Marian Results
Cleary Results

After nearly two full months away from home, Lourdes returned to the Franciscan Center Gymnasium on Saturday, dropping a 27-12 decision to 12^th-ranked Marian before rebounding with a 29-21 victory over Cleary in a match that came down to the final bout.
 
"This was a tough split for us," head coach Dock Kelly III said afterwards.  "We were in complete control of our match against Marian, but we allowed several golden opportunities to get by us.  In our dual against Cleary, we have to close teams out completely.  Unfortunately we lost a couple of matches that made the final score a lot closer than it should have been."
 
The opening match against the Knights was close until the upper weight bouts.  Marian won on a decision in the final seconds at 125 pounds only for the Gray Wolves' Jimmy Balazy (Parma, Ohio/Padua Franciscan H.S.) to even the match with his 11-6 victory at 133.
 
Nick Henneman (Oregon, Ohio/Clay H.S.) put the Gray Wolves in front, avenging his only loss of the season to date with a 10-5 decision over Brandon James, who was the top-ranked grappler at 141 pounds in the NAIA.  Henneman entered the contest ranked third nationally.
 
Marian (14-3) tied the match with a decision at 149 before Garret Anderson (Oregon, Ohio/Clay H.S.) registered a pin in his 157-pound match with just 18 seconds remaining in the second period to put Lourdes in front 12-6 at the midway point.
 
The Knights scored a pair of decisions in the next two contests to even the match and pulled away with victories in the final three bouts, one via forfeit, another by fall, and the final a decision.
 
Lourdes started fast against Cleary.  Ray Porter (Strongsville, Ohio/Strongsville H.S.) was awarded a forfeit at 125 before Balazy won his second match of the day, an 11-4 decision.  Henneman made quick work of his opponent at 141, registering four four-point near falls before winning his match in a technical fall 18-0 just 1:03 into the contest.
 
Garrett Carter (Macedonia, Ohio/Saint Vincent-Saint Mary H.S.) increased the lead to 17-0 at 149 with a shutout in his 7-0 decision before the Cougars got on the scoreboard at 157.
 
Greg Briggs (Seville, Ohio/Cloverleaf H.S.) scored a pin with 16 seconds left in the opening period at 165 to push the Gray Wolf lead to 23-3.  Cleary (1-3) pulled within two with a pair of falls and a forfeit, setting the stage for the day's final match.
 
Alec Moore-Nash (Price Hill, Ohio/Elder H.S.) recorded a fall at the 2:24 mark of the opening stanza to secure the victory for the Gray Wolves.  With the win, Lourdes is assured of a winning record in dual matches this season for the first time in program history.
 
"We have less than a week to get prepared for our final home dual of the season," Kelly added.  "I'm excited for this opportunity to send our seniors out on a winning note."
 
Lourdes (10-7) will close out the home portion of the 2019-2020 schedule on Friday evening as the Gray Wolves host Rochester (Mich.).  The opening bout is set for 7 p.m. inside the Franciscan Center Gymnasium with Senior Night activities taking place prior to the match.