move after a hard-fought takedown and four quick near-fall points. A late Fehlman third-period takedown sealed the win. On Saturday, Dec. 14, Lock Haven picked up lopsided wins over Millersville, McDaniel and Messiah, and Fehlman was 3-0 on the day with a tech fall and two pins.
MAC West Division: Wrestlers of the Week
Evan Cheek, Cleveland State—Senior, Milan, Ohio (Edison High School)
Cleveland State senior Evan Cheek won the 141-pound title at the Cleveland State Open last weekend to become the first Viking to win a title at CSU's own event since 2011. He went 5-0 on the day, tallying two pins and a technical fall in the process. He began the day with a 5-2 victory over fellow MAC wrestler Cory Simpson of Kent State. After taking down a pair of Division II opponents in the next two bouts via fall and technical fall, Cheek moved into the semifinals. He proceeded to dispatch of Ohio State's Jordan Decatur in the semifinals by a 10-3 margin before winning the title in style with a first-period pin of West Virginia's Jeffrey Boyd. Cheek improved to 18-1 this season with his performance, with 11 of those victories being of the bonus-point variety.
Additional Nominees:
Jarrett Jacques, Missouri—Sophomore, Columbia, Mo. (Father Dalton High School)
Missouri sophomore Jarrett Jacques posted a win over Buffalo’s Hunter Shaut last Sunday. With Mizzou trailing its Sunday dual at Buffalo, 6-8, heading into the 157-pound weight class, Jacques tallied a 24-9 technical fall win over Shaut. That flipped the dual in favor of Mizzou as the team won five of the next six bouts to extend its MAC winning streak to 15-straight. Jacques moved to 13-1 on the season with the win and remains ranked in the national top-15 in all of the major rankings. He has won 13 straight bouts after losing his season-opener to nationally-ranked B.C. LaPrade of Virginia Tech.
