CMC75 Moments: 1973 Wrestling Wins SCIAC Championship

As part of the buildup to the 75th Anniversary celebration for Claremont McKenna College (visit CMC's 75th Anniversary Countdown Page to learn more), we are reliving many of the great moments from CMS athletic department history over the 75-day countdown from April 17 to July 1. If you were a part of this great moment and would like to add to the memories, or if you would like to submit your memories of your own favorite CMS Athletics moment, fill out the form on our main 75th Anniversary page.

Great Moments from 75 Years of Athletics
1973 Wrestling: Stags Win SCIAC with Undefeated Season

The Claremont-Mudd wrestling program tied for first place in the SCIAC in 1972, but the Stags weren't in a sharing mood in 1973, sweeping through their conference rivals to take the outright SCIAC Championship. The title helped Claremont-Mudd to its first-ever SCIAC All-Sports Trophy for overall athletic excellence, making department history in the process.

The Stags shut out Redlands and Pomona-Pitzer, before edging Whittier (29-15) and Caltech (30-22) to cap the undefeated dual season, then earned sixth place at the NAIA District Championships. Mark Buchanan was both a SCIAC and NAIA District Champion, earning league MVP honors at 177 pounds. Rich Cozart and John Lucas (who was SCIAC MVP the year before in 1972) each picked up SCIAC titles, and Mark Biggers and Mike Brown earned runner-up finishes. Cozart and Biggers added third-place finishes at the District Championships to their postseason accolades as well.

CMS would go on to capture SCIAC Championships in 1974 and 1975, stretching its streak to four in a row including the co-championship in 1972. Buchanan and Lucas later both earned inductions into the CMS Hall of Fame, with Lucas part of the Class of 1997 and Buchanan following four years later in the Class of 2021. Lucas was a SCIAC Champion and NAIA national qualifier for three straight years from 1971-73 and finished with a career record of 77 wins and six losses. Buchanan, who also played football, qualified for the NAIA Nationals in 1971, 1973 and 1974. 

Rich Cozart:

I remember losing 30 pounds in '72-'73 to make 118, because Coach Merandi really wanted to win SCIAC. I said I would do it if he allowed me to move up to 126 for districts (and nationals in Sioux City, Iowa) which he did. My black eye in the pics that year took place when my Cal Lutheran opponent took me off the mat and slammed my face to the gym floor during a tournament. My head hit with a loud bang, that brought the coaches and ref to my side. But there was no real problem, and I had the opportunity to explain during the weeks to come what a stud I was, and that I was known to have a very hard head.

One similar memory is the conditioning drills. There was the distance running -- like, "are we on the cross country squad or the wrestling team?" I also recall during practice running tag teams up and down the concrete bleachers on the south side of the track (is this true or just a nightmare memory that seems real?). We also ran up the street between CMC and Pitzer (when it was still a street), and around the other schools, and back to the gym. Okay, yeah, the co-eds might be looking on, but the motivation to run like it didn't hurt! And as always, as I recall, John Lucas was the point man.    

Also, all four years of my time at CMC I was on a financial need scholarship, paying minimally, and during the first year part of the agreement was that I work part time in the athletic department. Dr. Arce assigned me to the trophy case in the gym entry area, where I polished trophies for an untold number of weeks, maybe months. Apparently Dr. Arce had a thing, and rightly so, for sparkling trophies and shining trophy cases. Or, it could have been he needed to give me some busy work to make me feel like I was making a contribution to my education (sort of a World War II generation-mentality, very much a CMC value in those days). As I worked my way through the trophies I admired the names and pictures of athletes that had gone before, and wondered if my name would join them.

Mark Douglas:

I remember very little from that year other than John Lucas and Bobby M dragging me all over the mat during practice. The competition in our schedule couldn't compare to them.

John Lucas:

I just remember we did not lack for conditioning.  Coach Merandi often made us run four miles before practice and then run lines on the basketball court after practice. Good group of guys.

1973 Wrestling Roster
Head Coach: Mike Merandi
Assistant Coach: Luther Martinez
John Allen (Heavyweight, CMC)
Mark Biggers (142, CMC)
Mike Brown (150, CMC)
Mark Buchanan (177. CMC)
Jim Bucher (142, CMC)
Rich Cozart (118, CMC)
Moises Cubillos (150, CMC)
Mark Douglas (167, CMC)
George Drysdale (150, HMC)
Daryl Liskey (126, CMC)
John Lucas (158, CMC)
Robert Mennis (190, CMC)
Thomas Petty (177, CMC)
Dan Rawsthorne (177, HMC)
Chris Roach (150, CMC)
Rudy Romero (142, CMC)
Gerald Smith (126, CMC)
Charles Speelman (Heavyweight, CMC)
Jose Vargus (126, CMC)
Doug Weeks (134, CMC)