Bradley Central wrestlers bump off Baylor, 43-30

Bradley Central's D.J. Gibson, top, prepares to take down Baylor's Sam Reynolds Tuesday at Baylor. Gibson pinned Reynolds in the 220 weight class.
Bradley Central's D.J. Gibson, top, prepares to take down Baylor's Sam Reynolds Tuesday at Baylor. Gibson pinned Reynolds in the 220 weight class.

The intensity between the Bradley Central and Baylor wrestling teams Tuesday night at Baylor matched the rankings accorded to each, and the top-ranked visiting Bears came out on top.

As a matter of fact, they locked up the 43-30 victory over the fourth-ranked Red Raiders with four matches still to be wrestled in front of a lively full house.

"That was fun. It was about what we expected," Bradley coach Ben Smith said. "I felt we'd get a few more bonus points in some of the matches, and I thought (Baylor) did a good job fighting off their backs in some situations. Any time you can get a win over one of the most storied programs in Tennessee wrestling history, you have to feel good."

Bradley (8-0) dominated, rolling up a 37-12 advantage through 10 matches and clinching the win in that 10th match on a 10-4 decision from 152-pound Austin Matthews.

At one point the Bears reeled off five consecutive victories starting with Wesley Devaney (106) and continuing through T.J. Hicks (113), Trey Hicks (120), Ethan Anderson (126) and Ryan McElhaney (132). The Hicks brothers and McElhaney had pins, T.J. getting his in just 14 seconds, and Devaney just missed a technical fall.

The Red Raiders' Austin Atchley broke the streak with a pin at 138, but the Bears countered with wins from Knox Fuller and Mathews.

Baylor (4-1) began closing the gap with pins from Mason Reiniche (160) and Khamari Whimper, which sandwiched an injury default victory by Riley Westlake (170).

"I knew at 170 the way my 170 (Henley Headrick) wrestles that somebody was going to their back in that match," Smith said.

Westlake was taken to his back by Headrick in what was judged to be an illegal throw and was unable to continue. Initial reports were that he had suffered a concussion, and he was headed to the hospital for tests.

"I hope Westlake is OK. The outcome of that one the way it started out was going to be six points for somebody," the Bradley coach said.

All five of Baylor's victories produced maximum bonus points, although the Red Raiders are likely to do some retooling in the upper weights when health issues are resolved.

"We're going to get better and it's going to be a fun year," Baylor coach Ben Nelson said. "It gets frustrating when you don't see immediate results, but we're going to be fine. But Bradley wrestled great. That's why we love to get to wrestle those guys. It's a good indicator of where we are and where we need to be."

Contact Ward Gossett at wgossett@timesfreepress.com or 423-886-4765. Follow him on Twitter.com/wardgossett.

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