2008 Woodie Awards
Wrestling's underdog victory
Heather Fox
Issue date: 2/21/08 Section: Sports
Last Fri. the Wrestling Team upset the nationally ranked Messiah Falcons by a score of 25-21. The away match was the last of the regular season for the team, and several wrestlers came out with strong wins.
After a month of sickness and injuries the wrestlers had a full team of starters. The first win came from junior Billy Hall in the 141 lb. weight class. He pinned his opponent in 3:52. Next Sat., Hall (25-4) will compete for his second title at the Centennial Conference Championships.
Junior Rob Kein won the following match by major decision 11-3. No team held the lead for long as the wins shifted every other match. The Falcons, won in the 157 lb. class.
It was senior Co-Captain David Lavin's match that shook things up. At 165 lbs. Lavin wrestled a nationally ranked Falcon, Trent Zempel. Lavin was dropped back on his neck by an illegal move executed by his opponent. He was taken off the mat on a stretcher, but suffered only a minor concussion and a sore neck. He remarked that the drop was not on purpose and laughs about the situation. "I was really shaken up," said Lavin, "but at least I got a standing ovation for my final regular season match." The illegal move gave Lavin the win.
According to Messiah coverage, their coach Bryan Brunk agreed that the illegal move call was right. He explained that the move wasn't intentional on Trent's part and that Lavin is "a tough, tough kid."
The next match at 174 lbs. earned Messiah back some points. At 184 lbs. junior Matt Horn pinned his opponent in 4:36. After another loss at 197 lbs., the winning team rested on senior Co-Captain Joe Tartar. The heavyweight didn't allow one point to be scored on him, winning the final bout 7-0. The college saw a true underdog victory 25-21 over the 26th-ranked Falcons.
Tarter put the win in perspective, "Our win gave us momentum to break free from our slump and realize that we have great wrestlers and a great team."
This Sat. the wrestlers head to Ursinus for the Centennial Conference Championships.
After a month of sickness and injuries the wrestlers had a full team of starters. The first win came from junior Billy Hall in the 141 lb. weight class. He pinned his opponent in 3:52. Next Sat., Hall (25-4) will compete for his second title at the Centennial Conference Championships.
Junior Rob Kein won the following match by major decision 11-3. No team held the lead for long as the wins shifted every other match. The Falcons, won in the 157 lb. class.
It was senior Co-Captain David Lavin's match that shook things up. At 165 lbs. Lavin wrestled a nationally ranked Falcon, Trent Zempel. Lavin was dropped back on his neck by an illegal move executed by his opponent. He was taken off the mat on a stretcher, but suffered only a minor concussion and a sore neck. He remarked that the drop was not on purpose and laughs about the situation. "I was really shaken up," said Lavin, "but at least I got a standing ovation for my final regular season match." The illegal move gave Lavin the win.
According to Messiah coverage, their coach Bryan Brunk agreed that the illegal move call was right. He explained that the move wasn't intentional on Trent's part and that Lavin is "a tough, tough kid."
The next match at 174 lbs. earned Messiah back some points. At 184 lbs. junior Matt Horn pinned his opponent in 4:36. After another loss at 197 lbs., the winning team rested on senior Co-Captain Joe Tartar. The heavyweight didn't allow one point to be scored on him, winning the final bout 7-0. The college saw a true underdog victory 25-21 over the 26th-ranked Falcons.
Tarter put the win in perspective, "Our win gave us momentum to break free from our slump and realize that we have great wrestlers and a great team."
This Sat. the wrestlers head to Ursinus for the Centennial Conference Championships.