The Lock Haven women’s wrestling team hosted a Tri-Match inside Thomas Fieldhouse against Ursinus and No. 23 Gannon on Sunday.

Before the match, the team honored its two seniors, Jessica Johnson and Lily Sherer, for their dedication and contributions to Lock Haven and the women’s wrestling program. Sherer came to a Lock Haven program just starting up and has helped transform the program to what it is now sitting at 79 career wins as of Sunday and a three-time national qualifier.

“It’s definitely something that’s really hard to think about,” Sherer said. “I’ve been here for the last four years like I put my heart and soul into this program, and I don’t know if I’m ready to walk away yet.”

In the first dual, Ursinus pulled off a massive upset over the No. 12 ranked Bald Eagles, 24-23.

The story of the dual was Lock Haven shooting themselves in the foot. The Haven surrendered four pins and had leads in three of those matches.

“Losing the first one to Ursinus was tough,” Lock Haven head coach Matt Lackey said. “And the way we did it, we really shot ourselves in the foot. We gave up four pins and in three of those matches we had leads. We have to wrestle smarter. We got to be tougher and do a better job.

Ursinus started with back-to-back pins from Madeline Gavares (103) and Olivia Guy (110). Gavares was down 4-0 against Summer Batts but scored a takedown and turned Batts on her back for the pin in 1:48. Guy needed 29 seconds for the pin over Taylor Bloom.

The Bald Eagles rallied late, grabbing wins from Jayleah Pletz, Lily Sherer, and Marissa Rumsey but Ursinus’ fast start was enough for the dual win.

Sherer dropped Stacy Bloomfield by a 7-0 decision at 131. Rumsey (145) pinned Paisley Fox in 2:04.

However, at 160, Ursinus sealed the dual.

Emma Matera pinned Avry Ryhal with less than 10 seconds left in the match. Ryhal and Matera were tied 6-6 with about 30 seconds remaining when Ryhal made an aggressive move for a takedown but Matera defended well and turned Ryhal on her back for the fall.

Lindsay Laws and Trinity Monaghan picked up wins for The Haven by forfeit to round out the team’s wins in the tri-meet opener.

The Bald Eagles would rebound in a big way next bout, posting a 34-12 win over No. 23 Gannon.

“It was nice to get a win,” Lackey said. “What you’re looking for is improvement of your team and and we still have a way to go, but we’re really young, and we’re going to make a lot of mistakes, and we’re going to get back to the drawing board each and every week, and we’re going to try to fix those things, and we’re going to keep hammering improvement and growth. I feel great about where we’re at right now.”

The Haven won the first five bouts to get out to a commanding 24-0 lead. At 117, Pletz tech falled Brenna McCarley 11-0 in 2:05. Isabella DeVito followed her up with a pin over Hannah McCarley at 124 in 1:12.

The Golden Knights picked up wins from Lili Ujfalvi, Nyla Burgess and Isabella Phipps at 138, 160 and 180 respectively. Ujfalvi dropped Paige Jackson 4-1. Burgess secured a first-period fall over Ryhal in 2:33. And Phipps teched Azariah Moore 12-1.

But Lock Haven standout freshman and nationally-ranked – No. 3 – Alyssa Favara would put the icing on the cake with a 10-0 tech fall in 1:07 to close out the dual at 207.

Favara has shined in her freshman year making quick work of her opponents with five pins on the year and eight tech falls. Additionally, all five pins have come in under one minute and make up a total time of 2:49. Favara sits at a 22-1 overall record and a 13-1 record in duals.

“I’m definitely proud of myself. The competition has been pretty good and I’m just grateful for the opportunity to be able to wrestle in so many matches. And I’m grateful to coach Lackey for coaching me on my way to a successful season.”

UP NEXT

The Bald Eagles hit the road and will travel to York for three matches to conclude the 2024-25 regular season. The Haven will compete against York, Cedar Crest and Delaware Valley.

They will kick off postseason action on Sunday, Feb. 23, and compete in the National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Region 2 Championship hosted by East Stroudsburg University.

Ursinus 24, No. 12 Lock Haven 23

103: Madeline Gavares (U) pinned Summer Batts (LH), 1:48. 110: Olivia Guy (U) pinned Taylor Bloom (LH), 0:29. 117: Jayleah Pletz (LH) won by forfeit. 124: Kalli Roskos (U) tech fall Mackenzie DelVecchio (LH), 10-0 (4:25). 131: Lily Sherer (LH) dec. Stacy Bloomfield (U), 7-0. 138: Emma Sagi (U) pinned Paige Jackson (LH), 3:56. 145: Marissa Rumsey (LH) pinned Paisley Fox (U), 2:04. 160: Emma Matera (U) pinned Avry Ryhal (LH), 5:53. 180: Lindsay Laws (LH) won by forfeit. 207: Trinity Monaghan (LH) won by forfeit.

No. 12 Lock Haven 34, No. 23 Gannon 12

103: Summer Batts (LH) won by forfeit. 110: Taylor Bloom (LH) won by forfeit. 117: Jayleah Pletz (LH) tech fall Brenna McCarley (G), 11-0 (2:05). 124: Isabella DeVito (LH) pinned Hannah McCarley (G), 1:12. 131: Lily Sherer (LH) won by forfeit. 138: Lili Ujfalvi (G) dec. Paige Jackson (LH), 4-1. 145: Marissa Ramsey (LH) tech fall Ariana Gonzalez (G), 10-0 (4:11). 160: Nyla Burgess pinned Avry Ryhal (LH), 2:33. 180: Isabella Phipps (G) tech fall Azariah Moore (LH), 12-1 (5:07). 207: No. 3 Alyssa Favara (LH) tech fall Christina Chavez (G), 10-0 (1:07).