LEWISBURG -- Lewisburg head coach Jim Snyder was hoping for a red-hot start to the Green Dragons' Heartland Athletic Conference Division II showdown with Bloomsburg Thursday night. What he got was a luke-warm beginning in a 41-28 loss to the Panthers.
Snyder was relying on the Green Dragons getting wins in the first four bouts of the match that started at 215 pounds. But Bloomsburg's Mike Recla, who needed to shed a bit of weight before stepping on the scales earlier in the evening, used a third-period takedown to pull out a 3-1 decision over Cody Fisher in the opener and under-sized 112-pounder Alan Evans upset Lewisburg's Zach Morrell with a first period fall thanks to a tight headlock.
The loss kept Lewisburg without a win in the HAC-II at 0-3 and even their overall record at 6-6.
"We needed a hot start and we didn't get it. We didn't get it done," Snyder said. "From there on we were in trouble. When we got pinned at 112 you could just feel the air go out of our bench. It was almost impossible to come back from that and we couldn't make a move we wanted to make later in the match. Any moves we wanted to make in the match were taken away with the kind of start we had."
Lost in the disappointing beginnings were solid performances from Darrick Clark (285) and Jordan Danowsky (103). Clark broke open a close match with a second period head lock that decked Bloom heavyweight Tyler Lunger in 3:42 while Danowsky picked up a four-point move at the end for a 13-4 major decision over Jared Hahn. Those wins handed Lewisburg a 10-3 lead.
"Jordy and Clarky wrestled well and they kind of got back to where we needed to be," Snyder said. "Jordy gets those four points in the last 10 seconds for the major. But it just wasn't enough."
It wasn't enough because Evans, in just his second year of wrestling and weighing in at only 109 pounds pinned Morrell after falling behind when he surrendered the first takdedown of the match.
"Every single match (Evans) is improving," Bloomsburg coach Dan Sevison said. "He came up with something big and I am proud of him. The headlock is his move, guess."
Evans' fall started a six-match win streak for the Panthers (2-2 HAC-II, 8-5 overall) that quickly erased the Green Dragons' advantage. Corey Buckley topped Andrew Fox, 8-1, at 119 and Garrett Graham decked Sean Klingman in 1:09 at 125.
At 130, Bloomsburg's Allan Dietrick used three sets of backpoints to roll over Conner Kalin, 15-0 (4:40), and Robert Kresch decked Dylan Kalin in just 57 seconds a weight later. Troy Franko completed the run with an even quicker fall (26 seconds) over Torey Van Sickle that handed the Panthers a 35-10 lead.
Lewisburg finally ended the streak when Bloom forfeited to Curt Schneider at 145. But in a heated battle at 152, the Panthers veteran Colton Eyer outlasted Brian Van Sickle, 10-4, with a five-takedown effort that wrapped up the win.
The Green Dragons Eric Hummel (160) collected a forfeit and Nathaniel Brown followed with a second-period fall at 171. The Panthers promising sophomore Ryan Longenberger ended the night with an 8-2 decision over Jacob Parkes.
"January is the month that you start building for the postseason and today was good step toward that," Sevison said.
Snyder was left searching for positives after another disappointing loss.
"It's not like we are coming out here and getting our doors blown off," said Snyder, whose team gave Shamokin a bit of a scare last Saturday. "But this league is so tough. There are no easy nights in this league. We are competitive but I just don't know how long that continues.
Sports
HIGH SCHOOL WRESTLING: Bloomsburg's quick start dooms Dragons
- Sports
-
-
College Lacrosse: Bucknell men prepare to improve upon great season
LEWISBURG -- It started a handful of years ago, when the Bucknell men's lacrosse team put a big 'X' on the national map in Central Pennsylvania with an upset of No. 1 Maryland. From that point on Bison coach Frank Fedorjaka has had a difficult time getting big-time opponents on the schedule, even with Bucknell opting to travel under the worst of circumstances.
-
High school football: Pratt says Kutztown the right fit
SUNBURY -- When Shikellamy's Tyler Pratt joins the Kutztown University football team as a free safety next fall, he will already have a good feeling for what his position coach will expect from him. Pratt, who signed a national letter of intent this week to accept a scholarship offer to play for the Golden Bears, will be under the tutelage of his father's high school football coach.
-
Todd Stanford On high school boys basketball: Increasing the refs' workload
If two heads are better than one, does that mean six eyes are better than four? Not necessarily, according to some Heartland Athletic Conference officials. There is a move afoot in the HAC to cut the number of basketball referees from three to two for part of the season beginning next year.
-
High School Roundup: Greenwood boys complete perfect TVL season
Greenwood capped off an unbeaten 2011-12 Tri-Valley League season by crushing Halifax 61-38 on Thursday Night.
-
Shikellamy Braves pull away from Shamokin
SUNBURY — Tyler Pratt kept Shikellamy in the game in the third quarter Wednesday, scoring all seven of the Braves’ points. He then got some help in the fourth.
-
High School Roundup: Selinsgrove tops Jersey Shore
JERSEY SHORE — With the game tied at 32 at the half, the Selinsgrove boys basketball term went on a big run in the third quarter to open up the game and take a 65-56 Heartland Athletic Conference Division I win over Jersey Shore on Wednesday.
-
Shikellamy Braves rally to stay alive
SELINSGROVE — With 11 losses, the Shikellamy girls basketball team is teetering on the brink of elimination from the District 4 Class AAA playoffs. And on Wednesday night, it looked like the Braves were going to go quietly into the offseason when Selinsgrove built a 14-point lead early in the third quarter.
-
They learn to be tough young
It's difficult to recall exactly how the sequence unfolded because it happened so darn fast. Shikellamy made a couple baskets, and the crowd began to stir. It was still anybody's game, and the Braves had some momentum late in the third quarter of a recent run with Danville.
-
Motorsports: Selinsgrove, Lincoln speedways to host 360 sprint series
MECHANICSBURG -- Mach 1 Chassis of Mechanicsburg will be the title sponsor of the Mid-Atlantic 360 Sprint Car Championship Series, a $120,000 six-race tour that will include five shows at Selinsgrove Speedway and one event at Lincoln Speedway in 2012.
-
Girls basketball: Records fall, Red Tornadoes stay unbeaten
SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT -- An overflow crowd zealously cheered Tierney Pfirman's pursuit of the South Williamsport scoring record throughout Tuesday's game, until their breathless faces matched the Mounties' royal blue.
- More Sports Headlines
-
