NEW YORK – Nick Babin (125), Matt Kazimir (141), Cesar Alvan (157), and Lennox Wolak (174) all picked up wins for Columbia wrestling on Sunday afternoon at Levien Gymnasium. Still, the Lions could not hold on as No. 20 Pittsburgh battled to take a 19-18 win.
 
"We have designed this schedule as challenging as possible for a reason," Andrew F. Barth Head Coach of Wrestling Zach Tanelli said. "We need to be in these environments. We need to have these heavy-pressure situations. At the end of the day, we have to surround these guys with the people we are going to see at NCAA (championships) to be All-Americans and national champions. There are no moral victories. We have to take care of business when the opportunities are there."
 
Babin put the Lions in a great position to start the dual match as he secured a 4-2 decision over No. 30 Colton Camacho at 125 to put the Lions up, 3-0. Angelo Rini would fall in the 133 bout, but a Pittsburgh forfeit at 141 gave Matt Kazimir the win as Columbia took a 9-3 lead.
 
Alvan found himself down 14-1 in the third period of the 157 matchup before he battled back to pin No. 21 Dazjon Casto. Alvan fought through two injury timeouts as he extended the Columbia advantage to 15-6.
 
"(Alvan) has guts, he has heart, and he has proven multiple times throughout this year already," Tanelli said. "He stepped up big, and as far as the score is concerned, he put us in a position to win. That was a big turn from where that match was going."
 
Wolak secured the last Columbia win of the match at 174 as he secured a 3-2 decision against No. 33 Luca Augustine to put the Lions up 18-9. Wolak got a takedown to take the early lead in the first period and then hung on to secure the win.
 
Columbia would drop the last three bouts at 184, 197, and 285 as the Panthers battled down the stretch to seal the 19-18 win.

RESULTS
No. 20 PITTSBURGH 19, COLUMBIA 18
New York, N.Y. (Levien Gym)
 
125 | Nick Babin (Columbia) def. No. 30 Colton Camacho (Pitt) | D, 4-2
133 | No. 9 Micky Phillipi (Pitt) def. Angelo Rini (Columbia) | D, 2-0
141 | Matt Kazimir (Columbia) def. Pitt | FORFEIT
149 | Tyler Badgett (Pitt) def. Danny Fongaro (Columbia) | D, 5-0
157 | Cesar Alvan (Columbia) def. No. 21 Dazjon Castro (Pitt) | Fall, 5:12
165 | No. 17 Holden Heller (Pitt) def. No. 12 Joshua Ogunsanya (Columbia) | D, 4-2
174 | Lennox Wolak (Columbia) def. No. 33 Luca Augustine (Pitt) | D, 3-2
184 | James Lledo (Pitt) def. Jack Wehmeyer (Columbia) | D, 10-9
197 | No. 3 Nino Banaccorsi (Pitt) def. Javen Jovero (Columbia) | D, 15-2
285 | Jake Slinger (Pitt) def. Danny Conley (Columbia) | D, 6-2
 
Cumulative Scoring Results:
125 | PITT 0, COL 3
133 | PITT 3, COL 3
141 | PITT 3, COL 9
149 | PITT 6, COL 9
157 | PITT 6, COL 15
165 | PITT 9, COL 15
174 | PITT 9, COL 18
184 | PITT 12, COL 18
197 | PITT 16, COL 18
285 | PITT 19, COL 18
 
UP NEXT
The Lions will take a break for final exams and the holidays before traveling to the Soldier Salute event in Iowa. The two-day event will be held on Dec. 29-30.

FOLLOWING THE LIONS
Stay up to date on all things Columbia Wrestling by following the Lions on Twitter (@CULionsWR), Instagram (@culionswr) and on Facebook (@ColumbiaAthletics).