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Wrestling Splits Against NY Duo, Clinches First Ivy Winning Mark Since '87
February 14, 2010 | Wrestling
A 28-13 victory over the Columbia Lions, Princeton's fifth straight victory, assured the Tiger wrestling team its first Ivy League winning record since 1987. The Tiger win streak ended later that evening against the sixth-ranked Cornell Big Red, although senior Danny Scotton recorded a Saturday sweep with a 5-3 victory.
Princeton opened the day with a 28-13 victory over Columbia, marking its fifth-straight win and its first year with at least three Ivy League wins since 1991. The tone was set early, as both teams sent out strong 125-pounders in the first match. Princeton freshman Garrett Frey took control against Kyle Gilchrist and improved to 24-4 with an 8-4 victory to open a 3-0 lead.
Two strong performances from classmates Zach Bintliff and Luis Ramos quickly sent that lead to 15-3. Bintliff pinned Andrew Grabfelder in 4:09 at 133 pounds, and Ramos was dominant with a pin in 36 seconds at 141 to put Princeton in control.
Sophomore Daniel Kolodzik continued his strong season with a 9-0 victory over Steve Santos at 149. The major decision opened a 19-0 lead for the Tigers, but Princeton head coach Chris Ayres knew that Columbia still had enough talent to make it a tough match. One potential turning point came at 157, when Columbia's Jake O'Hara held a late lead over Scotton. As he did one week earlier against Brown, Scotton used one late surge to take O'Hara to his back and win an 11-9 thriller.
Columbia's Eren Civan used riding time to edge senior co-captain Mike Alvarez, who put forth an impressive performance against one of Columbia's most talented wrestlers.
Any momentum Columbia had at that point went away as Princeton junior Travis Erdman won yet another thriller, this time topping Stephen West 4-3 at 174 pounds to clinch the team victory. A 2-0 win for Kurt Brendel at 184 opened a 28-3 lead for the Tigers, who dropped matches at 197 and heavyweight to conclude the dual
"I was curious all week how the success of the New England trip would affect our team and our new found confidence showed against Columbia as we wrestled extremely well," Ayres said. "I felt there were many matches which could go either way and we found a way to win most of them. I was most impressed with the fact that we were able to win three matches in the third period with Scotton, Erdman and Brendel. We want to be the best team in the country in the third period, we work third period situations a lot, and it showed today."
The evening match belonged to the sixth-ranked and reigning Ivy champion Cornell, which sent six nationally ranked wrestlers to the mat in a 46-3 victory over Princeton. Scotton provided the lone win with a 5-3 victory over Derek Schreiner.
"Cornell is one of the toughest teams in the country and was a good test for our team," Ayres said. "After the dual I told the team that we are not there yet, but that is what we aspire to. If we are to be the best in the league we are going to have to beat that team and we need to learn from the way they wrestled us tonight. They were simply tough in all positions and took advantage of every mistake we made. I want the team to take how their wrestlers approached a match and apply it to their own wrestling. A lot can be learned form that match."
Princeton will remain home next weekend when it takes on Penn and Millersville. The winner of the 1 p.m. dual with the Quakers will clinch second place in the Ivy League.
PRINCETON 28, COLUMBIA 13
125: Frey, Garrett (P) d. Gilchrist, Kyle 8-4
133: Bintliff, Zachary (P) p. Grabfelder, Andrew 4:09
141: Ramos, Luis (P) p. Doyle, Ryan :36
149: Kolodzik, Daniel (P) md. Santos, Steve 9-0
157: Scotton, Danny (P) d. O'Hara, Jake 11-9
165: Civan, Eren (C) d. Alvarez, Mike 5-4
174: Erdman, Michael (P) d. West, Stephen 4-3
184: Brendel, Kurt (P) d. Aldrich, Cary 2-0
197: Miller, Louis (C) md. Fox, Charles 8-0
285: Lester, Kevin (C) p. Grogan, Robert 4:45
CORNELL 46, PRINCETON 3
125: Frank Perrelli (Cornell) dec. Garett Frey, 10-4
133: No. 11 Mike Grey (Cornell) tech fall Zach Bintliff, 17-2 (6:32)
141: No. 1 Kyle Dake (Cornell) win by fall Luis Ramos, 5:22
149: Corey Manson (Cornell) dec. Daniel Kolodzik, 8-2
157: Danny Scotton (Princeton) dec. Derek Schreiner (Cornell), 5-3
165: No. 16 Justin Kerber (Cornell) win by fall Mike Alvarez, 2:02
174: No. 1 Mack Lewnes (Cornell) tech fall Travis Erdman, 16-0 (5:42)
184: No. 17 Steve Bosak (Cornell) win by fall Kurt Brendel, 2:32
197: No. 5 Cam Simaz (Cornell) win by fall Charles Fox, 2:16
HWT: Josh Arnone (Cornell) win by fall Robert Grogan, 4:16