The Citadel tops Limestone
CHARLESTON, S.C. – The Citadel wrestling team picked up its third victory of the season on Friday afternoon, defeating Limestone 28-10 inside McAlister Field House.
Sawyer Root (9-5) led things off for the Bulldogs at 184 pounds, taking a 10-4 decision over Limestone’s Steve Decius to give The Citadel an early 3-0 lead. Marshall Haas (7-3) added to the lead at 197 pounds after earning a 5-1 decision giving the Bulldogs a 6-0 lead as junior Joe Bexley (5-4) took to the mat for the 285 bout. Bexley won easily, giving The Citadel a 12-0 lead after winning by technical default.
At 125 pounds, Patrick Kearney (1-5) lost in a close match by a 7-5 decision to make the score 12-3 heading into the 133-pound match. Limestone would add another four points to its team score after Caleb Smith (7-7) dropped the 133-pound match by an 11-2 major decision, but the Saints then forfeited at 141 pounds, giving Ty Buckiso (7-4) the win. With four weight classes remaining, The Citadel held an 18-7 lead.
Matt Frisch (4-1) was the next Bulldog to take to the mat at 149 pounds. The senior took a 5-2 win by decision to increase The Citadel’s lead to 21-7. In the 157-pound bout, Aaron Walker (9-3) held an 8-2 lead over Deandre Johnson heading into the third period. The junior had no trouble in the third period, cruising to a 17-5 win and effectively clinching the team win for the Bulldogs.
The next match featured Jason Carr (4-4) against Mac Mota at 165 pounds. Behind a last-second takedown at the buzzer, Carr won by a 4-3 decision in his first appearance in a dual this season. The win pushed the score to 28-7 in favor of the Bulldogs.
Tim Knipl (8-4) was the last Bulldog to take the mat for the day and he faced Matt Ostemiller. Knipl had previously defeated Ostemiller at The Citadel Open in early November, but Knipl was unable to duplicate the result and lost by a 7-4 decision.
The Citadel lost just three bouts en route to the 28-10 win and improved to 3-0 on the year.
Frisch and Haas will now head to Reno, Nevada, to compete in the Reno Tournament of Champions on Sunday. As a team, The Citadel will return to the mat Jan. 1 and 2 for the Southern Scuffle in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
The Citadel 28, Limestone 10
184 Sawyer Root (The Citadel) over Steve Decius (Limestone) (Dec 10‐4)
197 Marshall Haas (The Citadel) over Matthew Rudy (Limestone) (Dec 5‐1)
HWT Joe Bexley (The Citadel) over Cody Vandeline (Limestone) (Tech Def)
125 James Sass (Limestone) over Patrick Kearney (The Citadel) (Dec 7‐5)
133 Chris Diaz‐Rivera (Limestone) over Caleb Smith (The Citadel) (MD 11‐2)
141 Ty Buckiso (The Citadel) (Forfeit)
149 Matt Frisch (The Citadel) over Taylor Wickett (Limestone) (Dec 5‐2)
157 Aaron Walker (The Citadel) over Deandre Johnson (Limestone) (MD 17‐5)
165 Jason Carr (The Citadel) over Mac Mota (Limestone) (Dec 4‐3)
174 Matt Ostemiller (Limestone) over Timothy Knipl (The Citadel) (Dec 7‐4)
Chattanooga falls to No. 17 Ohio
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wrestling team battled No. 17 Ohio in an 18-14 loss in Maclellan Gym on Friday. The Mocs won four matches, scoring bonus points in two, but could not pull off the upset at home.
There were six matches that went down to the wire. UTC was only able to capture two of the close ones as it dropped to 4-2 on the year. Ohio improved to 4-1 overall.
The dual opened at 125 and UTC freshman Alonzo Allen found himself in a big hole early. He gave up three takedowns and four back points to trail 10-2 after the first period. He battled back with a takedown in the second and put four more points up in the third before falling 11-8.
Sophomore Cody Hill also lost a close one at 133, falling 7-6 to Cameron Kelly. Junior Michael Pongracz remained undefeated on the year with his 3-1 win over Noah Forrider at 141. He scored a takedown in overtime to improve to 9-0.
After an Ohio win at 149, freshman Kamaal Shakur took the mat against Ohio senior Spartak Chino. Chino came into the match with a 12-3 record and a top-10 ranking in a number of polls. Shakur set the tone early with a takedown and eventually scored a 4-3 victory to improve to 12-2. That made the team score 9-6 in favor of the Bobcats.
Ohio went on to win the next three matches to nearly put it out of reach at 18-6. Senior John Lampe had a chance at 184, but he lost to Andrew Romanchik (4-1) in another tight bout.
Junior's Scottie Boykin and Jared Johnson scored major decision wins at 197 and heavyweight, respectively, to close out the match.
UTC is back in action on Sunday when it hosts SIUE at 1 p.m.
No. 17 Ohio 18, Chattanooga 14
125: Shakur Laney (Ohio) – Dec. 11-8 - Alonzo Allen (UTC) – Ohio 3-0
133: Cameron Kelly (Ohio) – Dec. 7-6 - Cody Hill (UTC) – Ohio 6-0
141: Michael Pongracz (UTC) – Dec. 3-1 (SV1) - Noah Forrider (Ohio) – Ohio 6-3
149: Cullen Cummings (Ohio) - Dec. 7-1 - Roman Boylen (UTC) – Ohio 9-3
157: Kamaal Shakur (UTC) – Dec. 4-3 - Spartak Chino (Ohio) – Ohio 9-6
165: Austin Reese (Ohio) – Dec. 5-4 - Dominic Lampe (UTC) – Ohio 12-6
174: Cody Walters (Ohio) – Dec. 8-3 - Sean Mappes (UTC) – Ohio 15-6
184: Andrew Romanchik (Ohio) – Dec. 4-1 - John Lampe (UTC) – Ohio 18-6
197: No. 18 Scottie Boykin (UTC) – MD 11-2 - Nate Hall (Ohio) – Ohio 18-10
285: Jared Johnson (UTC) – MD 11-0 - Jesse Webb (Ohio) – Ohio 18-14