Butler sets Penn wrestling win record in '95

Brian Butler's win record was anticipated before this weekend in 1995. The Quaker wrestlers will be making their home debut this weekend, and the change of venue could not have come at a better time. After seeming to be nearly unbeatable this season, Penn (7-3, 2-1 EIWA) fell back to earth in a hurry after it was rocked by Cornell last weekend. Along with the loss, the Quakers' goals of repeating as Ivy champs and becoming a top-20 team were put in jeopardy. With that in mind, the Quakers feel they need a sweep of their three dual meets this weekend to get back on the right track. But to do that, Penn needs to slay Brown, currently ranked No. 1 in the EIWA and No. 22 nationally, at the Palestra Saturday (1:30 p.m.). "They're definitely the team to beat in the conference this season, but I don't want to think about matchups or anything of that nature," Penn coach Roger Reina said. Before the main event Saturday, the Quakers will have to dispatch with Harvard (2-4, 1-2), the weak sister of the Ivy League, and Rutgers (6-2, 2-2), a team that shocked the Quakers last year with an upset win. Both meets take place today at Hutch Gym (3 p.m.). "I don't think we're overlooking the Harvard and Rutgers match," sophomore Brandon Slay said. "But Brown is definitely the biggest match this year." The Bears (10-1, 1-0) present many challenges for the Quakers because they have an entire crew of wrestlers ranked at the top of the EIWA. Hitting leadoff for the Quakers will be senior co-captain Gary Baker at 118. Baker, who was a unanimous first-team All-Ivy selection last year, was shocked last week when he lost a 3-2 decision to Cornell. Although he was coming off both rib and knee injuries, the senior co-captain knows he must overcome his physical problems. "My match is a big match," said Baker, who might be facing Mike Mulroney, the No. 3 wrestler in the EIWA. "I've got to get everyone going. I'm kind of the spark plug." Other matches to look out for will be at 126 and at 190. Junior co-captain Brian Eveleth will be challenging Dave Gustovitch, who is ranked No. 2 in the EIWA, at 126. And in what looks to be the best match of the day, senior co-captain Brian Butler will square off at 190 against Paul Fitzpatrick, who is No. 1 in the EIWA and ranked 12th in the country. "I think everyone has to wrestle like they have been taught," Butler said. "I think everyone has to wrestle with their hearts. Personally, I have to wrestle for me and the other nine men whose butts are on the line. The people who work in the circle for everyone to see have to perform." Before the Brown face-off, Butler will have a chance to make Penn history. With one more victory, he will have the most career wins of any Quakers wrestler, surpassing 1993 graduate Adam Green's record of 87 wins. His first opportunity will likely come against Crimson wrestler Dan Vandermyde. "I've been thinking a lot about when I take the mat against Harvard," Butler said. "It's going to be for everyone.? It's for all the people who got me to where I am. With that kind of support behind me, I can't lose. It's impossible." With their backs to the wall and their season on the line, the Penn wrestlers overcame a five point deficit to defeat Brown, the top team in the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association, 16-15. The heart-stopping win at the Palestra against the Bears, who came into the meet ranked No. 22 in the nation, rekindles hope for a repeat as Ivy champions and a place in the national rankings. The Quakers' championship hopes, however, still rely on a Cornell loss, which would most realistically be to Brown. A Big Red loss would give the three Ivy wrestling powerhouses -- Penn, Brown and Cornell -- one loss each. The day before Saturday's victory over the Bears, the Quakers (10-4, 5-1 EIWA, 3-1 Ivy League) embarrassed Harvard and Rutgers, two other EIWA squads. They destroyed the Crimson, 34-3, and then pummeled Rutgers, a team that defeated Penn a year ago, 37-3. But the dual meet against Brown (11-2, 5-1, 1-1) was the main event, and the comeback victory came down to the last period of the last match. Down 15-10 to the Bears, the Quakers were left to their last two wrestlers, senior co-captain Brian Butler at 190 pounds and junior Joey Allen in the heavyweight division. Penn would need to sweep both of these meets to edge out the victory. Although Allen was expected to defeat his opponent, Dimitrios Gavriel, Butler was facing the No. 1 wrestler in the EIWA, Paul Fitzpatrick, whose record this year was a cool 17-2. "It was really a dej^-vu situation," Penn coach Roger Reina said. "Last year we were down 10-15 [to Brown] and won 17-15. So I wasn't pessimistic." "Brian Butler. I can't say enough about him. He's a tremendous leader, a tremendous example," Reina continued. "He's got great heart. To me, he's everything this program's all about. I mean everything." In an incredible display of wrestling, Butler, who had set the career-win record for Penn against Harvard on Friday, dominated a lethargic Fitzpatrick throughout the match. In the third period, Butler recorded two takedowns to defeat the Brown superstar, who was ranked 12th in the nation by Amateur Wrestling News, 10-4. The only points Fitzpatrick got from Butler were off four escapes. Allen, on the other hand, had more trouble with his less-regarded opponent Gavriel, who initially enjoyed some success with a slow-down strategy. Deadlocked at two points apiece going into the third period, Allen came through in the clutch, recording a three-point near-fall in front of a cheering crowd of several hundred people. " I felt I had to get some points, so I went after him," Allen said.

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