With their first dual meet win of the season, the Hofstra University wrestling team extended its all-time win streak over Sacred Heart University to 16-0 on Thursday, Nov. 13. Jake Slotnick secured the 21-15 victory for the Pride during the last match of the night with a 2-1 win by decision over AJ Falcone at 165 pounds.
The Pride started the night hot, winning their first three matches. At 174 pounds, Jurius Clark beat Aidan Zarrella 4-1 with a takedown in the first period and an escape in the second. Matthew Waddell had a strong performance coming off his 4-0 weekend at the Journeyman Collegiate Classic. In his match against Hunter Perez at 184 pounds, Waddell fought for a takedown in the first period, a reversal and another takedown in the second period, and he ended the match with two more takedowns in the third to win by major decision 14-5. In his first dual meet with the Pride since the 2023-24 season, Will Conlon played a match against Chris DeLena that went to overtime tiebreakers where Conlon scored a point from DeLena’s stalling and won 2-1.
Brendan Gilchrist got the Pioneers on the board by pinning Danny Church in the 285-pound match. Teague Strobel and Gauge Shipp extended the Pride’s lead with wins at 125 and 133 pounds. Strobel had a dominant performance, allowing only one point from Caden Smith in his win by technical fall, 17-1. In contrast, Shipp won his match by scoring just one point after Braxton Fries-Appello was called for stalling twice.
The Pioneers had a three-match win streak of their own in the middle weights. At 141 pounds, John Hildebrandt scored a crucial takedown in a tight match against Joe Sparacio to win 4-3. Zach Reilley entered the dual for the Pride angry from an upset last. However, his recent success did not matter against Dakota Asuncion, who scored two takedowns in the third period and beat Reilley 7-2. With the scores tied 15-15, Frank Volpe helped move the Pride forward with a 4-1 win in sudden victory over Feliz Lettini, with Slotnick coming in next to end the night.
The Pride hosted their first home dual of the season against Columbia University on Sunday, Nov. 16, at 1 p.m. at the David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex. The Lions beat the Pride last season 32-10 while Hofstra still leads the all-time series 17-15-2.
