WVU Drops Matches in Arizona
TEMPE, Ariz. (January 23, 2016) – The West Virginia University wrestling team suffered a pair of setbacks to Pac-12 foes on Saturday, losing 18-17 to Arizona State on criteria and dropping a 20-15 dual to Stanford at ASU’s Wells Fargo Arena.
The Mountaineers (5-6, 0-2) and the Sun Devils finished the match tied 17-17, but ASU was awarded a bonus-point after taking criteria on match point totals.
Four Mountaineers went 2-0 on the day as No 13/14 Zeke Moisey, Keegan Moore, No. 14/15 Dylan Cottrell and No. 7 Jacob A. Smith earned wins against both the Sun Devils and the Cardinal.
“We had some good wins and some bad wins,” said coach Sammie Henson. “We need to capitalize on bonus points. We had opportunities in some matches, and we just didn’t make it happen. We have to believe in the system and keep grinding. All in all, it was a tough weekend with some missed opportunities.”
West Virginia jumped out to an 8-0 lead after winning bouts at 125 and 133 against Arizona State. As 125, Moisey won a 9-3 decision over Mike Perales. He started the match with a takedown and a pair of near fall points for a 6-1 lead heading to the second. With Perales starting on bottom, Moisey used a pair of near fall points in the second for an 8-1 advantage. Perales struck with a takedown in the third, but Moisey tacked on riding time to put three on the board for the Mountaineers.
Moore followed with an 18-3 tech. fall of Tyree Owens in the third. He used a pair of first-period takedowns in taking a 4-1 lead before scoring a takedown and six back points in the second. Moore capped the third with an escape and two more takedowns, adding the riding time point for the tech. fall as WVU took an 8-0 advantage.
ASU earned major decisions at 141 and 149 pounds to tie the score at 8-8. Cottrell used an escape and a takedown in the second period to take a 3-1 advantage over Oliver Pierce. He rode Pierce through the third period, adding an additional point for riding time in winning a 4-1 decision to put WVU on top again, 11-8. Connor Flynn followed with a 2-1 decision over Preston McCalmon at 165 pounds, using a third-period reversal for the win as West Virginia took a 14-8 lead in the match.
The Sun Devils posted wins at 174 and 184 to tie the dual 14-14. Wrestling Josh Dasilveira at 197, Smith used a takedown in the second for a 2-1 advantage. He escaped to make it 3-1 in the third, adding another takedown and a point for riding time in earning a 5-1 decision to push WVU ahead, 17-14. A win by ASU at heavyweight tied the match, with the Sun Devils winning criteria with 53 match points to WVU’s 49.
Moisey also started the Mountaineers off with a win at 125 against Stanford. After Moisey and Connor Schram ended regulation in a 1-1 tie, Moisey scored a takedown in the closing seconds of the first sudden victory period take a 3-1 decision and give WVU a 3-0 lead.
Moore picked up his second win of the day with a 5-3 decision over Brian Rossi. A takedown and a pair of near fall points pushed in front 4-0 in the first he added an escape in the second as West Virginia took a 6-0 lead. The Cardinal earned a major decision at 141 pounds to cut their deficit to 6-4 before Zachary Moore earned a 10-5 decision over Tommy Pawelski at 149. Moore scored four takedowns in the victory as the Mountaineers took a 9-3 advantage.
Cottrell made it two in a row for WVU, claiming a 16-5 major decision over Walker Dempsey at 157. Three takedowns gave Cottrell a 7-1 lead at the end of the second. He went on to register four more in the third, adding riding time, in pushing WVU’s lead to 13-3.
The Cardinal won a major decision at 165 and a fall at 174, with WVU losing a team point for unsportsmanlike conduct as Stanford took a 14-12 lead. A win by decision at 184 pounds made it 17-12 in favor of the Cardinal.
Smith notched his second victory of the day at 197, winning a 7-0 decision over Michael Sojka. Smith scored a takedown in the first, riding Sojka through the second for a 2-0 lead. After an escape in the third, Smith scored a takedown and added points for riding time and stalling for the decision as WVU came within two, down 17-15. Stanford then claimed an 8-1 decision at heavyweight for the 20-15 victory.
West Virginia heads back east for a back of matches next week. The Mountaineers travel to Blacksburg, Virginia, on Friday for a 7 p.m. dual at No. 10 Virginia Tech. They return to Morgantown on Sunday to host No. 3 N.C. State in a 1 p.m. match.
Arizona State 18, West Virginia 17
125: No. 13/14 Zeke Moisey (WVU) dec. Mikel Perales (ASU), 9-3
133: Keegan Moore (WVU) tech. fall Tyree Owens (ASU), 18-3 (7:00)
141: Robbie Mathers (ASU) major dec. Tony DeAngelo (WVU), 14-4
149: Christian Pagdilao (ASU) major dec. Zachary Moore (WVU), 13-3
157: No. 14/15 Dylan Cottrell (WVU) dec. Oliver Pierce (ASU), 4-0
165: Connor Flynn (WVU) dec. Preston McCalmon (ASU), 2-1
174: Jacen Petersen (ASU) dec. Ross Renzi (WVU), 3-1 SV-1
184: No. 3/4 Blake Stauffer (ASU) dec. Bubba Scheffel (WVU), 6-1
197: No. 7 Jacob A. Smith (WVU) dec. Josh DaSilveira (ASU), 6-2
HWT: No. 6 Tanner Hall (ASU) dec. A.J. Vizcarrondo (WVU), 8-1
Stanford 20, West Virginia 15
125: No. 13/14 Zeke Moisey (WVU) dec. No. 20 Connor Schram (Stan), 3-1 SV-1
133: Keegan Moore (WVU) dec. Brian Rossi (Stan), 5-3
141: No. 2 Joey McKenna (Stan) major dec. Tony DeAngelo (WVU), 10-0
149: Zachary Moore (WVU) dec. Tommy Pawelski (Stan), 10-5
157: No. 14/15 Dylan Cottrell (WVU) major dec. Walker Dempsey (Stan), 16-5
165: No. 18 Jim Wilson (Stan) major dec. Connor Flynn (WVU), 13-4
174: Peter Galli (Stan) pinned Ross Renzi (WVU), 4:29
184: Garet Krohn (Stan) dec. Bubba Scheffel (WVU), 3-2
197: No. 7 Jacob A. Smith (WVU) dec. Michael Sojka (Stan), 7-0
HWT: Nathan Butler (Stan) dec. A.J. Vizcarrondo (WVU), 8-1
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