March 10, 2002

LARAMIE, Wyo. -

For the second consecutive season University of Wyoming sophomore Levi Prevost has qualified to compete at the 2002 NCAA Wrestling Championships after his second place finish on Saturday at the 2002 West Regional in Fresno, Calif.

Prevost, from Sidney, Mont., wrestled his way into the championships match of the 157 pound class before falling to eventual champion Frank DeFillippis of Eastern Illinois, 4-3 in two overtimes. Prevost faced Fresno State's Ben Baca in the true second place match defeating him 10-9, to take second and earn a wild-card invitation to the NCAA Championships.

All ten of Wyoming's wrestlers placed helping the Pokes place third in the five team field with 62.5 points. Northern Iowa won the West Regional team title with 107.5 points followed by Fresno State in second with 67.5. Air Force placed fourth with 56.5 points followed by Eastern Illinois in fifth with 27. The Cowboys also placed third last season at the West Regional.

"We competed better than we have competed all year long," said Wyoming head coach Steven Suder. "I couldn't have been more proud to have been sitting in each guy's corner. Every guy placed and they had to win at least one match to have that happen. They all went above and beyond the call of duty. The way things shook out they just got beat by better guys each time. We didn't lost a match that we shouldn't have lost."

At 125 pounds UW sophomore Reynold Candelaria won his first match 11-4 over Dexter Wright of Eastern Illinios 11-4 before dropping his next two matches to take fourth place.

Senior Kelly McConville also won his first match in the 133 pound division putting him in the championship match against Northern Iowa's Mark Manchio. McConville fell to Manchio 2-1 to take second.

UW's Mark Hamrick, a senior from Wheatland, Wyo., dropped his first match before going on to win his next two to claim third at 141.

At 174, redshirt freshman E.K. Waldhaus went 1-2 at the tourney taking fourth. Waldhaus lost a close 4-3 match to eventual champ Terry Perham of Air Force in his second match.

Sophomore Kevin Kessner battled his way to a third place showing after taking out AFA's Josh McCrary in the wrestle-back bracket 10-2. Kessner finished the tournament with a 2-1 record.

True freshman Malcolm Havens turned some heads with his third place showing in the 197 pound match. Havens went 2-2 and defeated Eastern Illinios' Jim Kassner by fall to take third. Fresno State's Marcio Botelho defeated Havens in the true second match. Poke heavyweight Brad Steele also placed third, going 2-1 giving him a team leading 29 wins.

Unfortunately for the Cowboys only Prevost was selected as a wild-card for the NCAA Championships. The winners in each weight class earned an automatic berth to the NCAA Championships. The next best nine wrestlers qualified based on a vote by the coaches of the five participating teams.

"It was very disappointing that we only qualified one of our guys for the national championships. We have three guys with 20 wins who'll be sitting at home who really deserved to be picked to go the the NCAA meet." Suder said.