Four Fighting Scots Reach EWL Finals After Completion of Saturday's Second Session
March 3, 2007

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CLEVELAND, OH – Edinboro will have four wrestlers in the finals of the 2007 Eastern Wresling League Tournament. After the second session of the EWL’s at Cleveland State’s Woodling Gym, the Fighting Scots are in second place with 78 points. Edinboro has won four straight EWL championships.

West Virginia has five wrestlers in the finals and leads the team standings with 84.5 points. Bloomsburg is third with 76.5 points, with Pittsburgh next with 74.5 points. Lock Haven stands fifth with 67 points, followed by Cleveland State in sixth (45 points), and Clarion in seventh (33 points).

The top two wrestlers in each weight class are assured trips to the NCAA Division I National Championships at Auburn Hills, MI on March 14-17. The EWL coaches will select 12 wild cards following Sunday’s medal matches to complete the 32 EWL representatives.

Gregor Gillespie leads the contingent of Edinboro finalists, seeking his second consecutive crown at 149 lbs. The sophomore, an All-American as a true freshman a year ago, advanced with an impressive 9-1 major decision over Matt Moley of Bloomsburg. Gillespie, who is ranked fifth by Amateur Wrestling News and sixth by InterMat, will face West Virginia’s David Jauregui in the final. Jauregui defeated Gillespie recently, 10-9.

Deonte Penn, ranked eighth in both polls, posted his second fall in the tournament, needing just 2:21 to win by fall over Cleveland State’s Marcus Effner. Penn and Sean Richmond will meet in the final at 165 lbs. Penn is making his third trip to Nationals and seeks his second EWL crown after winning the 149 lb. championship in 2004. He earned All-American honors a year ago.

Alex Clemsen made it three Fighting Scots in the finals in a brawling 14-5 major decision at 184 lbs. against David Gilkey of Cleveland State. Clemsen, a senior and now a four-time national qualifier, is ranked seventh by InterMat and tenth by Amateur Wrestling News. He has finished second twice and third once in three previous EWL appearances. Clemsen will face Bloomsburg’s Nate Shirk in the championship bout.

Edinboro’s fourth wrestler in the finals is Jim Gibson. The senior avenged an earlier 5-2 loss to Cleveland State’s Chris Hahn with a 6-2 decision to earn his first trip to Nationals. Gibson meets West Virginia’s Jared Villers on Sunday.

Five other Boro wrestlers lost in their attempts to reach the finals as a total of nine grapplers had advanced into the semifinals after the first session. All are alive, with Ricky Deubel the lone wrestler eliminated after the first day. The sophomore, a national qualifier last year at 125 lbs., lost twice at 133 lbs.

Here’s a look at how the Edinboro wrestlers fared:

• 125 lbs. – Eric Morrill
  Championship Quarterfinals – bye
  Semifinals – lost by decision to #11/#13 Mike Sees (BU), 9-6

  The freshman gave Sees, ranked 11th by InterMat, a tough battle before losing in his first EWL Tournament match. Morrill scored the first points of the match on a takedown at the two-minute mark. Sees would escape and post a takedown with one minute remaining for a 3-2 lead after one period. Morrill tied the match in the second at 3-3 with an escape, but Sees came up with a pair of takedowns on the edge of the mat, sandwiching a Morrill escape, for a 7-4 lead after two periods. In the third period, Sees got a quick escape, and then with four seconds remaining Morrill came up with his second takedown. Sees owned a 2:04 advantage in riding time. Morrill now falls into the consolation round with a 14-14 record, while Sees moves into the finals against Lock Haven’s Obe Blanc. Sees is 29-3.

• 133 lbs. – Ricky Deubel
  Championship Quarterfinals – lost by decision to Mark Anderson (WVU), 5-3

  For the second straight year Deubel lost in the first round of the EWL’s, dropping his season record to 24-10. Anderson, who improved to 11-14, avenged an earlier 8-4 loss to Deubel. He scored the first points with a takedown with 1:15 left in the first period, with Deubel’s escape making it 2-1 at the end of one period. Deubel tied the score at 2-2 with an escape to start the second period, but Anderson countered a Deubel takedown attempt for a takedown and a 4-2 lead. Deubel’s escape made it 4-3 after two periods. The third period began in the neutral position, and Deubel was unable to register a takedown, with Anderson owning 1:07 in riding time for the final score.

  Consolation First Round – lost by decision to Ricky Donald (BU), 9-4

  Deubel’s struggles at the EWL’s continued as he lost for the fourth time in five matches and was eliminated. Deubel grabbed the early lead with a takedown at the 1:25 mark, with Donald escaping for a 2-1 score after one period. The match turned in the second period when Deubel chose down, and Donald rolled him over for three near-fall points and a 4-2 lead after two periods. An escape gave Donald a 5-2 lead early in the third, but Deubel closed to 5-4 with a takedown with just over a minute remaining. Donald would come up with an escape and then registered a takedown at the buzzer. He also had riding time. Deubel’s season closed at 24-11.

• 141 lbs. – Daryl Cocozzo
  Championship Quarterfinals – won by major decision over Zack Kell (LHU), 15-2

  Cocozzo jumped out to a 7-1 lead after one period, posting an early takedown, then following with three back points. Following a Kell escape, Cocozzo registered his second takedown late in the period. Kell rode Cocozzo out in the second period, but Cocozzo enjoyed a big third period. After a Kell escape closed the match to 7-2, Cocozzo recorded his third takedown, then a pair of near-fall moves for five back points. He added a point for riding time to improve to 15-11.

  Semifinals – lost by decision to Darren Kern (BU), 4-2

  The freshman turned in a strong effort against Kern, who had beaten him twice eralier, but could not come up with the upset. He took a 2-0 lead with a double-led takedown with 30 seconds left in the first period, but Kern escaped before the end of the period. Kern started the second period with an escape to knot the score. He posted the winning takedown with just 20 seconds remaining. Cocozzo now has a 15-12 record and moves to the consolation round.

• 149 lbs. – Gregor Gillespie
  Championship Quarterfinals – bye
  Semifinals – won by major decision over Matt Moley (BU), 9-1

  The sophomore remained in pursuit of his second EWL crown with a strong showing against Moley. Gillespie had narrowly defeated Moley earlier in the year, 6-5, and it had a similar appearance after a scoreless first period. But Gillespie took control in the second period with a takedown at the 1:05 mark, followed by a pair of near-fall moves for a total of five points. Gillespie began the third period on top, and after Moley escaped to cut the lead to 6-2, Gillespie came up with his second takedown at the 15 second mark. He had a 2:39 advantage in riding time. Gillespie is now 28-2. He is ranked fifth by Amateur Wrestling News and sixth by InterMat.

• 157 lbs. – Matt Hill
  Championship Quarterfinals – won by decision over Dennis Bermudez (BU), 8-5

  In a hard-fought opening-round match, Hill improved to 29-3 while dropping Bermudez to 21-16. Hill opened the scoring a double-leg takedown at the 50-second mark, with Bermudez escaping to make it 2-1 after one period. Hill picked up two back points in the second for a 4-1 lead, but Bermudez countered with a reversal and a 4-3 score after two periods. In the third period, Hill started out with an escape and boosted his advantage to 7-3 with a takedown. Hill was penalized a point for stalling, and then escaped with 25 seconds left to cut Hill’s lead to 7-5. Hill added a point with a riding time advantage of 1:08.

  Semifinals – lost by decision to #13/#8 Seth Martin (LHU), 2-0

  In the fourth meeting between the two this season, and the tenth in the last three years, Martin came up with a second period escape and a riding time advantage of 1:50 for his third win vs. Hill this year. Hill came close to escaping on several occasions in the third period, but never could get out. Hill, ranked 12th by Amateur Wrestling News and 14th by InterMat, falls to 29-4 while competing in a very strong weight class. He has a 102-39 career record.

• 165 lbs. – Deonte Penn
  Championship Quarterfinals – won by fall over Eric Connolly (WVU), 3:46

  Penn continued his impressive wrestling with his 17th fall of the season and 50th of his career. It was Penn’s sixth straight win by fall, not counting a forfeit win against Pittsburgh, and his 22nd consecutive triumph. Penn posted a takedown just 12 seconds into the match, then rode Connolly the rest of the period. He started the second period in the down position, and used a reversal and two back points for a 6-0 advantage. Soon after came his 17th fall in 2006-07, tying for the third-highest season total. Penn is now 31-2.

  Semifinals – won by fall over Marcus Effner (CSU), 2:21

  Ranked eighth in both polls, Penn cruised into the finals with a quick pin over Effner. Effner actually grabbed a 2-0 lead with a takedown just thirty seconds into the match. Penn answered with a reversal forty seconds later, and soon had the Viking on his back. It marked Penn’s 51st career fall and 18th this season. He holds the career record for falls and the 18 falls ties the season record. Penn is now 32-2 and has won 23 straight matches. The last seven, save for a forfeit win against Pittsburgh, have come by fall. He boosted his career record to 109-41.

• 174 lbs. – Phil Moricone
  Championship Quarterfinals – bye
  Semifinals – lost by decision to Kurt Brenner (WVU), 11-8

  Moricone nearly upset the defending EWL champion, leading 7-6 entering the third period. Brenner knotted the match with an escape early in the third period, then recorded the winning takedown at the 50-second mark. Moricone would escape, but Brenner added an insurance takedown with 14 seconds left. Moricone moves into the consolation bracket with a 22-9 record.

• 184 lbs. – Alex Clemsen
  Championship Quarterfinals -- bye
  Semifinals – won by major decision over David Gilkey (CSU), 14-5

  Clemsen had to avoid the raging-bull mentality of Gilkey to reach the finals for the third time. He came up with five takedowns in the match while improving to 31-2 with his 14th straight win. The match started with a pair of Clemsen takedowns, followed by Gilkey escapes. Clemsen took control in the second period, starting with an escape. He recorded a takedown at the 1:35 mark, and after a Gilkey escape, had a takedown in the waning seconds for a 9-3 lead after two periods. The third period got wild, with Gilkey turning it into a brawl. Gilkey came up with two escapes, but Clemsen had a takedown and was twice awarded penalty points. Clemsen, ranked seventh by InterMat and tenth by Amateur Wrestling News, improves to 115-33 for his career and will make his fourth trip to Nationals. He is after his first EWL crown and will face Bloomsburg;’s Nate Shirk, who he recently defeated 2-1, in the finals.

• 197 lbs. – Jim Gibson
  Championship Quarterfinals – won by decision over Mike Heist (UP), 5-0

  Gibson improved to 20-8 with a methodical win. After a scoreless first period, Gibson started out the second period in the down position and came up with an escape 13 seconds into the period. Heist chose neutral to begin the third, and Gibson’s single-leg takedown early in the period gave him a 3-0 lead. He added a point for stalling against Heist and a riding time point to reach the semifinals.

  Semifinals – won by decision over Chris Hahn (CSU), 6-2

  Gibson avenged an earlier 5-2 loss to Hahn to earn his first trip to Nationals. The senior is now 21-8 thanks to an impressive showing in the semifinals. He opened with a takedown with 51 seconds left, with a Hahn escape with five seconds to go making it 2-1 after one period. The lone scoring in the second period was an escape by Hahn, tying the score at 2-2. With Gibson owning riding time, Hahn let the Boro wrestler out to start the third. Gibson then cemented the win over the second seed with a takedown with three seconds showing. He added the riding time point.

• Hwt. – Joe Fendone
  Championship Quarterfinals – won by decision over Rashard Goff (CSU), 3-1

  Fendone moved into the semifinals in the loaded heavyweight field thanks to a takedown and riding points. The first period was scoreless. In the second, Fendone chose the neutral position and took advantage of a scramble at the edge of the mat to take a 2-0 lead with a takedown. Fendone kept Goff on the mat until 25 seconds remained in the final period, and with a 2:10 advantage in riding time ended up with the 3-1 decision. He defeated Goff 5-3 during the season. Fendone is now 24-8, while Goff falls to 23-15.

  Semifinals – lost by decision to #11/#14 Mike Spaid (BU), 7-0

  Spaid continued to give Fendone trouble, beating him for the third time, all by shutout. The big Husky recorded a late first-period takedown, then had a point for stalling and a reversal in the second period. He added a takedown in the third period with just under a minute remaining to send Fendone to 24-9 on the season.