SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio – The No. 10-ranked Falcons made the most of their home debut at Murphy Gymnasium on Sunday afternoon, besting Mount Union, 34-6. NDC is now 3-1 in dual matches this season, while the Purple Raiders drop to 1-2. Notre Dame got strong results from sophomore #Thomas Straughn#, senior #Victer Crenshaw#, and senior #Chris Tripp# to lead the victory.
Straughn, the No. 8-ranked wrestler in the NAIA, defeated freshman Bryan Skoff (St. Clairsville, Ohio) by tech fall, 24-9, in the157-pound bout. With the victory, Straughn raised his record to 11-1. Crenshaw went back-to-back, getting another tech fall victory in the following 165-pound match. The No. 3-ranked Cincinnati native dominated junior Mike Manypenny (Salem, Ohio) by a score of 16-0. This was Crenshaw's team-leading fourth tech fall of the year, running his overall record to 10-1.
Tripp picked up the most impressive victory of the day for the Falcons, pinning sophomore Tyree Johnson (Cleveland, Ohio) at the 0:33 mark of their 197-pound bout. The victory was Tripp's team-leading fifth by pin this season, and now raises his record to 6-3.
The rest of the day's matches all featured tough, low-scoring decisions. No. 1-ranked junior #Adam Koballa# upped his record to 11-2 with a 9-2 victory in the 141-pound bout. Freshman #Jeffrey Pelton# also picked up a victory by decision, 8-7, in his 149-pound match to remain perfect on the season with a record of 9-0.
“The majority of our matches today were tough, to say the least,” said head coach #Frank Romano#. “But the mark of a good wrestler is being able to find a way to win those close matches. Also, it's always good to win your home matches in front of your fans.”
Mount Union managed to grab two victories from the Falcons. Freshman Colin Dennis (North Ridgeville, Ohio) picked up a victory for the Purple Raiders over freshman #Garrett Haas# in the 133-pound match by a score of 5-0. Freshman #Alex Denman# came up on the short end against freshman Andy Jenkins (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio), 5-2, in their competitive 184-pound bout.
NDC heads back to the mats next Wednesday (12/17) as they travel to Montgomery, W. Va., for a dual match with West Virginia Tech. Bout time is set for 7:00 p.m.
# 10 Notre Dame 34, Mount Union 6
Sunday, Dec. 14, 2008
Murphy Gymnasium, South Euclid, Ohio
125 #6 Tyler Savage (NDC) by dec. over Justin Toth (MUC); 2-0 NDC 3, MUC 0
133 Colin Dennis (MUC) by dec. over Garrett Haas (NDC); 5-0 NDC 3, MUC 3
141 #1 Adam Koballa (NDC) by dec. over Josh Malave (MUC); 9-2 NDC 6, MUC 3
149 Jeffrey Pelton (NDC) by dec. over Kevin Shadrach (MUC); 8-7 NDC 9, MUC 3
157 #8 Thomas Straughn (NDC) by tech. fall over Bryan Skoff (MUC); 24-9 NDC 14, MUC 3
165 #3 Victer Crenshaw (NDC) by tech. fall over Mike Manypenny (MUC); 16-0 NDC 19, MUC 3
174 Kurt Wolff (NDC) by dec. over Jeremy Hathaway (MUC); 5-1 NDC 22, MUC 3
184 Andy Jenkins (MUC) by dec. over Alex Denman (NDC; 5-2 NDC 22, MUC 6
197 Chris Tripp (NDC) by fall over Tyree Johnson (MUC); 0:33 NDC 28, MUC 6
285 Don Stocum (NDC) by forfeit NDC 34, MUC 6
Match started at 141; attendance 153
NOTES FROM THE NEST…
FIRST TIME FOES: Sunday's dual match was the first between the two schools. Notre Dame wrestled last season at the Purple Raider Open, hosted by Mount Union. Tyler Savage and Koballa won the title in the 125-pound and 141-pound weight classes, respectively. The Falcons will again participate in this year's Purple Raider Open (1/18).
DUAL STREAK: NDC won their third straight dual match this season. Pelton, Crenshaw, Koballa, Savage, Straughn, and Kurt Wolff have also now won three individual dual matches in a row. Pelton's dual record stands at 3-0, while the rest stand at 3-1. Their only losses came at the hands of nationally-ranked wrestlers from Ohio State (11/16). Pelton won his bout by forfeit against the Buckeyes.
SAME PLACE, DIFFERENT TIME: The Blue-and-White will be back in action at Murphy Gymnasium, in their second, and final, home match of the season next Sunday (12/21). NDC will host Purdue, with match time set for 8:00 p.m. The Falcon – Boilermaker dual will be preceded by a high school showcase match. Teams and match time are still to be determined.
