The Hofstra University wrestling team lost their first dual meet of the season on Sunday, Nov. 19, by a score of 51-0 against the No. 6 Ohio State University Buckeyes. The Pride fell to 0-1 in the campaign while the Buckeyes went up to 4-0.
The Pride lost all but one of their bouts before the end of the third set and did not register a single offensive takedown.
“We knew Ohio State is better than us right now. They’re better than 99% of the country, that’s what it is,” said Hofstra head coach Dennis Papadatos. “I wasn’t expecting this; I thought our guys fought and they were outmatched, they got ‘big-brothered’ a little bit.”
Nine of Ohio State’s 10 starters were nationally ranked heading into the meet, with both No. 32/19 Brendan McCrone and No. 16/13 Nic Bouzakis earning pins at the beginning of the second half in the 125 and 133-pound bouts, respectively. Seven of Ohio State’s eight other starters won their bouts on technical falls, with No. 5/7 Dylan D’Emilio and No. 14/19 Luke Geog coming away with dominant victories.
While there were a few highlights from the day for the Pride, many Hofstra freshmen gained valuable experience on the mat by taking on some of the country’s finest collegiate wrestlers. Will Conlon, Ryan Arbeit, Noah Tapia and Frank Volpe all made their college wrestling debuts. Volpe had the best showing out of anyone on the team, scoring five points on five escapes and holding his own with No. 17/15 Paddy Gallagher before he eventually lost on a technical fall in the 157-pound bout.
The meeting between the two teams also marked the return of a Hofstra athletic great: Ohio State coach Tom Ryan. Ryan was Hofstra’s wrestling coach for 11 seasons from 1995 to 2006. During this period, Ryan was an eight-time conference coach of the year, a six-time conference champion, a six-time top 25 finisher at the NCAA championships, a two-time New York State coach of the year and a two-time New York State champion. Ryan also had two runner-up finishes while he helmed the Pride as they went on a 47-match unbeaten streak from 2001-2005. Ryan was inducted into the Hofstra Athletics Hall of Fame this summer.
Papadatos was coached by Ryan during his time as a Hofstra wrestler and affirmed his strong relationship.
“He’s a man of his word,” Papadatos said. “He told me, ’Dennis, we’re coming, and we’re bringing our starters.’ He’s a man of his word, and that’s probably one of the reasons why I feel like I am. He’s always good to have here. [Ryan’s] always great to have in town. He means a lot to me, and he always looks out for me, so I always look out for him.”
Despite the tough loss, Papadatos hopes that this could be a positive experience for his team in the long run.
“I think it was four years ago, we started off slow and then NC State came in and walloped us, and then we won 11 matches in a row and beat some good teams,” Papadatos said.
Hofstra returns to the mat on Friday, Dec. 1, at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Collegiate Wrestling Invitational at the Westgate Paradise Event Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Photo courtesy of Hofstra Athletics
