LOCK HAVEN There was a mixed bag of results that came out of Thomas Field House Friday night as the Lock Haven University wrestling squad split a pair of dual meets.
The Bald Eagles had an easy time of it in the opener by winning nine of 10 weights for a lopsided 40-4 win over Shippensburg before they came out on the short end of a 19-14 final to Rider University in the nightcap.
"This is a fun team to coach, but I am disappointed for them that they lost this dual (to Rider) because I felt they outwrestled them," said LHU head coach Robbie Waller. "We have to find a way to win those close ones. Those are some of the matches involving underclassmen and we'll get better in those."
Of the nine wins in the victory over Ship, the Bald Eagles picked up bonus points in six of the nine weights.
Zach Heffner and Joe Rimel picked up falls for LHU, Jake Kemerer was all over John Lindquist for an 18-3 technical fall in 5:08, Dan Neff and Mac Maldarelli posted major decisions and Phil Sprenkle was awarded a forfeit.
"We are gradually separating ourselves from some of the other teams a little bit," said Waller about the margin of victory over the Red Raiders. "The reason we do this is to give us a gauge as to where we are and to give our kids come confidence."
In the loss to Rider, the Bald Eagles held an 11-6 lead midway through the meet, but the Broncs put together four wins in a row to score 13 unanswered points for a 19-11 lead with just one bout left.
Of the six losses the Bald Eagles incurred in the loss, four were by a total of nine points.
"We simply have to find a way to win the close ones," said Waller. "If we do that tonight, that is a different dual meet. If we could have turned one of those one-point losses around, it is a different outcome. If you look at it on paper, those matches really shouldn't have been that close, but they were because our kids fight hard. If they keep fighting hard, we'll turn some of those losses into Ws."
Leading the Bald Eagles to their lopsided over the Red Raiders and the narrow loss to Rider with a pair of wins each was the foursome of Bobby Rehm, Dan Neff, Jake Kemerer and Harry Turner.
"If you watched the performances of our guys who won tonight, they went out to dominate. They didn't just go out to win," Waller said. "That is an attitude that is becoming infectious throughout our team and it will continue to grow."
In addition to winning both of his matches, Kemerer turned around an early season loss into an impressive win when he dominated Rider's Zac Cibula for a 14-6 major decision in his second bout of the evening. Kemerer showed his superiority on his feet as he took down Cibula six times en route to the win.
"That kid pinned him five days ago and tonight he turns around and majors him," said Waller. "Jake Kemerer is getting better and better and Jake Kemerer is going to be back."
After one open tournament and the pair of dual meets, Waller likes where his wrestlers are at this point of the season.
"We are nowhere close to where we need to be, but I feel like we are improving every week," said Waller. "The more we wrestle, I am seeing better and better things from our guys."
Rider 38, Shippensburg 3
125 Chris Kochinsky, S, dec. Patrick Skinner, 13-6 (0-3) 133 Jimmy Morris R, dec. Cameron Throckmorton, 4-3 (3-3) 141 Vinny Fava, R, dec. Tyler Erdman, 5-3. (6-3) 149 Curt Delia, R, dec. Mark Lentz, 10-3. (9-3) 157 Zac Cebula, R, maj. Dec John Lundquist, 19-8. (13-3) 165 Ramon Santiago, R, dec. Bobby Schivert, 7-2. (16-3) 174 James Brundage, R, won by forfeit. (22-3) 184 Clint Morrison, R, pinned Jimmy Knapp, 5:53. (28-3) 197 Donald McNeil, R, won by forfeit. (34-3) 285 Greg Velasco, R, maj. Dec. Dan Fultz, 11-2. (38-3)
Lock Haven 40, Shippensburg 4
125 Bobby Rehm, LH, dec. Chris Kochinsky, 6-4. (3-0) 133 Cameron Throckmorton, S, maj. Dec. Cody Wheeler, 10-2. (3-4) 141 Dan Neff, LH, maj. Dec. Tyler Erdman, 10-1. (7-4) 149 Mac Maldarelli, LH, maj. Dec. Marc Lentz, 9-0. (11-4) 157 Jake Kemerer, LH, tech. fall John Lundquist, 18-3, 5:08. (16-4) 165 Aaron McKinney, LH, dec. Neal Grudi, 4-0. (19-4) 174 Zach Heffner, LH, pinned Bobby Scheivert, 2:46. (25-4) 184 Joe Rimel, LH, pinned Jimmy Knapp, 4:47. (31-4) 197 Phil Sprenkle, LH, won by forfeit. (37-4) 285 Harry Turner, LH, dec. Dan Fultz, 6-0. (40-4)
Rider 19, Lock Haven 14
125 Bobby Rehm, LH, maj. Dec. Patrick Skinner, 13-1. (4-0) 133 Jimmy Morris, R, dec. Matt Bryer, 5-2. (4-3) 141 Dan Neff, LH, dec. Vinnie Fava, 7-2. (7-3) 149 Curt Delia, R, dec. Mac Maldarelli, 15-13. (7-6) 157 Jake Kemerer, LH, maj. dec. Zac Cibula, 14-6. (11-6) 165 Ramon Santiago, R, dec. Aaron McKinney, 5-0. ((11-9) 174 James Brundage, R, dec. Zach Heffner, 3-2. (11-12) 184 Clint Morrison, R, maj. Dec. Joe Rimel, 11-0. (11-16) 197 Donald McNeil, R, dec. Phil Sprenkle, 11-8. (11-19) 285 Harry Turner, LH, dec. Greg Velasco, 5-3. (5-3).
