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Third-Ranked Delaware Valley Gets Sweep, Claims 46-0 Decision
Junior Alex DeHart put forth a valiant effort Wednesday, dropping a 7-4 defeat in the 141 bout.
Grantham, PA — A steep test proved to be too much for the 27th-ranked Messiah wrestling program Wednesday night, as the Falcons dropped a 46-0 decision to Delaware Valley College in Brubaker Auditorium. Delaware Valley — ranked third in the latest NWCA National Poll — captured its fourth dual-match shut-out of the season in the win, moving its overall record to 14-1-1 on the year. It was the sixth win over a ranked opponent for the Aggies as well, leaving Messiah head coach Bryan Brunk both disappointed and respectful. “Going into tonight, we talked about the fact that we were not favored,” Brunk said. “After tonight, you just say, ‘they’re good.’ It’s very frustrating to not win a match in a dual meet, however. Tonight we had some winnable matches, and we just couldn’t get it done. That is the only thing that’s hard to stomach.” Messiah’s best chances to capture wins came in the 141, 149 and 157 weight classes, where the only three standard decisions of the evening took place. Junior Alex DeHart dropped a 7-4 decision to the Aggies’ Eric McCann in the 141-pound bout, while sophomore Mike Bressler fell by a 9-4 score to Del Val’s Dale Fava at 149. Senior Craig Gin had a 4-2 lead on Robert Hickman with time running out in the third period, but what Brunk called an “over pursuit” led to a takedown, helping to the final result. “Craig’s opponent put a quick level change on him and got an angle,” Brunk said. “He was able to get behind him for a takedown.” Bressler was also in respectable shape in his match, keeping a clean scoreboard going into the second period. An ensuing scramble gave Delaware Valley’s Fava an advantage, however, putting Bressler on his back for a two count. “Once Mike was down 4-0, it was tough for him to wrestle his match,” Brunk said. “You’re playing catch-up at that point and have to try for some things you normally wouldn’t.” Perhaps the biggest positive of the night came from DeHart, as the junior got on top of the Aggies’ McCann with 20 seconds to go in the final period. “If he could have turned him, that match would have been different,” Brunk said. “Alex put himself in a position to win.” Delaware Valley opened the evening with the first of an eventual three pins, as Chris Sheetz took freshman Danny Lethbridge down at the 3:43 mark. Ranked fourth in the nation among all 125-pounders, Sheetz ran his overall record to 24-3 on the year. Brunk praised freshman Andrew Rentzel in a 15-1 defeat to the nation’s ninth-ranked 133-pounder, claiming Rentzel “fought really hard and did a great job of giving maximum effort.” The Aggies boasted five nationally-ranked grapplers in all Wednesday, with the other three (fifth-ranked Rocky Mantella at 174, second-ranked Michael Wilcox at 184 and third-ranked Kyle Bilquist at 285) taking technical falls at minimum. Bilquist was able to pin sophomore Zane Bachert in the heavyweight bout, closing the evening’s festivities in 1:46. “I was proud of a lot of our guys tonight,” Brunk said. “While we thought we left some decisions out there, we also had some guys give some very good efforts. We talked beforehand about wanting to go out and wrestle Messiah wrestling. I thought that, for the most part, we were able to do that.” Wednesday’s shut-out decision was the program’s first during Brunk’s six years at the helm, and Messiah will have a bit of a layoff before hitting the competitive mats again. The program will next compete in the prestigious Wheaton College Invitational Jan. 30 and 31. Wrestling is slated to begin at 2 p.m. Friday, Jan. 30. “I told the guys, especially our top individuals, that we really need to get some matches (at Wheaton),” Brunk said. “Now is the chance for some guys to turn their season around, and it’s a chance for other guys to build on their season. Either way, the Wheaton Invite is a big opportunity, and we’ll look forward to it.” Results: #3 Delaware Valley College 46 over #27 Messiah College 0 |
