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Barzona, Bucknell get needed test

LEWISBURG — Geo Barzona rose to his feet and pumped his fists as he walked toward the center of the circle Sunday. The usually stoic Bucknell 125-pounder knew he just recorded a big win.

It was worth breaking character for a moment and showing his excitement. His win over Buffalo national qualifier Kyle Akins is easily the biggest of his career. And on a day where Bison head coach Dan Wirnsberger wanted to be tested by the Bulls’ veteran lineup, Barzona passed with flying colors.

Bucknell lost its final dual of the three-match day to Buffalo, 25-12, but opened with wins over VMI (36-3) and Cleveland State (25-10) in its first competitions of the season. Wrestling against Buffalo was all about trying to find out just where the Bison are at with a dual against the Goliath of college wrestling, Penn State, looming in just 18 days.

Barzona knocked off Akins, 5-4, to cap a 2-0 day. Freshman Zach Hartman went 3-0 in his first collegiate competition, including a win over Buffalo’s 17th-ranked Alex Smythe. And Wirnsberger got a combined 10 wins from six freshmen or sophomores.

“I want to see where we’re at and what kind of fight we have,” Wirnsberger said. “I want to see how our guys who haven’t been tested a lot react when they get punched in the face. Are they going to punch back and get back in the battle? I’m really happy with our performance and our fight. We have something to build on definitely.”

Barzona and Hartman showcased the fight Wirnsberger wanted to see perfectly. Knowing Barzona is usually so emotionless when seven minutes of wrestling is finished made Wirnsberger excited to see his sophomore hyped over the biggest win of his career. It means the Central Mountain graduate knew exactly what he was up against when he stepped on the line in the quad-meet’s marquee dual. It means despite know what he was up against, Barzona found a way to raise his level of competition to that of a former national qualifier and scrap and claw his way to a 5-4 victory.

After an 8-14 freshman campaign which included a 1-2 record in the EIWA tournament, Barzona dedicated himself to changing his body during the offseason in preparation for matches like this. He was actually weighing more during last season, but he toned his body during the offseason and now looks leaner and stronger.

Wrestling with, and even beating, wrestlers of Akins’ caliber a year ago wasn’t an option for Barzona. The strength and the confidence just weren’t there and he was often dominated by those kinds of wrestlers.

Sunday at Davis Gym, Barzona was the aggressor against Akins. He scored a takedown halfway through the first period with a sweet little blast double. And it set the tone he wanted to of being aggressive and relentless. When Akins fought for the go-ahead takedown in the final 45 seconds, Barzona never allowed him an opening. He kept Akins at arm’s length and was able to give the Bison an unlikely 3-0 lead.

“That was my first real big win in college,” said Barzona, who was 2-0 yesterday. “I’ve beaten kids on my level before. But this takes me to another level and it’s definitely going to give me another push to get a lot better. This definitely gave me the confidence I needed and the motivation to get even better now.”

“It’s night and day when you’re talking about someone as a freshman and then they get a year of experience under their belt,” Wirnsberger said. “He gained such valuable experience last year. He worked hard in the offseason and developed. He got a little stronger and a little bigger and he just looks more confident out there.”

And then there was Hartman, the freshman from Belle Vernon High School who was a PIAA Class AAA runner-up just eight months ago. He was a wrestler Wirnsberger had high expectations for coming into the season. But you just never know what to expect from true freshmen in their first competition.

The moment was never too big for Hartman, though. The 157-pounder scored a third-period fall in a match he was leading by five points in his first career bout against VMI. Against Cleveland State he battled and grinded to an 8-2 win against a third-year collegiate wrestler.

But against Buffalo, he battled back from a 4-1, first-period deficit, as well as a one-point third-period deficit. He was poised and persistent. He was aware of the situation when he started the third period in the bottom position holding on to a riding time advantage of 1 minute, 18 seconds. He escaped in just two seconds against U23 national champion Smythe and used the riding-time point to win 8-7.

“It’s really easy to fall in line with what everyone else is saying and that you’re just a freshman and this guy is going to the U23 World Championships,” Wirnsberger said. “But I think the biggest thing about Zach is his self-belief. And when you believe in yourself, it really doesn’t matter what anybody else says or thinks.”

“He works harder than anyone in the room and everyone knows that,” Barzona said. “He’s always in good shape. He’s perfect at cutting weight. He’s just an all-around good lifestyle kind of guy.”

Bucknell 36, VMI 3

125: Geo Barzona, B, tech. fall Derek Shockey, 21-5, 7:00.

133: Brett Rezendes, B, dec. Hunter Starner, 8-2.

141: Matthew Kolonia, B, dec. Dominick Gallo, 5-2.

149: Joey Schiele, B, dec. Darren Ostrander, 2-1.

157: Zach Hartman, B, pinned Jerrod Hunzicker, 6:41.

165: D.J. Hollingshead, B, pinned Jacob Kennedy, 4:33.

174: Neal Richards II, V, dec. Nick Stephani, 13-7.

184: Kyle Inlander, B, dec. Max Gallahan, 5-2.

197: Drew Phipps, B, maj. dec. Christopher Beck, 10-0.

285: Brandon Stokes, B, dec. Tre Momon, 7-0.

Takedowns: Bucknell 19, VMI 9.

Bucknell 25,

Cleveland State 10

125: Jake Campbell, B, dec. Cameron Lathem, 2-0.

133: Armando Torres, CS, dec. Brett Rezendes, 5-0.

141: Matthew Kolonia, B, pinned Kyle Hennig, 1:11.

149: Brady Barnett, CS, maj. dec. Joey Schiele, 10-1.

157: Zach Hartman, B, dec Nico O’dor, 8-2.

165: D.J. Hollingshead, B, dec. John Vaughn, 3-1.

174: Nick Stephani, B, dec. Dimitri Williams, 8-4.

184: Kyle Inlander, B, dec. Chris Morrow, 4-3.

197: Drew Phipps, B, maj. dec. Ben Smith, 13-1.

285: Collin Kelly, CS, dec. Brandon Stokes, 5-4.

Takedowns: Bucknell 12, Cleveland State 7.

Buffalo 25, Bucknell 10

125: Geo Barzona, Bucknell, dec. Kyle Akins, 5-4.

133: Derek Spann, Buffalo, maj. dec. Brett Rezendes, 11-0.

141: No. 11 Bryan Lantry, Buffalo, maj. dec. Matthew Kolonia, 13-5.

149: Jason Estevez, Buffalo, maj. dec. Joey Schiele, 12-3.

157: Zach Hartman, Bucknell, dec. No. 17 Alex Smythe, 8-7.

165: Noah Grover, Buffalo, pinned D.J. Hollingshead, :49.

174: Nick Stephani, Bucknell, dec. Jake Lanning, 9-6.

184: Logan Rill, Buffalo, dec. Kyle Inlander, 3-1, sv.

197: Drew Phipps, Bucknell, dec. Brett Perry, 7-2.

285: No. 18 Jake Gunning, Buffalo, maj. dec. Brandon Stokes, 9-0.

Takedowns: Buffalo 16, Bucknell 11.

Record: Bucknell (2-1).

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