Edinboro 25 Clarion 13

FIGHTING SCOTS RALLY FOR SECOND STRAIGHT DAY AT CLARION TO EXTEND EWL STREAK

EDINBORO, Pa. – Less than 24 hours after rallying for a 19-17 win against Buffalo the Edinboro wrestling team did it again, this time opening Eastern Wrestling League action with a 25-13 triumph at Clarion. The victory extends Edinboro’s streak with out a loss in EWL matches to 27 straight, with a 25-0-2 record during that period. The Fighting Scots, ranked 21st by in the NWCA/USA Today Coaches Poll and 23rd by InterMat, are 5-4 while Clarion is now 2-4. The Golden Eagles were seeking their second upset of a nationally-ranked team after defeating Old Dominion last week.
Edinboro once again put itself in need of a big comeback after losing four of the first five bouts to fall behind 13-3. Buffalo won four of the first five matches on Saturday night to take a 17-3 lead. And once again the Fighting Scots won the final five matches, with Shawn Fendone again the key figure.
The junior closed out the match with a pin of Alex Thomas at 2:36 in the 197 lb. bout. That gave the Scots a 22-13 lead. It was a rematch of the PSAC championship bout, with Thomas pinning Fendone two minutes into the match. Thomas opened with a takedown, but Fendone reversed Thomas and ended up with the fall to improve to 10-7. Thomas is 11-8. On Saturday night Fendone upset Buffalo’s Jimmy Hamel to pull Edinboro within a point and Chris Birchler closed out the win at heavyweight with a decision.
This time there was no pressure on Birchler, and he responded with an 8-4 decision over Phil Catrucco. Catrucco led 3-2 after one period, but Birchler used takedowns in the second and thord periods for the win. Ranked 15th by Amateur Wrestling News and 17th by InterMat, Birchler improved to 25-8.
Eric Morrill, still battling an injury, opened the match with a 3-0 decision at 125 lbs. over Joe Waltko. That boosted Morrill, who is ranked eighth, to 25-4.
Clarion would run off four straight wins to go ahead 13-3. Jay Ivanco claimed a 5-1 decision over Ashton Osterberg (14-17) at 133 lbs., and Greg Lewis followed with 7-3 win over Joel Webster at 141 lbs. Webster just returned recently following an injury and dropped to 12-10.
Kory Bissett, filling in for injured starter Torsten Gillespie, battled Clarion standout James Fleming before losing 2-0 at 149 lbs. On Saturday Bissett was dominated by 14th-ranked Desi Green of Buffalo, but he gave Fleming all he could handle before the Clarion wrestler used a reversal midway through the third period to improve to 16-5. Bissett is now 5-6.
Former General McLane High School standout Hadley Harrison concluded Clarion’s run with a 12-0 major decision over John Greisheimer at 157 lbs. Harrison, ranked 16th, improved to 23-6 while Greisheimer, a freshman, is 19-16.
As he did on Saturday, defending national champion Jarrod King got Edinboro’s rally started with a major decision at 165 lbs. He dominated freshman Nick Milano, a former standout at nearby Cathedral Prep, prevailing 17-4. That gives King, who is ranked fifth by InterMat and third by Amateur Wrestling News, a 28-1 ledger.
Phil Moricone, one of the many Fighting Scots battling injuries, knotted the match at 13-13 when he pinned Steven Cressley at 4:37. Moricone was expected to wrestle one of the two weekend matches and had competed against Buffalo on Saturday. The graduate student boosted his record to 12-3.
Pat Bradshaw made it 16-13 with a 2-1 win over Clint Podish at 184 lbs. The senior used a first period takedown to improve to 22-11. He now has 89 career wins.
Edinboro is back in action next Saturday, January 23 at Lock Haven in another EWL match.

#21 EDINBORO 25, CLARION 13
Sunday, January 17, 2010
W.S. Tippin Gym
Clarion, PA

EU-CU
125 #8 Eric Morrill (EU) dec. Joe Waltko (CU), 3-0 3-0
133 Jay Ivanco (CU) dec. Ashton Osterberg (EU), 5-1 3-3
141 Greg Lewis (CU) dec. Joel Webster (EU), 7-3 3-6
149 James Fleming (CU) dec. Kory Bissett (EU), 2-0 3-9
157 #16 Hadley Harrison (CU) maj. dec. John Greisheimer (EU), 12-0 3-13
165 #5 Jarrod King (EU) maj. dec. Nick Milano (CU), 17-4 7-13
174 Phil Moricone (EU) fall over Steven Cressley (CU), 4:37 13-13
184 Pat Bradshaw (EU) dec. Clint Podish (CU), 2-1 16-13
197 Shawn Fendone (EU) fall over Alex Thomas (CU), 2:36 22-13
Hwt. #17 Chris Birchler (EU) dec. Phil Catrucco (CU), 8-4 25-13

Records: Edinboro 5-4, 1-0 EWL
Clarion 2-4, 0-1