Princeton Falls to Columbia in Ivy Opener

Friday, January 23

Princeton, N.J.

7:00 PM

Princeton University

Columbia

Photo by: Lisa Elfstrum

January 23, 2026 | Wrestling

PRINCETON, N.J. – The Princeton men's wrestling team opened conference play on Friday night, falling 36-3 to Columbia.

Eligh Rivera was the lone Tiger to come away with a result on the night.

Against Columbia's Richard Fedalen, Rivera got a takedown early in the match, continuing to be aggressive after taking a 3-1 lead into the second period. Scoring two more takedowns, Rivera built up a strong lead with 90 seconds to go in the match. He ultimately took a 10-7 decision to get Princeton on the board.

Holden Garcia dropped a close decision to #28 Nick Fine, making a takedown in the third period to cut Fine's lead to two points. Taking a shot as the clock expired, Garcia came up just short of a winning takedown.

#12 Ty Whalen also had close bout against #31 Cesar Alvan, taking a score of 1-1 into the third period as the two battled it out. Taking the lead on an escape with time ticking down, it looked like Whalen might win it, but Alvan came up with a late takedown to reverse the advantage and win 4-2.

First-year Matthew Martino had a strong performance against #19 Lorenzo Frezza, taking the lead with a big takedown early. Adding a two point reversal and a stall point, Martino left the first period with a 6-2 lead.

As junior Frezza worked his way back, Martino found himself down 9-8 when he came up with a hard-fought escape to tie the match. Despite Martino's effort, though, Frezza made a takedown to get the decision, 13-9.

The Tigers will be back in action tomorrow on the road in Lawrenceville, N.J. as they take on Jersey rival Rider. The first match is scheduled for 4 p.m.

Columbia defeats Princeton, 36-3
165 | #31 Cesar Alvan (C) DEC Ty Whalen, 4-2; Columbia leads 3-0
174 | #28 Nick Fine (C) DEC Holden Garcia (P), 5-3; Columbia leads 6-0
184 | Joe Curtis (C) FALL Xavier Giles (P), 1:00; Columbia leads 12-0
197 | #32 Jack Wehmeyer (C) TF Gabe Garibaldi (P), 17-1; Columbia leads 17-0
285 | Vincent Mueller (C) TF Conor McCloskey (P), 15-0; Columbia leads 22-0
125 | Sulayman Bah (C) TF Dale O'Blia (P), 20-3; Columbia leads 27-0
133 | Dan Jones (P) DEC Evin Gursoy (C), 3-0; Columbia leads 30-0
141 | #19 Lorenzo Frezza (C) DEC Matt Martino (P), 13-9; Columbia leads 33-0
149 | #11 Eligh Rivera (P) DEC Richard Fedalen (C), 10-7; Columbia leads 33-3
157 |#19 Kai Owen (C) DEC Rocco Camillaci (P), 9-4; Columbia leads 36-3.