EVANSTON, Ill. --- Wrestlers Cody Cleveland and Joey Knox earned fourth-place finishes Sunday night at the 45^th Annual Midlands Championships and helped the 10^th-ranked Mocs to a seventh-place finish in the team standings.

Cleveland, a sophomore from Tullahoma, Tenn., wrestled eight times in the consolation bracket at 141 pounds after going 1-1 in the main draw.  He reached the Third-place match by pinning Harvard's eighth-seeded Corey Jantzen at 4:49.  Top-seeded Alex Tsirtsis of Iowa scored a 12-1 major decision over Cleveland for third place.

Knox made the championship quarterfinals before dropping to the consolations.  After three wins including a pin of third-seeded Mitch Mueller of Iowa State, the Dublin, Ga., sophomore dropped a 5-3 decision to Missouri's Josh Wagner, seeded No. 7.

“We wrestled above our seeds at every weight,” UTC Head Coach Chris Bono said.  “This was a good gauge for the NCAA Tournament because it was a two-day tournament with two-day weigh-ins.  Cody Cleveland had an incredible tournament and wrestled 10 matches.  Joey Knox was outstanding as well.”

The Mocs also earned three seventh-place finishes and an eighth-place Sunday.

Picking up seventh-place finishes for the Mocs were Steve Hromada (133), Lloyd Rogers (174) and Matt Koz (197).  Josh Edmondson (184) notched an eighth-place finish.  Hromada won four matches.  Rogers, the eighth seed, defeated fourth-seeded Nick Hayes of Northwestern, 9-8, and Koz won a 9-5 decision over No. 7 Joe Williams of Michigan State.

The Mocs finished with 78.5 team points and moved into seventh place in the team standings after holding down the 12^th spot following the first day.  Iowa took the team title in the 52 team field.  Iowa State was second followed by future Chattanooga opponent Central Michigan.

The Mocs return to action Jan. 6, taking on Kennesaw State and Northern Iowa in Douglasville, Ga.

UTC INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

125 ? No. 7 Javier Maldonado (UTC) dec. Ryan Riggs (Cleveland State), 7-2; Troy Dolan (Missouri) dec. Maldonado, 5-2

Consolations:  Johnny Olanowski (Missouri) by forfeit Maldonado

133 ? Steve Hromada (UTC) dec. Chris Clark (American), 4-0; No. 3 Joe Slaton (Iowa) maj. dec. Hromada, 15-5

Consolations:  Hromada dec. Whitt Dunning (Army), 5-3; Hromada dec. No. 5 Andrae Hernandez (Indiana), 5-1; Cory VomBaur (Wyoming) dec. Hromada, 4-2; Hromada dec. No. 8 Conor Beebe (Central Michigan), 7-5 (Hromada Seventh Place)

141 ? Cody Cleveland (UTC) tech fall Josh Mohr (IL St. WC), 16-0 (3:33); Ryan Cubberly (Central Michigan) dec. Cleveland, 12-9

Consolations:  Cleveland tech fall Jacob Elsbernd (Peacock WC), 16-0 (3:50); Cleveland dec. Micah Carter (Mich. State), 13-9; Cleveland maj. dec. Tony D'Alie (Central Mich.), 12-3; Cleveland maj. dec. Ali Lockett (San Francisco State), 11-2; Cleveland dec. Keith Sulzer (Northwestern), 6-3; Cleveland dec. Nick Gallick (Iowa State), 8-6; Cleveland pinned No. 8 Corey Jantzen (Harvard), 4:49;

No. 1 Alex Tsirtsis (Iowa) maj. dec. Cleveland, 12-1 (Cleveland Fourth Place)

149 ? Joey Knox (UTC) maj. dec. Jeff Kastel (Elmhurst), 15-4; Knox dec. Andrew Nadhir (Northwestern), 6-0; Knox pinned No. 4 Brandon Carter (Central Mich.), 4:36; No. 5 Jake Patacsil (Purdue) pinned Knox, 4:36

Consolations:  Knox dec. Kurt Kinser (Indiana), 10-5; Knox pinned Marty Gould (Northwestern), 1:28; Knox dec. No. 3 Mitch Mueller (Iowa State), 2-0;

No. 7 Josh Wagner (Missouri) dec. Knox, 5-3 (Knox Fourth Place)

157 ? Seth Garvin (UTC) tech fall Ben Boudro (Mich. State), 16-0 (4:58); Garvin dec. Bobby Latessa (Harvard), 5-1; No. 5 Ryan Morningstar (Iowa) maj. dec. Garvin, 10-2

Consolations: Garvin maj. dec. Clint Artis (Illinois), 10-2; Garvin dec. Pete Puckett (Central Mich.), 8-2; No. 6 Wayne French (Great Falls WC) maj. dec. Garvin, 14-2

165 ? Colby Covington (Iowa Central) dec. Nick Davis (UTC), 8-3

Consolations:  Aaron Jansen (Iowa) maj. dec. Davis, 11-2

174 ? No. 8 Lloyd Rogers (UTC) pinned Evan Copeland (Adams State), 4:38; Rogers dec. No. 9 Alex Dolly (Northern Iowa), 4-1; No. 1 Keith Gavin (Pitt) dec. Rogers, 4-2

Consolations:  Rogers dec. Ben Friedl (Illinois), 7-2; Mike Miller (Rider) dec. Rogers, 3-1 ot; Rogers dec. No. 4 Nick Hayes (Northwestern), 9-8 (Rogers Seventh Place)

184 ? Josh Edmondson (UTC) maj dec. Justin Lucas (Chicago), 17-7; No. 8 Marc Bennett (Indiana) dec. Edmondson, 4-1

Consolations:  Edmondson dec. Dan Dunning (Northern Iowa), 5-3; Edmondson dec. Andy Oloughin (Northern Iowa), 4-1; Edmondson dec. No. 6 Doug Umbehauer (Rider), 6-4, Edmondson dec. Derek Ross (Neb-Kearney), 17-15 ot; No. 4 Louis Caputo (Harvard) tech fall Edmondson, 17-0 (2:42); Ben Kelto (Central Michigan) maj. dec. Edmondson, 9-1 (Edmondson Eighth Place)

197 ? No. 5 Matt Koz (UTC) maj. dec. Joe Fagiano (Indiana), 13-5; No. 4 T.J. Morrison (Rider) dec. Koz, 3-1 ot

Consolations:  Koz dec. Logan Brown (Purdue), 4-3; No. 8 Andrew Anderson (Northern Iowa) dec. Koz, 6-1; Koz dec. No. 7 Joe Williams (Michigan State), 9-5 (Koz Seventh Place)

285 ? No. 7 Zach Sheaffer (Pitt) by medical forfeit Matt Lettner (UTC)

Consolations:  Dom Bradley (Missouri) dec. Lettner, 5-2

TEAM RESULTS

1. 174.0 Iowa

2. 133.0 Iowa State

3. 113.5 Central Michigan

4. 96.0 Illinois

5. 82.5 Northwestern