Pitt
Virginia Duals
Wrestling Finishes 2-2 at Virginia Duals
1/14/2002 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Jan. 14, 2002
After topping Indiana in its first-round match at the Virginia Duals in Hampton, Va., the No. 18 Panthers dropped a 19-13 decision to Kent State, defeated Eastern Wrestling League rival Virginia Tech, 30-13, and lost to Wisconsin, 24-18, to finish 2-2.
The match against Kent State on Friday started out well with the Panthers taking a 9-3 lead on wins by Mike May (Derry Area, Pa./Derry Area), Shawn Amistade (Washington, Pa./Trinity) and Justin Giovinco (Norristown, Pa./Plymouth-Whitemarsh). The Golden Flashes won the next four matches by decision, however, to take a 15-9 lead. The Panthers had closed it to 15-13 on a major decision victory by David Sandberg (Spokane, Wash./North Central) at 197 pounds, but Kent State got four points right back with a major decision in the heavyweight bout.
The Panthers responded with a 30-13 victory in the first match on Saturday over the Hokies. Although down 9-3 after three weight classes, the Panthers responded with six wins in the final seven to claim the match. May, Giovinco and Sandberg posted wins as well as Zach Doll (Quakertown, Pa./The Hill School), Carl Fronhofer (Salem, N.Y./Salem) by forfeit, Matt Catullo (Oakmont, Pa./Riverview) in a major decision and Jacob Lininger (Hummelstown, Pa./Lower Dauphin) by pinfall.
In its final match of the tournament, the Panthers lost a tough decision to Wisconsin, 24-18, despite winning half of the 10 bouts. Two pinfalls and a technical fall helped the Badgers gain six more bonus points than the Panthers and pushed the Pittsburgh dual record down to 6-3 for the season.
Amistade, Giovinco, Fronhofer, Sandberg and Lininger all picked up victories in the loss to Wisconsin. Giovinco (141 pounds) and Sandberg (197) finished the tournament with wins in all four dual meets.
The Panthers host Duquesne, Franklin & Marshall and Eastern Michigan in a quad meet this Saturday at Fitzgerald Field House. The Panthers' three matches are scheduled for noon, 1:30 p.m. and 3 p.m.
