GRANTHAM, Pa. (January 15, 2022)  – The Stevens Institute of Technology wrestling team won four individual titles Saturday to capture the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Championship for the second time.

Junior Kyle Slendorn topped the field at 141, graduate student Brett Kaliner placed first at 149, junior Stefan Major took gold at 174, and senior Michael Dooley placed first at 197, as Stevens totaled 134.5 points to top the eight-team field. The conference championship is the seventh straight for the Ducks, with five taking place in the Centennial Conference from 2015-19, and the sixth coming in 2020 in the program's first year in the MAC. The 2021 MAC Championships were not contested. The individual titles were the second MAC crowns for Slendorn, Kaliner and Dooley, while Major earned his first career conference title. 

"Really proud of the way the guys wrestled today," head coach Joe Favia said. "From top to bottom, they all wrestled hard, worked to score points and gave their best effort. Our depth across the board was on full display today and it's depth in our wrestling room that will prepare us for March."

In addition to the four individual titles, Stevens had two runner-up finishes and two third-place finishes to total nine medals. Over two events, the Ducks have amassed 10 individual champions, which ranks 17th all-time in the MAC's lengthy history, leapfrogging current Division I programs Drexel, Rider, and Bucknell. 

"There are high expectations around this program and guys embrace that and they let it drive them," Favia added. "We are excited to hang another banner, but we are eager to get back to working towards our ultimate goal."

Hosting Messiah finished second on the team leaderboard with 114 points, with Alvernia (98.5), York (89.5) and Wilkes (88.5) rounding out the top five. 

Junior Akhil Vega finished second at 125, junior Hunter Gutierrez and sophomore Nick Boggiano placed second and third, respectively, at 157, and junior Frank Medina and sophomore Joel Martsinovsky finished second and third as Stevens swept the medals at 174, to round out the medalists. The Ducks' medal sweep at 174 is the first for the conference in any weight class since 2016, when Wilkes swept the medals at 141.

All-Conference recognition is determined by the medalists in each weight class. The champions are named to the All-MAC First Team, the runner-up is named Second Team All-MAC and third-place finisher is named to the league's Third Team.

Slendorn began his march to the 141-pound title with three straight falls, including two in the first period. The Howell, New Jersey native capped off his title run with a 5-1 decision over Messiah's Josiah Gehr. Slendorn led all student-athletes in the field with 21 team points.

Kaliner, the nation's top-ranked 149-pounder, received a first-round bye and then scored three consecutive bonus-point wins to capture his fourth conference crown. The West Chester, Pennsylvania native posted first-period pins of Delaware Valley's Zachary Zuckerman and Greg Croce before posting a 24-6 tech fall over Messiah's Jake Coniglio in the championship match.

After receiving a bye through the first round of the 174-pound bracket, Major scored three straight decisions, including a thrilling 3-2 margin over Medina in the championship match to capture his first conference championship. 

Dooley earned his second conference championship with a 3-2 decision over York's Camden Farrow in the final. The Hillsborough, New Jersey native began his tournament with a first-round bye before posting a dominating 15-0 tech fall over Lycoming's Jacob Davis in the quarterfinals. 

The Ducks totaled 21 pins, nine more than any other team in the field. The Ducks also amassed five tech falls, which also led the field and finished the tournament with a 62-32 record for a .660 winning percentage. Individually, Slendorn, Medina and junior Jonah Schechtman each had three pins to lead the Ducks, with Wilkes' Nevin Rauch and Alvernia's Quinn Tobin each scoring four pins to lead the field. Boggiano led all competitors with two tech falls. Medina's 36-second pin of Joseph Davis of King's in the opening round was the second-fastest fall of the tournament. 

Perhaps most impressively was the Ducks' overall performance at 174, where in addition to Major's championship, Medina had three pins to reach the championship match and Martsinovsky had a pair of majors and rebounded with a 4-2 decision over Kade Kravits in the third-place match to claim his first conference medal.

Vega placed second at 125, falling in sudden victory to York's Jared Kuhns. The Cupertino, California native reached the finals with a 21-6 tech fall over Delaware Valley's Merlin Senat and a 6-5 decision over the Aggies' Ryan Kelly in the semifinals. 

The Ducks had four entrants in the field at 157, with the four wrestlers claiming second, third, fourth and fifth. Gutierrez, who ultimately finished second, defeated Boggiano to drop the second-year grappler into the consolation bracket. However, Boggiano scored tech falls over Schechtman and first-year Chris Stathopoulos to capture bronze.

First-year Jack Bailey had six matches in his first conference tournament, closing out his day with a pin of Wilkes' Charles Everdale in the fifth-place bout. Classmate Brendan Newbury was one of two Ducks (joining Stathopoulos) to place fourth, picking up two victories and a medical forfeit to total 11.5 team points.

Schechtman had four bonus-point wins at 157, junior James Snyder added a pin and a major, first-year Blaise Wagner had two pins, senior Robert Gennat added a pin, and first-year Joseph Russell had a major to round out the Ducks' victories on the day.

Up Next: Wrestling returns to the mats on Jan. 21 for a dual with the United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, New York. A link for live video is available on StevensDucks.com.

Facebook: "Like" Stevens Athletics
Twitter: @stevensducks
Instagram: @stevensducks
#AllRise