BOONE, N.C. - VMI jumped out to a 15-6 lead through six matches, but Appalachian State swept the final four bouts en route to a 22-15 Southern Conference dual victory on Sunday afternoon.
With the win, the Mountaineers improve to 9-10 overall and 3-2 in league matches. The Keydets, meanwhile, fall to 5-8 on the season with the loss and 1-3 in the SoCon.
"Overall, we had a good effort, but we just came up a little short," said VMI head coach John "Rocky" Trudgeon. "We lost a couple in there that we really needed to have that didn't go our way. We had a real nice comeback at 141; David Yost fell behind 6-0 and scored the final 10 points of the match for a win, and at 165, Matt Brock kept wrestling the entire time and scored a pin right at the end to give us a chance. It would have been nice to have Ronnie Ellsworth in there, but he tweaked his knee in last night's match so we had to forfeit 197. Now we've got to get healthy and continue to work hard, because we've got a big test coming Friday night. Chattanooga is the best team in the conference, and our plan is to get our guys ready for that challenge."
The match began at heavyweight, where junior Josh Wine improved to 20-1 on the year with his 5-0 blanking of Ken Altarac. Tony Gravely tied the match with a 5-2 decision over VMI's John Pope at 125 lbs., but the Keydets moved on top by reeling off three wins in the next four matches. Sophomore Luke Todd scored his first conference win of the season, a 6-1 decision over Weston Haney, before David Yost won a 10-6 dual over Chris Collura at 141 lbs.
With VMI up 9-3, ASU's Savva Kostis defeated Keydet senior Michael Long, 11-5, at 149. The Keydets answered right back with a bang, as sophomore Matthew Brock pinned Chip Powell just one second before the end of the match, putting VMI up 15-6 with just four matches remaining.
The tide turned at 165 lbs., where ASU's Kyle Blevins won a 4-2 decision against Conor Black. Carter Downs followed with a 9-6 win over Evan Dill at 174 lbs., while Austin Trotman's 12-1 major decision against Vinnie Gallo at 184 pushed the Mountaineers up 16-15. The Keydets then forfeited the 197-pound weight class, giving ASU the win.
The Keydets wrap up their regular season on Friday, playing host to Chattanooga on Senior Night at The Thunderdome. The match is scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. start.
Appalachian State 22, VMI 15 (Feb. 14, 2010)
285 - Josh Wine (VMI) dec. Ken Altarac (ASU) 5-0, VMI 3-0
125 - Tony Gravely (ASU) dec. John Pope (VMI) 5-2, Tied
133 - Luke Todd (VMI) dec. Weston Haney (ASU) 6-1, 6-3 VMI
141 - David Yost (VMI) dec. Chris Collura (ASU) 10-6, 9-3 VMI
149 - Savva Kostis (ASU) dec. Michael Long (VMI) 11-5, 9-6 VMI
157 - Matthew Brock (VMI) Fall Chip Powell (ASU) 6:59, 15-6 VMI
165 - Kyle Blevins (ASU) dec. Conor Black (VMI) 4-2, 15-9 VMI
174 - Carter Downs (ASU) dec. Evan Dill (VMI) 9-6, 15-12 VMI
184 - Austin Trotman (ASU) major dec. Vinnie Gallo (VMI) 12-1, ASU 16-15
197 - Dylan Temple (ASU) win by forfeit ASU, 22-15
