Parker wins Most Outstanding Wrestler award and helps Lehigh win the team title at the 99th EIWA Cha

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John Fuller (TheMat.com)
03/08/2003


Ithaca, N.Y. - Greg Parker probably never thought he would help decide the team title at the 2003 EIWA Championships, but with a pin over top-ranked Clint Wattenberg of Cornell at 184 lbs., the Princeton star did just that.    Parker trailed Wattenberg 4-1 in the third period after Wattenberg had scored twice on double-leg takedowns, but as he lifted underneath Wattenberg on a shot attempt, Parker was able to put his opponent's shoulders on the mat, earning the defensive fall. Parker is now 2-0 this season against Wattenberg.    Parker was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler for his effort.    The win sealed the team title for Lehigh, which finished with 138 points. Host school Cornell finished second with 122.5 points, followed by Pennsylvania with 103.5.    Cory Cooperman, Derek Zinck, Troy Letters, Brad Dillon and Jon Trenge all captured individual titles for Lehigh as well.    125-pound All-American Travis Lee of Cornell survived a major scare in his finals match with Matt Valenti of Pennsylvania. Lee and Valenti were involved in some great scrambles in the first two periods.    Lee earned an escape to tie the score at 1-1, but needed to score a takedown as Valenti had gained a riding time advantage. With 10 seconds remaining in the match, Lee and Valenti were involved in a scramble that saw Lee finish with a double-leg takedown with five seconds remaining, giving him a 3-1 win.    Phillip Simpson of the Army also survived a late scare in his match. Leading Clint Frease of Brown 12-2 in the third period at 141 lbs., Frease locked up a cradle on Simpson and held him to the mat for over one minute. Simpson was able to keep his composure and never let both his shoulders touch the mat before squirming to safety with 30 seconds remaining in the period.    Simpson went on to win the match 13-5.    All-Americans Jesse Jantzen of Harvard and Trenge were dominant in their performances in the finals.    Jantzen controlled Jody Giuricich of Pennsylvania at 149 lbs. on his way to an 11-0 major decision. Trenge controlled the action against Matt Greenberg of Cornell, coming out with a 4-1 win.    Cooperman was dominant in his performance, posting an 18-4 major decision over Alejandro Alvarez of Cornell at 133 lbs. Cooperman took control in the first period, scoring two takedowns and three points off a cradle to take an insurmountable 7-1 advantage.    The freshman Letters was equally as impressive, pinning Frank Edwards of the U.S. Naval Academy at 165 lbs. Letters won the Sheridan award for the most falls in the least amount of time.    Dillon took control of his 174-pound match with Andy Roy of Rutgers by scoring a takedown as time expired in the second period. The takedown gave Dillon a 4-2 advantage, and he coasted through the third period to a 7-3 victory.    The win was monumental for Dillon, who had missed the last two postseasons with injuries.    Zinck was entrenched in a battle of defense with Gabe Webster of Cornell at 157 lbs. Zinck came out on top 2-1 in the end due to a stalling point he was awarded in the second period.    At 285 lbs., Matt Feast of Pennsylvania was able to score a first-period takedown that guided him to a 4-1 victory over Joe Sahl of Lehigh. Feast added a second-period escape and a riding time point in his win.    Both Cornell and Lehigh will send eight wrestlers to the NCAA Tournament in Kansas City, Mo., March 20-22. Pennsylvania will send six.    EIWA Championships, 1st Place Results  Ithaca, N.Y.  March 7-8, 2003  125 - Travis Lee (Cornell) dec. Matt Valenti (Pennsylvania), 3-1  133 - Cory Cooperman (Lehigh) maj. dec. Alejandro Alvarez (Cornell), 18-4  141 - Phillip Simpson (Army) maj. dec. Clint Frease (Brown), 13-5  149 - Jesse Jantzen (Harvard) maj. dec. Jody Giuricich (Pennsylvania), 11-0  157 - Derek Zinck (Lehigh) dec. Gabe Webster (Cornell), 2-1  165 - Troy Letters (Lehigh) pin Frank Edwards (Navy), 2:54  174 - Brad Dillon (Lehigh) dec. Andy Roy (Rutgers), 7-3  184 - Greg Parker (Princeton) pin Clint Wattenberg (Cornell), 6:25  197 - Jon Trenge (Lehigh) dec. Matt Greenberg (Cornell), 4-1  285 - Matt Feast (Pennsylvania) dec. Joe Sahl (Lehigh), 4-1