BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Sacred Heart University men's wrestling team earned eight victories and accumulated 22 points on day one of the 2025 EIWA Championships, hosted by Lehigh at Stabler Arena.
Leading the 12-team field after day one is Lehigh, with 120 points. The Mountain Hawks boast a league-leading six wrestlers advancing to Saturday's championships. Lehigh holds an 18.5-point lead over second-place Bucknell, while Drexel (93.5), Army West Point (93), and Binghamton (90) round out the top five.
Day two of the EIWA Championships is slated to begin tomorrow at 10:00 a.m.
Player Notables:
The Pioneers have three wrestlers –
Braxton Fries-Appello,
Felix Lettini, and
Hunter Perez – still competing for a chance to place seventh in their respective weight classes and will resume play tomorrow morning. All three finished day one with a 2-2 record.
- Fries-Appello (133 pounds) secured two wins: one by tech fall in the round of 16 and another by decision in the consolation bracket.
- Lettini (157 pounds) also notched two wins, including a thrilling tiebreaker victory against Hofstra's Jurius Clark in the round of 16.
- Perez (184 pounds) earned a 5-4 decision win in the round of 16 and followed it up with a dominant 19-5 major decision victory in the consolation bracket over Franklin & Marshall's Noah Bash.
Additionally,
Aidan Zarrella and
Brendan Gilchrist both recorded wins for the Pioneers, each securing victories in the first round of 16.
Individual Results:
Round of 16 -
133:
Braxton Fries-Appello (Sacred Heart) def. Kevin Lopez (Morgan State) by Tech Fall, 16-1
141: Rich Treanor (Army West Point) def.
Andrew Fallon (Sacred Heart) by Decision, 7-3
157:
Felix Lettini (Sacred Heart) def. Jurius Clark (Hofstra) by Decision, 2-1 (Tiebreaker 2)
165: Kaden Milheim (American) def.
Calvin Pineda (Sacred Heart) by Fall (1:50)
174:
Aidan Zarrella (Sacred Heart) def. Rylan Rogers (Lehigh) by Decision, 7-4
184:
Hunter Perez (Sacred Heart) def. Jakob Gilfoil (Army) by Decision, 5-4
197: Payton Thomas (Navy) def.
Chris DeLena (Sacred Heart) by Tech Fall, 17-2
285:
Brendan Gilchrist (Sacred Heart) def. Brody Kline (Franklin & Marshall) by Fall (4:44)
Quarterfinals -
133: Matthew Lopes (Lehigh) def.
Braxton Fries-Appello (Sacred Heart) by Major Decision, 15-5
149: Kaemen Smith (Navy) def.
Dakota Asuncion (Sacred Heart) by Decision, 7-5
157: Logan Rozynski (Lehigh) def.
Felix Lettini (Sacred Heart) by Decision, 5-2
174: Danny Wask (Navy) def.
Aidan Zarrella (Sacred Heart) by Tech Fall, 17-2
184: Caden Rogers (Lehigh) def.
Hunter Perez (Sacred Heart) by Major Decision, 12-4
285: Brady Colbert (Army) def.
Brendan Gilchrist (Sacred Heart) by Tech Fall, 17-2
Consolation of 8 -
133:
Braxton Fries-Appello (Sacred Heart) def. Kaelan Francois (LIU) by Decision, 9-3
141: Carter Bailey (Lehigh) def.
Andrew Fallon (Sacred Heart) by Decision, 7-1
149: Noah Tapia (Hofstra) def.
Dakota Asuncion (Sacred Heart) Tech Fall, 17-2
157:
Felix Lettini (Sacred Heart) def. Luke Bender (Franklin & Marshall) by Decision, 4-0
165: Cody Walsh (Drexel) def.
Calvin Pineda (Sacred Heart) by Fall (2:49)
174 :Blake Bahna (LIU) def.
Aidan Zarrella (Sacred Heart) by Decsion, 6-3
184:
Hunter Perez (Sacred Heart) def. Noah Bash (Franklin & Marshall) by Major Decision, 19-5
197: Cayden Bevis (Binghamton) def.
Chris DeLena (Sacred Heart) by Major Decision, 13-5
285: Christopher Powell (LIU) def.
Brendan Gilchrist (Sacred Heart) by Decision, 5-1
Consolation of 4 –
133: Raymond Lopez (American) def.
Braxton Fries-Appello (Sacred Heart) by Fall (4:39)
157 Jack Nies (American) def.
Felix Lettini (Sacred Heart) by Decision, 6-5 (Tiebreaker 2)
184: Giuseppe Hoose (Drexel) def.
Hunter Perez (Sacred Heart) by Major Decision, 11-2
Records by Weight Class:
133: Fries-Appello (2-2)
141: Fallon (0-2)
149: Asuncion (0-2)
157: Lettini (2-2)
165: Pineda (0-2)
174: Zarrella (1-2)
184: Perez (2-2)
197: DeLena (0-2)
285: Gilchrist (1-2)
