MAC Wrestling Weekend Action

 

 

BUFFALO, NY - The Buffalo wrestling team continued to struggle through a tough early season schedule Sunday afternoon, losing to 17th ranked Edinboro (4-1) 28-9. The Bulls (0-4) saw wins by Max Soria, Mark Lewandowski, and John-Martin Cannon, but depth concerns would plague the team in the loss. The win by Lewandowski was the 100th of the senior's career at UB, making him the eighth wrestler in program history to reach the mark.

 

"I'm extremely disappointed, we didn't wrestle well from top to bottom," head coach Jim Beichner said. "We have a lot of injuries and sometimes that effects your team but there are no excuses. This was a match we expected to be in regardless of who we put out there. We as a coaching staff didn't like the product that we put on the mat today."

 

The Bulls started with a big win at 125 pounds, as Max Soria came from behind to earn an 8-4 win over Kory Mines. After trailing 2-1 going into the second period, Soria started out on bottom and scored a quick reversal and turned Mines for two more points and a 5-4 lead going into the final period. In the third, he sealed the win with three more near-fall points.

 

"I was really happy he went out there and found a way to win, because he started very slow," Beichner said. "We feel Max is a great wrestler, and his attitude should be that whoever steps out on the mat he should beat them. The outcome was good, but even he would tell you that the match pace as a whole is something he needs to continue to work on."

 

Lewandowski did not win the glamorous match that he had become accustomed to in his time at UB, but he was able to snap a four-match losing streak by the team and won 8-5 over Casey Fuller at 165 pounds. After scoring a quick takedown in the first period, Lewandowski was caught and taken down and ended the first period all square at 3-3. Lewandowski entered the third period up 4-3 and extended the lead to 5-3 after a quick escape. Fuller scored a tying takedown that also aggravated an injury for Lewandowski that put his win in jeopardy.

 

The gutsy senior rebounded with another takedown and rode out Fuller for the riding time point and an 8-5 win.

 

"If you relax too much, that's when injuries happen, and even though he was dominating his guy he relaxed and it wound up coming back to hurt him," Beichner said. "I'm happy and proud of him for getting his 100th career win, but I'm positive that he isn't happy with the way his match went today. You have to look at the milestone as something only eight wrestlers have done in almost 80 years of a program, but we want Mark to improve and leave here as one of the very best ever."

 

Buffalo's final win of the day would come from Cannon at 174. Finally free of his protective mask that shielded a broken nose suffered early in the season, Cannon looked to be his old self right from the start. He snatched Patrick Jennings' foot right off the opening whistle for a takedown, then proceeded to take him down four more times in the match for a never-in-doubt 11-5 win.

 

The team will be back in action next weekend, as it travels to Virginia for the Virginia Duals. It is a double-elimination team tournament that will feature many of the best teams in the country. The tournament starts Friday and runs through the weekend.

 

#17 EDINBORO 28, BUFFALO 9

 

 

 

 

MOUNT PLEASANT - Central Michigan won nine of 10 bouts and earned bonus points from redshirt freshman Lucas Smith, sophomore Mike Ottinger and senior Ben Bennett to defeat Bucknell Sunday night, 35-3. 

 

The Chippewas (5-2) jumped out to a quick 9-0 lead by winning the first three matches and after dropping their only match of the night, earned bonus points in their next four to put the Bison (2-5) away. 

 

Smith got the bonus point victories started for the Chippewas by defeating Vincent Favia by major decision, 8-0, at 157 pounds. The Wheeling, Ill., native went up 2-0 with a takedown in the first period and extended the lead to 7-0 in the second with an escape, takedown and two-point near fall. He accumulated 2:23 of riding time to earn a bonus point for the major decision. 

 

Ottinger (165) continued the extra scoring at 165 pounds with a 21-6 technical fall over Robert Schlitt. The sophomore used a pair of takedowns in the first period to grab a 4-1 lead and extended his lead in the second by earning a quick escape, takedown and three-point near fall. 

 

He continued to push the pace through the third period, taking Schlitt down four more times in the final frame to earn the tech fall. 

 

The Bison forfeited their match at 174 pounds giving the Chippewas six bonus points and Bennett earned the Maroon and Gold their second-straight tech fall with a 15-0 win over Robert Marchese. 

 

Bennett, ranked No. 4 in the country by InterMat at 184 pounds, went up 5-0 in the first period behind a takedown and three-point near fall before extending his lead to 10-0 with an escape, takedown, penalty point and another three-point near fall in the second. With a takedown in the third period and 4:23 of riding time, the senior was able to keep his record unblemished on the year and push the Chippewas' lead to 29-3. 

 

Senior No. 11 Christian Cullinan used 1:44 of riding time to help earn a slim 2-0 decision in the opening match of the night at 125 pounds before sophomore Tyler Keselring won by decision, 6-4, and junior Scott Mattingly held on for a 2-0 victory that included 1:38 of riding time. 

 

Redshirt freshman Jackson Lewis also won by decision, 3-1, over Tyler Lyster at 197 pounds before senior No. 7 Jarod Trice finished the night with a high-scoring affair at the heavyweight division. 

 

Trice had a pair of takedowns and nearly pinned his opponent in the first period, but instead was awarded a three-point near fall to grab a 7-1 lead through one. Another takedown and two-point near fall allowed the senior to extend his lead and after Joe Stolfi earned a takedown in the third period, Trice swung through for a reversal to seal the 15-8 win. 

 

The Chippewas are back in action next weekend when they travel to Hampton, Va., for the Virginia Duals. Brackets for the duals will be announced Tuesday morning. Check back to CMUChippewas.com throughout the week for a full preview. 

 

No. 11 Central Michigan 35, Bucknell 3

125: No. 11 Christian Cullinan (CMU) dec. Austin Miller, 2-0; CMU 3-0

133: Tyler Keselring (CMU) dec. Paul Petrov, 6-4; CMU 6-0

141: Scott Mattingly (CMU) dec. Derrik Russell, 2-0; CMU 9-0

149: Adam Healey (Bucknell) dec. Donnie Corby, 4-3; CMU 9-3

157: Lucas Smith (CMU) maj. dec. Vincent Favia, 8-0; CMU 13-3

165: Mike Ottinger (CMU) tech. fall Robert Schlitt, 7:00 21-6; CMU 18-3

174: No. 20 Craig Kelliher (CMU) wins by forfeit; CMU 24-3

184: No. 4 Ben Bennett (CMU) tech. fall Robert Marchese, 7:00 15-0; CMU 29-3

197: Jackson Lewis (CMU) dec. Tyler Lyster, 3-1; CMU 32-3

285: No. 7 Jarod Trice dec. Joe Stolfi, 15-8; CMU 35-3

 

 

 

 

CHATANOOGA, Tenn. - The sixth-ranked Mizzou wrestling team took third place in a very competitive field that included the nation's top three teams at the Southern Scuffle on Wednesday (Jan. 2) as the team earned 147.5 total points in the two-day competition. The Tigers finished ahead of third-ranked Minnesota and just behind No. 1 Penn State (first, 178.5) points and No. 2 Oklahoma State (second, 158.0) points. Redshirt senior Dom Bradley took first in the heavyweight class in a thrilling championship bout against Minnesota's Tony Nelson, earning a 2-1 decision in a tiebreaker over the defending national champion.

 

Bradley's bout with Nelson is a possible matchup later in March at the NCAA Championships as Bradley, the nation's No. 2 heavyweight, earned the win Tuesday. Bradley is now a team-best 22-0 on the season after defeating Nelson for the title, snapping Nelson's streak of 40 straight wins dating back to last season. Nelson was the No. 1 heavyweight in the country heading into the Southern Scuffle and was the 2012 National Champion.

 

Among other notable finishers for the Tigers on Tuesday was sixth-ranked Nathan McCormick, who earned third place at 133 pounds after pinning Penn State's James Gulibon in 4:44. McCormick advanced to the semifinals before losing to Jon Morrison of Oklahoma State, but he rebounded with the fall in the third-place match for the Tigers.

 

At 149 pounds, 18th-ranked Drake Houdashelt took fourth after wrestling back to the third-place match after losing the quarterfinal match to Cole VonOhlen of Air Force. He lost the third-place match, 5-2, to James English of Penn State but put on a show in the wrestleback bracket, earning a pair of major decisions en-route to the third-place match.

 

At 157 pounds, Kyle Bradley also earned a fourth-place nod after advancing to the semifinals on day one of the scuffle. Bradley was ousted in the semifinals by Virginia's Jedd Moore, 2-0, but came back to earn a 10-2 major decision to earn a spot in the third-place match. Bradley nearly came out on top, but ultimately fell to top-seeded Alex Dieringer of Oklahoma State, 3-2, in the third-place bout.

 

At 165 pounds, 12th-ranked Zach Toal finished fifth overall after pinning Zach Strickland of Appalachian State in the fifth-place bout. Toal went 4-2 over the two-day scuffle en-route to the fifth-place finish. Todd Porter, the nation's No. 16 grappler at 174 pounds took fifth-place in his bracket as well, going 4-2 over the two days.

 

Mike Larson turned in a fourth-place effort at 184 pounds after advancing to the semifinals in the first day of competition. In the semifinals, Larson was defeated by top-seeded Edward Ruth of Penn State, but Larson rebounded to take fourth in the consolation bracket, falling in the third-place bout to Kevin Steinhaus on Minnesota. Mizzou's Johnny Elblen finished seventh in the same weight class.

 

After winning the individual title at 197 pounds a year ago, Mizzou's Brett Haynes was ousted in the quarterfinals by Phillip Wellington of Ohio, 5-2, but wrestled all the way back to a third-place finish. Coincidentally, Haynes' win in the third-place bout came against Wellington, this time besting the Bobcat grappler, 4-3, to take third overall.

 

 

 

 

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - The Northern Illinois wrestling team recorded two wins Sunday afternoon in Edwardsville, Ill., as the Huskies defeated Southern Conference foes Appalachian State and SIU Edwardsville.

 

With the wins, NIU improved to 7-3 on the year, putting them one victory away from matching last season's win total.

 

NIU Downs Mountaineers, 26-12

 

The Huskies began the day with a big non-conference win against perennial SoCon contender Appalachian State, defeating the Mountaineers, 26-12.

 

"We came out and battled hard," said NIU head coach Ryan Ludwig. "I liked our mindset for the most part. Mental toughness is key."

 

NIU got into an early hole against ASU when Derek Elmore dropped a 9-2 decision to Dominic Parisi at 125 pounds. Yet, Northern turned their fortunes around when Nick Smith beat Brett Boston at 133 by a 6-2 margin, tying the meet up at three.

 

From there, the Huskies took control of the match with three consecutive wins - two of which with bonus points. At 141, Kevin Fanta, who was making his dual meet debut of the year, scored a 15-5 major decision against ASU's Chris Johnson to put NIU up 7-3. Following Shawn Fayette's 6-1 win against Zach Kechter, Andrew Morse earned his first career pin when he stuck Collins Creech late in the second period, giving NIU an insurmountable 16-3 advantage.

 

ASU threatened to come back with two consecutive wins to get within seven. Dan Burk lost to Zack Strickland by a narrow 4-3 decision at 165, followed by Colin Hedash defeating Matt Mougin, 9-7, at 174 pounds.

 

Bryan Loughlin stemmed the Mountaineers' momentum with a convincing 12-4 win against Jon Hartley at 184 pounds, putting NIU up, 20-9. After Parker Settecase dropped a narrow 5-4 decision against Paul Weiss at 197, Jared Torrence put the finishing touches on the Huskie win with a second period pin of Joe Cummings at heavyweight.

 

Northern Illinois 26, Appalachian State 12

125: Dominic Parisi (ASU) dec. Derek Elmore (NIU), 9-2

133: Nick Smith (NIU) dec Brett Boston (ASU), 6-2

141: Kevin Fanta (NIU) maj. dec. Chris Johnson (ASU), 15-5

149: Shawn Fayette (NIU) dec. Zach Kechter (ASU), 6-1

157: Andrew Morse (NIU) pins Collins Creech (ASU), 4:47

165: Zack Strickland (ASU) dec. Dan Burk (NIU), 4-3

174: Colin Hedash (ASU) dec. Matt Mougin, 9-7

184: Bryan Loughlin (NIU) maj. dec. Jon Hartley (ASU), 12-4

197: Paul Weiss (ASU) dec. Parker Settecase (NIU), 5-4

285: Jared Torrence (NIU) pins Joe Cummings (ASU), 4:23

 

Huskies Rout Cougars, 31-13

 

NIU completed their stay in suburban St. Louis by dominating the homestanding Cougars of SIU Edwardsville, 31-13. The win was the Huskies' 20th consecutive win over their downstate rivals.

 

"We looked better in the top position," Ludwig said. "I thought we wrestled with a scoring mindset on all positions."

 

The Huskies started on a fast note with a forfeit win at 125 for a 6-0 lead. Nick Smith added to that advantage when he beat SIUE's wins leader Patrick Myers in a tight 4-3 decision to put Northern up, 9-0. Kevin Fanta widened that margin even further when he pinned Brandon Brindley at 4:35 to put NIU ahead by 15.

 

The Cougars kept the Huskies close, though, after Dillon Pousson stuck Shawn Fayette in the first period at 149 pounds. However, Andrew Morse got his second big win of the day when he shutout Kyle Lowman in a 10-0 major decision.

 

Sam Bennett helped get that lead to 25-6 when he pinned Logun Taylor midway through the first period. Following Dan Burk's 6-1 loss at 174 to Jake Residori, Bryan Loughlin shut the door on SIUE when earned a 10-9 win against Derek Nagel.

 

After Parker Settecase lost to Josh Wood at 197, Jared Torrence earned an overtime 6-1 win with a takedown in the first sudden victory round against David Devine.

 

Northern Illinois 31, SIU Edwardsville 13

125: Derek Elmore (NIU) wins by forfeit

133: Nick Smith (NIU) dec. Patrick Myers (SIUE), 4-3

141: Kevin Fanta (NIU) pins Brandon Brindley (SIUE), 4:35

149: Dillon Pousson (SIUE) pins Shawn Fayette (NIU), 1:03

157: Andrew Morse (NIU) maj. dec. Kyle Lowman (SIUE), 10-0

165: Sam Bennett (NIU) pins Logun Taylor (SIUE), 1:54

174: Jake Residori (SIUE) dec. Dan Burk (NIU), 6-1

184: Bryan Loughlin (NIU) dec. Derek Nagel (SIUE), 10-9

197: Josh Wood (SIUE) maj. dec. Parker Settecase, 19-5

285: Jared Torrence (NIU) dec. David Devine (SIUE), 6-1 (OT)

 

 

 

 

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa - The University of Northern Iowa wrestlers recorded seven pins en route to a dominating victory over Iowa Western Community College.

 

The Panthers beat the Reivers 56-0, improving the team's dual record to 2-1.

 

"We want to put guys away," said head coach Doug Schwab. "We do preach bonus points. It's going to help in those tight matches." 

 

UNI just returned from getting 13th at the Midlands Championships after being on a short break for the holidays. 

 

"It's been a good break. We had a great training phase," said Schwab. "I thought we competed well at Midlands. Our guys came back well. I think our guys are encouraged after being at such a high-level competition."

 

Senior Ryan Jauch got a technical fall in his first dual meet for UNI at 125 pounds. Iowa Western forfeited at 133 pounds. David Bonin, ranked 18th in the nation by Amateur Wrestling News, won by decision in the 157-pound weight class.

 

Three Panther wrestlers got first-period pins:

 

Joey Lazor at 141 pounds 

Jarrett Jensen at 165 pounds 

Cody Caldwell at 174 pounds 

Ryan Loder, ranked sixth in the nation by Intermat in the 184-pound weight class, continues his winning streak. He currently has the fifth-highest winning percentage among all UNI Panthers who have had at least 50 wins and competed at least two seasons in Division I. His career record improves to 82-20. 

 

"I liked how he wrestled," said Schwab. "He just has to get better each time out."

 

The Panthers are on the road next week, wrestling at Northern Colorado Jan. 11 and at Air Force Jan. 13. 

 

UNI returns home Jan. 18 to host Oklahoma.

 

FINAL RESULTS: UNI 56, IWCC 0

 

125 - Ryan Jauch (UNI) wins by tech fall Adrian Lozano (IWCC), 18-1 (5:00)

 

133 - Levi Wolfensperger (UNI) wins by forfeit                                 

 

141 - Joey Lazor (UNI) pins Seth Stender (IWCC), 2:25                    

 

149 - Bart Reiter (UNI) pins Kasey Einerson (IWCC), 4:23    

 

157 - David Bonin (UNI) dec. Zak Benitz (IWCC), 9-2

 

165 - Jarrett Jensen (UNI) pins Chase Dunlap (IWCC), 1:39   

 

174 - Cody Caldwell (UNI) pins Austin Borne (IWCC), 1:02 

 

184 - Ryan Loder (UNI) pins Devin Peterson (IWCC), 5:44               

 

197 - A.J. McBroom (UNI) pins Josh Kloppel (IWCC), 3:59

 

285 - Blayne Beale (UNI) pins Kayne Daudt (IWCC) 3:47