Columbus, Ohio, March 7, 2004 – The Penn State wrestling team got off to a solid start at the 2004 Big Ten Wrestling Championships in Columbus, Ohio, Saturday, as the Nittany Lions stood tied for fourth in the team standings with Illinois with 49 points. Iowa had the early lead with 64 followed by Minnesota (57.5) and Michigan (50.5).

Junior James Woodall, the No. 7 seed, got Penn State of to a great start as he pinned Ryan Rhoades (OSU) in the first period of their 157-pound bout in the Nittany Lions’ first match of the day. Penn State, which received six first-round byes, went 3-1 in the opening round with four wrestlers on the mat. Also posting wins for the Lions were No. 2 seeded 184-pounder Eric Bradley and No. 7 seeded 197-pounder Joel Edwards in their first Big Ten appearances. Freshman 174-pounder James Younushonis lost his first round bout with Nick Roy (MI) 7-4 in his first Big Ten Tournament bout.

With nine men in the quarterfinals, Penn State needed a strong showing to keep pace in the team race. The Nittany Lions got wins from four favored wrestlers but failed to pull off an upset as they went 4-5 in the quarterfinals and advanced four men into semifinal action. Iowa and Minnesota advanced seven into semifinal action while Michigan, Purdue and Illinois each moved five men forward.

Senior co-captain Josh Moore, seeded No. 2, was the first to advance as he went right after Quincy Osborn (MINN) in their 133-pound bout locking up on his head and taking him straight to his back. Osborn survived the first throw, but Moore eventually got him turned again and recorded the fall at 2:33. It was one of four falls for Penn State on the day as the Nittany Lions kept pace in the bonus points. For Moore, it was his record 23rd of the year and 52nd of his career. He will take on No. 3 seed Mark Jayne (IL) in the semifinal.

Freshman Matt Storniolo, the No. 3 seed at 149, was the next to advance as he pinned No. 6 seed Dan Jankowski at 2:10. He will face Iowa’s Ty Eustice, the No. 2 seed, in the semifinal.
At 184 pounds, Bradley followed up his first round victory with a workman like 6-3 win over Nate Mesyn (MSU) to advance to the semifinals in a bracket that saw numerous upsets. Bradley, the No. 2 seed, is now the favorite as No. 1 seed Bryan Glynn (IL) went down, 3-2, to No. 8 seed Josh McLay (MINN). The No. 5 seed Paul Bradley (IA) upset No. 4 seed Blake Kaplan (OSU), 5-2, and No. 6 seed Ben Wissel (PU) knocked off No. 3 Brady Reinke (W), 6-4, in overtime. Bradley will face Wissel in the semifinal.

Senior co-captain Pat Cummins was the last Lion to move into the semis as the No. 3 seeded heavyweight felt out No. 6 Josh Buuck (IND) for a period before hitting a double-leg takedown and taking him to his back for the fall at 4:31. It was the 11th fall on the year for Cummins who will take on No. 2 Greg Wagner (MI) in the semifinal.

Junior Adam Smith, the No. 8 seed at 125, dropped a hard fought quarterfinal match to No. 1 seed Luke Eustice (IA), 5-1. Smith, ranked No. 15, got a consolation round bye which insures he can finish no lower than eighth in the stacked weight class.

Sophomore DeWitt Driscoll, the No. 7 seed at 141, dropped his quarterfinal match to unseeded Doug Withstandley (PU) who knocked off No. 2 seed Andy Simmons (MSU) in the first round. Driscoll posted three first period takedowns and a second period reversal for the lead in the match but gave up a pair of three-point near-falls in the second and third periods to fall, 15-9. He will face Paul Augle (NU) in the consolation bracket.

Woodall dropped a tough quarterfinal match with No. 2 seed Ryan Bertin, 9-5. He also received a consolation bye that insures no less than an eighth place finish.

At 165, junior Jarrad Turner, the No. 8 seed, dropped his first Big Ten match to No. 1 seed Johnny Clark. Clark pinned him at 3:55. Turner will face Matt McCarty (MSU), the victim of Turner’s lone dual meet win on the year, in the consolation bracket. McCarty had been awarded a first round fall over No. 2 seed Pat Owen (MI) before officials consulted and called the two wrestlers back to the mat. Owen came back from the 6-0 deficit on the restart to win 11-9.

Edwards didn’t last long in his quarterfinal match with No. 2 seed Ryan Fulsaas (IA). The Hawkeye pinned him in 44 seconds. Edwards will face Jeff Clemens (MSU) in the consolation bracket.
Action continues at 6:00 p.m. Saturday.

Penn State’s
2004 Big Ten Tournament Scores
First Round – 3-1 (6 byes)
Quarterfinals – 4-5

Tournament Record – 7-6
Total Falls For: 4

125 – (8) Adam Smith
Quarterfinal
L, 5-1 to (1) Luke Eustice (IA)
Consolations
Vs. winner of Mark Moos (MI) and Jermaine Jones (OSU)

133 – (2) Josh Moore
Quarterfinal
W, F;2:33 over (7) Quincy Osborn (MN)
Vs. (3) Mark Jayne (ILL)

141 – (7) DeWitt Driscoll
Quarterfinal
L, 15-9 to Doug Withstandley (PU)
Consolations
Vs. Paul Augle (NU)

149 – (3) Matt Storniolo
Quarterfinal
W, F;2:10 over (6) Dan Jankowski (PU)
Semifinal
Vs. (2) Ty Eustice (IA)

157 – (7) James Woodall
First Round
W, F;2:28 over Ryan Rhoades (OSU)
Quarterfinal
L, 9-5 to (2) Ryan Bertin (MI)
Consolations
Vs. winner Aleksanyan (MSU) and Turner (W)

165 – (8) Jarrad Turner
Quarterfinal
L, F;3:55 to (1) Johnny Clark (OSU)
Consolations
Vs. Matt McCarty (MSU)

174 – James Yonushonis
First Round
L, 7-4 (7) Nick Roy (MI)
Consolations
Vs. Anton Hall (MSU)

184 – (2) Eric Bradley
First Round
W, 12-4 over Joseph Gulotta (NU)
Quarterfinal
W, 6-3 over (7) Nate Mesyn (MSU)
Semifinal
Vs. (6) Ben Wissel (PU)

197 – (7) Joel Edwards
First Round
W, 3-1 over Chase Verdoorn (MI)
Quarterfinal
L, F;0:44 to (2) Ryan Fulsaas (IA)
Consolations
Vs. Jeff Clemens (MSU)

Hwt. – (3) Pat Cummins
Quarterfinal
W, F;4:31 over (6) Josh Buuck (IN)
Semifinal
Vs. (2) Greg Wagner (MI)