Gardner-Webb Falls, 29-12, to Citadel
February 27, 2008 | Wrestling
The Gardner-Webb wrestling team ended its regular season with a
29-12 loss to the Bulldogs of The Citadel on Wednesday night.
GWU's Tommy Bennet and and Citadel's Tyler Sim started off the
match at 125 lbs. Sim struck first with a takedown 30 seconds into
the match. Bennet later escaped only to be taken down again, which
put the match at 4-1 in favor of Sim.
Bennet began the second period on top, but Sim escaped soon after
the whistle. Sim later added to the margin with another takedown
and the second period ended 8-1. The third was much like the first
two rounds and Sim won by major decision 13-3.
Gardner-Webb was forced to forfeit the 133 lbs. weight class, and
Citadel took an early 10-0 lead.
Chaz Franz and Citadel's Michael Fenton faced off at 141 lbs. Franz
got an early takedown and added four back points with a minute
still remaining in the first. He kept up the pressure on Fenton and
took a 6-1 lead into the second period.
Franz started the second on top, and held on tight as Fenton
struggled to get lose. Fenton eventually did get lose, but did not
have enough time to do anything.
Franz added an escape point at the start of the third to put the
match at 7-2. The five point lead proved enough and Franz was
rewarded another point for riding time as he won the match 8-2. The
win put the overall score at 10-3 in favor of Citadel.
GWU's Edward McCray and Citadel's Derek Royster matched up at 149
lbs. McCray won the first period, 2-1, after taking down Royster
one minute in. McCray added to his lead in the second as he took
down Royster again. Royster got an escape with 30 seconds to go,
and the second period ended with McCray on top 5-2.
McCray kept up the pace in the third and did not let Royster out of
his grip. The third ended with the same score at the end of the
second and McCray took the match 6-2.
Senior Jordan Lowe and Citadel's Keith Koziel faced off at the 157
lbs. weight class. Koziel began the match with a quick shot and got
an early takedown for a 2-0 lead. He added three back points
shortly for a 5-0 lead. Lowe gained an escape, but Koziel took him
down again shortly after. Koziel eventually gained good position
and pinned Lowe in the second period. The pin gave Citadel a 10
point lead, 16-6.
Senior Brendan Couture and Citadel's Brendan Prince met at 165 lbs.
Much like Koziel, Prince gained an early takedown and added three
back points for a 5-0 lead. Couture pulled off a nice reversal with
seconds left in the first to reduce Prince's lead to 5-2.
Couture gained an escape point at the beginning of the third, but
Prince answered back with another takedown. The score showed 7-3 at
the end of two. Couture couldn't do anything in the third while
Prince added a couple more takedowns for a 11-4 decision.
Senior Chad Davis faced off with Citadel's Derek Sickel at 174 lbs.
Davis showed some good moves in the first period and got two
takedowns against Sickel. Davis took the first period 4-1, and
added two more takedowns in the second for an 8-4 lead heading into
the third.
Sickel began the third on top and stayed there the entire period.
Although Davis did not get an extra point for riding time, he did
take the 8-4 decision to shrink Citadel's lead to 10.
Matthias Piasecki and Citadel's Darius Caldwell matched up at the
184 lbs. weight class. Caldwell got three takedowns in the first
period to take a 6-2 lead into the second, and he added another
point in the second after escaping Piasecki's grasp.
Piasecki added an escape of his own in the third, but Caldwell
proved too much. The senior from Citadel added two more takedowns
in the third for a 12-4 major decision.
Dustin Porter shrunk the Citadel's lead to 11 after picking up a
7-3 win at 197 lbs. Porter started the first period with a
takedown, but Citadel's John Buck escaped shortly after as the
first period ended 2-1. After Buck chose bottom to begin the
second, Porter gained two back points with a nice roll-over move to
extend his lead to 4-1 heading into the third.
After a quick escape from the bottom, Porter finished the match
with a 7-3 decision. The win put the overall score at 23-12 in
favor of Citadel.
GWU's Windell Wilson and Citadel's Aaron Brown rounded out the
night at 285 lbs. Brown came out strong in the first with a quick
takedown. Shortly after, Brown finished Wilson off with a pin with
one minute remaining in the first.
The final score showed Citadel-29 and Gardner-Webb-12.
GWU Citadel
125 lbs. Sim (Citadel) def. Bennet (GWU) 13-3 0 4
133 lbs. Anthony Easter (Citadel) won by forfeit 0 10
141 lbs. Franz (GWU) def. Fenton (Citadel) 8-2 3 10
149 lbs. McCray (GWU) def. Royster (Citadel) 6-2 6 10
157 lbs. Koziel (Citadel) def. Lowe (GWU) Fall 6 16
165 lbs. Prince (Citadel) def. Couture (GWU) 11-4 6 19
174 lbs. Davis (GWU) def. Sickel (Citadel) 8-4 9 19
184 lbs. Caldwell (Citadel) def. Piasecki (GWU) 12-4 9 23
197 lbs. Porter (GWU) def. Buck (Citadel) 7-3 12 23
285 lbs. Brown (Citadel) def. Wilsonn (GWU) Fall 12 29
