2009 NCAA Division II Softball Tournament

November 20, 2002
Bald Eagle Wrestling Opens With Buffalo, Iowa State

THE SERIES: The Haven owns a 5-3 advantage over Buffalo, but has not met up with the Bulls in over 20 years. In their last meeting back in 1978, Lock Haven defeated Buffalo, 31-15.
Iowa State has won each of the three times the Cyclones have matched up against the Bald Eagles, including a 36-6 win in 2000. 

On the University of Buffalo: The Buffalo Bulls opened up their 2002-03 season at the Oklahoma Gold Classic, placing seventh while earning three individual third-place finishes. Sophomore 125-pounder Mike Sebaaly, junior Garrett Bontempo at 184 pounds, and 197-pound sophomore Kyle Cerminara all placed third in the tourney field. 

On Iowa State University: The Iowa State Cyclones are ranked seventh in the latest InterMat poll, and sport four nationally-ranked grapplers in their lineup. The key match-up in the LHU-Iowa State dual will undoubtedly be at 141 pounds between No. 1-ranked Aaron Holker and the Bald Eagles’ No. 3-ranked Mike Maney. ISU also enlists top-ten ranked wrestlers at 133 pounds with No. 6 Zach Roberson and at 165 pounds with No. 7 Nick Passolano. Roberson won the individual crown at last week’s Cyclone Open, while another Cyclone, freshman Trent Paulson, captured the title at 149 pounds. Senior Austen Palmer enters into the weekend ranked 19th at 184 pounds.

Below is the LHU weight-by-weight preview:

125: While the graduation of four-year NCAA qualifier Trap McCormack may be instantly noticeable, a handful of both veteran and younger wrestlers have been toiling away in the shadows. Red-shirt freshmen Leslie Morrow (Canton, Ga./Sequoyah) and Jim Collins (Jonestown/Northern Lebanon) made up the distance between themselves and their upperclassmen competitors to steal the potential starting nod for this weekend’s bouts. Morrow was a three-time Georgia state champion in high school, while Collins has one PIAA state championship title. 

133: Senior Justin Owens (Morrisdale/West Branch) has secured the title role at 133 pounds this weekend. Owens placed fifth at Mat Town last season and though he wrestled only seven matches, he posted a 5-2 record. Two of his wins were by fall, and the other three were major decisions. 

141: No. 3-ranked Mike Maney (Clarence/Bald Eagle Area), LHU’s only returning All-American, returns in top form. The junior went 27-9 last season, winning the PSAC crown and finishing fifth at the EWL Tournament. He advanced to the national tournament for the second-consecutive year, where he finished eighth at 141 pounds for his first All-America award. 

149: Shoring up the lineup at 149 pounds is senior James LaValle (East Hanover, N.J./Hanover Park). LaValle, the Bald Eagles’ utility player of sorts the past three seasons, has always amply filled in where ever needed. Last year, he finished 13-5 overall operating mainly as a backup and also captured a PSAC title at 149 pounds. 

157: Experience in the middle weights comes from junior Charlie Brenneman (Hollidaysburg/Hollidaysburg), who moves down a weight class after finishing 12-13 at 165 pounds last season. Brenneman was a fourth-place finisher at the 2002 EWL tournament. 

165: With Jason Gilligan (Brookville/Brookville) and Chris Haines (Gettysburg/Gettysburg) both ready for action, the Bald Eagles have the luxury of significant depth at 165 pounds. Gilligan was 12-12 in what amounted to an illness and injury plagued season, but still finished fifth at the EWL Tournament. Haines was 17-9 overall, and earned a third-place finish at 165 pounds at last year’s PSAC Tournament. 

174: Mike Greenberg (Canton/Canton) and Eric O’Connor (Elizabethtown/Elizabethtown) could both represent the Bald Eagles at 174 pounds. Greenberg, a junior, went 6-6 last year. O’Connor, a senior, was 6-8 in 2002.

184: Red-shirt freshman Morgan Horner (Hasbrouck Heights, N.J./Hasbrouck Heights), a former New Jersey state champion, won the starting role at 184 pounds. Also new to the LHU lineup is Dan Riggs (Hanover/Delone Catholic), a transfer from McDaniel College. Riggs went 21-3 as a freshman, helping lead McDaniel to the Centennial Conference (Division III) championship. He went 2-2 at last weekend’s West Virginia Open.

197: Last year’s heavyweight Tim Boetsch (Lincolnville, Maine/Camden Rockport) drops down to a more comfortable weight class, earning the starting nod at 197 pounds to open the season. Boetsch, who initially joined the Bald Eagle team as a 174-pounder, filled the gap at heavyweight last season and went 4-15 after being out-matched by at least 30 pounds on most occasions. 

HWT: Lock Haven has yet to lockdown any depth at heavyweight, but appears to be solid for the moment with junior Steve Itterly (Bethlehem/Nazareth). Itterly posted a 3-3 mark in 2002, breaking into the lineup towards the latter half of the season and finishing sixth at the EWL Tournament.

UP NEXT: The annual Mat Town USA Invitational is the next event on the Bald Eagles’ schedule, set for Saturday, November 30, with action beginning at 9 a.m. This year’s invitational field includes #17 Penn State, #18 Nebraska, #23 Purdue, Ohio, Oregon, Pittsburgh, Slippery Rock, Buffalo, and Franklin and Marshall. 

###LHU###