ERIE, Pa. – The 25th-ranked Kutztown University wrestling team has battled though some nail-biting matches this season. KU has won multiple matches this year by criteria, but lost its first of the year by criteria Friday night when it nearly upset eighth-ranked Mercyhurst University. Mercyhurst recorded a pin at heavyweight to tie the match at 19, giving the Lakers a tiebreaking point on criteria to defeat KU 20-19 in a nationally-ranked showdown.
 
The Golden Bears went toe-to-toe with one of the top teams in Division II in Mercyhurst. Both teams won five matches, but Mercyhurst's sole win by pinfall earned it the criteria point.
 
KU led 19-13 going into the final match of the night. No. 10 Ryan Appleby (Belvidere, N.J./Belvidere) went up against No. 8 Andy Welton in a rematch of last year's regional final. Appleby led 4-2 with less than 40 seconds remaining in the match, but Welton hit a single-leg and was able to turn Appleby for a pin to force a tie through the final bout, and Mercyhurst's eventual win.
 
While the loss is tough for Kutztown, it rests on the fact that it nearly took down one of the top teams not only in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, but Division II. Each team had three nationally-ranked wrestlers, coincidentally, all coming in the same weight classes.
 
KU's No. 11 Austin Petril (Clifton Heights, Pa./Upper Darby (Ursinus)) went up against the top-ranked 125-pounder in Division II in Willie Bohince, but dropped a 6-1 decision. KU followed with wins by Lucas Miller (Perkiomenville, Pa./Boyertown Area) and Mikey O'Brien (Lansdale, Pa./North Penn) to take a 7-6 lead.
 
Bill Manley (Monroe Township, Pa./Tunkhannock Area) won a 12-2 major decision at 157, leading up to the featured match of the night – No. 1 Francis Mizia of Mercyhurst vs. No. 6 T.C. Warner (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley (Bloomsburg)) of Kutztown. Not many points were scored, but Mizia – a returning national qualifier – scored an extra takedown in a 5-2 win. It was Warner's first loss of the year as he sits at 9-1 this year.
 
Joe Balboni (Springfield, N.J./Jonathan Dayton (Old Dominion)) moved to 14-3 on the year at 174 with a 14-11 decision, giving KU a 14-10 lead with three matches to go.
 
Jeff Reimel (Lansdale, Pa./North Penn) won a 15-0 tech. fall at 184, and Mercyhurst won a major decision at 197 to give KU the 19-13 lead heading into the final match of the night.
 
Kutztown has less than 24 hours to recover from Friday night, as it takes on Gannon University on Saturday, Feb. 4, at 12 p.m.
 
 

Weight	Summary	MERC	KUTZ
125	#1 Willie Bohince (Mercyhurst) over #11 A. Petril (Kutztown) (Dec 6-1)	3	0
133	L. Miller (Kutztown) over Jeff Sisk (Mercyhurst) (Dec 7-2)	0	3
141	M. O'Brien (Kutztown) over Braden Flinn (Mercyhurst) (MD 8-0)	0	4
149	Logan Grass (Mercyhurst) over C. Haegele (Kutztown) (Dec 2-0)	3	0
157	B. Manley (Kutztown) over Cole Gavin (Mercyhurst) (MD 12-2)	0	4
165	#1 Francis Mizia (Mercyhurst) over #6 T. Warner (Kutztown) (Dec 5-2)	3	0
174	J. Balboni (Kutztown) over Kevin Holman (Mercyhurst) (Dec 14-11)	0	3
184	J. Reimel (Kutztown) over Nick Konyk (Mercyhurst) (TF 15-0 6:46)	0	5
197	Wes Phipps (Mercyhurst) over C. Jenco (Kutztown) (MD 13-3)	4	0
285	#8 Andy Welton (Mercyhurst) over #10 R. Appleby (Kutztown) (Fall 6:10)	6	0
Criteria		1.00	0
Team Score:		20	19