Wrestling Heads to Philadelphia this Weekend for EIWA Championships

About the EIWA Championships
The 110th EIWA Championships will take place this Saturday and Sunday at The Palestra in Philadelphia, Pa. A total of 18 teams will be competing in the historic event. Cornell has won the team championship each of the last seven years, while Lehigh won it the previous five years. Tournament seeds and brackets will be released Friday evening, March 7.

Tournament Schedule
Saturday, March 8
Session 1 – 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m.
(Championship First Round, Championship Second Round, Consolation First Round, Championship Quarterfinals, Consolation Second Round, Consolation Third Round)

Sunday, March 9
Session 2 – 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
(Championship Semifinals, Consolation Fourth Round, Consolation Semifinals, Consolation Finals)

Session 3 – 4 p.m.
(Championship Finals)

Tickets
Tickets can be purchased online via PennAthletics.com or by calling 215-898-6151. An all-session ticket is $70 in advance and $80 at the door. Single-session tickets are also available.

NCAA Qualifiers from EIWA Championships
The EIWA will have 47 automatic qualifiers for the NCAA Championships, which will take place March 20-22 in Oklahoma City, Okla. Forty 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 12.

EIWA Automatic NCAA Qualifiers by Weight Class (47)
125: 6
133: 4
141: 5
149: 4
157: 5
165: 5
174: 3
184: 4
197: 7
285: 4

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 71-87-2 (.450) since then. Eleven different wrestlers have combined for 22 NCAA appearances and four 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
2011-12: 4-16, 2-4 EIWA
2012-13: 6-14, 2-5 EIWA
2013-14: 10-11, 5-4 EIWA

Bucknell's EIWA Championships History
Bucknell first joined the EIWA in 1999-2000 and has wrestled at the EIWA Championships 10 times. The first year the Bison competed they were not awarded team points. Since then, they have seven top-10 finishes.

Bucknell's EIWA Team Finishes
2000: no team points awarded
2001: 10th of 14 (30 points)
2002: 12th of 13 (12.5)
2007: 9th of 14 (40)
2008: 8th of 14 (43.5)
2009: t-3rd of 14 (79)
2010: 4th of 13 (103.5)
2011: 8th of 13 (59)
2012: 13th of 14 (28.5)
2013: 10th of 14 (47)

EIWA Individual Titles
Bucknell wrestlers have claimed an EIWA individual title on two occassions. Andy Rendos won the 165-pound crown in 2010 and Kevin LeValley captured the 149-pound title in 2011.

Bucknell Individuals at EIWA Championships
Four of Bucknell's 10 projected wrestlers at the EIWA Championships have previous postseason experience. The four grapplers have combined for a 7-8 career mark at the EIWA Championships.

• Paul Petrov (Career at EIWAs: 2-3)
- 2013: 2-3 (133 pounds) - 6th place
Robert Ruiz (Franklin & Marshall), W, Fall (1:50)
Bricker Dixon (Cornell), W, 5-4
Randy Cruz (Lehigh), L, Fall (2:51)
Vincent Dellafave (Rutgers), L, 3-2
Jordan Thome (Army), L, Fall (4:28)

• Robert Schlitt (Career at EIWAs: 0-2)
- 2013: 0-2 (174 pounds)
Cameron Croy (Harvard), L, 8-3
Marshall Peppelman (Cornell), L, Fall (0:31)

• Tyler Lyster (Career at EIWAs: 0-2)
- 2012: 0-2 (197 pounds)
Joe Kennedy (Lehigh), L, MD 11-3
Daniel Mitchell (American), L, 8-2
- 2013: 2-3 (197 pounds) - 8th place
Devon Bradley (American), W, 8-3
James Fox (Harvard), L, 7-4
Nicholas Mills (Columbia), W, MD 10-0
Jacob Bennett (Cornell), L, 5-0
Dan Seidenberg (Rutgers), L, 3-1

• Joe Stolfi (Career at EIWAs: 5-1)
- 2013: 5-1 (285 pounds) - 3rd place
Collin Wittmeyer (Army), W, 3-0
Daniel Miller (Navy), L, 10-5
Dillon Ingham (Brown), W, Fall (5:38)
David Ng (Harvard), W, 5-1
Steven Graziano (Penn), Fall (4:26)
Stryker Lane (Cornell), W, MD 12-0

• Grim Gonzalez, Connor Lapresi, Victor Lopez, Ray Schlitt, Rustin Barrick, Rory Bonner
- Career: 0-0

Starting Lineups
Bucknell used 12 different starting lineups in its 21 dual matches this year. The Bison used six different lineups in 2012-13.

Difficult Schedule
Bucknell faced six ranked opponents in 2013-14. The Bison have now wrestled 44 ranked foes over the last seven campaigns.

Streaking
Seven Bison enter the EIWA Championships having won at least one bout in a row: Joe Stolfi (+14), Paul Petrov (+7), Grim Gonzalez (+2), Victor Lopez (+2), Ray Schlitt (+2), Robert Schlitt (+2), Connor Lapresi (+1).

Wirnsberger Second on Wins List
Bucknell head coach Dan Wirnsberger ranks second on the Bison career wins list with 71. He has guided Bucknell to a 71-87-2 mark over the last eight years and trails only longtime Bison mentor Bob Ferraro, who posted a 169-175-6 mark from 1974-97. On a career level, Wirnsberger owns a solid 97-109-2 mark.

Bison Headlines
• Bucknell's EIWA lineup consists of four freshmen, three sophomores and three juniors. There are just two seniors on the 23-person Bison roster.
• Tyler Lyster, Paul Petrov and Joe Stolfi are Bucknell's 2013-14 team captains.
• Bucknell finished with a 10-11, 5-4 EIWA dual mark in 2013-14. It marked the most overall and conference wins for the Bison since posting a 12-6, 6-0 EIWA mark in 2009-10.
• Bucknell outscored its opponents 404-381 in its 21 duals this season.
• Bucknell defeated No. 22 Lehigh by an 18-17 score in Bethlehem in November. It marked the first win over the Mountain Hawks in 10 all-time meetings and it was Bucknell's first victory over a ranked foe since February 2007.
• Tyler Lyster (197 pounds) enters the EIWA Championships with a 13-1 career record in bouts decided by fall.
• Corey Lear (165 pounds) and Joe Stolfi (285) were Bucknell's two NCAA qualifiers a year ago. Lear was unable to compete at NCAAs due to an injury, while Stolfi posted a 3-2 mark to finish in the top 12, one victory shy of becoming the sixth different All-American in program history.

Joe Stolfi Facts
• Enters EIWA Championships on a 14-match winning streak.
• Leads team in victories (29).
• One win shy of becoming 16th Bison to reach 30 wins in a season.
• Tied with Brian Pitzer on Bucknell's single-season pins list.
• Ranks sixth on program's career pins list with 29.
• One of two Bison, along with classmate Tyler Lyster, to start all 21 duals this season.
• Placed third at 2013 EIWA Championships. Did not wrestle at 2012 EIWAs due to injury.
• Ranks second nationally in wins by fall (20).

Up Next
Bucknell's NCAA qualifiers will participate in the NCAA Championships March 20-22 in Oklahoma City, Okla. Last year, two Bison (Corey Lear, Joe Stolfi) earned berths in the NCAA Championships.