Objectives Attained at W&J Tourney
By Daniel Whitehead, WVU Sports Information Office
November 13, 2010
Brackets AT THIS LINK
MORGANTOWN, W. Va. (Nov. 13, 2010) – Seeking advanced exposure for his team and an opportunity for more wrestlers to get action on the mat, West Virginia University wrestling coach Craig Turnbull was pleased with the efforts of the team Saturday at the Washington & Jefferson College Open.
Three WVU grapplers came in first place in their respective weight divisions and several others came in second place after forfeiting their matches to prevent potential injuries.
“I thought it was a very positive day,” Turnbull says. “We achieved what we scheduled the tournament for and got everyone in the program matches. People seemed to have some pretty good success - it really helps our program that they bring that excitement and motivation back into the room.”
Sophomore Shane Young won the 125-lb. division by beating David Fogle of Pitt-Johnstown. In the 133-lb. class, sophomore Nathan Pennesi arrived in second place having forfeited the title bout to Penn State’s Sam Sherlock.
True freshman Michael Morales went 4-0 for the day, good enough for a sixth-place finish after forfeiting a match in the semifinals versus Delaware State’s Matt Ulrich.
“Our frontline wrestled well,” Turnbull says. “We wanted to stay with the purpose; it wasn’t so much everyone winning the tournament in every division but to get matches in.”
A pleasant surprise, freshman Michael Bennett wrestled to the finals in the 149-lb. division where he eventually lost to Delaware Valley’s Emmanuel Ajagbe. Redshirt freshman Brandon Loro also had a nice day after finishing in third place in the same class. At one point, he defeated his own teammate, Zachary Cerrone, who eventually landed in fifth place.
Redshirt freshman Nick Vallone came in third place in the 157-lb class after going 2-0 in the original bracket and 3-0 in the consolation bracket. Redshirt junior Ryan Goodman had a good tournament with a 4-2 finish having lost to Penn State’s James Volrath and forfeiting a match in the consolation bracket.
“It was good for (Ryan) Goodman to get more reps,” Turnbull says. “He needed matches after missing most of last year. That was positive for him.”
At 165 lbs., redshirt senior Donnie Jones enjoyed a good outing by going 4-0 before forfeiting to Penn State’s Dirk Cowburn, a match in which he was ahead 5-3 before forfeiting with an AC sprain.
The 174-lb. class saw a lot of success from the Mountaineers as they swept the top three spots. Redshirt junior Matt Weston took first place having defeated redshirt freshman teammate Brandon Lintner in the final. Redshirt junior Robert DeSano placed third in the division having lost to Weston in the semifinals.
WVU redshirt junior Matt Ryan won the 184-lb class outright after beating A.J. Brentzel of Pitt-Johnstown. Redshirt freshman Mac Mancuso came in third place following a couple of forfeit matches then defeating Dave Doyle of West Liberty.
Redshirt Cameron Gallaher was having a strong day, reaching the finals with a perfect 4-0 record in the tournament before suffering a minor concussion and forfeiting the match.
Heavyweight Philip Mandzik picked up his first victories of the season, going two rounds before losing to Derrick Hesson of Mt. Union. He picked up a third win in the consolation bracket.
“We achieved our objectives today,” Turnbull says. “We got a lot of people a good amount of matches and the front line had good success. For being early in the season, we got what we were hoping for.”
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