Medina Takes Third, Team
12th at 29th Mat Town Invite
LOCK HAVEN, Pa.
– The Lock Haven University wrestling team (1-0) placed two en route to
finishing 12th of 13 teams at the 29th Annual Mat Town
Invitational today at the Thomas Field House. Newcomers No. 6 University of
Minnesota took the team title, besting Penn State University 154-146.5.
Junior Josh Medina
(Las Vegas/Pima C.C.) was the top finisher for Lock Haven, taking third
place at 149 with a 6-3 victory over American University’s Tom Kniezewski.
Medina, competing in his first Mat Town event after transferring from Pima
Community College, went 5-1 on the day, avenging his earlier loss to
Kniezewski with a victory in the third-place bout.
Tied at two in the third
period, Medina scored on an escape for a 3-2 lead. The junior then hit a
single-leg takedown to stretch his lead to 5-2 with less than a minute left.
Kniezewski notched a point on an escape, but it was too late to make any
effect on the final.
The only other placer
for the Bald Eagles was sophomore Obe Blanc (Naples, Fla./Lely), who
finished seventh in the 125-pound class. Blanc topped Ohio University’s
Caleb Metcalf 7-5 in the seventh-place match.
“There are no excuses
for the way we performed today,” head coach Rocky Bonomo said. “I don’t like
to make any, but the competition is definitely tougher. A positive for us
was that we stayed aggressive but it certainly was a reality check.”
American’s Muzaffar
Abdurakhmanov took top honor, winning the Harris Lipez Most Outstanding
Wrestler trophy for taking the title at 157.
Medina, Blanc and the
rest of the Bald Eagles are back in action Sunday, Dec. 5 at 9 a.m. in the
Penn State Open.
Team Totals
| Finish |
Team |
Points |
| 1 |
#6 University of
Minnesota |
154 |
| 2 |
#18 Penn State
University |
146.5 |
| 3 |
Indiana University |
128 |
| 4 |
University of
Pittsburgh |
115.5 |
| 5 |
American
University |
90.5 |
| 6 |
Ohio University |
67.5 |
| 7 |
#23 Rider
University |
64.5 |
| 8 |
Old Dominion
University |
62 |
| 9 |
University of
North Carolina |
55.5 |
| 10 |
Clarion University |
44 |
| 11 |
University at
Buffalo |
43 |
| 12 |
Lock Haven
University |
39 |
| 13 |
University of
Maryland |
23.5 |
