ALLENTOWN, Pa. – The Ursinus College wrestling team split a Centennial Conference tri-match at Muhlenberg, edging Merchant Marine 25-18 before giving 6th-ranked Stevens all it could handle in a hard-fought, 19-18 setback. Seniors Derek Arnold and Matan Peleg were each 2-0 on the afternoon for the Bears, and classmate Alexander Kramer recorded his 100th career win with a technical fall against the Mariners.
Ursinus (13-3, 4-1) won the first five bouts against Merchant Marine, starting with a forfeit at 125. Junior Christopher Tan posted an 8-5 victory over Tyler Craig in his first match at 133, and freshman Alfred Corradetti followed with a 12-0 rout of Chad Puglio at 141.
Kramer notched his tenth technical fall of the season, ending his match with Trent Dolby early in the second period to give him his milestone win. Kramer is second in Division III in technical falls.
Arnold completed the run of five straight winning bouts with a 10-0 blanking of Erik Beshada at 157. The Mariners claimed the next four contests, including three major decisions and a pin, to close the gap to 21-18, but Peleg sealed the match for the Bears with a 7-4 decision over Victor Raigoza.
Ursinus next faced off with undefeated Stevens and came within a whisker of handing the Ducks their first loss of the year. The Bears went up against three nationally ranked grapplers and held their own, but ultimately a pair of one-point decisions was enough to swing the match in favor of Stevens.
At 125, Tan pushed defending CC champion Rob Murray to the limit in a 7-6 defeat, and Kramer was nipped 3-2 at 149 by Zach Wilhelm, the nation's 10th-ranked wrestler.
After dropping the first four matchups, the Bears responded with wins in five of the following six. The run started with Arnold's 15-5 victory over Thomas Poklikuha, ranked seventh in the country. Sophomore Jarret DiGiantomasso notched a 4-0 decision against Aaron Wolfgang at 165, and junior Patrick Rafferty tested defending CC champion Colin Navickas before falling, 6-4, at 174.
Junior Cody Richmond registered a 4-2 victory over Josh Smith at 184, and sophomore William McGinley dominated Ryan Jachim, 14-5, at 197.
Trailing 19-14 heading into the heavyweight bout, Peleg's 9-1 major decision over Pete Andrich left Ursinus a mere point shy.
The wrestling team heads to Gettysburg for CC contests with McDaniel and the host Bullets on Saturday, February 4.
Ursinus 25, Merchant Marine 18
125: John DeLia (U) won by forfeit
133: Christopher Tan (U) dec. Tyler Craig, 8-5
141: Alfred Corradetti (U) maj. dec. Chad Puglio, 12-0
149: Alexander Kramer (U) tech. fall Trent Dolby, 3:48
157: Derek Arnold (U) maj. dec. Erik Beshada, 10-0
165: Joshua Glantzman (M) maj. dec. Robert Endy, 10-1
174: Collin Keil (M) pinned Corey Markovitch, 5:55
184: Patrick Rooney (M) maj. dec. Deon Edmund, 13-4
197: Blake Bunce (M) maj. dec. Michael Newman, 12-1
HWT: Matan Peleg (U) dec. Victor Raigoza, 7-4
#6 Stevens 19, Ursinus 18
125: Rob Murray (S) dec. Christopher Tan, 7-6
133: Troy Stanich (S) pinned Patrick Ammirati, 3:07
141: Dylan Van Sickell (S) maj. dec. Alfred Corradetti, 14-4
149: Zach Wilhelm (S) dec. Alexander Kramer, 3-2
157: Derek Arnold (U) maj. dec. Thomas Poklikuha, 15-5
165: Jarret DiGiantomasso (U) dec. Aaron Wolfgang, 4-0
174: Colin Navickas (S) dec. Patrick Rafferty, 6-4
184: Cody Richmond (U) dec. Josh Smith, 4-2
197: William McGinley (U) maj. dec. Ryan Jachim, 14-5
HWT: Matan Peleg (U) maj. dec. Pete Andrich, 9-1