ST. LOUIS – The No. 7-ranked University of Indianapolis wrestling team had a dominant start to their season, with five Greyhounds capturing titles at the Kaufman/Brand/Bayly Open hosted by Maryville in St. Louis. Blake Mulkey (141lbs), Jackson Hoover (149lbs), Owen Zablocki (165lbs), Aidan Petersen (184lbs), and Derek Blubaugh (197lbs) were the five wrestlers who contributed to the successful start of the Hounds' season.
 
Alongside the champs, Derek Blubaugh picked up the outstanding wrestler award for the tournament.
 
 
Aside from the champions, the Hounds peppered the podium across multiple weight classes with Ray Rioux placing third at 141lbs, Phoenix Rodgers tallying third at 184lbs alongside Porter Keevers' second in the same class and Jay Thompson's third place finish at 285lbs.
 
INS & OUTS
141 saw four Greyhounds battle the bracket in Mulkey, Ray Rioux, Brayden Lowery and Gavin Garcia. Mulkey, making his debut in the Greyhound singlet, was domain early, picking up a tech fall in the first round and following that with a tech fall in the quarters. He would match up with the No. 11-ranked Rioux in the semifinals where the two battled to a 3-1 decision, falling in Mulkey's way. He kept that momentum going, capturing the title with via sudden victory. Rioux would find himself in the third-place podium after downing Garcia 7-0. Lowery fought back from an early loss to claim seventh.
 
Hoover's journey to the title at 149 was filled with offense for the junior out of Edwardsburg, Mich. as he tallied 47 points across his first four matches, tallying a major and a tech fall on the way. He captured the title with a pin in a minute and 34 seconds.
 
Zablocki, after receiving a first-round bye, kept his legs fresh, pinning Brant Whitaker of Missouri in the first round in 3:16. That is where he faced his biggest test of the day, taking on Cory Peterson of McKendree and the No. 5-ranked wrestler in the nation. Zablocki withstood the test, capturing the victory 12-6 and his spot in the finals. Zablocki once again faced off against a GLVC-foe, taking down Cole Ritter of Maryville 5-3.
 
The 184lbs bracket was also filled with quality Greyhound performances as the trio of Petersen, Keevers and Rodgers landed on the top three spots. Petersen and Keevers were the dynamic duo when it came to pins as the pair combined for six pins across the first three rounds to meet each other in the finals. The pins stopped there as Petersen grabbed the crown for the 184lbs class via a 8-0 decision. Rodgers fought through the consolation bracket after a first-round loss, downing three GLVC opponents on his way to the third-place match where he won 5-3.
 
Blubaugh, having dominated the yearly Maryville-hosted open throughout his career, kept that going and more by capturing his fourth straight title at the event and his third in the elite division.^* The No. 2-ranked Blubaugh was dominant from the gate, winning my major in his first match and following that up with a tech in the quarters. A 9-0 major in the semis sent Blubaugh to the finals where he pinned his SIU Edwardsville-opponent in four minutes and 38 seconds.
 
On the amateur side of the bracket Mason Cantu placed fourth at 149lbs, Kaden Lone finished second at 165lbs and Logan Farnell grabbed third at 165lbs.
 
^{*Blubaugh won the 174lbs Amateur title in 2019, the 197lbs elite title in 2021 and 2022.}
 
UP NEXT
Invitational action continues for the No. 7-ranked Greyhounds as they travel east to Cleveland, Ohio for the Bob Del Rosa Ohio Intercollegiate Open hosted by Case Western. Action is set to begin at 9 a.m. in the Land.