Mid-American Conference

MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE ANNOUNCES WRESTLER OF THE WEEK

MAC Wrestler of the Week
Zach Horan, Central Michigan—Junior, Nazareth, Pa. (Nazareth High School)

Central Michigan junior Zach Horan went 2-0 for the week, upping his overall season record to 12-4 and maintaining his spotless mark in MAC competition at 4-0. On Friday, Horan helped Central Michigan claim a dominating 26-9 team road win over non-conference foe SIU Edwardsville, defeating Angelo Silvestro, 3-2. On Saturday in Columbia, versus No. 3 Missouri, the MAC's top-rated team, Horan secured a signature win over a higher-ranked opponent, handing No. 6 Lavion Mayes his first defeat of the season, 9-5, in sudden victory. Horan is ranked 14th nationally by Intermat and was slotted at No. 3 in the January MAC rankings.
  
Additional Nominees:
Brandon Zeerip, Eastern Michigan—Senior, Fremont, Mich. (Hesperia High School)

Eastern Michigan senior Brandon Zeerip notched two individual wins on the week despite the Eagles being unable to pick up a team win against Cleveland State and Ohio. The 157 lb. grappler pinned Latrell Davis of Cleveland State with just one minute remaining in the third period to bring EMU within two of Cleveland State with just three bouts remaining in the dual last Thursday, Jan. 15. Following the pin, Zeerip secured his first conference victory of the season with a decision against Ohio. Although Ohio had already notched the dual victory, the Fremont, Mich. native battled in the final bout of the afternoon earning a takedown with 15 seconds left over OU's Spartak Chino. The victory marked the first conference victory of the season for Zeerip and ninth dual win of the year.

Tyler Buckwalter, Kent State—Junior, Mill Hall, Pa.

Kent State junior Tyler Buckwalter went 2-0 this past weekend, including 4-0 upset of Ohio’s Harrison Hightower Friday night.  The win helped the Flashes to a 24-12 victory over the Bobcats.  Hightower was No.3 in the January MAC rankings and No. 27 according to Wrestling Report. Buckwalter then extended his dual meet win streak to nine on Sunday with a 3-2 victory over Edinboro’s Casey Fuller.  Buckwalter improved to 20-11 on the season.

Drake Houdashelt, Missouri—Senior, O’Fallon, Mo.

Missouri senior Drake Houdashelt improved to 23-1 this season with a pair of wins last weekend. Houdashelt kicked off his weekend with a 5-1 victory over No. 18 Colin Heffernan. It marked his seventh win against a ranked opponent this season and helped key Mizzou’s 23-12 win over Central Michigan. The following day, Houdashelt took home an impressive 11-2 major decision win over Sam Melikian of North Carolina State. The win propelled the Tigers to a dominating 29-10 triumph over the visiting Wolfpack and improved the team’s record to a perfect 15-0 this season.

Blaize Cabell, Northern Iowa—Junior, Independence, Iowa

Northern Iowa junior heavyweight Blaize Cabell climbed four spots in the national rankings after knocking off No. 7 Ty Walz of Virginia Tech. It was a rematch at heavyweight with Walz and Cabell last Friday. Cabell led the series 1-0 with a win over Walz at the 2013 Cliff Keen Invite. Walz would get the lead at the start of the second with an escape. Cabell tied it back up with an escape of his own to start the third. After two more takedowns and a Walz escape, Cabell would go on to win 5-3.  Cabell is a returning NCAA qualifier. He has four major decision wins, two tech falls and four falls so far this season. He hasn't given up bonus points this season. ?Cabell has started in all of the Panthers' duals and remains undefeated in dual competition. He is 18-4 overall and 10-0 in duals. He is 3-0 in the MAC.

Trace Engelkes, Northern Illinois—Sophomore, Winnebago, Ill. (Winnebago High School)

Northern Illinois sophomore Trace Engelkes played a big part in the Huskies' 19-15 win last Saturday against SIU Edwardsville. After NIU rallied from a 15-9 deficit to take a 16-15 lead, Engelkes faced off with SIUE's Jake Residori in a winner-take-all bout at 174. The two battled to a scoreless tie in the first period, but the Winnebago, Illinois, native got a reversal to open the second, then nailed a takedown with seconds left to open up a 4-1 lead. Residori battled back to tie the bout at 4-4 late in the third, but a quick reversal by Engelkes with 20 seconds remaining pushed the Huskies to a 7-4 win and the dual victory.

Cody Walters, Ohio—Junior, Macedonia, Ohio (St. Peter Chanel High School)

Ohio junior Cody Walters picked up wins against both Kent State and Eastern Michigan at the 174-class, improving his team-high overall record to 22-1, 4-0 MAC. The redshirt junior earned a 5-0 decision against Kent State’s Mike Vollant on Friday evening and followed up his performance with a 17-4 major decision against EMU’s Austin Geerlings on Sunday. Walters has won his last 16 consecutive bouts, and holds three tournament titles.