PHILADELPHIA, PA – The Rider wrestling team closed out the regular season Thursday night, dropping a hard-fought 22-18 decision at Penn in a back-and-forth dual that came down to the final bout. 

No. 15 Tyler Klinsky set the tone at 125 pounds, continuing his dominant season with an 18-2 technical fall in the second period. Klinsky finished the regular season a perfect 18-0 in dual matches and extended his winning streak to 15, giving the Broncs an early 5-0 advantage.

Penn responded with a major decision at 133 pounds to trim the lead to 5-4.

A top-15 clash followed at 141 pounds as No. 14 Elijah Griffin squared off with 2x All-American No. 9 CJ Composto. Griffin struck first, scoring early to carry a 3-1 lead into the second period. Griffin rolled through for a tilt to start the second period, earning two near-fall points to build his lead before Composto escaped to make it 5-2. An injury timeout gave Composto choice, and he selected bottom, escaping on the restart. A second injury timeout against Griffin awarded Composto a point to make it 5-3, and another quick escape trimmed the lead to 5-4. Composto closed the period with a takedown and rode out Griffin in the third, securing an 8-5 decision with the riding time point.

At 149 pounds, No. 33 Dylan Layton answered. After surrendering the first takedown and trailing 3-0 after one, Layton chipped away. He cut the deficit to 4-3 late in the second and chose neutral to start the third. Layton delivered with a snap-and-go-behind takedown to claim a gritty 6-3 win, putting Rider back on top 8-7.

Penn regained control with a technical fall at 157 and a major decision at 165, building a 16-8 lead.

Enrique Munguia provided a spark at 174 pounds. Munguia locked up a cradle and recorded a second-period fall, pulling the Broncs within two at 16-14 with three bouts remaining.

The Quakers added a decision at 184 to extend the margin to 19-14.

No. 14 Brock Zurawski kept Rider within striking distance at 197 pounds against Martin Cosgrove. After a scoreless first period, Zurawski exploded for nine points in the second, highlighted by a Jonesy tilt, to take a commanding 9-1 lead. He continued to push the pace in the third, adding two takedowns and riding time to earn a 16-3 major decision, cutting the team score to 19-18 heading into the heavyweight finale.

With the dual on the line at 285 pounds, Hogan Swenski battled John Pardo but fell 8-1, sealing the 22-18 victory for the Quakers.


Quotes and Notes 
"The dual meet season is over and we did well this year but now it's on to the Post Season!  

I'm disappointed in the final outcome tonight. We had our chances but did not capitalize where Penn did.  

I'm very pleased with the consistent performances from Tyler and Brock every match.  Fun fact, Tyler went undefeated in Duals this year, that's impressive with our schedule. - Rider Head Coach John Hangey

Match Results
UPenn 22, Rider 18
125: #15 Tyler Klinsky (Rider) over Davis Motyka (Penn) (TF 18-3 6:20)
133: #13 Evan Mougalian (Penn) over Nieko Malone (Rider) (MD 11-3)
141: #9 CJ Composto (Penn) over #14 Elijah Griffin (Rider) (Dec 8-5)
149: #33 Dylan Layton (Rider) over Kelly Dunnigan (Penn) (Dec 6-4)
157: #12 Jude Swisher (Penn) over Gianni Maldonado (Rider) (TF 18-3 5:53)
165: #19 Sean Seefeldt (Penn) over Brendon Abdon (Rider) (MD 13-3)
174: Enrique Munguia (Rider) over Caden Bellis (Penn) (Fall 5:23)
184: Liam Carlin (Penn) over Giovanni Alejandro (Rider) (Dec 6-0)
197: #14 Brock Zurawski (Rider) over Martin Cosgrove (Penn) (MD 16-3)
285: John Pardo (Penn) over Hogan Swenski (Rider) (Dec 8-1)

Up Next
The Broncs now turn their focus to the next two weeks of preparation for the MAC Championships, set for March 6–7 and hosted by University at Buffalo.