RESULTS

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Fifth-years Jacob Sherzer and Casey Allen made strong season debuts in the Sunshine State, heading five Cornell placewinners at the Citrus Invitational Thursday and Friday.
 
The Rams totaled 99 points over the two-day tournament and finished fifth in the 16-team field, won by third-ranked Augsburg with 219.5 points. Cornell was only 1.5 points behind fourth-place Roanoke.
 
The Rams beat two nationally-ranked teams in No. 10 John Carroll (73 points) and No. 16 New York University (75.5 points).
 
Sherzer highlighted Cornell's efforts, going 5-1 for third place at 174 pounds in his first competition since regionals last February. Sherzer lost by fall in the quarterfinals (5:21) to eventual champion Seth Goetzinger of Augsburg.
 
Sherzer rebounded with four consecutive wins on the consolation side, capped by a 12-6 decision over Augsburg's 14th-rated Adam Sylvester in the third-place bout.   
 
Junior Treyten Steffen (7-6) placed fourth in the 197-pound class with a 4-2 mark. He was edged 4-3 by top-seeded Bryce Walker of NCAA Division II UNC-Pembroke in the third-place match.
 
Sophomore 184-pounder Cael McLaren won his final match of the tournament, 4-1 over William Smith of Williams, to secure fifth place. McLaren (9-7) finished 5-2 with a pin and major decision.  
 
Allen, the 2021 Citrus champion at 165, gave the Rams a boost in his anticipated return to the lineup. He went 3-0 with a pin and technical fall during Day 1 to advance to the semifinals. Allen did not wrestle on the second day and wound up sixth.
 
The Rams also received a sixth-place showing from freshman Gabriel Smith at 157. Smith (15-8) earned bonus points in two of his four wins. He dropped a 6-5 decision to Roanoke's Zane Cox in the fifth-place match.
 
Cornell crowned two champions in the Day 2 Warrior Bracket with Evan Husko at 133 and Landon Card at 149. Both Rams went 4-0 on Friday.
 
Jayden Rael (125) and Jackson Brinker (197) both finished runner-up at their respective weights in the Warrior Bracket. Carter Fecht (141), Eli Sneed (141) and Austin Wilkins (165) all took fourth.
 
Cornell had 27 wrestlers compete in the tournament.
 
Cornell placewinners
157 – Gabriel Smith (6th, 4-3). 165 – Casey Allen (6th, 3-0). 174 – Jacob Sherzer (3rd, 5-1). 184 – Cael McLaren (5th, 5-2). 197 – Treyten Steffen (4th, 4-2).
 
Coming up – Cornell hosts the annual Cliff Keen-Mike Duroe Invitational Jan. 14 in the arena of the Small Athletic and Wellness Center. Action begins at 9 a.m.