Lehigh University Athletics
Mountain Hawks top American, Rider at Sheridans
12/6/2003 12:00:00 AM | Athletics
Bethlehem, PA – The Mountain Hawks went undefeated at the Sheridan Duals for the third time in four years, defeating American 38-9 in the early match before taking down Rider 23-10 in the late match. The match with Rutgers was cancelled when Rutgers was unable to make the trip due to inclement weather. Lehigh has now won six straight duals after the season opening loss to Iowa State. In the match against American, Lehigh controlled from the very beginning to take the 38-9 decision. Head coach Greg Strobel elected to use the match get some mat time for more of the wrestling squad, as Mario Stuart, Matt Ciasulli, and Matt Cassidy were the only starters to wrestle. The match only included seven matches, as American forfeited at three weights. At 125, Mario Stuart came out firing, executing a takedown and a three-point near fall in the first period. He never let up either, winning over Matt Pelligrino by tech fall at 6:44 by a score of 20-3. Then, at 133, Matt Ciasulli gained his team-leading third pin on the season, toppling Ben Lamson in just 1:13. Mark McCauley made his first appearance of the year at 141, losing a very close match to Daniel Lobsenz. Lobsenz executed a takedown with just :10 left on the clock in the third period to take the victory 3-2. Tommy Rohn returned to the mat at 149, and Lehigh lost another thriller when Tim Kneizewski beat the buzzer with a match-tying takedown in the third, then scored another takedown in overtime to win 11-9. The Mountain Hawks then took the next three weights by forfeit, with Derek Zinck, Mike Maceroli, and Brad Dillon picking up the wins. At 184, Dan Waters continued American’s efforts, beating Dave Helfrich with the only takedown of the match, winning 3-2. At 197, Matt Cassidy improved to 5-1 on the season with his first pin, taking down Adam Montgomery at 1:51. Finally, at heavyweight, Anthony Livecchi won his first match by besting Jared Hyman 8-6. The Mountain Hawks got a tougher test in the afternoon match with Rider, getting bonus points at only one weight to win 23-10. Senior Mario Stuart began the match by picking up his second win of the day with a 5-3 win over Jim DiCisco in a match that was tight throughout. Don Fisch of Rider than controlled the next match as he defeated Matt Ciasulli of Lehigh by a score of 7-1, to tying the team scores at three. Ninth ranked Cory Cooperman helped the Mountain Hawks regain the lead with a 12-6 victory over Mike Molosky of the Broncs, in a match that Cooperman controlled throughout. Freshman Matt Anderson then dueled with Labe Black in a bout that was close throughout, but Anderson was able to prevail as he came out on top with a 5-4 victory at 149. At 157, Derek Zinch engaged in a very close and entertaining battle with Dave Miller, as both wrestlers tried to gain control of the bout, but neither able to pull away. In the end, Zinck prevailed with a 3-1 victory and the Mountain Hawks led 12-3. Mike Macerolli then got on the mat for the first time this season, after winning a decision by forfeit earlier in the day against American. Macerolli had a tough time against Ryan Cunningham, who came out fired up early and took control of the bout. Cunningham won the 165 pound by major decision with a score of 15-7, as the Broncs closed to within 12-7 overall. But, senior All-American Brad Dillon quickly put an end to that with a win by technical fall, as he defeated Chris Marold 20-5, and put the Mountain Hawks back up by ten, 17-7. Travis Frick scored a tough 3-2 victory over Nick Catone to put Lehigh ahead 20-7, which put the match out of reach. Freshman Matt Cassidy then went up against Jeff Black in a very intense match, which was interrupted midway through, when Black spit on the mat, which turned into a technical point being awarded to Cassidy. Cassidy then countered Black’s outburst with a balanced attack of his own, which turned into a 6-2 victory. In the final bout of the day, Carmelo Marrero of Rider defeated Paul Weibel by a score of 11-6, but it did not matter at that point, as Lehigh was already in control. In the 10:00 match, Rider defeated American 46-3. Rider leaves with a record of 1-1, while American is now 0-3. Lehigh, now 6-1, returns to the mat on January 3, when the Mountain Hawks travel to Columbus, Ohio to compete in the Buckeye Duals. Lehigh will take on three opponents, in host Ohio State, Buffalo and Eastern Illinois. Lehigh 38, American 9 Weight Matchup Result 125 Mario Stuart (LU) over Matt Pelligrino (AU) WTF, 20-3 (6:44) 133 Matt Ciasulli (LU) over Ben Lamson (AU) WBF, 1:13 141 Daniel Lobsenz (AU) over Mark McCauley (LU) 3-2 149 Tim Kniezewski (AU) over Tommy Rohn (LU) 11-9 (OT) 157 Derek Zinck (LU) forfeit 165 Mike Maceroli (LU) forfeit 174 Brad Dillon (LU) forfeit 184 Dan Waters (AU) over Dave Helfrich (LU) 3-2 197 Matt Cassidy (LU) over Adam Montgomery (AU) WBF, 1:51 HWT Anthony Livecchi (LU) over Jared Hyman (AU) 8-6 Lehigh 23, Rider 10 Weight Matchup Result 125 Mario Stuart (LU) over Jim DiCisco(RU) 5-3 133 Don Fisch (RU) over Matt Ciasulli (LU) 7-1 141 Cory Cooperman (LU) over Mike Molosky (RU) 12-6 149 Matt Anderson (LU) over Labe Black (RU) 5-4 157 Derek Zinck (LU) over Dave Miller (RU) 3-1 165 Ryan Cunningham(RU) over Mike Macerolli (LU) MD, 15-7 174 Brad Dillon (LU) over Chris Marold (RU) WTF, 20-5 184 Travis Frick (LU) over Nick Catone (RU) 3-2 197 Matt Cassidy (LU) over Jeff Black (RU) 6-2 HWT Paul Weibel (LU) over Carmelo Marrero (RU) 11-6 Rider 46, American 3 125 Jim DiCicco (R) over Matt Pelligrino (A) WTF, 5:34 15-0 133 Don Fisch (R) over Ben Lamson (A) WBF, 5:27 141 Mike Molosky (R) over Daniel Lobsenz (A) WTF, 5:27 18-3 149 Labe Miller (R) over Tim Kniezewski (A) 10-3 157 Dave Miller (R) forfeit 165 Ryan Cunningham (R) forfeit 174 Chris Marold (R) forfeit 184 Dan Waters (A) over Joe Maroney (R) 11-5 197 Jeff Black (R) over Adam Montgomery (A) WBF, 2:30 HWT Jared Terrell (R) over Jared Hyman (A) 16-14, (OT)
