ELIZABETHTOWN, PA – The Johns Hopkins wrestling team closed the first semester portion of its 2023-24 schedule with a seventh-place finish at Elizabethtown's Blue Jay Classic on Saturday.  JHU totaled 61.5 points to earn its seventh-place showing; host Etown claimed the team title with 152.5 points and was followed by Wilkes (145.5), Cortland St. (139.5), Roanoke (126) and McDaniel (119.5) in the top five of the team standings.
 
Hoffmann (165), Parker (125) Grabs Silver
Sophomore Jake Hoffmann (165) and graduate student Riley Parker (125) earned runner-up finishes to lead the way for Johns Hopkins on Saturday.
 
Hoffmann went 4-1 on the day and scored two wins by technical fall, one by major decision and another by decision.  After opening with consecutive wins by technical fall, Hoffman eased into the semifinals with an 18-5 win over Roanoke's Josh Epperly in the quarterfinals and then topped Scranton's Jacob Burgette, 9-4, in the semifinals.  His run came to an end when he fell to Etown's Brian Schneider by fall in the final.
 
Hoffmann improved to 16-4 on the year and his two wins by technical fall give him nine tech. falls on the season, which ties Joe Paul's single-season Johns Hopkins record.
 
Parker made his Johns Hopkins debut and went 3-1 to earn his runner-up finish.  After an opening-round bye, Parker used three technical falls to move into the title bout.  His wins came by scores of 21-5, 21-5 and 25-10 with his 25-10 victory over Roanoke's Michael Policarpio moving him into the final.  There, he dropped a 7-3 decision to Etown's Ethan Liptzin to place second.
 
Pimental Places Fourth at 149
Freshman Freddy Pimental continued his impressive rookie campaign as he won three of five matches on the day and placed fourth at 149.  Pimental earned wins by technical fall, fall and decision and bumped his season record to 15-5 with his effort today.
 
What's Next
The Blue Jays will on Saturday, December 29-30 when they travel to Ft. Lauderdale to participate in the Citrus Invitational.