| What was supposed to be the most intense, emotional confrontation of the SJSU wrestling season turned out to be
an embarrassment not only for the Spartans but for the athletic department as well. |
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| Bakersfield State coach T.J. Kerr, who just three years ago left SJSU in a bitter dispute with the administration,
(especially President Gail Fullerton), returned Wednesday night to Spartan Gym where his Roadrunners dominated
the Spartans 30-8. |
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| Bakersfield's domination was never in question because the statistics tell the story: |
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| Not once in the 10 matches did the Spartans ever take the first lead. |
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| Only twice were the Spartans ahead in a match. |
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| Bakersfield had a total of 32 takedowns, while SJSU had only two. |
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| Bakersfield converted seven near falls, while SJSU had none. |
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| Of the eight Spartan points, six were awarded by disqualification and the remaining two occurred from a tie. |
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| "Our main problem is that we are not ourselves motivated," said 118-pounder Andrew Flores. "The
team lacks intensity and that's including me." |
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| Flores should know first-hand the trouble SJSU had all evening with the Roadrunners. In his match, he allowed opponent
Ahmed El Sokary to convert five takedowns and a reversal. Flores' only points came on defensive escapes which insured
a 10-5 win for El Sokary. |
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| "All i can say is that the other guy was in better shape," Flores said. |
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| The 126-pound contest between Joel Chew and Mike Dallas was ebbed in controversy near the end of the first period. |
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| Behind 4-2, Chew seemed to have converted a hip takedown at the edge of the boundary, but the referee ruled no
takedown. Later, Dallas made a reversal out of bounds and got the two points. |
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| This controversial ruling gave Dallas a lead that Chew could not overcome. The end result was 14-8 loss for SJSU. |
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| "Joel did a great job against a guy who was All-American last year," Hejnal said. "I thought Joel
got the pin inside the mat, but it was the ref's decision and i have to respect that." |
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| The outcome of the next four matches seemed like nightmares for Hejnal and his wrestlers. SJSU's 134-pounder Greg
Eissner suffered a technical fall in the second period against Alan Paradise, while 142-pound Joe Zamlich lost
9-2 to Roadrunner Ron Thatcher. |
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| Although Martin Navarette's 12-3 loss to Doug Holley in the 150-pound category wasn't too surprising, the worst
was yet to come. |
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| Senior Jeff Profio, who was the only Spartan not losing his match, was pinned with 15 seconds left in the first
period by freshman John Tripp. |
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| After six straight Spartan losses, 167-pounder Shane Baum brought some respect back to the team by tying with Paul
Olejnik. |
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| Unfortunately, Baum's fighting spirit could not bring any fire into teammate Scott Gustafson who was soundly defeated
by Larry Sidiropoulos 21-6 in the 190-pound match. |
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| The final match between Spartan heavyweight Brent Smith and Tom Osendorf had an ugly ending. |
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| Ahead 8-1 in the second period, Osendorf attempted a leg takedown by forcing Smith's left knee out of joint, which
is a dangerously illegal move. |
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| "I don't tell Osendorf to use that kind of a move," Kerr said. "One thing i know for sure is that
he'll never do that again, because there is no room for that type of wrestling." |
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| The move disqualified Osendorf and gave the six-point win to Smith, who was lying on the mat in pain. |
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| "Tonight was a simple case of Bakersfield being more experienced and aggressive," Hejnal said. |
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| "I don't want to dwell on the past, but it was probably good the way things turned out with me going to Bakersfield,"
Kerr said. "Even though we won big, i was very impressed with SJSU. They've got a great crowd, impressive
wrestlers and a good coach in Kevin, who i know will make them an outstanding team." |
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| SJSU's record falls to 1-1 in the Pac-10 and 1-2 overall. |
