NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ – Sophomore Chris Ressa (Andover, NJ) won his 25th match of the season in building a 20-14 lead for the Scarlet Knights, but it wasn’t enough as Army rallied to defeat Rutgers, 23-20, at the College Ave. Gymnasium. For the second straight year, the Scarlet Knights split five of ten bouts from Army, only to lose the match on bonus points. The deciding points this time came at 174, where Rutgers forfeited, due to the ankle injury to NCAA-qualifier, Andy Roy (Wall, NJ). The loss drops Rutgers’ record to 8-5 on the year.

The match started at 197, where Ryan McGrath (Blairstown, NJ) got Rutgers off to a 3-0 lead, winning his match, 6-3. Army’s John Paxton evened the score with a 6-2 decision at heavyweight, while the turning point of the match came at 125. Freshman Shaun Sehar (Harrisburg, PA) held a 12-6 lead in the third period when he gave up a defensive pin. This proved to be a nine-point setback for the Knights.

Rutgers climbed out of the hole by winning four of the next five matches. Sophomore Andrew Tilles (Devon, PA) was in a close match at 133 when he took his opponent down to his back, securing a pin to tie the team score at 9-9. After a loss at 141 to eighth-ranked Phillip Simpson, Greg Austin (Seaville, NJ) and Amir Khan (Vorhees, NJ) both scored major decisions as Rutgers reclaimed, 17-14. Chris Ressa (Andover, NJ) won, 3-1, at 165 with a late third period takedown. The forfeit at 174 tied the score, 20-20, with one match remaining. The decisive 184-pound match was close for five minutes, but in the third period, Army’s Luke Calvert wore down Rudy Medini (Colonia, NJ), scoring an 8-5 decision.

Rutgers returns to action on Friday, January 14th, when it travels to Princeton. The match starts at 7:00 p.m.

Army 23, Rutgers 20

197-Ryan McGrath (RU) dec. Joe Forsman 6-3
285-John Paxton (A) dec. Frank Sabatino 6-2
125-Jon Anderson (A) pin Shaun Sehar 6:03
133-Andrew Tilles (RU) pin Bernard Gardner 4:16
141-Phillip Simpson (A) tf. Jon Rodriguez 17-0
149-Greg Austin (RU) maj. Anthony Dunkin 15-5
157-Amir Khan (RU) maj. Doug Reynolds 14-3
165-Chris Ressa (RU) dec. Ron Schroeder 3-1
174-Robert Song (A) forf.
184-Luke Calvert (A) dec. Rudy Medini 8-5