HACKETTSTOWN, N.J. – Four falls and a tech fall highlighted the return to the mat for the Centenary University wrestling team who hosted its annual Public Eliminations on Friday evening.

The match also featured an exciting alumni contest between former All-Americans Chris Burdge and Etiini Udott.

The Cyclones were back on the mats for the first time since March 1, 2020.

The night's action started at 184-pounds as senior Justin Hopman recorded a fall over freshman Armani Nunez in 1:11. The second battle at 184 was a tight one as freshmen Aaron Llanas and Angelo Piazza needed overtime to declare a winner. Llanas edged Piazza on a riding time point in overtime, 6-5.

At 125-pounds, freshman Garrett Spychala went unchallenged.

Senior Jacy Jones (133-pounds) and sophomore Xavier Pena (141-pounds) both went unchallenged at their respective weight classes. The pair battled in an exhibition match bout with Pena recording a fall in 50 seconds.

Senior Cameron Bruffy used a dominate first period to record the win at 149-pounds. Bruffy recorded a tech fall (win by 15 or more points) over freshman Vinnie Sciacca with 38 seconds left in the first period.

At 157-pounds, freshman Adrian Pietri picked up a 5-2 decision versus junior Perry Maio.

The 165-pound bout saw sophomore TJ Pawlicki recorded a fall over freshman Chris Fanelli in 4:10.

At 174-pounds, senior Haakon Mathewson earned a 7-3 decision over fellow senior Aidan Fernandez.

Sophomore Keevon Berry was unchallenged at 197-pounds on the evening.

In the 285-pound match, senior Matt Angelov posted a fall in 48 seconds against freshman Nicholas Wickkiser.

The evening's early winners at 184-pounds returned to the mat as Hopman took on Llanas. Hopman recorded his second fall of the night, this time in 3:31.

The Public Eliminations wrapped up with the alumni match featuring Burdge and Udott. Burdge was a four-time All-American while Udott earned All-American accolades twice. It was a close match as neither wrestler scored in the first period. Udott went ahead 1-0 after the second but Burdge recorded three points in the third and held Udott to just one for the 3-2 decision.

Centenary is back in action on Sunday, Nov. 7 as the Cyclones take part in the ESU Open at East Stroudsburg.