Michigan
Penn State
Dowd, Smith Earn Falls as Michigan Rolls Past Penn State
2/15/2003 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 9-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team cruised to a 25-17 victory over 12th-ranked Penn State Saturday night (Feb. 15) in front of 738 fans at Cliff Keen Arena. The Wolverines won six bouts in the meet to improve their home record to 5-0.
| | Dowd's second pin of the year gave U-M an early 9-0 lead. |
Dowd, ranked eighth, gave Michigan a 10-point lead after just the second match with his fall against ninth-ranked Josh Moore. Dowd struck first in the bout, scoring a takedown midway through the first period, but Moore responded late in the period, scoring a takedown of his own and adding three-point near fall. Moore held on to the four-point lead until late into the final period when Dowd scored a takedown and put the Lion on his back to earn the pin at 6:46.
With the Nittany Lions cutting the Michigan lead down to six points with two bouts remaining, Smith sealed the win for Michigan, collecting a fall over Ryan Cummins at the 2:54 mark. Smith came out strong in the first period, aggressively attacking Cummins, but could not score until late in the period when he collected a takedown and put the Lion on his back to earn the pin with six seconds remaining.
Senior captain A.J. Grant (Clarkston, Mich./Clarkston HS), ranked fourth by InterMat, put the Wolverines on the board first, earning a 12-4 victory over the Nittany Lions' Adam Smith at 125 pounds. After taking the early lead with a pair of first-period takedowns, Grant went on the attack again in the final frame, adding three more takedowns, including one with 15 seconds remaining to give him the major decision.
At 141 pounds, senior/junior Clark Forward (Archbold, Ohio/Archbold HS) posted a strong first period to collect a 7-4 upset victory over 15th-ranked Scott Moore. With both wrestlers exchanging shots through much of the first frame, Forward took the lead after scoring a takedown and three-point near fall late in the period. Despite giving up a second-period takedown, the Wolverine was able to hang on, adding two more points to his score with a pair of escapes.
Penn State jumped onto the board at 149 pounds, where 20th-ranked Nate Galloway collected six team points by pinning redshirt freshman Ryan Churella (Northville, Mich./Novi HS), ranked 15th, just 25 seconds into the bout.
Junior/sophomore Ryan Bertin (Broadview Heights, Ohio/St. Edward HS), ranked eighth, sent the Wolverines into the break with the 10-point advantage after collecting a 3-1 overtime decision over ninth-ranked Nate Wachter at 157 pounds. With both wrestlers scoring only an escape during regulation, the bout went into overtime with the score tied a one point apiece. Bertin broke the tie midway through the extra frame, scoring a takedown to collect the win.
The Nittany Lions cut down the Michigan lead at 165 pounds as Doc Vecchio earned a 14-11 decision over senior/junior Pat Owen (Polson, Mont./Polson HS). Owen had gained the initial lead with a pair of takedowns in the first period and held a four-point edge heading into the final frame. Vecchio exploded in the third period, however, scoring four takedowns to steal the lead and take the win.
In a close bout at 174 pounds, redshirt freshman R.J. Boudro (Richmond, Mich./Armada HS) earned the 10-8 decision over Dan Waters to bring the Michigan lead back to 10 points. Down by one point after the first period, Boudro gained the lead after scoring a reversal and a takedown in the second period. Waters retook the lead in the final frame with an escape and takedown, but Boudro battled back again, scoring a reversal late in the match and hanging on to collect riding time advantage.
Penn State collected two wins in the final three bouts. Fifth-ranked Mark Becks outwrestled redshirt freshman Willie Breyer (Oxford, Mich./Oxford HS), scoring eight takedowns, a reversal and a two-point near fall en route to a 22-10 major decision. Eighth-ranked Pat Cummins defeated redshirt freshman Tony Grygorzyk (Grand Rapids, Mich./West Catholic HS) 17-5 in the Wolverine wrestler's first collegiate dual meet. Cummins scored seven takedowns in the match and held Grygorzyk to just five escapes in the major decision.
The Wolverines will return to the mat tomorrow (Sunday, Feb. 16) to face Ohio State in their final home dual of the season. The meet is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Cliff Keen Arena.
#9 Michigan 25, #12 Penn State 17
(Individual rankings from Intermat)
| 125 -- #4 A.J. Grant (U-M) major dec. Adam Smith, 12-4 | U-M, 4-0 |
| 133 -- #7 Foley Dowd (U-M) pinned #9 Josh Moore, 6:46 | U-M, 10-0 |
| 141 -- Clark Forward (U-M) dec. #15 Scott Moore, 7-4 | U-M, 13-0 |
| 149 -- #20 Nate Galloway (PSU) pinned #15 Ryan Churella, 0:25 | U-M, 13-6 |
| 157 -- #8 Ryan Bertin (U-M) dec. #9 Nate Wachter (PSU), 3-1 OT | U-M, 16-6 |
| 165 -- Doc Vecchio (PSU) dec. Pat Owen, 14-11 | U-M, 16-9 |
| 174 -- R.J. Boudro (U-M) vs. Dan Waters, 10-8 | U-M, 19-9 |
| 184 -- #5 Mark Becks (PSU) major dec. Willie Breyer, 22-10 | U-M, 19-13 |
| 197 -- #17 Kyle Smith (U-M) pinned Ryan Cummins, 2:54 | U-M, 25-13 |
| Hwt -- #8 Pat Cummins (PSU) major dec. Tony Grygorzyk, 17-5 | U-M, 25-17 |
Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
