Lebe Wins Navy Classic
By Tim Goodenow, WVU Sports Information Office
November 20, 2004
ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The West Virginia University wrestling team sent three Mountaineers to championship finals matches as junior Matt Lebe won his 157 pound weight class on Saturday afternoon at Halsey Field House.
Lebe was a perfect 3-0 in taking home his second consecutive Navy Classic title. In the finals, the Jeannette, Pa., native posted a 10-8 decision over Rutger's Gene Zannetti. Lebe took an early 6-3 advantage after one period. A fourth Lebe takedown extended the lead to 8-3 before holding on for a 10-8 decision.
"It's always nice to win a title, but there is a lot of work to be done," says Lebe. "I couldn't find a good rhythm today. This is a good early season tournament for our team to get some kinks out. We'll be okay if we keep working hard and learn from our matches today."
Brandon Lauer and Zac Fryling both earned runner-up finishes with strong performances at 141 and 165 pounds. Lauer tallied a fall and 5-2 decision before dropping a 9-5 decision to Navy's Nathan Gulosh. Fryling scored three major decisions victories before taking a 3-2 loss to Virginia Tech's Chris Stith.
Jared Villers, wrestling in his first collegiate action of his career, rallied from an opening round loss to win three matches and win third-place honors. The sophomore also earned a fall over Virginia Tech's Tomas Ovalle at 197 pounds.
Junior Eric Mullen wrestled well at 165 pounds to earn fourth-place honors. He won three matches on the afternoon.
Junior Seth Lisa finished in fifth-place at 133 pounds for the Mountaineers with his 9-3 decision over Navy's Branden Beasley.
Host Navy won five of the ten individual titles in the day-long tournament where up to 20 wrestlers could be entered per team. The Mountaineers, who only traveled 11 wrestlers, finished in fifth-place with 90.5 points.
CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS
125 - Garrett Cummings (NCSU) def. Justin Staylor, 13-11 (sv)
133 - Sam Gray (Navy) def. #16 David Hoffman (Va. Tech), 4-2
141 - Nate Gulosh (Navy) def. #5 Brandon Lauer (WVU), 9-5
149 - John Cox (Navy) def. Chris Deluca (NCSU), 9-6
157 - #10 Matt Lebe (WVU) def. Greg Zannetti (Rutgers), 10-8
165 - #15 Chris Stith (Va. Tech) def. #19 Zac Fryling (WVU), 3-2
174 - #7 Andy Roy (Rutgers) def. Kevin Gabrielson (NCSU), MD 8-0
184 - Chris Ressa (Rutgers) def. Steve Borja (Va. Tech), 12-7
197 - Thayer Paxton (Navy) def. Andrew Adams (Navy), Fall 6:30
HWT - Tanner Garrett (Navy) def. Joel Caruso (GMU), 6-2
FINAL TEAM SCORES
1. Navy 202.5
2. Virginia Tech 152
3. NC State 126
4. Rutgers 122.5
5. West Virginia 90.5
6. George Mason 69.5
7. Duquesne 30.5
8. Campbell 1
Return to the WV-Mat WVU Main Page