CLARION, Pa. – The Clarion wrestling team opened its dual match season on Sunday, with the Golden Eagles falling in a tight contest to George Mason at Tippin Gym.  Clarion (0-1) and the Patriots split each of the five matches on the mat, but bonus points proved to be the difference in giving George Mason the win.
 
 Both teams picked up a win by fall on Sunday afternoon, with Greg Bulsak pinning Jeremy Seymour just 1:32 into the 197-pound bout and Josh Jones defeating Seth Koleno with 51 seconds left at 133 pounds.  That latter result, as well as a major decision by the Patriots in the 165-pound bout, led to them winning by a single point.
 
George Mason won the first three bouts of the afternoon before Clarion returned the favor with three straight wins of their own, starting with a 3-2 decision by Luke Funck in the 184-pound bout.  Bulsak followed with the pin over Seymour, with the two-time NCAA qualifier quickly breaking Seymour down and flattening him for the six-point result.  Ty Bagoly wrapped the three-match streak with a win over Jake Slinger in the heavyweight bout, including an exciting takedown and two-point near fall to beat his man and pull his team ahead 12-10. 
 
The Patriots countered with wins at 125 and 133 pounds, but Taylor Ortz stopped the bleeding with a 5-3 decision over Alex Madrigal to give the Golden Eagles a shot at the team win.  Brock Zacherl won the day's finale in a sudden-victory decision, but Colston DiBlasi kept him from bonus points and a possible tie.
 
George Mason 19, Clarion 18
 
157 : Kolby Ho (George Mason) over Avery Shay (Clarion) (Dec 9-5)
165 : Neil Schuster (George Mason) over Mike Vernagallo (Clarion) (MD 10-2)
174 : Anthony Lombardo (George Mason) over Max Wohlabaugh (Clarion) (Dec 11-9)
184 : Luke Funck (Clarion) over Paul Pierce (George Mason) (Dec 3-2)
197 : Greg Bulsak (Clarion) over Jeremy Seymour (George Mason) (Fall 1:32)
285 : Tyler Bagoly (Clarion) over Jake Slinger (George Mason) (Dec 10-3)
125 : Talha Farooq (George Mason) over Cameron Butler (Clarion) (Dec 6-3)
133 : Josh Jones (George Mason) over Seth Koleno (Clarion) (Fall 6:09)
141 : Taylor Ortz (Clarion) over Alex Madrigal (George Mason) (Dec 5-3)
149 : Brock Zacherl (Clarion) over Colston DiBlasi (George Mason) (SV-1 4-2)