Jan. 17, 2011
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Nine members of the Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team travelled to Millersville University on Sunday to take part in the Floyd `Shorty' Hitchcock Memorial Classic. True freshman Rob Vollrath (Richboro, Pa.) led the way for the Nittany Lions with a second place finish at 133 pounds. Vollrath, who is red-shirting this year, was wrestling unattached.
Vollrath went 4-1 at 133, including a first period pin of York's Sergio Grigorian. The Nittany Lion rookie lost to Lock Haven's John Trumbetti in the finals, 7-1. Red-shirt freshman Andrew Church (Erie, Pa.), also wrestling unattached, went 2-2 at 184 to advance to the semifinals. Church went 1-1 in tie-breaker matches. Senior Eric Caschera (South Williamsport, Pa.) went 2-2 at 125 and true freshman Brandon Phillips (Timonium, Md.) went 2-2 at 174. True freshman David Church (Erie, Pa.) went 3-2 at 157 while classmate Cameron Kelly (Pittsford, N.Y.) picked up a win at 125. Freshman James Vollrath (Richboro, Pa.) also grabbed a win at 165. Other Nittany Lions taking part in the tournament included Nate Morgan (McCook, Neb.) at 125, Kyle Moran (Oxford, Pa.) at 149 and Justin Haug (Galeton, Pa.) at 165.
The Nittany Lions are 11-0 on the year, their best start (no losses or ties) since the team went 12-0 in 1971-72. Penn State will be back in action for a nationally televised match-up with No. 23 Pittsburgh this Friday, Jan. 21, at 6 p.m. Action in the Big Ten Network live event begins at 6 p.m. in Rec Hall. Fans wishing to purchase single dual meet tickets for the 2010-11 Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling season can place their orders by calling 814-865-5555 or visit the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office. The box office is open Monday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Ticket pricing is $8 for adults and $5 for youth, and there will be a limit of eight tickets per order. Group sales are also available. The 2010-11 Penn State wrestling season is presented by the Family Clothesline. All Penn State events will once again air live on Forever Broadcasting's WRSC (1390 AM) and WSQV (92.1 FM). All radio broadcasts are streamed live at GoPSUsports.com as part of the All-Access package. The 2010-11 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline.