Trailing 9-7 in the overall score, Peppelman put Harvard back in the lead by scoring his first of two falls for the weekend, pinning Ramon Santiago at 1:09. With the win, the Crimson moved into the lead, 13-9.
“I feel like I wrestled pretty well,” Peppelman said. “I wasn’t sure I was ready and my coaches did a good job of pushing me to wrestle those two matches. They were good wins for me and they helped build my confidence back up.”
Yet Rider pulled ahead once again with victories at 165 lbs. and 174 lbs. The Crimson rebounded and sealed the matchup by winning the final three bouts. Sophomore Cameron Croy earned a decision over Brandon Lintner, 10-4, and increased his career record to 25-26. Freshman James Fox pulled out another 4-0 decision against Donald McNeil, and heavyweight freshman David Ng finished off the dual by edging Evan Craig, 3-2.
According to Weiss, the Crimson still needs to improve to win against some of the competition it will face this season. But after finishing last year with a 2-15 record, a win early on is certainly welcome for Harvard.
“It’s not where we want to be, but we’re getting there, that’s for sure,” Weiss said.
—Staff writer Steven T. A. Roach be reached at sroach@fas.harvard.edu.