"We're really proud of the group of guys we have coming to join us next season, it's unquestionably one of the top classes we've signed in the last 20 years at Northwestern," Cysewski said. "All seven of them have achieved incredible things both athletically and academically and have won championships on many different levels. We see each of these young men challenging for Big Ten and NCAA championships down the road so this is an exciting day for NU wrestling."
Below is a look at each individual wrestler's complete bio as well as a scouting report courtesy of Northwestern associate head coach Drew Pariano.
Kaleb Friedley
141 � Kearney, Mo./Park Hill
High School: Career record of 98-12 with 81 pins through junior season ... InterMat's 77th-ranked overall senior recruit in the nation ... State champion as a junior and third-place finisher as senior ... Helped Park Hill win the 2009 Class 4 Missouri state championship after it placed second in 2008 ... Two-time district champion and all-conference selection ... Took fifth at the 2009 Super 32 tournament at 140 pounds ... Second-place finisher at 2009 FILA Cadet Nationals at 152 pounds ... Member of Team Central Wrestling Club ... Two-time Cadet All-American.
Personal: Born Kaleb N. Friedley ... Son of Dwight and Maureen Friedley ... Chose Northwestern over Wisconsin, Old Dominion and Iowa State ... Anticipated major is undecided.
Quoting Coach Pariano: "Kaleb is a proven winner and he just loves to compete. He was a member of the FILA Cadet Pan Am team and was able to train at Northwestern this summer because of his association with the national team. We look forward to watching him contribute to the lineup immediately."
Pat Greco
141 � St. Charles, Ill./Marmion Academy
High School: Won a regional championship and placed second in his section at 140 pounds as a junior ... 2009 Suburban Christian Conference championship and first-team all-area selection ... Two-time All-Suburban Christian Conference honoree ... Garnered honorable mention in USA Wrestling's national rankings for high school seniors ... Two-time academic all-conference ... Team MVP in 2008 ... Trained at Overtime School of Wrestling for three seasons ... Freestyle state runner-up in 2007 and a USA Cadet National All-American in 2008 ... Illinois Junior National team member in 2009.
Personal: Born Pasquale Peter Greco ... Son of Eduardo and Lisa Greco ... Chose Northwestern over Brown, Penn and Illinois ... Anticipated major is business institutions.
Quoting Coach Pariano: "Greco is a local product who trains at Overtime and wrestles for one of the up-and-coming high school programs in the state. We're excited for him to join us and add some great quality depth in our room right away."
Pierce Harger
165 � Loveland, Ohio/Archbishop Moeller
High School: Owns a 116-22 record through his junior year ... Has placed third, sixth and seventh in his three trips to Ohio state championships ... InterMat's ninth-ranked senior recruit in the nation at 152 pounds (No. 61 overall recruit) ... 2009 Enquirer All-Stars First Team ... Competed in the 2009 Western Regionals in Las Vegas, where he was a champion in Greco-Roman and runner-up in freestyle at 152 pounds ... 2009 team MVP ... Led team in points and pins senior year ... 2009 State Duals MVP ... Three-time Disney All-American ... Two-time Ohio All-Academic team selection ... Ranked seventh in graduating class with a 4.0 GPA ... Member of National Honor Society.
Personal: Born Pierce Everett Harger ... Son of Michael and Jodi Harger ... Chose Northwestern over Cornell, Stanford, Princeton, North Carolina, Missouri, and Indiana ... Brother Kyle wrestled at Maryland ... Anticipated major is industrial engineering or pre-med.
Quoting Coach Pariano: "He's a southern Ohio product from a high school that has produced a lot of Division I wrestling talent. He's a dynamic wrestler who can score from anywhere and he takes a lot of chances trying to create offense. He wants to be a starter and contribute right away and I think he can do that."
Michael McMullan
HWT. � Easton, Pa./Wyoming Seminary
High School: Four-year letterwinner ... Fourth-ranked senior recruit at heavyweight in the nation by WIN Magazine ... 2009 national prep heavyweight champion ... Ranked as the No. 81 overall recruit in the country by InterMat ... Member of Easton team that ranked No. 3 in the country ... Individually ranked fourth in the nation at 285 by Win Magazine ... Five-year member of Red Hawk Wrestling Club ... Also played varsity football and lacrosse ... Dean's List sophomore and senior years of high school.
Personal: Born Michael John McMullan ... Son of John and Suzanne McMullan ... Chose Northwestern over Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, Dartmouth, North Carolina and Virginia ... Grandson, John McMullan Sr., played football at Notre Dame and in the NFL with the New York Titans ... Anticipated major is undecided.
Quoting Coach Pariano: "It's always important that we get a guy from Pennsylvania but especially from Wyoming Seminary, which is ranked third in the country and wrestles the first or second-hardest schedule in the nation. He's a super-athletic kid and he's just going to solidify our upper weights. He's ranked third in one poll but his coach assures us he's the best heavyweight in the country."
Leroy Munster
184 � Fox Lake, Ill./Grant
High School: Owns career record of 120-6 through junior season ... Ranked No. 1 senior recruit nationally at 171 pounds and No. 8 overall by InterMat ... Holds all-time single season pinning record at Grant (30) ... Two-time Illinois state champion (2007 at 119 lbs., 2009 at 171 lbs.) ... Finished 47-0 as a junior, when he won the Most Outstanding Wrestler award at every tournament he competed in where the honor was given ... Placed second at 2009 USA National Championships and fourth in 2008 ... Three-time North Suburban Conference, regional and sectional champion ... Team co-MVP junior year ... Has trained at the Overtime School of Wrestling since 2001 where he was a part of three USA National Club Team championship teams (2006-08) ... Scholar-athlete all four years.
Personal: Born Leroy Arthur Munster ... Son of Leroy and Raedel Munster ... Sister, Trista, played four years of soccer at Jacksonville State University and sister, Kaela, played basketball at Carthage College ... Seven-time Judo National Champion (Junior Olympics) ... Six-time International Judo Champion (American/Canadian Championship) ... Anticipated major is undecided.
Quoting Coach Pariano: "Lee's a local kid who we've seen since he was a state champion as a freshman. His background in judo makes him really comfortable on the mat and he can scramble really well for a big guy. He trains at Overtime and I think he's excited that a guy the caliber of Jake Herbert is sticking around to train here because they've had some opportunities to work together already. He's a potential four-time All-American-type wrestler."
Alex Polizzi
197 � Beloit, Wis./Beloit Memorial
High School: Placed second in the state at 215 pounds as a junior with a 43-1 record after placing third as a sophomore ... Ranked as InterMat's No. 6 senior recruit at 215 in the nation and No. 90 overall ... Third-place finisher at the 2009 Super 32 tournament at 215 pounds ... 2008 USA Wrestling Preseason Nationals champion.
Quoting Coach Pariano: "Alex is the perfect combination of size and speed for his weight class. When you're able to sign a top national 197-pounder and a top national heavyweight in the same year as we have, we think you're destined for success at the upper weights. It's very similar to a few years ago when we brought in the combination of Jake Herbert, Mike Tamillow and Dustin Fox. I definitely see Alex as being in the same mold as those guys were for us.'
Colin Shober
149 � Reading, Pa./Schuylkill Valley
High School: 2009 PIAA state champion at 135 pounds ... Ranked No. 6 in the nation among seniors at 145 pounds and No. 45 overall by InterMat ... Set a Berks County record for wins in a season with 53 ... Won Berks County and District III individual championships ... Team won county and District III titles his junior season and placed third at the PIAA Championships ... Placed third in the state as a sophomore with one loss ... Champion at 2009 Super 32 Challenge.
Personal: Born Colin Shober ... Son of Lori and Hugh Shober ... One brother, Glen, is the starter at 149 pounds for Navy ... Chose Northwestern over Lehigh and Maryland ... Anticipated major is undecided.
Quoting Coach Pariano: "Another Pennsylvania guy right down the road from Michael McMullan, but one is a state champion and the other is a prep national champion so they haven't crossed paths too often. Shober just won the most important preseason national tournament at 145 which most people would say is the weight class in high school with the most depth across the board. His summer wrestling has elevated him to a new level."
The Wildcats, whose next match is Thursday, Dec. 3 at Northern Illinois, are in their 20th season under the direction of Cysewski.
Recommended Comments
There are no comments to display.
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now