NCAA DIV. I WRESTLING RESULTS
PEPSI ARENA - ALBANY, N.Y.
MARCH 21-22, 2002
ALL-AMERICA ROUND FRIDAY NIGHT (SEE STORY BELOW)
197- #5 Scott Barker (Missouri) dec. Eric Mausser (Clarion) 5-4
285- #8 Kevin Hoy (Air Force) dec. John Testa (Clarion) 6-2
FRIDAY MATCHUPS: QUARTERFINALS
285- #4 Garrett Lowney (Minnesota) dec. John Testa (Clarion) 6-2
Consi Round
157- Rocky Smart (Arizona State) dec. Jeremy Reitz (Clarion) 9-2
197- Eric Mausser (Clarion) dec. #11 David Shunamon (Edinboro) 5-3
Consi Round Friday Afternoon
197- Eric Mausser (Clarion) dec. Chris Jones (Drexel) 7-2
By CRAIG PHILLIPS
Derrick Staff writer
ALBANY, N.Y. -- Clarion University wrestlers Eric Mausser and John Testa came oh so close to their dreams of becoming All-Americans on Friday, only to be turned away at the threshold in the 72nd NCAA Division I National Championships at the Pepsi Center.
Testa, who had upset defending heavyweight champion John Lockhart of Illinois in the second round Thursday, dropped a 6-2 decision to returning third-place finisher Garrett Lowney of Minnesota in the quarterfinals. He then lost a 6-2 verdict to Kevin Hoy of Air Force in the bout which guaranteed the winner All-American status.
Mausser, who lost his opening bout in the tournament at 197 pounds to three-time defending champion Cael Sanderson of Iowa State, rebounded with three straight wins in the wrestlebacks before losing a controversial bout against Missouri's Scott Barker.
Mausser, who entered the third period of the bout tied at 3-3, but with 1:19 riding time, saw his season end amidst confusion and meetings of the minds at the scorer's table.
The Clarion junior was locked in an intense battle with Barker when he attempted a single-leg shot. Barker countered by using an illegal head scissors, but in the heat of battle he was awarded a takedown with :20 remaining and the official then began counting for near-fall points. A whistle quickly stopped the action as both head coaches and the two officials approached the table to discuss the situation.
When the official returned to the mat, he awarded a point to Mausser for Barker's technical violation, but let the takedown stand, which gave the Missouri sophomore a 5-4 lead.
Without restoring time on the clock, the bout resumed and Mausser attempted a standup to gain a bout-tying escape. On his way up, and while one of his knees was still on the mat, Barker locked his hands in a bear-hug position as Mausser began his way to his feet. As the final seconds ticked off the clock and Mausser was twisting violently to break Barker's grasp, the Tiger tripped Mausser to his back and an apparent pin was called at or after the buzzer.
The scorer's table ruled the fall occurred just as time expired so the final result went into the books as Barker claiming a pin in 7:00.
The truth be known, and it may never be as is the case with many judgment decisions in sports, Mausser may have been the victim of one call which should have stopped the action and another call which was never made.
Clarion coach Ken Nellis, visibly shaken after the loss, refused to question the officiating in the press.
Rather, he praised Mausser's efforts in the tournament.
"He wrestled great," Nellis said. "He did a tremendous job and improved on his feet and in the top position." Mausser used his skills in both aspects of the sports to give himself the opportunity to earn a medal.
He opened Friday's competition with a solid 5-3 decision over returning All-American David Shunamon of Edinboro and followed it with a 7-2 victory over Drexel's Chris Jones.
Mausser struck for a takedown, reversal and earned a riding time point against Shunamon, who placed sixth last season.
His recipe for success against Jones was a pair of takedowns and a reversal, plus riding time.
He finished the season with a 34-9 record.
Testa, who had two opportunities to earn All-American honors, simply came up short against Lowney and Hoy.
Lowney, a formidable opponent who earned a bronze medal in Greco-Roman at 220 pounds in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney Australia, opened the bout with a takedown off a counter with :45 left in the first period.
Testa escaped to trail 2-1 after one period and was released to tie the bout late in the second period.
Lowney, who had accumulated more than a minute riding time, escaped :03 into the third to build a 3-2 lead. Testa then sought a takedown which never materialized and was countered by Lowney with :03 left in the bout. Lowney picked up the takedown and added a point for riding time for the 6-2 win.
Testa's 6-2 loss to Hoy, who ironically eliminated the Eagle junior by a 4-2 margin last year, had a different flavor.
The two traded escapes with Testa's knotting the bout 1-1 just :05 into the final period. Testa then decided to attack.
He attempted a single-leg takedown and pulled Hoy's leg into his body only to have his opponent scoot his hips under the Eagle and spin behind for the takedown and a 3-1 lead.
Testa escaped and tried another single leg, but Hoy repeated the maneuver for another takedown and added 2:05 riding time for the victory.
"(Hoy) was real tall and lanky and I'm stocky," Testa said, explaining Hoy's edge in leverage. "I shouldn't be too upset with myself, but it's disappointing because I worked my tail off."
Nellis was philosophical in his post-match comments.
"The heavyweight class won't get any easier for (John)," the coach said. "But, he knows he can compete with these guys and he's proved it."
Testa completed the season with a 34-7 record.
THURSDAY RESULTS
ROUND 2 RESULTS
157- #3 Luke Becker (Minnesota) maj. dec. Jeremy Reitz (Clarion) 14-6
285- #12 John Testa dec. #5 John Lockhart (Illinois) 2-1 tb (SEE STORY BELOW)
ROUND 2 CONSOLATIONS
133- Dave Hoffman (Va. Tech) dec. Rad Martinez (Clarion) 5-3
197- Eric Mausser (Clarion) maj. dec. Greg Eynon (Millersville) 11-0
ROUND 1
133- Marat Tomaev (Penn State) dec. #12 Rad Martinez (Clarion) 5-4
157- Jeremy Reitz (Clarion) dec. Levi Weikel-Magden (Stanford) 9-7
197- #1 Cael Sanderson (Iowa State) wbf Eric Mausser (Clarion) 3:32
HWT- #12 John Testa (Clarion) dec. Steven Kovach (Navy) 4-3 tb
By: Rich Herman & Craig Phillips
ALBANY, N.Y. -- Clarion University's John Testa dethroned the king.
Testa, a junior heavyweight, recorded the most significant victory of the opening day of the 72nd NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships when he upset defending champion John Lockhart of Illinois in the second round Thursday at the Pepsi Arena. Clarion sits in 31st place in team scoring after the first day with 6.0 points. Oklahoma is first with 37.5 and pre-tourney favorite Minnesota is second with 35.5 points.
"(John) wrestled two smart matches," Clarion coach Ken Nellis said. "I would like him to be more offensive, but beating the national champion, from a confidence point of view, give him a lot of credibility. It will help his confidence."
The script couldn't have been more dramatic as the Golden Eagle used a sit-out maneuver to catch Lockhart off-balance before reaching back and gaining head control and pulling the Illini senior forward for an escape :04 into the second overtime period for a 2-1 triumph.
Testa, 34-5 on the season, accomplished the shocker by using both patience and a brilliant counter to a deep single-leg shot by Lockhart with :23 remaining in the first period.
Lockhart appeared to be ready to receive the takedown when Testa turned into him on the edge and threw a whizzer to stop his momentum. Seconds later the two were whistled off the mat.
Both Testa and Lockhart needed only three seconds to escape each other's grasp in the next two periods and the bout proceeded into overtime tied at 1-1.
There was no scoring in the 1:00 extra session in the neutral position before Testa won the toss and chose the down position.
History would follow just four seconds later. Testa didn't realize at first he had won the toss, but knew he could escape. "I had forget what color my anklet was and when it hit green I looked down at my ankles and was praying to God," Testa said. "I was great. I had confidence I could get out (off the bottom)."
He agreed his first-period takedown counter was pivotal and said he knew if he stayed in the bout he would have the opportunity to win.
"(Lockhart) is a house," the Eagle continued. "When it all came down to it, I felt if I could go the distance (overtime) I have a 50-50 chance of winning."
Testa advanced to the second round with a 4-3 double overtime win over Navy's Steve Kovach when he escaped with :11 left in the bout.
He will now face Minnesota's Garrett Lowney in the quarterfinals, which will begin at 10 a.m. today along with the second-round wrestlebacks.
Lowney, who finished third a year ago as a freshman, is 26-5 on the year. He also earned a bronze medal in Greco-Roman in the 220-pound weight class at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia.
Testa will be joined in today's competition by teammates Jeremy Reitz and Eric Mausser, who posted 1-1 records and remain alive in the wrestlebacks.
Reitz, a sophomore and 1999 PIAA state champion from Brookville, saw his title hopes dashed in a 14-6 loss to Minnesota's Luke Becker in the second round at 157 pounds.
Becker, the third seed, picked up six takedowns in the win and added an escape and riding time. The Golden Gopher junior, who won the Big Ten championship, entered the bout with a 33-3 record.
Reitz, 19-13, advanced to the second round with a 9-7 decision over Levi Wekel-Magden of Stanford in the preliminaries.
"(Jeremy) wrestled well (in the first bout)," Nellis said. "Winning the first match was important."
Mausser had the most difficult assignment of any wrestler in the tournament in the preliminaries -- defeat three-time champion Cael Sanderson of Iowa State.
Sanderson, who entered the bout at 35-0 on the season and 154-0 in his career, struck for six takedowns and a two-point near fall in the first period to build a 12-5 lead.
Mausser chose the top position in the second period, but could only hold the Cyclone :27 before Sanderson turned a reversal into a low-leg cradle and pinned the Eagle junior in 3:32.
Mausser rebounded with a 10-0 win over Millersville's Greg Eynon, who had beaten him the last time they had wrestled in the 2001 PSACs.
The Clarion junior, 32-8 on the season, connected for three takedowns and a three-point near fall in the bout and will facee Edinboro's David Shunamon in the second-round wrestlebacks.
Shunamon was seeded ahead of Mausser despite two losses to the Eagle, and that fact did not go unnoticed.
"That (seeding) situation gives me added incentive," Mausser said. "It wasn't his fault, but I'll be out to prove something."
Clarion junior Rad Martinez struggled in the preliminaries in a 5-4 loss to Penn State sophomore Marat Tomaev, who he had defeated 8-1 in a dual-meet bout earlier this season.
He then dropped a 5-2 decision to Virginia Tech's David Hoffman and was eliminated from the tournament.
A pair of first-period takedowns and an escape with :15 remaining in the bout proved to be the difference in the loss to Tomaev.
The Nittany Lion chose to wrestle in a defensive mode after opening up a 4-1 lead, was penalized twice for stalling in the third period. But, the Eagle junior could only close the gap to one point.
Hoffman scored the opening takedown with a shrug :37 into the bout and closed it with another takedown with :24 remaining to claim his win over Martinez.