Back-to-back emotional wins by Drew Lashaway and Clint Sponseller got the good guys off and running at Clarion University Wednesday night. Lashaway trailed late in the third period against Sal Lascari, but a flurry of late action gave him a big 6-5 win. Sponseller fell behind Hadley Harrison 6-4 with inside of a minute remaining in regulation, but a reversal and headlock turned the score around, making Sponseller a 9-6 winner, and forging Kent State in front, 6-0.
"That was a good start for us, especially with how defensive I thought we wrestled," head coach Jim Andrassy said. "We got a little frustrated but we held on and fought hard."
However, any momentum Kent State might have gathered with the pair of wins quickly evaporated when the Eagles rallied to win the next two. At 157, Travis Uncapher knocked off Patrick Lanham 7-2 and then Clarion tied things up with a 3-0 win at 165. David Cox notched the shutout of Sli Bostelman, 3-0 as the teams were now even at 6-6.
In the 174-pound bout, Chris Estep snapped a seven-period scoreless streak for KSU with a third period reversal of Mario Morelli. Protecting a precarious 2-1 lead, Estep allowed a perimeter reversal with 0:17 remaining to suffer a heart-breaking 3-2 decision. It gave Kent State its first deficit since the Michigan dual Dec. 7.
Kent State quelled the uprising in the person of Eric Chine at 184. Despite being the third straight Flashes wrestler to be held scoreless in the first two periods, Chine's three-spot in the third frame erased a 1-0 deficit. He held on for a 3-2 win.
The offensive drought continued with Michael Blackwell at 197. Trailing 1-0 into the third, he needed just three seconds to tie Jamie Luckett with an escape. With neither competitor showing any desire to shoot, the bout remained tied 1-1 into overtime. In the bonus session, the lack of offense continued, sending the match into the tiebreaker. Luckett won the toss, was warned for stalling between periods and was never able to break free of Blackwell's grip. Needing only an escape to win, Blackwell took down. With seven seconds gone by, Blackwell rolled Luckett for the reversal, and simply rode him out for the mind-boggling 3-1 win.
"We have varying styles," Blackwell said. "He is real heavy-handed and tried to keep me from doing anything. They (Clarion) videotaped us last week and his coaches told him to slow me down. All I knew was I was better conditioned and after the first shot I knew I'd have to win it with conditioning."
"It came down to shape, it's never going to be a conditioning thing for Michael, it's always about his confidence," Andrassy added.
With a 12-9 advantage, Kent State put its fortunes into the good hands of returning NCAA qualifier Jermail Porter. Perhaps growing ever tired of the lack of first and second period points, Porter tallied a pair of takedowns in the first period to build a 4-1 lead. The next two periods were simply more of the same as Porter rolled to the 8-2 decision.
The Flashes' three-match win streak was then lengthened at 125 as Nic Bedelyon twice rallied from behind against Jay Ivanco and then suddenly secured a dramatic fall with 47 seconds remaining in the second stanza. The action concluded with another solid performance by Dan Mitcheff. The undefeated junior rolled up more than four minutes of advantage time and cruised to a 6-1 win over Rob LaBrake. The decision added to Kent State's lead and gave the Flashes a 24-9 win.
"Our guys are tired, and that was my intent. With the five days off before the Southern Scuffle I wanted to burn them out with practices and tonight's meet. This isn't a bad time to be tired, but I was pleased with the outcome," Andrassy said.
Kent State will take a Christmas recess from action before heading south for the always-tough Southern Scuffle. The Flashes will see national champion Minnesota and many other top teams and individuals at the Greensboro Coliseum in North Carolina. The tournament will be held on Dec. 29 and 30.
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