RESULTS
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Senior
Joe Calderone and sophomore
Anthony Sparacio punched their tickets to the NCAA Division II Championships in two weeks at the Super Region I Championships.
Calderone and Sparacio placed fourth in their respective weight classes to qualify for the national championship meet in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
At 141, Calderone advanced through the first round with a bye before advancing by technical fall, 19-2 in the second round. In the third round, the senior came up short, 15-11, to the eventual weight class champion,
Drew Walker of Notre Dame College.
Moving to the loser's bracket, Calderone pinned Seton Hill's
Luke Landefeld in 1:18 to advance. After falling to Wheeling Jesuit's
Dustin Warner for third place, Calderone earned the qualifying spot by way of an officials ruling against Landefeld in the fourth-place match.
In the 133 division, Sparacio also advanced out of the first round by way of a bye before suffering a fall to Alderson Broddaus'
Curtis Cox in the second round. Bouncing back, the sophomore earned a 14-7 decision on the opposite side of the bracket before following up with an 8-4 decision. Sparacio suffered another fall to West Liberty's
Darius Bunch to fall down to the fourth-place bracket but moved into the final match with a 6-4 decision victory. The North Babylon native dominated against Kutztown's
Christopher Crane for a 13-4 major decision victory to take fourth place and secure a berth in the NCAA Championship.
Junior
Dan Arkow made it to the fourth-place bracket, earning three victories during the event before falling to Notre Dame's
Justan Rivera, 6-4 to finish sixth. Graduate student
T.J. Fabian also earned two victories and made it to the fourth-place bracket before suffering a major decision loss to take sixth-place as well.
The two Pioneers will travel to Iowa in two weeks for the NCAA Championships. More information regarding the national tournament will be available the week of the event. Fans can check www.liupostpioneers.com for all the latest news and updates.