Wrestling Places 15th at Doug Parker Invitational

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- Freshman heavyweight Ryan Higgins (Billerica, Mass.) and sophomore 165-pounder Fox Maxwell (Wilmington, Mass.) each placed to lead the Bridgewater State University wrestling team at the Doug Parker Invitational hosted by Springfield College on Saturday.

The Bears finished 15th out of 17 schools in the teams standings.

Higgins placed fourth in the heavyweight class as he went 2-2 at the tournament. He won his first two bouts with a 10-3 decision over Ben Klei of Cortland and a 4-3 win over Henri Behaeghel of Johns Hopkins. Higgins then dropped a 6-1 decision to ninth-ranked Joe Fusco of host Springfield in the semifinals and lost by fall in the third-place match to Southern Maine's Mike Risti.

Fusco is ranked ninth in all of Division III and #1 in New England, while Risti is ranked fourth in New England.

After dropping his opening bout by major decision, Maxwell reeled off six straight wins including a 9-6 win over Ryan Harty of Springfield in the fifth-place match. Harty entered the tournament ranked seventh in New England.

Maxwell is now a 11-3 on the season. He leads the Bears with the 11 wins.

The BSU wrestling team is back in action on Friday, November 30th and Saturday, December 1st as the Bears compete at the two-day Messiah Petrofes Invitational.