Freshman Connor Hanafee (133), junior Casey Thome (141), sophomore Jimmy Rafferty (149) and freshman Collin Wittmeyer (184) were each also double-winners for Army, which improved its dual meet mark to 7-3 this winter.
"Having been off for two weeks, I was concerned with would be a bit rusty, but overall I thought we wrestled pretty well," said Army head coach Chuck Barbee. "We did the things we've been working on in practice, transitioning well from move to move, so I thought it was a good day. Our seniors have been great over the last four years and I was especially happy to see them come out here fired up today. They didn't have easy matches, but they really just turned it up a notch and I was proud of all of those guys. They have been mainstays in our lineup and I am excited about making the end-run with them."
Army 46, Sacred Heart 3
Penhale got things going in the opening match, taking a 6-1 decision from Pat Feely in the final minute of the bout. Feeley looked to have a win in hand late, leading 1-0 after a second-period escape with a 1:01 riding time advantage. However, Penhale notched an escape of his own with 1:00 left in regulation and received another point after Feely was called for stalling with 15 seconds left on the clock. Looked to be headed to overtime, Penhale took Feely down to his back with under five seconds left, and was credited with a two-point near-fall to finish off the decision.
Following a Sacred Heart forfeit at 133, Thome built a 13-2 lead in the second period with a 7-0 spurt that included two near-falls, before sticking Michael Impellizeri on his back at 4:52 to earn the fall.
Filling in for senior captain and eighth-ranked Matt Kyler who was sidelined with a stomach bug, Rafferty followed with a 4-2 decision over Cory Dunn at 149 pounds. Rafferty went up 3-0 in the second period following an escape and a takedown and built nearly a two-minute riding time advantage to seal the decision to put Army ahead, 18-0.
Sacred Heart's Anthony Priore (157) and Jonathan Rizzitello (165) were both leading their respective bouts, but were each forced to injury default to give the Black Knights a commanding 30-0 lead.
Army notched three-straight bonus-point victories en route to its seventh dual-meet win in its last eight outings. Mergen was in control of Sacred Heart's Mike Hartmen well into the third period before putting him on his back for his first fall of the season with 41 seconds left in the 174-pound bout. Whittmeyer made short work of Sam Sheppard, putting him on his back with only 1:59 elapsed in the contest. After a scoreless first period opposite Ricky Eichenlaub at 197, Starks nearly pinned his opponent while outscoring him 6-0 in the second period en route to a 11-0 major decision.
Sacred Heart's Paul Schweighardt earned a touch 6-4 decision over Black Knight freshman Christian Botero in the final bout for the only decision for the visitors on the night.
Army 37, Millersville 6
In Army's opening match, Penhale got the Black Knights off to a quick start against Millersville, taking Matt Devestine down 20 seconds into the opening bout and pinning him 23 seconds later. Following a pair of Maurader forfeits at 133 and 141, Rafferty used a third-period escape to earn a 3-2 victory over J.J. Lester to put Army up, 21-0.
Millersville registered back-to-back decisions at 157 and 165 to cut into the Army lead, but three-straight dominating Army performances put the match out of reach. Mergen used a 7-0 third period to cruise to a 12-1 major decision over Shane Smith at 174, before Wittmeyer pulled away late with four takedowns in the third period to secure a 16-7 major decision over Josh Marquad at 184. At 197, Starks made short work of Brent Barr, building a 14-0 first-period lead and notching an early takedown in the second to earn the 16-0 technical fall.
Botero finished things off at 285, using a third-period takedown to defeat Chase Godfrey, 3-2, to complete the Army victory.
The Black Knights will return to action next Saturday, wrapping up the dual meet portion of the schedule with a 7:00 p.m. showdown at service-academy rival Navy.
Army 46, Sacred Heart 3
125 - Lance Penhale (A) dec. Pat Feely, 6-1
133 - Conor Hanafee (A) win by forfeit
141 - Casey Thome (A) pin. Michael Impellizeri, 4:52
149 - Jimmy Rafferty (A) dec. Cory Dunn, 4-2
157 - Dan Young (A) inj. def. Anthony Priore
165 - Patrick Marchetti (A) inj. def. Jonathan Rizzitello
174 - Ryan Mergen (A) pin. Mike Hartmen 6:19
184 - Collin Whittmeyer (A) pin. Sam Sheppard 1:01
197 - #17 Richard Starks (A) maj. Ricky Eichenlaub, 11-0
285 - Paul Schweighardt (S) dec. Christian Botero, 6-4
Army 37, Millersville 6
125 - Lance Penhale (A) pin Matt Devestine, :43
133 - Connor Hanafee (A) win by forfeit
141 - Casey Thome (A) win by forfeit
149 - Jimmy Rafferty (A) dec. J.J. Lester, 3-2
157 - Jarrett Hostetter (M) dec. Dan Young, 3-1
165 - Jeremy Brooks (M) dec. Patrick Marchetti, 3-2
174 - Ryan Mergen (A) maj. Shane Smith, 12-1
184 - Collin Wittmeyer (A) maj. Josh Marquad, 16-7
197 - #17 Richard Starks (A) tech. Brent Barr, 16-0 (3:25)
285 - Christian Botero (A) dec. Chase Godfrey, 3-2
Sacred Heart 30, Millersville 15
125 - Pat Feely (S) pin. Matt Devestine, :32
133 - Tim Yoon (M) win by forfeit
141 - Mike Impellizeri (S) win by forfeit
149 - Cory Dunn (S) dec. J.J. Lester, 3-1 (OT)
157 - Jarrett Hostetter (M) dec. Anthony Priore, 5-2
165 - Jonathan Rizzitello (S) dec. Jeremy Brooks, 8-6
174 - Shane Smith (M) pin. Sam Sheppard, 2:50
184 - Mike Hartman (S) dec. Josh Marquard, 5-3
197 - Ricky Eichenlaub (S) pin. Brent Barr, 1:30
285 - Paul Schweighardt (S), dec. Chase Godfrey, 3-2 (OT)
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