BETHLEHEM, Pa. – #6 Lehigh secured four of the first five
weight classes to hand Franklin & Marshall a 28-18 setback in
Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) action, but
Justin Herbert delivered the Diplomats (5-11, 0-6 EIWA) a moral
victory in the form of a pin at 174-pounds.
The F&M senior picked up his tenth fall of the season,
decking 14th-ranked Alex Caruso to extend his school-career pins
record to 34. The fall came off of a headlock throw that went from
feet to flat in the blink of an eye 69 seconds into the bout,
bumping Herbert's record to 20-9 on the year.
F&M was well behind on the board thanks to an early Mountain
Hawk (22-1, 8-0 EIWA) run that began when the Diplomats conceded
the 125-pound bout. F&M quickly halved the Lehigh lead when
freshman Matt Murray (4-16) put a 13-10 decision on Mike
Margherita.
The Hawks responded with a pair of first period pins and a major
decision to pull away for good. At 141, Steve Ciasulli pinned Frank
Higgins (4-11) at 1:47, while Sean Bilodeau pinned Matt Gittleman
(0-12) late in the first period at 157 pounds.
Anthony Bongarzone (14-14) halted the bleeding, eeking out a 3-2
decision over Brandon Hatchett 165. That set up Herbert's
pin, the first of two Diplomat pins on the afteroon. Freshman,
Colin Ely decked Jamie O'Dowd with 13-seconds left in the
first period, improving Ely's record to 10-14.
The Diplomats (5-11) close their EIWA slate without a win,
falling to 0-6 in league matches. The Mountain Hawks (22-1) went
unscathed in the EIWA with an 8-0 record.
F&M wraps up the final season on Friday night when the
Diplomats head down the road to Millersville for the Battle for the
Rupp Cup, named in honor Lancaster wrestling legend, Ted Rupp. Rupp
coached both F&M and Millersville, including a short stint
where he coached both institutions simultaneously.
#7 Lehigh 28, Franklin & Marshall 18
125 John McDonald (Lehigh)
W Forfeit
133 Matt Murray (F&M)
dec. Mike Margherita (Lehigh)
13-10
141 Seth Ciasulli (Lehigh)
Fall Frank Higgins (F&M)
1:47
149 Trevor Chinn (Lehigh) maj.
dec. Al Gianforti (F&M)
13-2
157 Sean Bilodeau (Lehigh)
Fall Matt Gittleman (F&M)
2:32
165 Anthony Bongarzone
(F&M) dec. Brandon Hatchett
(Lehigh) 3-2
174 Justin Herbert (F&M)
Fall Alex Caruso (Lehigh)
1:09
184 David Craig (Lehigh)
dec. Jimmy Schulz (F&M)
5-0
197 Colin Ely (F&M)
Fall Jamie O'Dowd
(Lehigh) 2:47
285 Zach Rey (Lehigh) maj.
dec. Nico Somers (F&M) 12-4
