By: Pat Donghia



Dec. 5, 2010



UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - No. 5 Penn State sent 29 wrestlers into action at the 2010 Nittany Lion Open, had 16 quarterfinalists and ended the day with four champions. Three freshmen and a junior claimed titles for head coach Cael Sanderson and the Nittany Lions.



Penn State sent eight wrestlers into the finals with half of them winning their bouts. Freshman Frank Martellotti (Pittsburgh, Pa.), ranked No. 18 at 125, went 5-0 to win at 125 with two pins, a tech fall and a major. Classmate Andrew Alton (Mill Hall, Pa.), ranked No. 12, put on a show at 141, going 6-0 to claim the title with five pins. The fifth pin was a :39 fall over No. 20 Zack Kemerer of Penn in the finals. Red-shirt freshman David Taylor (St. Paris, Ohio), ranked No. 5 nationally, continued his superb run with a 6-0 day at 157. Taylor claimed the title with a 9-3 dismantling of Virginia Tech's Jesse Dong (who reached the NCAA round of 12 last year). Taylor had a fall, a tech and three majors. Junior Cameron Wade (Twinsburg, Ohio), ranked No. 7 at heavyweight, went 5-0 with three tech falls, a pin and a major.



Penn State's outstanding afternoon was tempered, however, in the finals at 184. No. 6 Quentin Wright (Wingate, Pa.) was beating No. 14 Nathan Schiedel of Binghamton with just seconds to go in the final when the returning All-American was injured and suffered an injury default to take second place. Wright went 5-1 on the day. Just seconds before that, two-time All-American Frank Molinaro (Barnegat, N.J.), ranked No. 2 at 149, was upset in overtime by No. 10 Mario Mason of Rutgers. Mason downed Molinaro 3-1 (sv), giving the Lion junior a 5-1 record on the day. Red-shirt freshman Ed Ruth (Harrisburg, Pa.), ranked No. 14 at 174, dropped a hard-fought 9-4 decision to No. 8 Mike Letts of Maryland in the finals. Ruth went 5-1 for second place with two pins and two tech falls. True freshman Dirk Cowburn (Coudersport, Pa.), wrestling unattached at 165, advanced to the finals where he was pinned by No. 3 Josh Asper of Maryland. Cowburn went 5-1 for his runner-up finish.



Senior Adam Lynch (Mifflinburg, Pa.) was solid at 141, going 5-1 to take third place. His only loss came to Alton in the semifinals. Sophomore James English (York, Pa.) also took third at 149, going 5-1. His only loss was a 3-1 decision to No. 10 and eventual champ Mason of Rutgers in the semifinals. Red-shirt freshman James Vollrath (Richboro, Pa.) took fourth at 157. He lost to Taylor in the semis and went 3-2 on the day to take fourth place.



Freshman Nate Morgan (McCook, Neb.), wrestling unattached at 125, went 4-2 to take second place while classmate Sam Sherlock (West Mifflin, Pa.), unattached at 133, went 4-3 to take eighth. Sophomore Nick Fischer (Unionville, Pa.) went 3-3 at 165 and placed eighth while classmate Justin Ortega (Oxford, Pa.) went 4-2 at 197 to take sixth place. True freshman Nick Ruggear (Oxford, Pa.) was also 4-2 at 197 and finished seventh. Red-shirt freshman Jake Kemerer (Greensburg, Pa.), ranked No. 12 nationally at 165, went 3-2 and did not place at 165 while sophomore Bryan Pearsall (Lititz, Pa.) went 4-2 and did not place at 133.



Unattached wrestlers who grabbed victories but did not place included Cameron Kelley (Pittsford, N.Y.), 1-2 at 125; Rob Vollrath (Richboro, Pa.), 0-2 at 133 but beat a non-rostered entrant; Seth Beitz (Juniata, Pa.), 1-2 at 141; John Gingrich (Wingate, Pa.), 1-2 at 285 and Kyle Moran (Oxford, Pa), who went 3-2 at 141. Other attached wrestlers competing included Andrew Church (Erie, Pa.) at 174 while other unattached grapplers competing included David Church (Erie, Pa.) at 149, Thomas Gorman (East Patchogue, N.Y.) at 157, Brandon Phillips (Timonium, Md.) at 174) and Justin Haug (Galeton, Pa.) at 165.



Other champions at the event included Mitchell Port of Edinboro at 133 and Zac Thomusseit of Pittsburgh at 197.



The Nittany Lions, now 5-0 this year, return to action at home on Dec. 12 when Lock Haven comes to town for a 2 p.m. dual. Fans wishing to purchase single dual meet tickets for the 2010-11 Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling season can place their orders by calling 814-865-5555 or visit the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office. The box office is open Monday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Ticket pricing is $8 for adults and $5 for youth, and there will be a limit of eight tickets per order. Group sales are also available. The 2010-11 Penn State wrestling season is presented by the Family Clothesline. All Penn State events will once again air live on Forever Broadcasting's WRSC (1390 AM) and WSQV (92.1 FM). All radio broadcasts are streamed live at GoPSUsports.com as part of the All-Access package. The 2010-11 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline.



2010 NITTANY LION OPEN FINALS RECAP:

Sunday, Dec. 5, 2010 - Rec Hall - University Park, Pa.

125: #18 Frank Martellotti PSU 7-0 dec. Joseph Langel Rutgers

133: Mitchell Port UA-Edinboro 8-2 dec. Kevin Smith Buffalo

141: #12 Andrew Alton PSU pinned #20 Zack Kemerer Penn (WBF 0:39)

149: #10 Mario Mason Rutgers 3-1 (SV) dec. #2 Frank Molinaro PSU

157: #5 David Taylor PSU 9-3 dec. Jesse Dong, UA-Virginia Tech

165: #3 Josh Asper Maryland pinned Dirk Cowburn UA-PSU (WBF 2:24)

174: #8 Mike Letts Maryland 9-4 dec. #14 Ed Ruth PSU

184: #14 Nate Schiedel Binghamton inj. def. #6 Quentin Wright PSU

*Wright winning 2-0 w/ seconds remaining at time of injury

197: #9 Zac Thomusseit Pittsburgh WB forfeit Matthew Wilps Pittsburgh

285: #7 Cameron Wade PSU 15-0 TF dec. Odie Delaney UA-The Citadel (TF; 3:31)



Penn State's weight-by-weight summary:

UA - Note that UA indicates unattached collegiate wrestler

UANR - Note that UANR indicates a Non-Collegiate opponent and that result does NOT count towards individual's win/loss record.

* - Note that an (*) by a Penn State name indicates a PSU wrestler who is competing unattached.



Penn State's 125 agate:



#18 Frank Martellotti

Rd. 1: Bye

Rd. 2: WBF over Kory Mines, UA-Edinboro (0:57)

Rd. 3: W, 16-1 TF over Gabriel Gomez, UA-Virginia (6:15)

Qtrs: WBF over Jacob Corrill, North Carolina, (5:55)

Semis: W, 9-0 maj. dec. Matt Fusco, Rutgers

FINALS: W, 7-0 dec. Joseph Langel, Rutgers

1st Place, 5-0 Overall



*Cameron Kelly

Rd. 1: Bye

Rd. 2: W, 11-5 dec. vs. Anthony Marino, UA-Bloomsburg

Rd. 3: L, 1-17 TF vs. Jerome Robinson, UA-Old Dominion

Cn. 2: L, 3-8 dec. Kory Mines, UA-Edinboro

DNP, 1-2 Overall



*Nate Morgan

Rd. 1: Bye

Rd. 2: W, 6-2 dec. Alex Moritz, Rider

Rd. 3: W, 5-3 dec. Joe Roth, Central Michigan

Qtrs.: L, 2-10 maj. dec. Shane Gentry, Maryland

Con. Qtr.: W, 4-2 dec. Sean Walton, Buffalo

Con. Semi: L, 2-3 dec. Jenkins Monzey, UA-Maryland

7th Place: WBF over Ty Mitch, UA-Virginia Tech

7th Place, 4-2 Overall



Penn State's 133 agate:



Bryan Pearsall

Rd. 1: WBF over Kristopher Lowery King College, Tenn. (1:11)

Rd. 2: LBF vs. Tyler Sackett, Navy (2:15)

Cn. 1: WBF over Sean DiEmma, UA-Lock Haven (2:56)

Cn. 2: WBF over Craig Barker, UA-Bloomsburg

Cn. 3: W, 8-4 dec. Shelton Mack, Pittsburgh

Cn. Qtr.: L, 3-5 dec. Erik Spjut, UA-Virginia Tech

DNP, 4-2 Overall



*Sam Sherlock

Rd. 1: Bye

Rd. 2: W, 15-4 maj. dec. Dan Riggi, Binghamton

Rd. 3: L, 2-6 dec. Brock Livorio, UA-North Carolina

Cn. 2: W, 13-5 maj. dec. Erik Galloway, UA-Pittsburgh

Cn. 3: W, 9-5 dec. Matt Byston, Columbia

Cn. Qtrs: W, 12-8 dec. Tyler Sackett, Navy

Cn. Semis: L, 1-3 dec. Erik Spjut, UA-Virginia Tech

7th Place: L, 2-8 dec. Patrick McCaffrey, Navy

8th Place, 4-3 Overall



*Rob Vollrath

Rd. 1: Bye

Rd. 2: WBF over Victor LiPari, UANR (5:41)

Rd. 3: L, 0-8 maj. dec. Mitchell Port, UA-Edinboro

Cn. 2: L, 1-2 dec. Dan Riggi, Binghamton

DNP, 0-2 Overall



Penn State's 141 agate:



#12 Andrew Alton

Rd. 1: WBF over Scott Festejo, Old Dominion (0:35)

Rd. 2: WBF over Ben Mathiesen, UA-Central Michigan (1:05)

Rd. 3: W, 7-5 dec. Danny Lopes, North Carolina

Qtrs: WBF over Mark Hartenstine, UA-Maryland

Semis: WBF over Adam Lynch, Penn State (2:20)

FINALS: WBF over #20 Zach Kemerer, Penn (0:39)

First Place, 6-0 Overall



Adam Lynch

Rd. 1: WBF over Nick Gurol, UA-Bucknell (1:16)

Rd. 2: W, 22-4 TF over Brandon Deamer, UANR (TF; 6:49)

Rd. 3: WBF over Seth Schaner, Eastern Michigan (4:27)

Qtrs.: W, 8-2 dec. Zach Neibert, Virginia Tech

Semis: LBF vs. #12 Andrew Alton, Penn State (2:20)

3rd Place: W, 4-3 dec. Trevor Melde, Rutgers

3rd Place, 5-1 Overall



*Seth Beitz

Rd. 1: Bye

Rd. 2: L, 0-8 maj. dec. Trevor Melde, Rutgers

Cn. 1: W, 7-4 dec. Brian Guilfoyle, Binghamton

Cn. 2: LBF vs. Danny Lopes, North Carolina

DNP, 1-2 Overall



*Kyle Moran

Rd. 1: W, 2-0 dec. Jordan Dix, The Citadel

Rd. 2: L, 5-8 dec. Garet Pisani, UA-Clarion

Cn. 1: W, 8-0 maj. dec. Matthew Hasbrouck, UA-Edinboro

Cn. 2: W, 3-2 dec. Danny O'Malley, Maryland

Cn. 3: L, 2-4 dec. Seth Schaner, Eastern Michigan

DNP, 3-2 Overall



Penn State's 149 agate:



#2 Frank Molinaro

Rd. 1: W, 14-3 maj. dec. Bryan Smith, UA-Bloomsburg

Rd. 2: WBF over Daniel Helena, North Carolina (6:37)

Rd. 3: W, 8-2 dec. Alex Smith, Army

Qtrs.: W, 14-5 maj. dec. Kyle Rosser, Lehigh

Semis: WBF over Cameron Hurd, Virginia Tech

FINALS: L, 1-3 (sv) #10 Mario Mason, Rutgers

2nd Place, 5-1 Overall



James English

Rd. 1: WBF over Tim Rich, Sacred Heart (4:07)

Rd. 2: W, 3-2 dec. Anthony Salupo, UA-Lehigh

Rd. 3: W, 8-3 dec. Billy Ashnault, UA-Rutgers

Qtrs: W, 3-1 (sv) dec. Zach Basich, Navy

Semis: L, 1-3 dec. #10 Mario Mason, Rutgers

3rd Place: W, 9-5 dec. Cameron Hurd, Virginia Tech

3rd Place, 5-1 Overall



*Dylan Alton

Rd. 1: W, 12-4 maj. dec. Dane Stevens, Lehigh

Rd. 2: WBF over Lester France, Eastern Michigan (2:03)

Rd. 3: W, 2-1 dec. Joey Metzler, Old Dominion

Qtrs.: L, 6-7 dec. #10 Mario Mason, Rutgers

Con. Qtr.: L, 2-5 dec. Anthony Salupo, UA-Lehigh

DNP, 3-2 Overall



*David Church

Rd. 1: LBF to Dane Johnson, Pittsburgh (2:58)

DNP, 0-1 Overall



Penn State's 157 agate:



#5 David Taylor

Rd. 1: WBF over Dylan Caprio, UA-Lock Haven (2:08)

Rd. 2: W, 20-8 maj. dec. Nicholas Visicaro, Rutgers

Rd. 3: W, 18-3 TF over Zach Clemente, Hofstra (TF; 6:58)

Qtrs.: W, 17-6 maj. dec. Mark Lewandowski, Buffalo

Semis: W, 12-0 maj. dec. James Vollrath, Penn State

FINALS: W, 9-3 dec. Jesse Dong, UA-Virginia Tech

1st Place, 6-0 Overall



James Vollrath

Rd. 1: Bye

Rd. 2: W, 12-0 maj. dec. John Kaloust, Binghamton

Rd. 3: W, 11-2 maj. dec. Nick Tourville, Boston

Qtrs.: WBF over Tyler Wilps, Pittsburgh (2:15)

Semis: L, 0-12 maj. dec. #5 David Taylor, Penn State

3rd Place: L, 5-8 dec. Kyle John, Maryland

4th Place, 3-2 Overall



*Thomas Gorman

Rd. 1: L, 3-19 dec. Bryce Busler, Bloomsburg (TF; 6:32)

DNP, 0-1 Overall



Penn State's 165 agate:



#11 Jake Kemerer

Rd. 1: WBF over Ryan Maurer, UA-Pitt-Johnstown (4:10)

Rd. 2: W, 7-4 dec. Christopher Smith, Bloomsburg

Rd. 3: W, 5-2 dec. Adam Counterman, Pittsburgh

Qtrs.: L, 4-7 dec. Turtogtokh Luvsandorj, The Citadel

Con. Qtr.: L, 3-6 dec. Nicholas Czapla, UA-Bucknell

DNP, 3-2 Overall



Nick Fischer

Rd. 1: Bye

Rd. 2: WBF over Sam Shirey, Bloomsburg (6:16)

Rd. 3: W, 13-2 maj. dec. Frank Rainey, UANR

Qtrs.: L, 6-7 (tb) dec. John-Martin Cannon, Buffalo

Con. Qtr.: W, 2-1 dec. Charles Miller, UA-Virginia

Con. Semi: L, 3-5 dec. Mason Bailey, Navy

7th Place: L, 0-10 maj. dec. Nicholas Czapla, UA-Bucknell

8th Place, 3-3 Overall



*Dirk Cowburn

Rd. 1: W, 9-3 dec. Kyle Czarnecki, Boston

Rd. 2: W, 7-3 dec. Jerry Rice, Eastern Michigan

Rd. 3: W, 8-1 dec. Bionojel Candelaria, UA-Kutztown

Qtrs.: W, 3-1 dec. Thomas Scotton, North Carolina

Semis: W, 6-4 dec. Turtogtokh Luvsandorj, The Citadel

FINALS: LBF vs. #3 Josh Asper, Maryland (2:24)

2nd Place, 5-1 Overall



*Justin Haug

Rd. 1: Bye

Rd. 2: L, 6-22 TF vs. #3 Josh Asper, Maryland

Cn. 1: L, 2-4 dec. Kevin Nash, Michigan State

DNP, 0-2 Overall



Penn State's 174 agate:



#14 Ed Ruth

Rd. 1: WBF over Brandon Lintner, UA-West Virginia

Rd. 2: W, 15-0 TF over Luke Etter, UA-Bloomsburg (TF; 4:52)

Rd. 3: WBF over Ryan McGarity, Binghamton (4:30)

Qtrs.: W, 17-2 TF over Hunter Meys, Boston (TF; 6:33)

Semis: W, 6-2 dec. Scott Giffin, Penn

Finals: L, 4-9 dec. #8 Mike Letts, Maryland

2nd Place, 5-1 Overall



Andrew Church

Rd. 1: L, 4-7 dec. Shane Stark, UA-Lehigh DNP, 0-1 Overall



*Brandon Phillips

Rd. 1: LBF #18 Ethan Headlee, Pittsburgh (0:32)

DNP, 0-1 Overallv



Penn State's 184 agate:



#6 Quentin Wright

Rd. 1: Bye

Rd. 2: WBF over Ty Snook, Maryland (0:52)

Rd. 3: W, forfeit over John Rizqallah, Michigan State

Qrts.: WBF over Kevin Bailey, Lehigh (4:54)

Semis: W, 13-0 maj. dec. Antonio Giorgio, North Carolina

FINALS: L, inj. def. #14 Nate Schiedel, Binghamton

2nd Place, 5-1 Overall



Penn State's 197 agate:



Nick Ruggear

Rd. 1: W, 6-1 dec. Matt Berretta, Binghamton

Rd. 2: L, 2-5 dec. Matt Wilps, UA-Pittsburgh

Cn. 2: W, 17-5 maj. dec. Chris White, Lock Haven
Cn. 3: W, 19-4 TF over Brandon Lapp, Sacred Heart (TF; 7:00) 
Con. Qtr.: W, 5-3 dec. Dallas Brown, Maryland 
Con. Semis: L, 0-5 dec. Justin Ortega, Penn State 
7th Place: W, forfeit over Steven Graziano, Penn 
7th Place, 5-2 Overall 

Justin Ortega

Rd. 1: WBF over Alex Jabely, UANR (4:18)

Rd. 2: W, 5-0 dec. Bobby LaVelle, Virginia Tech

Qtrs.: L, 2-3 dec. Zachary Bennett, North Carolina

Con. Qtr.: W, 7-2 dec. Max Wessel, UA-Lehigh

Con. Semis: W, 5-0 dec. Nick Ruggear, Penn State

5th Place: L, 2-3 dec. Tyler Peter, Buffalo

6th Place, 4-2 Overall



Penn State's 285 agate:



#7 Cameron Wade

Rd. 1: Bye

Rd. 2: W, 16-0 TF over James Donner, Buffalo (TF, 7:00)

Rd. 3: WBF over Tim Gecaj, UA-Rider (2:41)

Qtrs.: W, 16-0 TF over Dondricus Anderson, King College (Tenn.), (TF; 4:51)

Semis: W, 10-2 maj. dec. David Wade, Eastern Michigan

FINALS: W, 15-0 TF over Odie Delaney, UA-The Citadel

1st Place, 5-0 Overall



*Jon Gingrich

Rd. 1: Bye

Rd. 2: W, 4-0 dec. Michael McCarthy, Navy

Rd. 3: L, 5-8 dec. Joseph Rizqallah, Michigan State

Cn. 2: L, 4-8 dec. Spencer Myers, Maryland

DNP, 1-2 Overall