Wrestling

DELAWARE VALLEY CAPTURES NCAA MIDWEST REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
LaForge Claims Individual Crown, Three To Head To Nationals

NORTH MANCHESTER (IN) - Delaware Valley College's first trip to the NCAA Midwest Regional was a successful one as the fourth-ranked Aggies captured the team title and qualified three wrestlers for the NCAA Division III Championships.

Delaware Valley, one of 15 teams at the regional, tallied 108 points to outdistance Olivet College by 19.5 points. Host Manchester College finished third with 84 points while Mt. Saint Joseph (82.5 points) and Lycoming College (62.5) rounded out the top five.

Senior transfer Ricky LaForge (Pompton Lakes, NJ/Indian Hills) was the lone Aggie to win his weight class as he took the 141-pound title and earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Championships to be held at Loras College (Dubuque, Iowa) on March 2 and 3.

Sophomore Kyle Bilquist (Toms River, NJ/Toms River South) and junior Ryan Herwig (Glen Burnie, MD/Mt. St. Joseph) placed second at heavyweight and 157 pounds respectively and each were selected as one of the regional's six wild cards for the NCAAs.

Herwig also earned the most falls in least time award while Brandon Totten was named the Midwest Regional Coach of the Year, the fifth straight year that he earned a Coach of the Year Award at a NCAA qualifying tournament.

LaForge, who is ranked second in Division III in his weight class, sealed a trip to Iowa when he won by default over second-seeded David Manoogian of Case Western Reserve in the finals. LaForge was winning handily when Manoogian suffered a leg injury and was forced to retired.

LaForge opened the tournament with back-to-back pins over Matthew Pence of Mt. Saint Joseph (2:00) and eighth-seeded Matt Palladino of Manchester (1:51). LaForge then reached the finals with a 5-3 triumph over No. 5 Damian Rose of Thiel in the semis. He will take a 29-2 record to the national tournament.

Bilquist, entered the regional as the third-ranked heavyweight wrestler in Division III. The top seed dropped Dean Roseman of MacMurray in 1:58 of the preliminaries, and then notched back-to-back decisions over eighth-seeded Dawud Wilson of Case Western (5-0) and No. 4 Spencer Fulk of Manchester (2-1) to reach the finals.

Bilquist saw his run to a regional title comes to an end with a 7-5 loss to second-seeded Kyle Brown of Thiel. However, Bilquist will get another chance to wrestle and he will bring a 38-5 record to Iowa in two weeks.

It's the second straight year that Herwig will head to the NCAA Championships. He began the tournament as the fourth seed at 157. He dropped Jake Rohrer of Thiel in just 48 seconds in the preliminaries and then earned a 9-3 decision over fifth-seeded Craig Gin of Messiah in the quarterfinals.

Herwig reached the finals by pinning No. 1 seed Kenneth Andrews of Olivet with 40 seconds left in the first period (2:20). Herwig's run at a regional title ended as he was pinned in 90 seconds by second-seeded Elliott Spence of Mt. St. Joseph, but he was selected as a wild card and will take a 31-13 record to nationals.

Sophomore Josh Proctor (Newburg, PA/Shippensburg) was also a runner-up in his weight class (125 pounds) but he did not receive a wild card to nationals.

Proctor was seeded second for the regional and he reached the finals with a 9-0 shutout of No. 7 Ashton Osterberg of Thiel and a 10-0 blanking of third-seeded Stephen Austin of Mt. Saint Joseph. He faced top-seeded Eracieo Valleio of Manchester and was edged, 6-5, to end his season with a 27-13 mark.

Fellow sophomores Jaryd Steinbacher (Montgomery, PA/Montgomery), Paul Donnell (Shillington, PA/Governor Mifflin) and Martin Porter (Long Branch, NJ/Long Branch) placed in the top six at the regional.

Steinbacher, who qualified for the NCAAs as a freshman last season, finished third at 149 pounds. He was seeded second for the tournament and opened with two wins before falling to third-seeded Andrew Gardella of Case Western by an 8-2 decision in the semifinals. Steinbacher came back and pinned fourth-seeded Richard Croswell of Elizabethtown in the consolation finals to finish the year with a 31-10 record.

Donnell, who was seeded third at 174 pounds, placed fifth at the regional. He reached the semifinals with a pair of pins but dropped a 13-3 major decision to No. 2 Ben Hoover of Manchester. Donnell bounced back with a pair of wins in the consolation bracket, including an 8-0 shutout of Justin Waycaster of Lycoming in the fifth place match, to finish 27-12.

Porter, was also seeded third and placed sixth at 184 pounds. He went 1-1 in the championship bracket and then reached the consolation semifinals with a pair of wins. Porter dropped his last two matches to fall to 27-15.

Seniors Mike Handleman (Crofton, MD/Arundel) and Ryan Pope (Mt. Holly, NJ/Rancocas Valley) saw their career comes to an end as the competed but failed to place at 133 and 165 pounds respectively. Freshman Joe West (Washington, PA/Trinity) rounded out the Aggie roster and did not place at 197 pounds.

2007 NCAA DIVISION III MIDWEST REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS (TEAM STANDINGS)
1. Delaware Valley College 108.50 points
2. Olivet College 89.50 points
3. Manchester College 84.00 points
4. Mt. Saint Joseph 82.50 points
5. Lycoming College 62.50 points
6. Case Western Reserve University 61.50 points
7. Thiel College 58.50 points
8. Wabash College 50.50 points
9. Messiah College 45.50 points
10. Elizabethtown College 42.00 points
11. Millikin University 37.50 points
12. Washington & Jefferson College 36.00 points
13. MacMurray College 26.00 points
14. Rose Hulman Institute of Tech. 17.00 points
15. Waynesburg College 13.50 points

CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS
125 - Eracieo Valleio (Manchester) by decision over Josh Proctor (DVC), 6-5
133 - Sean Cullen (Lycoming) by decision over Paul Nioku (MacMurray), 9-2
141 - Ricky LaForge (DVC) by default over David Manoogian (Case Western)
149 - Jason Roush (Mt Saint Joseph) by decision over Andrew Gardella (Case Western), 6-4
157 - Elliott Spence (Mt. Saint Joseph) by fall over Ryan Herwig (DVC), 1:30
165 - Corey Murphy (Thiel) by decision over Joseph Hoover (Manchester), 11-7
174 - Kyle Vanderhyde (Olivet) by decision over Ben Hoover (Manchester), 8-2
184 - Daron Cruickshank (Olivet) by decision over Chad Craft (Mt. St. Joseph), 6-5 TB
197 - Keith Garrard (Wabash) by decision over Tim Kelly (Mt. St. Joseph), 4-3
Hwt - Kyle Brown (Thiel) by decision over Kyle Bilquist (DVC), 7-5

Coach of the Year: Brandon Totten, Delaware Valley
Outstanding Wrestler: Corey Murphy, Thiel
Most Falls/Least Time: Ryan Herwig, Delaware Valley (2 in 3:08)

The 10 individual champions along with six wild-card selections, including Kyle Bilquist and Ryan Herwig, will compete at the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships at Loras College (Dubuque, Iowa) on March 2 and 3.

HOW DELAWARE VALLEY COLLEGE WRESTLERS FARED
Josh Proctor - 125 pounds - Seeded 2nd
Quarterfinals: Won by major decision over #7 Ashton Osterberg (Thiel), 9-0
Semifinals: Won by major decision over #3 Stephen Austin (Mt. Saint Joseph), 10-0
Finals: Lost by decision to #1 Eracieo Valleio (Manchester), 6-5
True Second place: Won by fall over #5 Kyle Labrecque (Olivet), 2:33
- Proctor, a sophomore, placed second and finished the season with a 27-13 record -

Mike Handleman - 133 pounds - Unseeded
Preliminaries: Lost by major decision to #3 Terry Bartholomew (Elizabethtown), 10-2
Consolation Second Round: Lost by decision to #5 Eric Meyer (Mt. Saint Joseph), 4-0
- Handleman, a senior, finished the season with a 4-19 record -

Ricky LaForge - 141 pounds - Seeded 1st (Ranked 2nd In Division III)
Preliminaries: Won by fall over Matthew Pence (Mt. Saint Joseph), 2:00
Quartrfinals: Won by fall over #8 Matt Palladino (Manchester), 1:51
Semifinals: Won by decision over #5 Damian Rose (Thiel), 5-3
Finals: Won by default over #2 David Manoogian (Case Western)
- LaForge, a senior, captured the title and bid to the NCAA Championships. He will enter the national tournament with a 29-2 record -

Jaryd Steinbacher - 149 pounds - Seeded 2nd
Preliminaries: Won by decision over Jarrett Tribbett (Wabash), 9-2
Quarterfinals: Won by fall over #7 Justin Edwards (Millikin), 4:22
Semifinals: Lost by decision to #3 Andrew Gardella (Case Western), 8-2
Consolation Semifinals: Won by decision over #5 Shaun Yackey (W&J), 9-2
Consolation Finals: Won by fall over #4 Richard Croswell (Elizabethtown), 3:25
- Steinbacher, a sophomore, placed third and finished the season with a 31-10 record -

Ryan Herwig - 157 pounds - Seeded 4th
Preliminaries: Won by fall over Jake Rohrer (Thiel), 0:48
Quarterfinals: Won by decision over #5 Crag Gin (Messiah), 9-3
Semifinals: Won by fall over #1 Kenneth Andrews (Olivet), 2:20
Finals: Lost by fall to #2 Elliott Spence (Mt. Saint Joseph), 1:30
- Herwig, a junior, placed second and was selected for a wild card berth to the NCAA Championship with a 31-13 record. It will be his second trip to the national tournament. -

Ryan Pope - 165 pounds - Seeded 6th
Preliminaries: Won by major decision over Joey Desrochers (Olivet), 10-0
Quarterfinals: Lost by decision to #3 Corey Murphy (Thiel), 9-5
Consolation Second Round: Won by decision over Keith Staulters (Elizabethtown), 5-0
Consolation Quarterfinals: Lost by decision to #7 Tyler Goble (Rose Hulman), 7-3
- Pope, a senior, finished the season with a 24-18 record -

Paul Donnell - 174 pounds - Seeded 3rd
Preliminaries: Won by fall over Tyle Thornton (Rose Hulman), 4:08
Quarterfinals: Won by fall over Justin Waycaster (Lycoming), 0:47
Semifinals: Lost by major decision to #2 Ben Hoover (Manchester), 13-3
Consolation Semifinals: Won by fall to #6 Patrick Wilson (W&J), 3:24
Fifth Place: Won by major decision over Justin Waycaster, 8-0
- Donnell, a sophomore, placed fifth and finished the season with a 27-12 record -

Martin Porter - 184 pounds - Seeded 3rd
Preliminaries: Won by decision over Nathan Hodges (Manchester), 16-10
Quarterfinals: Lost by decision to #3 Chad Craft (Mt. Saint Joseph), 6-4
Consolation Second Round: Won by decision over Dave Bernholt (Case Western), 10-3
Consolation Quarterfinals: Won by decision over #7 Joshua Herbert (Elizabethtown), 4-2
Consolation Semifinals: Lost by decision to #1 William Clarke (Wabash), 5-3
Fifth Place: Lost by decision to #2 Brian Kopesky (Lycoming), 4-3
- Porter, a sophomore, placed sixth and finished the season with a 27-15 record -

Joe West - 197 pounds - Seeded 7th
Preliminaries: Won by fall over Chad Coxon (Rose Hulman), 1:13
Quarterfinals: Lost by fall to #2 Keith Garrard (Wabash), 1:13
Consolation Second Round: Lost by decision to Robert Osborne (Manchester), 11-9
- West, a freshman, finished the season with a 14-9 record -

Kyle Bilquist - Heavyweight - Seeded 1st (Ranked 3rd in Division III)
Preliminaries: Won by fall over Dean Roseman (MacMurray), 1:58
Quarterfinals: Won by decision over #8 Dawud Wilson (Case Western), 5-0
Semifinals: Won by decision over #4 Spencer Fulk (Manchester), 2-1
Finals: Lost by decision to #2 Kyle Brown (Thiel), 7-5
- Bilquist, a sophomore, was selected for a wild card berth to the NCAA Championships. He will enter the national tournament with a 38-5 record -