Sunday, January 09
No. 16 Penn State wrestlers down No. 25 Pittsburgh, 26-19
Nittany Lions sweep double-dual to improve to 4-2 on the year
State College, Pa., Jan. 9, 2005 – The No. 16 ranked Penn State wrestling posted its second victory over a ranked opponent on the day as the Nittany Lions downed No. 25 Pittsburgh, 26-19, Sunday in Rec Hall. The match was the second of a double-dual on the day. Penn State rolled to a 34-12 win over No. 12 West Virginia earlier in the day and ran its dual meet record to 4-2 as the Nittany Lions prepare to open the Big Ten season with a road trip to No. 5 Michigan and Michigan State next weekend. Pittsburgh dropped to 1-3 on the year.
Penn State was the beneficiary of forfeits for the second match on the day as the Panthers had two wrestlers hurt in a 34-12 loss to No. 6 Lehigh in Pittsburgh the night before. The Panthers did not have a wrestler at 133 or 157, spotting Penn State 12 points. The Nittany Lions took care of the rest.
Senior co-captain Adam Smith opened the match in dominating fashion as he pinned Zach Bowman at 1:51 of the 125-pound bout for an early 6-0 lead. The win improved Smith to 6-0 in dual meet action on the year.
Freshman Bryan Heller took the forfeit win at 133 pounds before Pittsburgh got on the board with a hard fought victory by No. 5 ranked Ron Tarquinio over No. 18 DeWitt Driscoll. Tarquinio got the opening takedown in the first period and escaped in the second to take a 3-1 lead into the third period. Driscoll started down in the third and got a reversal to even the bout at 3-3. He let Tarquinio escape with 45 seconds remaining but was unable to convert a go ahead takedown and Tarquinio claimed the 4-3 victory.
Pittsburgh got another win from State College product Matt Kocher at 149. Kocher, ranked No. 16, downed Nittany Lion freshman Jack Decker, 11-3, to close the margin to 12-6 in favor of Penn State. Nate Galloway took a Pittsburgh forfeit at 157 to extend the lead to 18-7 for the Nittany Lions.
At 165, senior Jarrad Turner got the start as regular starter Steven Troup took a rest. Turner, who weighed in at 157, took on Panther Justin Nestor who controlled the action with a first period takedown and second period reversal and held on for a 5-1 win.
Pittsburgh got a big fall from 174-pounder Zach Doll to close the gap to 18-16 in favor of Penn State. Doll and Nittany Lion sophomore James Yonushonis battled through a scoreless first period. Yonushonis took down in the second period and escaped. The pair then got into a scramble for several seconds until Doll locked up a cradle, got the takedown and then slowly squeezed Yonushonis to his back at 4:43.
Penn State sent No. 6 ranked Eric Bradley to the mat needing a win at 184. He took on Pittsburgh’s Eric Cassidy and quickly controlled the action. With takedowns in the first and second period and a second period escape, Bradley took a 5-1 lead into the third. He added three takedowns and a stalling point in the third for a 13-4 major decision that gave Penn State some breathing room with a 22-16 lead.
Junior Joel Edwards iced the match for Penn State with a solid 12-4 win over Lou Thomas at 197. Edwards posted a pair of first period takedowns and took a 4-1 lead into the second period. Edwards took the down position and gave Penn State fans a scare when Thomas locked up a cradle and nearly pinned the Nittany Lion before he broke the hold after nearly a minute. Edwards eventually got a reversal but not before giving up three near-fall points. He then posted a takedown and three near-fall points of his own in the third for a 12-4 major decision that sealed the win with a 26-16 Penn State lead.
The heavyweights wrapped things up as senior Josh Walker took on Panther Zach Sheaffer. The pair battled through a scoreless first period. Sheaffer chose neutral in the second and recorded a takedown. Walker escaped and it was 2-1 going into the third. Walker took down and turned in to get a reversal. Sheaffer escaped and the two went head to head for another minute until Sheaffer converted the winning takedown with six seconds remaining. The win made the final 26-19 in favor of Penn State as the Nittany Lions took a 50-12-2 lead in the series.
#16 Penn State 26, #25 Pittsburgh 19
PITT PS
125 #15 Adam Smith (PS) pinned Zach Bowman (PITT), F;1:51 0 6
133 Bryan Heller (PS) win by forfeit 0 12
141 #5 Ron Tarquinio (PITT) dec. #18 DeWitt Driscoll (PS), 4-3 3 12
149 #16 Matt Kocher (PITT) Maj. Dec. Jack Decker (PS), 11-3 7 12
157 #11 Nate Galloway (PS) win by forfeit 7 18
165 Justin Nestor (PITT) dec. Jarrad Turner (PS), 5-1 10 18
174 Zach Doll (PITT) pinned James Yonushonis (PS), F;4:43 16 18
184 #6 Eric Bradley (PS) Maj. Dec. Eric Cassidy (PITT), 13-4 16 22
197 Joel Edwards (PS) Maj. Dec. Lou Thomas (PITT), 12-4 16 26
Hwt. Zach Sheaffer (PITT) dec. Josh Walker (PS), 26-19 19 26
Penn State: 4-2 Pittsburgh: 1-3
Attendance: 2,310
Ridge Riley Award: Adam Smith (125)
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