Park City, Kan. – Just a day after earning the first NAIA All-America finish in program history, Friends University senior Braden Morgan completed his historic season with a fourth-place finish at the final day of the NAIA Men's Wrestling National Championship today (Mar. 8) at Park City Arena in Park City, Kan.
Morgan surged into the third-place match today with a 4-2 decision win over fourth-seeded Nico Rodriguez (Eastern Oregon) before losing a 9-1 majority decision to fifth-seeded Kenneth Copley (Embry-Riddle) to finish fourth overall after entering the championship tournament as the seventh seed in the 285-pound division.
A native of El Dorado, Kan., Morgan went 5-2 overall at the NAIA National Championship competition.
"Braden has been waiting patiently for his chance to compete in this tournament," said Friends men's wrestling head coach Tyler Mies. "His hard work throughout the years has shown through. He had a great tournament! His All-American status is a great step for this program. We are excited to have many more in the future!!!"
In addition to Morgan's performance, Ezavian Ortega (157 pounds) and Benedict Holthaus (174 pounds) were also national qualifiers and each won a match at the event.
"Ezavian has been sniffing this tournament for a couple of years now," said Mies. "Hoping he decides to come back and give it one last run. He is a great leader to have around! Benedict had a great true freshman season and continued to get better each and every week. We are beyond excited to continue to pursue his goals!"
The Falcons recorded 15 points as a team to finish 27th overall.
Final NAIA Men's Wrestling National Championship Bracket
