Cornell earns 42nd Ivy League title with victories over Penn and Princeton

Story by Betsy Veysman
EIWA Sports Information Dir.

As Jacob Cardenas secured near fall points against Penn's Cole Urbas at 197 pounds on Sunday and soon after finished off a major decision, the crowd at the Friedman Center roared. A second straight Ivy League championship for the Big Red was secure.

"We found a way to win," said head coach Mike Grey. "It's tradition at Cornell. It's pride. The guys on the team were excited about starting their own streak of Ivy League titles." 

A dominant 32-7 victory over Princeton on Saturday and the 19-15 win over Penn the next day clinched an unbeaten Ivy campaign for the Big Red and the program's 42nd overall Ivy Championship (and 19 of the past 20).

On Saturday, the Tigers chose the starting weight of 165 pounds - the marquee match between undefeated Quincy Monday and Cornell's Julian Ramirez, two top 10 wrestlers.

In an action-packed affair, Ramirez notched a takedown and two back points late in the third to break a tie and win 10-6. 

"Julian was really excited for that match," Grey said. "With two really athletic guys, you knew it was going to be a fun one. Julian got the early score, and settled in. It was a back and forth battle for sure, and Julian hung in and just kept trying to get the next score. He did all the things we preach. He set the tone for us and lifted the team with a big win. From there, we just kept building momentum." 

Indeed, Cornell won four of the first five bouts before intermission. Chris Foca gave the Big Red a 6-0 advantage after defeating Grant Cuomo at 174. After the Tigers got on the scoreboard at 184, Jacob Cardenas met Luke Stout in a clash of ranked wrestlers.

The two split a pair of overtime matches last season, but Cardenas used a four-point near fall, an escape, a late takedown and riding time to take an 8-0 major. 

Then, it was Brendan Furman's turn to get the crowd going. After ending regulation knotted at 1, Furman took Princeton's Travis Stefanik to his back for a sudden victory pin to give Cornell a 16-3 lead. 

"That brought the place down," Grey said. "Furman gets noticeably better from week to week. He's been doing great game planning with [coach Nick Gwiazdowski] and it was a big win for him against a nationally ranked guy. Getting the fall was the icing on the cake. He's much different than he was a few weeks ago. His technique is better; he's in better shape. I can't wait to see where he is in a few weeks for the conference tournament." 

While Patrick Glory drew Princeton closer with a major at 125, the Big Red finished with four consecutive victories afterwards. Vito Arujau and Yianni Diakomihalis registered technical falls at 133 and 149, respectively, while Ethan Fernandez came out on top 8-2 at 141 and Cole Handlovic ended the dual strong with a big third period to win 7-1 at 157.

"Vito turned the momentum back to us really quickly with the tech fall," Grey said. "Ethan did a great job, putting up points and taking care of business. He fought hard all weekend and wrestling those matches when the tension was high was great for him - he'll be ready to go in the future when called upon. Yianni did what he does and Cole is putting it all together and wrestling well."

Sunday's dual, during which Cornell's seniors were honored, featured more drama.

Penn's Ryan Miller gave the visitors a 3-0 lead with a win at 125, but Arujau responded with a convincing 13-7 win over top 10 opponent Michael Colaiocco to knot the score at 3.

"When Vito is wrestling well, he's really hard to beat," Grey said. "He's healthy now. He did a good job of answering their win. He was aggressive and kept pushing, looking to put up points for the team." 

Fernandez lost a hard-fought bout to Carmen Ferrante at 141, but Diakomihalis again leveled the score (6-6) with a victory over highly ranked Doug Zapf, 8-3.

"Yianni took care of business," Grey said. "He had timely scores. Zapf went to the leg early to test him, but Yianni scored. He wrestled well in all three positions and continues to progress. He's not where he'll be at the NCAAs. He's a great leader."

Former EIWA champion and Round of 12 finisher Anthony Artalona edged Handlovic, 3-2, to give Penn the 12-9 lead going into intermission.

"Cole took him to the wire," Grey said. "I like to see our guys being the aggressor in the third. Cole pushed, and although he didn't get the takedown, I'm happy with his effort and I think he can shock people at EIWAs." 

At the break, Grey said the team talked about staying focused and continuing to fight. 

"We were in a dogfight," he said. "It was a back and forth battle, but we weren't going to blink. We had hammers left to go and we knew we could depend on them."

That started with Ramirez, who followed up his Saturday performance with a solid 4-2 win over Lucas Revano to make it 9-9.

It was time for a showdown between another pair of ranked wrestlers - Chris Foca and Nick Incontrera. Foca took a big lead in the second when he put the Quaker on his back and then did it again in the third - and got the pin. 

"Chris is showing that he's ready to do big things," Grey said. "Incontrera's having a great year - making the finals at Midlands and winning some impressive matches. But Chris wrestled his style and picked his spots. He believes in himself and in his unique techniques and I couldn't be happier to see the success he's having. That pin was obviously huge." 

Injured Jon Loew fought hard to keep Penn's Max Hale to a decision at 184, which made it 15-12 in favor of Cornell. 

Cardenas then ensured the championship would be staying in Ithaca with his second major of the weekend, this time 12-2 against Cole Urbas. 

"Jacob was really good in all three positions," Grey said. "He had a great weekend. He's starting to show his potential. Honestly, the loss to [Lehigh's Michael] Beard was the motivator. It was a rude awakening that is a catalyst for his success now." 

After Ben Goldin prevailed in sudden victory at heavyweight for the Quakers, the final was 19-15. And the Ivy trophy was presented to the home squad in front of the President of the University, the Athletic Director, and a Dean.

"This is the new Ivy streak," Grey said. "The guys are excited to make history of their own. It's a big thing to uphold the Cornell standard of being the best in the Ivy League and continuing to build tradition. The Ivy League is getting better, which is great for the sport. We're determined to keep our grasp on the championship like we have for so many years. It all starts from the top and we're so grateful to have a lot of support from our administration and the people in town. We're excited to finish strong and we're looking to bring a team trophy back to Ithaca."