LEXINGTON, Va.
– After
a back-and-forth dual match in the early going, the VMI wrestling team pulled
out a 22-15 Southern Conference decision over Gardner-Webb, giving the Keydets a
second-straight win for the first time this season.
“We
knew it was going to be a good match and they (Gardner-Webb) have a nice team
and their guys are really similar to ours,” said VMI head coach John Trudgeon,
who guided his team to its third-straight win over the Runnin' Bulldogs. “I
knew we would be up against at a couple of weight classes, their 157-pounder
was at the national tournament last year and I thought Mike Burnett wrestled a
really solid match against him.”
In
front of a standing room only crowd at The Thunderdome, the Keydets battled
back from a 6-0 deficit after forfeiting 125 pounds. But the key to the comeback
was in the upper weight classes, where VMI logged victories in four of five
final matches.
The
Keydets (4-6, 2-1 SoCon) cut the deficit early with a Ryan Goodsell victory at
133 pounds. The Keydet was taken down with just 16 seconds left in the bout,
tying the action at 3-3, but he quickly turned Robert Golde for a reversal and
grabbed a 5-3 decision.
VMI
took its first lead of the night after Zeb Stewart put together a domination
performance, blanking Alex Hamm 10-0 and putting the Keydets on top 7-6.
Stewart's 10-point night was aided heavily by his first round where he got a
take down in the final minute, turning Hamm towards his back for three
near-fall points.
The
Runnin' Bulldogs (4-7, 1-3 SoCon) picked up six points on two decisions at 149
and 157 pounds, but VMI bounced back at 165 pounds after Carry Joseph got an
early takedown and another three near fall points to bolster his 8-2 decision
while adding four minutes of riding time. Joseph's win cut the VMI deficit back
down to just two, 12-10 in favor of GWU.
Senior
Matthew Brock got VMI back in control as he stuck Aaron Rabin in the second
period, logging his fifth win by fall of the season. The victory, Brock's 23rd
of the year, was his eighth straight, including his second pin in the last
three matches.
In
the 184 pound bout, John Dommert won VMI's third straight match 5-2 over the
Bulldogs' Jason Porter. A key to Dommert's success was two and a half minutes
of riding time, which started with a first-period takedown. Starting the third
period on bottom, Dommert hit one of VMI's five team reversals to secure the
win.
Down
19-12, but not out, Gardner-Webb picked up a win at 197 pounds and cutting back
to a one-bout deficit. The Bulldog win in the second to last match cut the
Keydet lead to 19-15.
In
the final bout of the evening, VMI's Juan Adams got hit first career win for
VMI and did so with riding time to notch a 3-2 decision over Justin Kozera.
“All
nine guys laid it out there for us tonight, even the guys who ended up not
getting the result they wanted,” said Trudgeon of the squad's victory.
The Keydets have a quick turnaround before their next match
as they head to Charleston, S.C. on Sunday to take on the Bulldogs of The
Citadel. Action is set for 2 p.m. at the Bulldogs' McAlister Field House. The
match will be web streamed, with a link to the stream on VMIKeydets.com.
Agate:
VMI (4-6,
2-1 SoCon) 22
Gardner-Webb University (4-7, 1-3 SoCon) 15
Attendance: 521
Bout-by-Bout Winner def. Loser Type Score – Running Score: (VMI-GWU)
125 Michael
Slaughter (GWU) wins by Forfeit (0-6)
133 Ryan Goodsell (VMI) def. Robbie Golde (GWU) Dec. 5-3 (3-6)
141 Zeb Stewart (VMI) def. Alex Hamm (GWU) Major
Decision 10-0 (7-6)
149 Davante Andujar (GWU) def. David Yost (VMI) Dec. 6-3 (7-9)
157 Alex Medved (GWU) def. Michael Burnett (VMI) 6-3 (7-12)
165 Carry Joseph (VMI) def. Justin Guthrie (GWU) Dec. 8-2 (10-12)
174 Matthew Brock (VMI) def. Aaron Rubin (GWU) Fall 3:35
184 John Dommert (VMI) def. Jason Porter (GWU) Dec. 5-2 (19-12)
197 Travis Porter (GWU) def. Urayoan Garcia (VMI) Dec. 7-2 (19-15)
285 Juan Adams (VMI) def. Justin Korzera (GWU) Dec. 3-2 (22-15)
