Pitt
West Virginia
Panthers Fall in 20-13 in Backyard Brawl
2/4/2006 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Feb. 4, 2006
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -
The Panthers continued EWL competition this weekend as they faced West Virginia in wrestling's version of the Backyard Brawl. Despite getting off to a strong start, they lost a tough 20-13 to the Mountaineers.
"We got off to a fast and furious start," said Head Coach Rande Stottlemyer. "It was great to see Brad Gentzle go out and be aggressive to get us that bonus point early. Mike Ciotti turned in a really solid performance after being down by a point in the third and then coming back. It was a fun meet to be in because the guys were wrestling hard and fighting hard. Even though we lost, I can say it wasn't because of a lack of effort. We're getting better in terms of experience, and a lot of our guys did a great job."
At 125 pounds, Pitt's Gentzle (Easton, Pa./Easton) faced West Virginia's Scott Stuart. Gentzle won the match with a 14-4 major decision, making this his third on the season and advancing him to a 6-12 record. His extra point gave the Panthers an early 4-0 lead against the Mountaineers.
Keeping Pitt in the lead, senior Mike Ciotti (Latrobe, Pa./Greater Latrobe) defeated West Virginia's Seth Lisa with a 8-2 decision. Ciotti's win puts him at 8-2 in dual matches this season with a 14-7 overall record. His victory maintained the Panthers' lead 7-0.
The 141 bout was between Pitt's Ronald Tarquinio (McDonald, Pa./West Allegheny) and West Virginia's Brandon Rader. West Virginia was able to get on the scoreboard for the first time as Rader won an 8-2 decision over Tarquinio making the score 7-3 with Pitt in the lead.
At 149 pounds, Pitt freshman Joey Ecklof (Northampton, Pa./Northampton) took on West Virginia's David Jauregui. Both earned conference honors earlier this season, making this one of the night's more difficult matches. Jauregui was victorious in a 3-1 decision, closing the gap at six points for West Virginia.
Pitt's Sean Richmond (Emmaus, Pa./Easton) faced West Virginia's Matt Lebe at 157 pounds. Lebe moved the Mountaineers into the lead for the first time with a 9-5 decision over Richmond, making the team score 9-7.
Wrestling at 165 pounds was Pitt's Justin Nestor (Transfer, Pa./Reynolds) against West Virginia's Larry Hall. Nestor achieved Pitt's third victory of the evening with a 6-4 decision. He moves to 21-7 for the season with a 7-3 dual record. His win moved Pitt back into the lead with a score of 10-9.
Nick Padezan (Irwin, Pa./Penn Trafford) wrestled West Virginia's Kurt Brenner in the 174 bout. Brenner came away with a close 3-2 decision in a match that didn't let up until the end. His win would give West Virginia the momentum they needed to take the next two matches.
Pitt freshman Kyle Deliere (Cecil, Pa./Canon-McMillan) went up against West Virginia's Chance Litton at 184 pounds where he lost a 5-1 decision. And Pitt's Mike Heist (Orefield, Pa./Parkland) faced West Virginia's Jared Villers at 197 pounds where he lost a 16-0 technical fall at the 4:13 mark. West Virginia moved to a 20-10 lead.
In the final match of the evening, Pitt's Lou Thomas (Parkersburg, W.Va./Parkersburg) wreslted West Virginia's Matt Holsopple. Thomas was able to earn a few more points for the Panthers as he defeated Holsopple with a 7-5 decision, making the final score 20-13 in favor of West Virginia.
Pitt is now 2-8 overall and 0-3 in the EWL conference. They'll continue league competition next week as they take on Clarion on Tuesday and Lock Haven on Friday. In addition, several Panthers will compete in the Kent State Open this weekend.
125: Brad Gentzle (P) maj. dec. Scott Stuart (WVU), 14-4 [4-0, Pitt]
133: Mike Ciotti (P) dec. Seth Lisa (WVU), 8-2 [7-0, Pitt]
141: Brandon Rader (WVU) dec. Ronald Tarquinio (P), 8-2 [7-3, Pitt]
149: David Jauregui (WVU) dec. Joey Ecklof (P), 3-1 [7-6, Pitt]
157: Matt Lebe (WVU) dec. Sean Richmond (P), 9-5 [9-7, WVU]
165: Justin Nestor (P) dec. Larry Hall (WVU), 6-4 [10-9, Pitt]
174: Kurt Brenner (WVU) dec. Nick Padezan (P), 3-2 [12-10, WVU]
184: Chance Litton (WVU) dec. Kyle Deliere (P), 5-1 [15-10, WVU]
197: Jared Villers (WVU) tech. fall Mike Heist (P), 16-0; 4:13 [20-10, WVU]
285: Lou Thomas (P) dec. Matt Holsopple (WVU), 7-5 [20-13, WVU]
