March 19, 2009
ST. LOUIS, Mo. - The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team had a solid first session at the 2009 NCAA Wrestling Championships. Junior All-American Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.), unseeded at 165, posted the day's biggest win for Penn State, downing No. 9 seed Brandon Mason of Oklahoma State in the opening round.
Despite the upset loss of defending national runner-up Bubba Jenkins (Virginia Beach, Va.) at 141, the rest of the Nittany Lions put together a strong morning session as the team finds itself in tenth place thanks in large part to two pins and Vallimont's upset win.
The Nittany Lions are tied for 10th place with 11.0 points along with Hofstra, Illinois and Missouri. Iowa State leads the team race with 25.0 points while Iowa is in second with 22.0.
Sophomore Brad Pataky (Clearfield, Pa.) was solid at 125, getting a pin over Bloomsburg's Ian Moser in a pigtail bout before dropping a hard-fought 11-6 decision to #6 seed James Nicholson of Old Dominion. Jake Strayer (South Fork, Pa.), the #10 seed at 133, notched a solid 7-2 win over Edinboro's Ricky Deubel to move into the second round tonight. Frank Molinaro (Barnegat, N.J.) dropped a tough 7-1 decision to #8 Ryan Williams of Old Dominion and, like Pataky, will wrestle in consolations tonight.
Jenkins suffered his upset at 149, getting hit with a four point move near the end of the second stanza to have a 6-1 lead erased and then getting taken down and turned for three near fall points in the third period to lose 12-6 to Lock Haven's Matt Fittery. Vallimont, however, took the sting off that loss with a thrilling 8-6 (sv) win over #9 seed Brandon Mason of Oklahoma State in his first round match at 165. True freshman Quentin Wright (Wingate, Pa.) then put a fine exclamation point on a solid first round by pinning UNC-Greensboro's Byron Sigmon at the 1:17 mark.
The tournament continues with a session at 7:30 p.m. tonight with wrestlers looking to advance to tomorrow's national quarterfinals. The three-day tournament continues on Friday with sessions at 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. and on Saturday with sessions at 10:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. ESPN360 will cover the full first session live.
BOUT BY BOUT:
125: Sophomore Brad Pataky (Clearfield, Pa.) began his first NCAA Championship tournament with one of the tourney's ten pigtails at 125. Pataky took on Ian Moser of Bloomsburg. Pataky was the early aggressor, shooting on Moser repeatedly right out of the gates. Moser got called for an early stall and then Pataky immediately went to the mixer. Pataky worked his way into control of Moser's shoulders, turned Moser to his back and then planted the Huskie at the 1:40 mark. The win moved Pataky on into a first round meeting with #6 seed James Nicholson of Old Dominion.
Pataky gave up an early takedown in his bout with Nicholson, falling behind 2-0 at the 1:55 mark. Pataky escaped at the :45 mark to cut ODU lead to 2-1 but could not manage a takedown of his own and trailed 2-1 after the opening period. With a 1:08 riding time edge, Nicholson chose down to star the second stanza. Pataky was able to put together a solid ride, but with :45 left, Nicholson reversed the Nittany Lion and picked up three back points as well to break open a close bout with the five point move. The ride out gave Nicholson a 7-1 lead heading into the final period. Pataky chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 7-2 deficit. Pataky quickly took Nicholson down and cut him loose to trail 8-4. The Lion then tried to catch Nicholson in a mixer, but the Monarch countered and got another takedown to move out to a 10-4 lead. Pataky escaped with :45 left and added another takedown, but it was not enough as time wound out on the sophomore's upset bid as Nicholson notched the 11-6 win. Pataky will face Demetrius Johnson of Chattanooga tonight in the first round of consolations.
133: Senior All-American Jake Strayer (South Fork, Pa.), the seventh place finisher in 2007, entered the tournament as the #10 seed at 133. Strayer met Edinboro's Ricky Deubel in the first round. Strayer quickly gained control of Deubel's right leg and took a 2-0 lead with a takedown at the 2:15 mark. He then turned Deubel over and picked up three near fall points to open up a 5-0 lead. Strayer then continued to dominate the Fighting Scot from the top position, riding Deubel out to carry the 5-0 lead with 2:15 in riding time into the second period. Strayer chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 6-0 lead. Each wrestler battled evenly for the remainder of the second period and Strayer led 6-0 with 2:01 in riding time heading into the final period. Deubel chose neutral and quickly gained control of Strayer's right leg, but the Nittany Lion All-American was able to counter the Scot shot and force a reset with 1:17 left in the bout. Strayer got in deep on Deubel's leg and spent :30 looking for another takedown with hopes of getting a major. But Deubel was able to force a stalemate with :26 left. Deubel caught Strayer for a late takedown, cutting the Lion lead to 6-2 with :15 left. But Strayer was able to wind out the clock on the bottom and, with the riding time point, post a 7-2 win and move into a second round meeting with #7 Nick Fanthorpe of Iowa State.
141: Red-shirt freshman Frank Molinaro (Barnegat, N.J.), a wild card selection at 141, met #8 seed Ryan Williams of Old Dominion in his NCAA Championships debut. Williams came out fast, getting in on Molinaro's left ankle off the opening whistle. But the Nittany Lion was able to force a reset at the 1:58 mark scoreless. Molinaro then shot in on Williams and nearly finished off a high single. But the Monarch was able to force his own reset with 1:15 left. Another Molinaro shot led to another reset with 1:00 left. With the bout scoreless after the opening period, Molinaro chose down to start the second stanza. Molinaro spent the entire period trying to work his way out of Williams' grasp, but the Monarch was able to maintain control for the entire period, picking up only one stall call in the process. The bout moved into the third period tied 0-0 but Williams had a 2:00 riding time advantage. Williams chose down to start the third period and was allowed out by Molinaro to a 1-0 lead. Williams dashed any hopes of a freshman upset with a quick low double and a takedown at the 1:35 mark, taking a 3-0 lead. Molinaro then gave up a point for a third restart caution and fell behind 4-0. Molinaro escaped with :45 left, but Williams immediately countered with another takedown to lead 6-1. The riding time point gave Williams a solid 7-1 win. Molinaro will take on #8
149: Defending national runner-up Bubba Jenkins (Virginia Beach, Va.) began his quest for a return trip to the national finals as the #2 seed at 149 and met Lock Haven's Matt Fittery in the first round. Jenkins got the first takedown of the bout, using a solid low single to take a 2-0 lead with 1:37 left in the opening period. A quick Fittery escaped led to a quick Fittery shot as the Bald Eagle gained control of Jenkins' right thigh and began working for a go-ahead takedown. But Jenkins deftly worked his way around Fittery and took a 4-1 lead with a takedown s the period ended. A ride-out allowed Jenkins to lead 4-1 with ;40 in riding time heading into the second stanza. Jenkins chose down to start the middle period and steadily worked his way to a reversal and a 6-1 lead with :50 left in the period. But Fittery turned Jenkins for a reversal and two back points before the second period ended and the Nittany Lion led only 6-5 heading into the third. Jenkins was injured on the move and took an extended injury timeout before the third period started. Fittery chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 6-6 tie. Fittery quickly took Jenkins down to take and 8-6 lead with 1:30 left. Fittery then turned Jenkins for three back points and, with the riding time point, notched a stunning 12-6 upset victory. Jenkins' loss moves him into tonight's consolation round where he will face David Jauregui of West Virginia.
165: Junior Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.), the third place finisher at 157 last season and unseeded at 165, opened up his quest for a second All-America honor against the tournament's #9 seed, Brandon Mason of Oklahoma State. Vallimont used a fast single leg for a 2-1 lead just :20 into the bout and then quickly got in on Mason's right thigh again, nearly notching a second takedown before a minute had elapsed. But the Cowboy grappler managed to force a reset with 2:00 left in a furious opening period. Vallimont quickly countered a Mason shot to take a 4-2 lead at the 1:30 mark. Mason used a quick single leg to take Vallimont down and tie the score at 4-4 with just :06 left in the period. Tied 4-4, Mason chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 5-4 lead. Another single leg by Vallimont led to a scramble in the middle of the mat. Vallimont worked for the takedown for :30 but Mason was able to force a stalemate with 1:14 left in the period. Vallimont just kept shooting, gaining control of Mason's right ankle and forcing another long tie-up that ended in a stalemate. Another Vallimont shot led to a Mason stall warning with :25 left. Down by one but leery of Mason's ride, Vallimont chose neutral to start the third period, looking for the lead via a takedown. The Nittany Lion junior did just that, taking Mason down off the opening whistle and cutting him loose to tie the bout at 6-6 with 1:30 left in the bout. Mason shot in on Vallimont, gaining control of his right leg and forcing a mad scramble over the next minute. But Vallimont was able to fight off the Cowboy move and force a stalemate with :06 left. The bout moved into a sudden victory period. Vallimont nearly completed the upset early in the period, with a single leg shot, but action moved out of bounds. But Vallimont was not to be denied as the All-American notched the winning takedown by snagging both of Mason's fleeing ankles with :13 left. The 8-6 (sv) win moves Vallimont into tonight's second round where he will face #8 Jonathan Reader of Iowa State.
174: True freshman Quentin Wright (Wingate, Pa.), the Big Ten runner-up at 174, made his NCAA Championships debut as the #11 seed. Wright met UNC-Greensboro's Byron Sigmon in his debut match at the NCAA Championships. The talented newcomer wasted no time in making his presence felt, gaining control of Sigmon's shoulders, turning him to the mat and working for nearly a minute to get a quick pin at the 1:17 mark. Wright moves into tonight's second round where he will take on #6 Steve Anceravage of Cornell.
2009 NCAA Wrestling Championships
Team Top Ten - End Session 1
1 Iowa State - 25.0
2 Iowa - 22.0
3 Ohio State - 17.5
4 Boise State - 15.0
Nebraska - 15.0
6 Lehigh - 14.0
7 Edinboro - 12.5
8 Central Michigan - 12.0
Cornell - 12.0
10 PENN STATE - 11.0
Missouri - 11.0
Illinois - 11.0
Hofstra - 11.0
Attendance session one: 15,266
Penn State's record overall through session one: 4-3
Penn State Agate (# indicates tournament seed)
125 - Brad Pataky (Clearfield, Pa./Clearfield HS), So.
Tournament Record: 1-1 - Overall record now 29-10
Pigtail: WBF (1:40) Ian Moser, Bloomsburg
Rd 1: L, 6-11 dec. #6 James Nicholson, Old Dominion
Cns 1: Tonight vs. Demetrius Johnson, Chattanooga
133 - #10 Jake Strayer (South Fork, Pa./Forest Hills HS), Sr.
Tournament Record: 1-0 - Overall record now 17-8
Rd. 1: W, 7-2 dec. Ricky Deubel, Edinboro
Rd. 2: Tonight vs. #7 Nick Fanthorpe, Iowa State
141 - Frank Molinaro (Barnegat, N.J./Southern Regional HS), Fr.
Tournament Record: 0-1 - Overall record now 19-17
Rd. 1: L, 1-7 dec. #8 Ryan Williams, Old Dominion
Cns 1: Tonight vs. #9 Corey Jantzen, Harvard
149 - #2 Bubba Jenkins (Virginia Beach, Va./First Colonial HS), Jr.
Tournament Record: 0-1 - Overall record now 24-2
Rd. 1: L, 6-12 dec. Matt Fittery, Lock Haven
Cns 1: Tonight vs. David Jauregui, West Virginia
165 - Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J./Jefferson Twp. HS), Jr.
Tournament Record: 1-0 - Overall record now 22-10
Rd. 1: W, 8-6 (sv) #9 Brandon Mason, Oklahoma State
Rd. 2: Tonight vs. #8 Jonathan Reader, Iowa State
174 - #11 Quentin Wright (Wingate, Pa./Bald Eagle Area HS), Fr.
Tournament Record: 1-0 - Overall record now 30-10
Rd. 1: WBF (1:17) Byron Sigmon, UNC-Greensboro
Rd. 2: Tonight vs. #6 Steve Anceravage, Cornell