By SAMUEL LEGG
The Tribune-Democrat
March 02, 2008 12:42 am
—
A blue moon occurs more regularly.
Leap Year is even more frequent.
Pitt-Johnstown failing to retain its NCAA Division II East Regional Wrestling Tournament title: No way.
But that’s what transpired Saturday at the UPJ Sports Center.
Newberry College, out of South Carolina, dethroned the 20-time champion Mountain Cats, who had won five in a row and 15 out of the past 16 regionals.
The last time the Mountain Cats didn’t win the East Region team championship was in 2002, when Ashland (Ohio) University claimed the title.
“I guess it has to happen every now and then,” said Mountain Cats coach Pat Pecora, in his 32nd season. “Newberry, they just had a great team. Newberry did a great job. They deserve it. Newberry’s loaded in every weight. You’ve got to lose with some dignity. When someone can take a regional tournament from us, it’s big.”
The Indians bested the Mountain Cats 129.5-121. Mercyhurst College finished third with 87 team points, while Gannon University and West Liberty State College tied for fourth with 83.5.
Newberry had seven wrestlers in the finals compared to six for UPJ.
“The key was our mentality,” Newberry coach Jason Valek said. “We had some success earlier against Coach Pecora and the Mountain Cats. They’re unbelievable. It’s such a testament to what he’s done for so long. Our kids really believed. We’re in our third year as a program and they’re starting to mature. (Pecora) set the standards. So we have to go get him. We’re going to have many more of these.”
UPJ will send seven wrestlers to the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships March 14-15 at Upper Iowa University. Those national qualifiers all have shots at being All-Americans.
The top four placewinners in each of the 10 weight classes at regionals advanced to nationals.
“We had a great tournament, getting seven guys to nationals,” Pecora said. “We still have another big tournament coming up. We’ve got two weeks to get better.”
Brandon Reasy (No. 1 seed) at 133 pounds, Kyle Keane (1) at 165 and Albert Miles (3) at 174 took top honors for UPJ.
“Reasy had a fantastic tournament,” Pecora said. “He’s been Steady Eddie all year.”
Mike Corcetti (3) at 184, Patrick Walsh (1) at 197 and Zach Majocha (2) at 285 placed second, and 141-pounder Shane Valko (4) finished fourth.
Keane and Walsh will be making their first trip to nationals.
The Mountain Cats had nine of 10 wrestlers finish in the top six in the East. Only Ryan McIntyre (8) at 149, filling in for Adam Whetstone, who didn’t pass a skin check, failed to advance past the consolation quarterfinals.
Derrek Bosso (5) at 125, a 2006 All-American, and Mazen Kholi (8) at 157, who had to default his final two matches due to a slight concussion, both took sixth place.
“You wrestle to win the thing and we came up a little short,” Pecora said. “But the effort was there.”
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