Michigan
Lehigh
Wolverines Fall at No. 2 Lehigh in Dual Season Opener
11/18/2004 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
BETHLEHEM, Pa. -- Despite gaining the initial lead with a victory in the first match of the contest, the No. 6-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team dropped a 22-15 decision against No. 2 Lehigh in its season opener Thursday (Nov. 18) at Leeman-Turner Arena. With the matches split at five apiece, bonus points played a key factor in the Lehigh victory as the Mountain Hawks scored extra points in four of their individual wins.
After junior/sophomore Mark Moos (Lorain, Ohio/St. Edwards HS) gave the Wolverines a 3-0 advantage with an 11-9 victory over John Stout at 125 pounds, Lehigh tallied big points with back-to-back wins in the subsequent two bouts to steal away the lead for good. Moos built a sizable lead through the first six minutes, scoring a takedown and two-point near fall in the opening frame before adding a reversal and early third-period takedown. Stout went on the attack late in the bout, scoring two takedowns to cut the deficit, but Moos was able to hang on for the decision.
The Mountain Hawks took control of the meet as Jeffrey Santo and fourth-ranked Cory Cooperman combined for 11 team points with a fall and technical fall at 133 and 141 pounds, respectively. Freshman Craig Gillison (Arcadia, Mich./Benzie Central HS) had earned an early advantage over Santo, shooting in just seconds into the match to take the Lehigh wrestler right to his back in a four-point move. The Wolverine freshman collected another pair of back points to amass a 6-0 lead, but Santo reached behind to come from underneath for the pin at the 1:03 mark. Cooperman dominated throughout the 141 bout against junior/sophomore J.R. Muldoon (Northville, Mich./Novi HS), scoring six takedowns, a reversal and seven back points en route to a 21-5 victory.
Michigan narrowed the Mountain Hawks' lead to two points with decisions at 149 and 157 pounds as sophomore/freshman Eric Tannenbaum (Naperville, Ill./North HS) picked up his first varsity win and fifth-year senior captain Ryan Bertin (Broadview Heights, Ohio/St. Edward HS) topped eighth-ranked Derek Zinck 7-4. Tannenbaum earned three takedowns and riding-time advantage while allowing Lehigh's Matt Anderson just three escapes in a 7-3 decision, while Bertin scored early and used his superior technique to never allow Zinck into the match.
Lehigh earned victories in three of the last five bouts, including major decisions by its pair of top-ranked wrestlers -- Troy Letters at 165 pounds and Jon Trenge at 197. Letters tallied six takedowns and accumulated riding-time advantage to defeat senior/junior captain Ryan Churella (Northville, Mich./Novi HS) 13-5 in the Wolverine wrestler's first match after bumping up two weight classes. Similarly, Trenge was dominant from his feet against senior/junior Willie Breyer (Oxford, Mich./Oxford HS), scoring six takedowns as well as a reversal and two-point near fall in a 17-5 victory.
In perhaps the most impressive U-M victory of the contest, junior/sophomore Nick Roy (Wall, N.J./Wall HS), ranked 15th by Amateur Wrestling News, stayed on the offensive through three periods to collect a 10-6 decision against fourth-ranked Travis Frick at 174 pounds. Roy took the first shot of the match, scoring a takedown early in the opening period, but Frick came back later in the frame with a takedown of his own and the score was knotted at 3-3 after three minutes. In the remaining two periods, Roy controlled the action with three takedowns, including two late in the third period, while holding Frick to just three escapes.
U-M will split the squad this weekend, sending 10 wrestlers to the Body Bar Invitational on Saturday (Nov. 20) in Ithaca, N.Y., while the remaining Wolverines will head north to East Lansing, Mich., for the annual Michigan State Open on Saturday and Sunday (Nov. 20-21).
#2 Lehigh 22, #6 Michigan 15
(Individual rankings from Amateur Wrestling News)
| 125 -- #11 Mark Moos (U-M) dec. John Stout, 11-9 | U-M, 3-0 |
| 133 -- Jeffrey Santo (LU) pinned Craig Gillison, 1:03 | LU, 6-3 |
| 141 -- #4 Cory Cooperman (LU) tech. fall J.R. Muldoon, 21-5 (4:51) | LU, 11-3 |
| 149 -- Eric Tannenbaum (U-M) dec. #14 Matt Anderson, 7-3 | LU, 11-6 |
| 157 -- #3 Ryan Bertin (U-M) dec. #8 Derek Zinck, 7-4 | LU, 11-9 |
| 165 -- #1 Troy Letters (LU) major dec. Ryan Churella, 13-5 | LU, 15-9 |
| 174 -- #15 Nick Roy (U-M) dec. #5 Travis Frick, 10-6 | LU, 15-12 |
| 184 -- #17 Matt Cassidy (LU) dec. Joshua Weitzel, 9-4 | LU, 18-12 |
| 197 -- #1 Jon Trenge (LU) major dec. Willie Breyer, 17-5 | LU, 22-12 |
| Hwt -- #4 Greg Wagner (U-M) dec. Paul Weibel, 8-3 | LU, 22-15 |
Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
