Freshman 125-pounder Tony Comunale continued his brilliant rookie season. He dominated Millersville’s John Andel, earning a pin in three minutes, 53 seconds. On Saturday, he earned a hard-fought 3-1 decision over Columbia’s Brandon Kinney but fell to Cornell’s Mike Rodriguez in a wild, confusing match.
Tied up with Rodriguez in the bottom position, Comunale earned a point by escaping successfully but unknowingly exposed his back. Rodriguez earned two back points and had a 9-8 lead with 10 seconds remaining. Comunale, unaware that he was trailing, wrestled out the final seconds without making any aggressive moves. The loss was Comunale’s first in the Ivy League.
“Tony’s match [against Cornell] was unfortunate,” head coach Chris Ayres said. “He was wrestling a guy who’d just beaten the No. 9 125-pounder in the country, and he outwrestled him but ended up losing.”
Freshman Travis Erdman ran his win streak to seven before being pinned by Cornell All-American Steve Anceravage. He started the weekend with a 7-3 decision over Millersville’s Steve Funk at 184 pounds. Wrestling at 174 pounds against Columbia, Erdman broke a close match open with 30 seconds remaining with a takedown for a 4-3 victory over Travis Creagan. Erdman was pinned in 1:31 by Anceravage, his first league loss of the season.
“I think Travis might’ve been a little awestruck by Anceravage,” Ayres said. “He’s a freshman wrestling an All-American, but he’s got to keep wrestling because if he does he can win.”
Junior 165-pounder Alex Enriquez played to a 1-1 tie in regulation with Millersville’s Dave Morey, then broke through with a takedown with 17 seconds remaining in overtime to score a 3-1 victory for the Tigers. Against Columbia’s Victor Mocco, Enriquez ignited the crowd with an early escape and quick takedown, but Mocco was unfazed, methodically building a lead and holding on for a 9-4 victory. Enriquez was unable to wrestle due to injury.
Sophomore 197-pounder Zach Morse fell 7-3 to Millersville’s Raymond Bennett, then was pinned by Columbia’s Nick Sommerfeld in 4:32. He battled hard with Cornell’s Justin Kerber but fell 6-2.
Sophomore Mike Alvarez suffered a tough loss to Millersville’s Jeremy Brooks wrestling at 174 pounds, falling by pin in 5:44. Against Lion 184-pounder Mike Wolfer, Alvarez suffered a series of takedowns and fell 9-7 despite a late rally. Big Red 165-pounder Joey Hooker pinned Alvarez in 4:15. Junior Robert Benitez fell 4-2 to Millersville’s Matt Leggett, then won by forfeit against Columbia. Cornell’s Mike Grey pinned Benitez in 1:17.
Freshman Matt Katz had a tough weekend wrestling at 157 pounds. Against Millersville’s Jarrett Hostetter, he fell 13-1 by major decision. Columbia’s Matt Dunn defeated Katz 17-0 by technical fall. Cornell’s Jordan Leen, the No. 9-ranked 157 pounder heading into the season, pinned Katz in 57 seconds.
The Tigers were forced to forfeit the 141-pound, 149-pound and heavyweight brackets in all three matches, leaving insurmountable deficits and causing the scores to appear excessively lopsided.
The Tigers next opportunity comes against Penn this coming Sunday at home. After that, Princeton will head to the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association tournament, where each member of the team will compete for a trip to the NCAA Tournament. Instead of making major changes, the Tigers are focusing on getting wrestlers back from injury.
“Changes are going to be really specific to each guy,” Ayres said. “We don’t have anything new to add — it’ll be more like fine tuning. Also, it’ll be great to get some guys back from injuries.”
Hard-fought losses and a couple of impressive wins were the story of the weekend. If Princeton can get healthy before next Sunday’s showdown with Penn, it may force a competitive match.
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