WRESTLING at Franklin & Marshall
WHEN:  Saturday, February 9 | 8:00 p.m.
WHERE:  Mayser Center | Lancaster, Pa.
RECORDS:  Mason (7-5, 3-3 EWL), Franklin & Marshall (2-6, 0-5 EIWA)
ALL-TIME SERIES:  Franklin & Marshall leads, 11-10
LAST MEETING:  Franklin & Marshall defeated Mason, 22-17, on February 11, 2018 in Fairfax.
LIVE VIDEO | LIVE RESULTS
MATCH NOTES: Click here (PDF)

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FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason wrestling team is back on the road, facing Franklin & Marshall on Saturday, Feb. 9 at 8 p.m. at the Mayer Center in Lancaster, Pa.

Mason (7-5, 3-3 EWL) fell to Rider, 30-6, in the final Eastern Wrestling League match of the season on Jan. 31 at the Recreation Athletic Complex.

The Broncs won eight of 10 matches, with redshirt seniors Tejon Anthony (149 lbs.) and Matthew Voss (285 lbs.) earning wins for the Patriots.

Mason finished with three victories against conference opponents, equaling the most wins against EWL foes since joining the league in 2013-14. 

The Patriots will host the 2019 EWL Championships on March 9 at EagleBank Arena.

Voss (26-4, 11-1) leads the team with a career-high 26 wins.  He finished with a 6-0 dual record against EWL opponents this season.

Voss was ranked No. 12 at heavyweight in the first NCAA Division I Coaches' Rankings.  He is also ranked 10th by Win Magazine, 12th by both FloWrestling and TheOpenMat, 16th by Intermat and 23rd by Trackwrestling.

The final Coaches' Panel Rankings will be part of the selection process to determine the qualifiers for the 2019 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships which will be held March 21-23 at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, Pa.

Anthony (24-8, 9-3), who was ranked No. 28 at 149 pounds in the first NCAA Division I Coaches' Rankings, is second on the squad in both overall wins and dual victories. 

This season, the Patriots have recorded wins over VMI (20-17), Bloomsburg (24-11), Gardner-Webb (30-13), Davidson (34-6), Cleveland State (26-9), The Citadel (31-18) and Edinboro (20-19).

Mason redshirt junior Colston DiBlasi (23-9, 7-2) is third on the team in wins, while redshirt sophomore Eli Spencer (20-11, 2-5) is fourth and freshman Kolby Ho (17-9, 7-3) ranks fifth. 

DiBlasi, who was ranked No. 24 at 165 pounds in the first NCAA Division I Coaches' Rankings, has recorded 14 of his wins this season by fall.

In last year's matchup against the Diplomats, the Patriots dropped a 22-17 decision at the Recreation Athletic Center.

The Patriots won five bouts in the match, with Ibrahim Bunduka (125 lbs.), Anthony (149 lbs.), Garrett Griffith (165 lbs.), Austin Harrison (184 lbs.) and Voss (285 lbs.) each recording victories against Franklin & Marshall.

MASON PROBABLE STARTERS

125 | R-So. Talha Farooq (Arlington, Va./Yorktown)
- or - Jr. Spencer Reed (Leesburg, Va./Tuscarora)
133 | Fr. Mel Ortiz (New Milford, Conn./New Milford)
141 | Fr. Julio Alegria (Stafford, Va./North Stafford)
149 | R-Sr. Tejon Anthony (Baltimore, Md./Western Tech)
- or - Jr. Justin Yorkdale (Centreville, Va./Westfield)
157 | Fr. Kolby Ho (Dubois, Pa./Dubois Area)
- or - R-Jr. Ryan Yorkdale (Centreville, Va./Westfield)
165 | R-Jr. Colston DiBlasi (Kansas City, Mo./Park Hill)
174 | R-Fr. Cornelius Schuster (Westminster, Md./Mount St. Joseph)
184 | Fr. Paul Pierce (Stafford, Va./Brooke Pointe)
- or - R-So. Philip Stolfi (Harleysville, Pa./Souderton Area)
197 | R-So. Eli Spencer (Stuttgart, Germany/Stuttgart)
- or - Fr. Alex Donahue (Indiana, Pa./Indiana Area)
285 | R-Sr. Matthew Voss (Edgewood, Wash./Puyallup)

SCOUTING FRANKLIN & MARSHALL

Franklin & Marshall has competed in three open tournaments and eight duals this season.  The Diplomats have an overall record of 2-6, including a mark of 0-5 against EIWA opponents. 

Franklin & Marshall is 1-1 at home, 0-4 on the road and 1-1 in duals held at a neutral site.

After starting the season 2-0, the Diplomats have dropped six straight duals. 

Last time out, Franklin & Marshall fell to Hofstra, 19-12 on Feb. 2 at the Mayser Center and then suffered a 35-6 setback on Feb. 3 at Bucknell in Lewisburg, Pa.

The Diplomats will wrestle in two duals on Saturday, hosting Bloomsburg at 6 p.m. before facing Mason at 8 p.m.

Sophomore Wil Gil (24-9) leads the Diplomats in wins, while senior Antonio Pelusi (20-5) is second and junior Emmett LiCastri (19-11) is third.

Senior Philip Robilotto leads the team with seven pins, while LiCastri and senior Paddy Quinlan are second with five.

FRANKLIN & MARSHALL PROBABLE STARTERS

125 | Fr. Jose Diaz (Valparaiso, Ind./Wheeler)
133 | So. Mike Simonetti (Little Falls, N.J./Saint Peter's Prep)
141 | So. Wil Gil (Oakland, N.J./Saint Benedicts Prep)
149 | Jr. Cole Aaron (Brookville, Pa./Brookville Area)
- or - Sr. Paddy Quinlan (Fayetteville, N.Y./Fayetteville-Manlius)
157 | Jr. Emmett LiCastri (Easton, Conn./Joel Barlow)
165 | Fr. Crew Fullerton (Larchmont, N.Y./Westchester County)
174 | Sr. Jake Conners (Cincinnati, Ohio/Elder)
184 | Jr. Reid Robilotto (Laytonsville, Md./The Heights School)
197 | Sr. Philip Robilotto (Laytonsville, Md./Our Lady of Good Counsel)
285 | Sr. Antonio Pelusi (Norristown, Pa./La Salle)

MAT FACT

Upcoming important dates:
Feb. 14 – Second release of the NCAA Coaches' Rankings/RPI
Feb. 28 – Conference allocations for NCAA Championships, third release of the NCAA Coaches' Rankings/RPI
March 12 – Release of the 330 qualifiers for the Division I Wrestling Championships
March 13 – The NCAA.com selection show at 6 p.m.