Dear Friends,

 

This past weekend our wrestlers competed in open competition at the Penn State Open held in State College, PA. Overall we had a very good day. Here is a quick recap of how the tournament went:

 

125: We had two wrestlers place at this weight class. Ross Gitomer went 4-2 on the day and took 4th place overall. Ross stormed to the semi finals and lost a very close decision to Jarrod Garnett of Virginia Tech. As you may recall, Garnett had an amazing year last season and was ranked in the top 12 for most of the year. Ross had a very close match with Garnett but lost the match late in the third period. Ross continues to make great progress coming off of season ending ACL surgery a year ago. Quit frankly, it is amazing to me that he is even wrestling at this level so soon after such a massive injury. I've seen other wrestlers in the past take much longer to come back from a knee injury like this and I am once again impressed with Gitomer's toughness and resiliency.

 

Also placing at this weight class was standout redshirt Freshman Matt Snyder. Snyder won an impressive 5 matches on the day and upped his season record to 14-4 on the year. Matt lost in the quarterfinals to the eventual 3rd place finisher Bradley Wisdom of Missouri but then fought back with two big major decision victories of Olanowski of Michigan State (12-3) and Strizki of Maryland (8-0). In the 5th/6th place match Snyder lost 9-8 on  a last second takedown in a scramble position. 

 

141: Nick Nelson took 7th place at this weight class and ended up 3-2 on the day. Nick is much better than what he showed in this tournament. Nick lost a close 4-3 match in the quarterfinals to Penn's Zach Kemmerer and ended up winning one more match before suffering another defeat to nationally ranked Tyler Nauman of Pitt. The Kemmerer match was frustrating b/c Nelson was in the "driver's seat" late in the match but had a mental lapse (which is very uncharacteristic for him) and it cost him an escape and takedown which lost the match for him. Nelson never gives up this many points, especially late in the match. Everyone is allowed to have a bad day. I've had a few myself. We aren't going to over-react but certainly will rope Nick in and remind him that his goal is to be an NCAA Champion..anything short of this in the future is unacceptable. He will need to wrestle much better than this if this goal is to become a reality.

 

149: We were very happy with the results we received at this weight class. Both Kellon Balum and Shawn Harris placed 7th and 8th respectively and most importantly were able to rack up a ton of matches on the day. Kellon made his way into the quarterfinal round with solid wins over James English of Penn State and Nick Standish of Colombia. After a loss in the quarterfinal round to Lehigh's Joey Napoli, Kellon was able to rebound nicely and pick up two more falls to complete his day. He defeated Shawn in the 7th and 8th place bout by fall in the first period. His only other loss in the tournament came to nationally ranked Donnie Vinson of Binghamton University. Kellon's record now stands at 11-3 on the year. Shawn Harris went 4-3 on the day and had some solid wins of his own. More specifically, Shawn earned a very impressive 8-4 victory over Cornell's Craig Eifert (who recently won the East Stroudsburg Open at the same weight class Shawn competed in). Shawn, like Ross Gitomer, is coming off of a very serious injury as well from a year ago and continues to inch back to his old form. 

 

157: Both Pat Riley and Dan Clarke went 3-2 on the day at this weight class. Again, we are very happy with the number of matches these two young men competed in. One of our main mantra's in our wrestling room is that the best way to make major strides in your wrestling is to compete. With 5 matches a piece we feel that both these guys got better and did in fact make major strides. One match in particular that is of note is  5-4 loss Riley suffered to #6 ranked Cyler Sanderson of Penn State. Riley gave Sanderson (a returning All American and the brother of Cael Sanderson) all he could handle in this match and had our both Coach Moore and Coach Clemsen on the edge of their seats. Riley has really turned a corner this year and fights hard for every point. Obviously we are never happy with a loss but we were certainly happy with his effort against a very, very tough opponent. Riley's season record now stands at an impressive 12-5 on the season. Clarke also continues to improve. Fresh off a fourth place finish at the MatTown tournament last weekend, Clarke racked up another 3 wins in this tournament. 

 

174: As always, Chris Henrich came to this tournament ready to do battle. He dominated in the finals 10-3 against a very tough Dorian Henderson of Missouri. Henderson, who has been nationally ranked in the top 20 all year long, is a very talented, hard to wrestle opponent. Henrich wasted no time in taking control of the match however (this is the what separates Chris from our other guys...he always makes it a point to score first) scoring on two long single takedowns and grinding his Missouri opponent for over 2 minutes of riding time before the second period even started. In the end Chris kept the pressure on and kept extending the lead en route to the tournament title. Chris has another nationally ranked opponent from App State coming up on December 19th and will look to close out a very productive fall semester of wrestling with another big win.

 

184: This weight class was another highlight for our team with two guys placing at one weight yet again. Redshirt Freshman Mike Salopek and first year Jon Fausey both placed in the top 8 and wrestled very well in spurts. They both have work to do but showed some great stuff from the top position in particular. Salopek started the day with a 9-6 win over Dallas Brown of Maryland and a 6-2 decision victory of Crowell of Penn State. He then lost to #5 nationally ranked Patterson (a returning All American from Binghamton University) 9-1 but rebounded nicely with a 10-3 decision over Cornell's Colin MacDonald. Fausey also had some solid  wins on the day but perhaps impressed the most in the two losses he suffered in the tournament. In the quarterfinal round Jon lost a close 5-3 decision to All American Quinten Wright of Penn State. The match was back and forth the whole time with some amazing scrambles. In the end, one mistake cost Jon and he wasn't able to pull the upset victory out. In the wrestle backs Jon then matched up with the #1 ranked recruit in the nation coming out last year in Ed Ruth of Penn State. For all those that don't know, Ruth is being mentioned as "the next big thing" from Cael Sanderson directly. He is big, strong, fast and very talented. Again, Jon gave him a great match but lost 4-2. Jon is very upset and is never happy about losing to anyone. This is a great trait and will undoubtedly motivate him moving forward. My staff and I feel that he showed just how talented he is in these two bouts and with a little more polish he'll be ready to make a big impact on this team.

 

 

197: Brent Jones had a pretty good day overall, going 4-1 and taking second. Brent beat some very tough opponents to make his way to the finals against a familiar foe (in Hudson Taylor of Maryland). In the quarterfinal round Brent beat highly touted Brandon Palik of Drexel (who has had a great season thus far) and then dominated Brent Haynes of Missouri in the semifinal round by a score of 9-2. Haynes, is young, but very good and has been nationally ranked since the first tournament of the year. Brent wrestled a very smart and tactful match in this particular bout and carried the momentum into the finals against #2 ranked Hudson Taylor. In the finals, Brent came out on fire and took down Taylor twice in the first period. He was winning 4-1 in the period and looked to be in control but made one mistake from the top position and was reversed and pinned. Taylor, like Jones, is very dangerous. He can pretty much pin you from anywhere and it showed in this match. The troubling thing was that Brent was wrestling so well up until that point. As many of you have seen, when Jones is on he can wrestle with anyone. He showed that again in this match but learned another tough lesson, in that you can never let your guard down against the best of the best. Jones season record now stands at 10-2 on the year. 

 

HWT: Jack Danilkowicz had a decent day, going 3-2 and narrowly missing placing by one match. Jack started the day with a good win over Michigan State's Steve Andrus 5-3 and made it to the quarterfinal round. There he met with #2 ranked Mark Ellis of Missouri. Ellis (whowon the NCAA title last year) showed how good he really is in this bout, pinning Jack in the second period. Jack then lost 3-2 to the Hwt from Penn State and was out of the tournament. 

 

*Other notes: Danny Gonsor sat this tournament out with a back injury. Derek Valenti and Michael Chaires suffered upset losses in the first round of the tournament and were unable to advance. The way the tournament is set up, if you lose before the second round you are not allowed to wrestle back. Both Derek and Mike just flat out had bad matches. They will be back and much improved in the coming weeks. I can assure you of that. 

Here is the link for all the PSU Open results:   http://test.escapesports.com/Results/2010/2009NLO.pdf

 

All the best to you and yours,

 

Coach Garland sent this out on Monday.  Sorry for the delay in getting this posted.

-------------------------

 

Dear Friends,

 

This past weekend Virginia Wrestling took another big step in the right direction. Overall I was extremely pleased with the way our guys wrestled. For the first time in this young season I thought that we were clicking on all cylinders. Below are my notes from the matches:

 

 

125: Matt Snyder came out at this weight class and gave us a big boost with a 8-0 major decision over a very tough Jamie Franco. Franco had just beaten a nationally ranked opponent (Tony Mustari from Northern Colorado) the round before this match up so this made the dominant win that much better. From the opening whistle Snyder (transfer from Bloomsburg who is a redshirt freshman eligibility wise) controlled the tempo of the match, taking his opponent down and cradling him for a 5-0 lead. From there Snyder kept the heat on and accumulated almost 5 minutes of riding time advantage. He was able to expand his lead with a reversal in the third period and and with the riding time point got us a bonus point win. Snyder is now a very impressive 10-2 on the season.

 

133: Ross Gitomer once again stepped up for our team, bumped up to the 133lb weight class and earned a pivotal victory in the dual meet. Much like Matt Snyder, Ross came out and took his Hofstra opponent down quickly and worked him over from the top position with a one on one wrist ride. Ross is brutal with this move and this really wore down the Hofstra wrestler. Ross gave up a takedown late to make the match closer than it really was. I believe that Ross was in control the whole time and did a great job toughing out a win for us. 

 

141: Derek Valenti kept the momentum for our team with a 3-0 win over Luke Vaith. Vaith is a very talented young wrestler (originally from MN) and was a game opponent. Valenti, in the end however, was too much for him from the top position (notice a theme here...I think our team was one the best in the entire competition from the top position this weekend). Valenti controlled the match using a very tough leg ride on top and power half series. Derek doesn't always make the match the most exciting thing to watch I guess, but quite honestly I don't care. He's a winner and a mentally tough competitor who never quits. His record now stands at 7-1 on the year as well. 

 

149: Kellon Balum continued to wrestle well for us, earning another bonus point win for the team. His 9-1 major decision victory was highlighted by two very nice low ankle shot takedowns and a ton of riding time advantage. Kellon was able to "flow" pretty freely on his feet and made his three takedowns look pretty easy. 

 

157: This was a breakout match for Danny Gonsor and a bout he'll never forget. He came out and TECH FALLED the #8 ranked guy in the nation in Jon Bonilla-Bowman. Danny came out and took Bowman down with a single leg takedown and immediately leg turked him to his back for an early 5-0 lead. He didn't stop there however and turned him two more times before the period ended. It was a crazy thing to watch. Danny just kept working from one move to the next on top and chain wrestled from one turn to the next. Danny then chose top in the second period and finished the match off with two more 3 point turns and ended the match with a 15-0 win. For all those who don't know, Bonilla Bowman is known in the wrestling world as one of the best conditioned athletes in our sport today. He has been in the All American round at NCAA's the past two seasons and is always ranked in the top 10 nationally. This was undoubtedly the biggest win of Dan's career to date and we are very happy for him. It was so shocking to some wrestling fans that I actually got a couple emails from reporters asking me if the bout score was correct. 

 

165: Michael Chaires, who has been fighting through a back injury, lost in double overtime to a very talented PJ Gillespie. Gillespie was also in the All American round last season and is known for being one of the best wrestlers in the country at the 165lb weight class on the mat. Chaires won the mat battle but lost the war giving up a takedown in the second overtime that ultimately lost the match for him. What was upsetting to the coaches is that Mike had what would have been the winning takedown at the end of the third period (he shot in on a beautiful sweep single leg takedown) but got over anxious and rushed his finish and didn't get the points. We work on this particular position all the time so that was frustrating. I think this match will motivate Mike moving forward however but we need to keep him healthy. 

 

174: This match was a showdown between two of the best 174lbers in the country. Henrich came out big in the end with a 7-1 win over #11 ranked Ryan Patrovich. Patrovich is known for his win last year over then #1 seed Mack Lewnes of Cornell University at the NCAA tournament. He is very strong and goes extremely hard. He came out on fire against Chris is did a great job in the fist period. Chris settled down however and was able to turn Patrovich from the top position to break the match open. Chris had a big weekend (as I will discuss a little later in more detail) beating two top nationally ranked foes back to back. This win was a great highlight of the day.

 

184: This match was one of the best matches I've seen this season. Mike Salopek (redshirt freshman) outshot his opponent, Ben Clymer (who is undefeated and 10-0 on the year) 8 shots to 2 but still lost in overtime (again off of his own shot right by the edge of the mat). Mike had numerous chances to finish takedowns but was unable to do so. He looked great from the top position however and rode out Clymer the entire second period. Mike chose the neutral position in the third period and was winning 1-0 with 20 seconds to go in the match. He was hit with a stall call at that point which sent the match into overtime. Obviously I am biased, but I couldn't believe that a referee would hit our guy for stalling when he had taken more than the majority of shots in the match. It was unfortunate, but if Mike finishes one of the many single leg attacks he had during the course of the match, it doesn't matter. So, in the end, we learned that Mike has to work on this position more. Its just that simple. This is a technical thing that can be corrected.

 

197: Brent Jones finished his day with a 3-0 record with a 7-5 win over Anthony Tortora. Jones took Tortora down in the first 30 seconds of the match with a great double leg takedown and then accumulated well over two minutes of riding time. 

 

Hwt: Jack Danilkowicz finished the dual meet off with an impressive 5-2 win over a very talented Paul Snyder. Snyder was one of the top heavyweight prospects in the nation coming out of high school and is very good on his feet in particular. Jack took him down twice though and looked as good as we've seen him all year. This was a big positive for us b/c this weight class has been unproductive in recent years. We need more from this weight and we are hopeful that this bout was a step in the right direction.

 

*Overall, the biggest thing that came out of this dual meet was that we really can wrestle on top when we want to. When our kids put their minds to it, they can be one of the best teams in the country from the top position specifically. Being able to score points from this position is crucial to beating the best wrestlers and we feel we are really making progress here. The head coach from Hofstra, Tom Shifftlet is a good friend of mine. We lived and coached together at Cornell University for two years so this dual meet had a little bit of a back story with it. I know Tom trains his guys hard and I knew that we had to be ready to fight for 7 minutes against these guys. Hofstra has placed in the top 15 at the NCAA tournament two out of the last three years so this was a great win for our program.

 

 

125: Ross Gitomer got the call for this match and lost a tough battle in overtime 5-3. Ross was able to earn a takedown in the third period but was reversed off of a scramble late in the match which tied the bout at 3-3. In overtime Ross got sloppy on a double leg takedown attempt and was taken down with a throw bye. This was a particularly disappointing match for us b/c Ross has lost to this wrestler before. Matt Steintrager from Central Michigan is a very tough opponent and this would have been a big win for Ross. 

 

133: First year Matt Cubillos was up against some pretty tough odds in this bout. He wrestled one of the most dangerous wrestlers in the nation in Scotti Sentes (who is ranked #7 in some polls nationally). Sentes caught Matt in a cradle early on in the first period and was pinned soon thereafter. Matt has taken some lumps as of late mostly due to his lack of experience. He is a great kid but has wrestled some great kids in this early part of the season.

 

141: Derek Valenti got us on the board with a very nice 6-1 win over Jeff Shutich. The highlight of the match for Derek came in the first period when he won a long scramble and was able to earn the takedown off of his opponent's shot. This scramble pretty much sums up Derek's never quit attitude and really gave him a momentum boost for the rest of the bout. He was able to ride out Shutich in the second period and add another takedown in the third period to ice the victory.

 

149: Kellon Balum actually wrestled very well in stints during this bout but was caught on his back with a 5 point throw and was unable to recover. With the match in striking distance 3-1 late in the second period, Tony D'Alie from Central Michigan pancaked Kellon to his back off of a shot and broke the match open 8-1.

 

157: Danny Gonsor earned another solid win with a 4-0 shutout over Donnie Corby. Gonsor controlled the match with an early takedown and then rode very hard on top to wear his opponent down. The top position is where Danny is very dangerous and he did a great job of working his stuff on top this bout.

 

165: We had fourth year Beau Fisher in first this dual meet and he was out horsed by a very strong Tyler Grayson of Central Michigan. Grayson looked like a Greek statue and was about a strong a 165lber as you'll ever see. Beau really couldn't get much going against him and lost 11-3.

 

174: This was the biggest bout of the dual meet for us. Chris Henrich had to wrestle against #9 ranked Ben Bennett. Bennett, for those who don't know, just beat out the #1 (returning NCAA finalist Mike Miller, who then went up to 18lbs and wrestled Mike Salopek) guy in the nation for this weight class and thus earned the starting spot over him. That is how good Central Michigan is. Their #1 ranked wrestler gets beat out for the starting spot and the guy who beats him immediately is nationally ranked. Chris beat this young man last season but this kid is flat out tough as nails and we are very anxious before this match started. Chris however, wrestled controlled and smart and was able to earn a takedown early on and never look back. Chris dominated from the top position and was able to ride out Bennett the entire second period, nearly turning him several times. This was a great win for Chris and got his confidence back up after a tough loss at the All Star match.

 

184: Mike Salopek went out and gave it all he had against the above mentioned Mike Miller. Miller is a three time All American and is about a strong a wrestler pound for pound that you'll ever face. Mike battled and got in on a bunch of good shots but was unable to finish. As I mentioned above, this is a problem area for Mike and he knows that now. We'll continue to work on this position.

 

197: Brent Jones got another win for our team with a 9-7 victory over Eric Simaz. Simaz is a 5th year senior and was able to stay in this bout with Brent. Brent looked great in small doses but needs to expand the lead in matches like this. All in all, it was another win for Jones and he improves his record to 7-1 on the season.

 

Hwt: There isn't really much I can say about this match. Calvin was tech falled by a Jarrod Trice in the bout. I wasn't happy at all with the effort that was put out. Calvin has been great this year for our team with his heart and with his work ethic but it didn't show in the particular bout. Calvin is a great kid though and I'm sure he'll bounce back.

 

There really isn't much to say about this dual either. Highlights of the match were wins from first year Matt Cubillos and pins from Brent Jones, Derek Valenti and Kellon Balum.

 

A:  There is no better way to train than with the best in world.  My training this summer was amazing. I got to train with Jake Herbert, Tervel Dlagnev, Kerry McCoy, and another of the best guys in the country as I was preparing for the world team trials and at the world team training camp at the olympic training center.  Competeing and training in the off season is the best way to get ready for folkstyle season.  It is like there wasn't any off season and it was a constant means of bettering myself. I wouldn't have wanted to train any other way.

 

Q:  How did your pre-season training go?
A:  This was one of the hardest preseason training I have had to complete.  It was rough to cut back down to 197, after putting a lot of muscle mass on for my world team weight of 211.5, but hard things only make you better.  You know that you are training the right way when things are rough and hard.  If you push yourself through your training, than you get used to the pain in matches and can overcome it. 

 

A:  My goals this year are just like everyone else in the country.   I want to be a national champ, plain and simple.  It is one thing to say it, but a totally seperate thing to achieve it.  I think it is more than in my reach for this year.  My goal beyound this year is to become an olympic champion.  I am going to push back med school to chase a dream you can only do one time in your life.  You can always become a doctor, but you only have a certain time in your life when you can win the olympics.  Wrestling is the love of my life. I do not want to live a life of what if, but rather live a life that others dream.