Pittsburgh, PA – The Pride won the first three matches of the contest but captured just one of the remaining seven as ninth-ranked Pittsburgh defeated 22nd-ranked Hofstra, 22-12 at Fitzgerald Field House Friday night. The Pride, who dropped their second straight 22-12 decision after losing at third-ranked Cornell last Saturday, fall to 10-2 on the season. The Panthers of Pittsburgh, who won their 10th consecutive match, improve to 13-1. 

Starting the match at 125 pounds, Pride junior Steve Bonanno, ranked 14th, recorded his ninth win in the last 10 matches with a 6-1 victory over 15th-ranked Anthony Zanetta. Bonanno improved to 22-6 on the year and gave Hofstra a 3-0 lead. Sophomore Jamie Franco continued his winning ways with a 6-5 victory over 19th-ranked Shelton Mack in the second tie-breaker at 133 pounds. Franco, who has now won seven of his last nine matches, is 17-9 on the season while Mack slipped to 15-7. Sophomore Luke Vaithgave the Pride a 9-0 lead in the contest with a 4-1 decision over Travis Shaffer at 141 pounds. Vaith, who has won six of his last seven matches, is now 16-8 on the year. 

But the Panthers closed the gap with consecutive wins. 12th-ranked Tyler Nauman improved to 22-4 with a 4-3 victory over Pride red-shirt junior Justin Accordino at 149 pounds. Accordino, who saw his nine-match winning streak come to an end, fell to 19-9 on the season. At 157, Pitt’s Donnie Tasser defeated junior Tyler Banks, 9-3 to bring the Panthers back to within three at 9-6. 

Hofstra senior P.J. Gillespie gave the Pride some breathing room with a 5-4 decision over Tyler Wilps in the tie-breaker at 165 pounds. Gillespie, who won his sixth straight match, improved to 23-5 on the season and gave Hofstra a 12-6 lead. It would also be the Pride’s last win of the match. 

The Hofstra lead was quickly erased at 174 when the Pride forfeited to Ethan Headlee which tied the match 12-all. The Panthers took their first lead on the contest at 184 pounds when P.J. Tasser, who was wrestling up a weight class, defeated Hofstra’s ninth-ranked senior Ben Clymer, 2-1 on a late third-period takedown. Clymer slipped to 23-6 while Pitt took a 15-12 lead. At 197, the Panthers expanded their lead as Andy Vaughan posted a 13-4 major decision over Hofstra sophomore Tim Murphy. Pitt boosted its lead to 19-12 while Murphy fell to 10-17.  Matt Wilps, who is ranked fourth at 197 pounds, closed out the match with a 5-2 victory over Hofstra junior Paul Snyder at 285 pounds. 

The Pride will return to action on Sunday, February 12 when they host the 19th-ranked Bearcats of Binghamton at the Mack Physical Education Center at 1 p.m.

#9 Pitt 22, #22 Hofstra 12 
125 – #14 Steve Bonanno (H) dec. #15 Anthony Zanetta (P), 6-1
133 – Jamie Franco (H) dec. #19 Shelton Mack (P), 6-5 tb2
141 – Luke Vaith (P) dec. Travis Shaffer (P), 4-1
149 – #12 Tyler Nauman (P) dec. Justin Accordino (H), 4-3
157 – Donnie Tasser (P) dec. Tyler Banks (H), 9-3
165 – #19 P.J. Gillespie (H) dec. Tyler Wilps (P), 5-4 tb
174 – Ethan Headlee (P) wins by forfeit
184 – P.J. Tasser (P) dec. #9 Ben Clymer (H), 2-1
197 – Andy Vaughan (P) maj. dec. Tim Murphy (H), 13-4
HWT – #4* Matt Wilps (P) dec. Paul Snyder (H), 5-2
* – at 197 pounds

Courtesy of gohofstra.com