Wrestling Season Begins with the ESU Open

By Colin O’Connell
Staff Writer

The East Stroudsburg University wrestling program welcomed a buzzing crowd to Koehler Fieldhouse for the 50th ESU Open on Sunday, Nov. 6.

The Open is an individual wrestling tournament held for 10 different weight classes.

Rutgers University (N.J.) dominated the entire event with six wrestlers winning their respective weight classes.

Brandon Paetzell (125), Tyson Dippery (133), Eleazar Deluca (157), Phillip Bakuckas (174), Nicholas Gravina (184) and Kevin Mulligan (197) all ended up on top of their weight classes for the Scarlet Knights.

Rutgers also had four runners-up in Scott DelVecchio (133), Michgal Van Brill (141), John Van Brill (157) and Jordan Pagano (184).

Meanwhile, Lehigh University ended up with three winners of their own: Ryan Pomrinca (141), Gordon Wolf (165) and Jordan Wood (285).

Chase Gallik (165), Chris Weiler (184) and Thomas Murray (197) all came in second for the Mountain Hawks.

Tyler Richardson was ESU’s highest placed wrestler, coming in fourth in the 184-pound weight class.

Richardson dropped a heartbreaking 1-0 decision to Anthony Mancini of Franklin & Marshall College.

Mancini and Richardson wrestled twice during the event. The two met in their first match of the day, with Mancini taking an easy 17-4 major decision.

Richardon’s toughness and resolve making their second match of the day much closer than the first shows his potential.

Richardson, a senior, holds a career record of 37-30 and is 22-14 in duals.

For ESU, their drought of a champion at the Open continues for a fifth straight year. Ed Ebewo of the 197-pound weight class won in 2011, which at the time snapped a 10-year skid for the Warriors without having a champion.

The last time ESU had a runner-up was Brandon Turner (165) in 2013.

Dylan Nace (141) was the only other wrestler for the Warriors in the Open. Nace took a bye in the first round and then defeated Julian Flores of Drexel by a 7-1 decision.

Nace went on to drop a 6-0 decision to Zack Davis of the US Naval Academy. Nace then went on to make it to the semifinals of the consolation bracket before getting pinned by Luke Karam of Lehigh.

The Warriors will open their season at Trinity College (in Hartford, Conn.) on Nov. 18. They will look to improve upon a 6-9 2015-2016 campaign, one that saw the Warriors go 0-7 in conference play.

Email Colin at:
coconnel11@live.esu.edu