Jump to content
  • Playwire Ad Area
  • Photo:

    Photo:

    No. 12 Cornell (Iowa) wins 26-12 over Simpson

    MOUNT VERNON -- Aburough Abegesah (JR/Beltsville, Md.) gave Cornell's wrestling team the spark it needed with a dominant victory at 197 pounds as the 12th-ranked Rams took down Simpson, 26-12, on Military Appreciation Night Tuesday in the Small Multi-Sport Center.

    The Rams (5-5) built an early 15-0 lead through three matches, but then saw Simpson (2-3) storm back and cut the margin to 18-12 going into the 197-pound bout.

    Abegesah quickly turned momentum in favor of the Rams, notching 11 first-period points en route to a 22-6 technical fall in 5:22 over Ethan Calvert. Abegesah (5-7) recorded four 3-point near falls and four takedowns to seal the team win for Cornell, which has now won 11 straight duals against the Storm.

    Cornell heavyweight Eric Tucker (JR/Monroe, Conn.) put the finishing touches on the victory, recording a takedown with 12 seconds remaining to beat Colby Vlieger, 3-1. Tucker (9-5) improved his December record to 6-0.

    The Rams picked up six individual wins, including a forfeit handed to 125-pounder Scott Smith (JR/Chicago, Ill.) (6-10) to start the night. Sophomore Phillip Opelt (SO/Neillsville, Wis.), ranked fifth at 133, gave Cornell six more points with a second-period pin in 3:27 over Devan Berrian. Opelt took over the team lead for wins at 10-5.

    Sophomore Nathan Shank (SO/Iowa City, Iowa) (3-6) posted three takedowns in his 8-5 decision over Dalton Kenig at 141, stretching Cornell's margin to 15-0.

    The Storm strung together three tight wins to cut the deficit to 15-9. Ram freshman 149-pounder Josh Martin (FR/Lombard, Ill.) led Jonathan Melton most of the way in a 6-5 loss that was decided by riding time. Cornell's Aaron Engle (SO/Kansas City, Mo.) fell 7-5 to Jake Mize, who scored a takedown with one second left in the first overtime period. Simpson's Brian Haynes then edged Michael Maksimovic (SO/Northbrook, Ill.), 3-1, at 165.

    Senior 10th-ranked Brent Hamm (SR/Iowa City, Iowa) (7-6) got the Rams back on track with a 5-2 decision over Brett Roberts at 174. The Storm countered with a 7-4 win at 184 from Spencer Ward over James Garrett (SO/Fountain, Colo.), closing the gap to 18-12.

    The Rams held a 14-10 advantage in total takedowns. Cornell finished with 12 near-fall points – all from Abegesah – to Simpson's three.

    Coming up – The Rams get a break from competition until the Citrus Invitational Dec. 29-30 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

    The 12-team individual tournament includes No. 9 Mount Union, No. 11 Augsburg, No. 12 Cornell, Case, John Carroll, Liberty, Williams, Western New England, Ursinus, SUNY-Oneonta, Florida Gulf Coast and Knox.

    User Feedback

    Recommended Comments

    There are no comments to display.



    Create an account or sign in to comment

    You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

    Create an account

    Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

    Register a new account

    Sign in

    Already have an account? Sign in here.

    Sign In Now

  • Playwire Ad Area
×
×
  • Create New...