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Wrestling Drops Home Finale 23-11 To Second-Place Quakers
February 20, 2010 | Wrestling
The gap may be closing between the Princeton wrestling team and the Ivy League elite, but there is still more work to be done. Penn clinched second place in the Ivy League Saturday with a 23-11 win at Dillon Gym, but Princeton put forth its best performance against Penn since 2003 and ends the regular season with its first winning Ivy League record since 1987.
Princeton earned victories at 149, 157 and heavyweight, but a pair of nailbiter losses proved to be the difference for the Tigers, who will now look ahead to the EIWA Championships, which will be held the first weekend in March at Lehigh.
"We can grow from this," head coach Chris Ayres said. "Penn has a good team with a number of tough wrestlers, and I thought there were a few times that we stopped wrestling. We have to learn from today. I'm bitterly disappointed to lose this match, but if we want to get somebody to NCAAs, we can become better because of it."
Penn took an early 9-0 lead with three decisions, including a 3-2 win at 125 by Quaker sophomore Mark Rappo. Princeton's Garrett Frey, who has 24 wins during his freshman season, trailed after a first-period takedown, but nearly came all the way back; his takedown attempt in the final seconds never fully materialized in a 3-2 loss.
After a 6-1 win at 133, Penn's Zack Kemmerer controlled the third period against Luis Ramos to earn an 8-5 victory. An excited Princeton crowd, who came to enjoy both Senior Day and Alumni Weekend, needed a lift, and both Daniel Kolodzik and Danny Scotton would provide it. Kolodzik was dominant at 149 against Cesar Grajales, scoring quick takedowns and four near falls en route to a 20-2 technical fall. Scotton, who is on a four-match win streak since losing to the top-ranked wrestler in the country, then scored on an array of takedowns to defeat Troy Hernandez 10-4.
The crowd was alive at that point, but Penn had a pair of its top wrestlers waiting in the wings. At 165, Gabriel Burak picked up his 30th win of the season with a 10-1 win over Mike Alvarez, and Quaker junior Scott Giffin followed with a 13-3 major decision over Travis Erdman.
Now trailing 17-8, Princeton had little margin for error. Ayres sent out sophomore Kurt Brendel, who was aggressive at the start of his 184-pound match, but found his own shot would end up on the wrong end of a scramble against Harrison Cook. Brendel went down 4-1 in the first period, but he clawed his way back to force overtime. Cook had the best shot in sudden victory and made it count; his single-leg takedown finished a 10-8 win and clinched no worse than a tie for the Quakers.
Penn assured the team win with a 7-3 victory at 197, but freshman heavyweight Bobby Grogan gave the Tiger fans a pleasant ending to what has been a mostly magical February. Trailing 1-0 entering the third period against Tyler Blakely, Grogan scored two takedowns to clinch a 5-3 win. That win assured Princeton that each of its starters earned at least one Ivy League victory during the season.
"No doubt, that was the highlight of the day," Ayres said. "Bobby needed that and he earned it. He never stopped wrestling the whole match, and he was rewarded with a victory."
Check back with GoPrincetonTigers.com during the week of EIWAs for a full preview as Princeton looks for its best finish at Easterns under Ayres and its first NCAA qualifier since Jake Butler '05.
125- Mark Rappo (Pe) d. Garrett Frey 3-2
133- Bryan Ortenzio (Pe) d. Zach Bintliff 6-1
141- Zack Kemmerer (Pe) d. Luis Ramos 8-5
149- Daniel Kolodzik (Pr) tf. Cesar Grajales 20-2 (4:03)
157- Danny Scotton (Pr) d. Troy Hernandez 10-4
165- Gabriel Burak (Pe) md. Mike Alvarez 10-1
174- Scott Giffin (Pe) md. Travis Erdman 13-3
184- Harrison Cook (Pe) d. Kurt Brendel, 10-8 (SV)
197- Micah Burak (Pe) d. Charles Fox 7-3
HWT- Bobby Grogan (Pr) d. Tyler Blakely 5-3
125 – Garrett Frey (Pr) vs. Mark Rappo (Pe)
Rappo got in first on a single for a 2-0 lead in the first period. Frey escapes late in period to cut deficit to 2-1. Frey takes down to start second and escapes in 20 seconds, but is down 1:19 in riding time. No points scored in the remainder of the period. Rappo is down to start third and escapes with 30 seconds remaining. Frey got in tight with near double-leg takedown in final seconds, but Rappo fought it off for a 3-2 win.
Rappo d. Frey 3-2
133 – Zach Bintliff (Pr) vs. Bryan Ortenzio (Pe)
Ortenzio scored the first with an early takedown and carried 1:44 of riding time into the second period. Ortenzio starts down in the second and records an escape and takedown for 5-0 lead at end of second. Bintliff escapes 30 seconds into third and takes several shots, but Ortenzio fights off every attempt and, with an extra point for riding time, takes a 6-1 victory.
Ortenzio d. Bintliff 6-1
141 – Luis Ramos (Pr) vs. Zack Kemmerer (Pe)
Kemmerer scores first midway through the first period with a double, but Ramos escapes in eight seconds. Kemmerer scores a second takedown in the period, but Ramos scores with a reversal in the final seconds and trails 4-3 going into the second. Ramos scores a quick escape, but Kemmerer records two takedowns in the final period for 8-5 win.
Kemmerer d. Ramos 8-5
149 – Daniel Kolodzik (Pr) vs. Cesar Grajales (Pe)
Kolodzik scores takedown seconds into the match and earns first three near-fall points one minute into period. In final minute of first, Kolodzik scores three more near-fall, then adds two in final seconds. Grajales gets a late reversal and trails 10-2 going into the second. Kolodzik starts down in second and scores escape, takedown and then consecutive near falls to claim 19-2 technical fall.
Kolodzik tf. Grajales 20-2 (4:04)
157 – Danny Scotton (Pr) vs. Troy Hernandez (Pe)
Scotton scores first with a takedown, then after an escape, records a second takedown. Hernandez escapes again, then once more to start second period. Scotton fights off two near takedowns, then ends period with a takedown to lead 6-3. Scotton escapes to start third for 7-3 lead. Scotton gets hit with a stalling point, then gets a single-leg to clinch the match.
Scotton d. Hernandez 10-4
165 – Mike Alvarez (Pr) vs. Gabriel Burak (Pe)
After about 1:30 without scoring, Burak hit a four-point move after getting a deep single. Burak rode for 1:20 to hold 4-0 lead entering second. Burak builds lead to 5-0 with quick escape in second, then follows with takedown; Penn rides out the period to lead 7-0 and hold 2:41 in riding time. Alvarez gets his first point on an escape in the third, but Burak quickly responds with a takedown. With riding time, Burak scores a major decision.
Burak md. Alvarez 10-1
174 – Travis Erdman (Pr) vs. Scott Giffin (Pe)
Giffin scores early takedown and rides for 1:35 before Erdman escapes. A late scramble near the edge of the mat ends with Erdman on his back for four seconds; Giffin leads 6-1 going into second period. Erdman escapes in the second, but Giffin scores on a double to lead 8-2 and take more than three minutes of riding time into the third period. Giffin scores a reversal in third and finishes match with 13-3 edge.
Giffin md. Erdman 13-3
184 – Kurt Brendel (Pr) vs. Harrison Cook (Pe)
After Brendel gets deep in on a single and looks close to points, Cook scrambles and actually scores the first takedown. Brendel escapes, but Cook scores on another takedown. Brendel escapes before period ends, then scores another escape point early in the second. Cook scores a third takedown, but Brendel escapes and gets late takedown to tie score at 6-6. Brendel cuts Cook to start third, then earns takedown for 8-7 lead. Cook escapes with 35 seconds remaining to force overtime, then wins on single in sudden victory.
Cook d. Brendel, 10-8 (SV)
197 – Charles Fox (Pr) vs. Micah Burak (Pe)
After lengthy scoreless stretch to open match, Burak scores takedown and holds 2-1 lead entering second. Burak opens down and escapes for 3-1 lead, and nobody scores remainder of period. Fox cuts deficit to 3-2 with immediate escape in third, but Burak scores two more takedowns to earn 7-3 win.
Burak d. Fox 7-3
HWT – Bobby Grogan (Pr) vs. Tyler Blakely (Pe)
For the first time in the dual, there was no scoring in the opening period. Blakely was down to start the second and escaped quickly for 1-0 lead; it would remain that way until the start of the third, when Grogan escaped to even the score. An early scramble in the period ended with Grogan scoring a takedown. Blakely escaped, but Grogan continued to push the action and was rewarded with a late takedown in a 5-3 win.
Grogan d. Blakely 5-3