Feb. 10, 2010

PITTSBURGH -

PDF of Pitt vs. Clarion match notes | Watch Live

The Pitt wrestling team will play host to Clarion Thursday night at 7 p.m. at Fitzgerald Field House as scheduled. The Pitt Wrestling Alumni reunion the was scheduled prior to the meet will now be postponed until Friday, Feb. 19 for the Edinboro match.

Due to inclement weather, the reunion date has been changed and will now begin at 6 p.m. on Feb. 19 followed by Pitt vs. Edinboro at 7 p.m. For additional details, please contact the Pitt Varsity Letter Club at 412-648-1085.

The Panthers (15-1-1, 4-0 EWL) will look to add to their school-record for wins against the Golden Eagles in Eastern Wrestling League action. Below are complete match notes for Pitt vs. Clar

Looking At The Panthers
Pitt holds a 15-1-1 record entering the Clarion match, including a perfect 4-0 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.

At rival West Virginia on Feb. 9, the Panthers picked up their school-record 15th dual match win, breaking the previous record of 14, originally set by the 1994-95 squad.

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 43-7 in duals. In addition, Pitt has swept those three weight classes in 12 of Pitt's 17 matches to date.

Pitt vs. Clarion
Clarion holds a 5-7 record heading into its match at Pitt. The Golden Eagles dropped an 18-15 decision at Pitt-Johnstown on Saturday night.

Senior Hadley Harrison needs just eight wins at 157 to hit the 100-win mark for his career.

Series History
Clarion holds a 21-17-3 advantage over the Panthers in a series that dates back to the 1968-69 season. Last season, Pitt defeated the Golden Eagles by a score of 24-10 on the road.

Making History
Pitt, at 15-1-1 recently set the school record for dual wins in a season with 15 with their 19-15 win at West Virginia on Feb. 9. The 1994-95 team set the previous record, totalling 14 wins (14-9-0).

The Panthers are also on pace to have their best winning percentage (currently .912) since the 1955-56 team went undefeated at 10-0 (1.000).

20-20
Pitt currently has four wrestlers with 20 wins on the year (Zanetta 30, Wilps 28, Nauman 28, Tomei 27) and one closing in (Sullivan 19). Zanetta and Wilps, however, will only be able to count 29 and 27 wins respectively with a win coming against Division III Waynesburg.

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 49 pins this season. Heavyweight Ryan Tomei has totalled a team-high 11 falls and Tyler Nauman (141) is second with nine falls on the year.

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 a tie for fifth on the list with nine falls this season and a total of 27. 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 29-8 mark on the season, which ties him for seventh. Zanetta is tied with teammate Tyler Nauman, who recorded a 29-9 record in the 2008-09 season. Wrestling at 125, Zanetta's 29 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 266-216-12 record, including a 4-7-1 mark last season and 15-1-1 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.