Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Wrestling Set to Host 107th EIWA Championships
3/2/2011 7:00:00 AM | Wrestling
March 2, 2011
(video is free of charge for all but finals)About the EIWA Championships
The 107th EIWA Championships will take place this weekend at Bucknell's Sojka Pavilion. A total of 13 teams will be visiting Lewisburg. Cornell has won the team championship the last four years, while Lehigh won it the previous five years. Tournament seeds and brackets are expected to be released Friday evening, March 4.
Tournament Schedule
Saturday, March 5
Session 1: 10 a.m.-3 p.m. (Round of 16, Quarterfinals & Consolations, Consolations)
Session 2: 3:30 p.m. (Semifinals)
Sunday, March 6
Session 3: 10 a.m.-1 p.m. (Consolation Semifinals, Place Finals)
Session 4: 3 p.m. (Finals)
Sojka Pavilion: Home of the 2011 EIWA Championships
• Opened Jan. 15, 2003.
• Bucknell's primary basketball venue.
• Hosted Bucknell wrestling vs. Iowa/Rutgers on Nov. 27, 2009. That was the only wrestling competition in Sojka Pavilion prior to the EIWA Championships.
• 2,127 fans watched Bucknell wrestle Iowa and Rutgers.
• Namesake is Dr. Gary Sojka, a former Bucknell University president.
• Pronounced "SOY-cuh".
• Seating capacity is 4,000.
• Largest crowd for a basketball game was 4,433 vs. Villanova (Dec. 6, 2005).
Bucknell Hosts Conference Championship for First Time Since 1997
Bucknell is serving as the host school for a conference championship for the first time since 1997 when it hosted the ECWA Championships. The Bison finished in seventh place out of nine teams that year.
2010 EIWA Championships
Wrestling at the EIWA Championships with a roster that contained seniors for the first time since the program was reinstated prior to the 2006-07 campaign, Bucknell's upperclassmen carried the squad at last year's event. 2010 graduate Andy Rendos won the first individual EIWA title in program history, while classmates David Marble and Shane Riccio posted top-three showings. Then-junior Kevin LeValley finished second in his weight class as a record eight Bison were placewinners. Bucknell finished in fourth place in the team standings with 103.5 points. Cornell won the team title for the fourth straight year, while Penn and host Lehigh rounded out the top three.
Bucknell's EIWA Championships History
Bucknell first joined the EIWA in 1999-2000 and has wrestled at the EIWA Championships seven times. The first year the Bison competed they were not awarded team points. Since then, they have finished 10th, 12th, ninth, eighth, tied for third and fourth.
Bucknell's EIWA Team Finishes
2000: no team points awarded
2001: 10th (30 points)
2002: 12th (12.5)
2007: 9th (40)
2008: 8th (43.5)
2009: t-3rd (79)
2010: 4th (103.5)
Bucknell Individuals at EIWA Championships
Eight of Bucknell's projected wrestlers at the EIWA Championships have previous postseason experience. The six grapplers have combined for a 27-29 career mark at the EIWA Championships. Andy Rendos, a 2010 graduate, won the program's first-ever EIWA individual title last March.
Bucknell Individuals at EIWA Championships
• Derek Reber (Career at EIWAs: 4-1)
- 2009: 4-1 (3rd place at 125 pounds)
Robert Benitez (Princeton), W, Fall (3:33)
Lance Penhale (Army), W, 6-2
Rollie Peterkin (Penn), L, MD 10-0
John McDonald (Lehigh), W, 3-2
Greg Einfrank (Brown), W, 6-2
• Adam Healey (Career at EIWAs: 1-2)
- 2009: 1-2 (141 pounds)
Seth Ciasulli (Lehigh), L, Fall (4:31)
Matt Michaels (East Stroudsburg), W, Fall (2:28)
Corey Manson (Cornell), L, 7-4
• Kevin LeValley (Career at EIWAs: 8-6)
- 2008: 2-2 (149 pounds)
Mark Bloom (Brown), W, MD 11-1
Trevor Chinn (Lehigh), L, 7-4
Christopher Clarke (American), W, MD 11-2
Anthony Constantino (Columbia), L, 3-2
- 2009: 3-3 (6th place at 149)
Kellen Bradley (Rutgers), W, 10-3
Trevor Chinn (Lehigh), L, 8-3
Daniel Kolodzik (Princeton), W, Fall (3:40)
D.J. Meagher (Cornell), W, 9-4
Kyle Borshoff (American), L, 3-1 (sv)
Cesar Grajales (Penn), L, 4-2
- 2010: 3-1 (2nd place at 149)
Philip Marano (Brown), W, Fall (3:26)
Daniel Kolodzik (Princeton), W, Fall (6:36)
Glenn Shober (Navy), W, 8-4
Matthew Kyler (Army), L, 5-3
• Brantley Hooks (Career at EIWAs: 5-6)
- 2007: 1-2 (157 pounds)
Devin Mesanko (Columbia), L, 6-5
Mike Alvarez (Princeton), W, MD 10-2
Christian Snook (Army), L, 8-1
- 2008: 2-2 (157 pounds)
Dave Nakasone (Lehigh), L, MD 18-6
Kyle Heselpoth (East Stroudsburg), W, 7-4
Martin Everin (Princeton), W, 7-5
Robert Hitschler (Penn), L, 5-4
- 2010: 2-3 (6th place at 157 pounds)
Steve Fittery (American), L, MD 15-4
Daniel Young (Army), W, 5-2
Matthew Dunn (Columbia), W, 3-0
Daryl Cocozzo (Rutgers), L, 5-2
Matt Dragon (Penn), L, 5-4
• David Thompson (Career at EIWAs: 5-4)
- 2008: 1-2 (184 pounds)
Lior Zamir (Penn), L, 9-5
Fred Rowsey (Harvard), W, Fall (2:37)
Matthew Porter (Columbia), L, 5-3
- 2009: 4-2 (5th place at 184 pounds
McPaul Ogbonna (Rutgers), W, Fall (4:47)
Casey Caldwell (Navy), L, 7-5
Kenji Porter (Columbia), W, 7-2
Eddie Ebewo (East Stroudsburg), W, 4-3
Louis Caputo (Harvard), L, MD 12-1
Casey Caldwell (Navy), W, 5-1
• Rob Waltko (Career at EIWAs: 2-3)
- 2010: 2-3 (6th place at 184 pounds)
David Craig (Lehigh), L, 8-2
Harrison Cook (Penn), W, 11-6
Bran Crudden (Brown), W, 5-2
Steve Bosak (Cornell), L, Fall (4:01)
Collin Wittmeyer (Army), L, 7-4
• Jay Hahn (Career at EIWAs: 0-4)
- 2008: 0-2 (197 pounds)
Thomas Shovlin (Penn), L, MD 16-6
Nick Sommerfeld (Columbia), L, 9-5
- 2010: 0-2 (197 pounds)
Branden Stearns (Rutgers), L, 5-3
Joseph Kennedy (Lehigh), L, 5-4
• Joe McMullan (Career at EIWAs: 2-3)
- 2010: 2-3 (8th place at heavyweight)
Larry Otsuka (Brown), W, Fall (4:43)
Dominick Russo (Rutgers), L, Fall (1:42)
Spencer DeSena (Harvard), W, 10-4
Kevin Lester (Columbia), L, 10-4
Orion Ross (Army), L, 7-5 (sv2)
• Alex Pellicciotti, Corey Lear
- Career: 0-0
NCAA Qualifiers from EIWA Championships
The EIWA will have 45 automatic qualifiers for the NCAA Championships, which will take place March 17-19 in Philadelphia, Pa. Forty-nine additional at-large qualifiers who do not earn automatic berths will be selected at the conclusion of all conference tournaments. The at-large qualifiers will be announced March 9.
EIWA Automatic NCAA Qualifiers by Weight Class (45)
125: 5
133: 3
141: 5
149: 5
157: 5
165: 4
174: 5
184: 4
197: 5
Hwt.: 4
Bucknell's NCAA Qualifiers
Since the reinstatement of its program prior to the 2006-07 season, Bucknell has had seven different wrestlers combine for 16 NCAA appearances. Current Bison Kevin LeValley (2009, 2010), Derek Reber (2009) and David Thompson (2009) have advanced to the NCAAs. The Bucknell program has had 64 all-time individual NCAA berths, including four last year.
Ranked Bison
Senior captain Kevin LeValley enters the EIWA Championships as Bucknell's only ranked wrestler. The 149-pounder is listed fourth nationally by InterMat. He is one of three EIWA grapplers in the top 10, along with No. 2 Kyle Dake (Cornell) and No. 8 Ganbayar Sanjaa (American).
Individual Ranked Opponents
Bucknell wrestlers will see plenty of ranked opponents at the EIWA Championships since 32 EIWA grapplers show up in the lastest Intermat rankings. The 10 Bison entrants in the EIWAs combined to go 8-36 when facing a ranked individual this season. Kevin LeValley (7-1) was the only Bison to post a record of better than .500 against ranked opposition.
Bucknell's EIWA Entrants vs. Ranked Opponents (Intermat)
125 - Derek Reber (0-3)
133 - Alex Pellicciotti (0-1)
141 - Adam Healey (0-1)
149 - Kevin LeValley (7-1)
157 - Brantley Hooks (0-5)
165 - Corey Lear (1-7)
174 - David Thompson (0-4)
184 - Rob Waltko (0-1)
197 - Jay Hahn (0-5)
Hwt. - Joe McMullan (0-8)
Kevin LeValley Notes
• 119 career wins ranks second in program history
• 26-1 record this season
• Second on Bucknell's single-season winning percentage list (.944)
• One regular-season loss in the last 14+ months
• Went 36-4 during 2010 calendar year
• 16 consecutive wins in Davis Gym (home venue)
• First-ever Bison to win individual title at Midlands Championships
• Team-best 7-1 vs. ranked opponents in 2010-11 and 16-8 since the beginning of 2009-10
• 13 bonus-point wins in 2010-11
• Six-time Bison Athlete of the Week winner
• Defeated then-No. 12 Torsten Gillespie at NWCA All-Star Classic to become first Bison to win at that event
• Ranked No. 4 in the nation at 149 pounds
• Won 26 of last 27 dual matches
• Nine losses over last two years are all by decision by a total of 19 points
• 2010 All-American
• Two-time NCAA qualifier and EIWA placewinner
Young 149-Pound Bracket
Senior 149-pounder Kevin LeValley will be Bucknell's highest seed entering the EIWA Championships and he should be able to use his experience to his advantage this weekend. He is the only senior in his bracket, and 10 of the 12 student-athletes are listed as freshmen or sophomores. American's Ganbayar Sanjaa is the only junior.
Brantley Hooks in Top 10 for Wins
Senior Brantley Hooks ranks 10th in program history with 84 wins. He owns an 84-65 career mark and is nine victories behind ninth-place Ken Herceg.
Starting Lineups
Bucknell used 13 different starting lineups in its 18 dual matches this year, including 12 different lineups in its final 14 competitions.
Consistent Starters
While Bucknell used 13 different starting lineups, four Bison were been in the lineup in all 18 duals. Derek Reber (125), Kevin LeValley (149), Corey Lear (165) and Jay Hahn (197) started every match. That quartet combined to go 50-22 in duals. The rest of the team is a combined 38-66.
Difficult Schedule
Bucknell faced seven ranked opponents in 2010-11. The Bison have now wrestled 26 ranked foes since the program was reinstated prior to the 2006-07 campaign.
Streaking
Kevin LeValley (8), Alex Pellicciotti (2), David Thompson (3) and Rob Waltko (5) all enter the EIWA Championships on individual winning streaks.
Wirnsberger Second on Wins List
Bucknell head coach Dan Wirnsberger already ranks second on the Bison career wins list with 51. He has guided the Bison to a 51-46-2 mark over the last five years and trails only longtime Bison mentor Bobby Ferraro, who posted a 169-175-6 mark from 1974-97. On a career level, Wirnsberger owns a solid 77-68-2 mark.
Return of Bucknell Wrestling
The Bucknell wrestling program was discontinued following the 2001-02 season, but was brought back in 2005 thanks in large part to a generous donation from Bill Graham '62. The Bison's first season of competition after reinstatement was 2006-07 and they are 51-46-2 (.525) since then. Seven different wrestlers have combined for 16 NCAA appearances and three All-America certificates over that span.
Bucknell's Year-by-Year Records Since Reinstatement
2006-07: 12-9-1, 3-3-1 EIWA
2007-08: 9-11-1, 4-4 EIWA
2008-09: 11-9, 5-3 EIWA
2009-10: 12-6, 6-0 EIWA
2010-11: 7-11, 2-5 EIWA
Following the EIWA Championships
Internet Broadcast: Live video of the entire tournament on Bison Vision (www.BucknellBison.com). The first three sessions will be free, while Sunday's finals will require a subscription.
Online Results: Live results updated regularly at BucknellBison.com, NWCAonline.com and Escapesports.com.
Up Next
Bucknell's NCAA qualifiers will participate in the NCAA Championships March 17-19 in Philadelphia, Pa. Last year, four Bison earned automatic berths in the NCAA Championships, including current senior Kevin LeValley.
Bucknell Lineup
Wrestler (2010-11 Record)
125: Derek Reber (15-12)
133: Alex Pellicciotti (8-10)
141: Adam Healey (4-7)
149: No. 4 Kevin LeValley (26-1)
157: Brantley Hooks (18-10)
165: Corey Lear (21-11)
174: David Thompson (12-11)
184: Rob Waltko (15-13)
197: Jay Hahn (24-8)
HWT: Joe McMullan (7-16)
