PITTSBURGH, PA – Rider University wrestlers Jesse Dellavecchia (Great River, NY/East Islip) and Ethan Laird (Waterford, PA/General McLane) each won their first matches of the day before being eliminated in Consolation Round 3 of Day 2 at the NCAA Wrestling Championships at PPG Paints Arena Friday.

Dellavecchia started the day with a 14-6 major decision over #29 Nick Kiussis of West Virginia. Dellavecchia scored four nearfall points twice by the midpoint of the second period to take a commanding lead and held strong for the victory. He then fell to sixth-seeded Logan Massa, 11-3, to end his tournament. Massa controlled the match with three takedowns in the first period and never trailed.

Laird scored an early takedown against Woodley and rode out the first period to take 2:36 of riding time into the second period. An escape in the second and a stalling penalty in the third gave Laird the 4-0 victory. In his next match against #9 Ben Honis of Cornell, the Broncs' sophomore took two-point leads on the strength of a pair of takedowns in the first period. But Honis would outscore Laird, 9-1, the rest of the way to end Laird's tournament run.

Quotes & Notes
"I thought our student-athletes represented Rider University and the wrestling program very well this weekend. I'm pleased with how they competed and proud of their genuine effort each time they stepped on the mat."

"It's always tough on both the athletes and the coaches to leave NCAA's without an All-American. That's always been the goal and will remain the goal for our program."

"Our kids gained some extremely valuable experience. I know it will motivate these four guys to work harder to put themselves in position to get back here and get it right next year!" - Rider Head Coach John Hangey 

- Dellavecchia, Laird, Anthony Cefolo (Florham Park, NJ/Hanover Park Regional) and Dean Sherry (Brick, NJ/Brick Township) represented Rider at the NCAA Championships.
- Laird led the Broncs with three wins, while Dellavecchia won twice. Sherry also won a match Thursday.  
- The wins were the first at NCAA's for Dellavecchia, Laird and Sherry.
- Dellavecchia finishes the year with a team-best 25 wins, while Laird was second with 22.  

Individual Results
133 – #27 Anthony Cefolo
Round of 32 – Lost decision to #6 Ethan Lizak (Minnesota), 3-1
Consolation Rd. 1 – Lost decision to #22 Noah Gonser (Campbell), 8-3

165 – #14 Jesse Dellavecchia
Round of 32 – Won decision over #19 Tanner Skidgel (Navy), 9-2
Round of 16 – Lost major decision to #3 Josh Shields (Arizona State), 10-2
Consolation Rd. 2 – Won major decision over #29 Nick Kiussis (West Virginia), 14-6
Consolation Rd. 3 – Lost major decision to #6 Logan Massa (Michigan), 11-3

174 – #30 Dean Sherry
Round of 32 – Lost major decision to #3 Zahid Valencia (Arizona State), 11-2
Consolation Prelims – WBF over #32 Jake Covaciu (Indiana), 6:48
Consolation Rd. 1 – Lost decision to #19 Ethan Smith (Ohio State), 8-6

197 – #32 Ethan Laird
Prelims – Won decision over #33 Rod Jones (Chattanooga), 4-2 (SV-1)
Round of 32 – Lost by fall to #1 Bo Nickal (Penn State), 2:34
Consolation Rd. 1 – Won decision over #17 Stephen Loiseau (Drexel), 7-1
Consolation Rd. 2 – Won decision over #18 Jake Woodley (Oklahoma), 4-0
Consolation Rd. 3 – Lost decision to #9 Ben Honis (Cornell), 10-5