Dec. 9, 2006
ATHENS, Ohio - The Ohio wrestling squad earned wins in the last three matches to defeat Eastern Michigan 18-15 Saturday at the Convocation Center. It was the Mid-American Conference dual meet opener for both squads.
"I thought Clay Tucker wrestled well," Head Coach Joel Greenlee said. "I also thought Matt Smith wrestled well. That's changing a loss to a win from a week ago for him. Jake Frerichs wrestled well for his first time out. Jacob Ison has a heart as big as this building."
With the victory, the Bobcats move to 5-1 on the season in dual meets and 1-0 in MAC competition. The Eagles fall to 2-2 on the season and 0-1 in conference action.
Eastern Michigan started the competition off with a pair of decision wins. John McClure topped senior Nick Terbay (Dayton, Ohio) at 184 pounds to open the competition. After a scoreless first period, McClure earned a point on an escape in the second and had a riding time advantage to earn a 2-0 win. Terbay entered the week ranked fourth in the MAC at 184 pounds.
At 197 pounds, Eastern Michigan's Tony Lyssiotis replicated McClure's 2-0 win with one of his own over fourth-ranked Larry Reichard (New Albany, Ohio). After another scoreless first period, third-ranked Lyssiotis earned a point in the second and earned another on a riding time advantage over one minute.
Senior Marcus Adelman (Alliance, Ohio), ranked third in the MAC at his weight class, gave Ohio its first win of the night with a 3-0 win at 285 pounds. Adelman and fourth-ranked Charlie Walker wrestled to a scoreless first two periods but Adelman earned a point in the third on an escape and another on a penalty called on Walker. He also earned a riding time advantage for the 3-0 win. Adelman improved to 4-4 on the season with the win.
The Bobcats pulled within 6-3 on Adelman's win but forfeited the 125-pound weight class to fall behind 12-3 to the Eagles. Senior Matt Smith (Sandyville, W.Va.) gave Ohio three more points at 133 pounds with a 6-4 win over Chris Jenkins. Smith earned two points on a takedown in the first period and Jenkins countered with an escape for one point. After a scoreless second period, Smith got two points on a reversal for a 4-1 advantage. Jenkins momentarily tied things up with an escape and a takedown but Smith earned an escape and held on for a 6-4 win after the riding time advantage. Smith evened his season record at 6-6 with the victory.
Ohio pulled within three points of the Eagles at 12-9 when sophomore Albert Madsen (Strongsville, Ohio) earned a 3-0 win against Drew Lesko. Madsen, ranked fourth in the conference at 141 pounds, scored two points on a takedown in the first period and added a point later in the match. He held on for the win to improve to 3-5 on the season.
Redshirt freshman Clay Tucker (Martins Ferry, Ohio) nearly tied things up at 149 pounds against Jermain Thompson, who entered the event ranked 15th in the nation according to the latest NWCA Rankings. Tucker carried a 3-1 advantage into the final period but Thompson earned an escape and a takedown and finished with a 5-3 win.
Sophomore Jake Frerichs (Uniontown, Ohio), making his season debut, came through for the Bobcats with an 8-2 win over Cory Mancuso at 157 pounds. The win pulled Ohio within three points at 15-12. Frerichs earned two points in the first period on a takedown and five more in the second period on a reversal and a near-fall. Mancuso earned a takedown in the third period but it was not enough as Frerichs won his season debut. Frerichs is currently ranked second in the MAC at 157 pounds.
Redshirt freshman Jacob Ison (Batavia, Ohio) won a crucial match at 165 pounds to tie the score at 15-15 with only the 174-pound match remaining. After a scoreless first period, Ison earned a point on an escape in the second period and carried the 1-0 lead into the third period. Eastern Michigan's Nick Conklin earned two points on a reversal but Ison came through at the very last minute, earning a two-point reversal and two back points in the final three seconds of the match. The result was a 5-2 win for Ison to move his season record to 11-5.
With the score tied and only one match remaining, junior Antione Love (Gahanna, Ohio) came through despite an obvious injury and pulled off a 7-6 win over Josh Lewis. Love earned five points in the first period on a takedown and a near-fall but was hurt shortly after. After an injury timeout, Lewis earned two points on a reverse to cut the score to 5-2. Love held on for the win, however, with two more points on escapes and gave the Bobcats an 18-15 victory.
The Bobcats will resume action Friday with a dual meet at Findlay. Competition is set to begin at 7:00 p.m.
Ohio 18, Eastern Michigan 15
125: Zach Beck (EMU) won by forfeit
133: Matt Smith (Ohio) dec. Chris Jenkins (EMU), 6-4
141: Albert Madsen (Ohio) dec. Drew Lesko (EMU), 3-0
149: #15 Jermain Thompson (EMU) dec. Clay Tucker (Ohio), 5-3
157: Jake Frerichs (Ohio) dec. Cory Mancuso (EMU), 8-2
165: Jacob Ison (Ohio) dec. Nick Conklin (EMU), 5-2
174: Antione Love (Ohio) dec. Josh Lewis (EMU), 7-6
184: John McClure (EMU) dec. Nick Terbay (Ohio), 2-0
197: Tony Lyssiotis (EMU) dec. Larry Reichard (Ohio), 2-0
HWT: Marcus Adelman (Ohio) dec. Charlie Walker (EMU), 3-0
