ITHACA, N.Y. (January 29, 2022)  – No. 20 Stevens Institute of Technology wrestling totaled 13 victories across two duals to defeat No. 16 The College of New Jersey and No. 26 Ithaca College Saturday in a triangular dual hosted by Ithaca at Ben Light Gymnasium.

Junior Kyle Slendorn, graduate student Brett Kaliner, junior Hunter Gutierrez and sophomore Nick Boggiano each had a pair of victories to lead the Ducks, who won their fourth straight to even their dual record at 4-4.

The Ducks began their day by winning seven of the 10 bouts against the previously undefeated Lions in scoring a 24-12 victory and then closed out the day by winning six of the 10 matches against the hosting Bombers in posting a 26-14 victory. TCNJ defeated Ithaca 25-16 in the final dual of the event. TCNJ closed competition at 7-1, while Ithaca fell to 6-4

"We knew coming into the weekend that it was going to be a tough day of competition," associate head coach Anthony Bonaventura said. "Ithaca and TCNJ are both solid programs and our guys were going to have to battle in order for us to walk away with two dual wins."

TCNJ opened the dual with a major decision at 125 before sophomore Luke Hoerle recorded half of his points in the final period to score a 6-3 decision over Kyle Nase at 133 for the Ducks' first victory of the day. The victory by the Westfield, New Jersey native was the first of six straight decisions by the Ducks that built an 18-4 lead. Following Hoerle's win, Slendorn (6-0), Kaliner (18-11), Gutierrez (4-2), Boggiano (7-1) and junior Stefan Major (3-1) all picked up victories in the sequence. Kaliner scored an impressive eight takedowns in picking up his 18th win of the year, while Major picked up his team-leading 22nd win.

Senior Robert Gennat clinched the dual for the Ducks with a dramatic third-period pin of #13 Daniel Surich. The final-minute fall was the Ducks' only bonus-point victory of the dual and was the second pin of the year for Gennat. TCNJ picked up consecutive majors at 197 and 285 to produce the final score.

"We came out a little sluggish in our first match against TCNJ," Bonaventura commented. "We were finding ways to win, but did not do a good enough job of extending our lead. Robbie Gennat came up big to secure a late pin to win the dual; he never quit and we love that about him."

Against Ithaca, the Ducks got on the board at 125 with junior Akhil Vega earning six points at 125 with an injury default. Ithaca got on the board with a decision victory at 133, before Slendorn scored a 17-6 major over Travis Jones at 141 to give Stevens a 10-3 lead. The Howell, New Jersey native scored eight points in the final period to break the match open for his 20th win of the year.

Kaliner (14-8) and Gutierrez (7-3) scored consecutive decisions at 149 and 157 before Boggiano used a four-point near-fall in the opening period and a key reversal in the final period to pick up the Ducks' second major of the dual with a 13-4 win over Jackson Gray at 165. Junior Frank Medina clinched the dual with a first-period pin of Adrian Rosario-Beato, for his 12th pin of the season.

Sophomore Joel Martsinovsky battled #4 Chibueze Chukwuezi before dropping a 10-4 decision at 184. The Bombers scored back-to-back majors at 197 and heavyweight to close out the dual.

"The team carried the momentum into the final dual of the day," Bonaventura said. "It was a much better performance overall against Ithaca - more bonus points and guys fighting to not give them up."

The victory over the Lions was the Ducks' first since 2017, while the triumph over the Bombers was the first for the program since 2015.

"Proud of everyone's effort that stepped on the mat today, but we have a quick turnaround; we need to assess and keep working," Bonaventura reflected. "[We have] another nationally-ranked opponent on Wednesday and we need to be ready to go against cross-river rival, NYU."

Dual Results
No. 20 Stevens 24, No. 16 The College of New Jersey 12
125: Ryan Rosenthal (TCNJ) won by major decision over Akhil Vega (SIT), 11-0; TCNJ leading 4-0
133: Luke Hoerle (SIT) won by decision over Kyle Nase (TCNJ), 6-3; TCNJ leading 4-3
141: #5 Kyle Slendorn (SIT) won by decision over Domenic Difrancescantonio (TCNJ), 6-0; Stevens leading 6-4
149: #1 Brett Kaliner (SIT) won by decision over Mike Conklin (TCNJ), 18-11; Stevens leading 9-4
157: #8 Hunter Gutierrez (SIT) won by decision over Matt Sacco (TCNJ), 4-2; Stevens leading 12-4
165:Nick Boggiano (SIT) won by decision over Matt Surich (TCNJ), 7-1; Stevens leading 15-4 
174: Stefan Major (SIT) won by decision over Reid Colella (TCNJ), 3-1; Stevens leading 18-4
184: Robert Gennat (SIT) pinned #13 Daniel Surich (TCNJ), 6:46; Stevens leading 24-4
197: #9 Quinn Haddad (TCNJ) won by major decision over Michael Conrad (SIT), 14-0; Stevens leading 24-8
285: #12 Thomas Marretta (TCNJ) won by major decision over Joseph Russell (SIT), 8-0; Stevens wins 24-12

No. 20 Stevens 26, No. 26 Ithaca 14
125: Akhil Vega (SIT) won by injury default over Matt Haycook (IC), 3:43; Stevens leading 6-0
133: Luis Hernandez (IC) won by decision over Luke Hoerle (SIT), 7-5; Stevens leading 6-3
141: #5 Kyle Slendorn (SIT) won by major decision over Travis Jones (IC), 17-6; Stevens leading 10-3
149: #1 Brett Kaliner (SIT) won by decision over Matthew Beyer (IC), 14-8; Stevens leading 13-3
157: #8 Hunter Gutierrez (SIT) won by decision over Adam Wagner (IC), 7-3; Stevens leading 16-3
165: Nick Boggiano (SIT) won by major decision over Jackson Gray (IC), 13-4; Stevens leading 20-3
174: Frank Medina (SIT) pinned Adrian Rosario-Beato (IC), 2:22; Stevens leading 26-3
184: #4 Chibueze Chukwuezi (IC) won by decision over Joel Martsinovsky (SIT), 10-4; Stevens leading 26-6
197: Jeremy Mazzella (IC) won by major decision over Max Ruiz (SIT), 13-5; Stevens leading 26-10
285: Edwin Rubio (IC) won by major decision over Joseph Russell (SIT), 8-0; Stevens wins 26-14

Up Next: No. 20 Wrestling heads into Brooklyn for a dual with No. 13 New York University on Feb. 2. The Ducks defeated the Violets 30-13 on Feb. 1, 2020 in the last meeting between the programs and have won four of the last five matchups. A link for live video is available on StevensDucks.com.

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