KING'S GRAPPLERS UPSET 13TH RANKED LYCOMING, 24-20

WILKES-BARRE – King's College heavyweight Justin Bender (left) posted a match-clinching decision in the final bout of the night as the Monarchs posted a 24-20 upset victory over 13th ranked Lycoming College Tuesday in Scandlon Gymnasium.

With the win, King's improved to 4-7 on the year while Lycoming slipped to 7-4.

With King's holding a slim 21-20 lead after nine matches, the bout would be decided at heavyweight. Bender (2-2) would take down Lycoming's Troy Hansen for a 2-0 lead but Hansen would escape to cut the lead to 2-1 heading into the second period. Hansen would again post an escape but neither wrestler would score fore the remainder of the period, entering the third period tied at 2-2. Bender would escape to start the third period to take a 3-2 lead, then secured a decisive takedown for a 5-2 lead. Hansen would pick up another escape late in the match but Bender added a riding time point to clinch the match with a 6-3 decision.

The match was close throughout as neither team gained a clear advantage in the team scoring.

In the first match at 125-pounds, Lycoming's Noel Faison (5-0) used a takedown and four sets of three-point near falls to take a 14-0 first period lead over Lenny Viggiano. Faison would then register another near fall early in the second period for a 17-0 technical fall victory.

At 133, King's returning Division III national champion David Morgan (right) scored four takedowns and six near fall points to build a 14-3 first period lead over Andrew Lewis. Morgan (15-1) added two more takedowns in the second period for a 18-4 lead heading into the final frame. Morgan would quickly add an escape point in the third period to register a 19-4 technical fall victory to tie the match at 5-5.

In the 141-pound bout, Tom Barger of Lycoming chalked up two takedowns to enter the second period with a 4-1 advantage over Tony Miele. Barger (10-7) added a reversal to take a 6-1 lead but Miele (12-12) countered with an escape, takedown and near fall to tie the match at 6-6 heading into the third period. Neither wrestler would score in the final frame but Barger would gain a riding time point for a 7-6 victory and an 8-5 Warrior advantage in the team scoring.

At 149, King's Frankie Davis (12-13) used a takedown for a 2-0 lead over Mike Maurer. After a Maurer escape, Davis added another takedown with 0:05 on the clock for a 4-1 lead after one period. Maurer would escape midway through the second period to cut the lead to 4-2, but Davis scored another takedown to up the advantage to 6-2. Maurer would then add a late escape to cut the lead to 6-3 heading into the final period. After a scoreless final frame, Davis added a riding time point for a 7-3 decision while tying the team score at 8-8.

In the matchup at 157-pounds, King's Taylor Green (7-1) scored a takedown for a 2-0 first period lead over Zach Frederick. Green would follow with a quick second period reversal and rode out Frederick for the remainder of the period to stretch the advantage to 4-0 and entering the third period. Green would score an escape and tacked on a riding time point for a 7-1 victory to give the Monarchs an 11-8 lead.

Lycoming would quickly respond at 165-pounds when Chris Dahlheimer (8-1) pinned Ryan Trees in 2:51 to give the Warriors a 14-11 lead.

At 174, Nick Lansberry of Lycoming would score a late first period takedown of Mike Reilly, but Reilly would post a reversal at the buzzer to knot the score at 2-2. In the second period, Reilly would post three near fall points before Lansberry would escape to cut the lead to 5-3 entering the third period. Reilly (10-1) then posted a reversal and added three near fall points to build a 10-3 lead before settling for a 13-4 major decision to put King's back on top 15-14.

The pivotal point of the match came at 184-pounds when Zach Martinez (10-11) shrugged off a quick takedown by Troy Hayre to register an escape and takedown before scoring a sudden pin in 1:33 to give the Monarchs a 21-14 lead with two matches left.

At 197, eighth-ranked Matt Miller (13-2) of Lycoming would draw the Warriors to within 21-20 when he pinned Jon Wood in 2:27 to set up Bender's heroics at 285.


King's 24 - Lycoming 20
125 – Noel Faison (L) tech fall Lenny Viggiano (Ki), 17-0, 3:17
133 – David Morgan (Ki) tech fall Andrew Lewis (L), 19-4, 5:11
141 – Tom Barger (L) dec. Tony Miele (Ki), 7-6
149 – Frankie Davis (Ki) dec. Mike Maurer (L), 7-3
157 – Taylor Green (Ki) dec. Zach Frederick (L), 7-1
165 – Chris Dahlheimer (L) pinned Ryan Trees (Ki), 2:51
174 – Mike Reilly (Ki) major dec. Nick Lansberry (L), 13-4
184 – Zach Martinez (Ki) pinned Troy Hayre (L), 1:33
197 – Matt Miller (L) pinned Jon Wood (Ki), 2:27
285 – Justin Bender (Ki) dec. Troy Hansen (L), 6-3