Cornell University 118th EIWA Team Champions

Ithaca, NY

By Betsy Veysman

EIWA Sports Writer

Two points!

That's all that separated Cornell and Penn going into the last session of the EIWA Tournament in Ithaca. Both teams had four finalists, while the Quakers had one more competitor in the consolations.

The Big Red was looking for a spark and Vito Arujau certainly provided it.

In a highly anticipated match between two of the top three 125 pounders in the nation, Arujau scored a takedown about 30 seconds into the bout against Princeton's Patrick Glory and never stopped his onslaught of offense and tough top wrestling.

"I felt confident coming in but I anticipated a relatively close match," Arujau said. "I was determined to be more offensive and get to more leg attacks than last time [an 11-9 loss earlier this season]. Once I got my offense going, I felt the openings and kept the pressure on. I was surprised in the third when I realized I could possibly get the technical fall, but it was a little too late."

Instead, it was a very impressive 19-6 major decision for Arujau, who ultimately captured the Coaches Trophy as the event's Outstanding Wrestler.

"Vito stole the show today, which is fantastic," said Big Red head coach Mike Grey. "He put the team on his back and got us off to a really great start in the last session, which really set the tone."

That two-point lead grew to 10 during the session, as Dom LaJoie concluded his strong weekend with a third place finish at 133, Jacob Cardenas punched his ticket to the NCAA tournament with a victory for fifth at 197, and two more members of the Big Red earned titles - Yianni Diakomihalis at 149 and Jonathan Loew at 184.

The 149-pound final was the only one that featured a Big Red wrestler vs a Quaker, making it critical in the team race. Diakomihalis left no doubt, as he took a 4-1 lead in the first and finished with an 11-2 major.

"Yianni wrestled really poised," Grey said. "Artalona is strong and tough - he made the Round of 12 in 2019 at Nationals. He's a quality guy and now Yianni has majored him twice."

At 184, Loew faced Princeton's Travis Stefanik for the crown. Loew never took his foot off the gas, racking up double digit points in a 12-5 decision, his third straight win over Stefanik. 

"Jon is wrestling the best he ever has," Grey said. "It was almost a major this time. You can see the confidence coursing through his veins. He was really sharp. He's doing everything we've asked of him and he deserves his success." 

Loew's win secured the team championship for the Big Red. 

"Jon was in two tough positions - he clinched it for us in the last session," Grey said. "But it might have been a tougher spot earlier - he had to stop the bleeding in the morning session and he did a great job."

In that morning semifinals session, Arujau began with a pin over Penn's Ryan Miller, bringing LaJoie to the mat against the top seed, Josh Koderhandt of Navy. A slot in the finals wasn't the only reward - the winner would receive an NCAA bid at weight that only had two allocations in the EIWA. 

The bout went to overtime, and LaJoie got to Koderhandt's legs multiple times and looked to be in on the winning shot before the Midshipman turned the tables for a dramatic fall.

"Dom wrestled great this weekend," Grey said. "He and [associate head coach] Donnie Vinson work really well together on game plans and Dom followed. He was in on the leg for the bid to NCAAs in overtime and from there you just have to find a way to score. Unfortunately it didn't happen. I'm proud of Dom as always. He gives everything every time he gets on the mat and is a great leader for the team."

Diakomihalis accepted a forfeit at 149 and Hunter Richard battled in a back-and-forth affair with Bucknell's Nick Delp, coming away with a 9-8 victory to advance in the consolation bracket at 157.

Then, the adversity Grey referred to commenced in the semifinal round. At 165, top seeded Julian Ramirez lost to Josh Ogunsanya of Columbia in the closing seconds. Chris Foca held an early lead over Penn's Nick Incontrera when he was injured and had to forfeit out of the event. 

With momentum seeming to build for Penn, Loew then came up against another Quaker, Neil Antrassian, at 184 in the semis. Loew provided the win the Big Red needed to stay in the top spot in a convincing 8-4 decision.

Cardenas then lost a bout in sudden victory to Princeton's Luke Stout at 197, but Lewis Fernandes sent the Big Red out of the session in the lead with a solid 5-0 blanking of Hofstra's Zachary Knighton-Ward.

"Lewis is very dependable," Grey said. "The guys he's supposed to beat, he does. He keeps getting better and better and he'll start beating some guys he isn't supposed to. He always gives great effort. He has a fun, unique style for heavyweight. I'm very pleased with Lewis and his win at the end of that session was important."

When the team race is as close as it was, Grey acknowledged that every victory was important.

"Take someone like JJ Wilson," Grey said. "He was seeded 13th and scored 2.5 points for us. I was proud of his effort, he gave everything he had and those 2.5 points, they were key. Ultimately, the weekend was a great example of a team effort. Julian [Ramirez] had a tough loss in the semis and came back to beat a tough kid in Penn's [Lucas] Revano. That was huge. Jacob [Cardenas] had a heartbreaker, then another one, but followed the two tough losses with the big win to qualify for the NCAAs. "Then you have guys like Hunter [Richard] and Dom [LaJoie] Those guys give you everything they have every single time they get on the mat. They're guys you tell the team about in 20 years. They always make you proud when they put the "C" on their chest."

Cornell nabbed the EIWA title for the 26th time in history, and the first since 2017. Of course, it's also the first conference crown for Grey, in his inaugural year as head coach.

"I'm happy that we got to help [Grey] start his era the right way with the Ivy League and EIWA championships," Arujau said. "He's given me so much and helped formed me into the competitor I am today. Giving him the trophies he deserves is exciting. Our coaching staff has been amazing."

Now, it's time for the coaches and wrestlers to start focusing on the next set of goals in Detroit. 

"You want to wrestle well and build momentum, but at the end of the day, the EIWA tournament is a qualifier," Grey said. "All it does is get you into the NCAA field. And once you're there, you never know. Let it rip. That's what's exciting."

The Big Red locked up six auto bids to the Nationals and are hopeful that Foca*, Richard, and LaJoie will get wildcards as well.

"I'm proud of the guys, proud of everybody," Grey said. "It's a young team and a young staff and it was our first time all together. The first day went to chalk, we did what we were supposed to do. We were a little off on Sunday morning, but we brought the guys together and got them refocused and they came back and did a phenomenal job."

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Coach Grey wanted to thank the Cornell University Athletic Department and Facilities Staff as well as Gene Nighman and all EIWA Staff members and contributors for putting on a great event.

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*Grey said "the preliminary indication with Chris [Foca] is that it's fairly mild. We're hopeful that he can wrestle at NCAAs, but obviously sports medicine will review carefully and have the final say."