MCCAA Conference Champions

Dowagiac, MI – November 10, 2025 – The #6 ranked Muskegon Community College (MCC) Jayhawks wrestling earned the MCCAA Conference Championship on Sunday, November 9, delivering a dominant performance and capping the day with a thrilling victory over a nationally ranked opponent.

The Jayhawks went a perfect 3-0 on the day, starting with massive wins against their conference rivals. MCC overwhelmed Ancilla College with a decisive 57-0 shutout and followed up with a 46-4 routing of Henry Ford College.

The momentum carried into the championship final against Southwest Michigan College (SMC), who entered the day ranked Number 16 in the NJCAA. In a tense, back-and-forth battle, the Jayhawks clinched the title with a 22-15 victory.

Crucial to the final score were the bonus points.  Darnell Mack (157 lbs) secured a critical victory by fall, and Alex Hicks (184 lbs) added valuable points with a major decision, which proved essential in sealing the 7-point victory.

Six Jayhawks went undefeated on the day:

"Our guys are wrestling really well right now. We looked like we were in great shape, which allowed us to finish matches.  (Andrew) Baldwin had to dig deep in his one point match against a very tough kid, Amari Richardson," said head coach, Cody Carpenter. "To not only dominate the early matches but then to step up and defeat a nationally ranked team like Southwest Michigan College in a championship setting shows the caliber of this program. Southwest is good. They are well-coached, so it's really rewarding to be able to prove ourselves against them."  Early in the match, Freshman Collin Kuhn found himself in an early 7-0 hole vs SWC's Caden Lapaugh, but generated a 3^rd period flurry that came up just short a 14-10 loss.  "Kuhn's match was actually huge for us," continued Carpenter.  "At the end of the first period, I was thinking about how hard it would be to overcome bonus points for Southwest. But Collin fighting, and while he lost, he not only eliminated bonus points, he stole back a lot of momentum and proved to our guys that we could battle back. I'm really proud of him for that."    The Jayhawks led the dual by 4 points entering the heavyweight match, and freshman Ian Barynas would seal the win with a thrilling 4-1 overtime win over Chaz Underwood.  "Ian made me sweat a little. Underwood is huge and likes to throw, but Ian really came through in the clutch.  He was so excited after-it was really fun to watch." 

The Jayhawk men are off for the next week, but the women will travel to Albion next weekend for the Albion Open.