The University of Pennsylvania wrestling team will travel to Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, this weekend to compete against Campbell University at the Throwdown on the Yorktown event. The match is scheduled for Saturday, November 15, at 1 p.m. and will take place aboard the USS Yorktown CV-10.
The Throwdown on the Yorktown features eight men’s wrestling teams and three women’s programs competing on an active aircraft carrier. The event was first held last year and received positive feedback from participants and spectators.
Penn enters the contest with a record of 0-0 in both overall and Ivy League competition. The Quakers began their season at the Journeymen Collegiate Classic, where sophomore Cross Wasilewski achieved a 3-0 record in the 149-pound bracket and earned his first hammer award. Several other Penn wrestlers won their final matches at their respective weights during that tournament, including Davis Motyka (125), Deven Casey (133), Nathan Taylor (141), Paul Ognissanti (165), Isaias Rodriguez-Jimenez (165), Caden Bellis (174), and Brian Heard (174). Freshmen such as Bellis, Liam Carlin, Casey, Heard, Greyson Meak, Motyka, Rodriguez-Jimenez, Wyatt Stout, and Nathan Taylor made their collegiate debuts at this event.
The team returns two NCAA qualifiers: Wasilewski at 149 pounds—who won his weight class at last year’s Ivy League Championships—and Jude Swisher at 157 pounds who finished as runner-up. Both athletes are ranked nationally; Wasilewski is ranked fifth in his weight class while Swisher holds twelfth place according to FloWrestling and Intermat rankings.
Campbell comes into the dual with a 1-2 record after competing in the Mason Duals last weekend. Their only win so far was a 28-14 victory over Williams College. In preseason polling by Southern Conference coaches, Campbell was projected to finish sixth in its league.
Penn’s projected lineup includes Davis Motyka (125 lbs.), Evan Mougalian or Deven Casey (133 lbs.), Nathan Taylor (141 lbs.), Cross Wasilewski or Kelly Dunnigan (#5) (149 lbs.), Jackson Polo (157 lbs.), Sean Seefeldt (165 lbs.), Caden Bellis or Liam Carlin (174 lbs.), Greyson Meak (184 lbs.), Martin Cosgrove (197 lbs.), and John Pardo (285 lbs.).
