Mel Berry Duals Home Page

GREENVILLE, Pa. – The Tomcat wrestling squad recorded three wins on Saturday as they hosted the fifth annual Mel Berry Duals in the College's Rissell-Schreyer Dome.

The annual event is in memory of Mel Berry, Thiel College's head wrestling coach from 1958 through 1978. Coach Berry is a member of the National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III Hall of Fame, was inducted into the Mercer County Hall of Fame in 1978, and was named to the Thiel Athletic Hall of Fame in 1982.

Thiel (6-5) opened with a 25-18 win over Washington & Jefferson College in the 10 a.m. session and posted a 26-15 win over Mercyhurst Northeast in the 11:30 a.m. session. The Tomcats, trailing by two points going into the final two bouts against Seton Hill University, battled  back from a 17-5 deficit midway through the match to notch a 30-20 decision over the Griffins.

Corey Brown (Greenville, Pa./Reynolds) went 3-0 on the day to pace the Tomcats. Brown, currently the top-ranked wrestler at 133 pounds in the January 24 National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) individual rankings, earned a 12-5 decision over W&J's Zachary Cecchetti, a 5-3 win over Christian Drain, and won by forfeit in the team's victory over Seton Hill.

Matt Lowry (Smithfield, Pa./Albert Gallatin) earned a pair of wins by pin fall at 165 pounds, pinning James Bennet (3:38) of Mercyhurst Northeast and Seton Hill's Kurt McCamley (0:48). Patrick Morris (Graysville, Pa./West Greene) finished 2-0 at 197 pounds, picking up a 5-0 decision over W&J's Theron Mitchell before earning a 9-2 win over Mercyhurst Northeast's Brian Slattery.

Will Ringer (Fredonia, Pa./Reynolds) went 2-0 at 285 pounds, earning an 8-3 decision over Mercyhurst Northeast's Matt Knapp and a pin fall victory (2:17) over Eric Minerd of Seton Hill. Jacob Lowry (Smithfield, Pa./Albert Gallatin) finished the day 2-0, posting a 19-1 technical fall win over Eric King of Mercyhurst Northeast and an injury default win (0:17) against Seton Hill's Randall Wagner.

Sean Byham (Saegertown, Pa./Saegertown) posted a 2-1 record at 141 pounds, picking up a win by fall (3:59) against W&J's Charles Baugher and a 6-2 decision against Logan Kellogg before suffering 5-0 loss to Seton Hill's Andrew Fisher.

The Tomcats will wrap up their 2012 home schedule on Wednesday, February 1 when they host Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) rival Waynesburg University to Beeghly Gymnasium. Matches will get underway at 7 p.m.