Lions Fall to Case Western Reserve, Kent State Tuscawaras

CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Penn State Behrend wrestling team dropped a pair of close non-conference matches, falling to Kent State Tuscarawas and Case Western Reserve on Saturday afternoon.

Scores: Kent State Tuscarawas 30, Penn State Behrend 27
Scores: Case Western 27, Penn State Behrend 16
Records:  Penn State Behrend (3-15), Case Western (2-3), Kent State Tuscarawas (5-8)

Key Moments:

* The Lions had a three-point lead heading into the final bout against Kent State
* Behrend's largest lead was at 22-12 after the sixth bout
* Kent State tallied a pin in the last bout (165) to edge Behrend
* Sophomore Levko Higgins (Palmyra, PA/Palmyra Area), freshman 125-pounder Michael Binni (Canonsburg, PA/Canon McMillan) and Cole Ruffo (Mercer, PA/Hickory) each tallied a pair of wins on the day
* Higgins registered a forfeit vs. KS-Tuscarawas and then pinned Cade Lueker in 0:54
* Binni recorded two major decisions, earning a 14-5 victory and then a 16-6 win
* Ruffo recorded a technical fall at 157 to give the Lions a 27—24 in the first match, before earning a 6-5 decision over Brandon Barton of Case
* Sophomore Jake Paulson (Erie, PA/McDowell) suffered his first dual-match loss against Case Western, falling by one point
* Tyler Speraw (Annville-Cleona, PA / Annville-Cleona) followed at 165 with a 6-4 decision to earn three points for the Lions

Kent State Tuscawaras 30, Penn State Behrend 27
174 – Mason Contini (KSU-T) pin over Sam Tubbs (PSB), 0:23 (6-0)
184 – Jake Paulson (PSB) wins by forfeit (6-6)
197 – Levko Higgins (PSB) wins by forfeit (12-6)
285 – Zachary Trim (PSB) wins by forfeit   
125 – Elijah Nash (KSU-T) wins by forfeit
133 – Michael Binni (PSB) maj. dec. over Ray Velez (KSU-T), 14-5 (18-12)
141 – Austin Bailey (KSU-T) wins by forfeit (22-18)
149 – Lane Householder (KSU-T) wins by forfeit (24-22)
157 – Cole Ruffo (PSB) tech. fall over Austin Croto (KSU-T), 16-1 (27-24)
165 – Collin Mancuso (KSU-T) pin over Tyler Speraw (PSB), 3:34 (30-27)

Case Western 27, Penn State Behrend 16
174 – Aidan McCooey (CWRU) dec. over Sam Tubbs (PSB), 5-0 (3-0)  
184 – Levko Higgins (PSB) pin over Cade Lueker (CWRU), 0:54 (6-3)  
197 – Gavin Dersh-Fisher (CWRU) dec. over Jake Paulson (PSB), 5-4 (6-6)
285 – Brian McNamara (CWRU) dec. over Zackery Trim (PSB), 6-2 (9-6)
125 – Michael Binni (PSB) maj. dec. over Patrick Hebreard (CWRU), 16-6 (10-9)
133 – Alec Hoover (CWRU) wins by forfeit (15-10)
141 – Andrew Hoover (CWRU) wins by forfeit (21-10)  
149 – Cole Ruffo (PSB) dec. over Brandon Barton (CWRU), 6-5 (21-13)
157 – Jack Chipps (CWRU) pin over Trey Kovalick (PSB), 2:40 (27-13)
165 – Tyler Speraw (PSB) dec. over Isaac Collier (CWRU), 6-4 (27-16)

Up Next:

The Behrend Lions return to action Wednesday at Pitt-Bradford. Match begins at 7 p.m.