Cornell won the two feature matches before the intermission to take control of the dual, as ninth-ranked Chris Villalonga topped No. 10 Mitch Minotti at 149 pounds, 3-0, and freshman Brian Realbuto upset No. 8 Joey Napoli with an 8-0 major decision.
After a scoreless first period, Villalonga rode out Minotti in the second and took down to begin the third. The senior reversed Minotti midway through the period and added 1:26 of riding time to capture the match 3-0.
Realbuto dominated the unbeaten Napoli from the whistle, taking down the senior 18 seconds in and catching him for two near-fall points to make it 4-0 before capturing nearly three minutes of ride time. Napoli took bottom trailing 4-0, and not only did the rookie ride him out, but he also turned him for two more near-fall points to go into the final period with a 6-0 lead with ride time locked in. Realbuto escaped with 42 seconds to spare and used more than three minutes on top to take home the 8-0 major decision.
Nashshon Garrett had a fairly easy go of it at 125 pounds to open the dual, topping Darian Cruz 10-3. With three first period takedowns, the sophomore rolled to a 6-2 lead after one. Cruz scored the second period's only points with an escape, and a quick escape and a final takedown for Garrett, along with more than two minutes of riding time, made it a 10-3 final. The win was Garrett's 11th consecutive.
After Lehigh's sixth-ranked Mason Breckman topped Logan David 12-1 at 133 pounds to give Lehigh a 4-3 lead in the dual, senior Mike Nevinger responded with a dominant 11-0 major decision over Jim Carucci. After a scoreless first and leading just 3-0 heading into the third, Nevinger dominated the final period, earning two stall points from Carucci along with a takedown and a late three-point near-fall to complete the shutout, one of three on the day for Cornell.
At 165 pounds, freshman Dylan Palacio won a wild 17-8 major over Ben Haas. Haas got the initial takedown in the first period, but an illegal hold call on the Mountain Hawk and a Palacio escape tied it at 2-2 after the first three minutes. Palacio was able to reverse Haas early in the second and then used a cradle to pick up a pair of two-point near-fall scores to make it 8-2 heading into the third. The third was a flurry of scoring, as Palacio had three takedowns and reversed one by Haas, the final coming with two seconds left in the match to secure the major decision.
With Cornell leading the dual 18-4 heading into 174, Lehigh got back on the board when No. 17 Elliot Riddick outlasted Duke Pickett, 7-4. Riddick used a pair of second period takedowns and three overall to enter the final period up 6-3. With the visitor choosing down to start the third, Pickett tried to score from the top, nearly catching his ranked opponent twice, but Riddick was able to earn a late escape to neutralize Pickett's 1:24 in riding time to earn the decision.
In his first match since ending the 84-match win streak of Penn State's Ed Ruth, Gabe Dean dominated en route to a technical fall with 44 seconds left on the clock in the third, topping Zach Diekel 20-5. An early takedown and a three-point near-fall in the first gave Dean a comfortable lead, and he just built on it in the second. He escaped, then earned four takedowns of Diekel, who suffered an injury in the first period and toughed through the match. Dean made fast work of Diekel in the third with three quick takedowns on top of his more than three minutes of riding time that was already locked in to give Cornell the dual meet win with two matches remaining.
Jace Bennett was victorious over John Bolich at 197 pounds thanks in large part to a huge second period. Bennett earned a takedown early in the first before Bolich was granted a last-second escape to make it 2-1 after the first three minutes. Bennett earned a reversal and a two-point near-fall to make it 6-1, and with riding time nearly locked in, was the aggressor in the third. Bolich was hit with a stall warning with less than 20 seconds remaining, and Bennett was able to secure the big takedown with two seconds left to give him the major and extend Cornell's lead to 27-7.
Lehigh decided to forfeit the heavweight bout, giving Cornell its final 33-7 margin.
Results:
125 Pounds - #2 Nahshon Garrett (C) won by decision over Darian Cruz (L), 10-3
133 Pounds - #6 Mason Breckman (L) won by major decision over Logan David (C), 12-1
141 Pounds - #11 Mike Nevinger (C) won by major decision over Jim Carucci (L), 11-0
149 Pounds - #9 Chris Villalonga (C) won by decision over #10 Mitch Minotti (L), 3-0
157 Pounds - #10 Brian Realbuto (C) won by major decision over #8 Joey Napoli (L), 8-0
165 Pounds - #17 Dylan Palacio (C) won by major decision over Ben Haas (L), 17-8
174 Pounds - #17 Elliot Riddick (L) won by decision over Duke Pickett (C), 7-4
184 Pounds - #2 Gabe Dean (C) won by tech fall over Zach Diekel (L), 20-5 (6:16)
197 Pounds - #18 Jace Bennett (C) won by major decision over John Bolich (L), 9-1
285 Pounds - Jacob Aiken-Phillips (C) won by forfeit over Doug Vollaro (L)
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