Stouffers upset gives wrestling a victory
EAST LANSING — The No. 14 ranked wrestling team defeated No. 9 Michigan State Tuesday 16-16 with an tie-break advantage in its first dual meet of the season.
Heavyweight sophomore Bill Stouffer earned the tie when he upset No. 15 John Wechter 6-4 in the final match.
According to a new tie-break rule, CMU was awarded the victory as the Chippewas had more near fall points (10-3) in the meet.
“We didn’t wrestle well, but it was our skill and determination that lead to the win,” said Head Coach Tom Borrelli.
The meet began with MSU’s Nick Simmons winning an 8-0 major decision over Kyle Stoffer at 125-pounds. Simmons is ranked No. 17 in the nation and used a two-point takedown in the closing seconds of the match to pick up four points for the Spartans. Both wrestlers are redshirt freshmen.
No. 15 Ryan L’Amoreaux increased MSU’s lead to 7-0 after a 3-1 overtime victory over sophomore Jason Borrelli. L’Amoreaux scored a takedown 30 seconds into the extra session to take the match.
CMU junior and No. 6-ranked Jason Mester then put his team on the board with a 10-3 decision over MSU redshirt freshman Darren McKnight. The match brought CMU to the score of 7-3.
CMU junior Ty Morgan then won a battle of ranked wrestlers over State’s No. 8 Karl Nadolsky. No. 11 Morgan won the double-overtime match 2-1 to draw the Chippewas almost even at 7-6. It was Morgan’s first win in five attempts against Nadolsky.
No. 5 ranked Gray Maynard won a 10-7 decision over No. 12 ranked sophomore David Boylard for the Spartans at 157-pounds, making the meet 10-6, in favor of MSU at intermission.
Junior Kevin Carr drew the Chippewas even at 165-pounds with a 14-2 major decision over senior Arsen Aleksanyan. Carr almost got the pin with a cradle, but time expired before Aleksanyan was down.
CMU sophomore Mitch Hancock narrowly salvaged a tie against No. 11 Rashad Evans. The MSU senior held on for a 4-3 decision to regain a 13-10 lead for the Spartans. Hancock thought he had escaped for the tie, but the referees didn’t award him the point.
“There were a couple of times where we could have got a few more points that would have made the win a little bit more secure,” Tom Borrelli said.
CMU redshirt freshman Alex Lammers drew his team even with a 3-1 decision at 184-pounds. He defeated MSU redshirt freshman Jeff Clemens.
No. 9-ranked Nik Fekete put the Spartans in the lead with a 10-4 decision over senior Brett Faustman at 197-pounds.
Stouffer’s upset then gave CMU the victory.
“The biggest thing is that he was coming off from a bad week (at the Missouri Open where he was 0-2). To bounce back like that is the sign of a good kid,” Tom Borrelli said.
CMU is home in the Indoor Athletic Complex Dec. 14 when it hosts Cleveland State in a dual meet.
