Three Up, Three Down: Penn wrestling vs. Lehigh

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Who'll be up and down for the Quakers when they take on Lehigh at the Palestra on Sunday? We decide:

Three Up-

Recent success: In a matchup that resembled Sunday’s dual meet on paper, the Quakers were able to upset the Mountain Hawks 24-12 on the road in last year’s dual. Last year’s unranked Quakers squad took down a No. 21 ranked Lehigh team, and the currently unranked Quakers take on a No. 23 ranked Hawks squad this weekend. Although there has been a lot of turnover this season, Penn’s three wrestlers who faced Lehigh last year – Andrew Lenzi, Casey Kent, and Steve Graziano – that are slated for Sunday’s dual won their matches against the Hawks last season. The Quakers know they can beat this Lehigh team, and it only helps that the dual is at the Palestra.

Star-power and firepower: Sunday’s dual is shaping up to be an entertaining, intense affair. It will feature seven ranked wrestlers across the two rival squads – four for Lehigh, and three for Penn. Lorenzo Thomas, who is ranked No. 9 at 184 pounds and is 10-2, is Penn’s highest-ranked wrestler. The two other ranked Quakers are Casey Kent, who is No. 13 at 165 pounds, and Frank Mattiace, who is No. 19 at 197 pounds. The pair of Lehigh wrestlers to look out for most is Mason Beckman, ranked No. 7 at 133 pounds, and Joey Napoli, who is a defending EIWA champion and is ranked No. 8 at 157 pounds. Both grapplers are undefeated thus far. Although none of the ranked grapplers will go head to head, it will be nice to see some of the best talent in the EIWA on display at the Palestra on Sunday.

Penn’s impact freshmen: Penn freshmen Caleb Richardson and Frank Mattiace have erased any uncertainty about their respective weight classes – 125 and 195 pounds – and played a large role in the Quakers’ early success, which they look to build on this weekend. Richardson is 3-0 in duals this year, and 6-2 overall, with both losses coming against top 10 opponents. Richardson will face another freshman, Lehigh’s 5-3 Darian Cruz, on Sunday. The intense Mattiace has burst onto the scene with a 10-3 overall record, and two decisive dual victories. He will face Lehigh sophomore John Bollich, who has started the season 7-6.

Three Down-

Tough scenario: The Quakers might be running into Lehigh at the wrong time. After starting 1-3 in duals, the Hawks ripped off three straight wins at the Northeast Duals this past weekend, which propelled them back into the top 25. Lehigh will look to take advantage of the momentum generated by the three wins, which came over Central Michigan, Columbia, and No. 11 Virginia. The Hawks will also be out for revenge after last year’s 24-12 defeat at the hand of the Red and Blue.

Still getting there: Although Penn has a winning record and has seen a good amount of success thus far, like coach Rob Eiter has stressed, the Quakers have had their share of missed opportunities this year. Penn only boasted one champion at the Keystone Classic a few weeks back, and most recently, dropped a number of winnable matches against No. 24 Bloomsburg. The Lehigh team the Quakers face Sunday is of similar caliber to Bloomsburg, and has beat Huskies this year, 22-13. Missed opportunities on Sunday will mean a step down to .500 for the 2-1 Quakers.

Heavyweights moving in opposite directions: Penn senior heavyweight Steve Graziano, who started off the year 4-1, has dropped five of his last six matches after losing in duals against Bloomsburg and Boston University last weekend. On the opposing end, Lehigh sophomore heavyweight Doug Vollaro is on a three-match winning streak. If Sunday’s dual is tight until the end, the trends at the 285-pound class will need to reverse in order for Penn to come out on top.

-Seamus Powers