CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – Luke Werner (Bethlehem, Pa./Liberty) was second, Kyle Shoop (Boiling Springs, Pa./Boiling Springs) placed fourth and

Cole Manley (Altoona, Pa./Altoona) finished fifth, as the trio of placewinners led the way for the Lock Haven University wrestling team at the two-day (Jan. 1-2) 2020 Southern Scuffle, one of the premier in-season college wrestling tournaments.

Werner made an exciting two-day run, before finishing second overall at 125 pounds with a 4-1 record.

Shoop, nationally-ranked at 141, placed fourth in a deep bracket. He was 5-2 with a pair of day-one tech falls.

Manley, who was unseeded at 133, capped his breakout performance with a fifth-place finish. He was 6-2 overall in two days of action.

All three LHU wrestlers earned their spot in yesterday’s action on Day 2 of the Southern Scuffle after strong tournament-opening days.

With Werner (125), Shoop (141) and Manley (133) all placing, it marked Lock Haven’s second straight Southern Scuffle with at least three placewinners.

The trio of placewinners helped Lock Haven place 10th overall in the competitive team standings.

Werner went 3-0 in Day 1 action, which helped him book his spot in the semifinals.

Werner, the No. 6 seed at 125, returned to action for the first time since his redshirt was pulled on December 6 for the dual with Central Michigan, and looked as if he hadn’t missed a beat going 3-0 on Day 1 of the tournament. He recorded a major to open the day and earned a pin in the quarterfinals. In the quarters, Werner pinned Pitt’s Colton Camacho in 6:23.

Day 2, Werner won by medical forfeit in the semifinals and booked his trip to the Southern Scuffle finals. He was awarded the semifinal-win over Old Dominion’s Michael McGee, the No. 7 seed.

Werner, entered the title bout at 4-0 for the tournament. In the finals, Werner faced off vs. top-seed Nick Piccininni of Oklahoma State, who is ranked fourth in the country at 125. Werner was the aggressor in the first period, but he and Piccininni were scoreless after the opening period. Piccininni opened the scoring with a quick escape in the second and led Werner 4-0 after two. In the end, Werner dropped the final to the top-seed (MD, 10-0).

Werner’s berth into the finals made it back-to-back years were Lock Haven was represented in the Southern Scuffle finals.

Werner capped the two days with a 4-1 overall record. He had a major and a pin on the way to the finals.

Shoop rolled into the semifinal round after a brilliant Day 1.

Shoop, ranked among the top-20 nationally, entered as the No. 4 seed at 141. The returning All-American and three-time NCAA qualifier cruised into the semifinals with a dominating 4-0 record. He opened the day yesterday with back-to-back tech falls, outscoring the opposition in his first two matches of the tournament, 32-0 in less than seven minutes of action between the two bouts.

Shoop followed up the two techs with a pair of hard-fought wins, including a 6-5 quarterfinal-win over Jojo Aragona of Rutgers.

He opened Day 2 action vs. No. 1 seed Kaden Gfeller of Oklahoma State in the semifinals. Shoop scored a takedown midway through the second period vs. Gfleller and led 2-0, before the Oklahoma State Cowboy secured a reversal, which led to a pin. The loss dropped Shoop into the consolation semifinals, and he quickly bounced back with a 3-0 win over George Mason’s Alex Madrigal. The win over Madrigal pushed Shoop into the third-place match.

In the third-place match at 141, Shoop met another wrestler from Oklahoma State in unseeded Dusty Hone. Hone edged out Shoop, 3-1, for third place.

Shoop (4th overall) was 5-2 overall in two days of work.

Competing at 133 pounds, Manley went 3-1 Day 1 and was alive in the consolation round (4th Round). He opened Day 2 action with a win by medical forfeit, which secured him as a Southern Scuffle placewinner. In another consolation bout, Manely secured a dominating 14-2 major and improved to 5-1, which pushed the Bald Eagle into the consolation semifinals.

In the consolation semis, Manley was edged out 5-3 by top-seed Micky Phillippi of Pitt. The loss pushed Manley into the fifth-place bout where he took on No. 6 seed Devan Turner of Oregon State.

In the fifth-place bout, Manley won a thriller, upsetting Turner, 7-4 (TB-2) in a bout that went the distance and more.

Manley finished the two-day tournament at 6-2. He had one major in his breakout outing for Lock Haven.

This was LHU’s third straight trip to the Southern Scuffle, and overall, this marked Lock Haven’s 10th all-time appearance at the tournament. LHU traveled to the tournament every year from 2004 to 2010 and the Bald Eagles opened the 2018 calendar year there as well, before placing sixth last season in 2019.

UP NEXT:

The Bald Eagles will now turn their attention to a busy stretch of road duals January 16-18. LHU will open a three-match road swing at Appalachian State on Thursday, Jan. 16, before back-to-back Mid-American Conference (MAC) Eastern Division duals at Old Dominion and George Mason on January 17 and January 18, respectively.