Rutgers Wrestling Goes 2-0 at Second Annual “Garden State Grapple” Showcase

No. 25 Rutgers Wrestling (5-1, 0-0) swept their two duals Sunday afternoon at the Garden State Grapple showcase at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ.

In the opening match against the No. 15 ranked University of Pennsylvania, the Scarlet Knights put on a stellar performance, led by ranked wins from Dean Peterson (125), Joe Heilmann (133), Billy Janzer (197) and Boone McDermott (HWT) as they came away with a 19-12 victory over the Quakers.

The tone was set early by Peterson who easily dispatched No. 17 Ryan Miller by major decision, 10-2, behind four takedowns and a strong ride. The redshirt freshman Peterson, who is in a roster battle with teammate and 20th ranked Dylan Shawver (who picked up a decision win against Drexel), looked to be operating at another level against the Quaker Miller.

At 133lbs, No. 14 Joe Heilmann displayed some late match heroics in his matchup with No. 10 Michael Colaiocco where he picked up an escape, followed by a converted blast double with 10 seconds remaining to steal a 3-2 victory of Penn’s Colaiocco.

Heilmann, who would later secure a pin in his match against Drexel, looked dead to rights before earning the escape by getting Colaiocco into danger as the Quaker attempted a turn late in the third.

Next up, No. 8 Sammy Alvarez earned a sudden-victory decision win over Penn’s Carmen Ferrante, 3-1, before the Quakers reeled off four straight wins at 149, 157, 165, and 174.

The Scarlet Knights likely weren’t favored in the four bouts, but at 165lbs, Rutgers’ Connor O’Neill was in a wild one with Penn’s Lucas Revano that saw the Quaker edge out a 9-8 victory in a back and forth match.

With the Scarlet Knights trailing 12-10 after the 174lbs bout, they turned to their No. 12 ranked true freshman Brian Soldano to stop the bleeding, and the young Rutgers standout delivered, just missing out on a major decision, taking out Maximus Hale 10-3.

Soldano showed off a tough ride, along with a couple of blast double-leg takedowns in his victory.

At 197lbs, Billy Janzer earned a big ranked win over No. 27 Cole Urbas behind a slick second period duck under to put the Scarlet Knights ahead 16-12 in the team score.

While it was great to see Janzer get his hand raised in a big spot, it appeared he re-injured his knee during his match later in the day against Drexel’s Sean O’Malley, so we’ll have to wait and see as to his availability going forward.

To close out the upset win, Rutgers’ No. 26 Boone McDermott avenged a loss from last season as he thoroughly handled Penn’s No. 24 Ben Goldin, 11-5.

McDermott, now 8-0 after pinning Drexel’s Liam Dietrich later in the day, converted five takedowns en route to his ranked win as he continues to look great to begin the season.

When the final score was tallied, No. 25 Rutgers came away with the 19-12 win over No. 15 UPenn, backed by strong performances up and down the lineup.

The Drexel dual, which Rutgers won 26-13, went mostly as anticipated as the Scarlet Knights won the match split 6-4.

No. 12 Brian Soldano found himself in a tight, if not drawn out, matchup with Drexel’s Brian Bonino, but came away with a 9-3 decision win as he planted Bonino to his back as time expired.

The Scarlet Knights looked impressive Sunday in their two victories as the young bucks continue to lead the way early in the season.

Boone McDermott looks like he could be a big problem for his heavyweight competitors throughout the country as he just keeps tossing grown men around the mat like rag dolls.

Next up for the Scarlet Knights will be the annual “BIG-IVY” rivalry match with the Princeton Tigers at Jadwin Gym in Princeton a week from today (12/11) at 2:00PM.

No. 25 Rutgers 19, No. 15 Penn 12

125: Dean Peterson (RU) over No. 17 Ryan Miller (PENN) by MD, 10-2

133: No. 14 Joe Heilmann (RU) over No. 10 Michael Colaiocco (PENN) by decision, 3-2

141: No. 8 Sammy Alvarez (RU) over Carmen Ferrante (PENN) by SV1, 3-1

149: No. 10 Doug Zapf (PENN) over No. 32 Tony White (RU) by decision, 8-2

157: No. 17 Anthony Artalona (PENN) over Andrew Clark (RU) by decision, 4-1

165: Lucas Revano (PENN) over Connor O’Neill (RU) by decision, 9-8

174: No. 24 Nick Incontrera (PENN) over No. 28 Jackson Turley (RU) by decision, 7-4

184: No. 12 Brian Soldano (RU) over Maximus Hale (Penn) by decision, 10-3

197: Billy Janzer (RU) over No. 27 Cole Urbas (PENN) by decision, 2-1

HWT: No. 26 Boone McDermott (RU) over No. 24 Ben Goldin (PENN) by decision, 11-5

No. 21 Rutgers 26, Drexel 13

125: No. 20 Dylan Shawver (RU) over Antonio Mininno (DREX) by decision, 10-5

133: No. 14 Joe Heilmann (RU) over Jaxon Maroney (DREX) by fall (2:23)

141: No. 8 Sammy Alvarez (RU) over Desmond Pleasant (DREX) by tech fall, 18-3 (7:00)

149: No. 32 Tony White (RU) over Gabe Onorato (DREX) by decision, 7-2

157: Dom D’Agostino (DREX) over Al DeSantis (RU) by decision, 7-6

165: No. 24 Evan Barczak (DREX) over Connor O’Neill (RU) by decision, 7-1

174: Cody Walsh (DREX) over Eric Freeman (RU) by MD, 12-2

184: No. 12 Brian Soldano (RU) over Brian Bonino (DREX) by decision, 9-3

197: Sean O’Malley (DREX) over Billy Janzer (RU) by decision, 3-0

HWT: No. 26 Boone McDermott (RU) over Liam Dietrich (DREX) by fall (0:13)