Jan. 12, 2008
HAMPTON, Va. -- Old Dominion finished 4-1 at the Virginia Duals, good enough for third place at the event. The Monarchs dropped the dual in the semis to #17 Illinois, 26-12, before defeating Virginia, 23-12, and finally Kent State, 25-12, in the third place match. The Monarchs improve to 8-2 on the year with the only losses coming to nationally ranked programs. Sophomore Kyle Hutter toppled two nationally ranked opponents on the day.
ODU opened the day in the semi's, across the mat from #17 Illinois for an opportunity to wrestle in the championship match. Despite tight wrestling in all three of the first bouts, ODU fell into a 9-0 hole after the 141-lb. bout.
Redshirt sophomore #18 Kaylen Baxter got ODU back in it with a pin of Grant Paswell in the second period and Dan Rivera did his part, holding the number one ranked grappler in the nation at 157 lbs to just a 14-6 major decision. The score was just 13-6 after the first half, setting up an epic battle at 165.
Redshirt sophomore #20 Chris Brown and Illinois' Roger Smith-Bergsrud battled for three periods to a 1-1 tie, setting up overtime. In the first sudden victory, Brown looked to have a sure takedown nearing the end of the minute, but was not awarded the points putting the pair in the first tiebreaker. Smith-Bergsrud nearly had the win after escaping in the firs half, but Brown grabbed an escape point with one second remaining to force the second sudden victory period. This time, with just under ten seconds remaining, Brown scored the two-point takedown, plus a two-second nearfall for the 7-2 win.
The win would give ODU a momentary high, cutting the lead to 17-12, but Illinois won three of the final bouts for the 26-12 win.
In the wrestlebacks, the Monarchs faced in-state rivals Virginia for an opportunity to wrestle in the consolation finals. Virginia has been receiving votes in the national polls for several weeks, but ODU dropped the Cavaliers, taking seven of the ten bouts, including the first of several huge individual victories for ODU on the day.
The big win for ODU came at 133 lbs, when Kyle Hutter earned the first of two wins over nationally ranked opponents on the day. He faced #15 Eric Albright and won 5-2 over the NCAA Qualifier.
ODU also grabbed two major decisions in the dual, as Nicholson shutout Ross Gitomer, 9-0, at 125 lbs and Brown won 11-3 over Dan Gonsor at 165 lbs.
Finally, the Monarchs faced Kent State in the 3rd place match. Last season at the Virginia Duals, Kent State faced ODU twice and defeated the Monarchs in both matchups. This season, ODU got its retribution to the tune of a 25-12 win over the Golden Flashes, including several more huge wins for the Monarch grapplers.
Dan Mitcheff, ranked 13th in the nation, was the second top-fifteen grapler to fall at the hands of Kyle Hutter. Hutter notched his second win over an NCAA Qualifier by a count of 10-4. Ryan Williams and Jesse Strawn also scored wins over nationally ranked opponents. Williams dropped #14 Drew Lashaway in a 5-3 decision at 141 lbs and Strawn beat #20 Eric Chine, 5-3, at 184 lbs.
Chris Brown suffered his only loss of the weekend to NCAA Qualifier and 16th ranked Kurt Gross in a tight 3-2 decision.
The Monarchs improved to 8-2 with the third place effort, and wrestle at the CAA Duals next weekend. The event will be held at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va. on the 18th and 19th.
Final Results:
Match #3 Semifinal: Illinois defeated Old Dominion 26-12125 - Gabe Flores (Illinois) over James Nicholson (Old Dominion) Dec 4-1133 - Jimmy Kennedy (Illinois) over Kyle Hutter (Old Dominion) Dec 7-2141 - Ryan Prater (Illinois) over Ryan Williams (Old Dominion) Dec 10-6149 - Kaylen Baxter (Old Dominion) over Grant Paswall (Illinois) Pin 3:46157 - Mike Poeta (Illinois) over Dan Rivera (Old Dominion) Maj 14-6165 - Chris Brown (Old Dominion) over Roger Smith-Bergsrud (Illinois) Dec 7-2174 - John Dergo (Illinois) over Nick Pullano (Old Dominion) Maj 12-2184 - Jesse Strawn (Old Dominion) over Ben Friedl (Illinois) Dec 6-5197 - Patrick Bond (Illinois) over David Mendoza (Old Dominion) InjHWT - John Wise (Illinois) over Roy Dragon III (Old Dominion) Dec 6-1
Match #4 Cons. Semi: Old Dominion defeated Virginia 23-12125 - James Nicholson (Old Dominion) over Ross Gilomer (Virginia) Maj 9-0133 - Kyle Hutter (Old Dominion) over Eric Albright (Virginia) Dec 5-2141 - Ryan Williams (Old Dominion) over Kellon Balum (Virginia) Dec 2-0149 - Kaylen Baxter (Old Dominion) over Pat Riley (Virginia) Dec 3-1157 - Dan Rivera (Old Dominion) over Kyle Artosio (Virginia) Dec 2-1165 - Chris Brown (Old Dominion) over Dan Gonsor (Virginia) Maj 11-3174 - Chris Henrich (Virginia) over Nick Pullano (Old Dominion) Dec 6-4184 - Rocco Caponi (Virginia) over Jesse Strawn (Old Dominion) Dec 4-1197 - Brent Jones (Virginia) over Unknown (Unattached) ForfHWT - Andy Totusek (Old Dominion) over Jack Danikowicz (Virginia) Dec 2-1
Match #5 3rd Place Match: Old Dominion defeated Kent State 25-12125 - James Nicholson (Old Dominion) over Nicolas Bedelyon (Kent State) Dec 7-4133 - Kyle Hutter (Old Dominion) over Dan Mitcheff (Kent State) Dec 10-4141 - Ryan Williams (Old Dominion) over Drew Lashaway (Kent State) Dec 5-3149 - Kaylen Baxter (Old Dominion) over Clint Sponseller (Kent State) Inj157 - Dan Rivera (Old Dominion) over Pat Lahman (Kent State) Dec 3-2165 - Kurt Gross (Kent State) over Chris Brown (Old Dominion) Dec 3-2174 - Nick Pullano (Old Dominion) over Chris Estep (Kent State) Maj 12-4184 - Jesse Strawn (Old Dominion) over Eric Chine (Kent State) Dec 5-3197 - Michael Blackwell (Kent State) over Unknown (Unattached) ForfHWT - Jermail Porter (Kent State) over Andy Totusek (Old Dominion) Dec 6-0