Edinboro Match Notes
 
PROBABLE LINEUPS

Edinboro Fighting Scots (8-3, 5-0 EWL)  
125 -- #19/#16 Kory Mines (Jr.-r, 19-6, Bedford, OH)
133 -- #2/#2 A.J. Schopp (Jr.-r, 25-1, Tyrone, PA
141 -- #1/#1 Mitchell Port (Jr.-r, 21-0, Bellefonte, PA)
149 -- #16/#17 Dave Habat (Jr.-r, 21-4, Parma, OH)
157 -- #17/#16 Johnny Greisheimer (Sr.-r, 20-7, Wantagh, NY)
165 -- Kasey Burnett-Davis (Jr.-r, 15-8, Meadville, PA)    
174 -- Patrick Jennings (So.-r, 9-9, Ridge, NJ)
184 -- #15/#14 Vic Avery (So.-r, 18-3, Foxboro, MA)
                Nick Mitchell (Fr.-r, 13-11, Frewsburg, NY)           
197 -- Vince Pickett  (So., 17-9, Galloway, OH)
Hwt. -- #19/#16 Ernest James (Sr.-r, 21-5, Medford, NY)
 
HEAD COACH:  Tim Flynn (Penn State '87, 178-68-5, 17th year)
Rankings:  InterMat/Amateur Wrestling News
 
#6 Pittsburgh Panthers (12-1, 5-0 ACC)  
125 -- #18/NR Anthony Zanetta (Sr.-r, 18-6, Pittsburgh, PA)
133 -- #20/NR Shelton Mack (Sr., 21-7, Meadville, PA)
141 -- #17 /#18 Edgar Bright (Fr., 15-6, Cleveland, OH)
149 -- Mikey Racciato (Fr., 20-9, Pen Argyl, PA)
157 -- Eric Nutter (So.-r, 12-8, Pittsburgh, PA)
                Cole Sheptock (Fr.-r, 10-13, Northampton, PA)
                Ronnie Garbinsky (So.-r,16-6, Tyrone, PA)
165 -- Geno Morelli (Fr.-r, 10-12, DuBois, PA)
174 -- #7/#7 Tyler Wilps (Jr.-r, 23-5, Oakdale, PA)
184 -- #6/#8 Max Thomusseit (Jr.-r, 13-1, St. Paris, OH)
197 -- #18/#20  Nick Bonaccorsi (So.-r,17-9, Bethel Park, PA)
Hwt. -- #19/NR P.J. Tasser (Sr.-r, 14-5, Belle Vernon, PA)
                Mike Gregory (Sr., 7-9, Dracut, MA)
 
HEAD COACH:  Jason Peters (East Stroudsburg '98, 12-1, 1st year)
Rankings:  InterMat/Amateur Wrestling News
  
 
THE MATCH STORIES

While the date may be Valentine's Day, you can bet there will be very little love on the mat when Edinboro wrestles Pittsburgh at Fitzgerald Field House on Friday, February 14 at 7:00 p.m.  The two became heated rivals in recent years, with Edinboro serving as the standard bearer in the Eastern Wrestling League before the Panthers came along to wrest the EWL?title away from the Fighting Scots the last three years.  While Pittsburgh moved to the Atlantic Coast Conference this year, both teams are still among the best in the country.  Edinboro comes in with an 8-3 record and has clinched the EWL regular season crown with a 5-0 record.  The Fighting Scots are ranked ninth by InterMat and 14th in the USA Today/ NWCA/AWN Coaches Poll.  The Panthers are 12-1 overall and clinched at least a tie for the ACC?regular season title with a 19-14 win over Virginia Tech, improving to 5-0 in league competition.  The Panthers are ranked sixth by AWN and are tied for 19th in InterMat's rankings.

Friday's Edinboro at Pittsburgh match will be televised on ESPN3.   Pete Blais will handle the play-0by-play with Greg Warnock providing the color commentary.

Edinboro has won eight of its last nine duals to improve to 8-3.  The Fighting Scots last competed on February 1, defeating Buffalo 41-3.  However, a number of regulars competed in last weekend's Edinboro Open.  That included Vince Pickett, who took home first place at 197 lbs., Vic Avery, who was second at 184 lbs., and Kasey Burnett-Davis, who was fourth at 165 lbs.    

The Fighting Scots captured second place at the Virginia Duals a month ago.  Following a first round bye, they edged 25th-ranked Old Dominion 17-16, then advanced to the finals with a 23-9 win over 15th-ranked Virginia Tech.  Virginia, ranked 13th, would edge Edinboro in the finals, 20-19. 

Edinboro and Pittsburgh have wrestled four common opponents -- Lock Haven, Buffalo, Virginia and Virginia Tech.  Pitt defeated all four, including a 25-9 win over Virginia.  Edinboro lost to the Cavaliers 20-19, and the Fighting Scots have split a pair of matches with Virginia Tech.     

The Fighting Scots own a 15-10 record in the all-time series with Pittsburgh, but the Panthers have won the last four meetings.  Prior to that Edinboro had run off 11 straight wins in the series.  

The Fighting Scots turned in a strong showing at the prestigious Midlands Championships.  They matched their highest finish ever in the event, coming in second.  In addition, five wrestlers placed, led by Mitchell Port.  The redshirt junior was the champion at 141 lbs., Edinboro's first since 2011.  A.J. Schopp bounced back from a loss in the semifinals to take home third place at 133 lbs., and Johnny Greisheimer was also third at 157 lbs.  Ernest James was fifth at heavyweight and Vic Avery came in eighth at 184 lbs., although the redshirt sophomore forfeited his final two matches due to an injury.   

Edinboro has continued to climb in the various national rankings.  The Fighting Scots are ranked ninth in the latest InterMat poll and have been as high as sixth.  The Scots are 14th in the USA Today/ NWCA/AWN Coaches Poll.  In addition, they are 10th according to WrestlingReport.com and tied for 10th in WIN's Tournament Power Index.

Edinboro's list of ranked wrestlers fell back to eight this week as Kasey Burnett-Davis fell out of the WrestlingReport.com rankings after being in them for several weeks.  The group is led by Mitchell Port, who is ranked number one at 141 lbs.  Port finished as the runnerup at 141 lbs. at the NCAA?Division I?National Championships last March, earning All-American honors for the first time.  He owns a 21-0 record and is number one according to InterMat, Amateur Wrestling News and WrestlingReport.com, and second in the WIN?rankings.  A.J. Schopp (25-1), another junior, was first for a week at 133 lbs. before suffering his first loss of the season at the Midlands Championships.  He is second according to InterMat, Amateur Wrestling News and WrestlingReport.com and third in the WIN poll.  Dave Habat (21-4) is ranked 12th at 149 lbs. by WIN, along with 15th by InterMat and 16th by AWN and WrestlingReport.com.  Vic Avery (18-3) is as high as 13th at 184 lbs. according to AWN and WIN, along with 15th by InterMat and 17th by WrestlingReport.com.  Kory Mines (19-6) has made a steady climb up the rankings at 125 lbs., and moved into 13th in the WIN poll.  He is also 14th by AWN, 17th by WrestlingReport.com and 18th according to InterMat.  Johnny Greisheimer (20-7) is another Fighting Scot who has ascended up the rankings.  The senior is now 14th at 157 lbs. according to WIN, along with 15th by AWN and WrestlingReport.com, and 16th by InterMat.  Ernest James (21-5) parlayed a strong showing at Midlands into a boost in the rankings, and picked up a pair of big wins recently to climb a little more.  The heavyweight is now 14th according to AWN, 15th in the WrestlingReport.com poll, 17th according to InterMat and 19th by WIN.  Finally, Vince Pickett (17-9) is ranked 29th by WrestlingReport.com at 197 lbs.            

Head coach Tim Flynn has once again assembled a demanding schedule, with no fewer than five teams ranked in this week's InterMat Top 25 or USA?Today/NWCA/AWN Coaches Poll.  Leading the way is Iowa, which visited McComb Fieldhouse on December 5 as the top-ranked team in the country.  Using the NWCA?poll, which is a measure of dual meets, Iowa is currently ranked third. Pittsburgh has moved up to sixth, while Virginia Tech has been ranked as high as eighth and is now 16th.  Rider was ranked 25th at the time Edinboro faced the Broncs, and Bloomsburg has been ranked at various points in the season.  The Fighting Scots also competed in the Virginia Duals, where they faced 12th-ranked Virginia in the finals.  Throw in the Midlands Championships and Edinboro's wrestlers have again faced some top talent.          
 
THE PITTSBURGH SERIES
EDINBORO LEADS 15-10
Pittsburgh has won the last four meetings between the two team, including a 19-18 decision a year ago.  Prior to that Edinboro ran off 11 straight wins against the Panthers.
 
LAST MEETING
2012-13:  PITTSBURGH 19, EDINBORO 18 -- The Panthers prevailed thanks to a win in the final match at heavyweight.  Matt Wilps, ranked third at 197 lbs., moved up to heavyweight and won a 3-2 decision in a tiebreaker over Ernest James. 
 
THE COACHES
EDINBORO -- Tim Flynn (Penn State '86) is in his 17th season as the helm of the Fighting Scots.  He has elevated the Edinboro program to one of the best in the country, compiling a 181-68-5 record.  Edinboro has had 11 top-20 finishes and three in the top ten at the NCAA?Division I?National Championships during his tenure.  He has produced three national champions and 30 All-Americans.  All told, Flynn has been named the EWL?Coach of the Year five times and the PSAC?Coach of the Year 11 times.
 
PITTSBURGH -- Jason Peters (East Stroudsburg '98) replaced long-time head coach Rande Stottlemyre this year after serving as an assistant coach for the Panthers for ten seasons. He helped lead Pittsburgh to three straight EWL?Tournament titles and now is guiding the Panthers in their inaugural season in the Atlantic Coast Conference. In fact, with last Friday's win over Virginia Tech Pitt clinched at least a tie for the ACC?regular season championship.  he has also served as an assistant coach at Harvard and Princeton. 
 
SCOUTING PITTSBURGH
The Panthers feature a veteran lineup with three seniors and two redshirt juniors, but it is also mixed with several promising young grapplers.  Head coach Jason Peters' can call on seven ranked wrestlers, led by Tyler Wilps and Max Thomusseit.  Wilps is ranked seventh at 174 lbs. with a 23-5 record.  Thomusseit is ranked sixth by InterMat and eighth by Amateur Wrestling News at 184 lbs. with a 13-1 ledger.  Both are redshirt juniors.  At 125 lbs., fifth-year senior Anthony Zanetta picked up his 100th career win last week against Virginia Tech.  Ranked 18th by InterMat, he is 18-6 on the season and 100-34 for his career.  Freshman Edgar Bright will challenge top-ranked Mitchell Port at 141 lbs.  He has a 15-6 record and is ranked 17th by InterMat and 18th by Amateur Wrestling News.