Wrestling disposes of Drexel neighbors

Joey Allen and Andrei Rodzianko were particularly effective against the Dragons It was business as usual for the Penn wrestling team last night at the Palestra, as it registered a decisive 29-4 victory over West Philly rival Drexel. On paper, the Quakers (13-2) were the favorites to win, and after a shaky start -- an overtime win and a four-point major decision loss -- they lived up to the expectations that come with being the No. 1 team in the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association. Penn nearly dropped its first match of the evening, before Quakers 118-pounder Ben Hatta pulled out a win over Brian Teshner in overtime. Hatta jumped out to an early 5-0 lead in the first round. But Teshner battled back to tie the match at 8 in the third round. In the sudden-death overtime, Hatta recorded a take-down, giving him the 10-8 victory. It was truly a team effort as nine wrestlers won their matches, but Penn coach Roger Reina was quick to single out the Quakers' two heaviest wrestlers for praise. "Andrei Rodzianko did an excellent job coming from behind as a result of superior conditioning," Reina said. "I was pleased with [Joey] Allen, in terms of dictating the match." Rodzianko, wrestling at 190 pounds, was down 2-1 to the Dragons' Joe Fazio after the first round. But the Penn freshman scored an escape in the second round to even the score at 2. In the third round, Rodzianko again fell behind by a point, but scored a takeout to win the match 4-3. Allen, the No. 1 heavyweight in the East, ran his season's record to 12-0 with a workman-like 8-3 win against Jamie Huntington. Since the Drexel contest marked the final home dual-meet of his career, Allen succeeded in finishing his career undefeated at the Palestra. Allen, who is ranked 19th in the nation, also had the pleasure of avenging last year's loss to the Huntington. The night's most lopsided margin came in the 142-pound contest between Penn freshman Brett Matter, whose No. 12 national ranking is the best on the team, and the Dragons' Jon Clark. Showing the tenacity that characterized the entire team all night long, Matter emerged with a convincing 17-5 win, improving his team-best record to 28-2. "The coaches really emphasize the aggressive style," said Alex Boisvert, who accounted for four Quakers points with a major decision in the 150-pound slot. "If you go to nationals and don't wrestle aggressively, you'll get thrown off the mat." In addition to Allen and Matter, Penn's other two nationally recognized wrestlers were victorious. Clinton Matter, despite a sub-par performance by his standards, was good enough at 177 pounds to record a win, and Josh Bailer came away with a win at 167. Actually, there is a fifth Penn wrestler in the rankings, senior co-captain Brian Eveleth. But the 126-pounder's only role last night was accepting praise by the crowd in a prematch ceremony for his distinguished career. The win over Drexel was an appropriate end to the regular season, one in which Penn ran up a perfect mark in Ivy League action and won its final 11 dual-meets. Now the task is to do well at the Eastern Championships, which serve as the qualifying tournament for the national competition. "I feel great about the postseason," Allen said. "Our goal is to place highly at the East tournament -- obviously to win it and take as many guys as possible to the NCAAs." Having established themselves as top dog in West Philadelphia, Penn now sets its sights on bigger prizes.