ECWC Honoree List
Week #14 (February 20 - February 26, 2017)
Wrestler of the Week: Bobby Dierna (Sr.) | SUNY Cortland | 157 LBS
Dierna was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler at the NCAA Div. III Northeast Regional for the second straight year, and third time overall, as he repeated as champion at 157 pounds. He went 4-0 on the weekend with two pins, a technical fall and a major decision. Ranked first nationally and the defending national champ at 157, Dierna won the regional title with a technical fall over nationally second-ranked Zach Joseph of Springfield College. His victory in Saturday's quarterfinals was the 100th of his career. Dierna is 17-0 this season, with every match resulting in bonus points, and has a career mark of 102-9.
Rookie of the Week: Sammy Schneider (Fr.) | Ithaca | 149 LBS
Schneider captured the 149-pound title at this past weekend’s NCAA Northeast Regional Championships, hosted at Roger Williams. The IC rookie went 4-0 on the weekend to improve his record to 31-1 on the year. He kicked off the weekend with a pair of 20-5 technical falls on Saturday, dispatching Raffaele Masi of Castleton State and Thomas Grippi of Johnson & Wales. He followed up his strong start with an even more dominant finish on the final day of competition. Schneider scored a first-period pin (2:36) of Wesleyan’s Carter Armendarez in the semifinal to earn a trip to 149-pound title and a bout against nationally-ranked (4
th NWCA, 3
rd d3wrestle) Dan Del Gallo of Southern Maine in the finals. Schneider won in a flash in the final, locking in the fall just 31-seconds into the match.
Week #13 (February 6 - February 12, 2017)
Wrestler of the Week: Jimmy Kaishian (Sr.) | Ithaca | 125 LBS
Kaishian went 1-0 on the week, scoring a thrilling 9-7 decision over the nation’s second-ranked wrestler at 125-pounds in Guesseppe Rea of #24 Wilkes University. Trailing Rea 7-5 deep into the third-period, Kaishian scored a late takedown, but still needed to essentially ride out the period to force overtime due to Rea’s riding-time advantage. The IC senior did one better, whittling the ride-time under a minute, before turning Rea to his back for a go ahead two-point near fall as time expired. The victory upped Kaishian’s record to 26-9 on the year, while it was only Rea’s fourth defeat this season. The fourth-ranked Bombers went on to defeat 24
th-ranked Wilkes 34-12 in the match.
Rookie of the Week: Joey Bush (Fr.) | Oswego State | 149 LBS
Bush went 2-0 during the week with huge wins against conference-opponents Oneonta and Cortland. On Wednesday, in the Lakers first triumph over the Red Dragons since Jan. 26, 2002, the freshman downed Nicholas Heck by a 7-0 decision. Later in the week against No. 15 Cortland, Bush defeated Matt Caputo by a sudden-victory decision (9-5). The Governeur, N.Y. native avenged his loss to Caputo during the ECWC Championships earlier in the year.
Week #12 (January 30 - February 5, 2017)
Wrestler of the Week: Jonathan Haas (Jr.) | Brockport | 125 LBS
Haas earned three more wins this week at the John Summa Invitational in Berea, Ohio, winning the 125-lb weight class. After earning the top seed and an opening round bye, he wrestled his way to an easy first place finish, beating his first two opponents by technical fall before a 12-9 decision win over Nick Berry of host Baldwin Wallace in the finals. The Spencerport, N.Y. native is now 21-1 on the season, and is ranked ninth in the country at 125.
Rookie of the Week: Jordan Bushey (Fr.) | Oswego State | 184 LBS
Bushey continued his stellar season during the wrestling team’s trip to Berea, Ohio for the John Summa Baldwin Wallace Invitational. The freshman raised his season record to 28-0 with his victories in the 184-lb weight class. In his opening round match against Caleb Garvey of Thiel College, Bushey collected a 20-0 technical fall. He followed up this dominating performance with a near-perfect 16-1 tech fall over Nathan Tang of Washington and Jefferson College. The Peru, N.Y. native proceeded to roll in a tighter 5-1 match, claiming the decision over Nick Fox of nationally-ranked Wabash College. In the championship bout, Bushey earned the pin fall over Alfred State’s George Van Valen in 1:57.
Week #11 (January 23 - January 29, 2017)
Wrestler of the Week: George Van Valen (Jr.) | Alfred State | 197 LBS
Van Valen went 7-0 on the week, which included a perfect 6-0 record at the NWCA National Duals in Lynchburg, Va. He recorded three pin-falls, one technical fall, and two major decisions during the course of the week. Highlighting the action was a narrow 2-1 win by decision over Michael Swider of Wheaton College who is currently ranked sixth in the latest NWCA rankings at 197-pounds. Van Valen’s record currently stands at 25-5 on the year.
Rookie of the Week: Tristan Almeter (Fr.) | Alfred State | 165 LBS
Almeter posted a perfect 7-0 record this past week, which included a 6-0 mark at the NCWA National Duals in Lynchburg, Va. He recorded two technical falls and a major decision among his seven victories, while he only conceded three points against all week.
Week #10 (January 16 - January 22, 2017)
Wrestler of the Week: Jonathan Haas (Jr.) | Brockport | 125 LBS
Haas posted a perfect 4-0 record on the week, which included a 3-0 record on Saturday en route to the 125-pound title at this past weekend’s ECWC Championships. Beginning as the second-seed, he bested Patrick Lehman of Alfred State in a 23-8 technical fall to advance to the semifinals. He went on to defeat a pair of Ithaca wrestlers to secure the title. In the semifinals, he outlasted the Bombers’ Ferdinand Mase, who went on to finish third in the bracket, in a 5-2 decision. Haas capped the day with a hard-fought 4-3 victory over the nation’s eighth-ranked wrestler in both the NWCA and d3wrestle.com polls in two-time defending 125-pound champion Jimmy Kaishian. For his impressive efforts, Haas was named the event’s Most Outstanding Wrestler.
Rookie of the Week: Kevin Knox (Fr.) | SUNY Oneonta | 133 LBS
Knox was one of three rookies to secure weight-class titles this past weekend at the ECWC Championships, hosted by Oswego State. The SUNY Oneonta freshman posted a perfect 4-0 mark, which included a triumph over national-ranked teammate Austin Sisco (4
th NWCA, 5
th d3wrestle.com) in the 133-pound final. Knox opened his run with a 20-3 technical fall over SUNY Cortland’s Chris Cataldo. He bested Isaiah Ocasio of RIT in an 11-3 major decision, before doubling up with a 12-4 major over Ithaca’s Bryan Israel. Knox capped his run with a 14-10 victory over his teammate Sisco in the final.
Week #9 (January 9 - January 15, 2017)
Co-Wrestler of the Week: Jake Sepor (Sr.) | RIT | 141 LBS
Sepor went 5-0 at 141 lbs. at the prestigious Budd Whitehill National Duals hosted by Lycoming College. Friday, he won a major decision over Caleb-Lewis Cepero of Thiel (17-4), major decision over Scorr Worlund of Wisconsin-Eau Claire (10-2), and defeated Anthony Gagliano of The College of New Jersey (5-1) Saturday, Sepor won a major decision over Bryan Coll of Oswego, 13-4 and defeated Brandon Seyfried of Williams, 5-3. Sepor is now 18-1 on the season and a perfect 9-0 in dual matches.
Co-Wrestler of the Week: Dempsey King (So.) | RIT | 157 LBS
King went 5-0 at 157 lbs., at the prestigious Budd Whitehill National Duals hosted by Lycoming College. Friday, he defeated Brett Beltz of Thiel, 9-5, pinned Scott Mattison of Wisconsin Eau-Claire in 2:10 and won a 5-0 decision over Luke Balina of The College of New Jersey. Saturday, King knocked off Michael DeCapua of Oswego, 12-2 and Gabriel Corrochano of Williams, 3-0. King is now 15-3 on the season and a perfect 9-0 in dual matches.
Rookie of the Week: Matt Caputo (So.) | SUNY Cortland | 149 LBS
Caputo, in his first season of collegiate wrestling, finished 4-0 with a technical fall and a major decision at the Budd Whitehill National Duals. He won in sudden-victory overtime versus Williams and by an 11-3 major decision versus Messiah during the opening day. He followed that by posting a 16-0 technical fall against Millikin and an 8-2 decision in the fifth-place match against Ohio Northern. Caputo is 15-9 this season with two pins, a tech fall and four majors.
Week #8 (January 2 - January 8, 2017)
Co-Wrestler of the Week: Colin Barber (Sr.) | SUNY Cortland | 174 LBS
Barber went 4-0 this past week at the North/South Duals in Pennsylvania. Three of those bouts were wrestled at his normal weight of 174 pounds where he went 3-0 all coming in major decisions. He defeated Jake Gordon of Muhlenbeg 8-0, Josh Smith of nationally-ranked Stevens 11-3, and Hunter Fenk of NCAA Division II Shippensburg 10-1. Barber also won his lone match at 184 pounds, besting Jacob Brook of Wilkes 12-2. Barber improved his season record to 19-6 with six victories coming by way of major decision.
Co-Wrestler of the Week: Carlos Toribio (Sr.) | Ithaca | 197 LBS
Toribio posted a dominant two days in leading No. 4 Ithaca College to a fourth-place finish at the NWCA Multi-Divisional National Duals hosted in Fort Wayne, Ind. The IC senior went 4-0 at the event, scoring bonus points in all four of his victories on the week. He opened the event with a first-period pin-fall (0:41) win over Augustana’s Ethan Benoit. He followed that effort with a clutch 16-0 technical fall victory over Nick Graziano, giving the Bombers their first lead in a dual they went on to win 23-15 over No. 18 Wisconsin-Whitewater. Although IC dropped both of its duals in the second day of competition, Toribio still was a mainstay for the Bombers. He marked another 16-0 technical fall over No. 3 Augsburg’s Logan Hortop, before rounding out the National Duals with a 10-1 whitewash of Michael DiNardo of No. 6 Johnson & Wales. The 4-0 week pushed Toribio’s record to 13-4 on the season and a perfect 6-0 in dual meet competitions.
Rookie of the Week: Sammy Schneider (Fr.) | Ithaca | 149 LBS
Schneider continued to stake his claim for the No. 1 rank at 149 pounds at the NCAA Division III level with another dominant effort this past week. Like his teammate Toribio, Schneider went 4-0 at the NWCA Multi-Divisional National Duals. The rookie began the two-day event with an 11-3 major decision over Augustana’s Matt Sears, before helping spark the Bombers comeback against No. 18 UW-Whitewater with an 11-4 decision over Adam Becker. He got the scoring started for IC against No. 3 Augsburg on Friday with an 13-11 decision over Ryan Epps and rounded out the competition with a 22-7 technical fall over DJ Tirelli of No. 6 Johnson & Wales. The wins brought Schneider’s record up to 18-1 during his debut campaign.
Week #7 (December 26, 2016 - January 1, 2017)
Wrestler of the Week: Austin Sisco (Jr.) | SUNY Oneonta | 133 LBS
Sisco finished with a 4-0 record in winning the 133-pound title at the ultra-competitive Citrus Invitational in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., this past week. Entering the event as the fourth seed in the weight-class, he bested two top-ranked grapplers en route to navigating the difficult field unblemished. He opened the invite with a 7-1 decision over Brody Lamb of Cornell College. He scored a pin-fall at the conclusion of the opening period in his quarterfinal-round bout against Monty Fredericksen of Augsburg. Sisco faced No. 3 Ryan Weinmann of Wisconsin-La Crosse in the semifinals, dominating in a 10-0 major decision. He concluded his run with a second-period victory by pin-fall over No. 4 Sam Bennyhoff of Augsburg. The two impressive victories helped Sisco jump both wrestlers to the No. 4 rank in the latest NWCA Individual Rankings released on Monday, January 2nd.
Rookie of the Week: Kevin Knox (Fr.) | SUNY Oneonta | 133 LBS
Knox posted a 5-1 record in taking third-place in the 133-pound bracket at the Citrus Invite this past week. After winning his initial bout by fall, Knox met No. 4 Sam Bennyhoff in the second round. Although he led for the majority of the match, the Augsburg wrestler overtook Knox in the final minute for a 10-8 decision. The Red Dragons grappler battled through the wrestle-backs with four straight victories to take third place. Of his victories, he scored a 9-2 decision over No. 3 Ryan Weinmann of Wisconsin-La Crosse in the consolation bracket semifinals. He defeated Nathan Shank of Cornell College by an 11-7 decision in the third-place bout.
Week #6 (December 5 - December 11, 2016)
Wrestler of the Week: Brendan Dent (Jr.) | SUNY Cortland | 165 LB
Dent recorded a 3-0 record at the North East Duals hosted by Oneonta, helping Cortland post a 2-1 record. Dent picked up a 9-4 decision in Cortland’s setback against nationally sixth-ranked Johnson & Wales. He then earned a 6-1 decision in the Red Dragons’ 33-13 win over Castleton. Dent finished the day with a key 17-6 major decision in Cortland’s 16-15 victory against WPI with his bonus point earned being the deciding factor in the team score. For the season, Dent has a 16-4 record with one pin, one technical fall and three majors.
Rookie of the Week: Jordan Bushey (Fr.) | Oswego State | 184 LB
Bushey went 1-0 in the Lakers lone dual meet of the week. He defeated Ithaca's red-hot 184-pound entrant, Jake Ashcraft, in an 8-4 decision. The rookie recorded three takedowns, an escape, and a point on riding time. Bushey is now 2-0 against Ashcraft on the year.
Week #5 (November 28 - December 4, 2016)
Wrestler of the Week: Triston Engle (So.) | Brockport | 197 LB
Engle continued his dominant season with four easy wins at the New Standard Corporation Invitational on his way to a first place finish. In his opening bout with Miles Gilliam of Johns Hopkins, the Dolgeville, N.Y. native took just 1:18 before pinning his opponent and moving onto the quarterfinals. It was that matchup with Michael DiNardo of Johnson and Wales University that would end up being the closest for Engle, although he was still able to come out victorious with a 6-0 decision. After winning by technical fall 17-2 in the semis, Engle pinned yet another opponent in the finals, taking just 1:51 to defeat Elizabethtown’s Luke Fernandez by fall. It is the second time this season that Engle has earned the weekly honor from the ECWC.
Rookie of the Week: Sammy Schneider (Fr.) | Ithaca | 149 LB
Schneider turned in a dominant effort this past weekend, racking up five victories en route to the 149-pound weight-class title at the New Standard Corporation Invitational, hosted by York College (Pa.). The Ithaca rookie began his run with a first period pin (0:53) of Elizabethtown’s Khai Do. After dispatching Robert Duxbury of Delaware Valley in a 16-5 major decision, Schneider picked up his second victory by fall of the day when he pinned Sean Peacock of Brockport in the first period (0:53). In one of the most anticipated match-ups of the afternoon, he faced Zach Wilhelm (8
th NWCA, 5
th d3wrestle.com) of Stevens in the semifinal round, besting the Ducks’ talented grappler in an 11-5 decision. Schneider completed his run when he defeated Danny Downes of Roger Williams by the same 11-5 score in the 149-pound title bout. It is Schneider's second Rookie of the Week honor from the ECWC this season.
Week #4 (November 21 - November 27, 2016)
Wrestler of the Week: Kade Andrews (So.) | Oswego State | 285 LB
Andrews earned two victories on Sunday in Oswego’s second-straight trip to Madison Square Garden for the Grapple at the Garden. In his first match against Pete Andrich from No. 11 Stevens Institute of Technology, the heavyweight won by a 4-1 decision. The Felts Mills, N.Y. native wrapped the day by pinning his opponent from Muhlenberg College to add six points to Oswego’s 39-7 team win. This helped improve the Lakers to 1-2 on the season in dual contests.
Rookie of the Week: Jordan Bushey (Fr.) | Oswego State | 184 LB
Bushey helped lead Oswego to a 1-1 day with 12 individual points after he won both of his matches this past weekend at the annual Grapple at the Garden. Bushey won his first match over Danny Moore of nationally-ranked Stevens Institute of Technology by a pin fall in a quick 1:33. The freshman then won his second match, this one again by pin fall, against Steve Rice of Muhlenberg College. Bushey battled slightly longer, going into the third period, but getting the victory nonetheless in 5:30. His win helped the Lakers win the match over the Mules 39-7.
Week #3 (November 14 - November 20, 2016)
Co-Wrestler of the Week: James Bethel (Jr.) | SUNY Oneonta | 285 LB
Bethel went 3-1 this weekend at the NYS Collegiate Championships at Cornell with a second place finish in the A-Division at 285 pounds. Bethel's only loss of the tournament came in the championship bout, as he fell to Garrett Ryan of Columbia who is a two-time NCAA Qualifier and is nationally ranked this year. Bethel scored one victory by fall and a pair of victories by decision is his first three bouts at the tournament. Bethel is currently 12-1 on the season with seven win via pins. He is ranked third nationally in his weight class by the NWCA.
Co-Wrestler of the Week: Jake Ashcraft (So.) | Ithaca | 184 LB
Ashcraft also posted a 3-1 record this weekend at the NYS Collegiate Championships at Cornell’s Bartels Hall, placing second in the A-Division at 184 pounds. He scored a major decision and two victories via falls to advance to the 184-pound championship against two-time National Champion and current No. 1 ranked Gabe Dean of Cornell. Ashcraft hung around in the bout against Dean, before eventually getting pinned in the third period to settle for second place. Ashcraft is now 8-5 on the year with five of his victories coming by way of falls.
Rookie of the Week: Zach Gifford (Fr.) | SUNY Cortland | 285 LB
Gifford posted a 5-2 record en route to earning a fifth-place finish in the Open Division at 285 pounds. After dropping his first bout of the day, Gifford rattled off four straight victories by way of pins in the wrestle-back portion of the bracket. His bid for third place was ultimately ended one round short when he fell to Buffalo’s Ian James in the wrestle-back semifinals. He went on to secure fifth place when top-seeded Wyatt Morris of RIT had to withdraw from the tournament with an injury.
Week #2 (November 7 - November 13, 2016)
Wrestler of the Week: Triston Engle (So.) | Brockport | 197 LB
Engle was dominant this week for Brockport in winning all five of his bouts. He opened the week with a first-period pin (2:20) of Alfred State’s Braydn Whitacre in the Golden Eagles’ 40-12 dual-meet victory. He continued his strong week with four victories to take the 197-pound weight class championship at the Purple Raider Invitational, hosted by Mount Union. He opened the tournament with a first-period fall (1:11) against Ethan Budd of Mount Union. Engle followed that 16-0 technical fall victory over Ohio Valley’s Tyler Koreski. He pinned Mercyhurst’s Wes Phipps in the first period (1:56) to advance to the finals, where he won a tight 11-5 decision against top-seeded Evan Rosborough of Lake Erie Colllege. Engle was named Most Outstanding Wrestler at the event.
Rookie of the Week: Sammy Schneider (Fr.) | Ithaca | 149 LB
Schneider took home second place in his pool at this past weekend’s Journeymen/ASICS Collegiate Classic, posting a 3-1 official record on the weekend. He picked up victories by forfeit over SUNY Cortland’s Derak Heyman and LIU’s Matt Langan. He scored a victory by fall over another Red Dragon wrestler, when he pinned Cortland’s Matt Caputo in the second period (3:45). His lone blemish on the weekend came against Division I competition, as he fell in a 12-0 major decision to James Dekrone of West Virginia.
Week #1 (October 31 - November 6, 2016)
Co-Wrestler of the Week: James Bethel (Jr.) | SUNY Oneonta | 285 LB
Bethel returned to action following a medical hardship and over a year and a half out of competition to win the Monarch Invitational at King’s College this past weekend. Bethel went 5-0 on the day with two victories via falls and three winning decisions. Entering the year as the third-ranked wrestler at 285-pounds by the NWCA, Bethel defeated the No. 4 wrestler in Kyle Foster of Roger Williams in a 4-2 decision in the heavyweight finals.
Co-Wrestler of the Week: Carlos Toribio (Sr.) | Ithaca College | 197 LB
Toribio made his debut at 197 pounds at last weekend’s Ithaca Invitational, posting a 4-0 record en route to the crown in the weight class. He opened the weekend with a first-period fall (0:49) over Jonathan Jividen of New England on Day One of the competition. In the quarterfinals, he bested Western New England’s Brian Donovan in a 10-2 major decision and Oswego State’s Daniel Smith in a 4-0 decision in the semifinal round to earn a spot in the 197-pound finals. The final was one of the most anticipated bouts of the weekend as Toribio (No. 3 NWCA/No. 3 d3wrestle.com) faced off against AJ Kowal (No. 2 NWCA/No. 1 d3wrestle.com) of nationally-ranked Stevens. Toribio scored an early takedown and clinched the bout with a two-minute ride in the third period to score the 2-1 decision. He was named the Invitational’s Most Outstanding Wrestler by the participating coaches.
Rookie of the Week: Jordan Bushey (Fr.) | Oswego State | 184 LB
Bushey’s collegiate career is off to a fast start as he conquered the field in the 184-pound weight class in his first tournament at the Ithaca Invite this past weekend. In the quarterfinal bout, Bushey earned an 8-6 decision. He then battled with top-seeded Jake Ashcraft of Ithaca in the semifinal match, scoring a 16-6 major decision. With an unblemished 3-0 record, Bushey headed into the weight class’s championship match against Brian Hennessey of Norwich University. The Plattsburgh, N.Y. native continued to ride the momentum and won the title by fall in just under four minutes (3:58).
