Brandon trio to wrap up careers at NCAAs

Posted Mar 17, 2010 by Adam Adkins

Updated Mar 17, 2010 at 01:27 PM

Three of the best wrestlers to ever come through the Brandon High wrestling program will wrap up their collegiate careers this weekend.

David Craig, Cesar Grajales and Franklin Gomez, each of whom were high school All-American’s with the Eagles, will compete at the NCAA Wrestling Championships in Omaha, Neb. The event begins Thursday.

Gomez, a senior at Michigan State, is headed back to the NCAA Championships to defend his 133-pound individual title. Last season, Gomez became the first former Brandon High wrestler to win an NCAA title and the first Spartans wrestler to win an NCAA individual crown since 1995. After finishing third at the recent Big Ten Championships, Gomez, who is 23-2 this season, enters this weekend’s tournament as the No. 3 seed at 133 pounds. Gomez, who is making his third appearance at the NCAA Championships, also finished third as a sophomore in his first appearance at the tournament.

Grajales, a senior at Pennsylvania, is making his fourth trip to the NCAA Championships. An All-Ivy League selection three years, including first-team honors as a junior, Grajales ranks sixth in Penn program history with 109 career wins. He is 11-4 this year and enters this weekend’s tournament unseeded at 149 pounds.

Craig, a senior at Lehigh, is making his third trip to the NCAA Championships. Craig won a 184-pound title at the EIWA Championships as a junior and placed third at that event this season. He enters this weekend’s tournament with 86 career wins, including a 22-5 mark this season, and is the No. 12 seed at 184 pounds.