InterMat Staff

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Penn State Nittany Lion wrestlers Brad Pataky (Clearfield, Pa.), who red-shirted last season and will seek an Olympic red-shirt this year, continues to build upon his freestyle successes. A starter for Penn State during the 2005-06 season as a true freshman, Pataky has been focused solely on class and freestyle wrestling over the course of the last two years. During the 2006-07 academic year, Pataky competed in five freestyle events. He went 5-2 at the prestigious Sunkist Open, garnering three pins along the way. He followed that up with a third place finish at the Guelph Open in Canada and then winning the Brockport Open in New York. The talented Clearfield native then went 3-1 at the Dave Schultz Memorial in February of 2007, getting all three wins with pins. In June of this past summer, Pataky competed at the World Team Trials and went 1-1. This year, Pataky has competed in two events, the Sunkist Open and the NYAC Open this past November. Pataky placed sixth at the Sunkist Open, competing at 55 kg (121 pounds). He followed that performance up with an outstanding fourth place finish at the NYAC Open. Pataky went 4-2 on his way to the consolation finals where he lost a close bout to former Penn State stand-out Adam Smith. Pataky's only other loss was a close 1-0, 1-0 decision to former Arizona State All-American Danny Felix. Along the way, Pataky grabbed a superb 4-3, 8-6 win over 2006 NCAA National Champion Joe Dubuque of Indiana. Pataky went 15-8 in 2005-06 as a true freshman, including a 6-2 mark in duals and a 2-1 record in Big Ten action.

THIS WEEK The top-ranked Iowa wrestling team (7-0) will compete at the 45th annual Midlands Championships - dubbed Midlands "45" - Saturday and Sunday (Dec. 29-30) in Evanston, IL. The two-day, four session double-elimination tournament will be held in Welsh-Ryan Arena on the Northwestern University campus. Former Olympians, who also competed at the Midlands, will be honored at the annual banquet, the March of Champions and will participate in the awards ceremonies. Former Midlands competitors have won a total of 19 Olympic gold medalists and hail from five different countries. Hawkeye Head Coach Tom Brands and former Head Coach Dan Gable are two of five Olympians who also won Midlands and NCAA titles. Bruce Baumgartner, Kenny Monday and the late Dave Schultz are the other three. MIDLANDS "45" TICKET INFORMATION Tickets can be purchased from the Northwestern University Athletic Ticket Office at (847) 491-2287. All-session passes are $48 for reserved theater-style seats, $36 for adult bleacher general admission and $30 for student bleacher general admission. EIGHT HAWKEYES EARN MIDLANDS "45" EARLY PRE-SEEDS Eight Iowa wrestlers have earned early pre-seeds for Midlands "45". Senior defending Big Ten and NCAA Champion Mark Perry is the top seed at 165 pounds. Perry won the 2004 title at 165 and is a three-time finalist at the tournament. Junior all-American Charlie Falck is seeded second at 125, while sophomore Brent Metcalf is third at 149. Iowa's other pre-seeds include senior Matt Fields (4th-Hwt.), and sophomores Jay Borschel (5th-174), Joe Slaton (6th-133), sophomore Ryan Morningstar (7th-157) and Phillip Keddy (8th-184). ON THE AIR Television - The Big Ten Network will air Sunday's finals live and will rebroadcast the show Dec. 31 at 6 p.m. and Jan. 1 at 4:30 p.m. (CT). The broadcast will be available on DIRECTV channel 220 and DISH Network Channel 439. Internet - Press releases, tournament brackets and touranment notes will be available on the Northwestern University website, www.nusports.com. Session results and recaps will be available on the University of Iowa website, www.hawkeyesports.com. Current Hawkeye staff and student-athlete head shots can be found at pics.hawkeyesports.com. MIDLANDS HISTORY AND HONORS Iowa has won the most team titles (18) in the 44 years of Midlands history. The Hawkeyes won their first team title in 1974, and proceded to win nine of the next 11 tournaments. Iowa also won team titles in 1990, 1992, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001 and 2002. Other team winners include Iowa State (8), Michigan State (3), Sunkist Kids Wrestling Club (3), Illinois (3), Michigan (2), Arizona State (1), Minnesota (1), North Carolina (1) and Oklahoma State (1). Team scores were not kept at four tournaments (1991, 1993, 1994, 1995.) Seven former Hawkeyes are enshrined in the Midlands Hall of Fame. They are Ed Banach, Chris Campbell, Steve Combs, Tim Cysewski, Barry Davis, Randy Lewis and Chuck Yagla. Former Hawkeye Heach Coach Dan Gable is also a Midlands Hall of Fame member. Former Hawkeye Joe Williams holds the most individual titles in Midlands history, winning 10. Other former Hawkeyes to win at least three titles are Tim Cysweski (5), Mark Ironside (4), Royce Alger (3), Ed Banach (3), Jim Heffernan (3), Randy Lewis (3) and Chuck Yagla (3). Several Hawkeyes also hold Midlands weight class records. Ironside has the most wins (27) at 141 pounds, and he and Cysewski hold the most titles (4 each) at that weight. Jim Heffernan holds the most titles (3) at 157, while Joe Williams holds the most wins (35) and titles (6) at 174. Pat Kennedy holds the fastest fall (11 seconds) at 165. Dan Gable holds the most titles (3) and falls (13) at 149 pounds. 2006 MIDLANDS REVIEW Iowa crowned one champion, two runners-up and four other placewinners at the 44th annual Midlands Championships in Evanston, IL. Iowa placed second in the team race, scoring 107 points. Iowa State won its first team title since 1981 with 154.5. Hawkeye senior 174-pounder Eric Luedke won his first Midlands title and picked up his 35th career victory, defeating Rider's Doug Umbehauer, 6-4, in the finals. Juniors Alex Tsirtsis and Mark Perry both placed second with second-seed Tsirtsis losing an 8-5 decision to top-seed Ryan Lang of Northwestern at 141 and top-seed Perry losing a 5-2 decision to second-seed Travis Paulson of Iowa State at 165. Also placing for the Hawkeyes were senior Mario Galanakis (8th-133), junior Matt Fields (6th-Hwt.), sophomore Charlie Falck (7th-125) and redshirt freshman Ryan Morningstar (7th-157). PERRY NAMED BIG TEN WRESTLER OF THE WEEK Iowa wrestler Mark Perry has been named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week, earning the honor for the second time in his career. He first earned the honor Feb. 9, 2005. Perry, who is ranked second nationally at 165 pounds, pinned both his opponents and helped Iowa pick up two dual wins Dec. 13 in Iowa City. He pinned third-ranked Moza Fay of Northern Iowa in 48 seconds to score his 80th career victory in the first match of the night. He then stuck Cornell College's Christian Coffey in 4:17 to score his 30th career pin. Perry needs 10 more falls to break into Iowa's all-time top-10 career leaders list. He is 5-1 this season, pinning five of his six opponents. Perry is the second Hawkeye this season to earn the weekly conference honor. Sophomore Joe Slaton was honored Dec. 12 for upsetting Nick Fanthorpe of Iowa State, 6-5, at 133 pounds in Ames Dec. 9. 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 March 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 March 8. Session 2 will get underway at 6 p.m. that same day, and the Session 3 championship matches will start at noon March 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. The Big Ten Network is scheduled to provide live coverage of Sunday's conference finals. LAST MEET The top-ranked Hawkeyes improved to 7-0 Dec. 13 with wins over Northern Iowa (40-3) and Cornell College (51-0). The Hawkeyes went 19-1 on the night, losing the first match on a last-second takedown. Iowa rebounded to score eight pins, six major decisions and two technical falls in the remaining 19 matches. Senior Matt Fields (Hwt.), junior Charlie Falck (125) and sophomores Joe Slaton (133) and Jay Borschel (174) all remain undefeated at 7-0 this season. Iowa recorded its 40th series win over Northern Iowa and its 20th win in Iowa City. Senior Mark Perry, who is ranked second at 165 pounds, pinned No. 3 Moza Fay in 48 seconds in the night's marquee matchup to pick up his 80th career win. Perry also pinned Cornell's Christian Coffey in 4:17 to score his 30th career pin. Sophomore Ryan Morningstar scored his 30th career win by pinning Panther Jarion Beets in sudden victory at 157. Iowa's win over Cornell was the first time the Hawkeyes scored more than 50 points since the 2003-04 season when they defeated Southwest State, 54-0. Falck recorded his 45th career win with a 12-2 major decision over Cornell's Chris Heilman, who is ranked second in Division III. Fields scored his 70th career win with a 4:57 pin over Josiah Payne. 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. The Iowa-Ohio State dual on Jan. 18 in Columbus will air same-day tape-delayed at 8:30 p.m. (CT) and the Iowa-Minnesota dual on Feb. 1 in Minneapolis will air live at 7 p.m. (CT). The Iowa-Oklahoma State dual on Jan. 5 was originally scheduled for a tape-delayed broadcast, but will not be aired due to the addition of the Iowa-Minnesota dual. IOWA WRESTLING HISTORY Iowa's overall dual meet record is 816-214-30 (.784) 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. 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. JOHNSON COUNTY I-CLUB WRESTLING LUNCHEON The annual Johnson County I-Club wrestling luncheon will be held Jan. 4, 2008 at 11:45 a.m. at the First Avenue Club in Iowa City. Tickets for the event are $13 and must be purchased in advance. To purchase tickets, make a check payable to the Johnson County I-Club and mail to: Iowa Wrestling ATTN: Luncheon 223 Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, IA 52242 NEXT COMPETITION Top-ranked Iowa (7-0) will host fifth-ranked Oklahoma State (5-1) Jan. 5 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Match time is set for 7 p.m. The Cowboys have won the last eight meetings between the two teams and hold a 24-16-1 advantage in the series.

Des Moines, Iowa -- For the 7th consecutive year Takedownradio.com will broadcast the Midlands Tournament Live from Evanston, Illinois and Northwestern University. Starting at 9:05AM CST you can tune in to this broadcast free of charge courtesy of Northwestern University, Brute Adidas, Defense Soap and the rest of the family of TDR sponsors.

DURHAM, N.C. -- The Duke wrestling squad will compete for the first time in four weeks when they head to Greensboro, N.C., for the prestigious Southern Scuffle Tournament on Dec. 29 and 30 at the Greensboro Coliseum. 16 Blue Devils from nine weight classes will compete in the two-day tournament. Last year, the Blue Devils finished 26th out of 32 teams at the Southern Scuffle. Senior captain Kellan McKeon will represent Duke at 125 pounds. McKeon is 15-6 this season with three falls and two top-four finishes. He is 11-5 in tournaments this year. Duke will utilize two 141-pound wrestlers in Greensboro. Sophomore Spencer Jasper is 8-9 this season with three falls and a second-place finish at The Citadel Open on Nov. 4 in Charleston, S.C. Jasper's career record at Duke is 20-19. Freshman A.J. Guardado is 10-9 in his first season with two pins and a fourth-place finish at the Davidson Open on Dec. 1. Redshirt sophomore Michael Degli Obizzi will go at 149 pounds this weekend. Degli Obizzi is 15-4 this year, including a 13-1 mark in tournaments and titles at the UNC Pembroke Open on Nov. 10 and the Davidson Open. Degli Obizzi now boasts a 37-26 record as a Blue Devil. At 157 pounds, sophomores Voris Tejada and Jared Sernoffsky get the nod at the Southern Scuffle. Tejada has placed in the top five in three of Duke's four tournaments this season. He is off to a 19-7 mark this year and his career .717 winning percentage (38-15) currently ranks 16th all-time at Duke. Sernoffsky has placed in the top three in two meets this season and has a 12-4 mark with three pins. He is 20-10 in his two years as a Blue Devil. Junior captain Addison Nuding and redshirt junior Aaron Glover will handle the duties at 165 pounds. Nuding is 13-4 on the year with a second-place showing at Pembroke and a championship at Davidson under his belt. Glover took second place behind Nuding with four wins at the Davidson Open in his first action of the 2007-08 campaign. Redshirt sophomore Ben Wales and redshirt junior Turner Rooney will both compete for Duke at 174 pounds. Wales won The Citadel Open and now holds an 11-8 record this season with one fall. His overall record at Duke is 20-19. Rooney placed second at The Citadel, losing only to Wales at the meet, and has posted a 6-5 mark this year with one pin and a 20-17 all-time record. 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. Barone won a 12-6 decision over the then-No. 8 nationally ranked Marc Bennett of Indiana on Nov. 24. 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 19-1 with six falls in 2007 and 54-17 overall as a Blue Devil, which is good for ninth place on Duke's all-time winning percentage list with a .761 clip. At 197 pounds, three Duke wrestlers will see action in Greensboro. Redshirt junior Dan Fox is 9-9 in this season with two pins. Redshirt freshman Robert Holbrook is 8-6 and earned a third-place finish at The Citadel Open. Redshirt junior captain Dan Tulley, who holds a 20-27 record at Duke, will take to the mats for the first time in 2007-08. At the heavyweight division will be redshirt sophomores Wade Van Sickle and Mike Tunick. Van Sickle has three top three finishes this season and has posted a 17-5 record with three falls this season. He is 39-29 overall as a Blue Devil. Tunick went 2-2 with two pins at the Davidson Open in his only competition of the season. Duke will next compete against Campbell, Gardner-Webb and Anderson College at the N.C. State Duals on Saturday, Jan. 5, beginning at 12 p.m. The Blue Devils first home meet, and only one in January, is Wednesday, Jan. 9 at 7 p.m. versus N.C. State in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Mack Reiter, a senior 133-pounder for the University of Minnesota, will undoubtedly go down as one of the program's all-time greats. But the Gilbertville, Iowa native has had a rollercoaster ride of successes and disappointments throughout his collegiate career. His successes include winning Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors and being named Most Outstanding Wrestler at the Big Ten Championships in 2005, twice earning All-American honors (2005 and 2006), and being a part of a national championship team (2007). His disappointments include being disqualified for an illegal slam at the 2006 NCAA Championships, tearing his ACL, missing most of his junior season, and failing to place at the 2007 NCAA Championships. Mack ReiterReiter, who entered the season with the 12th highest career winning percentage in school history (.851), would like nothing more than to finish his senior campaign with an individual national title and a team national title. Entering the Southern Scuffle (December 29-30), Reiter carries a 6-1 record and is ranked No. 4 in the country at 133 pounds by RevWrestling.com. (Note: His record does not include the 6-0 exhibition loss to Lou Ruiggirello of Hofstra on Nov. 19 at the NWCA All-Star Classic.) RevWrestling.com recently caught up with Reiter and talked to him about how he ended up at Minnesota, the ups and downs of his career, how his ACL injury has affected him, what the team took away from the loss to Iowa State, what he expects to happen at 133 pounds next season for the Gophers, what he expects out of the team and himself this season, whether he plans to continue competing after the collegiate season, and much more. I'm going to go back a few years to your senior season of high school in 2003. You grew up a Hawkeye fan and were quoted in a story during the recruiting process as saying, "I think it would be tough to turn down Iowa, but if that's what's best, I don't know … picturing myself in Minnesota's uniform is a little hard. I can see myself in a Hawkeye uniform. I always have." Yet you signed with Minnesota and became the first blue-chip recruit from the state of Iowa to sign with the Gophers. Why did you choose Minnesota over Iowa? Reiter: To be honest, something just felt right about the whole situation at Minnesota. I loved the coaching staff. Minnesota had everything in place. I think more than anything else, I just needed a little bit of a change. I felt that if I went to Iowa that I would have just been hanging out with the same people I hung out with all my life. I thought up here at Minnesota that I would meet new people and have new coaches who could take me to the next level. I think that was my deciding factor. Your freshman season in the lineup, you turned in one of the best freshman seasons in school history, finishing the year with a 40-7 record, fourth place at the NCAA Championships, Big Ten Freshman of the Year, and Most Outstanding Wrestler at the Big Ten Championships after pinning Mark Jayne. Did you surprise even yourself by how much success you had so soon? Or did you expect to challenge for a national title right away? Reiter: In the back of my mind, I always wanted to win a national title right away. But I can't sit here and say there weren't doubts in my mind. I spent my life watching some of the guys that I would be wrestling, since they were a few years older than me. I was always in amazement at how good they are … guys like Travis Lee, who I watched in the Junior National finals. So, like I said, I can't sit here and say there weren't doubts in my mind. But as the season progressed, I was having success against some of them. My mindset started to change a little bit and I started to believe in myself a lot more. It seemed like your freshman season you were kind of the freshman underdog and surprised a lot of people. Coming back your sophomore season as the returning Big Ten Freshman of the Year and an All-American, was there added pressure to accomplish more than you did as a freshman? Reiter: I never really felt much pressure because I go out there to wrestle for me and my team. I don't wrestle for anybody else. The only pressure I felt was from my team. There was a little bit from my team because we were competing for a national title. We were close all year. We were ranked No. 1 after beating Oklahoma State, although we eventually fell short of winning a national title at the NCAAs. A little bit from that, but not much pressure from anywhere else, other than from myself and what I wanted to accomplish. My goal was to be a four-time Big Ten champ after my freshman year. Obviously, I fell short of that too. Mack Reiter was disqualified against Purdue's Chris Fleeger for an illegal slam in the 2006 NCAA quarterfinals (Photo/The Guillotine)In the NCAA quarterfinals of your sophomore season you wrestled against Purdue's Chris Fleeger. You were trailing 2-0 early in the match when you were called for an illegal slam and lost by disqualification. What were your thoughts on the way that whole situation played out? Reiter: Initially, I couldn't believe the slam was called. My intention was to do a leg slip … and try to slip him off because I knew there wasn't a lot of time left in the period. Now that I've gone back and watched the film, it does look a little more violent than what I intended it to be. I can understand now why the slam was called. I don't fault any referee decisions as far as the call goes. As far his choice to not continue the match, I can't say one way or another whether he was able to continue or not. He wrestled a great match five hours later against (Shawn) Bunch, so … I don't know. It was a tough thing to take and it has never gotten any easier. Last season, you tore your ACL in an early-season practice. How exactly did it happen? Reiter: I was just wrestling with Jayson Ness. It was right towards the end of practice when we were doing matches. We were in the 30-second overtime of the last match. I tried standing up and he went to bring me back down to the mat … and it was just an accident. My knee went one way and my body went the other way … and it tore it out. How did your injury affect you when you returned to the mat in February? Reiter: It was more of a mindset than anything. I think my knee was strong enough, but it was real hard to convince myself to trust it. I favored my other leg a lot. I wasn't aggressive as I should have been because in the back of my mind I was scared about what could happen with my knee and possibly re-injuring it. It was more of a mindset than anything. At the NCAA Championships last season, you lost in the quarterfinals to Matt Valenti of Penn, 4-0, and then you eventually lost again in the Round of 12 to Tyler McCormick of Missouri, 4-3. On the one hand your team had won the NCAA title. But on the other hand you came up short of your personal goals. Describe your emotions after the NCAA Championships. Reiter: My emotions were mixed. Not placing was really, really hard for me to take. I really struggled with it for quite a while. But I was so happy for my team. Being a part of a national championship team is something very few people ever get a chance to be a part of. It was a great feeling because we did something we set our minds to do … and we did it together, especially with the team race so close it was important that each and every one of us scored every point that we did. It was real hard for me as an individual to take. But as far as the team, I was extremely happy. You dropped a couple early-season matches (to Lou Ruggirello of Hofstra and Nick Fanthorpe of Iowa State). Were those losses more the result of you needing to make adjustments in your wrestling, the result of your health, or were those losses more the result of something going on mentally? Reiter: I think it's just early season. I'm not taking anything from those guys. They wrestled great matches. But I feel like when I possibly meet Ruggirello at the Southern Scuffle, and hopefully face Fanthorpe at the National Duals, I'll be a different wrestler. I think there were some things that were slowing me down a little bit earlier in the season. I had to keep my weight under control, but I have it under control completely right now. I feel great. I know now that I can wrestle seven minutes and not stop moving the entire time. That has always been my biggest asset … my conditioning and being able to outwork guys. Mack Reiter scored a comeback victory over Nebraska's Kenny Jordan on December 6 (Photo/The Guillotine)You mentioned keeping your weight under control. You have wrestled 133 throughout your entire career at Minnesota. Has it become much tougher to get down to 133 this season as opposed to past seasons? Would you be better suited at 141? Reiter: No, I don't believe that I would be better suited at 141. It's just a long process of getting it under control. Now that I have it under control, I can maintain my weight right around 140 and not have any problems. So I don't think I would be any better off at 141. Those guys are pretty big. I don't think I'm that big yet. What did the team take away from the loss at home to Iowa State on December 2? Reiter: Some of the guys on our team were just assuming that it was going to be given to us. There were situations where we definitely needed to work harder, myself included. We were not ready to wrestle in that dual. It was obvious. They were well prepared. They came out and wrestled us their style. We let them control the edge and slow the pace down. I don't think in a rematch that we are going to allow them to do that. We are prepared now to face a lot of the other teams that will probably wrestle that same style of wrestling. You showed a lot heart in your last-second victory over Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational champion Kenny Jordan of Nebraska on December 6. You seemed pretty fired up after the victory. How big was that win for you? Reiter: It just kind of showed me that I'm getting back to where I want to be. I'm still not there yet. I have a long ways to go. Those types of wins are my favorite, where you can catch a guy at the end and he's just so exhausted that he can hardly stand up. Those wins were a big part of my success my freshman season. I think that I need to get back to that. For me, it was almost like my freshman season was my best season for competing because I wore guys down. I may not have had the most ability, but I was able to win matches that way. Mack Reiter lost to Hofstra's Lou Ruggirello at the NWCA All-Star Classic on November 19 (Photo/Tony Rotundo)Are you still enjoying the sport as much you always have? Reiter: I think so. I love it. You get the chance to go out there and compete. The whole country is watching us, especially as defending national champs. We are in the spotlight a lot of the time. It's exciting to have everybody gunning for us. Iowa State comes up here and knocks us off. Now we have something to go prove. So it's really exciting from that standpoint. And I still haven't gotten my individual national title, so I have something to look forward to. I still have a chance to win my first individual national title. Hopefully in March I can accomplish that. Would anything less than an NCAA individual title and a team title be considered a disappointing season? Or do you not look at it like that? Reiter: I couldn't say a disappointing season. Yeah, obviously I want to win a title and I want my team to win a title, but I don't know if I would say a disappointing season, but it's clearly not what I would want. It's tough to say disappointing season because if I'm the runner-up in the country, it's a pretty special thing. But obviously I'm hoping to win a national title. You will finish your collegiate wrestling career in March. You have been successful in age-group events in the international styles of freestyle and Greco-Roman. Do you plan to continue to wrestle freesytle or Greco after your collegiate career is over? Or do you have aspirations of getting into coaching? Reiter: My plan right now is to wrestle Greco. Watching some of those guys in freestyle, I don't know that I have enough time between March and May to change my style to compete with some of the top guys in freestyle, so I think I'm going to try Greco. I wrestle a lot of upperbody when I wrestle collegiately. It's a real physical and demanding style. It's a tough style and I think I can excel in it. After that, I plan on coaching. I would like to coach here at Minnesota. Hopefully that works out. So do you plan to compete internationally at 132 pounds or 145.5 pounds? And do you plan on competing at the 2008 U.S. Nationals in Las Vegas? Reiter: I will compete at 132 pounds. Those 145.5 pounders would be really big. They would be throwing me around. Yeah, I plan to compete at the U.S. Nationals. Obviously, Minnesota loses a lot of firepower after this season. Who do you expect to take over at 133 next season? Do you see Jayson Ness moving up to 133? Or do you expect Mike Thorn or possibly Zach Sanders to be the starter at 133? Reiter: I think it's going to be a decision made by the coaches. But I don't see Ness having any problem moving up and succeeding … and then Sanders jumping in at 125. If Ness does stay at 125, I think Thorn is more than ready to compete. I wrestle him at least once a week. He wrestles hard. I think he will definitely be ready to step in next season. I see 133 as a strong weight class next season for us either way. Zach Sanders, who is redshirting, came to Minnesota with great high school credentials. How is he looking in the wrestling room? Do you wrestle with him much? Reiter: Yeah, I wrestle with him. He's tough and fights hard. That's all you can ask for out of a redshirt. He constantly wrestles hard and keeps improving. I'm excited to see him step out on the mat and actually compete next season. Please Note:This story also appears in the December 28 issue of The Guillotine. The Guillotine has been covering amateur wrestling in Minnesota since 1971. Its mission is to report and promote amateur wrestling at all levels -- from youth and high school wrestling to college and international level wrestling. For information on The Guillotine, Click HERE.

Lincoln -- Husker wrestler Vince Jones has been invited to compete in the 45th annual Midlands Championships on Dec. 29-30 at Northwestern University. Jones, a junior from Sicklerville, N.J., will compete in the 184-pound division. The tournament is a national invitational/open event for college teams, clubs and individuals. The event annually draws more than 350 of the country's top wrestlers. Sessions begin at 9:30 a.m. and 7 p.m. on Dec. 29, with the third session at noon on Dec. 30 and the finals at 7 p.m. The Big Ten Network will air the semifinals on tape delay at 6 p.m. and will provide live coverage of the finals, starting at 7 p.m. Jones, a returning national qualifier for the Huskers, made his debut this season at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational on Nov. 30-Dec. 1. Jones recorded three straight pins, his fastest in 29 seconds, to kick off the season. He is currently 6-4 on the year, including 1-1 in duals. His lone dual lose of the year came to second-ranked Roger Kish of Minnesota, 6-2. This will be a special year for the Midlands. In anticipation of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the tournament will honor all Midland competitors who have represented their countries in past Olympic Games. Those Olympians in attendance will be honored prior to the final session. Several former Husker greats will be honored, including Rulon Gardner, Brad Vering, Jim Scherr and Bill Scherr.

EVANSTON, Ill. -- From Oklahoma to Minnesota to North Carolina, Illinois natives are dominating the college-wrestling scene. With more than 200 wrestlers from the state of Illinois now populating the country's wrestling teams, Illinois has become a state to reckon with as far as high school wrestling goes. A total of 30 wrestlers from University of Illinois' roster are homegrown, while at Northwestern, 12 student-athletes decided to stay in state for college. Among those wrestlers are former state champions, NCAA All-Americans and 2008 NCAA Championship contenders. At Illinois, there are none better than Mike Poeta and Jimmy Kennedy. Poeta brought home two state championships in high school and did not slow down once he became an Illini wrestler. As a redshirt freshman, he won the Missouri Open and finished the year 9-1 in open competition. From there, he qualified for the NCAA Championships, finished 7-1 in the Big Ten and placed second at the Midlands. His sophomore season, Poeta wrestled to an 18-0 start to the season, holding the No. 1 spot in the nation for nine-straight weeks before sustaining his first loss of the season to C.P. Schlatter (Minnesota) in the semifinals at Big Tens. A title at the 44th annual Midlands Championships also highlighted his season. This season, Poeta has gotten off to an unbeaten start in the first month of the season and holds the No. 1 ranking yet again. On Dec. 5, he was named the Big Ten Wrestler of the Week. As a true freshman in 2006-07, Kennedy qualified for the NCAA Championships with a season record of 29-7 and a No. 9 ranking at 133 lbs. At his first Midlands Championships, he placed second with his only loss coming to top-ranked Nick Simmons of Michigan State. In his four years of high school, he averaged less than one defeat a year. With his 187-3 career record, he won the state title as a sophomore and senior, finished second as a freshman and third as a junior while breaking the state takedown record in 2006. This year, Kennedy is ranked eighth in the nation and has been a force among the 133-lb. weight class. Illinois high school legend Mike Benefiel had his choice of schools to pick from, ranging from Minnesota, Iowa State, Wisconsin, Virginia Tech, Nebraska and Michigan. Benefiel chose to stay in his home state and picked Northwestern. The freshman now holds multiple high school records with a 200-4 career mark, which he ended on a 123-match win streak. He became just the ninth person in Illinois state history to win the state wrestling title all four years of high school with titles at 119 lbs., 140 lbs., 152 lbs. and 171 lbs. and holds the record for wins in a high school career. Last season, the Aurora native beat out Sean Bormet, his wrestling club coach, by going undefeated in his senior year and breaking Bormet's record for most wins in a season. Teammate Brandon Precin, in his sophomore season, is quickly elevating himself to new heights as well. With a 16-0 record to begin the 2007-08 campaign, he is on a fast track to qualify for the NCAA Championships for a second-straight season and can add to his renowned status in state as well. In high school, Precin was a two-time Illinois state champion with a career record of 186-6. With the continued influx of Illinois talent like Poeta, Kennedy, Precin, Benefiel and others such as Northwestern's Mike Tamillow, schools around the Big Ten and throughout the country stand to benefit from the state's continued success in the coming years.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team will be featured in at least three live televised duals this year as the Big Ten Network and local affiliates WPSU-TV and WHVL-TV will all air one match in the upcoming weeks. The Big Ten Network recently announced that Penn State's home conference dual with Michigan State will be broadcast to a national audience live on Feb. 15. The dual had initially been changed to a 5 p.m. start, but scheduling changes with the BTN have allowed the match to be switched back to its original 7 p.m. start time. Penn State's Jan. 4 home dual with Eastern rival Cornell will be televised live on WPSU-TV, Penn State's PBS affiliate. Action in Rec Hall begins at 7 p.m. as No. 3 Penn State hosts No. 17 Cornell in what should be a hotly contested dual. The event will also serve as a celebration of Penn State's first ever dual match, a meeting with Cornell 100 years ago. WPSU-TV serves a large statewide audience from Clarion to Williamsport and includes parts of southern New York and northern Maryland. In addition, WHVL-TV, State College's new local television station, will follow Penn State to nearby Lock Haven University to televise Penn State's Feb. 23 road dual at Lock Haven live as well. In order to accommodate the live telecast, the dual has been moved back to an 8 p.m. start (instead of the original 7:30 p.m. start). WHVL-TV is serving a growing audience in the Centre Region and can be seen on seven regional cable systems. Check www.whvl.com for a complete list of local affiliates and channels. The Nittany Lions, 4-0 overall, are currently ranked No. 3 in the country and will next meet No. 17 Cornell on Jan. 4 in Rec Hall. The dual will start at 7 p.m. All Penn State duals can be heard locally on WBLF AM (970) and WKVA (920 AM). Tickets for all regular season duals are on sale now at the athletic department ticket office in the Bryce Jordan Center. Single-dual tickets are $5 for adults and seniors and $3 for students 18 and under. Penn State students with a proper student ID are admitted free! Fans can call 814-863-1000 or 800-833-5533 to order single-dual tickets.

STILLWATER, Okla. -- Augsburg College alumnus Dr. James Mastro '73, a pioneer in athletics for the blind, will receive the Medal of Courage award from the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum in ceremonies May 30-31, 2008, it was announced this week. Mastro, who has been totally blind since age 18, was a member of the Augsburg wrestling team from 1968-73, earning All-Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference honors twice and winning the conference title at 177 pounds as a senior in 1973. Despite his visual impairment, he shined as an amateur wrestler. He competed as a member of the U.S. team at the World University Games in 1973, while earning bronze medals at international competitions three times. In 1976, he became the first blind athlete to be a member of an Olympic team, when he was an alternate on the U.S. Greco-Roman wrestling team at the Montreal Olympics. Mastro competed in seven Paralympics (Olympic competition for disabled athletes), becoming the first Paralympic athlete ever to medal in four different sports. He earned 10 medals (five gold, three silver, two bronze) while competing in wrestling, judo, track and field and goalball (an on-court team sport designed for blind athletes). He has also earned 17 international medals in other competitions, including the gold medal at the 1995 World Judo Championships for the Blind. In 1996, he was named as the flag-bearer for the United States team at the Paralympics opening ceremonies in Atlanta, Ga. In 1995, Mastro was named Blind Athlete of the Year by the U.S. Olympic Committee, and he was inducted into the Augsburg Athletic Hall of Fame in 1997. He is also a past president of the National Beep Baseball Association and served on the board of directors of the United States Association of Blind Athletes. A professor of professional education and physical education at Bemidji State University, Mastro has also been a pioneer in education. He was the first student with a visual impairment to earn a Ph.D. in physical education in the United States, when he earned his doctorate, with an emphasis in adapted and developmental physical education, from Texas Woman's University. He taught at the University of Minnesota before moving to Bemidji State. He has authored or co-authored 47 published articles and performed 26 national and international presentations on adapted and developmental physical education for state and national organizations, as well as athletes with disabilities. Ceremonies for the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum Class of 2008 will be held on May 30-31, 2008 in Stillwater, Okla. Four individuals will receive Distinguished Member induction into the Hall of Fame: Ricky Bonomo of Harrisburg, Pa., Mike Houck of Victoria, Minn., the late Wayne Martin of Tulsa, Okla., and Bobby Weaver of Easton, Pa. Houck and Weaver made their mark within international wrestling. Weaver was a gold medalist in freestyle wrestling at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Calif. and was a 1979 World silver medalist. Houck was the first U.S. wrestler to win a gold medal at the World Greco-Roman Championships with his historic victory at the 1985 World Championships in Kolbatn, Norway. Bonomo and Martin were among the best collegiate wrestlers of their eras, both winning three NCAA individual titles during their illustrious careers. Bonomo captured three NCAA titles for Bloomsburg University (Pa., 1985-87). Martin was a three-time NCAA champion for the University of Oklahoma (1934-36), also winning the Outstanding Wrestler at the 1936 NCAA Championships. Additional honorees to be inducted during the 2008 Honors Weekend will be: Outstanding American recipient Dan T. Cathy of Atlanta, Ga.; Order of Merit recipient Richard Small of Tulsa, Okla.; and Lifetime Achievement for Officials award recipient Jerry Wager of Las Vegas, Nev.

What's the smartest route from Annapolis, Maryland to Ithaca, New York? For Cornell University freshman wrestler Mack Lewnes, the journey included a side trip to Colorado Springs for a year at the Olympic Training Center. Mack LewnesThe "detour" has already paid big dividends. "(Mack's) transition from high school to college was smoothed considerably by being in Colorado Springs," according to Cornell's head coach Rob Koll. Now Mack Lewnes is putting that experience to work for the Big Red. The 165-pound freshman starter is currently ranked eleventh in RevWrestling.com's rankings, and, as of this writing, is fresh off winning the title at the 2007 Reno Tournament of Champions. Prep success in Maryland Before Colorado Springs and Cornell, Mack Lewnes spent his entire life in Annapolis, the state capitol of Maryland, and home to the United States Naval Academy. He took up wrestling at age six, enrolled in the Maryland Junior League. For the Lewnes, wrestling was very much a family affair. "My dad (Charlie) wrestled at the University of Oklahoma," Mack discloses. "I followed my older brother Sam (now an Oklahoma State Cowboy) into the Naval Academy (wrestling) program. I really looked up to him." This program was also the start of Mack's exposure to high-quality, name-brand coaching talent. The Navy Junior Wrestling program was coached by Division I All-Americans Wayne Hicks and Kelly Ward. Mack Lewnes attended high school at Mt. St. Joseph in Baltimore, where he compiled an outstanding 187-13 mat career record, and was a four-time Maryland state champ. "My coaches Dan Youngblood and Jay Braunstein took me to the next level," says Mack. When asked about what he considered to be the high points of his prep wrestling career beyond winning the private school state title each of his four years, Mack immediately mentioned his first big tournament, the Beast of the East, where he was crowned champion as a sophomore. He was also a two-time Powerade champion, claimed a title at the Walsh Ironman, and won championships at the Dapper Dan Classic and Dream Team events. "I really wanted to test myself against guys from Pennsylvania and Ohio because they are among the best in the country," says the Mt. St. Joseph wrestling alum. Mack's considerable high school successes weren't limited to the wrestling mat. He ranked in the top fifteen percent in his class, and graduated with a perfect grade point average. Rocky Mountain highs While in high school, Mack Lewnes committed to the wrestling program at Cornell University. However, before taking a single class at the Ivy League school in Ithaca, New York, Mack was able to spend a year at the U.S. Olympic Training Center (OTC) in Colorado Springs, thanks to the efforts of Cornell coach Rob Koll. Mack Lewnes spent time at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs (Photo/Lindsey Mechalik & Patrick Shanahan)"Being at the Olympic Training Center allowed me to get bigger, get stronger," says Mack "Working with the other wrestlers and coaches Terry Brands and Kevin Jackson really helped me with technique. I'm so lucky to have been coached by these guys." "I'd like to think I helped the other wrestlers, too, in our workouts. I'm a real scrapper." While in Colorado, Mack didn't spend all his time in the wrestling practice room at the OTC. He also took classes at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. "The experience really helped me develop my time-management skills," according to the Cornell freshman. "The Olympic Training Center offers a tremendous experience," according to coach Koll. "Being out there is very humbling. But the transition from high school to college is usually humbling for wrestlers … Mack came in here ready to contribute and compete." Wrestling for the Big Red As a first-year starter at Cornell, Mack Lewnes is already making positive contributions to the Big Red wrestling program. In the first dual meet of the season hosting the University of Wisconsin at Madison, Mack pinned the Badgers' Jake Donar at 4:37, contributing six points to the team score. At the Body Bar Invitational held at Cornell, Mack dominated the 165-pound weight class. He secured falls against Drexel's Dave Woodall and Maryland's Mike McGill to find himself in the finals against familiar foe Jake Donar. This time, Mack got a 17-5 major decision over the Wisconsin wrestler. Cornell coach Rob Koll calls Mack Lewnes' lone loss this season "a blip in the road" (Photo/Lindsey Mechalik & Patrick Shanahan)Mack Lewnes got off to an impressive start at the Nittany Lion Open at Penn State. He pinned Duquesne's Ryan Sula in the opening round … earned a 11-0 major decision over Matt Moore of the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown … then racked up a second fall of the tournament, putting King College's Javonte Ashford's shoulders to the mat at 1:33. However, Mack lost a close 4-3 decision to Marcus Effner of Cleveland State, and took a medical forfeit for the rest of his matches. "It was a blip in the road," is how coach Koll describes what happened to Mack Lewnes at Penn State tournament. "It was a wake-up call -- that he needs to be a bit more aggressive all the time out there." Koll quickly follows up, "(Mack's) a coach's dream come true. You don't have to motivate him. He loves practice … He's always got a smile on his face. His positive attitude helps motivate the entire room." Mack Lewnes returns the compliment. "I'm lucky to have Coach Koll, Cory Cooperman, Tyler Baier and volunteer assistant coach Damion Hahn. I'm surrounded by awesome coaches and wrestlers. Every day I get to work out with guys like Jordan Leen and Steve Anceravage." Mack apparently gained from what happened at the Nittany Lion Open. More recently, at the 2007 Reno Tournament of Champions in mid-December, the Annapolis native brought home the 165-pound title. Seeded third, Mack pinned Trevor Adkisson of Oklahoma City University in the first round … followed up by two major decisions (10-1 over Liberty's Chad Porter, and 17-4 over Oregon's Zack Frasier). In the semifinals, Mack got an 8-3 decision over Oklahoma City University's second-seeded Jake Dieffenback. Mack won the title with a 5-2 victory over the fourth seed, Trevor Stewart of Central Michigan. Most accommodating Mack Lewnes' winning smile and competitive spirit will serve him well in his chosen career, the hospitality industry. Mack is enrolled in Cornell's College of Hotel Administration, which coach Koll describes as being "the world's best. It attracts the top students, and is incredibly competitive." "It's a very time-consuming program," Rob Koll adds. "Hotel school is very tough," Mack concurs. "All my classes are in the hotel school … There are four-hour culinary classes. My Financial Accounting class has five hours of homework, but it's all relevant, very realistic… " "There are practicum courses where you have hands-on experience in working in a restaurant or a hotel," says the Cornell wrestler who grew up in the hospitality industry. (His family has been in the restaurant business in Annapolis since 1928, currently owning what Mack describes as an "upscale, white-tablecloth steakhouse.") "Perhaps the toughest for me was working housekeeping in a hotel." Checking into the future Ask Mack Lewnes about his goals and he responds, "I take things one at a time, and wrestle each match the best I can, mentally and physically. I plan to wrestle my best, as hard as I can." Mack Lewnes recently won the Reno Tournament of Champions (Photo/Tech-Fall.com)"Right now, I'm concentrating on folkstyle, but I want to wrestle internationally in summer and after college." As someone who has been blessed with top-flight coaches his entire wrestling career -- and appreciates their contributions in terms of instruction and motivation -- Mack Lewnes may seem like a natural to someday be a coach himself. "Coaching? I haven't really thought about it," says Mack. "I want to stay focused on my wrestling and academics right now." In the meantime, wrestling fans seeking exciting action in the 165-pound weight class will find Cornell's Mack Lewnes most accommodating.

KENT -- Riding a four-match win streak, Kent State head wrestling coach Jim Andrassy received some additional good news – his team is about to get stronger. After sitting out the first several events due to eligibility issues, the Golden Flashes (4-1) will have their strength bolstered with the return of two-time MAC Champion and two-time NCAA qualifier Kurt Gross at the 157-pound weight class. Gross, along with transfer Obie Simpson at 165 pounds, will be eligible to compete for Kent State at the Southern Scuffle in Greensboro Dec. 29-30. Gross is a three-year letter-winner from North Royalton and has won back-to-back MAC championships at 157 pounds. He has been ranked in several polls this season – including the MAC preseason #1 – despite not having wrestled attached to KSU in 2007-08. Gross has registered at least 21 victories in each of the past three seasons. He was a state champion for Parma Padua Franciscan High, posting a 34-1 record his senior season. Simpson, who has been competing for Kent State at open tournaments, will likely assume the starting role at 165. Before arriving in Kent, Simpson was a two-year starter at North Carolina State. He went 15-13 as a freshman in Raleigh, claiming third place honors at the ACC Tournament. He was part of NC State's 2007 ACC title team. He was also a member of two Illinois High Scholl State Championship teams. "We feel we have a pretty good team right now," Andrassy explained. "The addition of Kurt and Obie just makes us that much tougher and really strengthens the middle part of our line-up." Kent State has placed third and fourth at the Oklahoma Gold and Body Bar tournaments, respectively. The Flashes have four dual meet wins with the lone setback coming at the hands of Michigan in Ann Arbor Dec. 7. Following the Southern Scuffle, the Flashes will entertain in-state rival Ohio State for the home opener Jan. 4. KSU has defeated the Buckeyes in each of the past two seasons.

PARK RIDGE, IL -- Iowa wrestler Mark Perry has been named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week, earning the honor for the second time in his career. He first earned the honor Feb. 9, 2005. Perry, who is ranked second nationally at 165 pounds, pinned both his opponents and helped Iowa pick up two dual wins Dec. 13 in Iowa City. He pinned third-ranked Moza Fay of Northern Iowa in 48 seconds to score his 80th career victory in the first match of the night. He then stuck Cornell College's Christian Coffey in 4:17 to score his 30th career pin. Perry needs 10 more falls to break into Iowa's top-10 all-time career leaders list. He is 5-1 this season, pinning all five of his wins. Perry is the second Hawkeye this season to earn the weekly conference honor. Sophomore Joe Slaton was honored Dec. 12 for upsetting Nick Fanthorpe of Iowa State, 6-5, at 133 pounds in Ames Dec. 9. Top-ranked Iowa (7-0) will resume competition Dec. 29-30, at the 45th annual Midlands Championships in Evanston, IL.

Pittsburgh, Pa. -- In a contest between two undefeated teams, the eighth-ranked Missouri wrestling team held off No. 19 Pittsburgh (5-1), 23-17, in the Fitzgerald Field House improving to 4-0 on the season. Sophomore Maxwell Askren (Hartland, Wis.) helped seal the Tiger victory with a 17-2 win by technical fall over Dave Crowell at 197 pounds, while two Tigers wrestled up one weight class in an effort to hold off No. 1 ranked Keith Gavin at 174 pounds. "It's been a long trip," Head Coach Brian Smith said. "Our guys our tired and run down, but even though a few moved up a weight class, we still found a way to pull through for the win. I think that says a lot for our team." With the win, Missouri improves to 4-0 against the Panthers and brings its perfect record back to Columbia for a home-opening dual, Friday, Jan. 4, against Bucknell beginning at 7 p.m. (CT) in the Hearnes Center. Missouri's win marks the second straight dual in which the Tigers put a stop to their opponents run at a perfect record. Last Saturday, the Tigers took down No. 10 Chattanooga, 24-10, in Tennessee. Rebounding from his loss at UTC, 11th-ranked redshirt freshman Tony Pescaglia (Columbia, Mo.) managed a 13-0 major decision over Brad Gentzle of Pittsburgh. Dominating his opponent, Pescaglia rattled off 13 unanswered points, with each grappler hit with either a caution of stall call. Redshirt freshman Willie Saxton (Rayland, Ohio), made his first career start in the Tiger lineup. Battling with Drew Headlee, Saxton was taken down in the first period, but cut the Panther's lead in half with an escape. Saxton tied the bout at two in the second, but was taken down before the end of the period. In the end, Headlee came through with eight points, including one for riding time, for the 12-4 win. Senior Josh Wagner (Milton, Wis.) came up with the fourth straight bonus point victory of the night, pinning Joey Ecklof in 3:45. With the win, Wagner, ranked 15th in the nation at 149 pounds, recorded his 70th career victory. Junior Michael Chandler (High Ridge, Mo.) and sophomore Nicholas Marable (Colliervielle, Tenn.) each moved up one weight class from their usual starting position. Chandler, ranked 13th in the nation at 157 pounds, shutout Ethan Headlee, 9-0, and scored four of his nine points by reversal. Taking his chances with Gavin, Marable scored first in the bout with a takedown but allowed Gavin an escape which he followed with a takedown of his own. The second period opened with Marable down by deferral. His escape was the only point scored in the two minute period and sent the grapplers tied at three heading into the third period. Gavin came up with an escape and a takedown to win the bout, 7-3. "Nick looked good tonight," Smith said. "He did a really nice job against the No. 1 wrestler in the nation. We were very pleased with how he stepped up to the challenge." Junior Raymond Jordan (New Bern, N.C.) improved to 12-1 on the season after besting Dave Sullivan, 13-4, at 184 pounds. Jordan's win gave the Tigers a four point lead, which Askren added his five points to for a nine point advantage heading into the heavyweight bout. The Tigers will take a few days off over the holidays before returning to the mat against Bucknell on Jan. 4.

CLARION, Pa. -- It took a pair of gut-wrenching winning streaks and a double overtime epic for the Flashes to earn the program's fifth win over Clarion in 17 tries. Back-to-back emotional wins by Drew Lashaway and Clint Sponseller got the good guys off and running at Clarion University Wednesday night. Lashaway trailed late in the third period against Sal Lascari, but a flurry of late action gave him a big 6-5 win. Sponseller fell behind Hadley Harrison 6-4 with inside of a minute remaining in regulation, but a reversal and headlock turned the score around, making Sponseller a 9-6 winner, and forging Kent State in front, 6-0. "That was a good start for us, especially with how defensive I thought we wrestled," head coach Jim Andrassy said. "We got a little frustrated but we held on and fought hard." However, any momentum Kent State might have gathered with the pair of wins quickly evaporated when the Eagles rallied to win the next two. At 157, Travis Uncapher knocked off Patrick Lanham 7-2 and then Clarion tied things up with a 3-0 win at 165. David Cox notched the shutout of Sli Bostelman, 3-0 as the teams were now even at 6-6. In the 174-pound bout, Chris Estep snapped a seven-period scoreless streak for KSU with a third period reversal of Mario Morelli. Protecting a precarious 2-1 lead, Estep allowed a perimeter reversal with 0:17 remaining to suffer a heart-breaking 3-2 decision. It gave Kent State its first deficit since the Michigan dual Dec. 7. Kent State quelled the uprising in the person of Eric Chine at 184. Despite being the third straight Flashes wrestler to be held scoreless in the first two periods, Chine's three-spot in the third frame erased a 1-0 deficit. He held on for a 3-2 win. The offensive drought continued with Michael Blackwell at 197. Trailing 1-0 into the third, he needed just three seconds to tie Jamie Luckett with an escape. With neither competitor showing any desire to shoot, the bout remained tied 1-1 into overtime. In the bonus session, the lack of offense continued, sending the match into the tiebreaker. Luckett won the toss, was warned for stalling between periods and was never able to break free of Blackwell's grip. Needing only an escape to win, Blackwell took down. With seven seconds gone by, Blackwell rolled Luckett for the reversal, and simply rode him out for the mind-boggling 3-1 win. "We have varying styles," Blackwell said. "He is real heavy-handed and tried to keep me from doing anything. They (Clarion) videotaped us last week and his coaches told him to slow me down. All I knew was I was better conditioned and after the first shot I knew I'd have to win it with conditioning." "It came down to shape, it's never going to be a conditioning thing for Michael, it's always about his confidence," Andrassy added. With a 12-9 advantage, Kent State put its fortunes into the good hands of returning NCAA qualifier Jermail Porter. Perhaps growing ever tired of the lack of first and second period points, Porter tallied a pair of takedowns in the first period to build a 4-1 lead. The next two periods were simply more of the same as Porter rolled to the 8-2 decision. The Flashes' three-match win streak was then lengthened at 125 as Nic Bedelyon twice rallied from behind against Jay Ivanco and then suddenly secured a dramatic fall with 47 seconds remaining in the second stanza. The action concluded with another solid performance by Dan Mitcheff. The undefeated junior rolled up more than four minutes of advantage time and cruised to a 6-1 win over Rob LaBrake. The decision added to Kent State's lead and gave the Flashes a 24-9 win. "Our guys are tired, and that was my intent. With the five days off before the Southern Scuffle I wanted to burn them out with practices and tonight's meet. This isn't a bad time to be tired, but I was pleased with the outcome," Andrassy said. Kent State will take a Christmas recess from action before heading south for the always-tough Southern Scuffle. The Flashes will see national champion Minnesota and many other top teams and individuals at the Greensboro Coliseum in North Carolina. The tournament will be held on Dec. 29 and 30.

Columbia, Mo. -- The eighth-ranked Missouri wrestling team will put its perfect 3-0 record on the line when the Tigers take on No. 19 Pittsburgh, also undefeated (5-0), Wednesday, Dec. 19, at 6 p.m. (CT) in Fitzgerald Field House. The dual will be available to view online at www.ewlwrestling.com. Coming off of a 24-10 win over No. 10 Chattanooga, in which Missouri broke up the Mocs then-perfect season, Wednesday night's dual will be the Tiger's final meeting of the 2007 calendar year. Missouri owns a 3-0 record in the all-time series with Pittsburgh with the Wednesday evening meeting marking the third straight season in which the teams have competed against one another. Missouri enters its fourth dual of the season with nine wrestlers ranked among the top-25 of their respective weight class. Senior 133 pound grappler Tyler McCormick (Leawood, Kan.) holds the highest Tiger ranking at second in the nation. After a five-week absence from the mat, McCormick made his return Saturday evening besting Steve Hromada of UTC, 6-1, for his second win of the season and 72nd of his career. Pittsburgh's No. 1 ranked 174 pound grappler Keith Gavin is expected to wrestle Missouri's James Williamson (Blue Springs, Mo.) or Joey Garrity (Orion, Ill.). Gavin, currently 11-0 on the season, finished second at the 2006 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships after suffering a 4-3 loss to two-time Tiger National Champion, Ben Askren. Thirteenth-ranked Michael Chandler (High Ridge, Mo.) is expected to square off with No. 6 Matt Kocher in the Fitzgerald Field House. Chandler lost a one point, 4-3, decision to Kocher in last season's Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Chandler went on to finish the two-day event in sixth, while Kocher claimed a fourth-place finish. This season, Chandler has lost only three bouts, all coming to top-ranked opponents including then-second-ranked Craig Henning of Wisconsin. Two familiar opponents will once again meet in the heavyweight division. Missouri sophomore and 12th-ranked Mark Ellis (Peculiar, Mo.) and Pittsburgh's No. 15 Zach Sheaffer will battle for the second time of the season. Ellis holds the 1-0 advantage over the Panther wrestler after pinning him in 49 seconds at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, Dec. 1.

HEMPSTEAD, NY -- Hofstra University Head Wrestling Coach Tom Shifflet today announced that Paul Snyder, a two-time Pennsylvania State Championships placer, has signed a National Letter of Intent to attend and wrestle at the University beginning in September 2008. Snyder, a native of Greensburg, Pennsylvania and a senior at Mt. Pleasant Area High School outside of Pittsburgh, is currently the top-rated heavyweight high school wrestler in Pennsylvania, and is ranked the 10th-best scholastic heavyweight in the country as ranked by Wrestling International Newsmagazine (W.I.N.). "We are excited about signing a student-athlete of Paul's caliber," Shifflet said. "He is talented, tough and aggressive, and still has great potential as a championship-caliber college wrestler." Snyder posted a 43-6 record and placed third at the Pennsylvania High School State Championships in 2007 as a junior. The 6'0", 265-pound senior also placed seventh in the state championships as a sophomore in 2006 recording a 44-7 record. The Vikings of Mt. Pleasant placed third in the Pennsylvania Championships in 2006 and were fourth in 2005. The Hofstra Pride, ranked 14th in the country with a 3-3 dual match record, return to action on December 29-30 when they compete in the 28-team Southern Scuffle in Greensboro, North Carolina.

This week's edition of "On the Mat" will feature Heath Grimm, Kim Parrish, and Tim Csysewski. "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. Grimm is the head wrestling coach at Upper Iowa University, a position he has held since the 2001-02 season. During his tenure, Grimm has led the Peacocks to four top-11 national finishes, including a second place finish (program best) in 2002. His team is currently ranked sixth in the nation in Division II. Parrish is a judge and a law professor who is the author of the book "Cowboy Up." In this book, Parris chronicles the record setting 2004-05 Oklahoma State wrestling season under head coach John Smith. Csysewski is in his 19th season as the head wrestling coach at Northwestern University. At last year's NCAA tournament, his Wildcat wrestling team placed fourth at the NCAA tournament. The Wildcats are currently ranked ninth in the USA Today/Intermat/NWCA Coaches poll. "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.

This week we're LIVE from our Brute Adidas Studios in Des Moines and we'll deliver a brand new episode of Takedown Radio. Takedown Radio is now broadcast on the following internet outlets: Takedownradio.com, KXNO.com, Matchannel.com, Mat-magazine.com. Please be sure to join our regular live broadcasts every Saturday as we talk to the worlds greatest athletes each Saturday AM from 9AM to 11:00AM CST. TDR is available LIVE, Archived and Pod Cast. Visit Takedownradio.com for more details. Two weeks ago we shot an episode of TDR on video. You can Watch this TDR broadcast on Matchannel.com FREE of charge. TDR scheduled guests include: Tom Minkel-Head Coach of the Michigan State Spartans. Tom will join us to discuss the season, improvements on the team and the balance of the year as we look forward to the Nat'l Duals and the NCAA's. Michigan State's wrestlers closed out the fall semester competing at the annual Nittany Lion Open hosted by Penn State University on Sunday, Dec. 2. Senior Joe Williams finished second in the 197 bracket, nearly defending his title from last year, while junior Clint Frutiger placed fourth at 125 pounds. The Spartans will break for the holiday season and return to tournament action at the Midlands Championships from Dec. 29-30 in Evanston, Ill. Michigan State's next dual isn't until next year, when MSU hosts Ohio at 7 p.m. in Jenison Field House on Jan. 4, 2008. John Jeffire- Author of "Motown Burning", joins us to discuss his book and relationship to wrestling. Strength can come from many sources. I draw strength from guys like John. Very inspiring read. John teaches English and Coaches Wrestling at Chippewa Valley High School in a suburb of Detroit, Michigan. Andy Hrovat- U of Mich grad, NYAC, president of the silent H Club has been named Themat.com/TDR Wrestler of the Week for Nov. 20-26. Hrovat won a gold medal at 84 kg/185 lbs. at the Henri Deglane International on Nov. 24 in Nice, France. Hrovat defeated Soslan Kosoev of Russia 5-2, 6-0 in the freestyle finals. He downed American Clint Wattenberg 1-1, 4-1 in the semifinal round. Hrovat was a member of the 2006 U.S. World Team and placed second at the 2007 U.S. World Team Trials. He was a silver medalist at the 2007 Pan American Games. C.B. Dollaway- Arizona State: 2005 Pac-10 Runner-up at 184 pounds. 2004-05: Went 29-9 in his first season of Division I competition...placed second at the Pac-10 Championships as the No. 2 seed to earn a berth into the NCAA Championships...seeded No. 12 at the national event, going 1-2 and not placing...opened the year with a 4-0 record and winning the Fullerton Open with a 10-0 major decision upset of No. 9 Ryan Halsey (Cal Poly)...finished second in both the Las Vegas Invitational and Reno Tournament of Champions...went 14-4 in dual competition with losses coming to the then-ranked No. 2, No. 3, No. 4 and No. 12 wrestlers in the nation...led the team in falls with 10...tied for the team lead in bonus-point victories with 18 on 10 falls, one technical fall and seven major decisions...perfect 8-0 in Pac-10 duals...has 11-bout win streak snapped in finals of conference meet. Phil Davis- (Harrisburg, Pa./Penn State University) is Themat.com/TDR Athlete of the week for Nov. 13-19. Davis, a three-time All-American for Penn State, is off to a strong start at 197 pounds in his senior season. He already owns wins over three opponents ranked in the top eight nationally. The second-ranked Davis downed No. 3 Mike Tamillow of Northwestern 6-2 in the National Wrestling Coaches Association All-Star Classic on Nov. 19 in Eugene, Ore. That win came two days after Davis notched a 12-1 major decision over Hofstra's sixth-ranked Joe Rovelli in a dual meet. Davis also beat Maryland's eighth-ranked Hudson Taylor by a 17-2 technical fall on Nov. 11. Davis placed seventh at the NCAA Championships as a freshman in 2005 before finishing second at the NCAAs in 2006. He finished fifth in the NCAA meet as a junior this past March. Davis entered this season with a 90-19 career record at the collegiate level. Ben Askren- Ben Askren (Columbia, Mo./Sunkist Kids) has been named TheMat.com/TDR Wrestler of the Week for Oct. 30-Nov. 5. Askren won a loaded freestyle class at 74 kg/163 lbs. in capturing the title at the Hargobind International Wrestling Championships on Nov. 3 in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada. He was named Outstanding Wrestler. Askren downed U.S. National Team member Ramico Blackmon in the semifinals before avenging a loss from the week before by defeating past NCAA All-American Travis Paulson in the finals. Askren also beat past NCAA champion and Canadian World Team member Matt Gentry in the second round. The 74 kilos weight class also included U.S. World Team Trials runner-up Casey Cunningham, who lost to Paulson in the semifinals before coming back to place third. Askren lost to Paulson in the semifinals of the Sunkist Kids International Open on Oct. 28 in Chandler, Ariz. Askren is focusing full-time on international wrestling now after just completing a standout collegiate career at Missouri. Askren was a two-time NCAA champion and two-time Hodge Trophy winner for the Tigers. He was a four-time NCAA finalist in college. Askren is now serving as the volunteer assistant coach at Missouri. Iris Smith- (Colorado Springs, Colo./U.S. Army) has been named TheMat.com/TDR Wrestler of the Week for Oct. 23-29. Smith knocked off Russia's top two wrestlers at 72 kg/158.5 lbs. en route to winning the women's freestyle title at the Sunkist Kids International Open on Oct. 27 in Chandler, Ariz. Smith beat 2004 Olympic silver medalist and 2007 World bronze medalist Guzel Manyurova of Russia 3-0, 1-2, 1-1 in the semifinals. She followed by beating past two-time Junior World runner-up Daria Nazarova of Russia 2-0, 2-1 in the finals. Smith, a 2005 World champion, placed third in the 2007 U.S. World Team Trials. Ryan Bader- While at Arizona State: Overall Record: 88-34 Returning All-American at 197 after claiming fourth place at the 2004 NCAA Championships...three-time Pac-10 Championships finalist, winning the 2003 and 2004 titles and placing second in 2005...needs just 12 victories in his senior season to record 100 in a career. 2004-05: Finished the year with a 31-8 overall record and runner-up at the Pac-10 Championships...entered the NCAA Championships as the No. 7 seed...finished with a 2-2 record and did not place...finished second at both Fullerton Open and Las Vegas Invitational...took third at the Reno Tournament of Champions...scored a 5-3 upset of No. 4 Marcio Bothelo of Fresno State to advance to the third place bout at the Reno event...recorded three winning streaks of six bouts or more on three occasions, including an 11-match stretch...posted a record of 8-6 against nationally ranked foes...was 15-2 in dual meets...also went 7-1 in Pac-10 duals...was 8-0 at home... 2003-04: Finished the season at 33-8...won his second conference title in as many seasons at 197 after going 3-0 in the Pac-10 meet, defeating K.C Walsh of Boise State, 3-0, for the championship...went 4-2 at the NCAA Championships, placing fourth to earn his first All-America honor...began the season 8-0 and climbed into the Top 5 of the national rankings where he remained for a majority of the season...won the Missouri Open by defeating No. 16 Rusty Blackmon of Oklahoma State, 10-2...placed second at the Las Vegas Invite...went 4-0 at the Reno TOC on his way to a first place finish, defeating No. 8 Matt Monteiro of CS Bakersfield, 4-2...selected as ASU's Most Valuable Wrestler by the coaching staff... 2002-03: Built a 24-18 overall record on his way to the 2003 Pac-10 Championship at 197...was the No. 2 seed in the conference meet, going 3-0 and defeating No. 4 K.C. Walsh of Boise State, 2-1, for the title...his victory in the final clinched the team title for the Sun Devils...went 1-2 at the NCAA Championships...won his opening match in overtime, 6-4, over Millersville's Adam Schaaf before falling to national runner-up and top-seeded Jon Trenge of Lehigh, 11-2...was 3-8 against nationally ranked foes, including an 18-4 major decision over then-No. 6 Kyle Smith of Michigan, the seventh-place finisher at the national meet... 2001-02: Redshirted.

IRVING, Texas -- Cyler Sanderson has been named Big 12 Wrestler of the Week for his pin of Northern Iowa's Jarion Beets Sunday in Cedar Falls, the conference announced Monday afternoon. Sanderson receives this recognition for the first time in his career. Sanderson helped lead the No. 2 Cyclones past No. 25 Northern Iowa, 29-10, for ISU's seventh dual win of the season. The sophomore pinned Beets in 2:12, after recording two takedowns in the first period. The fall marks the first of the season for Sanderson, who is ranked No. 4 in the nation at 157 pounds. The victory keeps Sanderson unbeaten at 11-0 and pushes his career mark to 40-9. Four of Sanderson's 11 victories have resulted in bonus points (two major decisions, a technical fall and a pin).

RENO, NEV. -- The Big Red wrestling team captured third place with a modified roster at the Reno Tournament of Champions on Tuesday. Cornell earned two individual titles with junior Jordan Leen winning the championship at 157 pounds, while freshman Mack Lewnes upset two higher ranked wrestlers to grab the crown at 165 pounds. At 125 pounds, freshman Frank Perrelli opened the tournament with a 9-5 win over Cal-Poly's Micah Ferguson to advance to the quarterfinals. Perrelli lost to the No. 1 seed, Tanner Gardner (Stanford), to move to the wrestlebacks where he lost to UC-Davis' Marcos Orozco. Also at 125, senior Mike Rodriguez wrestled unattached for the Big Red. Rodriguez lost his opening match to Arizona State's Anthony Robles. Rodriguez pinned all three of his next opponents in the wrestlebacks before avenging his loss to Robles, defeating the Sun Devils wrestler by major decision, 13-2. Rodriguez went on to place sixth in the tournament. Freshman Mike Grey represented Cornell at 133 pounds as the No. 4 seed. Grey opened with an 11-5 decision over Conor Beebe of Central Michigan. Grey won his next two bouts by major decisions advancing to the semifinals, where he lost an 8-2 decision to No. 1 nationally ranked Coleman Scott of Oklahoma State). The freshman defeated the No. 3 seed Filip Novachkov (Cal Poly), 3-1, to take third place. As the No. 2 seed at 141 pounds, sophomore Adam Frey pinned his first two opponents to advance to the semifinals where he defeated Cal State Bakersfields' Elijah Nacita, 7-5. In the finals, Frey faced No. 1 seed and fourth ranked Nathan Morgan of Oklahoma State. The two were scoreless after the first period, but Morgan edged past Frey by a 6-3 decision. The Big Red did not wrestle at 149 pounds. Leen entered the tournament as the No. 1 seed at 157 pounds. After receiving a bye in the first round, he won a 6-2 decision over Appalachian State's Eddie Hutchinson, before earning a 13-0 major decision over Oklahoma City's Brandon Benson in the quarterfinals. He advanced to the finals with a 12-5 win over Cal State Bakersfield's Trevor Hall. In the championship bout, Leen faced the No. 2 seed Chase Pami of Cal Poly. Leen earned an escape and with 1:44 in riding time, won a 2-0 bout to win the crown. No. 3 seeded Mack Lewnes pinned his first opponent before winning major decisions over the next two to plow his way to the semifinals. Lewnes advanced to the finals with an 8-3 decision over ninth-ranked, and the No. 2 seed, Jake Dieffenback of Oklahoma State. The freshman faced the No. 4 seed Trevor Stewart of Central Michigan in the finals, where Lewnes earned the 5-2 victory.

Reno, NEV -- The Oklahoma State wrestling team finished second at the 2007 Reno Tournament of Champions Tuesday, crowning two individual champions along the way to their runner-up finish. Coleman Scott and Nathan Morgan both captured individual titles, as the Cowboys finished with seven individuals in the top three of their weight classes. The Cowboys 130 points were second only to Central Michigan's 152.5. "We can hold our chin up," said head coach John Smith. "We're better than when we got out here and our guys wrestled some of their best matches of the year. We felt that if we didn't score at three weight classes it was going to be tough for us to win." I was a little disappointed in our performance in the semifinals, but was pleased with the way our guys came back and finished." Scott cruised through the 133-pound bracket, picking up a major decision and technical fall in his first two matches. Following workmanlike wins over Ryan Dunn of Oregon (13-6) and Mike Grey of Cornell (8-2), Scott set the stage to repeat as the 133-pound champion. In the finals against Joey Baker of Navy, Scott used a first period takedown to open up the scoring and later pushed his lead to 5-1 after a takedown early in the third period. Baker got a late takedown to pull with two points, but Scott closed out his 14th win of the season with a 6-4 victory. Morgan had little trouble reaching the finals as well, picking up a fall and technical fall among his four wins en route to the finals. In the finals against second-seeded Adam Frey of Cornell, Morgan fought through a scoreless first period and then broke the match open in the second period with a reverse and takedown, giving himself a 4-1 lead heading into the final period. Morgan got a third period takedown for good measure and finished off his tournament run with a 6-3 victory. Heavyweight Jared Rosholt had arguably the most impressive run through the tournament of anyone in the field. Despite being ranked seventh nationally entering the tournament, Rosholt was not awarded one of the top four seeds. After picking up falls in his first two matches, Rosholt dominated in a 9-0 major decision over fourth-seeded Zach Hammond of Cornell. Rosholt followed up his quarterfinal performance by upsetting top-seeded and No. 2 ranked Bubba Gritter of Central Michigan 4-2. Rosholt dropped a hard-fought contest in the finals against Ed Prendergast of Navy, nearly scoring a go-ahead takedown with the match tied 2-2 in the third period, before falling victim to a takedown and three-point nearfall to drop the match 7-3. Newly McSpadden had the longest day of any Cowboy, finishing the day with eight matches under his belt to go with his third place finish. After losing a nail-biter to eventual runner-up Chase Pami, McSpadden reeled of six consecutive wins in a roller coaster afternoon. Trailing 6-4 in the final seconds of the consolation finals against Central Michigan's Tyler Grayson, McSpadden scored a late takedown to force overtime and earned a 7-6 sudden victory win when he rode Grayson out in the first thirty seconds and scored an escape in the second. McSpadden topped off his day with a 3-2 victory over third-seeded Josh Zupancic to earn his third-place finish. Senior Jake Dieffenbach continued his strong start in Stillwater, despite losing his first match of the season. Seeded second, Dieffenbach stormed through his first two matches, picking up major decisions over Eric Coxbill of Wyoming (12-4) and Justin Jacobs of Navy (13-5). After dropping an 8-3 decision to eventual champion Mark Lewnes of Cornell, Dieffenbach posted a 7-1 decision over Tommy Hutchinson of Appalachian State and a 7-3 decision over top-seeded Patrick Pitsch of Arizona State to earn third place honors. Brandon Mason continued his season-long trend of winning big, picking up two falls, a technical fall, and two major decisions in his third place effort. Mason essentially went untouched until the semifinals when he dropped a 4-2 decision to eventual champion Brandon Sinnott of Central Michigan. Mason followed up just his second loss of the season with an 11-2 major decision over John Wilcox of OKCU and a 2:31 fall over Evan Copeland of Adams State in the third place match. Clayton Foster showed flashes of brilliance throughout his run to third-place honors, proving why the Cowboy coaching staff is so high on the 197-pound true freshman. Among Foster's five victories were two major decisions and a pair of gutsy two-point victories. He wrapped things up with an 11-5 decision over Thor Moen of Arizona State in the third-place match. Jared Shelton was strong out of the gate, picking up a fall in his first match and jumping out to a 7-2 lead in his second before his injury. Neil Erisman also saw his solid performance end in injury default after picking up three wins in his first four matches. At 149, both Quinten Fuentes and Mike Bizzle went 2-2 for the Cowboys, while Cody Hill had a 2-2 showing and Ben Ashmore finished with a 1-2 tournament record.

STILLWATER, OKLA. -- The National Wrestling Hall of Fame & Museum has announced the selection of the Class of 2008 Distinguished Members, as well as its special award honorees for the year. They will be inducted during the Honors Weekend Banquet and Induction Ceremony in Stillwater, Oklahoma, May 30-31, 2008. The event will mark the 32nd anniversary Class of the Hall of Fame & Museum. Four wrestling greats will be added as Distinguished Members in 2008. They are: • Ricky Bonomo of Harrisburg, Pa. • Mike Houck of Victoria, Minn. • Wayne Martin of Tulsa, Okla. (deceased) • Bobby Weaver of Easton, Pa. Houck and Weaver made their mark within international wrestling. Weaver was a gold medalist in freestyle wrestling at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Calif. and was a 1979 World silver medalist. Houck was the first U.S. wrestler to win a gold medal at the World Greco-Roman Championships with his historic victory at the 1985 World Championships in Kolbatn, Norway. Bonomo and Martin were among the best collegiate wrestlers of their eras, both winning three NCAA individual titles during their illustrious careers. Bonomo captured three NCAA titles for Bloomsburg University (1985-87). Martin was a three-time NCAA champion for the Univ. of Oklahoma (1934-36), also winning the Outstanding Wrestler at the 1936 NCAA Championships. Additional honorees to be inducted during the 2008 Honors Weekend will be: • Outstanding American recipient Dan T. Cathy of Atlanta, Ga. • Order of Merit recipient Richard Small of Tulsa, Okla. • Medal of Courage recipient Dr. James V. Mastro of Bemidji, Minn. • Lifetime Achievement for Officials award recipient Jerry Wager of Las Vegas, Nev. The Hall of Fame's Board of Governors approved these selections at its semi-annual meeting held in Las Vegas in December 2007. "I want to thank our Board of Governors and the various screening and selection committees involved in the six-month process that determines our honorees for induction. This is another exceptional class of inductees whose merits transcend our sport," said Lee Roy Smith, Executive Director of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame & Museum. The four Distinguished Members were among the dominant athletes of their era. Bonomo was the greatest wrestler in the history of Bloomburg Univ., a Div. I program in Pennsylvania. For three straight years (1985-87), Bonomo won all of the major events on the schedule, capturing the NCAA Div. I title, along with the Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) title and the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) title at 118 pounds. He was named the EWL and PSAC Wrestler of the Year all three of those seasons. Ricky's career record was a stellar 116-12-3. Ricky and his brother Rocky were the first twins to win Pennsylvania state titles side-by-side in 36 years when they won Class AA titles for Lake Lehman High in 1981, wrestling for the legendary Floyd "Shorty" Hitchcock. Rocky was also an All-American for Bloomsburg, making the Bonomo brothers the most feared lightweight tandem in college wrestling at the time. Houck made U.S. wrestling history in 1985, when he became the first American Greco-Roman wrestler to win a gold medal at the World Championships with his dramatic victory in Kolbatn, Norway. He competed on three U.S. World Teams during his career, and won three U.S. National titles. He also won an AAU National Greco-Roman title in 1981. Twice, Houck placed second at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials. He competed for Maranatha Baptist Bible College, winning two Christian College National titles and three All-American honors. Houck worked as USA Wrestling's National Greco-Roman Coach from 1990-95. He coached the USA to two individual medals at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, Spain. Houck was a founder and coached for the U.S. Olympic Training Center Greco-Roman Resident Program, which was created in 1993 and has become internationally respected for developing champion athletes. Martin won three NCAA titles for the Univ. of Oklahoma, competing for Coach Paul Keen. He was the first three-time NCAA champion in Sooner history, and the first athlete to win NCAA Div. I wrestling titles in three different weight classes. Martin was the 134-pound champion in 1934, the 145-pound champion in 1935 and the 135-pound champion in 1936, winning the Outstanding Wrestler as a senior. He was a three-time Big Six champion and had a career record of 39-2 with 21 falls. Martin won two Oklahoma state high school titles for Tulsa Central under its legendary coach Art Griffith. His son Mickey was a two-time NCAA champion, and they were the only father-son combination to win NCAA Outstanding Wrestler awards, when Mickey was honored in 1963. Wayne was also a coach for Elk City High School for a number of years and was inducted into the Helms Hall of Fame in 1962. Weaver was one of the nation's greatest lightweight freestyle wrestlers ever, capped off with his gold-medal victory at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Calif. He was one of seven U.S. freestyle champions in Los Angeles, competing under Dan Gable. Weaver also qualified for the 1980 U.S. Olympic Team, which did not compete in the Moscow Olympics due to the U.S. government boycott. He was a silver medalist at the 1979 World Championships and fifth at the 1983 World Championships. Weaver won World Cup titles in 1980 and 1984, and was a 1977 Junior World silver medalist. Weaver won four AAU National titles and two USWF national titles. He competed at Lehigh Univ., where he was third in the 1982 NCAA Championships. Weaver won three Pennsylvania state titles for Easton High School (1975-77) and was a Prep School national champion for Blair Academy. The special honorees represent tremendous achievements both within wrestling and in society. Business giant Dan T. Cathy will be inducted as a 2008 Outstanding American, which honors past wrestlers for their success in other walks of life. Since 2001, Cathy has served as the President and Chief Operating Officer of Chick-fil-A, one of the nation's largest family owned businesses. Cathy has led the Atlanta-based quick-service chicken restaurant chain to continued success in the industry. The chain was founded by his father S. Truett Cathy, and Dan participated in the business throughout his life. He also served as director of operations, senior director of operations, vice president of operations, and executive vice president before assuming his current duties. In his quest to provide customers with "2nd Mile Service" (exceeding even the highest expectations of a typical fast-food restaurant), Dan has defined a special role for himself – humbly saying, "I work in customer service." Dan and his brother Donald "Bubba" Cathy were high school state champions for the Woodward Academy. Dan won the state title at 119 pounds in 1971 and had a 40-4 record his last two years. He later wrestled for Furman University. For 20 years, Chick-fil-A and the Cathy family sponsored the state wrestling awards banquet. The 2008 Order of Merit, given for contributions that further the sport and elected by Hall of Fame Distinguished Members, goes to Richard P. Small, a former wrestler and successful businessman who has been a leader within the sport. Small was high school wrestler in Illinois, and a member of the legendary 1947 Cornell College team which won both the NCAA and AAU team championships. He was a Midwest Conference champion for Cornell. His corporate business career included serving as chairman and CEO for Cheker Oil Company, as well as president/CEO for Tri-Star Aerospace. Small has served many years on the Board of Governors of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum. His leadership has helped the Hall of Fame to raise substantial funds to expand its facility, exhibits, and endowment fund. He remains the most benevolent benefactor of all-time to his alma-mater at Cornell College. The 2008 Medal of Courage recipient is Dr. James Mastro, who has been blind since birth, has been an outstanding wrestler and athlete, along with a lifetime of achievement in education and community work. He is a tenured full professor of professional education and physical education at Bemidji State University. Mastro is the first individual with a visual impairment to earn a Ph. D. in physical education in the United States. As a tenured full professor at Bemidji State, Dr. Mastro has authored or co-authored 47 published articles and 26 national and international presentations on adapted and developmental physical education for state and national organizations as well as athletes with disabilities. He is past president of the National Beep Baseball Association and was a member of the USABA Board of Directors. Mastro was a varsity wrestler at Augsburg College from 1968-73, winning a conference title. He also became nationally ranked in Greco-Roman. He won a bronze medal at the AAU Senior Greco-Roman Nationals, and qualified to compete in U.S. Olympic Team Trials in 1972 and 1976. He won numerous medals competing in goalball, judo, track and field, and wrestling in the U.S. Association of Blind Athletes (USABA) National Championships. In 1995, he was named U.S. Olympic Committee Blind Athlete of the Year. Mastro was chosen flagbearer for the United States Paralympics Team at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. He won a gold medal at the 1995 World Judo Championships for the Blind. Mastro has been a wrestling coach since 1970, coaching on the youth, middle school, and high school levels. The winner of the Lifetime Achievement for Officials award goes to veteran international wrestling official Jerry Wager, who also had a distinguished coaching career. Wager was a Mid-American Conference champion at Toledo University, and competed in the 1956 U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Greco-Roman. He was a coach with the Las Vegas YMCA from 1970-1980 and also coached seven age-group World Championships teams for the USA. Wager was a college wrestling official from 1960-1963 and was also the head official for the Southern Nevada High School program from 1963-66. His major achievements were on the international level, where he was a FILA Referee from 1962-1998. Wager officiated in over 50 major international meets, including the World Championships, Junior World Championships, Pan American Championships, and European Championships. Wager was the first U.S. official selected as a mat chairman, when he worked the 1985 World Greco-Roman Championships in Norway. He was head official for the World Police and Fire Games for 10 years. Wager was recognized as a FILA Lifetime Exceptionelle Referee, and was presented with the FILA Gold Medal. He also won national Official of the Year and Coach of the Year awards and served as National YMCA Wrestling Chairman for 10 years. The final award to be presented at Honors Weekend 2008, the Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award, will be announced later in the spring.

RENO, Nev. -- Central Michigan University claimed four individual titles en route to winning its second consecutive team championship at the Reno Tournament of Champions on Tuesday. Led by first-place finishes by Luke Smith (125 pounds), Brandon Sinnott (174), Christian Sinnott (184) and Wynn Michalak (197), the sixth-ranked Chippewas tallied 152.5 team points to defend their Reno team title. Oklahoma State finished second with 128 points, while Cornell was third with 99 points. A total of 10 Chippewas placed in the top six of their respective weight classes to contribute to the team score. Trevor Stewart finished runner-up at 165 pounds, Eric Kruger was third at 141, Nathaniel Holt (149) and Bubba Gritter (285) placed fifth and Conor Beebe (133) and Tyler Grayson (157) placed sixth. Also of note was Ben Kelto, competing unattached, advancing to the semis at 184 before eventually placing fifth. Smith entered the tournament seeded second at 125 pounds. He defeated the No. 3 seed, Cal Poly's Boris Navochkov, 3-1 in the semis before claiming a 4-3 decision over No. 1 seed Tanner Gardner (Stanford) in the championship match. Gardner, a 2007 All-American, entered the tournament ranked fourth nationally at 125. Brandon Sinnott, seeded third at 174 pounds, defeated the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds en route to his title. After a pair of major decisions in his first two matches, Sinnott advanced to the semis via a 3-2 decision over an unattached Ryan Smith. A 4-2 decision over No. 2 seed Brandon Mason (Oklahoma State) in the semis qualified Sinnott for the finals, where he blanked top-seeded Matt Stolpinski (Navy), 4-0. Christian Sinnott matched his twin brother with a title at 184. An opening-round pin and a pair of decisions moved the second-seeded Sinnott into the semis, where he earned a 9-2 decision over Cornell's Michael Moore. Cal State Fullerton's Ian Murphy medical forfeited the championship match to Sinnott. Michalak proved worthy of the No. 1 seed at 197 pounds, recording two falls, a major decision and a technical fall, respectively, to advance to the finals. He clinched the championship with a 3-1 decision over Arizona State's Jason Trulson, a national qualifier in 2007. Stewart steamrolled his way to the finals at 165 pounds before falling to No. 3 seed Mack Lewness (Cornell). Stewart, seeded fourth, posted a 6-3 decision over No. 1 seed, and nationally fourth ranked, Pat Pitsch (Arizona State). Third-seeded Kruger was upset in his first-round match at 141 pounds but rebounded to win seven consecutive matches in the wrestle backs to place third. Of Kruger's seven wins, three were by major decision and one by technical fall; he claimed a 15-6 major decision over Elijah Nacita (Cal State Bakersfield) in the third-place match. Both Holt and Brandon Carter advanced to the quarterfinals at 149 pounds before Holt ultimately placed fifth. He defeated Jeremy Doyle (Cal State Bakersfield), 8-6, in the fifth-place match. CMU returns to action on Dec. 29-30, competing at Midlands in Evanston, Ill. The Chippewas placed fourth in the 56-team field last year.

Tickets for the 2008 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, to be held at the University of Minnesota's Williams Arena March 8 and 9, will go on sale at 9 a.m. Monday, Dec. 17. 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-U-GOPHER or 612-624-8080. Big Ten Championship all-session tickets will also be available for sale at all Minnesota home wrestling meets this season. "We're extremely excited to be hosting the Big Ten Championships this year," said J Robinson, head coach of the defending national champion Gophers. "This event always features some of the best collegiate wrestling in the country and we expect to get a lot of support from wrestling fans around the Upper Midwest." The 2008 Big Ten Wrestling Championships will feature a three-session format, with the Session 1 preliminary matches beginning at 11 a.m. on Saturday, March 8. Session 2 will get underway at 6 p.m. that same day, and the Session 3 championship matches will start at noon on Sunday, March 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. "The Big Ten Championships will showcase the very finest that college wrestling has to offer," said Marc Ryan, Minnesota associate athletics director. "We fully expect to have sellout crowds both days and that will create an electric atmosphere inside Williams Arena." The Big Ten Network is currently scheduled to provide live television coverage of Sunday's conference finals. The BTN is currently available in Minnesota on DirecTV (channel 220) and Dish Network (channel 439). Williams Arena has not played host to the Big Ten Championships since 1997, a year that saw Robinson's Gophers finish in second place to the Iowa Hawkeyes. Since that year, Minnesota has dominated the Big Ten and established itself as one of the most dominant teams in the country. The Gophers have won six Big Ten team titles in the last nine seasons and crowned a Big Ten-best 27 individual champions during that span. At the 2007 Big Ten Championships, hosted by Michigan State in East Lansing, the Gophers put on an utterly dominating performance. Minnesota's four individual champions – Jayson Ness (125 pounds), Dustin Schlatter (149), C.P. Schlatter (157) and Cole Konrad (Hwt.) – paved the way for a whopping 156 team points and a 55.5-point margin of victory over runner-up Wisconsin. Minnesota's team score was the highest at the Big Ten Championships since the 2002 team earned 174 points. Two weeks later, the Gophers would go on to win their third national title in the past seven years. The 2007 season also marked the second time in school history that the Gophers have won consecutive conference championships (Minnesota also won the 2006 Championships at Indiana), with the only other occurrence coming when they won three straight from 2001-03. Minnesota has finished first or second at the Big Ten Championships nine straight seasons and has placed in the top three each of the past 11 years. Single-session tickets, if available, will not go on sale until Monday, March 3. For more information on the 2008 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, please call 1-800-U-GOPHER, 612-624-8080 or log on to gophersports.com.

Columbia, Mo. -- Improving to 3-0 on the season, the eighth-ranked Missouri wrestling team held off No. 10 Chattanooga, 24-10, at Maclellan Stadium. Seven Tiger grapplers earned wins in their respective weight class, including sophomore Mark Ellis (Peculiar, Mo.), who recorded his seventh fall of the season. With the victory, Missouri improves to 6-1 over the Mocs and takes its perfect three-dual win streak to Pittsburgh for a Wednesday, Dec. 19, match beginning at 6 p.m. (CT). Opening the afternoon contest at 125 pounds, two of the top-ranked wrestlers in the nation, Missouri's seventh-ranked redshirt freshman Tony Pescaglia (Columbia, Mo.) and UTC's No. 10 Javier Maldonado battled back-and-forth. Maldonado came out on top with a 9-7 win by decision putting Chattanooga ahead on the scoreboard. Returning to the mat after a five week absence, third-ranked Tiger senior Tyler McCormick (Leawood, Kan.) recorded a 6-1 win by decision over Steve Hromada bringing the score to three points a piece. A loss at 141 put Missouri down again, but the Tigers rallied with three straight wins by decision to take the 12-6 advantage. A loss at 174 pounds brought the Mocs within two points, but an additional three straight Tiger wins, including a six-overtime bout between ninth-ranked Tiger sophomore Maxwell Askren (Hartland, Wis.) and 10th-ranked Matt Kox of UTC, gave Missouri the decisive win. Askren, who stands at 10-2 on the season, scored the only point in the overtime periods, winning the bout by a score of 4-3. Ellis ended the dual quickly, pinning Matt Lettner in 2:58. With 13 wins on the season, Ellis has won seven of his bouts by way of fall, the fastest clocked at 49 seconds against Pittsburgh grappler Zach Sheaffer at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational on Dec. 1. Ellis and Scheaffer are expected to meet on the mat again Dec. 19. The loss was UTC's first of the season and first at home in 14 duals.