East Stroudsburg 27, #9 Kutztown 20
 
EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa. – The ninth-ranked Kutztown University wrestling team experienced an unexpected setback Tuesday night, when it dropped a 27-20 decision at East Stroudsburg University in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) match.
 
For the second night in a row, Kutztown (11-5, 5-2 PSAC) dropped the first two bouts and was forced to try and overcome a 12-0 deficit. Monday night against Shippensburg, Kutztown responded by scoring 30 of the next 33 team points to earn a 30-15 victory.
 
On Tuesday against the Warriors (6-8, 3-4), Kutztown continued its trend of fighting back and took a 16-15 lead following a forfeit by ESU at 165. Kutztown senior Mitch Voelker (Shoemakersville, PA/Schuylkill Valley) put the Golden Bears on the board with a 8-0 major decision at 141, and Matt Martoccio (Kintnersville, Pa./Council Rock South) earned his second pin of the season at 157.
 
Candelaria's forfeit win at 165 pushed him to 8-0 this season at the weight class.
 
East Stroudsburg pulled away with three straight victories, including a decision by fifth-ranked Brendan McKeown and a pin by Luke DeLuise at 184. Kutztown trailed by eight points with two bouts to go and needed bonus points in at least one bout to attempt the comeback; however, an ESU decision at 197 put the match out of reach.
 
Kutztown's top-ranked heavyweight Ziad Haddad (Orefield, Pa./Bethlehem Catholic (North Carolina)) closed his regular season with a perfect 18-0 mark with a 11-2 major decision. Along with chasing a national championship, Haddad will train to be just the second wrestler in Kutztown history to hold a perfect winning percentage throughout the entirety of a season.
 
With the loss, Kutztown is no longer in contention for the PSAC team title.
 
The Golden Bears will have the next 11 days to prepare for the Super Region 1 Championships on March 1-2, hosted at Pitt-Johnstown. The top three finishers at each of the 10 weight classes will punch their tickets to Cleveland, Ohio for the NCAA National Championships on March 14-15.
 
 
ESU 27, #9 Kutztown 20
125 – Anthony Marino (ESU) pinned N. Lamoreaux, 1:55 ... ESU 6-0
133 – Nick Kaiser (ESU) won by forfeit ... ESU 12-0
141 – M. Voelker (KU) maj. dec. Joey Kratochvil, 8-0 ... ESU 12-4
149 – Eric Howey (ESU) dec. J. Stabile, 8-3 ... ESU 15-4
157 – M. Martoccio (KU) pinned Joseph Hoy, 2:48 ... ESU 15-10
165 – B. Candelaria (KU) won by forfeit ... KU 16-15
174 – #5 Brendan McKeown (ESU) dec. J. Heller, 10-5 ... ESU 18-16
184 – Luke DeLuise (ESU) pinned G. Ortiz, 6:00 ... ESU 24-16
197 – Tyson Searer (ESU) dec. B. Clark, 4-1 ... ESU 27-16
285 – #1 Z. Haddad (KU) maj. dec. Tyler Richardson, 11-2 ... ESU 27-20