New York, NY – The Hofstra Pride Wrestling team recorded six wins by decision to top George Mason University in their second match of the day and split their two matches in the fifth annual Grapple at the Garden at Madison Square Garden Sunday afternoon.

The Pride dropped their first match on the day to Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association-foe and eighth-ranked Cornell, 39-0. Hofstra is now 0-1 in the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) and 1-1 overall.

In the nightcap against the Patriots of George Mason, the Hofstra lightweights gave the Pride an early 6-0 lead as freshmen Jacob Martin and Vinny Vespa posted 7-1 and 6-3 victories at 125 and 133, respectively. Martin is 5-5 on the young season while Vespa is 4-4.

But Patriot Tejon Anthony tallied a 15-3 major decision over Connor Burkert (3-5) at 141 and Sahid Kargbo topped Ryan Burkert (4-5), 6-2 at 149 to take a 7-6 lead in the match. Hofstra responded by winning the next three matches as red-shirt freshman Jake Kaminsky (5-6) defeated Matthew Raines, 11-5 at 157, red-shirt sophomore Bobby Fehr (1-1) defeated Garrett Tingen, 14-10 at 165 and newcomer Sage Heller (9-5) edged Patrick Davis at 174 to give the Pride a 15-7 advantageous.

George Mason's Daniel Mika gave the Patriots some home with a 5-2 decision over red-shirt sophomore Michael Oxley (5-6) at 184 pounds to close the deficit to 15-10. But Hofstra red-shirt sophomore Nezar Haddad (3-2) clinched the match at 197 with a 5-3 sudden victory decision over Matt Meadows after regulation ended at 3-3. George Mason's Matthew Voss closed out the contest with an 8-6 victory over Pride sophomore Omar Haddad (1-5) at 285 to post the final 18-13 score.

In the first contest of the day for the Pride, the Big Red of Cornell recorded three bonus point victories, including a pins by defending national champion Gabe Dean and 20th-ranked Brandon Womack, to post the 39-0 victory. Hofstra battled the defending EIWA champions early as Jacob Martin dropped his 125-pound match to Noah Baughman on a takedown with 0:18 remaining in the match. Vespa battled back from a 9-1 deficit to Mark Grey after two periods but fell short at 133 pounds, 14-12. Connor Burkert battled Will Koll at 141 pounds before dropping a 9-4 decision and Cornell's 19th-ranked Joey Galasso battled back from a 5-3 deficit in the third period to post a 9-6 win over Ryan Burkert at 149 pounds.

Hofstra's Jake Kaminsky battled Taylor Simaz before falling 5-2 at 157 pounds before the floodgates really opened. Cornell's 20th-ranked Brandon Womack won by fall at 165, fifth-ranked Brian Realbuto recorded a 21-3 technical fall at 174 and Dean posted his pin in 33 seconds at 184 to boost their lead to 32-0. Ben Honis tallied a major decision at 197 and Jeremy Sweany took home the win at 285 to complete the sweep in the match.

The Pride will return to action on Sunday, December 4 when they compete in the Journeymen-Blue and Gold Tussle Tournament at the Hofstra David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex. The seven-team tournament begins at 9 a.m.

#8 Cornell (1-0, 2-0) 39, Hofstra (0-1, 1-0) 0
125 – Noah Baughman (CU) dec. Jacob Martin (HU), 3-1
133 – Mark Grey (CU) dec. Vinny Vespa (HU), 14-12
141 – Will Koll (CU) dec. Connor Burkert (HU), 9-4
149 – #19 Joey Galasso (CU) dec. Ryan Burkert (HU), 9-6
157 – Taylor Simaz (CU) dec. Jake Kaminsky (HU), 5-2
165 – #20 Brandon Womack (CU) WBF Bobby Fehr (HU), 3:50
174 – #5 Brian Realmuto (CU) tech fall Sage Heller (HU), 21-3
184 - #1 Gabe Dean (CU) WBF Michael Oxley (HU), 0:33
197 – Ben Honis (CU) maj. dec. Nezar Haddad (HU), 9-1
285 – #19 Jeremy Sweany (CU) dec. Omar Haddad (HU), 6-2

Hofstra (1-1) 18, George Mason (0-3), 13
125 – Jacob Martin (HU) dec. Quinton Tucker (GMU), 7-1
133 – Vinny Vespa (HU) dec. Lio Quezada (GMU), 6-3
141 – Tejon Anthony (GMU) maj. dec. Connor Burkert (HU), 15-3
149 – Sahid Kargbo (GMU) dec. Ryan Burkert (HU), 6-2
157 – Jake Kaminsky (HU) dec. Matthew Raines (GMU), 11-5
165 – Bobby Fehr (HU) dec. Garrett Tingen (GMU), 14-10
174 – Sage Heller (HU) dec. Patrick Davis (GMU), 9-8
184 - Daniel Mika (GMU) dec. Michael Oxley (HU), 5-2
197 – Nezar Haddad (HU) dec. Matt Meadows (GMU), 5-3
285 – Matthew Voss (GMU) dec. Omar Haddad (HU), 8-6