The Tech’s Athlete of the Week: Joseph B. Silverman ’10
The Tech’s Athlete of the Week: Joseph B. Silverman ’10
This past weekend, MIT junior Joseph B. Silverman placed seventh in the 197-pound weight class in the Division III National Wrestling Tournament, held at Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. His stellar performance in the tournament earned him All-American status, and Joe is the second MIT wrestler to earn this distinction in the last two years. Glenn J. Geesman ’09 also qualified for and competed in the national tournament.
Silverman qualified for the tournament with a strong second-place finish two weeks earlier at the New England Wrestling Association tournament, which, coupled with a 33-5 season record, earned him a wild-card spot in his weight class. Considered an underdog entering the tournament, Silverman wasn’t ranked among the top ten in his weight class nationwide, but he wrestled strong and posted a record of 4 wins and 2 losses. His losses came at the hands of the first and third place finishers. His work ethic and training regimen contributed to his four victories, including an impressive 8-1 decision over Ed Broderick of The College of New Jersey.
Heavyweight Geesman also wrestled in the tournament. He qualified by winning the New England tournament in dramatic fashion over Springfield College wrestler Chris Brown, who had defeated Glenn earlier in the tournament. Geesman won his first match at Nationals, a 3-0 decision over Adam Sutter of Lakeland College, after dropping his next two to the second and eighth place finishers. His final season record stands at an impressive 38 wins to only four losses.
Silverman and sophomore 125-pounder Grant M. Kadokura ’11 were also named Academic All-Americans for the past season. Kadokura posted an impressive fifth-place finish in the New England tournament but did not qualify for the national tournament.
—Michael Gerhardt, Staff Writer