"We wrestled harder, and we're getting better," said Head Coach Rande Stottlemyer. "We have a lot of young guys, and I think they grew a little today. They performed well, and we made some progress."
At 125 pounds, true freshman Brad Gentzle (Easton, Pa./Easton) extended his dual match winning streak to three as his defeated Slippery Rock's Chris Clarke and Duquesne's Jonathan Bittinger. Against Clarke, Gentzle got to an early lead with a score of 6-3 after the first period. He gained two stalling points and an escape point in the second to move him to 9-3 heading into the final period. After being granted a point for riding time, Gentzle won with a 10-4 decision. He also won his match against Bittinger because of a Duquesne forfeit. Gentzle is now 3-2 in dual matches for the season and 5-8 overall.
Wrestling for the Panthers at 133 pound was senior Mike Ciott (Latrobe, Pa./Greater Latrobe). In his first match, Ciotti faced Slippery Rock's Sal Lascari where moved to a 9-1 lead in the first period with two takedowns and two near falls. Lascari scored an escape point in the second period to make it 9-2, but Ciotti stayed strong into the third, coming out with a 12-4 major decision. He also faced Duquesne's Keith Pavlekovsky, maintaining the lead the entire time as well. After an escape and takedown in the first period, Ciotti was up 3-2. He scored a point for riding time in the third to give him a 4-2 victory. Ciotti's two victories put him at 3-2 in dual matches and 9-7 for the season.
Joe Ciampoli (Altoona, Pa./Altoona) finished 1-1 for the evening after facing Slippery Rock's David Pienaar and Duquesne's Brad Cipriani. Pienaar took the lead for the Rock, finishing the first period 6-1, earning points for a near fall and takedown. He kept his momentum in the second with and escape and takedown while Ciampoli gained three for a takedown and escape. In the third period, Piennar pinned Ciampoli at the 5:54 mark, putting Slippery Rock on the board for the first time. Ciampoli was more successful with Duquesne, gaining a 3-0 lead in the second period against Cipriani. With a point for riding time, Ciampoli came away with a 4-1 win. He is now 1-2 in dual matches this season and 9-10 overall.
True freshman Joey Ecklof (Northampton, Pa./Northampton) had the most successful night for the Panthers, adding two more pins to his record book at 149 pounds. In his first match, he scored two points on a takedown before pinning Slippery Rock's Shawn Baglio at the 1:42 mark. Against Duquesne, Ecklof had two takedowns while Brandon Baldini scored one point on an escape in the first period. Ecklof won by fall at the 2:37 mark. These marked Ecklof's second and third pins for the season. He now moves to 2-2 in dual competition and 12-7 overall.
At 157 pounds was Sean Richmond (Emmaus, Pa./Easton) against Slippery Rock's Gerald Christian and Duquesne's Rob Dempsey. Against Christian, Richmond earned a 2-0 lead in the second period after an escape and a stalling point against Slippery Rock. Christian's escape in the third wasn't enough as Richmond received a 2-1 victory. He received his second win of the evening after a takedown in the first period against Dempsey put him at a 2-1 lead. An escape in the second advanced him to 3-1, and two takedowns in the third gave him a 7-3 decision. Richmond is now 2-3 in dual matches and 8-9 for the season.
Senior Justin Nestor (Transfer, Pa./Reynolds) kept the Panthers in the lead at 165 pounds. After going scoreless in the first two periods against Slippery Rock's Jason Cardillo, Nestor scored an escape point and a point for riding time in the third to give him a 2-0 win. His match against Duquesne's Cody Midlam started out the same way, scoreless in the first period before Nestor gained two points in the second for a takedown. He went on to win an escape point and two more for a takedown in the third to finish with a 5-0 decision. Nestor is now 3-2 on the season with 107 career victories.
At 174 pounds, Nick Padezan (Irwin, Pa./Penn Trafford) finished 1-1 with his win coming over Slippery Rock's Jeremiah Frederick. Padezan was down 2-1 in the first period, but came back in the second with an escape point to tie it. In the third period he gained three points for a near fall, earning a 4-3 victory. He also faced Duquesne's Jared Ricotta who took the lead 2-1 in the first period after a takedown, and with a point for riding time in the third, defeated Padezan 3-1. Padezan now stands at 2-2 in dual matches this season with a 9-9 record overall.
Wrestling for the Panthers at 184 was Kyle Deliere (Cecil, Pa./Canon-McMillan) who finished 0-2. In his first match, Slippery Rock's Charlie Pienaar took the lead 2-0 with a takedown in the first period. Deliere fought back in the second period with a near fall, but it wasn't enough after Pienaar was awarded two for a reversal. Pienaar won 4-3. Deliere also wrestled Duquesne's Mark Himes. Deliere scored two points on a takedown in the first while Himes came back with an escape and takedown as well. In the third period, Himes received a point for stalling by Pitt as well as a point for riding time, giving him a 5-3 victory. Deliere is now 0-5 in dual matches and 5-11 overall this season.
Mike Heist (Orefield, Pa./Parkland) had two successful matches at 197 pounds, fighting both into overtime. In his first match, he faced Slippery Rock's Andrew Joseph where the two went scoreless in the first period. Heist earned an escape point in the second while Joseph came back with one in the third to tie the score 1-1. The two remained tied after the first overtime, and Joseph scored an escape in the third. In the fourth, Heist came back with an escape to make the score 2-2. He went on to get a takedown in the fourth, giving him the 4-2 decision. Against Duquesne's Tim Frank, the two were also scoreless in the first period, but Heist scored an escape in the second to give him a 1-0 lead. Frank scored one in the third to tie it, and after the first overtime, the score remained at 1-1. In the third overtime, Heist won three points on a near fall to give him a 4-1 win. Heist's two wins make him 2-3 in dual matches and 4-8 overall.
At heavyweight, Lou Thomas (Parkersburg, W.Va./Parkersburg) was able to maintain his position as having the best dual record at Pitt this season, adding two more wins against Slippery Rock and Duquesne. Against the Rock's Matt Burkholder, Thomas took the lead in the first period with two points on a takedown. He scored an escape and takedown in the second to make the score 5-1 heading into the final period. In the third, he was given a point for riding time to win a 6-2 decision. Thomas faced Duquesne's Joe D'Orsie where he got an early 5-0 lead after a takedown and near fall in the first period. Another take down in each of the two following periods gave him a 9-0 victory. Thomas is now 4-1 in dual matches this season and 5-7 overall.
The Panthers' next match will be away as they travel to Lehigh next Friday for a 7 p.m. match. The match will broadcast of Fox College Sports Atlantic.
NOTE - Also wrestling was Belmont Abbey who faced both Duquesne and Slippery Rock. Their results have been posted as well.
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