ITHACA, N.Y. – The Norwich University wrestling team finished fifth out of 12 teams with 75.5 team points at the Ithaca Invitational, hosted by Ithaca College, on Saturday.
Three wrestlers placed in the top five. Freshman Jacob Forsman (Voorhees, N.J.) wrestled in the 125 pound class with poise and relentless pace and pinned his first two opponents before falling to returning NCAA qualifier and Northeast Regional Finalist, James Kaishian of Ithaca College in the quarterfinals in a heartbreaking 14-11 decision. Forsman would pick up a 6-2 decision over Ferdinand Mase of Ithaca College before defeating Wayne Yuan of New York University, 9-2, to clinch third place in the bracket.
Junior Pat McCurdy (Alloway, N.J.) finished the weekend with four pins in 7:03 for the total combine times of matches with pins, earning the Most Falls award in the tournament en route to a fifth place spot in the 165 pound weight class after weighing in at just 159 pounds.
Senior team captain Bryan Giblin (Georgetown, Mass.) fought and battled his way to a 4-2 record and a fourth place spot in the 197 pound bracket. Giblin overwhelmed his competition with his aggressive pace and superior work ethic, earning a major decision and two pins on the weekend, despite a pair of losses to Daniel Glinko of Ithaca College in the championship and consolation bracket.
"As a team we wrestled tough, although we did not get as many in the placing rounds as we wanted but I'm pleased with the progress and finishing fifth, two spots higher than last year," said head coach Alex Whitney. "But we're never content. We finished with 15 pins as a team which is a testament to the 'pinning mentality' that has been developed through our program."
Ithaca College won the event with 163 team points followed by Stevens Institute in second (137.5) and Springfield College in third (111.5) and New York University in fourth with 97.5 team points.
Norwich will return to action on Wednesday, Nov. 11 as they travel to Plymouth State University for its first dual meet of the season. The first match is slated for 7:00 p.m.
For full results, click here.
