Mike Reilly
Mike Touey
King's junior Mike Reilly is back at 174-pounds after winning back-to-back crowns in 2008 and 2009 but missed the 2010 event with an injury. Reilly was named the Outstanding Wrestler of the 2009 event.

King's Hosting "Loaded" Field at 2011 Metropolitan Wrestling Conference Championships Sunday

2/26/2011 10:00:34 AM

Metropolitan Wrestling Conference Tournament Preview:

LOADED FIELD TO MAKE 2011 METROPOLITAN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS A MEMORABLE EVENT

Click Here for:  Tournament Home Page

Live Video WebCast of Championship Finals:  approximately 4:30-4:45 p.m.
(Double-click the video to enlarge screen when watching)

WILKES-BARRE, PA -- When King's College hosts the Metropolitan Wrestling Conference Championships on Sunday, the event may very well have its most talented pool of teams ever. The 2011 tournament will feature 11 teams with six member squads ranked in the National Wrestling Coaches Association Top-30 in NCAA Division III.

Those teams include Centenary (10th), defending Metro champion The College of New Jersey (12th), Wilkes (13th), York (15th), and Elizabethtown (24th). Delaware Valley, which dominated the Midwest Regional Championships from 2007-10, joins the Metro Conference this year after finishing 5th at D-III nationals a year ago. The Aggies are currently ranked 21st by the NWCA.

Other teams competing include host King's, Hunter College, New York University, University of Scranton, and Yeshiva University.

At stake will be 18 berths into the NCAA Division III National Tournament March 10-11 in La Crosse, Wisconsin.  All 10 Metro championships will receive automatic berths into the NCAA Championships, while an additional at-large bids (wild cards) will be handed out following a vote of the conference coaches.

Wrestling begins at 9:30 a.m. with finals and consolation finals expected to begin simultaneously at approximately 4:30-4:45 p.m.

A live video web stream of the championship finals will be available to fans at the following link:
http://streaming.kings.edu/KCsports

The following is a weight-by-weight breakdown of the event:
     
At 125-pounds, Delaware Valley's Charlie Frankel (14-11) is top ranked in the Metro Conference. Junior Jose Vega (14-6) of Centenary and Elizabethtown junior Will Bentley (21-5), and York senior Jerrid Hartman (17-11) stand as top challengers. TCNJ freshman Steve Godine (19-12) and Scranton sophomore Mike Murcia (12-8) figure to contend.

Will Livingston Centenary
The 133-pound class is led by the nation's top wrestler and the defending Metro champion in Centenary senior Will Livingston who stands at 18-0 on the year. Several youngsters looking to knock off the top man in the division include TCNJ sophomore Dan Herr (30-4) who was runner-up to Livingston last season. Sophomore Vinny Signoriello of Scranton (12-5), Delaware Valley sophomore Zac Haynes (11-8), freshman Chuck Glatz (15-14) of York, NYU senior Steve Contino (15-9) and Wilkes rookie Seth Bartlett (13-9) will all look to challenge.

Chris Albright York
At 141-pounds, sophomore Chris Albright (28-1) of York is top-ranked in his weight class. Centenary senior Dave Alsieux (24-3) is an experienced veteran while Del-Val senior transfer Matt Ulrich (16-7) was an all-American after placing sixth at last season's national tournament while at Southern Maine. Junior Ryan Wilson (16-11) of Wilkes, sophomore Colin Sheridan (16-10) of Elizabethtown, and Hunter junior Sean Messina (13-9) could figure into the mix.

Tye Boyer Etown
In a tough 149-pound weight class, Elizabethtown sophomore Tye Boyer (16-3) is the defending conference champion and is ranked second in the conference. Wilkes junior Mike Dattolo (23-2), last season's runner-up at this weight, is ranked first in the conference and seventh in the nation. Senior Jon Stillo (19-4) of Centenary follows at second in the conference rankings while sophomore Chris Gugliotti (20-9) of York is ranked fourth in the conference. Other contenders include Delaware Valley junior Zack Andrews (26-5) and TCNJ sophomore John Darling (25-10).

Jesse Harrington DVC
At 157, Delaware Valley senior Jesse Harrington (19-5) was a 2010 Midwest Regional champion and earned all-American honors with a fifth-place finish in the 2010 D-III national tournament. He is currently ranked second nationally by the NWCA. Senior Eduardo Delgado (16-3)  is ranked second in the Metro Conference and 10th nationally.  Another serious contender is junior Kyle Packer (6-1) of TCNJ who is down a weight class after winning the 165-pound crown a year ago. Centenary junior Owen Vernon (21-5), Wilkes junior Shane Everett (21-11), and King's freshman Tommy Desir (15-10) hope to challenge.

Matt McGill-NYU
Another talented weight class is 165-pounds which is paced by a pair of past champions.  Senior Justin Bonitatis (31-2) won the 2009 championship but was fourth at 157 last year. Fellow senior Matt McGill (31-8), of NYU won the 157-pound title a year ago and was named the tournament's “Outstanding Wrestler” award. Senior Matt Regan (25-4) of Centenary is looking to get over the hump after finishing second in the Metropolitan Tournament each of the past two seasons. Sophomore Quint Eno (17-7) of Elizabethtown and Wilkes junior Ben Marich (15-6) are capable of surprising the favorites.

The 174-pound class is also stacked with three nationally-ranked grapplers. Freshman Julian Meaney (15-2) of Elizabethtown is ranked first in the Metro and sixth nationally by the NWCA.  Sophomore Brian Broderick of TCNJ (27-3), the 2010 runner-up at 174, is ranked eighth in the nation. The favorite in the weight class, however, could be King's junior Mike Reilly (27-1) who made a late-season drop in weight after competing the majority of the year at 184 where he is currently ranked fourth nationally. Reilly won back-to-back 174-pound titles in 2008 and 2009, earning Outstanding Wrestler honors as a sophomore. Last season Reilly suffered a season-ending injury and missed the post-season but was awarded an NCAA medical redshirt and retained junior eligibility. Junior David Rice (16-6) of NYU, Centenary senior Charles Cannella (20-11), and junior Matt Heisey (21-14) of York will also contend.     

Mike Denver TCNJ
The 184-pound class is headed by defending Metro champion Mike Denver (32-2) of TCNJ, pictured left, who is ranked third nationally. Handing King's Reilly his only loss of the year, Denver is the heavy favorite to repeat. The top challenger appears to be York junior Alex Martocello (25-4) who lost to Denver in the 2010 Metro final. Sophomore Sabino Galassi (22-14) of NYU, Centenary junior J.J. Mitchell (11-5) Wilkes rookie Dave Oberrender (18-11) will also contend.
  
One of only two weight classes with three nationally ranked wrestlers, 197 is headed by Centenary junior Tim Lutke (8-0). A second-semester transfer from Division I Edinboro, Lutke is ranked first in the Metro Conference and is rated 7th nationally by the NWCA. Freshman Aaron Karns (23-5) of Delaware Valley is second in the Metro and eighth in the nation while York junior George Saliba (21-2) is third in the conference and 10th nationally. TCNJ senior Adam Koziol (9-2), sophomore Peter Dwyer (10-5) of King's, Wilkes freshman Matt Transue (19-5), freshman Philip Landis (13-8) of Elizabethtown, and NYU junior Stephen Massey (16-13) all took to emerge.  

At 285, sophomore James Laughlin (10-1) of York is ranked first in his weight class.  Wilkes senior Chris Smith(17-9) follows in the rankings along with third-ranked junior Joe Zitone (16-7) of Centenary and fourth-rated Elizabethtown senior Tim Katzaman (23-4). Delaware Valley junior Zeke Pyle (12-13) could loom as the dark horse.                   

Note: Metropolitan Conference Individual Rankings provided by: D3Wrestle.com    
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