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WVU Celebrates 2015-16 Season
April 27, 2016 11:10 AM | General
MORGANTOWN. W. Va. – Junior Dylan Cottrell was named the 2015-16 Most Outstanding Wrestler as the West Virginia University wrestling team capped the season at the Mountaineers’ annual postseason banquet, held at Lakeview Golf Resort and Spa last week.
There was plenty to celebrate, as several wrestlers were honored for their accomplishments during the team’s second season under coach Sammie Henson.
Season Recap
The year started off in Morgantown, as the squad hosted the Mountaineer Quad at the WVU Coliseum on November 8. Wins over Drexel, Campbell and rival Arizona State put the Mountaineers at 3-0 on the young season. The highlight of the day came during the 197-pound match against the Sun Devils. Josh Dasilveira took down Jacob A. Smith for the lead with under a minute to go in the match, causing the ASU bench to erupt. However, Smith reversed Dasilveira and put him flat on his back for the pin, helping WVU defeat the Sun Devils 22-14 and earning Smith Big 12 Wrestler of the Week honors.
Ranked No. 19 at the time, the Mountaineers faced two ranked at the Northeast Duals (Nov. 15), defeating Buffalo but dropping matches to No. 20 Oregon and No. 5 Michigan. In his first season in a Gold and Blue singlet, Cottrell made his presence known at 157 pounds, going 3-0 with a pin. No. 3/4 Zeke Moisey earned a big win over Michigan’s Conor Youtsey at 125 before adding another over Buffalo’s Kyle Akins.
Senior Bubba Scheffel won the 184-pound title at the Joe Parisi Open in St. Charles, Missouri (Nov. 21), going 3-0 with a pin to take the title. Cottrell suffered his first setback of the season to Oklahoma State’s Joe Smith, taking the runner-up spot on the podium, while Smith used a pair of pins to take second at 197.
A trio of freshmen had their redshirts pulled at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (Dec. 4-5), with Keegan Moore pulling off a major upset in his collegiate debut. Moore notched a 12-9 decision over Michigan’s Rossi Bruno, who was ranked sixth in the nation and fourth at the tournament. However, it was the West Virginia natives that led the way for the Mountaineers as Cottrell won a 5-3 decision over Virginia’s Andrew Atkinson for third place at 157 pounds while Smith finished fourth at 197.
West Virginia returned to Morgantown on Dec. 12 to host Lock Haven and the second annual Cradles for Cancer event. Donning pink socks (wrestlers) and ties (coaching staff), the Mountaineers picked up a 30-3 victory while honoring those affected by cancer. Freshman Connor Flynn defeated Cody Cordes, 8-1, to earn his first collegiate victory in honor of his mother, who died of leukemia in 2005. Zachary Moore also earned his first collegiate win with a 13-4 major decision while, Tony DeAngelo earned a 3-1 tiebreaker win over All-American Dan Neff in honor of breast cancer survivor Stephanie Henson.
WVU rang in the New Year at the 2016 Southern Scuffle in Chattanooga, Tennessee (Jan. 1-2). Smith and the freshman duo of Keegan Moore and Flynn advanced, but it was Moisey who became the highlight of the tournament. After suffering an upset loss in the first round, Moisey won seven straight matches, including six in one day, to take third place at 125 pounds. Smith took fourth place at 197, while DeAngelo (141) placed seventh and Ross Renzi (174) finished eighth.
Big 12 action opened in January as Oklahoma State (Jan. 15) and Oklahoma (Jan. 17) came to Morgantown. Smith claimed the lone win in a 38-3 loss to the No. 5 Cowboys, and added a major decision in a 23-11 loss to the No. 9 Sooners during Beauty and the Beast.
The Mountaineers escaped a blizzard in Morgantown when they traveled to Tempe, Arizona, later in January to face rival Arizona State and Stanford. WVU took four wins, including a tech. fall at 133 by Moore, against the Sun Devils but dropped the match, 18-17 on criteria to move to 3-2 against ASU in the Sammie Henson/Zeke Jones Era. Moisey won in sudden victory over No. 20 Connor Schram, while Cottrell, Smith and both Moore brothers came away victorious but it wasn’t enough as the Mountaineers suffered a 20-15 setback to the Cardinal.
West Virginia closed January by facing a pair of top-10 opponents in No. 10 Virginia Tech and No. 3 NC State. Smith earned an 8-2 decision at 197 in the Mountaineers’ 32-3 loss to the Hokes in Blacksburg, Virginia on Jan. 29. The squad looked to rebound by welcoming the Wolfpack to WVU Coliseum on Jan. 31, but suffered a 24-9 loss. Scheffel overcame a gruesome injury to top then-No. 15 Pete Renda in sudden victory, while Moisey won a 7-2 decision over No. 24 Sean Fausz and Renzi defeated Nicky Hall, 4-1.
However, the Mountaineers got back on track in a big way as they upset No. 17 Pitt for the second straight season in the Backyard Brawl on Feb. 7 in Morgantown. Moisey won a 3-2 decision over No. 26 Lorenzo Bentley at 125 and DeAngelo claimed a 10-7 decision over Nick Zanetta at 141. Zachary Moore (149), Cottrell (157), Scheffel (184) and Smith (197) defeated their Panther counterparts as the Mountaineers sang “Country Roads” to close the meet.
On Feb. 12, West Virginia traveled to No. 24 South Dakota State to meet the new Big 12 affiliate member for the first time. A.J. Vizcarrondo started the match with a win at heavyweight, followed by a win for Moisey. However, the Mountaineers couldn’t carry the momentum and dropped the dual 18-15. They then headed to No. 16 Iowa State, with Moore and Cottrell picked up wins as WVU took the 28-11 loss on Feb. 14. A scary momentum occurred in the 125-pound bout, when an injury required Moisey to forfeit the match and put the rest of his season in jeopardy.
WVU closed out its home slate and celebrated seniors Renzi, Vizcarrondo, Scheffel and Chris Nelson on Feb. 19 with a meet against Clarion. The West Virginia natives once again led the way. Fairmont’s Ryan Elliott won a 10-4 decision over Patrick DeWitt in his first career start at 125, while Cottrell came away with a first-period pin of Jake Keller and Smith grabbed his 27th win of the season at 197 pounds as the Mountaineers downed the Golden Eagles, 30-6.
The regular season ended on a high note for West Virginia, as they defeated Edinboro, 18-15, for the first time since 2012 in Edinboro, Pennsylvania on Feb. 20. No. 17 Cottrell upset No. 15/16 Austin Matthews, claiming Big 12 Wrestler of the Week accolades, while Moore (133) and DeAngelo (141) also scored points for the Mountaineers.
Prior to the postseason, Scheffel, Nelson and Moisey were honored, earning mention on the Big 12 All-Academic Teams for their work in the classroom.
In the new, expanded Big 12 Championship in Kansas City (March 5-6), West Virginia placed seven on the podium to take sixth place and qualify two for NCAAs. Scheffel claimed third at 184 pounds to earn his third NCAA bid, while Cottrell placed third at 157 to earn his second NCAA qualification and his first at WVU. Flynn finished fourth at 165, while DeAngelo placed fifth at 141. Smith (197) and Renzi (174) each placed sixth.
Moisey, who injury defaulted at Big 12s to stay eligible for NCAAs, was selected for an at-large bid at 125 but was unable to repeat his run from 2015 as he was forced to withdraw. Smith was selected for an at-large bid at 197, joining Cottrell and Scheffel, and entered the tournament seeded No. 13 in his weight class.
At Madison Square Garden in New York (March 17-19), Smith won his first-round bout with a 3-2 decision over Cornell’s Owen Scott. Scheffel picked up his first-ever NCAA tournament win with a 6-4 decision over OSU’s Kenny Courts in wrestlebacks while Cottrell defeated Neal Richards of VMI in wrestlebacks. Cottrell posted two more wins to make it to the blood round, but dropped a 5-3 decision to No. 6 Joe Smith of Oklahoma State to fall a win short of earning All-America honors.
Postseason Awards
Most Outstanding Wrestler – Dylan Cottrell
Most Improved – Bubba Scheffel
Coaches’ Award – Louis Colonna
Freshman of the Year – Keegan Moore
Most Falls – Jacob A. Smith
Superstar for Social Media (presented by Asst. SID Ashley Bailey) – Dylan Cottrell
Eat to Defeat (presented by team dietitian Nettie Freshour) – Jacob A. Smith
Iron Eagle (presented by athletic trainer Brittany Arnold) – Parker VonEgidy
Outstanding Scholar Scrambler (presented by Asst. Director for Student-Athlete Development Jen Mandeville) – Joe Wheeling
Iron Mountaineer (presented by strength coach Tanner Kolb) – Bubba Scheffel
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