Three Mountaineers Take Titles
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. November 8, 2003– West Virginia University sent six wrestlers to the finals at the 22nd annual WVU Open Saturday afternoon in the Shell Building. Joe Clarke (141), Matt Lebe (157) and Brent Miller (HWT) swept their brackets en route to earning tournament titles.
Clarke, a transfer from Princeton, scored a 15-8 decision over Dewitt Driscoll of Penn State in the finals. Lebe, a sophomore, won five matches including a pin against Al Moreno of Mercyhurst to open the tournament on his way to taking the 157-weight class. Miller, a junior, capped off a five-win day with an 8-5 decision over Tom Curl.
Three WVU grapplers also advanced to the final four of their respective brackets. Seniors Casey Brewster (125), Mike Torriero (149) and junior Matt Daddino (197) all posted runner-up finishes for WVU.
Similarly impressive were sophomore Eric Mullen (165) and freshman Jeff Courtney (197) who were victorious through their first three matches.
Several Mountaineers posted solid performances by winning their opening two matches. Nathan Kendjorsky (125), Trevor Braxton (133), Nino Paglia (133), Ryan Wilman (174), Jonathan Tranquillo (184) each won two for West Virginia.
This year's WVU Open produced a tournament record number of participants. Over 450 wrestlers gathered to participate in the WVU Open.
The Mountaineers return to action Saturday, Nov. 22, at the Navy Classic in Annapolis, Md.
Championship Match Scores:
125A: Coleman Scott (unatt – Waynesburg HS) dec. Mike Sees (unatt – Edinboro), 8-3
125B: Adam Smith (unatt – Penn State) dec. Casey Brewster (unatt – West Virginia), 6-3
133A: Josh Moore (unatt – Penn State) dec. Shawn Bunch (unatt – Edinboro),4-2
133B: Thad Benton (Pitt-Johnstown) pinned Cliff Smith (Buffalo), 4:00
141A: Joe Clarke (unatt – West Virginia) dec. Dewitt Driscoll (unatt – Penn State),15-8
141B: Dustin Schlatter (Ohio Boyz) dec. Frank Edgar (unatt – Clarion), 7-4
149A: Mike Maney (unatt – Lock Haven) dec. Wayne French (unatt Tennessee Chattanooga), 10-2
149B: Travis Piccard (The Citadel) dec. Mike Torriero (unatt – West Virginia), 6-4
157A: Charlie Brenneman (unatt – Lock Haven) dec. Mike Parsons (Virginia Military Institute), 3-0
157B: Matt Lebe (unatt – West Virginia) dec. Jake Yost (unatt – Tennessee Chattanooga), 3-1 DQ
165A: Troy Letters (Lehigh) dec. Jason Cardillo (unatt – Slippery Rock), 20-5
165B: Christ Stith (unatt – Virginia Tech) dec. Albert Miles (unatt – Pitt Johnstown), 5-2
174A: Mark Himes (unatt – Duquesne) dec. John Ptak (Mercyhurst), 7-3
174B: Keith Clifton (The Citadel) dec. Dominic Buckman (Appalachian State), 5-2
184A: Adam Wright (unatt – Old Dominion) dec. Ben McAvinew (Mercyhurst), 3-1
184B: Daniel Waters (unatt – American) dec. John Burda (Pitt-Johnstown), 5-3
197A: Matt Cassidy (unatt – Lehigh) dec. Ryan Chulda (unatt – Bloomsburg), 4-1
197B: Morgan Horner (unatt – Lock Haven) dec. Matt Daddino (West Virginia), 1-0
285A: Brent Miller (unatt – West Virginia) dec. Tom Curl (unatt), 8-5
285B: Jordan Everett (The Citadel) dec. Jon Richard (unatt – Gardner Webb), 9-2
Brackets available at MSNSportsNet.com