Providence, R.I. – The Brown wrestling squad celebrated its Senior Day with a split against Ivy rival Harvard and Lehigh at home on Saturday afternoon, knocking off the Crimson 33-12 in the most impressive match of the season for the Bears before falling to nationally ranked Lehigh 33-6.  In an exceptionally balanced effort, Bruno got one win apiece from nine different wrestlers over the course of the two matches, helping Brown earn the split.

In the early match, the Bears took on Harvard, looking for their first Ivy win of the season.  After a 10-5 Crimson decision at 125, Brown turned in an exceptional string of performances, earning victories by fall in four of the next five events to take control of the match.  Sophomore T.J. Popolizio began the streak at 133, pinning Harvard’s Chad Eason in just 2:22 to give Brown a 6-3 lead after two events.

Brown got two more pins at 141 and 149, as Zach Kulczycki and Phil Marano earned the victories in 3:18 and 3:28 respectively, essentially putting the match away for the Bears, as they raced out to an 18-3 lead.  The Crimson then earned a pin at 157, continuing the run, before Brown came back with yet another, as Jeff Lemmer pinned Harvard’s Michael Sadler at 165, winning in 6:30, and giving Brown a 24-9 lead.

Though the pace slowed slightly from there, the Bears still continued to pick up wins, as Ziad Kharbush earned an 8-3 decision over David Lalo at 174.  After a Harvard decision at 184, the Bears took the last two events.  At 197, senior Branden Stearns wrestled an impressive bout to pick up a 12-5 win, just missing a major decision, followed by classmate Larry Otsuka winning a tight 3-2 heavyweight bout to close out the first match with a 33-12 Brown win.

In the afternoon match Lehigh, which came into the afternoon ranked in the top-10 nationally, assumed quick control of the action and did not let up.  After senior Greg Einfrank took an opening win at 125, winning a 13-6 decision, the Mountain Hawks took the next six events, opening up a 25-3 lead.

At 184, senior Bran Crudden regained some momentum for the Bears, fighting to a tough 3-2 decision over Lehigh’s Manuel Schubert.  Lehigh then came back at 197 with a technical fall over Branden Stearns, however, and closed out the match with a 4-1 decision at 285, holding on for a 33-6 win over the Bears.

Brown will be back in action next weekend, when the Bears travel to Ithaca to take on the Cornell Big Red.

Brown vs. Harvard 02.13.10

125: Chad Eason (H) dec. Greg Einfrank 10-5; Har. Leads 3-0
133: T.J. Popolizio (B) pin Chad Eason (H) 2:22; Brown leads 6-3
141: Zach Kulczycki (B) pin Fermin Mendez (H) 3:18; Brown leads 12-3
149: Phil Marano (B) pin Spencer Friedman (H) 3:28; Brown leads 18-3
157: J.P. O’Connor (H) pin Max Lewin (B) 0:29; Brown leads 18-9
165: Jeff Lemmer (B) pin Michael Sadler (H) 6:30; Brown leads 24-9
174: Ziad Kharbush (B) dec. David Lalo (H) 8-3; Brown leads 27-9
184: Louis Caputo (H) dec. Bran Crudden (B) 6-0; Brown leads 27-12
197: Branden Stearns (B) dec. Sean Murphy (H) 12-5; Brown leads 30-12
285: Larry Otsuka (B) dec. Spencer DeSena 3-2; Brown wins 33-12

Brown vs. Lehigh
125: Greg Einfrank (B) dec. Mitch Berger (L) 13-6; Brown leads 3-0
133: Matt Fisk (L) maj dec. Cort Choate (B) 11-0; Lehigh leads 4-3
141: Seth Ciasulli (L) pin Zach Kulczycki (B) 2:37; Lehigh leads 10-3
149: Joey Napoli (L) dec. Phil Marano (B) 5-0; Lehigh leads 13-3
157: Brian Tanen (L) pin Max Lewin (B) 4:41; Lehigh leads 19-3
165: Brandon Hatchett (L) dec. Jeff Lemmer (B) 10-4; Lehigh leads 22-3
174: Robert Hamlin (L) dec. Ziad Kharbush (B) 10-4; Lehigh leads 25-3
184: Bran Crudden (B) dec. Manuel Schubert (L) 3-2; Lehigh leads 25-6
197: Joe Kennedu (L) tech fall Branden Stearns (B) 17-2; Lehigh leads 30-6
285: Justin Allen (L) dec. Tyler Cowman (B) 4-1; Lehigh wins 33-6