By Tim Glon
No. 18-ranked Ohio Northern got first period pins from senior Kyle Raber and junior Michael Pawlitz and posted a 42-4 Ohio Athletic Conference wrestling victory at John Carroll Tuesday night at the Don Shula Sports Center.
The Polar Bears improve to 13-2 overall and stay atop the OAC with a 2-0 record, while the Blue Streaks fall to 3-5, 0-2.
ONU won nine of the 10 weight classes and are now 18-2 in OAC dual meet action this year.
Raber won by fall in 1:08 at 184 pounds and Pawlitz followed with a pin in 52 seconds at 197 pounds.
Raber improves to 6-5 on the season and Pawlitz is now 21-4 with a team-best 11 pins.
After junior Jerry Pasquale started the match with a forfeit win at 125 pounds, senior Jeremy Jones, sophomore Cody Harting and sophomore J.P. Hoopes all won by decision at 133, 141 and 149 pounds, respectively, to give ONU a 15-0 lead.
Jones improves to 12-11, Harting is now 5-10 and Hoopes moves to 5-2 on the year.
Freshman Tyler Gargano won by forfeit at 165 to make it a 21-4 score.
Senior three-time All-American, defending national champion and top-ranked Kyle Kwiat increased ONU's lead to 26-4 with a 17-0 tech fall at 174 pounds.
He improves to 24-3 on the season with a team-best 13 tech falls.
The pins by Raber and Pawlitz made it 38-4 and sophomore Cody Lovejoy won the heavyweight bout 9-0 to wrap up the meet.
Lovejoy (20-6) becomes the third ONU wrestler to hit the 20-win mark on the year.
The Polar Bears will return to action on Saturday at the Alma (Mich.) Open.
