Grapplers Finish Third at ECWA Championships
March 7, 2000 | Men's Wrestling
The Terrier wrestling team, paced by two runners-up and four consolation winners, finished third at the 2000 East Coast Wrestling Association Championship Tournament held March 4-5 at Rider University. With 60.5 points, the Terriers trailed Rider (86.5) and Hofstra (85), while they finished ahead of Seton Hall (52.5), Drexel (40), Boston College (35.5), Sacred Heart (24), and Wagner (1.5).
Head Coach Carl Adams' Terriers finished the 1999-2000 season with a 7-6-1 overall record and a 4-2-1 mark in the ECWA.
Freshman 125-pounder Jose Leon (Santa Ana, CA) and junior 149-pounder Malik Elliott (Park Forest, IL) were the runners-up in their respective divisions. However, both Leon and Elliott earned at-large bids to the 2000 NCAA Championships to be held on March 16-18 in St. Louis, MO. Elliott's invitation marks the second time he will participate in the NCAA Tournament. He wrestled at the 1998 NCAA's in the 142-pound weight class as a member of the Northwestern University wrestling team.
B.U. senior Chris Simmons (Hendricks, MN) finished third at 157 pounds, while sophomore Ali Abri (Ashland, VA) placed third in the 174-pound weight class. Freshmen Ed Strauss (Macungie, PA) and Rich Wilson (Coldwater, MI) also placed third in the 197-pound and heavyweight division, respectively.
Leon, the No. 2 seed at 125 pounds, earned an 18-5 major decision over Drexel's Dan Digirolamo in his first match before defeating No. 3 Tom Noto of Hofstra, 10-5, in the tournament's semifinals. Leon was defeated 3-1 in the championship match by No.1 Jerold Limongelli of Rider.
Elliott, the No. 3 seed at 149 pounds, recorded a 15-0 technical fall over Sacred Heart's Gregory Ruggiero in the quarterfinals. He then bested No. 2 Derek Jenkins of Rider 3-1 in the semifinals before falling to Hofstra's Eric Schmiesing, the division's number-one seed, 4-1 in the finals.
Simmons, Abri, Strauss, and Wilson each won their respective quarterfinal matches before losing in their division's semifinal match. However, each recovered to earn two victories in their consolation brackets to finish in third place in their individual weight classes.
| Terrier Scoring Summaries | |
|---|---|
| 125 pounds | |
| Quarters | No. 2 Jose Leon (BU) maj. dec. Dan Digirolamo (Drexel) 18-5 |
| Semis | Jose Leon dec. No. 3 Tom Noto (Hofstra) 10-5 |
| Finals | No. 1 Jerold Limongelli (Rider) dec. Jose Leon 3-1 |
| 133 pounds | |
| Quarters | No. 4 Mike Messina (BU) maj. dec. Joe Pollard (Rider) 13-1 |
| Semis | No. 1 Roman Fleszar (Hofstra) dec. Mike Messina 7-4 |
| C. Semis | Mike Messina dec. No. 3 Mike Settembrino (Sacred Heart) 3-1 |
| C. Finals | No. 2 Justin Gottwald (Drexel) dec. Mike Messina 2-1 |
| 141 pounds | |
| Quarters | No. 1 Jason DeBruin (Hofstra) pin Peter Aguado (BU) 2:09 |
| C. Semis | No. 3 Joe Benvenuti (Sacred Heart) dec. Peter Aguado 3-1 |
| 149 pounds | |
| Quarters | No. 3 Malik Elliott (BU) tech. fall Gregory Ruggiero (Sacred Heart) 15-0 |
| Semis | Malik Elliott dec. No. 2 Derek Jenkins (Rider) 3-1 |
| Finals | No. 1 Eric Schmiesing (Hofstra) dec. Malik Elliott 4-1 |
| 157 pounds | |
| Quarters | No. 4 Chris Simmons (BU) medical forfeit Craig Braun (Sacred Heart) 28-13, 4:25 |
| Semis | No. 1 Dennis Papadatos (Hofstra) dec. Chris Simmons 3-1 |
| C. Semis | Chris Simmons dec. Alex Botchan (Wagner) 3-1 |
| C. Finals | Chris Simmons dec. No. 2 Nick Harrington (Rider) 5-4 |
| 165 pounds | |
| Quarters | No. 3 R.J. Haynes (Rider) maj. dec. Zak Emond (BU) 10-2 |
| C. Semis | No. 4 Paul Wyka (Sacred Heart) dec. Zak Emond 6-3 |
| 174 pounds | |
| Quarters | No. 4 Ali Abri (BU) tech. fall Ryan Olivera (Sacred Heart) 27-12 |
| Semis | No. 1 Evertt Bell dec. Ali Abri 7-6 |
| C. Semis | Ali Abri dec. Robert Pizzuto (Rider) 4-3 |
| C. Finals | Ali Abri pin No. 3 Dan Degan (Boston College) 6:36 |
| 184 pounds | |
| Semis | No. 2 Shawn Scannell (Rider) maj. dec. No. 3 Chad Grant (BU) 12-4 |
| C. Semis | Chad Grant dec. Steve Sinkovich (Hofstra) 6-4 |
| C. Finals | No. 1 Anthony Reynolds (Sacred Heart) dec. Chad Grant 11-5 |
| 197 pounds | |
| Quarters | No. 4 Ed Strauss (BU) maj. dec. Pat Purcell (BC) 13-5 |
| Semis | No. 1 Todd Palmisano (Rider) pin Ed Strauss 6:11 |
| C. Semis | Ed Strauss dec. Rich Attonito (Hofstra) 3-1 |
| C. Finals | Ed Strauss dec. No. 2 Damien Craighton (Drexel) 6-5 |
| Heavyweight | |
| Quarters | No. 3 Rich Wilson (BU) pin Mike Eberle (Hofstra) 1:30 |
| Semis | No. 2 Marc DeFrancesco (Rider) pin Rich Wilson 2:13 |
| C. Semis | Rich Wilson pin Carlos Panfili (Sacred Heart) 1:50 |
| C. Finals | Rich Wilson pin Mike Eberle 0:39 |
