Notre Dame downs Lake Erie in lone dual match of 2011-12
PAINESVILLE, Ohio -- It had been nearly a year since the Wrestling Falcons last met a foe in a dual match. But with Friday's 24-15 win at Lake Erie, it's evident Notre Dame remembers how to get it done.
The Falcons -- whose 2011-12 schedule is rife with tournament competition -- got an early lead and managed to hold on for a win in what marked the team's only dual match of the year.
NDC's (1-0) victory came over a game Lake Erie (6-6) squad which came into the night having won four of its last five duals. The Wrestling Falcons won 6-of-10 bouts on the evening.
The match started at 165 pounds, with Jared King facing nationally-ranked Matt Vandermeer. Vandermeer, a freshman from Clarkston, Mich., came into the bout ranked sixth in NCAA-II (NCAA-II Coaches' Association) and the first Storm wrestler in the program's two-year history to earn a top-8 ranking. The Falcons' King got out to a 7-4 lead in the first period and held on for a 7-6 decision to give Notre Dame a 3-0 lead. The loss was just Vandermeer's fourth of the season against 12 wins.
Jon Bittinger followed the victory with a win of his own at 174, another decision, to give NDC a 6-0 lead. For Bittinger, the win marked his eighth in his last 10 bouts. He is now 10-6 on the season.
At 184, it was Charles Mason's turn, and the freshman from Cincinnati came up with a big pin over Jon Schaefer to up the Falcons' lead to 12-0. The fall, at 4:51, marked Mason's first collegiate pin.
Mike Samilenko defeated Eddie Hupp at 197 (5-3 in overtime) to get the host Storm on the scoreboard at the Osborne Center. Lake Erie's Robert Zappitelli then followed that up with a taut, 3-2 win over Dan Demick in the heavyweight division. That brought Notre Dame's cushion down to six points, 12-6.
Austin Gillihan then downed Matt Perez, 8-2, at 125 pounds to garner three more points for Lake Erie. NDC's Paul Rose stopped the bleeding at 133, where he picked up a key 7-1 decision over LEC's Ian Ross. Rose's win put the Wrestling Falcons up, 15-9.
A win by decision by Austin Sanders at 141 extended NDC's lead to 18-9. The match got a jolt at 149, with LEC's Zach Vargo pinning Louden Gordon to net six points for the Storm.
In the final bout of the evening, veteran Ashtin Primus preserved the 18-15 lead with a pin of Tyler Tesny on a controversial call 5:10 in and after a caution.
For the 10-bout match, NDC recorded 14 takedowns to LEC's six.
For the Falcons, the 24-15 final spelled their first win in a dual match since Jan. 29, 2011, when NDC downed Campbellsville (Ky.), 23-7, to round out an 8-0 dual campaign on the 2010-11 season. Notre Dame has won 19 dual matches since its last defeat, a loss to Ohio State at the beginning of the 2009-10 season.
Notre Dame will return to tournament action next week when the Falcons compete in the Jan. 28 Simonson Open hosted by Ashland University.
Notre Dame 24, Lake Erie 15
Friday Jan. 20, 2012 | Jerome T. Osborne Family Athletic & Wellness Center (Attendance: 162)
125: Austin Gillihan (LEC) dec. Matt Perez (NDC), 8-2
133: Paul Rose (NDC) dec. Ian Ross (LEC), 7-1
141: Austin Sanders (NDC) dec. Tom McVicker (LEC), 11-6
149: Zak Vargo (LEC) pinned Louden Gordon, 3:40
157: Ashtin Primus (NDC) pinned Tyler Tesny (LEC), 5:10
165: Jared King (NDC) dec. Matt Vandermeer (LEC), 7-5
174: Jon Bittnger (NDC) dec. Zev Green (LEC), 8-1
184: Charles Mason (NDC) pinned Jon Schafer (LEC), 4:51
197: Mikey Samijlenko (LEC) dec. Eddie Hupp (NDC), 5-3 (OT)
Hwt: Bobby Zappitelli (LEC) dec. Dan Demick, 3-2
Won-loss records noted are NCAA-recognized collegiate records while wrestling attached. Collegiate bouts do not include those against junior college foes, club opponents and unaffiliated amateurs.
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The Falcons -- whose 2011-12 schedule is rife with tournament competition -- got an early lead and managed to hold on for a win in what marked the team's only dual match of the year.
NDC's (1-0) victory came over a game Lake Erie (6-6) squad which came into the night having won four of its last five duals. The Wrestling Falcons won 6-of-10 bouts on the evening.
The match started at 165 pounds, with Jared King facing nationally-ranked Matt Vandermeer. Vandermeer, a freshman from Clarkston, Mich., came into the bout ranked sixth in NCAA-II (NCAA-II Coaches' Association) and the first Storm wrestler in the program's two-year history to earn a top-8 ranking. The Falcons' King got out to a 7-4 lead in the first period and held on for a 7-6 decision to give Notre Dame a 3-0 lead. The loss was just Vandermeer's fourth of the season against 12 wins.
Jon Bittinger followed the victory with a win of his own at 174, another decision, to give NDC a 6-0 lead. For Bittinger, the win marked his eighth in his last 10 bouts. He is now 10-6 on the season.
At 184, it was Charles Mason's turn, and the freshman from Cincinnati came up with a big pin over Jon Schaefer to up the Falcons' lead to 12-0. The fall, at 4:51, marked Mason's first collegiate pin.
Mike Samilenko defeated Eddie Hupp at 197 (5-3 in overtime) to get the host Storm on the scoreboard at the Osborne Center. Lake Erie's Robert Zappitelli then followed that up with a taut, 3-2 win over Dan Demick in the heavyweight division. That brought Notre Dame's cushion down to six points, 12-6.
Austin Gillihan then downed Matt Perez, 8-2, at 125 pounds to garner three more points for Lake Erie. NDC's Paul Rose stopped the bleeding at 133, where he picked up a key 7-1 decision over LEC's Ian Ross. Rose's win put the Wrestling Falcons up, 15-9.
A win by decision by Austin Sanders at 141 extended NDC's lead to 18-9. The match got a jolt at 149, with LEC's Zach Vargo pinning Louden Gordon to net six points for the Storm.
In the final bout of the evening, veteran Ashtin Primus preserved the 18-15 lead with a pin of Tyler Tesny on a controversial call 5:10 in and after a caution.
For the 10-bout match, NDC recorded 14 takedowns to LEC's six.
For the Falcons, the 24-15 final spelled their first win in a dual match since Jan. 29, 2011, when NDC downed Campbellsville (Ky.), 23-7, to round out an 8-0 dual campaign on the 2010-11 season. Notre Dame has won 19 dual matches since its last defeat, a loss to Ohio State at the beginning of the 2009-10 season.
Notre Dame will return to tournament action next week when the Falcons compete in the Jan. 28 Simonson Open hosted by Ashland University.
Notre Dame 24, Lake Erie 15
Friday Jan. 20, 2012 | Jerome T. Osborne Family Athletic & Wellness Center (Attendance: 162)
125: Austin Gillihan (LEC) dec. Matt Perez (NDC), 8-2
133: Paul Rose (NDC) dec. Ian Ross (LEC), 7-1
141: Austin Sanders (NDC) dec. Tom McVicker (LEC), 11-6
149: Zak Vargo (LEC) pinned Louden Gordon, 3:40
157: Ashtin Primus (NDC) pinned Tyler Tesny (LEC), 5:10
165: Jared King (NDC) dec. Matt Vandermeer (LEC), 7-5
174: Jon Bittnger (NDC) dec. Zev Green (LEC), 8-1
184: Charles Mason (NDC) pinned Jon Schafer (LEC), 4:51
197: Mikey Samijlenko (LEC) dec. Eddie Hupp (NDC), 5-3 (OT)
Hwt: Bobby Zappitelli (LEC) dec. Dan Demick, 3-2
Won-loss records noted are NCAA-recognized collegiate records while wrestling attached. Collegiate bouts do not include those against junior college foes, club opponents and unaffiliated amateurs.
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