Feb. 12, 2005
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- When you mention scoring streaks, you don't think of wrestling matches. Scoring streaks are more common in basketball games, or lacrosse matches.
But the Columbia wrestling team twice utilized a scoring streak at Brown Saturday, enabling the Lions to defeat both Brown and Sacred Heart in hard-fought matches at the Pizzitola Sports Center.
Columbia's 25-6 victory over Brown and 30-12 defeat of Sacred Heart, coupled with a 36-6 defeat of Harvard Friday, gave the team a 3-0 sweep on its New England trip, and clinched third place in the Ivy League.
Columbia trailed Brown, 6-2, after three bouts, when the streak began. Junior Jeff Sato (Pismo Beach, Calif.) ignited it when he edged the Bears' Jeff Schell, 3-2, in the 125-pound match.
Schell had topped Sato, 6-2, when the two met in the title bout of the Empire State Open last November 14, and the rematch was much anticipated. Sato is ranked third by the EIWA coaches, and Schell is ranked fourth.
The Lion took a 2-0 lead on a second-period reversal, controlling Schell the rest of the period. That proved decisive, as Schell came back to tie the bout at 2-2; Sato's 1:42 of riding time gave him the point needed for the 3-2 victory.
Sophomore Matt DeLorenzo (Wantagh, N.Y.) put Columbia ahead, 8-6, with a 6-1 win over Dan Apello at 133, and sophomore Anthony Constantino (Kirtland, Ohio) opened the lead to 11-6 with a 3-2 squeaker over Mark Savino at 141. Sophomore Ricky Turk (Crestline, Calif.) beat Tim Smith at 149, 10-2, the major decision giving the Lions four more team points.
Junior Devin Mesanko (Toms River, N.J.) at 157 and sophomore Matt Palmer (Germantown, Md.) at 165 both posted decisions, and junior Sven Hafemeister (Leipzig, Germany) closed the scoring with a 12-4 major decision over Shawn Kitchener. From its 6-2 deficit, Columbia had scored 23 straight points!
The Lions jumped out to a 6-0 lead against Sacred Heart as first-years Nick Sommerfeld (Transfer, Pa.) and Jed Wade (Wasilla, Alaska) won 8-2 and 5-2 decisions at 184, the starting weight, and 197. The Pioneers tied it, however, on a pin at heavyweight.
Another streak was called for, and Sato again started one when he pinned Mike Arone at 6:43, just seven seconds from the end of the bout. That put Columbia up, 12-6, the margin going to 18-6 on close decisions by DeLorenzo and Constantino. Ricky Turk pulled away from Anthony Hayes, a highly-rated wrestler, for a 12-7 win at 149 to make the score 21-6, and Devin Mesanko added to the streak with a 7-4 win at 157.
After Sacred Heart was awarded six points on a forfeit, Sven Hafemeister ended the day with a 1:37 pin of Andrew Silber at 174 to give the Lions a 30-12 victory.
"I couldn't be more pleased with our two matches today," head coach Brendan Buckley said. "It's not easy to wrestle two hard-fought, emotional matches just one day after another hard-fought match. We had several close bouts against Brown and Sacred Heart, and won almost every one. That's the sign of a good team."
In fact, five bouts in the Columbia-Brown match were decided by one-point margins, and another by two points. The Lions won four of those six.
Columbia returns to University Gym next weekend, meeting nationally-ranked Hofstra Friday, February 18, at 7 PM, and East Stroudsburg on Saturday, Feb. 19, at 6 PM.
The results (# = EIWA ranking):
#6 COLUMBIA 25, #8 BROWN 6
184 - Nick Sommerfeld, Columbia, dec. Joe Walton, 5-4
197 - Leo Saniuk, Brown, dec. Jed Wade, 5-4*
Hwt - Lee Beane, Brown, dec. Bart Seemen, 3-2 sv OT
125 - #3 Jeff Sato, Columbia, dec. #4 Jeff Schell, 3-2
133 - Matt DeLorenzo, Columbia, dec. #6 Dan Apello, 6-1
141 - Anthony Constantino, Columbia, dec. Mark Savino, 3-2
149 - #6 Ricky Turk, Columbia, dec. Tim Smith, 10-2
157 - #6 Devin Mesanko, Columbia, dec. Mike Savino, 3-1
165 - #2 Matt Palmer, Columbia, dec. Dave Saadeh, 6-1
174 - Sven Hafemeister, Columbia, dec. Shawn Kitchner, 12-4
*team point deducted from Columbia
Saturday, February 12, 2005, at Providence, R.I.
#6 COLUMBIA 30, SACRED HEART 12
184 - Nick Sommerfeld, Columbia, dec. Dan Keefe, 8-2
197 - Jed Wade, Columbia, dec. Mike Ames, 5-2
Hwt - Payam Zarrinpour, SHU, pinned Bart Seemen, 4:52
125 - #3 Jeff Sato, Columbia, pinned Mike Arone, 6:43
133 - Matt DeLorenzo, Columbia, dec. Kyle McCarthy, 9-6
141 - Anthony Constantino, Columbia, dec. Matt Stewart, 7-5
149 - #6 Ricky Turk, Columbia, dec. Anthony Hayes, 12-7
157 - #6 Devin Mesanko, Columbia, dec. Jesse Fendryk, 7-4
165 - Sherwood Fendryk, SHU, won by forfeit
174 - Sven Hafemeister, Columbia, dec. Andrew Silber, 1:37
Saturday, February 12, 2005, at Providence, R.I.
