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PURDUE CLAIMS 2002 MAT TOWN USA TITLE
Penn State’s Driscoll Garners Most Outstanding Wrestlers Accolades

(Lock Haven, Pa.) -- The Purdue Boilermakers under the direction of head coach Jessie Reyes captured the 2002 Mat Town USA Invitational team title, crowning three individual champions while outdistancing their closest competitor by 11 team points.  Penn State 141-pounder DeWitt Driscoll garnered the tournament’s Most Outstanding Wrestler honor after earning the individual crown by knocking off four seeded wrestlers.
                Purdue totaled 167.50 team points on the evening, while the University of Nebraska was second with 156.50 points.  Pennsylvania State University, last year’s champion, finished third (147.00 pts), while host Lock Haven University placed fourth as a team with 102.50 points.  Following in fifth through eighth places were Ohio University (77.50), University of Pittsburgh (75.00), University of Buffalo (73.50), and the University of Oregon (64.00).  Slippery Rock University (17.50) was ninth, while Franklin and Marshall College rounded out the field in tenth place with 12.50 points.
                At 125 pounds, reigning Mat-Town champion and top-seeded Chris Fleeger of Purdue defended his title with a decision over Nebraska’s Jason Powell, the bracket’s second seed. After taking a 4-1 lead following the first period, Fleeger scored the only points of the second stanza with an escape after Powell elected to open the period in the offensive position. Another escape and then a takedown with 10 seconds remaining finished off Powell for the final 8-1 advantage.
                Another repeat performer came at 133 pounds, as Penn State’s Josh Moore outscored Nebraska’s Joey Malia, 13-6, for his second-straight tournament title.  It was a tight battle through one period, as Moore, the top seed, held a slim 5-4 lead over the seventh-seeded Malia.  Moore stretched out the lead in the second period, posting an escape, a takedown, and a two-point near fall to build the 11-6 cushion. Another takedown in the third period brought the final to 13-6 in favor of the Nittany Lion wrestler.
                The 141-pound weight class crowned a new, and unseeded, champion in Penn State freshman DeWitt Driscoll with his 7-5 victory over defending champion Scott Moore, also of Penn State.  Moore scored the first points of the match with a takedown late in the first period. Driscoll turned the tides in the second period, however, as two straight three-point near falls jumped him ahead, 6-2, by the close of the stanza.  Moore threatened in the final period but was too late, tacking on three of his own backpoints as time ran off the clock.  A last-second escape by Driscoll brought the final to 7-5 in his favor and also aided his additional title as Most Outstanding Wrestler.
                All-American Jake Percival of Ohio added a Mat-Town title to his resume with a 14-4 major decision over Pittsburgh’s Justin Giovinco in the 149-pound battle. A close dual through two periods, Percival, last year’s runner up and this season’s top seed, was up only 4-2 entering into the third frame.  A flurry of offensive activity earned the sophomore another 10 points in the third period, however, including a two-point near fall as the time ticked off the match clock. 
                Two Boilermakers squared off in the title bout at 157 pounds, with the elder Clovis Crane, the top seed, out-distancing second-seeded Brad Harper, 4-2.  Crane got on the scoreboard with a takedown at 0:58 remaining in the first period. A neutral start led to a scoreless second period, then Crane put another point up with an escape to open the third stanza.  Harper took Crane down with 11 seconds left, but the quick escape by Crane moved the Purdue senior ahead, 4-2, to claim the tournament title.   
                After taking runner-up honors last year, Purdue’s Oscar Santiago returned to claim the 2002 Mat-Town crown at 165 pounds with a 5-2 decision over Ohio’s Luke Moore.  Santiago had the only offensive points of the match, posting a takedown early in the first period to move ahead, 2-1, by the close.  An escape by Moore tied things up in the second period, but Santiago was awarded a penalty point to maintain his one-point lead at 3-2.  Starting on the defensive in the final stanza, Santiago maneuvered his way to a reversal with 36 seconds left for the final 5-2 victory. 
                Another new champion was crowned at 174 pounds, as Shane Webster of Oregon grabbed a 9-7 victory over Purdue’s Ryan Lange.   This battle bounced back and forth, with a 3-3 tie after the first and a 6-6 tie after two periods of action. Webster outlasted Lange in the third period for the win, escaping quickly after starting on the defensive for the 7-6 lead.  A takedown with less than a minute remaining pushed Webster out ahead, 9-6, and despite a subsequent escape by Lange, was enough to hold for the 9-7 win. 
                Mark Becks of Penn State garnered his second-straight crown with a 5-3 decision over Nebraska freshman B.J. Padden in the championship bout at 184 pounds.  Becks took a 2-1 lead following one period of action, and extended it to 4-3 following the close of the second frame.  An escape in the third period sealed the final outcome as Becks took the 5-3 win over Padden.
                Nebraska’s Justin Ruiz took the 197-pound crown by medical default over Purdue’s Jon Bush.  Ruiz, the top seed, advanced through the bracket with a fall (1:42) over Buffalo’s Harold Sherrell and a 14-3 major decision over Penn State’s Ryan Cummins. 
                Another Nittany Lion dual raged at heavyweight, as Penn State’s top-seeded Pat Cummins registered the 12-7 victory over fellow teammate and tournament third seed Josh Walker.  Cummins held the leverage throughout, taking a 5-3 lead after one period and a 7-4 advantage after two periods.  He stretched out his advantage to 12-7 by the close to grab his first Mat-Town title. 

Mat-Town USA Placewinners
125# 259 Jordan Sianni, PITTSBURGH WBF Martin Mitchell, OREGON 4:26 3RD PL BT
260 Adam Smith, PENN STATE DEC Mark Budd, BUFFALO 6-1 5TH PL BT
261 Jeremy Emerson, NEBRASKA DEC Tyrone Hodge, LOCK HAVEN 6-2 7TH PL BT
133# 262 Marat Tomaev, PENN STATE DEC Renee Hernandez, PURDUE 6-1 3RD PL BT
263 Mike May, PITTSBURGH DEC Justin Owens, LOCK HAVEN 8-3 5TH PL BT
264 Jarred Berger, NEBRASKA OT Blair Tugman, LOCK HAVEN 5-3;SV 7TH PL BT
141# 265 Mike Maney, LOCK HAVEN MAJOR Doug Withstandley, PURDUE 8-0 3RD PL BT
266 Matt Murray, NEBRASKA DEC Ron Tarquinio, PITTSBURGH 2-0 5TH PL BT
267 Paul Sacquitne, PURDUE DEC Adam Grillo, BUFFALO 4-2 7TH PL BT
149# 268 Nathan Galloway, PENN STATE OT Travis Shuflet, NEBRASKA 7-5;SV 3RD PL BT
269 Dan Jankowski, PURDUE DEC Tony Overstake, OREGON 11-7 5TH PL BT
270 Brad Cieleski, SLIPPERY ROCK DEC David Ingalls, NEBRASKA 3-0 7TH PL BT
157# 271 Charlie Brenneman, LOCK HAVEN DEC Adam Shepler, PENN STATE 6-1 3RD PL BT
272 Nate McMillin, NEBRASKA DEC James Pummel, NEBRASKA 5-4 5TH PL BT
273 Justin Nestor, PITTSBURGH WBF Jason Cardillo, SLIPPERY ROCK 1:27 7TH PL BT
165# 274 Jacob Klein, NEBRASKA DEC Chris Haines, LOCK HAVEN 5-0 3RD PL BT
275 Jason Gilligan, LOCK HAVEN DEC Doc Vecchio, PENN STATE 9-6 5TH PL BT
276 Luke Larwin, OREGON DEC Tom Palading, BUFFALO 6-5 7TH PL BT
174# 277 Gary Cooper, BUFFALO WBF Eric O'Connor, LOCK HAVEN 2:49 3RD PL BT
278 Ed Willis, OHIO MED FORF Travis Pascoe, NEBRASKA 5TH PL BT
279 Mike Greenberg, LOCK HAVEN MAJOR Isaiah Hankel, F & M 14-5 7TH PL BT
184# 280 Ben Wissel, PURDUE DEC Garrett Bontempo, BUFFALO 4-3 3RD PL BT
281 Mark Groski, PURDUE OT Dan Riggs, LOCK HAVEN 8-6;SV 5TH PL BT
282 Mark Shrout, OHIO DEC Mike Croyle, PITTSBURGH 3-2 7TH PL BT
197# 283 Ryan Cummins, PENN STATE DEC Kyle Cerminara, BUFFALO 3-2 3RD PL BT
284 Tim Boetsch, LOCK HAVEN DEC Joel Weimer, OHIO 4-2 5TH PL BT
285 Bryan Kapp, PURDUE DEC Harold Sherrell, BUFFALO 3-2 7TH PL BT
285. 286 Mitch Manstedt, NEBRASKA WBF Isreal Blevins, PURDUE 5:45 3RD PL BT
287 Nathan McClain, NEBRASKA MAJOR Tom Curl, BUFFALO 8-0 5TH PL BT
288 Erik Jones, OHIO DEC Steve Itterly, LOCK HAVEN 8-3 7TH PL BT