Aidan Thompson
Assistant Sports Editor
Anchormen wrestling took part in Springfields Doug Parker invitational this past weekend where they placed fifth out of 14 teams. Senior Nathan Lackman won the 165-pound championship, being one of four RIC wrestlers who placed at this meet.
RIC finished the meet having a team score of 86.5 points while Coast Guard, who placed first, earned a team score of 153.0 points.
The Anchormen have high hopes for this season as they are coming off a great season last year where Lackman took home the NCAA Division III that season. However, Lackman isn’t the only notable wrestler on this team. Juniors Christopher McCarthy, Michael Alfonso and Sophomore Fred Luchs also placed during the meet.
Lackman ended the meet with a sweeping 4-0 record, earning four technical falls through those wins. He was victorious over the Coast Guard’s Steven Rochard, having an impressive score of 20-3.
Alfonso had gone 5-1 in the 285 lbs weight class, earning three pins and finishing fifth. The season is still young and early on, but Alfonso has proved he is a force to be reckoned with in his current weight class.
McCarthy placed sixth in the 174 lbs weight class. During the meet, McCarthy also finished 5-1 throughout his matches, getting three pins and one technical fall en route to his sixth place finish.
Luchs, who placed sixth, competed in the 125 lbs weight class where he shined. He finished the day 4-1. All four of the wins were pins. During the first match he had, in less than a minute, Luchs pinned Dan McLaughlin, a wrestler for Western New England University. As he continues to get recognition and wrestles well, Luchs could piece together an impressive sophomore season during his time at RIC.
Entering the season, the Anchormen were ranked 12th in pre season rankings. Led by Head Coach Jay Jones, the team has expectations to fill. Lackman begins his senior season with an impressive victory during this meet, and it might be a sign of what is to come during the rest of the season. He may not be able to top his season from last year, but he aims to. Lackman is the most notable wrestler here at RIC due to last year, but Alfonso, McCarthy and Luchs all make strong cases for their name to be known during the season.
The Anchormen will have a couple of weeks to work out any discrepancies they may have had during this meet. Their next meet isn’t until Dec. 2, where they will travel to Western New England and start their meet at 6 p.m.