EVANSTON, Ill. ? Four members of the VMI wrestling team got an early jump on their return from Christmas break, competing at the prestigious Midlands Championship, hosted by Northwestern.

Junior Michael Long won his first match at 149, defeating Northern Iowa's Trevor Kittleson, 7-6.  Long, however, dropped his next two matches, suffering a pin against third-seeded Kyle Ruschell of Wisconsin before losing 9-3 to Chattanooga's Dan Waddell.

Sophomore Josh Wine also was pinned to fall out of the Championship bracket at 285, falling in 2:09 to Oregon State's Clayton Jack.  Wine bounced back to defeat Old Dominion's Roy Dragon, 7-3, before being disqualified in his final match.

Also competing were freshman Andrew Szymborski, who went 0-2 at 174, while senior Leon Barrow suffered an injury during his first match at 285, forcing him to forfeit to American's Quinton Pruett.

The VMI wrestling team returns to action on Wednesday, Jan. 7, taking on Delaware State and South Dakota State in Dover, Del.