Bates, Francis Named Most Outstanding Wrestlers at RWU Invitational

BRISTOL, R.I. – Bridgewater State University senior Zachary Bates (Leyden, Mass.) and junior Ken Francis (New Bedford, Mass.) were selected as the Most Outstanding Wrestlers at the Roger Williams University Invitational on Saturday.

Francis, competing out of the 125-pound weight class, was named as the Most Outstanding Lower Weight Wrestler, while the 174-pound Bates captured Most Outstanding Upper Weight Wrestler honors.

Bridgewater State placed sixth in the team standings at the tournament with a total of 93.5 points.  Messiah College captured the team title with 146.5 points followed by Johnson & Wales University and host Roger Williams tied for second place with 120 points apiece.

Bates notched two pins and a pair of major decision wins en route to the 174-pound championship.  In the title bout he recorded a first period pin of Colin Lenhardt of Johnson and Wales.  Bates and Lenhardt were tied for first in the New England Wrestling Association preseason individual rankings.

Francis captured the 125-pound title as he went 4-0 on the day including a 10-2 major decision victory over Chris Alvanos of Wesleyan University in the championship match.  Ranked fourth in the NEWA preseason individual rankings, Francis also knocked off third ranked James Soprano of Johnson and Wales, 8-3, in the semifinals.

Senior 16-pounder Ethan Raymond (Middlebury, Vt.) and junior 197-pounder Andrew Frazer (West Hartford, Conn.) also wrestled well for the Bears.  Both grapplers went 3-2 with a pin in their respective weight classes and finished in fourth place.