NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. - Despite scoring 12-consecutive points in its match against 22nd-ranked Rutgers (11-5) Saturday afternoon at the College Ave. Gym, the Navy wrestling team's rally would fall short as the Scarlet Knights won the final two matches and edged the Mids (3-4), 20-15.

"The match today helped our guys see how important it is to be prepared to fight from the first whistle to the last whistle," said first-year Navy head coach Joel Sharratt. "We let a couple of individual matches go and that was the deciding factor in the final team score.

"The youth of this team is getting stronger and more experienced every time we compete and today every midshipman who made the trip with us felt the impact of competing as a team, not just 10 individuals. When these guys know their brothers are standing shoulder to shoulder with them, they rise up and compete at a much higher level."

For a second straight week, Navy took the early lead as freshman Cam Timok (Glen Allen, Va.) kept his undefeated dual meet streak intact. His takedown with 18 seconds left in the match led him to a 6-4 win over redshirt sophomore Sean McCabe and gave the Mids a 3-0 lead.

"Cam once against got us off to a good start and has been strong and consistent over the last couple of weeks which has instilled a greater confidence in his wrestling," said Sharratt.

Rutgers, however, would win the next four matches, including a pair by major decision to jump out to a 14-3 advantage heading into intermission. Among those four bouts, three Scarlet Knights wrestlers are currently ranked among the nation's top 20, including ninth-ranked 141-pound Anthony Ashnault who scored an 11-2 major decision over Navy senior Patrick Prada (Laurel, Md.).

The 10-minute intermission was just what the doctor ordered for the Mids as they came back onto the mat and won three in a row. The run was sparked by senior team captain Peyton Walsh (Glen Allen, Va.), who won his 99th collegiate match by way of a 4-2 victory over Rutgers redshirt senior Nick Visicaro. Walsh, who dropped from 13th to 16th in the national rankings following his dual loss against North Carolina a week ago, is now 6-1 in dual action this season and 21-5 over his career.

"Peyton did a great job starting the surge back in the second half," added Sharratt. "He halted their momentum and got our team and fans back in the competition."

The 174-pound bout featured two wrestlers more than familiar with one another as both are from the state of New Jersey - Navy's Jadaen Bernstein hails from Glen Gardner and 19th-ranked Phil Bakuckas from Hammonton. Bakuckas owned a 2-1 advantage through the first period and 3-1 heading into the final stanza. Bernstein closed the gap with an escape shortly into the period and took his first lead in the match with a takedown with 1:04 to go. Unable to keep Bakuckas on the mat, the match was tied up when the Rutgers sophomore was awarded an escape with just under a minute to go in the match, sending it into a one-minute sudden victory session. Bernstein, who came into the match with a 1-1 mark in sudden victory, scored the takedown in the middle of the mat with 41 seconds remaining to earn the 6-4 win. The rookie is now 18-11 on the year and 5-2 in dual competition, while he stands 3-4 in matches against ranked wrestlers.

"Jadaen put a ton of heart into his match and we were all on our feet when he finished."

Though trailing 14-9, Navy looked to have turned the momentum in its favor when junior 184-pound Michael Woulfe (Oak Park, Ill.) stepped to the mat to face redshirt sophomore Anthony Pafumi. Woulfe used a beautiful inside trip to score a takedown in the first period and held a 2-1 advantage heading into the second. Woulfe began the period on the bottom and less than 10 seconds in, he was able to turn Pafumi for the reversal and just 13 seconds later was rewarded with the pin (3:22). It was Woulfe's sixth win by fall this season which is the second most on the team (Zack Davis - 7).

"Michael has emerged as a threat in so many ways and the wide open style he wrestles makes it difficult to compete with him."

Having scored 12-straight points, Navy held a 15-14 advantage with two matches remaining. Next up was the 197-pound weight class where neither wrestler due to represent their respective school was the normal starter. Navy rookie Steban Cervantes (Chula Vista, Calif.) began the year at 197 pounds, but had dropped down before the semester break, while Rutgers' Hayden Hrymack had also been wrestling at 184 pounds.

Cervantes broke into the scoring column first with an escape in the second period and Hrymack answered with an escape to open the final period. Cervantes took the lead back with a takedown with 1:22 remaining, but was unable to keep a feisty Hrymack on the mat. Hrymack scored what would be the match-winning takedown with 33 seconds left, but the official was forced to go to video review when Cervantes looked to, at the very least, get himself in the neutral position to tie the match. Upon review, however, the official ruled Hrymack did not give up control and was awarded the 4-3 decision to give Rutgers a 17-15 lead heading into the final bout.

"Steban gave us every opportunity to take the match back and close the door. We had several chances to end that match, but unfortunately we allowed Hrymack to stay close enough, long enough that a reversal could have changed the outcome."

The heavyweight match featured 14th-ranked Billy Smith of Rutgers, who outweighed Navy senior Colynn Cook (Murrysville, Pa.) by 30 pounds. Smith dominated the match and secured the team victory for the Scarlet Knights via an 8-1 decision.

"We need to continue to improve in our mat wrestling both top and bottom," said Sharratt. "Strategically we learned a great deal from this match and it will be a good learning lesson as we get closer to postseason competition."

The Midshipmen will step away from dual action next weekend when they make the trip to the Merchant Marine Academy for the 21st annual All-Academy Championship. Navy has won the team title 13 times, including each of the last six.


Rutgers 20, Navy 15
125 - Cam Timok (N) dec Sean McCabe 6-4
133 - Scott DelVecchio dec Colton Rasche (N) 7-4
141 - #9 Anthony Ashnault major Patrick Prada (N) 11-2
149 - #17 Ken Theobold dec Corey Wilding (N) 6-1
157 - #17 Anthony Perrotti major Drew Daniels (N) 11-1
165 - #16 Peyton Walsh (N) dec Nick Visicaro 4-2
174 - Jadaen Bernstein (N) dec #19 Phil Bakuckas 6-4 SV
184 - Michael Woulfe (N) fall Anthony Pafumi 3:22
197 - Hayden Hrymack dec Steban Cervantes (N) 4-3
285 - #14 Billy Smith dec Colynn Cook (N) 8-1


### Go Navy ###