The Lehigh wrestling team went up against Bucknell University and came away with a 33-7 victory in its season opener Friday night at Leeman Turner Arena.
The Mountain Hawks showcased junior Darian Cruz, sophomore Scott Parker, senior Randy Cruz, senior Laike Gardner, freshman Jordan Kutler, sophomore Gordon Wolf, sophomore Ryan Preisch, freshman Kyle Gentile, senior Ben Haas and senior Doug Vollaro. These nine wrestlers won seven out of their nine duals, pushing the team to its first victory of the year.
The team’s performance was highlighted by performances by Randy Cruz, Kutler and Wolf, who combined for over six takedowns and three escapes. Randy Cruz had one takedown and two escapes to finish off the night.
“As a team we looked really solid, aggressive, we took a lot of the shots in my opinion and scored a lot, so I think as a team we looked really good,” Randy Cruz said. “I need to push the pace a little more. Throughout the whole match sometimes I get a little tired, but every wrestler gets tired, so I just gotta work on pushing the pace throughout the whole match.”
Kutler debuted in brown and white Friday night, tallying three takedowns and one escape.
“I felt pretty good, it was kind of a rough week with exams and trying to manage all that and trying to keep my weight under control so there was a little stress there,” Kutler said. “My opponent was pretty tough as he’s a couple time NCAA qualifier, so it was definitely a good first match right off the bat, and I was glad I could get that win under my belt.”
Coach Pat Santoro was pleased with the performance, saying Bucknell has always been tough competition for the team.
I think the last few times we’ve wrestled them, win or lose I just thought we got out-wrestled,” Santoro said. “Tonight, overall I think we did a really nice job.”
Santoro added that the team still needs work and that more competition will help with early nerves of the young guys. With that being said, Santoro said he’s also excited about the young talent on the roster this year.
“We really like our freshman class,” Santoro said. “We got some good young kids, we have a good young crew. This right here is a fun team because we have a lot of young faces in the lineup, so it’s kinda nice to see them out there and compete.”
Next up on the list of opponents for the Mountain Hawks is Pittsburgh University, where they will travel to face off on Nov. 18.
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