ODU begins the 2010 campaign with its annual Blue/Silver intersquad match on Sunday, October 24 before hitting the road for its first 11 events of the season.
"We're excited to release the schedule, just in our dual meets we face seven teams that were in the top 20 last season," Martin said. "We're also excited about our home matches, facing three teams that were ranked in the top 25. The basis of the schedule is to have us at peak performance at the end of the year."
The Monarchs will compete in the Hokie Open and Binghamton Open on consecutive weekends to begin the year. The Hokie Open will consist of nationally ranked programs such as Virginia Tech, Iowa State, Virginia and Kent State. ODU won six individuals at last year's event, including returners James Nicholson, Kyle Hutter, John Nicholson and Joe Budi. The Monarchs open match play on Nov. 20 at Northern Iowa and take on eight-time national champion Iowa State Nov. 21. The Panthers had four NCAA qualifiers last season while the Cyclones sent their entire squad for the fourth-straight year, producing two champions and three All-Americans.
Old Dominion will stay in the Midwest to compete in the Hoosier Duals on Nov. 27 before returning east, traveling to American on Dec. 19. American had three all-Americans (second most) and finished tied for 14th at last year's NCAA Championships. ODU finishes 2010 at the Southern Scuffle and the Midlands Tournaments. ODU will face South Dakota State, Liberty, Northern Illinois and Indiana at the Hoosier Duals. South Dakota State and NIU each produced one national qualifier last year. Liberty produced six national qualifiers while the Hoosiers had six as well, with four returning after helping IU 14th place tie with American at the NCAA Championships.
The Southern Scuffle will feature national title contender and 2009-10 runner-up Cornell, as well as Minnesota, Edinboro, and Kent State. The Midlands features some of the top teams in the country, including 23-time national champion and reigning champion Iowa. New to this year's field will be seven-time national champion Oklahoma, and Nebraska, who finished 12th at the NCAA Championships last season.
ODU begins the new year at the Virginia Duals on Jan. 7-8 in Hampton before competing at the CAA Duals a week later. This year's duals will feature several top 20 teams, including Arizona State, Bucknell, Edinboro, Kent State, Penn State and Virginia.
The Monarchs begin their home portion of the schedule on Sunday, Jan. 23 when they host George Mason. The match will be Youth Wrestling Night, featuring 3-4 youth matches during halftime.
Old Dominion goes back on the road for two-straight matches, traveling to Central Michigan and NC State before ending the season with three-straight home matches. The Chippewas were one of just four teams to send their entire 10-man lineup to the NCAA Championships last year (Iowa, Iowa State and Oklahoma the others). They ranked as high as No. 6 during the year and have won nine-straight Mid-American Conference Championships.
ODU begins the home stand on Feb. 10 versus Virginia Tech and follows that with a tri-meet, hosting Binghamton and UNC Greensboro on Feb. 13. The match against the Hokies will be fan appreciation and Spirit Night. The Monarchs will host Virginia on Feb. 20, which will also be senior day. The Hokies sent six wrestlers to last year's championships, producing one All-American, ranking as high as No. 14 during the year, while the Cavaliers had eight qualifiers, and finished 15th overall. Binghamton finished 21st at the NCAA Championships.
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