Lehigh welcomes Harvard and Brown Sunday for final home duals
2/7/2013 8:01:00 PM | Men's Wrestling
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Following a weekend away from the mats, Lehigh returns to action with its final home duals of the season, as the Mountain Hawks welcome EIWA rivals Harvard and Brown to Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall on Sunday. Two weekends ago, Lehigh upset then-No. 16 Oklahoma 21-14 and dropped a tight 20-14 decision to No. 10 Oregon State. The Mountain Hawks' six seniors will be recognized prior to the Harvard match.
Lehigh's six member senior class includes Welsh, Alex Abreu, Kevin Bailey, Josh Fitch, Robert Hamlin and Albert Woody. Five of Lehigh's six seniors are expected to compete in at least one of the duals on Sunday.
For the second straight season Welsh has parlayed a strong showing at the Midlands Championships into success in the second half of the dual season. Last year, Welsh placed eighth at the Midlands and went on to capture the EIWA title at 149, capping a 22-7 season. This season Welsh finished seventh at the Midlands, and since his seventh-place match, Welsh has reeled off seven consecutive wins, including victories over ninth-ranked Nick Lester of Oklahoma and seventh-ranked Scott Sakaguchi of Oregon State two weeks ago. For his efforts, Welsh was named EIWA Wrestler of the Week and moved into the national rankings.
Like Lehigh, Harvard returns from a weekend off from competition. The Crimson were last in action January 27 when they won at Army 23-16. Harvard comes into the weekend at 3-4 in duals as the Crimson will wrestle at Penn and Princeton on Saturday before visiting Lehigh on Sunday. The Crimson are led by a pair of ranked wrestlers. Walter Peppelman is ranked 11th at 157 while Steven Keith moved up from 133 to 141 for his senior season and is ranked 14th. Lehigh Valley native Jay Weiss is in his 20th season as the Crimson's head coach.
Brown enters the weekend with a 6-5 dual meet record. Like Lehigh and Harvard, the Bears are coming off a week away from competition. Brown joined Harvard at Army last time out, but the Bears dropped a 29-9 decision to the Black Knights. Like the Crimson, Brown will be wrestling Saturday duals at Penn and Princeton prior to Sunday's visit to Lehigh. The Bears do not have any wrestlers ranked in the national polls. Junior Billy Watterson (125) is the only Brown wrestler ranked in the latest EIWA rankings. Watterson finished fourth in the EIWA last year and is one of three returning place winners among the Bears' probable starters joining Zach Tanenbaum (8th – 141) and Ophir Bernstein (4th – 184). Dave Amato is in his 30th season as Brown's head coach.
Lehigh has dominated the all-time series against both teams it will face on Sunday. The Mountain Hawks are a combined 34-5 all-time versus Harvard and Brown and have won their last 15 duals against the Bears and their last 14 versus the Crimson.
Action begins Sunday at 1 p.m. when Lehigh host Harvard inside Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall, with the Lehigh-Brown dual set to follow at 3 p.m. Tickets can be purchased by logging on to Lehighsports.com at any time, or by calling 610-7LU-GAME during normal business hours.
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Date:
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February 10, 2013
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Opponent:
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Harvard Crimson
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First match:
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1:05 p.m.
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Arena:
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Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall (2,130)
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Location:
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Bethlehem, Pa.
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Lehigh's record:
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6-6 overall, 2-3 EIWA
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Harvard's record:
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3-4 overall, 1-3 EIWA
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Series:
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Lehigh leads 15-1
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Streak:
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Lehigh has won the last 14 meetings
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Television:
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None
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Radio:
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ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 with Steve Lomangino and Gary Brownell beginning at 12:45 p.m.
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Internet broadcast:
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Lehighsports.com
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Behind enemy lines:
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Date:
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February 10, 2013
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Opponent:
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Brown Bears
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First match:
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3:05 p.m.
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Arena:
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Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall (2,130)
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Location:
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Bethlehem, Pa.
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Lehigh's record:
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6-6 overall, 2-3 EIWA
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Brown's record:
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6-5 overall, 1-3 EIWA
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Series:
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Lehigh leads 19-4
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Streak:
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Lehigh has won the last 15 meetings
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Television:
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None
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Radio:
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None
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Internet broadcast:
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Lehighsports.com
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Behind enemy lines:
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Lehigh Sports Central: Wrestling
Wednesday, March 12
Lehigh Sports Central: Wrestling
Thursday, February 20
Lehigh Sports Central: Wrestling
Wednesday, December 04
Season Preview: Wrestling
Wednesday, October 30
