WILKES-BARRE, Pa. – Ryan Smith won his second straight 157-pound title,
Blaise Wagner earned his first crown at 197 pounds,
Carmen Cortese took second at 149 pounds, and
Joel Martsinovsky took second at 184 pounds to round out the four finalists for the Stevens Institute of Technology wrestling team, who took third at the 2025 Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Championships on Saturday.
Alvernia won five individual titles en route to the team championship. The Ducks finished with 115.5 points, 8.5 back of second-place Messiah.
FULL Results:
1. Alvernia - 159
2. Messiah - 124
3. Stevens - 115.5
4. Delaware Valley - 64
5. King's - 60.5
6. Misericordia - 56.5
7. York - 41.5
Chris Stathopoulos (165 pounds),
Joseph Russell (197 pounds),
Max Ruiz (285 pounds), and
Tyler Venet (157 pounds) all finished third in their respective brackets for the Ducks.
The Rundown
- Smith, the 1-seed in the class, started his day with a fall in 2:06, then advanced to the semifinals with an 18-1 technical fall victory. In the semifinals, Smith held 5-seed MJ Turi without a point, taking an 8-0 major decision. In the final against 2-seed Jason Rezac, Smith secured takedowns in the first and third periods in a 9-3 title-clinching decision win.
- Also the 1-seed in his bracket, Wagner posted pinfalls in his first two matches of the day. In the semifinal against 4-seed Micah Kunkle, Wagner secured three takedowns and two near falls in the first period, closing out his 17-2 technical fall victory just seconds into the second period. In the final against second-seeded Sawyer Dereszynski, Wagner picked up one takedown in the first period, two in the second, and three in the third during a 22-6 technical fall win.
- Martsinovsky, yet another one seed for the Ducks, started his day on the mats with a 20-3 decision win in the Round of 16 and a 5-0 decision in the quarterfinals. After an 11-4 decision win over 4-seeded Hayden McLellan in the semis, Martsinovsky led the championship match 1-0 and 2-1, but eventually dropped a 3-2 decision to 2-seed Ryder Slayton.
- The final 1 seed for the Ducks, Cortese';s day began with a 12-3 major decision victory. In the semis against 4-seed Dalton Monger of Messiah, Cortese trailed 3-0 after an early takedown, but recovered to take a 5-3 advantage before securing the pinfall all before the end of the first period. Cortese's title hopes were dashed with a technical fall loss to 2-seed Chance Babb in the final
- Competing for just the second time since November 2, Russell, unranked in the bracket, picked up decision victories over 3-seed Richard Fronheiser in the Round of 16 and 6-seed Jason Chiodi Jr in the quarterfinals. After a defeat in the semifinals, Russell picked up a fall in just 40 seconds in the consolation semifinals, then claimed third with an 18-2 technical fall over 4-seed Micah Kunkle in the third place bout.
- The 6-seed at 285 pounds, Ruiz picked up wins by major decision, pin, and technical fall before claiming third with an 8-2 decision win.
- After suffering a defeat in his first bout of the day, Venet ran through the consolation draw with two pins (both in 90 seconds or less), an 8-0 major decision win, and an 11-7 decision victory in the third place bout.
- Elsewhere, Jack Bailey & Harrison Hinojosa took fourth place at 165 and 174 pounds, respectively, and Chris Piazza & Branden Bulatao each took sixth place at 174 and 184 pounds, respectively.
Up Next
The Ducks return to Pennsylvania for the Elizabethtown-hosted Ken Ober Invitational next Saturday, January 25.
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