BTN to air 2 Northwestern duals

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern is set to wrestle two duals on the Big Ten Network according to the BTN broadcast schedule announced Friday. Northwestern's Jan. 8 match at Wisconsin will air on same-day tape-delay at 8 p.m. CT, while the Wildcats' Jan. 27 match at in-state rival Illinois will air live at 5 p.m. CT.

The Big Ten Network also will provide live coverage during the second day of the Big Ten Championships, beginning at 2 p.m. March 4.

"The Big Ten Network has and will continue to showcase college wrestling to a national audience," Northwestern head coach Drew Pariano said. "Our television exposure is imperative to our fans and alumni who live outside of the Evanston/Chicago area."

Television information for the 49th annual Ken Kraft Midlands Championships at Welsh-Ryan Arena will be announced at a future date. Fans are reminded to take advantage of the early-bird ticket prices for the Dec. 29-30 event. The early-bird ticket prices are available until Oct. 7 and can be purchased by calling 1-888-GO-PURPLE or fans can fill out an order form, which is available at the Midlands Tournament info section on NUSports.com.

The wrestling season is right around the corner and the Wildcats begin the 2011-12 season close to home, hosting Stanford at Marist High School in Chicago at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 5. Northwestern returns three NCAA qualifiers (Jason Welch, Kaleb Friedley and Levi Mele) from last year's squad that posted an 18-2 dual record and finished 6-2 in the always competitive Big Ten Conference.