KUTZTOWN, PA (January 27, 2011) – There is no question about the high level of improvement the Kutztown University wrestling team has seen this season. That progress, however, will be put to the test this weekend as it goes up against a pair of top teams in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC).
KU will face Mercyhurst College on Friday night at 7:00 p.m., and Gannon University on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.
Live stats for Friday's match against Mercyhurst can be found by CLICKING HERE. Live stats for Saturday's match against Gannon can be found by CLICKING HERE.
The Golden Bears (7-9 overall) have stepped it up over the past couple of weeks and have started to receive votes in the latest Division II national poll. They are also ranked fifth in Super Region I. Kutztown's latest achievement came this past weekend as it won two of three matches at the regional duals in Pembroke, N.C. KU defeated Anderson University 32-9 and ended the weekend taking down Limestone College 25-14.
Having its wrestlers improve on a weekly basis has fueled Kutztown's run of winning four of its last five matches. With the addition of some new faces on the team, Kutztown has continued to get better during the tougher second half of the season. With a goal of sending wrestlers to nationals, the Golden Bears are heading in the right direction.
“We still have a ways to go,” said head wrestling coach Rob Fisher. “We've been improving every single week and I hope we can keep it up this weekend.”
One wrestler in particular who's been performing at a high level has been sophomore Austin Williams (Pen Argyl, PA/Pen Argyl). Williams was named this week's PSAC Athlete of the Week after winning all three of his matches at 133 pounds last weekend and taking down two nationally-ranked wrestlers in the process. He defeated fifth-ranked William Young from Newberry by fall in 1 minute, 28 seconds, and sixth-ranked Michael Magaha from Limestone in a 7-5 decision. Williams also earned a 17-1 tech fall against Anderson's Joseph Perry.
Williams is currently ranked fourth in the latest Super Region I rankings and leads the team with 12 wins in dual meets this season. He has 15 total wins. Williams has also recorded four major decisions which is second on the team, and a team-high three tech falls.
Kutztown has five wrestlers in the latest regional rankings. Along with Williams, Desmond Moore (Easton, PA/Easton) is ranked fifth at 125, John Paukovits (Northampton, PA/Northampton) is fourth at 149, Tim Darling (Nazareth, PA/Nazareth) is second at 174 and Justin Grant (Easton, PA/Easton) is third at 285.
Darling is also ranked fifth in Division II but will not be wrestling this weekend. He is 11-3 this season and co-leads the team with Ricky Pena (Reading, PA/Reading) with five falls. Probable candidates to replace Darling at 174 should be Eric Sergent (Nazareth, PA/Nazareth Area HS) or Zach Martlatt.
Grant, despite his impressive 17-6 record, also notices the potential for the team and how important this weekend's matches are for KU.
“Individually we are making huge strides as wrestlers,” said Grant. “Our goal is to not only be a top program but to be a top 10 program. We have as much, and maybe even more talent than any team in the nation. As a competitor, it would be a disappointment if we don't come away with both matches this weekend. We are far too talented to lose any dual meets this year, but we are slowly and steadily getting better and ready for regional's where we expect to get at least half our line-up to nationals.”
Kutztown holds the advantage over Mercyhurst, defeating them three of its four meetings overall. KU took down Mercyhurst 32-9 on Feb 5, 2010. The Lakers (8-6) are currently seventh in the region and split their four matches at the Super Region I duals last weekend.
Gannon (4-1-1) is ranked third in the region and have moved into the national rankings as well at 14. The Golden Knights have won two of their last three dual meets, its most recent victory being a 28-6 win over the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown.
Gannon's A.J. Milanek is ranked eighth in Division II at 141 and will go up against Leonard Drummond. Drummond just joined the team this semester and has already proven his talents with both of his victories this season coming by fall. Tony Petrella is also ranked in Division II as he is second at 174.
Both teams are sure to give Kutztown a run for its money this weekend as each match features some top individual matchups. Needless to say, this is a real big weekend for the Golden Bears as they continue to prove why they are one of the top teams in the conference.
--KU--
