Wilkes University Athletics

THE OFFICIAL WEBSITE OF THE WILKES UNIVERSITY COLONELS

THE OFFICIAL WEBSITE OF THE WILKES UNIVERSITY COLONELS WILKES UNIVERSITY COLONELS

Steve Finkernagel

Pankil Chander finished second at 141 for Wilkes at the 81st annual Wilkes Open Saturday

FIVE COLONELS CLAIM TOP FOUR FINISHES AT 81ST ANNUAL WILKES OPEN; CHANDER FINALIST AT 141

12/28/2013 6:12:00 PM

(Full Results)

FIVE COLONELS CLAIM TOP FOUR FINISHES AT 81^ST ANNUAL WILKES OPEN; CHANDER FINALIST AT 141

WILKES-BARRE – Five Wilkes University wrestlers claimed top four finishes at the 81^st annual Wilkes Open Saturday afternoon at the Marts Center. Freshman Pankil Chander (Cedarhurst, NY/Lawrence) led the list of finishers notching second place at 141-pounds.

Chander was impressive early in the tournament earning three tough decision wins to reach the finals. He opened with a 3-1 victory over Jake Deangelo of North Carolina State, then followed with a 5-4 win over Victor Signorelli of York and an overtime 6-5 decision against Maryland's RJ DeGeorge in the semifinals. Chander fell in the championship bout 14-5 against Maryland's Daniel Sanchez.

No. 5 Mark Hartenstine (Easton, PA/Easton) improved his overall record to 20-1 and a third place finish in the Open at 149-pounds after claiming second at the event last season. He opened with a pin in 1:53 in the first round and followed with a 10-1 major decision in the quarterfinals against Princeton's Nicholas Maselli. After falling in the semifinals, Hartenstine settled for third place earning a hard-fought 2-0 victory over Travis Shaffer of Pittsburgh.

Guesseppe Rea (Stroudsburg, PA/Stroudsburg) finished fourth at 125-pounds wrestling his way back through the consolation rounds after falling in the first round. Rea reeled off five straight victories to reach the third place bout, including one pin and two major decisions. He beat out teammate Michael Fleck (Easton, PA/Wilson Area) 4-2 in the consolations to reach the third place bout. Rea was forced to exit the tournament with a medical forfeit to settle for fourth.

At 133-pounds, Myzar Mendoza (Westminster, MD/Winters Mill) inched closer to the 100-win plateau for his career finishing fourth at the Open. He went 4-2 over the event bringing his career record to 96-25. After opening with a 5-4 decision, Mendoza fell in his next match only to wrestle through the consolation rounds to earn a shot at third place. He beat teammates Matthew Evans (Honesdale, PA/Honesdale) and Corey Fleming (Long Valley, NJ/West Morris) in back-to-back matches to reach the third place match. There Mendoza fell to Kyle Brady of Sacred Heart 6-1. It marked the second straight year Mendoza finished in the top six at the event closing out last year in fifth place.

Levi Veppert (Kempton, PA/Northwestern Lehigh) was the final top four finisher for the Colonels earning fourth at 184-pounds. After an opening round defeat, Veppert went 5-0 to reach the third place bout including two pins in under three minutes in his first two consolation round matches.

Wilkes remains idle through the New Year holiday before traveling to the NWCA National Duals in Des Moines, Iowa on January 11 and 12.

Print Friendly Version