Campbell wrestlers earn SoCon All-Freshman honors

Assistant Coach Rocco Caponi and Head Coach Joe Boardwine (photo by Bennett Scarborough)

Spartanburg, S.C. – The Southern Conference Wrestling awards were announced this morning, and Campbell wrestlers were recognized by earning five of the ten spots on the All-Freshman team. James Cook (Madera, Calif.), Mark Hartenstine (Easton, Pa.), Ryan Krecker (Nazareth, Pa.), Joe Nolan (Jackson, N.J.) and Joey Rizzolino (Easton, Pa.) were selected to the team.

Cook is 19-8 this season with three pins and three major decisions. His fastest pin came over Anderson's Dalton Harper in the first match of the season. The redshirt freshman finished 3-2 in Southern Conference matches.

Hartenstine recorded a 5-1 record against SoCon competition this season and stands at 18-11 overall with three pins, two tech falls and five major decisions. Wrestling at 149 pounds the entire season, his fastest pin came over Millersville's Steve Hess in 2:38.

Krecker holds a 12-9 record after splitting time between 157 and 165 pounds. A true freshman, Krecker finished with a 3-1 SoCon record this season and recorded one pin, one tech fall and one major decision overall.

Nolan stands at 12-14 overall in the heavyweight division, with two pins and one major decision. The true freshman out of Jackson HS finished 3-3 against SoCon competition. Nolan holds an overtime win over Indiana's Jowan Gill to his credit this season.

Rizzolino is 9-12 overall, wrestling at 133 and 141 pounds. The Easton HS product finished with a 4-1 record against SoCon competition, with his only loss coming against SoCon freshman of the year Nick Soto of Chattanooga. Rizzolino has one pin and four major decisions this season.

The 2012 Southern Conference Wrestling Championships, the 75th annual gathering of the league's wrestling teams, will take place on Saturday, March 3 at Chattanooga's McKenzie Arena in Chattanooga, Tenn. First round matches will begin at 10 a.m., with the finals slated to start at 6:30 p.m.