Season preview: Accomplished lightweights set standard for talented Mountain Hawks
11/8/2017 4:36:00 PM | Men's Wrestling
A strong 2016-17 Lehigh wrestling season ended with a flourish in St. Louis as Darian Cruz captured the program's 28th individual national championship. Cruz worked his way through a tough 125-pound weight class, knocking off previously unbeaten and top seed Thomas Gilman of Iowa in an epic overtime semifinal and then avenging his most recent loss (from January) in the NCAA finals to win Lehigh's first title since 2011.
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Cruz's championship capped a tournament in which Lehigh finished 12th as a team, with Scott Parker joining Cruz in earning All-America honors and three others finishing one win shy of a spot on the podium.
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Cruz and Parker also won EIWA titles last March and are back to anchor the Mountain Hawks at the first two weights. Lehigh went 10-4 in duals a season ago and entered the EIWA Tournament with high hopes, only to settle for second place.
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Expectations are high for the Mountain Hawks, but with two All-Americans at the top of the lineup plus several experienced veterans and an influx of young talent at some key spots, the pieces are in place for Lehigh to make a run at an EIWA title and a return to the top 10 nationally.
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For 10th-year head Pat Santoro and his staff, the emphasis will be on improving every day and utilizing a tough early-season schedule to hopefully pay dividends at the end of the year.
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"You just want the guys to come out and get a little better each time out," Santoro said. "We'll find out a lot about ourselves really early with a conference dual and some strong competition right out the chute. We jump into the fire first semester, which is really good for our team because we're going to have a lot of new faces and some old faces at new weights. We're going to see early on where we are and where we need to go."
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In addition to the two returning All-Americans, Lehigh's 44-man roster includes three previous NCAA qualifiers, including junior Ryan Preisch, who reached the round of 12 last year, four others who have represented the Brown and White in an EIWA tournament and four highly-regarded freshmen who deferred eligibility last season. One of those freshmen, Jordan Wood, is the likely starter at heavyweight. With Lehigh likely set at the top and bottom of the lineup, there is still depth and versatility in between, as Lehigh's likely end-of-year lineup is a work in progress that will require contributions from just about everyone on the roster throughout the season.
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"We have a lot of really good wrestlers and can accomplish some really good things, but we're going to need a full team effort," Santoro said. "It needs to be everybody, not just the 10 that are out there. It's going to go a lot deeper than that. The guys will need to push each other each day and work through situations each day. Some people don't think this is a team sport but it is a team sport."
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To prepare for March, the coaching staff has put together a challenging schedule that features duals with eight teams ranked in the NWCA preseason top 25 plus a trip to the always tough Southern Scuffle in January. Preseason No. 4 Michigan will provide a stiff challenge in the season's first month, while a Lehigh home dual-record crowd is expected when the Mountain Hawks host two-time defending national champion Penn State at PPL Center in Allentown on Dec. 3.
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"We're always going to give our guys the best schedule we can," Santoro said. "That's really important to us. It's all about getting ourselves ready. We have a lot of guys who want to be national champions and All-Americans, so we have to give them every opportunity to face the best competition they can to prepare them for the NCAA Tournament."
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Here's a weight by weight look at what to expect from the Mountain Hawks in 2017-18:
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125 – Senior Darian Cruz capped a spectacular season by winning Lehigh's 28th individual NCAA title. Cruz is now a two-time All-American and two-time EIWA Champion, who owns a 90-18 career mark and enters the season on a 21 bout winning streak. Behind Cruz are deferred freshman Aaron Burkett and true freshmen Matt Parker and Luke Resnick. Deferred freshman Nick Farro could also drop down if something were to happen to Cruz.
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133 – Scott Parker's emergence gives Lehigh as good a 1-2 punch at the first two weights as there is anywhere in the country. Parker came off a deferred year to win an EIWA title and earned All-America honors with an eight place finish. Sophomore Joe Lobeck filled in well for Parker last season after Parker missed a month due to injury. Farro and sophomore transfer Brandon Paetzell could provide depth here and could also go down to 125 if needed. Freshmen Satoshi Abe and Brock Herring could also figure in here.
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141 – Lehigh loses a four-time NCAA qualifier and former All-American Randy Cruz to graduation. Deferred freshman Luke Karam and sophomore Ryan Pomrinca appear to be the top two here. Karam, who is tough from the top position, went 19-7 in his deferred year, while Pomrinca went 20-6 with some quality tournament results last season. True freshmen Jimmy Hoffman and Dan Moran are waiting in the wings.
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149 – The graduation of team captain Laike Gardner opens the door for competition here. Junior Cortlandt Schuyler has the most dual experience with a 31-9 career record and six dual appearances but he will be challenged by senior Jon Mele and scrappy sophomore David Pipa. Juniors Camden Fischer and Brandon Diaz also figure in at this weight.
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157 – With sophomore Jordan Kutler likely moving up two weight classes, this weight has opened up for several veterans. Junior Ian Brown represented Lehigh at this weight at the 2016 EIWA Championships and will look to find the form that saw him win 25 bouts that season. He will likely be challenged by sophomore Kent Lane, who could also potentially drop down to 149 second semester depending on how things go. Sophomore Cole Walter qualified for NCAAs at 165 last year but could end up here depending on how other weights progress. Sophomore Tyler Casamenti and deferred freshman Trey Cornish will provide depth here.
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165 – Cole Walter won this spot last February and went on to qualify for the NCAA Championships. One of Lehigh's deepest weights will likely also feature fifth-year senior Drew Longo and junior Gordon Wolf. Longo has seen plenty of dual action in his career and competed at EIWAs as a freshman. Wolf qualified for NCAAs at 174 as a freshman. Sophomore Chase Gallik and freshman Tyler Hazard also figure in at this versatile weight class where just about anyone could move up or down a weight if needed.
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174 – Injuries and the inability to get down to weight at the EIWA Championships derailed a promising season for Jordan Kutler, who went 13-1 and won Lehigh's first Southern Scuffle title since 2005. Kutler will begin this season up two weight classes from where he competed last year. Sophomore Charlie Sell will provide depth here, while Gordon Wolf and Chase Gallik are options to move up if need be.
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184 – With Kutler moving up, junior Ryan Preisch is also expected to bump up one weight. Preisch was ranked in the top 10 for most of his sophomore season and finished one win shy of earning All-America honors, following a 25-6 campaign. Sophomores Paul Dunn and Andrew Price will provide depth behind Preisch along with deferred freshman Dylan Ammerman. Sophomore Kyle Gentile competed at EIWAs at this weight last year and could defer eligibility or compete up at 197.
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197 – There will be competition here with several younger wrestlers battling it out. With Jordan Kutler and Ryan Preisch bumping up, deferred freshman Chris Weiler moves up after going 24-7 in his deferred year at 184. He will likely battle deferred freshman Jake Jakobsen, with junior Tom Murray, sophomore Kyle Gentile and freshman Eli Grape rounding out the options here.
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285 – Recent years have seen Max Wessell earn All-America honors in his senior season and Doug Vollaro reach the round of 12 in his final campaign. Deferred freshman Jordan Wood, a former cadet world medalist and junior world team member in freestyle, is expected to get the nod here. Wood went 11-3 in his deferred year, highlighted by a second place finish at the prestigious Midlands Championships. Sophomore Christian Colucci will likely back up Wood, while deferred freshman Andrew McDonald and true freshman Victor Lacombe complete the roster.
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The Mountain Hawks, ranked No. 10 in the initial USA Today/NWCA Coaches Poll, will open the dual season Friday at EIWA rival Bucknell, with the match set for a 7 p.m. start from Sojka Pavilion. Two days later, Lehigh will compete at the Journeymen Collegiate Classic in Troy, N.Y. The Mountain Hawks will open their home slate with duals against Edinboro (Nov. 17 at 7 p.m.) and Michigan (Nov. 19 at 1 p.m.) inside Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall. Tickets are available and can be purchased online at LehighTickets.com or by calling 610-7LU-GAME during normal business hours.
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Cruz's championship capped a tournament in which Lehigh finished 12th as a team, with Scott Parker joining Cruz in earning All-America honors and three others finishing one win shy of a spot on the podium.
Â
Cruz and Parker also won EIWA titles last March and are back to anchor the Mountain Hawks at the first two weights. Lehigh went 10-4 in duals a season ago and entered the EIWA Tournament with high hopes, only to settle for second place.
Â
Expectations are high for the Mountain Hawks, but with two All-Americans at the top of the lineup plus several experienced veterans and an influx of young talent at some key spots, the pieces are in place for Lehigh to make a run at an EIWA title and a return to the top 10 nationally.
Â
For 10th-year head Pat Santoro and his staff, the emphasis will be on improving every day and utilizing a tough early-season schedule to hopefully pay dividends at the end of the year.
Â
"You just want the guys to come out and get a little better each time out," Santoro said. "We'll find out a lot about ourselves really early with a conference dual and some strong competition right out the chute. We jump into the fire first semester, which is really good for our team because we're going to have a lot of new faces and some old faces at new weights. We're going to see early on where we are and where we need to go."
Â
In addition to the two returning All-Americans, Lehigh's 44-man roster includes three previous NCAA qualifiers, including junior Ryan Preisch, who reached the round of 12 last year, four others who have represented the Brown and White in an EIWA tournament and four highly-regarded freshmen who deferred eligibility last season. One of those freshmen, Jordan Wood, is the likely starter at heavyweight. With Lehigh likely set at the top and bottom of the lineup, there is still depth and versatility in between, as Lehigh's likely end-of-year lineup is a work in progress that will require contributions from just about everyone on the roster throughout the season.
Â
"We have a lot of really good wrestlers and can accomplish some really good things, but we're going to need a full team effort," Santoro said. "It needs to be everybody, not just the 10 that are out there. It's going to go a lot deeper than that. The guys will need to push each other each day and work through situations each day. Some people don't think this is a team sport but it is a team sport."
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To prepare for March, the coaching staff has put together a challenging schedule that features duals with eight teams ranked in the NWCA preseason top 25 plus a trip to the always tough Southern Scuffle in January. Preseason No. 4 Michigan will provide a stiff challenge in the season's first month, while a Lehigh home dual-record crowd is expected when the Mountain Hawks host two-time defending national champion Penn State at PPL Center in Allentown on Dec. 3.
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"We're always going to give our guys the best schedule we can," Santoro said. "That's really important to us. It's all about getting ourselves ready. We have a lot of guys who want to be national champions and All-Americans, so we have to give them every opportunity to face the best competition they can to prepare them for the NCAA Tournament."
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Here's a weight by weight look at what to expect from the Mountain Hawks in 2017-18:
Â
125 – Senior Darian Cruz capped a spectacular season by winning Lehigh's 28th individual NCAA title. Cruz is now a two-time All-American and two-time EIWA Champion, who owns a 90-18 career mark and enters the season on a 21 bout winning streak. Behind Cruz are deferred freshman Aaron Burkett and true freshmen Matt Parker and Luke Resnick. Deferred freshman Nick Farro could also drop down if something were to happen to Cruz.
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133 – Scott Parker's emergence gives Lehigh as good a 1-2 punch at the first two weights as there is anywhere in the country. Parker came off a deferred year to win an EIWA title and earned All-America honors with an eight place finish. Sophomore Joe Lobeck filled in well for Parker last season after Parker missed a month due to injury. Farro and sophomore transfer Brandon Paetzell could provide depth here and could also go down to 125 if needed. Freshmen Satoshi Abe and Brock Herring could also figure in here.
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141 – Lehigh loses a four-time NCAA qualifier and former All-American Randy Cruz to graduation. Deferred freshman Luke Karam and sophomore Ryan Pomrinca appear to be the top two here. Karam, who is tough from the top position, went 19-7 in his deferred year, while Pomrinca went 20-6 with some quality tournament results last season. True freshmen Jimmy Hoffman and Dan Moran are waiting in the wings.
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149 – The graduation of team captain Laike Gardner opens the door for competition here. Junior Cortlandt Schuyler has the most dual experience with a 31-9 career record and six dual appearances but he will be challenged by senior Jon Mele and scrappy sophomore David Pipa. Juniors Camden Fischer and Brandon Diaz also figure in at this weight.
Â
157 – With sophomore Jordan Kutler likely moving up two weight classes, this weight has opened up for several veterans. Junior Ian Brown represented Lehigh at this weight at the 2016 EIWA Championships and will look to find the form that saw him win 25 bouts that season. He will likely be challenged by sophomore Kent Lane, who could also potentially drop down to 149 second semester depending on how things go. Sophomore Cole Walter qualified for NCAAs at 165 last year but could end up here depending on how other weights progress. Sophomore Tyler Casamenti and deferred freshman Trey Cornish will provide depth here.
Â
165 – Cole Walter won this spot last February and went on to qualify for the NCAA Championships. One of Lehigh's deepest weights will likely also feature fifth-year senior Drew Longo and junior Gordon Wolf. Longo has seen plenty of dual action in his career and competed at EIWAs as a freshman. Wolf qualified for NCAAs at 174 as a freshman. Sophomore Chase Gallik and freshman Tyler Hazard also figure in at this versatile weight class where just about anyone could move up or down a weight if needed.
Â
174 – Injuries and the inability to get down to weight at the EIWA Championships derailed a promising season for Jordan Kutler, who went 13-1 and won Lehigh's first Southern Scuffle title since 2005. Kutler will begin this season up two weight classes from where he competed last year. Sophomore Charlie Sell will provide depth here, while Gordon Wolf and Chase Gallik are options to move up if need be.
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184 – With Kutler moving up, junior Ryan Preisch is also expected to bump up one weight. Preisch was ranked in the top 10 for most of his sophomore season and finished one win shy of earning All-America honors, following a 25-6 campaign. Sophomores Paul Dunn and Andrew Price will provide depth behind Preisch along with deferred freshman Dylan Ammerman. Sophomore Kyle Gentile competed at EIWAs at this weight last year and could defer eligibility or compete up at 197.
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197 – There will be competition here with several younger wrestlers battling it out. With Jordan Kutler and Ryan Preisch bumping up, deferred freshman Chris Weiler moves up after going 24-7 in his deferred year at 184. He will likely battle deferred freshman Jake Jakobsen, with junior Tom Murray, sophomore Kyle Gentile and freshman Eli Grape rounding out the options here.
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285 – Recent years have seen Max Wessell earn All-America honors in his senior season and Doug Vollaro reach the round of 12 in his final campaign. Deferred freshman Jordan Wood, a former cadet world medalist and junior world team member in freestyle, is expected to get the nod here. Wood went 11-3 in his deferred year, highlighted by a second place finish at the prestigious Midlands Championships. Sophomore Christian Colucci will likely back up Wood, while deferred freshman Andrew McDonald and true freshman Victor Lacombe complete the roster.
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The Mountain Hawks, ranked No. 10 in the initial USA Today/NWCA Coaches Poll, will open the dual season Friday at EIWA rival Bucknell, with the match set for a 7 p.m. start from Sojka Pavilion. Two days later, Lehigh will compete at the Journeymen Collegiate Classic in Troy, N.Y. The Mountain Hawks will open their home slate with duals against Edinboro (Nov. 17 at 7 p.m.) and Michigan (Nov. 19 at 1 p.m.) inside Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall. Tickets are available and can be purchased online at LehighTickets.com or by calling 610-7LU-GAME during normal business hours.
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Players Mentioned
125/133
/ Men's Wrestling
184
/ Men's Wrestling
157
/ Men's Wrestling
125
/ Men's Wrestling
157
/ Men's Wrestling
285
/ Men's Wrestling
157
/ Men's Wrestling
125
/ Men's Wrestling
141
/ Men's Wrestling
149
/ Men's Wrestling
184
/ Men's Wrestling
125/133
/ Men's Wrestling
149
/ Men's Wrestling
165
/ Men's Wrestling
149
/ Men's Wrestling
184/197
/ Men's Wrestling
197
/ Men's Wrestling
165
/ Men's Wrestling
133/141
/ Men's Wrestling
141
/ Men's Wrestling
197
/ Men's Wrestling
141
/ Men's Wrestling
174
/ Men's Wrestling
285
/ Men's Wrestling
149/157
/ Men's Wrestling
133
/ Men's Wrestling
157/165
/ Men's Wrestling
285
/ Men's Wrestling
141
/ Men's Wrestling
125/133
/ Men's Wrestling
125
/ Men's Wrestling
133
/ Men's Wrestling
149
/ Men's Wrestling
141
/ Men's Wrestling
184
/ Men's Wrestling
184
/ Men's Wrestling
125/133
/ Men's Wrestling
149
/ Men's Wrestling
174
/ Men's Wrestling
285
/ Men's Wrestling
157/165
/ Men's Wrestling
184/197
/ Men's Wrestling
165/174
/ Men's Wrestling
285
/ Men's WrestlingLehigh 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
