With the start of the 2015-16 season less than a week away, GoMocs.com is breaking down the Chattanooga Mocs wrestling roster. Picked to win its 30
th Southern Conference title, UTC is once again stacked from top-to-bottom.
Today's breakdown takes a look at one class that is loaded and another that has a talented starter without a backup.
UTC's group at 174 pounds might be its best overall. Junior
Sean Mappes is a returning SoCon Champion and on the preseason All-SoCon team. Preseason rankings have him No. 26 according to the Wrestling Report and No. 20 in Amateur Wrestling News.
Mappes went 17-12 overall last season, with third-place finishes at both the Hokie Open and the Navy Classic. He is being pushed by three newcomers in junior college transfer
Bryce Carr, sophomore
Justin Lampe and freshman
Chad Solomon.
Lampe started at 165 after joining the team last January and went on to earn SoCon All-Freshman honors. Carr is a junior college national champion from Darton State in Albany, Ga., who has a bright future for the Blue & Gold. He was also a state champion at West Laurens High School in Dexter, Ga., during his prep career. Soloman is a two-time NHSCA All-American and three-time state champ from Maryville (Tenn.) High School.
"This is an exciting weight class for us," said UTC head coach
Heath Eslinger. "For one, we have a returning NCAA qualifier in
Sean Mappes.
Justin Lampe gained a ton of experience fill a role for us last season, and
Bryce Carr has already proven that he can compete at this level. Also, throw in the mix true freshman
Chad Solomon and we have some great options right now.
"We are not sure what we are going to do with all of these guys yet, but
Sean Mappes is the one who has proven himself by winning the conference and competing at the national tournament. It is nice to have depth, and it is nice to have healthy competition. They are doing a phenomenal job of pushing each other."
As loaded as 174 is, the only one on the roster at 184 is senior
John Lampe. The eldest of the three Lampe brothers, John is a two-time All-SoCon and two-time Academic All-SoCon pick. Despite his regular season success, he is still looking for his first trip to the NCAA Tournament.
Last season, he was 11-8 at 184 and finished fifth at the Navy Classic. His best year was as a sophomore in 2013-14 when he went 18-12 overall and 7-0 in league matches. He is actually 12-1 in his career in SoCon regular season competition.
"This is a weight class where we have great leadership," said Eslinger. "We have a great guy we know can win, but we just don't have a lot of depth there. John is very resilient, and he has proven he can win at this level. This is his last year and time is of the essence, but I believe this is going to be a great year for him at 184 pounds."
The Mocs are busy preparing for the next week's Blue-Gold Match on Thursday, Oct. 29. Action begins at 6:00 p.m., at the annual intra-squad scrimmage in Maclellan Gym and admission is free. Season tickets are on sale now on GoMocs.com or by calling the UTC Ticket Office at (423) 266-MOCS (6627).
