ITHACA, N.Y. – Less than 24-hours from kicking off its busy weekend with a 42-3 victory over Nassau Community College, the third-ranked Ithaca College wrestling team was back on the mat at Ben Light Gymnasium this morning when it welcomed perennial Mid-Atlantic wrestling power Delaware Valley University for an 11:00 a.m. dual. The Bombers continued their strong run of form, taking nine of 10 bouts in rolling to a 43-6 victory over the Aggies that improved the team's record to 9-2 in dual meets this season.
 
A day after having to grind out several close bouts against one of the top JUCO programs in the country in Nassau CC, Ithaca showed out on Saturday morning, delivering plenty of fireworks to bring the animated Ben Light Gymnasium crowd to its feet. The Bombers scored bonus points in five of its nine triumphs, not including sophomore Ben Brisman's (4^th NWCA | 5^th d3wrestle.com) received forfeit at 141-pounds. IC tallied four falls and a major decision over the final five wrestled bouts on the day to easily pull away for the 43-6 win.
 
Junior Ferdinand Mase set the tone for the match with a hard-fought decision at 125-pounds over Delaware Valley's talented sophomore Kordell Rush. Mase snatched early control with a takedown and strong ride in the first period, building up over a minute of ride time before ultimately cutting Rush loose. IC's third-year grappler added takedowns in both the second and third periods, the latter sealing the bout after Rush had cut the deficit to a single point at 4-3.
 
Sophomore Tito Colom also continued his strong stretch run with a gutsy 4-3 decision victory over Delaware Valley's Brenden Velez. Like Mase, Colom was much the aggressor during the early stages, connecting on a first-period shot to go up in the bout. Colom built out his lead to 4-1, before holding off Velez on a late charge to up IC's team lead to 6-0.
 
After Brisman received his forfeit at 141-pounds, junior Jawan Jones continued the IC momentum. Facing a scrappy grappler in the Aggies Dustin Childs, Jones used strong defense and showcased his strength to impose his will on Childs throughout much of the competitive bout. He picked up two takedowns and built up over 1:35 of riding time in the 5-1 decision. With the result, Ithaca delivered a 15-0 lead to its lineup of nationally-ranked wrestlers over the following four bouts.
 
Junior Austin Whitney (9^th NWCA) got the flashy stretch run started when he delivered a highlight-reel finishing move in his 157-pound bout against Anthony Snyder. Initially, it looked as though Delaware Valley might score its first takedown of the day when Snyder got in on Whitney's leg just over 30-seconds into the bout. However, in a display of sheer strength and athleticism, Whitney was able to keep his balance and tilt Snyder to his back for a pin just 50-seconds into the bout.
 
Senior Nick Velez (3^rd NWCA | 3^rd d3wrestle.com) dominated in a more conventional way in his 165-pound tilt with Chris Richardson. He raced out to a 10-3 advantage on the strength of four takedowns and a two-point near-fall during the opening minute of the bout, before driving Richardson's shoulders to the mat at 1:14. The victory clinched the match with still four bouts remaining.
 
Senior Jaison White (9^th NWCA) also was impressive in one of the tougher bouts of the match against the Aggies' Eliias Vega. In the end, White's conditioning and endurance shown through, as he was able to blow open a fairly close 7-4 score through two periods with four takedowns in the final period in the 16-7 major decision.
 
Junior Jake Ashcraft (3^rd NWCA | 3^rd d3wrestle.com) and sophomore Dalton Elias put the exclamation on the performance at 184-pounds and 197-pounds, respectively. Ashcraft continued to impose his dominance at will when he faced David Furmato in the first bout of the sequence. Like Velez, Ashcraft jumped out to a commanding 10-2 lead, before locking in his team-high 16^th fall of the season at 2:18. Elias had to work harder for his pin in a tightly contested bout against Carlos Martinez. In a similar sequence to Whitney's earlier fall, Elias was able to turn disadvantage into advantage in taking Martinez to his back at 5:42.
 
Delaware Valley got on the scoreboard when Marc Isaac received a forfeit at 285-pounds, as IC elected not to send out a grappler with the match long-earlier decided.
 
Ithaca will be back in action tomorrow when a contingent of wrestlers take part in the Jamestown Community College Open.
 
No. 3/3 Ithaca College 43 – Delaware Valley University 6
125 LB | Ferdinand Mase (ITHACA) def. Kordell Rush (DelVal) | DEC: 7-3
133 LB | Tito Colom (ITHACA) def. Brenden Velez (DelVal) | DEC: 4-3
141 LB | Ben Brisman (ITHACA) receives forfeit
149 LB | Jawan Jones (ITHACA) def. Dustin Childs (DelVal) | DEC: 5-1
157 LB | Austin Whitney (ITHACA) def. Anthony Snyder (DelVal) | FALL: 0:50
165 LB | Nick Velez (ITHACA) def. Chris Richardson (DelVal) | FALL: 1:14
174 LB | Jaison White (ITHACA) def. Eliias Vega (DelVal) | MD: 16-7
184 LB | Jake Ashcraft (ITHACA) def. David Furmato (DelVal) | FALL: 2:18
197 LB | Dalton Elias (ITHACA) def. Carlos Martinez (DelVal) | FALL: 5:42
285 LB | Marc Isaac (DelVal) receives forfeit