WEST POINT, N.Y. - Despite a pair of bonus point wins by juniors Corey Wilding (Pittsburgh, Pa.) and Michael Coleman (Hudson, Ohio) that gave Navy a one-point advantage late in the match, Army West Point won the final two bouts to defeat the Navy wrestling team, 19-14, in the annual Star Match held Sunday afternoon at Christl Arena in West Point, N.Y.

"From the seniors who were there supporting to the 10 guys who were competing, this match will be one that every wrestler on our team will remember when they are facing adversity in there careers," said third-year Navy head coach Joel Sharratt. "Wrestling teaches you a lot about yourself and how you rise from a disappointing result and adjust your course to make it right going forward."

After falling behind 7-0 in the match, Navy called upon rookie 141-pound Jared Prince (Safety Harbor, Fla.) to answer the call. Prince, ranked 15th nationally, faced 18th-ranked Logan Everett in a rematch of the All-Academy Championship in which Prince dominated three weeks ago. On Sunday, Everett jumped out to a 4-1 advantage in the opening period, countering on a pair of Prince shots. Prince patiently worked his way back into the match, first by scoring the escape to begin the second and then scoring a takedown to knot the match at four apiece heading into the final period. Everett took a one-point lead with an escape to start the third, but Prince went on to score the match-winning takedown and tacked on a point for riding time in the 7-5 victory.

One of four Navy wrestlers to make his Star Match debut, Prince has won eight straight matches dating back to his Jan. 8 dual victory over Maryland. He is now 21-6 overall and closed out the dual season with a flawless 7-0 record.

Navy pulled even when Wilding recorded three takedowns and a pair of two-point near falls to earn a 14-2 major decision over Army's Nick Noel. Wilding, who captured his 50th career victory, has now won two in a row for the Mids in the Star Match.

"Wilding was a rock and he also ripped the door open after a slow start," said Sharratt. "His major decision could have easily been the point that won the dual. He has been wrestling so well and now our focus will be to prepare for the EIWA Championship and ultimately the NCAAs."

Army took the lead again when 16th-ranked Russ Parsons and Andrew Mendel posted back-to-back wins over the Mids' Zack Davis (Jr / Granger, Ind.) and Drew Daniels (Jr / Overland Park, Kan.) at 157 and 165 pounds, respectively. Davis, who was an NCAA qualifier a year ago at 133 pounds, pushed up to 141 pounds this season but made his debut at 157 pounds on Sunday. Parsons scored three takedowns en route to a 9-2 decision. Meanwhile, Mendel sought to avenge his loss to Daniels at the All-Academy Championship earlier this season. After a scoreless opening period, Mendel scored the takedown at the end of the second stanza and never looked back as he captured a 7-4 win over Daniels.

The Mids once again answered the challenge. Fifteenth-ranked 174-pound Jadaen Bernstein (Jr / Glen Gardner, N.J.) also faced a familiar foe in Ben Harvey, his finals opponent at the All-Academy Championship. Bernstein scored a takedown early in the match and following the Harvey escape, held a 2-1 advantage going into the second period. The two-time NCAA qualifer was magnificent in riding out Harvey the entire second period to assure himself of riding time. Harvey chose the neutral position to start the third period, but Harvey was unable to capitalize and Bernstein produced a 3-1 win.

The win marked Bernstein's first in three appearances in the Army-Navy Star Match, dropping back-to-back one-point decisions to Harvey's older brother Brian his first two years. Bernstein now stands 25-6 this season and finished the dual slate undefeated (9-0) for the first time in his career. He will take a nine-match winning streak which dates back to the Jan. 8 Maryland dual into the EIWA Championship.

Navy took its lone lead in the match following a dominant performance by Coleman at 184 pounds. Making his first appearance in the Army-Navy rivalry, Coleman scored a takedown and nearly had the fall over Army's Samson Imonode, but instead built a 6-0 advantage and more than two minutes of riding time thanks to a four-point near fall. He tacked on a point for an escape in the second, a point for stalling in the third and the riding time for the 10-0 major decision and a 14-13 lead for the Mids with two matches remaining.

Army's Rocco Caywood would go on to hand 197-pound Steban Cervantes (Jr / Chula Vista, Calif.) just his second dual loss of the season in a 7-4 decision and put the lead back in the Black Knights' favor at 16-14.

Sharratt asked rookie 197-pound Joshua Roetman (Kotzebue, Alaska) to face veteran heavyweight Trevor Smith in the final match of the day. Roetman and Smith were scoreless going into the final period, but Roetman, wrestling in his first career dual and first match at heavyweight, succumbed to a reversal and two-point near fall late in the match. Smith went on to seal the Army win with the 5-0 decision.

"There are a number of positives to build upon from tonight's match," added Sharratt. "Our top tier guys are finding ways to win even when their opponent just tries to keep it close. It was great to see Jared Prince repeat an outstanding performance from the All Academy Tournament. Bernstein went out and got right after the first takedown and that changes the complexity of a match. Coleman produced another strong win against a formerly-ranked wrestler and had a real chance to close the door early.

"We challenged some guys today and mixed it up with Zack Davis and Josh Roetman wrestling out of their traditional weight classes," added Sharratt. "Davis is a former 133 pounder who stepped in and wrestled a nationally-ranked veteran at 157 pounds ... he's got heart! Josh Roetman, meanwhile, is a talented 197 pounder who has been getting better every week. He had the best style to find a win tonight, but was a little small for the heavyweights. Again that's a real challenge for a Plebe to step up when the Star Match is on the line. He welcomed the chance to compete for his NAVY TEAM!"

Navy has dominated the series, holding a 49-7-5 lead including wins in 15 of the 17 meetings.

The Midshipmen will use the next two weeks to prepare for the EIWA Championship slated for March 3-4 at Bucknell's Sojka Pavilion.

Army West Point 19, Navy 14
125 | Trey Chalifoux dec over Brant Leadbeter (NAVY), 14-8 | 0-3
133 | Austin Harry major dec over Cody Lambert (NAVY), 18-6 | 0-7
141 | #15 Jared Prince (NAVY) dec over #18 Logan Everett, 7-5 | 3-7
149 | Corey Wilding (NAVY) major dec Nick Noel, 14-2 | 7-7
157 | #16 Russ Parsons dec over Zack Davis (NAVY), 9-2 | 7-10
165 | Andrew Mendel dec Drew Daniels (NAVY), 7-4 | 7-13
174 | #15 Jadaen Bernstein (NAVY) dec over Ben Harvey, 3-1 | 10-13
184 | Michael Coleman (NAVY) major dec over Samson Imonode, 10-0 | 14-13
197 | Rocco Caywood dec over Steban Cervantes (NAVY), 7-4 | 14-16
285 | Trevor Smith dec over Joshua Roetman (NAVY), 5-0 | 14-19

### Go Navy ###