Veterans dominate Intrasquad Meet
November 7, 1998
CORVALLIS, Ore. - Oregon States veterans dominated the action Saturday morning as the 13th-ranked Beaver wrestlers held their annual Intrasquad Meet at Gill Coliseum. OSU opens the regular season at home against Stanford on Nov. 29 at 2 p.m.
"I thought it was good for us to get out and wrestle in front of a crowd, on our home mat, with officials," head coach Joe Wells said of the morning, which also featured the annual Kid Wrestling meet on the Beaver mats. "It was a nice crowd, and having the event with the tiny Beavers wrestling gave them a chance to see it and get some autographs."
Senior Oscar Wood, ranked first in the nation at 149 pounds, pinned freshman Andy Frey twice. Senior Mat Orndorff, ranked sixth nationally at heavyweight, took a pair of victories over redshirt freshman Jason Cooley. Sophomore Eric Jorgensen, ranked 12th in the nation at 157 pounds, won his lone match by technical fall, 16-1 over redshirt freshman Brad Wahrlich. Sophomore Ben Richards, an NCAA qualifier last season, won his only match of the day 11-2 over freshman Shane Cunanan.
Two Beavers who are in the national rankings missed the meet for health reasons: sophomore Shane Zajac, ranked 10th at 197 pounds; and junior Isaac Wood, ranked 20th at 165 pounds. Junior Clint Wilson, another returning starter, beat highly-regarded freshman Jason Lovell 9-6 and 8-2 at 174 pounds.
"Our upper-classmen, the first time around, struggled a little bit," Wells said. "They looked a little uneasy and not quite sure of themselves. In the second round, they picked up the pace and were more focused. Thats why we have a match like this - to do things in preparation for competition."
A pair of newcomers may have earned spots in the lineup by posting a pair of wins, as redshirt freshman Nathan Navarro beat freshman Matt Davis 12-6 and 13-4 at 125 pounds; and freshman Isaac Weber beat redshirt freshman Levi Reilly 4-1 and 9-2. The mornings other matches saw sophomore Paul Barron beat freshman Casey Horn 6-3, and freshman Nathan Coy beat classmate Jake Huffman 23-10.
"It was a nice beginning," Wells said. "Were excited about the season and the possibilities. We saw that weve got a number of young athletes who could start for us, and that will give us more balance and a higher level of competition."
OREGON STATE INTRASQUAD MEET RESULTS
125 - Nathan Navarro dec. Matt Davis 12-6; Nathan Navarro dec. Matt Davis 13-4. 133 - Ben Richards dec. Shane Cunanan, 11-2. 141 - Paul Barron dec. Casey Horn, 6-3. 149 - Oscar Wood pinned Andy Frey, 5:45; Oscar Wood pinned Andy Frey, 3:41. 157 - Eric Jorgensen tech. fall over Brad Wahrlich, 16-1. 165 - Nathan Coy dec. Jake Huffman, 23-10. 174 - Clint Wilson dec. Jason Lovell, 9-6; Clint Wilson dec. Jason Lovell , 8-2. 184 - Isaac Weber dec. Levi Reilly 4-1; Isaac Weber dec. Levi Reilly 9-2. HWT - Mat Orndorff dec. Jason Cooley 10-5; Mat Orndorff dec. Jason Cooley 6-3.
