ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Another season is now complete for the SIUE wrestling team. Once again, SIUE Head Coach Jeremy Spates is able to point to continued progress for his team after completing the 2015 NCAA Division I Championship at the Scottrade Center.
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"Being here is great. Last year we had one. This year we had two wrestlers," said Spates. "We're showing growth. We're wrestling on day two where last year we were two and out."
Jake Tindle, who won his opening match Thursday against Northwestern's Alex Polizzi, was defeated by two more Big Ten wrestlers, including Wisconsin's Timothy McCall 6-1 to close out his season Friday afternoon.
"It was a tough matchup. That kid is big and strong, and Jake is a little undersized for a 197-pounder right now," said Spates.
Tindle finished the season with an 18-19 record. He joined Connor McMahon and David Devine from the 2013-14 season as NCAA Division I Championships qualifiers since the Cougars made the transition to Division I.
"He (Tindle) came to wrestle today. I think he'll use this to build off," added Spates.
SIUE lost just two seniors from the 2014-15 squad and expects a solid group to perform next season.
"We know we have a lot of work to do," said Spates. "We have some young guys in the room who are doing well. We're just going to continue to get to work."
Spates is aiming to create more of a team atmosphere at the national tournament.
"It's different too when you come in with six or seven guys, and it's a team atmosphere," he said. "When you come in with one or two guys, it's a little bit of a bigger stage.
"The next step is to get guys on the podium. We need to get an All-American. With the history we've had, we have had a lot of Division I All-Americans and a ton of Division II All-Americans.
SIUE Results
Cons. Round 2 - Timothy McCall (Wisconsin) 23-12 won by decision over Jake Tindle (SIUE) 18-19 (Dec 6-1)
