Wheeling, W. Va. – Entering Wednesday night's dual meet with Frostburg State, the Wheeling University Wrestling team (1-0, 1-0) had never beaten Frostburg State in a dual meet. It would come down to the 285lb weight class inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center, and it was a pin that would give the Cardinals the 23-18 victory. They start 1-0 in Mountain East Conference (MEC) dual meet action for the first time in program history as they started their dual meet season off with a bang on the mat.
The lead had already changed hands three times over the final three weight classes and as the heavyweight bout approached, Wheeling was on the losing end, trailing 18-17. Frostburg State would send Cole Yonkin to the mat, while the Cardinals had the National Wrestling Coaches Association's (NWCA) #13 ranked wrestler Gavin HArper heading to the mat. Harper had the size advantage, and the two would circle around the center of the mat. However, Harper used his size to his advantage, getting his hands on Younkin and taking him to the ground. It would take just over a minute, but once Harper had control he wouldn't let go. He flipped Yonkin on his back and would get the pin at the 1:16 mark to round out the night. It brought the matches' final score to 23-18, giving the Cardinals their first dual meet victory of the season.
The night would be book ended by pinfalls for the Cardinals, with freshman Neal Krysty competing in the 125lb weight class. He would battle Frostburg State's Rakan Alabbadi. Krysty would battle to the end of the first period, amassing a 6-1 lead on the scoreboard along the way. However, with two seconds left in the period, he would earn the pinfall to start his team's night out with six points. After Leroy Steagall fell in a 19-3 Tech Fall, freshman Jack Dinwiddie would get the team back on track. Dinwiddie took on Frostburg State's Dylan Montgomery, and jumped out to an early lead thanks to two takedowns in the first period. Dinwiddie would keep the shutout going through the final two periods, and went on to earn a Major Decision with an 11-0 shutout. The Cardinals would increase their lead in the team portion to 9-5 as they headed into the midweights.
Up first was Mannix Wasco in the 149lb bout as he battled Frostburg State's Gabe Heilbrun. It was one of the most competitive matches on the night, with the two wrestlers sitting tied at 1-1 after one period. It would be a takedown that made the difference as Wasco picked up the 4-2 decision to push the Cardinal lead to 13-5. Frostburg State would begin to rally back, scoring 10 straight points to bring the score to 15-13 in favor of Frostburg State. The Cardinals needed a spark and would get it in the 184lb weight class courtesy of Kyle Snider. Snider would take on Frostburg State's Andrew Wolfanger and a late push would work in his favor. He would pick up the Major Decision and the score flipped back in favor of Wheeling at 17-15. A win in the 197lb weight class would put Frostburg State back on top, but Harper would make sure that he sealed the deal in the final match.
The full list of results from the night are listed below:
125: Neal Krysty (WHL) over Rakan Alabbadi (FRO) (Fall 2:58) - WHL 6, FRO 0
133: Tanner Holling (FRO) over Leroy Steagall (WHL) (TF 19-3 4:02) - FRO 5, WHL 6
141: Jack Dinwiddie (WHL) over Dylan Montgomery (FRO) (MD 11-0) - WHL 10, FRO 5
149: Mannix Wasco (WHL) over Gage Heilbrun (FRO) (DEC 4-2) - WHL 13, FRO 5
157: John D'Amico (FRO) over Bradley Spencer (WHL) (MD 16-6) - WHL 13, FRO 9
165: Alexander Blake (FRO) over Frank Aquila (WHL) (DEC 3-2) - WHL 13, FRO 12
174: John Reho (FRO) over Jake Taylor (WHL) (DEC 8-4) - WHL 13, FRO 15
184: Kyle Snider (WHL) over Andrew Wolfanger (FRO) (MD 12-4) - WHL 17, FRO 15
197: Austin Lewis (FRO) over Jaxon Burcher (WHL) (DEC 12-5) - WHL 17, FRO 18
285: Gavin Harper (WHL) over Cole Yonkin (FRO) (Fall 1:16) - WHL 23, FRO 18
The Wheeling University Wrestling team returns to action on Sunday, November 9th, when they compete at the Ohio Collegiate Open with first matches beginning at 9 AM.
