Orange kick off season at Titan Open

ALBANY,NY. - Syracuse, ranked pre-season 23rd in the nation, began the 09-10 season with a decimated lineup at the Titan Open held at Washington Avenue Armory in Albany, NY. With several scratches, the Orange took only four wrestlers, three of whom made their college debut.

The tournament got off to a rocky start with all wrestlers losing their first match. "I didn't bother me," head coach John Crandall commented, "and I made sure it didn't bother them. The losses came from simple mistakes that could be easily corrected." The second round of matches went much better with freshman Connor Policastro (Danbury, CT/Immaculate) pinned his opponent in 2:53 and Freshman Mike Lucks (Port Jefferson, NY/Vandermeulen) won a 6-3 decision. Policastro and Lucks both went 1-2 and came within one win of placing.

Senior Craig Tompkins (Beacon, NY/Beacon) went 0-2. "Despite going 0-2 Craig fought hard in his matches," Crandall noted, "He only gets one season to make an impact, and I feel he will do just that." Senior David Tubiolo (Yonkers, NY/Fordham Prep) also went 0-2, having been pinned in the first round in both matches. "Dave is still on a learning curve and will no doubt improve as the season progresses. Unfortunately, he missed a season of competition. We'll be working hard to get him in top form by Regionals."

Up next for Syracuse is the Northeast Conference Duals at University of New Hampshire on the 22nd.