Appalachian State 21, The Citadel 19
Charleston, S.C. - No. 19 Odie Delaney picked up his fourth straight victory by fall, but The Citadel wrestling team lost to visiting Appalachian State by a 21-19 score in their Southern Conference opener at McAlister Field House Friday evening. The Bulldogs fall to 4-7 overall, 0-1 in the SoCon, while Appalachian improves to 9-3, 3-0 in the league.
Appalachian opened a 3-0 lead as Mike Kessler captured a 4-1 decision over Jordan Dix at 141 pounds. The Bulldogs evened the match at 149 pounds as Seth Vernon edged Savva Kostis 7-6. The two entered the third period tied 6-6 with Vernon choosing the bottom position. The transfer from Oklahoma escaped just two seconds into the period and held on during furious action over the final minute to earn the victory.
The Mountaineers won the next two matches to open an 11-3 lead on the host Bulldogs. Chip Powell scored a 5-2 decision over Pierre Frazile at 157, while No. 17 Kyle Blevins picked up five points with a 19-3 technical fall over Mike Harper at 165.
The Citadel chipped away at the Appalachian lead, winning three of the next four matches to take a 16-15 advantage. No. 18 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj dominated Carter Downs in the 174-pound match, earning a 13-5 major decision with six takedowns. Appalachian picked up a 16-3 major decision at 184, as No. 12 Austin Troutman defeated Josh Tuck. Kelby Smith ran his winning streak to seven with a 9-4 decision over Paul Weiss at 197 pounds and cut the Bulldogs' deficit to 15-10.
Delaney scored a pinfall victory at the 6:12 mark, putting the shoulders of Joe Cummings to the mat in the third period while ahead 3-0 on the scorecard. The fall gave the Bulldogs a 16-15 lead with two matches remaining.
The lead was short-lived however, as Tony Gravely blitzed Richard Alarcon in the 125 match, stunning the senior with a fall at the 51 second mark to give the Mountaineers a 21-16 lead. The Bulldogs needed a pin in the final bout at 133, but Kyle Casaletto was unable to close out Brett Boston, holding on for an 8-4 decision.
The Bulldogs return to action Sunday afternoon as they host Virginia Military Institute at the McAlister Field House at 2:00 p.m.
Citadel (4-7, 0-1 SoCon) vs. Appalachian State (9-3, 3-0 SoCon)
Match Summary
141 Mike Kessler (ASU) won by decision over Jordan Dix (The Citadel) 4-1; ASU leads 3-0
149 Seth Vernon (The Citadel) won by decision over Savva Kostis (ASU) 7-6; Tied 3-3
157 William Powell (ASU) won by decision over Pierre Frazile (The Citadel) 5-2; ASU leads 6-3
165 Kyle Blevins (ASU) won by tech fall over Michael Harper (The Citadel) 6:04 19-3; ASU leads 11-3
174 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (The Citadel) major decision over Andrew Downs (ASU) 13-5; ASU leads 11-7
184 Austin Trotman (ASU) major decision over Josh Tuck (The Citadel) 16-3; ASU leads 15-7
197 Kelby Smith (The Citadel) won by decision over Paul Weiss (ASU) 9-4; ASU leads 15-10
285 Andrew Delaney (The Citadel) won by pin over Joe Cummings (ASU) 6:12; CIT leads 16-15
125 Antonio Gravely (ASU) won by pin over Richard Alarcon Jr. (The Citadel) 0:51; ASU leads 21-16
133 Kyle Casaletto (The Citadel) won by decision over Brett Boston (ASU) 8-4; ASU leads 21-19
Chattanooga 30, Campbell 7
BUIES CREEK - Campbell University fell to Chattanooga 30-7 on Friday evening at Gilbert Craig Gore Arena as the Mocs extended their Southern Conference winning streak to 37 matches. Chattanooga has won eight consecutive SoCon titles and the team's conference winning streak extends back seven seasons.
The match began with the 174-pound bout, and the Mocs jumped out to a 6-0 lead after the first two individual matches. John Weakley earned a 16-4 major decision win at 197 pounds over Chattanooga's Niko Brown to get the Camels on the scoreboard. Weakley improved to 19-7 on the season, recording his third major decision win.
Mark Hartenstine took a 6-2 decision win at 149 pounds over Kelly Felix to round out the CU scoring. Hartenstine moves to 14-7 during his redshirt freshman season with the triumph.
CU drops to 8-12 overall, 2-2 in the SoCon. Chattanooga improves to 9-3 overall, 2-0 in the SoCon. Campbell will return to action on Thursday evening as the Camels welcome ACC member Duke to Buies Creek for a 7 p.m. dual match.
Chattanooga 30, Campbell 7
174: Levi Clemmons (CHAT)dec. James Cook (CU) 8-2
184: Robert Prigmore (CHAT) dec. Matt Cox (CU) 4-0
197: John Weakley (CU) major dec. Niko Brown (CHAT) 16-4
285: Kevin Malone (CHAT) pinned Joe Nolan (CU) 3:33
125: Cole Gallagher (CHAT) major dec. Chance Credeur (CU) 10-2
133: Nick Soto (CHAT) major dec. Joey Rizzolino (CU) 18-5
141: Shawn Greevy (CHAT) major dec. Jordan Tolbert (CU) 9-1
149: Mark Hartenstine (CU) dec. Kelly Felix (CHAT) 6-2
157: Dan Waddell (CHAT) dec. Nick Rex (CU) 10-3
165: Brandon Wright (CHAT) dec. Ryan Krecker (CU) 3-0
VMI 22, Gardner-Webb 15
LEXINGTON, Va. - After a back-and-forth dual match in the early going, the VMI wrestling team pulled out a 22-15 Southern Conference decision over Gardner-Webb, giving the Keydets a second-straight win for the first time this season.
"We knew it was going to be a good match and they (Gardner-Webb) have a nice team and their guys are really similar to ours," said VMI head coach John Trudgeon, who guided his team to its third-straight win over the Runnin' Bulldogs. "I knew we would be up against at a couple of weight classes, their 157-pounder was at the national tournament last year and I thought Mike Burnett wrestled a really solid match against him."
In front of a standing room only crowd at The Thunderdome, the Keydets battled back from a 6-0 deficit after forfeiting 125 pounds. But the key to the comeback was in the upper weight classes, where VMI logged victories in four of five final matches.
The Keydets (4-6, 2-1 SoCon) cut the deficit early with a Ryan Goodsell victory at 133 pounds. The Keydet was taken down with just 16 seconds left in the bout, tying the action at 3-3, but he quickly turned Robert Golde for a reversal and grabbed a 5-3 decision.
VMI took its first lead of the night after Zeb Stewart put together a domination performance, blanking Alex Hamm 10-0 and putting the Keydets on top 7-6. Stewart's 10-point night was aided heavily by his first round where he got a take down in the final minute, turning Hamm towards his back for three near-fall points.
The Runnin' Bulldogs (4-7, 1-3 SoCon) picked up six points on two decisions at 149 and 157 pounds, but VMI bounced back at 165 pounds after Carry Joseph got an early takedown and another three near fall points to bolster his 8-2 decision while adding four minutes of riding time. Joseph's win cut the VMI deficit back down to just two, 12-10 in favor of GWU.
Senior Matthew Brock got VMI back in control as he stuck Aaron Rabin in the second period, logging his fifth win by fall of the season. The victory, Brock's 23rd of the year, was his eighth straight, including his second pin in the last three matches.
In the 184 pound bout, John Dommert won VMI's third straight match 5-2 over the Bulldogs' Jason Porter. A key to Dommert's success was two and a half minutes of riding time, which started with a first-period takedown. Starting the third period on bottom, Dommert hit one of VMI's five team reversals to secure the win.
Down 19-12, but not out, Gardner-Webb picked up a win at 197 pounds and cutting back to a one-bout deficit. The Bulldog win in the second to last match cut the Keydet lead to 19-15.
In the final bout of the evening, VMI's Juan Adams got hit first career win for VMI and did so with riding time to notch a 3-2 decision over Justin Kozera.
"All nine guys laid it out there for us tonight, even the guys who ended up not getting the result they wanted," said Trudgeon of the squad's victory.
The Keydets have a quick turnaround before their next match as they head to Charleston, S.C. on Sunday to take on the Bulldogs of The Citadel. Action is set for 2 p.m. at the Bulldogs' McAlister Field House. The match will be web streamed, with a link to the stream on VMIKeydets.com.
Agate:
VMI (4-6, 2-1 SoCon) 22
Gardner-Webb University (4-7, 1-3 SoCon) 15
Attendance: 521
Bout-by-Bout Winner def. Loser Type Score - Running Score: (VMI-GWU)
125 Michael Slaughter (GWU) wins by Forfeit (0-6)
133 Ryan Goodsell (VMI) def. Robbie Golde (GWU) Dec. 5-3 (3-6)
141 Zeb Stewart (VMI) def. Alex Hamm (GWU) Major Decision 10-0 (7-6)
149 Davante Andujar (GWU) def. David Yost (VMI) Dec. 6-3 (7-9)
157 Alex Medved (GWU) def. Michael Burnett (VMI) 6-3 (7-12)
165 Carry Joseph (VMI) def. Justin Guthrie (GWU) Dec. 8-2 (10-12)
174 Matthew Brock (VMI) def. Aaron Rubin (GWU) Fall 3:35
184 John Dommert (VMI) def. Jason Porter (GWU) Dec. 5-2 (19-12)
197 Travis Porter (GWU) def. Urayoan Garcia (VMI) Dec. 7-2 (19-15)
285 Juan Adams (VMI) def. Justin Korzera (GWU) Dec. 3-2 (22-15)