North Carolina
Nittany Lion Open
Drury Leads Tar Heels At Nittany Lion Open
December 3, 2006 | Wrestling
Dec. 3, 2006
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - Led by redshirt freshman Dennis Drury's runner-up showing at 197 pounds, the University of North Carolina wrestling team posted a quartet of top-four finishes Sunday at the Nittany Lion Open at Penn State's Rec Hall. Junior Keegan Mueller was third at 165, while senior Spencer Nadolsky and redshirt freshman Dan Goetter placed third and fourth at heavyweight for Carolina.
Freshman Thomas Scotton, who was wrestling unattached, placed seventh at 157 pounds for the Tar Heels' fifth place-winner on the day.
Drury, a product of Jenkintown, Pa., ran off five straight wins to open the tourney in his home state. After two shutouts, a major decision over Pittsburgh's A.J. Hunte (12-3) and a pin of Eric Shaw of Bloomsburg (3:33), Drury scored an 8-5 decision over Penn State's Chad Unger to advance to the final. The Nittany Lions' Phil Davis topped Drury 12-3 in the final. Drury is now 5-6 on the season.
Mueller, who is ranked 14th nationally at 165, continued his hot start as a Tar Heel with his third-place finish. Now 13-2 on the season, Mueller posted major decisions over Sli Bostelman of Kent State and Corey Blake of Lock Haven en route to the semifinals. Penn State's Dave Rella scored a 5-2 decision over Mueller in the semis, but the Dallas native bounced back with a 3-0 win over Virginia Tech's Eric Decker in the third-place bout.
Nadolsky and Goetter gave Carolina's its usually strong showing at heavyweight, as both grapplers opened with three straight victories. Nadolsky, ranked fourth in the nation, picked up pins of Branden Bowden of Lock Haven (1:06) and Michigan's Matt Guhn (0:42) before falling in overtime to Navy's Ed Prendergast (6-4) in the semifinals.
Goetter reached the semifinals with four straight wins, including a pin of Michael Cook of Lock Haven in 1:35, before being pinned by Mike Spaid of Bloomsburg. Nadolsky and Goetter then squared off the in the consolation final with Nadolsky scoring a 7-3 win. Nadolsky is now 8-2 on the season, while Goetter stands 10-4.
Scotton, a rookie out of Willingboro, N.J., went 5-2 on the day to post his seventh-place finish and is now 11-2 in unattached action on the year.
A pair of freshmen were solid at 141 for Carolina, as Nick Stabile and Mike Rappo each went 4-2 wrestling unattached. Redshirt freshman Robert McCarthy was 2-2 on the day at 184 pounds.
The Tar Heels are now off until the UNC Greensboro's Southern Scuffle Dec. 29-30.
Players Mentioned
