LEXINGTON, Va. - VMI got a pair of extra-point victories and three forfeits to dispatch Franklin & Marshall, 33-10, in a non-conference dual on Wednesday evening at The Thunderdome.
The Keydets (2-4) got a technical fall victory at 141 lbs. from sophomore David Yost and a major decision from freshman Michael Burnett at 157 lbs. The Diplomats (0-6) then ran off three straight victories to cut the Keydet advantage to 12-10 before VMI junior Ronnie Ellsworth rallied for a 7-5 decision at 197 lbs. The Keydets picked up three forfeit wins to cap the match, providing the final, 23-point difference.
"Any time that you win, it's a good feeling," said VMI head coach John "Rocky" Trudgeon. "I still think that we have a lot of room for improvement. We're wrestling hard, but we're still short a little technically, which cost us a couple of matches. We're still looking to put our best team out there, and hopefully we can do that this weekend. We think both of those matches should be competitive, and hopefully that should get our guys' juices going."
The match began at 141 lbs., where Yost made short work of Matt Murray, needing just 3:41 to score a 15-0 technical fall. Keydet senior Michael Long advanced the lead with his 8-1 decision over Eric Norgard at 149 lbs. before Burnett did him one better with a 9-1 major decision over Matt Gittleman at 157 lbs.
The tide turned at 165 lbs., where F&M junior Andrew Bongarzone scored a takedown late in the first period and doubled his advantage in the closing seconds of the second period with a reversal to move ahead, 4-0. An escape and the riding time point were the only scoring that Keydet sophomore Matt Brock could muster, as he lost 4-2 to Bongarzone to put the Diplomats on the board.
F&M edged closer at 174 lbs., where sophomores Matt Fullowan (F&M) and Andrew Szymborski (VMI) squared off. Following a scoreless first period, Fullowan began in the bottom position and netted an escape, then scored a takedown late in the period before a Szymborski escape. In the third, Szymborski scored an early escape to cut the lead to 3-2, but could not get a takedown for the rest of the period, falling by a single point to bring the match to 12-6.
The Diplomats pulled closer with Matt Latessa's 14-5 major decision over Vinnie Gallo at 184 lbs., cutting the margin to just two points, 12-10. At 197 lbs., the best match of the night ensued, as Ellsworth took a 2-0 lead midway through the first period before F&M sophomore Colin Ely escaped just eight seconds later. Ely moved ahead, 3-2, on a takedown late in the first period, and escaped early in the second period to push the margin to 4-2.
Ellsworth rallied as time expired in the second, scoring a takedown to even the match at 4-4. In the third, Ellsworth worked an escape just before the midway point, then scored a late takedown to take control of the match. An Ely escape to close the period capped the scoring, giving Ellsworth a 7-5 decision and pushing VMI's lead to 15-6.
The Keydets then collected three forfeits to end the night, as Josh Wine was credited with the win at heavyweight, John Pope did the same at 125 lbs. and Andrew Bannister wrapped up the night with a victory at 133 lbs.
VMI returns to action on Saturday, traveling to Charleston, S.C. to begin their Southern Conference schedule, taking on The Citadel at 2 p.m.
VMI 33, Franklin & Marshall 10 (Jan. 13, 2010)
141- David Yost (VMI) tech. fall Matt Murray (F&M), 15-0 (3:41)
149- Michael Long (VMI) dec. Eric Norgard (F&M), 8-1
157- Mike Burnett (VMI) maj. dec. Matt Gittleman (F&M), 9-1
165- Andrew Bongarzone (F&M) dec. Matt Brock (VMI), 4-2
174- Matt Fullowan (F&M) dec. Andrew Szymborski (VMI), 3-2
184- Matt Latessa (F&M) maj. dec. Vinnie Gallo (VMI), 14-5
197- Ronnie Ellsworth (VMI) dec. Colin Ely (F&M), 7-5
285- Josh Wine (VMI) wins by forfeit
125- John Pope (VMI) wins by forfeit
133- Andrew Bannister (VMI) wins by forfeit
