OREM, Utah — Utah Valley University wrestling held its annual Black and Green Wrestle-Offs on Friday night at Lockhart Arena, with the black team winning six of 10 matches to secure a 25-15 victory.
Five of the black team's six wins came by major decision or fall, starting with Geronimo Rivera's pin of Talen Eck at the 6:15 mark of their 125-pound bout.
"Tonight was a fun way to finally see our guys compete, even if it was against their teammate," head coach Adam Hall said. "A lot of great takeaways from tonight, especially the amount of offense in several matches. We have a deep squad, and a lot of these spots are up for grabs. With that being said, I believe that some people wrestled not to lose and some people wrestled to dominate. We will address our needs on Monday and prepare for the Clarion Open next weekend. I'm grateful for all of the fans who came out tonight to support the team. Go Wolverines!"
Smokey McClure, Moses Espinoza-Owens, Marcus Espinoza-Owens, Jay Singer and Will McCleary also won for the black team. Three of the five wrestlers who earned bonus points for the black squad are newcomers to the Wolverine program.
McClure edged Owen Proper, 2-1, at 141 pounds, with a riding-time point proving to be the difference. Moses Espinoza-Owens, who moved down from 174 to 165 pounds this season, defeated Ryker Fullmer, 11-1. His twin brother, Marcus, moved up from 165 to 174 pounds and beat Hudson Rogers, 12-3.
True freshman Jay Singer won the 184-pound bout against Trevor Frank, 16-6. Frank competed up a weight class with Caleb Uhlenhopp, Utah Valley's returning NCAA qualifier at 184 pounds, sitting out Friday's matches in preparation for next week's season opener.
McCleary closed out the night with a 10-2 major decision over fellow true freshman Elijah Schunke, securing a late takedown in the final bout.
For the green team, Layne Kleimann earned an 18-4 major decision over Jake Castagneto at 133 pounds. Jason Worthley also won by major decision, defeating Josh Fish, 14-4, at 149 pounds. At 157 pounds, Ian Fritz earned a 17-4 major decision over Keegan Goeas. Returning NCAA qualifier Kael Bennie added a 6-1 decision over Chandler Thompson at 197 pounds.
Utah Valley will open the 2026-27 season Sunday, Nov. 1, at the Clarion Open in Pennsylvania. Fans can watch the action and follow the tournament on FloWrestling.
Black 25, Green 15
125: Geronimo Rivera (Black) pinned Talen Eck (Green), 6:15 (Black leads 6-0)
133: Layne Kleimann (Green) major decision over Jake Castagneto (Black), 18-4 (Black leads 6-4)
141: Smokey McClure (Black) decision over Owen Proper (Green), 2-1 (Black leads 9-4)
149: Jason Worthley (Green) major decision over Josh Fish (Black), 14-4 (Black leads 9-8)
157: Ian Fritz (Green) major decision over Keegan Goeas (Black), 17-4 (Green leads 12-9)
165: Moses Espinoza-Owens (Black) major decision over Ryker Fullmer (Green), 11-1 (Black leads 13-12)
174: Marcus Espinoza-Owens (Black) major decision over Hudson Rogers (Green), 12-3 (Black leads 16-12)
184: Jay Singer (Black) major decision over Trevor Frank (Green), 16-6 (Black leads 21-12)
197: Kael Bennie (Green) decision over Chandler Thompson (Black), 6-1 (Black leads 21-15)
285: Will McCleary (Black) major decision over Elijah Schunke (Green), 10-2 (Black wins 25-15)
