Kent State wrestling competed in the two-day Mid-American Conference Championships that took place on Friday and Saturday, finishing in eighth place overall. The University of Missouri, the favorite going into the match, took home first place followed by Central Michigan University and Rider University earning second and third place respectively.  

Kent had six wrestlers enter with a top eight seeding in the tournament, with the possibility of sending five Flashes to the national tournament, which takes place on March 18-20 in St. Louis, Missouri.  

The Flashes’ Andrew McNally won the title match on day two at 174, after going 3-0 on day one. Senior Jake Ferri and junior Kody Komara did enough to qualify for the national tournament.   

Ferri entered the weekend on a 10-match win streak. After earning a first round bye on Friday, Ferri defeated Lucas Rodriguez of Edinboro University to advance to the semi-final round.  

Ferri came back on Saturday and won two matches to earn a spot at nationals, beating George Mason University’s Josh Jones in a 4-2 decision and later took down Jonathan Tropea of Rider 14-9 at 125.  

Komara fought hard in the consolation bracket on Saturday after losing one match on the first day. Winning an 11-6 decision over Tyler Vath of Edinboro proved to be enough to earn his place in the national tournament.  

Those three Flashes will now prepare for the tournament, which features the likes of Big Ten giants Iowa, Penn State and Michigan all ranking in the top five in the Division I Coaches Poll. MAC Champion Missouri is ranked fifth, with Central Michigan sitting at 21. 

Mason is a sports reporter. Contact him at [email protected].