For the most part, the 17th-ranked Chippewas accomplished those goals Sunday as they won seven matches in defeating Virginia, 22-10, in their first dual meet of the season at McGuirk Arena.
“We're really emphasizing, kind of changing our culture, to score more points,†said CMU junior Colin Heffernan, who recorded an 8-6 victory at 157 pounds. “Every match we're trying to go out there and get as many points as we can.
“If we're wrestling to score points it's going to pay off. The whole time we're trying to attack and score as many points as we can.â€
Heffernan, who is ranked 12th nationally, topped 20th-ranked Andrew Atkinson in the only match that featured two ranked wrestlers.
Heffernan recorded four takedowns in his bout, as did teammate Jordan Ellingwood, who took a 10-2 major decision victory at 184.
The Chippewas finished with 20 takedowns in the meet to Virginia's 10. The Cavaliers are 0-2.
“I know Virginia's not ranked in the top 25, but I know they have a very talented team,†CMU coach Tom Borrelli said. “If you know high school wrestling and you know the credentials of their kids coming out of high school, you know how talented they are.â€
The Chippewas also got victories from Corey Keener (133), Justin Oliver (149), C.J. Brucki (174), Austin Severn (197) and Newton Smerchek (heavyweight).
Both Keener and Oliver had to come from behind to win their respective matches.
“It wasn't easy today,†Borrelli said. “We had to fight to win some matches. I think when you're put in tough situations – (Keener) was really close to getting pinned, and (Oliver) was down 4-0 – and you figure out how to come back and win, you learn a lot. Those things are all plusses.
“I was pleased with the way they kept their composure and came back. I know our guys had to push through a lot today. Our guys were tired; they were really tired. The first-match jitters, that anxiety takes a little bit out of you. You can always get better conditioning wise. You're never in good enough shape.â€
The Chippewas' Brent Fleetwood (125) lost to Jack Mueller, a standout freshman who improved to 6-0 on the season. CMU's lineup included two freshmen, Mason Smith (141) and Logan Parks (165).
Smith's opponent, George DiCamillo, is ranked 10th nationally, while Parks faced a senior, Ray Bethea. DiCamillo scored a 13-4 major decision over Smith, while Parks dropped a 3-1 decision.
“Mason's going to be good,†Borrelli said. “He's got a lot of fundamental things to work on. He's a big-move kind of guy. He's wrestling a guy who's ranked in the top 10 in the country. Fundamentals is what beats those guys, not tricks. He tried a lot of tricks and they didn't work for him.
“Logan, he wrestled a senior and the guy was pretty cagey. He kind of stole the match from Logan. He got a takedown and then hung on to Logan on the edge of the mat in the third period.
“They spent probably 40 seconds in a situation right on the edge of the mat in the third period, which is really good strategy if you have the lead. You're burning time and if you're almost taken down you can get out of bounds. The guy was smart enough and Logan's a freshman, he doesn't understand what the guy's doing there.â€
The Chippewas go to the Michigan State Open next Sunday, then to the Cliff Keen Invitational on Dec. 2-3.
“Our goals are high,†Heffernan said. “They are every year. No matter what we're ranked, we want to get 10 guys at the NCAA Tournament, we want to get 10 guys wrestling their best and bring home a trophy from the NCAA Tournament.
“My goal is to be an NCAA champion and I'm hoping every other guy on the team has a goal to be an NCAA champion. If we all set our goals high, we expect to achieve those goals. If we don't expect to achieve those goals there's not point in wrestling the season.â€
Results:
125: Jack Mueller (UVA) dec. Brent Fleetwood, 8-4
133: Corey Keener (CMU) dec. Will Mason, 11-7
141: George DiCamillo (UVA) major dec. Mason Smith, 13-4
149: Justin Oliver (CMU) dec. Sam Krivus, 8-6
157: Colin Heffernan (CMU) dec. Andrew Atkinson, 8-6
165: Ray Bethea (UVA) dec. Logan Parks, 3-1
174: C.J. Brucki (CMU) dec. Tyler Askey, 6-0
184: Jordan Ellingwood (CMU) major dec. Will Schany, 10-2
197: Austin Severn (CMU) dec. Chance McClure, 6-1
HWT: Newton Smerchek (CMU) dec. Chuck Boddy, 4-1
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