Wrestling Team Loses Against Division II Opponent to Open Season
On Wednesday, Nov. 9, the Waynesburg University wrestling team traveled to Shippensburg, Pennsylvania to take on the Raiders in the season opener. The Raiders came out on top of the Jackets beating them by a score of 27-13.
The Jackets were looking for an upset as Shippensburg came in ranked number 24 in all of Division II. The Jackets won four of the eight matches they wrestled, but the two forfeits at 149 and 157 pounds put the upset out of reach for the Jackets.
At 125 pounds, junior Tristan Buxton started the night off with a 12-9 victory over David Reagan for the Raiders. After Buxton’s win to start off the match, the Raiders went on a 23-0 run to put it away.
Senior 141 pounder Flilppo Crivelli had a hard fought battle with Division II national qualifier, Karl Lightner, before losing 5-3. Although Crivelli led the match all the way into the third period, he giving up a couple of escapes alongside a late takedown Shippensburg would get the win at 141 pounds.
Crivelli talked about his expectations for the match and the overall performance of the team.
“It’s good to get the first match out of the way to see where we are at,” said Crivelli.
Crivelli was not sure if he would be competing in the match due to injuries that have kept him out of practice, but said he was not going to make any excuses for himself.
After facing Lightner, Crivelli said he could have won the match.
“I was right there with him the whole match and I should have won the match, but I let my conditioning get the best of me,” said Crivelli.
Once Crivelli gets healthy and ahead of these injuries that have been holding him back, he is confident that he will be a force in the PAC and will make a run at nationals later on in the year.
The next points to come from Waynesburg were earned by sophomore 174 pounder Nick Kusich, winning by major decision over Shippensburg’s Colton Rebert. Following that match was the 184-pound match, which ended in a 6-3 victory in favor of senior Ryan Shank.
According to Shank, he was not pleased with his personal performance.
“I did not wrestle well, but I am glad to get the win,” said Shank. “The first match is always rough but you have to put it in the past and continue to improve.”
Shank has been a top performer for the Jackets over the past couple seasons and is a key member of the team, providing experience and leadership. Coming into the match Shank was focused on perfecting his attacks, finishing the match, and just wrestling his style.
After losing the 197 pounds by major decision, the Jackets ended the night on a high note as sophomore Jake Evans won the 285-pound match by a score of 3-2.
Although the Jackets did not get the win, head coach Ron Headlee said he was happy with the performance of the team.
“It is hard to see what guys really need to work on at practice,” said Headlee. “Getting on the mat really helps, the first match is always a tough one.”
Headlee talked about how getting out of the wrestling room and into actual competition gives the team an idea of where they are at with conditioning as well as what they need to work on most.
Headlee was impressed most by the performance of Nick Kusich, the 174 pounder from Avella. Kusich stepped in for Mike Millero, who was sick, and Kusich almost had a fall for the Jackets which might not have made a difference in the final outcome of the match but would have gave Kusich confidence going into the upcoming Washington and Jefferson Invitational.
Next for the Jackets is the Washington & Jefferson Invitational. The Jackets will travel to Washington, Pennsylvania this weekend, Nov. 12, for the event that is set to begin at 9:30 a.m.