Steven Cressley wrestles against Lock Haven’s Derek Caldwell at 174 pounds, winning by decision 7-3. (Neal Henry / The Clarion Call)
With a dominating 33-9 win against Lock Haven Friday night, the Golden Eagles wrestling team finished the season with a record of 8-8 in dual meets and a 4-2 record in the Eastern Wrestling League.
The team’s final record of 8-8 marked the first time in four years the team finished at .500.
Head coach Teague Moore believes this could be a turning point for the team and expects to improve even more in years to come.
“Going 8-8 with our schedule, I’m happy as a coach. Considering the competition we faced during our season, this is positive,” said Moore.
While on paper the match ups against Lock Haven were pretty much even, a few early wins got the team going. Moore said he was happy with the final number of wins as they took 8 of 10 bouts.
For Moore, the turning point in the match came in the form of heavyweight Quintas McCorkle as he beat Dan Craig 5-1.
Then Joe Waltko gained another key win as he upset Nick Hyatt at 125 pounds with a 5-3 decision.
“I believe these two were key in us coming out with the victory. After this we shut the door on them and you could see their bench, it affected them mentally and we capitalized on it,” said Moore.
The evening also proved to be a good night for seniors Hadley Harrison and Greg Lewis as both came out with big wins on Senior Night.
Lewis pinned Justin Louden in 2:27 at 141 pounds while Harrison scored a 10-2 major decision over Seth Creasy at 157 pounds.
Also contributing to the wins against Lock Haven, were Steven Cressley at 174 pounds, Alex Thomas at 197 pounds, James Fleming at 149 pounds, and Nick Milano at 165 pounds.
The action for the Golden Eagles continued Saturday as Clarion hosted the National Collegiate Open.
Harrison not only finished second in the 157 weight class, but four wins throughout the day brought him to one of the biggest achievements for a wrestler, 100 wins for his collegiate record.
Hadley Harrison wins by major decision of 10-2 over Lock Haven’s Seth Creasy at Tippin Gymnasium. (Neal Henry / The Clarion Call)
“I’m happy for him. He’s the first wrestler at Clarion since 2005 to get 100 wins,” said Moore.
Only two starters participated in the NCO. McCorkle also took part but took himself out of competition after going 2-1.
Tyler Bedelyon finished in 4th place at the NCO in the 141 weight class.
From here, the Golden Eagles will participate in both the Eastern Western League Championships and the NCAA Championships next month.
“We’re sitting in a good situation. As a team, we’re healthy. At this point in the year, to have all 10 starters healthy is really important,” said Moore.
The EWL Championships will be in Morgantown, West Virginia.
