Marisa Lombardo

Men's Wrestling 12/1/2023 11:29:00 PM By Marisa Lombardo (Director of Sports Information)

Alvernia in Second as 11 Wrestlers Advance to Saturday at Petrofes

Grantham, Pa. (Dec. 1, 2023) - After the first day of competition at the Messiah University Petrofes Invitational, Alvernia University sits in second place overall with 11 wrestlers advancing into Saturday.

The host Falcons sit atop the team leaderboard with 117 points. Alvernia is in second place with 94 points and has a 1.5 point buffer over Averett.

At 133 lbs, Anthony Portillo enters the semifinal on Saturday after going 2-0 with a bye on Friday. After his first round bye, Portillo recorded a technical fall in the second round and a 5-2 decision over Averett's AJ Orlando in the quarterfinals.

At 141 lbs, Avery Leonard started his day with back-to-back technical falls to advance to quarterfinals. Leonard then advanced into the quarterfinals with a pin in 57 seconds over Averett's Mauricio Reyes.

Also wrestling at 141 lbs for Alvernia is Garrett Gehr, who will start his Saturday in the consolation semifinals after picking up a pin against Torey Falkinburg of Gettysburg.

At 149 lbs, Quinn Tobin will be competing in the consolation semifinals following a pin in 24 seconds over Muhlenberg's Alexander Greco.

Jason Rezac, who is wrestling at 157 lbs, started his day with a bye before picking up a fall in 1:42 in his second round. He then punched his ticket into Saturday with a fall in 3:38 over Thaddeus Stevens' Tanner McCracken.

Chance Babb, who is wrestling at 165 lbs, had three technical falls on Friday to move into Saturday. He closed out his Friday with a commanding 19-0 technical fall over Muhlenberg's Riley McHale.

Also competing at 165 lbs for Alvernia is Matthew Lackman. Lackman started his day with a tech fall in his first round and moved onto the quarterfinals with a fall in 1:07. He closed out his Friday with a fall in 2:30 over Averett's Tommy Baldwin in the quarterfinals.

Ryan LePore is Alvernia's third wrestler competing at 165 lbs. Lepore moved into the consolation bracket following his second round, but fought his way into Saturday with a decision and two technical falls, including a 17-2 win over Averetty's Tommy Baldwin in the consi quarterfinals.

Gavin Hollingsworth had three technical falls on his day to advance to the semifinals on Saturday. Hollingsworth capped off his day with a 25-7 technical fall in the quarterfinal.

James Circle, wrestling at 174 lbs, started his day with back-to-back technical falls and advanced to the semifinals on Saturday with a 10-3 decision over Greensboro's Luke Gregory.

Brian Czaus rounded out the Alvernia wrestlers advancing to Saturday. He started his day with a 4-1 win by decision and followed that up with a pin in 3:51. He lost by major decision in teh quarterfinals, but advanced to Saturday's consi quarterfinals with a 6-2 decision over Mount Union's Donelle Taylor-Blackwell.

Alvernia is back at Messiah tomorrow morning for the podium rounds of the Petrofes Invitational.

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Players Mentioned

Chance Babb: 149/157; Sophomore

James Circle: 174; Sophomore

Brian Czaus: 285; Senior

Garrett Gehr: 141; Sophomore

Gavin Hollingsworth: 174; Graduate Student

Matthew Lackman: 165; Senior

Avery Leonard: 141; Sophomore

Ryan Lepore: 157/165; Sophomore

Anthony Portillo: 133; Senior

Jason Rezac: 157; Senior

Players Mentioned

Chance Babb
: Sophomore
: 149/157

James Circle
: Sophomore
: 174

Brian Czaus
: Senior
: 285

Garrett Gehr
: Sophomore
: 141

Gavin Hollingsworth
: Graduate Student
: 174

Matthew Lackman
: Senior
: 165

Avery Leonard
: Sophomore
: 141

Ryan Lepore
: Sophomore
: 157/165

Anthony Portillo
: Senior
: 133

Jason Rezac
: Senior
: 157