Upset Wins by Martino, Rivera Send Tigers Past Penn, 23-14

Saturday, February 14

Princeton, N.J.

12:00 PM

Princeton University

Penn

Matt Martino Arm Raise Pin Over #8 CJ Composto

Photo by: Lisa Elfstrum

Upset Wins by Martino, Rivera Send Tigers Past Penn, 23-14

February 14, 2026 | Wrestling

PRINCETON, N.J. – With a highlight pin by Matt Martino over #8 CJ Composto and another upset victory by Ethan Rivera over #12 Evan Mougalian, the Princeton wrestling team defeated Penn, 24-13, on Saturday afternoon in Jadwin Gym.

While Martino and Rivera were key in securing the victory, six Tigers won as Holden Garcia, Xavier Giles, Marc-Anthony McGowan and Ty Whalen contributed to an all-around solid team performance on the day.

Garcia set the tone for the day, wrestling hard against Caden Bellis at 174 as he took shots and dominated early. After a takedown in the first period, Garcia added two more over the course of the match to make it a major and put Princeton up, 4-0.

Xavier Giles was next, gutting out a win over Liam Carlin as he pulled away from a 1-1 stalemate in the third with a clutch single leg turned takedown. Riding out the clock, Giles took a 4-3 decision and made it 7-0 Tigers.

At 197 and 285, respectively, Conor McCloskey and Sebastian Garibaldi fought hard but fell by decision to the Quakers, making it 7-6 Princeton going into 125.

#12 McGowan took the mat and wasted no time, going to work from the whistle to get a takedown just 25 seconds in. Continuing to be aggressive, McGowan made two more takedowns as the match continued. Adding a point for riding time, he took an 11-2 decision over Brady Pruett.

The real fireworks began at 133, with sophomore Ethan Rivera taking the mat across from #12 Evan Mougalian. Going in with energy, Rivera was first to score as he got a takedown in the first period to go up 3-0.

With Mougalian looking to equalize, Rivera was solid defensively as he dodged the Quaker's attacks and wrestled out of dangerous spots without conceding points. However, Mougalian was able to find a takedown and tie the match at 3-3 in the second period.

With a minute remaining and the match still locked in a tie, it looked like Mougalian might score three before Rivera scrambled and reversed it to get two points and a big mat return, sending the Tiger bench into a frenzy.

Continuing to defend down to zero on the clock, Rivera took the 5-3 decision for three big team points as he fired up the Princeton crowd.

First-year Matt Martino then stepped on to the mat with two-time All-American, #8, Composto. Wrestling with confidence and ambition, Martino started taking shots. Tilting Composto twice for two points a piece, Martino worked his way to a 4-2 lead in the second period.

Tilting again at the edge of the circle, Martino got Composto on his back. As the home crowd started to roar with the ref counting, Martino had keen spatial awareness as he kept a toe in the circle and pushed to keep Composto pinned.

Jadwin kept growing louder while Martino held his position until the ref blew the whistle, electrifying the Tiger bench and audience alike. The victory was Martino's third ranked win this year.

Now holding a 20-6 lead, Princeton was closing in its first home dual win of the season.

The Quakers' Cross Wasilewski picked up a major decision over #10 Eligh Rivera, and #12 Jude Swisher earned a major over Rocco Camillaci, bringing the score to 19-14.

Last up, #17 Whalen stepped onto the mat and let it fly, pursuing takedown after takedown as he worked to a major decision over Jackson Polo, solidifying the Tiger win.

Marking Princeton's first victory over Penn since 2020, the feat was an extraordinary send-off for the Princeton Wrestling Class of 2026 as the team celebrated senior day.

For the Martino brothers, the day was extra special as first-year Matt sent off his brother, graduating captain Chris Martino, off with a huge upset win.

With the Jadwin action now closed until next year, the Tigers will hit the road for two more regular season duals before turning their attention to the postseason. The Tigers will take on #14 Rutgers on Monday at 7 p.m., before traveling to College Park, Penn. on Friday to face #1 Penn State.

Princeton def. Penn, 23-14
174: Holden Garcia (PRIN) over Caden Bellis (PENN) (MD 11-2)
184: Xavier Giles (PRIN) over Liam Carlin (PENN) (Dec 4-3)
197: Martin Cosgrove (PENN) over Conor McCloskey (PRIN) (Dec 5-1)
285: John Pardo (PENN) over Sebastian Garibaldi (PRIN) (Dec 4-2)
125: Marc-Anthony McGowan (PRIN) over Brady Pruett (PENN) (MD 11-2)
133: Ethan Rivera (PRIN) over #12 Evan Mougalian (PENN) (Dec 5-3)
141: Matthew Martino (PRIN) over #8 CJ Composto (PENN) (Fall 4:45)
149: #5 Cross Wasilewski (PENN) over #10 Eligh Rivera (PRIN) (MD 11-2)
157: #12 Jude Swisher (PENN) over Rocco Camillaci (PRIN) (MD 15-3)
165: #17 Ty Whalen (PRIN) over Jackson Polo (PENN) (MD 15-2)
(PRIN unsportsmanlike conduct -1.0)