CEDAR RAPIDS, IA. -- Oneonta wrestling seniors Avery Leonard (Milford, N.Y./Milford Central), Carson LiCastri (Easton, CT/Joel Barlow High School), and Jack Ryan (Trumbull, CT/) competed in the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships in Cedar Rapids, Iowa this past weekend. Leonard totaled three wins in the tournament at 149 pounds, while Ryan and LiCastri each recorded a win at 184 and 197 pounds, respectively. Leonard and Ryan both finished in the top 12 of their respective brackets. As a team, the Red Dragons placed 43rd out of 62 teams with 6.0 points. Wartburg College won the team event with 110.0 points.

Avery Leonard (Milford, N.Y./Milford Central), 149 pounds –
Leonard went 3-2 at the tournament with three decision victories. He won his first match against Ty Stewart (Springfield) in a 7-3 decision. The Red Dragon came out quick and scored a takedown 25 seconds into the contest, then another one 13 seconds into the second period for a 7-2 lead. Leonard showed great defense against Stewart in the final two minutes and was only called for stalling with 20 seconds left in the match for the 7-3 final.

His second match was against Cole Handlovic (Stevens Tech), the four seed of the 149 pound bracket. Handlovic recorded a takedown in each period for an eventual 11-0 major.

On the consolation side, Leonard took on Adam Whittier (Wisconsin-Platteville) and defeated him in a 10-4 decision. The Milford, N.Y.-native scored a takedown in each period and an escape in the third for the win.

After he beat Whittier, Leonard competed against Caleb Olson (Wartburg) and outlasted him Olson in a 6-4 decision. Oneonta's 149 pounder was too quick for Olson early as he recorded two takedowns for a quick 6-2 lead within the first minute of the match. Olson gained riding time during the second period then an escape to start the third, however for the last 1:55, Leonard defended himself from Olson's shots and picked up the win.

In the second round of the consolation side, Leonard faced Angelo Centrone (Cortland). Following an intense first round where neither side allowed the other to score, Leonard started on the bottom in the second round and earned the escape five seconds in. Unfortunately, at 3:33 in the match, Centrone recorded a takedown for the fall.

Jack Ryan (Trumbull, CT/), 184 pounds -
Ryan went 1-2 with a major decision at the tournament as he came up short in two tough sudden victories decisions. As the tournament's eight seed, his first match was against nine seeded Landry Barker (Loras). Ryan controlled and overpowered Barker from the start, totaling a takedown in each period and over three minutes of riding time for an 11-0 major decision.

His second match was in the championship quarterfinals against top seeded Ganon Smith (Elizabethtown). Neither wrestler could get the advantage over the other throught the match. Following a scoreless opening period, Ryan started the second period on bottom and escaped after Smith gained 1:10 of riding time. In the third period, Ryan held Smith down for 11 seconds and made riding time a non-factor.

In the closing seconds of the match, it looked as though Ryan took Smith to his back, however the refs did not signal the three. The Red Dragons were unable to challenge the call, since they challenged a previous call earlier in the day during one of Leonard's matches, and Ryan's match with Smith went into sudden victory. With 30 seconds remaining in the first overtime period, Smith scored the takedown for the 4-1 decision.

The Trumbull, Ct.-native's third match was against Easton Hall (Wisconsin-Stevens Point) and played out similar to his one against Smith. Following a scoreless first period, Ryan escaped from Hall early in the second. Despite being the aggressor throughout the match, the Red Dragon was tagged with a stalling warning in the final seconds in the second period. Hull escaped from Ryan quickly in the third period to make riding irrelevant, and the two went into overtime. With less than 30 seconds left in overtime, Ryan defended himself from Hull, and the two wrestlers went out of play. The officials however deemed that Ryan had stalled and penalized him, giving Hull the 2-1 sudden victory decision.

Carson LiCastri (Easton, CT/Joel Barlow High School), 197 pounds -
LiCastri went 1-2 with a decision victory at the tournament. In his first match, he went up against Zach Borzio (Williams). LiCastri looked strong right away and secured a takedown with less than a minute left in the first period. He then held Borzio down to the mat and gained over 1:20 of riding time in the second. In the final period, the 197-pound Red Dragon reversed his Eph opponent and finished the match with over 3:00 of riding time for a 6-1 decision.

The Easton, Ct.-native's second match was against three seeded Lorenzo Pellot-Vazquez (Roanoke). Pellot-Vazquez recorded a takedown in the first, but LiCastri managed to escape before the end of the period to trail only 3-1. After his Maroon opponent escaped in the second, LiCastri scored a takedown 15 seconds later and tied the match. Immediately after the takedown, LiCastri was close to scoring nearfall points and possibly a fall, but Pellot-Vazquez shifted his hips and reversed him to score a fall at 3:50.

LiCastri then took on Gabe Monroe (Coast Guard) in his third match. Monroe picked up the first takedown 30 seconds into the match as LiCastri escaped from him shortly after. The Red Dragon turned it up a gear in the second period for a takedown to head into the third tied at four.

The momentum continued for LiCastri early in the final two minutes of the match as he escaped and gained a takedown to go up 8-4 with 1:31 to play. Monroe got the escape 20 seconds later and registered a takedown to tie it up with 46 seconds left. After the Bear's takedown, Monroe let LiCastri escape, then he scred another takedown with 19 seconds to go for the 11-9 decision.

The tournament marks the end of the careers of the three senior Red Dragons. Leonard finished with a 72-10 record with 42 tech falls in his two years as a Red Dragon. He finished with a career record of 140-27 with 62 tech falls. LiCastri ended his career with a record of 107-22 with 53 falls, and Ryan capped his career off with a 104-17 record and 48 pins. LiCastri finished his campaign third in program history in career pins and tied for seventh in total wins, while Ryan ended his tied for fourth in career pins with senior Kennith Jackson (New Orleans, LA/) and 10th in total wins.

NCAA Championship Results - Avery Leonard (Milford, N.Y./Milford Central)
Championship Prelim. - Leonard 7-3 decision over Ty Stewart (Springfield)
Championship First Round - Cole Handlovic (Stevens) 11-0 major over Leonard
Consolation Prelim. - Leonard 10-4 decision over Adam Whittier (Wisconsin-Platteville)
Consolation First Round - Leonard 6-4 decision over Caleb Olson (Wartburg)
Consolation Second Round - Angelo Centrone (Cortland) 3:33 fall over Leonard

NCAA Championship Results - Carson LiCastri (Easton, CT/Joel Barlow High School)
Championship Prelim. - LiCastri 6-1 decision over Zach Borzio (Williams)
Championship First Round - Lorenzo Pellot-Vazquez (Roanoke) 3:50 fall over LiCastri
Consolation Prelim. - Gabe Monroe (Coast Guard) 11-9 over LiCastri

NCAA Championship Results - Jack Ryan (Trumbull, CT/) 
Championship First Round - Ryan 11-0 major decision over Landry Barker (Loras)
Championship Quarterfinals - Ganon Smith (Elizabethtown) 4-1 sudden victory decision over Ryan
Consolation Second Round - Easton Hall (Wisconsin-Stevens Point) 2-1 sudden victory decision over Ryan