EWING, N.J. – Thomas Marretta jumped out to an early lead at heavyweight and never allowed his opponent any chance to comeback, securing a victory for the no. 13 TCNJ wrestling team over Messiah University, 19-16, on Wednesday night. The Lions' season-opening win evened the Falcons record at 1-1.
 
"The team came together tonight for a hard-fought win," said head coach Joe Galante '07. "All in all, our guys competed hard and were trying to score. I'm proud of guys who stay after their opponent and are committed to improving."
 
With the score tied at 16, Marretta took the mat needing a victory to secure the match for the team. Marretta earned a pair of takedowns in the opening period to jump out to a 4-2 lead. An escape early in the second extended the advantage to 5-2. After allowing an escape in the third, Marretta earned one final takedown to secure the match.
 
"I wasn't the least bit nervous," said Marretta. "I saw my teammates go out there one-by-one and take care of business, and when it was my turn I followed suit."
 
TCNJ started the night with a hard-fought, 5-3, decision by Nick Denora. Second-ranked Jake Giordano proved why he is one of the best 133-pounders in the country with a 10-1 major that gave the Lions a 7-0 advantage.
 
Following a Falcons victory at 141, senior Robert Dinger took the mat against fellow reigning All-American Garret Cornell. Cornell topped Dinger when the two met in the final dual of the 2019-20 season, but Dinger flipped the script with an 8-4 win. The win by Dinger punctuated senior night for TCNJ. Prior to the match, Dinger and the rest of the class of 2021, Thomas Anderson, Thomas Dinger, and David Santiago, were honored for their accomplishments over the past four seasons.
 
After Dinger's win at 149, Messiah won four-straight bouts to take the lead, 16-10. Fifth-ranked Quinn Haddad pinned his opponent in the first round at 197 to tie the score and set up the winner-take-all heavyweight bout.
 
In extra countable matches, Larry Melchionda earned a 13-0 major decision at 133, and Thomas Stigliano pinned his opponent in the middle of the second round at 174.
 
#13 TCNJ 19, Messiah 16
125 – Nick Denora (T) dec. Corey Morabito (M) 5-3                                    TCNJ leads 3-0
133 – #2 Jake Giordano (T) maj. Jordan Howard (M) 10-1                          TCNJ leads 7-0
141 – Dalton Daugherty (M) dec. Domenic Difrancescantonio (T) 10-4       TCNJ leads 7-3
149 – Robert Dinger (T) dec. Garret Cornell (M) 8-4                                    TCNJ leads 10-3
157 – Nick Barnhart (M) dec. Matt Paglia (T) 5-0                                         TCNJ leads 10-6
165 – #9 Matt Pangle (M) maj. Nick Golden (T) 12-0                                   Score tied 10-10
174 – #8 Brian Shermeyer (M) dec.  Reid Colella (T) 8-6                            Messiah leads 13-10
184 - #7 David Stevens (M) dec. Thomas Anderson (T) 6-2                        Messiah leads 16-10
197 - #5 Quinn Haddad (T) WBF Spencer Clements (M) 2:38                    Score tied 16-16
HWT – Thomas Marretta (T) dec. Hayden Benner (M) 8-3                          TCNJ wins 19-16
Extra Countable Matches
133 – Larry Melchionda (T) maj. Jordan Howard (M) 13-0
157 – Joshua Paige (M) maj. Alex Stavrou (T) 10-2
174 – Thomas Stigliano (T) WBF Max Martin (M) 4:00