The defending NCAA and Big Ten champion Iowa wrestling team will open the 2008-09 dual season Friday when it hosts the Iowa City Duals. Iowa will wrestle Iowa Central at 9 a.m., Coe at 10:30 a.m., and Minnesota State-Mankato at noon in the North Gym at the University of Iowa Field House. It will be the first time the Hawkeyes have wrestled in the Field House since December 1983, as Carver-Hawkeye Arena opened in January that year. There is no admission charge to the Field House matches.
The Hawkeyes will then head over to Carver-Hawkeye Arena to face Arizona State at 3:30 p.m. Tickets purchased in advance are $10 for adults and $5 for youth. Tickets purchased at the dual are $12 for adults and $6 for youth. University of Iowa students and children ages 5 and under will be admitted free. Tickets can be purchased from the University of Iowa Athletic Ticket Office at 1-800-464-2957, 319-335-9327 or www.hawkeyesports.com.
ON THE AIR
Live audio broadcasts from the Iowa City duals will be available online at www.hawkeyesports.com. Broadcasts are available using the XXL All-Access subscription ($14.95 per month or $119.95 yer year). The Iowa-Arizona State dual will also be aired live on AM-800, KXIC. Steven Grace and two-time Hawkeye NCAA champion and four-time all-American Mark Ironside will call the action.
Press releases, meet results, audio broadcasts and live video broadcasts from home duals are available online at www.hawkeyesports.com. To access live scoring for home meets, go to the wrestling schedule page, select the event and click on the Live Results link. Results will be updated after each bout during the dual. Current staff and student-athlete head shots can be found at pics.hawkeyesports.com.
IOWA CENTRAL TRITONS
The Iowa Central Tritons will open their 2008-09 dual season Friday in Iowa City. The Tritons, who are ranked third in the NJCCA Division I national pre-season poll, have won the last three NJCAA national team titles and the last two national dual titles. The Tritons return all-Americans Carrington Banks (157), Brad Lower (165) and Joe Johnson (184).
Head Coach Luke Moffitt, who was a Big Ten champion at Iowa and earned outstanding wrestler honors at the 2002 conference meet, has a 46-7 record in his fifth season at Iowa Central. He ranks fourth in Iowa school history for most pins in a season (19 in 2001-02). Moffitt is a three-time Region IX Coach of the Year honoree, and has been named NJCAA National Coach of the Year twice. Moffitt is assisted by Troy Bennett, Justin McClintock and Justin Wolfe.
Iowa leads the series with Iowa Central, 2-0. The Hawkeyes won the last meeting (50-0) at the 2007 St. Edward Duals in Lakewood, OH.
COE KOHAWKS
The Coe College Kohawks are ranked fourth in the NWCA NCAA Division III pre-season poll, which is its highest ranking in school history. After competing at the Pointer Open earlier this month, the Kohawks will open their 2008-09 dual season Wednesday at Central College in Pella.
Head Coach John Oostendorp was a two-time Hawkeye all-American at heavyweight, winning the 1992 Big Ten title. He and Hawkeye coaches Tom and Terry Brands were part of Iowa teams that won three NCAA and Big Ten titles, and posted a 55-1-2 dual mark (1990-92). Oostendorp is assisted by Dustin Hinschberger, Marcus Kurtz, Eric Casey and Dustin Bliven.
Coe returns three all-Americans, including defending NCAA Division III national champion Tyler Burkle at 165 pounds. Burkle and Hawkeyes Dan and Nick LeClere are all from Coggon, IA, and all wrestled for North-Linn High School. Burkle takes a 42-match winning streak into Wednesday's dual at Central. Sophomore Clayton Rush (125) and junior Rob Kramer (197) are each ranked second in the nation, and senior Greg Lalla (184) is ranked fourth. Lalla is an Iowa City native who wrestled for City High School.
Iowa leads the series with Coe, 1-0. The Hawkeyes won the only meeting (50-0) in Iowa City in 2007.
MINNESOTA STATE-MANKATO MAVERICKS
The Minnesota State-Mankato Mavericks are ranked second in the NWCA Division II pre-season coaches poll, and will open their 2008-09 dual season Friday in Iowa City.
Minnesota State-Mankato returns four all-Americans from the 2007-08 squad that won a NWCA National Duals title, a NCAA North Central Regional title and placed second at the NCAA Division II Championship, finishing a half point behind team champion Nebraska- Kearney. Senior John Putman (133), juniors Travis Elg (141) and Brady Wilson (Hwt.), and sophomore Tommy Abbott (149) are all ranked in the top five in the nation.
Head Coach Jim Makovsky is in his 16th season with the Mavericks with a record of 190-65-2. His career record is 215-84-5. He is assisted by Jonathan May and Andy Schmalzriedt.
Iowa leads the series, 1-0, winning the only meet (37-3) at Blue Earth, MN, in 2004.
ARIZONA STATE SUN DEVILS
The Arizona State Sun Devils are 2-0 (2-0 Pac-10) with wins over UC Davis (26-12) and Portland State (40-0). The Sun Devils are led by sophomores Anthony Robles (125) and Chris Drouin (141).
Head Coach Thom Ortiz has a 76-51-7 mark in eight years at Arizona State. Ortiz is assisted by Al Fuentes, Brian Stith and Zach Roberson.
Iowa leads the series with Arizona State, 23-1-1, and has won the last 17 meetings between the two teams. The Hawkeyes won the last meeting - a 36-3 decision last season at Copper Canyon High School in Glendale, AZ.
HAVEN'T WE MET?
Following are past head-to-head results between Iowa Hawkeyes and their Iowa City Duals opponents.
Iowa vs. Coe
184 - Phillip Keddy dec. Greg Lalla, 13-7, at 2007 dual
Hwt. - Dan Erekson pinned Rob Kramer, 2:40, at 2007 dual
Iowa vs. Iowa Central
197 - Luke Lofthouse dec. Joe Johnson, 8-6, at 2007 Nichols Open
Iowa vs. Arizona State
125- Charlie Falck dec. Anthony Robles, 8-6, at 2008 dual
141 - Dan LeClere dec. Chris Drouin, 10-8 SV, at 2008 dual
141 - Chris Drouin dec. Dan LeClere, 13-7, at 2008 NCAA Champ's
197 - Chad Beatty dec. Thor Moen, 4-2, at 2008 dual
FIVE HAWKEYES SET FOR NWCA ALL-STAR CLASSIC
Five Hawkeyes are scheduled to compete at the 43rd annual NWCA All-Star Classic Nov. 24 in Columbus, OH. The event will be held in Ohio State's St. John Arena and is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. (CT). ESPNU will air a taped delay telecast Dec. 4 at 9 p.m. (CT). Tickets are $10, with children ages six and under admitted free. Tickets can be ordered from TicketMaster at 614-431-3600 or www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com.
Hawkeye senior Charlie Falck (125) and juniors Joe Slaton (133), Brent Metcalf (149), Jay Borschel (174) and Phillip Keddy (184) have all accepted invitations to compete at the event. It will be the most Iowa competitiors since the 1992 event in Iowa City when six Iowa wrestlers (Chad Zaputil, Terry Brands, Tom Brands, Troy Steiner, Terry Steiner and Travis Fiser) participated. Six Hawkeyes also competed at the event in 1985.
Three of Iowa's five match-ups will be against Big Ten foes. Falck will wrestle Cornell's Troy Nickerson at 125, while Slaton will face Minnesota's Jayson Ness at 133. It will be the first meeting for both. Nickerson is a two-time all-American who sat out last season due to injury. Ness earned two all-America honors at 125 for Minnesota, and is moving up to 133.
Metcalf will face Penn State's Bubba Jenkins in a rematch of last season's 149-pound NCAA finals. Metcalf won that match (14-8), as well as two other meetings during the season (pin in 5:33 at dual match in Iowa City and 15-3 major decision at the Big Ten semifinals).
Borschel will face Michigan's Steve Luke at 174. The Hawkeye junior holds a 1-1 record against Luke, winning a 3-2 decision at the 2008 National Duals and losing a 5-3 decision at the dual in Iowa City. Luke is the defending Big Ten Champion and the 2008 NCAA runner-up.
Keddy will wrestle Harvard's Louis Caputo at 184. Keddy is 0-1 against the junior, losing a 7-0 decision in the consolation round of the 2007 NCAA Championships to knock him out of the tournament.
Following is the scheduled lineup. The individual rankings are from the most recent USA Today/Intermat/NWCA poll.
2008 NWCA All-Star Dual Match-Ups
125 - #2 Troy Nickerson (Cornell) vs. #3 Charlie Falck (Iowa)
133 - #1 Joe Slaton (Iowa) vs. #2 Jayson Ness (Minnesota)
141 - #1 J Jaggers (Ohio St.) vs. #2 Nick Gallick (Iowa St.)
149 - #1 Brent Metcalf (Iowa) vs. #2 Bubba Jenkins (Penn St.)
157 - #1 Jordan Leen (Cornell) vs. #3 Dan Vallimont (Penn St.)
165 - #1 Nick Marable (Missouri) vs. #2 Mack Lewnes (Cornell)
174 - #1 Steve Luke (Michigan) vs. #2 Jay Borschel (Iowa)
184 - #3 Phil Keddy (Iowa) vs. #4 Louis Caputo (Harvard)
197 - #1 Jake Varner (Iowa St.) vs. #2 Hudson Taylor (Maryland)
Hwt - #1 Jake Rosholt (Okla. St.) vs. #3 Kyle Massey (Wisconsin)
HAWKEYES CROWN FIVE PLACEWINNERS AT CYCLONE OPEN
Sophomore Jake Kerr (165) led Iowa with a second-place finish as 11 Iowa wrestlers opened the 2008-09 season Saturday at the Cyclone Open in Ames. Three Hawkeye true freshmen - Matt McDonough, Mark Ballweg and Grant Gambrall- each placed in their collegiate debuts, while wrestling unattached.
Kerr, who was one of six Hawkeyes to compete attached, recorded three decisions before losing to Iowa State's Johnathan Reader, 12-1, in the finals. McDonough placed third at 133, Gambrall placed fourth at 184 and Ballweg placed fifth at 141. Hawkeye redshirt freshman J.J. Krutsinger was Iowa's other placewinner - finishing fourth at 125.
HAWKEYE WRESTLING TICKET INFORMATION
Season tickets and single meet tickets for Iowa's home duals are on sale at the University of Iowa Athletic Ticket Office at 1-800-464-2957, 319-335-9327 or www.hawkeyesports.com. Fans will be admitted to the Iowa City Duals at the UI Field House free of charge. University of Iowa students will be admitted free to all matches with a valid student ID. Students are asked to stop by the UI Athletic Ticket Office before the Iowa State and Minnesota duals to pick up a free paper ticket for seating purposes. Following are this season's ticket prices:
Season Tickets
$60 - General public, $48 - Faculty/staff*
Single Meet vs. Iowa St., Minnesota
Advance Purchase: $13 - Adult, $7 - Youth, $2 - Age 5 and under
Door Purchase: $15 - Adult, $8 - Youth, $2 - Age 5 and under
Free Admission: UI Students with paper ticket
Single Meet vs. Arizona St., Wisconsin, Illinois, Bucknell, Purdue
Advance Purchase: $10 - Adult, $5 - Youth
Door Purchase: $12 - Adult, $6 - Youth
Free Admission: UI Students, children ages 5 and under
* - A limit of two tickets available at this price. All others must be purchased at the public price.
SQUAD LOOKS TO EXTEND DUAL WINNING STREAK
Iowa enters the season having won 14 straight duals. The Hawkeyes have also won 15 consecutive duals away from Iowa City. The school record for consecutive dual wins is 42 (1994-97).
H. A. W. K. CLUB PARTIES
After 15 years at the First Avenue Club, the post-meet H.A.W.K. club parties will have a new location for the 2008-09 season. All parties will be held on the second floor of Kinnick Stadium. Using the Gate D entrance, take one of the elevators to the second floor, take a left out of the elevator and another left at the hallway. The party dates are as follows: Dec. 6 (Iowa State), Jan. 23 (Wisconsin), Jan. 30 (Bucknell) and Feb. 15 (Minnesota).
OH BROTHER
The two sets of brothers on the 2008-09 Hawkeye wrestling roster are junior Dan LeClere and redshirt freshman Nick LeClere from Coggon, IA, and sophomore Matt Ballweg and freshman Mark Ballweg from Waverly, IA.
There have been 10 sets of brothers to wrestle together in the Hawkeye lineup since the 1950s. They are Don and Tom Huff (1961), Mark and Scott Trizzino (1981), Lenny, Larry and Jim Zalesky (1981-82), Ed and Lou Banach (1981-83), Marty and Lindley Kistler (1984-85), Jim and John Heffernan (1987), Tom and Terry Brands (1989-92), Troy and Terry Steiner (1991-93), Ryan and Randy Fulsaas (2001) and Luke and Ty Eustice (2003-04).
There have also been five sets of twins to wrestle at Iowa. They are Ed and Lou Banach, Tom and Terry Brands, Ben and Brett Stedman, Troy and Terry Steiner and Randy and Ryan Fulsaas.
CARVER-HAWKEYE ARENA
Carver-Hawkeye Arena has been the home of Iowa wrestling since 1983. The Hawkeyes are 162-18 (.900) in the arena, which includes a record 10 victories during the 1986 season. Iowa has recorded 16 undefeated seasons in the arena, with the most recent (8-0) occurring in 2002-03. The dual wrestling attendance record for Carver-Hawkeye Arena is 15,291, set when Iowa defeated Iowa State on February 22, 1992. The arena seats 15,500 for a dual wrestling meet.
IOWA WRESTLING HISTORY
Iowa's overall dual meet record is 828-215-30 (.786) in 96 seasons. The Hawkeyes have won 21 national titles and 32 Big Ten titles. Iowa's 49 NCAA champions have won a total of 76 NCAA individual titles, crowning six three-time and 14 two-time champions. The Hawkeyes' 101 Big Ten champions have won a total of 182 conference titles. There have been seven four-time, 18 three-time and 24 two-time Iowa winners. Iowa's 135 all-Americans have earned all-America status 273 times, including 17 four-time, 27 three-time and 33 two-time honorees.
HAWKEYES EARN TOP RANKINGS
Iowa earned the top spot in the most recent USA Today/NWCA/Intermat Top 25 coaches poll and the W.I.N. Magazine pre-season dual team rankings. Hawkeye juniors Joe Slaton (133) and Brent Metcalf (149) also earned top spots at their weight class in national rankings by Amateur Wrestling News (AWN), Intermat/NWCA/NWMA and W.I.N. Magazine.
Slaton was an NCAA finalist and placed third at the Big Ten meet last season with a 31-5 overall record. He also won a Midlands title, went 18-3 in duals and 7-1 in the Big Ten.
Metcalf returns after collecting nearly every collegiate wrestling accolade possible in 2008. He was awarded the Dan Hodge Trophy, which is presented to the nation's top collegiate wrestler, and the Jesse Owens Big Ten Male Athlete of the Year Award, given annually to the best male student-athlete in any Big Ten sport. He was named outstanding wrestler at the NCAA and Big Ten Championships after winning individual titles. He earned Big Ten Wrestler of the Year honors, and was named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week twice - in consecutive weeks - becoming the first wrestler in conference history to achieve that feat. His 35-1 season record included an undefeated 7-0 Big Ten dual mark. He ended the season on a 32-match winning streak. Metcalf also led the team in collegiate wins (35), dual wins (21), collegiate and dual winning percentages (.972, .954), dual team points scored during the season (100) and technical falls (6).
Senior Charlie Falck (125) is ranked second by AWN and W.I.N. Magazine, and third by Intermat/NWCA/NWMA, while junior Jay Borschel (174) is ranked second in all three polls. Falck is a two-time all-American who posted a 21-1 dual record last year, going 7-1 in the Big Ten and leading the squad in dual wins (21) and dual winning percentage (.954). Borschel recorded a 32-5 season and 20-2 dual mark en route to third-place finishes at the NCAA and Big Ten Championships last season. He led the team in major decisions (11), and ranked second in collegiate wins (32) and dual team points scored during the season (79).
CHAMPIONSHIP EXPERIENCE
The Hawkeye wrestling staff of Tom Brands, Terry Brands, Doug Schwab, Mike Zadick and Jared Frayer earned a total of one Olympic gold medal, one Olympic bronze medal, six NCAA titles, 11 conference titles and 15 all-America honors. Their combined college career wrestling record is 487-83-2 (.858).
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