Jan. 28, 2010

PITTSBURGH -

Pitt travels to Millersville to take on the Mauraders Saturday evening at 5 p.m. At 13-1-1 on the year, Pitt will look to tie its school record for wins on Saturday, tying the 1994-95 team's win total (14-9). Below are the Panthers' complete match notes for the weekend.

PDF copy of Pitt at Millersville match notes

Looking At The Panthers
Pitt sits at 13-1-1 entering the weekend, including a perfect 3-0 record in Eastern Wrestling League action.

The Panthers have not suffered a loss since they fell 24-9 to then-No. 17-ranked Lehigh on Nov. 15. Pitt’s only other blemish was a 19-19 tie to No. 14 Penn State on Dec. 12.

For his efforts last week against Cleveland State and Penn, sophomore Matt Wilps (197) earned EWL Wrestler of the Week honors. Wilps is now 14-1 in duals on the season.

The end of Pitt’s lineup has been exceptionally strong this year as Zac Thomusseit (184), Matt Wilps (197) and Ryan Tomei (285) are a combined 39-5 in duals. In addition, Pitt has won each of those three weight classes in the last seven matches, and has swept them in 11 of Pitt’s 15 matches to date.

Pitt vs. Millersville
The Mauraders enter the weekend with a 3-8-1 record on the year after dropping matches to Virginia Military Academy and Davidson, last weekend. Millersville has struggled with injury this season as they were unable to fill two weight classes in the losses.

Prior to Pitt’s match with Millersville, the Mauraders will take on Columbia at 3 p.m. Both matches will be recorded for a later airing on Blue Ridge Cable Channel 11 and local Comcast channels.

Series History
Pitt holds a 9-4 series record with Millersville with the series dating back to the 1974-75 season when Pitt claimed a 28-13 win. Pitt and Millersville have not faced each other on the mat since 1987 when Pitt won 33-5.

Eyeing History
Pitt, at 13-1-1 is just one victory away from tying its school record for dual wins in a season. The 1994-95 team totalled 14 wins (14-9-0).

The Panthers are also on pace to have their best winning percentage (currently .900) since the 1955-56 team went undefeated at 10-0 (1.000).

Rankings Respect
In the latest NCAA Coaches Panel Rankings, Pitt holds the following individual spots:

125 -- #20 Anthony Zanetta
141 -- #16 Tyler Nauman
149 -- #31 Eric Albright
184 -- #26 Zac Thomusseit
197 -- #19 Matt Wilps
285 -- #8 Ryan Tomei

Pin Party
Pitt has recorded 43 pins this season. Heavyweight Ryan Tomei and Tyler Nauman (141) are both tied for the team high with eight.

Movin’ On Up
Redshirt sophomore Tyler Nauman entered the 2009-10 season No. 15 on the all-time pins list in Pitt history. Nauman has climbed into seventh on the list with eight falls this season and a total of 26. Last year, Nauman won over a third of his matches by fall, finishing the year with 11 — the seventh most in a single season by a Pitt wrestler.

Rookie Review...
Freshman Anthony Zanetta recently broke into the top 10 for wins by a freshman, as he currently holds a 26-8 mark on the season, which ties him for eighth. Zanetta is tied with Pitt legend Pat Santoro, who recorded a 28-6 record in the 1985-86 season. Wrestling at 125, Zanetta’s 28 wins are the most on the squad.

Oh Brother...
Pitt currently has two sets of brothers on the squad including sophomore Chris Albright and his brother, redshirt senior Eric Albright; as well as freshman P.J. Tasser and his brother, redshirt freshman Donnie Tasser.

In addition, in Pitt’s signing class, two more sets of brothers are set to join the squad. Sophomore Zac Thomusseit’s brother Max signed a letter of intent with the Panthers, as well as Matt Wilps’ brother Tyler.

Stottlemyer’s 30-Year Stint
Pitt head coach Rande Stottlemyer is in his 31st season at the helm of the Panther program. In his 31st season, Stottlemyer is the winningest coach in Pitt history, recording a 264-216-12 record, including a 4-7-1 mark last season and 13-1-1 this season in dual action.

Stottlemyer helped guide four wrestlers to the NCAA Tournament last season, with three of those returning in 2009-10.

Open Success
After a successful appearance at the Buffalo Open, the Panthers continued to make a mark at the Penn State Open on Dec. 6, where heavyweight Ryan Tomei (285) claimed a second place finish and five others placed.

Anthony Zanetta (125) and Tyler Nauman (141) both captured fifth place finishes while in State College after falling to the consolation bracket. After winning his first two matches of the day, Zanetta captured his fifth place finish with a marginal 9-8 decision over Matthew Snyder of Virginia. Nauman entered the open with a previously undefeated record, falling to Penn State’s Colby Pisanni, 9-3, in his third match of the day.

Mark Powell (157) completed the day with a 6-2 record to clinch a seventh place finish after a 3-0 decision over Bucknell’s Corey Lear. Ethan Headlee (174) wrestled unattached and finished sixth following a 14-6 major decision over Navy’s Michael Billings.

At 197, sophomore Matt Wilps captured a fourth place finish at the Penn State Open when he tallied a 10-1 major decision over former Panther A.J. Brentzel of Pitt-Johnstown.

Ryan Tomei continued to make his presence known when he claimed the Panthers’ best place of the day, finishing second in the heavyweight class. Tomei accrued four consecutive wins before appearing in the championship round where he fell to third-ranked Zachery Rey of Lehigh with a 3-2 decision.

He’s Back!
Former Pitt wrestler Matt Kocher is back with the Panther program. This time, as an assistant coach. Kocher joined the Pitt staff this summer and has been an invaluable addition to the squad.

While at Pitt, Kocher was a four-time NCAA qualifier and currently sits at second on the all-time wins list in Pitt history at 151-45.