The Hofstra University wrestling team began the new year by finishing 20th in the highly competitive Southern Scuffle in Chattanooga, TN, which included several ranked teams, with Jacob Ferreira placing fifth in the 184-pound weight class. 

Ferreira, the no. 24 wrestler in his weight class, won his first match against Purdue’s Mitch Hutmacher, 10-4, and then defeated Virginia Tech’s Sam Fischer. In the quarterfinals, Ferreira was down 5-3 to Oklahoma State’s (OSU) Kyle Haas, but earned two points with a Granby Roll reversal to send the bout to overtime where he eventually won the match. Ferreria then lost to no. 12 Travis Wittlake, also of OSU, in a close 3-2 finish after a controversial takedown was awarded to Wittlake. Ferreria was then sent to the consolation bracket and finished the tournament with a final record of 4-2. 

In the 141-pound weight class, Justin Hoyle picked up wins over Andrew Bloemhof (OSU), Rudy Lopez of Northern Colorado State and the University of Minnesota’s Vance Vombaur. As strong as Hoyle looked early on, he was overmatched by of pair of nationally-ranked opponents, losing to no. 25 Darren Miller of Bucknell University, 6-1, and was pinned in 20 seconds by no. 28 Carter Young of OSU. 

Zachary Knighton-Ward entered the tournament as the fifth seed in the heavyweight bracket but was upset in the first round by North Dakota Staete’s Juan Mora 5-1. Knighton-Ward bounced back in the consolation bracket with wins over a pair wins over Appalachian State wrestlers in Mason Fiscella and Jacob Sartorio, before closing out the tournament with a loss to Josiah Hill from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. 

Overall, the Pride collected 17.5 points as a team in the two-day tournament. Hofstra did enter the competition shorthanded, though, as team co-captain Trey Rogers did not compete.  The Pride’s next competition is on Friday, Jan. 6, at the Franklin and Marshall Lehman Open. 

Photo Courtesy of Hofstra Athletics/Sam Janicki