College Wrestling
Rider 16, Army 15
WEST POINT, NY-The Broncs and Black Knights each won five bouts but a major decision at heavyweight gave Rider a victory over the United States Military Academy Tuesday evening in the season opener. "This was a good start," said Rider head coach Gary Taylor. "The fight was there."
Rider (1-0) sophomore Evan Craig (Clarks Summit, Pa./Abington Heights) jumped out to an 8-0 lead and won an 18-10 major decision at heavyweight to give Rider a 7-3 lead. "That was a hard-fought win for Evan," Taylor said.
Freshman Vinny Fava (Elmwood Park, N.J./Elmwood Park) upset 19th ranked Jordan Thome 8-3 at 133 to give Rider a 13-3 lead. "Vinny really wrestled well," Taylor said of his red-shirt freshman. "He wrestled with confidence. He is a very explosive wrestler and when he wrestles with confidence he is very, very tough. He beat a veteran who is probably their best wrestler."
Rider junior Zac Cibula (Luxemburg, Wis./Luxemburg Casco), ranked 12th in the nation at 149, won a 4-3 decision at 157 to give Rider a 16-9 lead. "That match was a brawl," Taylor said. "Rafferty is very good."
Rider sophomore Chuck Zeisloft (Woodbury Heights, N.J./Gateway) posted a late takedown to win 5-2 at 125 to give Rider a 10-3 lead. "That was a very good wrestler that Chuck beat," Taylor said.
Rider freshman Donald McNeil (Plainville, Mass./Wyoming Seminary) won his first collegiate match 10-3 at 197 to tie the score at 3-3. "Our 197 pounder looked really good," Taylor said of McNeil.
McNeil was twice a Massachusetts State Champion at King Phillip Regional High and was a Prep Nationals Champion for Wyoming Seminary, winning awards for most pins and most team points. McNeil came to Rider from North Carolina Greensboro, where he red-shirted last season.
Army (2-1) defeated 24th-ranked Iowa State (23-22) and Boston University (28-9) at the Nor'easter Duals to begin the season.
Rider lost to Army 19-16 last season in Lawrenceville. Rider and Army have now met 25 times since the series began in 1976-77, with each team winning 12 times with one tie. The last time the Broncs visited West Point, December 10, 2009, Rider defeated Army 17-16. "This has been three years of great battles," Taylor said. "All three have been barn-burners. It's been a great rivalry through the years."
The Broncs travel to the Binghamton Open Sunday. "Today was a great opportunity to get a match under our belts, with the pressure and everything," Taylor said. "Now we can go to Binghamton and get a lot more experience before Wisconsin comes in."
Rider hosts Princeton and the Badgers of Wisconsin in the home opener November 18.
Rider 16, Army 15
184: Wil Brown (A) dec. Clint Morrison, 7-1
197: Donald McNeil (R) dec. Daniel Mills, 10-3
285: Evan Craig (R) maj. dec. Christian Botero, 18-10
125: Chuck Zeisloft (R) dec. David White, 5-2
133: Vinny Fava (R) dec. Jordan Thome, 8-3
141: Connor Hanafee (A) dec. Jimmy Kirchner, 10-5
149: Daniel Young (A) dec. Aaron Nestor, 6-0
157: Zac Cibula (R) dec. Jimmy Rafferty, 4-3
165: Alex Smith (A) dec. James Brundage, 6-2
174: Collin Wittmeyer (A) dec. Jim Resnick, 4-2
