Lehigh University
Pittsburgh
Mountain Hawks down Pittsburgh 24-9 on Sunday
11/15/2009 3:45:00 PM | Men's Wrestling
 |
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – No. 17 Lehigh moved to 3-0 on the dual season with a 24-9 victory over Pittsburgh Sunday afternoon inside Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall. Senior captain Matt Fisk led the charge with a third-period pin of Zach Grove at 5:41 for Lehigh’s lone bonus-point win of the afternoon as the Mountain Hawks won seven of ten bouts overall, including a number of close matches.
“It was a tough match,” said Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro. “We knew coming in that it would be a battle. There were eight matches that could have gone either way. Pitt’s a well coached team. They wrestled hard for seven minutes. Our guys performed well, but we’re still making some mental mistakes that we need to clean up.”
The dual started at 125 with sophomore John McDonald impressing in a 12-5 win over Chris Kochinsky. Fisk then followed by building an 8-1 lead over Grove early in the third period, before taking Grove down to his back to earn his first fall of the season and give the Mountain Hawks an early 9-0 lead.
“Matt’s rolling right now,” said Santoro. “He’s really focused. Last March left a bad taste in his mouth. He wants to get the job done this year.”
The only matchup between nationally-ranked wrestlers came at 141 as 18th-ranked Seth Ciasulli met No. 13 Tyler Nauman of Pittsburgh. Nauman scored first on a counter takedown in the first period and added a second takedown in the second period to win 5-3. The bout was the first of eight straight to close the dual that were decided by three points or less. The Panthers tacked on a second win at 149 as Eric Albright made a first period takedown stand in a 3-2 win over sophomore Brian Tanen.
Sophomore Sean Bilodeau started a four bout Lehigh run with a 6-3 decision over Mark Powell at 157. Bilodeau scored two first period takedowns and added a third late in the final period to put the Mountain Hawks up 12-6 at intermission.
Senior Mike Galante scored two first period takedowns against Karl DiCiantis at 165, but found himself trailing 5-4 entering the third. After an escape tied the bout, Galante picked up the decisive takedown and added riding time to earn an 8-5 decision.
At 174, freshman Robert Hamlin continued his strong start to the season with a 3-1 win over Dave Sullivan, while senior David Craig gave up the first takedown, but responded with takedowns in the final two periods to defeat Zac Thomusseit 6-3 at 184.
Pittsburgh’s Matt Wilps notched the Panthers third and final win of the day, defeating sophomore Joe Kennedy 3-1 in sudden victory. Sophomore Zach Rey closed the dual on a winning not for Lehigh, breaking a 1-1 tie with a third period takedown to earn a 3-2 decision over Ryan Tomei.
The Mountain Hawks will return to the mat on Friday when they travel to Columbus, Ohio for their first road dual against the third-ranked Buckeyes of Ohio State. First match is set for 7 p.m. from St. John Arena.
|
Weight |
Match-up |
Result |
|
Score/Time |
|
125 |
John McDonald (Lehigh) |
dec. |
Chris Kochinsky (Pitt) |
12-5 |
|
133 |
Matt Fisk (Lehigh) |
Fall |
Zach Grove (Pitt) |
5:41 |
|
141 |
Tyler Nauman (Pitt) |
dec. |
Seth Ciasulli (Lehigh) |
5-3 |
|
149 |
Eric Albright (Pitt) |
dec. |
Brian Tanen (Lehigh) |
3-2 |
|
157 |
Sean Bilodeau (Lehigh) |
dec. |
Mark Powell (Pitt) |
6-3 |
|
165 |
Mike Galante (Lehigh) |
dec. |
Karl DiCiantis (Pitt) |
8-5 |
|
174 |
Robert Hamlin (Lehigh) |
dec. |
David Sullivan (Pitt) |
3-1 |
|
184 |
David Craig (Lehigh) |
dec. |
Zac Thomusseit (Pitt) |
6-3 |
|
197 |
Matt Wilps (Pitt) |
dec. |
Joe Kennedy (Lehigh) |
3-1, s.v. |
|
285 |
Zach Rey (Lehigh) |
dec. |
Ryan Tomei (Pitt) |
3-2 |
Attendance – 1,434
Referee – Jeff Cook
Lehigh - Pittsburgh Post-Match Show
