The Observer, February 8, 2008
Volume XL, Issue 16
Wrestlers tie up opponents at Wheaton
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Three Spartans placed in the top eight of their weight classes at last weekend's Pete Wilson Wheaton Invitational, propelling the wrestling team to a 12th- place finish out of 27 teams.
Senior 141-pounder Dave Manoogian placed second, which was where he was seeded heading into the tournament. He started with four straight wins before losing the championship match, 4-2, to Matt Irwin from the University of Indianapolis, a Div. II school.
Drew Gardella, who battled a knee injury early in the season, has come on strong as of late, and placed fourth in the 149-pound weight class. Coach Bob Del Rosa likes both Manoogian's and Gardella's chances heading into their final four meets, and then into the national tournament in the first week of March.
"Dave and Drew are wrestling very strongly, and both will contest for a spot at nationals," he said. Del Rosa also mentioned that heavyweight Bob Gavlak should contend at the tournament, even though he has lost a few tough matches to formidable opponents.
After last season, Manoogian finished four points shy of becoming an NCAA All-American. Del Rosa said that this year Manoogian would have a legitimate shot at earning that title, if not competing for the national championship.
Another wrestler who had a strong weekend was junior B.J. Greenman. Greenman, who wrestles at 174 pounds, finished eighth and had an impressive win over seventh seeded wrestler Greg Horn from Elmhurst College, a win which Del Rosa says is his most impressive of the year.
"He controlled the entire match and wrestled very well this past weekend," said Del Rosa of Greenman.
Of the entire weekend, Del Rosa is happy with how his team wrestled, claiming each of them wrestled quite well. Freshman Ray Lonardo has been bouncing back and forth between 174 and 184 pounds, which means he has been wrestling heavier opponents most of the time. Del Rosa believes that he shows promise in his first year with the Spartans. Freshman Clay Criss, who has the unfortunate luck of being in the same class as Manoogian, has also been wrestling well when he's had the chance.
There are four meets remaining, including this weekend's tournament at NYU. Still, with a month left in the season, there is plenty of time for underclassmen to make an impression heading into next year, while Manoogian leads the charge into the NCAA tournament with his 16-2 record.
