Pitt Wrestling Travels To Penn State Open
12/4/2009 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Dec. 4, 2009
PITTSBURGH -
The Pitt wrestling squad will be traveling to the Penn State Open this weekend in State College, Pa. The all day tournament will take place on Sunday, Dec. 6. Below is a closer look at the 25th-ranked Panthers.
Looking At The Panthers
The 25th-ranked Pitt squad sits at 5-1 on the dual season with its only loss coming to No. 17 Lehigh. The Panthers, however, responded with an 18-15 win over No. 17 Illinois the next weekend at the Sprawl & Brawl Duals.
Pitt is led by sophomore Tyler Nauman, who is ranked as high as sixth at 141 and has enjoyed an undefeated season entering the weekend with an 11-0 record. Nauman’s perfect record includes a 6-0 mark in dual matches.
Also having an outstanding year for Pitt is junior heavyweight Ryan Tomei with an 11-1 record on the season.
Oh Brother...
Pitt currently has two sets of brothers on the squad including sophomore Chris Albright and his brother, redshirt senior Eric Albright; as well as freshman P.J. Tasser and his brother, redshirt freshman Donnie Tasser.
In addition, in Pitt’s signing class, two more sets of brothers are set to join the squad. Sophomore Zac Thomusseit’s brother Max signed a letter of intent with the panthers, as well as Matt Wilps’ brother Tyler.
Rankings Respect
In the latest national rankings, sophomore Tyler Nauman leads the way at 141 with a No. 6 ranking by Amateur Wrestling news and InterMat and ranked No. 8 by WIN.
Sophomore Matt Wilps holds a No. 19 ranking by InterMat and junior Ryan Tomei is 12th in Amateur Wrestling News and 18th by InterMat and 19th by WIN.
Stottlemyer’s 30-Year Stint
Pitt head coach Rande Stottlemyer is entering his 31st season at the helm of the Panther program. In his 31st season, Stottlemyer is the winningest coach in Pitt history, recording a 256-216-11 record, including a 4-7-1 mark last season and 5-1 this season in dual action.
Stottlemyer helped guide four wrestlers to the NCAA Tournament last season, with three of those returning in 2009-10.
197 Battle
At 197 this season, head coach Rande Stottlemyer has a good problem on his hands. Stottlemyer has two successful wrestlers available for the lineup as Matt Wilps holds a 15-2 record on the year and A.J. Hunte has challenged all season with an 8-3 record. In the Clarion Open, Hunte earned a second place finish with a 3-1 mark.
Open Success
Tyler Nauman (141) and Ethan Headlee (174) claimed titles at the Clarion Open on Nov. 8, while seven others placed. Nauman went undefeated on the day, including a pin (1:43) over Matt Bogusz of Maryland. In the finals, Nauman was to meet up with teammate Dane Johnson, but Johnson, a true freshman, took a forfeit to give Nauman the title. Johnson also had an outstanding tournament as he wrestled unattached, winning four matches prior to the finals.
At 174, Headlee wrestled unattached but won five straight including a pin (6:32) against Robert Doyle of the US Military Academy, and a 7-5 victory over Hayden Harrison of host Clarion in the finals.
Freshman Dane Johnson had a successful first tournament on the collegiate level at the Buffalo Open as the rookie earned a first round bye, then went on to a 4-0 sweep on his way to the 141 title.
In the 197 weight class, sophomore Matt Wilps picked up the second tournament win of his career. Pitt’s most impressive title win of the day came in the heavyweight division as redshirt junior Ryan Tomei earned his fifth career tournament win, setting the pace with three straight bonus-point wins to open the day.
Tomei the Terrible
Junior Ryan Tomei returned from his redshirt season with a bang as he bullied his way to the heavyweight title at the Buffalo Open. For his efforts, Tomei was named the Eastern Wrestling League’s Wrestler of the Week.
He’s Back!
Former Pitt wrestler Matt Kocher is back with the Panther program. This time, as an assistant coach. Kocher joined the Pitt staff this summer and has been an invaluable addition to the squad.
While at Pitt, Kocher was a four-time NCAA qualifier and currently sits at second on the all-time wins list in Pitt history at 151-45.
Players Mentioned
