McPeek leads Grizzly grapplers with third place finish at Cowboy Open

Four other ASC wrestlers place while competing unattached

LARAMIE, Wyo.- New Mexico Highlands University transfer Luke McPeek (Albuquerque, N.M.), a 2009 NCAA Division II All-American, took third place as he led a group of 11 wrestlers representing the Adams State College Grizzlies to 17 combined wins in Saturday's Cowboy Open hosted by the University of Wyoming in the Pokes' War Memorial Fieldhouse.  Four other ASC wrestlers, competing unattached, also placed amongst the top four of their respective brackets, including freshman Casey Lynn (Cortez, Colo.) who recorded four wins by fall before falling 3-0 in the final of the Amateur 141-pound bracket.

McPeek, who took sixth at the 2009 NCAA Division II National Championships while wrestling at NMHU, went 4-1 on the day winning three matches over Division I foes.  His only loss came in the semifinals to defending NCAA Division II National Champion and Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Preseason Wrestler of the Year Donovan McMahill of Western State, the top ranked man in the NCAA Division II National Wrestling Coaches Association's Preseason Rankings.

McPeek, ranked fourth, started his day in the Elite 197-pound division with a 9-2 win over Joe O'Farrell of the host Wyoming squad in the first round.  He then defeated Mesa State's Shane Miller by a 9-3 margin in the quarterfinals before dropping a tight 6-4 decision to McMahill.

McPeek bounced back in the consolation bracket besting O'Farrell again by a 6-3 score before finishing the day with a 2-1 overtime win over Neil Delaney of Air Force.

McPeek was one of just four wrestlers representing the Grizzlies in the Elite Division.  Meanwhile, seven wrestlers wore a Grizzly singlet in the Amateur Division brackets, reserved for wrestlers age 20 and under.  Jeremy Robledo (Denver, Colo.) and Corey Johnson (Newcastle, Calif.) led that group.

Robledo went 4-2 in the 125-pound bracket advancing to fifth round of the consolation bracket and just two wins shy of a top four placing.  Johnson went 3-2 advancing to the championship quarterfinals and the consolation semifinals.

Lynn, who pinned his way to a 4A Colorado High School State Championship while at Montezuma-Cortez High School last year, recorded pin-falls in each of his first four matches and shared tournament high honors for overall falls with Western Wyoming's Justin Schumacher.  However, Lynn, who also had a victory by fall in Wednesday's Green & Black Intrasquad Dual, fell just short of a title in his first collegiate tournament as Wyoming's Michael Hamel claimed a 3-point victory.

Meanwhile, Matt Sandoval (Albuquerque, N.M.), also competing unattached took fourth in the 149-pound Amateur Division bracket after falling to Schumacher in the consolation championship.

Dominic DeMarco (Shingle Springs, Calif.) also took fourth at 184 pounds while Paul Cabbage (Rio Rancho, N.M.) took third in the 184-pound Elite Division bracket with a 4-0 consolation final win over fellow unattached wrestler Brad Darrington.

The Grizzlies will continue open tournament action next week competing in the University of Northern Colorado's Old Chicago Open in Greeley, Colo.  That tournament is slated to begin at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 20.

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