Cowboys Ride in and Hogtie the Pride
By Dave Diamond
It was an inopportune time for the No. 16 Pride to welcome the two-time defending national champion Cowboys of Oklahoma State University to the Hofstra Arena, considering the injury trouble the Pride has had to overcome.
Nevertheless, OSU walked in and took advantage of the plummeting Pride, winning 30-10 Saturday.
“We can learn a lot from today, “said Pride head coach Tom Ryan, whose wrestlers were in trouble early and often.
The highly anticipated dual between two of the top wrestling programs in the nation started painfully for the Pride. OSU jumped out to a 10-0 lead after winning the first three matches, highlighted by Chris Pendleton’s big win over the Pride’s Paul Siemon. Pendleton is the top-ranked wrestler (174) in the nation and defending national champion. With the match still within striking distance for Siemon, Pendleton broke the match wide open in the final period, adding two separate two-point takedowns to secure a 14-5 victory.
It took a freshman to get the Pride back into the dual. Joe Rovelli was able to blow out the Cowboys’ Clay Kherer in the third period of his 184-pound match. The Pennsylvania native took the final nine points of the match, putting a four spot on the board for the Pride, and cutting the OSU lead to 10-4. It was undoubtedly the biggest win of Rovelli’s young career, admitting he was nervous going up against the best team in the nation. “I just tried to stick to my game plan and wrestle tough, and I came out on top, “he said.
It was a fine prelude to the impressive match-up pitting the Pride’s No. 2 Chris Skretkowicz against the top-ranked Jake Rosholt (197). With Rosholt taking an early lead, Skretkowicz fought to take a 5-4 lead midway through the third period, and in very good position. Skretkowicz held a defenseless Rosholt on the mat and could have let the clock run down, but he inexplicably tried to push Rosholt over. Rosholt instead reversed the hold and took down Skretkowicz in the latter seconds, giving Rosholt the win and Ryan scratching his head. “We have to win that match, “he said. “I told him not to roll him over, all he had to do was ride him out to win the match. He was in good position, that’s a match we have to win.”
The next match sent the Pride tail-spinning to an irrecoverable deficit. The number one ranked heavyweight in the country, Cowboys’ Steve Mocco (28-0), made quick work of an injured Gian Villante.
Villante was pinned in the first period, adding six points to the OSU lead, making it 19-4 with only four matches remaining.
After The Pride’s Dave Tomasette won his 125-pound match, another Pride freshman, No. 17 Charles Griffin (133) brought a disappointed crowd to its feet one final time with his upset over the Cowboys’ eighth-ranked Nathan Morgan in overtime. Griffin had a two-point take down after a one-point escape in the waning seconds of the third period to force the extra session.
The final two matches summed up the type of dual it was for the banged-up Pride, with two of its quality wrestlers unable to put up much of a showing. Ricky LaForge, also injured, couldn’t keep up in his 141-pound match, grimacing in pain most of the way through and taking an injury time out midway through. While the pain on his face led spectators to believe LaForge will not be in top condition any time soon, Ryan disagreed. “I think he’s almost through the injury, but I think we’re at the point where he isn’t practicing as much as he needs to because of the injury, “he said. “If we put four good weeks in before the NCAA (Championships) I think he’ll be a factor.”
Junior Pride John Masa, a 2003 All-American, was pinned to end the disappointing dual. While the two freshmen victories were the only bright spots for the Pride, a major opportunity to upset the top team in the nation fell short. However, even if the Cowboys’ were coming off of their closest match, a 20-19 win over Nebraska, Ryan noted that didn’t necessarily mean OSU was ripe for the pickings.
“Knowing (Cowboys head coach) John Smith, they were probably more prepared than they ever have been, “he said.
From the Hofstra University student newspaper
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