| Sophomore Jake Strayer became Penn State??s third and newest All-American and will wrestle for seventh place at 133 tomorrow morning. |
AUBURN HILLS, Mich.; March 16, 2007 ?C Senior Aaron Anspach (Columbia, Pa.) earned a spot in the national title bout at heavyweight with a semifinal win at the 2007 NCAA Wrestling Championships at the Palace of Auburn Hills. Anspach is one of three Nittany Lion All-Americans and head coach Troy Sunderland and his team sit in seventh place in the team race.
In addition, sophomore Jake Strayer (South Fork, Pa.) became an All-American at 133 and will wrestle for seventh place tomorrow. Junior Phil Davis (Harrisburg, Pa.) was upset in his semifinal bout and will wrestle to finish as high as third tomorrow morning.
Penn State??s first bout of the all-important evening session took place at 133, where Strayer took on No. 12 seed Robert Preston of Harvard in the ??round of 12??. A win meant All-American status, a loss meant the season??s end. Looking to break a trend of falling behind early, Strayer was the aggressor out of the gates, using a shoulder throw and getting a takedown on the edge of the mat for a quick 2-0 lead. The Lion sophomore, who lost in this very round last season as a freshman, looked to ride Preston but the Harvard grappler quickly reversed the Nittany Lion. But seconds later, Strayer returned the favor for a reversal of his own and led 4-2 with 1:46 to go in a furious first period. Strayer maintained control long enough to build up a 1:59 riding time edge, but Preston managed a reversal right before the period ended to send the bout to the second tied 4-4. Preston chose down to begin the second and, with a big time advantage already in hand, Strayer cut the Harvard man loose, giving him a 5-4 lead. Strayer then quickly tossed Preston to the mat once more of his second takedown and a 6-5 lead. Strayer continued to ride Preston, dominating action from the top position. He did, however, pick up a first stall warning. Still, a big ride-out and Strayer led 6-5 with a 3:34 riding time edge, guaranteeing himself a riding time point. Strayer chose down to start the final period and, after a short scramble, reversed Preston to lead 8-5 with :50 left to wrestle. Continuing with his trend of dominating action from the top position, Strayer rode Preston until only :14 remained. His second stall warning gave the Harvard man a point, cutting the lead to 8-6, but after a reset, Strayer simply maintained control until the period ended. The riding time point gave Strayer a 9-6 win and made him an All-American for the first time. Strayer advanced to the next round of consolations where we would meet Missouri??s Tyler McCormick, the No. 8 seed.
At 149, red-shirt freshman Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.), the No. 12 seed, met Big Ten rival Matt Coughlin of Indiana in the ??round of 12?? as well. The duo traded early parries, working the shoulders to no avail. Vallimont tried to counter the upper moves of Coughlin with quick shots to the Hoosiers?? left leg, but Coughlin stepped back each time, keeping the bout scoreless. Strayer??s best early chance came with :45 left when he lifted Coughlin off the ground and brought him to the mat, but the IU grappler showed poise in fighting off the move and action moved off the mat, forcing a reset. The Nittany Lion freshman continued to apply the offensive pressure but the first period ended in a scoreless tie. Vallimont chose down to begin the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. Coughlin had his best opportunity :30 into the second, getting full hold of Strayer??s leg. But the Lion freshman backed out nicely to maintain his 1-0 lead. Vallimont worked in on Coughlin and looked to finish on a high single leg, but Coughlin countered and threw the Lion rookie to his back for a two point takedown and three near fall points. The five point move gave Coughlin a 5-1 lead heading into the third period. Coughlin chose neutral to start the third and then played defense, waiting for Vallimont to leave an opening as the Nittany Lion began to look for any chance to score. The Hoosier countered another Vallimont shot and iced the bout with another takedown. Coughlin also got a riding time point and posted a sound 8-1 win, ending Vallimont??s All-America hopes. Vallimont finished an outstanding freshman campaign with a 3-2 performance at nationals and a 22-12 overall record.
After earning All-America laurels with a win early in the evening session, Strayer now had the chance to earn higher places and important team points with one more round of consolation action. A win would keep dreams of a third place finish alive. A loss would mean a trip to the seventh place bout tomorrow morning.
Strayer met No. 8 seed Tyler McCormick of Missouri in the next consolation round. Strayer set the tempo early, forcing McKnight back to the edge of the circle early. Using a series of quick shots, he kept McKnight on his heels early but could not break through the Tiger??s outstanding defense. Strayer forced McKnight into an early stall call but with :05 left, got caught by the Tiger and gave up a critical takedown with just :08 left. Strayer chose down to start the second period but could not escape as McCormick hung on his upper body. The Tiger was hit with a second stall warning, cutting the lead to 2-1, but McKnight did ride Strayer out to lead 2-1 with 2:08 in time after two periods. McKnight chose down to start the final stanza and Strayer immediately cut him loose to a 3-1 deficit, needing multiple takedowns to win. McKnight kept up his defensive style, holding Strayer at arm??s length and hanging on his upper body when possible. Strayer didn??t manage a score in the bout and the eighth-seeded Tiger would escape with a hard-fought 4-1 win. Strayer will now wrestle for seventh place tomorrow morning at 10 a.m.
Penn State??s first semifinalist was junior Phil Davis (Harrisburg, Pa.). Davis, the No. 4 seed, took on No. 9 Kurt Backes of Iowa State for a trip to tomorrow night??s national finals. Davis, now a three-time All-American, carried a 27-3 record into the bout while Backes came in 28-6. Backes scored first and scored quickly with a single leg and trip to go up 2-0 at the 2:45 mark. Davis escaped to a 2-1 deficit, but not before Backes had :45 of riding time. Backes then tripped Davis to the ground again for his second first period takedown to lead 4-1. Davis escaped to a 4-2 deficit but not before Backes had 1:36 in riding time. Backes played defense for the rest of the period and led 4-2 after one stanza. Backes chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 5-2 lead. Davis got in on Backes right leg and the Cyclone worked hard to escape, working his way off the mat while Davis tried to pull him back. Backes held out just long enough to force a reset and send the bout to the third period with Backes leading 5-2 with over a minute of riding time. Davis chose down to start the third, looking for a reversal and back points to avoid the upset loss. Davis first got the reversal at the 1:25 mark and then forced a reset while looking to turn the Cyclone wrestler. With 1:16 left, Davis began working off a reset to turn Backes and comeback for the victory. Davis spent the final minute plus working to complete a cradle and nearly pulled it off on the edge of the mat. But time ran out before he could complete the move and Backes escaped with a 5-4 win. The loss sent Davis to tomorrow morning??s consolation semifinals, starting at 10 a.m.
Senior Aaron Anspach (Columbia, Pa.), now an All-American at HWT and the tournament??s No. 2 seed, took on powerful No. 3 seed Bubba Gritter of Central Michigan in his semifinal bout. Anspach entered the semifinal with a 21-3 mark while Gritter came in 31-5. Anspach wasted no time in forcing the issue in his bout. Quickly working in on the Chippewa, Anspach completed a high single leg takedown to get his first points with 1:54 to wrestle in the first. Gritter escaped to a 2-1 deficit and nearly got a takedown off a reset with :35 left. But Anspach fought the move off. The Nittany Lion senior nearly tossed the Chippewa to his back with a throw on the edge of the mat, but Gritter quickly slid aside and action resumed mid-mat. Anspach carried his 2-1 lead into the second stanza where Gritter chose down to start the period. Gritter escaped to tie the scored at 2-2 and riding time was not a factor. Anspach got in low on Gritter??s right ankle and began working for a takedown, but Gritter worked over Anspach and forced a stalemate and a reset with 1:15 to go in the second period. Anspach nearly got a second takedown as the second period closed down with his standard high double-leg, but Gritter was just quick enough to avoid the takedown and keep the bout tied at 2-2 heading into the third period. Anspach chose down to start the final period and escaped to a 3-2 lead with 1:33 left in the bout. Anspach kept up his aggressive style and it paid off. With :42 left, Anspach iced the bout and a trip to the finals with a quick takedown and a 5-3 lead (after the Gritter escape) with less than :30 left in the bout. Anspach rode that takedown to a 5-3 win and a date in the national finals tomorrow night against No. 1 Cole Konrad of Minnesota. The finals begin at 8 p.m. tomorrow evening and will be shown live on ESPN.
Iowa State leads the team race with 83.5 points followed closely by Minnesota with 80.0. Missouri is in third with 69.5 and Oklahoma State sits in fourth with 62.5. Northwestern is in fifth with 62.0, followed by Michigan (55.5) and Penn State (50.0). Iowa is eighth with 48.5 while Hofstra (48.0) and Ohio State (46.5) round out the top ten. Penn State went a combined 7-7 over day two of the championships and is 17-11 overall.
Action continues tomorrow morning with the placing bouts, seven through three, starting at 10 a.m. The placing bouts will be broadcast live on ESPNU. Saturday night??s championship finals start at 8 p.m. and will be carried live on ESPN.
PENN STATE INDIVIDUAL AGATE (# indicates tournament seed)
125: Mark McKnight, Jr., McDonald, Pa./South Fayette (Record: 2-2 NCAA/23-11 overall)
Rd. 1: W, 12-4 maj. dec. Matt Fisk, Lehigh
Rd. 2: L, 4-7 dec. #1 Sam Hazewinkel, Oklahoma
Cn. 1: W, 6-3 dec. Eric Stevenson, Oregon State
Cn. 2: L, 3-16 maj. dec. #10 Nicholas Manthorpe, Iowa State
SEASON COMPLETE
133: Jake Strayer, So., South Fork, Pa./Forest Hills ?C 2007 All-American (Record: 3-2 NCAA/26-8 overall)
Rd. 1: WBF vs. Lou Ruggirello, Hofstra (6:19)
Rd. 2: W, 4-2 dec. Nick Gallick, Iowa State
Qtrs: L, 3-9 dec. #6 Darrell Vasquez, Cal Poly
Cn. 4: W, 9-6 dec. #12 Robert Preston, Harvard
Cn. 5: L, 1-4 dec. #8 Tyler McCormick, Missouri
7th Pl: Tomorrow morning, 10 a.m.
149: #12 Dan Vallimont, Fr., Lake Hopatcong, N.J./Jefferson Twp. (3-2 NCAA/22-12 overall)
Rd. 1: W, 11-2 maj. dec. Ryan Adams, North Dakota State
Rd. 2: L, 2-10 maj. dec. #5 Gregor Gillespie, Edinboro
Cn. 2: W, 10-6 dec. Michael Roberts, Boston
Cn. 3: W, 10-6 dec. Joshua Wagner, Missouri
Cn. 4: L, 1-9 dec. Matt Coughlin, Indiana
SEASON COMPLETE
157: Bubba Jenkins, Fr., Virginia Beach, Va./First Colonial (Record: 1-2 NCAA/23-12 overall)
Rd. 1: W, 15-3 maj. dec. Michael Chandler, Missouri
Rd. 2: L, 0-4 dec. #3 James Strouse, Hofstra
Cn. 1: LBF vs. #8 Seth Martin, Lock Haven (2:44)
SEASON COMPLETE
174: #4 James Yonushonis, Sr., Philipsburg, Pa./Philipsburg-Osceola (Record: 1-2 NCAA/30-6 overall)
Rd. 1: W, 8-6 dec. Neal Martin, Appalachian State
Rd. 2: L, 1-3 dec. Rudy Rueda, American
Cn. 1: L, 3-5 dec. #7 Brandon Sinnott, Central Michigan
SEASON COMPLETE
197: #4 Phil Davis, Jr., Harrisburg, Pa./Harrisburg ?C 2007 All-American (Record: 3-1 NCAA/27-4 overall)
Rd. 1: W, 9-3 dec. Ryan Goodman, North Carolina State
Rd. 2: WBF vs. Travis Gardner, Oregon State (4:30)
Qtrs: W, 6-3 dec. #5 Jerry Rinaldi, Cornell
Semis: L, 4-5 dec. #9 Kurt Backes, Iowa State
Con. Semi: Tomorrow morning, 10 a.m.
HWT: #2 Aaron Anspach, Sr., Columbia, Pa./Columbia ?C 2007 All-American (Record: 4-0 NCAA/22-3 overall)
Rd. 1: 13-4 maj. dec. Levon Mock, Brown
Rd. 2: 11-1 maj. dec. Joe Fendone, Edinboro
Qtrs: W, 5-4 dec. Payam Zarrinpour, Sacred Heart
Semis: W, 5-3 dec. #3 Bubba Gritter, Central Michigan