Panthers Set to Open Season with Wrestle-Offs
10/26/2005 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Oct. 26, 2005
PITTSBURGH - The Pitt wrestling team will prepare to open their 2005-06 season by having wrestle-offs on Sunday, November 6. The competition will begin at 6:00 p.m. in the Fitzgerald Field House as the Panthers look to establish their starting line up.
At 125 pounds, the starting position is wide open with three tough true freshman battling returning starter Zach Bowman (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan). Bowman was an EWL placewinner for the Panthers last season, but the new freshman should keep it interesting. Senior Mike Ciotti (Latrobe, Pa./Greater Latrobe) looks to be the early season favorite at 133 pounds as last year's starter Drew Headlee (Waynesburg, Pa./Waynesburg) is healing from a wrist injury. Redshirt senior Ronald Tarquinio (McDonald, Pa./West Allegheny) will try to maintain his starting position at 141 pounds, but he'll be faced with some tough competition from redshirt freshman Joe Ciampoli (Altoona, Pa./Altoona).
Wrestling fans can expect to see some early season surprises from true freshman Joey Ecklof (Northampton, Pa./Northampton) as he battles for a starting position at 149 pounds. An NCAA qualifier last year, Matt Kocher (State College, Pa./State College) will face Sean Richmond (Emmaus, Pa./Easton) at 157 pounds. While Kocher will likely redshirt for the season, it should still be a tough match.
At 165, redshirt senior Justin Nestor (Transfer, Pa./Reynolds) is favored after three berths to the NCAA Championships. Redshirt junior Francis Iorfido (Johnsonburg, Pa/Johnsonburg) returns to dual meet action this year and will battle Nick Padezan (Irwin, Pa./Penn Trafford) for the starting position.
With Keith Gavin (Factoryville, Pa./Lackawanna Trail) a probable redshirt for the coming year, it will be interesting to see how Kyle Deliere (Cecil, Pa/Canon-McMillan) steps up to the challenge at 184 pounds. Also look for Mike Heist (Orefield, Pa./Parkland) to make a push for the starting position. At 197 pounds, Lou Thomas (Parkersburg, W.Va./Parkersburg), a returning starter from last season, is the early favorite. There will not be a match at 285 pounds due to Zach Sheaffer's (Carlisle, Pa./Cumberland Valley) knee injury.
The Panthers are currently ranked in the top-25 of four of the nation's premier polls. The team has six returning NCAA qualifiers, two veteran EWL conference champions and an NCAA All-American. With that much talent, it's sure to be an exciting starting line up. The Panthers will officially start their season with an away dual meet on Tuesday, November 15 with a 7:30 p.m. against EWL rival Bloomsburg.