KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The Kutztown University wrestling team overcame a 9-0 deficit as
Matt Martoccio (Kintnersville, Pa./Council Rock South (Lock Haven))'s win by decision in the final bout gave KU a 19-18 win over Gannon University on Saturday afternoon in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) match at Keystone Arena.
The Golden Bears (6-3, 1-2 PSAC) and Golden Knights (2-1, 2-1) entered as two of the top-10 teams in the region on Saturday, and the final bout would decide who came away with the team victory.
With the match starting at the 165-pound weight class, Martoccio closed the day at 157 pounds. Gannon rattled off nine straight points across two weight classes to lead 18-16 heading into the final bout. Martoccio, ranked sixth in Division II and second in Super Region I, went up against Garret Smith, ranked fourth in the region, in a physical matchup.
Martoccio used two takedowns and only allowed points off escapes to lead 4-3 entering the final period. The two grappled for the majority of the final period as Martoccio held on for his one-point win by a 4-3 decision and a team victory for the Golden Bears.
125-pounder
Austin Petril (Clifton Heights, Pa./Upper Darby (Ursinus)) turned in the biggest win of the day for Kutztown in regards to team points. He earned a 16-0 win by tech. fall in 4:41 that was a part of four straight wins for KU.
Kutztown dropped the first three bouts, but
Brandan Clark (Audubon, Pa./Methacton) turned the trend around with a 6-1 win at 197.
Ryan Appleby (Belvidere, N.J./Belvidere) followed with a 9-1 major decision at heavyweight, as Petril's tech. fall and
Anthony Petril (Clifton Heights, Pa./Upper Darby (Ursinus))'s 10-2 major decision at 133 gave KU a 16-9 lead with three bouts to go.
Gannon responded with a tight 6-5 decision at 141, giving KU's
Travis Roper (Kingston, Pa./Wyoming Valley West) his first loss of the year. John Marotto worked a takedown in the final minute of the third period to break a 4-4 tie and take control of the match.
KU wrestling returns to the mat at Keystone Arena in one week on Saturday, Jan. 23 to take on seventh-ranked Mercyhurst University at 12 p.m.
| Final Results - Kutztown 19, Gannon 18 | | |
| Weight | Summary | KUTZ | GANN |
| 165 | #7 Nate Ross (Gannon) over J. Meyer (Kutztown) (Dec 8-2) | 0 | 3 |
| 174 | Christopher Matthews (Gannon) over J. Balboni (Kutztown) (Dec 9-5) | 0 | 3 |
| 184 | Lorenzo Maddox (Gannon) over C. Schildt (Kutztown) (Dec 5-3) | 0 | 3 |
| 197 | B. Clark (Kutztown) over Nigel Toussaint (Gannon) (Dec 6-1) | 3 | 0 |
| 285 | R. Appleby (Kutztown) over Gunner Loughman (Gannon) (MD 9-1) | 4 | 0 |
| 125 | Au. Petril (Kutztown) over Casey Vollmer (Gannon) (TF 16-0 4:41) | 5 | 0 |
| 133 | An. Petril (Kutztown) over Korey Caudill (Gannon) (MD 10-2) | 4 | 0 |
| 141 | John Marotto (Gannon) over T. Roper (Kutztown) (Dec 6-5) | 0 | 3 |
| 149 | George McGuire (Gannon) over J. Esposito (Kutztown) (Fall 2:19) | 0 | 6 |
| 157 | #6 M. Martoccio (Kutztown) over Garrett Smith (Gannon) (Dec 4-3) | 3 | 0 |
| Team Score: | 19 | 18 |
