KENT, Ohio

The most up-for-grabs weight class heading into the season was 174. Redshirt freshmen Casey Newburg and Keith Witt battled it out for the right to take on incumbent Chris Estep. Newburg edged Witt in the opening match with a rideout in overtime, before falling to Estep 5-0 in the day's last match.

"We're going to get better at 174 because of the competition," Head Coach Jim Andrassy said. "Chris is a tremendous athlete that still hasn't reached his full potential yet and he's going to get better with two guys pushing him."

Also requiring overtime was the battle at 165 pounds. Redshirt junior Sli Bostelman suprised Obie Simpson 8-7 in extra time for the right to start against the Hokies next weekend.

"Sli's gotten better," Andrassy said. "That's another weight where the competition is going to help us."

With junior Nic Bedelyon out for at least the beginning of the season, sophomore Troy Opfer and redshirt freshman Stevie Mitcheff battled at 125 pounds. Opfer topped Mitcheff 2-0 in what Andrassy called a very close match.

Senior Danny Mitcheff grabbed an 8-5 win over redshirt freshman Sean Collins at 133.

"Danny did a good job today and Sean fought hard too," Andrassy said. "Danny is our guy right now, but Sean has a good future ahead of him."

Redshirt freshman Mallie Shuster earned a 5-0 victory over last year's starter Ross Tice at 157 pounds. Shuster scored a takedown and earned a riding time point.

"The match was closer than the final score indicated," Andrassy said. "Both guys are going to help us there this season."

Another redshirt freshman, Chase Skonieczny, earned the starting nod at 141 with a 6-1 win over redshirt sophomore Marcel Clopton.

"Chase looked good today," Andrassy said. "He was aggressive and earned back points. And when you get back points, you really give yourself a chance to win."

Another redshirt freshman that looks to make a big impact this season is Adam Cogar, who knocked off redshirt sophomore Ryan Buckner 6-1 at 197.

At 149 pounds, true freshman Tommy Sasfy defeated both Jake Peterson and Drew Leonard. Sasfy cruised to a 13-1 win over Peterson in his first bout.

Redshirt sophomore heavyweight Brendan Barlow took on 184-pounder Dustin Kilgore. Barlow topped Kilgore 6-4.

"Both of them fought hard," Andrassy said. "There was a lot of movement in that match."

Kent State's season gets underway Saturday, Nov. 7 with dual meets against Virginia Tech and Chattanooga in Blacksburg, Va, followed by the Hokie Open the next day.