Wrestling Drops Pair of Matches at Trinity Tri-Match

HARTFORD, Conn. -- The Bridgewater State University wrestling team dropped a pair of matches at a tri-match hosted by Trinity College on Sunday afternoon.

The Bears (3-16) fell to Rhode Island College, 30-18, before dropping a 36-15 decision to host Trinity.

Rhode Island College 30, Bridgewater State 18

Sophomore Andrew Valdina (Dracut, Mass.) opened the match with a 10-6 decision at the 125-pound weight class.

The Anchormen responded with three straight major decisions by junior Stephen Masi (Cumberland, R.I.), freshman Michael Scaravilli (Lodi, N.J.) and senior Jake Dorman (Foxboro, Mass.) at 133, 141 and 149, respectively, to take a 12-3 lead.

Back-to back pins by junior Eric Kerr (Lynnfield, Mass.) at 157 and sophomore Declan Heaslip (Dedham, Mass.) at 165 followed by a 6-4 decision by senior Anthony Cote (Danbury, Conn.) at 174 put the Bears back on top, 18-12. Cote's win at 174 marked his team-leading 24th of the season.

RIC, however, closed out the match with three straight pins from junior 184-pounder Michael Gallagher (Narragansett, R.I.), junior Javante Johnson (Wakefield, R.I.) at 197 and senior heavyweight John Georges (Cranston, R.I.) to claim the 30-18 victory.

Trinity 36, Bridgewater State 15

Valdina opened the match with a win by forfeit at 125 to stake the Bears to an early 6-0 lead. 

The host Bantams then ripped off six straight wins including four by fall to take a commanding 33-6 advantage and put the match out of reach.

Junior Bobby Gasdia (Rockland, Mass.) earned a 6-5 decision at the 184-pound weight class, while junior heavyweight Tom Arseneault (Lynnfield, Mass.) recorded a win by forfeit to close out the scoring for the Bears.

Next Sunday, several members of the BSU wrestling team will compete at the New England Wrestling Association (NEWA) Futures Tournament hosted by Johnson & Wales University.