Jan. 16, 2009
Bucknell Match Notes vs. Brown
About Saturday’s Match
Bucknell (6-6, 1-2 EIWA) travels to Brown to take on the Bears in an EIWA match Saturday evening at 7 p.m. at the Pizzitola Center. It is just the second road dual this season for the Bison, and their first since a Dec. 2 win at Franklin & Marshall. Brown (2-5, 0-2 EIWA), which will be hosting its second dual of the year, is coming off a 21-12 home loss to Rutgers.
Bucknell vs. Brown
The all-time series between Bucknell and Brown is knotted at 2-2. The teams have split their meetings the last two years with the home team winning each time.
Last Meeting: Bucknell 21, Brown 12 (Jan. 18, 2008 - Lewisburg, Pa.)
*125: Greg Hart (Buck) dec. Nathan Myers (Brown), 8-4.
133: No. 15 David Marble (Buck) dec. Jeff Schell (Brown), 10-4.
141: Luke Chohany (Buck) dec. Mark Savino (Brown), 10-6.
149: Mark Bloom (Brown) dec. Kevin LeValley (Buck), 11-8.
157: Tom Fazio (Brown) dec. Brantley Hooks (Buck), 5-0.
165: Andy Rendos (Buck) pinned Kasey McCurdy (Brown), 6:20.
174: Shane Riccio (Buck) dec. Chris Musser (Brown), 2-0.
184: Matt Gevelinger (Brown) dec. David Thompson (Buck), 5-2.
197: Branden Stearns (Brown) dec. Charlie Wonsettler (Buck), 4-3.
HWT: George Hingson (Buck.) dec. Zach Zdrada (Brown), 2-1.
* - starting weight
Virginia Duals Recap
Bucknell competed at the Virginia Duals last week and went 1-2. The Bison lost to No. 24 Kent State (22-10) in their opening match, but bounced back with a 22-13 victory over Ohio in the consolation bracket. Bucknell then dropped a close 18-12 decision to Navy after leading 12-9. With a win against the Mids the Bison would have clinched a top-eight showing in the competitive 16-team field. Central Michigan won the Virginia Duals with a 21-12 victory over Lehigh in the championship match.
Busy Stretch
Saturday’s match at Brown begins a busy stretch for the Bison. Bucknell will wrestle five times in a 16-day span. Luckily, three of those matches will be at home, but the two road trips are both lengthy (Brown, Iowa).
Averaging Nine Wins per Year
With six victories this year, Bucknell has upped its win total over the last three years to 27. The Bison have not had that many victories in a three-year span since they won 28 from 1988-89 to 1990-91. The program record for wins in a three-year span is 30.
Ranked Opponents
Bucknell has faced four ranked opponents this season. The Bison are 0-4 in those matches, but are 6-2 against unranked foes. No. 1 Iowa, No. 8 Lehigh and No. 21 Old Dominion are on the upcoming schedule. Last year the Bison battled five ranked opponents and were 0-5 against them.
Ranked Wrestlers
Bucknell’s David Marble (133 pounds) and Andy Rendos (165) remain in the national rankings in their respective weight classes. Marble is listed at No. 20, while Rendos is 12th. Both have been ranked all season long. Rendos posted the best win by a Bison this season when he upset then-No. 1 Nick Marable of Missouri in November.
Damon’s Bison Athlete of the Week
On Monday, junior Shane Riccio became the second wrestler to be named Damon’s Bison Athlete of the Week this year. The 2008 NCAA qualifier was the only Bucknell wrestler to go 3-0 at the Virginia Duals last week as he improved to 21-11 on the season. His 63 career victories place him in a tie for 11th on the program’s career wins list. Riccio, who wrestles in the 174-pound weight class, opened the Virginia Duals with a 4-0 decision over Kent State’s Chris Estep last Friday morning. He followed that afternoon with an 8-0 major decision against Ohio’s Nick Purdue. Riccio wrapped up the weekend with a 7-2 win against Navy’s Mike Billings on Saturday. That victory staked the Bison to a 12-9 lead over the Mids, but Navy claimed the final three bouts for an 18-12 win. Riccio has now won six consecutive matches and is 9-2 over his last 11 bouts.
Top 10
Both David Marble and Andy Rendos now appear among the top 10 in Bucknell history in victories. Rendos stands eighth in program history with 74 wins, while Marble is 10th with 69. Additionally, Rendos, who is 17-1 against unranked opponents this year, ranks sixth in program annals with a .787 career winning percentage.
Wins Leader
Freshman Derek Reber leads the Bison in wins this year with 22. He is one of 10 Bucknell grapplers to accumulate at least 10 victories this season and he is one of 10 Bison to earn 20 wins in a season since the return of the program to varsity status prior to the 2006-07 season.
Most Wins (since 2006-07)
1. Andy Rendos - 28 (2007-08)
2. Eric Lapotsky - 27 (2006-07)
David Marble - 27 (2007-08)
Andy Rendos - 27 (2006-07)
5. Shane Riccio - 25 (2007-08)
6. David Marble - 24 (2006-07)
7. Kevin LeValley - 22 (2007-08)
Derek Reber - 22 (2008-09)
9. Shane Ricco - 21 (2008-09)
10. Luke Chohany - 20 (2007-08)
Duals Wins Leader
In addition to leading the team in overall victories (22), freshman Derek Reber paces Bucknell with 10 duals victories. The 125-pound Lewisburg, Pa., native is 10-0 against unranked foes in duals. Only David Thompson, who as accumulated six of his 12 victories this season in duals, has a higher percentage of wins in dual matches than Reber.
Return of Rendos
After missing four matches and seeing his consecutive starts streak come to an end at 49, junior Andy Rendos made a triumphant return in the final two matches at the Virginia Duals last week. The No. 12-ranked wrestler at 165 pounds, Rendos went 2-0 against his opponents from Ohio and Navy. He won the two bouts by a combined 19-5 score as he improved to 19-3 this year. Rendos has won eight of his last nine matches.
Closing in on Pins List
Even though he has not recorded a pin since the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational the first weekend of December, Andy Rendos is just two pins shy of joining the Bucknell career pins list. Rendos has six pins this year, which give him 17 in his career. Robert Greenly, Doug Mays and Gene Santoli are currently tied for 10th place on that list with 19.
Wirnsberger in Second Place on Wins List
Bucknell head coach Dan Wirnsberger has moved into second place on the Bison career wins list with 27. In three seasons of competition, Wirnsberger has an overall mark of 27-26-2 at Bucknell. He recently coached his 100th career match (Dec. 19 vs. Wagner) and is 53-48-2 in his head coaching career, which has been split between Bloomsburg and Bucknell.
Up Next
Bucknell will host a pair of non-league duals next weekend when it welcomes Liberty and No. 21 Old Dominion to Davis Gym. The Bison will wrestle the Flames on Saturday at 1 p.m., while they will square off with the nationally ranked Monarchs Sunday at 1 p.m. Bucknell won at Liberty (25-9) and lost at then-No. 22 Old Dominion (30-6) last January.
