CLARION, Pa. – The Clarion wrestling team swept a Sunday doubleheader with a pair of dominant efforts, defeating Hofstra 28-5 and West Liberty 39-3 at Tippin Gymnasium on Sunday afternoon.
The Golden Eagles (3-6, 0-2 EWL) will be back in action on Friday when they host George Mason.
Clarion took the vast majority of the bouts contested on Sunday, losing just one in regulation time and two others in sudden victory. More impressive was the fact that the Golden Eagles were able to get contributions from throughout the lineup and the bench. Twelve different wrestlers picked up wins for Clarion on Sunday afternoon.
Only one wrestler earned a win in both matches, though, with Scott Marmoll cleaning up with a decision in the early match against Hofstra and a major decision in the nightcap against West Liberty. Against the Pride’s Michael Oxley, he built up a 5-0 lead through two periods and fended Oxley off until a takedown late in the third period. He quickly escaped and tacked on the riding time point for a 7-2 decision. Marmoll made short work of the Hilltoppers’ Dawson in the second match, taking him down four times and never once allowing Dawson to do the same. Riding time again played a factor in this one as Marmoll took the 11-3 major decision.
Jake Gromacki opened the proceedings against Hofstra with a 12-3 major decision over Jacob Martin, and Roshaun Cooley escaped the 133-pound match with a 3-1 decision to make it 7-0. Brock Zacherl really opened up the team advantage in the 141-pound match, though, taking a 22-7 win by technical fall over Conner Burkert to give Clarion a 12-0 lead.
The Pride won each of the next two matches, but a point deduction at the conclusion of the 149-pound match made the score just 12-5. DeLong put Clarion up with a win by decision at 165 pounds to make it 15-5, and then perhaps the pivotal moment of the match came in the very next bout. Sage Heller was ruled to have taken down Dom Rigous in the waning seconds of the second period in the 174-pound bout, which would have given Heller a 4-3 advantage.
A replay challenge showed that Rigous was in fact not taken down, giving him a 3-2 lead entering the third. Rigous scored two- and four-point near falls to open the third period and rode Heller out for a 10-2 major decision.The match against the Pride now firmly in hand, Marmoll, Dustin Conti and Evan Daley rattled off three more wins to close as Clarion took the victory.
There was no such drama against the Hilltoppers, as the Golden Eagles built and early, decisive lead. Cameron Butler opened with a 7-1 decision at 125 pounds against Zach Brown, and a win by forfeit at 141 pounds gave Clarion a 9-3 lead. Jack Peura notched a decisive win at 165 pounds, winning by technical fall with a 17-2 advantage just 3:32 into the bout against Tryston Kessler. Taylor Cahill and Jake Keller also came out on top in the light weights, claiming decisions over DeMadre Turner and Josh Cornell, respectively. Terrell Fields also earned a win by decision, beating Garrett Vulcano 4-1 in the 197-pound bout.
The highlight of the late match, though, came courtesy of Nick Shawley. He made quick work of Chris Cook in the heavyweight clash, bringing him down seconds into the bout and scoring the pin just 1:27 into the match.
Clarion 28, Hofstra 5
125: Jake Gromacki (Clarion) over Jacob Martin (Hofstra) (MD 12-0)
133: Roshaun Cooley (Clarion) over Vinny Vespa (Hofstra) (Dec 3-1)
141: Brock Zacherl (Clarion) over Connor Burkert (Hofstra) (TF 22-7 7:00)
149: Ryan Burkert (Hofstra) over Jake Keller (Clarion) (SV-1 2-0)
157: Jake Kaminsky (Hofstra) over Taylor Cahill (Clarion) (SV-2 4-2)
165: Evan Delong (Clarion) over Bobby Fehr (Hofstra) (Dec 7-3)
174: Dominic Rigous (Clarion) over Sage Heller (Hofstra) (MD 10-2)
184: Scott Marmoll (Clarion) over Mike Oxley (Hofstra) (Dec 7-2)
197: Dustin Conti (Clarion) over Nezar Haddad (Hofstra) (Dec 3-2)
285: Evan Daley (Clarion) over Omar Haddad (Hofstra) (Dec 2-0)
Clarion 39, West Liberty 3
125: Cameron Butler (Clarion) over Zach brown (West Liberty University) (Dec 7-1)
133: Bryce Humphreys (West Liberty University) over Roshaun Cooley (Clarion) (Dec 6-2)
141: Brock Zacherl (Clarion) win via forfeit
149: Jake Keller (Clarion) over Josh Cornell (West Liberty University) (Dec 6-4)
157: Taylor Cahill (Clarion) over DeMadre Turner (West Liberty University) (Dec 5-2)
165: Jack Peura (Clarion) over Tryston Kessler (West Liberty University) (TF 18-2 3:32)
174: Dom Rigous (Clarion) win via forfeit
184: Scott Marmoll (Clarion) over Nathan Dawson (West Liberty University) (MD 11-3)
197: Terrell Fields (Clarion) over Garrett Vulcano (West Liberty University) (Dec 4-1)
285: Nicholas Shawley (Clarion) over Chris Cook (West Liberty University) (Fall 1:28)
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL TOPS GANNON SATURDAY FOR FIRST WIN OVER KNIGHTS IN OVER 20 YEARS
ERIE, Pa. – The Clarion women’s basketball team used a 9-1 run late in the fourth quarter to complete a come-from-behind road victory, defeating Gannon 75-71 at Gary Miller Court. The Golden Eagles (11-6, 8-3 PSAC) defeated the Golden Knights for the first time since Feb. 25, 1995, a span of 18 meetings.
Jordan Bekelja shot 7-of-12 of the field for a game-high 23 points while also recording six assists. Taylor Moltz finished with 16 points, including a 4-of-10 performance from three-point range, and Delrika Jones-Carey tacked on 10 points and six rebounds.
Clarion trailed 20-11 at the end of the first quarter but chipped away throughout, taking the lead on a three-pointer from Polite early in the fourth quarter. Moltz scored a transition bucket in the paint with 7:54 left to give Clarion a 55-52 lead, but Lanise Saunders eventually put the Golden Knights up 59-55 with a free throw.
Polite drilled another trey with 5:00 left to cut the lead to one point, and Bekelja tied it up at 63 with a three-pointer of her own. The sophomore point guard scored on the fast break with 2:55 left in regulation to give Clarion the lead for good, and later gave the Golden Eagles a 69-64 lead with two free throws down the stretch. Maggie Mitchell pulled the Golden Knights within two points with a make at the 0:05 mark of the quarter, but Jen Straw made two free throws in the final seconds to seal the win.
Gannon led by as many as 11 points in the first quarter, taking a 20-9 lead early on, but Clarion kept the pressure on and cut it to two possessions by halftime. Jones-Carey made a midrange jumper to pull Clarion to within 31-30 with 2:29 left in the second quarter, and although Gannon pulled away down the stretch, the score was just 35-30 at the halftime break. The lead became just a one-possession one entering the fourth quarter, with Jones-Carey making a jumper in the paint with three seconds left in the to make it 52-50.
HEARTBREAK FOR GOLDEN EAGLE MEN’S HOOPS IN DOUBLE OT LOSS AT GANNON
ERIE, Pa., – The Clarion University men’s basketball team fell on the road Saturday afternoon against the Gannon Golden Knights in double-overtime by a final score of 110-104. The loss moves the Golden Eagles to 5-11 on the season (3-8 PSAC). The Blue and Gold return to action Wednesday when they host Edinboro at Tippin Gymnasium.
Jamani Pierce led the way offensively for the Golden Eagles in the high-scoring affair, recording a team-high 24 points as well as a team-high five rebounds and an assist. Cameron Grumley posted 22 points and four assists, including an incredible 8-16 from beyond the three-point line. Manny Powell finished with a team-high seven assists on the evening.
The game was a spirited, back and forth affair, the second consecutive game this season that Clarion has dropped in overtime. Clarion clung to a one-point lead at the half, 40-39, thanks largely in part to some big buckets by Grumley and Justin Grant. The Eagles led 78-76 with just two seconds remaining in the game when Powell fouled Gannon guard Zay Jackson, who promptly sank both free-throws to send it into overtime.
The Golden Eagles would enjoy some last minute heroics of their own, however. Kwame Morton Jr. knocked down a desperation three with two seconds remaining in the first overtime frame to knot the game up at 92 a piece.
A six-point run by the Golden Knights at the start of the second overtime helped GU close out the Eagles for good.
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