The Keiser wrestling team earned their first wins at the NAIA National Championship in Wichita, Kansas on Friday. After becoming just the second and third national qualifiers, Patrick Gould and Earnest Johnson made statement wins at the tournament.


"We didn't get the results that we were looking for, but there's no doubt that we're headed in the right direction," said Head Coach, Nick Soto. " Earnest (Johnson) has been a consistent leader throughout the year. He wrestled his tail off this weekend and battled through a tough bracket. He pulled off multiple upsets, which is not easy to do at the national tournament. Pat (Gould) battled through a tough bracket in his first full tournament of the year. We went down big in the round of 16, but he didn't let it phase him. He showed a lot of heart and kept looking to find ways to score points. In no way are we satisfied, but I am proud of how we prepared and competed. Next year we will be bringing back some hardware to West Palm Beach."



Championship Round 1
No. 8 Patrick Gould MD Donavan Parn (Missouri Valley), 16-6

Championship Round 2
No. 9 Julian Hernandez (Life) dec. Patrick Gould, 6-5

Consolation Round 2
Patrick Gould MD Tyler Okada (Waldorf), 12-1

Consolation Round 3
Joseph Rice (Missouri Valley) MD Patrick Gould, 16-8

 
Championship Round 1
No. 11 KC Buday (Providence) dec. Earnest Johnson, 5-1

Consolation Round 2
Earnest Johnson TB-1 Carlos Figueroa (Lindsey Wilson), 4-2

Consolation Round 3
Earnest Johnson dec. Bradon Antesberger (Doane), 3-2

Consolation Round 4
No. 2 Odgerel Batkhisig (Doane) fall Earnest Johnson, 0:29