Friday, February 12
7:00:00 PM
Lehigh University
9
vs
28
Penn State
Record crowd sees No. 6 Lehigh fall to No. 1 Penn State 28-9 at Stabler Arena
2/12/2016 10:16:00 PM | Men's Wrestling
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – A Lehigh dual meet record 5,909 fans packed Stabler Arena Friday night but Lehigh saw its 10 match dual winning streak come to an end as the sixth-ranked Mountain Hawks fell 28-9 to top-ranked Penn State. The visiting Nittany Lions won seven of ten bouts and their quartet of No. 1 ranked wrestlers totaled 19 points as Penn State remained unbeaten at 14-0 while Lehigh falls to 12-2.
"It was a great for Lehigh Valley," Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro said. "We're just thankful that the fans showed up to watch a great wrestling match."
Junior Randy Cruz and seniors Nathaniel Brown and Max Wessell accounted for Lehigh's points with wins at 141, 184 and 285, respectively.
"Early in the evening I don't think we were very aggressive," Santoro said. "Nate (Brown) dictated the pace a lot. We had a great opportunity in front of us to wrestle some great ranked people. We didn't attack and if you don't attack you're not going to beat a good wrestler. When you're competing against a high-caliber wrestler you need to be able to pull the trigger. I didn't think we were aggressive early on. After 149 we just went out and wrestled. Sometimes we were outmatched but we wrestled."(2/12/2016) Wrestling vs. Penn State, 2/12/16
Penn State raced to an early 6-0 lead behind a pair of decisions. At 125 fourth-ranked Nico Megaludis posted a 7-1 decision over No. 13 Darian Cruz, while at 133, fifth-ranked Nittany Lion Jordan Conaway scored takedowns in all three periods to defeat Mason Beckman 8-2.
Randy Cruz put the Mountain Hawks on the scoreboard with a 4-0 decision over Jimmy Gulibon in a matchup of top 20 wrestlers at 141. After a scoreless first period the 18th-ranked Cruz rode Gulibon out in the second period and then won a scramble for a takedown in the third, while adding 3:02 of riding time advantage.
"He did a really nice job," Santoro said of Cruz. "It was one of those matches where he could've opened it up a little bit early on if he was more offensive early, but he's so good on top. That's his strength and that's where he's going to win matches. It was a really good win for him."
At 149, junior Laike Gardner didn't back down against No. 1 ranked Zain Retherford, but the Nittany Lion scored a takedown in each period en route to an 8-0 major decision. The second No. 1-ranked Penn State wrestler, Jason Nolf scored two early takedowns against freshman Ian Brown at 157, then hit a cement job for the first period fall at 1:23, giving the visitors a 16-3 lead at intermission.
Sophomore Drew Longo stepped in for injured freshman Ryan Preisch and nearly pulled off a dramatic third period comeback against No. 17 Shakur Rasheed at 165. Rasheed led 5-0 after two periods thanks to a takedown, an escape and two penalty points for stalling against Longo, but the third period belonged to Longo, who scored three takedowns and a reversal and came up just short while bidding for a tying takedown as an exhausted Rasheed prevailed 10-8.
The third No. 1-ranked Nittany Lion, Bo Nickal, posted Penn State's third bonus win with a 14-6 major decision over freshman Gordon Wolf at 174. Nickal totaled four takedowns and added a pair of two point near falls but Wolf scored a takedown at the buzzer to cut the deficit from 10 to eight.
Nathaniel Brown delivered Lehigh's second win of the night with a 6-0 win over Matt McCutcheon in a clash of top-six wrestlers at 184. Brown scored takedowns in the second and third periods and was strong on top as he improved to 16-2 on the season.
At 197, top-ranked Morgan McIntosh came to life after a quiet first two minutes against senior John Bolich, scoring a takedown and two four point near falls to lead 10-0 after one period. McIntosh opened the second period with a reversal and added a four point near fall to clinch the 16-0 technical fall in 4:17.
In the final bout of the night, senior Max Wessell met Penn State freshman Nick Nevills, who was making his season debut. Nevills, a highly-touted prospect who had missed the entire season thus far due to injury, opened the scoring with a takedown but a penalty point for an illegal headlock and a Wessell escape tied the score at two after one period. Wessell escaped in the second and Nevills did same early in the third but a Wessell takedown gave him a 5-3 lead and erased Nevills' riding time advantage. Nevills escaped to get within 5-4 but Wessell fought off a shot in the final seconds to earn the victory.
Lehigh's previous dual meet attendance record was 5,828 when the Mountain Hawks fell to No. 1 Oklahoma State on February 13, 2005. Lehigh-Penn State duals now account for three of the top four Lehigh dual meet crowds. The 100th dual in the series in 2011 drew 5,584 fans while the Mountain Hawks' last win in the series drew 5,254 in 2009. Friday's dual was the 104th in the series, which Penn State leads 67-34-3. The Nittany Lions have won the last six in the series.
"If you wrestle a team like Penn State you have to take the fight to them," Santoro said. "We saw that we stand around we were never in the match. We have to go out there and try to score points. That's what Penn State does and that's why they're so successful. Our team has done a good job of it this year. I don't know if it was a little bit of nerves tonight but as the match went on our guys got more relaxed and once we got the crowd into it a little bit, that helped.
"We can take a lot from this match," Santoro continued. "They beat us pretty good tonight so we have a lot to work on. It gives us a measuring stick of where we need to be in a month."
The Mountain Hawks will close out their home schedule on Sunday when they host Bloomsburg inside Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall beginning at 2 p.m. Tickets, including $2 upper level seats are still available and can be purchased at LehighTickets.com or prior to the match Sunday at Grace Hall.
No. 1 Penn State 28, No. 6 Lehigh 9
125 – Nico Megaludis (Penn St.) dec. Darian Cruz (Lehigh) 7-1
133 – Jordan Conaway (Penn St.) dec. Mason Beckman (Lehigh) 8-2
141 – Randy Cruz (Lehigh) dec. Jimmy Gulibon (Penn St.) 4-0
149 – Zain Retherford (Penn St.) major dec. Laike Gardner (Lehigh) 8-0
157 – Jason Nolf (Penn St.) Fall Ian Brown (Lehigh) 1:23
165 – Shakur Rasheed (Penn St.) dec. Drew Longo (Lehigh) 10-8
174 – Bo Nickal (Penn St.) major dec. Gordon Wolf (Lehigh) 14-6
184 – Nathaniel Brown (Lehigh) dec. Matt McCutcheon (Penn St.) 6-0
197 – Morgan McIntosh (Penn St.) tech fall John Bolich (Lehigh) 16-0, 4:17
285 – Max Wessell (Lehigh) dec. Nick Nevills (Penn St.) 5-4
Attendance – 5,909
Officials – Ryan Hagan and Gary Kessel
"It was a great for Lehigh Valley," Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro said. "We're just thankful that the fans showed up to watch a great wrestling match."
Junior Randy Cruz and seniors Nathaniel Brown and Max Wessell accounted for Lehigh's points with wins at 141, 184 and 285, respectively.
"Early in the evening I don't think we were very aggressive," Santoro said. "Nate (Brown) dictated the pace a lot. We had a great opportunity in front of us to wrestle some great ranked people. We didn't attack and if you don't attack you're not going to beat a good wrestler. When you're competing against a high-caliber wrestler you need to be able to pull the trigger. I didn't think we were aggressive early on. After 149 we just went out and wrestled. Sometimes we were outmatched but we wrestled."
Penn State raced to an early 6-0 lead behind a pair of decisions. At 125 fourth-ranked Nico Megaludis posted a 7-1 decision over No. 13 Darian Cruz, while at 133, fifth-ranked Nittany Lion Jordan Conaway scored takedowns in all three periods to defeat Mason Beckman 8-2.
Randy Cruz put the Mountain Hawks on the scoreboard with a 4-0 decision over Jimmy Gulibon in a matchup of top 20 wrestlers at 141. After a scoreless first period the 18th-ranked Cruz rode Gulibon out in the second period and then won a scramble for a takedown in the third, while adding 3:02 of riding time advantage.
"He did a really nice job," Santoro said of Cruz. "It was one of those matches where he could've opened it up a little bit early on if he was more offensive early, but he's so good on top. That's his strength and that's where he's going to win matches. It was a really good win for him."
At 149, junior Laike Gardner didn't back down against No. 1 ranked Zain Retherford, but the Nittany Lion scored a takedown in each period en route to an 8-0 major decision. The second No. 1-ranked Penn State wrestler, Jason Nolf scored two early takedowns against freshman Ian Brown at 157, then hit a cement job for the first period fall at 1:23, giving the visitors a 16-3 lead at intermission.
Sophomore Drew Longo stepped in for injured freshman Ryan Preisch and nearly pulled off a dramatic third period comeback against No. 17 Shakur Rasheed at 165. Rasheed led 5-0 after two periods thanks to a takedown, an escape and two penalty points for stalling against Longo, but the third period belonged to Longo, who scored three takedowns and a reversal and came up just short while bidding for a tying takedown as an exhausted Rasheed prevailed 10-8.
The third No. 1-ranked Nittany Lion, Bo Nickal, posted Penn State's third bonus win with a 14-6 major decision over freshman Gordon Wolf at 174. Nickal totaled four takedowns and added a pair of two point near falls but Wolf scored a takedown at the buzzer to cut the deficit from 10 to eight.
Nathaniel Brown delivered Lehigh's second win of the night with a 6-0 win over Matt McCutcheon in a clash of top-six wrestlers at 184. Brown scored takedowns in the second and third periods and was strong on top as he improved to 16-2 on the season.
At 197, top-ranked Morgan McIntosh came to life after a quiet first two minutes against senior John Bolich, scoring a takedown and two four point near falls to lead 10-0 after one period. McIntosh opened the second period with a reversal and added a four point near fall to clinch the 16-0 technical fall in 4:17.
In the final bout of the night, senior Max Wessell met Penn State freshman Nick Nevills, who was making his season debut. Nevills, a highly-touted prospect who had missed the entire season thus far due to injury, opened the scoring with a takedown but a penalty point for an illegal headlock and a Wessell escape tied the score at two after one period. Wessell escaped in the second and Nevills did same early in the third but a Wessell takedown gave him a 5-3 lead and erased Nevills' riding time advantage. Nevills escaped to get within 5-4 but Wessell fought off a shot in the final seconds to earn the victory.
Lehigh's previous dual meet attendance record was 5,828 when the Mountain Hawks fell to No. 1 Oklahoma State on February 13, 2005. Lehigh-Penn State duals now account for three of the top four Lehigh dual meet crowds. The 100th dual in the series in 2011 drew 5,584 fans while the Mountain Hawks' last win in the series drew 5,254 in 2009. Friday's dual was the 104th in the series, which Penn State leads 67-34-3. The Nittany Lions have won the last six in the series.
"If you wrestle a team like Penn State you have to take the fight to them," Santoro said. "We saw that we stand around we were never in the match. We have to go out there and try to score points. That's what Penn State does and that's why they're so successful. Our team has done a good job of it this year. I don't know if it was a little bit of nerves tonight but as the match went on our guys got more relaxed and once we got the crowd into it a little bit, that helped.
"We can take a lot from this match," Santoro continued. "They beat us pretty good tonight so we have a lot to work on. It gives us a measuring stick of where we need to be in a month."
The Mountain Hawks will close out their home schedule on Sunday when they host Bloomsburg inside Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall beginning at 2 p.m. Tickets, including $2 upper level seats are still available and can be purchased at LehighTickets.com or prior to the match Sunday at Grace Hall.
No. 1 Penn State 28, No. 6 Lehigh 9
125 – Nico Megaludis (Penn St.) dec. Darian Cruz (Lehigh) 7-1
133 – Jordan Conaway (Penn St.) dec. Mason Beckman (Lehigh) 8-2
141 – Randy Cruz (Lehigh) dec. Jimmy Gulibon (Penn St.) 4-0
149 – Zain Retherford (Penn St.) major dec. Laike Gardner (Lehigh) 8-0
157 – Jason Nolf (Penn St.) Fall Ian Brown (Lehigh) 1:23
165 – Shakur Rasheed (Penn St.) dec. Drew Longo (Lehigh) 10-8
174 – Bo Nickal (Penn St.) major dec. Gordon Wolf (Lehigh) 14-6
184 – Nathaniel Brown (Lehigh) dec. Matt McCutcheon (Penn St.) 6-0
197 – Morgan McIntosh (Penn St.) tech fall John Bolich (Lehigh) 16-0, 4:17
285 – Max Wessell (Lehigh) dec. Nick Nevills (Penn St.) 5-4
Attendance – 5,909
Officials – Ryan Hagan and Gary Kessel
Players Mentioned
133
/ Men's Wrestling
197
/ Men's Wrestling
149/157
/ Men's Wrestling
184
/ Men's Wrestling
125
/ Men's Wrestling
141
/ Men's Wrestling
149
/ Men's Wrestling
149/157
/ Men's Wrestling
165
/ Men's Wrestling
285
/ Men's Wrestling
174
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