March 18, 2010
OMAHA, Neb.; March 18, 2010 - Head coach Cael Sanderson's Nittany Lion wrestling team bolted out to a 5-1 mark during session one of the 2010 NCAA Wrestling Championships in Omaha, Neb. The Nittany Lions' four seeded wrestlers all won while Penn State picked up one upset victory while nearly grabbing another before a sudden victory loss.
Junior Brad Pataky (Clearfield, Pa.) got Penn State off to a hot start, upsetting No. 9 seed Jarrod Patterson of Oklahoma in the first round at 125. Sophomore All-American Frank Molinaro (Barnegat, N.J.) opened up with a 9-4 win over Binghamton's Donald Vinson at 149 and 2008 All-American Cyler Sanderson (Heber City, Utah) downed Northern Illinois' Bryan Deutsch 16-12 at 157.
Senior Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.) posted an 8-3 win over Virginia Tech's Matt Epperly at 165 and senior David Erwin (Urbana, Ohio) dominated Oklahoma's Erich Schmidtke, picking up a 4-0 win with over 3:00 in riding time at 184 for Penn State's fifth straight win to open up the tournament. Sophomore Cameron Wade (Twinsburg, Ohio) took No. 3 seed Zach Rey to sudden victory before dropping a 3-1 decision at heavyweight.
The tournament continues this evening with the evening session starting at 6:30 p.m. Central/7:30 p.m. Eastern. Tonight's session features the first round of consolations and the second round in the championship bracket.
Penn State's action in the tourney will be aired live on Forever Broadcasting's WRSC?(1390 AM) and on www.GoPSUsports.com as well. The 2009-10 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline.
BOUT-BY-BOUT RECAP AND AGATE:
The following is a weight-by-weight breakdown of Penn State's opening round match-ups with seeds and overall records heading into the tournament.
125: Brad Pataky, Jr. (Clearfield, Pa.), 27-8 overall
Rd. 1: W, 6-4 dec. #9 Jarrod Patterson, Oklahoma
Rd. 2: vs. #8 Matt Steintrager, Central Michigan, tonight
Unseeded Brad Pataky battled No. 9 seed Jarrod Patterson of Oklahoma in the first round. Neither wrestler managed a solid shot in the first period until Patterson countered a Pataky low single, worked behind the Nittany Lion and got the bout's first takedown at the :33 mark. The Sooner was able to ride Pataky out to carry the 2-0 lead into the second period. Patterson chose down to start the second period and was quickly turned to his back for a near fall. Pataky was in the process of getting the pin when the official ruled the hold potentially dangerous, stopping action before the Lion could get the fall. Leading 3-2 now, Pataky then put tougher a strong ride, maintaining control of Patterson and looking for a chance to turn the Sooner again. Pataky was able to build up a build up a 1:28 edge in riding time with a ride-out. He then chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 4-2 lead. The Lion junior then got in on a high single and forced a scramble that led to Patterson nearly pinning Pataky. But Pataky was able fight off his back and eventually gave up a takedown with :21 left. Pataky, still with a time edge, was able to escape to a 5-4 lead and then killed the clock to grab a 6-4 upset win.
149: Frank Molinaro, So. (Barnegat, N.J.), #5 seed, 30-5 overall
Rd. 1: W, 9-4 dec. Donald Vinson, Binghamton
Rd. 2: vs. Eric Albright, Pittsburgh, tonight
No. 5 seed Frank Molinaro battled Binghamton's Donald Vinson in the opening round. Molinaro fought off a couple early Vinson shots and then turned a solid high single into a takedown and a 2-0 lead at the 1:37 mark. Then built up a :38 riding time edge before Vinson escaped. Vinson then worked his way into a low single and a 3-2 lead with a takedown at the :08 mark, a lead he would carry into the second period. Molinaro chose down to start the second period and quickly reversed the Binghamton wrestler to retake the lead. But Vinson quickly escaped to a 4-4 tie with 1:41 on the clock and action resumed in the center circle. Molinaro then took a 6-4 lead with a high double at the 1:10 mark and then put together a strong ride, maintaining his advantage for the remainder of the period. The ride-out gave Molinaro a 6-4 lead with 1:40 in riding time heading to the second period. Vinson chose neutral to start the third period, looking for a tying takedown. But Molinaro iced the bout with another takedown off a low double, breaking open an 8-4 lead and securing the riding time point with just over :30 left in the match. Another ride-out gave Molinaro a 9-4 win.
157: Cyler Sanderson, Sr. (Heber City, Utah), #4 seed, 29-4 overall
Rd. 1: W, 16-12 dec. Bryan Deutsch, Northern Illinois
Rd. 2: vs. Dan Gonsor, Virginia, tonight
Fourth-seeded Cyler Sanderson battled Northern Illinois' Bryan Deutsch in the opening round. Deutsch got in on an early shot and took Sanderson down just :15 into the bout. Sanderson steadily worked himself into a reversal and then built up a :20 riding time edge before Deutsch escaped to a 3-2 lead with 1:40 on the clock. Deutsch then took Sanderson down again and led 5-3 after a Sanderson escape. Sanderson then got his first takedown to tie the bout with 1:15 left in a furious first period. Deutsch escaped with :48 left to retake the lead 6-5, but Sanderson was relentless, turning a tie-up into a low double and a takedown with just :02 left. The move gave Sanderson a 7-6 lead with :55 in riding time heading into the second period. The 2008 All-American chose down to start the second period and reversed Deutsch, only to get reversed himself with 1:20 left (still leading 9-8). Sanderson escaped to a 10-8 lead and added another takedown to move out to a 12-8 lead with 1:00 left in the middle stanza. Deutsch escaped to a 12-9 deficit with :30 on the clock. Trailing by three, the NIU grappler chose down to start the third period. Sanderson maintained control long enough to build up more than a minute's worth of riding time before Deutsch escaped to a 12-10 deficit. Deutsch notched another takedown to briefly tie the bout before Sanderson escaped to a 13-12 lead with 1:22 on the clock. Deutsch battled for a go-ahead takedown, but Sanderson was able to finish off a solid double through Deutsch's waste to move out to a 15-12 lead with :28 on the clock (and a secured riding time point). A Sanderson ride-out gave the Nittany Lion a 16-12 win and moved him into the second round tonight.
165: Dan Vallimont, Sr. (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.), #6 seed, 27-7 overall
Rd. 1: W, 8-3 dec. Matt Epperly, Virginia Tech
Rd. 2: vs. #11 Rick Schmelyun, Bloomsburg, tonight
No. 6 seed Dan Vallimont met Matt Epperly of Virginia Tech in the opening round. Vallimont quickly took Epperly down to open up a 2-0 lead just :09 into the bout. Epperly escaped after :23 and action returned to the center circle. Vallimont turned Epperly to his back, getting another takedown before the Hokie rolled through the move, avoiding back points. Vallimont build up a 1:10 time advantage before Epperly escaped to a 4-2 deficit with :30 left in the opening period. Epperly chose down to start the second period, but Vallimont was able to break him down and continue to add to his time advantage. Epperly escaped, but not until Vallimont owned 2:16 in riding time. Vallimont, up 4-3, chose down to start the third period, and quickly escaped to a 5-3 lead. The 2008 All-American at 157 added another takedown with 1:10 on the clock to move out to a 7-3 lead and clinch the bonus point. A strong ride-out by Vallimont gave the Nittany Lion an 8-3 win and moved him into tonight's second round.
184: David Erwin, Sr. (Urbana, Ohio), #11 seed, 30-8 overall
Rd. 1: W, 4-0 dec. Erich Schmidtke, Oklahoma
Rd. 2: vs. #6 Max Askren, Missouri, tonight
Senior David Erwin, the No. 11 seed, met Oklahoma's Erich Schmidtke of Oklahoma in the opening round. Erwin gained control of Schmidtke's right leg early, looking for a takedown at the outset. But the Sooner was able to work his way out of bounds to keep things scoreless at the 2:00 mark. The Nittany Lion battled Schmidtke through a scoreless first period and then chose down to start the second stanza. A quick escape gave Erwin a 1-0 just :19 into the period. Schmidtke then got in deep on Erwin's right leg, forcing a scramble that that nearly resulted in a Sooner takedown. But Erwin deftly scrambled out of Schmidtke's grasp, worked his way behind him, and got the bout's first takedown with :18 on the clock. A short ride-out allowed Erwin to take a 3-0 lead into the final period. Schmidtke chose down to start the final period and was nearly turned to his back for a near fall. While the Sooner managed to roll out of trouble, Erwin was able to dominated Schmidtke from the top, riding the Sooner out. The bonus point gave Erwin a strong 4-0 win.
HWT: Cameron Wade, So. (Twinsburg, Ohio) 20-10 overall
Rd. 1: L, 1-3 SV #3 Zach Rey, Lehigh
Cns. Rd. 1: vs. David Wade, Eastern Michigan, tonight
Unseeded heavyweight Cameron Wade faced off with No. 3 seed Zach Rey of Lehigh in the opening round. Neither wrestler was able to find an opening in a scoreless first period. Tied 0-0, Rey chose down to start the second period and quickly worked himself into a position to try and reverse Wade. But the Lion sophomore was able to fight off the move and force a reset with 1:35 on the clock, still in control. Rey escaped at the 1:28 mark to take a 1-0 lead and action resumed in the center circle. Like the first period, no one found any offense and Wade entered the third period down 1-0. The Lion sophomore chose down to start the final period, needing an escape to tie the score. A quick Wade escape tied the score at 1-1 with 1:46 remaining. Wade and Rey continued to battle for position, with neither man forcing the issue as regulation wound down. Rey took a flurry of quick shots at the :40 mark, but Wade was able to keep the third-ranked grappler from finishing. Tied 1-1 after regulation, action moved to a sudden victory period. Rey shot deep on Wade, gaining control of his right ankle. But Wade was able to scramble out of trouble initially. Rey, however, kept working on the move and fished off the takedown for a 3-1 SV win.