Cornell leads EIWA with seven semifinalists, ahead of Penn and Lehigh

NCAA champion Jordan Leen is on top during his first-round victory at 157 pounds

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - Cornell has a commanding 15 ½ point lead in the team race after the first day of action at the EIWA Championships at the Palestra on Saturday.

Cornell, ranked No. 2 in the nation, advanced seven wrestlers into Sunday's semifinals, and has all 10 wrestlers still in the tournament. The Big Red did not lose any wrestlers who were seeded to reach the semifinals.

"We would have to work hard to lose at this time," said Cornell head coach Rob Koll. "Stranger things have occurred."

Returning NCAA champion Jordan Leen (157), seeded No. 2 in the tournament, advanced to the semifinals. Also moving on were No. 1 seeds Troy Nickerson (125) and Mack Lewnes (165).

The other Big Red semifinalists are Mike Grey (133), Steve Anceravage (174), Justin Kerber (184) and Cam Simaz (197).

Koll always puts his focus on the NCAA Championships. Repeating as the conference champions and qualifying as many athletes for the nationals is the task at hand this weekend.

"You can't wrestle well at the nationals if you don't get there," said Koll. "Everything for us is the national tournament. We have a countdown clock, but it is not set for the Easterns. But you have to get through here. I do look at this as a qualifier, but our administration and alumni don't look at it that way."

The EIWA is 105 years old, and winning this event is very prestigious, as one of the nation's most competitive conferences. Koll cares about this event, as well as the regular season, but the NCAAs in St. Louis in two weeks are his main focus.

"I take a little grief about how I put so much emphasis on the national tournament," said Koll. "These are young men going to college to have a great experience. Sometimes, I will sit them out, even if it means losing dual meets. I'd love to win dual meets, but I am not placing my personal goals ahead of the national championship. I will allow us to lose if it is better for the individuals."

All of the sessions of the tournament were competed without a break today, as the gym will be used this evening for a women's basketball game.

Cornell also had the lead after the first round, on the strength of bonus points. Extra points came from pins came from Troy Nickerson (125), Corey Manson (141), Jordan Leen (157), plus a major decision by Justin Kerber (184), getting the Big Red on a roll that continued all day.

Penn was in second after the day with 48 points, followed by Lehigh in third with 46 points and Navy in fourth with 41.5 points. Both Penn and Lehigh placed six wrestlers in the semifinals and Navy has five semifinalists.

Penn lost a defending champion when No. 4 Cesar Grajales was defeated by No. 5 Kyle Borschoff of American, 2-1 in tiebreaker. Grajales was the only of the 10 defending or returning champions to lose on Saturday.

The Quakers scored an upset in the quarterfinals, based upon seeds, when No. 6 Thomas Shovlin pinned No. 3 Joe Kennedy of Lehigh in 1:09. Kennedy had pinned Shovlin in the dual meet between the teams, 8-2.

All of the undefeated No. 1 seeds advanced into the semis: Nickerson and Lewnes, Joe Baker of Navy at 133 pounds and Mike Cannon of American at 184 pounds.

However, it was a difficult day for the No. 1 seeds, many who were close to defeat during at least one of their matches.

Baker had a tough scrap in the quarterfinals against No. 8 Thomas Pisarsic of Harvard, 5-4. Baker, who recently returned to action from injury, needed to score late in the third period to pull out the win.

In the quarterfinals at 157 pounds, No. 1 J.P. O'Connor of Harvard was pushed into overtime by No. 8 Derek Sickles of Columbia before winning 5-4. O'Connor was able to get an escape in the 30-second portion of overtime, then rode Sickels for 30 seconds to secure the win.

Another Harvard top seed, No. 1 Corey Jantzen, had a tremendous battle in the quarterfinals, edging No. 8 Corey Manson of Cornell, 5-4. The difference in the bout was a riding time point for Jantzen.There were a number of situations in the match where Manson was close to scoring takedowns which may have changed the outcome.

Army survived scares when No. 1 seeds Matt Kyler (141) and Richard Starks (197) were both challenged.

Starks trailed most of the match and had to go into overtime to defeat Brandon Stearns of Brown, 7-5 in the first round. Stearns got the opening takedown and went toe-to-toe with Starks the entire match. The margin of victory was a reversal by Starks in overtime.

It didn't get better for Starks in the second round, as he was pushed into overtime again, this time by Louis Miller of Columbia, winning a 2-1 decision in a tiebreaker.

Kyler was pushed hard by Scott Heckman of East Stoudsburg in the opening round. Heckman scored the opening takedown, and Kyler tied it with escapes in the first and second period at 2-2. Kyler was able to ride Heckman in the third, getting riding time advantage, and closed it out with a three-point near fall by turning Heckman with just six seconds left for a 6-2 win.

The battle on Sunday may be for second place, and for earning individual trips to the NCAA Championships.

Concerning Cornell, Koll would rather talk about his wrestlers who lost than the seven who will be in the semifinals on Sunday.

"The guys wrestled well, even the guys who lost," said Koll. "I felt Manson outwrestled Jantzen to win that match. But you have to make it obvious to get the calls. D.J. Meagher lost his first match, but wrestled a strong second match against a tough senior from East Stroudsburg. Zach Hammond is Hammond. I hope he can sneak back and make it to the nationals."

EIWA semifinal pairings

125 pounds
No. 1 Troy Nickerson (Cornell) vs. No. 5 Prescott Garner (Navy)
No 2 Rollie Peterkin (Penn) vs. No. 3 Derek Reber (Brown)

133 pounds
No. 1 Joe Baker (Navy) vs. No. 4 David Marble (Bucknell)
No. 2 Mike Grey (Cornell) vs. No. Matt Fisk (Lehigh)

141 pounds
No. 1 Corey Jantzen (Harvard) vs. No. 4 Trevor Melde (Rutgers)
No. 2 Seth Ciasulli (Lehigh) vs. No. 3 Rick Rappo (Penn)

149 pounds
No. 1 Matt Kyler (Army) vs. No. 5 Kyle Borschoff (American)
No. 2 Bryce Saddoris (Navy) vs. No. 3 Trevor Chinn (Lehigh)

157 pounds
No. 1 J.P. O'Connor (Harvard) vs. No. 4 Scott Winston (Rutgers)
No. 2 Jordan Leen (Cornell) vs. No. 3 Matt Dragon (Penn)

165 pounds
No. 1 Mack Lewnes (Cornell) vs. No. 4 Matt Pletcher (Rutgers)
No. 2 Andy Rendos (Bucknell) vs. No. 3 Mike Galante (Lehigh)

174 pounds
No. 1 Mike Cannon (American) vs. No. 4 Luke Rebertus (Navy)
No. 2 Steve Anceravage (Cornell) vs. No. 3 Scott Giffin (Penn)

184 pounds
No. 1 David Craig (Lehigh) vs. No. 4 Casey Caldwell (Navy)
No. 2 Louis Caputo (Harvard) vs. No. 3 Justin Kerber (Cornell)

197 pounds
No. 1 Richard Starks (Army) vs. No. 5 Andy Silber (American)
No. 2 Cam Simaz (Cornell) vs. No. 6 Thomas Shovlin (Penn)

285 pounds
No. 1 Ryan Flores (Columbia) vs. No. 4 Chris Birchler (East Stroudsburg)
No. 2 Zach Rey (Lehigh) vs. No. 3 Trey McLean (Penn)

Team Standings
1. Cornell, 63.5
2. Penn, 48
3. Lehigh, 46
4. Navy, 41.5
5. Bucknell, 36.5
6. American, 36
7. Harvard, 27
8. Rutgers, 25.5
9. Army, 25
10. Columbia, 13.5
11. East Stroudsburg, 10
12. Franklin and Marshall, 8.5
13. Brown, 7.5
14. Princeton, 3