"The reason we wrestle against a team like Nebraska is so we can get ready for the end of the year," head coach Mark Cody said. "Regardless of the outcome it's definitely a step forward. My guys fought hard."
The Eagles fell behind early in the match, losing the first three bouts, two by fall. In his first match of the year, 141 pounder Jordan Zipkin (Hewlett Harbor, N.Y./Lynbrooke) was pinned by No. 18 Dominick Moyer in the first period. Senior Tom Kniezewski (Boyertown, Pa./Boyertown) next dropped a 12-6 decision at 149 and Rudy Rueda (Waldorf, Md./DeMatha) got as close as 5-3 in the third period before getting pinned with just 17 seconds left.
"On paper, we felt that we were going to win those two [the Kniezewski and Rueda matches]," Cody said.
The Eagles were down 15-0 with Muzaffar Abdurakhmanov (Tashkent, Uzbekistan) up. The undefeated No. 4 ranked 165 pound wrestler was due to face the Huskers' Marc Harwood who's ranked No. 16 in the country. Instead, Abdurakhmanov wrestled David Ingalls and ran to a 12-4 lead before pinning him at the 3:58 mark for the Eagles' first victory. The returning EIWA champion at 157 is now 15-0 in the 2005-06 season.
At 174 Dwayne Hash-Barberis (Scotia, N.Y./Scotia Glenville) was faced with the unenviable task of taking on returning All-American No. 3 Jacob Klein who proved his ability by way of an 18-2 tech fall at the 3:49 mark.
In the most anticipated matchup of the night, No. 3 Josh Glenn (Johnson City, N.Y./Johnson City) took on up-and-coming No. 10 Vince Jones at 184. The Huskers' Jones had recently defeated the No. 2 184 pounder in the country and won all four of his matches at the National Duals Tournament. Glenn stepped on the mat with a 20-1 record with 14 pins and left it 21-1 with 15 pins, putting the Nebraska freshman on his back at the 1:17 mark after leading at 4-2.
After Tyler Flatt (Albany, N.Y./Blair Academy) was pinned by No. 3 B.J. Padden at 197 and the score was 26-12, No. 14 Adam LoPiccolo (Glen Rock, Pa./Glen Rock) stepped in with No. 18 John May. LoPiccolo struggled with May early in the first, but battled back with an escape and a takedown in the second for a 5-4 lead before pinning May at the 4:07 mark.
"He got a very slow start," Cody said of the LoPiccolo's match. "He cannot get a slow start like that if he's going to win a big match. He has to come out ready to go and be confident in his attack."
Omaha native Matt Morkel (Omaha, Neb./Skutt) was up next against No. 9 Paul Donahoe and fought him to down 2-1 after the first. Donahoe ran up a 5-1 lead over the next two periods and a Morkel escape at 1:45 left the score at 5-2 where it would remain to the end. With the loss, Morkel is 8-4 on the year.
Though the dual was out of reach at 29-18, Lipp wrestled, in Cody's words, his best match of the season to take a 2-1 win over Patrick Aleksanyan. The match was tied at 1-1 when Aleksanyan was called for a second stalling warning and Lipp was awarded a penalty point. The freshman has won all five of his matches since the end of the first semester.
"The reason we felt we had a good chance is because on paper we matched up with them where they were tough," Cody explained. "In the end, we're a couple breaks away from winning the dual."
American hits the match next against Sacred Heart in their first home dual of the year at 2 p.m. on Sunday Jan. 29.
** Please note the finalized schedule for Sunday's dual is at 2 p.m.
#5 Nebraska 29, American 21
141-#18 Dominick Moyer (NU) by fall over Jordan Zipkin (AU), 1:27
149-Ryan Davis (NU) by dec. over Tom Kniezewski (AU), 12-6
157-#16 Chris Oliver (NU) by fall over Rudy Rueda (AU), 6:43
165-#4 Muzzaffar Abdurakhmanov (AU) by fall over David Ingalls (NU), 3:58
174-#3 Jacob Klein (NU) by tech. fall over Dwayne Hash (AU), 18-2; 3:49
184-#5 Josh Glenn (AU) by fall over #10 Vince Jones (NU), 1:17
197-#5 B.J. Padden (NU) by fall over Tyler Flatt (AU), 3:48
HWT-#15 Adam LoPiccolo (AU) by fall over Jon May (NU), 4:07
125-#9 Paul Donahoe (AU) by dec. over Matt Morkel (AU), 5-2
133-Jordan Lipp (AU) by dec. over Patrick Aleksanyan (NU), 2-1
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