GRANTHAM, PA – Seven wrestlers advanced to the semifinal round as the No. 17 Wilkes University wrestling team concluded day one at the Messiah Petrofes Invitational hosted by Messiah College on Friday. Guesseppe Rea (Stroudsburg, PA/Stroudsburg) became the third wrestler in the last five years to reach the 100-win plateau for Wilkes at the event.
 
No. 5 Rea needed one more victory to reach the 100-win milestone and wasted little time achieving the accomplishment with a technical fall in his first round match. The senior went on to post two straight falls in the second round and quarterfinals in 1:49 and 2:44 respectively. Rea awaits a semifinal bout against Mount Union's No. 10 Nick Mancini tomorrow. Should Rea win, it would most likely setup a title match against No. 1 Lucas Malmberg of Messiah for the 125-pound crown.
 
Pankil Chander (Cedarhurst, NY/Lawrence) reached the semifinal round at 133-pounds starting the day with a 21-7 major decision before posting a 6-4 decision over Andrew Nirchio of Springfield in the quarterfinals. Chander will face Zachary Rainess of Greensboro in the semifinal bout tomorrow.
 
No. 2 Matthew Grossmann (Lancaster, PA/Manheim Township) moved into semifinal competition at 141-pounds going 3-0 with three extra-point victories. Grossmann began the day with back-to-back pins before a 16-3 major decision moved the former national champion into the semifinal round. Grossmann awaits a bout against Lee Cassel of Messiah tomorrow for a chance at a title match. Kyle Medrow (West Chester, PA/West Chester Henderson) and Cory Fleming (Long Valley, NJ/West Morris) both remain alive in the consolation bracket of 141 with Medrow using a major decision and Fleming three straight falls to continue wrestling tomorrow for a possible third place meeting.
 
Wilkes saw two wrestlers claim spots in the semifinals at 157-poundsas John Ritter (Bethlehem, PA/Liberty) and Nicholas Racanelli (West Creek, NJ/Southern Regional) remain alive for a title. Ritter used three extra-point victories including falls in the second round and quarterfinals to reach the semifinals. Racanelli was almost perfect on the day going 3-0 with three falls to reach the semifinals and a date with Colin Kowalski of Gettysburg. Ritter faces No. 5 Jeff Hojnacki of Messiah in the other semifinal bout. Ashton Gyenizs (Madison, CT/Daniel Hand) remains alive in the consolation bracket using a fall in the wrestle backs to have a chance for third place tomorrow. Gyenizs fell 11-2 to Kowalski in the quarterfinals earlier in the day.
 
Zachary Faust (Wilkes-Barre, PA/G.A.R. Memorial) was the sixth Colonel to reach the semifinals at 197-pounds. After a bye, Faust used a 4-2 decision followed by a fall in the quarterfinals in :56. Faust will face Kacee Hutchinson of Greensboro in the semifinals tomorrow. Jordan Nochimson (Nutley, NJ/Nutley) remains alive in the consolation bracket after falling 16-4 against Hutchinson in the quarterfinals.
 
Jacob Huling (Jersey Shore, PA/Jersey Shore) rounded out the Wilkes semifinalists going 3-0 with a thrilling sudden victory in the quarterfinals to advance. Huling began the day with a fall in 4:16 followed by a 4-0 decision before the hard-fought last-second victory in the third round. Huling now faces No. 4 Paul Triandafilou of Gettysburg looking for a huge upset in the semifinals tomorrow.
 
Michael Paskas (Rutherford, NJ/Rutherford) remained alive in the consolation bracket at 165-pounds. Paskas fell to No. 4 Larry Cannon of Messiah in the quarterfinals only to wrestle back with a 10-3 decision in the consolation to remain alive for a possible third place bout tomorrow.
 
Day two action begins tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. in Grantham, Pa.