Three Wrestlers Earn All-America Honors
6/21/1999 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
March 23, 1998
CLEVELAND--Three University of Pittsburgh wrestlers earned All-America honors to help the Panthers to a 20th-place finish at the NCAA Championships, held at Cleveland State University March 19-21. The Panthers' three All-Americans were their most in a single- season since 1963. Pittsburgh had five wrestlers place among the top 12 in their respective weight classes this year.
Pittsburgh seniors John Withrow (Elizabeth, Pa./Elizabeth Forward) and Mark Bodo (Greenville, Pa./Reynolds) each earned their third All-America citation, while redshirt freshman Nick Mengerink (Upper Sandusky, Ohio/Carey) produced his first All-America finish. Withrow was the Panthers' highest national finisher, placing third at 177 pounds. His finish makes him the first Pittsburgh wrestler to gain All-America status at three different weights. He previously earned All-America honors at 158 pounds in 1995 and 167 pounds in 1997.
Withrow, seeded fifth, won a 9-1 decision over Virginia's Tom Shaw in the opening round and an 8-2 decision over Central Michigan's Mike Greenfield to place him in the quarterfinals where he defeated Navy's Greg Gingeleskie, 1-0. In semifinal competition, Withrow lost a 5-0 decision to eventual champion Mitch Clark from Ohio State and later defeated Brandon Eggum from Minnesota, 3-2, in the consolation semifinals. Wrestling in his final match, Withrow won a 2-1 decision over second-seeded Aaron Simpson from Ohio State for the third-place finish.
Bodo achieved his third All-America award with a sixth-place finish at 190 pounds. In the first round of the tournament, fifth- seeded Bodo won a 9-5 decision over Penn State's Ross Thatcher, and went on to win a 6-3 decision over Illinois' Pat Quirk in the second round. In the quarterfinals, Bodo lost a 3-2 decision to place him in the consolation semifinals where he was defeated by Iowa's Lee Fullhart, 6-1. In the fifth-place match, Bodo lost a close 3-1 decision in overtime to Northwestern's Sam Neider.
Mengerink won his first two matches of the championships with a 9-1 decision over Fresno State's Markese Nelson in the first round, and a 5-3 decision over Harvard's Ed Mosley in the second round on the way to an eighth-place finish and his first All- America honors. Mengerink was later defeated 11-0 by Oklahoma State's second-seeded Mark Smith in the quarterfinals. In the consolation round, Mengerink won a 7-3 decision over Iowa State's Ben Perkins to place him in the quarterfinals, but later received a medical forfeit for the remainder of the championships.
Also competing in the championships for Pittsburgh were sophomore Rob Loper (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep), redshirt junior Chad Jesko (Dunbar, Pa./Connellsville) and redshirt sophomore Mike Ziska (North Huntington, Pa./Norwin). Loper appeared in his second NCAA Championships and finished with a 2-2 record while wrestling at 126 pounds. Loper, a number-four seed, won his first two matches with 10-7 decision over Iowa's Doug Schwab and a 6-5 decision over Fresno State's Stan Greene. In the quarterfinals, Loper lost a tough 8-8 tiebreaker to Michigan State's Pat McNamara and later a 5-4 tiebreaker to Cal State Fullerton's Joey Coughran in the consolation round.
At 134 pounds, Jesko, a three-time NCAA qualifier, wrestled to a 3-2 record. Jesko lost a 23-8 major decision in his opening match to eventual champion Mark Ironside from Iowa and went on to win three matches in the consolations, including wins over North Carolina State's James Kocher, 5-0; Hofstra's Eric Shmiesing, 4-0; and Cal State Bakersfield's Mike Mendoza, 4-3. Jesko then lost a 5-3 decision to Northwestern's Scott Schatzman.
Competing in his first NCAA Championships, Ziska finished the tournament with a 1-2 record. In the opening round, Ziska suffered a fall to third-seeded Jason Davids from Minnesota, and went on to win a 9-5 decision over Buffalo's Jeromy McVige in the consolations. In his final match, Ziska lost a 5-3 decision to West Virginia's Dorian Hager.
Pittsburgh's three All-Americans is the most in one year since 1963 when the Panthers had four wrestlers receive the honor.