Mid-American Conference

MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE ANNOUNCES WRESTLER OF THE WEEK
 
MAC Wrestler of the Week
Tyler Buckwalter, Kent State—Senior, Mill Hall, Pa. (Central Mountain High School)
 
Kent State senior Tyler Buckwalter defeated two ranked opponents Sunday, helping Kent State go 2-0 in dual meets.  In the Golden Flashes’ 18-17 win over Central Michigan, Buckwalter earned an 11-9 comeback victory over No. 33 Jordan Atienza.  Buckwalter trailed Atienza 7-2 to start the second period and needed a takedown late in the third to complete the comeback.  Taking on No. 24 Casey Fuller (Edinboro) later that day, Buckwalter scored a takedown in the final 10 seconds of the match for a 5-4 victory.  Kent State went on to defeat the Fighting Scots 18-15, extending the Flashes’ winning streak to nine.  Buckwalter finished the regular season on a six-match winning streak. He is 14-4 in dual meets and 6-2 in MAC duals.  Kent State finished 7-1 in conference duals and its 15-3 mark was the program’s best finish since 2007.
 
Additional Nominees:
James Benjamin, Buffalo—Junior, Vestal, N.Y. (Vestal High School)
 
Buffalo junior James Benjamin went 2-0 over the weekend to help lead the Buffalo wrestling team to a pair of dual wins over Binghamton and Northern Illinois. Against Binghamton, Benjamin shut out Mark Tracy, 4-0, to clinch the dual for the Bulls. The Buffalo 197-pounder had a takedown, an escape and 3:33 of riding time to earn the victory. Benjamin’s biggest win of the season came on Sunday when he pinned 16th-ranked Shawn Scott at the 2:12 mark to give the Bulls a 6-0 lead and set the tone for the afternoon. Buffalo’s win over Northern Illinois was its 10th of the season – the most since 2004.
 
Corey Keener, Central Michigan—Junior, Schuylkill Haven, Pa. (Blue Mountain High School)
 
Central Michigan junior Corey Keener collected two convincing wins last weekend, as the Chippewas split a pair of dual meets at Kent State. Against the Golden Flashes, Keener won by technical fall, defeating Del Vinas, 17-2. Later in the day, he earned key points for the Chippewas against Edinboro’s Anthony Rivera, posting a 12-3 major decision, helping Central Michigan to a 20-15 victory. With the wins, Keener extended his dual meet win streak to four matches and upped his overall season record to 15-8.
 
Kyle Springer, Eastern Michigan—Sophomore, New Boston, Mich. (Davenport High School)
 
Eastern Michigan sophomore Kyle Springer highlighted the 19-12 win over Old Dominion for Eastern Michigan at 141 pounds.  He defeated reigning All-American and No. 12 ranked Chris Mecate by 11-4 decision, narrowly missing the major decision.  It was Springer's second win over a ranked opponent this season, and was a revenge match for him after falling to Mecate by 4-2 decision at The Midlands.  Springer now has 17 wins on the season.
 
Trace Engelkes, Northern Illinois—Junior, Winnebago, Ill. (Winnebago High School)
 
Northern Illinois junior Trace Engelkes was a takedown machine on Sunday and recorded a major decision over Tyler Rill of Buffalo with a 12-4 victory. The NIU junior 174-pounder’s win was the fifth in a row for the Huskies in the dual, which helped NIU almost come back from an early 18-0 hold. Engelkes now owns 18 wins this season with a 9-5 record in dual matches.
 
Josh Alber, Northern Iowa—R-Freshman, Freeport, Ill. (Dakota High School)
 
Northern Iowa redshirt freshman Josh Alber notched his third fall of the season against North Dakota State's Nico Colunga. It also was his third first-period fall. He pinned Colunga in 2 minutes, 5 seconds. Alber improved to 25-8 overall and is 4-3 in the MAC. He is ranked 13th in the nation by the NCAA and holds an RPI of 9.
 
Shakur Laney, Ohio—Freshman, Canal Winchester, Ohio
 
Ohio freshman Shakur Laney swept last weekend’s competition with wins over Nick Derosa of Cleveland State and Cortez Starkes for Gardner-Webb. Laney, who was ranked No. 28 at 125-pounds in the latest coaches poll, made quick work of Derosa landing an initial takedown off the starting position, then after an escape pulled Derosa down again and got the pinfall with just 33-seconds left in the opening frame. 
 
Laney then beat Starkes of Gardner-Webb, who entered the weekend at No. 33 in the latest coaches poll. Laney took multiple shot attempts in the first, but was unsuccessful to score off them. Starkes started off in the down position in the second and was able to escape after Laney tried dropping to a leg. Laney then took him down and rode Starkes out for the rest of the period. After a quick escape in the third Laney went on to take the decision 4-3. Laney now stands at 21-8 overall with a 5-3 MAC record and an 11-4 mark in dual competition.