Bloomsburg Falls to Pittsburgh in Wrestling Action

BLOOMSBURG-- The Bloomsburg University wrestling team lost a heartbreaker to the University of Pittsburgh 18-16 in Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) action on Thursday night in front of a raucous crowd at Nelson Field House. The match was the first EWL match for both Bloomsburg and Pittsburgh on the year and was also Bloomsburg's first dual match of the season.

125- 13th ranked Mike Sees (Northumberland/Shikellamy) got the Huskies off to a fast start with a 14-4 major decision win over Brad Gentzle. Sees got his first takedown at 1:23 of the first and never looked back, as he recorded five takedowns in the match.

133- Jason Guffey (Muncy/Warrior Run) gave the Huskies a 6-0 lead with a 5-2 comeback victory over Jimmy Conroy. Guffey fell behind early in the first after a takedown, but fought his way back after recording consecutive escape points to knot the score up. Guffey then took the lead at 4-2 with a takedown late in the second and held on down the stretch to take the win.

141- 11th ranked Drew Headlee got the Panthers on the board with a 5-2 win over Bloomsburg's George Hickman (Castle Hayne, NC/Riverside). Headlee got off to a quick start in the match, recording a takedown early in the first. Hickman fought back later in the first with an escape point to cut the score to 2-1, but Headlee recorded an escape and a takedown in the second to put the match out of Hickman's reach.

149- Joey Ecklof cut the Pittsburgh deficit to 7-6 with an exciting 3-2 win over Darren Kern (Pennsburg/Upper Perkiomenville). Kern took a 1-0 lead into the third, but Ecklof came back, recording an escape, then a take down for a 3-1 lead. Kern came back with an escape of his own to get the score to 3-2. However, Ecklof hung on in the last minute of the match to take the win.

157- In a battle of two nationally ranked wrestlers, 15th ranked Matt Moley (Phoenixville/Spring-Ford) got the best of fourth ranked Matt Kocher in a hard fought 2-1 victory that increased the Huskies lead to 10-6. It appeared Kocher had control of the match late in the third with a 1-0 lead, but Moley fought his way back and recorded a reversal that proved to be the difference in the match.

165- Rob Hoffmann (Spring City/Owen J. Roberts) built on the Bloomsburg lead with a dominating 7-2 win over Sean Richmond. Hoffmann recorded a takedown early in the first and never looked back from that point on, as he recorded three takedowns in the match.

174- Number one ranked Keith Gavin got the Panthers right back into the match, after a win by fall over Nate Graham (Selkirk, NY/Ravena) that cut the Huskies lead to 13-12. Graham battled in the first, as he was only behind 2-1. But, things changed in the second, as Gavin took control of the match with two takedowns, then put the match away with a pin late in the third.

184- 19th raked David Sullivan gave the Panthers their first lead of the night at 15-13 with a 4-1 win over Jesse Hasseman (Franklin, IN/Franklin). Sullivan took an early 2-0 lead with a takedown in the first, but Hasseman came back in the second with an escape point to make the score 2-1 going into the third. Sullivan, however, hung on in the end, recording an escape point of his own early in the third to put the match out of Hasseman's reach.

197- P.J. DiStefano (Whitehall/Whitehall/Coplay) put the Huskies back in he lead at 16-15 with a 7-3 win over A.J. Hunte. DiStefano took a 3-1 lead in the second, but Hunte came back with a takedown to knot the score up at three apiece. From there, Di Stefano took control, as he recorded an escape point late in the second, then a takedown to take an insurmountable 6-3 lead late in the third.

HWT- In the bout that decided the match, Pitt's Zach Sheaffer defeated sixth-ranked Mike Spaid (Perkiomenville/Boyertown) in overtime to seal the match for Pittsburgh. After both wrestlers battled to a 1-1 tie after three periods, the match went into overtime. Sheaffer was able to pick up an escape point in the extra session for the win. Sheaffer earned a hard fought 2-1 win and in the process won Pitt the match at 18-16 over Bloomsburg.

The Huskies will travel to Annapolis, MD for the Navy Classic on Saturday.

Results (Match Started with the 125 Weight Class)

November 15, Bloomsburg vs. Pittsburgh - Nelson Field House, Bloomsburg, PA

Wt. Match Result Bout Match Score
125- Mike Sees (BU) maj. dec. Brad Gentzel (Pitt) 14-4 4-0, BU
133- Jason Guffey (BU) dec. Jimmy Conroy (Pitt) 5-2 7-0, BU
141- Drew Headlee (Pitt) dec. George Hickman (BU) 5-2 7-3, BU
149- Joey Ecklof (Pitt) dec. Darren Kern (BU) 3-2 7-6, BU
157- Matt Moley (BU) dec. Matt Kocher (Pitt) 2-1 10-6, BU
165- Rob Hoffman (BU) dec. Sean Richmond (Pitt) 8-2 13-6, BU
174- Keith Gavin (Pitt) WBF Nate Graham (BU) 6:40 13-12, BU
184- David Sullivan (Pitt) dec. Jesse Hasseman (BU) 4-1 15-13, PITT
197- P.J. DiStefano (BU) dec. A.J. Hunte (Pitt) 7-3 16-15, BU
HWT- Zach Sheaffer (Pitt) dec. Mike Spaid (BU) 2-1 (OT) 18-16, PITT