LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Celebrating eight seniors and honoring the military in their final home dual of the season, the Bellarmine University wrestling team closed out the home portion of its schedule with its largest margin of victory, taking down Davidson 42-3 on Sunday afternoon.
 
"I'm so grateful for the contributions of our seniors. They've seen a really cool transformation over the last four seasons and through our transition to Division I," head coach Ned Shuck said of the eight seniors the team honored before today's dual. "That's loyalty through and through. The foundation they created for this program will carry on for generations."
 
The win marks the third in a row for the Knights who are now above .500 for the first time this season with a 4-3 overall record and 3-2 record in the Southern Conference. With the loss, Davidson moves to 3-12 on the season and 1-5 in SoCon duals.
 
"A huge thank you to Danny Hayes and the entire DWP team for helping us make the best home dual environment again this season for our wrestlers and our fans," said Shuck on the team's partnership with Danny Wimmer Presents.
 
Starting at the 157-pound weight class, Bellarmine got on the board immediately as Jeb Prechtel was awarded six team points for a win by forfeit.
 
In the first match wrestled, Davidson pulled out a narrow 12-11 decision at 165 for its only win of the day.
 
From there, it was all Bellarmine. Grant O'Dell (174) started the win train with a 6-1 decision over Marc Koch before Devan Hendricks (184) earned a dominant 20-5 tech fall win over Brett Sanderlin in his final career dual bout in Knights Hall.
 
Andrew Liber and the Knights earned six more free points at 197 due to another forfeit.
 
The action picked up again with the heavyweights as Daulton Mayer secured yet another win by fall, defeating DJ Spring II in 0:33. The fall is Mayer's 13^th of the season, moving him into sole possession of second place in the NCAA in wins by pin this season.
 
Moving into the lightweights, Jack Parker (125) kept his win streak alive with a 15-0 tech fall win over Enis Ljikovic, followed by Trayce Eckman (133) with a tech fall win of his own, defeating Hale Robinson 18-2.
 
AJ Rallo, the 25^th ranked wrestler in the 141-pound weight class by FloWrestling, continued his impressive streak of wins with a 3-1 decision over Tyson Sherlock, ranked the 31^st wrestler in the class in the NCAA Coaches' Poll. Zac Cowan capped the day off with a 7-1 decision win over Tyler-Xavier McKnight.
 
"What a way to send out our seniors and honor our military and veterans. The guys were aggressive and wrestled with excitement," Shuck added on his team's effort. "Love to see their confidence growing more and more as we get closer to the post season. Can't Wait!"
 
Up next, Bellarmine hits the road for its final three duals of the regular season, traveling first to Boiling Springs, NC to take on Gardner-Webb University on Friday, February 14^th.
 
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Bellarmine 42 vs. Davidson 3
157: Jeb Prechtel (BELL) win by forfeit
165: Bryce Griffin (DC) def. Cole Nance (BELL) by Dec, 12-11
174: Grant O'Dell (BELL) def. Marc Koch (DC) by Dec, 6-1
184: Devan Hendricks (BELL) def. Brett Sanderlin (DC) by TF, 20-5
197: Andrew Liber (BELL) win by forfeit
285: Daulton Mayer (BELL) def. DJ Spring II (DC) by Fall, 0:33
125: Jack Parker (BELL) def. Enis Ljikovic by TF, 15-0
133: Trayce Eckman (BELL) def. Hale Robinson (DC) by TF, 18-2
141: AJ Rallo (BELL) def. Tyson Sherlock (DC) by Dec, 3-1
149: Zac Cowan (BELL) def. Tyler-Xavier McKnight (DC) by Dec, 7-1