Thursday, October 24
7:00:00 PM
Lehigh University
vs
Wrestle- Offs
Lehigh to host Brown and White Wrestle-offs Thursday night
10/22/2013 4:07:00 PM | Men's Wrestling
Watch the Wrestle-offs live! | Buy Tickets
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh wrestling team will hop on the mats in front of the home fans  with the annual Brown and White Wrestle-offs Thursday inside Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall. Fans will get their first look at the 2013-14 Mountain Hawks with 11 matches tentatively scheduled on the evening.Â
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The Mountain Hawks are just under two weeks into preseason practice and with two and a half weeks until the dual opener versus Bucknell on November 9, the focus remains on improving every day.
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"It's been a good two weeks but we still have a lot of things we need to work on," said Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro. "Every week we need to get a little bit better. We have to be focused on right now, but we also have to be focused on the big picture. "
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Thursday's event marks the return of Lehigh's public wrestle-offs after last year's Grace Hall event was cancelled due to Hurricane Sandy. Wrestle-offs were moved inside Lehigh's wrestling room, ending a streak of 49 consecutive years of Lehigh public wrestle-offs.
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"For some of these guys it will be their first time in front of a big crowd in Grace Hall," Santoro said "I want to see how they respond with the big crowd, how they respond to the nerves, how they respond to making weight for the first time. Those are all important steps to getting better because you have to be able to take those nerves and use those in a good way. Channel that into scoring points and keeping your focus without being overwhelmed by the crowd. "
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Lehigh returns all three of their 2013 EIWA champions in senior Joey Napoli, junior Nathaniel Brown and sophomore Randy Cruz. With the return of sophomore Mason Beckman from a deferred year in 2012-13, Cruz is expected to move up to 141 this season. He will face classmate Laike Gardner on Thursday. Gardner posted a .500 record in 12 bouts for the Hawks last season. He moved up to 141 mid-year last season after Cruz's emergence at 133 in late December.
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Brown has bumped up to 184 to replace three-time All-American Robert Hamlin. On Thursday, Brown will wrestle an exhibition match against sophomore John Bolich, the projected starter at 197. Bolich placed fifth at the EIWA championships last season, finishing one spot shy of an NCAA qualification.
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Coming off a brilliant junior campaign where he won 18 of his first 20 bouts, Napoli will square off against junior Cal Stack in a battle at 157.
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Thursday's card begins with two bouts at 125. Freshman Dean Somers will open things up against sophomore Cody Kievman. Kievman posted a 9-8 record as a freshman and competed in two duals at 133.
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The other bout at 125 features two highly-regarded true freshmen as Darian Cruz of Allentown faces Artem Timchenko of Columbus, Ohio, as both rookies bid for the starting spot when the season opens.
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With Beckman penciled in as the starter at 133, he will wrestle an exhibition bout against freshman 141-pounder Drew Longo. That will be followed by a 141 pound bout between sophomore Will Switzer and junior Jim Carucci.
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At 149, freshman Mitch Minotti, who deferred his eligibility last season and posted an impressive 38-10 record, battles junior Michael Stepien. Sophomore Ben Haas and freshman Brian Brill will wrestle off at 165. Haas manned the starting spot through the second semester of last season after Brill suffered a season-ending injury in his first varsity appearance.
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A pair of deferred freshmen will compete in an exhibition bout as Elliott Riddick (174) will meet Zach Diekel (184). The heavyweights will contest the final bout of the night with sophomore Max Wessell squaring off against freshman Doug Vollaro.
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"We're going to have a very young group out there," Santoro said. "They're excited to compete. Anytime someone is excited to compete it's exciting to watch them. They just want to score points and wrestle. Winning and losing isn't really their focus. The whole focus is on getting better each match and scoring the next point no matter where you are."
Â
The wrestle-offs get underway at 7 p.m. Thursday from Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall. Tickets are still available and can be purchased by calling 610-7LU-GAME or by visiting LehighTickets.com. Tickets will also be available Thursday evening at Grace Hall. For those unable to make it to Grace Hall on Thursday, the wrestle-offs can be seen live on Lehighsports.com via the Patriot League Network, with Steve Lomangino , Â Gary Brownell '72 and Denny Diehl '70 handling the commentary.
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Thursday's probable matchups:
Â
Wt.        Brown  vs. White
125Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Dean Somers vs. Cody Kievman
125Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Artem Timchenko vs. Darian Cruz
EXÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Mason Beckman (133) vs. Drew Longo (141)
141Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Will Switzer vs. Jim Carucci
141Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Laike Gardner vs. Randy Cruz
149Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Mitch Minotti vs. Mike Stepien
157Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Joey Napoli vs. Cal Stack
165Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Ben Haas vs. Brian Brill
EXÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Elliott Riddick (174) vs. Zach Diekel (184)
EXÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Nathaniel Brown (184) vs. John Bolich (197)
285Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Doug Vollaro vs. Max Wessell
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Story with contributions from David Gordon '15
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh wrestling team will hop on the mats in front of the home fans  with the annual Brown and White Wrestle-offs Thursday inside Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall. Fans will get their first look at the 2013-14 Mountain Hawks with 11 matches tentatively scheduled on the evening.Â
Â
The Mountain Hawks are just under two weeks into preseason practice and with two and a half weeks until the dual opener versus Bucknell on November 9, the focus remains on improving every day.
Â
"It's been a good two weeks but we still have a lot of things we need to work on," said Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro. "Every week we need to get a little bit better. We have to be focused on right now, but we also have to be focused on the big picture. "
Â
Thursday's event marks the return of Lehigh's public wrestle-offs after last year's Grace Hall event was cancelled due to Hurricane Sandy. Wrestle-offs were moved inside Lehigh's wrestling room, ending a streak of 49 consecutive years of Lehigh public wrestle-offs.
Â
"For some of these guys it will be their first time in front of a big crowd in Grace Hall," Santoro said "I want to see how they respond with the big crowd, how they respond to the nerves, how they respond to making weight for the first time. Those are all important steps to getting better because you have to be able to take those nerves and use those in a good way. Channel that into scoring points and keeping your focus without being overwhelmed by the crowd. "
Â
Lehigh returns all three of their 2013 EIWA champions in senior Joey Napoli, junior Nathaniel Brown and sophomore Randy Cruz. With the return of sophomore Mason Beckman from a deferred year in 2012-13, Cruz is expected to move up to 141 this season. He will face classmate Laike Gardner on Thursday. Gardner posted a .500 record in 12 bouts for the Hawks last season. He moved up to 141 mid-year last season after Cruz's emergence at 133 in late December.
Â
Brown has bumped up to 184 to replace three-time All-American Robert Hamlin. On Thursday, Brown will wrestle an exhibition match against sophomore John Bolich, the projected starter at 197. Bolich placed fifth at the EIWA championships last season, finishing one spot shy of an NCAA qualification.
Â
Coming off a brilliant junior campaign where he won 18 of his first 20 bouts, Napoli will square off against junior Cal Stack in a battle at 157.
Â
Thursday's card begins with two bouts at 125. Freshman Dean Somers will open things up against sophomore Cody Kievman. Kievman posted a 9-8 record as a freshman and competed in two duals at 133.
Â
The other bout at 125 features two highly-regarded true freshmen as Darian Cruz of Allentown faces Artem Timchenko of Columbus, Ohio, as both rookies bid for the starting spot when the season opens.
Â
With Beckman penciled in as the starter at 133, he will wrestle an exhibition bout against freshman 141-pounder Drew Longo. That will be followed by a 141 pound bout between sophomore Will Switzer and junior Jim Carucci.
Â
At 149, freshman Mitch Minotti, who deferred his eligibility last season and posted an impressive 38-10 record, battles junior Michael Stepien. Sophomore Ben Haas and freshman Brian Brill will wrestle off at 165. Haas manned the starting spot through the second semester of last season after Brill suffered a season-ending injury in his first varsity appearance.
Â
A pair of deferred freshmen will compete in an exhibition bout as Elliott Riddick (174) will meet Zach Diekel (184). The heavyweights will contest the final bout of the night with sophomore Max Wessell squaring off against freshman Doug Vollaro.
Â
"We're going to have a very young group out there," Santoro said. "They're excited to compete. Anytime someone is excited to compete it's exciting to watch them. They just want to score points and wrestle. Winning and losing isn't really their focus. The whole focus is on getting better each match and scoring the next point no matter where you are."
Â
The wrestle-offs get underway at 7 p.m. Thursday from Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall. Tickets are still available and can be purchased by calling 610-7LU-GAME or by visiting LehighTickets.com. Tickets will also be available Thursday evening at Grace Hall. For those unable to make it to Grace Hall on Thursday, the wrestle-offs can be seen live on Lehighsports.com via the Patriot League Network, with Steve Lomangino , Â Gary Brownell '72 and Denny Diehl '70 handling the commentary.
Â
Thursday's probable matchups:
Â
Wt.        Brown  vs. White
125Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Dean Somers vs. Cody Kievman
125Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Artem Timchenko vs. Darian Cruz
EXÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Mason Beckman (133) vs. Drew Longo (141)
141Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Will Switzer vs. Jim Carucci
141Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Laike Gardner vs. Randy Cruz
149Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Mitch Minotti vs. Mike Stepien
157Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Joey Napoli vs. Cal Stack
165Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Ben Haas vs. Brian Brill
EXÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Elliott Riddick (174) vs. Zach Diekel (184)
EXÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Nathaniel Brown (184) vs. John Bolich (197)
285Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Doug Vollaro vs. Max Wessell
Â
Story with contributions from David Gordon '15
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