Wrestling Strong in First Day of PSAC Tournament

EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa.—With six wrestlers still competing in the winner’s bracket, the Lock Haven University wrestling team (3-4, 0-0 EWL) put together a strong showing in day one of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Tournament hosted by East Stroudsburg University. LHU stands fourth of nine teams, behind Bloomsburg University, Edinboro University and ESU.

Thanks to convincing first-day wins, six Bald Eagles, Obe Blanc (Naples, Fla./Lely), Matt Fittery (Denver, Pa./Cocalico), Joshua A. Medina (Las Vegas/Pima C.C.), Seth Martin (Selinsgrove, Pa./Selinsgrove), Mike Metzger (Reading, Pa./Governor Mifflin), and Morgan Horner (Hasbrouck Heights, N.J./Hasbrouck Heights), will start their day tomorrow competing in the semifinals.

125: Blanc, the No. 2 seed, scored a 15-5 win over Edinboro’s Greg Sill. LHU’s freshman 125-pounder faces ESU’s Roberto Ramos in the semifinals.

133: Junior No. 4-seed Jim Collins (Jonestown, Pa./Northern Lebanon) suffered a tough 5-2 defeat at the hands of Clarion University’s Chris Lape before rebounding with a dominating 16-0 tech fall of Millersville University’s Dave Roberts. Collins’s first match tomorrow will feature Nicholas Nauroth of Kutztown University.

141: No. 4-seed Fittery scored a fall at 4:30 over Millersville’s Cody Becker. His Saturday match is against No. 1-seed Frank Edgar of Clarion. Edgar is ranked No. 10 by the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA).

149: Medina, the No. 2-seed, posted a 16-5 major win over Slippery Rock University’s Jacob Zeoli. His next opponent will be Bloomsburg’s George Hickman, who scored two falls in Friday’s action.

157: Sophomore No. 3-seed Martin picked up the squad’s third major victory of the day in an 11-2 decision of ESU’s Keith Kleckner. Martin begins tomorrow with No. 2-seed Matt Hill of Edinboro.

165: No. 5-seed Rory McCoy (Hughesville, Pa./Hughesville) battled for a 6-2 loss to No. 4-seed Keith Smith of East Stroudsburg. The freshman will face Jonathan Shaffer of Kutztown in his next bout.

174: Sophomore No. 6-seed Carlos Ponce (Hialeah, Fla./Hialeah Miami Lakes) fell victim to a 7-6 decision by Shippensburg University’s Kyle Skinner in the pigtails, later dropping by fall to Ryan Wasser of Kutztown.

184: After competing at 197 for the last few weeks, Metzger made the switch to 184 with a win by default. He’ll take on No. 2-seed Jim Gibson of Edinboro tomorrow.

197: In the most promising match of the day, Horner, a former national-qualifier who had yet to compete this season, pinned Millersville’s Jeremy Wampler in 1:11. He faces Bloomsburg’s Chad Hoare, the No. 2-seed, in Saturday’s action.

Hwt: Freshman Jamie Nagel (Shade Gap, Pa./Mount Union Area) dropped his first two matches of the day, a pin by Kutztown’s Andrew Freas and a 6-1 decision to Clarion’s John Fager.