COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – Close matches and thrilling finishes were the theme of the day as the Ursinus College wrestling team won three of its four contests at the North/South Duals inside the Floy Lewis Bakes Center field house on Saturday.
Freshman Collin Wickramaratna was an unblemished 4-0 at 125 pounds for the Bears, who improved to 5-1 on the young season with tight victories over Rhode Island College (28-16), Elizabethtown (24-23), and Southern Maine (21-14).
Senior William McGinley was 3-0 at heavyweight, including a walk-off 3-2 win to give Ursinus a thrilling 24-23 triumph over Elizabethtown, while classmate Anthony Cutrufello (174/184) and freshman Gary Nagle (174) also won all three of their bouts.
Wickramaratna kicked off his perfect day with a 7-2 decision over Daniel Murray at 125 pounds, and fellow rookie Kyle Seibert posted a late pin of Marc Vehling at 141 to put Ursinus ahead by a 9-3 count.
After RIC took the lead with two straight bout wins, DiGiantomasso dropped Alexander Horn in 4:02 at 165 to give the Bears the upper hand for good. Classmate Anthony Cutrufello followed with a 6-3 decision at 174 before freshman Kyle Schaffer's major decision at 197 and a pin by McGinley at heavyweight provided the final margin.
The second match of the day was a barn-burner that went down to the final seconds. Wickramaratna started with a tight 4-2 decision against Josh McLaughlin, but the Blue Jays reeled off 20 consecutive points to grab a commanding advantage.
Back came the Bears with three consecutive pins, the first by senior Zachary Goranson at 165. Nagle needed just 1:15 to take down Hunter Beaudet at 174, and Cutrufello's first-period pin of Dayne Ross at 184 put Ursinus back on top at 21-20.
The lead did not last long, however, as Elizabethtown swung the pendulum again with a decision at 197. With the Bears trailing by two points heading into the heavyweight clash, McGinley walked off with a thrilling result in holding on for a match-sealing 3-2 triumph over Maxwell Rhoden.
The Bears' third match – against Southern Maine – was slightly less nerve-wracking, but a battle nonetheless. Wickramaratna started with a 12-3 major over Leo Amabile, only for the visitors to take the next three bouts and claim an 11-4 edge.
Freshman Noah Supsic edged out Zac Thompson, 9-7, at 157 to get Ursinus on the comeback trail, and back-to-back decisions by DiGiantomasso (4-0 at 165) and Nagle (8-2 at 174) made it 13-11 in favor of the hosts. After a Southern Maine decision, Schaffer put Ursinus in front for good with a 16-0 shutout of Sam Strozier at 197, and junior Zebulin Pfeiffer closed the door with a 6-4 defeat of Jake Peavy at heavyweight.
Wickramaratna completed a 4-0 effort with a 16-4 major decision opposite Cortland's Benjamin Lloyd in a 23-14 defeat to the Red Dragons. Nagle scored a major decision at 8-0 over Charlie Buckley at 174, and Cutrufello picked up his third straight victory with a 3-1 defeat of Josh Farrar at 184. McGinley matched him at 3-0 with a 7-1 decision over Ben Klei.
The Bears are back at home next Saturday, when they host the annual Will Abele Invitational.
Ursinus 28, Rhode Island College 16
125 – Collin Wickramaratna (UC) dec. Daniel Murray, 7-2 (3-0)
133 – Stephen Masi (RIC) dec. Brandon Miller, 5-0 (3-3)
141 – Kyle Seibert (UC) pinned Marc Vehling, 5:40 (9-3)
149 – Samuel Lindblom (RIC) pinned Patrick Rowe, 2:35 (9-9)
157 – Zachary Ford (RIC) maj. dec. Noah Supsic, 19-7 (9-13)
165 – Jarret DiGiantomasso (UC) pinned Alexander Horn, 4:02 (15-13)
174 – Anthony Cutrufello (UC) dec. Nathaniel Stemple, 6-3 (18-13)
184 – Michael Gallagher (RIC) dec. Ben Maack, 9-8 (18-16)
197 – Kyle Schaffer (UC) maj. dec. Matthew Borquin, 9-1 (22-16)
285 – William McGinley (UC) pinned Jordan Zanni, 4:02 (28-16)
Ursinus 24, Elizabethtown 23
125 – Collin Wickramaratna (UC) dec. Josh McLaughlin, 4-2 (3-0)
133 – Colton Rex (EC) tech fall Brandon Miller, 16-0 (3-5)
141 – Luke Moynihan (EC) dec. Kyle Seibert, 10-5 (3-8)
149 – Nick Gonzalez (EC) inj. def. Tom Boldosser, 0:50 (3-14)
157 – Kyle Bythell (EC) pinned Edward Howlette, 3:27 (3-20)
165 – Zachary Goranson (UC) pinned Colton Shriner, 1:28 (9-20)
174 – Gary Nagle (UC) pinned Hunter Beaudet, 1:15 (15-20)
184 – Anthony Cutrufello (UC) pinned Dayne Ross, 2:16 (21-20)
197 – Elijah Flasher (EC) dec. Charlie Wildermuth, 4-0 (21-23)
285 – William McGinley (UC) dec. Maxwell Rhoden, 3-2 (24-23)
Ursinus 21, Southern Maine 14
125 – Collin Wickramaratna (UC) major dec. Leo Amabile, 12-3 (4-0)
133 – Brad Beaulieu (SM) maj. dec. Brandon Miller, 11-1 (4-4)
141 – Austin Shorely (SM) maj. dec. Kyle Seibert, 17-3 (4-8)
149 – Brendan Weir (SM) dec. Patrick Rowe, 6-4 (4-11)
157 – Noah Supsic (UC) dec. Zac Thompson, 9-7 (7-11)
165 – Jarret DiGiantomasso (UC) dec. Juan Vernaza, 4-0 (10-11)
174 – Gary Nagle (UC) dec. Josh Smith, 8-2 (13-11)
184 – Raul Gierboli (SM) dec. Ben Maack, 4-3 (13-14)
197 – Kyle Schaffer (UC) tech fall Sam Strozier, 16-0 (19-14)
285 – Zebulin Pfeiffer (UC) dec. Jake Peavy, 6-4 (21-14)
Cortland State 23, Ursinus 14
125 – Collin Wickramaratna (UC) maj. dec. Benjamin Lloyd, 16-4 (4-0)
133 – Matt Maquet (CORT) maj. dec. Brandon Miller, 14-2 (4-4)
141 – Alex D'Angelo (CORT) maj. dec. Kyle Seibert (4-8)
149 – Jeremy Pond (CORT) pinned Patrick Rowe, 4:58 (4-14)
157 – Gianno Silba (CORT) dec. Noah Supsic, 11-6 (4-17)
165 – Dimitreus Henry (CORT) dec. Zachary Goranson, 6-2 (4-20)
174 – Gary Nagle (UC) maj. dec. Charlie Buckley, 8-0 (8-20)
184 – Anthony Cutrufello (UC) dec. Josh Farrar, 3-1 (11-20)
197 – Ryan O'Shea (CORT) dec. Kyle Schaffer, 3-1 (11-23)
285 – William McGinley (UC) dec. Ben Klei, 7-1 (14-23)