The Muhlenberg wrestling team won two of three matches in the highly competitive Mule Duals.

The four teams - Muhlenberg, Alfred State, Brockport and Delaware Valley - combined to bring 14 regionally and/or nationally ranked wrestlers to Memorial Hall. No team went 3-0, and two of the six matches were decided by a single point.

Both of those one-point matches involved Muhlenberg. The Mules lost 22-21 to Alfred State on criteria in their opening match and defeated Delaware Valley, 20-19, in their third. In between, they posted their first victory ever against Brockport, 22-16.

Muhlenberg trailed Delaware Valley, which had defeated both Brockport and Alfred State by comfortable margins - 9-0 after three bouts. Sophomore Chris Sockler got the Mules on the right track with a 10-6 decision, and sophomore Brandon Bowles followed with a technical fall of a regionally ranked opponent.

A major decision by the Aggies and a 6-1 decision by sophomore Anson Dewar left the score at 13-11 with three bouts to go. Freshman Ryan Fairchild gave the Mules their first lead by pinning his 184-pound opponent in just 1:40.

Sophomore 197-pounder Paul Parise, wrestling for the first time on the day, scored a six-point move late in the first period and took an 8-4 lead into the third. His opponent escaped early in the period, then recorded a takedown in the final seconds that, combined with his advantage in riding time, sent the bout into overtime tied at 8-8.

Parise had the last laugh, though, taking his opponent down 27 seconds into the extra period for a 10-8 victory that clinched the match for the Mules.

Bowles and Dewar both were impressive in going 3-0. Bowles recorded two major decisions and a technical fall, with two of the wins coming against regionally ranked opponents, amassing more than 13 minutes in riding time. Dewar conceded only one point, on a third-period escape, in his three bouts, riding all three of his opponents for at least four minutes.

Sockler had a dramatic pin against a regionally ranked Alfred State opponent, flattening his opponent with just 8 seconds left to end what had been a tight match. Freshman heavyweight Ben Krauss also posted a win against a regionally ranked Alfred State wrestler, escaping twice in the rideout for a 4-3 victory that tied the match at 21-21. The Pioneers won the tiebreaking point, however, due to their two pins.

Sophomore Frank DiEsso (pictured above) had a big win against Brockport, using a third-period reversal to edge a 2022 national qualifier, 4-3.

Box Scores
Alfred State 22, Muhlenberg 21
125 Joey Lamparelli (M) maj. dec. Elijah Moshenek, 9-0
133 Zachary Levey (A) pinned Ricky Caamano, 2:32
141 Dom Vinci (A) dec. Christopher Dalmau, 5-1
149 Chris Sockler (M) pinned Sean Peterson, 6:52
157 Brandon Bowles (M) maj. dec. Justin Smith, 11-3
165 Cale Bartosch (A) dec. Ronnie Grevera, 6-2
174 Anson Dewar (M) maj. dec. Johnny Layfield, 12-0
184 Sean Melanfant (A) dec. Ryan Fairchild, 12-9
197 Blake Ilges (A) pinned Jack Patti, 2:47
HWT Ben Krauss (M) dec. Evan Albrecht, 4-3 (sv2)

Muhlenberg 22, Brockport 16
125 Joey Lamparelli (M) tech fall Isaiah Jackson, 5:52
133 Frank DiEsso (M) dec. Matt Caccamise, 4-3
141 Christopher Dalmau (M) dec. Marquis Larmond, 5-2
149 Elijah Sims (B) tech fall Chris Sockler, 5:17 
157 Brandon Bowles (M) maj. dec. Francis Whitehouse, 10-1
165 Matt Kline (B) dec. Ronnie Grevera, 6-1
174 Anson Dewar (M) dec. Jared Zenie, 5-0
184 Ryan Fairchild (M) maj. dec. Gavin McLaughlin, 8-0
197 Mike Sullivan (B) tech fall Deon Savage, 4:14
HWT Nick Franco (B) dec. Andrew Franklin, 5-3

Muhlenberg 20, Delaware Valley 19
125 Jacob Blair (DV) dec. Brian McCaw, 10-6
133 Ryan Kelly (DV) dec. Joey Lamparelli, 11-4
141 Malachi Harvey (DV) dec. Frank DiEsso, 11-4
149 Chris Sockler (M) dec. Andre Henene, 10-6
157 Brandon Bowles (M) tech fall Greg Croce, 5:20
165 Joseph McCullough (DV) maj. dec. Ronnie Grevera, 12-3
174 Anson Dewar (M) dec. Luke Moore, 6-1
184 Ryan Fairchild (M) pinned Cooper Kidd, 1:40
197 Paul Parise (M) dec. Dan Eckley, 10-8 (sv)
HWT Logan Flynn (DV) won by forfeit