Edinboro's website wrote:

Few Surprises at 2007 Wrestleoffs

EDINBORO, PA – The Edinboro University wrestling team held its annual Wrestleoffs on Sunday. When it was all said and done, there were few surprises, but plenty of good wrestling.

Head coach Tim Flynn was pleased with what he saw. “The matches were very competitive,” Flynn pointed out. “We have a lot of competition at a lot of weights. That’s healthy. We may not be where we want to be yet. But that will help down the road. The matches were tight. I think we’ll be alright.”

The wrestleoffs gave Flynn an opportunity to decide who would compete this weekend when Edinboro hosts the Fighting Scot Duals on Saturday, November 3. The Fighting Scots face Mercyhurst at 1:00 p.m., Army at 3:00 p.m., and Maryland at 5:00 p.m. However, Flynn indicated that there are still some decisions to be made, and the lineup will be impacted by who will redshirt.

The two biggest question marks coming into the season was who would start at 141 and 184 lbs. Seven different wrestlers competed at 141 lbs., with sophomore Joel Webster finally prevailing over Torsten Gillespie thanks to a 6-5 decision. However, Webster is not eligible until the second semester, leaving Gillespie, a freshman and the younger brother of national champion Gregor Gillespie, as the anticipated starter. The younger Gillespie was impressive while defeating fellow freshman Tom Wipfli by technical fall, 17-0, then handing junior Ryan Morgan an 8-1 defeat.

At 184 lbs., freshman Chris Honeycutt and sophomore Dan Thompson, a transfer from Slippery Rock, met in the finals. Honeycutt won his first two matches by fall, at 3:34 over redshirt freshman Tim Lutke, and 4:17 over senior Donald Walker. Thompson, meanwhile, won his semifinal match by fall at 4:06 over redshirt freshman Shawn Fendone.

In the final, the two battled on even terms before a Thompson takedown in the final five seconds accounted for the difference in a 9-7 decision. Thomspon was 3-1 at Slippery Rock two years ago, and remained at the school a year ago after the wrestling program was dropped.

Here’s a look at how the wrestleoffs went, weight class by weight class:

125 lbs. – Returning starter Eric Morrill survived a strong showing by junior Greg Sill in the finals. Morrill, 15-15 as a true freshman a year ago, was a 2-0 winner over Sill. Morrill reached the finals with a 10-5 decision over redshirt freshman Michael Bunn, while Sill handed redshirt freshman Danny Whitenak a 3-1 defeat. In a consolation match, Whitenak decisioned Bunn, 8-2.

133 lbs. – Ricky Deubel has had an up-and-down first two seasons, but the junior has 48 career wins. He dominated his competition, beginning with a 14-4 major decision over Aaron Ely, a freshman. Deubel then handed sophomore Kyle Fluke an 11-2 defeat in the final. Fluke came back to defeat Ely by technical fall, 16-0.

141 lbs. – While Webster captured the title match, there were a number of other bouts held. In the preliminary matches, Morgan won by fall over freshman Mike Otero at 1:26, while freshman Kory Bissett won an 11-3 major decision over sophomore Joe Bockmore. In consolation matches, Tom Wipfli won by fall over Otero at 1:45. Bissett then won by fall over Wipfli at 1:17. Finally, Morgan won an 8-2 decision over Blackmore.

149 lbs. – After competing at 149 lbs. a year ago, Daryl Cocozzo moves up to 149 lbs. As a true freshman he was a national qualifier and had a 17-12 record. He won by fall over freshman John Donaldson at 2:03 to advance to the finals against one of the gems of a strong recruiting class, Thomas Straughn. Straughn handled Matt Frey, another freshman, 12-4 in the other semifinal. In the final, Cocozzo edged Straughn, 3-2, thanks to a riding time point. Cocozzo remains a candidate to redshirt. In a consolation match, Frey decisioned Donaldson, 5-2.

157 lbs. – Gregor Gillespie is another wrestler moving up a weight class. The junior looked like he’ll like 157 lbs. after winning by technical fall over redshirt freshman Ricky Saxton, 17-0. Gillespie was 34-2 last year and was the national champion at 149 lbs.

165 lbs. – Jarrod King made a successful debut after transferring from Oklahoma. The junior won by fall at 1:33 over sophomore Dan Snyder in the semifinals, then posted an 11-3 major decision against freshman Paul Paddock in the finals. Paddock, another of the blue-chip recruits, advanced to the finals with an 11-0 win over freshman Matt Coleman. In a consolation match, Coleman pinned Snyder in 45 seconds.

174 lbs. – Phil Moricone is the lone wrestler at this weight class.

197 lbs. – The anticipated battle between senior Jeremy Mosley and sophomore Pat Bradshaw did not occur. Mosley, who has battled injuries throughout his career and was moving down from heavyweight, has once again been bit by the injury bug and was unable to compete. Bradshaw, 12-9 a year ago, instead faced freshman Kenny Massey, winning by fall at 1:19.

Hwt. – What was expected to be a close matchup between junior Joey Fendone and sophomoe Terry Tate turned out to be an impressive showing by Fendone. In his second season at heavyweight, Fendone bested Tate, who missed most of the season due to a knee injury, 11-2. Fendone was 28-12 last year and fell one win shy of All-American status.