Jan. 15, 2000

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - The University of Virginia wrestling team was looking to snap a four-match losing streak in dual match action when the Cavaliers hosted the Old Dominion Monarchs in a dual competition at Memorial Gymnasium on Saturday evening. Coming off 27-12 loss to Navy earlier in the afternoon, UVa ran away with a 32-7 decision over ODU. Virginia's Steve Garland (Middletown, N.Y./Middletown) and John Pozniak (State College, Pa./State College) recorded falls for the 'Hoos, while UVa's Jason Bernd (Virginia Beach, Va./First Colonial) and Josh Etu (Queensbury, N.Y./Queensbury) earned major decision victories for Virginia in the 32-7 win.

The Cavaliers claimed eight of the ten matches on the night including the first four bouts. UVa's Dave Takseraas (Seaford, N.Y./Seaford) started the Cavaliers off on the right foot when he posted a 5-4 decision over Old Dominion's Joel Jimenez at 133 lbs. to give UVa a 3-0 lead. Virginia's Bernd gave the Cavaliers a 7-0 edge after recording an 11-0 major decision victory over the Monarch's Charlie Busch at 141. The Cavaliers' Pozniak kept UVa's momentum moving forward when he recorded the match's first fall at the 2:56 mark in the 149 lbs. class over ODU's Dennis Whitby. Pozniak's fall extended Virginia's lead to 13-0. UVa's Don Carlo-Clauss (Rochester, N.Y./Greece Olympia) gave the Cavaliers a 16-0 lead when he earned an 8-5 decision over the Monarch's Jake Cairns at 157.

Old Dominion recorded its first points of the match in the 165 lbs. class when Jeff Rusak, ranked 15th in the country, edged out Virginia's Brian Muir (Toms River, N.J./Toms River North) by the score of 3-1 to close Old Dominion's deficit to 16-3. However, UVa would post back-to-back wins in the next two bouts at 174 and 184. Virginia's Steve Mazzola (Cleveland, Ohio/St. Edwards) gathered a 7-5 decision at 174 over the Monarch's George Stable and the Cavaliers' Ryan McGrath (Blairstown, N.J./Blair Academy) topped ODU's Brad Krepps by the score of 8-3 at 184 to make it a 22-3 Virginia lead.

Old Dominion came right back to record its second and final win of the evening when Chris Harrington posted ODU's lone major decision victory of the night with a 12-2 decision over Virginia's Andy DeMartino (No. Va./Jefferson High School) at 197 to make the score 22-7 in favor of the Cavaliers. UVa went on to win the final two matches of the dual. Etu posted a 14-1 major decision victory over Old Dominion's Leevi MacDonald in the heavyweight class. Garland, ranked fourth in the country at 125 lbs., improved his overall record to 14-2 when he recorded a fall over ODU's Chip Reyes with one second remaining in the match at 6:59 in the 125 lbs. class to push Virginia's final score to 32-7.

With the win, UVa improves its overall record to 2-4 in dual action, while the loss drops ODU's mark to 1-3 on the year. Virginia will return to action on Friday, January 21st when the Cavaliers travel to Blacksburg, Va. to compete in the Virginia Intercollegiates. Competition at the meet will continue through Saturday, January 22nd.

Team Results:
Old Dominion      7
Virginia         32

Individual Results:    
                                                          Team Score    
 Wgt.   Results                                    Score   (UVa/ODU)
133 Dave Takseraas (UVa) def. Joel Jimenez (ODU)    5-4       3-0
141 Jason Bernd (UVa) def. Charlie Busch (ODU)   MD 11-0      7-0         
149 John Pozniak (UVa) def. Dennis Whitby (ODU) Fall @ 2:56  13-0
157 Don Carlo-Clauss (UVa) def. Jake Cairns (ODU)   8-5      16-0
165 Jeff Rusak (ODU) def. Brian Muir (UVa)          3-1      16-3
174 Steve Mazzola (UVa) def. George Sable (ODU)     7-5      19-3         
184 Ryan McGrath (UVa) def. Brad Krepps (ODU)       8-3      22-3
197 Chris Harrington (ODU) def. Andy DeMartino (UVa) MD 12-2 22-7
Hwt  Josh Etu (UVa) def. Leevi MacDonald (ODU)    MD14-1     26-7
125 Steve Garland (UVa) def. Chip Reyes (ODU)   Fall @ 6:59  32-7