Armdrag.com: Cortland State's J.C. Cardenas Selected as ECWC Co-Rookie of the Week

J.C. Cardenas Selected as ECWC Co-Rookie of the Week https://t.co/vHQBznpMhL
— Cortland Athletics (@RedDragonPride) December 9, 2021

Cortland sophomore J.C. Cardenas (Brooklyn/Grand Street Campus) has been selected as the Empire Collegiate Wrestling Conference (ECWC) Co-Rookie of the Week for the week ending Dec. 5. He shared the honor with RIT's Josh Harkless.

Cardenas was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler at the 17-team Messiah College Petrofes Invitational after winning the 133-pound weight class with a 4-0 record and two pins.

He opened the tournament with a pin versus Alvernia's Louis LaRocca and an 8-3 decision against Muhlenberg's Ricky Caamano. In the semifinals, Cardenas pinned Greensboro College's Josh Wilson, who is currently ranked third in the Southeast Region by the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) and is listed as a national "contender" in the 133-pound rankings by D3Wrestle.com.

In the championship bout, Cardenas earned a 5-2 decision over David Massey of Mount Union. Massey is presently ranked fourth nationally and first in the Central Region by the NWCA, and he is ranked eighth nationally by D3Wrestle.com. He was an NCAA qualifier in 2020.

Cardenas won his second straight tournament title; he was the New York State Collegiate Tournament 133-pound champion on Nov. 20. For the season, Cardenas is 8-0 with two pins and a major decision.

Cortland will not be competing at Scranton this weekend as originally scheduled. The Red Dragons will return to action on Dec. 20 with three matches at the Rennie Rodarmel All State Duals, hosted by Lycoming College in Williamsport, Pa.

Cortland is joined in the ECWC by Alfred State, Brockport, Ithaca, Oneonta, Oswego, Penn St. Behrend, Pitt Bradford, and Rochester Institute of Technology.