EDINBORO, PA (February 18, 2000) The Edinboro University wrestling team made it back-to-back Eastern Wrestling League dual titles on Friday, turning in an impressive performance against West Virginia. With upsets of two ranked wrestlers, the Fighting Scots coasted to a 25-9 triumph to improve to 13-1 overall and 6-0 in EWL action. Edinboro has now won 14 straight EWL matches dating back to 1997-98, with West Virginia the last outfit to defeat the Scots.
Edinboro entered the match ranked 7th by InterMat and 11th by the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA). The Mountaineers, now 5-4-1 and 4-2-1 in the EWL, were 17th in both polls.
The highlight of the evening came in the evening’s fifth match, with WVU’s Vertus Jones, carrying a perfect 22-0 record and ranked second nationally, going up against the Boro’s Kevin Welsh (Solon, OH/Solon), ranked ninth with a 30-5 mark. Following a scoreless first period, Jones took a 1-0 lead with a second period escape, but Welsh returned the favor with an escape to begin the third period. Welsh scored the winning takedown with 46 seconds remaining in overtime for a 3-1 win, his first ever over Jones. For Welsh it represented his 116th career win.
West Virginia captured the opening match as 18th-ranked Billy Smith prevailed over Kevin Maier (Reading, PA/ Reading) by a score of 8-2 at 149 lbs. Edinboro ran off wins in the next six matches for a commanding 22-3 lead. In the first upset of a ranked Mountaineer, the Boro's Shaun Shapert (Glenshaw, PA/Shaler), subbing for regular Ben Boozer (Cochranton, PA/Cochranton), dominated his match with 14th-ranked Joe Carr, winning by a 10-0 margin. Shapert recorded three takedowns and had two-and-a-half minutes of riding time to improve to 15-5. Carr, now 23-8, is the nephew of former Erie great and Olympian Nate Carr.
After losing several recent close matches, Yanni Diamond (Wellesley, MA/Wellesley) posted a 3-1 victory over WVU’s Richard Taylor in the 165 lb. match. Diamond entered the third period trailing 1-0, but the junior registered an escape, then picked up the match’s lone takedown with 46 seconds remaining to improve to 22-13.
One night after suffering just his third loss of the year, second-ranked Josh Koscheck (Waynesburg, PA/ Waynesburg) registered his third fall of the season, pinning Erik Warg at the 4:54 mark. Koscheck is now 30-3 at 174 lbs.
Following the Welsh victory over Jones, A.J. Johnson (Fort Myers, FL/Fort Myers) earned a hard-fought 3-1 win over Martius Harding at 197 lbs. Johnson is now 24-7 and ranked 19th. Like Diamond he trailed 1-0 early in the second period, but he followed up a second period takedown with an escape in the third session.
Heavyweight Josh Pearce (Greenville, PA/Commodore Perry) improved to 23-8 with a 6-0 triumph over Ryan Kehler. Pearce, ranked 18th, had a pair of takedowns and 2:57 in riding time.
West Virginia’s Angelo Zegarelli, the 19th-ranked wrestler at 125 lbs., ended Edinboro’s streak with an 8-4 win over Casey Brewster (Nashville, TN/Overton). Zegarelli, improving to 18-6, recorded four takedowns, while Brewster, now 2-11, could muster just four escapes.
Mountaineer Rob Patnesky, ranked 12th at 133 lbs., improved his ledger to 19-3 with a 6-2 win over Chad Caros (Franklinville, NY/Suffern). Caros trailed just 3-2 before Patnesky recorded a takedown with 38 seconds remaining, and picked up an additional point in riding time. Caros is now 20-8.
Appropriately, the final match of the evening went into overtime, with Cory Ace’s (Franklin, PA/Franklin) takedown at the 1:34 mark of overtime giving him a 3-1 win over Micah Kahn. Ace, ranked 19th, is now 24-13.
The Fighting Scots return to action on Wednesday, February 23, concluding their EWL dual campaign at Cleveland State.
149 - #18 Billy Smith (WVU) dec. Kevin Maier (EUP), 8-2
157 - Shaun Shapert (EUP) maj. dec. #14 Joe Carr (WVU), 10-0
165 - Yanni Diamond (EUP) dec. Richard Taylor (WVU), 3-1
174 - #2 Josh Koscheck fall Erik Warg (WVU), 4:54
184 - #9 Kevin Welsh (EUP) dec. #2 Vertus Jones (WVU), 3-1; ot
197 - #19 A.J. Johnson (EUP) dec. Martius Harding (WVU), 3-1
HWT - #16 Josh Pearce (EUP) dec. Ryan Kehler (WVU), 5-0
125 - #19 Angelo Zegarelli (WVU) dec. Casey Brewster (EUP), 8-4
133 - #12 Bob Patnesky (WVU) dec. Chad Caros (EUP), 6-2
141 - #19 Cory Ace (EUP) dec. Micah Kahn (WVU), 3-1; ot
Attendance: 600
Records: Edinboro is now 13-1, 6-0 in the Eastern Wrestling League.
West Virginia is 5-4-1, 4-2-1 in the Eastern Wrestling League.