InterMat Staff

NORFOLK, Va. -- Redshirt freshman James Nicholson (Des Moines, Iowa) was named the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Rookie of the Week for all wrestling between December 18-January 7. It is his first career conference honor and the first for ODU this season. The 125-pounder was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler at the Virginia Intercollegiate State Tournament last weekend, where he went 3-0 with two technical falls. His win helped lead ODU to a third straight team victory at the VA States. Prior to that, he went 5-1 for a 3rd place effort at the respected Southern Scuffle tournament in Greensboro, North Carolina. During the Scuffle, Nicholson faced the CAA's top ranked wrestler at 125, Dave Tomasette from Hofstra, and defeated the Pride grappler 4-2. The win propelled Nicholson to the top of the conference rankings and into the national polls for the first time in his young career. Nicholson is ranked by four national polls including a ranking as high as 13th by Amateur Wrestling News (AWN). He is 16-7 overall this season.

BLOOMSBURG -- Bloomsburg University wrestler Mike Sees (Northumberland/Shikellamy) was named the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Athletic Conference Wrestler of the Week for the period ending Jan. 6th. At the Southern Scuffle in Greensboro, NC on Dec. 29-30, Sees picked up his 100th career victory en route to a second place finish. The senior notched a 5-1 record, falling in the finals to third-ranked Jayson Ness of Minnesota. In the semifinals, Sees defeated Drew Forshey of North Carolina, 14-3, to reach the milestone. Sees is now 100-19 for his career.

THIS WEEK Second-seed Iowa (7-1) will face unseeded Cornell University in the first round of the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals Saturday at 11 a.m. at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls. The two-day annual tournament features 16 teams from NCAA Division I, 12 from Division II, 15 from Division III and NAIA, eight NJCAA teams, seven NCWA teams and five women's wrestling teams. The Division I field includes nine of the top 10 ranked teams in the most recent USA Today/Intermat/NWCA coaches poll. Central Michigan, Cornell, Hofstra, Indiana, Iowa State, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Northern Iowa, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Tennessee-Chattanooga and West Virginia will battle the Hawkeyes for the title. Results will be available at www.unipanthers.com throughout the tournament. Depending on the outcome of the Iowa-Cornell dual, the Hawkeyes will face either the winner or loser of the #7 Missouri-Indiana dual Saturday at 3 p.m. NATIONAL DUALS TICKET INFORMATION All-session tickets are $30 for adults and $22 for seniors and students. Individual session tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for seniors and students. Tickets may be purchased by contacting the UNI-Dome box office at 1-877-216-3663. NATIONAL DUALS SCHEDULE The following is the Division I tournament schedule for this weekend's NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals: Saturday, January 12 9-11 a.m. - Championship Preliminary Round 11 a.m.-1 p.m. - Championship Preliminary Round 1-3 p.m. - Championship Quarterfinal, Consolation First Round 3-5 p.m. - Championship Quarterfinals, Consolations First Round 5-7 p.m. - Consolation Second Round 7-9 p.m. - Consolation Third Round Sunday, January 13 9-11 a.m. - Seventh-Place Match 11 a.m.-1 p.m. - Championship Semifinals 1-2:45 p.m. - Third and Fifth-Place Matches 3-5 p.m. - Championship Finals ON THE AIR Online Radio - Steven Grace and two-time Hawkeye NCAA champion and four-time all-American Mark Ironside will call the Iowa dual meet action live on www.hawkeyesports.com. To listen, go to the wrestling schedule and click on the event. Broadcasts are available using the Hawkeye All-Access subscription ($6.95 per month or $49.95 per year) or the CSTV XXL Premium subscription ($99.95 per year). Takedown Wrestling Radio will also broadcast portions of the National Duals free of charge at Takedownradio.com. and KXNO.com. Online Video - LiveSportsVideo.com will present a free web cast of Sunday's championship semifinals (11 a.m.), third and fifth-place matches (1 p.m.) and championship finals (3 p.m.). Internet - Press releases, meet results and audio broadcasts are available on the University of Iowa's website, www.hawkeyesports.com. To access live dual scoring, go to the wrestling schedule page, select the event and click on the Livestats link. Current staff and student-athlete head shots can be found at pics.hawkeyesports.com. Television - Iowa Public Television will air a two-hour taped-delay broadcast of the tournament semifinals at 1 p.m. with live coverage of the finals at 3 p.m. Tim Johnson will provide play-by-play, and Jim Gibbons will provide color commentary. LAST TIME AT THE DUALS Iowa placed fifth at the 2007 N.W.C.A./Cliff Keen National Duals in Cedar Falls. The fifth-seeded Hawkeyes opened the tournament with a 41-4 win over Cal-Davis before losing to fourth-seed Oklahoma State (22-13) in the quarterfinals. Iowa rebounded to beat Nebraska (30-5) and eighth-seed Northwestern (22-18) in Saturday's consolation matches and defeated third-seed Hofstra (26-10) in Sunday's fifth-place match. HAWKEYE HISTORY AT THE DUALS Iowa has wrestled in 15 National Duals and has a 54-10-3 all time record in the tournament. Iowa has won the title three times (1992, 1995, 1996), placed second three times (1994, 1997, 1998), third six times (1990, 1991, 1993, 2001, 2002, 2003), fifth once (2007) and sixth once (2006). CORNELL BIG RED Cornell is 0-2 with losses to Wisconsin (18-21) and Penn State (10-35). The Big Red won the Body Bar Invitational in November, and placed third at the Reno Tournament of Champions and fourth at the Southern Scuffle in December. Head Coach Rob Koll is 154-59-4 in 14 seasons at Cornell. He is assisted by Tyler Baier (Cornell, 2005), Cory Cooperman (Lehigh, 2006) and Damion Hahn (Minnesota, 2004). The Big Red are led by juniors Jordan Lee (157), Steve Anceravage (174) and Zach Hammond (Hwt.), sophomore Adam Frey (141) and freshmen Mike Grey (133) and Mack Lewnes (165). THE SERIES Cornell leads the series, 1-0, winning the only meeting between the two teams - a 24-6 decision in Iowa City in 1965. OKLAHOMA STATE 19, IOWA 14 Iowa lost its first dual of the 2007-08 season Saturday night, dropping a 19-14 decision to Oklahoma State in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Iowa entered the match ranked first in the nation and fell to 7-1 on the season in front of 14,332 fans. That attendance figure is the seventh-largest for a dual meet in NCAA wrestling history and the fifth-largest in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Oklahoma State, who was ranked as high as sixth and as low as ninth in the nation, improved to 6-1. "We got whipped," said Iowa Head Coach Tom Brands. "I don't like this feeling because it feels too much like last year - going up and down. We've got a lot of improving to do. I don't like it, but I wouldn't have it any other way because now we know what needs to be done. I'm going to put the loss on me first, and I'm sure there are at least five or six guys up in the (wrestling) room that are going to put it on themselves too." Iowa won four of the 10 weights, including two by major decision. Junior Charlie Falck opened the dual at 125 with a narrow 7-5 decision over Ben Ashmore. Falck fought off his back early in the third period and scored a reversal with one minute left to pick up the win. Sophomores Brent Metcalf (149) and Phillip Keddy (184) both scored major decisions, while senior Matt Fields closed out the dual with a 4-3 win over Jared Rosholt at heavyweight. Fields picked up his 75th career win, while Keddy posted his 25th. Oklahoma State won five of the six matches they were favored in, and added an upset to their six-win tally. Top-ranked Coleman Scott held off a late charge by second-ranked sophomore Joe Slaton at 133 to win 8-6. It was Slaton's his first loss of the season. Cowboy senior Nathan Morgan followed with an 8-4 win over sophomore Dan LeClere at 141. Juniors Newly McSpadden (157) and Brandon Mason (174) both scored decisions for Oklahoma State and senior Jake Dieffenbach upset second-ranked senior Mark Perry, 5-3, at 165. Oklahoma State 19, Iowa 14 125 - Charlie Falck (I) dec. Ben Ashmore (OSU), 7-5 133 - Coleman Scott (OSU) dec. Joe Slaton (I), 8-6 141 - Nathan Morgan (OSU) dec. Dan LeClere (I), 8-4 149 - Brent Metcalf (I) maj. dec. Quinten Fuentes (OSU), 20-8 157 - Newly McSpadden (OSU) dec. Ryan Morningstar (I), 4-2 165 - Jake Dieffenbach (OSU) dec. Mark Perry (I), 5-3 174 - Brandon Mason (OSU) dec. Jay Borschel (I), 2-0 184 - Phillip Keddy (I) maj. dec. Cody Hill (OSU), 12-2 197 - Clayton Foster (OSU) maj. dec. Rick Loera (I), 12-1 Hwt. - Matt Fields (I) dec. Jared Rosholt (OSU), 4-3 PERRY AIMS FOR RECORDS BOOK Senior Mark Perry needs six pins to break into the Iowa records book for career pins. The Hawkeye 165-pounder has 34 career pins, including nine this season. Former Hawkeye Lou Banach (1980-83) is ranked 10th in school history with 40 pins. His twin brother, Ed, holds the school record with 73 career falls. Perry has led the team in pins the last three years, recording six in 2004-05 and 2006-07 and 13 in 2005-06. CHAMPIONSHIP EXPERIENCE The Hawkeye wrestling staff of Tom Brands, Wes Hand, Doug Schwab and Mike Zadick earned a total of one Olympic gold medal, four NCAA titles, six conference titles and 12 all-America honors. Their combined college career wrestling record is 487-83-2 (.853). BIG TEN NETWORK SCHEDULE ANNOUNCED The Big Ten Network has released its 2007-08 wrestling schedule. Nine duals and the finals of the 2007 Midlands Championships and 2008 Big Ten Championships are scheduled to be aired on the network. Iowa will have two televised duals on the network. The Iowa-Ohio State dual on Jan. 18 in Columbus will air same-day taped-delay at 8:30 p.m. and the Iowa-Minnesota dual on Feb. 1 in Minneapolis will air live at 7:30 p.m. Both times are Central. BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIPS TICKETS GO ON SALE Tickets for the 2008 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, to be held at the University of Minnesota's Williams Arena Mar. 8-9 are now available. All-session tickets are $30 and may be purchased through gophersports.com, in person at the Minnesota athletics ticket office in Mariucci Arena or by calling 1-800-846-7437 or 612-624-8080. Single-session tickets, if available, will go on sale March 3. The 2008 Big Ten Wrestling Championships will feature a three-session format, with the Session 1 preliminary matches beginning at 11 a.m. on Mar. 8. Session 2 will get underway at 6 p.m. that same day, and the Session 3 championship matches will start at noon Mar. 9. Doors to Williams Arena open approximately one hour prior to the beginning of each session. Sessions 1 and 2 will feature four mats of action, while Session 3 will have live wrestling on three mats. The Williams Arena court will be extended to accommodate the four-mat setup. NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS RETURN TO ST. LOUIS The 2008 NCAA Wrestling Championships are scheduled for Mar. 20-22 at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, MO. The Scottrade Center was the site for the national wrestling tournament in 2000, 2004 and 2005, and will host the event in 2009. The NCAA, University of Missouri and the St. Louis Sports Commission will co-host the event. Sessions I (11 a.m.) and II (6:30 p.m.) will be held Mar. 20, Sessions III (10 a.m. and IV (6 p.m.) will be Mar. 21, and Session V (10 a.m.) and the championship finals (7:30 p.m.) are set for Mar. 22. Tickets to the event are available at (866) 646-8849 or www.ticketmaster.com. All-session tickets are priced based on seat location. Following is the price breakdown. Plaza - $150 Mezzanine Center & Mezzanine Corner (1st 2 rows) - $120 Mezzanine Corner & Mezzanine End (1st 2 rows) - $95 Mezzanine End - $60 FAMILY FOUR PACK AVAILABLE The University of Iowa is offering a Family Four Pack ticket package for the Iowa vs. Indiana dual on Feb. 15. The package includes four tickets, four hot dogs and four drinks for $30. Orders can be placed through the University of Iowa Athletic Ticket Office or at 1-800-464-2957, 319-335-9327 or www.hawkeyesports.com. IOWA TICKET INFORMATION Tickets for Iowa's four remaining home duals are on sale at the University of Iowa Athletic Ticket Office or at 1-800-464-2957, 319-335-9327 or www.hawkeyesports.com. University of Iowa students will be admitted free to all matches with a student ID. Tickets purchased in advance are $8 for adults and $4 for youth. Tickets purchased at the event are $10 for adults and $5 for youth. IOWA WRESTLING HISTORY Iowa's overall dual meet record is 816-215-30 (.783) in 96 seasons. The Hawkeyes have won 20 national titles and 31 Big Ten titles. Iowa's 48 NCAA champions have won a total of 74 NCAA individual titles, crowning six three-time and 13 two-time champions. The Hawkeyes' 100 Big Ten champions have won a total of 181 conference titles. There have been seven four-time, 18 three-time and 24 two-time Iowa winners. Iowa's 130 all-Americans have earned all-America status 266 times, including 16 four-time, 28 three-time and 32 two-time honorees. NEXT COMPETITION Iowa (7-1) will kick off the Big Ten dual season Jan. 18 at Ohio State (9-1) in Columbus at 6 p.m. The Big Ten Network will air a taped-delay broadcast of the dual at 8:30 p.m. The Hawkeyes will then host Penn State (5-0) Jan. 20 at 2 p.m. in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa -- University of Northern Iowa 165-pounder Moza Fay has been named the Western Wrestling Conference's Wrestler of the Week as announced by league officials. This week's honor took into account wrestling action from Dec. 15 through Jan. 6. Fay compiled a mark of 5-1 from Dec. 15 through Jan. 6, which included three falls and a win over previously undefeated Jon Reader (Iowa State). Fay started his Christmas work with a 9-6 win over Iowa State's Reader in the Panthers' dual with the Cyclones. Fay then added a trio of wins at the Midlands tournament before capping the holiday season with a fall over Chattanooga's Nick Davis in UNI's 21-16 victory over the 10th-ranked team in the country. Fay picked up falls over Northern Illinois' Scott Wallace (3:23) and Harvard's Matt Button (3:05) at Midlands. Fay is now 13-3 on the season with a team-leading five falls. The Western Wrestling Conference is comprised of seven schools including the Air Force Academy, North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, Northern Iowa, South Dakota State, Utah Valley State and Wyoming. Others nominated: Air Force - Jordan Tribble North Dakota State - Eric Hoffman Northern Colorado - Reece Hopkin Utah Valley State - Ben Kjar Wyoming - Eric Coxbill

NORFOLK, Va. -- The Old Dominion wrestling Monarchs (4-1) dropped the Delaware State Hornets (0-6-1) in dual action at home Tuesday night by a score of 48-0. ODU won all ten weight classes for the shutout, including a pin by sophomore Jesse Strawn at 184 lbs and three major decisions. ODU returns to the mat this weekend at the Virginia Duals at nearby Hampton Coliseum. The event begins Friday, January 11 at 9:00 am with ODU's first match beginning at 11:00 am against Lock Haven. The point differential was the second most for a victory in Coach Martin's four-year career at Old Dominion, shy of the record 55-point differential set against Wagner in 2004-05 during his first year by just seven points. It was also the first shutout for ODU since the Wagner dual. "Our guys wrestled well tonight," said assistant coach Jon Sioredas. "This gives us something to build on for this weekend at the Virginia Duals. It should give us a little bit of momentum." ODU jumped to a 4-0 lead when redshirt freshman Billy Chamberlain notched his first career dual victory in a 9-1 major decision. The Monarchs would then add 18 points to the team total as the Hornets forfeited the next three weight classes. The next match of the night was the 157-lb bout, where Dan Rivera earned his fifth win of the season with a 6-2 win over Kyle Robinson. His win put the Monarchs up 25-0 and brought redshirt sophomore Chris Brown to the mat for the 165-lb bout. Brown jumped to a quick 5-0 lead less than a minute into the match, with a takedown into a 3-second nearfall that nearly ended in a pin of his opponent, Brandon Gardner. Gardner would avoid the pin, but Brown kept on the offensive, tallying 10 points on the Hornet wrestler in the first three and a half minutes before head coach of the Hornets, Reggie White, pulled Gardner for the medical forfeit. With the match won 31-0 with four bouts to go, the Monarchs did not shy away, winning the upper weights as well. Redshirt senior Nick Pullano earned the second major decision of the evening putting up 15 points on Kyle Skinner and Strawn battled his way to his team-leading fourth pin during the second period of his match. David Mendoza put away Shawn Nowrey 12-1 at 197 lbs and in the tightest match of the evening, true freshman Andy Totusek won in the first tiebreaker, 2-1. After battling to a 1-1 tie with Zeb Davis of Delaware State, neither wrestler was able to score in the first sudden victory overtime period. In the tiebreaker, Totusek got the escape just four seconds in and didn't allow Davis to get up during the second thirty for the win.

WATERLOO, Iowa -- The National Wrestling Coaches Association will be hosting the 20th annual National Wrestling Duals on January 12-13 at the UNI Dome in Cedar Falls, Iowa. The wrestling museum has teamed up with the NWCA and Bay Valley Foods for a special promotion during the event. Young wrestling fans will get FREE admission, when accompanied by a paying adult, to the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals on January 13. Each student will also get FREE admission, January 11-13, when accompanied by a paying adult, to the Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum. Each student will receive a free Dan Gable Asics poster from the museum. The museum will have special hours of operation during this event. They are as follows: Friday, January 11: 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, January 12: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, January 13: noon to 5 p.m.

This week's edition of "On the Mat" will feature Mike Finn, J Robinson, and Mike Moyer. "On the Mat" is a weekly wrestling radio program that airs every Wednesday night. This week's broadcast can be heard live from 6-7 p.m. Central Standard Time. The Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum in Waterloo, Iowa, hosts the show. W.I.N. Magazine editor Mike Finn will be on the program for his bi-weekly segment. Finn will give an update on several key wrestling events, including Oklahoma State's recent win over Iowa, and the upcoming NWCA National Duals. Robinson is the head wrestling coach at the University of Minnesota. His Golden Gopher team won the National Duals and the NCAA tournament in 2007. During Robinson's tenure, Minnesota has won three NCAA team titles. His team is currently ranked sixth in the latest Intermat poll. Moyer is the executive director of the National Wrestling Coaches Association. The NWCA hosts the National Duals event that will be taking place in Cedar Falls, Iowa, this weekend. "On the Mat" can be heard live on the Internet at www.kcnzam.com or locally in Northeast Iowa on 1650, The Fan. Feel free to e-mail radio@wrestlingmuseum.org with questions or comments about the show.

Jaran Rutledge, from Mundelein, Illinois (Carmel High School), won his 100th career match with the Knox College wrestling team Saturday. Rutledge finished a perfect 4-0 at the third annual Knox College Chuck Porter Duals hosted by Knox, giving him 101 career victories. For his efforts, the senior heavyweight was named the Knox College Prairie Fire Performer of the Week today. Rutledge, ranked sixth in the recent National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Division III individual poll, opened with an 8-3 decision over Chase Campbell, from Wheaton College. He followed with a 4-1 victory over North Central College's Rod Knowlton. Against Wabash College, Rutledge won via forfeit for his 100th career collegiate victory. He ended his afternoon by pinning Nicholas Hagen (University of Dubuque) in 4:12. Knox finished 0-4 at the Chuck Porter Duals. North Central won the six-team event with a 4-0 record. Rutledge became Knox College's first wrestling All-American by placing third at the NCAA Division III Championships last year. He was the first Knox wrestler to compete in the National Wrestling Championships since Tom MacMillan reached nationals for the second straight year in 1980. Last year, Rutledge finished with a 36-5 record and won individual titles at the Central College Invitational, the Northern Wrestling Association Tournament and the Great Lakes Regional. Thanks to his efforts, Rutledge led Knox to a 25th-place national finish. The biology major placed third at regionals and was an alternate qualifier as a sophomore for the 2005-06 National Championships. The Prairie Fire wrestling team returns to the mat Wednesday, January 9, at Augustana College. The dual meet is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.

DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke Wrestling opens its ACC slate on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. in Cameron Indoor Stadium versus N.C. State. The dual meet marks the first home competition of the season for the Blue Devils and their only home match in the month of January. The Blue Devils: Duke is 4-4 so far this season in duals after going 1-4 at the Hoosier Duals on Nov. 24 and sweeping three opponents at the N.C. State Duals on Jan. 5. In their only team-scored tournament of the year, Duke took 21st place out of 29 teams at the prestigious Southern Scuffle on Dec. 29 and 30 in Greensboro, N.C. The Blue Devils will try to snap their 11-match ACC losing streak; their last conference win came on Feb. 18, 2005 against Virginia. Duke's most dominating wrestler at any weight this year has been 184-pound redshirt sophomore captain John Barone, who won at Pembroke and Davidson and placed second at the East Stroudsburg Open on Nov. 17. He was named the ACC's wrestler of the week on Nov. 27. Barone's 11-second pin of Mike Walsh of Limestone College on Dec. 1 was the fastest fall in Duke history, breaking an 18-year-old school record. He is 24-3 with 10 falls and an 8-0 ledger in duals in 2007-08. Barone's 59-19 overall mark as a Blue Devil is good for ninth place on Duke's all-time winning percentage list with a .756 clip. With four more victories, Barone will crack the top 20 for career wins at Duke and is only 10 wins away from tying the single-season wins mark with 14 regular season matches to go and the ACC Tournament. Another tough competitor is senior captain Kellan McKeon, who will represent Duke at 125 pounds on Wednesday night. McKeon is 19-8 this season with three falls and two top-four tournament finishes. He is 6-1 in dual meets. Sophomore Voris Tejada will get the nod at 157 pounds. Tejada has placed in the top five in three of Duke's four tournaments this season and is off to a 22-9 mark overall and a 3-0 record in duals. Junior captain Addison Nuding gets the call at 165 pounds. Nuding is 19-6 on the year with a second-place showing at Pembroke and a championship at Davidson under his belt. He is 6-2 in dual matches. At the heavyweight division will be redshirt sophomore Wade Van Sickle, who has three top three finishes this season in tournament action. Van Sickle has posted a 21-7 record with four falls this year and is 7-1 in dual meets and 43-31 overall as a Blue Devil. The Opponent: N.C. State is 4-5 this season and has yet to wrestle an ACC match. Four of the Wolfpack's five losses have come to teams from the Big Ten and Big 12, which are undeniably the nation's strongest conferences. Two of their losses--- Oklahoma and Iowa--- came against opponents ranked in the top 20. N.C. State is the defending ACC Champion and returns four of their five ACC champions from last year. Leading the way is sophomore Darrion Caldwell at 149 pounds and junior Joe Caramanica at 141 pounds. Caldwell is 19-3 this season with 11 pins and is ranked ninth nationally. Caramanica holds the seventh spot in the nation and is 19-4 with three falls. Most Recent Meeting: N.C. State avoided an upset in Raleigh on Jan. 10, 2007, as they defeated upstart Duke 26-15. The Blue Devils trailed only 16-15 going into the final two matches before the Wolfpack pulled away. Barone, redshirt junior Aaron Glover and redshirt junior captain Dan Tulley all picked up victories for Duke.

IRVING, Texas -- Jake Varner (Iowa State) has been named Big 12 Wrestler of the Week for his performances in competitions from Dec. 17-Jan. 5, the conference announced. Varner receives this recognition for the first time in his career. Varner avenged his 2007 NCAA Championship loss to former Northwestern 184-pound national champion Jake Herbert with a 3-1 sudden victory, on December 30 at the Midlands Championships. The sophomore, who placed third at the Midlands last season, became the 38th ISU wrestler to earn a Midlands title. During the course of the tournament, the All-American tallied three victories by pin, including a 5:54 stick of former Nebraska standout Travis Pascoe. He also notched a 2-1 semifinal decision over No. 6 Christian Sinnott of Central Michigan. Varner has pinned four opponents and owns a 12-0 record this season.

Colby, KS -- After a long holiday break, the Trojans were back in wrestling action at the Colby Tournament of Champions in Colby, KS. NIACC finished with six placers out of eight that competed with three champions. NIACC finished second as team with Colby winning the team title. Colby, currently ranked No. 4 in the country finished with seven placers and three champions. The Trojans of Colby matched up head to head with the Trojans of NIACC in seven weights with NIACC winning five of the seven. The tournament which is typically ran in a traditional 8-man bracket, was switched to a round-robin format due to a lack of numbers. NIACC was led by it's three champions, T.J. Moen (141), Albert White (149) and Glenn Rhees (174) who has made his return from an early season injury. Moen claimed the championship with a big win over No. 3 rated Lyobomir Kumbarov of Colby by a score of 8-2. Albert White claimed his second tournament championship of the year by defeating the same wrestler he did for the first title in T.J. Hepburn of Colby who is rated No. 5. Rhees, in his first tournament action since placing sixth at the Harold Nichols Open completed the day 4-0 with three falls to claim the title at 174. At 133, Cody Hogan finished second losing in the finals to Western Wyoming's Nick Mammalis. Despite only losing one match on the day, Aaron Hancock finished in third place at 165. The final placer was Beau Tudor at heavyweight placing third. "We have been working very hard since our return from the holidays," stated head coach Richard Fergola. Our guys turned a huge corner at Colby that will help us in the long run. The Trojans will have an action packed weekend starting with a home dual against region foe Minnesota West on Friday January 11th at 7:00 pm. The Trojans will then travel to Pella, IA for the Central College Open on Saturday January 12th at 9:00 am and then return home to host No. 3 rated Labette on Monday January 14th at 6:00 pm.

DOUGLASVILLE, Ga. -- The University of Northern Iowa wrestling squad picked up its first dual win of the season Sunday by knocking off No. 10-ranked Chattanooga, 21-16. The match took place at Lithia Springs High School in suburban Atlanta. UNI improved to 1-2-1 on the season, while UTC fell to 5-2. "Overall we wrestled extremely well," UNI head coach Brad Penrith said. "I'm really proud of how the guys bounced back from the early duals and Midlands." Redshirt freshman Andy O'Loughlin (Independence, Iowa) gave the Panthers a shot of adrenaline with an 8-5 victory over Chattanooga's Josh Edmondson at 184 pounds. Edmondson came into the match ranked No. 16 in the nation and had defeated O'Loughlin just a week earlier at Midlands, 4-1. However, O'Loughlin used a pair of first period takedowns Sunday to take charge of the match. Chattanooga's Matt Koz gained his own revenge at 197 pounds with a 10-4 victory over UNI junior Andrew Anderson (Sioux City, Iowa). Anderson secured a 6-1 victory over Koz in last weekend's Midlands tournament. Koz's victory tied the dual at 3-3. UNI's Dustin Bauman (Stratford, Wis.) put on a dominant effort in the heavyweight match with a 2-0 shutout of UTC's Matt Lettner. Bauman scored an escape in the second period and then rode out Lettner in the third to secure the riding time point. Bauman's win gave UNI a 6-3 lead in the dual. UTC's Javier Maldonado was able to hang on for an 11-8 win in his 125-pound match with Caleb Flores (Rosemead, Calif.). Maldonado came into the match ranked No. 9 in the nation, but Flores refused to give in and battled to the end, which included a takedown in the final 10 seconds to pull within three points. UNI's Josh Baldridge (Haysville, Kan.) made his Panther debut and was awarded a forfeit win at 133 pounds to improve the Panthers' dual lead to 12-6 against the Mocs. The Panthers' C.J. Ettelson (Hudson, Iowa) recaptured his winning ways with a strong effort at 141 pounds. Ettelson topped Cody Cleveland, 6-0, on the strength a first period four-point move. After getting on top early, Ettelson used the top position to take over the match and rolled up nearly four minutes of riding time. Cleveland entered the match ranked No. 16 in the nation at 141 pounds. Ettelson's win made it 15-6 in favor of the Panthers. "It's been bad start to the season, not exactly where I wanted it," Ettelson said following the match. "I wrestled a good match and it felt good for once. I went out and took control of the match right away. I haven't had a chance to get it going early, I've been giving up early takedowns. I went out and went right after him today." The Mocs' Joey Knox decisioned UNI's Charlie Ettelson, 4-2, at 149 pounds. Knox, ranked No. 20 in the nation, took an early 4-0 lead. However, Ettelson (Hudson, Iowa) notched a reversal in the second period and looked to have a two-point nearfall on the reversal, but was not awarded the points. Knox was then able to hang on for the 4-2 decision. Knox's win pulled UTC to within 15-9 in the dual. At 157 pounds, UTC's Seth Garvin tallied a 12-6 victory over UNI's Tyson Reiner (Mitchell, S.D.). Garvin led 6-2 midway through the third period before Reiner rallied to cut the lead to 6-5. However, Garvin was able to notch two more takedowns and extend the lead to five. Garvin then added a riding time point and his victory cut UNI's dual lead to 15-12. UNI junior Moza Fay (Anamosa, Iowa) clinched the Panther dual victory with a fall over UTC's Nick Davis. No points had been awarded in the match as Fay was able to gain the defensive fall over Davis in the first period at the 2:05 mark. It was Fay's team-leading fifth fall of the season and improved his season mark to 13-4. At 174 pounds, UTC's Lloyd Rogers dominated UNI's Alex Dolly (Mishawaka, Ind.), 17-6. Rogers led 8-4 after two periods but extended his lead with a strong third period. Rogers, ranked No. 9 in the nation, cut the Panthers' dual lead to 21-16 with the major decision. The Panthers will be in action again Saturday when they host the 2008 NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals in the UNI-Dome.

GREENSBORO, NC -- The UNC Greensboro Spartan wrestling team opened up the 2007-08 Southern Conference season with a 35-3 victory over the Bulldogs of The Citadel, Sunday at Fleming Gymnasium. The Spartans walked away with nine victories out of 10. The Spartans opened up their first conference dual of the season with a win at the 157-pound weight class. Senior Mark Ring blanked The Citadel's Keith Koziel with 8-0 decision. With the win, the Glassboro, NJ native is now 4-7 overall, 1-0 SoCon. Sophomore Byron Sigmon collected his third fall of the season at 165 lbs. Sigmon, from Claremont, NC, pinned the Bulldogs' Brenden Prince in 2:20. He improved to an even 8-8 overall record, 1-0 in the SoCon. First-year Mikal McKee tacked on his ninth win of the season with a 15-6 major decision victory over The Citadel's 174-pound Derek Sickel. A native of Asheville, NC, McKee was the youngest Spartan wrestler to place at the 2007 UNCG Southern Scuffle held last weekend at the Greensboro Coliseum and Special Events Center. He moved to a 9-8 overall record, 1-0 SoCon. The Spartans held a 14-0 team score advantage going into the day's fourth match before The Citadel was able to put up three points of their own. 184-pound Darius Caldwell nabbed The Citadel's first and only win of the dual with a 3-1 decision over UNCG's Nick Clark. Clark, a senior from Cohocton, NY dropped to a 2-8 overall record, 0-1 in the conference. UNCG's only nationally ranked wrestler, senior Daren Burns blanked The Citadel in the197-pound match to put points back in the win column for the Spartans. Burns, a native of Catawba, NC won a 3-0 decision over John Buck and extended the home-gym lead to 17-3. Currently ranked 11th at 197 lbs., Burns is now 21-3 on the season, 93-30 in his career. The win moved him even closer to surpassing UNCG's all-time career win record of 98-25 set by Joe Stanton (1993-97). A native of Winston-Salem, junior Ryan Hsu tabbed his 12th win of the season with a close, 4-3 victory over The Citadel's Aaron Brown in the heavyweight bout. At 125 lbs., Laurinburg, NC native, Mitchell Johnson defeated the Bulldog's Tyler Sim with a 6-4 decision. Johnson is now 6-9 overall, 1-0 SoCon. Jeff Hedges continued to show his determination and leadership on the mats as he won a fall victory in the 133-pound bout. The senior from Havre, MT pinned The Citadel's Anthony Easter in one minute to improve to a 12-9 overall, 1-0 SoCon record. Ben Wilmore (2-6, 1-0 SoCon) won the Spartan's eighth match of the day in the 141-pound weight class. The senior from Fort Worth, TX held the Bulldog's Michael Arias scoreless to win a 7-0 decision. In the final match of the day, UNCG's 149-pound Marcus Hannah defeated The Citadel's Derek Royster with an 8-6 decision. Hannah improved to 7-3 overall, 1-0 SoCon. The Spartans are back in action next Sunday, January 13 as they travel to Boone, NC to take on the Appalachian State Mountaineers. Matches are set to begin at 2pm. For more news on UNCG wrestling, ticket prices, a complete season schedule, and all other Spartan athletic information log onto www.UNCGSpartans.com.

Princeton, NJ -- The Cardinal wrestling team added two more wins to its season tally this afternoon, as the Cardinal topped East Stroudsburg 29-16, before demolishing Princeton, 32-10. Senior Tanner Gardner highlighted the day with two pins, and Stanford improved to 5-1 on the year. Gardner started the Cardinal off at 125 pounds in the first dual, pinning his second opponent of the weekend. With just one second remaining in the second period (4:59), Gardner put East Stroudsburg sophomore Matthew Benedetti on his back and gave Stanford an early 6-0 lead. The Warriors matched the effort at 133 pounds, however, as junior Matthew Swallow pinned Cardinal freshman Blair Matsuura in 4:58. The Warriors' Sean Carr then won a close decision over Stanford's Max Rosefigura at 141 pounds, scoring a late takedown to earn the 6-4 win and give East Stroudsburg the lead, 9-6. The Warriors' lead would be their last, however, as the Cardinal rallied to win four consecutive matches in the middle weights to go ahead for good. At 149 pounds, redshirt freshman Lucas Espericueta battled back from an initial deficit and dominated East Stroudsburg's Jesse Dunn for a 20-10 major decision. Josh Zupancic continued the onslaught, pinning the Warriors' Kyle Heselpoth in 4:34. Sophomore Peter Miller followed with a 9-0 major decision over East Stroudsburg's Joe Schick at 165 pounds to push the Stanford lead out to 20-9. Redshirt freshman Alex Muller tacked three more points onto the Cardinal total, winning his first career bout at 174 pounds. Muller scored two takedowns in the third period to come from behind and top East Stroudsburg junior Tom Pagano, 9-7. Click here to find out more! At 184 pounds, the Warriors' Shane Mallory finally halted the Cardinal momentum. Mallory and Luke Feist battled into overtime, but Mallory scored a reversal in the second overtime period and held on for a 9-8 decision. East Stroudsburg forfeited at 197 pounds, however, sealing the victory for Stanford. Chris Birchler won by major decision for East Stroudsburg at heavyweight to finish the dual, topping Mark Shughart, 23-9. The Cardinal then turned to the host Princeton Tigers, and Gardner once again set the pace quickly for Stanford. The senior 125-pounder earned his third consecutive pin and second of the day, sticking freshman Tony Comunale in the third period (6:07). At 133 pounds, Matsuura earned his first career dual victory to increase the Stanford lead to 9-0. The true freshman scored three points in the third period to win a 7-4 decision over the Tigers' Nikhil Pereira. Princeton forfeited the 141-pound match, and both teams bowed out of the 149-pound bout, pushing the Cardinal lead to 15-0. Espericueta wrestled up in the 157-pound bout and came out with his second career pin. The Cardinal redshirt freshman put Princeton junior Aaron Casp on his back in 4:46, and picked up his 16th win of the year. Miller pushed Stanford closer to the win at 165 pounds, earning his second victory of the day with a 9-6 decision over Alex Enriquez. Miller's three points pushed the Stanford advantage to 24-0 heading into the 174-pound bout. The Tigers earned their first points of the afternoon at 174 pounds, as Mike Alvarez pinned Stanford's Muller as time expired in the second period (5:00). Feist wrestled his second consecutive match at 184 pounds, and edged Princeton's Travis Erdman, 7-6, to seal the Cardinal win. Sophomore Jake Johnson pushed Stanford further ahead with his second technical fall of the year, beating Zach Morse, 19-2. The Tigers finished the day with a win at heavyweight, as senior Sam Ritter bested Stanford's Phillip Doerner, 15-7. The Cardinal will wrestle its third dual of the day later tonight, taking on the Wagner Seahawks at the New York Athletic Club at 7:30 p.m. Stanford demolishes Wagner New York, NY - Stanford wrestlers collected six pins and shut out an opponent for the first time in recent history tonight, posting a 52-0 rout over the Wagner Seahawks. Led by freshman Blair Matsuura's 32-second pin, the Cardinal scored bonus points in nine of the ten bouts and concluded its three-dual day with a perfect record. Stanford finishes the preseason with a 6-1 record, one of the best in program history. Stanford came out firing from the start. Senior Tanner Gardner (25-1) set the tone with his fourth consecutive pin and third of the day at 125 pounds, sticking Wagner's Nick Keshecki midway through the second period (4:00). Matsuura, a true freshman, followed suit, pinning the first opponent of his career in just 32 seconds. Matsuura (3-8) bested the Seahawks' Tyler Harmer to give Stanford a 12-0 lead after just two bouts. At 141 pounds, freshman Max Rosefigura (9-5) scored a late escape to narrowly defeat Mike Tutunjian, 8-7. Redshirt freshman Lucas Espericueta (17-7) dominated Patrick Larkin in the ensuing 149-pound bout, and came away with an 18-2 technical fall. At 157 pounds, 16th-ranked Josh Zupancic (23-5) picked up the Cardinal's third pin of the night and the second in under a minute. Zupancic put Sean Quinn on his back in 59 seconds and gave the Cardinal a 26-0 lead. Sophomore Peter Miller (12-6) continued the slaughter with a 15-5 major decision over Larry Peotter at 165 pounds. At 174 pounds, junior Luke Feist (5-6) nabbed Stanford's fourth pin of the match, pasting Wagner's Peter Morano to the mat in 4:24. Sophomore Zack Giesen (16-5) then saw his first action of the day at 184 pounds, and topped Eddie Broderick by major decision, 15-4. Sophomore Jake Johnson (17-7) picked up the fifth Stanford pin at 197 pounds, finishing off Anthony Interiano in 6:02. Senior heavyweight Phillip Doerner (15-10) then put an exclamation point on the win with the Cardinal's sixth pin, sticking John Graeffe in 6:01. The Cardinal returns to the mat on Jan. 18, beginning the 2008 Pac-10 season against Boise State and UC Davis in Davis, Calif.

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. -- Fifth-ranked Central Michigan University recorded a pair of milestone victories Sunday afternoon. Wins over No. 16 Hofstra, 22-14, and No. 13 Edinboro, 28-11, extended CMU's winning streak to a school-record 17 duals. The victories were Tom Borrelli's 194th and 195th at CMU, moving him into a tie with Chick Sherwood for the school's career wins record. Perhaps most importantly, however, the two wins over nationally ranked opponents provide CMU with momentum entering next weekend's National Duals. At 7-0, CMU is off to its best start since the 2002-03 team also opened the season with wins in its first seven duals. CMU was 0-1-1 in two duals with Hofstra last season; in both contests, the Pride built large early leads before CMU rallied late to the even the team score. Sunday's dual played out in exactly the same fashion. Hofstra (3-4) recorded major decisions at 125 and 133 to take an 8-0 lead that eventually ballooned to 14-3 at the midway point of the match. Pete Puckett's 6-4 decision over Anthony Tortora at 165 pounds, however, was the first of five straight CMU victories to close the dual. Brandon Sinnott, ranked third nationally at 174 pounds, followed Puckett with a 3-1 sudden victory decision over No. 6 Alton Lucas. Christian Sinnott scored a bonus point for the Chippewas with a 17-4 major decision at 184, and sixth-ranked Wynn Michalak put CMU in front for the first time (16-14) with a 7-0 decision over No. 9 Joe Rovelli. Bubba Gritter sealed the win with a pin of Tom Daddino. In both of last year's matchups with Hofstra, Gritter scored major decisions in the final match to even the team score. Edinboro (4-1) entered its matchup with Central Michigan having won 15 straight duals and 33 of its last 34 overall. The Chippewas won seven of the 10 individual bouts to extend their own winning streak and put a halt to Edinboro's. Eric Morrill gave Edinboro an early 3-0 lead with a 3-1 decision over Luke Smith at 125 pounds. CMU's Conor Beebe, Eric Kruger and Nathaniel Holt were winners at 133, 141 and 149, respectively, to put the Chippewas in front 10-3. Third-ranked Gregor Gillespie and No. 16 Jarrod King answered with major decisions for Edinboro at 157 and 165 pounds, however, giving the Scots an 11-10 advantage. As was the case in the day's first match with Hofstra, the Chippewas rallied with wins at each of the top four weight classes. Brandon and Christian Sinnott won by decision at 174 and 184 pounds, and Michalak and Gritter put an exclamation point on the day with pins at 197 and 285. Brandon Sinnott, Christian Sinnott, Michalak and Gritter were a combined 8-0 in the two duals, accounting for 34 of CMU's 50 total team points. Among their eight wins were three falls, one major and four decisions. CMU travels to Cedar Falls, Iowa for next weekend's National Duals. The 16-team, two-day tournament begins Friday morning.

TEMPE, Ariz. -- The Arizona State University wrestling team opened the new year in winning fashion Sunday afternoon as it swept all three of its match-ups as host of the 2008 Sun Devil Duals inside Wells Fargo Arena. On a day that honored the program's alumni, including the 20th anniversary of ASU's 1988 NCAA Championship, the Sun Devils scored victories over Army (22-13), Grand Canyon (42-10) and No. 23 Penn (21-17) to improve to 8-0 overall (2-0 Pac-10) on the year. With their 21-17 upset of No. 23 Penn, the Sun Devils moved to 8-0 on the year, marking just the fourth time in program history that a Sun Devil team has opened the year with an 8-0 or better record. The start is the best since the 1988-89 team opened the year 8-0 before tying and losing its next two duals. The day opened with the Sun Devils and Black Knights (5-4) meeting on the mats for the first time with ASU scoring the 22-13 victory. No. 10 Patrick Pitsch opened the dual with a pin at 5:35 to put ASU on top, 6-0. After Army won at 174, the Sun Devils would win the next two bouts, decisions by both Jake Cranford (184) and Jason Trulson (197), to push the lead to 12-3. After a loss at heavyweight, No. 19 Anthony Robles (125) scored an impressive 15-4 major decision before Todd Schavrien (133) won a 4-2 decision with a takedown 18 seconds into overtime for a 19-6 ASU team lead. After two losses, the dual ended with Alex Pavlenko scoring a 7-1 decision at 157 for the final team points and a 22-13 team victory. Up next was a battle of Arizona schools as ASU faced first-year NCAA Division II program Grand Canyon (Phoenix). The Sun Devils, who are now 54-9-0 all-time against teams from Arizona, picked up all seven of its victories by forfeit for the 42-10 victory. Winners for the Sun Devils included Pitsch (165), Cranford (184), Trulson (197), Kenny Lester (285), Schavrien (133), Orlando Jimenez (141) and Jerrad Trulson (149). After honoring the alumni in attendance, including the 1988 team, the Sun Devils took on the Quakers as former members of that championship team faced one another with Thom Ortiz guiding his ASU squad and Zeke Jones leading the Penn side. The Sun Devils fell behind early with decision losses at both 165 and 174, trailing 6-0. The tides turned at 184 as No. 18 Brent Chriswell earned a hard-fought, 2-1, upset decision over No. 13 Lior Zamir to not only cut the deficit to 6-3, but also spark the ASU bench. Jason Trulson tied the team score in the next bout as he won the 197-pound match with a 5-2 decision. The Sun Devils continued their momentum at heavyweight as Lester caught his opponent in a move, put him on his back and scored the pin fall at 1:49 for a 12-6 team lead. Despite an acrobatic loss at 125 pounds, the Sun Devils kept the momentum going with Schavrien scoring a 6-1 decision at 133 before Chris Drouin, who had a 3-1 lead, won by injury default at 141 when his opponent could not continue. Leading, 21-10, ASU lost the last two bouts of the day, but it was not enough for the Quakers as ASU won, 21-17. On the day, six Sun Devils went undefeated, led by 3-0 showings from both Schavrien (133) and Trulson (197). Also going undefeated were Jimenez (1-0), Cranford (2-0), Chriswell (1-0) and Lester (2-0. ASU hits the road for a trio of Pac-10 duals next weekend, all three of which take place in California. The weekend opens with a 7 p.m. (PST) dual at Cal Poly (San Luis Obispo) Friday night before heading to Bakersfield, Calif., for a 5 p.m. dual with the Roadrunners of CS Bakersfield on Saturday. The road trip concludes Sunday with a 2 p.m. dual against CS Fullerton in Fullerton.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- The ODU wrestling team earned its third straight win at the Virginia Intercollegiate State Tournament on Saturday as they tallied 107 team points. The Monarchs had 10 placewinners and six champs at the tournament, including the event's Most Outstanding Wrestler, redshirt freshman James Nicholson (Des Moines, Iowa). Nicholson grabbed two technical falls and a 4-3 decision over UVA's Ross Gitomer in the title bout for the win at 125 lbs. Old Dominion returns home to host Delaware State at the Ted Constant Center in dual action on Tuesday, January 8 at 7:30 pm. Nicholson (ranked #20 in the nation) won the weight at 125 and backing him up for ODU, Billy Chamberlain (Shippensburg, Pa.), also placed at the weight, taking third place. The Monarchs placed eight more in the tournament including winning five more weights. Kyle Hutter (Mokena, Ill.) won the 133 weight handily, #12 Ryan Williams (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) won the 141 weight and #18 Kaylen Baxter (Fairbanks, Alaska) swept through the 149-lb weight class. The other champs were Jesse Strawn (Holton, Kansas) at 184 and true freshman Andy Totusek (Omaha, Neb.) at the heavyweight slot. Redshirt senior Nick Pullano, junior David Mendoza and true freshman Roy Dragon III also placed for ODU, taking third in their respective weight classes. Old Dominion scored 107 team points in the tournament, ahead of UVA's 101 for second place, Liberty's 40.5, George Mason's 32.5, VMI's 16 and the Apprentice School's six team points. It is the third win in as many years for Old Dominion at the event. Old Dominion returns home to host Delaware State at the Ted Constant Center in dual action on Tuesday, January 8 at 7:30 pm. Next weekend, the Monarchs will take part in the annual Virginia Duals at Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, Va.

Oklahoma picked up three wins Saturday to push its record to 8-1 on the season at the 11th Annual Lonestar Duals in Arlington, Texas. The No. 19-ranked Sooners looked impressive on the day, crushing No. 21 Navy, Cal-State Fullerton and North Carolina. "I thought this was a tremendous outing for us," head coach Jack Spates said. "Navy came in as a very good ranked team and we dominated them. I thought there were a lot of good matches and we were extremely tough all day." The Sooners jumped on Navy in the first dual, winning by a wide-margin of 28-6. The Sooners racked up 18 straight points after six decisions to put the match out of reach for the Academy. Joey Fio at 125 pounds, Brian Shelton at 133 pounds, Zack Bailey at 141-pounds, Will Rowe at 149 pounds, Chad Terry at 157 pounds and Max Dean at 165 pounds all scored decisions for OU to open up competition. Jeff James was defeated by Matt Stolpinski by a narrow margin or 3-2 at 174 pounds, followed up by a commanding victory by Joshua Weitzel with a 14-6 major decision over Parsons. Joel Flaggert recorded a fall in his win over Tyler Moyer at 197 pounds and heavyweight Nathan Fernandez dropped a 4-2 decision in double-overtime to Navy's Pronderast. It was much of the same story in match two versus Cal-State Fullerton. Oklahoma jumped out early thanks to a dominant 20-4 technical fall recorded by Fio. Shelton then posted a 5-1 decision over TJ Dillashaw and Terry was defeated 10-6 by Astorga. Rowe and Vernon both scored decisions back-to-back, followed by a major decision by Dean over Tedd Bristll, 10-0. James, Weitzel and Flaggert recorded decisions in their matches to push the score to 27-3, and Fernandez was defeated in the final match for a final team score of 27-6 against Cal-State Fullerton. The night cap pitted the Sooners versus the North Carolina Tarheels, marking the final match for both schools. Oklahoma once again flexed its muscles, taking the victory 27-6. Fio and Shelton picked up their third wins on the day by positing decisions to open the match, followed by Zack Bailey winning in a decision over Nick Stable, 12-8, to make the team score 9-0. Rowe gave the Sooners another boost by posting a fall over Vincent Ramirez, then teammate Chad Terry defeated Fiacco to put the match out of reach. Keegan Mueller topped Dean at 165 pounds, followed up with three decisions by James, Weitzel and Flaggert. Fernandez was defeated by Dobies in the heavyweight division. "Our team has improved over the break and it shows," Spates said. "The success we experienced today is something we can build off of heading into our tough upcoming schedule." The Sooners head back to Norman to prepare for a double-dual versus No. 20 Pittsburgh and Michigan State next Saturday, Jan. 12. The matches will get underway at 2 p.m. and admission is free to the public.

PRINCETON, N.J. -- The Rutgers wrestling program, under the guidance of first-year head coach Scott Goodale, defeated EIWA conference opponent Princeton 33-12 Saturday afternoon at Dillon Gym in Princeton, N.J. Rutgers picked up its first conference win of the season, improving to 2-4, 1-1 on the season, while Princeton fell to 0-4, 0-1 in the EIWA. "I am excited with how we performed," said Goodale. "We wrestled pretty well, especially considering it was our third match in two days. We are definitely getting momentum which is something we needed as a program." Against the Tigers, after Ryan Jablonski (Norristown, Pa.) was pinned by Tony Comunale at 125 pounds, Rutgers reeled off five consecutive wins to take a commanding 23-6 lead. At 133 pounds, senior Dan Hilt (Manalapan, N.J.) earned a 13-4 major decision over Nikhil Pereira. In the 141-pound bout, No. 20 Steve Adamcsik (Chester, N.J.) won by forfeit, as did Jack Barrett (Metuchen, N.J.) at 149 pounds. In the 157 pound contest Jamie Lijo (Stanhope, N.J.) earned a 12-0 major decision victory over Aaron Casp and then Matt Pletcher (Eastampton, N.J.) defeated Alex Enriquez 4-0 at 165 pounds. Princeton stopped the five-bout winning streak when Travis Erdman earned a 3-2 decision over McPaul Ogbonna (East Hanover, N.J.) at 174 pounds, but then another forfeit gave Keith Dobish (Lodi, N.J.) a victory at 184 pounds. In the 197 pound contest, Lamar Brown (Red Bank, N.J.) put the match out of reach with another major decision (10-0) over Zach Morse. In final bout of the day, in the heavyweight division, DJ Russo (Netcong, N.J.) fell to Sam Ritter 5-3. "The kids needed to see some success and they got that, so now they have more confidence," said Goodale. "In this sport it's all about confidence, so we will see if we can take this into Thursday's match against East Stroudsburg." Rutgers returns to the mat on Thursday, Jan. 10, at 7:00 p.m. when they face conference opponent East Stroudsburg at the College Ave. Gym. Admission is free to the public.

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Duke Blue Devils continued their impressive season on Saturday at the N.C. State Duals, as they came away from Reynolds Coliseum with three dual meet victories. Duke upended Anderson, 36-9, to start off the afternoon. The Blue Devils then dispatched of Gardner-Webb, 29-15 and finally took down Campbell, 30-12. With its three wins in Raleigh, the Duke squad improved to 4-4 on the season. Four Blue Devils went a complete and perfect 3-0 on the afternoon and two more finished up 2-0 on the day. All told, the 12 Duke wrestlers combined to go 21-6 with five pins, three technical falls and three major decisions. All six losses were decisions by seven points or less. Once again leading the way was redshirt sophomore captain John Barone at 184 pounds, who earned three crushing victories--- one by fall, one by technical fall and one by major decision. He is 24-3 in 2007-08 with nine pins and an undefeated 8-0 mark in duals. Barone's 59-19 collegiate record, which translates into a .756 winning percentage, ranks ninth all-time at Duke. With four more victories, Barone will crack the top 20 for career wins at Duke and is only 10 wins away from tying the single-season wins mark with at least 14 regular season matches to go. Sophomore Voris Tejada had a dominating performance at 157 pounds, winning all three matches with one major decision. Tejada is 22-9 this year and 41-17 in his career. His .707 winning percentage at Duke is 17th all-time. In the heavyweight division, redshirt sophomore Wade Van Sickle was 3-0 with one pin on the afternoon. He holds a 21-7 mark this season with four pins and is 7-1 in duals. Van Sickle's career record stands at 43-31. Junior captain Addison Nuding also picked up three wins, including two falls. Nuding is 19-6 this year and 6-2 in dual matches. He also now holds a 41-33 mark as a Blue Devil. Senior captain Kellan McKeon won both of his matches on Saturday in dominating fashion at 125 pounds, recording two technical falls. McKeon is now 19-8 this season overall and 6-1 in dual meets. At 174 pounds, redshirt sophomore Ben Wales was also 2-0 in Raleigh with a pin and a major decision. Wales improved to 13-10 this year with two pins and is 22-21 in his career at Duke. Putting in another good performance was redshirt freshman Robert Holbrook, who was 2-1 at the N.C. State Duals at 197 pounds. Redshirt senior Bryan Gibson (133 pounds), sophomore Spencer Jasper (141 pounds) and freshman Mike Bell (149 pounds) all won one match to add to Duke's dominating team performance. Gibson now has 68 career victories, which ranks 18th all-time at Duke. The Blue Devils next competition is their first home meet--- and only one in January. That will take place on Wednesday at 7 p.m., versus ACC foe N.C. State in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Darrion Caldwell picked up a pair of pins and a technical fall, all three matches ending in the first period, to lead NC State to a sweep of its three matches in the NC State Duals, held Saturday at Reynolds Coliseum. Caldwell and Joe Caramanica ended the Wolfpack's opening-round bout with Gardner-Webb with first-period pins to help NC State pull away 29-13. Ryan Goodman and Jalil Dozier had major decisions, and Taylor Cummings won a technical fall as the Pack scored big points and pulled away late. In the second round of the day, the Wolfpack wrestled both Anderson and Campbell, defeating Anderson 42-9 behind pins by Caldwell and Ryan Goodman, and technical falls from Cummings and Caramanica. The Pack dumped Campbell 29-6 thanks in part to technical falls from Goodman and Caldwell. The three match sweep improves NC State to 4-5 in dual matches. Caldwell, ranked No. 9 at 149, is now 19-3 on the season, one win shy of his total for all of the 2006-07 season. He now has 11 pins for the season, one more than when he set the school record for pins by a freshman a year ago, and 21 for his career. He ranks eighth in school history for career pins. Caramanica improved to 19-4 for the season, and 62-23 for his career. Goodman is now 10-4 for the year and 54-14 for his career. NC State will be in action again on Wednesday, January 9 at Duke. The match will begin at 7 p.m.

SOUTH GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas -- The No. 7-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team extended its winning streak to nine straight dual-meet competitions after sweeping its opposition at the Lone Star Duals on Saturday (Jan. 5) at the South Grand Prairie Warrior Coliseum. The Wolverines defeated Harvard (35-12), Columbia (43-3) and Appalachian State (32-9). The event kicked off with the Wolverines' most competitive and non-traditional contest, in which U-M earned a forfeit victory (141 pounds) and two injury defaults (165 and 184 pounds) en route to a lopsided 35-12 win. Harvard won three of the first five bouts and led the dual -- which only lasted an hour -- by three points at the midway point, but the Maize and Blue rallied with five straight wins at the upper weights to seal it up. Junior Michael Watts (Riverton, Utah/Riverton HS) gave Michigan the initial lead after the opening weight, using a pair of takedowns and six back points to cruise to an 11-4 decision over Dan Kelly at 125 pounds. The teams split the subsequent bouts and swapped six points as the Crimson's Shay Warren earned a quick pin at 133 pounds -- locking up a cradle on sophomore Chris Diehl's (Burton, Mich./Flint Kearsley HS) single-leg attempt at 1:26 -- before his team forfeited at 141. After two more, back-to-back Harvard wins, including fifth-ranked J.P O'Connor's narrow 4-3 decision on riding time over fifth-year senior Josh Churella (Northville, Mich./Novi HS), U-M scored six team points in each of its next three matches as fifth-year senior captain Eric Tannenbaum (Naperville, Ill./North HS) and senior/junior captain Tyrel Todd (Bozeman, Mont./Bozeman HS) each accepted injury defaults in the first period at 165 and 184 pounds, respectively, and senior/junior Steve Luke (Massillon, Ohio/Perry HS) picked up a first-period fall against Frankie Colletta. Luke, ranked No. 2 at 174 pounds, secured a quick takedown and used an arm bar to turn Colletta for three points before using the same to stick the Crimson wrestler at 2:00. Sophomore/freshman Anthony Biondo (Clinton Twp., Mich./Chippewa Valley HS) continued his tear at 197 pounds, scoring three takedowns and eight back points en route to a 15-0 technical fall over Jon Butler -- his second of the season. Sophomore/freshman Chad Bleske (Washington, Mich./Romeo HS) iced the Wolverines' victory with a 7-2 decision over Andrew Knapp at heavyweight. Bleske converted on a pair of double-leg takedowns and countered a Knapp shot for another takedowns in the middle frame to control the contest from start to finish. Michigan was just a match away from shutting out Columbia in its second dual contest of the day, claiming nine individual matches en route to a 43-3 win -- the program's highest point total and largest margin of victory in seven years. Seven Wolverine wrestlers earned bonus points, including Diehl, Churella, Luke and Biondo, who all tallied first-period falls. Diehl and Churella avenged their losses from earlier in the day as each picked up his second fall of the season to prematurely end U-M's matches at 133 and 149 pounds, respectively. Diehl used an arm bar to stick Jerome Greco at the 2:05 mark, while Churella, ranked seventh, turned Anthony Constantino for the fourth time late in the opening frame and came around to the front to seal up his pin at 2:54. Luke's fall -- coming at the 2:42 mark against Travis Creagen -- capped his dominant first period that opened with a five-point move, while Biondo needed even less time, locking up a cradle on an early single-leg shot to roll up Mike Bossetta just 20 seconds into his bout. Watts opened the dual with a 5-4 decision victory over 17th-ranked Brandon Kinney -- Columbia's lone ranked wrestler -- at 125 pounds. The Lion scored a late takedown in the third period to even the score, but Watts earned an immediate escape to stay ahead by one point. Fifth-year senior Jeff Marsh (Dexter, Mich./Dexter HS) and Todd added major decisions at 157 and 184 pounds, respectively, while Tannenbaum earned a dominant 16-1 technical fall at 165. The Wolverine captain, ranked No. 1 at 165 pounds, tallied three takedowns and nine back points to end his match with Joe Kushnerick at the conclusion of the second period. U-M closed the busy day in strong fashion, rallying from an early deficit with eight individual wins against Mountaineers, including two falls and two major decisions, to win 32-9. Freshman Kellen Russell (High Bridge, N.J./Blair Academy) earned his most convincing win of the day with a first-period pin against Marcus Cox -- the first fall of his collegiate career. The U-M rookie, ranked No. 1 at 141 pounds, scored two takedowns and a three-point near fall to lead 8-3 late in the frame before taking advantage of a scramble on the mat to stack up Cox and pin him at 2:49. With his perfect 3-0 mark at the Lone Star Duals, Russell improved his career record to 18-0. It is the best start for a U-M true freshman in program history. Luke secured the Wolverines' other pin against Appalachian State, sticking Brett Houghtman at 2:42 to earn three first-period falls in three matches. Luke struck immediately with a fireman's carry, sending Houghtman to his back for a quick five points, and, after using a chicken wing to pick up another three-point near fall, he finished on his third attempt late in the frame. Luke boasts four pins on the season. Tannenbaum and Todd used a plethora of takedowns to earn major decisions in their matches. Tannenbaum scored five, picked up a pair of stalling points and accumulated 2:26 in riding time to cruise past Tommy Hutchinson 13-2. Tannenbaum improved his record to 16-0 with three wins on the day. Todd, ranked fourth, converted on four takedowns and earned more than three minutes of riding-time advantage to win against Austin Trotman and extend his winning streak to 12. The Wolverines (10-1, 0-0 Big Ten) will compete in the prestigious Cliff Keen/NWCA National Duals on Saturday and Sunday (Jan. 12-13) in Cedar Falls, Iowa. U-M will be one of 16 teams competing in the Division I field. Hosted by the University of Northern Iowa, all matches will be held at the UNI-Dome.

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- No. 6 Oklahoma State handed No. 1 Iowa a 19-14 defeat Saturday in front of 14,332 gold-clad fans in Carver-Hawkeye Arena to claim their ninth straight win in the series and their 12th win in their last 13 meetings with the Hawkeyes. Including Saturday's win, Oklahoma State has now beaten the top-ranked team in the nation 11 times since 1977 and four times under John Smith. "We looked forward to this match for some time and we knew that scoring takedowns was going to be the difference and we did that," Smith said. "We didn't have much of a strategy going in except getting takedowns." Seniors Coleman Scott and Jake Dieffenbach both picked up wins over Hawkeye wrestlers ranked No. 2 in the nation, as Scott handed No. 2 Joe Slaton an 8-6 beating and Dieffenbach claimed a 5-3 victory over second-ranked Mark Perry. "This is nice, but it's not what I'm after," Dieffenbach said after being asked if Saturday's victorious trip to Iowa was the time of his life. "If I go 0-and-2 at NCAAs, nobody will remember me. If I win an NCAA championship, then I'll call it the time of my life." Though Scott's and Dieffenbach's were impressive, perhaps even more crucial to the Cowboys' team success were Newly McSpadden's 4-2 decision over No. 19 Ryan Morningstar at 157 pounds and true freshman Clayton Foster's 12-1 major decision win over Rick Loera at 197 pounds. Shendandoah, Iowa, native Brandon Mason was also a winner for OSU, shutting out No. 11 Jay Borschel by a 2-0 margin. "We're progressing every week," Scott said. "We're going to be there right in the mix at the end of the year." The Cowboys return to action when they compete at the Virginia Duals in Hampton, Va., January 11 and 12. Match-by-Match Breakdown: 125 pounds: Oklahoma State freshman Ben Ashmore's strong upset bid was bolstered when he recorded a three-point nearfall in the third period to take a 6-5 lead, but a reversal from No. 5 Charlie Falck with 54 seconds left in the match, plus a 1:14 riding time advantage gave Falck the final edge in a 7-5 decision. 133 pounds: In the most intense match of the evening, top-ranked Coleman Scott raced out to a 7-1 lead and held off a comeback bid by second-ranked Joe Slaton to claim a 7-6 win. Scott notched a takedown at the 1:41 mark of the first period for the only scoring of the opening stanza. After choosing down to open the second, Scott escaped at the 1:41 mark, then posted another takedown at the 1:18 mark to jump out to a 5-0 advantage. A Slaton escape with 19 seconds remaining in the period brought the score to 5-1 entering the third period. Scott bagged his third takedown of the match with 1:41 reaming to open up his widest lead at 7-1. Slaton rushed back with an escape and a late surge, but Scott kept the sophomore at bay and added a riding time point to claim the 8-4 win. 141 pounds: Nathan Morgan was the aggressor throughout the match to claim an 8-4 win over 10th-ranked Dan LeClere. Morgan notched one takedown in each of the three periods and held a 5-1 advantage after a takedown with 1:19 remaining in the second period. A LeClere escape with 29 seconds left in the second stanza trimmed Morgan's advantage to 5-2 heading into the third period. The final period started with a quick escape by LeClere to make it 5-3, but a takedown by Morgan with 51 seconds left brought the score to 7-3 and put the match out of reach for LeClere, who notched a late escape. Morgan added a riding time point to bring the final score to 8-4. 149 pounds: No. 2 Brent Metcalf established himself early and took the match to Quinten Fuentes for a full seven minutes to claim a 20-8 win over the Cowboy freshman. Fuentes was unable to take Metcalf down, with Metcalf logging eight takedowns and a reversal in a bout that was never in doubt. 157 pounds: No. 14 Newly McSpadden avoided a late takedown bid by 19th-ranked Ryan Morningstar in what ended up being arguably the key moment of McSpadden's 4-2 win. The scoring opened with a McSpadden takedown with 43 seconds remaining in the first period, followed by a Morningstar escape with 28 seconds left in the opening stanza that sent McSpadden into the second stanza with a 2-1 lead. After choosing down to start the period, McSpadden escaped to go up 3-1 with 1:43 left for the only points of the period. McSpadden rode Morningstar for the bulk of the third period, but an escape with 44 seconds left brought the score to 3-2. With Morningstar desperate for a takedown late in the match, McSpadden fought off his best effort to seal the win. He added 1:15 of riding time to bring the final to 4-2. 165 pounds: For those who were unsure of what OSU senior Jake Dieffenbach was capable of, he made a bold statement Saturday with a 5-3 win over reigning national champion and second-ranked Mark Perry. A scoreless first period that included very few shots was followed by a second period that saw Perry open the scoring by escaping at the 1:50 mark to go up 1-0. Things remained largely stagnant until Dieffenbach took the Stillwater native down with 19 seconds remaining, then turned the Hawkeye's biggest star two seconds later to record a two-point nearfall and bring the score to 4-1 entering the final period. Perry logged a takedown with 1:37 remaining to trim Dieffenbach's advantage to 4-3, but a Dieffenbach escape with 35 ticks left dashed Perry's hopes of a win. 174 pounds: Wrestling in his home state, OSU junior and Shenandoah, Iowa native, Brandon Mason claimed a 2-0 win over No. 11 Jay Borschel. After the two wrestlers went through the first period scoreless, Mason chose down to start the second and escaped with 1:38 on the clock for the period's only point. Down 1-0 to start the third, Borschel chose down. Mason capitalized on the sophomore's decision and rode him out the entire final stanza, finishing with 1:40 of riding time to claim a 2-0 win. 184 pounds: No.12 Phillip Keddy picked up a 12-2 major decision win over Oklahoma State's Cody Hill behind the strength of four takedowns and a pair of stalling calls on Hill. Keddy controlled the match from the start and finished with 4:10 of riding time added on. 197 pounds: Cowboy true freshman Clayton Foster announced his presence to the Iowa wrestling faithful by picking up a takedown and a three-point nearfall within the first two minutes of his 12-1 win over Hawkeye sophomore Rick Loera. Taking a 5-1 lead into the second stanza, Foster rode Loera out for the entire period. Starting the third period down, Foster notched an escape eight seconds in, then notched a takedown and a three-point nearfall to go up, 11-1 at the 1:07 mark. After 4:37 of riding time was added on, Foster was a 12-2 winner. Heavyweight: Jared Rosholt was cut under his eye early in the match and lost a slow-paced 4-3 decision to No. 8 Matt Fields.

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Michigan State wrestling defeated Ohio Friday night, tallying its first home dual victory of the season in the 39-0 win in Jenison Field House. Two Spartans earned their first career starts and dual wins en route to MSU's first shutout since defeated Eastern Michigan 39-0 on Feb. 1, 1998. With the win, Michigan State evens its record to 3-3-0, while Ohio dropped to 4-3-0. The match started with an Ohio forfeit at 125 pounds, giving the Spartans a quick 6-0 advantage. No. 3 Franklin Gomez remained perfect in dual action with his 13-3 major decision victory over Seth Morton. Gomez began the match with two takedowns in the first, sandwiching Morton's escape. In the second period, Gomez tallied an escape and another takedown, picking up three points. In the final period, Morton escaped twice but forfeited a point for stalling and couldn't overcome Gomez' two takedowns. With the win, MSU extended its lead to 10-0. At 141 pounds, Micah Carter made his first career start for the Spartans, and tallied his first dual win, taking down Germane Lindsey in a 12-6 decision. Carter jumped out to a fast 5-0 lead, with a takedown and three near fall points. Lindsey managed an escape, only to be taken down again to give Carter a 7-1 lead after the first period. The pair traded points in the second, then Carter started the third with another takedown. Lindsey fought back with an escape and eventual takedown, but Carter held on to capture the win, 11-6. Anthony Jones Jr. also started and won his first dual match, defeating Kevin Christensen 5-3 at 149 pounds. After a scoreless first period, Jones struck first with an escape, but Christensen took a one-point lead with a takedown. Heading into the third period, Jones gave up an escape but posted a takedown to tie the score 3-3, forcing a sudden-death overtime. Moments into the extra minute, Jones picked up two points with the winning takedown. John Fulger continued to dominate for the Green and White, picking up a 7-2 win over Clay Tucker at 157 pounds. In the second period, Fulger tallied the first points with a takedown, then earned three more with an escape and an additional takedown in the third. With a 5-0 lead, Tucker managed a reversal to put two points on the board, but Fulger quickly posted a reversal of his own, to seal the win for Michigan State. After the end of five bouts, the Spartans led Ohio 19-0. Coming out of intermission, Rex Kendle showed no signs of Michigan State letting up, as the 165-pounder posted the night's second major decision for the Spartans; Kendle defeated Kent Smith 10-2. Smith struck first with a takedown, but Kendle soon regained control with an escape and a takedown to finish the first period ahead 3-2. Kendle tallied the remainder of the points with an escape, two takedowns and two nearfall points. The eight major decision points boosted MSU's lead to 23-0. At 174 pounds, John Murphy earned the night's only fall, pinning Ryan Knapp in 6:44. The match started with an MSU 4-1 advantage after the first, and Murphy tacked on additional points to lead 9-2. With an early takedown in the third, Murphy lead 11-2 before pinning Knapp in the final minute. Nick Palmieri kept the Spartans' shutout alive with an 11-3 major decision victory over Erik Schuth at 184 pounds. Palmieri tallied two takedowns in the first, while Schuth managed a single escape. After a scoreless second period, Palmieri tacked on six points with three takedowns, but gave up two Ohio escapes. With the additional point from riding time. Palmieri chalked up the major decision win and added on four team points for the Spartans' 33-0 lead. MSU's No. 18 Joe Williams took a solid 5-0 lead against Chris Iammarino after two periods at 197 pounds. Iammarino gave MSU a scare as he tallied two near fall points, but Williams quickly rolled loose for an escape point. With a 6-2 lead, Williams took down Iammarino and inched Michigan State one bout closer to a perfect night. In the night's final match, Alan O'Donnell battled to the last seconds with Ohio's Jason Marshall. O'Donnell, who returned to the starting lineup after missing over a month with a knee injury, picked up three escape points after a scoreless first period, but Marshall maintianed a 4-3 lead with takedown points. Marshall extended his lead to 5-4 with an early escape in the third, but O'Donnell swept in to tally a takedown. Marshall eventually escaped again, and rebuttled with a takedown of his own, regaining the lead 8-6. O'Donnell inched back within one point with an escape, and with four seconds left in regulation, O'Donnell gave the fans a thrilling finish, taking down Marshall for the eventual 9-8 win. The Spartans return to the mat Saturday, Jan. 12 in Oklahoma City, Okla., taking on Pittsburgh and Oklahoma. Action begins at 2 p.m.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- With a 27-6 win over Kent State Friday, the No. 12 Ohio State wrestling team won its sixth consecutive match of the season at the M.A.C. Center in Kent, Ohio. The Buckeyes improve to 9-1 overall, while the Golden Flashes fall to 4-2 in dual action. Senior heavyweight and second-ranked J.D. Bergman kept his perfect record in tact at 15-0, including a 10-0 mark in dual competition. Redshirt-sophomore Mike Pucillo and true freshman Colt Sponseller remained undefeated in dual action, moving to 9-0 and 5-0 on the year, respectively. After dropping the first two matches at 125 and 133 pounds to give Kent State six team points, Ohio State reeled off eight consecutive wins, including major decisions by Lance Palmer (149), Jason Johnstone (157) and Bergman. Redshirt-junior and 10th-ranked J Jaggers gave the Buckeyes their first points of the match with a 3-2 decision over No. 13 Drew Lashaway at 141 pounds. Still down 6-3, No. 9 Lance Palmer propelled Ohio State to its first lead after handing Clint Sponseller an 11-1 loss. Never relinquishing the lead from that point, junior Jason Johnstone defeated Sli Bostelman, 13-2, to increase the OSU lead to 11-6. Clint's younger brother, Buckeye and 165-pounder Colt Sponseller decisioned his way to another win after beating No. 15 Kurt Gross, 8-5. At 174 pounds, Alex Picazo downed Mike Estep, 10-5, before Pucillo dropped Eric Chine, 8-2. John Weakley earned his sixth win of the season with a 13-9 decision over Michael Blackwell before Bergman sealed the OSU victory with a 17-6 win over No. 18 Jermail Porter. Ohio State will break from dual action when it participates in the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals Jan. 12-13 in Cedar Falls, Iowa. The all-day event will be hosted by Northern Iowa at the UNI-Dome. This is the first time since 2004 Ohio State has participated in the National Duals.