WPU Falls to Fighting Bees in Season Opener

Davenport--The Statesmen men's wrestling team claimed four wins in its season opener, but it was not enough to take down St. Ambrose in a 28-12 Heart of American Athletic Conference dual meet loss Thursday.

William Penn (0-1, 0-1 Heart) failed to claim the opening bout at 125, as the Fighting Bees (1-0, 1-0 Heart) jumped out to a 6-0 advantage.

Lane Scorpil (Sr., Columbus Junction, Iowa, Business Management) immediately trimmed the SAU lead as he slipped by Mitchell Murphy with a 7-5 decision.

Back-to-back wins by the hosts, however, pushed the lead to 16-3 before the navy and gold battled their way back into the contest.

Ashton Hayhurst (Jr., Evansville, Ind.) edged out Georgino Morgaga in a high-scoring 17-16 decision at 157 pounds, while Trent Evans (Jr., Houston, Texas) followed suit with a 10-6 decision against Kayden Maroff in the 165-pound division, pulling William Penn within seven at 16-9.

Unfortunately, St. Ambrose clinched the dual victory with back-to-back triumphs at 174 and 184, extending its lead to 22-9.

197-pounder LaDainian Gordon (Jr., Centennial, Colo.) still put in a strong effort, kicking off his Statesmen career with an 8-2 decision over Jeremiah Morris.

"We came out pretty flat tonight against a tough team that made us pay for it," Head Coach Drew Sams said.  "I thought we had a really good week of prep heading into today, but with a lot of new faces in the lineup, we will need to find what preparation works to get these guys ready."

"Credit to St Ambrose for wrestling hard and providing a really tough dual environment," Sams added.  "I think this dual gave us a lot of lessons and areas to improve on as we move forward.  We are looking forward to getting back on the mat this weekend and getting more matches and experience under our belts."

Next Up: William Penn travels to Indianola Saturday to compete in the Simpson Luther Hill Invitational at 9 a.m.

125--Tyler Clarke (S) won by fall over Gentry Walston, 2:10 (0-6)
133--Lane Scorpil (W) won by decision over Mitchell Murphy, 7-5 (3-6)
141--Guiseppe Guerra (S) won by major decision over Brody Brisker, 12-4 (3-10)
149--Joshua Zeman (S) won by fall over Luis Garza, 1:56 (3-16)
157--Ashton Hayhurst (W) won by decision over Georgino Moraga, 17-16 (6-16)
165--Trent Evans (W) won by decision over Kayden Marolf, 10-6 (9-16)
174--Broderick Schmidt (S) won by decision over Jace Parent, 8-2 (9-19)
184--Nicolas Makwala (S) won by decision over Kendal Pugh, 10-7 (9-22)
197--LaDainian Gordon (W) won by decision over Jeremiah Morris, 8-2 (12-22)
285--Tyler Casey (S) won by forfeit (12-28)