Panthers edge Lock Haven

Lou Thomas picked a great time to step up for the Pitt wrestling team.

Early on in his… Lou Thomas picked a great time to step up for the Pitt wrestling team.

Early on in his heavyweight matchup, the sophomore wrapped up Lock Haven’s Tim Meyers, flipped him over on his back and recorded a two-point takedown just on the edge of the mat.

With the pressure of the team’s fate on his shoulders, Thomas held on for a 3-2 victory in the final match of the night.

His three team points put the Panthers on top for a 17-15 win over the visiting Bald Eagles Friday night.

“You don’t realize how much pressure there is when you’re the last guy and everything depends on you,” Pitt head coach Rande Stottlemyer said. “And he [Thomas] rose to the challenge and did a nice job to win the match for us.”

Pitt (4-8 overall, 2-3 Eastern Wrestling League) picked up its second consecutive win heading into its final match of the year, all while continuing to battle injuries and inexperience.

“We’ve dealt with a lot of adversity,” Stottlemyer said of his team. “They could have thrown in the towel and said we’ll wait until next year.

“Obviously you can tell by tonight’s performance we’re trying to win right now.”

Down 3-0 after the first match, seniors Mike Ciotti and Ron Tarquinio posted back-to-back wins, putting the Panthers up by four.

Ciotti held Lock Haven’s Casey Moore scoreless for all three periods, using an escape and the riding point for a 2-0 victory and Pitt’s first win.

Tarquinio, however, went a different route.

From the get-go, Tarquinio went right at Brian Ellis. A quick takedown put Tarquinio up 2-0 before he picked up another two points on a near fall while down on the mat.

Moments later, Tarquinio found himself on the ground with Ellis again. He maneuvered his arms up under the shoulders of Ellis and rolled his back to the ground to notch three near fall points.

His aggressiveness continued until the end when he finished off Ellis for a 16-3 major decision.

“Tarquinio didn’t wrestle very well the other night. I think he disappointed himself,” Stottlemyer said of the senior. “We needed that. The team feeds off that when someone goes out and wrestles as hard as he did.”

After two straight losses at 149 and 157 pounds, Pitt’s Justin Nestor put Pitt back on the board, while Nick Padezan followed him with a surprising win for a 14-9 Panther lead.

Nestor used four takedowns in his match for a major decision, as Padezan picked up three near-fall points early and held off a late attack of Carlos Ponce, who looked for a takedown to win, for an 8-5 victory.

“Nick Padezan did a great job,” Stottlemyer said. “He was really the swing match that we really needed. He was an underdog in that match, definitely.”

Losses at 184 and 197 pounds put the Panthers down one at 15-14 heading into the final match of the evening at heavyweight. But Thomas sealed the deal for Pitt with his 3-2 win.

“We wrestled hard,” Stottlemyer said. “Wrestling is just like everything else. If you compete hard, you always give yourself a chance to win.”

Stottlemyer made sure to note the Spirit Night crowd in the stands of the Fitzgerald Field House that created a great atmosphere for the wrestlers.

“Those kids have done a great job,” he said. “They’re very enthusiastic. It’s something that really pushes the team.”

Pitt resumes EWL action Friday at 7:30 p.m. when they host undefeated Edinboro in its final match of the season. Seniors Ciotti, Tarquinio and Nestor will be honored before the match.