Karibo Earns Runner-Up Honors, Wildcats Finish 14th at MVC Invite

MARSHALL, Mo. – Baker men's wrestling's Malachi Karibo took second in the 197-pound division of the highly-competitive Missouri Valley Invite this past weekend in Marshall, Mo. where the Wildcats came in 14th overall.

Baker totaled 67 points to finish 14th in the team standings, putting them just ahead of conference teams Graceland (58.5) and Central Methodist (54.5). Tournament winner Grand View (192) and the hosts MVC (124.5) were the only Heart programs to finish above the Wildcats in the 45-team field.

Karibo teamed up with fellow senior Brett Bober as the BU wrestlers to earn placement honors at the weekend tournament after Bober placed fifth in the 184-pound bracket.

After firing off three straight wins in Friday's opener, Karibo secured his spot in the title match with a dramatic 7-6 decision win in the semifinals. The championship bout featured a top-8 matchup with the fifth-ranked Karibo going up against the NAIA's No. 8 wrestler and resulted in Karibo falling by decision.

Bober won his first three matches of the weekend as well, but had to work his way back through the consolation bracket after falling in the quarterfinals. He added two more wins with his final win coming in the placement match that saw him pin a top-10 wrestler to claim fifth place.

As the third Wildcat to reach the quarterfinals, Joey Hancock followed up a tech fall win in his first bout at 165 pounds with a pin in his second match before bowing out of the tournament in the sixth round of the consolation bracket.

Wrestling at 149 pounds, Dallas Koelzer and Jakob Stovall combined for five wins with Koelzer delivering back-to-back wins to start the tournament and Stovall picking up two straight pins and a tech fall victory in a solid showing for the junior from Spring Hill, Kan.

Joseph Triscornia recorded a pin in his first match in the 141-pound division before adding another win in the consolation third round.

Up next, the Wildcats will host Central Methodist for a Senior Night wrestling doubleheader along with the BU women's team on Wednesday, Jan. 24 in the Collins Center. With Senior Night festivities set to take place between the two duals, the women's match will begin at 6 p.m. with the men to follow at approximately 7:15 p.m. in Baldwin City.

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