The first bout of what is ASC's final dual meet of the season, is slated for 7 p.m.
In honor of Valentine's Day, the Grizzlies are holding Couple's Night in conjunction with the event, sponsored by Safeway. All couples will receive two admissions for the price of one.
The Grizzlies, ranked third in the latest NCAA Division II National Wrestling Coaches Association Top 20 poll, have won nine straight duals and are 10-1 overall and a perfect 8-0 in RMAC action. The Lopers, ranked fourth nationally, are the 6-time defending RMAC Tournament Champions and have won three straight conference dual titles. They are 10-5 overall and 4-1 in RMAC action after seeing their 26-RMAC match winning streak snapped with a 19-17 setback to No. 5 Western on Saturday in Kearney.
The Lopers, who will have up to seven nationally ranked wrestlers in their lineup, are at New Mexico Highlands on Wednesday night. They have three RMAC duals remaining this season and can get to 7-1 in conference action.
Western State is currently 5-1 and can also get to 7-1 should the Mountaineers win out at Colorado Mines and New Mexico Highlands on Saturday and Monday. Their lone RMAC loss was to the Grizzlies, who mathematically have clinched the dual-meet title even if they should fall to the Lopers. The fact is certainly aided as the Grizzlies had the opportunity to wrestle and defeat affiliate RMAC member San Francisco State, something both Nebraska-Kearney and Western State did not.
And because of that, ASC coach Jason Ramstetter and the Grizzlies want to end any debate on who the dual-meet champion is before it begins, something they can undoubtedly do by claiming Thursday's head-to-head match-up with the Lopers.
Already winners of 10 duals for the first time since 1990 and riding a 9-dual winning streak, their longest in the NCAA Division II era (1992-93/Present), the Grizzlies hold their highest team ranking under Ramstetter, who can win his 50th career dual.
ASC has five individually ranked wrestlers, up to four of which are slated to face off with fellow nationally-ranked opponents.
The first of those battles could come at 125 pounds as sophomore Arsenia Barksdale (Norfolk, Va.) could face either seventh-ranked Joey Morrison or unranked Michael Abril. Barksdale, ranked fifth, is 19-8 overall and leads all RMAC wrestlers in that weight class with his .704 winning percentage. Abril, a junior, is 10-12 while Morrison, who may wrestle at 133 pounds, is 12-8 overall.
Raymond Dunning (Nashville, Tenn.), also ranked fifth nationally, is 21-6 overall this year, the best RMAC record in the 133-pound weight class. He has not wrestled since the Western State dual on Feb. 1 and will draw either Morrison or senior Brett Allgood, a 2006 NCAA Division II National Champion who has not been out on the mat this year.
On paper, the Lopers appear to have the edge at 141 pounds as senior Jeff Rutledge, a 2-time All-American, is ranked third in the country with his RMAC-best 27-11 record. The Grizzlies counter with Josh Hensley (Alamosa, Colo.), just a redshirt freshman. Although young, Hensley has had a solid season racking up a 21-9 overall record, a mark that includes a 10-1 record in duals. Hensley is also a perfect 8-0 in RMAC duals and could make quite a case for the top seed in the upcoming Mar. 1 RMAC/NCAA West Regional Championships if he can get by Rutledge, who is 12-2 in duals this year.
Another big match could come at 149 pounds as the Lopers are likely to send sixth-ranked Ryan Etherton to the mat to face ASC sophomore Joey Deaguero (Commerce City, Colo.). Deaguero, who has been nationally ranked for much of this season, is 18-8 overall and 9-2 in duals. He was a 2007 All-American at 141 pounds. Etherton, also a sophomore, is 28-11 and 12-13 in duals. He leads all RMAC wrestlers with 14 wins by fall this year, something Deaguero, who shares ASC's team lead with 8, must certainly be aware of as bonus-points could significantly factor into the entire dual.
If the aforementioned matches were not enough to salivate the excitement glands of wrestling fans, the 157-pound match-up should be as Loper senior Joe Ellenberger, currently ranked second in the country, is slated to face fifth-ranked Noomis Jones. Ellenberger, a returning All-American who racked up 43 wins in 2006-07, sports a 27-6 overall record and is an impressive 14-1 in dual meets.
Jones comes in with a 21-8 record and has won seven straight matches to get to 10-1 in duals. He is also a perfect 8-0 in RMAC affairs.
The Lopers might have a slight edge at 165 pounds as well with junior Keenan McCurdy, ranked eighth, slated to go against and up-and-down Grizzly sophomore in Mike Gallegos (Alamosa, Colo.). McCurdy is 21-15 overall, but just 7-6 in duals. Gallegos, 7-3, has had some big wins but has also dropped some matches he would like back after missing the first half of the season with an eye injury.
Another decisive tilt could be at 174 pounds as two of the top three wrestlers in the country will face off. ASC senior Evan Copeland (Las Cruces, N.M.) is ranked second in the country and sports a 21-10 record. He is slated to face Loper sophomore Marty Usman, ranked third. Usman is 15-5 overall and a perfect 4-0 in limited dual meet action.
At 184 pounds, the Grizzlies have their highest ranked wrestler in Jared Deaguero (Commerce City, Colo.). A winner of 15 straight matches and the reigning RMAC Wrestler of the Week, Deaguero is 26-5 in the year following his national title run. Undefeated in 20 straight matches against Division II opposition, Deaguero will be attempting to avenge his only RMAC dual meet loss of his career when he faces a Loper in Paul Sutton, a junior with a 21-11 record.
Deaguero's only RMAC dual meet loss of his career came last February against UNK's Matt Farrell, a man Deaguero did defeat in the finals of the 2007 RMAC/NCAA West Regional Championships. A mid-year transfer to ASC last year, Deaguero has never lost in Plachy Hall.
He and Copeland, ASC's two seniors, will be wrestling there for the final time on Thursday.
At 197 pounds, the Lopers are likely to send Derek Ross to the mat. He is 15-12 this year and 6-3 in duals. ASC will counter with true freshman Collin Backlund (Taylorsville, Utah), who had his redshirt pulled off mid-season as Brandon Morris (Nucla, Colo.) left the team. Backlund is 1-8 since then.
Like ASC does with Jared Deaguero, the Lopers also have a defending national champion and top-ranked wrestler in the lineup in heavyweight Tervel Dlagnev, a perfect 26-0 this year. Arguably the top big-guy in all of collegiate wrestling, Dlagnev was last year's RMAC Wrestler of the Year and earned preseason honors before this season.
The Grizzlies will counter with either sophomore Jeff Schossow (Fort Morgan, Colo.) or Josh Marquez (Bakersfield, Calif.). Schossow, who replaced Marquez after the later was pinned in two straight matches, is 8-6 this year. He will also have a personal vendetta after suffering a season-ending shoulder injury in last year's match with Dlagnev. Marquez is 7-6.
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