Mid-American Conference

MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE ANNOUNCES CO-WRESTLER OF THE WEEK
 
MAC Co-Wrestler of the Week
Cody Walters, Ohio—Senior, Macedonia, Ohio (St. Peter Chanel High School)
 
Ohio senior Cody Walters captured the Midlands 174-pound Championship, a first for an Ohio wrestler by beating three top 20 nationally ranked wrestlers including a then ranked top-5 wrestler in then-ranked No. 3 Alex Meyer of Iowa (3-1, Dec.), then-No. 15 Leland Weatherspoon of Iowa State (7-2, Dec.) and No. 13 Jonathan Schleifer of Princeton who Walters beat in the final match to capture the Championship 1-0. Meyer was the top seeded wrestler in the field while Walters was the No. 4 seed at the tournament.  Walters also beat Indiana’s Devin Skattzka 5-0 and Old Dominion’s Brooks Climmons 15-0 during the opening rounds of competition at the Midlands Championships. Walters finished the competition outpointing his opponents 31-3. Walters is ranked No. 9 in the InterMat 174-pound national rankings and owns a 13-2 overall record this season. 
 
Emilio Saavedra, Old Dominion—R-Freshman, Modesto, Calif. (Modesto High School)
 
Old Dominion redshirt freshman Emilio Saavedra captured the 133 lb. crown at the 53rd Ken Kraft Midlands after entering the tournament unranked and as the No. 13 seed. En route to the title, Saavedra first pinned Franklin & Marshall's Scott Stevens in 2:50 in the opening round. He then knocked off Nebraska's No. 13 Eric Montoya in the round of 16 by a 5-4 decision before defeating Lehigh's 17th-ranked, two-time All-American, Mason Beckman, by a 4-2 OT decision in the quarterfinals. After receiving a medical forfeit in the semifinals, Saavedra earned the 133 lb. Midlands crown with a double-overtime takedown to upend Northern Iowa's No. 18 Josh Alber, 4-2 2 OT. As a result, Saavedra has entered every major rankings publication and is currently listed as high as No. 8 in the nation by The Open Mat. Saavedra's title helped the Monarchs finish in seventh place out of 38 teams at the Midlands.
 
Additional Nominees:
Justin Oliver, Central Michigan—R-Freshman, Davison, Mich. (Davison High School)
 
Central Michigan redshirt freshman Justin Oliver had a strong showing at the Southern Scuffle in Chattanooga, placing third at 149 lbs. Oliver went 6-1 for the two-day tournament and was Central Michigan’s top finisher. Oliver opened with victories over Penn State’s Gary Dinmore (major decision, 14-4) and Oklahoma State’s Anthony Collica (sudden victory 2, 5-3) before dropping his only match of the tournament, an 11-5 loss to Drexel’s Matthew Cimato. Oliver then reeled off four-straight victories, including a major decision over Stanford’s Paul Fox (17-5) and avenging his previous defeat to Cimato (5-2) to claim third place. For the season, Oliver upped his overall record to 17-4.
 
Kyle Conel, Kent State—R-Freshman, Ashtabula, Ohio (Lakeside High School)
 
Kent State redshirt freshman Kyle Conel won a 197-pound championship at the Lock Haven Classic on Dec. 29 at Thomas Fieldhouse.  He went 3-0 in a 13-man bracket, culminating in a 9-4 win in the finals over Bucknell’s Tyler Green.  In the semifinals, Conel topped Pitt’s Bonnaccorsi 7-3.  Bonnaccorsi was No. 33 in last week’s Wrestling Report rankings.  Conel started his day with a 5-2 win over Messiah’s Kyle Koser.  On the year, Conel is 13-5 overall and 6-0 in dual meets.
 
Steve Bleise, Northern Illinois—R-Freshman, Chelsea, Mich. (Chelsea High School)
 
Northern Illinois redshirt freshman Steve Bleise became the first NIU wrestler since 2006 to advance to the finals of the prestigious Ken Kraft Midlands Championships last week as he knocked off the No. 2 ranked wrestler in the country during the tournament. Bleise won his first five matches at 141 pounds at Midlands, including a sudden victory decision in the quarterfinals over Kevin Jack of North Carolina State, a wrestler ranked as high as No. 2 in the weight class. Bleise also defeated wrestlers from Illinois, Iowa, Purdue and Princeton on his way to the final, which helped the Huskies finish 19th as a team with 35.0 points – NIU wrestling’s best Midlands performance as a program since 2007.
 
Josh Alber, Northern Iowa—R-Freshman, Freeport, Ill. (Dakota High School)
 
Northern Iowa freshman Josh Alber took second at the Midlands Championships. It was the highest finish for any redshirt freshman from Northern Iowa since the team started competing there in 1965. Alber notched his third top-20 win at the tournament when he beat No. Anthony Giraldo of Rutgers for the second time this season. Alber was seeded sixth in the tournament. He is now 19-5 overall and 0-1 in the MAC.