From NYU Athletics

The New York University wrestling team opened its 2017-18 season on Saturday, November 4, at the Ned McGinley Invitational, which was hosted by King's College in Wilkes-Barre, PA.

NYU tallied 158 team points to win the 12-team event. York College (PA) (146.5) and SUNY Cortland (131) also finished among the top three, while Roger Williams University (127.5) and SUNY Oneonta (87.5) rounded out the top five.

Five of the 10 weight classes were won by NYU grapplers as sophomore Matt Noble (133 pounds), sophomore Sean Lyons (141 pounds), sophomore Evan Drill (149 pounds), senior captain Raymond Jazikoff (157 pounds), and sophomore Jack La Corte (197 pounds) each won their respective championships. 

"Our guys came out today and wrestled tough," said Senior Assistant Coach Corey Luce. "They put up big bonus points in the majority of their matches which helped us a ton in the team scoring."

Noble dominated the 133-pound bracket, winning all four of his bouts via a first-period pin. Lyons picked up three of his five wins by fall and Jazikoff won three by major decision and one by technical fall while only allowing one point to be scored on him in five matches.

Nine of the 20 wrestlers competing for NYU reached the semifinal round and 12 placed within the top six in their weight class.

"This was a great test for our team with a lot of tough teams competing," added Luce.

FYI:

- Sophomore Dante Montanaro was unseeded and made it all the way to the 141-pound title match where he fell to Lyons.

- Senior captain Matthew Coppola (149 pounds) finished in third place. His only loss of the day came in overtime after a tight semifinal match against Drill.

- Last season, NYU finished in fifth place among 12 teams at the same season-opening event.

"We're looking to get better and better each week," concluded Luce.