The victory for was the first for Rutgers (11-2, 4-0 EIWA) over Lehigh since the squad picked up a 16-11 decision over the Mountain Hawks on Feb. 22, 1950 and the second win against Lehigh in the program’s history. Lehigh (5-5, 2-3 EIWA) had won the previous 38 matchups in the series. It also marked the first time sixth-year head coach Scott Goodale beat the Mountain Hawks in his career.
Senior 125-pounder Joe Langel (Howell, N.J.) and sophomore 165-pounder Nick Visicaro (Long Branch, N.J.) each picked up bonus-point victories, while senior 174-pounder Greg Zannetti (Edision, N.J.), ranked No. 13, tallied a decision over No. 12 Nathaniel Brown of Lehigh.
The match started at 125 pounds, and Langel put the Scarlet Knights up 4-0 with the 11-1 major decision over Alex Abreu. Rutgers would take a 7-0 lead after junior Vincent Dellefave (Toms River, N.J.) earned a hard-fought 3-2 decision over Mountain Hawk Randy Cruz.
After Lehigh took a 10-7 lead following No. 3 Joey Napoli picking up a major decision at 157-pounds, Visicaro brought the Scarlet Knights back with a 17-6 major decision over the Mountain Hawks’ Ben Haas.
The highlight of the night came in a ranked-on-ranked bout between No. 16 Zannetti and No. 10 Brown at 174 pounds. The match went back-and-forth and was tied at 3-3 after Brown got called for stalling with 52 seconds remaining in the third period. With 11 seconds left on the clock. Zannetti picked up a vital takedown to earn the 5-3 decision, giving Rutgers a 14-10 lead.
In the 184-pound bout, senior Dan Rinaldi (Lodi, N.J.), ranked No. 13, wrestled No. 3 Robert Hamlin of Lehigh to a tightly contested match, but fell by decision, 4-2. Following a loss for the Scarlet Knights by decision at 197, Rutgers was down 16-14 heading to the deciding heavyweight bout.
Smith came out on a roll, earning a takedown in the first period to take a 2-0 lead over Mountain Hawk Jack Delia. In the second period, the freshman tallied three points with an escape and a takedown to go up 5-0 and wouldn’t look back. Smith held the third period scoreless and earned one point with a 2:08 riding time advantage to seal the victory for the Scarlet Knights.
Rutgers is back in action on the road, taking on Harvard on Sunday, Jan. 20 in Cambridge, Mass., at 1 p.m. before traveling to Providence, R.I., to face Brown at 6:30 p.m. on the same day. Both matches are EIWA contests.
Follow Rutgers Athletics on Facebook (www.facebook.com/RutgersAthletics) and Twitter (@RUAthletics) for all of the latest news and updates. For specific updates regarding Rutgers wrestling, follow the program on Twitter (@RUWrestling). Fans can receive timely information, including special offers and giveaways throughout the year on our social media outlets along with www.ScarletKnights.com.
Results:
125: Joe Langel (RU) major dec. Alex Abreu (Lehigh), 11-1
133: Vincent Dellefave (RU) dec. Randy Cruz (Lehigh), 3-2
141: Laike Gardner (Lehigh) dec. Trevor Melde (RU), 5-3
149: Shane Welsh (Lehigh) dec. Ken Theobold (RU), 5-1
157: No. 4 Joey Napoli (Lehigh) major dec. No. 17 Scott Winston (RU), 9-1
165: Nick Visicaro (RU) major dec. Ben Haas (Lehigh), 17-6
174: No. 16 Greg Zannetti (RU) dec. No. 10 Nathaniel Brown (Lehigh), 5-3
184: No. 3 Robert Hamlin (Lehigh) dec. No. 13 Dan Rinaldi (RU), 4-2
197: John Bolich (Lehigh) dec. Dan Seidenberg (RU), 4-2
HWT: Billy Smith (RU) dec. Jack Delia (Lehigh), 6-0
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