"I'm so proud of the guys today," said second-year head coach Kevin Ward. "All 10 wrestlers contributed, and every point in every match mattered. We were in a good position heading into the finals, and we rose to the occasion. Having six of our guys in the finals with four champions was a really exciting way to win the tournament."
Army sent six Black Knights to championship bouts, the most of any team in the tournament. Logan Everett (141), Andrew Mendel (165), 19th-ranked Brian Harvey (174) and Bryce Barnes (197) all came away with individual championships, while Russell Parsons Jr. (157) and Samson Imonode (184) placed second. Additionally, Army sent two more wrestlers to the third-place matches. David Farr (285) finished third, and Austin Harry (133) placed fourth.
Everett started the day with a 9-0 major decision before edging out a pair of one-point decisions. The Tioga, Pa., native topped Navy's Nicholas Gil 6-5 in the championship match.
Mendel followed a similar route to Everett on his way to a championship. A 14-4 major decision started his day before a pair of decisions led to the 165-pound crown. The sophomore from Mason, Ohio, used a 7-6 decision over host VMI's Shabaka Johns in the final bout.
Harvey earned the most bonus-points on the day for the Black Knights, earning a technical fall and a major decision. In the finals, the New Palestine, Ind., native faced off against the 18th-ranked 174-pounder in Jadaen Bernstein from Navy. After topping him 2-1 in last year's dual, Harvey came out on top once again, this time to the tune of 4-2.
Barnes earned an 18-1 technical fall in his opening match, but had to sweat out a 6-4 decision in the first sudden-victory period over Marshall Haas of The Citadel. He earned his second-consecutive championship in his final season from his home state with a 6-2 decision.
Parsons Jr. powered his way to the championship bout at 157-pounds for the second-straight year with two major decisions, but ran out of steam in the finals, suffering an 8-3 decision in the first tie breaker.
Imonode earned his second-straight runner-up honors at the All-Academy's after also starting out with a pair of major decisions. A 14-4 win over Derek Thurman of VMI led to a 10-2 bonus point win over Air Force's William Baker thanks to a late surge. He would suffer the team's only result by fall of the day, in the finals against Matthew Miller of Navy.
Farr opened the tournament with a 17-2 technical fall before being sent to the consolation bracket due to an 8-2 decision. A sudden-victory over Navy's Nick Mabry allowed the Cornwall, N.Y., native to place in the tournament. He powered his way to a 5-3 decision in the third-place match.
Harry battled back after dropping his first match and captured a 15-2 major decision to place in his first All-Academy's.
Army returns to the mat on Friday, Feb. 12, when the team travels to 4th-ranked Oklahoma State. The dual is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. ET.
For up-to-date information on Army wrestling visit GoArmyWestPoint.com and follow @ArmyWP_Wres on Twitter.
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