Wrestling feels at home in hotels

For senior 149-pounder Cesar Grajales and the Penn wrestling team, home cooking isn't always a good thing.

But not because of making weight.

The No. 24 Quakers (12-7, 6-3 EIWA) will be worried more about complacency at home than tipping the scales when they host the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association Tournament this weekend at the Palestra.

"Some of the guys who are competing are actually going to go stay in a hotel," Grajales said. "Just to make it seem like we're competing [on the road]."

Considering the quality of opposition that will be flooding Philadelphia come tomorrow, they'll need the focus that staying in a hotel affords.

Besides No. 2 Cornell, which beat Penn 24-9 last month, the Quakers will have to deal with No. 7 Lehigh and a tough Navy team, both of which also recorded wins over the Red and Blue earlier this season.

The Quakers will get a little respite, however, in the form of a new NCAA tournament selection system that was instituted this year.

In years past, wrestlers could guarantee themselves a bid to the big dance by placing high enough in their weightclass.

Wrestlers who did not qualify automatically could still earn a spot by getting a coaches' selection after the tournament.

Now, each weightclass has a different place finish requirement for automatic qualification, and those who do not get their bid that way have to wait for a selection committee to pass judgement.

The new system gives a larger margin for error to wrestlers in difficult weightclasses or those who have had consistent success throughout the season.

This makes for a more comfortable mindset for wrestlers like Grajales and 125-pound junior Rollie Peterkin, who have both put together stellar seasons. No. 13 Grajales boasts a 24-6 record, while No. 10 Peterkin sits at 17-4.

"If you compare [the selection system] to last year . it takes a little pressure off," Grajales said. "There's a pretty good chance that I would go to the NCAAs even if something crazy happened this weekend."

However, other wrestlers on the roster, like 133-pounder Bryan Ortenzio, may need something crazy to happen if they hope to secure a bid.

One such bubble-boy is 141-pound senior Rick Rappo.

Rappo has recorded some big wins this season, including an upset pin of then-No. 5 Kellen Russel of Michigan (who has since improved to No. 2) on Nov. 22, but his season tally is a lackluster 14-7.

Still, Rappo is confident in his ability to pull off key wins when he needs them.

"I was the six seed last year [at EIWAs], and I ended up making it to the finals," he said.

But Rappo and other fence-sitters like Ortenzio and 197-pounder Tyler Shovlin should have some leg up on the competition, given the familiar arena.

"You know the routine. You know what the room is going to be like and [if] the showers are warm or cold," coach Rob Eiter said.

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