By Andrew Sweet
Staff Writer
sweetad@sas.upenn.edu
Once again, the No. 14 Quakers fulfilled expectations.
With a 1-2 record this past weekend at the National Duals, the wrestling team maintained its position as a top-15 squad with a win over unranked West Virginia and respectable losses against top-ranked Missouri and No. 9 Central Michigan.
The event, held in Cedar Falls, Iowa, marked the second time Penn has competed against the top team in the country. The 27-15 loss against Missouri closely mirrored the 28-12 decision then-No. 1 Minnesota claimed against the Quakers at the Northeast Duals in November.
In the opening match against the Big 10 foe, Penn jumped out to a 9-0 lead. No. 14 Matt Eveleth, wrestling at 125, took down No. 18 John Olanowski.
In the 133-pound weightclass, reigning national champion Matt Valenti faced a fiesty No. 15 Tyler McCormick, but escaped twice in the last two periods to overcome a 2-1 deficit and win 3-2. No. 14 Matt Dragon upset No. 12 Michael Chandler to win at 157 pounds, but the Quakers then dropped four straight matches.
"We were certainly capable of winning six out of ten matches against them," head coach Zeke Jones said. "We left that building knowing we are capable of beating the number one team in the country."
Rick Rappo scored an entertaining win over No. 15 Ashtin Primus of Missouri, highlighted by two late takedowns that completed a comeback win for the sophomore. In the end, though, the Tigers were simply too much.
But the National Duals also gave the Quakers a second shot at Central Michigan.
As before, Penn jumped out early, creating large leads in the lower weightclasses. After the first three matches, the Quakers held an impressive 10-0 lead.
But like the first meeting, the tide turned when a Chippewas wrestler won a bout in the 149-pound weightclass. Penn was unable to maintain its lead through the heavier weightclasses. The Quakers lost their last five matches, and went down 27-13 in the consolation bracket's quarterfinal.
"There were some things we could have done better individually." Jones said.
For the most part, the Quakers were able to control the initial consolation contest with West Virginia. In that match, Penn received stronger performances from the heavier wrestlers. The Quakers opened up a 25-6 lead over the Mountaineers, who had just succumbed to No. 8 Northwestern, and did not let up.
Along with wins by Valenti, Eveleth, and Dragon at their positions, No. 16 Zack Shanaman and No. 13 Lior Zamir picked up wins at the 165- and 184-pound weightclasses, respectively. Matt Herrington picked up a forfeit win in the 174-pound weightclass.
Valenti, with his 119th victory, moved past Matt Feast to second on the all-time wins list at Penn. He is only nine wins short of leader Brett Matter.
The National Duals marked the last scheduled tournament for the Quakers before the dual-meet season. In all of the Penn's tournament performances so far, the team has beaten every team ranked behind them and lost to every team ranked ahead.
While this level of consistency is something on which the team prides itself, the Quakers hope they can improve and pull off some surprises.
"We need to beat a team that we are not supposed to beat," Jones said.
The first opportunity for that comes next on the schedule, a showdown with No. 3 Hofstra on Jan. 26th at the Palestra.
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