Muhlenberg sophomore Matt Loesch advanced to the 197-pound final for the third tournament in a row on the second day of the Petrofes Invitational, hosted by Messiah.

The two other Mule wrestlers who made it to the second day, junior Dale Mills and freshman Joseph DeCampo both won their final bouts to place third and seventh, respectively.

As a team, Muhlenberg was ninth, finishing ahead of Centennial Conference rivals Johns Hopkins and Gettysburg.

Loesch, the top seed in his bracket, won a 6-3 decision in the semifinals but was pinned in 1:40 by the second seed, from Brockport State, in the final. Loesch also placed second at King’s and Ursinus this season and has finished first or second in seven of the eight career tournaments in which he participated. The only exception was last year’s NCAA Championships.

Loesch is tied for the team lead in wins with eight.

At 149 pounds, the second-seeded Mills dropped a 13-10 decision in the semifinal round to the sixth seed. He rebounded to pin the eighth seed in the consolation semifinal, then won on a takedown in sudden-death overtime to capture third place.

DeCampo split two pins on the second day of competition, flattening an Oneonta State wrestler in the seventh-place match.

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It was the first time hitting the century mark this season for the Mules (5-0, 3-0), who reached triple digits in both meetings with the Shorewomen (1-4, 0-3) last year.

Muhlenberg shot only 33 percent from the field but fired off 109 shots (42 more than

Orosz hit double figures for the first time since scoring a career-high 14 against Bryn Mawr two years ago.

Washington) and had 35 offensive rebounds. The Mules also forced 40 turnovers and tied a school record set 17 years ago with nine blocked shots.

The Mules led by only nine points, 33-24, with seven minutes to play in the first half, but outscored the Shorewomen by a 20-12 margin the rest of the half and held a comfortable lead throughout the second half.

Coluccini, the first Muhlenberg player to score more than 15 points in a game this year, also had five steals. Junior Kristen Piscadlo had fine all-around numbers with 13 points, six assists and career highs of eight steals and six rebounds.

Juniors Lacie Smith (13 points), Tiffany Kirk (10) and Lindsay Orosz (10) also scored in double figures. Sophomore Meghan Courtney pulled down a career-high 15 rebounds – 10 off the offensive glass – and junior Valerie Robuck recorded a career-best nine boards in addition to three blocked shots.

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