Wrestling | 1/12/2019 5:51:00 PM

WORCESTER, MA – The No. 25 RIT wrestling team (8-1) won all three of its matches at the Worcester Polytechnic Duals on Saturday. The Tigers knocked off No. 18 Roger Williams University (9-6), 21-17, shutout Trinity College (1-3), 50-0 and defeated host WPI (7-7), 27-7.
 
The Tigers won 23 of a possible 30 dual matches on the afternoon. Chris Horton (Athens, PA/Athens Area) (133 lbs.), Zach Stedeford (Pittsburgh, PA/North Allegheny) (149 lbs.), Kaidon Winters (Athens, PA/Athens Area) (157 lbs.) and Connor Calkins (Almond, NY/Alfred-Almond) (285 lbs.) won all three of their matches on the day, while Chris Dean (Long Branch, NJ/Long Branch) (125 lbs.), Isaiah Ocasio (Vineland, NJ/Vineland) (141 lbs.), Dempsey King (New Hartford, NY/New Hartford) (165 lbs.), John Donohue (Smithtown, NY/Hauppauge) (174 lbs.) and Joe Cutugno (Ventnor, NJ/Atlantic City) (184 lbs.) won two matches apiece.
 
The Tigers were locked in a fierce dual to open the day versus No. 18 Roger Williams. Down 17-12 with two bouts left, RIT got a 9-6 win from Joe Cutugno (Ventnor, NJ/Atlantic City) over Anthony Malfitano at 197 lbs. and Calkins won the match for the Tigers with a pin right before the end of the opening round. Despite a win from Horton, RIT trailed 9-3 after the first three bouts. An 8-5 win for Stedeford, and quick pin for Winters, his 12th of the year, gave the squad a 12-9 lead.
 
RIT earned its second shutout win in two weeks, knocking off Trinity on the strength of five pins, including four straight to end the match. Winters earned a tough, 6-0 win over Grant Sorensen, who is ranked third nationally at 149 lbs.
 
The Tigers closed out the day by winning eight of 10 matches in the 27-7 victory over host WPI. In a battle of top-six wrestlers, Winters, now ranked fourth nationally at 157 lbs., ran his perfect record to 22-0 in 2018-19 with a 4-1 win over Tyler Marsh, the number six wrestler in Division III.
 
With the unblemished days, Horton ran his record to 20-5 this season, while Stedeford and Calkins both improved to 19-5.

"We had an opportunity to wrestle against some teams that have been ranked nationally all year long and these are programs we have a lot of respect for," said RIT head coach Jason Bovenzi. "We knew this was a great opportunity to test ourselves. Today each and every guy wrestled hard and competed for each other and I was proud of our effort. The most important takeaway is that we put it all in perspective and recognize that the toughest tests are still to come."
 
RIT returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 19 at the Empire Collegiate Wrestling Conference Championships, held at The College of Brockport. The championship meet is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m.
 
No. 25 RIT 21, No. 18 Roger Williams 17
Weight/Matchup                                                                            Result            
125      Kyle Kaiser (RWU) Pinned Chris Dean (Long Branch, NJ/Long Branch) (RIT)                    2:48              
133      Chris Horton (Athens, PA/Athens Area) (RIT) Dec. Tristan Haviland (RWU)              11-4             
141      Chris Fuschetto (RWU) Dec. Isaiah Ocasio (Vineland, NJ/Vineland) (RIT)             9-7                  
149      Zach Stedeford (Pittsburgh, PA/North Allegheny) (RIT)  Dec. Tyler Gazaway (RWU)           8-5                  
157      Kaidon Winters (Athens, PA/Athens Area) (RIT) Pinned Jack Kelly (RWU)               1:16                
165      Taylor Shay (RWU) Dec. Dempsey King (New Hartford, NY/New Hartford) (RIT)                  5-4
174      Travis Arata (RWU) Dec. John Donohue (Smithtown, NY/Hauppauge) (RIT)                  11-5                
184      Ryan DeLoach (RWU) Dec. Morgan Seller (Lyons Falls, NY/South Lewis) (RIT)               8-2                 
197      Joe Cutugno (Ventnor, NJ/Atlantic City) (RIT) Dec. Anthony Malfitano (RWU)           9-6
285      Connor Calkins (Almond, NY/Alfred-Almond) (RIT) Pinned Adam Patsun (RWU)           2:49