CASTLETON, Vt. – The Norwich University wrestling program captured a thrilling 21-20 victory over Castleton University on Wednesday in the first-ever Battle for the Green Mountain Championship.
With the match score tied at 20, the winner of the Green Mountain Championship trophy had to be determined via NCAA tiebreaking procedures. With both teams tied in number of total pins and penalties, the third tiebreaker (total points based upon decisions and technical) was in Norwich's favor.
Sophomore Jacob Forsman (Voorhees, N.J.), who gained national recognition on Tuesday with an honorable mention nod at the 133-pound weight bracket, defeated Nicholas Camacho via a 12-2 major decision and granted his team a 4-3 lead through two matches.
Castleton swept its matches at 141 and 149 pounds, netting eight points, before senior Benjamin Swanson (Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md.) rebounded to take a 3-2 decision over Cameron Milliken to cut the hosts lead to 11-7.
In the 165-pound showdown, Jared Costa was able to pin senior Richard Garzon (Hawthorne, N.J.) in 1:20, earning six points for the Spartans. Zachary Allen would follow at 174 pounds and edge Donte Jones (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) by a 5-3 margin, earning three points with the decision to create a 20-7 advantage for Castleton.
The threesome of freshman Joseph Hennessey (Boonville, N.Y.), senior David Rogers (Marlborough, Mass.) and junior Frank Girolamo (Stoughton, Mass.) stepped up at 184, 197 and 285, respectively, to earn 13-straight points to dramatically tie the score at 20.
Hennessey picked up a 14-3 major decision win at 184 pounds while Rogers battled Mitchell LaFlam to a 9-5 decision win. In the final match of the evening, Girolamo dramatically tied the match at 20 with a pin of Joseph Galusha only 31 seconds into the bout.
Prior to the match, several Cadets wrestlers performed admirably in exhibition showdowns. Freshman Tyler Ayers (Morrisville, N.Y.) claimed an 8-2 decision at 141 pounds while junior Jonathan Graziane (Beekmantown, N.Y.) pinned his Castleton opponent at the same weight class.
Immediately following the dramatic victory, sophomore Connor Drouin (O'Fallon, Ill.) and junior Connor Gobeille (Shelburne, Vt.) battled in 285 and 157 pound matches, respectively. Drouin cruised to a 6-0 win by decision before Gobeille posted a 13-2 major decision win.
The Cadets return to action Saturday, Nov. 19, taking on Roger Williams, Kings (Pa.) and the hosts from Worcester Polytechnic Institute at high noon.
