Pape saves points, match for Redbird wrestling

By: Kyle Moylan
   While pins in the last contest can be dramatic, there are other ways wrestlers can win a match for their team.
   Joe Kaplow got that dramatic pin in the final contested weight class to get Allentown a win in its first match this season. This past Saturday night, however, Pat Pape played the role of hero just by staying off of his back.
   With his team up by four points, heading into the final match at 119 pounds, Pape gave a little but held on to a lot against New Egypt’s Pat Riordan. Riordan won the match, 7-0, but Pape made sure Allentown held on for a 40-39 team win.
   Riordan scored in every period, but fell a point shy of the at least 8-point decision he needed to get a major decision and create a tie between the two teams.
   "We wanted him (Pape) to go out and wrestle to win, but we told him (the situation)," Allentown Coach Bob Mussari said. "He did a great job. He refused to get pinned or give up points."
   Prior to the 119-pound match, New Egypt had made things very interesting by recording 6-point wins in the previous three matches. Nick Markee (heavyweight) pinned C.J. Nafus in the first period. Tommy Carr (112 pounds) pinned P.J. Oliver at the 3:52 mark. Tommy Morton picked up the other points with a forfeit win at 103.
   These matches countered a quick 18-0 start Allentown got in the first three matches of the evening. Sean Mulligan (125) pinned Noel Larios at the 3:48 mark. Kyle Bachmann (130) pinned Lance Sutton at the 3:16 mark. Derek Bachmann (135) then pinned Dan Murray at the 2:59 mark.
   "We know our lightweights are a strength," Mussari said. "We have to win those."
   New Egypt’s Chris Springer stopped Allentown’s run by pinning Kaplow in the first period of their match at 140 pounds. John Butera, however, got Allentown back on track with a 16-4 decision over Joe Wahler at 145.
   Allentown padded its lead as Nick Pape pinned Scott Vierling in the first period of their 152-pound match. John Mumpower also came through with a pin over Conner Rubinstein in the first period of their match at 171.
   New Egypt answered Pape’s and Mumpower’s wins with pin at 160 and 189. Skeeter Cooke (160) pinned Matt Wilhelm just 1:18 into the match. Lee Hopkins (189) continued his great season by pinning Eugene Sydowski in just 42 seconds.
   Hopkins’ win left New Egypt down 34-18 with five matches left. Evan Teel then responded with a crucial pin at 215. Teel was up just a point going into the third period, but managed to pin Rosario DiGangi at the 5:10 mark.
   The win improved Allentown to 4-3 on the season. Allentown had improved to 3-3 with a 40-30 win over Keyport right before taking on New Egypt.
   Mulligan, Derek Bachmann, Nick Pape, Butera, James McCormick, Kaplow, Oliver and Teel recorded win for Allentown.
   "I never saw (Keyport), but we followed them through the newspaper," Mussari said. "Teams from the Shore Conference are usually pretty tough. That was a good win for us.
   "It was a long day, with three matches. We won two out of three on Saturday. It’s a long day, but it’s a nice day when you win the last two."
   Allentown was defeated in its previous two matches last week – 54-29 to West Windsor South and 47-30 against Nottingham.
   Wrestling against West Windsor South on Wednesday, January 12, the match was settled quickly as the Pirates won the first eight matches and built an insurmountable lead.
   West Windsor also managed a win at 130 pounds, but Allentown did win five of the final six matches.
   "They have a lot of kids," Mussari said. "That is a good team."
   Oliver won by technical fall at 112. Pat Pape (119), Mulligan (125), Derek Bachmann (135) and Butera (140) won by pin.
   Allentown also got into a quick hole in its match against Nottingham this past Saturday and ended up losing, 47-30.
   The team match started at 275 and Allentown was soon down 24-0. Allentown, however, closed the gap considerably by winning five of the next seven matches.
   Mulligan (125), Kyle Bachmann (130), Derek Bachmann (135), Nick Pape (152) and Mumpower (171) all won by pin.
   This rally gave Allentown a chance to pull out a dramatic win, but Nottingham won at 189 and 215.
   Allentown was scheduled to wrestle at Ewing last night. Allentown will also be in action for a tri-meet this Saturday at Lawrence. In addition to wrestling against the hosts, Allentown will also wrestle Hamilton West. Allentown will also be away for a match 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at West Windsor South.
   "Lawrence is going to be tough," Mussari said. "Lawrence is the best team in the conference. I think we can wrestle with Ewing and Hamilton."
   One win this week would put Allentown at .500. Two out of three would allow the squad to start distancing itself from the .500 mark.
   "We went 2-15 last year and now we’re 4-3," Mussari said. "Giving up 103 (to a forfeit) and those six points is tough, but last year it was 18 points every match. At least we have a chance. We have been competitive against everyone. The kids know they can wrestle against anyone. Even the ones we lost . . . last year those matches weren’t even close."
   And if that competitiveness continues, a .500 mark is not out of the question.
   "The kids have said they want to stay over .500 and keep a shot at making the states within striking distance. That is the goal."
   And beating New Egypt was certainly a step in the right direction.
   "The kids came out fired up,’ Mussari said. "The kids remember what happened against New Egypt last year (a 60-21 loss). Our kids came right at them. Our seniors let everyone know we had to win this match."
   NEHS



   Despite the setback to Allentown, New Egypt won three of its four matches this past week and is now 7-2 on the season.
   New Egypt opened with a 60-24 win against Palmyra back on Wednesday, January 12.
   This was a match in which every weight class was decided by a fall or forfeit – and all of them were very quick. Not one match went past the second period. Eight of the 14 were settled inside of a period.
   Lee Hopkins (189), Noel Larios (125), Dan Murray (135) and Albert Cook (160) recorded first-period pins for New Egypt. Nick Markee (275), Tommy Carr (112) and Pat Riordan (119) won on second-period pins. Chris Springer (150) and Lance Sutton (130) won by forfeit. Scott Vierling won by disqualification.
   This past Friday night, New Egypt won 11 of the matches held in a 64-12 win over BCIT Medford.
   Rosario DiGangi won by decision at 215. Larios (125) won by forfeit. The other nine wins came via the pin, with Carr (112), Riordan (119), Sutton (130), Springer (140), Joe Wahler (145), Cook (160), Connor Robertson (171), Hopkins (189) and Markee (275) doing the work.
   Prior to its 40-39 setback to Allentown on Saturday, New Egypt handled Keyport, 57-18, in the first contest in a tri-match on Saturday.
   New Egypt won 10 of the 14 matches against Keyport. Carr (112) won by decision. Morton (103), Scott Vierling (152) and Billy Preston (160) won by forfeit. Larios (125), Springer (140), Wahler (145), Cook (171), Hopkins (189) and Markee (275) won by pin.
   New Egypt was scheduled to host Maple Shade last night. New Egypt will have a very busy weekend. It will wrestle at Riverside 6 p.m. Friday night. On Saturday, starting at 2 p.m., New Egypt will take part in a tri-meet at Burlington City. In addition to the hosts, New Egypt will also wrestle against Holy Cross. New Egypt will also be away for a match at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday against Steinert.