Don Henry
Bryce Dolak

Men's Wrestling Bob Shreve, Assistant Director of Athletics Media Relations

No. 14 Golden Knights Return to Mat at Undefeated, No. 7 Pitt-Johnstown on Wednesday

No. 14 GANNON GOLDEN KNIGHTS (4-4, 1-0 PSAC) at No. 7 PITT-JOHNSTOWN (9-0, 2-0 PSAC)
DATE/TIME: Wednesday, January 18, 2023 | 7:00 p.m.
ARENA/LOCATION: UPJ Sports Center l Johnstown, Pa.

LIVE VIDEO
LIVE STATS
 
LAST MEETING
Feb. 11, 2022 – No. 13 Pitt-Johnstown 18, No. 6 Gannon 12 
125 lbs. -- Jacob Dunlop (Rostraver Township, Pa./Belle Vernon) (GU) dec. Matt Siszka (UPJ), 3-1
133 lbs. -- Mason Myers (UPJ) dec. Chase McLaughlin (Jamestown, Pa./Jamestown Area) (GU), 5-0
141 lbs. -- Caleb Morris (UPJ) dec. Austin Hertel (Rochester, N.Y./Hilton) (GU), 7-5 sv
149 lbs. -- Jacob Ealy (UPJ) dec. Dom Means (Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic) (GU), 8-2
157 lbs. -- Nathan Smith (UPJ) dec. Nick Young (Batavia, N.Y./Alexander) (GU), 7-6
165 lbs. -- Dillon Keane (UPJ) dec. Evan Fisler (Sewell, N.J./Washington Township) (GU), 8-6
174 lbs. -- Brock Biddle (UPJ) dec. Frank Guzzi (West Homestead, Pa./Steel Valley) (GU), 14-8
184 lbs. -- Joey Petrella (Reynoldsburg, Ohio/Bishop Hartley) (GU) dec. James Weber (UPJ), 4-1
197 lbs. Joel Leise (Transfer, Pa./Reynolds) (GU) dec. Dakoda Rodger (UPJ), 3-0
285 lbs.  Freddie Nixon (Buffalo, N.Y./St. Joseph's Collegiate Institute) (GU) dec. Ogden Atwood (UPJ), 3-1 sv
 
ERIE, Pa. – A year ago Gannon and Pitt-Johnstown shared first place in the PSAC after the Mountain Cats handed the Golden Knights an 18-12 defeat in the final match of the regular season. A year later two of the elite programs in the PSAC and Super Region 1 meet early in the year, with plenty still at stake.

Gannon, ranked 14th in the latest NWCA Division II rankings, heads to Johnstown on Wednesday, January 18 looking to hand an undefeated Pitt-Johnstown team its first loss of the season. The dual gets underway at 7:00 p.m. at the UPJ Sports Center.

The Mountain Cats are ranked seventh by the NWCA and come in with a 9-0 record after a dominating 35-5 win over No. 8 Millersville last Friday. That same night Gannon disposed of crosstown rival and No. 18 Mercyhurst 24-13 to move to 4-4 on the season. The Mercyhurst dual was Gannon's first against PSAC competition while UPJ is 2-0. The Mountain Cats also own a 41-6 win over East Stroudsburg.

UPJ has long been a powerhouse under long-time head coach Pat Pecora who is in his 47th season at the helm. The Mountain Cats have dominated the series of late, winning 14 of the last 16 meetings since 2005.

Gannon head coach Don Henry has been in charge of the Gannon program since 1984. Now in his 39th campaign he has built the Golden Knights into one of the top teams in Division II. With the return of starters Alex Farenchak (Painesville, Ohio/Riverside) and Joel Leise (Transfer, Pa./Reynolds) recently Henry can nearly call on his full lineup.

Six of those wrestlers appear in either the NWCA or The Open Mat rankings, while the UPJ lineup features nine ranked wrestlers. The highlight of the night is a showdown between the top wrestlers at 149 lbs. Top-ranked Jacob Ealy defeated Gannon's No. 2 Nick Young (Batavia, N.Y./Alexander) a month ago in the finals of the Midwest Classic via a 4-2 decision. Young comes in with an 18-3 record and along with being ranked second by the NWCA is fourth according to The Open Mat. The graduate student moved down from 157 to 149 lbs. this year. He earned All-American honors at 157 lbs. thanks to a sixth-place showing in 2020-21. Ealy enters with an unblemished 17-0 record.

Two other weight classes featuring two ranked wrestlers occur at 157 and 165 lbs. Dom Means (Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic) is a two-time national qualifier at 149 lbs. and earned NWCA All-American honors in 2019-20. Means and Young flipped weight classes this year, with Means now at 157 lbs. and ranked eighth by the NWCA and ninth by The Open Mat. The redshirt senior recently became a three-time place-winner at the Midwest Classic after placing fifth. He owns a 17-5 record. He is expected to face UPJ's Nate Smith, who is 11-4 and ranked ninth. The senior earned all-American honors a year ago.

Meanwhile at 165 lbs. Farenchak meets No. 11 Dillon Keane. Farenchak is still rounding into form after missing almost a full year following a season-ending injury last February. He is 4-0 and while not ranked by the NWCA yet the graduate student is second in The Open Mat poll.

That's no surprise, since he was ranked number one last year when he went down with the injury, and finished as the national runner-up at 165 lbs. in 2020-21 to earn All-American honors for the second time. Keane is a redshirt sophomore with a 13-3 ledger.

The final member of Gannon's fabulous four is Joel Leise (Transfer, Pa./Reynolds), who like Farenchak made his 2022-23 debut at the National Duals. The redshirt senior earned All-American honors a year ago with a seventh-place showing at 197 lbs. He is a deceiving 2-2, with the losses to 11th-ranked Derek Blubaugh of Indianapolis and No. 7 Luke McGonigal of Mercyhurst in an instant classic. McGonigal prevailed 3-1 in sudden victory after Leise barely failed on a pair of takedown attempts in overtime. Leise is ranked fifth according to The Open Mat.

Henry is hoping Joey Petrella (Reynoldsburg, Ohio/Bishop Hartley) can return at 174 lbs. after missing almost two months with an injury before returning to split a pair of matches at the National Duals. The redshirt sophomore comes in with a 5-1 record and is ranked 11th by The Open Mat. A national qualifier last year at 174 lbs., Petrella wrestled the first part of the season at 184 lbs. He would take the mat against Alex Weber who is ranked 12th by The Open Mat.

The Golden Knights will have a quick turnaround following the Pitt-Johnstown dual, returning home to host Shippensburg in another PSAC dual on Saturday, January 21. The matinee at the Highmark Events Center gets underway at 11:00 a.m.
 
GANNON PROBABLE LINEUP
125 lbs. – Jose Diaz (4-5, R-Sr.)
133 lbs. -- Chase McLaughlin (Jamestown, Pa./Jamestown Area) (8-9, So.)
141 lbs. – Joel Huck (6-6, R-So.)
149 lbs. – No. 2 Nick Young (Batavia, N.Y./Alexander) (18-3, Gr.)
157 lbs. – No. 8 Dom Means (Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic) (17-5, Sr.)
165 lbs. – Alex Farenchak (Painesville, Ohio/Riverside) (4-0, Gr.)
174 lbs. – Cole Casilio (5-56 R-Fr.) or Joey Petrella (Reynoldsburg, Ohio/Bishop Hartley) (5-1, R-So.)
184 lbs. – Cole Hivnor (5-5, R-Fr.)
197 lbs. – Joel Leise (Transfer, Pa./Reynolds) (2-2, R-Sr.)
285 lbs. – Matt Long (4-3, R-So.) or Eli Reese (Sarver, Pa./Knoch) (10-7, R-Fr.)
 
UPJ PROBABLE LINEUP
125 lbs. – Trevon Gray (R-Fr.)            
133 lbs. – Dajaugn Hertzog (R-So.)
141 lbs. – Caleb Morris (Sr.)
149 lbs. – No. 1 Jacob Ealy (17-0, Jr.)                         
157 lbs. – No. 9 Nate Smith (11-4, Sr.)            
165 lbs. – No. 11 Dillon Keane (13-3, R-So.)               
174 lbs. – Alex Weber (R-So.)
184 lbs. – No. 8 Brock Biddle (16-4, R-Sr.)                             
197 lbs. – Dakota Rodgers (So.)
285 lbs. – No. 5 Isaiah Vance (13-2, So.)                     
 
Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

Jacob Dunlop

Jacob Dunlop

125
Senior
125
Evan Fisler

Evan Fisler

157
Redshirt Junior
157
Frank Guzzi

Frank Guzzi

174/184
Freshman
174/184
Austin Hertel

Austin Hertel

141
Senior
141
Freddie Nixon

Freddie Nixon

197/Hwt.
Senior
197/Hwt.
Cole Casilio

Cole Casilio

174
Redshirt Freshman
Alex Farenchak

Alex Farenchak

165
Graduate Student
165
Joel Huck

Joel Huck

149
Redshirt Sophomore
157
Joel Leise

Joel Leise

197
Redshirt Senior
184/197
Matt Long

Matt Long

Hwt.
Redshirt Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Jacob Dunlop

Jacob Dunlop

Senior
125
125
Evan Fisler

Evan Fisler

Redshirt Junior
157
157
Frank Guzzi

Frank Guzzi

Freshman
174/184
174/184
Austin Hertel

Austin Hertel

Senior
141
141
Freddie Nixon

Freddie Nixon

Senior
197/Hwt.
197/Hwt.
Cole Casilio

Cole Casilio

Redshirt Freshman
174
Alex Farenchak

Alex Farenchak

Graduate Student
165
165
Joel Huck

Joel Huck

Redshirt Sophomore
157
149
Joel Leise

Joel Leise

Redshirt Senior
184/197
197
Matt Long

Matt Long

Redshirt Sophomore
Hwt.