Pittsburgh Places 12th at Las Vegas Invitational
12/2/2000 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Pittsburgh Places 12th at Las Vegas Invitational
12/2/2000
Primm, Nev. - University of Pittsburgh wrestling team, ranked among the nation's top 20 in both preseason polls, placed 12th with 63 points at the Las Vegas Invitational Dec. 1-2. Illinois, a consensus top five team, won with 140 points. The elite field included a total of 11 teams that are currently ranked in InterMat's poll.
The Panthers were led by senior Rob Loper (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep), freshman Zach Doll (Quakerstown, Pa./Pottstown) and sophomore Carl Fronhofer (Salem, N.Y./Salem), who each of whom reached the quarterfinals.
Loper reeled off a pair of 9-1 decisions and an 11-5 decision before suffering a 6-4 upset by Derrick Hayes (Fresno State) in the quarterfinals and settling for an eighth-place finish in the 133-pound division.
Doll, who was Co-Eastern Wreslting League (EWL) Wrestler of the Week after claiming the 157-pound championship at the Mat Town Invitational, continued perform at a high level. After registering two falls last week, he tallied two more at Las Vegas, including a 38-second pin in the first round versus Lehigh's Ryan Bernholz, who defeated Doll (9-5) in the Panthers' first dual match of the season, and a fall over Jon Martinez (Colorado Mines) at the 1:52 mark in the second round. Doll's run was ended in the quarters with an 8-2 setback to West Virginia's Joe Carr.
Fronhofer posted a team-best 4-1 record. He defeated Eddie Gifford (Fresno State), 9-4, in the consolation to earn a seventh-place finish at 165 pounds. He additionally recorded a 10-2 major decision over Brody Barrios (Cal Poly St. Louis Obispo), a 17-4 major decision over Aaron heinberger (Pacific) and a 4-0 decision over David Guarino (Buffalo). Fronhofer's lone loss was a 2-1 decision in a tiebreaker to eventual champion Matt Lackey (Illinois) in the quaterfinals.
Pittsburgh had a trio of wrestlers post 2-1 records, including junior Shawn Amistade (Washington, Pa./Trinity) at 125 pounds, sophomore Brendan O'Connell (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) at 174 pounds and junior David Sandberg (Spokane, Wash./North Central) at 197 pounds.
