Wrestler of the Week: Rocco Hladney

The first d3wrestle.com Wrestler of the Week for 2017-2018 is Rocco Hladney of Elizabethtown. Hladney missed the whole first semester last year, but he started to make up for lost time last weekend by winning the Messiah Invitational at 197 lbs. Hladney opened with a pair of major decisions before winning 21-6 against #2 seed Travis Ogden of Lycoming in the semifinals. That set up a match with 2017 All-American Kyle Koser of Messiah in the finals. Hladney prevailed with a 6-1 decision over the two time NCAA qualifier.

Hladney, a senior from Middletown, Delaware, is up at 197 this year after wrestling at 184 the past two seasons for the Blue Jays. He was 8-5 in an abbreviated season last year after going 25-13 and placing 5th at the Mideast Region in 2016. He transferred to Elizabethtown after a year at Coker College in South Carolina. Hladney was Elizabethtown’s top finisher this past weekend and will take the mat again this weekend at the Ursinus Fall Brawl.