Photo Gallery
GRANTHAM, Pa. - No. 15 Messiah wrestling scored 15 of the final 18 points against No. 19 TCNJ to earn a come-from-behind win on Saturday, 21-19. The win pushed Messiah to 15-5 on the season, with the Lions falling to 15-4.
Messiah will wrestle again next week Wednesday, Feb. 14 at McDaniel College. The bout with the Green Terror is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
Lost Lead
Messiah started with a 3-0 decision at 125, with
Sean Redington picking up a late takedown and a riding time point to win 10-8. But that strong start was quickly erased as TCNJ with a major decision at 133 and a fall at 141. Neither match was particularly close for Messiah.
The Falcons were now tailing 10-3, and
Stephen Maloney (149) earned a hard-fought 10-4 decision to cut Messiah's deficit in half. He picked up two nearfalls along the way and was the first of four Falcons to earn a second win in as many days.
At 157 Dominic Fano earned a second period fall over
Lee Cassel, and TCNJ went up 16-6 for their largest lead of the afternoon.
Piece by Piece
Messiah's comeback was methodic, and included more than a few highlights across the final five bouts.
Jeff Hojnacki (165) started it off with a thrilling 6-4 decision in sudden victory. Against Luke Balina he collected more than a minute of riding time, but needed an escape in the final 15 seconds of the third period to even the score up at 4-4. A takedown shortly into the overtime gave him the win.
Ben Swarr followed at 174 with a 4-2 decision, though he was hungry for more than the three-point decision. A takedown from Dan Kilroy in the final minute kept the match close, and the team score was 16-12 in favor of TCNJ.
Thomas Anderson (184) tried to increase the Lions' lead, but
Victor DeFrance held off Anderson even as he tired in the final period. His early takedowns set-up the late advantage and he finished with a 12-8 decision to make it a one-point match, 16-15.
Fall to Go Up
With just two bouts left, Messiah needed to make a big move on the board, and they did so behind
Kyle Koser at 197. He built a 4-0 lead over Pat Shnider, and then earned a momentous pin at 2:09 to put Messiah up 21-16. The fall was his eighth of the season.
Big Finish
In the final bout TCNJ needed either at tech fall or pin, and Messiah's
Jared Schell did all he could to keep that from happening. He held a 4-3 lead midway through the second period, a welcomed score considering he was almost pinned in the first minute. As the bout wore on Kyle Cocozza stormed back to take a lead, and his riding time of more than three minutes filled the final minute with intrigue. As it became Cocozza would earn the decision, Schell was turned onto his back with just 10 seconds to go, but he quickly rolled away to avoid the fall.
The decision kept the Lions from catching Messiah, and the Falcons finished with a sixth-straight win over their rival from New Jersey.
Messiah 21, TCNJ 19
Sean Redington (Messiah) defeated Jacob Falleni (TCNJ) - Decision, 10-8
James Goldschmidt (TCNJ) defeated
Ka'au Estrella (Messiah) - Maj Decision, 16-2
Robert Dinger (TCNJ) defeated
Nick Nunez (Messiah) - Fall, 4:29
Stephen Maloney (Messiah) defeated Anthony Rua (TCNJ) - Decision, 10-4
Dominic Fano (TCNJ) defeated
Kevin Edwards (Messiah) - Fall, 4:06
Jeff Hojnacki (Messiah) defeated Luke Balina (TCNJ) - Decision, 6-4
Ben Swarr (Messiah) defeated Dan Kilroy (TCNJ) - Decision, 4-2
Victor DeFrance (Messiah) defeated Thomas Anderson (TCNJ) - Decision, 12-8
Kyle Koser (Messiah) defeated Pat Shnider (TCNJ) - Fall, 2:09
Kyle Cocozza (TCNJ) defeated
Jared Schell (Messiah) - Decision, 8-5
