Rutgers Falls To No. 9 Lehigh 27-6
Dec 20 | Wrestling
NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. - The Rutgers wrestling team fell to No. 9 ranked Lehigh, 27-6 at the College Ave. Gym on Saturday. In front of a near-capacity crowd, the Scarlet Knights (11-4, 4-1 EIWA) dropped their first conference match of the season, while Lehigh (9-0, 2-0 EIWA) won its 10th consecutive dual match, dating back to last season.
| Scott Winston won by decision over Lehigh's Sean Bilodeau. (Tom Ciszek/NJSportsPhoto). |
Rutgers stayed close in each bout, including a 2-0 loss by senior Mike Whalen (Lake Hiawatha, N.J.) at 174 and a 3-2 loss by redshirt sophomore DJ Russo (Netcong, N.J.) at the heavyweight. Freshmen Matt Fusco (Belleville, N.J.) at 125 and Scott Winston (Jackson, N.J.) at 157 each picked up wins for the Scarlet Knights.
"That's why we brought those guys in," said Goodale. "The freshmen need to be able to compete at that level and they won at a big spot. It is what we expect from them so it doesn't surprise us, those guys will continue to win all year. We just need to get everyone on board and start winning those close matches."
Fusco opened the contest with a 5-2 win over Mitch Berger. But Lehigh won the next three bouts, as redshirt freshman Brian Bollette (Newton, N.J.), redshirt sophomore David Greenwald (Union, N.J.) and freshman David Seidenberg (Red Bank, N.J.) all fell to their opponents. Winston then stopped the losing streak with a 9-6 victory over Sean Bilodeau.
But Lehigh proved to be too much down the stretch, winning out to claim the victory. Senior Matt Pletcher (Eastampton, N.J.) lost 10-3 at 165 to No. 17 Mike Galante, followed by Whalen's two-point loss. Redshirt freshman Chris Orzechowski (Old Bridge, N.J.) and redshirt junior Karim Mahmoud (Wallington, N.J.) lost their 184 and 197-pound matches, and 1:16 of riding time gave the heavyweight bout to Lehigh's Zach Rey.
Rutgers returns to the mat on Dec. 29 in the Midlands Tournament in Evanston, Ill.
PACK THE RAC:
On Jan. 24, Rutgers will face Rider at the Louis Brown Athletic Center. Tickets for that match are on sale now. Fans can log on to www.ScarletKnights.com or call the Rutgers Ticket Office at 866-445-GORU. Reserved seating is 12 dollars, general admission is seven dollars and children under 12 and seniors are five dollars. Rutgers students enter free with their RU ID.
Lehigh 27 - Rutgers 6
125 - Matt Fusco (RU) 5-2 dec vs. Mitch Berger (LU) 3-0 RU
133 - Matt Fish (LU) 10-2 maj dec vs. Brian Bollete (RU) 4-3 LU
141 - Seth Ciasulli (LU) 5-0 dec vs. David Greenwald (RU) 7-3 LU
149 - No. 11 Trevor Chinn (LU) 11-3 maj dec vs. David Seidenberg (RU) 11-3 LU
157 - Scott Winston (RU) 9-6 dec vs. Sean Bilodeau (LU) 11-6 LU
165 - No. 17 Mike Galante (LU) 10-3 dec vs. Matt Pletcher (RU) 14-6 LU
174 - No. 16 Alex Caruso (LU) 2-0 dec vs, Mike Whalen (RU) 17-6 LU
184 - David Craig (LU) 6-0 dec vs. Chris Orzechowski (RU) 20-6 LU
197 - No. 20 Joe Kennedy (LU) 12-1 maj dec vs. Karim Mahmoud (RU) 24-6 LU
HWT - Zach Rey (LU) 3-2 dec vs. DJ Russo (RU) 27-6 LU
