Eastern’s wrestling team competed in its first tournament of the year Sunday at the Central Missouri Open where they finished eighth overall scoring 105.5 team points.

Missouri dominated the meet scoring 460.5 team points with Lindenwood coming in second with 263.5 points.

“There was quite a mixture of different teams,” Eastern head coach Ralph McCausland said.

Outside of Missouri there were also big name schools such as Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Stanford at the tournament as well as top National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics teams, Missouri Valley and Lindenwood who are ranked No. 1 and 2.

Panther sophomore Kenny Robertson, who took first at last week’s Eastern Michigan Open, was the only Eastern wrestler to place at the tournament finishing second at the 174-lb. weight class. Robertson was 4-1 on the day and wrestled No. 2 Ben Askeren, of Missouri, in the championship match. Robertson was up 5-1 going into the second period before he got caught on his back and pinned, McCausland said.

“For Kenny that was a good mark for him,” McCausland said. “He’s had some good feels for what this year is going to be like.”

Robertson and junior Chino Duran each wrestled in last week’s EMU Open, where Duran took sixth. For the other eight wrestlers who came with Eastern it was their first matches of the year. Duran was 3-2 in his second tournament as Panther and Eastern also turned in 3-2 records from sophomore Adam Beeler (149 lbs.) and freshman Shane Dintelman (197 lbs.).

“Overall I thought our guys did well,” McCausland said.

In an open tournament when wrestlers have to wrestle five or six matches some might think that would take it’s toll on the grapplers before their final match of the day but it doesn’t always turnout like that.

“Realistically the first match of the day is the hardest,” McCausland said. “After you get your first or second match under your belt you get some momentum.

“If you have a good first match then your on for the rest of the day.”

These early season opens are much the same as the late season tournaments on the national level so they help wrestlers gain experience early.

“This is the same road to the NCAA tournament,” McCausland said. “These are key indicators of what’s going to happen later in the season.”

Eastern senior Pete Ziminski and junior Dan Perez each went 5-1 at the open as they wrestled unattached from the Panthers.