The University of the Cumberlands (UC) Men's Wrestling team finished a strong season earlier in the spring with an appearance at the NAIA National Tournament.  Two Patriots were named NAIA All-Americans for their performances in the NAIA Tournament and one of those Patriots earned an additional prestigious honor this week from the Mid-South Conference (MSC).  

Anthonie Linares (San Jose, CA) has been named the MSC Wrestling Freshman of the Year following the coaches' vote.  The 149-pound freshman finished fourth at the NAIA National Championships to earn NAIA All-American honors.  Linares ended his first collegiate season with a 28-10 overall record.  His lone losses in the NAIA National Championship came to the top-ranked wrestler in the 149-pound weight class TJ Moen from Grand View and the eventual NAIA National Champion Eric Burgey from William Penn University.

The conference wrestler of the year and wrestling freshman of the year completes the honors for the 2011-12 season. The remaining all-conference awards were handed out following the conference championships in March.

Patriot Head Coach Matt Lowers commented, "Anthonie is very deserving of this honor.  He had a spectacular season.  It's not very often you see a true freshman come in and take 4^thin the country in one of the toughest weight classes in the country.  Anthonie came in with a goal of becoming an All-American and he did that by working very hard and keeping his sights on the prize.  He is going to prove to be a great leader for us in the future."

For more information on the Patriots' Men's Wrestling program as well as other Patriot athletics, please visit www.cumberlandspatriots.com.