Penn State Doubles up on Pitt 24-12
PITTSBURGH – The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team, ranked No. 7 in the latest Intermat Tournament Power Index, rolled to a 24-12 win at No. 16 Pittsburgh on Friday night. The dual, wrestled at Pitt’s Petersen Events Center in front of over 7,000 fans, was iced by Lion All-American Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.) with a pin at 197.
Penn State got off to a fast start, winning the first two bouts. Junior Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.), ranked No. 12 at 125, posted a 8-4 win over Pitt’s Dom Forys. Penn State moved out to a 7- 0 lead after sophomore Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.), ranked No. 5 at 133, majored Pitt’s Nick Zanetta 11-2. Pittsburgh got on the board at 141 with Edgar Bright posting a 3-2 win over Nittany Lion freshman Kade Moss (South Jordan, Utah) at 141.
Lion sophomore Zack Beitz (Mifflintown, Pa.), ranked No. 15 at 149, was dominating with a 11-5 win over No. 13 Mikey Racciato, giving Penn State a 10-3 lead. Lion freshman Cody Law (Windber, Pa.) nearly came back from an early 4-0 deficit but dropped a 6-4 decision to Pitt junior Ronnie Garbinsky at 157. The Panther win sent Penn State into the locker room with a 10-6 lead in the dual.
Red-shirt freshman Garett Hammond (Chambersburg, Pa.) suffered his first loss of the year at 165, dropping an 11-8 decision to Cody Wiercioch. The Panther victory cut Penn State’s lead to 10-9. Two-time All-American Matt Brown (West Valley City, Utah), ranked No. 3 at 174, dominated Pitt’s Troy Raeghard, posting a 17-6 major with over 3:00 in riding time. The victory put Penn State up 14-9 heading into the final three bouts. At 184, Penn State red-shirt freshman Matt McCutcheon (Apollo, Pa.) took on his fourth top-five ranked wrestler of the young season and nearly picked up his second win against the lofty competition. McCutcheon dropped a 5-3 decision to No. 4 Max Thomusseit.
With Pittsburgh inching closer in the dual score, trailing 14-12, All-American Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 4 at 197, silenced any Panther upset hopes by pinning No. 10 Nick Bonaccorsi at the 4:05 mark. McIntosh was dominant throughout the bout and led 8-0 at the time of his pin. The fall put Penn State up 20-12, clinching the dual. Senior Jon Gingrich (Wingate, Pa.), ranked No. 7 at 285, capped off a strong team performance with a 9-1 major over Pitt’s John Rizzo in the dual’s final bout. The victory gave Penn State the 24-12 win.
The Nittany Lions are now 2-0 on the year while Pittsburgh falls to 3-2. Penn State won six of ten bouts and owned a 6-0 margin in bonus points off a pin and three majors. The Nittany Lions posted a 22-7 takedown margin as well.
Penn State treks to Clarion tomorrow, Saturday, Nov. 22, for a 7 p.m. dual in Tippin Gymnasium. PSU will host its Nittany Lion Open Sunday, Dec. 7 and travel to Maryland Thursday, Dec. 11. The Nittany Lions next home dual is set for Friday, Dec. 19, at 7 p.m., in Rec Hall.
#7 Penn State 24, #16 Pittsburgh 12
November 21, 2014 – Petersen Events Center – Pittsburgh, Pa.
125: #12 Jordan Conaway PSU dec. Dom Forys PITT, 8-4 3-0
133: #5 Jimmy Gulibon PSU maj. dec. Nick Zanetta, 11-2 7-0
141: Edgar Bright PITT dec. Kade Moss PSU, 3-2 7-3
149: #15 Zack Beitz PSU dec. #13 Mike Racciato PITT, 11-5 10-3
157: Ronnie Garbinsky PITT dec. Cody Law PSU, 6-4 10-6
165: Cody Wiercioch PITT dec. Garett Hammond PSU, 11-8 10-9
174: #3 Matt Brown PSU maj. dec. Troy Raeghard PITT, 17-6 14-9
184: #4 Max Thomusseit PITT dec. #19 Matt McCutcheon PSU, 5-3 14-12
197: #4 Morgan McIntosh PSU pinned #10 Nick Bonaccorsi PITT, WBF (4:05) 20-12
285: #7 Jon Gingrich PSU maj. dec. John Rizzo PITT, 9-1 24-12
Attendance: 7,103
Records: Penn State 2-0, 0-0 B10; Pittsburgh 3-2
Up Next for Penn State: at Clarion, Saturday, Nov. 22, 7 p.m.