Rhoden Leads Wrestling At Doug Parker Invitational

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The American International College wrestling team had its best weekend to date at the Doug Parker Invitational hosted by crosstown rival Spring College Saturday.

The Yellow Jackets, led by a strong senior group, placed 12th of 18 teams with only seven point scorers and finished with 35.5 points. Stevens Institute of Technology claimed the invite (162.0). Williams (139.0) and the host Pride (127.0) rounded out the top three squads.

AIC senior Sheldon Rhoden (Hartford, Conn.) led the team, opening the day with a dominant win over his Springfield Technical Community College (STCC) opponent, 16-0. It then took only 53 seconds to claim the fall over his Centenary counterpart and 14 seconds to pin the 197-pounder from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to reach the semifinals. In his semis bout with Stevens, Rhoden led, but gave up the decision to the eventual champion. Rhoden quickly rebounded, earning a major decision over Rhode Island College and ending the impressive day with a 28 pin against Wesleyan.

Senior heavyweight Soslan Khamitcaev (St. Petersburg, Russia) also rolled to the semifinals, pinning his opponent from Southern Maine before claiming a decision over Daniel Webster to reach the semis. Khamitcaev fell to the eventual heavyweight champ and was injury defaulted the rest of the match.

Brandon Riggins, a former NJCAA All-American, made his Yellow Jacket debut and started with a decision over a Division II Regional opponent from East Stroudsburg. Riggins then fell by way of decision to the United States Coast Guard Academy and injury defaulted the remainder of the tournament.

AIC freshmen Caleb Thompson (Springfield, Mass.) and Nick Kushner (Springfield, Mass.) also recorded wins on the day, both over Southern Maine opponents. Thompson picked up his win by fall, while Kushner snagged his victory by riding time point. 

Complete Results:
http://sidearm.sites.s3.amazonaws.com/wnecgoldenbears.com/documents/2015/11/21/Doug_Parker_Brackets.pdf?id=1152 
 

The Yellow Jackets next travel to the University of Southern Maine for the Ted Reese Invitational Saturday, Dec. 5 in Gorham, Maine.