UPDATE: Penn State leads Oklahoma State by three points after day one of Southern Scuffle
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by Roger Moore, Special to TheMat.com
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – Winning championships these days requires bonus point victories. The top dogs at the 13th Southern Scuffle concur.
Penn State, in search of a sixth consecutive Scuffle title, was its usual self on the first day. Cael Sanderson’s Nittany Lions pushed 10 into Saturday’s quarterfinals and lead Oklahoma State by three points (47 ½ to 44 ½) with Cornell (39) and Lehigh (37) in hot pursuit. How good was PSU on the first day? OSU pushed 11 into quarterfinals and also piled up bonus point wins, yet still trails the blue and white.
“Oklahoma State had quite a few bonus points today. Those are big points in a tournament like this,” Sanderson said. “Even in the wrestlebacks, they stack up.
“It’s just a mentality. There are a lot of ways to score points. If guys are scoring big points in high school those are the type of guys who are going to go after (bonus points) at this level. We have to continue to work towards that … including tomorrow.”
PSU’s list of quarterfinals include: Nico Megaludis (125), Jordan Conaway (133), Kade Moss (141), Zain Retherford (149), Zack Beitz (149), Jason Nolf (157), Geno Morelli (165), Bo Nickal (174), Matt McCutcheon (184), and Morgan McIntosh (197). Teams entered as many as 17 wrestlers with 15 available for scoring points.
Retherford had a pin and a technical fall; Nolf had two technical falls; Nickal had a pair of techs and a major decision; McIntosh added a tech and a major.
John Smith’s Cowboys are making their fourth Scuffle appearance, finishing second behind the Nittany Lions in 2013 and 2014 and third last season. The bonus point theme is certainly in the Cowboys’ discussion.
“This is a very tough tournament, and in order to win the team title we need bonus points,” Dieringer said. “Bonus points is pretty much my motto. I am always trying to get bonus for the team. If I don’t, I am not satisfied. Today, I had a pin, major and tech, so all bonus points, but I can do better. I’m going to come in tomorrow with the same mindset I always have—score points.”
Dieringer, now a winner of 61-straight matches, had a first-period pin to go with a major and a 20-0 technical fall.
OSU’s Eddie Klimara had two majors at 125; Dean Heil (141) had a pin and a technical fall to help the cause. Anthony Collica (149) had two major decisions before losing in the Round of 16. Rookie Kaid Brock added a major decision in the second round. Another rookie, Joe Smith, wrestling un-attached, cruised to a pair of bonus point wins. Kyle Crutchmer had to battle for an early 6-4 deficit to win in the second round, a few hours after earning a major decision in his opening match. Jordan Rogers (184) had a 40-second pin and Austin Marsden (285) threw in a major decision for good measure.
“You have to score bonus to win this tournament,” said OSU head coach John Smith. “And it prepares you for what you have to do at the national tournament. The first day you really have to go after it. (Bonus points) don’t always come as much on the second day, but when the opportunity is there you have to take it.”
Lehigh continues to prove it has a viable product in 2015-16. Rookie Cortland Schuyler provided the first major surprise of the weekend, beating Penn State All-American James Gulibon in the second round at 141 pounds. Schyler, whose dad, Pete, was an All-American at Lehigh in 1983, used a late first period takedown to key a 4-3 win over the No. 2 seed. Schuyler also won in the next round and is one of eight in the final eight for the Mountain Hawks. Nate Brown, an NCAA finalist, had a pin and a technical fall at 184 pounds.
Back at the site of his 2014 shocker of Penn State’s Ed Ruth, Cornell’s Gabe Dean rolled to two victories on Friday. The top-ranked 184-pounder and 2015 NCAA champion will seek a third straight Scuffle title on Saturday along with Dieringer. The other two of head coach Rob Koll’s triple threat, Nahshon Garrett (133) and Brian Realbuto (174), had a combined four bonus point wins. Garrett had a 12-second pin in the second round.
Friday should prove to be a good day of wrestling with plenty of good matchups. And you can bet this thing might just come down to a bonus point or two in the end.
● In the what-in-the-wide-world-of-sports category, Andrew Marsden, a freshman at Oklahoma State, built a 12-2 lead on Army’s Bryce Barnes early in the second period. But Barnes continued to wrestle, scoring eight takedowns over the final 3 ½ minutes and eventually tied the match at 18-18. However, an obviously exhausted Marsden mule-kicked out for an escape at the buzzer and survived, 19-18.
● No. 13 Michigan did not bring starters to the tournament. Rookies Austin Assad and Logan Massa will each wrestle in the quarterfinals.
● Second seeded, 2015 NCAA finalist Zeke Moisey of West Virginia, suffered an 11-9 loss to Minnesota’s Steve Polakowski at 125 pounds in the same round.Penn State is leading the field after day one of the 2016 Southern Scuffle in Chattanooga, Tenn. The Nittany Lions are looking to claim their sixth straight Southern Scuffle title.
Quarterfinal Match-Ups
125 pounds
Nico Megaludis (Penn State) vs. Eli Hale (Oklahoma State)
Austin Assad (Michigan) vs. Darian Cruz (Lehigh)
Eddie Klimara (Oklahoma State) vs. Ethan Lizak (Minnesota)
Brent Fleetwood (Central Michigan) vs. Steven Polakowski (Minnesota)
133 pounds
Nahshon Garrett (Cornell) vs. Samuel Brancale (Minnesota)
Josh Martinez (Air Force) vs. Kaid Brock (Oklahoma State)
George DiCamillo (Virginia) vs. Zachary Davis (Navy)
Keegan Moore (West Virginia) vs. Jordan Conaway (Penn State)
141 pounds
Dean Heil (Oklahoma State) vs. Kade Moss (Penn State)
Bryce Meredith (Wyoming) vs. Tommy Thorn (Minnesota)
Joey McKenna (Stanford) vs. Joey Ward (North Carolina)
Zachary Horan (Central Michigan) vs. Cortlandt Schuyler (Lehigh)
149 pounds
Zain Retherford (Penn State) vs. Paul Fox (Stanford)
Justin Oliver (Central Michigan) vs. Matthew Cimato (Drexel)
Mitch Finesilver (Duke) vs. Patricio Lugo (Edinboro)
Matthew Frisch (The Citadel) vs. Evan Henderson (North Carolina)
157 pounds
Jason Nolf (Penn State) vs. Kamaal Shakur (Chattanooga)
Archie Colgan (Wyoming) vs. Mitch Minotti (Lehigh)
Luke Smith (Central Michigan) vs. Ian Brown (Lehigh)
Zach Beitz (Penn State) vs. Joseph Smith (unattached)
165 pounds
Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) vs. Ryan Preisch (Lehigh)
Connor Flynn (West Virginia) vs. John Michael Staudenmayer (North Carolina)
George Pickett (Cornell) vs. Geno Morelli (Penn State)
Logan Massa (unattached) vs. Tyler Marinelli (unattached)
174 pounds
Brian Realbuto (Cornell) vs. Chandler Rogers (Oklahoma State)
Michael Ottinger (Central Michigan) vs. Bo Nickal (Penn State)
Ethan Ramos (North Carolina) vs. Jadaen Bernstein (Navy)
Casey Kent (Penn) vs. Kyle Crutchmer (Oklahoma State)
184 pounds
Gabe Dean (Cornell) vs. Jordan Rogers (Oklahoma State)
Mathew Miller (Navy) vs. Matt McCutcheon (Penn State)
Lorenzo Thomas (Penn) vs. Nolan Boyd (Oklahoma State)
Alex Utley (North Carolina) vs. Nate Brown (Lehigh)
197 pounds
Morgan McIntosh (Penn State) vs. Vincent Pickett (Edinboro)
Zach Nye (Virginia) vs. Jacob Smith (West Virginia)
Brett Pfarr (Minnesota) vs. John Bolich (Lehigh)
Parker Hines (Air Force) vs. Conner Hartmann (Duke)
285 pounds
Austin Marsden (Oklahoma State) vs. Nathan Butler (Stanford)
Riley Shaw (Cleveland State) vs. Max Wessel (Lehigh)
Denzel Dejournette (Appalachian State) vs. Jared Johnson (Chattanooga)
Jeramy Sweany (Cornell) vs. +Michael Kroells (Minnesota)
Quarterfinalists
10 – Penn State, Oklahoma State
8 – Lehigh
6 – Minnesota
5 – Central Michigan, Cornell, North Carolina
Team Standings
1. Penn State 47.5
2. Oklahoma State 44.5
3. Cornell 39.0
4. Lehigh 36.5
5. North Carolina 32.5
6. Minnesota 30.5
7. West Virginia 30.5
8. Edinboro 27.0
9. Virginia 27.0
10. Wyoming 27.0
11. Central Michigan 25.5
12. Penn 25.5
13. Stanford 25.5
14. Appalachian State 22.5
15. Air Force 20.0
16. Duke 20.0
17. Chattanooga 19.5
18. Drexel 19.5
19. Army 19.0
20. Gardner Webb 18.5
21. Navy 18.5
Penn State, in search of a sixth consecutive Scuffle title, was its usual self on the first day. Cael Sanderson’s Nittany Lions pushed 10 into Saturday’s quarterfinals and lead Oklahoma State by three points (47 ½ to 44 ½) with Cornell (39) and Lehigh (37) in hot pursuit. How good was PSU on the first day? OSU pushed 11 into quarterfinals and also piled up bonus point wins, yet still trails the blue and white.
“Oklahoma State had quite a few bonus points today. Those are big points in a tournament like this,” Sanderson said. “Even in the wrestlebacks, they stack up.
“It’s just a mentality. There are a lot of ways to score points. If guys are scoring big points in high school those are the type of guys who are going to go after (bonus points) at this level. We have to continue to work towards that … including tomorrow.”
PSU’s list of quarterfinals include: Nico Megaludis (125), Jordan Conaway (133), Kade Moss (141), Zain Retherford (149), Zack Beitz (149), Jason Nolf (157), Geno Morelli (165), Bo Nickal (174), Matt McCutcheon (184), and Morgan McIntosh (197). Teams entered as many as 17 wrestlers with 15 available for scoring points.
Retherford had a pin and a technical fall; Nolf had two technical falls; Nickal had a pair of techs and a major decision; McIntosh added a tech and a major.
John Smith’s Cowboys are making their fourth Scuffle appearance, finishing second behind the Nittany Lions in 2013 and 2014 and third last season. The bonus point theme is certainly in the Cowboys’ discussion.
“This is a very tough tournament, and in order to win the team title we need bonus points,” Dieringer said. “Bonus points is pretty much my motto. I am always trying to get bonus for the team. If I don’t, I am not satisfied. Today, I had a pin, major and tech, so all bonus points, but I can do better. I’m going to come in tomorrow with the same mindset I always have—score points.”
Dieringer, now a winner of 61-straight matches, had a first-period pin to go with a major and a 20-0 technical fall.
OSU’s Eddie Klimara had two majors at 125; Dean Heil (141) had a pin and a technical fall to help the cause. Anthony Collica (149) had two major decisions before losing in the Round of 16. Rookie Kaid Brock added a major decision in the second round. Another rookie, Joe Smith, wrestling un-attached, cruised to a pair of bonus point wins. Kyle Crutchmer had to battle for an early 6-4 deficit to win in the second round, a few hours after earning a major decision in his opening match. Jordan Rogers (184) had a 40-second pin and Austin Marsden (285) threw in a major decision for good measure.
“You have to score bonus to win this tournament,” said OSU head coach John Smith. “And it prepares you for what you have to do at the national tournament. The first day you really have to go after it. (Bonus points) don’t always come as much on the second day, but when the opportunity is there you have to take it.”
Lehigh continues to prove it has a viable product in 2015-16. Rookie Cortland Schuyler provided the first major surprise of the weekend, beating Penn State All-American James Gulibon in the second round at 141 pounds. Schyler, whose dad, Pete, was an All-American at Lehigh in 1983, used a late first period takedown to key a 4-3 win over the No. 2 seed. Schuyler also won in the next round and is one of eight in the final eight for the Mountain Hawks. Nate Brown, an NCAA finalist, had a pin and a technical fall at 184 pounds.
Back at the site of his 2014 shocker of Penn State’s Ed Ruth, Cornell’s Gabe Dean rolled to two victories on Friday. The top-ranked 184-pounder and 2015 NCAA champion will seek a third straight Scuffle title on Saturday along with Dieringer. The other two of head coach Rob Koll’s triple threat, Nahshon Garrett (133) and Brian Realbuto (174), had a combined four bonus point wins. Garrett had a 12-second pin in the second round.
Friday should prove to be a good day of wrestling with plenty of good matchups. And you can bet this thing might just come down to a bonus point or two in the end.
● In the what-in-the-wide-world-of-sports category, Andrew Marsden, a freshman at Oklahoma State, built a 12-2 lead on Army’s Bryce Barnes early in the second period. But Barnes continued to wrestle, scoring eight takedowns over the final 3 ½ minutes and eventually tied the match at 18-18. However, an obviously exhausted Marsden mule-kicked out for an escape at the buzzer and survived, 19-18.
● No. 13 Michigan did not bring starters to the tournament. Rookies Austin Assad and Logan Massa will each wrestle in the quarterfinals.
● Second seeded, 2015 NCAA finalist Zeke Moisey of West Virginia, suffered an 11-9 loss to Minnesota’s Steve Polakowski at 125 pounds in the same round.Penn State is leading the field after day one of the 2016 Southern Scuffle in Chattanooga, Tenn. The Nittany Lions are looking to claim their sixth straight Southern Scuffle title.
Quarterfinal Match-Ups
125 pounds
Nico Megaludis (Penn State) vs. Eli Hale (Oklahoma State)
Austin Assad (Michigan) vs. Darian Cruz (Lehigh)
Eddie Klimara (Oklahoma State) vs. Ethan Lizak (Minnesota)
Brent Fleetwood (Central Michigan) vs. Steven Polakowski (Minnesota)
133 pounds
Nahshon Garrett (Cornell) vs. Samuel Brancale (Minnesota)
Josh Martinez (Air Force) vs. Kaid Brock (Oklahoma State)
George DiCamillo (Virginia) vs. Zachary Davis (Navy)
Keegan Moore (West Virginia) vs. Jordan Conaway (Penn State)
141 pounds
Dean Heil (Oklahoma State) vs. Kade Moss (Penn State)
Bryce Meredith (Wyoming) vs. Tommy Thorn (Minnesota)
Joey McKenna (Stanford) vs. Joey Ward (North Carolina)
Zachary Horan (Central Michigan) vs. Cortlandt Schuyler (Lehigh)
149 pounds
Zain Retherford (Penn State) vs. Paul Fox (Stanford)
Justin Oliver (Central Michigan) vs. Matthew Cimato (Drexel)
Mitch Finesilver (Duke) vs. Patricio Lugo (Edinboro)
Matthew Frisch (The Citadel) vs. Evan Henderson (North Carolina)
157 pounds
Jason Nolf (Penn State) vs. Kamaal Shakur (Chattanooga)
Archie Colgan (Wyoming) vs. Mitch Minotti (Lehigh)
Luke Smith (Central Michigan) vs. Ian Brown (Lehigh)
Zach Beitz (Penn State) vs. Joseph Smith (unattached)
165 pounds
Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) vs. Ryan Preisch (Lehigh)
Connor Flynn (West Virginia) vs. John Michael Staudenmayer (North Carolina)
George Pickett (Cornell) vs. Geno Morelli (Penn State)
Logan Massa (unattached) vs. Tyler Marinelli (unattached)
174 pounds
Brian Realbuto (Cornell) vs. Chandler Rogers (Oklahoma State)
Michael Ottinger (Central Michigan) vs. Bo Nickal (Penn State)
Ethan Ramos (North Carolina) vs. Jadaen Bernstein (Navy)
Casey Kent (Penn) vs. Kyle Crutchmer (Oklahoma State)
184 pounds
Gabe Dean (Cornell) vs. Jordan Rogers (Oklahoma State)
Mathew Miller (Navy) vs. Matt McCutcheon (Penn State)
Lorenzo Thomas (Penn) vs. Nolan Boyd (Oklahoma State)
Alex Utley (North Carolina) vs. Nate Brown (Lehigh)
197 pounds
Morgan McIntosh (Penn State) vs. Vincent Pickett (Edinboro)
Zach Nye (Virginia) vs. Jacob Smith (West Virginia)
Brett Pfarr (Minnesota) vs. John Bolich (Lehigh)
Parker Hines (Air Force) vs. Conner Hartmann (Duke)
285 pounds
Austin Marsden (Oklahoma State) vs. Nathan Butler (Stanford)
Riley Shaw (Cleveland State) vs. Max Wessel (Lehigh)
Denzel Dejournette (Appalachian State) vs. Jared Johnson (Chattanooga)
Jeramy Sweany (Cornell) vs. +Michael Kroells (Minnesota)
Quarterfinalists
10 – Penn State, Oklahoma State
8 – Lehigh
6 – Minnesota
5 – Central Michigan, Cornell, North Carolina
Team Standings
1. Penn State 47.5
2. Oklahoma State 44.5
3. Cornell 39.0
4. Lehigh 36.5
5. North Carolina 32.5
6. Minnesota 30.5
7. West Virginia 30.5
8. Edinboro 27.0
9. Virginia 27.0
10. Wyoming 27.0
11. Central Michigan 25.5
12. Penn 25.5
13. Stanford 25.5
14. Appalachian State 22.5
15. Air Force 20.0
16. Duke 20.0
17. Chattanooga 19.5
18. Drexel 19.5
19. Army 19.0
20. Gardner Webb 18.5
21. Navy 18.5
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