St. Louis, Mo., March 18, 2004 ¨C The Penn State wrestling team went 4-2 in the opening round of the 2004 NCAA Wrestling Championships that started Thursday morning in St. Louis, Mo.

All four of Penn State¡¯s seeded wrestlers advanced easily while the two unseeded Nittany Lions both fell into the consolation bracket. Penn State¡¯s morning started with a tough loss for junior Adam Smith at 125 pounds. The unseeded Smith held a 1-0 lead going into the third period against No. 10 seed Vic Moreno of Cal Poly.

However, Moreno escaped from the down position and then posted the go ahead takedown with 13 seconds remaining and held on for a 3-2 victory.

Penn State got its first win of the day in the Lions next match as senior All-American Josh Moore began his third NCAA Tournament with a quick 1:02 fall over Don Fisch of Rider at 133 pounds. Moore, the No. 6 seed, will take on No. 11 seed Ed Gutnik of Wisconsin in the second round. Gutnik dropped Moore, 14-4, in the third place bout of the Big Ten Tournament two weeks ago.

Freshman Matt Storniolo followed Moore¡¯s lead as he decked his first NCAA opponent, Sam Alvarenga of VMI, in 2:28 of his 149-pound bout. Storniolo, the No. 8 seed, will face unseeded David Dies of Brown, who knocked off No. 9 seed Ty Eustice of Iowa, in the second round.

Junior James Woodall didn¡¯t fare as well as he ran into a tough opponent in No. 4 seed Jake Percival of Ohio at 157 pounds. Woodall fell 10-2 to the Bobcat and will wrestle in the consolation bracket.

Penn State ended the morning session with a pair of victories from its two highest seeds. Sophomore Eric Bradley, the No. 4 seed at 184, was in control as he put up a 6-2 decision over Nick Halsey of Cal Poly. Bradley, the Big Ten Champion, will face unseeded Ben Wissel of Purdue in the second round. Bradley beat Wissel, 7-5, in the Big Ten semifinals two weeks ago.

Senior All-American Pat Cummins wrestled the last match of the morning session as the No. 2 seeded heavyweight posted a 12-4 major decision win over Ryan Zarrinpour of Sacred Heart. Cummins wore the first opponent of his third NCAA Tournament out as he posted a pair of third period takedowns to pull away.

Action continues Thursday night starting at 7:30 p.m. (Eastern).

Penn State¡¯s
2004 NCAA Tournament Scores
First Round ¨C 4-2

125 ¨C Adam Smith
First Round
L, 3-2 to (10) Vic Moreno, Cal Poly
Consolations
Vs.
NCAA: 0-1 Season: 27-14

133 ¨C (6) Josh Moore
First Round
W, F;1:02 over Don Fisch, Rider
Second Round
Vs. (11) Ed Gutnik, Wisconsin
NCAA: 1-0 Season: 41-7

149 ¨C (8) Matt Storniolo
First Round
W, F;2:28 over Sam Alvarengo, VMI
Second Round
Vs. David Dies, Brown
NCAA: 1-0 Season: 32-8

157 ¨C (7) James Woodall
First Round
L, 10-2 to (4) Jake Percival, Ohio
Consolations
Vs. Brad Cieleski, Slippery Rock
NCAA: 0-1 Season: 22-14

184 ¨C (4) Eric Bradley
First Round
W, 6-2 over Nick Halsey, Cal Poly
Second Round
Vs. Ben Wissel, Purdue
NCAA: 1-0 Season: 35-3

Hwt. ¨C (2) Pat Cummins
First Round
W, 12-4 over Payan Zarrinpour, Sacred Heart
Second Round
NCAA: 1-0 Season: 35-4