Alvarez claims gold as Rutgers finishes seventh at Southern Scuffle
Maybe it was the lull of the holidays, maybe it was the stiff competition, but something prevented Rutgers wrestling from starting of 2020 the way they were expected to. Rutgers kicked off the New Year at the University of Chattanooga in the Southern Scuffle. “The Scuffle” is widely regarded as one of the top mid-season tournaments in college wrestling.
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The Scarlet Knights took 7th place as a team, having five individual placers. Despite having medalists at half of the weights, the tournament as a whole would be labeled a disappointment in many people’s eyes. Rutgers was shorthanded to begin with, as starters Billy Janzer (184) and Christian Colucci (HWT) did not compete due to illness. Regardless, some of the grapplers who did compete fell short of where expected.
Joe Grello did miss time due to injury in the early part of the season, but expectations remain high for the returning NCAA qualifier. He took an early loss in the tournament to one of his former high school teammates, Chris Foca. However he did manage to bounce back with a win in his first consolation match, but was eliminated shortly after by Lehigh’s Jake Logan in a 3 – 2 decision, falling just short of the podium.
Even some of the placers disappointed, not finishing as high as anticipated. Nic Aguilar came in as the two seed in the 125 – lb bracket, much deserved after the hot start he has had to his redshirt-freshman season. Aguilar, however, went 3 – 3 in the tournament with an eighth – place finish.
Jordan Pagano, another Rutgers wrestler who had a start to his season, had a streaky tournament, finishing seventh in the 197 – lb bracket. Pagano was in a deep weight class – one of the most well – rounded brackets in the tournament. However, coaches and fans alike were hoping to see the senior bolster his No. 16 ranking with a few quality wins in the tournament. Along with Aguilar and Pagano, Brett Donner (7th at 165) and Mike Van Brill (8th at 157) were the other Rutgers wrestlers who brought home a medal.
The shining start in this tournament was undoubtedly 133 – lber, Sammy Alvarez. Alvarez started the tournament off with three consecutive, gutsy wins, which landed him in the semi-finals of the bracket. Alvarez would have a tall order standing in his way in No. 5 Micky Phillippi of Pitt. Phillippi came into the national spotlight when he knocked off eventual NCAA runner-up, Daton Fix.
Alvarez, though being the underdog, came out on the attack. The St. Joe’s product was consistently taking shots on Phillipi’s legs, even though some were ending in stalemates. The tenacity of Sammy Alvarez earned him a 6 – 3 decision, capped off with an exclamation point of a takedown in the closing seconds of the match.
That would not be the only top 10 match up Alvarez would have this tournament. His semi-final win earned him a championship bout with the 2nd seed and nationally ranked 8th, Cam Sykora of North Dakota State.
After back-and-forth action, Alvarez found himself tied with Sykora at three – all, late in the third period. Off of a Sykora leg attack, Alvarez was able to counter for a go-ahead takedown at the 45-second mark. Alvarez was able to hold on the rest of the match to win his first Southern Scuffle title with a 5 – 4 decision.
Rutgers wrestling will look to get back on track as they now head into the thick of their schedule. The Scarlet Knights will be in competition again on January 10th, as they take on No. 3 Ohio State. It does not get much easier from there, as Rutgers will wrestle Michigan State that Sunday, but will then see No. 24 Cornell and No. 2 Penn State the following weekend. The tough stretch poses some difficult competition, but also great opportunities for Rutgers wrestlers to knock off highly ranked oppositions.
