Pitt tops Bloomsburg in first EWL matchup

Pitt wrestling had a lot to be thankful for over the break.

On Wednesday evening, the team… Pitt wrestling had a lot to be thankful for over the break.

On Wednesday evening, the team won its conference opener against in-state rival Bloomsburg in front of a large, boisterous crowd. The victory kept Pitt (2-0, 1-0 EWL) undefeated in the early season.

The Huskies (0-1, 0-1 EWL) got off to a great start. At 125 pounds, Mike Sees earned a 19-3 technical fall in the third period of his bout with Panther Brad Gentzle to give Bloomsburg the early 5-0 advantage.

At 133 pounds, Pitt’s Drew Headlee maintained a scoreless bout with Ricky Donald through the first two periods. In the third period, Headlee scored two points on a near fall and only allowed Donald an escape to win 2-1 and cut Bloomsburg’s lead to 5-3.

The 141-pound bout went into overtime after Pitt’s Joe Ciampoli and the Huskies’ Tony Curto both scored one escape during the first three periods. In the extra period, Ciampoli scored on a takedown to win 3-1 and give Pitt its first lead of the day, 6-5.

At 149 pounds, Bloomsburg’s Matt Moley pinned Panther sophomore Dave Kapetanovich at the 2:26 mark, giving the Huskies an 11-6 advantage.

Pitt’s Matt Kocher brought the Panthers back with an outstanding bout against Dennis Bermudez. In the first period alone, Kocher scored on three takedowns, a reversal, a near fall and a penalty. He earned a 17-6 victory and brought the Panthers to within one point of the Huskies, 11-10.

Sean Richmond continued on the momentum that Kocher built, pinning Bloomsburg’s Ricky Schmelyun 22 seconds into his 165-pound bout. The Panthers took a 16-11 lead and never looked back.

At 174 pounds, Pitt’s Keith Gavin continued the assault on the Huskies. Gavin led Brian Shaw the entire bout and won on a 19-4 technical fall at the 6:10 mark to increase the Panthers’ lead to 21-11.

Bloomsburg’s Nate Shirk made things interesting in the 184-pound bout. Shirk took an early lead 2-1 over Pitt’s Mike Heist with a first period takedown. In the second period, Heist countered with his second escape to tie the match at two. Shirk scored an escape and earned a point for riding time to win the bout 4-2 and close Pitt’s lead to 21-14.

Eric Cassidy picked up the slack for Heist in his 197-pound bout with Bloomsburg’s PJ DiStefano. Cassidy took an early 2-1 lead with a takedown in the first period. In the second period, Cassidy added to his lead with a reversal before earning his first pin of the season at the 4:40 mark. The victory increased the Panthers’ lead to 27-14.

The final bout featured Pitt’s Zach Shaeffer and Bloomsburg’s Mike Spaid, both former EWL champions.

After a scoreless first period, Shaeffer took a 2-0 lead with a reversal in the second. Spaid tied the match in the third with a reversal and penalty point, but Shaeffer pulled away in the closing minutes by scoring two takedowns and a point for riding time to win the bout, 7-3. With the victory, the Panthers won the overall match 30-14.

“We wrestled hard and that’s the key to winning these matches,” Head Coach Rande Stottlemyer told pittsburghpanthers.com. “I think the swing matches for us were at 141 and 165. Those certainly ignited us, and then the floodgates opened at 197 and the heavyweight. I thought it was going to be a much closer match, but it was great to open the season like this with a big crowd at home.”

The Panthers will head to the Las Vegas Invitational on Dec. 1 to take on some of the nation’s top teams in a two-day tournament. They will return to Fitzgerald Field House Dec. 9 to face the Lehigh Mountain Hawks.