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CORNELL CAPTURES 2003 MAT-TOWN USA
INVITATIONAL
TITLE
Travis
Lee Named Outstanding Wrestler;
Four Big Red Grapplers Score Individual Titles
(Lock Haven, Pa.) – The Cornell
University
wrestling team under the direction
of head coach Rob Koll placed five wrestlers in the finals and
crowned four champions to capture the
2003 Mat-Town USA Invitational
team title. The Big Red
outdistanced their closest opponent by 29 points, posting 156
total points in the win. Cornell sophomore Travis Lee was named
Outstanding Wrestler after winning the 133 pound weight class.
Cornell was first with 156 points, followed by Penn
State
University
in second with 127 points. The
Nittany Lions had placed four in the finals, with two emerging as
individual champions. Separated
from second-place by only one-half point, in third was the
University
of
Pittsburgh with 126.5 points. Ohio
University
was fourth (119.5) and Rider
University
(88) rounded out the top five.
The host Lock
Haven
University
was a close sixth (87.5), while
the
University
of
Buffalo
finished seventh (83.5). The
University
of Virginia
(62),
Clarion
University
(54.5), Slippery
Rock
University
(40.5) and the University
of North Carolina
(29) followed in eighth through 11th
places.
At 125 pounds, freshman Drew Headlee of Pittsburgh
made a big statement in his first
Mat-Town appearance by taking the crown in the weight class.
Headlee, seeded seventh, pinned the No. 2-seed Alejandro Alvarez
of Cornell in
3:40
in the quarterfinals, then edged
the No. 3-seed Matt Smith of Penn
State, 8-7, in the semifinals.
Headlee met up with Penn
State’s Adam Smith, the fourth seed,
in the finals. After a scoreless first period, Headlee rode out
Smith in the second to accumulate riding time.
In the third period, Headlee took the defensive position,
then escaped with
1:50
remaining and held out for the 2-0
victory.
It was No. 1 versus No. 2 in the 133-pound final, with
top-ranked and seeded Travis Lee of Cornell facing No. 2-ranked
and seeded Josh Moore of Penn
State. Lee was the first to score,
earning a takedown with
2:10
to go in the first period.
An escape by
Moore
made it 2-1 at the end of the
first. A high-scoring second period saw two Lee takedowns and Moore
escapes to bring the
score to 6-3
in Cornell’s favor.
Lee would score two more takedowns in the third and
survived a late four-point rally by Moore, including two nearfall points,
for the 11-9 victory.
Virginia’s Scott Moore won his second
Mat-Town title, winning this year’s 141-pound crown by an 8-6
margin over Pittsburgh’s Ron Tarquinio.
The top-seed after finishing second last season, Moore
took a 4-1 lead after one period
including 1:56
of riding time.
Moore
was ahead 6-2 by the close of the
second, and was able to fend off a late surge by Tarquinio for the
8-6 win.
The top-seeded Dustin Manotti of Cornell denied Lock
Haven’s No. 3-seeded Mike Maney the individual title at 149
pounds, taking a 6-2 victory for his first Mat-Town championship.
Manotti had a 2-1 lead after one period of action, scoring
a quick takedown to open the bout.
Maney tied up the match at 2-2 with an escape in the
beginning of the second period, but a late takedown by Manotti
bumped the lead back out to 4-2.
An escape for Cornell’s Manotti along with the riding
time point gave him the 6-2 win.
Ohio
’s Jake Percival edged out
Cornell’s Scott Roth, 9-8, to win his second-straight title at
157 pounds. Percival
was down 6-5 after the first period, but registered an escape and
quick takedown to move into an 8-6 lead by the close of the
second. With the third
frame starting with the wrestlers in the neutral position,
Cornell’s Roth finally managed a takedown with 28 seconds
remaining to even things up. Percival
fought his way out of the grip of Roth to pick up the escape and
the win, 9-8.
Pittsburgh’s Zach Doll was the victor at
165 pounds. His championship opponent was Tim Foley of Virginia, who forfeited due to medical
reasons. Doll, the top-seeded grappler and ranked ninth in the
nation, had a trek to the finals that included the fourth and
eighth seeds.
Cornell’s Tyler Baier was the 174-pound champion,
outlasting Buffalo’s Ed Pawlak for the 8-3 victory.
Baier had a 3-1 advantage after two periods.
Pawlak cut the lead to one point with a takedown with 48
seconds remaining in the third, but an escape then a takedown with
less than 20 seconds by Baier closed the deal, 8-3.
The 184-pound bracket also had a new champion, as Penn
State's Eric Bradley captured the
individual title with a 2-1 win over Rider’s Nick Catone.
Catone held a 1-0 lead after two periods, but Bradley
posted an escape in the third then earned a penalty point with 24
seconds remaining to take the victory.
No. 8-nationally ranked Matt Greenberg of Cornell was the
197-pound champion, using a riding time point to do so for the 5-4
win over Buffalo’s No. 14-ranked Kyle Cerminara.
Greenberg tallied the first points, taking Cerminara down at
2:15
in the first period.
The score was even at
2-2 after two
periods, but two escapes and the
riding time point (
1:44
) for Greenberg in the third was
enough for the victory.
Penn
State’s No. 1-ranked Pat Cummins
posted a takedown on the edge of the mat with 37 seconds remaining
in the match for the 3-1 victory over Rider’s Carmelo Marrero.
###LHU###
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