HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. – Wil Gil (141 lbs.) will lead the Franklin & Marshall wrestling team into day two of the Matmen Open as the senior won a pair of wrestleback matches to stay alive in the prestigious tournament. The event replaced the prestigious Midlands Championships. Gil came in as the No. 6 seed and defeated both Cameron Johnson (Aurora) and Noah Levett (Bucknell) by decision on Wednesday. Gil will return to the mat with his fourth-round consolation (round of 12) match against No. 14 Parker Filius on Thursday morning.
The win against Bucknell ran Gil's record to a perfect 7-0 this season versus EIWA opponents. F&M's captain now has 95 career victories, 54 of which have come against conference foes. Gil's day got off to a tough start as he was upset in sudden victory by the No. 11 seed from Northern Illinois. His run through the backside was certainly adventurous, but he showed relentless determination as he worked his way through the bracket. Gil got caught in a Jonesy tilt before roaring back to a 16-9 victory over Aurora. In his third road consolation match, Gil secured two third period takedowns to clinch the win. The last takedown came with the score tied 10-10 and time winding down as the final score was enough to tack on the riding time point during the 13-10 victory.
Gil was joined in Wednesday night's session II by teammates Chase McCollum (157 lbs.), Noah Fox (174 lbs.), and John Crawford (174 lbs.). McCollum advanced to the fourth round of consolations with a thrilling 3-1 victory as he won a scramble late in the third period during a EIWA matchup against Harvard's Cael Berg before falling to the Crimson's AJ Jaffe one round later.
Crawford won two bouts on the day as he defeated Illinois' DJ Shannon by injury default during his opening match. After suffering his first defeat of the year against the No. 29 wrestler in the country, Crawford took out another Big Ten foe in Michigan's Matt Mckenna before a big throw against Rutgers put him in a hole that he was unable to climb out of. Fox advanced to the evening session after taking a medical forfeit against Brown before a narrow 4-1 defeat at the hands of Harvard.
Gio Diaz was the final Diplomat to join Gil and Crawford in Round of 16 championship action as he made his season debut at 125 lbs. Making the descent from 133 lbs., Diaz was strong right out of the gates as he took down Michigan's Wilfried Tanefeu before a loss to nationally-ranked Justin Cardani of Illinois. A narrow 2-1 setback on riding time in wrestleback action wrapped up his day at his new weight.
When Gil returns to the mats tomorrow morning, he will need one more win to reach the medal rounds. With at least two victories he would advance to the final session where the 1st, 3rd, and 5th place matches at each weight class will run simultaneously. Session III starts at 11 a.m. EST on Thursday (10 a.m. local with the final session getting underway at 7 p.m. EST (6 p.m. local).
Complete F&M Results
Gio Diaz – 125 lbs.
Round of 32: Won vs. Wilfried Tanefeu (Michigan), 2-1
Round of 16: Lost vs. #29 Justin Cardani (Illinois); 8-0
Consolation 2: Lost vs. Brandon Seidman (Bucknell); 2-1
Pat Phillips – 133 lbs.
Round of 32: Lost vs. Jack Wagner (Northern Iowa); 11-1
Consolation 1: bye
Consolation 2: Lost vs. Dylan Chappell (Bucknell); MFF
Wil Gil – 141 lbs. (#6 seed)
Round of 32: Bye
Round of 16: Lost vs. Ethan Basile (Northern Iowa); 7-5 (SV)
Consolation 2: Won vs. Cameron Johnson (Aurora); 16-9
Consolation 3: Won vs. Noah Levett (Bucknell); 13-10
Consolation 4: vs. #14 Parker Filius (Purdue)
Chase McCollum – 157 lbs.
Round of 32: Lost vs. Joseph Roberts (Illinois); 15-3
Consolation 1: Bye
Consolation 2: Won vs. Cael Berg (Harvard); 3-1
Consolation 3: Lost vs. AJ Jaffe (Harvard); 8-1
Noah Fox – 174 lbs.
Round of 32: Lost vs. Graham Calhoun (Wisconsin); 8-0
Consolation 1: Bye
Consolation 2: Won vs. Anthony Pedro (Brown); MFF
Consolation 3: Lost vs. Michael Doggett (Harvard); 4-1
John Crawford – 174 lbs.
Round of 32: Won vs. DJ Shannon (Illinois); Inj. Def. (6:09)
Round of 16: Lost vs. #29 Josh Kim (Harvard); 6-3
Consolation 2: Won vs. Matt Mckenna (Michigan); 5-2
Consolation 3: Lost vs. Connor O'Neill (Rutgers); 12-5
James Conway – 184 lbs.
Round of 32: Lost vs. Nikita Nepomnyashkchiy (Illinois); 3-2
Consolation 1: Bye
Consolation 2: Lost vs. Kendall Elfstrum (Princeton); 10-8
Mike Waszen – 197 lbs.
Round of 32: Lost vs. Tristin Guaman (Northern Illinois); 2-0
Consolation 1: Bye
Consolation 2: Lost vs. Nick Marcenelle (Harvard); 5-0
