The Barton Community College wrestling team sent a limited lineup to the mats Sunday at the UCM Roger Denker Open inside the Jerry M. Hughes Athletics Center in Warrensburg, Missouri, combining for a 3-8 record against a 17-team field featuring NCAA Division I, Division II, and NJCAA programs.
S'Ron Hill led the Cougars with a sixth-place finish at 184-pounds, posting a 3-2 record for the day. Hill opened the tournament with an 8-6 decision over No. 4 seed Judah Yates of Quincy University before being pushed to the consolation side of the bracket. He continued his run with a forfeit victory followed by a 7-6 decision to advance into the consolation semifinals, where he dropped an 8-4 decision to Seth Sarasua of Central Oklahoma. Hill later withdrew prior to the fifth-place bout to earn his sixth place finish.
In the process, the sophomore set a new Barton program record for takedowns in a season, reaching 78 to eclipse Tim Johnson's previous mark of 75 set in 2016.
At 285 pounds, Logan Buchanan faced a challenging draw, dropping both bouts, including a loss to the No. 3 seed Wade Stanton of Drury University, who went on to finish as the tournament runner-up. Jamal Garrett (125) and Tyler Gouker (141) rounded out the Cougars lineup, each encountering upper seeded opponents early in their brackets.
Two additional Barton wrestlers competed unattached, with Colin Little (149) and Michael Villarreal (285) each earning mat time in their respective brackets.
The Cougars will return to the mats Wednesday in Parsons as conference action continues, facing No. 17 Fort Hays Tech Northwest and host Labette Community College beginning at 4:00 p.m.