PARK CITY, Kan. - Missouri Baptist Men's Wrestling opened the 2026 season at the Falcon Open, a centralized event for wrestlers from across the NAIA to compete. Four Spartan grapplers placed in the top four of their respective weight classes. 

Redshirt junior Amad Soufi brought home his first tournament victory in the heavyweight group. After a bye and a forfeit, the No. 23 ranked wrestler began his day with a win over Devon Lolar from the University of Saint Mary by decision (8-2) in the semifinals. The first-place bout was against Gabe Kant of Bellevue, who is the No. 17 ranked heavyweight grappler in the country. Soufi and Kant again went all three periods, the Spartan coming out on top 4-3 for another win by decision and a top spot on the podium. 

Redshirt freshman Brenden Rayl and freshman Jackson Bassett each earned top three finishes as well.  

Rayl piled up a pair of victories in his first two matches of the 133-pound bracket before dropping the semifinal to No. 4 Vincent Citrano from Oklahoma City. Rayl bounced back strong, finishing with a 4-2 decision over conference opponent Aiden Serrano from Graceland and tech fall over Christian Ahren from Morningside in the third-place bout. 

Bassett won a trio of matches to begin his day, including a fall in the second period of the quarterfinals against Keiser's Isaac Santos. A loss in the semifinals gave Bassett a chance at the third-place match, which he would ultimately win via forfeit. 

Redshirt junior Evan Morris was the final top four finisher for Missouri Baptist, battling in the 174 group. Morris won three straight matches, including a statement win by decision (7-1) over No. 18 Francisco Ayala, who was wrestling unattached. Morris would eventually lose in the semifinals and third place match, finishing fourth. 

Other notable performances include Josiah Neri (2-2 in 125-pound Elite bracket), Angel Fernandez (4-2 in 125-pound Amateur bracket), John Davis (4-2 in 133-pound Elite bracket), Noah Keen (2-2 in 141-pound Elite bracket), Miguel Andruisa (2-2 in 141-pound Amateur bracket), Tanner Faulkner (2-2 in 165-pound Elite bracket), and Kaleb Bereza (2-2 in 184-pound Amateur bracket). 

MBU Men's Wrestling will compete in their first dual of the season against No. 7 ranked Central Methodist in Fayette, Mo. on Thursday, Nov. 5th at 7 p.m.