Bucknell University
NCAA Championships
Injury Forces Stolfi to Medical Forfeit at NCAA Wrestling Championships
3/20/2015 2:26:00 PM | Wrestling
ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Bucknell wrestling's 285-pounder Joe Stolfi (Souderton, Pa./Harleysville) saw his NCAA Championships run come to an end Friday as he was unable to compete due to an injury he suffered in a second-round bout on Thursday evening. The three-time NCAA qualifier was scheduled to wrestle Pittsburgh's Ryan Solomon, a native of nearby Milton, in the consolation bracket.
Stolfi, who was seeded 14th in his bracket, opened the NCAA Championships Thursday with a pin of South Dakota State's J.J. Everard. It was his 20th pin of the season and the 52nd of his career, which is the most in program history.
Stolfi then faced Maryland's Spencer Myers, who was coming off an upset of the No. 3 seed. Myers advanced to the quarterfinals on an overtime pin.
A senior who still has one more year of eligibility available, Stolfi finished the season with a 37-8 record and is now 99-37 in his career to rank seventh on the program's all-time wins list. His 37 victories this season place him second on the single-season ledger behind only All-American Kevin LeValley's 42 wins in 2009-10.
Stolfi finished in the top 12 at the 2013 NCAA Championships and posted one win at the 2014 NCAA Championships. He is now 5-5 in his NCAA career.
Stolfi became the third Bison to win an EIWA individual title when he claimed the heavyweight gold medal in 2014. He placed second at the event this year and is a three-time placewinner.
The Bucknell record-holder for pins in a season with 23 in 2013-14, Stolfi leads the nation in wins by fall this year (20). Last month he eclipsed Brian Pitzer's school record for career pins that had stood since 2000.
Four Bison qualified for this year's NCAA Championships, the most since 2010. Paul Petrov, Tyler Smith and Tom Sleigh each lost twice on Thursday. Bucknell is currently tied for 43rd place in the team standings with 3.0 points.
The 2014-15 regular season was a strong one for Bucknell, which set a school record for victories (15), posted 10 consecutive wins and registered a program-best third-place finish at the EIWA Championships, an improvement of 12 spots from last year.
