ROANOKE, Va. (March 10, 2023) – On Friday, USMMA senior James Cruz (Belleville, N.J.) represented Kings Point in the 197-pound bracket at the 2023 Division III National Championships. Cruz competed in three bouts over the two sessions and picked up one victory in the consolation (wrestlebacks) bracket before having his time at nationals come to an end.
 
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After opening action at Nationals on Friday morning with a tough loss to the bracket's #4 seed, Chibueze Chukwuezi of Ithaca, via an 11-2 major decision, Cruz rebounded by getting past Jarrod Setliff of Otterbein in the first round of the wrestlebacks Friday evening with an 11-7 decision.
 
In his final match down in Roanoke, Cruz suffered a defeat via a fall to the #3 seed in the bracket, Doug Byrne of Baldwin Wallace University, on Friday night.
 
That concluded a successful season for the Mariners' wrestling program in which they had four wrestlers, including Cruz, earn All-Region Honors, and saw USMMA return to the NCAA Championships for the first time since the 2019-20 season.
 
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