MOUNT VERNON, Ga.— Following a brief 2-week hiatus from head-to-head competition, the Montreat men's wrestling team returned to action with an Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) dual at Brewton-Parker College in Mount Vernon, Ga. While the Cavaliers collected victories in four separate matchups, they couldn't overcome the Barons' early lead and ultimately fell to 0-3 (0-2 AAC) on the season with a 32-17 defeat.
 
Brewton-Parker (1-0, 1-0 AAC) got off to a good start thanks to 6-point scoring efforts in three of the initial four bouts. As the dual began with the 184-lb weight class, the Barons utilized a pin to quickly jump ahead of the Cavs, 6-0. Seth Williamson brought the visitors within a point behind his dominant 17-0 tech fall triumph at 197; however, BPC notched wins via fall and forfeit at 285 and 125, respectively, to vault in front by 13 points (18-5).
 
The Cavaliers answered the bell after falling behind early, whittling their deficit down to just four points with two bouts to go. At 133, Coy Reid claimed victory in a back-and-forth 14-12 decision. Jack Hawbaker then followed up Reid's effort with a swift 73-second pin in the 141-lb weight class, cutting the Barons' edge to 18-14 in the process. Brewton-Parker answered with a down-to-the-wire 8-6 decision at 149, but Branson Bennett won those three points back with his 15-8 triumph at 157.
 
Despite Montreat's effort to get back into the dual, BPC ended the Cavs' comeback hopes with a pin at 165 and a 17-0 tech fall at 174. As a result, the Barons garnered a 32-17 win in their first dual of the season.
 
"Today was a day for growth," said associate head coach Jim Connaghan. "The silver lining is that we know what we need to work on. We were in a lot of these matches and need to find a way to push that extra mile. Back to the work shop."
 
The Montreat men's wrestling team resumes dual action next Saturday with a non-conference clash versus Huntingdon College. Bouts are slated to commence at 1 p.m. in Montgomery, Ala.
 
(RV) Brewton-Parker College 32, Montreat College 17
125        Patrick Jones (Brewton-Parker) over Unknown (For.)
133        Coy Reid (Montreat) over Keyshaun Taylor (Brewton-Parker) (Dec 14-12)
141        Jack Hawbaker (Montreat) over Conner Wright (Brewton-Parker) (Fall 1:13)
149        Gavin Daniels (Brewton-Parker) over Braden Wharton (Montreat) (Dec 8-6)
157        Branson Bennett (Montreat) over Bradley Owens (Brewton-Parker) (Dec 15-8)
165        Sean Houston (Brewton-Parker) over Ashton Medeiros (Montreat) (Fall 2:19)
174        Justin Grant (Brewton-Parker) over Dalton Towe (Montreat) (TF 17-0 1:26)
184        Charles Henkel (Brewton-Parker) over Dre Bonner (Montreat) (Fall 3:42)
197        Seth Williamson (Montreat) over Thomas Crawford (Brewton-Parker) (TF 17-0 5:40)
285        #22 Wilkinson Saul (Brewton-Parker) over Lucian Thomas (Montreat) (Fall 0:32)