Nov. 17, 2007
STATE COLLEGE, Pa.; - The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team, ranked No. 10 in the nation, put together another dominating performance and crushed No. 12 Hofstra 28-11 in a key Eastern Wrestling dual meet. Head coach Troy Sunderland watched three of his charges take down three top ten wrestlers and got two pins on its way to winning seven of ten bouts.
Senior Phil Davis (Harrisburg, Pa.) got things started in the dual's first bout with a major decision over the sixth-ranked 197-pounder in Hofstra's Joe Rovelli; classmate Mark McKnight (McDonald, Pa.) downed the seventh-ranked 125-pounder in Dave Tomasette and junior Jake Strayer (South Fork, Pa.) dominated the nation's second-ranked 141-pounder in Charles Griffin. Add to that a pin form heavyweight Stefan Tighe (Erie, Pa.) in the dual's second bout and junior 184-pounder Phil Bomberger in the final match-up and Penn State rode to a lop-sided win.
Davis got things started right away with another dominant performance over a top ten wrestler. This time, an 11-2 major of No. 6 Rovelli gave Penn State a lead it would never relinquish. By the time McKnight posted his decision over No. 7 Tomasette and Strayer nearly pinned No. 2 Griffin on his way to a decision, the Lions owned a 16-5 lead. Tighe and Bomberger added pins and sophomores Bubba Jenkins (Virginia Beach, Va.) and Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.) notched decisions in the victory. Penn State posted seven bonus points to Hofstra's two.
Penn State improves to 2-0 with the win while Hofstra falls to 0-2. Davis will take part in the NWCA All-Star Classic on Monday night in Eugene, Ore. The event begins at 10 p.m. Eastern and Davis will meet No. 3 Mike Tamillow of Northwestern in the exhibition. The Nittany Lions will return to action in two weeks when it takes part in the 2007 Nittany Lion Open in Rec Hall. Action for that event begins at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday, Dec. 2. The Nittany Lion Open is not part of Penn State's regular season ticket package. NLO?tickets are $5 for adults, $3 for students, $2 as part of a group package and free to Nittany Lion Wrestling Club members, Penn State students with ID?and season ticket holders. Penn State will return to action on Friday and Sunday, Dec. 7 and 9, when it visits Lehigh and Oklahoma State, respectively. Penn State's next home dual will be on Jan. 4, when Cornell visits Rec Hall for a 7 p.m. dual.
BOUT-BY-BOUT:
197: The bout began with a marquee match-up of top ten men. Penn State's Phil Davis (Harrisburg, Pa.) put his No. 2 national tag on the line against No. 6 Joe Rovelli of Hofstra at 197. Rovelli quickly gained control of Davis' right ankle but Davis deftly fought off the move and forced a reset with 2:30 to wrestle in the first period. Davis got the bout's first takedown with a strong move, wrapping Rovelli up mid-chest and taking him down for a 2-0 lead. Rovelli worked for a reversal twice but Davis' used his athletic ability to fight the moves off and carry that lead into the second period. Davis chose down to start the middle stanza and quickly reversed Rovelli, nearly pinning the sixth-ranked Pride wrestler. A dangerous hold forced a reset and Rovelli escaped to a 6-1 deficit. Davis continued to pour on the offense, getting another takedown and a three-point near fall as the second period ended, carrying an 11-1 lead with well over a minute's worth of riding time into the final stanza. Rovelli chose down to start the final period, but Davis maintained strong control for the entire period, dominating Rovelli for the full two minutes. The riding time point gave Davis a convincing 12-1 major decision and put Penn State up 4-0 after one bout. In Davis' first two bouts, the three-time All-American posted a 17-2 technical fall over the No. 8 wrestler in the country and a 12-1 major over No. 6 Rovelli.
HWT: Penn State sophomore Stefan Tighe (Erie, Pa.) took on Hofstra's James Guerin at heavyweight. Tighe got out to an early 2-0 lead with a hard-working takedown at the :47 mark but Guerin managed an escape as the period ended. Leading 2-1, Tighe chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 3-1 lead. Tighe nearly scored a double-leg takedown midway through the second, but Guerin managed to back off the mat and force a reset (he did get a stall warning in the process). A single leg trip led to another Tighe takedown with just :04 left and the Nittany Lion sophomore held a 5-1 lead entering the final period. Guerin chose down to start the final period and Tighe allowed him up to immediately begin working for bonus points. Tighe quickly grabbed Guerin around the shoulders, smartly tossed him to his back and scored a thrilling pin at the 5:19 mark, sending the Nittany Lion faithful into a frenzy. The pin put Penn State up 10-0 after two bouts.
125: Two of the nation's best met at 125 where Penn State senior Mark McKnight (McDonald, Pa.), ranked No. 10, met No. 7 Dave Tomasette of Hofstra. The talented senior duo battled tooth-and-nail through the first half of the first period, trading shots without either wrestler giving an inch. McKnight continued to roll through each
Tomasette shot, countering with his own near takedowns but after three minutes, the bout was tied 0-0. McKnight chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. He then turned into Tomasette and scored the bout's first takedown with a solid double-leg to take a 3-0 lead at the 1:43 mark. Tomasette got his escape after a reset, cutting the lead to 3-1. McKnight kept the pressure on Tomasette for the rest of the second and carried that lead into the final two minutes. Tomasette chose down to start the final period and escaped to a 3-2 deficit. McKnight continued to be the aggressor, looking for openings as time ticked away. Tomasette nearly turned a McKnight shot into a takedown with :40 left, but McKnight fought off the move and forced a reset in the center of the mat. The Nittany Lion senior continued to work for a clinching takedown and nearly got it as the third period ended. Tomasette managed to fight the move off, but the aggression by McKnight allowed the Lion senior to kill the clock and post an important 3-2 win. The victory put Penn State up 13-0 after three bouts.
133: With senior Tim Haas (Camp Hill, Pa.) sidelined by a sore knee, freshman Mike Eagen (Wharton, N.J.) took to the mat against No. 4 Lou Ruggirello of Hofstra. Ruggirello quickly gained control of the match with a two point takedown and a three-point near fall, leading 5-0 after just :30. Ruggirello added two more back points after a reset and three more within the same move and carried a 10-0 lead into the second period. Eagen chose neutral to being the second period but Ruggirello quickly took the Lion freshman down to lead 12-0. Ruggirello added another three-point near fall to post a 15-0 technical fall at the 4:04 mark, cutting the Penn State lead to 13-5.
141: In another match-up between top ten grapplers, No. 7 Jake Strayer (South Fork, Pa.) met No. 2 Charles Griffin of Hofstra. Following McKnight's lead, Strayer acted as the aggressor early on. Getting in on Griffin's left ankle, McKnight pulled the Pride grappler back onto the mat as he tried to slide off and got the bout's first takedown at the 1:21 mark. After a reset, Strayer finished a cradle and turned Griffin to his back, nearly pinning the No. 2 ranked grappler but not getting the call. Still, the three-point near fall sent the bout to the middle stanza with Strayer up 5-0. Griffin chose down to start the second period but Strayer would not give up an early escape. The Lion All-American worked Griffin's right arm from on top, building up a point-clinching 3:20 edge in riding time while riding Griffin out. Leading 5-0 after two periods, Strayer chose down to begin the final period. Strayer gave up a stall point while working to escape. While Griffin did ride Strayer out, Strayer posted a stunning 6-1 win with his riding time point. The thrilling decision gave the Lions a 16-5 lead heading into intermission.
149: Nittany Lion sophomore Bubba Jenkins (Virginia Beach, Va.) put his No. 7 national ranking on the line against Hofstra's Mitch Smith at 149. Jenkins wasted no time in getting up early on Smith, picking both Smith's ankles to lead 2-1 early on. Another ankle pick on the edge of the mat put Jenkins up 4-1 with :47 left. The Nittany Lion sophomore rode the Pride wrestler out to carry the 4-1 lead into the second period (with 1:09 in riding time as well). Smith chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 4-2 deficit. Looking for more points, Jenkins continued to apply the pressure, nearly nabbing another takedown with a flurry of moves midway through the period. But with Smith playing defense, Jenkins settled for a 4-2 lead after two periods. Jenkins chose down to star the final period and escaped to a 5-2 lead. But Smith did manage to work away Jenkins' riding time edge. Smith then took his first real shot of the bout at the 1:00 mark, getting in high on Jenkins' leg, but the Nittany Lion sophomore fought the move off and forced a reset with :55 left to wrestle. Jenkins got in low on Smith's left leg and nearly got two more points, but Smith stepped over Jenkins and forced a stalemate with just :20 left. Jenkins's solid first period was enough to post a sound 5-2 win and put Penn State up 19-5.
157: Penn State's Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.), ranked No. 12 at 157, met Jonny Bonilla-Bowman of Hofstra in the next bout. Vallimont wasted no time in opening up a lead, scoring a takedown just :35 into the bout. The Lion sophomore then worked Bonilla-Bowman from the top and built up a 2:35 edge in riding time while riding the Hofstra sophomore out. Down 2-0 after one period, Bonilla-Bowman chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 2-1 deficit. Vallimont used a solid single-leg at th3 :35 mark to up his lead to 4-1 and then his Hofstra foe out to carry that lead into the final period. Vallimont chose down to start the third and quickly escaped to a 5-1 lead. Sidestepping a quick Bonilla-Bowman shot, Vallimont countered with a high shot of his own, but Bonilla-Bowman worked away from the Nittany Lion. Bonilla-Bowman got his first takedown with just :05 left, but the offense was too little too late and, with a riding time point, Vallimont posted a 6-3 win. The victory gave Penn State a 22-5 lead.
165: Sophomore Dave Rella (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio), ranked No. 16 nationally, met Hofstra freshman Ryan Patrovich at 165. Neither wrestler broke through offensively over the first half. With :40 left, Rella worked in high on Patrovich's right thigh, but the red-shirt freshman fought off Rella long enough to force a reset. Scoreless after the first three minutes of wrestling, Patrovich chose down to start the middle period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. A strong double-leg in the middle of the mat nearly resulted in the bout's first takedown, but Patrovich deftly stepped back and out of the situation to maintain his slim lead. Down 1-0, Rella chose down to start the final period. Rella got his bout tying escape after a furious :48 seconds. Another double-leg shot was fought off by Patrovich, who countered the move for a takedown of his own at the :12 mark. The move was enough for the Hofstra grappler to post a 3-1 upset over Rella. The win cut Penn State's lead to 22-8.
174: With starter Mark Friend (Libertyville, Ill.) out of the line-up for Penn State with a skin disorder, sophomore David Erwin (Urbana, Ohio) took to the mats to meet Hofstra's Alton Lucas at 174. Erwin, who was ranked No. 11 nationally earlier in the season but dropped out of the rankings after faltering in wrestle-offs, found himself down 2-0 early as Lucas bolted out of the gates with a quick takedown just :07 into the bout. Lucas put together a strong ride and built up a 1:53 edge in riding time before Erwin escaped. Lucas added another strong takedown and rode Erwin out to lead 4-1 with 2:04 in riding time after one period. Erwin chose down to begin the middle stanza and quickly escaped to a 4-2 deficit. Breaking open his offense, Erwin got his first takedown right in front of the scorers table to tie the bout at 4-4. Needing more than one takedown, he let Lucas up, giving the Pride wrestler a 5-4 lead after two periods. Griffin chose down to start the third. Erwin cut him loose to a 6-4 deficit and quickly shot low but Griffin countered the move to score two points of his own. Erwin notched a reversal and once again cut Griffin loose but after 1:10 in the third period, Griffin held a 9-06 edge. The Hofstra junior added another takedown at the :40 mark to move out to an 11-7 lead after an Erwin escape. A riding time point gave Lucas a 12-7 win and cut Penn State's lead to 22-11.
184: Nittany Lion junior Phil Bomberger (Port Royal, Pa.), ranked No. 20 at 184, met Hofstra freshman Jeff Siciliano. Showcasing his offense quickly, Bomberger had an early takedown waved off just :15. Not needing much more time than that, Bomberger caught Siciliano in an upper body hold and tossed the Pride rookie to his back, sticking him for a pin at 1:52 to put an exclamation point on a dominating team performance. The six points gave Penn State a 28-11 win.
#10 Penn State 28, #12 Hofstra 11
Saturday, Nov. 17, 2007 - State College, Pa.
| 197: #2 Phil Davis PSU, maj. dec. #6 Joe Rovelli HOF, 12-1 | 4-0 |
| HWT: Stefan Tighe PSU pinned James Guerin HOF, WBF (5:19) | 10-0 |
| 125: #10 Mark McKnight PSU dec. #7 Mike Tomasette HOF, 3-2 | 13-0 |
| 133: #4 Lou Ruggirello HOF tech. fall Mike Eagen PSU, 15-0 (4:04) | 13-5 |
| 141: #7 Jake Strayer PSU dec. #2 Charles Griffin HOF, 6-1 | 16-5 |
| 149: #7 Bubba Jenkins PSU dec. Mitch Smith HOF, 5-2 | 19-5 |
| 157: #12 Dan Vallimont PSU dec. Jonny Bonilla-Bowman, 6-3 | 22-5 |
| 165: Ryan Patrovich HOF dec. #16 Dave Rella PSU, 3-1 | 22-8 |
| 174: Alton Lucas HOF dec. David Erwin PSU, 12-7 | 22-11 |
| 184: #20 Phil Bomberger PSU pinned Jeff Siciliano HOF, WBF (1:52) | 28-11 |
Records: Penn State 2-0, Hofstra 0-2
Attendance: 1,965
Up next for Penn State: Phil Davis at NWCA Classic, Monday night, 10 p.m. Eastern; team in the Nittany Lion Open, Dec. 2.