The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wrestling team dropped two matches at the Virginia Duals in Hampton, Va., today. The Mocs lost to No. 19 Arizona State 22-18 in the opening round of the 16-team tournament. Chattanooga then fell to Rider 33-10 in the consolation bracket. With the losses, UTC is now 5-8 on the year.
The Mocs looked like they might match-up well against the 19th-ranked Sun Devils but injuries and illnesses kept UTC from putting its full lineup of starters on the mat. Head Coach Heath Eslinger knew he would not have his top guys at 133 and 141. Senior Cody Cleveland (Tullahoma, Tenn.), ranked No. 8 in the nation at 141 this week, is still recovering from a hamstring injury he suffered at the Reno Tournament of Champions in December. Junior Demetrius Johnson (Memphis, Tenn.) has not seen the mat at 133 this year due to offseason knee surgery.
Chattanooga also lost starters at three other weights in the days leading up to the Virginia Duals. At 149, sophomore Alex Hudson (Marietta, Ga.) was out with a leg injury he suffered in practice this week and sophomore Dean Pavlou (Cleveland, Tenn.) was out with the flu. At 197, sophomore Niko Brown (Kissimmee, Fla.) is nursing a rib injury and was also unable to go. The surprise omission was at 125, where sophomore Prescott Garner (West Linn, Ore.) made his weight, but then fell ill prior to the match.
That took five starters out of the fold against a top-25 opponent. Regardless, the Mocs battled hard and nearly pulled off the upset. Chattanooga gave up bonus points in the first two matches and found itself down 9-0.
Freshman Shawn Greevy (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) continued his strong season with a pin over ASU's Kailin Goodsite at 141, pulling the score back to 9-6. Goodsite came into the match with a 15-9 record, but Greevy was able to improve to 6-3 with his third pin of the year.
"Shawn did a great job," stated Eslinger. "Every time he competes we miss less and less of Cody because he gets better. Now Cody doesn't have to rush back and can be rested and at 100% when the conference season starts. Regardless, Shawn continues to make improvements and is showing that he can wrestle at the highest level."
Freshman Trevor Herron (Cleveland, Tenn.) was forced to wrestle up a class since Hudson and Pavlou were out. He posted an impressive 5-4 decision to tie the team score at 9-9. The Sun Devils went back up 12-9 after No. 4 Bubba Jenkins defeated sophomore Josh Condon (Powder Springs, Ga.) 9-3, but Chattanooga took a 15-12 lead following a forfeit at 165. The score was tied again when ASU's Eric Starks defeated junior Brandon Wright (Germantown, Tenn.) at 174.
Junior Jason McCroskey (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.) gave the Mocs their last lead of the day when he won his 184 match 5-2 over Jake Meredith. Arizona State took the last two matches to secure the win.
"We had five starters out of our lineup and gave ourselves a chance to win," added Eslinger. "It shows that we have kids in the room who can step up and help us win. It is a long year and everyone is dealing with injuries. We have to find a way to work around it and it can't be an excuse. We want to win every match, but it is most important that our guys are healthy when the conference season rolls around."
No. 19 Arizona State 22, Chattanooga 18
Virginia Duals First Round - Hampton Coliseum - Hampton, Va.
Friday - Jan. 7, 2011
125: No. 3 Anthony Robles (ASU) - Tech Fall 17-0 - Joe DeAngelo (UTC) - ASU 5-0
133: David Prado (ASU) - MD 14-4 - Adam Wilson (UTC) - ASU 9-0
141: Shawn Greevy (UTC) - Fall 5:58 - Kalin Goodsite (ASU) - ASU 9-6
149: Trevor Herron (UTC) - Dec. 5-4 - Tai Fukumoto (ASU) - Tied 9-9
157: No. 4 Bubba Jenkins (ASU) - Dec. 9-3 - Josh Condon (UTC) - ASU 12-9
165: Dan Waddell (UTC) - won by forfeit - UTC 15-12
174: Eric Starks (ASU) - Dec. 8-3 - Brandon Wright (UTC) - Tied 15-15
184: Jason McCroskey (UTC) - dec. 5-2 - Jake Meredith (ASU) - UTC 18-15
197: Luke Macchiaroli (ASU) - Dec. 8-3 - Robert Prigmore (UTC) - Tied 18-18
285: Levi Cooper (ASU) - MD 10-1 - Matt Lettner (UTC) - ASU 22-18
UTC then took on Rider in the consolation round. The Mocs never could get things going against the Broncs, dropping each of the first seven matches. McCroskey and sophomore Robert Prigmore (Southlake, Texas) won at 184 and 197, respectively, to give Chattanooga its 10 points. McCroskey won a major decision while Prigmore scored his second pin of the year.
"We just matched up horribly with them," explained Eslinger. "They came out and took it to us right from the start. We could not get any advantage and they wrestled very well."
Rider 33, Chattanooga 10
Virginia Duals Consolations - Hampton Coliseum - Hampton, Va.
Friday - Jan. 7, 2011
125: Chuck Zeisloft (Rider) - Dec. 9-7 - Joe DeAngelo (UTC) - Rider 3-0
133: Jimmy Kirchner (Rider) - Fall 4:31 - Adam Wilson (UTC) - Rider 9-0
141: Aaron Nestor (Rider) - Dec. 8-2 - Shawn Greevy (UTC) - Rider 12-0
149: Zac Cibula (Rider) - Fall 7:31 - Trevor Herron (UTC) - Rider 18-0
157: Ramon Santiago (Rider) - Dec. 8-5 - Josh Condon (UTC) - Rider 21-0
165: No. 20 Jim Resnick (Rider) - Dec. 9-3 - Dan Waddell (UTC) - Rider 24-0
174: Rob Morrison (Rider) - Fall 4:49 - Brandon Wright (UTC) - Rider 30-0
184: Jason McCroskey (UTC) - MD 11-2 - James Brundage (Rider) - Rider 30-4
197: Robert Prigmore (UTC) - Fall 4:47 - Joe Ferber (Rider) - Rider 30-10
285: Evan Craig (Rider) - Dec. 6-4 - Matt Lettner (UTC) - Rider 33-10
Chattanooga will be back in action Jan. 15 when they travel to No. 18 Missouri for a 7:00 p.m. (E.S.T.) tilt with the Tigers. UTC returns home for the first time in over two months when it hosts The Citadel on Jan. 30. The Southern Conference opener for Chattanooga is set to begin at 2:00 p.m. in Maclellan Gym.
