Five Wrestlers Place at EMU Open
11/4/2008 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Nov. 4, 2008
PITTSBURGH — Two University of Pittsburgh wrestlers placed in the Eastern Michigan Open held Nov. 1 in Ypsilanti, Mich. Freshmen Matt Wilps and Zac Thomusseit both went 4-2 on the day and collected fourth and fifth place finishes respectively.
Three additional wrestlers competed at the open, wrestling unattached from the university. Eric Albright (York, Pa./Red Lion Area/Virginia), Eric Rosencranz (Quakertown, Pa./Quakertown) and Ryan Tomei (Irwin, Pa./Penn-Trafford) each picked up at least three wins and top-five finishes.
Albright, a junior transfer, posted a 5-0 mark on the day, taking first place in the 141-pound weight class. After an 8-1 decision over Joel Trombly (Michigan State) in the first round, Albright locked in a second-period pin on Thomas Swartz (CSU). A 4-1 decision over John Majka (Navy) advanced him to a semi-final match with Zach Donofrio (EMU). Albright advanced to the finals with a 7-6 decision. In the finals he carded a 6-4 decision over former Nebraska Cornhusker Kenny Jordan.
Sophomore Rosencranz tallied three straight decisions to advance to the finals of the 133-pound bracket. In the finals, Rosencranz met Jake Fleckenstein (Purdue), falling by a 14-5 major decision to the Boilermaker, finishing second overall.
Junior heavyweight Tomei opened up first-round action with a 3-1 decision over Ed Phillips (Michigan). His second round foe, Scott Steele (Navy), entered the match ranked No. 5 in the USA Today/Intermat/NWCA preseason rankings. Tomei fell 2-1, but burned through the consolation brackets to advance to the third place match, defeating Phillips 5-3, for the second time on the day.
Freshmen Wilps (Pittsburgh, Pa./Chartiers Valley) and Thomusseit (St. Paris, Ohio/St. Paris Graham) each notched four wins in their first open tournament for Pitt, taking fourth and fifth place in the 197-pound and 184-pound weight classes respectively.
The Panthers hit the road to open the 2008-09 season, starting off in East Lansing, Mich., for the Michigan State Open, Sunday, Nov. 9. The MSU Open is one of the largest opens annually and will be held at Jenison Field House on the MSU campus.