MCMINNVILLE, Ore. - The Red Hawk wrestlers traveled to McMinnville, Oregon, to compete in the Mat Cat Open this past weekend. This year's tournament fielded five Cascade Conference teams competing against Simpson as well as San Francisco State.

The three top Red Hawk finishers included Benjamen Mitchell, David Rapp, and Benjamin Vega-Sanchez. 

Benjamen Mitchell had a great day in the 165 lb group as he pinned his way to the finals and then had a tough match with Corban University's Jesse Rubio. They fought to a 2-2 tie and went into triple overtime, where Mitchell scored an escape and take down to finish the match for the 6-5 victory.

David Rapp won his Semi-Final match against Eric Karas (EOU), who is ranked #20 in the nation, before falling in the finals.

Benjamin Vega Sanchez won three straight matches to get to the finals, including a strong 5-3 win over E. Franco (SFSU) but fell in the finals to #3-ranked Antonio Garcia due to injury default.

The Red Hawks look to be back in action at Sacramento City College on January 16th.
 

Be sure to stay up to date and follow us at @simpsonredhawks on Instagram, Facebook, and X.