From HiltopperSports.com - The Official Athletic Site of West Liberty University

NO. 10 PITT-JOHNSTOWN BEATS NO. 16 WEST LIBERTY

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. (November 20, 2009) – All-American Mitch Smith scored a second-period fall but it wasn’t enough to help No. 16 West Liberty avoid a 27-12 loss to No. 10 Pitt-Johnstown in a Friday night dual match between a pair of nationally-ranked NCAA Division II mat squads.

Smith, who is ranked No. 3 in the nation at 149 pounds, pinned UPJ’s Ryan McIntyre at 4:23 of their match and the Hilltoppers’ Brian Leggett followed with a 5-1 win against the Mountain Cats’ Myers Miller at 157 to cut the hosts’ lead to 12-9 midway through the match.

But Pitt-Johnstown reeled off four straight wins – three decisions and a fall – to put the match out of reach.

West Liberty heavyweight Mike Carpenter closed out the scoring with an impressive 3-2 decision against UPJ’s Chris Dempsey, who entered the match as the No. 6-ranked heavyweight in the nation.

The Hilltoppers will be idle through the Thanksgiving holiday and will make their home mat debut on Dec. 2 when they host Mercyhurst in a 7 p.m. dual at the ASRC.

#16 WEST LIBERTY (WV) UNIVERSITY VS. #10 PITT-JOHNSTOWN MOUNTAIN CATS
FINAL SCORE: PITT-JOHNSTOWN: 27 WEST LIBERTY: 12
RECORDS: Pitt-Johnstown: (1-0) West Liberty University: (0-1)

Match by Match Results
125 lbs. Ryan Link (UPJ) Technical Fall Justin Fisher 23-7 (6:10) 5-0 UPJ
133 lbs. #1 Shane Valko (UPJ) Major Decision #8 Nick Wycoff (WLU) 17-8 9-0 UPJ
141 lbs. #1 Adam Whetstone (UPJ) Decision Kayne Melko (WLU) 5-3 12-0 UPJ
149 lbs. #3 Mitch Smith (WLU) Fall Ryan McIntyre (UPJ) 4:21 12-6 UPJ
157 lbs. Brian Leggett (WLU) Decision Myers Miller (UPJ) 5-1 12-9 UPJ
165 lbs. #4 Kyle Keane (UPJ) Decision Jarrod Shaw (WLU) 4-3 15-9 UPJ
174 lbs. Steve Makin (UPJ) Decision Matt Littleton (WLU) 7-1 18-9 UPJ
184 lbs. #6 Patrick Walsh (UPJ) Fall Shawn Fullerton (WLU) 2:58 24-9 UPJ
197 lbs. A.J. Brentzel (UPJ) Decision #7 Mitch Knapp (WLU) 3-2 27-9 UPJ
HWT. Mike Carpenter (WLU) Decision #6 Chris Dempsey (UPJ) 3-2 27-12 UPJ

MATCH NOTES
Pitt-Johnstown is ranked #10 in NCAA Division II and #2 in the East Region, while West Liberty is #16 in NCAA Division II and #3 in the East Region

Pitt-Johnstown’s 2009 National Runner-up Shane Valko (133 lbs.) and All-American Adam Whetstone (141 lbs.) are both ranked #1 in the nation. 2008 All-American and 2009 National Qualifier Kyle Keane (165 lbs.) is ranked #4, while two- time National Qualifiers Patrick Walsh (184 lbs.) and Chris Dempsey (HWT.) are both ranked 36

West Liberty is led by 2009 All-American Mitch Smith, who is currently ranked #3 at 149 lbs. 2009 National Qualifiers Mitch Knapp (197 lbs.) and Nick Wycoff (133 lbs.) are ranked #7 and #8 in their respective weight classes

Prior to the match, Pitt-Johnstown recognized last year’s All-Americans, National Qualifiers and NWCA All-Academic Wrestling Team members

The Mountain Cats travel to East Stroudsburg University on Dec. 2 and to the Penn State Open on December 6. Pitt- Johnstown’s next home match will take place on Wednesday, January 6, at 7:30 p.m. when East Region rival Kutztown University visits the Sports Center.



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