Feb. 15, 2009
Stanford, Calif. - In its final competition of the regular season, the Stanford wrestling team (8-13-1, 3-5 Pac-10) battled Cal Poly to the final bout and held on to edge the Mustangs, 21-18.
Tied at 18 heading into the final match, sophomore Cameron Teitelman (13-16) stepped up to win the deciding bout, claiming a 4-0 victory at 141 pounds. Stanford won six of the nine contested weight classes after having to once again forfeit at heavyweight.
The dual started at 149 pounds, where junior Tyler Parker (3-2) returned from injury and scored a close 6-5 decision over 2008 Pac-10 placer Eric Maldonado.
Parker's victory put Stanford on the board first, but defending Pac-10 champion and 12th-ranked Chase Pami got the best of Lucas Espericueta (25-13) at 157 pounds. Pami defeated the Cardinal sophomore, 9-4, and tied the team score at three.
Redshirt freshman Nick Amuchastegui (26-5), who had his 12-match win streak broken last week in Boise, bounced back to best Joel Shaw in the 165-pound bout, 6-1. Amuchastegui, currently the fourth winningest freshman in school history, picked up his 26th of the year.
At 174 pounds, Ryan DesRoches evened the score again, topping freshman Victor Haug (8-21) by decision, 12-5.
Junior Jake Johnson (28-14) pinned his opponent at 184 pounds, pushing Stanford's lead to six points with a win over Ben Crosby.
At 197 pounds, Luke Feist (19-11) took care of Bo Lukehart with a 5-0 decision, giving Stanford its largest lead of the afternoon, 15-6. Feist, Stanford's only senior, was wrestling in the final home match of his career and was honored prior to the dual.
The Cardinal then forfeited the heavyweight bout, and the margin slipped to 15-12.
At 125 pounds, freshman Matt Sencenbaugh (10-22) pulled out a hard-fought overtime victory over 2008 Pac-10 placer Micah Ferguson, 8-3.
The Mustangs got a pin at 133 pounds, however, as No. 16 Filip Novachkov put Austin Quarles (3-7) on his back in the first period. Novachkov's pin tied the dual with one bout to go, putting the competition in the hands of Teitelman and Cal Poly sophomore Andy Wagner.
Teitelman pulled through for Stanford, sealing the team's third conference win with a 4-0 victory.
Stanford now takes two weeks to prepare for the 2009 Pac-10 Championships, which will be held in Fullerton, March 1-2. Ten Cardinal wrestlers will compete for the individual and team conference titles as well as berths in next month's NCAA Championships.
Stanford 21, Cal Poly 18
125 - Matt Sencenbaugh (S) dec. Micah Ferguson (C), 8-3 (OT)
133 - No. 16 Filip Novachkov (C) pinned Austin Quarles (S), 1:38
141 - Cameron Teitelman (S) dec. Andy Wagner (C), 4-0
149 - Tyler Parker (S) dec. Eric Maldonado (C), 6-5
157 - No. 12 Chase Pami (C) dec. Lucas Espericueta (S), 9-4
165 - Nick Amuchastegui (S) dec. Joel Shaw (C), 6-1
174 - Ryan DesRoches (C) dec. Victor Haug (S), 12-5
184 - Jake Johnson (S) pinned Ben Crosby (C), 5:33
197 - Luke Feist (S) dec. Bo Lukehart (C), 5-0
HWT - Lenny Romero (C) by forfeit
*dual started at 149 pounds