Wrestling teams sweeps through Virginia road trip
The CMU wrestling team thrived in Virginia as it went 2-0 against its opponents over the weekend.
Central defeated No. 25 Old Dominion 24-13 on Sunday after beating No. 15 Virgnia Tech 21-17 Friday.
“I wish we could attack a little more when we are on our feet,” said coach Tom Borrelli. “We have been really good at defending our own legs, but we still need to be more aggressive.”
Freshman 174-pounder Ben Bennett earned a pin against senior 174-pounder Eric Decker halfway through the second period. The fall was the second of the season for Bennett.
“I did pretty good once I started attacking,” Bennett said. “I started out a little slow but, once I started to get my offense going, it got much better.”
Senior 157-pounder Tony D’Alie and sophomore 133-pounder Scotti Sentes earned bonus points for Central with major decisions against their opponents.
The Chippewas struggled to clinch wins in overtime as senior 125-pounder Matt Steintrager and senior 165-pounder Tyler Grayson lost in overtime.
“We have been training hard and pushing ourselves in practice,” Bennett said. “We have to keep working so we can be successful at the MAC tournament and the National finals.”
CMU 21, Virginia Tech 17
Central started the weekend with a win over the Hokies. The match started with CMU taking the only bout between ranked opponents, as No. 9 Matt Steintrager defeated No. 14 Jarrod Garnett 7-4.
“I was up 6-0 after the second and I gave up a reversal and a couple of stalling points, but I don’t think he was really in the match,” Steintrager said.
No. 9 Scotti Sentes scored a major decision to win 13-0 against Brock LiVorio, giving CMU an early 7-0 lead.
“I think we’re better than what we wrestled at some weight classes,” Borrelli said. “I don’t like to make excuses, but I think the day wore on us.”
Central’s bus broke down in West Virginia before its meet. CMU did not make it to Blacksburg, Va., until two and a half hours before the match started.
“With everything that has gone on in this trip, beating two top 25 teams is a pretty good weekend for us,” Borrelli said. “With the weather, the travel and the competition, I was impressed with the way we competed.”
The Chippewas began the weekend as the seventh-ranked program in the nation and the pair of dual wins brings their record to 12-2.
CMU has one more out-of-conference match left in the regular season this Friday against in-state rival Michigan State.
