Chattanooga drops Davidson
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wrestling team won its 10th match of the season with a near-perfect 36-3 victory against Davidson. The Mocs were a one-point loss away from a shutout while improving to 10-5 overall and 5-0 in SoCon action. The Wildcats dropped to 4-10, 0-3 in SoCon matches.
Davidson forfeited at 125 and Chattanooga scored bonus points in four of the other nine bouts. That was more than enough to improve the Mocs’ all-time record against the Wildcats to 23-0.
Sophomore Michael Pongracz (141) and freshman Jacob Murphy (149) both had major decisions, while freshman Justin Lampe (165) and sophomore Jared Johnson (285) scored technical falls.
Chattanooga held a 30-4 advantage in takedowns, with 11 of those put on the board by Lampe in his win over Patrick Devlin. Lampe jumped out to a quick lead with five takedowns in the first period alone. He finished with a 23-8 victory to improve to 3-2 in SoCon matches.
Johnson controlled his match throughout, getting nine back points in a 17-0 win over Will Cooley. He nearly had Cooley pinned twice before the buzzer saved the fall. Johnson is a team-best 25-6 overall and 5-0 in SoCon action.
Senior Nick Soto scored career win No. 109 with an 8-3 decision over Anthony Elias at 133. He is now tied for sixth on UTC’s all-time wins list with Ben Reichel (109-37-2; 1985-89).
The Mocs hit the road next weekend for a visit to Appalachian State. UTC can wrap up at least a share of its third straight SoCon regular season title with a win over the Mountaineers. Match time is set for 2 p.m. in Boone, N.C. The Mocs have won 14 titles since the league starting recognizing a season champion in 1994. Chattanooga also has 28 tournament trophies since joining the SoCon in 1978.
Chattanooga 36, Davidson 3
125: No. 12 Sean Boyle (UTC) – Forfeit – (DAV) – UTC 6-0
133: No. 12 Nick Soto (UTC) – Dec 8-3 - Anthony Elias (DAV) – UTC 9-0
141: Michael Pongracz (UTC) – MD 14-3 - Dustin Runzo (DAV) – UTC 13-0
149: Jacob Murphy (UTC) – MD 14-0 - James McCord (DAV) – UTC 17-0
157: Austin Sams (UTC) – Dec. 8-2 - Alex Palinski (DAV) – UTC 20-0
165: Justin Lampe (UTC) – Tech. Fall 23-8 - Patrick Devlin (DAV) – UTC 25-0
174: Sean Mappes (UTC) – Dec. 8-3 - Nathaniel Powers (DAV) – UTC 28-0
184: Scott Patrick (DAV) – Dec. 3-2 - John Lampe (UTC) – UTC 28-3
197: Scottie Boykin (UTC) – Dec. 9-3 - Ian Solcz (DAV) – UTC 31-3
285: Jared Johnson (UTC) – Tech. Fall 17-0 - Will Cooley (DAV) – 36-3
Appalachian State tops Gardner-Webb
BOONE, N.C. – Appalachian State hosted Southern Conference opponent Gardner-Webb in the Varsity Gym on Friday night. The Mountaineers defeated the Bulldogs 27-10 to remain undefeated in Southern Conference matches.
The meet started at the 157-pound weight class with Zack Strickland taking on Tyler Marinelli. Strickland got Appalachian on the board with a 6-2 decision win. With Appalachian up 3-0, Nick Kee faced Austin Trott. Kee defeated Trott 6-5 with a late third-period takedown to give the Mountaineers a 6-0 lead.
At 174, Forrest Przybysz won a 9-6 decision with a late rally against Brett Stein to give Appalachian its third victory in a row. Gardner-Webb bounced back to win its next two matches at 184 pounds and 197 pounds. Nick Vetell dropped a close 2-1 to 2013 SoCon champion Hunter Gamble. Tyler Radford fell to Boyce Cornwell via an 8-4 decision to bring the Bulldogs within three points.
After the intermission, Denzel Dejournette was up against Justin Kozera in the heavyweight matchup. Dejournette would get the Mountaineers back on track with an 11-4 decision. With the Mountaineers up 12-6, Dominic Parisi had a late takedown of Cortez Starkes to seal his 9-6 victory.
Vito Pasone was the first Mountaineer to win bonus points when he pinned Tyler Ziegler 1:55 into the match. Appalachian led 21-6 when Michael Longo took the mat against Ryan Hull. Longo made it two pins in a row 6:34 into the bout.
Javon Johnson took the mat against No. 26 Ryan Mosley for the last match of the night. Johnson fell to Mosley, 17-8.
The Mountaineers wrestle again Saturday in Durham, N.C., where they will take on the Duke Blue Devils at 5 p.m.
Gardner-Webb returns to action Sunday against Davidson and American in Davidson, N.C., starting at 1 p.m.
Appalachian State 27, Gardner-Webb 10
157: Zack Strickland (APP) def. Tyler Marinelli (GWU) D, 6-2 (3-0, App)
165: Nick Kee (APP) def. Austin Trott (GWU) D, 6-5 (6-0, App)
174: Forrest Przybysz (APP) def. Brett Stein (GWU) D, 9-6 (9-0, App)
184: Hunter Gamble (GWU) def. Nick Vetell (APP) D, 2-1 (9-3, App)
197: Boyce Cornwell (GWU) def. Tyler Radford (APP) D, 8-4 (9-6, App)
285: Denzel Dejournette (APP) def. Justin Kozera (GWU) D, 11-4 (12-6, App)
125: Dominic Parisi (APP) def. Cortez Starkes (GWU) D, 9-6 (15-6, App)
133: Vito Pasone (APP) pinned Tyler Ziegler (GWU) (1:55) (21-6, App)
141: Michael Longo (APP) pinned Ryan Hull (GWU) (6:34) (27-6, App)
149: Ryan Mosley (GWU) vs. Javon Johnson (APP) MD, 17-8 (27-10, App)