Princeton Tigers 19/20 Preview

[Cali_Nittany]

Princeton

The Tigers had one of their best seasons ever for their program, placing 15th with 35 points at the NCAA tournament. Three AAs were the most in a single season in their history. 15th was Princeton’s highest placement since 1978 and the 3rd best in their history.

Princeton finished with a 9-6 dual record which included a loaded non-conference schedule with the likes of Iowa, Wisconsin, Virginia Tech, Oklahoma State and Rutgers (all losses). Their biggest dual win of the season came against Lehigh. The Tigers finished 5th at Midlands and 3rd in the EIWA championships behind Lehigh and Cornell.

Princeton has 13 duals scheduled this season with another tough conference slate that includes Iowa, Oklahoma State, North Carolina and North Carolina State. They finish the dual season with the Battle for Jerzey against Rutgers. Princeton will again be hosting the Princeton Open and will be going to Midlands.

While Kolodzik is out of school for a year, D’Angelo is not a bad replacement. Especially considering he had two wins against AAs while wrestling for the NJRTC. All their other qualifiers are back and there should be some added help at heavyweight. Princeton is prime to take over the best team in Jerzey title next season and have a good shot to beat last season’s NCAA results.

125
Patrick Glory (So) <Delbarton, NJ>
Glory had a great true freshman season going 30-7 and finishing 6th from the 7 seed in the NCAA tournament. Glory’s 6th place finish was the best in Princeton’s history for a freshman. Glory won the EIWA championship beating Vitali Arujau (Corn), avenging an earlier loss by pin. <Bonus: 62.2%, RPI: .685>

133
Jonathan Gomez (So) <Locust Valley, NY>
Ty Agaisse (Sr) <Delbarton, NJ>
Last season bad luck struck here as Ty Agaisse suffered a season ending injury in the first match of the year after coming back from injury the previous season. Gomez went 8-15 and 1-2 at the EIWA Championship. <Bonus: 26.09%, RPI: .523>

141
Pat D’Arcy (Sr) <Holy Spirit, NJ>
Marshall Keller (Fr) <Christiansburg, VA>
D’Arcy is back from a year with the NJRTC where he went 6-8 at collegiate tournaments. D’Arcy qualified for the NCAA Championship in 2017 at 133.

Keller went 22-15 as a true freshman last season but it wasn’t enough to get a spot in the tournament as he placed 8th at the EIWA Championship (3 allocations). He had one win against a qualifier (Headlee – UNC) and also majored fan favorite, Kyle Todrank (Buff). <Bonus: 32.4%, RPI: .566>

149
Mike D’Angelo (Sr) <Commack, NY>
D’Angelo is also back from a year with the NJRTC where he went 19-4 at 157 and had two wins against eventual AAs, Christian Pagdilao (ASU) and Larry Early (ODU). He is a two-time NCAA qualifier (1-2 in 2018 and 2017).

After becoming Princeton’s first 3-time AA, Matt Kolodzik is grayshirting. He matched his seed at the NCAAs and placed 5th. His overall record was 25-5.

157
Quincy Monday (So) <Carrboro, NC>
Monday had a solid true freshman campaign going 24-13 and placing 3rd at the EIWA Championship. He received the 26 seed at the NCAA Championship and went 0-2. <Bonus: 29.7%, RPI: .611>

165
Dale Tiongson (Jr) <St. Paul’s, MD>
Grant Cuomo (So) <Brewster, NY>
With Leonard Merkin evidently taking a grayshirt, the starting spot looks to be Tiongson’s this season. Last season, Merkin took over as the starter late from Tiongson. Merkin went 9-6 and placed 5th from the 10 seed at the EIWA Championship (4 allocations), just missing qualifying for NCAAs. Tiongsin went 11-13 last season. <Bonus: 12.5%, RPI: .562>

Cuomo went 5-6 splitting time between 165 and 174 last season and could also be a possibility here.

174
Travis Stefanik (So) <Nazareth, PA>
Another one of Princeton’s freshman starters from last season, Stefanik received an at-large bid after placing 6th at the EIWA Championship (5 allocations). He went 19-15 overall and 0-2 at the NCAA Championship from the 31 seed. <Bonus: 26.5%, RPI: .581>

184
Kevin Parker (Jr) <Shenendehowa, NY>
Parker will be trying to make another level up after improving to 22-13 last season from 9-17 in 17/18. He also received an at-large bid to the NCAAs after finishing 7th at the EIWA Championship (6 allocations). Parker went 0-2 from the 31 seed. <Bonus: 48.6%, RPI: .589>

197
Patrick Brucki (Jr) <Carl Sandburg, IL>
Brucki returns as one of the contenders for the 197 championship. Brucki also improved last season compared to 17/18 (28-10 overall, 1-2 in the tournament). He won the EIWA championship and matched his seeding, placing 4th. With a season record of 33-3, his only losses were to Bo Nickal, Preston Weigel and Benjamin Honis (who he later beat). And props to Brucki for actually trying to wrestle Nickal. <Bonus: 47.2%, RPI: .683>

Heavy
Obinna Ajah (Sr) <Jericho, NY>
Christian Araneo (Sr) <Ward Melville, NY>
Jack DelGarbino (Fr) <Girard, OH>
Ajah took over the starting spot late last season, going 3-9 overall and 1-2 at the EIWA Championship. Araneo missed all of last season due to injury. He was the starter in 17/18 going 12-10 and not qualifying for the NCAA Championship. If DelGarbino does’t take an Ivy redshirt, he could be the starter here. He won the Ohio State D1 championship in 2018 and was upset in the final in 2019. Intermat ranks him #19 at 285.

New Faces
Sean Pierson <Nazareth, PA>
Pierson won the Pennsylvania 3A state championship 120 in 2019 (3rd @120 in 2018, 4th @113 in 2017). He is ranked #19 at 120 by InterMat.

Nathan Dugan <Lake Norman, NC>
Dugan is a two-time North Carolina 4A state champion. He is ranked #13 at 195 by InterMat.

Jack DelGarbino <Girard, OH>
Listed under Heavy

 

[matter7172]

I think the are the favorite to bring home the NJ trophy next season and will hit the top ten at nationals.

 

[BrucePa]

Someone please explain to me why, if Cornell can build a national level competitive wrestling program, why can't the rest of the Ivy League? Wrestling seems to me to be a sport that is ideal for the Ivies, with A students all over the place.

 

[SJP80]

There is a limited pool of wrestlers who can get into the Ives and everyone is chasing the best ones. No red shirts and most schools don’t won’t to get into the grey shirt finger lakes community college thing. So, kids only get 4 years in most cases. The ones that have real support Cornell, Princeton and Penn) can be somewhat competitive.

 

[matter7172]

Someone please explain to me why, if Cornell can build a national level competitive wrestling program, why can't the rest of the Ivy League? Wrestling seems to me to be a sport that is ideal for the Ivies, with A students all over the place.

My son and I went to a couple of matches at Cornell. When you look at the majors of the team members (and you can wade through it at https://cornellbigred.com/roster.aspx?roster=1230), there is a lot of similarity (i.e. College of Agriculture and Life Sciences). There are different colleges at Cornell which allows more flexibility in admission and the acceptance rate at CoAaLS is above 20%. Things are way tighter at Princeton, where the acceptance rate is 7.1%.

My son and I were struck by how much more rigorous the majors of the wrestlers from Lehigh were before one of the matches we attended in Ithaca.

https://lehighsports.com/roster.aspx?path=wrestling

 

[Dogwelder]

Ivy league schools don't give athletic scholarships. Nor academic scholarships. They seem to give only need-based financial aid. So scholarship money, limited as it is, is one fewer tool for an ivy league coach to use.

 

[El-Jefe]

Someone please explain to me why, if Cornell can build a national level competitive wrestling program, why can't the rest of the Ivy League? Wrestling seems to me to be a sport that is ideal for the Ivies, with A students all over the place.

Cornell (1) has a huge head start on the Ivies because they
(2) had a big hitter alum make a major gift over a decade ago that included one of the first wrestling-only facilities in the country, and
(3) hired Koll, who
(4) founded FLWC and
(5) pioneered the Ivy Shirt at the local community college.

 

[okinburg1]

My son and I were struck by how much more rigorous the majors of the wrestlers from Lehigh were before one of the matches we attended in Ithaca.

https://lehighsports.com/roster.aspx?path=wrestling[/QUOTE]
Can't actually say this based on the info in the link above. The Cornell wrestlers major is NOT listed; the college at Cornell they are enrolled in is what is in their bio. The admission rate for the Ag and Life Sciences college is higher than Princeton's, but you can, for instance, be a Biology major in ALS and take virtually all the same classes as a Bio major who is in the College of Arts and Sciences.
If any of these wrestlers not from NY are establishing residency (while gray-shirting), it makes sense for them to go ALS as it is one of 4 state-supported colleges at Cornell, with a corresponding lower tuition rate that is not insignificant compared to the private colleges.

 

[okinburg1]

Ivy league schools don't give athletic scholarships. Nor academic scholarships. They seem to give only need-based financial aid. So scholarship money, limited as it is, is one fewer tool for an ivy league coach to use.

When I attended Cornell in the late 80s I received academic scholarship money. No Ivy League school gives athletic scholarships. There certainly is plenty of need-based aid for sure.

All that being said, there is also a TON of non-academic, non-need-based aid that seems to find it's way to athletes of all types at Cornell, and I'd wager a large sum that also happens at all the other Ivies as well.

 

[matter7172]

Can't actually say this based on the info in the link above. The Cornell wrestlers major is NOT listed; the college at Cornell they are enrolled in is what is in their bio. The admission rate for the Ag and Life Sciences college is higher than Princeton's, but you can, for instance, be a Biology major in ALS and take virtually all the same classes as a Bio major who is in the College of Arts and Sciences.

Yeah, you can just see that the Cornell wrestlers are in the CoAaLS. We were looking at information about their majors when we were there. But there is no disputing the college is easier to get into than Princeton and if you think those guys don't have easier majors also, I have a bridge to sell you.

 

[AgSurfer]

Cornell (1) has a huge head start on the Ivies because they
(2) had a big hitter alum make a major gift over a decade ago that included one of the first wrestling-only facilities in the country, and
(3) hired Koll, who
(4) founded FLWC and
(5) pioneered the Ivy Shirt at the local community college.

Cornell also has an AD who was a good wrestler in college and also one of the Cornell coaches before he took the promotion to AD. It's no fluke that Koll was hired as head coach too.

 

[okinburg1]

Yeah, you can just see that the Cornell wrestlers are in the CoAaLS. We were looking at information about their majors when we were there. But there is no disputing the college is easier to get into than Princeton and if you think those guys don't have easier majors also, I have a bridge to sell you.

Some might choose an easier major, but certainly not all. One of my classmates in medical school was a Cornell wrestler, so there's that.

 

[nerfstate]

 

[Cowbell Man]

Yeah, you can just see that the Cornell wrestlers are in the CoAaLS. We were looking at information about their majors when we were there. But there is no disputing the college is easier to get into than Princeton and if you think those guys don't have easier majors also, I have a bridge to sell you.

Yes....that series of easier majors leads Cornell to one of the highest student suicide rates in the country. Smh

Try selling me the bridge. A required easier admission route through CALS does not mean easier majors. CALS itself doesn’t imply easier, just different. Many in the regular student body have used the admissions standards of CALS to gain entry and transfer later to college/major of choice.

I think we all can understand the value of superior coaching, ability to recruit, outstanding facilities and engaged alumni and fan bases. Cornell has all of those. The FLWC is certainly an advantage, also allowing a transition to college others don’t have, or choose not to. Consider the factors that have vaulted us to the top. Not unlike what has happened at Cornell, and precisely why Koll was interested to be our HC after Sunderland.

 

[NothingMeaningful]

Yeah, you can just see that the Cornell wrestlers are in the CoAaLS. We were looking at information about their majors when we were there. But there is no disputing the college is easier to get into than Princeton and if you think those guys don't have easier majors also, I have a bridge to sell you.

If you think that athletes, including wrestlers, don't have an easier time getting into the Ivy League schools than non-athletes, then you just haven't been keeping up with the headlines lately.

Half a dozen Cornell wrestlers are in the Engineering College; others in the Ag school had the high school grades to get into the other colleges (e.g., Darmstadt was taking lots of AP/honors classes).

Don't be fooled into thinking that the part of Cornell or Lehigh that a wrestler attends says anything about their course load or difficulty. As a Cornell grad and the father of a current Lehigh student, I have some perspective here.

 

[Lyons212]

Ivy league schools don't give athletic scholarships. Nor academic scholarships. They seem to give only need-based financial aid. So scholarship money, limited as it is, is one fewer tool for an ivy league coach to use.

The Ivies need based aid can be an advantage. I know an athlete who goes to an Ivy league school, plays an Olympic sport, was a top 10 recruit, was offered a one third athletic scholarship at an out of state B1G school. Price tag would have still been about $40K a year. Price tag for the ivy league school after need based aid is $14K a year and will be cut in half once their sibling starts college. This person was a good student in high school, probably does not get into an ivy league school without being a star athlete.

The ivies will lessen their admission standards for an athlete, however they do not go anywhere near the level most of schools will do to admit an athlete. Their are also stories of an athlete being accepted at Ivy league schools and not a PSU too.

 

[Bms22]

If you think that athletes, including wrestlers, don't have an easier time getting into the Ivy League schools than non-athletes, then you just haven't been keeping up with the headlines lately.

Half a dozen Cornell wrestlers are in the Engineering College; others in the Ag school had the high school grades to get into the other colleges (e.g., Darmstadt was taking lots of AP/honors classes).

Don't be fooled into thinking that the part of Cornell or Lehigh that a wrestler attends says anything about their course load or difficulty. As a Cornell grad and the father of a current Lehigh student, I have some perspective here.

But Matter needs to sell these bridges!! Please don’t dispute his quick internet research he did at a match with your first hand knowledge.

 

[matter7172]

Half a dozen Cornell wrestlers are in the Engineering College; others in the Ag school had the high school grades to get into the other colleges (e.g., Darmstadt was taking lots of AP/honors classes).

And Lehigh has twice as many in engineering and probably even more in their business program, which, as you know, is top flight. Since you know the majors of the Cornell guys, what is the breakout?

But the original point was why other Ivy League schools haven't developed wrestling programs as well as Cornell. You're telling me that Princeton's 7.1% acceptance rate compared to the CALS over 20% acceptance rate has nothing to do with it?

 

[PSUranger]

All that being said, there is also a TON of non-academic, non-need-based aid that seems to find it's way to athletes of all types at Cornell, and I'd wager a large sum that also happens at all the other Ivies as well.[/QUOTE]

SLUSH FUND

 

[Cali_Nittany]

And Princeton wrestling did really well this year.

 

[NothingMeaningful]

And Lehigh has twice as many in engineering and probably even more in their business program, which, as you know, is top flight. Since you know the majors of the Cornell guys, what is the breakout?

But the original point was why other Ivy League schools haven't developed wrestling programs as well as Cornell. You're telling me that Princeton's 7.1% acceptance rate compared to the CALS over 20% acceptance rate has nothing to do with it?

Did I say I know the majors of the Cornell wrestlers? Pretty sure I didn't. And there are some on their squad who are listed as being in both the Ag school and the business school. There's engineering and then there's engineering; I can't speak to the former at Lehigh, but I can speak to the lack of an easy curriculum in the Cornell Engineering school.

Again: if you think that 7.1% acceptance rate applies to athletes at Princeton, you just haven't been paying attention to the headlines. Here's some info on the effect at Harvard: https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2018/6/30/athlete-admissions/

 

[okinburg1]

Again: if you think that 7.1% acceptance rate applies to athletes at Princeton, you just haven't been paying attention to the headlines. Here's some info on the effect at Harvard: https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2018/6/30/athlete-admissions/[/QUOTE]

^THIS.
My guess is that the admission rate, for athletes, is probably very similar at all the Ivies and is much higher than the overall admission rate. Certainly the Harvard evidence bears this out.
Again, I knew athletes at Cornell in the late 80s who would never have sniffed the campus on their academic merits alone.
For those not necessarily connecting the dots, this topic is part of the "college admissions scandal" of late. Why did the celebs and hedge fund managers pass their kids off as members of the crew team? Because the admissions standards for athletes are much more relaxed compared to regular applicants.

 

[matter7172]

Did I say I know the majors of the Cornell wrestlers? Pretty sure I didn't. And there are some on their squad who are listed as being in both the Ag school and the business school. There's engineering and then there's engineering; I can't speak to the former at Lehigh, but I can speak to the lack of an easy curriculum in the Cornell Engineering school.

Again: if you think that 7.1% acceptance rate applies to athletes at Princeton, you just haven't been paying attention to the headlines. Here's some info on the effect at Harvard: https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2018/6/30/athlete-admissions/

I'll walk you through it.

School A has a standard for admission that causes 92.9% of applicants to get rejected, some of whom meet the standard. Athletes that meet the standard and can contribute athletically at the school will be admitted at a higher rate because they bring something "extra" that the school desires and/or requires. But the athlete must still meet the standard.

School B has less rigorous admissions standards and rejects 70-75% of applicants.

Some students who are accepted by School B are rejected at School A, but it's rarely, if ever, the other way around. Therefore, the pool of possible athletes is smaller for School A.

I read the article. The athletes in question had the highest and second highest academic ratings for admission standards at Harvard. Highest and second highest. It's not like they are below those ratings. The subject group is the most highly qualified applicants.

Yes, again, athletes that meet the high standards for admission at a school will have higher acceptance rates of acceptance than non-athletes with the same level of achievement because they offer something "other" that the school values.

But that has absolutely nothing to do with the relative selectiveness of two schools.

Nor does the Harvard "study" even *remotely* suggest different levels of qualification for the athletes - they were all in the highest and second highest levels of qualification academically. In other words, slam dunks even without their athletic qualifications.

 

[okinburg1]

Nor does the Harvard "study" even *remotely* suggest different levels of qualification for the athletes - they were all in the highest and second highest levels of qualification academically. In other words, slam dunks even without their athletic qualifications.[/QUOTE]

"Arcidiacono noted that athletes with an academic rating of 1 or 2 on Harvard’s scale of 1 to 6—with 1 being the highest and 6 the lowest—had a markedly higher admit rate than non-athletes with the same academic scores. For example, Arcidiacono noted that recruited athletes with an academic rating of 4 had an acceptance rate of 70.46 percent, nearly a thousand times greater than the 0.076 percent admit rate for non-athletes with the same academic rating."

Your statement I am replying to couldn't be more false. In the passage above the author points out how athletes with a ranking of 4 are nearly 1000 times more likely to be admitted to Harvard than non-athletes with a 4 ranking. So he is NOT just talking about those in the highest 2 tiers.

The standard for admission is clearly different for athletes vs non-athletes because of "extra value" athletes can bring to a college or university, as you mention. I have no problem with a lower admission standard for athletes, much like legacies, in the Ivy League (or at any other school, for that matter). If you think every Princeton wrestler (for example) met the same standard for admission as every other non-athlete, then you are delusional. They met the "standard for athletes," but that is not the Princeton standard that every other non-athlete had to meet.

 

[matter7172]

Again. You are totally misreading the article. It does not suggest different level of admission standards for athletes. It does suggest that athletes with the same level of qualification as a non-athlete have a higher chance of admission. But carry on.

 

[ad1986]

Barring injury, Princeton will be very good next year and will have a chance to qualify all 10 into the NCAAs with a shot at 4-5 AAs. Pat D'Arcy and Mike D'Angelo are both are out of school this year, and will return in 2019-20 as "Ivyshirt" seniors.
This could simply be coincidence; or the staff sees a one window to win the EIWA next year as Cornell is still reloading. Cornell will be a beast, top 5 team in 2021.

Princeton's first win ever at Lehigh and first win in 50 years last season.

 

[NothingMeaningful]

Barring injury, Princeton will be very good next year and will have a chance to qualify all 10 into the NCAAs with a shot at 4-5 AAs. Pat D'Arcy and Mike D'Angelo are both are out of school this year, and will return in 2019-20 as "Ivyshirt" seniors.
This could simply be coincidence; or the staff sees a one window to win the EIWA next year as Cornell is still reloading. Cornell will be a beast, top 5 team in 2021.

Princeton's first win ever at Lehigh and first win in 50 years last season.

Who is Cornell losing such that they need to "still reload?" Were they reloading this year when they beat Princeton 34-7 after winning the first eight matches? Cornell returns five AAs next year. I also think they will start 1-2 true freshman from their top Class of 2019 recruits.

 

[Media Fan]

Roger Reyna (sp) has come back to Penn, and I believe they are getting better. Used to be pretty good.

 

[Cali_Nittany]

Review edited into a preview