NEW CONCORD, Ohio – Notre Dame picked up right where they left off two days ago, posting an impressive 44-6 win over Muskingum on Tuesday. The win was highlighted by three pins, two tech falls, and a major decision. The victory comes on the heels of the Falcons going 1-1 in the Buckeye Duals, hosted by Ohio State University on Sunday.
Junior Adam Koballa (Twinsburg, Ohio), sophomore Thomas Straughn (Massillon, Ohio), and senior Chris Tripp (Cleveland, Ohio) each recorded their first pins of the season. Koballa's pin over junior Luke Caracofe (Hamilton, Ohio) in 5:55 gave the lead to NDC for good after the Muskies took an early 6-5 lead in the match. Koballa is now 4-2 on the season, and ranked no. 1 in the 141-pound weight class by the NAIA.
After an injury default victory for freshman Jeffrey Pelton (Bellevue, Ohio) in the 149-pound round, Straughn pinned freshman Mike Frashure (Logan, Ohio) at the 2:45 mark of the bout to give the Falcons a commanding 23-6 lead. With the win, Straughn improves his season record to 5-1.
Tripp evened his record at 2-2 by pinning his opponent in the 197-pound bout.
Freshman Alex Denman (Painesville, Ohio) picked up his first victory as a Falcon, with a major decision at 184. Denman came into the match with a record of 0-2.
Two of the other nationally ranked Falcons also picked up victories. No. 6 ranked sophomore Tyler Savage (Carlisle, Ohio) picked up his fifth victory of the season by tech fall in his 125-pound bout. His season record is now 5-2. Senior Victer Crenshaw (Cincinnati, Ohio), ranked no. 3 nationally, also picked up a tech fall win over freshman Mitch King (Dresden, Ohio) to improve his record to 4-1.
Rounding out the victories for the Falcons were decisional victories by sophomore Kurt Wolff (Genoa, Ohio) in the 174-pound match, and sophomore Justin Tripp (Cleveland, Ohio) in the heavyweight match. Wolff improves his record to 3-2, while Tripp gets back to even at 3-3.
The lone victory on the night for the Muskies came on sophomore Chip Halko's (Grove City) pin over freshman Garrett Haas (Chesapeake, Va.) at the 6:44 mark of their 133-pound contest.
“This was a great win for us tonight as a team,” said head coach Frank Romano. “To come back on short rest from our last match to dominate in this fashion is big for us going forward. Now we have some time before our next tournament to rest and prepare.”
Notre Dame will now be off for a few weeks. Their next contest will be at the R.I.T. Tournament in Rochester, N.Y., on Dec. 6.
NEWS FROM THE NEST…
THREE-PEAT PERFORMANCE: Tuesday's result was the Falcons' third straight victory over Muskingum. NDC has outscored the Muskies, 140-6, in those contests. Tyler Savage is the only Falcon to previously wrestle against MC, picking up a win by major decision in last year's dual. … Notre Dame's all-time duals record now stands at 15-8, including a 2-1 dual record this season. The Falcons posted a 4-1 dual record last season.
STILL TOP-10: Notre Dame slipped in the NAIA Coaches Poll, which was released on Tuesday. The Falcons, who had been a No. 7 preseason selection, fell to 10th in what was the first of six regular season ratings for the poll. 2007-08 national champion and preseason favorite Lindenwood (Mo.) remained at No. 1 in the rankings.
RESULTS: Notre Dame 44, Muskingum 6
125: Tyler Savage (ND) technical fall Shawn Feistamel (MC), 16-0 [TEAM: ND 5-0]
133: Chip Halko (MC) pin Garrett Haas (ND), 6:44 [TEAM: MC 6-5]
141: Adam Koballa (ND) pin Luke Caracofe (MC), 5:55 [TEAM: ND 11-6]
149: Jeffrey Pelton (ND) win by injury default Kevin Hipps (MC) [TEAM: ND 17-6]
157: Thomas Straughn (ND) pin Mike Frasure (MC), 2:45 [TEAM: ND 23-6]
165: Victer Crenshaw (ND) technical fall Mitch King (MC), 17-2 [TEAM: ND 28-6]
174: Kurt Wolfe (ND) decision Chris Farrington (MC), 7-2 [TEAM: ND 31-6]
184: Alex Denman (ND) major decision Nick Haddad (MC), 21-7 [TEAM: ND 35-6 ]
197: Chris Tripp (ND) pin Danny Dunn, 4:04 [TEAM: ND 41-6]
285: Justin Tripp (ND) decision AJ Komaromy (MC), 4-2 [TEAM: ND 44-6]
NEWS FROM THE NEST…
THREE-PEAT PERFORMANCE: Tonight's result was the Falcons third straight victory over Muskingum. NDC has outscored the Muskies, 140-6, in these contests. Tyler Savage is the only Falcon to previously wrestle against MC, picking up a win by major decision in last year's dual. … Notre Dame's all-time duals record now stands at 15-8, including a 2-1 dual record this season. The Falcons posted a 4-1 dual record last season.
