LYNCHBURG, Va.- Appalachian State University wrestling (8-11-1, 2-3 SoCon) fell to Liberty (14-7), 25-17, in both teams' regular-season finale on Tuesday night in Vines Center on the campus of Liberty.
The Flames took six of the 10 bouts, including the final two to secure the victory over the Mountaineers. With the win, it has given LU three straight wins over ASU.
In the 125 match, Liberty's Robert Jillard earned a second-period pin over sophomore Tony Gravely. Jillard started off the match taking down Gravely, but Gravely notched a takedown and an escape to go ahead, 3-2. Jillard then tallied a two-point reversal to end the first period ontop, 4-3. Jillard then nailed another two-point reversal and pinned Gravely in 4:39, giving the Flames an early lead.
In the 133 bout, LU's Thomas Mitchell got things started with a two-point takedown on sophomore Brett Boston. Boston escaped, but Mitchell countered with another takedown. Boston escaped from Mitchell again, closing the gap to 4-2, but it was all Mitchell from there. Boston escaped two more times in the third period, but Mitchell ended up earning the 12-4 major decision over Boston, giving the Flames a 10-0 cushion.
Junior Mike Kessler turned things around the Black and Gold grapplers in the 141 bout against Joe Pantaleo. Kessler opened up the match with a two-point takedown to go up 2-0, but Kessler pinned Pantaleo at 2:28 to end the match and give the Mountaineers their first points of the dual.
ASU notched another win in the 149 match as junior Savva Kostis never allowed Liberty's Joseph Montgomery to build any momentum as he earned a 12-1 major decision over Montgomery. The closest that Montgomery got was in the opening period when Kostis was ahead 2-1. With the win, the Mountaineers tied the dual up at 10-10. Kostis now has 23 wins during the 2010-11 campaign and needs seven more victories to break into the most wins in a season list.
The tie was broken during the 157 match as Julian Colon edged sophomore John Blakely, 8-2. Colon took an early lead in the first period as he led 2-0 heading into the second stanza. Colon used a takedown and escape to go ahead 5-0 before Blakely escaped to move the score to 5-1. Colon took down Blakely again, but Blakely garnered two more points to close the gap to 7-2. Colon scored one more point to take the match and give the Flames a 13-10 advantage.
Junior Kyle Blevins tied the dual back up in the 165 match as he took down Chad Porter, 6-0. Blevins only held a slim 2-0 margin in the first period and neither scored in the second period. But Blevins used the third period to pile on the points to earn the decision and move the team scores to 13-13. With the victory, Blevins picked up his 34th win of the season and 80th of his career. Blevins is now in sole possession of fourth place on the most wins in a season list and is two wins away from cracking into the career wins list.
In the 174 category, Liberty's Royal Brettrager got the best of junior Carter Downs and garnered a second-period pin over Downs in 4:45, moving the team scores to 19-13.
The Mountaineers earned their last win of the dual in the 184 match-up, as the reigning SoCon Wrestler of the Week Austin Trotman tallied a 17-5 major decision over Aaron Kelley. Kelley's only points of the match came from escapes on the first and second period. Trotman only held a 5-1 after the first period, but turned up the heat the rest of the way to earn the decision. With his win, Trotman now has 29 wins this season and needs just one to join the most wins in a season list. Trotman is already a member of the career wins list and still controls the number five spot with his 87th victory.
Appalachian dropped the final two bouts as sophomore Jon Hartley fell to Aaron Thompson, 8-3 and freshman Marc Tyson was edged by Johsua Pelletier, 5-3.
ASU will now take time to prepare for the 2011 Southern Conference Tournament, which is being hosted by Appalachian on Mar. 5. Wrestling will start at the Holmes Convocation Center at 11 a.m. For tournament and ticket information, visit www.GoASU.com.
ASU 17, Liberty 25
125: Robert Jillard (Liberty) fall Tony Gravely (ASU), 4:39
133: Thomas Mitchell (Liberty) major decision Brett Boston (ASU), 12-4
141: Mike Kessler (ASU) fall Joe Pantaleo (Liberty), 2:28
149: Savva Kostis (ASU) major decision Joseph Montgomery (Liberty), 12-1
157: Julian Colon (Liberty) dec John Blakely (ASU), 8-2
165: Kyle Blevins (ASU) dec Chad Porter (Liberty), 6-0
174: Royal Brettrager (Liberty) fall Carter Downs (ASU), 4:45
184: Austin Trotman (ASU) major decision Aaron Kelley (Liberty), 17-5
197: Aaron Thompson (Liberty) dec Jon Hartley (ASU), 8-3
285: Johsua Pelletier (Liberty) dec Marc Tyson (ASU), 5-3
