Rider stuns No. 6 Minnesota for 21-17 road victory
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by Rider Athletics and Minnesota Athletics
Photo of Rider's Dean Sherry courtesy of GoBroncs.com
Rider press release by Gregory Ott
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – Dean Sherry (Brick, NJ/Brick Township) pinned the No. 6 wrestler in the nation, Devin Skatzka, as the Rider University wrestling team earned a statement dual victory tonight, upsetting the nationally-ranked No. 6 Minnesota Golden Gophers, 21-17, at Williams Arena.
Rider got off to a quick start with decisions at 125 and 133 from Jonathan Tropea (Harrington Park, NJ/Saint Joseph (Montvale)) and Chris Wright (Harrisburg, PA/Central Dauphin) to take a 6-0 lead. Minnesota surged ahead with a fall from nationally-ranked No. 4 Mitch McKee at 141 and another decision from No. 9 Brayton Lee. Jesse Dellavecchia's (Great River, NY/East Islip [Binghamton]) decision over Carson Brolsma knotted the match at 9-9 through five bouts.
Minnesota retook the lead with a major decision at 165, before Sherry pinned Skatzka with six seconds remaining in the opening period. The Gophers briefly retook the lead with a major decision at 184, before No. 14 Ethan Laird (Waterford, PA/General McLane) scored an 11-4 decision over Dylan Anderson at 197 to put Rider on top, 18-17. At 285, Ryan Cloud (Brookville, OH/Northmont) scored an escape in the second period and held on for a 1-0 victory in the night's final bout, securing the 21-17 victory for the Broncs.
Quotes & Notes
"This is a big win for Rider University and our wrestling program."
"A lot of things have to go right to beat a nationally-ranked Big 10 team, especially in their place. Our kids wrestled very well tonight. I'm very proud of them and their effort."
"The match was a great team effort, but the difference in the match was the performance by Tropea and Sherry. We don't win that match without their wins!" – Rider Head Coach John Hangey
- The match was the third in the all-time series with Minnesota. Rider had fallen in 1996-97 and 2017-18 seasons.
- Rider's last win over a Big 10 program came Feb. 18, 2018, against Maryland. The last Rider victory over a Big 10 program other than Maryland was Dec. 5, 2015 against Northwestern in Alumni Gym.
- The Broncs prior win over a ranked team came Jan. 27, 2018, against then-No. 23 Lock Haven, 22-12.
- Rider returns to action Sunday at Northern Illinois. The match is set to begin at 1 p.m. (ET)/12 p.m. (CT).
Rider 21, Minnesota 17
125 - Jonathan Tropea (Rider) dec. #18 Patrick McKee (Minnesota), 10-3; Rider leads, 3-0
133 - #27 Chris Wright (Rider) dec. Brent Jones (Minnesota), 6-5; Rider leads, 6-0
141 - #4 Mitch McKee (Minnesota) WBF Herb Edwards (Rider), 0:40; Match tied, 6-6
149 - #9 Brayton Lee (Minnesota) dec. Gino Fluri (Rider), 11-7. Minnesota leads, 9-6
157 - #4 Jesse Dellavecchia (Rider) dec. Carson Brolsma (Minnesota), 3-2; Match tied, 9-9
165 - Bailee O'Reilly (Minnesota) maj. dec. Georgio Poullas (Rider), 17-9; Minnesota leads, 13-9
174 - #27 Dean Sherry (Rider) WBF #6 Devin Skatzka (Minnesota), 2:54; Rider leads, 15-13
184 - Owen Webster (Minnesota) maj. dec. #33 George Walton (Rider) 11-3; Minnesota leads, 17-15
197 - #14 Ethan Laird (Rider) dec. Dylan Anderson (Minnesota) 11-4; Rider leads, 18-17
285 - Ryan Cloud (Rider) dec. Bobby Stevenson (Minnesota), 1-0; Rider defeats #6 Minnesota, 21-17
Minnesota press release from GopherSports.com
MINNEAPOLIS – The Minnesota wrestling team fell to the Rider Broncs 21-17 on Friday night at Williams Arena.
"It's tough but we've got to move on," head coach Brandon Eggum said. "It's early in the season and we've got another chance on Sunday. It's just a sour taste in our mouth."
After the Gophers fell behind early in the dual, 141-pound Mitch McKee righted the ship with a quick 40 second pin to tie the dual up at six. McKee now has three straight pins in a combined 1:58 of mat time.
Just one bout later, 149-pound Brayton Lee kept the momentum rolling with an 11-7 decision that saw him earn five takedowns to his opponent's lone two-point takedown.
Coming out of intermission, 165-pound Bailee O'Reilly gave the Gophers a jolt of energy with his major decision over Georgio Poullas. An aggressive O'Reilly had the scoring advantage from the start and ultimately finished with a 17-9 major decision to start the second half.
Earning his second dual victory of the season was Owen Webster at 184-pounds. Sensing his opponent tiring out, Webster continued to shoot takedown attempts which ultimately paid off in the final minute.
With less than 20 seconds remaining, Webster locked up Rider's George Walton and flipped him to his back for a four-point nearfall sent the Williams Arena crowd into a wild frenzy.
While the Gophers held the lead after Webster's victory, the Gophers dropped the final two bouts to lose the dual.
He dropped the match, but 165-pound Carson Brolsma only fell to No.8 Jesse Dellavechia by 3-2 decision. A late takedown in the waning moments of the first period proved the difference as Brolsma's escape and riding time point weren't enough for a top-ten upset.
Closing out the night was heavyweight Bobby Steveson making his first dual appearance for the Gophers in nearly two seasons.
Rider press release by Gregory Ott
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – Dean Sherry (Brick, NJ/Brick Township) pinned the No. 6 wrestler in the nation, Devin Skatzka, as the Rider University wrestling team earned a statement dual victory tonight, upsetting the nationally-ranked No. 6 Minnesota Golden Gophers, 21-17, at Williams Arena.
Rider got off to a quick start with decisions at 125 and 133 from Jonathan Tropea (Harrington Park, NJ/Saint Joseph (Montvale)) and Chris Wright (Harrisburg, PA/Central Dauphin) to take a 6-0 lead. Minnesota surged ahead with a fall from nationally-ranked No. 4 Mitch McKee at 141 and another decision from No. 9 Brayton Lee. Jesse Dellavecchia's (Great River, NY/East Islip [Binghamton]) decision over Carson Brolsma knotted the match at 9-9 through five bouts.
Minnesota retook the lead with a major decision at 165, before Sherry pinned Skatzka with six seconds remaining in the opening period. The Gophers briefly retook the lead with a major decision at 184, before No. 14 Ethan Laird (Waterford, PA/General McLane) scored an 11-4 decision over Dylan Anderson at 197 to put Rider on top, 18-17. At 285, Ryan Cloud (Brookville, OH/Northmont) scored an escape in the second period and held on for a 1-0 victory in the night's final bout, securing the 21-17 victory for the Broncs.
Quotes & Notes
"This is a big win for Rider University and our wrestling program."
"A lot of things have to go right to beat a nationally-ranked Big 10 team, especially in their place. Our kids wrestled very well tonight. I'm very proud of them and their effort."
"The match was a great team effort, but the difference in the match was the performance by Tropea and Sherry. We don't win that match without their wins!" – Rider Head Coach John Hangey
- The match was the third in the all-time series with Minnesota. Rider had fallen in 1996-97 and 2017-18 seasons.
- Rider's last win over a Big 10 program came Feb. 18, 2018, against Maryland. The last Rider victory over a Big 10 program other than Maryland was Dec. 5, 2015 against Northwestern in Alumni Gym.
- The Broncs prior win over a ranked team came Jan. 27, 2018, against then-No. 23 Lock Haven, 22-12.
- Rider returns to action Sunday at Northern Illinois. The match is set to begin at 1 p.m. (ET)/12 p.m. (CT).
Rider 21, Minnesota 17
125 - Jonathan Tropea (Rider) dec. #18 Patrick McKee (Minnesota), 10-3; Rider leads, 3-0
133 - #27 Chris Wright (Rider) dec. Brent Jones (Minnesota), 6-5; Rider leads, 6-0
141 - #4 Mitch McKee (Minnesota) WBF Herb Edwards (Rider), 0:40; Match tied, 6-6
149 - #9 Brayton Lee (Minnesota) dec. Gino Fluri (Rider), 11-7. Minnesota leads, 9-6
157 - #4 Jesse Dellavecchia (Rider) dec. Carson Brolsma (Minnesota), 3-2; Match tied, 9-9
165 - Bailee O'Reilly (Minnesota) maj. dec. Georgio Poullas (Rider), 17-9; Minnesota leads, 13-9
174 - #27 Dean Sherry (Rider) WBF #6 Devin Skatzka (Minnesota), 2:54; Rider leads, 15-13
184 - Owen Webster (Minnesota) maj. dec. #33 George Walton (Rider) 11-3; Minnesota leads, 17-15
197 - #14 Ethan Laird (Rider) dec. Dylan Anderson (Minnesota) 11-4; Rider leads, 18-17
285 - Ryan Cloud (Rider) dec. Bobby Stevenson (Minnesota), 1-0; Rider defeats #6 Minnesota, 21-17
Minnesota press release from GopherSports.com
MINNEAPOLIS – The Minnesota wrestling team fell to the Rider Broncs 21-17 on Friday night at Williams Arena.
"It's tough but we've got to move on," head coach Brandon Eggum said. "It's early in the season and we've got another chance on Sunday. It's just a sour taste in our mouth."
After the Gophers fell behind early in the dual, 141-pound Mitch McKee righted the ship with a quick 40 second pin to tie the dual up at six. McKee now has three straight pins in a combined 1:58 of mat time.
Just one bout later, 149-pound Brayton Lee kept the momentum rolling with an 11-7 decision that saw him earn five takedowns to his opponent's lone two-point takedown.
Coming out of intermission, 165-pound Bailee O'Reilly gave the Gophers a jolt of energy with his major decision over Georgio Poullas. An aggressive O'Reilly had the scoring advantage from the start and ultimately finished with a 17-9 major decision to start the second half.
Earning his second dual victory of the season was Owen Webster at 184-pounds. Sensing his opponent tiring out, Webster continued to shoot takedown attempts which ultimately paid off in the final minute.
With less than 20 seconds remaining, Webster locked up Rider's George Walton and flipped him to his back for a four-point nearfall sent the Williams Arena crowd into a wild frenzy.
While the Gophers held the lead after Webster's victory, the Gophers dropped the final two bouts to lose the dual.
He dropped the match, but 165-pound Carson Brolsma only fell to No.8 Jesse Dellavechia by 3-2 decision. A late takedown in the waning moments of the first period proved the difference as Brolsma's escape and riding time point weren't enough for a top-ten upset.
Closing out the night was heavyweight Bobby Steveson making his first dual appearance for the Gophers in nearly two seasons.
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