Bald Eagles Edged by Cleveland State 18-15
LOCK HAVEN – The Lock Haven University wrestling team rallied to win three of the last five matches, digging out of an early hole, but it wasn’t enough today as the Bald Eagles were edged by visiting Cleveland State, 18-15 in an Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) thriller.
Lock Haven (7-8, 2-2 EWL) got wins from Jake Field (South Elgin, Ill./Marmion Academy), Bobby Rehm (Lancaster, Pa./Penn Manor), Dan Neff (Quarryville, Pa./Solanco), Aaron McKinney (McDonald, Pa./West Allegheny) and Cody Cordes (Edwardsville, Pa./Wyoming Valley West), but Cleveland State (7-5, 3-2 EWL) won the final bout of the match with the dual tied 15-15, giving the Vikings the league win.
Today’s match started at 184 pounds and Cleveland State jumped on Lock Haven early, taking a 12-0 lead after the first three bouts. The Vikings posted bonus points by way of a major and tech fall at 197 and 285, respectively.
Field put the Bald Eagles on the board after grinding out a 1-0 win at 125. Field used a third-period escape to edge Nick Derosa in a match that finished with a flurry.
Rehm, ranked No. 33 in the nation made it two LHU wins in a row with a hard-fought victory at 133. With the match tied 2-2 late in the third, Rehm scored a reversal and won 4-2. Rehm’s win cut into the Viking lead and CSU led 12-6 after five bouts.
CSU’s Mike Carlone posted a 12-5 win at 141 and stretched the lead the Viking lead to 15-6.
Neff, ranked No. 25, stretched his unbeaten streak to 13 matches with a dominating 5-1 win over Nick Montgomery at 149.
McKinney picked up LHU’s second straight win with a 3-0 victory at 157. Cleveland State led 15-12 with two bouts to go.
Cordes kept the Lock Haven rally going and picked up a 6-3 win at 165. His win marked Lock Haven’s third straight in the dual and tied the match at 15-15.
It all came down to the day’s final bout at 174 and the fireworks went off as the match between Tyler Wood (West Chester, Pa./West Chester-Rustin) and Gabe Stark went into sudden victory. The match withstood three video reviews, and in the end with things tied 6-6, Stark scored a takedown with 35 seconds left in sudden victory period number one. Stark’s win gave the Vikings the 18-15 win.
The Bald Eagles are set to host Edinboro on Thursday, February 4 at 7 p.m.
Cleveland State 18 – Lock Haven 15
*match started at 184 pounds
184: Xavier Dye (CSU) major dec. Tristan Sponseller (LHU) 13-3; CSU leads 4-0
197: Sam Wheeler (CSU) dec. Phil Sprenkle (LHU) 5-3; CSU leads 7-0
285: #16 Riley Shaw (CSU) tech fall Adam Mackie (LHU) 20-5 (7:00); CSU leads 12-0
125: Jake Field (LHU) dec. Nick Derosa (CSU) 1-0; CSU leads 12-3
133: #33 Bobby Rehm (LHU) dec. Evan Cheek (CSU) 4-2: CSU leads 12-6
141: Mike Carlone (CSU) dec. Cody Wheeler (LHU) 12-5; CSU leads 15-6
149: #25 Dan Neff (LHU) dec. Nick Montgomery (CSU) 5-1; CSU leads 15-9
157: Aaron McKinney (LHU) dec. John Vaughn (CSU) 3-0; CSU leads 15-12
165: Cody Cordes (LHU) dec. Nathan Wynkoop (CSU) 6-3; Tied 15-15
174: Gabe Stark (CSU) dec. Tyler Wood (LHU) 8-6 SV-1; CSU wins 18-15
