WASHINGTON, Pa. (pacathletics.org) - Saint Vincent College had three individual champions and 10 total all-conference wrestlers, as the Bearcats won the 2024 Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Wrestling Championship, which was held at Washington & Jefferson College Friday night.

Competing in their first varsity season since 1975 and their first PAC Championships ever, Saint Vincent scored 103.5 points to win the team title. Washington & Jefferson finished second with 81 points, while Waynesburg University was third with 75.5 points and Thiel College was fourth with 69.5.

With seven wrestlers in championship matches in their weight classes, the Bearcats were in control of the team standings before the finals began. Saint Vincent would get off to a quick start in the championship round when freshman Sean Cain won the first PAC title in SVC history with a 7-3 decision in the 125-pound bracket.

Saint Vincent would add two more title winners in the middle classes. Freshman Charlie Mesich was in a tight match at 157, but scored three points in the closing seconds to claim a 7-6 victory and earn his first PAC crown. That win was followed in the 165 bracket, where Bearcat freshman Chase Brandebura earned a 13-1 major decision in the title match for the Bearcats' third individual PAC title.

Matching Saint Vincent with three individual champions was Thiel, who had three repeat winners. Winning his third conference championship was senior Evan Whiteside, who won the 125 bracket the previous two years, but secured the 133 title with a pin this year. Thiel would also win two of the final three weight classes, starting with a thrilling sudden victory by senior Jared Curcio in the 184 title match, the same class he won a year ago. Tied at 1-1 after three periods, Curcio's takedown midway through the first OT period secured the repeat title.

In the last match of the Championships. junior Seth Phillips won his second title in a row at 285 when he scored a pin just 31 seconds into his finals bout.

W&J and Waynesburg both had a pair of title winners Friday. For the host Presidents, they went back-to-back with their victories. Junior Hunter Swedish, who was the 133-pound champion a year ago, claimed the 141-pound crown with a 12-3 major decision in the final. In the next bracket, W&J freshman Taylor Smith continued his remarkable first collegiate season when he earned his first PAC championship by scoring an 11-2 major decision in the final.

Waynesburg had a pair of champions in the later weights, including their own repeat winner. Senior Colby Morris captured the crown for the second year in a row at 174 with an 8-2 decision. He was joined as a conference champion by junior Ayden Bishoff, who went to overtime and won by sudden victory to win the 197-pound class.

Following the Championships, W&J's Taylor Smith was voted as the Most Outstanding Wrestler of the Tournament. Smith, who broke the W&J single-season record for wins with his first-period pin in the semifinal round, now has a 43-5 record this season after his 2-0 performance at Championships. He is the first freshman to win Most Outstanding Wrestler since Waynesburg's Rocky McGeary in 2020 and the first President to earn the top award at Championships since Taylor Potts in 2012.

Saint Vincent added two major award winners to their team crown Friday. Brandebura, who was 2-0 in the Championships after a first-period pin in the semifinals and then his major decision in the final, was selected as the Newcomer of the Year. Meanwhile, Coach of the Year laurels went to Bearcat head coach Dominick Nania. He was named head coach of the Bearcats in May, 2022 and built the program from that time through their first varsity season this year and culminating in the PAC championship with 10 all-conference wrestlers, eight of those being freshmen.

All four PAC programs will represent the league at this year's NCAA Division III Southeast Regional Championships March 1-2 at Lycoming College in Williamsport, Pa. The Division III National Championships, scheduled for Friday-Saturday, March 15-16, will be held at the La Crosse Center in La Crosse, Wis.  

PAC Award Winners
PAC Most Outstanding Wrestler of the Tournament: W&J freshman Taylor Smith (Mifflintown, Pa./Juniata)
PAC Newcomer of the Year: Saint Vincent freshman Chase Brandebura (Carnegie, Pa./Carlynton)
PAC Coach of the Year: Saint Vincent head coach Dominick Nania
 

PAC Champions
Name	School	Weight	Year	Hometown/High School
Sean Cain	Saint Vincent	125	Fr.	Mount Pleasant, Pa./Mount Pleasant
Evan Whiteside	Thiel	133	Sr.	Monroeville, Pa./Gateway
Hunter Swedish	W&J	141	Jr.	Cranberry Twp., Pa./Seneca Valley
Taylor Smith	W&J	149	Fr.	Mifflintown, Pa./Juniata
Charlie Mesich	Saint Vincent	157	Fr.	Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield
Chase Brandebura	Saint Vincent	165	Fr.	Carnegie, Pa./Carlynton
Colby Morris	Waynesburg	174	Sr.	Waynesburg, Pa./Waynesburg Central
Jared Curcio	Thiel	184	Sr.	Avonmore, Pa./Kiski Area
Ayden Bishoff	Waynesburg	197	Jr.	Kingwood, W.Va./Preston
Seth Phillips	Thiel	285	Jr.	Hubbard, Ohio/Western Reserve