Wrestling goes 1-1 in dual meets

An exciting come-from-behind victory over Northern University and an impressive fourth-place finish by junior Jake Butler at the Beast of the East Championships highlighted Winter Break for the wrestling team.

The Tigers (4-3) traveled to Brookings, S.D. in hopes of picking up two dual-meet victories on Dec. 10. It almost happened. Princeton rallied to defeat Northern University, 27-14, but South Dakota State was able to hold off a late Tiger surge and defeat them, 18-15.

Against Northern University the Tigers found themselves in an early 11-0 hole after losing their first three matches. Sophomore Eric Marcotulli (141 pounds) first got Princeton on the board with a forfeit victory and a 9-4 win by junior Andrew Iannuzzi (149) brought the team to within two points.

Freshman Alex Enriquez (157) added to the momentum by pinning Spencer Dockey at 2:24. This gave Princeton a 15-11 lead.

Senior Charlie Wiggins (165), junior Matt DeNichilo (174) and junior Jake Butler (197) made sure that the lead was not relinquished. The trio continued its dominant performance in competition this year, and each picked up a major decision victory, which secured the win.

The Tigers did not quite have the same luck against South Dakota St. Although Princeton won half of the bouts, the Jackrabbits prevailed because of bonus points they had picked up throughout the night's matches.

Sophomore heavyweight Kris Berr first put the Tigers up 3-0 by winning a 2-1 overtime thriller against Elliot Osterhoudt. Both wrestlers managed escapes in regulation but Berr's aggressiveness earned him a stalling point which gave him the win.

South Dakota St.'s Marcus Walters answered back by pinning senior Audrey Pang (125). Chris Werth then picked up a win over junior Ryan Foss (133) to give the Jackrabbits a 9-3 lead.

Marcotulli followed teammate Berr's example and earned a late takedown to force his match into overtime where he earned an extra point for the victory.

The momentum did not continue, and Iannuzzi, Enriquez and Wiggins all dropped their matches.

DeNichilo led off the second Princeton rally of the day by defeating Travis Gottschalk, 5-3. The win gave the Tigers nine points and cut their deficit to 18-9.

Senior Jack Fleming (184) followed suit by winning 5-3 in overtime. Fleming trailed late in the third period but gained an escape point and a stalling point. He then earned a takedown 45 seconds into overtime for the win.

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Butler then needed to pin his opponent to force a tie with the Jackrabbits. Despite three takedowns and two reversals, he was unable to save the day, and South Dakota St. picked up an 18-15 dual win.

The Tigers resumed competition a week later at The Beast of the East Championships. Led by Butler's fourth-place finish, Princeton placed twelfth at the annual tournament that features some of the best high school and college teams in the East.

Butler, the No. 3 seed in the tournament, won two matches before falling 3-1 in the semifinals to No.2 Chad Hoare of Bloomburg. He rebounded to defeat No. 5 Mark Thompson, 6-3, before falling 4-0 in the third-place match.

Marcotulli was the only other Tiger who was able to win a match in the winner's bracket. A 12-6 win over Buffalo's Dana Gingerich took him to the quarterfinal. However, he was pinned in his next two matches to miss placing in the tournament.