Edinboro Match Notes

The Lineups

EDINBORO Fighting Scots (8-7, 6-0 EWL)
 

			2015-16	Career
			Record	Record
125	Sean Russell	R-Fr.	22-6	22-6	Lawrenceville, Ga./Collins Hills
133	Anthony Rivera	R-Jr.	7-10	12-25	Mardela Springs, Md./Parkside
	Tony Recco	Fr.	6-19	6-19	Lyndonville, N.Y./Lyndonville
141	Tyler Vath	Fr.	9-15	9-15	Saegertown, Pa./Saegertown
	Nate Hagan	Fr.	13-12	13-12	Toledo, Ohio/Toledo Central Catholic
149	#18/#12 Patricio Lugo	Fr.	25-4	25-4	Homestead, Fla./South Dade
157	#16/#15 Austin Matthews	R-So.	6-1	6-1	Greenville, Pa./Reynolds/Clarion
165	#20/NR Casey Fuller	R-Sr.	22-6	67-55	Hamlin, Pa./Western Wayne
174	Patrick Jennings	R-Sr.	19-12	73-59	Ridge, N.Y./Longwood
	Ty Schoffstall	R-So.	7-3	27-10	Pottsville, Pa./Tri-Valley
184	#5/#8 Vic Avery	R-Sr.	6-1	89-30	Foxboro, Mass./Foxboro
197	Vince Pickett	Sr.	17-13	77-57	Galloway, Ohio/Central Crossing
	Warren Bosch	R-Sr.	8-8	40-49	Kings Park, N.Y./Kings Park
285	Billy Miller	R-Fr.	23-7	23-7	Perry, Ohio/Perry

 
RANKINGS: InterMat/Flowrestling


CENTRAL MICHIGAN Chippewas (8-4, 5-1 MAC) 
 

			2015-16
			Record
125	Brent Fleetwood	So.	16-9	Smyrna, Del.
133	Corey Keener	Jr.	13-8	Schuylkill Haven, Pa.
141	#16 Zach Horan	Sr.	20-8	Nazareth, Pa,
149	#9 Justin Oliver	R-Fr.	23-4	Davison, Mich.
157	#9 Luke Smith	Sr.	25-5	Wheeling, Ill.
165	Jordan Atienza	So.	22-14	Avonia, Mich.
174	#12 Mike Ottinger	Sr.	24-5	Schnecksville, Pa.
184	Jordan Ellingwood	R-Fr.	24-10	Plainfield, Ill.
197	Jackson Lewis	Sr.	15-13	Madison Heights, Ohio
285	Newton Smerchek	R-So.	11-10	Casco, Wisc.
	Adam Robinson	Sr.	22-10	Leslie, Mich.

RANKINGS:  InterMat

KENT STATE Golden Flashes (13-3, 6-1 MAC)
RANKINGS:  InterMat

The Match Stories

The Edinboro wrestling team is in the midst of a demanding stretch of duals to wrap up the 2015-16 regular season. After facing tenth-ranked Virginia Tech on Super Bowl Sunday, the Fighting Scots now "celebrate" Valentine's Day with matches against a pair of Mid-American Conference foes -- 20th-ranked Central Michigan and 17th-ranked Kent State -- on Sunday, February 14. While there likely won't be a lot of love on the mats at Kent State's M.A.C. Center, there will be some outstanding wrestling. Following these two duals, thanks to winning the EWL regular season crown, Edinboro qualified for a berth in the NWCA National Dual Championship Series and will face one of eight teams out of the Big Ten. Finally, the Fighting Scots wrap up the dual-meet season hosting West Virginia on February 20. 

Edinboro, tied for 22nd in the latest InterMat Tournament Rankings, saw its three-dual winning streak snapped with a 29-7 loss to tenth-ranked Virginia Tech last Sunday, leaving the Fighting Scots with an 8-7 record.  That was Edinboro's fifth loss this year to a team that was nationally-ranked at the time, along with a sixth loss to a Pittsburgh team which has been in and out of the national rankings. The Fighting Scots opened the year in the EMU Duals, winning two of three matches. Ranked 24th to start the season, they defeated Olivet, 46-3, before falling to 22nd-ranked Ohio, 22-12. They ended the day with a 19-12 win over Northern Illinois. Edinboro opened EWL action with a 23-15 win at Clarion. That was followed by a 36-6 loss at 10th-ranked Lehigh on November 22. Edinboro defeated Bloomsburg, 37-12, in its first home dual on December 3.  The Fighting Scots then suffered a 24-9 loss at Pittsburgh, before wrapping up dual action in 2015 with a 25-10 defeat of Cleveland State.  After a 15th place finish against a strong field in the Southern Scuffle to open 2016, Edinboro dropped three straight duals at the Pittsburgh Duals. The Scots fell to 15th-ranked North Carolina, 26-11, to Duke by a 30-15 score, and to third-ranked North Carolina State, 31-10. Edinboro claimed a 31-7 decision over George Mason before defeating Rider, 18-15. 

Central Michigan, ranked 20th in the latest USA Today/NWCA Coaches Poll, comes in with an 8-4 record and is 5-1 in the Mid-American Conference. The Chippewas wrestle Kent State at 1 p.m. before taking the mat against the Fighting Scots. Edinboro and Central Michigan have faced two common opponents. Both own wins over Rider by the identical score of 18-15. Edinboro lost top Ohio, while Central Michigan beat the Bobcats. Coach Tom Borrelli's team has four wrestlers ranked by InterMat, led by three-time national qualifier Zach Horan. The senior is ranked 16th at 141 lbs. Justin Oliver and Luke Smith are ranked ninth at 149 and 157 lbs., respctively. Mike Ottinger is 12th at 174 lbs. Borrelli has won 350 career duals, including 304 at Central Michigan.  

Kent State has a 13-3 record and is ranked 17th in the USA Today/NWCA Coaches Poll. The Golden Flashes have won seven straight duals and are 6-1 in the MAC. They will wrestle Central Michigan at 1 p.m. before facing the Fighting Scots later in the day. Edinboro and Kent State have five common opponents -- Bloomsburg (both won), George Mason (both won), Northern Illinois (both won), Ohio (Kent State won, Edinboro lost), Rider (Edinboro won, Kent State lost). Coach Jim Andrassy's team features four ranked wrestlers, led by Ian Miller. The fifth-year senior is a two-time All-American and three-time Mid-American Conference champion who is ranked third at 157 lbs. with a 19-0 record.  Mack McGuire, a three-time national qualifier, is ranked ninth at 133 lbs. Kyle Conel is 16th at 197 lbs. and former Fighting Scot Mike DePalma is 20th at 149 lbs. Former Edinboro standout Matt Hill is an assistant coach at Kent State. 

The Edinboro lineup received a huge boost recently with the returns of Vic Avery and Austin Matthews against George Mason. Both had missed the entire season while recovering from knee surgery. Avery is 6-1 since returning to wrestle at 184 lbs. and now has 89 career victories. He posted a 2-1 decision in a tiebreaker over seventh-ranked Blake Stauffer of Arizona State in the Edinboro Open, before dropping a 3-1 loss in sudden victory to Zach Zavatsky of Virginia Tech. The redshirt senior earned All-American honors for the first time a year ago with a third place showing. He was 34-7 a year ago and has been ranked as high as second in the various national rankings. Matthews had not competed since November of last season due to knee injuries. A former transfer from Clarion, Matthews was off to great start last year with a 9-0 record and climbed into the top five nationally. He would suffer a knee injury and miss the rest of the season. The redshirt sophomore began the year ranked as high as fourth at 157 lbs. He won a 6-1 decision in his 2015-16 debut. He is 6-1 this year while facing a number of very strong opponents.

The return of Avery and Matthews give Edinboro's lineup a little more experience, but the ascent is still on youth, with true freshmen Tyler Vath (141 lbs.) and Patricio Lugo (149 lbs.) in the lineup along with redshirt freshmen Sean Russell and Billy Miller at 125 and heavyweight, respectively. Lugo has a 25-4 record and is ranked 12th by FloWrestling and 18th by InterMat. Miller has a 23-7 record, while Russell is 22-6.

While youth has been key in 2015-16, Edinboro's upperclassmen have stepped up. Casey Fuller is enjoying the best season of his career. The redshirt senior has a 22-6 record while competing at 165 lbs. and is ranked 20th by InterMat. Coming off a 29-win season a year ago, redshirt senior Patrick Jennings owns an 19-12 record at 174 lbs. Finally, senior Vince Pickett has a 17-13 ledger at 197 lbs.  Pickett and Avery are the lone returning national qualifiers from last year's team. 

With a lineup featuring four true freshmen and three redshirt freshmen, it was anticipated that Edinboro would see its string of four straight PSAC championships come to an end. But someone forgot to tell the Fighting Scots. Six wrestlers reached the finals on December 5, with all six coming away with titles, and a total of eight Fighting Scots placed. It all added up to a fifth straight championship for the Scots, who finished with 136.5 points to outdistance Lock Haven, who finished second with 118 points. Mercyhurst was third with 108.5 points in the 12-team field. While the emphasis has been on the freshmen this year, it was a trio of seniors who led the way. Casey Fuller won his second straight title at 165 lbs., while Vince Pickett was doing the same at 197 lbs. Patrick Jennings won his first championship at 174 lbs. The freshmen did their part, as well. Redshirt freshmen Sean Russell and Billy Miller finished first at 125 and 285 lbs., respectively, while true freshman Patricio Lugo took home the crown at 149 lbs. Freshman Spencer Nagy added a third place finish at 157 lbs., with fellow freshman Nate Hagan fourth at 141 lbs.     

Edinboro comes off a monumental 2014-15 campaign which saw the Fighting Scots post their highest finish ever at the NCAA Division I National Championships. Edinboro earned a spot on the stand for the first time, finishing in third place, with four wrestlers earning All-American honors. That came after a fifth place showing at Nationals in 2014. Unfortunately, three of those All-Americans – A.J. Schopp, Mitchell Port, and Dave Habat -- have departed, and with them a total of eight All-American certificates and 399 career wins. In addition, four-year starter Kory Mines and his 88 career victories are gone, leaving Flynn to replace close to 500 wins in the starting lineup. Throw in Kasey Burnett-Davis, who was in-and-out of the Edinboro lineup during his career and had 64 wins, and Edinboro's five seniors accounted for 551 wins!

Head coach Tim Flynn is in his 19th season as head coach. Already the record-holder for career wins at Edinboro, Flynn joined the 200-win club with the early-season victory over Northern Illinois. He owns a 206-80-5 record. Flynn was named the EWL Coach of the Year for the second straight year and seventh time overall last season. In addition, he was selected the PSAC Coach of the Year for the 13th time.  

Edinboro has six wrestlers ranked in the various polls. Vic Avery is ranked as high as second by WIN Magazine at 184 lbs., and is fifth at 184 lbs. by InterMat, despite sitting out two months while recovering from knee surgery. Like Avery, Austin Matthews returned against George Mason and jumped right back in to the rankings. He is 12th at 157 lbs. according to TheOpenMat.com. Patricio Lugo is ranked as high as 12th by FloWrestling at 149 lbs., and is ranked 18th by InterMat. Casey Fuller climbed into InterMat's rankings this week, sitting in 20th place. Sean Russell is 19th by TheOpenMat.com at 125 lbs. Heavyweight Billy Miller fell out of several rankings following a loss against Rider, but is still 25th in TheWrestlingReport.com poll.

THE CENTRAL MICHIGAN SERIES
CENTRAL MICHIGAN LEADS 4-3 
The Fighting Scots and Chippewas last met in the EMU Duals a year ago, with Edinboro claiming a 30-3 victory. That snapped a two-match losing streak to the Chippewas.

LAST MEETING
2014-15:  EDINBORO 30, CENTRAL MICHIGAN 3 -- The Fighting Scots won nine of the ten matches, with the Chippewas winning at 165 lbs. Nine of the ten weight classes were decisions, with A.J. Schopp winning by fall in the second period at 133 lbs.

THE KENT STATE SERIES
EDINBORO LEADS 7-4 
The Fighting Scots made it three straight wins over the Golden Flashes with a 27-12 win last year at Edinboro.

LAST MEETING
2014-15:  EDINBORO 27, KENT STATE 12 -- Tied at 12-12 after six bouts, the Fighting Scots ran off wins in the final four matches to pull away for the win. Patrick Jennings gave Edinboro the lead for good with a 4-3 decision over Mike Vollant at 174 lbs. Vic Avery moved up a wight class to 197 lbs. and defeated Cole Baxter, 8-1. Warren Bosch capped the win with a fall just 45 seconds into the heavyweight match.

THE COACHES
EDINBORO -- Tim Flynn (Penn State '86) is in his 19th season as the helm of the Fighting Scots.  He has elevated the Edinboro program to one of the best in the country, compiling a 206-80-5 record.  Edinboro has had 13 top-20 finishes and five in the top ten at the NCAA Division I National Championships during his tenure.  That includes the two best finishes in school history the last two years. The Fighting Scots made the podium for the first time at Nationals with a third place showing a year ago, and in 2014 they were fifth. He has produced three national champions and 37 All-Americans.  All told, Flynn has been named the EWL Coach of the Year seven times and the PSAC Coach of the Year 13 times. Two years ago, Flynn captured nearly every Coach of the Year award, including being named the NWCA NCAA Division I Coach of the Year, WIN's Dan Gable Coach of the Year, and was InterMat's Co-Coach of the Year along with Minnesota's J Robinson.

CENTRAL MICHIGAN -- Tom Borrelli (The Citadel '79) is in his 25th year in charge of the Chippewas and owns a 304-133-7 record. He has led CMU to 13 Mid-American Conference championships and 14 MAC Championships titles, including 11 straight from 2002-12. He has coached 38 All-Americans at Central Michigan. CMU has boasted multiple All-Americans in nine of the past 12 seasons. His 39 total All-America honorees rank eighth among active NCAA Division I head coaches. Borrelli has been named MAC Coach of the Year a conference-record 12 times (1992, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010 and 2012), while no other MAC wrestling head coach has won the award more than five times. CMU has won at least 10 duals in 19 of Borrelli's 24 seasons.  All told, Borrelli has coached one national champion, 39 All-Americans, eight MAC Wrestler of the Year honorees, 81 MAC champions, 135 national qualifiers, eight NWCA All-Academic first team selections, 44 Academic All-MAC first team selections and 10 MAC Freshman of the Year selections.

KENT STATE -- Jim Andrassy (Kent State '95) is in his 13th season in charge of the Kent State wrestling program and owns a 155-93-1 record. He has been a part of the Kent State program for 26 years, beginning as a wrestler who posted a career record of 106-25-1. He is one of just two KSU wrestlers to reach 100 victories in only four seasons. That was followed by a stint as an assistant coach for the Golden Flashes before taking over as the head coach in 2003-04.