Complete All-Ohio Athletic Conference Wrestling Team (.pdf)
WESTERVILLE, Ohio – Eight Baldwin Wallace University men's wrestlers have been selected to the All-Ohio Athletic Conference wrestling team while head coach Jamie Gibbs, associate head coach Jason Zastrow and the rest of the BW coaching staff were selected as the Coaching Staff of the Year for the second straight season.
Senior and No. 3 nationally ranked 125-pounder Jacob Decatur (Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy), junior and No. 1 nationally ranked 149-pounder Michael Petrella (Reynoldsburg/Bishop Hartley), sophomore and No. 9 nationally ranked 157-pounder Tommy West (Avon Lake/St. Edward) and senior All-American and No. 4 nationally ranked 197-pounder Doug Byrne (Wickliffe) and Academic All-OAC 285-pounder Matthew Werts (Buffalo, N.Y./St. Joseph's Collegiate Institute) were named to the first team. Junior and No. 3 nationally ranked 133-pounder Jaden Hinton (Glassboro, N.J.), junior Academic All-OAC 141-pounder Robby Palmieri (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine-Richland) and senior Academic All-OAC 174-pounder Luke Hopkins (Cuyahoga Heights) were selected to the second team.
Decatur, who garners his second accolade, is the defending NCAA Division III 125-pound Champion. This season, he has a record of 20-1 with four major decisions, three technical falls and two pins. Decatur was the 125-pound champion at the Manchester (Ind.) University Spartan Mat Classic and the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission 2022 Collegiate Male Athlete of the Year Finalist. For his career, Decatur has a record of 55-2 with 12 technical falls, nine major decisions and six pins. He is a two-time OAC Wrestler of the Week selection.
Petrella, who earns his second honor, is the 2022 NCAA Division III 149-pound national runner-up. He is tied for the fifth on the team in victories with 25 but is the lone wrestler without a loss on the season. Petrella is second on the squad with 13 pins. He has recorded four major decisions and three technical falls. Petrella is a two-time OAC Wrestler of the Week and two-time individual champions. For his career, Petrella has a record of 64-4 with 25 pins, nine major decisions and six technical falls. Off the mat, he is a National Wrestling Coaches Association Scholar All-American.
West, who garners his first accolade, has a career-best tying 22 victories with just three losses. He has recorded five pins, two technical falls and two major decisions. He was the 157-pound champion at the 36th John Summa Invitational. For his career, West has a record of 44-14 with 18 pins, five technical falls and two major decisions.
Byrne, who garners his third honor, was also earned the OAC Most Falls in the Least Amount of Time Award as he had four pins in 8:14 in his seven league matches. He is tied for fifth on the team with a career-best tying 25 victories with just one loss. Byrne leads the team with a career-high 17 pins. He has recorded four major decisions and one technical fall. Byrne is a two-time OAC Wrestler of the Week and a two-time individual champion. For his career, Byrne is a National Wrestling Coaches Association All-American and has a record of 78-13, which ranks him tied for 27 on the school's all-time wins list. He has tallied 47 career pins, seven career major decisions and five career technical falls. Byrne is a 2020 NCAA Division III National Tournament qualifier at 184 pounds. Off the mat, he is a National Wrestling Coaches Association Scholar All-American.
Werts, who earns his first accolade, has a career-high tying 18 victories on the season with five pins and a career-best tying one major decision. For his career, Werts has 53 victories with 15 pins and three major decisions. Off the mat, he is a two-time Academic All-Ohio Athletic Conference performer, National Wrestling Coaches Association Scholar All-American, Dean's List student, Jacket Scholar and a member of the Chi Alpha Sigma and Dayton C. Miller honoraries.
Hinton, who earns his first accolade, is having his best season as a collegian. He is second on the team with a career-best 30 victories with just two losses. Hinton has recorded career-highs in major decisions with 11, technical falls with nine and pins with two. He was the OAC Wrestler of the Week on February 6 and is a three-time individual champion. For his career, Hinton was a 2022 NCAA Division III National Tournament qualifier at 133 pounds. He has a record of 60-13 with 23 major decisions, 17 technical falls and three pins.
Palmieri, who garners his first honor, is putting up career numbers in his third season. He is third on the team with a career-best 28 victories with 11 losses. Palmieri has recorded career-highs in major decisions with four, pins with three and technical falls with two. For his career, Palmieri has a record of 44-24 with five pins, five major decisions and three technical falls. Off the mat, he is an Academic All-OAC selection, Dean's List student and a Jacket Scholar.
Hopkins, who earns his first accolade, is 17-12 on the season with five technical falls and two major decisions. For his career, Hopkins has 40 victories with eight technical falls, six pins and five major decisions. Off the mat, he is a two-time Academic All-OAC selection, National Wrestling Coaches Association Scholar All-American, Dean's List student, Jacket Scholar and a member of the Chi Alpha Sigma and Dayton C. Miller honoraries.
BW is back in action on Saturday and Sunday, February 25 and 26 when it travels to Cleveland to compete in the NCAA Division III Central Regional Championships hosted by Case Western Reserve University in the Veale Athletic Center. Wrestling begins on Saturday at 10 a.m. with Sunday's action slated to start at 11 a.m.
The NCAA Division III National Championships will be contested on Friday and Saturday, March 10 and 11 at the Berglund Center in Roanoke, Virginia.
