|
|
|
|
[ Monday, Feb. 1, 1999 ]
Calabretta rises as wrestlers cool Boilers
By RYAN HOCKENSMITH
Collegian Staff Writer
Brett Calabretta in the practice room finally became Brett Calabretta in a dual meet. The Penn State 197-pound wrestler's fluctuant season took an upward swing yesterday after the junior's 12-4 major decision over Purdue's Jared Williams. Calabretta's win was instrumental in leading his No. 11 Nittany Lions (8-3) to a 24-14 Sunday brunching of the No. 12 Boilermakers (14-3). Calabretta's dominating performance, consisting of five takedowns, one escape and 3:47 of riding time, pushed Penn State ahead to an 18-3 lead after six bouts. The team went on to win two of the final four bouts on the way to the ten-point win. "That's what we see in the (wrestling) room of him," Lion coach Troy Sunderland said of Calabretta's victory. "He'll wrestle (teammate Jeff) Knupp like that. He'll go after (coaching assistants) Kerry McCoy and Dave Hart like that. I'm not sure what it is mentally. But he's very capable of having performances like that. And I hope to see a lot more of that type of performance." Calabretta, now 13-8 on the season, was equally miffed regarding the contrasting practice and match showings. "I don't know what it is," Calabretta said. "I always hear the guys yelling, ‘Just go out there and wrestle the way I do in practice and don't tighten up.' "It feels good to know that the stuff I'm working on … is starting to work on the mat. I feel that it's translating out on the mat now." Calabretta's turbulent season began in the team's first dual meet this season versus then-No. 16 Nebraska. That night, Calabretta thumped then-No. 11 Cornhusker Scott Munson 6-3, winning the Ridge Riley Award as Penn State's wrestler of the match. But in his next eight dual-meet bouts Calabretta went .500, alternating wins and losses before his win against Purdue -- a win that again garnered him Ridge Riley Award honors.
PHOTO: Shawn Knapp
P enn State 197 pounder Brett Calabretta takes down Purdue’s Jared Williams yesterday en route to a 12-4 decision yesterday at Rec Hall.
In yesterday's dual, Sunderland's revitalized Lion squad benefited from several lineup changes, including the return of injured starters Alex Leykikh (165 pounds) and Mark Janus (heavyweight) and Biff Walizer's move from 141 to 149 for the remainder of the season.
Sunderland couldn't complain following the win.
"I think we controlled the matches," the first-year head coach said. "We didn't rack up the points. I felt we controlled the aggression. I think a pretty good performance overall."
The most anticipated match of the day, pitting No. 3 Lion Clint Musser against undefeated No. 6 Boilermaker Willie Wineberg, didn't develop.
Purdue coach Jessie Reyes said Wineberg, who didn't wrestle against Ohio State Friday night, is currently injured and could not face off with fellow Ohio native Musser.
Musser, thinking back to the two wrestlers' high school days, had been hoping for a shot at Wineberg and his unblemished record.
"I thought he was wrestling 149 this year," Musser said. "I was like, ‘Oh, maybe I could have just stayed down (at 149), wrestled Willie just once and beat the crap out of him.' "
The Penn State co-captain didn't believe the reasons for Wineberg's absence from the lineup.
"I don't know what's wrong with him," the senior said. "I don't know if he's dodging me or what. He likes keeping those nice records."
Penn State next wrestles Saturday night against Lock Haven and No. 22 Indiana in a double dual meet at Rec Hall, the team's final home contests of the season.
Send an Opinion Letter to the Editor about this article.
Requested: Tuesday, October 07, 2008 1:27:11 PM -4
Created: Wednesday, May 07, 2008 6:25:47 PM -4