Erie, Pa. – While the No. 2 West Liberty University wrestling team and No. 20 Mercyhurst split the ten bouts on the night, bonus points carried the Hilltoppers to a 24-17 victory. Of the five wins for WLU three came by way of fall, including the final match of the night in which Francesco Borsellino secured the dual win by pinning his opponent only nine seconds into the match-up.
 
QUICK DETAILS
Final Score: No. 2 West Liberty 24, No. 20 Mercyhurst 17
Team Records: No. 2 West Liberty 2-0, No. 20 Mercyhurst 0-1
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Mercyhurst opened the dual with a win by decision at 125 pounds as Alexander Crane fell to Billy Smith 5-2. Smith recorded a takedown in the first and a reversal in the third, while Crane tallied escapes in the first and third. (Note: Result of match is incorrectly shown on TrackWrestling and dual scoring PDF)
• West Liberty evened the dual at three following the 133 pound match as No. 4 Vincent Scollo improved to 2-0 on the year with a 5-0 win by decision over Nate Knowlton. Scollo notched one takedown in the opening period and an escape in the second. He also totaled 1:54 in riding time to earn the riding time point.
• Khyvon Grace, the No. 3 ranked wrestler in the region, battled Jake Niffenegger, the No. 3 nationally ranked wrestler at 141 pounds. With five points in the final period it was not enough for Grace to complete the come-from-behind win, as Niffenegger notched a pair of takedowns en route to an 8-6 win by decision.
• Nico Taddy gave the Hilltoppers their first lead in the dual at 9-6 after earning the first pin of his collegiate career over Bret Minnick at 149 pounds. Taddy collected a pair of takedowns and a reversal prior to ending the match in 6:22 by way of fall.
• Jordan Watters extended the dual lead for the Black & Gold with a high scoring 14-12 win by decision over Max Stedeford. With three takedowns, two escapes, and a reversal, he held off a late rally by Stedeford who scored a takedown with only 12 seconds remaining to cut the lead to one. Watters totaled 2:06 in riding time to secure the riding time point.
• The Lakers won back-to-back bouts at 165 and 174 pounds to regain a 13-12 advantage in the dual. In the lone ranked match-up of the night, No. 3 Alec Cook fell by major decision (15-3) to No. 6 Dillon Walker at 165 pounds, and Caden Kenworthy fell by decision (4-2) to Chase Stein at 174 pounds.
• Moving to 2-0 on the year, No. 1 Ty McGeary picked up his second bonus point win of the season with a pin of Vincent Scaramuzzino. Starting off quick with three takedowns in the opening period, it looked as if McGeary would earn another tech fall but he was able to get the turn with 20 seconds remaining for his first pin of 2023-24.
• Mercyhurst cut West Liberty's dual lead to 18-17 entering the final match of the night, as Trever Begin won by major decision over Keaton Grider with a score of 15-2.
• Making his season debut, No. 4 Francesco Borsellino secured the dual meet win in a matter of seconds. Borsellino recorded the win by fall over Parker Wood in only nine seconds as he grabbed Wood's leg right off the start and immediately put him on his back to start the count.

MATCH RESULTS             

Weight	Summary	MERC	WLU
125	Billy Smith (Mercyhurst) over Alexander Crane (West Liberty) (Dec 5-2)	3	0
133	Vincent Scollo (West Liberty) over Nate Knowlton (Mercyhurst) (Dec 5-0)	0	3
141	Jake Niffenegger (Mercyhurst) over Khyvon Grace (West Liberty) (Dec 8-6)	3	0
149	Nico Taddy (West Liberty) over Bret Minnick (Mercyhurst) (Fall 6:22)	0	6
157	Jordan Watters (West Liberty) over Max Stedeford (Mercyhurst) (Dec 14-12)	0	3
165	Dillon Walker (Mercyhurst) over Alec Cook (West Liberty) (MD 15-3)	4	0
174	Chase Stein (Mercyhurst) over Caden Kenworthy (West Liberty) (Dec 4-2)	3	0
184	Ty McGeary (West Liberty) over Vincent Scaramuzzino (Mercyhurst) (Fall 6:40)	0	6
197	Trever Begin (Mercyhurst) over Keaton Grider (West Liberty) (MD 15-2)	4	0
285	Francesco Borsellino (West Liberty) over Parker Wood (Mercyhurst) (Fall 0:09)	0	6
Team Score:		17	24

 
Head Coach Danny Irwin Post Match Interview at Mercyhurst


UP NEXT
West Liberty will next be in action on Saturday, November 18 when they travel to the Findlay Open. The Hilltoppers will open the day at 9 a.m. in Findlay, Ohio.