UPDTAE | @RITWrestling standouts Dempsey King named 2019-20 Empire Collegiate Wrestling Conference Wrestler of the Year #RIT #GoTigers https://t.co/iH1JeXnc9R
— RIT Athletics (@RITathletics) April 7, 2020
ROCHESTER, NY -- Senior Dempsey King (New Hartford, NY/New Hartford) of the RIT wrestling team was named the 2019-20 Empire Collegiate Wrestling Conference Wrestler of the Year announced on Monday, April 6, 2020.
King, who finished runner-Up at 165-pounds at the 2019 NCAA Division III Championships, out-paced a trio of strong candidates in Brockport's 125-pounder Matt Caccamise, Ithaca's 184-pounder Eze Chukwuezi, and SUNY Cortland 174-pounder Demitreus Henry for the top spot. King garnered 11 total votes with eight of those registering as first-place votes. He finished with 49 Points, well ahead of Brockport's Caccamise (19 Points), Ithaca's Chukwuezi (19 Points), and Cortland's Henry (17 Points). Notably, all four grapplers were weight-class champions at the NCAA Mideast Regional Championships.
King capped an accolade-filled career with the Tigers in 2019-20, finishing the year with a 31-1 record, which included 15 falls, three technical falls, and four major decisions. He earned place-finishes at four events, securing 165-pound titles at the New York State Championships, Roger Williams Invite, RIT Invitational, and the aforementioned NCAA Mideast Regionals. Like Ithaca's Jones, he was also a strong academic achiever with ECWC All-Academic Team and NWCA Scholar All-American laurels at the conclusion of the year.
King, who earned the Tony Wallace Award as Most Outstanding Wrestler at the 2019 RIT Invitational, qualified for the 2020 NCAA Division III Championship for the third straight season. He finished with a 108-24 career record.