“It was great to see our guys respond after a loss with solid performances today,†said acting co-head coach Drew Headlee. “We pressed the offense the entire dual and were able to put up a large number of points on the board.â€
Of the nine victories, four Panthers were able to earn wins with bonus points including two pins and two technical falls.
Sophomore LJ Bentley got things going at 125 pounds, using a first period takedown to hold off VMI senior Dalton Henderson, 2-1, who entered the dual 17-7 overall. Starting on bottom entering the second frame, Dalton escaped, but neither wrestler would be able to score again.
Sophomore Robert Lee used Bentley's momentum at 141 pounds to earn his seventh pin of the season in 1:07. Lee took down John Reed just a few seconds into the bout and never looked back, boosting the Panthers to a 9-6 lead.
At 149 pounds, redshirt freshman Alex Murray outlasted Stevan Smith, 11-4, after jumping out to a 4-0 lead in the first period. Murray added on two more points in the second after taking down Smith early on and would ride him out for the remainder of the period. With the bout in his favor, 6-1, Murray started the third on bottom and quickly escaped. Murray would escape and take down Smith once more to secure the win with riding time.
Redshirt freshman Taleb Rahmani extended Pitt's lead to 17-6 after picking up a 19-1 technical fall in 4:39 over Dolan Walsh. Rahmani racked up 12 points in the first period and a takedown and four point nearfall would lock up his 15th win of the season.
Ranked 12th in the country by InterMat this week at 165 pounds, sophomore TeShan Campbell recorded his eighth technical fall of the season and has won his past five matches by technical fall. Campbell dominated Cade Kiely, 21-6, which included seven takedowns and extended Pitt's lead to 22-6.
At 174 pounds, freshman Christian Dietrich held off Shabaka Johns, 7-3. Dietrich struck first in the opening frame jumping to an early 2-0 lead. The two started in neutral to open the second and Dietrich took Johns down again. Dietrich tacked on three more points in the third by way of escape and riding time to secure the win.
Feeding off of the Panthers' momentum, sophomore Donovan McAfee turned in a 3-2 decision over Chris Beck, extending Pitt's lead to 28-6. After a scoreless first period, McAfee escaped to start the second and took down Beck in the third for the win.
Senior John Rizzo also picked up a win by decision as he defeated Taylor Thomas, 7-4. Rizzo scored the first takedown in the opening frame and escaped and scored a takedown in the second giving him a 5-0 lead entering the final period. Thomas was ready for Rizzo in the third as he took him down twice, but Rizzo would escape each time to lock up the win.
In the final bout of the day, redshirt junior Ryan Solomon jumped to an early 8-0 lead in the first thanks to a takedown and recording six nearfall points. Soon after, Solomon pinned Thomas Shea-Roop in 1:17 giving the Panthers a 37-6 victory.
Pitt resumes action Saturday, Jan. 28 as it hosts ACC foe North Carolina. The conference match-up is set to get underway at 7 p.m. in the Fitzgerald Field House.
Results:
125: LJ Bentley (UP) dec. Dalton Henderson (VMI), 2-1 – Pitt leads 3-0
133: Michael Hulcher (VMI) wins by forfeit – VMI leads 6-3
141: Robert Lee (UP) pins John Reed (VMI), 1:07 – Pitt leads 9-6
149: Alex Murray (UP) dec. Stevan Smith (VMI), 11-4 – Pitt leads 12-6
157: Taleb Rahmani (UP) tech. fall Dolan Walsh (VMI), 19-1 4:39 – Pitt leads 17-6
165: No. 12 TeShan Campbell (UP) tech. fall Cade Kiely (VMI), 21-6 7:00 – Pitt leads 22-6
174: Christian Dietrich (UP) dec. Shabaka Johns (VMI), 7-3 – Pitt leads 25-6
184: Donovan McAfee (UP) dec. Chris Beck (VMI), 3-2 – Pitt leads 28-6
197: John Rizzo (UP) dec. Taylor Thomas (VMI), 7-4 – Pitt leads 31-6
285: Ryan Solomon (UP) pins Thomas Shea-Roop (VMI), 1:17 – Pitt wins 37-6
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