By By SCOTT NOVAK / Niles Daily Star
DOWAGIAC - “It was worth the price of admission,” Dowagiac coach John Green said of the Big 16 Conference West Division match against visiting St. Joseph Thursday night.
The Bears posted a 40-32 victory in a match that was much closer than the final score.
Dowagiac rallied late in the match with a pair of pins at 112- and 119-pounds to take a 32-28 lead on the Bears, who had lost by criteria to the Chieftains back on Dec. 30, 2005.
That would leave the fate of the match hanging in the balance for a pair of Dowagiac freshmen.
St. Joseph picked up a pair of pins at 125- and 130-pounds to comeplete the comeback.
Dowagiac needed to pick up some victories in key matches between 145- and 275-pounds.
The Chieftains won three of those seven matches.
Mike Kasper and Deshaun Baylock got the Chieftains off to a good start at 145- and 152-pounds respectively, however, the Bears won at 160-, 171- and 189-pounds to take the lead.
Kasper won by technical fall (15-0) over Justin Randell, while Baylock scored a major decision over Dustin Phelan at 160-pounds, 11-3.
Following a victory by the Bears at 160-pounds, Green was hoping to get victories out of Elijah Caldwell and Kyle Bailey.
Caldwell dropped a 10-7 decision and Bailey was defeated, 9-7.
St. Jospeh also earned a victory at 215-pounds before senior Tony Stewart stopped the bleeding with a pin at heavyweight.
The Chieftains were without 103-pounder Andrew Ostrowski, who is out with a shoulder injury.
St. Joseph led 28-20 heading into the 112-pound bout.
The Bears bumped up their regular 103-pounder, Pranal Shaw to take on Dowagiac's Nathan Cottrell.
The move backfired on the Bears as Cottrell pinned Shaw in 1:07.
Dowagiac took the lead at 119-pounds when Justin Richter rallied from a 5-1 deficit to pin D.J. Verilyer in 5:06.
St. Joseph won the final two bouts to gain a measure of revenge against the Chieftains, who fall to 23-15 overall and 1-3 in the West Division.
The Chieftains return to the mat on Saturday as they participate in the Southwest Michigan Invitational at Lakeshore High School in Stevensville.
Wrestling is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m.
Green is expected to take Cottrell (33-5), Richter, D.J. Tarrt, Long (18-17), Keith Prak (11-6), Terry Prowoznik (25-12), Zach Roden, Kasper (30-8), Baylock (24-12), Caldwell (22-10), Bailey (21-15), Drew Staley (18-9), Robert Wescott and Stewart (30-8).
St. Joseph…40
Dowagiac…32
103- Jerry Clark (SJ) won by forfeit
112-Nathan Cottrell (D) p. Pranal Shaw, 1:07
119-Justin Richter (D) p. D.J. Verilyer, 5:06
125-Matt Ghidotti (SJ) p. Jacob Weldy, 1:25
130-Zach Becker (SJ) p. D.J. Tarrt, 3:55
135- Brian Ammeson (SJ) p. Nate Long, 2:28
140-Terry Prowoznik (D) t.f. S. Imbordino, 18-3
145-Mike Kasper (D) t.f. Justin Randell, 15-0
152-Deshaun Baylock (D) MD Dustin Phelan, 11-3
160- Ivan Hays (SJ) p. Andrew Hurrle, 1:52
171-T. Flora (SJ) d. Elijah Caldwell, 10-7
189-M. Lockwood (SJ) d. Kyle Bailey, 9-7
215-Logan Klug (SJ) d. Drew Staley, 11-3
275-Tony Stewart (Dow) p. A. Rosenthal 1:02