Friday, November 20
7:00:00 PM
Lehigh University
vs
Pittsburgh
Mountain Hawks welcome Pitt, Edinboro to open home slate
11/19/2015 11:55:00 AM | Men's Wrestling
Match Notes | Tickets | Video | Audio
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BETHLEHEM, Pa. – After two weekends on the road, No. 10 Lehigh will open its home schedule with two duals against western Pennsylvania opponents. On Friday, head coach Pat Santoro takes on his alma mater as Pitt visits Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall, then on Sunday, the Mountain Hawks will host last year's NCAA third place team in Edinboro.
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Last weekend, Lehigh split two duals against ranked Big Ten opponents at the Journeymen/ASICS Northeast Duals in Troy, N.Y. A first period pin from sophomore Darian Cruz propelled Lehigh to six wins in a 22-12 triumph over Minnesota in the Mountain Hawks' first dual of the day. Lehigh then suffered its first loss of the season as Nebraska won 8-of-10 bouts in a dual in which every match was decided by five points or less to defeat the Mountain Hawks 24-6.
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Randy Cruz deferred his eligibility in 2013-14 while moving up from 133 to 141, a move that paid off when he won his second career EIWA championship last March. In 2013, Cruz became Lehigh's first true freshman EIWA champion since 1980. Cruz has now won titles in his first two years of eligibility and last season fell one win short of earning All-America honors. Cruz owns a 59-22 career record that includes 14 wins by fall. He did not compete in the Bucknell dual, but went 5-0 to win the 141-pound title at the Jonathan Kaloust Bearcat Open. With Cruz's triumph at 141 last year, Lehigh wrestlers have won at least one individual EIWA title in 16 consecutive tournaments.
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Senior heavyweight Max Wessell is out to a 4-1 start subbing for the still-recovering Doug Vollaro. Injuries have slowed the now sixth-year senior throughout his career, but the 2014 NCAA qualifier posted his second career top 10 win with a 10-9 decision over then-No. 6 Michael Kroells of Minnesota at the Northeast Duals.
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Pitt enters Friday's dual at 3-0. The Panthers will be competing for the first time in nearly three weeks after opening their season with a 3-0 showing at the Terrapin Duals on November 1. Pitt posted wins over Kutztown, Maryland and West Liberty to open its season. The Panthers have only has two seniors listed among its probable starters while as many as three freshmen could see action against the Mountain Hawks. Heavyweight Ryan Solomon is the only Panther ranked by InterMat. Pitt's probable starters feature Lehigh Valley native Mikey Racciato from Pen Argyl, who is listed at 141 after competing the last two seasons at 149. Jason Peters is in his third season as head coach after succeeding Rande Stottlemyer, who was Pat Santoro's coach and guided the Panthers for more than 30 years.
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Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro wrestled for the Panthers from 1985-1989, under the guidance of Rande Stottlemyer, who retired following the 2012-13 season. Pittsburgh's only four-time All-American, Santoro amassed a 167-13 record in four seasons for the Panthers, and won national titles at 142 in 1988 and 1989. A three-time EWL Champion, Santoro is also the Panthers' career leader with 43 falls and posted an incredible 97-3 record over his final two seasons. Pittsburgh assistant coach Drew Headlee returned to his alma mater in 2014 after two seasons as Lehigh's volunteer assistant coach.
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Like Lehigh, Edinboro carries a 2-1 dual record. The Fighting Scots will visit Clarion on Friday prior to visiting Lehigh on Sunday. So far this season, Edinboro has defeated Olivet and Northern Illinois and lost to Ohio. Last weekend, the Fighting Scots competed at the Roadrunner Open with Patricio Lugo, Billy Miller and Casey Fuller winning titles. Edinboro finished third at the 2015 NCAA Championships with four All-Americans, including two runners-up and two third place finishers. Edinboro lost three of its All-Americans to graduation, while second ranked 184-pounder Vic Avery is not listed among Edinboro's probable starters. Eight of the 12 Fighting Scots listed as probable starters are either true or redshirt freshmen. If Avery is out, freshman Sean Russell will be the lone ranked Fighting Scot to wrestle on Sunday. Russell is ranked 20th at 125 by InterMat. Reigning NWCA National Coach of the Year Tim Flynn is in his 18th season at Edinboro.
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Lehigh and Pitt will meet for the 60th time with the Mountain Hawks holding a 41-17-2 advantage. The Mountain Hawks have won 15 of the last 18 duals against the Panthers. Pat Santoro is 5-2 versus his alma mater. Lehigh is just 4-9 versus Edinboro. The last six duals in the series have taken place at neutral sites. The last on-campus meeting was a 23-17 Edinboro win in Bethlehem on Feb. 1, 1997.
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Friday's match versus Pitt is set for a 7 p.m. start from Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall while Sunday's dual with Edinboro will get underway at 1 p.m. Tickets for both duals can be purchased at LehighTickets.com, by calling 610-7LU-GAME during normal business hours, or at Grace Hall on match day.
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Lehigh will have Thanksgiving weekend off and will return to action with a pair of road duals in New Jersey on Saturday December 5. The Mountain Hawks will begin the day at Rider for an 11 a.m. match looking to avenge a dual loss on criteria last season. Lehigh will then head to Princeton to face the EIWA rival Tigers at 2 p.m. The duals will mark Lehigh's final action before final exams begin.
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BETHLEHEM, Pa. – After two weekends on the road, No. 10 Lehigh will open its home schedule with two duals against western Pennsylvania opponents. On Friday, head coach Pat Santoro takes on his alma mater as Pitt visits Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall, then on Sunday, the Mountain Hawks will host last year's NCAA third place team in Edinboro.
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Last weekend, Lehigh split two duals against ranked Big Ten opponents at the Journeymen/ASICS Northeast Duals in Troy, N.Y. A first period pin from sophomore Darian Cruz propelled Lehigh to six wins in a 22-12 triumph over Minnesota in the Mountain Hawks' first dual of the day. Lehigh then suffered its first loss of the season as Nebraska won 8-of-10 bouts in a dual in which every match was decided by five points or less to defeat the Mountain Hawks 24-6.
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Randy Cruz deferred his eligibility in 2013-14 while moving up from 133 to 141, a move that paid off when he won his second career EIWA championship last March. In 2013, Cruz became Lehigh's first true freshman EIWA champion since 1980. Cruz has now won titles in his first two years of eligibility and last season fell one win short of earning All-America honors. Cruz owns a 59-22 career record that includes 14 wins by fall. He did not compete in the Bucknell dual, but went 5-0 to win the 141-pound title at the Jonathan Kaloust Bearcat Open. With Cruz's triumph at 141 last year, Lehigh wrestlers have won at least one individual EIWA title in 16 consecutive tournaments.
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Senior heavyweight Max Wessell is out to a 4-1 start subbing for the still-recovering Doug Vollaro. Injuries have slowed the now sixth-year senior throughout his career, but the 2014 NCAA qualifier posted his second career top 10 win with a 10-9 decision over then-No. 6 Michael Kroells of Minnesota at the Northeast Duals.
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Pitt enters Friday's dual at 3-0. The Panthers will be competing for the first time in nearly three weeks after opening their season with a 3-0 showing at the Terrapin Duals on November 1. Pitt posted wins over Kutztown, Maryland and West Liberty to open its season. The Panthers have only has two seniors listed among its probable starters while as many as three freshmen could see action against the Mountain Hawks. Heavyweight Ryan Solomon is the only Panther ranked by InterMat. Pitt's probable starters feature Lehigh Valley native Mikey Racciato from Pen Argyl, who is listed at 141 after competing the last two seasons at 149. Jason Peters is in his third season as head coach after succeeding Rande Stottlemyer, who was Pat Santoro's coach and guided the Panthers for more than 30 years.
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Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro wrestled for the Panthers from 1985-1989, under the guidance of Rande Stottlemyer, who retired following the 2012-13 season. Pittsburgh's only four-time All-American, Santoro amassed a 167-13 record in four seasons for the Panthers, and won national titles at 142 in 1988 and 1989. A three-time EWL Champion, Santoro is also the Panthers' career leader with 43 falls and posted an incredible 97-3 record over his final two seasons. Pittsburgh assistant coach Drew Headlee returned to his alma mater in 2014 after two seasons as Lehigh's volunteer assistant coach.
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Like Lehigh, Edinboro carries a 2-1 dual record. The Fighting Scots will visit Clarion on Friday prior to visiting Lehigh on Sunday. So far this season, Edinboro has defeated Olivet and Northern Illinois and lost to Ohio. Last weekend, the Fighting Scots competed at the Roadrunner Open with Patricio Lugo, Billy Miller and Casey Fuller winning titles. Edinboro finished third at the 2015 NCAA Championships with four All-Americans, including two runners-up and two third place finishers. Edinboro lost three of its All-Americans to graduation, while second ranked 184-pounder Vic Avery is not listed among Edinboro's probable starters. Eight of the 12 Fighting Scots listed as probable starters are either true or redshirt freshmen. If Avery is out, freshman Sean Russell will be the lone ranked Fighting Scot to wrestle on Sunday. Russell is ranked 20th at 125 by InterMat. Reigning NWCA National Coach of the Year Tim Flynn is in his 18th season at Edinboro.
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Lehigh and Pitt will meet for the 60th time with the Mountain Hawks holding a 41-17-2 advantage. The Mountain Hawks have won 15 of the last 18 duals against the Panthers. Pat Santoro is 5-2 versus his alma mater. Lehigh is just 4-9 versus Edinboro. The last six duals in the series have taken place at neutral sites. The last on-campus meeting was a 23-17 Edinboro win in Bethlehem on Feb. 1, 1997.
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Friday's match versus Pitt is set for a 7 p.m. start from Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall while Sunday's dual with Edinboro will get underway at 1 p.m. Tickets for both duals can be purchased at LehighTickets.com, by calling 610-7LU-GAME during normal business hours, or at Grace Hall on match day.
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Lehigh will have Thanksgiving weekend off and will return to action with a pair of road duals in New Jersey on Saturday December 5. The Mountain Hawks will begin the day at Rider for an 11 a.m. match looking to avenge a dual loss on criteria last season. Lehigh will then head to Princeton to face the EIWA rival Tigers at 2 p.m. The duals will mark Lehigh's final action before final exams begin.
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| Date: | November 20, 2015 |
| Opponent: | Pitt Panthers |
| First match: | 7:05 p.m. |
| Arena: | Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall (2,130) |
| Location: | Bethlehem, Pa. |
| Lehigh's record: | 2-1 overall, 1-0 EIWA |
| Pitt's record: | 3-0 overall, 0-0 ACC |
| Series: | Lehigh leads 41-17-2 |
| Streak: | Lehigh won last year's dual |
| Television: | Service Electric 2 Sports Saturday Nov. 21 at 4:30 p.m. |
| Radio: | ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 beginning at 6:45 p.m. |
| Internet broadcast: | Live Video on the Patriot League Network Live Audio at ESPNLV.com |
| Behind enemy lines: | http://www.pittsburghpanthers.com |
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| Date: | November 22, 2015 |
| Opponent: | Edinboro Fighting Scots |
| First match: | 1:05 p.m. |
| Arena: | Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall (2,130) |
| Location: | Bethlehem, Pa. |
| Lehigh's record: | 2-1 overall, 1-0 EIWA |
| Edinboro's record: | 2-1 overall, 0-0 EWL |
| Series: | Edinboro leads 9-4 |
| Streak: | Edinboro won last year's dual |
| Television: | None |
| Radio: | ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 beginning at 12:45 p.m. |
| Internet broadcast: | Video on the Patriot League Network Audio at ESPNLV.com |
| Behind enemy lines: | http://www.gofightingscots.com |
Players Mentioned
125
/ Men's Wrestling
141
/ Men's Wrestling
285
/ Men's Wrestling
285
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