Joey Lavallee is one of seven MAC finalists for Missouri (Photo/MUTigers.com)MT. PLEASANT, Mich. -- No. 3 Mizzou Wrestling (19-0, 7-0 MAC) closed an extremely successful first day of the 2018 Mid-American Conference Wrestling Championships by advancing seven wrestlers to the tournament's finals on Sunday. In the 14 matches wrestled by Mizzou's seven finalists, 11 matches were won by bonus points, including six by fall.
In addition to seven wrestlers wrestling for a conference championship tomorrow, four Mizzou grapplers have already qualified a spot at the 2018 NCAA Wrestling Championships in Cleveland, Ohio. Redshirt junior 133-pounder John Erneste (Kansas City, Mo.), redshirt sophomore 141-pounder Jaydin Eierman (Columbia, Mo.), redshirt senior 157-pounder Joey Lavallee (Reno, Nev.) and redshirt junior 174-pounder Daniel Lewis (Blue Springs, Mo.) each punched their trips to Cleveland with two wins on Saturday.
TEAM SCORES
Mizzou finishes the opening day of competition with a commanding lead, as its 134.5 points sits 34 points ahead of second-place Eastern Michigan, who has 100.5 points.
Mizzou has its sights sets on resetting the conference point record for the third time since joining the league in 2013, as it needs just 20 points to surpass its 2017 record-total of 154.5 points.
NOTABLE TIGERS
Eierman was the lone Tiger to pick up two falls on the day, as the Tiger sophomore never made it past the first period, pinning Northern Illinois' Anthony Rubino at 0:58 and Ohio's Mari Guillen at 1:29. The falls were Eierman's 13th and 14th on the season, as he improves to 27-1 on the season with 20 wins coming with bonus points. Eierman will face Central Michigan's Mason Smith tomorrow in the finals.
At 174 pounds, Lewis recorded a fall and technical to improve to 28-0 on the season and advance to the MAC finals for the third consecutive season. The Tiger junior pinned Buffalo's Austin Weigel at 1:57 in his opening match before defeating Kent State's Dylan Barreiro by 15-0 technical fall (7:00) in the semifinals. The technical fall was Lewis' 10th career technical fall, which moves him into a four-way tie for eighth place all-time in program history. Lewis will wrestle Central Michigan's CJ Brucki in the finals.
Wrestling in his first MAC Tournament, redshirt sophomore 165-pounder Connor Flynn (Dardenne Prairie, Mo.) advanced to the finals with a 16-0 techincal fall (4:49) over Old Dominion's Shane Jones and a fall at 2:58 over Kent State's Isaac Bast. In tomorrow's finals, Flynn will wrestle Eastern Michigan's Zac Carson.
At 197 pounds, Miklus clinched a spot in the finals with two technical falls, beating Northern Illinois' Max Ihry 16-1 (5:29) and Ohio's Aaron Naples 16-1 (7:00). The two 15-point wins gives Miklus 11 career technical falls, which moves him into a tie for sixth-most all-time. Miklus will wrestle Eastern Michigan's Derek Hillman tomorrow in the finals.
UP NEXT
Mizzou looks to capture its seventh straight conference championship tomorrow as it wraps up competition at the MAC Championships. The action will begin with the consolation semifinals at 11:30 a.m. (ET), with the finals and remaining place matches beginning at 1 p.m. (ET). A live stream of the event will be available on ESPN 3.
For all the latest on Mizzou Wrestling, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram (MizzouWrestling).
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