Feb. 5, 2000
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The 21st-ranked Purdue wrestling team picked up the intensity on the mat on Saturday night, but could not overcome Penn State and lost the dual match, 19-13. The loss is Purdue's ninth-straight Big Ten loss, dating back to last season and takes the Boilers to 8-10 overall (0-6 Big Ten) this season, while Penn State improves to 4-9 with the victory.
"Overall, I was pleased with the way our kids wrestled," Purdue coach Jessie Reyes said. "If we wrestled like this last night against Ohio State, we definitely would have come out on top. Vercelli started the momentum with a big win over a good kid, and we created some positive things. Yeah, we came up short, but let's not come up short at the Big Ten's and National's, that's what we are looking toward."
Sophomore Jacob Vercelli earned a 7-3 decision over 18th-ranked Mark Janus of Penn State in the heavyweight division to open the dual match. In the opening period, the 15th-ranked Vercelli registered a takedown and near fall to establish a 5-0 lead and recorded a second takedown in the third period to hold off Janus, a 1999 NCAA qualifier, and stake Purdue to a 3-0 lead.
In the second match, Boiler Jason Silverstein, ranked 14th, battled number-one ranked Jeremy Hunter of Penn State at 125-pounds. In last season's match between the two ranked wrestlers, Hunter won a 4-1 decision. The rematch also went to Hunter, as he registered four takedowns and accumulated 1:12 of riding time to win 10-4.
In a crucial match a 133-pounds, Purdue's 18th-ranked Evan Robinson wasted no time and got out to a 2-0 lead against Penn State's 16th-ranked Scott Moore with a takedown within ten seconds and registered another takedown just before the opening period expired for a 4-1 lead. However, Moore escaped Robinson's hold with one minute remaining and scored two points on a takedown to take a 5-4 decision, the difference coming on Moore's riding time advantage.
After 11th-ranked Jason Betz defeated Purdue's Luis Blanco at 141-pounds to extend the Nittany Lion's lead to 9-3, Purdue's Jimmy Hawthorne came out aggressively against Penn State's Brent Narkiewicz in the 149-pounds match. Despite several opportunities, Hawthorne was only able to take his opponent down once in the first and led 2-1. In the following period, Narkiewicz fought back to draw the match even at 3-3, but Hawthorne scored a second takedown with one minute remaining in the match for a 6-4 lead. Hawthorne successfully defended his lead by keeping Narkiewicz on the mat for much of the final minute and secured his first Big Ten win of the season. The 6-5 victory kept Purdue in the match and ran the team score to 9-6 in favor of Penn State at the intermission.
After the break, Purdue senior James Leavell and Penn State's Nate Wachter battled at 157-pounds in the sixth match of the evening. Wachter drew first blood with an escape from the down position to open the second period. Leavell countered with an escape to open the third and executed a takedown to earn a 3-1 lead. Leavell held the lead briefly, but Wachter answered for Penn State with a takedown and two-point near fall for a 6-3 win and 12-6 lead in the team score. In the 165-pound match, an aggressive Kirk Moore took down Penn State's Doc Vecchio four times in the first two periods for a 9-2 lead and accumulated an impressive 5:37 of riding time in the match for a 10-2 major decision. The win drew the Boilers to within two at 12-10. At 174-pounds, Mark Becks extended the Nittany Lion's lead to 15-10 with a 5-3 decision over Jon Fitch.
With eight matches in the books, the Boilers needed to win the final two in order to win the dual. Sophomore Jared Williams did his part at 184-pounds, pulling a reversal with 45 seconds remaining to break a 3-3 tie with Penn State's Jeff Knupp, ranked #17, and win 5-3. In the final match of the dual meet, Purdue senior Mark Colegrove faced 9th-ranked Ross Thatcher of the Nittany Lions. Thatcher established himself early and won a major decision 14-5 to end the Boiler's hope for victory.
Penn State's win extends its record in the all-time series against Purdue to 7-0. The Boilers return to action in search of a Big Ten victory at #6 Illinois in Champaign, Ill., on Feb. 17 at 7 p.m. and face Indiana in West Lafayette, Ind., on Feb. 20 at 1 p.m. in the Intercollegiate Athletic Facility.
FINAL SCORE: Penn State 19, Purdue 13125 Jeremy Hunter (PSU) dec. Jason Silverstein (PU), 10-4133 Scott Moore (PSU) dec. Evan Robinson (PU), 5-4141 Jason Betz (PSU) dec. Luis Blanco (PU), 11-5149 Jimmy Hawthorne (PU) dec. Brent Narkiewicz (PSU), 6-5157 Nate Wachter (PSU) dec. James Leavell (PU), 6-3165 Kirk Moore (PU) maj. dec. Doc Vecchio (PSU), 10-2174 Mark Becks (PSU) dec. Jon Fitch (PU), 5-3184 Jared Williams (PU) dec. Jeff Knupp (PSU), 5-3197 Ross Thatcher (PSU) maj. dec. Mark Colegrove (PU), 14-5Hwt. Jacob Vercelli (PU) dec. Mark Janus (PSU), 7-3