GRANTHAM, Pa. - Tuesday evening's dual with the Delaware Valley Aggies featured falls in five of the eight contested bouts. The Falcons earned four of the impactful wins en route to the 42-9 victory in Hitchcock Arena. Messiah's
Garret Cornell (149 lbs.) got the first of three-straight pins for the Falcons with
Nick Barnhart (157 lbs) and
Matt Pangle (165 lbs.) following immediately after.
David Stevens (184 lbs.) earned the fourth and final fall for the Falcons on the evening.
In addition to the quartet of pins for Messiah, the Falcons earned a pair of forfeits and two decisions.
Messiah will be back in action on Saturday when they host the Steven Ducks in Hitchcock Arena for a dual at 2:00 p.m.
Tight First Bout
Messiah's
Dalton Daugherty and Delaware Valley's Russell Benson went toe-to-toe in a tight opening bout at 141 lbs. after the Aggies conceded the first two weight classes of the night to the Falcons. With Messiah leading 12-0 in the team score, Benson got Delaware Valley on the board with a 7-6 decision over Daugherty. The bout was back and forth the whole time with both wrestlers earning a takedown and a pair of escapes through the first two and a half periods. With the score level 4-4, Benson earned a takedown with 31 seconds remaining in the third, but Daugherty scored a reversal just 16 seconds later. Unfortunately, he was unable to ride Benson into extra time. Benson earned the escape in the final seconds to score the one-point decision.
Three-Straight Falcon Falls
Messiah showed their strength at the middle weights with three-straight falls from
Garret Cornell (149 lbs.),
Nick Barnhart (157 lbs.), and
Matt Pangle (165 lbs.). All three wrestlers earned their falls in less than three and a half minutes, with Cornell and Barnhart picking up first period pins.
Cornell earned a takedown 1:19 into his match with Mike Rubino before earning his fall less than 40 seconds later in 1:58 at 149 lbs. Barnhart beat the first-period buzzer with his pin at 157 lbs. After taking Zach Zuckerman with under a minute remaining in the opening period, Barnhart picked up the fall 2:45 into the bout.
Matt Pangle needed just a little bit more time at 165 lbs. for his pin, getting the stick of Chris Richardson in 3:28. Pangle led 5-1 after the opening perdion, but earned an escape and a takedown early in the second before earning the fall.
The trio of falls gave Messiah a 30-3 lead heading into the final four bouts of the night.
Closing Out the Win
Brian Shermeyer earned a hard-fought sudden victory decision at 174 lbs., holding off Youssef Ait Boulahri by a 10-8 decision. Shermeyer led 3-2 after the opening period, but after a pair of takedowns from Ait Boulahri in the second, Shermeyer trailed 6-5 heading into the final two minutes. Combine a Shermeyer takedown in the third with a pair of Ait Boulahri escapes and a riding time point for the Messiah senior, the bout headed to extra time. Just 25 seconds into the extra period, Shermeyer earned the takedown on the edge of the mat to clich the tight decision.
David Stevens put together a dominating fall of Jake Nase at 184 lbs. to make it five-straight wins for the Falcons. Stevens led 6-0 after a takedown and a set of near fall points in the opening period. After a second-period escape and a takedown, Stevens put Nase to his back for the fall in the middle of the second period. Stevens earned the stick in 4:10.
At 197 lbs., Delaware Valley's Austin Williams earned a pin late in the second period, despite trailing in the bout 4-3 to Messiah's
Spencer Clements.
Carter Urich wrapped up the evening with a convincing decision at 285 lbs. over the Aggies' Dan Eckley. Urich claimed a 9-3 decision without being taken down once. The Messiah junior claimed a trio of takedowns, a reversal, and a riding time point to clinch the match for Messiah by a 42-9 final score.
What's Up Next
After splitting consecutive duals with the Aggies, Messiah will turn their attention to the Stevens Ducks, last year's Middle Atlantic Conference and NCAA DIII Southeast Regional Champions. The Falcons will host the Ducks in Hitchcock Arena on Saturday afternoon 2:00 p.m.
Messiah defeats Delaware Valley - 42-9
125 -
Corey Morabito (M) wins by for.
133 -
Hunter Rinehart (M) wins by for.
141 - Russell Benson (DV) dec. (7-6) over
Dalton Daugherty (M)
149 -
Garret Cornell (M) fall (1:58) over Mike Rubino (DV)
157 -
Nick Barnhart (M) fall (2:45) over Zach Zuckerman (DV)
165 -
Matt Pangle (M) fall (3:28) over Chris Richardson (DV)
174 -
Brian Shermeyer (M) dec. (10-8 SV-1) over Youssef Ait Boulahri (DV)
184 -
David Stevens (M) fall (4:10) over Jake Nase (DV)
197 - Austin Williams (DV) fall (4:39) over
Spencer Clements (M)
285 -
Carter Urich (M) dec. (9-3) over Dan Eckley (DV)
Ex. - Carter Owen (DV) dec. (5-2) over
Hunter Rinehart (M)
