Panther Wrestlers Conclude Season At NCAA Championships
3/20/2001 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
March 20, 2001
IOWA CITY, IA-For the first time in 11 years, the Pittsburgh wrestling team did not have one team member earn all-American status as all six wrestlers at the NCAA Championships this past weeekend failed to came up short in their respective weight class. As a team, the Panthers finished in a tie for 25th place with 15.50 points.
Junior Shawn Amistade (Washington, Pa./Trinity) opened the championships in the 125-pound class with a 2-1 win over Ohio State's Kore Sharpley. However, Fresno State's Stephen Abas, who was the No. 1 seed, defeated Amistade 11-3, which placed Amistade in the consolation bracket.
Once in the consolation round, Amistade recorded two victories, one over Appalachian State's Richard Caisse and the next against Boise State's Ben Vombaur. Amistade eventually lost to Michigan's A.J. Grant.
Senior Rob Loper (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep), who entered the championships as Pittsburgh's highest seed at No. 6, defeated Boise State's Charlie Griggs 3-2 in the opening round, but fell to Arizona State's David Douglas 9-1 in the next round.
In the consolation bracket, Loper reeled off two straight victories, a 4-0 decision against Lock Haven's Scott Blair and a 7-2 win over Virginia's Joe Alexander. However, Loper's season ended as he fell to Michigan State's Pat McNamara in overtime.
Freshman Zach Doll (Quakertown, Pa./Pottstown), competing in the 157-pound weight class, opened the championships with an upset win over Fresno State's Nathan Vasquez, which Doll pinned at the 6:33 mark. In the second round, Doll fell 13-12 to Bloomsburg's Ed Hockenberry. Doll was pinned in the consolation bracket by Pennsylvania's Yoshi Nakamura, the No. 3 seed, at the 1:44 mark.
Sophomore Carl Fronhofer (Salem, N.Y./Salem) opened the 165-pound class with a 4-3 setback to Buffalo's Dave Guarino. After defeating Ohio State's Johnny Clark, Fronhofer's season ended with a 4-2 loss to Pennsylvania's Tim Ortman in the second round of the consolation bracket.
Junior Dan Stine (Queensbury, N.Y./Queensbury) began the 184-pound class championships with a 10-2 loss to Iowa's Jessman Smith. Stine rebounded, though, and notched two straight victories over Virginia's Jim Massey and Maryland's Jake Stork. Stine eventually bowed out of the consolation bracket with a 2-0 defeat to Northern Iowa's Kyle Hanson.
In the 197-pound weight class, junior David Sandberg (Spokane, Wash./North Central) registered an upset as he pinned No. 4 seed Rusty Cook of Boise State. Sandberg then fell to Cal-State Fullerton's Babak Nejadmaghaddam 3-2.
Sandberg's season concluded with a 6-4 setback to Edinboro's David Shunamon in the consolation bracket.