Jan. 18, 2002

The Pittsburgh wrestling team, ranked No. 21 by the National Wrestling Coaches Association, edged Eastern Wrestling League rival Cleveland State, 19-16, on Thursday night at Woodling Gymnasium in Cleveland, Ohio.

The Panthers had built a 19-6 advantage after seven bouts, but the Vikings fought back with victories in the last three but couldn't earn enough team points to overcome the deficit.

Pittsburgh's Jacob Lininger (Hummelstown, Pa./Lower Dauphin) opened the match with a 5-2 win over Russ Davie in the heavyweight class. It was Lininger's 25th win of the season in just 32 matches.

Cleveland State tied the match at 3-3 with a decision at 125 pounds by Rocco Mansueto over the Panthers' James Thornton (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley). Mansueto edged Thornton, 3-1.

In the 133-pound match, the Vikings' Phil Mansueto, ranked 12th in the nation, slipped past Shawn Amistade (Washington, Pa./Trinity), 2-1, to give Cleveland State a 6-3 advantage. Pittsburgh won the next four matches, however, to take a 19-6 lead.

Blaise Mucci (Blairsville, Pa./Derry Area) scored a major decision victory over 12th-ranked Nick Boucher, 13-1, to earn four points for the Panthers at 141 pounds and gave Pittsburgh a 7-6 lead.

Pittsburgh got a win at 149 pounds by junior Justin Giovinco (Norristown, Pa./Plymouth-Whitemarsh) over CSU's Anthony Coleman by a score of 4-3 to push the lead to 10-6.

Sophomore Zach Doll (Quakertown, Pa./The Hill School) earned six big points for the Panthers at 157 pounds with a pinfall win over James Greenwood in just 1:39. Redshirt junior Carl Fronhofer (Salem, N.Y./Salem) followed with a 4-1 win over the Vikings' Jason Effner at 165 pounds.

In the final three matches, Cleveland State got wins from Gerald Harris, Joe Phillips and Stipe Miocic to gain 10 points but it wasn't enough to top the Panthers.

Pittsburgh is now 7-3 and 2-0 in the EWL, and will host a quad meet with Duquesne, Franklin & Marshall and Eastern Michigan starting at noon on Saturday, Jan. 19, at Fitzgerald Field House.

Weight       Decision                                                  Match Score
HWT          Jacob Lininger (UP) dec. Russ Davie (CSU), 5-2            Pittsburgh, 3-0
125          Rocco Mansueto (CSU) dec. James Thornton (UP), 3-1        Tied, 3-3
133          Phil Mansueto (CSU) dec. Shawn Amistade (UP), 2-1         Cleveland State, 6-3
141          Blaise Mucci (UP) maj. dec. Nick Boucher (CSU), 13-1      Pittsburgh, 7-6
149          Justin Giovinco (UP) dec. Anthony Coleman (CSU), 4-3      Pittsburgh, 10-6
157          Zach Doll (UP) pinned James Greenwood (CSU), 1:39         Pittsburgh, 16-6
165          Carl Fronhofer (UP) dec. Jason Effner (CSU), 4-1          Pittsburgh, 19-6
174          Gerald Harris (CSU) dec. Matt Catullo (UP), 11-4          Pittsburgh, 19-9
184          Joe Phillips (CSU) maj. dec. Rob Black (UP), 18-4         Pittsburgh, 19-13
197          Stipe Miocic (CSU) dec. David Sandberg (UP), 3-2       Pittsburgh, 19-16