The Sam Houston State University Wrestling Team was very successful last weekend at the NCWA Texas Collegiate State Championships, even with odds stacked against them.

The team, who took only a group of six competitors to a competition against full, 12-member squads, placed second overall and surpassed the previous state champions.

According to E. Jay Miranda, SHSU Wrestling Team member, the team’s accomplishment represents months of dedicated work and devotion on the part of both the team members and their coaches and advisors.

“In these tournaments, individuals compete in 11 or 12 different weight classes to earn points for their teams,” Miranda said. “We only had six guys competing against full squads of 12, but we were able to do well enough in our own weight classes to earn second place.

“The first place team, from University of Texas in Austin, earned 46 points, and we came in second with 44 points. We even beat the previous state champions, from the University of Texas in Arlington, by two points.”

The team earned their 44 points by coming in first, second or third in each of their individual weight classes.

In the 125-pound weight class, team member Harold Duncan earned first place, and in the 141-pound weight class, Miranda earned first place, as well.

In the 149-pound weight class, team members Collin Hartman and Stevie Noser took second and third place, respectively, and team member Spencer Bullock took second place in the 157-pound weight class.

Finally, team member Chris Renaud took first place in the 165-pound weight class.

“We’ve had a lot of valued help to get to this point,” Miranda said. “In addition to our team of about 15 to 20 members that help us prepare for matches and tournaments, we also have our head coach, A. J. Rivera, and our strength and conditioning coach, Joseph Anderson.

“For now, we’re doing very well where we are now, and it’s because of their guidance and knowledge.”

This weekend, the team will travel to Baton Rouge, La., to compete in the NCWA Southwestern Conference Regional Championships.

The regional championship will also involve individual competitions, and Miranda said the top three placers in each weight class will advance to a national competition.

“We do have high hopes for this weekend, but we also know we have very tough teams we’ll be competing with,” Miranda said. “However, judging from our achievements this last weekend, we’re very confident that we’ll be successful again.”