Fresno State Athletics
Wrestling to Host West Regional
2/19/2002 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Feb. 19, 2002
FRESNO, Calif. - Fresno State Hosts West Regional
The Bulldogs will host the 2002 West Regional Championships on March 9, in the North Gym. The regional meet is an NCAA qualifying tournament. Including Fresno State, there are five teams in the West Region. The other four schools are Air Force, Eastern Illinois, No. 17 Northern Iowa and Wyoming. Nineteen wrestlers will qualify for the NCAA Championships in Albany, N.Y., March 21-23. The top wrestler from each division will automatically qualify and the remaining nine spots will be wild card. Last year Wyoming hosted the West Region where Fresno State finished runner up to Northern Iowa. The Bulldogs took five wrestlers to the NCAA Championships last year.
Bulldogs Win Last Four
Fresno State won its last four meets to finish the season with a 14-7 dual meet record. The Bulldogs won road meets against Oregon State and Portland State before beating Cal Poly at home. The 'Dogs capped off their season with a 22-20 upset over 10th-ranked Arizona State in Tempe, Ariz. Fresno State jumped to a 5-0 start this season, and fell to 6-2 after being upset by Boise State and Purdue. The Bulldogs then lost a string of meets to top nationally ranked opponents including Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Pennsylvania. Fresno State had its first upset this season over Northern Illinois at the National Duals. The 'Dogs went 7-1 after the National Duals. The teams one loss in the last eight meets was to Oregon.
Fresno State Upsets Arizona State
The Bulldogs came back from a 20-9 deficit to upset 10th-ranked Arizona State on Sunday, Feb. 17, in Tempe, Ariz. Freshman Britt Mooney (Bakersfield, Calif.) got his first pin of the season over Arizona State's Chris Petrie, closing the gap to five points. Junior Eddie Gifford (Las Vegas, Nev.) picked up where Mooney left off, earning a 9-2 decision in the 184 division. The Sun Devils watched their 20-18 lead diminish as freshman Marcio Botelho (Lemoore, Calif.) worked Arizona State's Scott Hollingsworth for an 11-3 major decision. The Bulldogs also received points from a Sun Devil forfeit in the 125 division and sophomore Jim Medeiros' (Fremont, Calif.) 10-8 decision in the 149 division.
'Dogs Squeak Past Cal Poly
Fresno State edged Cal Poly in its last home dual meet of the 2002 season. Senior Darrick Duran (Fresno, Calif.) wrestled the match of his life to secure a 19-16 Bulldog victory. Fresno State led 16-12 with two matches left in the meet. Duran beat Cal Poly's Brody Barrios 6-4 in the 165 division, making it impossible for the Mustangs to win. Gifford lost by decision in the 184 division in the first match, but Botelho provided a Bulldog come back with his 19-6 major decision in the 197 division. No. 1 Stephen Abas (Hayward, Calif.) put Justin Pichardo to his back in 1 minute and 4 seconds to end his home dual meet career with the Bulldogs.
