Wrestling: Season Review
April 01, 2004 11:41 AM | General
By Tim Goodenow for MSNsportsNET.com
April 1, 2004
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| Turnbull |
Head coach Craig Turnbull led an injury-plagued Mountaineer squad to a 9-5 dual meet season and won a share of the 2004 Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) Championship title. For his efforts, Turnbull was selected by his peers as the EWL coach of the year. The league honor marks the fourth for Turnbull, previously accepting the accolades in 1990, 1998 and 2002.
The story of the year, however, belongs to Greg Jones who became the first Mountaineer to complete an undefeated season going a perfect 26-0. He also became the first wrestler in WVU history to win multiple national titles with his 184-pound championship in St. Louis. Jones’ performance was so dominant that he did not give up an offensive point during the entire 2004 NCAA tournament in going 5-0.
At the EWL Championships West Virginia and Edinboro wrestled to an overall tie with each team tallying 99.50 points while Pitt was a close third with 97.50 points in the closest tournament race in league history. The Mountaineers and Fighting Scots were each named EWL Tournament co-Champions. WVU has won the tournament title in two of the past three years.
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| Jones |
Jones was not the only highlight as Lebe and Clarke both provided top seasons for West Virginia. Clarke, a graduate of Princeton, used his final year of eligibility in producing the second-best record by a WVU 131/141-pounder in going 28-10. The senior won two tournament titles (WVU Open, Navy Classic) in filling in for All-American Brandon Lauer who redshirted the season.
Sophomore Lebe, like Clarke, finished in the round of 12 – one win shy of All-America status. Wrestling in perhaps the toughest weight-class in the country, the 157-pounder totaled a record of 31-9. Lebe’s 31 wins was good enough for third most all-time by a Mountaineer sophomore. He finished fourth at the prestigious Midlands Tournament after garnering titles at the WVU Open and Navy Classic. At one point in the season, Lebe wrestled 12 of 14 consecutive bouts against ranked opponents. The Jeanette, Pa., native was ranked as high as seventh in the country this year.
West Virginia opened the season with a bang as at least one Mountaineer placed in the opening three tournaments. Daddino, a Hofstra transfer, won his first title in a gold and blue uniform at the Navy Classic. Mike Torriero (149) and Zac Fryling (165) both earned runner-up finishes for the Mountaineers in Annapolis.
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| Lebe |
The team traveled out West to compete in the Sun Devil Duals hosted by Arizona State. The Mountaineers split matches with Stanford of the Pac-10 and No. 8 ranked Missouri of the Big XII.
West Virginia fell to No. 11 ranked Penn State, 13-24, before knocking off Ohio, 23-22, in non-league action. Turnbull’s squad was also chosen as one of the Top 16 teams in the country to participate in the National Duals in Cleveland, Ohio.
The EWL dual season came at a time of injuries for West Virginia. Lanfer Simpson returned to the mat in place of heavyweight Brent Miller for the second semester. The Mountaineer sophomore sealed team victories with wins in the final bout against Cleveland State, Clarion and Pitt.
The Mountaineers reeled off five straight league victories before Edinboro snapped WVU’s 19-match EWL win streak. It was the first regular season EWL loss for WVU in over two years.
West Virginia’s performance off the mat was equally impressive. They landed 15 wrestlers on the 2003-04 EWL All-Academic Team – the most among EWL institutions.
Regardless of the year, the goal of Turnbull’s Mountaineers is always simple and always the same. Work hard and wrestle. West Virginia has proven to be the EWL’s dominant team and a national contender every season.
Other memorable moments from 2003-04 include:
