1/16/2002 - Wrestling
Navy Wrestlers Whip Maryland, 24-12

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ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The Navy wrestling team scored a dominating 24-12 victory over the Maryland Terrapins, Wednesday evening in Halsey Field House before a crowd of 783. After dropping three of the first-five matches, Navy won all five matches after the intermission en route to its second-straight victory.

"This was a good win for Navy," Navy head coach Bruce Burnett said. "Our guys competed hard, but we are still making some technical mistakes that need to be corrected, even in matches that we won. We did a great job of competing as a team, and we won as a team."

Navy (6-4) dropped the first match of the contest when Daniel Hemminger (So./Annapolis, Md.) fell to Maryland's Adam James, 16-11, in the 149-pound weight class.

Michael Carbonaro (So./Blairstown, N.J.) tied the match for the Mids when he defeated John Antonelli in the 157-pound weight class, 6-2.

The Mids and Terrapins traded wins in the next two bouts. Maryland's Josh Weidman defeated Luke Lazzo (Jr./Rochester Hills, Mich.) in the 165-pound weight class, while Navy's Andrew Hemminger (So./Annapolis, Md.) scored a hard-fought 3-1 win over Mark Reid in the 174-pound weight class.

Maryland (3-1) took a 12-6 lead going into the break when Jake Stork made quick work of Navy freshman Thayer Paxton (Meyersdale, Pa.), pinning Paxton just one minute into the match.

After the break, Navy's Mike Bigrigg (Sr./Santa Ana, Calif.) pinned Bob Vorhies at the 4:49 mark in the 197-pound weight class to tie the match at 12-12.

In the heavyweight division, Steve Kovach (Jr./Parkesburg, Pa.) scored a reversal in the third period to take a 5-4 lead, however the Terrapins' Jeremy Duncan scored an escape to tie the match at 5-5, sending the match into overtime. With 33 seconds left in overtime, Kovach scored a two-point takedown to win the match.

Freshman Sam Gray (Essex, Vt.) wore down an exhausted Matt Pandullo in the 125-pound weight class after trailing the entire match. Gray scored a takedown with 21 seconds left to win the match for the Mids.

Mike Simon (Jr./North Canton, Ohio) sealed the win for Navy with a narrow 3-2 decision in the 133-pound weight class over Joe Guzzio. With the match tied at 1-1 in the third period, Simon recorded the winning takedown with just under a minute remaining.

The match ended with team captain Mark Conley (Sr./Exton, Pa.) turning in a dominating performance in the 141-pound weight class. Conley smothered Brandon York early in the match, building a 5-0 advantage after two periods. Conley, ranked third-nationally in the 141 pound class, earned his fifth-straight win, defeating York, 10-3.

Navy returns to action Jan. 25 when the Mids travel to Bethlehem, Pa., to take on the 10th-ranked Lehigh Mountain Hawks.

Navy 24          Maryland 12
125 - Sam Gray (N) dec. Matt Pandullo (M), 4-3
133 - Mike Simon (N) dec. Joe Guzzio (M), 3-2
141 - Mark Conley (N) dec. Brandon York (M), 10-3
149 - Adam James (M) dec. Daniel Hemminger (N), 16-11
157 - Mike Carbonaro (N) dec. John Antonelli (M), 6-2
165 - Josh Weidman (M) dec. Luke Lazzo (N), 10-6
174 - Andrew Hemminger (N) dec. Mark Reid (M), 3-1
184 - Jake Stork (M) pinned Thayer Paxton (N), 1:00
197 - Mike Bigrigg (N) pinned Bob Vorhies (M), 4:49
HWT - Steve Kovach (N) dec. Jeremy Duncan (M), 7-5 (ot)