Jan. 12, 2001

Box Score

PITTSBURGH - The 24th-ranked Pittsburgh wrestling team hosted No. 16 Ohio State in a dual match on Jan. 12 and fell to the Buckeyes, 26-11, at Fitzgerald Field House.

Ohio State struck first at 174 pounds, the first bout of the evening, with Ryan Heiber defeating Brendan O'Connell (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) with a 7-0 decision. Junior Dan Stine (Queensbury, N.Y./Queensbury) then responded with an 11-2 major decision over Anton Talamantes at 184 pounds.

The Buckeyes claimed the next two bouts, however, to take a 10-4 lead in the match. Nick Preston earned a 9-4 decision over junior David Sandberg (Spokane, Wash./North Central) at 197 pounds, and Tommy Rowlands majored redshirt freshman Jacob Lininger (Hummelstown, Pa./Lower Dauphin), 17-7, in the heavyweight division.

Redshirt junior Shawn Amistade (Washington, Pa./Trinity) came back to claim a 3-0 decision over Ohio State's Kore Sharpley in the 125-pound weight class, while freshman Joe Crecca (Roselle Park, N.J./Blair Academy) majored Jeff Ratliff, 12-3, at 133 pounds.

The two victories gave Pittsburgh a narrow 11-10 lead in the match, but the Buckeyes won the final four bouts to clinch the victory. Robert Sessley won a 13-3 major decision over Panther Zach Hasse (Washington, W.Va./Parkersburg South) at 141 pounds, and sophomore Matt Kaus (Darien Center, N.Y./Alexander Central) was defeated by a 19-4 technical fall at 149 pounds. Freshman Zach Doll (Quakertown, Pa./Pottstown) then lost a narrow 15-14 decision to Josh Janson in the 157-pound weight class, while sophomore Matt Catullo (Oakmont, Pa./Riverview) dropped a 12-4 major decision to John Clark at 165.

The Panthers move to 3-2 overall (1-0 Eastern Wrestling League). Pittsburgh returns to the mat on Wednesday, Jan. 17, when the Panthers host EWL foe Cleveland State at Fitzgerald Field House beginning at 7:30 p.m.