Good Finish at Navy Classic
By Daniel Whitehead for MSNsportsNET.com
November 20, 2010 10:26 PM
Complete results AT THIS LINK
MORGANTOWN, W. Va. - With half of the squad competing at the Navy Classic on Saturday morning while the dual starters will compete Sunday at the Sprawl & Brawl, the West Virginia University wrestling team had a solid conclusion to the Navy Classic with a fourth-place team finish.
The Mountaineers tallied 48 points on the day, scoring ahead of George Mason (21 pts), Franklin & Marshall (19) and Campbell (9). WVU fell only to host Navy, which had seven first-place competitors and totaled 135 points, followed by Bucknell (78) and Bloomsburg (61).
At the 174-lb class, redshirt junior Robert DeSano competed well for WVU, ending up in second place in the division after falling to Matt DiMichiel of Navy. To reach the finale, he beat Navy grappler Oscar Huntley by decision, 6-4, and David Thompson of Bucknell, 4-2. Mountaineer sophomore Brandon Lintner also performed well in the division, coming in sixth place after falling to the aforementioned Midshipman Huntley. Lintner had two victories and a loss in the opening rounds to get into position to battle for fifth place.
Several other Mountaineers got into position to compete for third place within their respective weight classes. At 165 lbs, redshirt junior Kyle Eason had a good tournament with a fourth-place finish after falling to Bobby Barnhisel of Navy by decision, 8-9. Sophomore Mac Mancuso came in third place by defeating Navy's Mike Brant, 3-2, by decision. Following a loss in the quarterfinals, Mancuso reeled off three straight victories in the consolation bracket to get himself back into contention for placement. He recorded three wins by major decision on the day.
Heavyweight Nick Perelli also had a good tournament, arriving in third place by beating Parker Burns of Campbell by decision, 4-2. Following a loss to Bloomsburg's Zac Walsh in the opening round, Perelli defeated two opponents and picked up a forfeit from another to challenge for third place in the heavyweight division.
For the 157-lb class, redshirt freshman Nick Vallone came in sixth place after being defeated by Bloomsburg's Bryce Busler. Vallone started off well with two victories in the opening rounds, but fell three straight times to end up in sixth place in his class.
Redshirt sophomore Zach Cerrone was in a similar position at 149 lbs, finishing in sixth overall after being defeated in his last two matches. In his quest, Cerrone pinned teammate Christian Hartsell in the consolation second round and later beat Navy's Tyler White by decision, 10-7.
The dual starters will compete Sunday morning at the Sprawl & Brawl in Vestal, N.Y. The Mountaineers face Sacred Heart at 9:45 a.m., No. 24 Rutgers at 11:30 a.m. and No. 6 Penn State at 1:15 p.m. on the campus of host school Binghamton University.
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