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    Purdue to contest starting roles at Gold & Black Matches

    WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- The Purdue wrestling team will contest starting roles at the Black & Gold Matches Saturday at 10 a.m. ET in Lambert Fieldhouse. Eight decisive bouts will take place, along with four exhibition matches. The Black & Gold Matches are free and open to the public.

    The 2013-14 Boilermakers begin competition at the Michigan State Open on Nov. 9. The first home dual of the season will be one to be remembered as Purdue will celebrate 100 years of wrestling while hosting Duke on Nov. 16. It marks the return of former assistant coach Glen Lanham, who is now at the Blue Devil helm, and two legendary Purdue grapplers, Jake Patascil and Ben Wissel, who are assistants under Lanham.

    Half of the Boilermakers' 14 duals will be against teams that finished among the top 20 at the 2013 NCAA Championships. They will take on familiar Big Ten Conference foes and meet a handful of opponents for the first time in years. Head coach Scott Hinkel has his Purdue team in three marquee tournaments to prepare for the 2014 Big Ten Championships and the grand finale at the 2014 NCAA Championships in Oklahoma City, Okla.

    Leadership and experience are key factors to success and the 2013-14 Boilermakers have that with five returning NCAA qualifiers and four Big Ten Championships placewinners. Their experience, combined with their range of weights, has brought a heightened drive and intensity into the wrestling room. A strong, healthy lineup has returned after battling hankering injuries and off-season surgeries. Even though half of the lineup has postseason credentials, they still have to earn their starting role.

    PurdueSports.com has broken down each weight class: who's the front-runner to earn a starting spot, who has changed weight classes and who has earned preseason recognition. Gold & Black bouts are unveiled at the conclusion of the 2013-14 preview.

    125:
    Veteran Camden Eppert enters his final campaign at Purdue with high aspirations after narrowly missing a third-straight trip to the NCAA Championships last year. The senior is looking to have his best season yet after an off-season surgery that questioned whether or not he would return to the mat. His recovery, and what he has shown in the wrestling room, is beyond what was expected. Earning preseason national rankings, Eppert is aiming for a podium finish in Oklahoma City.

    Eppert posted a 23-13 record as a junior, with a team-high nine wins via major decision. His 14 reversals earned him a spot on the single-season top-20 list, tied for 18th, and pushed him into a tie for 11th on the all-time list with 33. In conference duals, the Anderson, Ind., native surrendered just three takedowns while registering a 6-2 mark.

    Despite Eppert's credentials, redshirt sophomore Luke Schroder and true freshman Aaron Assad will also be contending for the starting role at 125. Schroder wrestled at 125 as a true freshman in 2011-12, filling in as Eppert battled illness and injury, finishing 9-14. He took a redshirt last year while listed at 133, but will drop back down for his second season.

    133:
    Like Eppert, Cashè Quiroga narrowly missed a third trip to the NCAA Championships last season after battling multiple injuries that limited him to just 13 matches. Quiroga's determination to become a two-time All-American has stood out early in practice. Although he had a shortened season as a junior, Quiroga owned a 10-3 record, highlighted by a trio of major decisions and tech falls, and had a team-high 68 takedowns. He currently sits at eighth on Purdue's career takedown chart with 289 and averages 96.3 takedowns per season. At that rate, he could be closing in on finishing among the top-three all-time. Willie Wineberg (1996-99) is third with 387 takedowns. The senior hailing from Indianapolis, Ind., has also garnered preseason attention, landing among the top 20 in two polls.

    Quiroga is being pushed by redshirt freshman Kyle Ayersman and true freshman Luke Welch, who is the younger brother of Doug and Chad.

    141:
    With Brandon Nelsen making the move to 149 pounds, the competition at 141 has heightened. Redshirt junior Nick Lawrence saw action in four duals, winning three bouts, and competed in six open tournaments, including a first-place finish at the Indianapolis Greyhound Open with a pair of tech falls, for a 17-9 record a year ago.

    Danny Sabatello makes the move up to 141 after spending his redshirt freshman season at 133, where he went 11-8. He had a team-best four tech falls which helped him earn the second-most back points among returners with 39. This is also one of the weights where Alex Griffin, a redshirt freshman from Lafayette, Ind., could be a contender as he shifts from 157. Also in the mix is true freshman Cody Pae, a two-time Missouri High School state champ.

    149:
    For the past two seasons, Brandon Nelsen has been the mainstay at 141, but with the graduation of All-American Ivan Lopouchanski, he makes the move to 149. Nelsen qualified for his first NCAA Championships a year ago after a fourth-place finish at the Big Ten Championships. He has twice led the Boilermakers with nine pins in each of his first two seasons, which is tied for 17th on the single-season record list, and his 18 career falls are tied for 14th. The Indianapolis, Ind., native has received preseason recognition, although two polls have him listed at 141. WrestlingReport.com included Nelsen on its 149 list, checking in at No. 23.

    Griffin could also be in contention at 149, in addition to 141. True freshman Josh Farrell is also in the mix at 149.

    157:
    With the loss of two-time NCAA qualifier Tommy Churchard to graduation, determining who will be the starter at 157 pounds will impact the Boilermakers all the way up to 184 with numerous wrestlers being able to compete at different weight classes. Heading into the Black & Gold Matches, four names are in the mix at 157: Kyle Mosier, Doug Welch, Dustin Schultz and Riley McClurg.

    Mosier has competed for Purdue at a wide-range of weights over the course of three years with a career record of 38-38 combined with matches at 164, 174 and 184. The Yorktown, Ind., native, has appeared in the Big Ten Championships each season for the Boilermakers.

    Welch is also making the move from 165 to 157. During his initial season, he wrestled all but one of his 22 matches at 165 for a 13-9 record. Seven of his wins resulted in bonus points with four pins, two major decisions and one tech fall.

    Redshirt junior Dustin Schultz is the only one out of four contenders that has wrestled at 157, with majority of his action coming at open tournaments. He is 17-16 in two seasons with one dual appearance. McClurg is a true freshman trying to gain an edge amongst the veterans.

    165:
    Pat Robinson went 23-15 as the starter at 165 pounds last season and his 58 takedowns are the third most among returners. During his redshirt sophomore campaign, Robinson won five-consecutive matches on two occasions, placed third at the Eastern Michigan Open and fifth at the Northern Iowa Open.

    Add Chad Welch, who was a NCAA qualifier at 174 pounds in his first season as a Boilermaker, into the conversation of potential starters at 165. Welch finished with a 22-15 record and an eighth-place showing at the Big Ten Championships.

    Redshirt sophomore Andy Hoselton is eyeing his dual debut after appearing in five open tournaments in his first year.

    174:
    Chad Welch could also resume his duties at 174, where WrestlingReport.com has tabbed him 26th in its preseason poll. Another starter from last season, Patrick Kissel, also wants to retain his role. Kissel (21-9) split the load for Purdue at 184 pounds alongside Andy Wiseman (12-8) while battling injuries. He has dropped down a weight class for his redshirt junior campaign, but so has Wiseman.

    Preston Quam wrestled his first three collegiate matches at 285 (2-1) before moving to 197 (2-4) for his six other bouts. For his redshirt sophomore season, he has cut to 174. Also providing support is true freshman Jacob Morrissey, who posted a pair of undefeated seasons in high school and won three Wisconsin state titles.

    184:
    Like Welch at 174, Kissel could also hold steady at his starting role at 184. He made his first appearance in a national poll, checking in at No. 19 in the W.I.N. Magazine preseason 184 list. If Kissel opts to wrestle at 174, a trio of redshirt freshmen is ready for an opportunity to become a starter in their first season of competition: Tanner Lynde, Luke Schmidt and Andrew Hissom.

    Lynde, a product of Delphi High School where he was teammates with 197-pounder Braden Atwood, became the first state champion in school history, winning the 189 pound Indiana title in 2012. He also posted the first undefeated season for Delphi with a record of 52-0 as a senior. Schmit and Hissom each were two-time high school state championship qualifiers in Minnesota and Michigan, respectively. Hissom wrestled his way to a podium finish, placing fifth at 189 as a senior.

    197:
    This is one weight class for the Boilermakers without any questions with Braden Atwood. The junior captain has been recognized as a top-15 197-pounder in numerous preseason polls, listed as high as No. 13 by Amateur Wrestling News and W.I.N. Magazine. Atwood went 25-12 last year and earned an automatic berth to his second NCAA Championships, his first at 197, with an eighth-place finish at the Big Ten Championships. He led the team with 85 points scored in dual action a year ago. Among returners, the Delphi, Ind., native's 25 wins and seven falls rank second and his 35 back points is third.

    285:
    A pair of wrestlers with experience as a starter, although at different weights, is vying for the job at 285. Redshirt senior Alex White led the way for Purdue as the starter a season ago finishing with a 10-19 record, with seven of his eight Big Ten bouts coming against top-20 competition.

    Drake Stein stepped in immediately as a freshman, serving as the 174-pound starter during the 2011-12 season. He tallied a 10-18 mark in his inaugural collegiate season, racking up six pins, one tech fall and one major decision. After taking a redshirt last year, Stein has bulked up and made the move to 285 where he looks to contend with White for the starting role.

    Looking for their first opportunity to step on the mat wearing the Old Gold & Black are redshirt freshman Tyler Kral and true freshman Andrew Geers. Kral took home the 220-pound Indiana High School state title as a senior and Geers compiled a 131-29 record with 63 wins via fall, capping off his high school career as the Illinois High School 3A runner-up.

    Black & Gold Bouts
    125 - Camden Eppert vs. Luke Schroeder
    125 - Aaron Assad vs. Luke Welch (exhibition)
    133 - Cashè Quiroga vs. Kyle Ayersman
    141 - Nick Lawrence vs. Danny Sabatello
    149 - Brandon Nelsen vs. Alex Griffin
    157 - Doug Welch vs. Kyle Mosier
    165 - Pat Robinson vs. Andy Hoselton
    174 - Patrick Kissel vs. Jacob Morrissey
    184 - Andy Wiseman vs. Luke Schmit (exhibition)
    197 - Braden Atwood vs. Tanner Lynde (exhibition)
    285 - Alex White vs. Drake Stein
    285 - Tyler Kral vs. Andrew Geers (exhibition)

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