FEBRUARY 19 2005
BOB ZIADIE

KING'S WRESTLERS FINISH FOURTH AT MAC TOURNEY
(Arnone Gains Second NCAA Berth With Wildcard)

MAC Tourney Home Page:  http://www.wilkes.edu/sports/mac/default.asp

Brackets

WILKES-BARRE -- The King's College wrestling team placed fourth and had eight wrestlers finish in the top-eight of the Middle Atlantic Conference Championships Saturday at Wilkes University. 

Delaware Valley won the team title with 175 points, followed by Lycoming (131.5), Messiah, 117), King's (95), and Wilkes (87.5) to round out the top-five teams.

The Monarchs placed two wrestlers in the finals but did not crown an individual champion.

Senior all-American Joe Arnone, the top-seed at 165-pounds, dropped a 7-2 finals decision to second-seeded Grant Brindle of Lycoming, the sixth-ranked wrestler in the nation.  

Arnone, 2004 MAC champion, was awarded a wildcard berth and will compete in the 2005 NCAA Division III Championships at St. Olaf College in Minnesota, March 4-5. Arnone (26-5) placed fifth in the 2004 NCAA Tourney.

Arnone, who received a first-round bye, reached the MAC finals with a 3-0 semi-final decision over Delaware Valley's Ryan Pope.

At 157, King's sophomore Drew Dehaut dropped a heartbreaking 10-8 overtime decision to Kyle Hart of Elizabethtown. Dehaut upset defending champion Jason Smith 8-4 in the quarterfinals, then posted a pin in 4:41 of Delaware Valley's John Powell.  

Finishing third for King's was freshman Ryan Richard who was seeded fourth in the event. Richard won his first match with a 14-4 major decision over Messiah's Josh Cragg. Richard then dropped an 8-0 verdict to top-seeded Mike Weston of Delaware Valley. In the wrestle-backs, Richard defeated Scranton's Rich Russell 8-3, then bested Cragg again 10-3 in the consolation finals.

At 133, King's sophomore John Houssock placed fifth. In his first match, Houssock fell to second-seeded Wade Ginter of Albright by a 11-8 decision. In the wrestle-backs, Houssock pinned Billy McEvoy of Wilkes before falling to Geoff Harner of Messiah 13-8. In the fifth-and-sixth place match, Houssock defeated Justin Martin of Elizabethtown 15-6.

In the 141-pound class, Monarch freshman Scott Prutzman also placed third. In his first match, Prutzman pinned Matt Fay of Albright in 1:58, but fell to top-seeded and eventual champion Dan Hall of Delaware Valley by a 6-1 verdict. In the wrestle-backs, Prutzman defeated Lycoming's Eric Snyder 7-1, then posted a 4-2 decision over Scranton's Joe Leva in the consolation finals.

At 149, King's freshman Chris Sullivan finished in fifth place. IN the first round, Sullivan fell to Rob Bozart of Elizabethtown 3-2. In the wrestle-backs, Sullivan defeated Mike Sciularra of Wilkes  7-2 before falling to second-seeded Sean Reese of Lycoming, 6-0. He then won by injury default over Scranton's Donnell Young.

In the 197-pound class, King's sophomore Jason Reilly placed third. In his first match, Reilly posted a 12-2 decision over Messiah's Mike Orfanos. In the semi-finals, Reilly fell to eventual champion Jamall Johnson of Delaware Valley. In the consolations, Reilly pinned Chad Bartholomew of Elizabethtown in just 0:26, then posted a 6-3 decision over Lycoming's Kevin Colton to finish third.

At 285, King's sophomore Jim Bishop placed fourth.  In his first match, Bishop pinned Paul Mazzei of Elizabethtown in 0:44, but fell 12-3 to top-seeded two-time champion Tommy Snyder of Lycoming. In the wrestle-backs, Bishop pinned Messiah's Ethan Bucarey in 1:59 before falling to Matt Carey of Wilkes 5-3 in the consolation finals.

King's other entries included Zach Dietrick at 174 and Joe Peteroy at 184. Deitrick lost to eventual runner-up Derek Crane of Lycoming 6-2 before losing by pin to Jason Bell of Elizabethtown.

Peteroy lost to two-time champion Andrew Helms in a 4:33 pin before suffering a 2-0 loss to Scranton's Trevor Needham.


Team Scoring
175.0  -  Delaware Valley College
131.5 - Lycoming College
117.0 - Messiah College
95.0 - King's College
87.5 - Wilkes University
46.5 - Elizabethtown College
40.5 - University of Scranton
23.5 - Albright College


Brackets can be view on the tournament home page at:

http://www.wilkes.edu/sports/mac/default.asp

 

 

King's College
133 North River Street  Wilkes-Barre, PA  18711
1 (888) KINGS PA

Questions or comments to:  Bob Ziadie, King's College Sports Information Director
Best if viewed with Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 or higher.