InterMat Staff

LOCK HAVEN, Pa. -– The Lock Haven University wrestling team (6-3, 1-1 EWL) finished third at the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championships. The Bald Eagles had one individual champion and three Haven grapplers earned runner-up honors. No. 8 Edinboro University took home the team title followed by Bloomsburg University. No. 9 senior Seth Martin (Selinsgrove, Pa./Selinsgrove) won his second straight individual PSAC title at 157 pounds topping rival Matt Hill of Edinboro 5-1 in the championship match after cruising into the finals. He started things off by pinning Kutztown University's David Zeek 1:03 into the second period and followed that up with a 14-2 major decision victory over Jarrett Hostetter of Millersville University. No. 7 junior Obenson Blanc (Naples, Fla./Lely) took second at 125, falling to Bloomsburg's Mike Sees in the finals, 10-5. Blanc reached the finals after beating East Stroudsburg University's Stephen Gambino and Eric Morrill of Edinboro. Blanc earned the major decision victory over both with identical 15-4 scores. Freshman Tom Kocher (Lancaster, Pa./Manheim Township) also took second after falling to Alex Clemson of Edinboro 14-4 in the finals. Kocher got to the 184 pound finals with just one win, but it was big one for the rookie, as he pinned David Williams of East Stroudsburg just 29 seconds into the third period Joining Blanc and Kocher with second place finishes was freshman Jeremie Cook (Venice, Fla.Venice) who took second at 197. Cook fell in the finals 3-2 to Edinboro's Jim Gibson. Like Kocher, Cook also got to the finals with just one win, a 10-6 victory over Keith McDonald of Millersville. Landis Wright (Wingate, Pa./Bald Eagle) continued to enjoy a successful rookie season, as the freshman took third at 165. Wright kicked things off with an 11-3 major decision over KU's Sonny Flood. Wright followed that up with a loss in the second round with an 8-2 victory. In the third-place match he topped Josh Evans of Millersville 12-5, good enough for the major decision. Senior Michael Metzger (Shillington, Pa./Governor Mifflin) joined Wright as a third place finisher. Metzger dropped his first match of the tournament, but followed it up with two straight wins, which earned him third-place honors at 174. He topped Clarion's Scott Joseph 9-4 and Millersville's Jeremy Brooks 11-2. Sophomore Ben Hepburn (Williamsport, Pa./Loyalsock) was one of three Bald Eagles to place fourth. He took fourth at 285 after falling to Clarion's A.J. Brooks, 6-2 in the championship bout. Hepburn got to the finals after starting his tournament with a 6-3 win over Kutztown's Rich Dalmas and followed that up with a 2-0 win over Charles Deighton of East Stroudsburg. Zach Kell (Ickesburg, Pa./West Perry) placed fourth for the Haven. The 141-pound freshman opened the tournament with a loss, but bounced back with a 6-4 win over Sean Carr of ESU. Kell then fell to Clarion University's Greg Lewis 10-3 in the third-place match. Along with Kell, freshman Donnie Ament (Acme, Pa./Mount Pleasant) also placed fourth. Wrestling at 149 pounds, Ament started the tournament with a loss, but rebounded by defeating Kutztown's Chris Chambers 6-2. Ament then lost in the third-place match 5-4 to Joel Webster of Edinboro. Freshman Nick Hyatt (Boyertown, Pa./Boyertown) placed for the Bald Eagles after finishing in sixth place at 133. He started his tournament with a 13-4 major decision win. Hyatt then fell to East Stroudsburg's John Stout 2-0 and Bloomsburg's Ricky Donald 8-0.

PISCATAWAY, N.J. –- Sophomore Matt Pletcher (Eastampton, N.J.) and freshman Chris Norrell (Phillipsburg, N.J.) went undefeated to lead the Rutgers wrestling team to a 3-0 record as it hosted Boston University, Delaware State and New York University on Saturday at the College Avenue Gym. "I'm really proud of our kids," said head coach John Sacchi. "They wrestled really well. We had a lot of intensity and really got after it. This is what we've been shooting for and hopefully we are now seeing, and will continue to see, the benefits of our hard work." Pletcher recorded three-consecutive decisions at 165 pounds to go 3-0 on the day, while Norrell posted two pins and had one decision win, also finishing with an unblemished 3-0 mark. Ryan Jablonski (Norristown, Pa.), Jack Barrett (Metuchen, N.J.), and Mike D'Amico (Kenilworth, N.J.) all went 3-0, winning two matches and being awarded a forfeit during the day. Lamar Brown (Red Bank, N.J.) went 2-0 on the day, as did freshman Keith Dobish (Lodi, N.J.), who returned to the mat for the first time since Jan. 9, due to an injury. In the opening match, the Scarlet Knights (8-3, 4-2 EIWA) defeated Boston University, 39-9. Senior Jablonskigot RU out to an early 3-0 lead with a 7-0 decision win over Abbie Rush. After BU won the next two bouts, Barrett won an exciting 10-8 overtime match, scoring a takedown 20 seconds into the first extra period. Norrell recorded a pin at 157 pounds at the 6:01 mark, while Pletcher won an 8-2 decision at 165 pounds. Mike Whalen (Lake Hiawatha, N.J.) won a 7-2 decision in the next bout, while at 184 pounds, Dobish pinned Boston University's Eli Vidal at the 3:49 mark. Following a 10-6 decision win by Brown at the 197-pound bout, D'Amico recorded a pin over Orey Hall 3:16 into the match. Rutgers won a 43-3 dual over Delaware State in the second round, including four forfeits by the Hornets. Barrett recorded a pin at 149 pounds, while Norrell and Pletcher each won by decision. At the 194-pound bout, Mike Elshamy (Brick, N.J.) won a 7-2 decision, followed by a major at 197 pounds by Karim Mahmoud (Wallington, N.J.). In the final match of the day, the Scarlet Knights came up with a 41-6 win over New York University. Jablonski and Kyle Milanese (Delran, N.J.) both won by major decision at 125 and 133 pounds, respectively, while Norrell posted his second pin of the day at 157 pounds just 36 seconds into the match. Pletcher won his third decision of the day, 6-2, of NYU's Seaon Connors, while Dobish recorded a 18-8 win over Nick Coleman. Brown pinned the Bobcats' Alex Chianurashvili at the 2:04 mark, while D'Amico won a 10-3 decision at heavyweight. The Scarlet Knights will host in-state rival Rider on Wednesday, Jan. 31, at the College Avenue Gym at 7:00 p.m. RESULTS

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa -- Oklahoma State's fourth-ranked wrestling team won five matches by bonus points and eight matches overall en route to a 35-6 victory over Northern Iowa inside the McLeod Center in Cedar Falls, Iowa. OSU improved to 12-3 on the season, while UNI fell to 3-8 on the year. The Cowboys jumped out to a 15-0 lead in the dual after just three matches. Tyler Shinn only needed two minutes before pinning Grant Ruge to start the dual. Coleman Scott followed with a major decision at 133, and Nathan Morgan capped the streak with a technical fall that ended with 11 seconds remaining in the second period. Northern Iowa's lone wins came at 149 and 157. Ryan Osgood scored the winning takedown in overtime to defeat OSU's B.J. Jackson, and Moza Fay followed with a decision over Newly McSpadden. OSU won the next four matches to put the dual away. Johny Hendricks extended his winning streak to 46 straight matches with a 2-1 decision over fifth-ranked Nick Baima. Baima was whistled for a violation in the first period, which proved to be the difference in the match. Brandon Mason recorded a decision over Alex Dolly to put the Cowboys up 21-6. The lead swelled to 29-6 when Jack Jensen and Jared Shelton both recorded major decisions. Jensen scored nine points in the third period and Shelton scored seven third period points to both secure the major. Jared Rosholt won by forfeit in the final match of the night at heavyweight. The Cowboys return to action tomorrow afternoon at 2 p.m. when they face the third-ranked Iowa State Cyclones at the Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa. The dual will be broadcast live on 93.7 FM with Rex Holt and Roger Moore calling the action.

BETHLEHEM, Pa. -– No. 24 Lehigh kicked off a busy weekend of action with two impressive victories Saturday afternoon in front of 1,713 fans inside Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall. The Mountain Hawks opened things up with a 31-13 triumph over Harvard, before closing out the day with a 30-15 win over Brown. The wins improve the Brown and White to 11-6 on the season and 4-1 in EIWA duals. "I'm really pleased with the way the guys wrestled today," said Lehigh head coach Greg Strobel. "We came in expecting Harvard to win maybe five or six, but to earn a 6-4 split in our favor was good. We're using today and the two big matches tomorrow to simulate the Easterns. We survived day one day, now we have to get ready for the ‘finals' against two pretty good teams." Lehigh won six of ten bouts against the Crimson (0-5, 0-2 EIWA), scoring bonus points in five. Sophomore Matt Fisk secured the first of three Lehigh falls in the dual, scoring two quick first period takedowns before pinning Ryan Fitzgerald in 47 seconds. Harvard came back to take a 9-6 lead, behind decisions from Robbie Preston at 133 and Max Meltzer at 141 over Lehigh's Seth and Matt Ciasulli; and then a 10-1 major decision by sixth ranked J.P. O'Connor over sophomore Trevor Chinn. Senior Dave Nakasone gave Lehigh its second lead with his first of two falls on the day, as he broke open a close bout with a takedown of Bobby Latessa before earning the fall with just over a minute remaining in the third period. A decision from Frankie Colletta over Lehigh freshman Manuel Schubert put the Crimson ahead again, but senior tri-captain David Helfrich gave the Mountain Hawks the lead for good, with a first period pin of Patrick Ziemnik at 174. At 184, freshman David Craig picked up one of his most impressive wins of the season, scoring a first period takedown near the edge of the mat and holding on to knock off No. 11 Louis Caputo 5-3. Senior Matt Cassidy returned to the Lehigh lineup at 197 and put together seven takedowns to clinch the dual for the Mountain Hawks with a 16-6 win over Jonathan Butler. In the final bout against Harvard, Paul Weibel twice snuck his way out of takedown attempts from Harvard's second-ranked, undefeated heavyweight Bode Ogunwole. After the second attempt, Ogunwole called for injury time for an apparent left arm injury and did not return giving Weibel a win by injury default. Against Brown (1-6, 1-2 EIWA) Lehigh's lightweights propelled the Mountain Hawks to a 12-0 lead, as Fisk won by tech fall over Greg Einfrank, while Seth Ciasulli managed a 3-1 win in sudden victory over Jeff Schell. The decisive takedown came with 25 seconds left in the second sudden victory period. Matt Ciasulli followed with a major decision over Mark Savino. The Mountain Hawks suffered a tough break at 149 when Chinn was forced to default his match to Lenny Marandino after suffering an elbow injury with under a minute to go. Chinn was leading at the time, when Marandino tried a throw. The injury was serious enough that Chinn was unable to continue, giving Brown six points on the scoreboard. Lehigh then rolled up three straight wins, with Nakasone adding his second fall of the day, once again scoring a third period pin of Tom Fazio. Schubert and Helfrich followed with wins by decision to put Lehigh up 24-6. Brown put three more points on the board when Matt Gevelinger earned a 5-3 decision over Alex Iacocca, who was given an opportunity by Strobel at 184. Cassidy completed a successful return to action with a first period pin over Larry Otsuka. In the final bout of the day, Weibel was caught on his back and pinned by Brown's Levon Mock. The Mountain Hawks will continue their busy weekend with two more duals on Sunday. Lehigh will visit EIWA foe and No. 24 Columbia at 1 p.m. for the teams' first dual meet in ten years. The Mountain Hawks will then head to the New York Athletic Club to face No. 6 Hofstra at 5 p.m. The Columbia match will be broadcast on ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 as well as online at lehighsports.com with streaming powered by Yahoo! Sports.

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The wrestling team used back-to-back pins Saturday to defeat UNC Greensboro 24-18 in a Southern Conference dual. Aaron Martin and Jake Yost posted consecutive pins at 149 pounds and 157 pounds respectively to push UTC's margin to 12-3 at the midway point of the match. The Spartans, 5-3, claimed three of the last five matches but couldn't overcome the early deficit and suffered their first league loss after entering the day with a 3-0 SoCon mark. Javier Maldonado put the Mocs, now 12-1 and 2-0 in the conference, on the scoreboard first in the opening match with a 6-4 win over Jeff Hedges at 125. Matt Keller defeated Mitchell Johnson, 8-3 at 133 before UNCG broke into the scoring column on Chris Bencivenga's 13-12 win over Cody Cleveland at 141. Cleveland wrestled in place of former All-America Michael Keefe who was on the trip but recovering from an illness. Martin and Yost responded to Bencivenga's win with the consecutive pins. Martin's came against Marcus Hannah, and Yost pinned Nathan Berryman. T.J. Sayers scored a 6-5 decision at 165, and Josh Edmondson defeated Scott Snyder, 6-1 at 184 to round out the Mocs' scoring. The Spartans captured the 174-pound match and the 197 match. UNCG's Joe Lowe defeated 16th-ranked Lloyd Rogers, 9-7 at 174. The Mocs forfeited at heavyweight to tack on six points for UNCG in the last match. UTC takes on Appalachian State Sunday at 2 p.m. in Boone, N.C.

Ewing, NJ -- The College of New Jersey wrestling team swept through the Metropolitan Conference/New England Duals winning all three of its matches as the Lions pushed their winning streak to nine straight on Saturday. TCNJ is ranked eighth in the latest National Wrestling Coaches Association Brute – Adidas Division III poll and improved to 15-1 on the year. In the other matches, Worcester Polytechnic Institute edged Hunter College, 19-18, Williams College beat Hunter, 21-16, while 19th-ranked Roger Williams University toppled Hunter, 43-6. In the win over Roger Williams, the Lions fell behind 3-0 before winning seven straight weight classes. The big win for TCNJ came at 141 pounds as Tyler Branham (Newtown, NJ/Kittantiny) used a last-second takedown to score a 5-3 upset of fourth-ranked Andrew Lacroix. Adding to the decisive win for the Lions was Joey Galante (Ocean City, NJ/Ocean City) at 157 as the senior won by fall and Ray Sarinelli (Rockaway, NJ/Morris Hills) at 133 with a win by technical fall. TCNJ again got off to a fast start against WPI winning the first six bouts for a 25-0 lead. Tom Roberto (Hamilton, NJ/Notre Dame) opened the match with a 4-1 overtime at 125 pounds followed by a Sarinelli pin at 133 sending the Lions to the victory. Williams struck first versus the Lions in the final dual of the day winning the 125-pound weight class, but TCNJ stormed back as Sarinelli won by technical fall at 133 and Branham by fall at 141. Branham's victory put the Lions in front for good at 11-6. Sophomore Greg Osgoodby (Waldwick, NJ/Waldwick) hit a milestone later in the match as he collected his 50th career win with a pin in 1:26 over Paul Fraulo (Katonah, NY) at 174. On the day, the Lions had three grapplers go 3-0 with Sarinelli, Branham and Osgoodby each accomplishing that feat. The Lions close out the home portion of the schedule tomorrow hosting Springfield College in a dual meet with a noon start time at Packer Hall.

MADISON, Wis. -- For the first time since 1965, the No. 9 Wisconsin wrestling team (16-1-0, 2-1-0) defeated fifth-ranked Iowa 21-14 Saturday in Iowa City. UW took six of eight bouts, including a pin by No. 13 Dallas Herbst that sealed the Badgers' win. Wisconsin's victory is its first in 42 matches against the Hawkeyes. The action got started at 125 lbs., as Collin Cudd (River Falls, Wis.) faced 13th-ranked Charlie Falck. Falck notched a takedown 10 seconds into the match and never let down, defeating Cudd 12-9 after riding time. The Badgers evened the score at 133 lbs., as No. 16 Zach Tanelli (Milburn, N.J.) upset No. 15 Mario Galanakis. As expected, the match was tight and the scoring stingy, as Galanakis led 3-0 in the third period. With 1:06 remaining, Tanelli notched a takedown followed by a three-point nearfall to take the lead 5-3. Galanakis, who had over a minute of riding time, responded with an escape to tighten the score. However, Tanelli answered with a takedown at 19 seconds to win the match 7-5 and put the Badgers on the board. The upset wins continued for Wisconsin, as freshman Kyle Ruschell defeated sixth-ranked Alex Tsirtsis at 141 lbs. Tsirtsis was up 4-1 in the second period before Ruschell tallied a penalty point, an escape, and a takedown in the final 45 seconds to lead 5-4. The Crittedent, Ky., native added an escape in the third to win 6-4. Ruschell remained undefeated in Big Ten action and improved to 22-4 on the season. At 149 lbs., Senior Tyler Turner (Spring Valley, Wis.) extended the Badger lead with an 8-2 decision over Iowa's Alex Grunder. Turner went up 4-1 after scoring two takedowns in the first period. In the second, No. 6 Turner tallied three unanswered points to lead 7-1 after two. Grunder notched an escape in the third, but Turner would go on to win 7-2. With Wisconsin leading 9-3, No. 3 Craig Henning (Chippewa Falls, Wis.) defeated 12th-ranked Ryan Morningstar at 157 lbs. Henning's escape in the third period was the only scoring of the match, as Henning won 2-0 after riding time. Nevertheless, the Hawkeyes fought back, notching five team points after No. 3 Mark Perry earned a tech fall over Jake Donar (Cuba City, Wis.) at 165 lbs. At 174 lbs., Mike Felling (Hutchinson, Minn) put up a tough fight against No. 2 Eric Luedke. After a scoreless first period, Luedke earned an escape and a takedown in the second to lead 3-0 and eventually won 5-0 after a stalling point and riding time. UW held a narrow 12-11 lead going into the battle at 184 lbs., between No. 15 Trevor Brandvold and Iowa's Phillip Keddy. Keddy scored first with a takedown in the opening period, but Brandvold responded with two escapes and two takedowns to win 6-2 and give Wisconsin a four-point lead. Then, at 197 lbs., Herbst did what he does best, pinning Rick Loera at 49 seconds to put Wisconsin up 21-11 and secure the Badger win. Herbst now has 13 pins on the season and is 19-4 overall. Wisconsin fell in the heavyweight bout, but won the match 21-14. The Badgers continue their road stretch as they head to Purdue on Feb. 2, followed by Michigan on Feb. 4. Check uwbadgers.com for the latest updates and scores.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- North Carolina picked up a pin from Dennis Drury and a major decision from 10th-ranked Spencer Nadolsky in back-to-back bouts to break a 9-9 tie and earned its third ACC win Saturday over Virginia Tech at Carmichael Auditorium. Vincent Ramirez, Ben Fiacco and Keegan Mueller also picked up wins for the Tar Heels, who moved to .500 on the year at 6-6 and 3-1 in the ACC. Virginia Tech dropped to 5-7 and 0-2 in the ACC. Drury broke the tie after he pinned Kevin O'Connor at 4:12. Nadolsky then expanded the Tar Heel lead with his major decision, 10-2, over Jim Powers in the heavyweight match. Following a Virginia Tech forfeit at 125, Carolina went up 25-9 and didn't look back. With the victory, Nadolsky was able to win his final bout at Carmichael on Senior Day and improved to 19-6 on the season. Sophomore Vincent Ramirez got Carolina on the board first with a 9-5 decision against Jon Bonilla-Bowman. Into the third, Ramirez held a 4-3 advantage, but Bonilla-Bowman forced a takedown to even the score at 5-5. Ramirez then fought back with an escape and a takedown to go up 8-5 and added another point later for riding time. Redshirt freshman Ben Fiacco followed with three more points for the Tar Heels in his 8-3 win over Derek Gallagher at 157. 15th-ranked Keegan Mueller earned Carolina's third-straight decision of the day and put them ahead 9-0 early on. Mueller prevailed 2-0 against Eric Decker at 165 and improved his team-best record to 23-6. Trailing 9-0, Virginia Tech was able to even the match at 9-9 through a pin by Steve Ratley at 174 and a 7-0 decision by Steve Borja. Ratley's pin came at 39 seconds over Jake Forestiere, while Borja was able to defeat Robert McCarthy in the 184 match. In the last 2 bouts of the match, Virginia Tech took away two decisions as Sheridan Moran and Matt Rosen were able to win by virtue of a riding time point over both of their opponents. Moran's decision came against senior Bobby Shaw, while freshman Mike Rappo dropped the bout to Rosen. Six Tar Heels were able to record two wins on the weekend as Carolina defeated Virginia, 21-11, on Friday. The six included: Ramirez, Fiacco, Mueller, Drury, Nadolsky, and Forshey Next up for Carolina is Duke on Wednesday at Chapel Hill High School at 7 p.m.

PHILADELPHIA -- No. 6 Hofstra dominated the evening from start to finish, dropping just one match as the Pride rolled over No. 14 Penn, 31-3, in wrestling action Friday evening. The Quakers (3-5) got their lone win with a gritty, five-overtime decision from Matt Valenti at 133 lbs. "We were flat tonight," said Head Coach Zeke Jones. "Rarely do you get through an entire season without a flat night and that was our one for the year. Hofstra was a great team tonight." The meet started at 184 with No. 7 Joe Rovelli besting No. 13 Lior Zamir to put Hofstra up 3-0. Zamir scored first on a takedown in the first period, but Rovelli escaped and returned the favor to lead 3-2. Zamir went to neutral, but was hit with a penalty near the end of the period. Rovelli chose down to start the second and reversed and rode out Zamir, then took him down to start the third. Zamir picked up a final point on a stalling penalty, but Rovelli had locked up riding time to earn the 9-4 edge. Penn fell in a 7-0 hole at 197 after Jack Sullivan suffered a 20-8 major decision to No. 11 Chris Weidman. Weidman scored first but Sullivan reversed him and earned two back points, but Weidman took control from there on out, scoring at will with a flurry of late takedowns to earn the major. Heavyweight saw a slow-going match, with Ben Reiter and Matt Pollock twice receiving double-stalling warnings. After a scoreless first, Pollock produced an escape before the pair earned simultaneous stalling points. Pollock then took down Reiter, who escaped to end the second. Reiter looked to have a chance to win it in the third – after escaping, the sophomore was down a point; he shot in but Pollock worked around him for the decisive takedown. The Quakers hoped to pull some momentum back at 125, but No. 11 Matt Eveleth ended up being upset by #18 Dave Tomasette in an entertaining 2-0 decision. The pair went scoreless for the first two periods before Tomasette chose down to start the third and reversed Eveleth midway through the period. The highlight of the night came at 133, where defending national champion Matt Valenti gutted out a five-overtime decision over No. 18 Lou Ruggirello. The score was tied at four after regulation with each scoring a takedown and two escapes. After three scoreless periods, Ruggirello was down to start the fourth overtime and Valenti produced a three-point near-fall. Valenti escaped in the fifth overtime and then scored another takedown to win, 10-4. But things came unraveled for Penn after that. Brett McCurdy made his season debut and suffered a fall to No. 7 Charles Griffin in 4:45 at 141, before Rick Rappo wrestled up at 149 and fell, 9-3, to Mike Parziale. No. 14 Matt Dragon couldn't get anything done at 157, either, falling 7-2 to #2 James Strouse. Strouse scored three takedowns and an escape and led the entire way to win. Zack Shanaman nearly pulled off an upset but came up short to No. 6 Mike Patrovich. The Hofstra 165-pounder scored first on a takedown, but Shanaman escaped. The two went scoreless in the second, and Patrovich escaped to open the third period. Shanaman scored another takedown with a single-leg at the edge of the mat to tie it at 3-3, but Patrovich managed a late escape and had secured riding time for the 5-3 edge. With the meet already lost, No. 8 Matt Herrington fell victom to No. 17 Alton Lucas, 5-3. Lucas scored an escape and a takedown in the second, then got another takedown in the third for the advantage. Penn returns home for three meets on Feb. 2 when it meets Brown, Delaware State and Drexel starting at 10 a.m. at The Palestra.

CORVALLIS, Ore. –- The Oregon State wrestling team posted its most lopsided victory over Arizona State in nearly 30 years, as the Beavers rolled to a 31-10 victory at Gill Coliseum on Friday night. The Beavers (12-1 overall, 4-0 Pacific-10 Conference) stretched their home winning streak to 10 meets over the past two seasons. The Sun Devils, the two-time defending Pac-10 champions, dropped to 5-10, 2-2. The last time OSU posted a victory over ASU this big was in 1978 and a 30-9 win. This was also OSU's first victory over the Sun Devils in a dual since 2003 (the Beavers had lost the last three meetings). OSU captured seven of the 10 weight classes (one by forfeit) and were led by a pinfall by Brett Arand at 165, a technical fall by Kyle Larson at 141 and major decisions by Ty Watterson at heavyweight and Jeremy Larson at 174. "For us to take this step and to become a contender for the Pac-10 championship, you've got to beat them sometime," OSU Coach Jim Zalesky said. "Now's a good time to beat them. Guys stayed aggressive and did things the right way. We figured this team would keep getting better and better and that's what it's all about, to keep getting better by the end of the year." Watterson (ranked No. 15 nationally by the NWCA) got the ball rolling with a 10-2 major decision over ASU's Thor Moen in the first match of the night. Watterson had takedowns in each of the first two periods and added two more in the final stanza. The schools traded decisions at 125 and 133, with ASU's Josh Espinoza picking up a 9-4 win over OSU's Jake Gonzales in the former and OSU's Bobby Pfennigs beating ASU's Shawn Jones 7-2 in the latter. Kyle Larson (ranked No. 19 nationally by the NWCA) had little difficulty at 141, as his match against ASU's Robert Galvan was stopped with 1:09 remaining in the third period after Larson built a 21-5 lead. Larson had an 8-3 advantage after the first period and a 13-4 lead after the second. The match ended after his second three-point near fall of the final period. OSU took an overall lead of 12-3 after the match. A forfeit victory at 149 pushed OSU's overall lead to 18-3. ASU's Brian Stith (ranked No. 5 nationally by the NWCA) had to fight off a strong challenge by OSU's Keegan Davis at 157. Stith appeared to be satisfied with a 5-2 lead late in the third period, but Davis kept after him and scored a takedown with 16 seconds remaining. With Stith holding a 5-4 lead plus riding time, Davis had to let him escape. Davis tried for another takedown, but Stith got one instead and held on for a 9-4 victory. Arand, who came into the night with an 8-10 record at 165, may have had the highlight of the event as he rallied back from an early takedown to pin ASU's Kevin Gaughan. Gaughan led 2-0, but a late escape and takedown by Arand gave him a 3-2 lead after the first period. Arand started the second period with a reversal, then later had a takedown and turned that into his fourth pinfall of the season. It came with 58 seconds remaining in the second period and pushed OSU to a 24-6 lead. Jeremy Larson (ranked No. 18 nationally by the NWCA) then clinched OSU's overall victory with a major decision, 14-3, over ASU's Alex Pavlenko at 174. Larson scored the first seven points, including a three-point near fall in the first period, and only allowed Pavlenko three escapes (while following each one up with another takedown) in the final two minutes. The Beavers then held an insurmountable 28-6 lead with two matches left. The bout at 184 pitted the top two ranked wrestlers in the Pac-10, OSU's Kyle Bressler and ASU's Greg Gifford. Gifford scored takedowns in the first and second periods to go up 4-1, then added two more takedowns in the third period of his 10-2 major decision victory. In the final match of the night, OSU's Travis Gardner upset the second-ranked wrestler in the Pac-10, ASU's Jason Trulson, with a 6-4 victory. After no scoring in the first period, both wrestlers earned reversals in the second period and were tied 2-2. After two more reversals, it was tied 4-4 with under a minute to go in the final period. But with Gardner holding more than a minute of riding time, Trulson had to let Gardner escape with 51 seconds left. Gardner battled Trulson to a standstill the rest of the way and picked up the win. The Beavers next host another Pac-10 foe, Boise State, on Sunday (Jan. 28) at noon in Gill Coliseum. "The win gives us momentum," Zalesky said. "It's a big weekend. Boise State is probably doing a little better than Arizona State is right now so it's another big meet that we've got to be ready for."

OMAHA, Neb. -- Winning five of the first six matches and six of 10 overall, Augsburg College claimed a 23-13 victory over the University of Nebraska-Omaha in a matchup of two Midwest small-college wrestling powers on Friday night at UNO's Lee & Helene Sapp Fieldhouse. Augsburg, ranked No. 1 nationally in the NCAA Division III national poll, built a 17-3 lead after the first six matches to claim the win over the Mavericks, ranked No. 2 in the NCAA Division II national poll and the three-time defending Division II national champions. The Auggies are now 9-0 in dual meets on the season, having won 75 of 90 individual matches in its nine team victories this season. Against teams from Divisions II and III, Augsburg is now 216-16 since the 1989-90 season, losing just 11 matches to non-Division I opponents since the 1995-96 season. Augsburg has won nine Division III national titles in the last 16 seasons. Augsburg now has a 2-1 edge in the series against the Mavericks. The teams have battled the last three seasons, with each victory coming by the visiting team. Nebraska-Omaha is now 4-2 in duals this season. Augsburg's Marcus LeVesseur (Sr., Minneapolis, Minn./Bloomington Kennedy HS), ranked No. 1 nationally at 165 pounds, maintained his unbeaten collegiate record with his second straight victory over a top-ranked Division II wrestler, scoring a 4-1 win over Ross Taplin of Nebraska-Omaha. After topping Minnesota State Moorhead's Nate Baker, who was ranked No. 1 at the time, 3-2 in a dual on Tuesday, LeVesseur scored a decision win over Taplin, who moved into the top spot in the national rankings on Wednesday. LeVesseur, who won Division III national titles at 157 pounds three times (2003, 2004, 2005), improved to 17-0 on the season and improved his collegiate career record to 141-0, the second-longest winning streak in college wrestling history, behind the 159 of Cael Sanderson at Iowa State (1998-2002). LeVesseur has yet to lose a college wrestling match. George Lynaugh (Jr., Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Simley HS) claimed the lone pin of the evening, a second-period match ender over Austin Boehm at 184 pounds, a 4:37 pin that clinched the team victory for the Auggies. Lynaugh is now 22-4 on the season. Augsburg's four top-ranked wrestlers all claimed victories. In addition to LeVesseur, Quincy Osborn (Jr., Grand Rapids, Minn.), who moved into the top ranking at 141 pounds this week, improved to 30-2 on the season with an 11-1, major-decision win over Sam Bribieseca, ranked No. 8 in Division II. Jeremy Anderson (Jr., Thief River Falls, Minn.), ranked No. 1 at 157, improved to 26-1 with an 8-5 win over UNO's Henry Wahle. Augsburg's Jafari Vanier (Jr., Minneapolis, Minn./Bloomington Kennedy HS), ranked No. 1 at 133, needed overtime to score a 9-7 win over Jeff Rau, claiming a reversal in the final tiebreaker session. Vanier is now 14-0 on the season. Seth Flodeen (So., Cannon Falls, Minn.), ranked No. 3 at 125, claimed an 11-3, major-decision win in the match opener against Jimmy Ball. Flodeen gave up an early takedown, but rallied back with consecutive near-falls to take an 8-3 lead after one period, eventually claiming the 11-3 win. Two of Nebraska-Omaha's three top-ranked wrestlers scored victories. At 149, Todd Meneely scored a 11-4 decision over Augsburg's Jared Evans (Sr., Blue Earth, Minn./Blue Earth Area HS), ranked No. 4 in Division III. J.D. Naig, top-ranked at 174, scored a 10-2, major-decision win over Augsburg's Robbie Gotreau (Jr., Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson HS), ranked No. 3 in Division III. At 197, UNO's Jacob Marrs, ranked No. 2 nationally, claimed an 8-5 win over Augsburg's Wally O'Connor (Jr., Oshkosh, Wis./Oshkosh West HS), and at heavyweight, in a battle of No. 7-ranked wrestlers in their respective divisions, UNO's Tony Lewis scored a 7-3 win over Augsburg's Andrew Neumann (Sr., Somerset, Wis.). Augsburg returns to action with its third straight match against a Division II opponent, hosting St. Cloud State on Sunday (1/28) at 2 p.m. at Si Melby Hall in Minneapolis. UNO returns to action on Saturday (1/27) at 7 p.m. with a match at Dana (Neb.), ranked No. 5 in the NAIA national poll.

The #21 ranked Kent State wrestling team overcame an early 9-0 deficit to register a 22-12 victory over Northern Illinois University in the home opener for the Golden Flashes. Kent State's victory also enabled the Flashes to move into first place in the Mid-American Conference at 2-0. Northern Illinois opened the match with an 11-5 decision by Johnny Galloway over freshman Sli Bostelman (Tontogany, Ohio/Ostego) at 165 pounds. The Huskies increased their lead to 6-0 as Danny Burk scored a 3-2 decision over senior Aaron Miller (Uniopolis, Ohio/Wapakoneta) at 174 pounds. NIU's Duke Burk scored a 9-4 decision over sophomore Eric Chine (Austintown, Ohio/Austintown Fitch) at 184 pounds as the Huskies took a 9-0 lead after three matches. Kent State got on the board when senior Ardian Ramadani (Garfield , N.J./Garfield) scored a 3-1 decision over Nick McClone at 197 pounds to cut the Golden Flashes' deficit to six at 9-3. Ramadani, ranked 20th nationally at 197 pounds, is now 18-9 overall. Sophomore heavyweight Jermail Porter (Akron, Ohio/Firestone) scored a 7-4 decision over Dave Benner to pull Kent State closer at 9-6. Porter's win increased his overall record this season to 20-7. He entered the match ranked 19th nationally. Northern Illinois increased its advantage to 12-6 when Pat Castillo scored a 7-4 decision over senior Chad Sportelli (Easton, Pa./Easton) at 125 pounds. Castillo entered the match ranked 17th nationally while Sportelli ranked 19th. The loss was the first for Sportelli in a dual match this season (13-1). Sophomore Danny Mitcheff (Lorain, Ohio/Elyria) scored a 10-7 decision over Gralen Early at 133 pounds to pull the Flashes within three at 12-9. The momentum turned in favor of the Golden Flashes when sophomore Clint Sponseller (Glenmount, Ohio/West Holmes) put Kent State in the lead with a pin of Justin Metcalfe at 141 pounds. Sponseller led the match 5-2 when he pinned Metcalfe 4:24 into the match. Senior Jason McGee (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio/Cuyahoga Falls) clinched the victory for Kent State when he registered a 9-1 major decision over Will McDermott at 149 pounds. McGee's victory increased his overall record this season to 22-9. Senior Kurt Gross (North Royalton, Ohio/Padua Franciscan) ended the match with a 6-1 victory in overtime over Kalen Knull at 157 pounds. Head Coach Jim Andrassy praised the efforts of his team in the come-from-behind victory. "At first I was nervous, especially after we lost at 174 and 184 pounds," Andrassy said. "But, this team has someone different step us for us in each dual match. Today, Clint Sponseller got us the lead and Jason McGee clinched the win. As a team, we have a knack of finding ways to win." Kent State (13-1, 2-0 MAC) hosts the University of Pittsburgh at 2:05 p.m. on Sunday (1/28) in the M.A.C. Center.

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -– The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team, ranked No. 12 nationally, pounded visiting Ohio State 26-12 in a key Big Ten dual in Rec Hall. Junior All-American Phil Davis (Harrisburg, Pa.) began the match with a pin of Buckeye All-American J.D. Bergman to spark Penn State to the convincing win. The match began at 197 in, perhaps, the evening's most anticipated match-up. Penn State's two-time All-American, Phil Davis (Harrisburg, Pa.) met Ohio State All-American J.D. Bergman. Davis entered the bout ranked No. 3 nationally while Bergman was ranked No. 7. The two All-Americans spent the first two minutes feeling out the other's game plan. Bergman was working for more openings high on Davis' body while Davis was looking to shoot low. At the :30 mark, Bergman got a hold of Davis right leg and spent the half minute working to get Davis down. But as time wound down, Davis held off the move and, with two seconds left, spun around behind Bergman and got a takedown as the period ended to go up 2-0 after one period. Up 2-0, Davis chose down to start the second and spend the first :30 working on a reversal to go up 4-0. After a Bergman escape, Davis kept up his relentless offense and took Bergman down again, high on his torso. Using his strength, Davis proceeded to push Bergman over to his back. After less than :20 of work, Davis adjusted his weight and got a thrilling and convincing pin at the 4:18 mark. The win gave Penn State an early 6-0 lead and improved Davis to 17-1 on the year. Bergman fell to 15-5. Nittany Lion senior Aaron Anspach (Columbia, Pa.) took on Buckeye Corey Morrison at heavyweight. Anspach, ranked No. 12, put together a dominating first period. Two takedowns in the first two minutes had the Penn State co-captain up 4-2 early. With :40 left, Anspach added another takedown and proceeded to put together a very nice ride, keeping control of Morrison for the remainder of the period to lead 6-2 with 1:10 in riding time after one period. Anspach chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 7-2 lead. Anspach then countered a low Morrison shot on the edge of the mat for another takedown and went up 9-3 after a Morrison escape. After a reset, Anspach pushed Morrison backwards and got another takedown to increase his lead to 11-4 after two periods. Morrison chose down to start the third period but found the going tough as Anspach continued to dominate from the top position. Morrison did escape, but not until Anspach had a 2:25 riding time edge. Needing on more takedown to get a major decision, Anspach's relentless offense began to wear down Morrison. Anspach got another takedown at with less than a minute left to go up 13-5 with a riding time point guaranteed as well. The Nittany Lion senior would maintain control for the rest of the period and post a 14-5 major decision. Penn State went up 10-0 with the win and Anspach improved to 11-2. Morrison fell to 10-14. At 125, Penn State's Mark McKnight (McDonald, Pa.) met Will Livingston of Ohio State. McKnight, ranked No. 5 in the country, got the first takedown of the bout at the 2:00 mark to go up 2-1 after a Livingston escape. Forty seconds later, McKnight added a second takedown and allowed Livingston up to lead 4-2. Livingston nearly took McKnight down with :25 left, but McKnight spun out of the near takedown and got in on Livingston himself. The Buckeye freshman fought off McKnight's efforts, however, and McKnight led 4-2 after one period. McKnight chose down to start the second period. Livingston put together a nice ride, working McKnight long enough to build up over a minutes worth of riding time. McKnight did escape with :06 left and, keeping hold of Livingston's wrist, held the Buckeye's hand down to the mat, spun around and got a takedown with :01 left. The quick move put McKnight up 7-2 after two periods. Livingston chose down to start the final period and quickly escaped to a 7-3 deficit. McKnight, beginning to get his offense going, got another takedown to up his lead to 9-3 with 1:38 left to wrestle. Livingston reversed McKnight to cut the lead to 10-5 after a McKnight escape. Livingston added another takedown with :01 left but the final flurry was not enough as McKnight posted a 10-8 decision (Livingston got a riding time point). The win put the Nittany Lions up 13-0 and improved McKnight's record to 17-2. Livingston fell to 13-11. Penn State sophomore Jake Strayer (South Fork, Pa.), ranked No. 8 at 133, met Ohio State's T.J. Enright. After nearly three minutes of scoreless wrestling, Enright got on the board with just :07 left, getting a nice takedown to lead 2-0 after one period. Strayer chose down to begin the second period and quickly escaped to a 2-1 deficit. With renewed offensive vigor, Strayer began setting the tempo. Enright managed to block off each of Strayer's shots. Strayer, however, countered an Enright shot and, after working around from in front of the Buckeye, got his first takedown at the :32 mark to take a 3-2 lead. Strayer maintained control for the rest of the period to lead 3-2 after two periods. Enright chose down to start the third stanza and escaped to tie the bout at 3-3 with 1:51 left in the bout. After a scramble in the middle of the mat, Strayer got a takedown to take the lead and, using his back and legs, turned Enright over for two near fall points. With a riding time point added, Strayer got an 8-3 decision to put Penn State up 16-0. Strayer moved to 17-3 with the win while Enright fell to 8-4. At 141, Nittany Lion junior Bryan Heller (Fair Haven, N.J.) took on Ohio State's J Jaggers. A wild scramble to start the bout saw Heller nearly take Jaggers to his back, then Jaggers nearly takedown Heller, ended in a stalemate. Still, the action set the tempo for the bout. Jaggers got in on Heller's right leg with 1:30 left and deftly turned the Lion junior to his back. After just a few seconds of work, Jaggers got the pin at the 2:05 mark. The six team points cut the Penn State lead to 16-6. Heller fell to 14-6 with the loss while Jaggers improved to 11-6. The first of three straight freshmen in the Penn State line-up (and four overall) stepped onto the mat at 149 where red-shirt freshman Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.) met Ohio State's Lance Palmer, who entered the bout ranked No. 16. Palmer set the early tempo of the bout but could not break through Vallimont's tough early defense. Palmer got the first takedown at the :31 mark but locked his hands in the process. Still, Palmer led 2-1 and continued to ride Vallimont for the rest of the period to hold that lead heading into the second period. Vallimont chose down to start the second period. Palmer got up high on Vallimont, however, and after :40 Vallimont was able to shake free of the ranked Buckeye and get a reversal to take a 3-2 lead. After the nice move, Vallimont proceeded to put together an exceptional ride, erasing over a minute's worth of riding time and riding Palmer out. Trailing 3-2, Palmer chose down to start the final period. Vallimont managed to maintain control long enough work up over a minute's worth of time himself. With :55 left, Vallimont nearly turned Palmer over and continued his strong work on top. Palmer scrambled from the bottom position but could not break free and the Nittany Lion red-shirt freshman posted an outstanding 4-2 upset win over the ranked Buckeye. The victory put Penn State up 19-6 and improved Vallimont's record to 13-7. Palmer fell to 17-11. True freshman Bubba Jenkins (Virginia Beach, Va.) met Ohio State's Jason Johnstone at 157. Jenkins wasted no time, getting a takedown less than :30 in to lead 2-1 after a Johnstone escape. Jenkins added another takedown to up his lead to 4-1 and put together enough of a ride to build up a 1:04 riding time edge before Johnstone escaped. The first-year grappler continued to set the tone for the remainder of the period and held the 4-2 lead after the first three minutes. Johnstone chose down to begin the second period and escaped after :30 of work. Jenkins countered a slight Johnstone shot and, after grabbing his left ankle, finished the nice move for a two-point takedown to lead 6-3. Johnstone, however, reversed the Lion freshman with :10 left to cut the lead to 6-5 after two periods. Jenkins chose down to begin the third period and escaped to a 7-5 lead. Jenkins also held 1:24 in riding time. Johnstone got in on Jenkins' right leg, but the Lion freshmen used outstanding strength to fight through the move and eventually work around for two points of his own. With just :40 left, Jenkins held a 9-5 lead and a guaranteed riding time point. Johnstone would escape before the bout ended, but Jenkins would post a convincing 10-6 win, his first in a Big Ten dual. The victory gave the Nittany Lions a 22-6 lead and improved Jenkins to 16-6 on the year. Johnstone fell to 13-12. At 165, true freshman Dave Rella (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio) met No. 16 Chris Vondruska of Ohio State. Rella had the first scoring attempt, getting in on a high single leg at the edge of the mat. But Vondruska fought off Rella's effort to force a reset at the 1:45 mark. Rella continued to set the offensive tempo, forcing the ranked Buckeye wrestler to the edge of the mat and forcing a first stall warning at the :49 mark. The first period ended scoreless and Vondruska chose down to begin the middle stanza. The Buckeye graduate student quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. Rella's constant offensive pressure forced Vondruska into a second stall call, tying the bout up at 1-1 with :50 left in the second period. Tied at 1-1 after two periods, Rella chose down to start the final stanza. After Vondruska nearly turned Rella, the Lion true freshman escaped to a 2-1 lead with 1:25 left to wrestle. With :45 left, Vondruska quickly spun around Rella on the edge of the mat to get the bout's first takedown and take a 3-2 lead. With :35 left, Rella needed an escape to tie the bout and sent the action into a sudden victory period. But the veteran Buckeye grappler managed to ride Rella out and, with a riding time point, post a hard-fought 4-2 win. The decision cut the substantial Nittany Lion lead to 22-9 and improved Vondruska to 21-8 on the year. Rella fell to 18-7. Nittany Lion All-American James Yonushonis (Philipsburg, Pa.), ranked No. 7 at 174, met Buckeye Tommy Priestley in the next bout. Wasting no time, Yonushonis got an initial takedown just seconds in to lead 2-1 early. The senior added three more takedowns, including one at the buzzer, to lead 8-3 after one period. Priestly chose down to start the second stanza, only to have Yonushonis maintain control long enough to build up a sizeable riding time edge. Working well on to, Yonushonis held Priestley down until the :30 mark, building up a 2:01 riding time edge. With :10 left, Yonushonis got in on Priestley's left leg and finished the move with a strong takedown to lead 10-4 after two periods. Holding the lead and a solid time edge, Yonushonis chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to an 11-4 lead. Working towards a major, Yonushonis got a takedown with :20 left to go up 13-4. With the bonus point, Yonushonis got the 14-4 major to put Penn State up 26-9 and improve his record to 23-3. Priestley fell to 2-3. The evening's final match-up featured Penn State red-shirt freshman Mike Ward (Mayfield, Ohio) taking on OSU freshman Mike Pucillo, who entered the bout ranked No. 3 in the country. Ward and Pucillo wrestled evenly throughout the entire first period, with the Nittany Lion wrestler grappling the No. 3-ranked Buckeye to a 0-0 tie after three minutes. Pucillo chose down to start the third period. After a stall warning on Ward, Pucillo did escape to take a 1-0 lead with 1:50 to wrestle. Each wrestler had a chance to score in the second period, but neither man could break through the other's defense and Pucillo held a 1-0 lead after two. Ward chose down to start the second and quickly escaped to a 1-1 tie with 1:41 left. Ward, already hit with a stall warning, needed to take shots to avoid giving up the penalty point. Doing just that, Ward put together a nice series of shots but could not score on the undefeated Buckeye grappler. With :45 left, Pucillo broke through Ward's tough defense and got the bout's only takedown. The two point move was enough to give Pucillo a hard fought 3-1 win and keep him undefeated at 14-0 on the year. Ward fell to 14-10. Still, Penn State posted a convincing 26-12 win. The Nittany Lions won seven of the ten bouts and won the war of bonus points 5-3. The Lions dominated the Buckeyes throughout the match, posting 25 takedowns to OSU's 5 as well. The win improves Penn State to 10-4 overall, 1-2 in Big Ten action. Ohio State falls to 5-4, 1-1 in the Big Ten. The Nittany Lions host No. 11 Illinois Sunday at 1 p.m. in Rec Hall. Penn State then returns to action next weekend when it hosts its final two dual meets of the season. The Nittany Lions welcome No. 9 Northwestern on Friday night, Feb.2, for a 7 p.m. dual. Penn State then hosts No. 5 Iowa on Sunday, Feb. 4, at 12 p.m. in a FSN-Pittsburgh/WWCP-TV live broadcast. Single-match tickets are on sale now and can be purchased by calling the Penn State ticket office at 814-863-1000 or 800-833-5533 for more information. Fans can also get tickets at GoPSUsports.com. Single dual prices are $5 per event for adults and $3 per event for youth. All of Penn State's matches can be heard on GoPSUsports.com and in the State College area on WBLF 970 AM.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- North Carolina picked up their second ACC victory over Virginia Friday night at Carmichael Auditorium as freshman Mike Rappo won a pivotal overtime decision, 4-2, that gave Carolina a 12-11 lead and essentially the victory. Vincent Ramirez followed with a 4-1 win at 141 to expand Carolina's lead , while redshirt freshman Ben Fiacco sealed the Tar Heel win with a come-from-behind victory in the third. The win improved the Tar Heels to 5-6 and 2-1 in the ACC. Virginia fell to 4-6 overall and 0-1 in the ACC. After battling to a 2-2 draw, Rappo was able to manage a takedown on Kellon Balum in overtime to take the decision, 4-2. With the 12-11 lead, Ramirez came on for Carolina and defeated Drew DiPasquale, 4-1, at 149 to give Carolina a 15-11 advantage. Fiacco was then able to capture the victory with a 3-1 decision over Mike Sewell at 157. Into the third, Fiacco was trailing 1-0, but managed an escape and a takedown to come away with the decision. Virginia got off to a fast start as senior Mike Grogan took the opening match over Daniel Llamas at 174, 10-1. 18TH -ranked Rocco Caponi then followed with another major decision for Virginia as he defeated Robert McCarthy, 8-0, at 184 pounds. With the Tar Heels down 8-0, Dennis Drury and Spencer Nadolsky earned the next two decisions for Carolina to bring the score to 8-6. At 197 pounds, Drury came away with a 4-0 decision over Virginia's Kyle Narkiewicz and moved to 10-10 on the season. 10th-ranked Nadolsky followed with his 2-0 decision over Scott Smith in the heavyweight match. Nadolsky earned one point for an escape in the second and added a point for riding time to pick up the win. Junior Drew Forshey, this week's ACC Wrestler of the Week, gave Carolina its first lead of the night with a come-from-behind victory over Ross Gitomer in the third. Trailing 1-0 entering the third, Forshey managed a takedown and an escape to edge Gitomer, 3-2, at 125. The lead would not last though as 12th-ranked Eric Albright recorded an 8-1 win over Bobby Shaw at 133 to give the Cavaliers an 11-9 advantage- its last lead of the night. 15th-ranked Keegan Mueller picked up the final win of the night for the Tar Heels at 165 with a 5-2 decision against Damian Johnson. Mueller improved his record to 22-6 on the season- the best mark of any Tar Heel. Carolina closes out its home schedule at Carmichael Saturday against Virginia Tech at 1 p.m.

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN -- The Iowa wrestling team improved to 11-2 (2-0 in the Big Ten) with a 36-3 win at Purdue Friday night. The Hawkeyes won nine of 10 matches, including two by major decision and two by pin. Purdue fell to 10-3, 0-3 in the Big Ten. Iowa sophomore Charlie Falck kicked off the dual at 125 with a 17-9 major decision over Boilermaker Brandon Tucker. Hawkeye senior Mario Galanakis scored his 35th career victory at 133, decking Sean Schmaltz in 2:48. Griffith, IN, native and Iowa junior Alex Tsirtsis had a happy homecoming with a 20-10 major decision over Nick Bertucci at 141. Hawkeye senior 149-pounder Alex Grunder upset Purdue's 11th-ranked Jake Patacsil, 7-5. Grunder avenged an earlier season loss to Patacsil with the win and scored his fifth straight victory. Hawkeye redshirt freshman Ryan Morningstar took Iowa into the intermission with a 3-1 decision over Jake Murphy at 157. Hawkeye junior Mark Perry kept the Hawkeyes on track with a 2:27 pin over Justin Fraga at 165. Senior Eric Luedke (174) and redshirt freshman Phillip Keddy (184) followed with decisions to make the team score 32-0. Luedke picked up his 18th consecutive win with the 11-7 decision over Jason Martin, improving to 20-1 in collegiate matches and 11-0 in dual competition. Purdue scored its only team points of the night at 197 when Nathan Moore defeated Iowa redshirt freshman Rick Loera, 6-0. Hawkeye heavyweight Matt Fields scored his 55th career win with a 14-4 major decision over David Pisarck to end the dual. Iowa (11-2, 2-0 in the Big Ten) returns home to host undefeated Wisconsin (15-0, 1-0 in the Big Ten) Saturday at 7 p.m. in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Badgers wrestled at Northwestern Friday night.

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Dustin Fox's (Galion, Ohio/Galion) escape in the third period of the final match proved to the be the difference as the Wildcats defeated ninth-ranked Wisconsin Friday night at Welsh-Ryan Arena, 19-16. The Wildcats trailed 18-6 heading into the last four matches, but the 'Cats won all four to claim their first Big Ten victory of the season and hand Wisconsin its first dual loss. The win improves the ninth-ranked Wildcats to 11-5 on the year, 1-2 in the Big Ten. Wisconsin picked up their first loss to drop to 15-1, 1-1 in the Big Ten. Brandon Precin (Orland Park, Ill./Carl Sandburg) started off against Wisconsin's Collin Cudd at 125 lbs. and after furious action for the first three minutes, the match still remained scoreless heading into the second. The freshman started down to begin the second frame and escaped to take a 1-0 lead. Neither wrestler could gain advantage after that and Precin went into the third with the 1-0 lead starting on top. Cudd evened the match at 1-1 and then notched an escape to pull ahead 2-1 with one minute remaining. The Badger surrendered a point for stalling to knot the match at 2-2 with 10 seconds to go. The freshman could not get his takedown before the buzzer and the bout went into overtime. The one-minute period ended scoreless and the first match of the night headed into a second overtime with Precin down. The freshman escaped with 10 seconds to go and pulled ahead 3-2 with Cudd starting down for the third overtime. The Badger could not escape the freshman's grasp and Precin won his first match in a Big Ten dual to give the 'Cats a 3-0 leading after one bout. Eric Metzler (Luxemburg, Wis./Luxemburg-Casco) took to the mat against Zach Tanelli. For the second-straight match, the first period ended with no score. Tanelli escaped to pull ahead, 1-0, and the Wildcat could not equal the score before the buzzer. Metzler escaped in the third to even the score at 1-1 with a little over one minute remaining in the match. With a little over 10 seconds remaining, Metzler found a way to get his opponent to the mat for the two-point takedown. With the 3-1 decision, the Wildcats led 6-0. For the first time in Big Ten matches, the 'Cats' two lowest weights got on the board with valuable points. NU would surrender the next four matches to the Badgers and the 6-0 lead would turn into an 18-6 deficit. Wisconsin's Kyle Ruschell took an early 2-0 lead over James Kohlberg (Rolling Meadows, Ill./Rolling Meadows), wrestling in the place of the injured Ryan Lang (North Royalton, Ohio/St. Edward) at 141 lbs., but Kohlberg notched a late escape to pull closer at 2-1. Ruschell found his groove and took the match by technical fall to make the score 6-5. Marty Gould (Lincolnwood, Ill./Niles West) took to the mat next at 149 lbs. against Wisconsin's seventh-ranked Tyler Turner. Turner scored two points with a takedown in the final 20 seconds of the first period to take a 2-0 lead. Turner pinned the Wildcat midway through the second period for six team points. Wisconsin took an 11-6 lead going into the 157-pound match. It was the first pin surrendered by the 'Cats in Big Ten duals. Dominic Marella (Roselle, Ill./Conant) faced sixth-ranked Craig Henning at 157 and fell behind in the first period, 2-0. Marella escaped to close to 2-1, but Henning scored a swift takedown to pull ahead, 4-1. The Badger cruised to the 11-1 major decision to give Wisconsin a 15-6 lead. At 165 lbs., Greg Hagel (Linwood, N.J./Blair Academy) took on Jake Donar and although Donar had a good opportunity at a takedown late in the period, he did not get his points in time and the first period ended scoreless. Donar scored a two-point reversal halfway through the second to take a 2-0 lead. A two-point near-fall gave the Badger a 4-0 lead. Hagel reversed back to close to 4-2 with 40 seconds remaining in the second, but surrendered an escape to allow Donar to take a 5-2 advantage into the third period. Hagel scored his second reversal of the match to close to 5-4 with 30 seconds remaining in the match, but could not find the equalizer and Donar took the 6-4 decision. Wisconsin led 18-6 heading to the upper weights -- Northwestern's strength. The comeback began with 14th-ranked 174-pounder Nick Hayes (Council Bluffs, Iowa/Lewis Central). Needing to turn the tide in the dual, Hayes took on Matt Maciag at 174. Hayes scored a takedown in the first minute to pull ahead 2-0. The Badger escaped to close to 2-1 at the end of the first. Hayes escaped early in the second to pull ahead, 3-1. The Wildcat notched a takedown with his foot barely on the out of bounds line to take a 5-2 lead with one minute left in the second and on top. Maciag took a point with an escape to close to 5-2 with 40 seconds left and the second period ended with the Wildcat holding a three-point advantage. The Badger could not escape Hayes until there were 40 seconds left in the third, but the junior came right back with a thunderous takedown to extend his lead to 7-3. Maciag escaped, but with the riding-time advantage, Hayes took the 8-4 decision and the 'Cats started to climb back, making the score 18-9 with the most dangerous weapon in the 'Cats' arsenal up next. Top-ranked 184-pounder Jake Herbert (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) took to the mat against Wisconsin's 16th-ranked Tyler Brandvold hungry for a win and bonus points to bring the Wildcats closer. He needed only 30 seconds to score his first points with a two-point takedown. Brandvold spent the rest of the first on his stomach and Herbert took a 2-0 lead into the second period. Herbert reversed 10 seconds into the second to pull ahead 4-0 and both wrestlers went neutral after the junior gave up an escape. Herbert promptly dropped the Badger to the mat for another takedown. After yet another two-pointer, Herbert led 8-2 going into the third. After a Brandvold escape, Herbert scored his fourth takedown to extend his lead to 10-4. The top-ranked junior, trying for more bonus points, dropped Brandvold for another takedown and led 12-4. After another takedown and riding time, Herbert took the 16-5 major decision and the 'Cats closed the gap to 18-13. Herbert improved his perfect record to 19-0 on the season. Second-ranked Mike Tamillow (Oak Park, Ill./Fenwick) came next at 197 lbs. against 12th-ranked Dallas Herbst. The Wildcat struck first with a two-point takedown midway through the opening frame. Tamillow had the Badger set up in the closing seconds, but could not score the pin or near-fall before the buzzer. The junior went into the second leading 2-0. The Wildcat went ahead 3-0 with an escape, causing the grapplers to go neutral. Tamillow took another point to go ahead 4-0 heading into the third period. After another Tamillow escape, the junior took the 5-0 decision and the 'Cats put themselves into position to take the dual if fourth-ranked heavyweight Dustin Fox could take his match. The Wildcats trailed 18-16 heading into the final bout. Fox came close to a takedown of Massey in the final minute of the first period, but the opening frame ended scoreless with Fox on top to being the second. The Badger escaped with one and a half minutes remaining to pull ahead 1-0, but the junior came right back with a two-point takedown to take the lead, 2-1. Massey registered a late escape to tie the score at 2-2 heading into the third. The Wildcat started down for the final frame and brought the crowd to its feet with an escape in the first 20 seconds. Fox held on for the 3-2 decision and after trailing by 12, the 'Cats notched their first Big Ten win, 19-18. "The first Big Ten win is always a special one," head coach Tim Cysewski said. "Our lower weight guys came up a little short in the first two duals, but tonight, they came up big. Heavyweights just have to worry about wrestling. Dustin has been there before and it's great to have him in that spot." The 'Cats return to action at Penn State, Friday at 7 p.m., before being hosted by Ohio State at St. Edward's High School in Cleveland, Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m.

AMES, Iowa -– The third-ranked Iowa State wrestling team beat eighth-ranked Oklahoma 27-9 Friday night in Hilton Coliseum. The Cyclones took seven matches from the Sooners, five of which resulted in bonus points. ISU redshirt freshmen lead the way as rookies Mitch Mueller and Nick Fanthorpe scored technical falls at 141- and 125-pounds, respectively. Redshirt freshmen Jake Varner (184) and Nick Gallick (133) won their bouts via major decision. Offensively Iowa State overpowered OU with 34 takedowns and only allowed six. ISU pushes its record to 8-3 overall and 2-0 in the Big 12 conference. The 18-point margin of victory is only the second time since 1995 that the Cyclones have recorded a double-digit victory over the Sooners. In 2005 ISU handed OU a 30-6 defeat in Ames. "We were able to go out and push the pace and wrestle hard tonight," head wrestling coach Cael Sanderson said. "That is how Iowa State wrestlers complete. The freshmen are really coming on. They've had the tools, now they are getting the confidence. In Big 12 meets, it is our freshmen who have been closing out wins for us." Mueller opened the dual in dominating fashion with a 24-8 technical fall over Nolan Spring in 5:33. Mueller, ranked 10th at 141 pounds, took Spring down four times in each of first two periods to take a commanding 16-7 lead going into the final period. With two more takedowns and 2:24 worth of riding time, the Iowa City-native finished with 24 points, the most scored in his first season as a Cyclone. "We're still working on the little things to get ready for March," Mueller said. "I've wrestled a tough schedule of guys, but that is okay. I like wrestling the ranked guys because that is how you improve. You might pick up a few bumps along the way, but you know if you wrestle seven minutes against the best competition you will get better." At 125-pounds, Fanthorpe rolled to an 18-2 technical fall of Henry Roman in 6:11. Fanthorpe, who is ranked 10th nationally, made the most of the second period, nearly pinning Roman on two occasions, scoring two three-point nearfalls and three takedowns to gain a 13-point advantage on the Sooner. A final takedown with 49 seconds left in the third period ended the bout. Fanthorpe improves his record to 19-7 with his second technical fall of the season. "I was able to open it up in the second period," Fanthorpe said. "We really believe what our coaches tell us. If we listen to what they are saying, good things will happen." Returning from an intermission that honored the 1972, 1977 and 1987 Cyclone NCAA championship teams, Jake Varner took an 11-2 major decision over Josh Hinton. The fifth-ranked 184-pounder began the match deliberately and carried a 4-1 lead going into the final three minutes of action. Varner reached the major with two takedowns in the final minute. He is now 20-4 in his first season as a Cyclone. Gallick closed out the dual with a 17-7 major decision of Brian Shelton. Gallick, who returned to action after missing the Nebraska dual, struck in the opening 10 seconds with a takedown. At the 1:45 mark in the first period, Gallick again took down Shelton and almost pinned him, but was awarded with a three-point nearfall. The Tucson, Ariz., native continued his offensive performance throughout the match with four more takedowns and accumulated 1:24 worth of riding time en route to his 21st victory. Trent Paulson recorded the fifth match that resulted in bonus points, a 12-3 routing of No. 11 Josh Weitzel at 157-pounds. The major decision is the fourth of his senior campaign. Paulson improves to 17-4 this season and his career mark is now 103-20. Also picking up wins for ISU were third-ranked Travis Paulson at 165-pounds and heavyweight David Zabriskie, ranked 18th. Paulson climbed within three wins of the 100-career victories list by scoring a 12-6 decision of No. 12 Shane Seibert. Paulson is 19-3 this season and holds a career record of 97-28. Zabriskie, a redshirt freshman from Branchville, N.J., moves to 17-6 on the year after winning a 2-1 decision over Brad Farmer. Iowa State will play host No. 4 Oklahoma State Sunday at 2 p.m. in Hilton Coliseum. The Cowboys wrestle at Northern Iowa Saturday. ISU defeated OSU, 25-9, for third place at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals Jan. 14.

The top-ranked Golden Gopher wrestling team defeated No. 17 Michigan by a final score of 29-6 on Friday night at the Sports Pavilion. The Wolverines, who handed Minnesota its only dual meet loss of the season last year, were no match for the Gophers this time around. Minnesota won eight of 10 matches on the night to cruise to the victory. No. 4 Jayson Ness started the Gophers off in style with a 20-3 tech fall over Michigan's Michael Watts, and Manuel Rivera, Gabriel Dretsch, and Cole Konrad each added major decisions to contribute bonus points to the team score. Konrad's victory was his 60th straight, extended his school-record winning streak. The Gophers also won the two marquee match-ups of the night, with top-ranked Dustin Schlatter earning a 2-1 decision over No. 3 Josh Churella at 149 pounds and No. 2 Roger Kish downing No. 4 Tyrel Todd, 15-8, at 174. Minnesota's other two victories came from Mike Thorn and C.P. Schlatter. Ness gave Minnesota an early 5-0 lead with his victory over Watts. Ness dominated from the opening whistle, countering a shot attempt by Watts to score the first takedown of the match 25 seconds in. He earned five back points and scored another takedown to lead 9-1 after the first. Ness extended his lead throughout the next two periods, capped off with a three-point near fall with under 10 seconds remaining to earn the tech fall. Ness' win was a sign of things to come for the Wolverines, as the Gophers won each of the next four bouts to put Michigan away early in the dual. In a battle between two true freshman at 133, Thorn fought his way to a close 7-5 decision over Chris Diehl. With the match knotted at four entering the third period, Thorn started down and took the lead with a reversal 28 seconds later. Diehl got the escape to make it 6-5, but Thorn prevented him from getting any shots in and earned the bonus point for riding time. Rivera, ranked No. 2 in the nation at 141, followed with a dominant 19-6 major decision over Justin Chrzanowski at 141. With a 9-2 lead entering the third, Rivera looked to extend his lead with a series of takedowns. Chrzanowski was able to avoid the tech fall, but Rivera proved once again that he is one of the nation's best with his 28th consecutive victory. In a low-scoring match at 149, Dustin Schlatter simply found a way to win once again, battling his way to a 2-1 decision over the third-ranked Churella to extend his winning streak to 53 consecutive matches. After a scoreless first period, Schlatter rode Churella the entire second period to build the riding time advantage. A double stall warning made the score 1-1, and with neither wrestler able to finish a shot in the third, Schlatter's riding time proved to be the difference. Third-ranked C.P. Schlatter turned in a 13-7 decision over Rob Sulaver at 157. Clearly the superior wrestler, Schlatter went to work immediately, scoring three takedowns in the first period. He held an 8-4 advantage after the third and attempted to earn bonus points in the third, but Sulaver was able to keep the damage to a minimum. Jeremy Larson faced a tough test in No. 2 Eric Tannenbaum, but as he has done all year against top competition, Larson fought throughout to prevent any bonus points. Tannenbaum finally got Michigan on the board with a 12-5 decision. The Gophers finished the night by winning three of the final four matches. No. 12 Gabriel Dretsch shut out his fourth opponent of the season, downing Jordan Sherrod, 8-0. Dretsch was never seriously threatened as he scored a takedown in each period, added an escape in the second and earned the bonus point with 2:28 of riding time. In the other bout between two-top five wrestlers, Kish was too much for Todd to handle at 184 pounds. Kish utilized his superior strength and athleticism to wear Todd down. He struck first with an takedown just over 30 seconds into the match and built his lead from there, opening it up in the second with a pair of takedowns and escapes with Todd visibly reeling with knee problems. In the end, Kish came up just short of earning bonus points but extended Minnesota's lead to 25-3 nonetheless. True freshman Brent Eidenschink turned in another solid effort against a ranked wrestler at 197 but eventually fell, 7-3, to No. 17 Nick Roy for Michigan's second victory of the night. Konrad erased any hopes Omar Maktabi may have had early in the match, scoring a takedown just 17 seconds in. With bonus points on his mind, Konrad immediately let Maktabi escape and went right back to work. The theme remained the same for much of the bout, as Konrad piled up nine takedowns in the match to eventually earn a 21-7 victory. CSTV will air tonight's match on tape delay on Monday, Jan. 29 at 8 p.m. (CST). A complete replay will be available in the Gold Zone next week. Minnesota will again be in action at the Sports Pavilion on Sunday when it hosts Purdue at 2 p.m. Live video of the match against the Boilermakers will be available in the Gold Zone.

Oklahoma State returns to Cedar Falls, Iowa just two weeks after finishing fourth at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals in the UNI Dome. The Cowboys defeated Northern Iowa, 29-5, in the opening round of the National Duals On Jan. 13. The win extended OSU's winning streak to 10 over UNI. The Cowboys lead the all-time series with the Panthers 19-2. Northern Iowa last defeated Oklahoma State on Feb. 10, 1991 in Cedar Falls, 21-16. OSU still owns a 7-2 advantage all-time at the home of the Panthers. The Cowboys head over to Ames to face Iowa State following their dual against Northern Iowa. OSU fell to Iowa State 25-9 in the third-place match at National Duals. It was the worst loss to the Cyclones since Jan. 18, 1980 in Ames when the Cyclones won 32-9. OSU still leads the all-time series 49-16-3. The difference is much tighter in Ames where OSU leads with a 17-9-2 record at the home of the Cyclones. Iowa State recorded three individual upsets that led to the rout in Cedar Falls. Those three matches will be key in OSU getting a different result the second time around. Both duals will be broadcast live on 93.7 FM with Rex Holt and Roger Moore providing the commentary. Last Time Out The Cowboys rolled past Oregon, 34-3, by winning nine of 10 matches inside Gallagher-Iba Arena. The dual started with an Oregon forfeit at 174. OSU then reeled off five consecutive victories, including a major decision by Coleman Scott at 133. Oregon got on the board with a decision at 141. The Cowboys then closed out the dual with wins at 149, 157 and 165. Johny Hendricks capped the win with a pin at 165. Scouting the Panthers Northern Iowa comes into the dual unranked with a 3-7 record after a pair of road wins over Northern Colorado and Wyoming last weekend. The Panthers boast three wrestlers ranked nationally with 165-pounder Nick Baima leading the way at No. 5. At 141, C.J. Ettelson is ranked No. 13, while Moza Fay is No. 14 at 157. Fay and 149-pounder Ryan Osgood are the only Panthers to win during the first meeting against Oklahoma State. Andrew Anderson has been ranked also at 197, but has recently fell out of the top 20 despite his 21-11 record. Scouting the Cyclones Iowa State is currently the consensus No. 3 team in the country after finishing third at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals. The Cyclones defeated OSU in the third-place match and leaped frog the Cowboys in the national rankings. ISU currently has seven wrestlers ranked among the top 20 led by the Paulson twins both ranked third nationally. Trent is ranked third at 157, while Travis is third at 165. Jake Varner, recorded a fall in his last match against OSU and is ranked sixth at 184. Kurt Backes is eighth at 197. Both wrestlers will have to perform to their capabilities for the Cyclones to make some noise in the postseason. The Cyclones also boast a potential All-American at 125 in Nick Fanthorpe. Fanthorpe is ranked 10th, but he lost his last match to OSU losing 5-2 to Tyler Shinn. Cyler Sanderson and Mitch Mueller are both ranked No. 14 nationally and won key matches in the previous dual with OSU. The key for the Cyclones is if Mueller, Nick Gallick and David Zabriskie could all duplicate their performance in the last dual. All three recorded upsets over higher ranked Cowboys, which sparked the 25-9 rout of OSU. Hendricks Named Wrestler of the Week Johny Hendricks was named Big 12 Wrestler of the Week for his performance for the week ending Jan. 21. Hendricks defeated Iowa's fourth-ranked Mark Perry on a late takedown before pinning Oregon's Jake McCoy. The previous week at National Duals he defeated the second, third, fifth and seventh ranked wrestlers in the country. Simpson Makes Debut True freshman Dakotah Simpson was pulled out of redshirt to face rival Iowa in the quarterfinals of the National Duals. Simpson made an immediate impact in the dual, pinning fifth-year senior Alex Grunder to put the Pokes up 15-0 and all but sealing the Cowboy victory. Simpson is currently 6-3 on the season and won an open title at the Oklahoma Open. Young Guns Oklahoma State graduated five starters and three All-Americans off of the 2006 national championship squad. Head coach John Smith has had to fill those holes the best that he could and that has come in the forms of a pair of redshirt freshmen and now the possible addition of true freshman Dakotah Simpson. Tyler Shinn has jumped into the rankings and is ranked as high as 16th, while his high school teammate, Jared Rosholt, has been ranked as high as 10th this season. Simpson was pulled out of redshirt at National Duals and is now in position to compete for the starting spot at 149 pounds. In addition, the Cowboys added a pair of sophomores to the lineup in Newly McSpadden and Jared Shelton at 157 and 197, respectiviely.

Phillipsburg, NJ -- The College of New Jersey wrestling team rolled to its sixth straight dual meet win on Thursday as the Lions beat Centenary College 28-15 at Philipsburg High School. The win put the Lions, ranked eighth in the latest National Wrestling Coaches Association Brute – Adidas Division III poll, at 12-1 on the season, while the Cyclones slipped to 4-5-1. The Lions won four of the first five weigh classes to get out to a commanding 19-3 advantage. Two of those wins came by pins as Tyler Branham (Newtown, NJ/Kittantinny) pinned Anthony Accardi (Manalapan, NJ/Manalapan) in 4:38 at 141 pounds, while Joey Galante (Ocean City, NJ/Ocean City) needed only 51 seconds to win by fall over Francisco Lopez (Ventnor, NJ/Atlantic City) at 157. The win was Galante's 20th of the season making him the sixth Lion to hit that plateau this season. TCNJ's Ray Sarinelli (Rockaway, NJ/Morris Hills) added a win by major decision at 133, while also earning wins were Chris Prihoda (Trenton, NJ/Hamilton) at 149, Greg Osgoodby (Waldwick, NJ/Waldwick) at 174 and Steve Carbone (Cranford, NJ/Cranford) at heavyweight. The Lions return to action this weekend hosting the Metropolitan Conference/New England Duals at Packer Hall on Saturday with the first round getting underway at noon. TCNJ will hold its final home dual meet of the season the following day taking on Springfield College at noon.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. –- North Carolina's annual wrestling match with rival Duke has been rescheduled to Wednesday, Jan. 31. The Tar Heels and Blue Devils, originally slated to meet Jan. 30 in Durham, will now square off the next night at 7 p.m. at Chapel Hill High School. The winner of the match will receive one point towards the Carlyle Cup, the annual all-sports competition between Carolina and Duke.

Former University of Minnesota wrestling coach Wally Johnson passed away Wednesday at the age of 91 in Edina from complications of Parkinson's disease. Johnson, who coached the Golden Gophers from 1952-86, guided Minnesota to Big Ten titles in 1957 and ‘59. The predecessor to current head coach J Robinson, Johnson is the school's all-time leader in wins with a 392-209-11 career record. "Wally will be missed," Robinson said. "There was a fondness about him when people talked about him, which means he impacted a lot of people's lives in a very positive way. So when you come in and follow a legend, you want to make sure you fill those shoes. After he retired, he reveled in the fact that we took a next step and really enjoyed seeing the success of Minnesota Wrestling. The true measurement of a coach when he leaves is that he wants the program to continue to build and to get better, and Wally epitomized all of those things." During his tenure at Minnesota, Johnson coached 28 individual Big Ten champions, including three-time winners Dick Mueller (1953, ‘57-58) and Larry Zilverberg (1974-76). He also led 25 different wrestlers to 31 All-America certificates, including three wrestlers who won NCAA individual titles: Mueller (1953), Evan Johnson (1976) and Pat Neu (1977). In 1976, Johnson earned national coach of the year honors after leading the Gophers to back-to-back runner-up finishes in the Big Ten. Under Johnson's leadership, two-time Big Ten Champion and 1986 All-American Ed Giese became Minnesota's career leader with 159 wins, a mark which still stands today. In 1985, Johnson received the highest honor in the wrestling profession when he was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater, Okla. Prior to becoming the head wrestling coach for the Gophers, Johnson coached at the University of South Dakota from 1947-50 and at Luther College from 1950-52. During the first 20 years of his tenure at Minnesota, Johnson also served as an assistant coach on the football team under Murray Warmath. Johnson's impact on wrestling extended to the national level, as he was the executive director of the Pan-American game trials in 1967 and '84. He was a co-founder of the U.S. Wrestling Federation in 1968 and served a stint as the president of the NCAA Wrestling Coaches Association. Johnson directed the U.S. Olympic trials in 1972 and coached the U.S. team at the World University Games in 1973. "He was a great pioneer for wrestling in the state of Minnesota," Robinson said. "He started youth wrestling in the state and co-founded the original U.S. Wrestling Federation, which changed international wrestling and provided an avenue for college people." A native of Detroit Lakes, Minn., Johnson competed in football, basketball and track in high school before enrolling at the University of Minnesota in 1937. He earned his bachelor's degree in education in 1942 and added a master's degree in 1948. Johnson competed on the Gopher football team in 1937 but broke his leg the following year, forcing him out of the sport. He went on to earn letters on the wrestling team in 1941 and '42 and also served as a team captain. Funeral services will be held at on Monday, Jan. 29, 11 a.m. at Mount Olivet Lutheran Church located at 5025 Knox Ave. S. in Minneapolis. The visitation will be on Sunday, Jan. 28, from 3-5 p.m. at Washburn-McReavy Funeral Home at 5000 W. 50th St. and Highway 100 in Edina.

Tyler Mumbulo, a sophomore from Bainbridge, New York, has been named the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) Wrestler of the Week. This honor is the sixth NSIC Player of the Week award earned by an Upper Iowa student-athlete this year and third by an Upper Iowa wrestler. This past week the Upper Iowa wrestling team hosted the Wolves of Northern State University in a match up of conference foes. The Peacocks shut the Wolves out 45-0. Mumbulo earned three points for the team when he won his match by decision. Mumbulo, ranked #5 at the time, defeated #6 Chas Welch of Northern State 4-0. Going into the match Welch had a record of 14-0 on the year, while Mumbulo had a record of 10-4. Mumbulo took control of the match in the first period with an early takedown and 1:51 of riding time to lead 2-0. Throughout the second period neither wrestler was able to gain an advantage on the other and the match moved to the final period with Welch trailing 2-0. Mumbulo began the third period with an escape and then held on to gain a riding time point and win by decision 4-0. In the latest NCAA Division II NWCA poll, Upper Iowa's wrestling program is ranked 7th in the country, while Mumbulo, and four other Peacock wrestlers, have earned national rankings as well. He is currently ranked 6th in the nation at 125 pounds. Head coach Heath Grimm proudly said, "Tyler being named NSIC wrestler of the week is a great honor for him. He knocked off an undefeated, nationally ranked wrestler with a controlled 4-0 win." Mumbulo and the #7 Peacocks will return to action in Forest City, Iowa for a dual match up with Waldorf College tonight, the 25th, at 6:00 p.m. Next week Upper Iowa will travel to Minnesota State University Mankato, who is ranked #4 in the latest NWCA poll. The Peacocks will wrestle the Mavericks next Thursday, Feb. 1st, at 7 p.m. The team will return home to face the Huskies of St. Cloud State University the following night, Feb. 2nd, at 7 p.m. The match on Friday night will be the Peacocks' last home action of the season and all the seniors will be honored.

IOWA CITY, IA -- Hawkeye wrestling fans can take advantage of a special ticket offer for Saturday night's Big Ten home opener against undefeated Wisconsin. A family can purchase four tickets to the meet, four hot dogs and four sodas for $35. The meet is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Iowa (10-2, 1-0 in the Big Ten) will try for its 33rd straight win over the Badgers, who enter the meet undefeated at 15-0 (1-0 in the Big Ten). Tickets are available by calling 1-800-IA-HAWKS or in person at the UI Athletic Ticket Office at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Tickets can also be purchased the night of the meet at the arena. The family four pack offer is not valid for online orders. Regular priced tickets purchased in advance are $8 for adults and $4 for youth/non-University of Iowa students. Tickets purchased at the event are $10 for adults and $5 for youth/non-University of Iowa students. University of Iowa students will be admitted free of charge for all matches with a student ID.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. -- University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wrestler Matt Keller was named the Southern Conference Wrestler of the Week, the league office announced Wednesday. The All-America from McDonald, Tenn., was responsible for a team-best 20 points at last Sunday's Chippewa Challenge at Central Michigan University. Wrestling at 133 pounds, Keller went undefeated in four dual matches and won by bonus points in each match. The senior recorded a pin against Rob Tate of Gardner-Webb, won by technical falls over Eastern Illinois' Leonard Grodoski and Cal Poly's John Hanks and scored a major decision over Conor Beebe of Central Michigan. His efforts led UTC to a 3-1 record in the four duals, and the Mocs set a school record with their 11th consecutive victory. Seventh-ranked Central Michigan put a halt to the streak in the final dual of the day with a 21-13 win. Keller's individual national ranking improved to No. 7 in the NWCA/Intermat poll. He pushed his overall record to 21-2 and is 9-0 in dual matches. The award is his second weekly honor by the SoCon this season, and it is the fourth for a UTC wrestler in 2006-07. The Mocs return to SoCon competition this weekend, traveling to UNC Greensboro Saturday and Appalachian State Sunday.