Upperweights Lift No. 17 Pitt Past No. 13 Lehigh

Saturday, November 19

Pittsburgh, PA

7 PM

Pitt

Lehigh

Upperweights Lift No. 17 Pitt Past No. 13 Lehigh

11/19/2022 9:00:00 PM | Wrestling

PITTSBURGH—Halfway through Saturday night's top-20 dual matchup, No. 13 Lehigh used a pin to take a 12-6 lead over No. 17 Pitt at the Fitzgerald Field House.

But the Panthers responded in the best way and won all five upperweight matches to send the Fitz into a frenzy, culminating with Nino Bonaccorsi and Dayton Pitzer dominating the final two matches to secure Pitt's 22-12 dual victory over the visiting Mountain Hawks.

"I'm really proud of our team," Pitt head coach Keith Gavin said. "We had a setback last night, but how you respond is very important and shows your character. We wrestled with passion tonight to beat a very good team. The guys fed off the crowd and looked like they loved being out there."

"Dayton is a savage," Gavin added of true freshman debutant Pitzer, who majored No. 17 Nathan Taylor in the first match of his college career. "He was giving up more than 50 pounds, but it didn't faze him."

Pitzer's 10-1 win over Taylor secured the dual, but it was Pitt's other upperweights who flipped the match.

No. 14 Holden Heller swung momentum with a shutout victory at 165 pounds, then Luca Augustine and No. 24 Reece Heller both beat higher-ranked opponents to give Pitt the lead.

In the only top-10 bout of the night, No. 9 Nino Bonaccorsi torched No. 8 Michael Beard at 197 pounds with an outstanding attacking display for a 10-4 decision that set the stage for Pitzer's final act.

Also winning matches for the Panthers, Colton Camacho started the night with an impressive triumph over No. 16 Carter Bailey at 125 pounds and No. 1 Cole Matthews stayed undefeated at 141.

Full results from Saturday's dual are available below.

Also of note, Pitt fans were given the chance to recognize and remember late, great, long-time coach Rande Stottlemyer as well as two-time national champion Pat Santoro, Lehigh's head coach. Both were honored as recent inductees into the Pitt Athletics Hall of Fame.

The Panthers (2-1) return to the mat in two weeks for a dual at Big Ten opponent Illinois. Pitt will meet the Fighting Illini at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 3.

No. 17 Pitt 22, No. 13 Lehigh 12
125 | Colton Camacho (Pitt) dec. #16 Carter Bailey (Lehigh), 4-2 (Pitt leads, 3-0)
133 | #22 Connor McGonagle (Lehigh) dec. #8 Micky Phillippi (Pitt), 5-3 (Tied, 3-3)
141 | #1 Cole Matthews (Pitt) dec. Owen Reinsel (Lehigh), 8-2 (Pitt leads, 6-3)
149 | Max Brignola (Lehigh) dec. Tyler Badgett (Pitt), 7-6 (Tied, 6-6)
157 | #9 Josh Humphreys (Lehigh) pins #11 Dazjon Casto (Pitt), 3:47 (Lehigh leads, 12-6)
165 | #14 Holden Heller (Pitt) dec. Brian Meyer (Lehigh), 6-0 (Lehigh leads, 12-9)
174 | Luca Augustine (Pitt) dec. #31 Jake Logan (Lehigh), 11-6 (Tied, 12-12)
184 | #24 Reece Heller (Pitt) dec. #14 Tate Samuelson (Lehigh), 7-6 (Pitt leads, 15-12)
197 | #9 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pitt) dec. #8 Michael Beard (Lehigh), 10-4 (Pitt leads, 18-12)
HWT | Dayton Pitzer (Pitt) maj. dec. #17 Nathan Taylor (Lehigh), 10-1 (Pitt wins, 22-12)

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