WVU Defeated by No. 1 Penn State
JV at Navy
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (Nov. 18, 2012) – The West Virginia University wrestling team was defeated by No. 1 Penn State, 44-3, on Sunday afternoon in front of 1,631 fans at the WVU Coliseum.
The Nittany Lions, who defeated No. 24 Lehigh 29-6 on Friday evening, were dominant in the contest, as they won nine of the 10 bouts in the dual meet.
“We understood the challenges that we faced coming into this match,” said associate head coach Greg Jones. “Some of the guys were able to rise up in some spots and compete, but others were unable to sustain anything throughout the match. We feel really good about this group of guys, but we understand that it may take a little bit of time.”
After Shane Young (125) was forced out of the lineup due to an injury, the Mountaineers turned to Gage Swartz. In his first varsity action, Swartz was pinned by No. 2 Nico Megaludis.
With Bubba Scheffel (174) also out of the lineup due to injury, Jason Luster (157) also saw his first varsity action, while Dominic Prezzia (165) and Ross Renzi (174) moved up one spot from their usual weight classes of 157 and 165, respectively.
At 133 pounds, WVU scored its lone win of the day, with Colin Johnston earning a 6-2 decision victory over Penn State’s Nate Morgan, 6-2.
“We definitely tried to come out and compete, but that is the No. 1 team in the nation without a doubt,” said Johnston. “We are only going to build confidence and character with today’s result. We need to get this result out of our head and prepare for the challenges that are ahead.”
With the Mountaineers seizing a bit of momentum after Johnston’s win, they looked to tie the match with a win by No. 19 Nathan Pennesi (141). The Latrobe, Pa., native was unable to do so, however, as PSU’s Bryan Pearsall slowed the pace of the match and worked his way to 2-0 decision win.
“Nathan allowed his opponent to wrestle in a match that made Nathan uncomfortable,” Jones said. “He is going to continue to get better. Obviously, we didn’t want to lose that match but Nathan is going to grow from that it.”
After the 141-pound match, the Nittany Lions strung together seven-bonus point earning victories, including wins by fall at 157, 174 and 197 pounds. Penn State also recorded a tech fall at 165 pounds.
“Our schedule isn’t built with any breaks or low-level competition in it,” said Jones. “We are going to have to use the time in between now and our tournament in Las Vegas wisely. We will be addressing a lot of key areas during this break.”
WVU will return to action on Nov. 30, when it travels to Las Vegas to compete in the two-day Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational.
Results
Final Score: 44-3, Penn State
125: No. 2 Nico Megaludis (PSU) win by fall Gage Swartz (WVU), 5:53
133: No. 17 Colin Johnston (WVU) dec. Nate Morgan (PSU), 6-2
141: Bryan Pearsall (PSU) dec. No. 19 Nathan Pennesi, 2-0
149: James English (PSU) maj. dec. Brutus Scheffel (WVU), 8-0
157: No. 2 Dylan Alton (PSU) win by fall Jason Luster (WVU), 2:28
165: No. 2 David Taylor (PSU) tech fall Dominic Prezzia (WVU), 20-5
174: No. 5 Matt Brown (PSU) win by fall Ross Renzi (WVU), 4:10
184: No. 1 Ed Ruth (PSU) maj. dec. Lance Bryson (WVU), 11-1
197: No. 3 Quentin Wright (PSU) win by fall A.J. Vizcarrondo (WVU), 0:25
HWT: Jimmy Lawson (PSU) maj. dec. Phil Mandzik (WVU), 9-0
JV at Navy Classic
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (Nov. 17, 2012) – With the team’s starters set to take on No. 1 Penn State on Sunday afternoon, eight West Virginia University wrestling reserves competed today in the Navy Classic held in Annapolis, Md.
Daniel Suite, Michael Bolash, Tyler White, Terrence Demery, Tre Miller-Scott, Greg Thurston, Christian Chirico and Mark Colabucci each competed in the all-day tournament and each took park in at least two matches.
Colabucci and Demery were the lone Mountaineers to place in the tournament, as they each took sixth-place honors.
Colabucci earned victories over Navy’s Colton Vanthof, Navy’s Matt McVay and Cleveland State’s Bobby Blankenship.
Action against the Nittany Lions will begin on Sunday at 2 p.m. from the WVU Coliseum.
Return to the WV-Mat front page