InterMat Staff

AMES, Iowa -- Three Iowa State redshirt freshmen scored pins in their Hilton Colliseum debuts and Trent Paulson beat his chief rival at 157 pounds for the second time in a week as the Cyclones blanked Arizona State 40-0 Sunday afternoon. In front of 1,807 fans, newcomers Cyler Sanderson (149), Jake Varner (184) and David Zabriskie (HWT) each won their match via pin. ISU did not give up a takedown to ASU. The Cyclones wrestle at intrastate rival Iowa Sunday at 4 p.m. “It is early,” first-year head coach Cael Sanderson said. “We have good kids who are hard workers. We matched up well with Arizona State. There are a lot of little things that we need to be working on and that is where we are concentrating.” The 40-point victory marked Iowa State’s biggest win over Arizona State. ISU NCAA champion teams beat the Sun Devils 32-2 in the 1968 – 69 season and 33-3 during the 1969 – 70 season. The 40-0 victory also marks only the fifth time since the program began in 1916 that the Cyclones have shut out their first two opponents. Meeting for the second time in less than a week, Iowa State’s two-time All-American Trent Paulson took on NCAA runner-up and top-ranked Brian Stith. The two faced off at the NWCA All-Star Meet Nov. 20 with Paulson coming out on top, 2-1. Sunday’s match remained scoreless until the start of the third period when Paulson started from the down position. He scored an escape at the 1:50 mark. Paulson accumulated 1:48 worth of riding time that ultimately gave him the advantage and the 2-0 victory. “I am just working hard to continue to improve,” the undefeated Paulson said. “This match was a part of that.” At 149-pounds, Cyler Sanderson wasted no time by taking down Cameron Smith six seconds into the match. From there it was only a matter of time before the redshirt freshman was able to stick Smith to the mat for the pin at 51 seconds. “I just went out to wrestle hard and it worked out,” Sanderson said. “I have been waiting for a long time to wrestle in Hilton Coliseum.” Jake Varner registered his seventh pin of the season at 184-pounds against Greg Glifford to improve to 10-0 overall. Varner scored early with a takedown in both the first and second periods before he pinned Glifford at the 4:05 mark. Like Sanderson, Varner has pinned both opponents in dual meet action on the season. David Zabriskie closed out the dual, recording three takedowns and a three-point nearfall in the first period to go up 9-2 on Arizona State’s Thor Moen. With 35 seconds left in the second period, Zabriskie scored another takedown and then stuck Moen to the mat in 4:35. Redshirt ISU freshman Nick Fanthorpe amassed four takedowns and a two-point nearfall en route to a 14-3 major decision over ASU’s Tyler Bowles in the match’s first bout.

GUILDERLAND CENTER, N.Y. -– The No. 14 University of Pennsylvania wrestling team went 2-2 at the Journeymen/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals on Saturday, beating Binghamton and Bloomsburg while falling to No. 1 Minnesota and No. 12 Central Michigan. It was the first dual-meet action of the season for the Quakers. Penn opened the day with a 45-0 shutout of Binghamton and a 24-9 victory over Bloomsburg. Facing some of the nation's toughest competition, the Quakers were unable to pull out victories in their final two meets, falling to Central Michigan, 30-12, and Minnesota, 28-12. "I think we had mixed results from an outcome standpoint," said Head Coach Zeke Jones. "Certainly the kids wrestled hard, and I think we're on track and making a lot of progress learning about the team. When you wrestle two top-12 programs, you learn a lot about yourself." Penn returns to action this Friday and Saturday when it travels to the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. The Quakers will then break for finals and the holidays before opening their home dual slate with York College on Jan. 6.

GUILDERLAND CENTER, New York -- The Pride won six of 10 matches, including the dramatic, match-clinching 11-8 victory by Chris Weidman at 197 pounds, as #11 Hofstra upset #1 Minnesota, 18-17, at the Journeymen/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals at Guilderland High School Saturday. "I am so proud of our guys," Hofstra's first year coach Tom Shifflet said. "We knew coming in that it was going to be a close match. I told the team that we had to go out and grab the momentum, and that's what Dave (Tomasette) and Louie (Ruggirello) did for us with victories. That boosted the whole team's confidence. Everybody wrestled hard for us and I am so proud of them." Tomasette, the junior from Sewell, New Jersey who is ranked 20th in the Intermat preseason poll, opened the match with a hard-fought victory over red-shirt freshman Jayson Ness, 12-9, at 125 pounds. Hofstra freshman Lou Ruggirello boosted the Pride lead to 6-0 with a 5-3 victory over freshman Mike Thorn at 133. Minnesota's 10th-ranked junior Manny Rivera put the Golden Gophers on the board with a 5-1 victory over Pride junior Charles Griffin, ranked 14th. Minnesota took its first lead of the match, at 8-6 when sophomore Dustin Schlatter, the top-ranked wrestler at 149 pounds, downed Pride senior Mike Parziale by tech fall 17-0. But the Pride rallied back with three straight victories as 12th ranked senior James Strouse improved to 7-0 on the year with a 4-2 victory at 157 pounds over sixth-ranked junior C.P. Schlatter in the second sudden victory period. Pride senior Mike Patrovich, ranked third at 165 pounds, downed junior Jeremy Larson 8-5, while sophomore Alton Lucas, who entered the season unranked, upset Minnesota's 12th-ranked junior Gabe Dretsch 5-3, at 174 pounds to boost the Pride lead to 15-8. But the Golden Gophers' second-ranked junior Roger Kish downed Hofstra's fifth-ranked junior Joe Rovelli, 4-1, at 184 pounds to close the deficit to 15-11. With the 285-pound match looming, featuring the top-ranked heavyweight in the country in Minnesota senior Cole Konrad, the 197-pound match was a must-win match for the Pride's sixth-ranked senior Chris Weidman over Minnesota sophomore Yura Malamura. After taking a 2-0 lead, Weidman struggled with the unranked wrestler and trailed 7-2 entering the third period. But Weidman rallied and scored nine of the next 10 points to post a 11-8 come-from-behind victory that gave Hofstra an insurmountable 18-11 lead. Konrad did pin Pride senior Matt Pollock in 1:48 to close the final margin to 18-17 as the Pride, which defeated second-ranked Lehigh two years ago at the Mack Sports Complex on the Hofstra campus, posted the biggest victory in program history. The Pride went on to add three more dual victories later in the day as Hofstra defeated American, 33-12, Princeton, 45-6, and Bloomsburg. In the American University match, the Pride won eight of the 10 matches, including tech fall victories by Strouse, Rovelli and Weidman, to cruise to the 33-12 victory. One of the losses was costly as Pride junior Dave Tomasette (125) suffered a leg injury that could cause him to miss the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational next weekend. Hofstra rolled over Princeton 45-6, losing just one match by forfeit at 125. Ruggirello, freshman Ryan Brown at 141, Weidman and Pollock all recorded wins by fall. The Pride took seven matches in their 27-15 victory over Bloomsburg University in the Northeast Duals finale. Weidman and Patrovich posted wins by fall against Bloomsburg.

LOCK HAVEN, PA -- The University at Buffalo wrestling squad posted strong numbers at the 2006 Mat Town USA Tournament on Saturday as UB had five finalists and eleven place winners. Senior captain Mark Budd (Orrville, OH/Orrville) won his second Mat Town USA title at 133 pounds, while junior Ryan Needle (Newfane, NY/Newfane) won his first title after moving up from 141 to 149. In a change of course from last year's event, the Mat Town USA Tournament was an open event instead of a team-scoring one, allowing a total of nine schools to participate. Budd, who is ranked in the top 10 in three of the major five national ranking polls, remained dominant as he upped his overall 2006-07 record to 11-0. The Orrville, OH native posted three victories to capture his second Mat Town title in as many years, including a 15-6 major decision against B.J. Compton of Old Dominion. Needle, wrestling at 149 pounds, went 4-0 with a major decision. He downed Lock Haven's Daniel Harrington, 3-1, in the finals. At 174 pounds, juniors Mickey Moran (Pittsburgh, PA/Shaler Area) and Nate Rock (Ephrata, PA/Ephrata) each went 3-0 going into the final match, as both would settle for a tie for second place. Junior Mike Ragusa (Foxboro, MA/Foxboro) cruised into the final event after winning two matches at 165 pounds, but fell to nationally-ranked Dave Rella of Penn State by a 8-4 count. Placing third at the open tournament was redshirt freshmen Jason Hilliard (Genoa, NY/Southern Cayuga) at 149 lbs., Ricky Scott (Walden, NY/Valley Central) at 197 lbs., and junior Jeff Parker (Foxboro, MA/Foxboro) at 285 lbs. After falling in the preliminary round, Hilliard went on a five-match win streak to earn the placing. Scott won four-straight in the consolation bracket, posting three falls and two major decisions in the process. Redshirt freshman Andrew Stella (Tonawanda, NY/Sweet Home) earned a fifth-place finish at 141 pounds, while senior Ray Lamb (Vineland, NJ/Absegami) and freshman Jimmy Hamel (Natick, MA/Natick) both settled for sixth at 197 pounds. Buffalo next travels to Las Vegas, Nevada for the 25th annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational on Friday, Dec. 1. The two-day event is an all-day affair that will include over 50 colleges, including 13 of the top 25 Division I wrestling schools in the country.

LOCK HAVEN, Pa. –- Two champions and 13 place-winners later, the Lock Haven University wrestling program opened up its first Mat Town Open a success. The format changed from the previous team-tournament style to increase numbers and quality of match-ups. No. 7 Obenson Blanc (Naples, Fla./Lely) and No. 16 Seth Martin (Selinsgrove, Pa./Selinsgrove) each won titles at 125 and 157, respectively. Blanc topped John Sutika (University of Pitt-Johnstown) in convincing fashion in round one, a 21-3 tech fall. After a 7-0 blanking of Franklin & Marshall College's Jake Bucha, Blanc beat Ian Moser (Bloomsburg University) 8-3 to advance to the title bout. He then topped the University of Virginia's Ross Gitomer 7-4 for first place. Martin made quick work of the rounds up to the championship, dropping Penn State University's Jon Clemens by third-period fall, the University at Buffalo's Stephen Muldrow by second-period tech fall (17-0) and adding another tech fall of Jake Hostetter (Millersville University) to get to the finals. There he met No. 11 Nate Galloway (Penn State). Martin got a late takedown to seal the 6-3 win. The win over Muldrow was Martin's 90th career victory. Other place-winners for the Bald Eagles included sophomore Tom Kocher (Lancaster, Pa./Manheim Township) in second at 184, third-place finishes from rookie Danny Lopes (Oakhurst, N.J./Ocean Township) at 133, and freshman Landis Wright (Bellefonte, Pa./Bald Eagle) at 165, fourth-place spots from freshman Zach Kell (Ikesburg, Pa./West Perry) at 141, rookie Corey Blake (East Fallowfield, Pa./Coatesville) at 165 and freshman Mike Cook (Bellefonte, Pa./Bald Eagle) at heavyweight, and sixth place by sophomore Mark Armstrong (Sugar, Pa./Wyalusing) at 141, freshman Anwar Goeres (Holley, N.Y./Phoenix) at 133, senior Derrick Morgan (Media, Pa./Athens) at 174, freshman Nick Hyatt (Bloomsburg, Pa./Bloomsburg) at 125 and freshman Branden Bowden (Duncannon, Pa./Central Dauphin East) at heavyweight. Kocher beat Shawn Fendone (Edinboro University) 8-6 and Calvin Cardillo (Virginia)14-5 before falling to Penn State's Dave Erwin in the finals 12-6. Sophomore Donnie Reinhart (Dublin, Ohio/Dublin), freshman Travis Stem (Wingate, Pa./Bald Eagle) and sophomore Michael Hudak (Brick, N.J./Brick Memorial) also entered for LHU at 184, with Reinhart going 1-3, Stem 0-2 and Hudak 0-2. Lopes continued to make his case for the starting job at 133, beating Joe Wilson (Buffalo) 8-6 and John Lester (Millersville) before slipping 6-1 to Old Dominion University's B.J. Compton. Lopes then got consecutive wins over Compton's teammate Adam Koballa 5-3 and Kyle Fluke (Edinboro) 4-3 for third place. The Bald Eagles also entered Goeres and freshman Erik Smith (Villas, N.J./Pittman) at 133, with Goeres going 2-3 for sixth place, and Smith dropping both of his bouts. Wright beat Penn State's Mike Lorenzo 5-1 and lost to ODU's Nick Pullano 16-4 in the second round. He wrestled back with a 6-2 defeat of Josh Evans (Millersville), a 13-7 edging of Justin Herbert (Franklin & Marshall) and a 4-3 win over Brent Fiorito (Virginia) before taking down teammate Blake 8-5 for third. Along with Blake, the Bald Eagles entered junior Jameik Matthews (Laurel, Del./Laurel) and rookie Derek Caldwell (Curwensville, Pa./Curwensville). Blake was 3-2 en route to fourth, Matthews 0-1 and Caldwell 0-2. Kell took fourth at 141, beating Alex Lauffenburger (Bloomsburg) 8-1 and getting a sudden-victory 5-3 win over Buffalo's Evan Veney. Kell then lost to Ryan Williams (ODU) before beating teammate Armstrong 6-5. ODU's Cam Watkins then beat Kell 12-7 in the third-place bout. Along with Armstrong, LHU entered sophomore Bradley Marquart (Rutherford, N.J./Rutherford) at 141, with Armstrong going 3-3 for sixth place and Marquart dropping both of his matches. Cook was LHU's top finish at heavyweight, beating Christian Refakis (F&M) 13-1, PSU's Brendan Herlihy 3-2 in overtime before falling to the consolation after a 9-1 loss to ODU's Matt Pellar. Cook rebounded with a 6-2 win over teammate Bowden, then lost 11-2 to Jeff Parker of Buffalo. Joining Cook and Bowden was sophomore Chris Grablutz (Newton N.J./Kittatinny), with Bowden finishing sixth at 3-3 and Grablutz going 1-2. At 174, Morgan was the lone LHU finisher, starting his day with a 6-5 loss to Dave Sullivan (East Stroudsburg University). Morgan battled back with three-straight wins in the consolation, dropping a pair of Monarchs in Bryan Koz (15-2) and Derek Coffey (6-2) and a high school grappler before losing to Sullivan again 6-4. Morgan couldn't rebound in the fifth-place match, losing by fall to PSU's Jack Decker. Neither of LHU's other entries fared any better, as freshman Alex Dalrymple (Branchville, N.J./High Point) was 2-2 and both senior Michael Metzger (Shillington, Pa./Governor Mifflin) and junior Rory McCoy (Hughesville, Pa./Hughesville) went 1-2. Hyatt was 2-3 for a sixth-place finish at 125, while freshman George Ester (Odenton, Md./Arundel) went 1-2 at the same class. Junior Brian Ellis (Bethlehem, Pa./Liberty) dropped both of his matches at 149, while freshman Donnie Ament (Acme, Pa./Mt. Pleasant) was 1-2. At 197, freshmen Jeremie Cook (Venice, Fla./Venice) and Dustin Pine (Mercersburg, Pa./James Buchanan) came up empty, each going 0-2. The Bald Eagles are back in action Sunday, Dec. 3 at the Penn State Open.

NORMAN, Okla. -- The Oklahoma wrestling team crowned 5 individual champions and placed 7 wrestlers at the 36th annual Oklahoma Open Saturday in Norman. "I am very pleased overall and this was a good tournament for our young guys to grow up in and that is what these meets are for," said head coach Jack Spates. Sooners claiming individual titles were Zack Bailey (133), Will Rowe (157), Shane Seibert (165), Joshua Weitzel and Jeff James (Tie, 174), Joel Flaggert (197). "Overall I am very pleased with our performance," continued Spates. "Our showing in this event boads well for us as we prepare for two very, very challenging dual against the University of Central Oklahoma and Oklahoma State". As well as hosting the college portion of the Open the Oklahoma Open also has a High School and Junior High Open. "This tournament year in and year out continues to be a tougher tournament than the Oklahoma High School State tournament," Spates said. "Every division is competitive and tough and that makes it a great challenge for the young wrestlers." The Sooners wrestle their next home dual on Wednesday, Nov. 29, when the University of Central Oklahoma travels to the Howard McCasland Field House.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Indiana went a perfect 5-0 on the day, sweeping the Hoosier Duals on Saturday, Nov. 25, in Assembly Hall. Four Hoosiers - Angel Escobedo, Matt Coughlin, Brandon Becker and Marc Bennett - were a perfect 5-0 on the day, with Escobedo pinning his final four adversaries and posting a major decision in his opening match. The Hoosiers held all five of their opponents - Appalachian State, Bucknell, University of the Cumberlands, Ohio and Oregon - to single digits at the event. IU opened the duals with a 38-9 victory over ASU, with Indiana taking eight of the 10 matchups in the dual. Escobedo opened with a 15-3 major decision over Brody Essick, but the Mountaineers bounced back, with 20th-ranked Terryl Williams giving Andrae Hernandez his only loss of the day, a 7-2 decision, giving Williams his first of five victories at the duals. Williams was the only non-Hoosier to go 5-0 on the day. Indiana then topped the Mountaineers in the next seven classes, with Nick Walpole, Coughlin and Trevor Perry posting falls. Becker and Justin Curran added technical falls, while Bennett won a 1-0 decision. In his first dual meet action, Elijah Cook topped ASU's Tommy Hutchinson 5-3. David Hazell closed out the dual with a victory for the Mountaineers, pinning Maurice Gunn in 4:30. Indiana stormed out of the gates against Oregon, with Escobedo pinning Ryan Dunn in just 44 seconds. Hernandez followed by putting up a 16-0 technical fall of Joey Lucas at 133, but the Ducks got four points back as Justin Pearch (4-1 on the day) tallied a 17-8 major decision over Walpole. Coughlin pinned his second wrestler of the day at 149, falling Zack Frazier at the 6:49 mark. Co-captains Becker and Max Dean followed by giving IU consecutive major decisions at 157 and 165. Dean was a perfect 4-0 on the day after sitting out the ASU match. Perry and Curran each took decisions for the Hoosiers at 174 and 197, respectively, while Bennett gave IU bonus points at 184 with a 14-3 major decision over Brysen French, giving French his only loss of the day. At heavyweight, Justin Kuhn made his Hoosier debut, but was outmatched by Chris Dearmon, who was awarded a 15-6 major decision in the contest. That gave the Ducks eight dual points on the match, with the Hoosiers taking a 35-8 victory over OU. Against Bucknell, the Hoosiers tallied their most decisive victory of the day, taking a 44-3 decision. Escobedo (1:47), Becker (6:39), Perry (1:50) and Gunn (0:37) all pinned their opponents, while Hernandez and Walpole earned bonus points for IU by earning major decisions. In the most exciting match of the afternoon, Coughlin took a 7-5 overtime decision over Michael Guttilla, with the two wrestlers fighting through 11 minutes of wrestling before Coughlin emerged victorious. Eric Lapotsky took a 6-3 decision over Curran, giving the Bison their only three points of the match. Indiana moved its tally to 4-0 against the Patriots, posting a 41-6 victory. Escobedo, Coughlin, Becker and Bennett each felled their opposition, while Hernandez (21-5) and Dean (18-2) each garnered five dual points with technical falls. Cumberland featured two of the best wrestlers at the duals, as Brad Cooper (141) and Eric Flinchum (heavyweight) each took decisions over their IU opponents, Scott Kelly and Gunn, to give UC six dual points. Cooper and Flinchum each went 4-0 for the event. The Hoosiers closed out the duals with a 31-9 victory over Ohio, as Indiana won the first six weight classes to jump out to an insurmountable 25-0 lead. Escobedo closed out his day by pinning Mike Wilson in 2:21, while Becker finished the afternoon with a 20-1 technical fall of Dan Fladda, nearly pinning the freshman before earning five dual points. Antione Love became the second opponent to pin a Hoosier, dropping Perry in 3:19 to give the Bobcats six points. In the final bout of the day, Kuhn was topped 7-2 by Marcus Adelman, but stopped Adelman, who outweighed him by more than 70 pounds, from earning bonus points. Indiana returns to action next weekend, traveling to Las Vegas for the Las Vegas Invitational on Dec. 1-2.

IOWA CITY, IA -- Tom Brands made his Carver-Hawkeye Arena debut as head coach of the Iowa wrestling team Saturday afternoon, leading the Hawkeyes to a 39-3 victory over Arizona State. The Hawkeyes improve to 2-0 with the win, handing the Sun Devils (2-1) their first dual loss of the season. A boisterous crowd of 4,905 turned out for the meet. Iowa went 9-1 against Arizona State, which was a great improvement over Tuesday night's dual at Northern Iowa, where the Hawkeyes went 5-5. Saturday's only loss was at 157 pounds, where second-ranked senior Sun Devil Brian Stith scored a takedown in sudden victory to defeat unranked Iowa redshirt freshman Ryan Morningstar, 3-1. Scoring team bonus points for the Hawkeyes were seniors Mario Galanakis (133 - pin), Alex Grunder (149 - technical fall) and Eric Luedke (174 - major decision), junior Matt Fields (Hwt. - forfeit) and redshirt freshman Phillip Keddy (184 - pin). Junior and second-ranked Mark Perry picked up his 50th career win with an 8-4 decision over Arizona State's Patrick Pitsch at 165 to end the dual. Iowa (2-0) will host intra-state rival Iowa State (1-0) December 3 at 4 p.m. in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The winning team will receive two points in the Hy-Vee Cy-Hawk Series. Iowa currently leads the 2006-07 series, 7-2, with wins in football and soccer.

Blacksburg, Va. -- Sophomore 184-pound wrestler Levi Wofford notched two last-minute takedowns, including one at the final horn, to upset ninth-ranked Steve Borja and spark a six-match winning streak for 18th-ranked Nebraska as it defeated Virginia Tech, 34-9, on Friday at Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Va. "It's a good win for Wofford," seventh-year head coach Mark Manning said. "It will be a real confidence booster for him. Levi just kept the pressure on Borja, and he outworked the kid." The win marked the 11th-straight year the Huskers won their season-opening dual, and it was keyed by a pair of freshmen in their first career dual matches earning victories for NU. After Wofford's win over Borja, Nick Schaefer notched a pair of takedowns to defeat Tim Miller, 5-3. Then, Nebraska built its lead with a pair of wins by fall by returning starters. The first was by heavyweight Jon May, who pinned Jim Powers 1:25 into the second period. That was followed by 125-pounder Paul Donahoe's win by fall over Sheridan Moran in 1:33, his seventh pin of the year, to give the Huskers an 18-point lead four matches into the dual. In his varsity debut at 133 pounds, Mike Rowe defeated Matt Rosen, 8-3, while Dominick Moyer clinched the dual for Nebraska with a 14-2 major decision victory at 141 pounds. After an overtime setback at 149 pounds, Chris Oliver earned his fifth win by fall of the year with his pin of Derek Gallagher with eight seconds remaining in the first period at 157 pounds. At 165, Marc Harwood won his first match of the year with a 3-1 sudden-victory triumph over Eric Decker to give NU a 34-3 lead with one match to go. With the dual decided, Steve Ratley won by fall for Virginia Tech at 174 pounds. "We wrestled really aggressively," Manning said. "Our conditioning really showed up as an asset." The Huskers (1-0) are next in action Saturday at 3 p.m. against Maryland at the Comcast Center Pavilion in College Park, Md. The time was changed to accommodate Terrapins fans wanting to attend both the wrestling dual and Maryland's football game that evening.

In the rich wrestling state of California, Derek Moore was not in the upper echelon of sought-after recruits for the class of 2002. Wrestling for Shasta High School, the Redding native placed fifth in the state tournament as a senior and seventh as a sophomore. Yet almost immediately upon donning a college singlet for the University of California-Davis, he began defeating wrestlers with superior high school credentials. He qualified for both the 2004 and 2005 NCAA tournaments at 133 pounds and drew two-time NCAA champion Travis Lee of Cornell in the first round each time. In both years, he also wrestled back to the Round of 12 and just missed All American status (losing 9-8 to Foley Dowd of Michigan in 2004 and 6-5 to Drew Headlee of Pittsburgh in 2005). For the 2006 season, Moore moved up a weight class to 141 where he amassed a 23-4 record and won the Pac-10 Championships. He entered the 2006 NCAA Championships as the eighth seed, but in the second round suffered an injury early in the bout against West Virginia's Brandon Rader. He continued the match, was pinned and then injury defaulted out of the tournament. Derek Moore (Photo/John Sachs)Moore has begun his senior season with a 5-2 win over highly-ranked Nathan Morgan of Oklahoma State on Nov. 12. He followed it up with a championship at the Fullerton Open last weekend where RevWrestling.com's Tom Franck caught up with him after his finals victory. Congratulations on your season thus far. A lot of people are saying that with your big win over Nathan Morgan and him beating Andy Simmons (of Michigan State), that, depending on what happens at the NWCA All-Star Classic, you should be ranked No. 1. Do you care about rankings at all? Do you even look at them? Moore: Everybody definitely looks at them. A lot of people say they don't care about the rankings. It's not that I care about them, but it's always nice for fan support, family and everyone to see you're ranked. But in terms of how I prepare or how I'm going to wrestle, it doesn't really have any effect on me. You've had some disappointing NCAA tournaments. You were having a great season last year. You won the Pac-10's, but then got injured in the second round of the NCAA's. What happened? Moore: I took him down in, like, the first eight seconds. I was kind of letting him go and he turned and dove into my knee. And it was kind of a weird angle and it caught the ACL. It has to hurt not being an All American three years in a row, especially last year when you were looking so strong. Moore: It was very frustrating. Very frustrating. We'd never gone to that tournament with ranked wrestlers before. We had me. We also had Ken Cook. We were looking for an All-American or even higher. How do you think you would have done if you were healthy? Moore: That guy (Brandon Rader of West Virginia) ended up taking sixth place and he went close with Nate Gallick, who ended up winning it, so there's a lot of what ifs, but I know I would have wrestled my heart out and had a chance of placing high. Looking at the immediate future, what are you expectations for the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational? There's going to be some tough people there. What do you have to do to win it? Moore: I got to bring it hard. I've got to work on my offense for sure. You saw that last match (against Iowa State's Mitch Mueller). I feel I can dominate on top. I feel no one in the nation get away from me. I feel as long as I can get at least one takedown, I'll come out on top. Derek Moore (Photo/John Sachs)You were doing very well in the finals of Vegas last year against Josh Churella (of the University of Michigan). You were really dominating him in first two periods and then he came back and then pinned you. What happened? Moore: That's been in the back of my head ever since that match. I stopped wrestling. I started going defensive. I had all my offense going in the first two periods and then I stopped wrestling. And ever since then I've just thought about that third period. It's definitely been on my mind. I won't let that happen again. Based on your style, at a tournament like this, how much do you think having no riding time here affects you? (The Fullerton Open doesn't keep riding time). Moore: It definitely affects me a lot. People chose top or bottom depending on riding time. That's an extra point or a loss of a point. So I think it's a big factor. As well as having a two minute first period (instead of a three-minute first period). It seems that because of your height, a lot of people are able to get in on your legs, but not a lot of people finish on you. Are you comfortable from that position? Moore: I'm very comfortable defensively on shots. I actually enjoy people being in on my legs. I have no problems scoring or being offensive from a defensive position. A lot of my points come that way or from scrambles. In high school, you placed twice in the California state tournament. Since you started competing in college, you've beaten a lot of people with more high school credentials than you, even a lot of California wrestlers who were more decorated than you in high school. To what do you attribute your progression as a wrestler in college? Moore: I believe it's the coaching. In high school, I feel like I could only be taken to a certain level -- the Northern California section area level. I tried to get out as much as I could during the summer for freestyle and stuff like that to get a more broad coaching experience. But still, I think I could only be at a certain level. But once I stepped into college, I had Mark Munoz, Lenny Zalesky, and the different coaches that we have, who just bought my repertoire of moves and technique up so much. What was the reason that you chose Cal Davis? Based on your credentials out of high school, I have to think that there were other in-state wrestlers who were ahead of you in terms of recruiting -- whom you've subsequently beaten since. Moore: Exactly. Actually I didn't get any scholarship money my freshman year. I was kind of a walk on, kind of a recruit, but after my first year where I did so well at nationals, I got money. But there were other schools looking at me out of high school. Brown, West Point, but they just didn't really do it for me. I didn't really like it there. Davis was close to home. A good school to go to. And I knew a couple of guys on the team already. I was reading that you are the first person in your family to go to college, is that correct? (Editor's Note: Moore is a biochemistry and molecular biology major) Moore: Yeah. Derek Moore (Photo/John Sachs)I have to imagine that they are incredibly proud of you and that being close to home is important to them as well. Moore: Yeah, they would have loved being here today, but they'll be at all my matches and Reno and Vegas and they'll come to Nationals. But it's been really nice being close to home and all my family support has been great. What do you think about this tournament's (Fullerton Open) growth? Iowa State is here this year. It's a lot different from when you were a freshman. Moore: It's great to see this tournament get to where it is because there's a lot of great high school wrestlers who wind up leaving California because of lack of opportunity. What do you think you have to do to be the national champion this year? First, second and third place graduated, so it's a pretty clean slate. Moore: 141 is definitely an open weight class. There are a lot of guys who want it. Whoever steps up and decides to wrestle their tournament of the year at nationals will win. I just got to keep working hard and keep my eye on the goal.

NORMAN, Okla. -- The University of Oklahoma wrestling team will host the 36th Annual Oklahoma Open this Saturday, Nov. 25, at the Howard McCasland Field House. The event is an all day event. Last year the Sooners claimed seven individual titles. Sam Hazewinkel (125), Kyle Terry (141), Matt Storniolo (149), Wes Roberts (174), Justin Dyer (184), Joel Flaggert (197) and Jake Hager (HWT). Also placing last year for the Sooners were Will Rowe (157) third, Chad Terry (149) third, Cody Hilbun (174) third and Austin David (HWT) who finished fourth. Last weekend the Sooners competed in the Missouri Open where they placed 10 wrestlers. Nathan Fernandez earned the Sooners lone individual title at heavyweight in the freshman/sophomore division. Hazewinkel, Storniolo and Rowe did not compete at the Missouri open because they competed in the 41st NWCA All-Star Classic at the Dallas convention center on Monday night. The Sooners wrestle their next home dual on Wednesday, Nov. 29, when the University of Central Oklahoma travels to the Howard McCasland Field House.

This week its back on the road for the Journeymen Brute Northeast Duals in Guilderland, New York. Join Intermatwrestle.com's Jason Bryant and I for a full day of wrestling and free broadcast courtesy of Frank Popolizio and company. Thanks Frank. Special LIVE line guests during the first 2 hours of the broadcast include Northwestern's Ken Kraft. Ken will join us to talk about the up coming Midlands Invitational. Jeff Murphy will join us to give us his TDR Top 20 of the week Tune in at 10:06 AM Eastern to Takedownradio.com Programs scheduled to compete include: Minnesota, U Penn, Cent. Michigan, Hofstra, Binghamton, American, Princeton and Bloomsburg Our thanks to each of you and may God's Blessing be with each of you during this holiday season.

MINNEAPOLIS -- Winning all 10 matches, including four by pin, the Augsburg College wrestling team dominated in a 43-0 victory over visiting St. John's University in a dual meet on Wednesday night at Augsburg's Si Melby Hall. The Auggies, ranked No. 1 in the latest NCAA Division III national rankings by the National Wrestling Coaches Association, claimed their 91st 90th straight victory over an opponent from the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in the past 21 seasons and their 21st straight win over the Johnnies. The Johnnies' last victory over the Auggies in a dual meet came in the 1985-86 season. Wednesday's meet was the only dual between Augsburg and an MIAC opponent this season. The MIAC no longer sponsors wrestling as a conference sport. Augsburg's last loss to an MIAC opponent came in the 1986-87 season. Since the 1975-76 season, Augsburg is now 190-2 against MIAC opponents. Against teams from Divisions II and III, Augsburg is now 208-16 since the 1989-90 season, losing just 11 matches to non-Division I opponents since the 1995-96 season. Against teams from Division III, Augsburg is 224-19 since the 1979-80 season and 148-9 since 1989-90. Augsburg has won nine Division III national titles in the last 16 seasons. Five Auggie wrestlers who were nationally ranked in individual weight class claimed wins on Wednesday. Jeremy Anderson (Jr., Thief River Falls, Minn.), ranked No. 1 at 157, moved up to the 165-pound class and scored a 9-1, major-decision win over Eric O'Brien (Sr., Becker, Minn.). Anderson is now 4-0 on the season. Quincy Osborn (Jr., Grand Rapids, Minn.), ranked No. 3 at 141, improved to 5-0 on the season with a third-period pin of Minga Batshuk (Fr., Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia/St. Benedict's HS). Robbie Gotreau (Jr., Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson HS), ranked No. 3 at 184, scored a 6-0 decision over the Johnnies' Andy Staberg (Fr., Stillwater, Minn.) to improve to 5-0 on the year. At 197, No. 8-ranked Wally O'Connor (Jr., Oshkosh, Wis./Oshkosh West HS) claimed a 3-0 win over Jason Finley (Jr., Lake City, Minn.), improving to 4-1 on the season. Andrew Neumann (Sr., Somerset, Wis.), making his season debut, claimed an 8-1 win over Ray Marvin (So., Rome, Ga./Armuchee HS). Neumann is ranked No. 6 nationally at heavyweight. The Johnnies' lone ranked wrestler, Jacob Malone (Sr., New York Mills, Minn.), lost a 12-10 decision to Augsburg's Willy Holst (So., Prescott, Wis.) at 157 pounds. Holst is now 4-0, while Malone, ranked No. 6 nationally, drops to 7-5. Jaime Rocha (So., Santa Maria, Calif./Righetti HS) claimed a third-period pin at 125 pounds for the Auggies, while Johnny Brandtjen (Fr., Sunfish Lake, Minn./Simley HS) claimed the quickest pin of the night, a 1:49 triumph at 149 to improve to 5-0 on the season. Brian Fischer (Jr., Freedom, Wis.) scored a second-period pin at 174. Paul Bjorkstrand (So., Burnsville, Minn.) also scored a win for the Auggies, at 133 pounds. In the junior varsity (White Team) match, Augsburg won all 10 matches and two exhibitions to claim a 52-0 triumph. Augsburg collected five pins in the undercard event. Both teams return to action on Saturday, Dec. 2 at 9 a.m. Augsburg will compete at the Minnesota State Moorhead Dragon Open, while St. John's will compete at the Simpson (Iowa) Invitational.

PITTSBURGH -- The Field House was alive tonight as the Panthers opened their conference season against Bloomsburg. Pitt (2-0, 1-0 EWL) defeated the Huskies (0-1, 0-1 EWL), 30-14, and had four matches with bonus points as two of their wrestlers grabbed their first pins of the season. "We wrestled hard, and that's the key to winning these kind of matches," said Head Coach Rande Stottlemyer. "I think the swing matches for us were at 141 and 165. Those certainly ignited us, and then the flood gates opened at 197 and heavyweight. I thought it was going to be a closer match, but it was great to open the season like this with a big crowd at home." At 125 pounds, Bloomsburg's Mike Sees took an early 7-0 lead over Pitt's Brad Gentzle (Easton, Pa./Eaton) in the first period, scoring on a takedown and two near falls. In the second period, Sees scored three and Gentzle came back with an escape to get on the board. Sees closed out the period with another takedown to take a 12-1 lead. In the final period, Sees earned a 19-3 technical fall at the 6:07 mark to put Bloomsburg ahead, 5-0. The Panthers fought back at 133 pounds as Pitt's Drew Headlee (Waynesburg, Pa./Waynesburg) took on Bloomsburg's Ricky Donald. The two were scoreless in the first two periods. Headlee came through to score two points on a near fall in the final period and held Donald to only an escape to win the bout, 2-1. Bloomsburg now led, 5-3. Pitt's Joe Ciampoli (Altoona, Pa./Altoona) faced Bloomsburg's Tony Curto at 141 pounds. The two were scoreless in the first period, and Curto had an escape to take a 1-0 lead in the second. Ciampoli tied it up with an escape in the third and sent the match into overtime. He scored on a takedown to win it for the Panthers and give Curto his first loss off the season, 3-1. Pitt moved into the lead, 6-5. Bloomsburg had success at 149 pounds as Matt Moley pinned Pitt's Dave Kapetanovich (Pittsburgh, Pa./CCAC) at the 2:26 mark. The Huskies moved back into the lead, 11-6. At 157 pounds, Pitt's Matt Kocher (State College, Pa./State College) faced Bloomsburg's Dennis Bermudez. In the first period, Kocher took a 12-4 lead that included three takedowns, a reversal, a near fall and a penalty point. Bermudez earned a point on an escape in the second period to put him at five points. In the final period, Kocher scored on a reversal and takedown and also scored a point for riding time. He went on to win the major decision, 17-6. Pitt edged in, 11-10. Pitt's Sean Richmond (Emmaus, Pa./Easton) turned things around for the Panthers at 165 pounds when he pinned Bloomsburg's Ricky Schmelyun at the 0:22 mark. Richmond scored on a takedown almost immediately and had the pin to give the Panthers a 16-11 lead. Keith Gavin (Factoryville, Pa./Lackawanna Trail) kept the Panthers' momentum going in the 174-pound bout against Bloomsburg's Brian Shaw. In the first period, Gavin commanded a 6-2 lead, scoring on a three takedowns and holding Shaw to two escapes. Shaw had only one escape in the second period while Gavin scored on an escape, takedown and a three-point near fall for an 11-3 lead. In the final period, Gavin won by a 19-4 technical fall at the 6:10 mark. The Panthers moved to 21-11. The 184-pound was a close one as Pitt's Mike Heist (Orefield, Pa./Parkland) faced Bloomsburg's Nate Shirk. In the first period, Shirk scored two points on a takedown and Heist had an escape. Heist tied it up at two with another escape in the second period. In the final period, Shirk scored on an escape and had a point for riding time to win a 4-2 decision. Pitt still held the lead, 21-14. The excitement kept going for the Panthers at 197 pounds as Pitt's Eric Cassidy (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) took on Bloomsburg's PJ DiStefano. In the first period, Cassidy took a 2-1 lead after scoring on a takedown. He gained momentum in the second period, scoring two on a reversal and then coming through with a pin at the 4:40 mark. The Panthers moved ahead, 27-14. The final match of the night was the battle of the two EWL champions as Pitt's Zach Sheaffer (Carlisle, Pa./Cumberland Valley) wrestled Bloomsburg's Mike Spaid. Both wrestlers went scoreless in the first period. Sheaffer took a 2-0 lead with a reversal in the second. Spaid tied it up with a penalty point and an escape in the third. Sheaffer had two more takedowns and a point for riding time to win the bout, 7-3. Pitt went on to win, 30-14 Next up for the Panthers is the Las Vegas Invitational. They'll head to the two-day tournament on December 1 and 2 where they'll face several of the nation's top-ranked teams. The Panthers return home on December 9 and will take on Lehigh at 1 p.m.

The Journeymen/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals, which started just four years ago, has quickly become one of the nation's premier early-season collegiate wrestling events. The eight-team dual meet format pits some of the nation's top teams against one another on Saturday, Nov. 25 at Guilderland High School in Guilderland Center, NY. Frank Popolizio, the founder of Journeymen Wrestling in Niskayuna, NY, started the Journeymen/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals in an attempt to bring a collegiate wrestling event to the Albany area. Frank's younger brother, Pat, was a three-time NCAA qualifier and scholar-athlete at Oklahoma State. "When Pat went through the college recruiting process, everything was so foreign," recalled Popolizio. "We had no prior knowledge of it looked like or what it should look like it. We had never seen it before. So after I got to watch Pat at Oklahoma State, I said, 'Man, this is a whole 'nother world, so why not make it happen here.'" The first Journeymen/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals took place in December of 2003. It was a quad meet (four teams) that was highlighted with Buffalo wrestling Sacred Heart. The event was held at Niskayuna High School and only 300 fans came through the doors. "At the time, we actually thought we did a good job," said Popolizio. "We had three mats down and we thought getting 300 people there was a good thing. And then we kind of pushed it a little more. We raised the bar about what the expectations should be." Since its inception four years ago, the Journeymen/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals has grown from a small, local event to a premier and exciting early-season collegiate wrestling event. Last season's event attracted over 1,100 fans and included four teams who finished in the top 30 at the NCAA Championships in Oklahoma City. The field of teams for the 2006 Journeymen/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals looks to be just as competitive. No. 1 Minnesota returns to the Journeymen/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals after posting a perfect 4-0 mark at this event last season. The Gophers, who finished runner-up at last season's NCAA Championships, return four All-Americans from last season's team, including NCAA champions Dustin Schlatter (149) and Cole Konrad (Hwt). Schlatter posted a remarkable 39-1 record last season as a true freshman with his only loss of the season coming at this event to Mark DiSalvo of Central Michigan, 1-0. Mack Reiter, a two-time All-American for Minnesota at 133 pounds, tore his ACL at an early-season practice and is expected to miss a significant amount of time. No. 12 Hofstra is a newcomer to the Journeymen/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals. The Pride are led by first-year head coach Tom Shifflet. Prior to coming to Hofstra, Shifflet spent four seasons as head coach at UNC Greensboro. He also organized the Southern Scuffle, which is widely considered one of the most prestigious midseason events in collegiate wrestling. Hofstra, who is coming off an 11th place finish at last season's NCAA Championships, returns two All-Americans. Senior Mike Patrovich placed fourth at 174 pounds, but has moved down to 165 pounds for his senior season. Chris Weidman, also a senior, finished sixth at 197 pounds. Wynn Michalak (Photo/John Sachs)Another ranked team making its return to the Journeymen/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals is No. 22 Central Michigan, who finished 3-1 at this event last season. The Chippewas bring back 12 lettermen from last season's squad, including three Mid-American Conference (MAC) champions, Luke Smith (125), Brandon Sinnott (174) and Wynn Michalak (197). Michalak, a two-time All-American, is currently ranked No. 7 in the country. Pennsylvania (Penn) will be making its debut at the Journeymen/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals. Zeke Jones, a former World champion who is in his second season as head coach, guided Penn to a 12th place finish at last season's NCAA Championships. The Quakers return an NCAA champion, two All-Americans, and four NCAA qualifiers. Matt Valenti was the NCAA champion at 133 pounds, Matt Herrington placed fifth at 174 pounds, and Cesar Grajales (141) and Matt Dragon (157) were both NCAA qualifiers. Herrington is a local New York product who hails from Cambridge. American returns to the Journeymen/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals after placing 17th at the NCAA Championships in March. The Eagles are coached by Mark Cody, who is known in collegiate circles as one of the most renowned technical coaches in the nation. Josh Glenn, a 197-pound pinning machine, is a returning All-American after placing fourth in Oklahoma City. NCAA qualifier Adam LoPiccolo returns at heavyweight. Damian Swietlik, who will compete at 149 pounds, is a talented newcomer and a three-time Poland Junior Nationals champion. Bloomsburg returns four NCAA qualifiers. Mike Sees, a 125-pounder, and Mike Spaid, a heavyweight, were Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) champions. At 157 pounds, Aric Fuhrman won 23 matches and finished fourth in the EWL. Tony Curto, a 141-pounder won 22 matches last season and took fifth at the EWL. Princeton is led by first-year coach Chris Ayres. A former Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) champion and All-American for Lehigh, Ayres brings a new passion to the Princeton program. He spent the past five seasons at his alma mater working under Greg Strobel, so he understands what it takes to win. The Tigers are young this season with three freshman and three sophomores in the starting lineup. Pat PopolizioLike Princeton, Binghamton begins this season with a new coach. Pat Popolizio -- the younger brother of Journeymen/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals director Frank Popolizio -- was the head assistant coach at American for the past two seasons, helping that program finish 17th in the country. Popolizio is hoping to change the reputation of the wrestling program at Binghamton and make it a top 25 program. Key Individual Matches by Round (Lineups Subject to Change): Round 1 (10:00 AM): -- At 133 pounds (Mat 1), it will be a battle of two talented true freshmen when Minnesota's Mike Thorn takes on Hofstra's Lou Ruggirello. Thorn is a three-time Minnesota state champion and a Junior Nationals All-American. Ruggirello is a three-time New York state champion and an NHSCA Senior Nationals champion. -- At 184 pounds (Mat 1), NCAA runner-up Roger Kish of Minnesota will face NCAA qualifier Joe Rovelli of Hofstra. Last season, Kish scored a 7-2 decision over Rovelli at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals in January. Round 2 (12:00 PM): -- At 174 pounds (Mat 1), No. 7 Gabe Dretsch of Minnesota will wrestle Brandon Sinnott of Central Michigan. Sinnott, a MAC champion, defeated Dretsch twice last season by scores of 9-3 (at this event) and 4-2 (in overtime) at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals in January. -- At 197 pounds (Mat 2), two All-Americans will go head to head when American's Josh Glenn faces Hofstra's Chris Weidman. Glenn, a junior, posted a 35-3 record last season and placed fourth at 184 pounds at the NCAA Championships. Weidman, who finished last season with an 18-13 mark, was a surprise All-American, placing sixth after entering the event unseeded. Weidman scored a big upset over top-seeded Wynn Michalak of Central Michigan (who is also competing in this event) in the second round. Round 3 (2:30 PM): -- At 157 pounds (Mat 1), Matt Dragon of Penn is expected to face Eric Neil (or Trevor Stewart) of Central Michigan. Dragon put together an impressive freshman campaign last season, winning the EIWA title and reaching the Round of 12 at the NCAA Championships. Neil was an NCAA qualifier in 2005. -- At 197 pounds (Mat 2), Minnesota's Yura Malamura, a junior college national champion and a newcomer for the Gophers, will take on All-American Josh Glenn of American. Round 4 (4:30 PM): Gabe Dretsch (Photo/Johnnie Johnson)-- At 174 pounds (Mat 2), No. 3 Matt Herrington, a local product hailing from Cambridge, NY, will wrestle No. 7 Gabe Dretsch of Minnesota. -- At 197 pounds (Mat 1), Central Michigan's Wynn Michalak will take on American's Josh Glenn at 197 pounds in what should be the premier individual match-up of this season's event. At the 2005 Journeymen/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals, Glenn (who competed at 184 pounds) pinned NCAA runner-up Roger Kish of Minnesota. Both are strong, powerful wrestlers, so fans can expect to see an exciting battle between two of the nation's top wrestlers.

University of Minnesota junior Gabriel Dretsch has been named the Big Ten Wrestler of the Week, the conference office announced today. A 174-pounder from Frazee, Minn., who entered the weekend ranked as high as seventh nationally, Dretsch defeated two ranked opponents on his way to the title at the Kaufman-Brand Open. In the semifinals, Dretsch defeated fifth-ranked Brandon Mason of Oklahoma State, 4-1, and followed it up with a 3-1 overtime victory over No. 19 Brandon Browne of Nebraska in the championship match. With a 4-0 record on the weekend, Dretsch remained undefeated on the season and has now claimed titles at the Bison Open and Kaufman-Brand Open to start the year. Dretsch moved up from eighth to fifth in the latest WIN rankings, and remained in the No. 7 spot by Amateur Wrestling News. This is the first Big Ten Wrestler of the Week honor for Dretsch during his career. The Golden Gophers open the dual meet season this Saturday by taking part in the Northeast Duals in Albany, N.Y.

The University of Minnesota wrestling team opens the dual meet season this weekend by taking part in the Northeast Duals. The event will run all day Saturday, Nov. 25, at Guilderland High School just outside of Albany, N.Y. The top-ranked Golden Gophers will compete in four matches on the day, with three of their duals coming against opponents ranked in the top 15 in the nation. Minnesota will face off against No. 11 Hofstra, No. 12 Central Michigan, American and No. 14 Penn, with the first match beginning at 9 a.m., (CST) and their last match scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m. The Golden Gophers are coming off a season in which they finished with a 20-1 overall dual meet record. Minnesota also opened the dual meet season at the Northeast Duals last season and defeated all four opponents it faced. The Gophers rolled over Virginia Tech, 41-7, and Tennessee-Chattanooga, 36-6. Their stiffest test of the meet came against Central Michigan in a match that ended with a final score of 19-13. The Gophers closed out the day with a 40-10 victory over American University. Now in its fourth year of existence, the Northeast Duals is fast becoming one of the toughest early season tournaments in Division I wrestling. The tournament will feature 10 returning All-Americans and nearly 30 NCAA qualifiers from a season ago.

The University of Wisconsin wrestling team has signed two athletes to National Letters of Intent, head coach Barry Davis announced today. Joining the Badgers in 2007-08 will be Ben Sarbacker (Verona, Wis.) and Kendall Vogel (Westfield, Wis.). Both are state finalists "Both Ben and Kendall are going to benefit our program," Davis said. "They bring us strong work ethic and strong dedication to the sport." Biographical information on each signee follows: Ben Sarbacker, Verona, Wis./Verona Area 2006 state champion at 160 lbs. * two-time state qualifier for Verona Area High School*went 54-0 as a junior * took second at state as a sophomore at 145 lbs. * is seven wins shy of school record for most wins in a career Kendall Vogel, Westfield, Wis./Pioneer Westfield Three time state qualifier * placed second as a junior at 145 lbs. * runner up as a sophomore at 133 lbs. * qualified as a freshman at 125 lbs. * career record of 118-15 * went 9-1 for Team Wisconsin in the National Dual tournament * has a 4.0 GPA.

BRISTOL, Tenn. -- The Saints wrestling team got its second dual meet win of the season with a 27-15 victory over King College (NAIA). Limestone now 2-0 for the 2006-07 season. Limestone's Dustin Baynes (Liberty Twp., Ohio) defeated Shayne Funk, 7-2, in the 149-pound weight class, and Mike Bush (Lakewood, N.Y.) got a 6-5 decision over David Johnson in the 157-pound division. Todd Neptune (New Concord, Ohio) won the 174-pound class as he defeated Derek Harrison (4-3). Dan Scanlan (Leesburg, Va.) beat Tomas Mancha with a technical fall (2:30) in the 197-pound category, and heavyweight Kyle Elliott (Valdese, N.C.) forced a technical fall against Marcus Porter. The Saints will compete in the Campbellsville Quad in Campbellsville, Kent., on December 2 at 10 a.m.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The No. 15 Ohio State wrestling team will continue dual action when it travels to Ithaca, N.Y., to face No. 9 Cornell at 2 p.m. Sunday in Newman Arena. The Buckeyes (0-1-0; 0-0-0 Big Ten) are coming off their first home dual of the season against No. 3 Missouri Nov. 16 in St. John Arena. The Scarlet and Gray is looking to even its record at 1-all after dropping a 29-9 decision to the Tigers. CLASS OF 2007-08 Ohio State wrestling head coach Tom Ryan announced the signing of five student-athletes to the Buckeye squad for the 2007-08 season. Sean Nemec, Colton Sponseller, Bo Touris, Nikko Triggas and John Weakley will join the team next season. "As a staff, we are honored each of these young men have chosen to pursue their academic and athletic goals at Ohio State University," Ryan said. "Each of these young men have won at the highest level with class and hard work. Our staff is looking forward to helping them build upon their successes in every aspect of their lives." Nemec, who hails from Lakewood, Ohio, and attended St. Edwards High School, is considered by many the top wrestling recruit in Ohio. Entering his senior year at St. Edwards, Nemec is ranked as high as first in the nation at 152 pounds in the wrestling publication Amateur Wrestling News and second by Wrestling International Newsmagazine. Nemec is a two-time high school state champion, three-time finalist and the 2004 Cadet freestyle national champion. Nemec also is a two-time junior national freestyle All-American, finishing third at 152 pounds in 2006 and sixth at 145 pounds in 2005. Sponseller, a student at West Holmes High School in Millersburg, Ohio, is a two-time high school state champion. Wrestling at 160 pounds, Sponseller also is the 2006 NHSCA Junior National Champion. Currently ranked as high as fourth in W.I.N. Magazine's preseason rankings, Sponseller was a seventh-place finisher in the 2005 freestyle competition. Touris is a native from West Chester, Ohio, and attended Lakota West High School. Wrestling at 112 pounds in 2005, Touris was an Ohio high school state division I district qualifier and finished the season with a 36-6 record. In 2006, Touris returned to 103 pounds after wrestling at that weight his freshman year, and finished third in the Ohio high school state championships, capping a 46-1 season. Touris also was the Ohio Cadet Greco Roman and Freestyle state champion in 2005. Touris, a Fargo Nationals Cadet Greco Roman National champion, also finished second at the FILA nationals in Cadet Greco Roman competition. Touris was ranked as high as fifth at 103 pounds in W.I.N Magazine and ninth at 112 pounds in W.I.N. Magazine. Triggas hails from Moraga, Calif., where he attended Campolindo High School and wrestles at 119 pounds. Triggas was the North Coast section champion his freshman, sophomore and junior years. He is the third freshman at any weight in the history of Campolindo to become state champion and is on track to become the second wrestler at Campolindo to win four sectional championships. A three-time state qualifier, Triggas finished third his sophomore year with a 51-3 record and was state champion his junior year, compiling 51-2 mark. Triggas also was the 2005 and 2006 Cadet Greco Roman Champion and finished third in freestyle competition in 2005 with a 19-1 record. Weakley is from Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, and prepped at Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy, where he wrestles at 189 pounds. Weakley is a three-time All-American, three-time conference champion, two-time district champion and two-time sectional champion. Weakley has been ranked No. 1 in all divisions and is the No. 2-ranked senior in Ohio according to ohiowrestling.net after winning PAC-7 Wrestler of the Year last season. Weakley's freestyle and Greco Roman credentials include becoming a three-time All-American, three-time freestyle state champion, three-time Greco Roman state champion and the Greco Roman Junior National runner-up in 2006. IN THE POLLS Ohio State is ranked in the Top 20 in three major polls. The Buckeyes are 15th in the USA Today/InterMat/NWCA rankings, 10th in the W.I.N. standings and 16th in TheWrestlingMall.com polls. INDIVIDUAL STANDINGS In the USA Today/InterMat/NWCA preseason polls (Oct. 20, 2006), eight of the 10 OSU weight classes are ranked in the Top 20. 133 - No. 18 T.J. Enright/Reece Humphrey 141 - No. 6 J Jaggers 149 - No. 19 Jason Johnstone/Lance Palmer 157 - No. 14 Chris Vondruska 174 - No. 12 Blake Maurer 184 - No. 13 Mike Pucillo 197 - No. 5 J.D. Bergman SCOUTING CORNELL Picked as the preseason No. 1 in the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association based on voting by the EIWA head coaches, Cornell has seven wrestlers that are ranked in the Top 6 of their respective weight classes, including Troy Nickerson and Steve Anceravage, who were named to the top spot. At 125 pounds, Nickerson was picked to finish first. Last season, Nickerson earned Ivy League Wrestler of the Year and Rookie of the Year honors. He went 4-0 at the EIWA championships to capture first place and led the Big Red in wins with 36. At 165 pounds, Anceravage took second at the EIWA championships last season. He went 25-10 for the season and was the No. 11 seed at the NCAA championships. Jerry Rinaldi is in the second position at 197 pounds. Rinaldi took second place at last year's EIWA championships. During his junior campaign, Rinaldi had a 28-3 record and finished fourth at the NCAA championships. The Big Red recently won the Body Bar Invitational for the second-consecutive year Saturday by a slim margin of one point ahead of No. 7 Michigan. Three Cornell wrestlers won individual titles. Jordan Leen took the 149 title, Rinaldi captured the 197 class, and Zach Hammond took home the title at 285. Head coach for Cornell is Rob Koll (North Carolina, 1989). BUCKEYES VS. BIG RED The Buckeyes lead the Big Red, 6-4-1, in the all-time series. The two teams last met in 2005 and Ohio State lost 27-9 in Ithaca, N.Y. Ohio State vs. Cornell - All-Time series 2005 - Ohio State 9, Cornell 27 2004 - Ohio State 20, Cornell 21 2003 - Ohio State 28, Cornell 12 1998 - Ohio State 14, Cornell 15 1986 - Ohio State 45, Cornell 4 1981 - Ohio State 40, Cornell 4 1979 - Ohio State 43, Cornell 3 1932 - Ohio State 13, Cornell 17* 1931 - Ohio State 14, Cornell 14* 1930 - Ohio State 21, Cornell 11 1929 - Ohio State 15, Cornell 13 Ohio State record in Ithaca: 4-1 Ohio State record in Columbus: 1-0 Ohio State record at neutral site: 1-2 *Do not have home and away information for 1931 and 1932 VS. THE IVY LEAGUE The Buckeyes own a 9-6-1 record against the Ivy League Conference. Ohio State is perfect against Brown (3-0) and Harvard (1-0), leads Cornell (6-4-1), is tied with Princeton (1-1) and trails Penn (0-1). OHIO CONNECTIONS Charlie Agozzino, a senior who wrestles at 157 pounds for the Big Red, hails from Cleveland Ohio, where he attended St. Edwards High School. Agozzino prepped at the same high school as Ohio State's and 2005 top recruit Lance Palmer and Buckeye transfer Chris Vondruska. VS. CORNELL-2005 Ohio State and Cornell last met during the 2004-05 season in the Friedman Events Center in Ithaca, N.Y. and the Buckeyes dropped a 27-9 decision to the then-No. 11-ranked Big Red. At 197, then-sophomore J.D. Bergman got the Buckeyes on the board with a 4-1 decision over Jerry Rinaldi by a 4-1 count. Bergman, ranked No. 4 in all major polls at the time, wrestled No. 7/11 Rinaldi to a scoreless tie through the first two periods before scoring an escape and a takedown. Bergman added a riding-time advantage for the final 4-1 count. Ohio State closed the dual with a decision win at 141 by freshman Jason Johnstone via a 4-2 score. ON THE ROAD Ohio State owns a 39-28-0 overall record in its opening duals on the road. ON THIS DATE The Buckeyes are looking to even up their record when competing on Nov. 26, as OSU is 0-1 on this date. Ohio State faced Iowa State Nov. 26, 2000 in St. John Arena and dropped a close 16-22 decision. THE REBOUND Although the Buckeyes fell to Missouri, 13-25, last season in Columbia, Mo., Ohio State was able to bounce back with a convincing 30-3 over Pittsburgh in its following dual. The Scarlet and Gray is looking to rebound from their loss to the Tigers Nov. 16 in St. John Arena when it faces Cornell Sunday. THE 11TH MAN A crowd of 2,354 was in attendance for the Buckeyes' 2006-07 season opener and head coach Tom Ryan's debut in St. John Arena. The crowd surpassed the second-best attendance from last season, which was 1,445. The record attendance from last year was 3,022 vs. Minnesota Jan. 27, 2006. FRESHMAN FIRSTS True freshman Lance Palmer and redshirt freshman Mike Pucillo earned their first career collegiate dual wins against Missouri. Palmer downed Top-20 ranked Josh Wagner, 1-0, in the 149-pound weight class. Pucillo was able to overcome Raymond Jordan, who is ranked as high as fourth in some national polls, 3-2. PICKING UP WHERE HE LEFT OFF Redshirt sophomore J Jaggers added another win to his record against Missouri when he defeated Amond Prater, 12-7. Jaggers has won 11 of his last 13 dual matches dating back to Jan. 14, 2006 when he downed Matt Dragon of Penn in 4:06 at the Virginia Duals. LAST TIME OUT - NO. 3 MISSOURI Ohio State lost to No. 3 Missouri, 29-9, Nov. 16 in St. John Arena in Tom Ryan's debut as head coach of the Scarlet and Gray. Three Buckeyes, J Jaggers (141), Lance Palmer (149) and Mike Pucillo (184) garnered wins for Ohio State. HEAD COACH Tom Ryan Tom Ryan enters his inaugural season as head coach of the Ohio State wrestling team in 2006-07. Ryan, who joins OSU following 11 seasons at Hofstra, is the Buckeyes' ninth head coach in the program's 86-year history. At Hofstra, Ryan led the Pride to six consecutive conference titles, which included the Colonial Athletic Association crown in 2006. Hofstra won the Eastern Collegiate Wrestling Association championship in 2001 before winning five consecutive CAA titles. During his tenure with the Pride, which began in 1995, Ryan was named conference coach of the year seven times. He also was a two-time New York State Coach of the Year. Highlights of Ryan's coaching career at Hofstra included recording a 47-match (46-0-1) conference unbeaten streak in dual action dating back to 1999. The mark stands as the nation's longest conference unbeaten streak. Overall, Ryan compiled a 109-83-1 record in his first head coaching stint. Ryan has guided 65 wrestlers to NCAA championship appearances, including eight in 2006. Eleven of his wrestlers earned All-America honors, while 10 were named Academic All-Americans. He also coached his wrestlers to 45 individual conference titles. Prior to his head coaching role at Hofstra, Ryan was an assistant coach at Indiana from 1992-1994. Ryan was responsible for the daily training for middleweight wrestlers, weight training and recruiting. In addition to his collegiate coaching experience, Ryan began operating Elite Wrestling Inc., in Hempstead, N.Y., in 1995. Ryan produced a wrestling school that enrolled more than 400 members and 500 summer campers. Elite Wrestling also is the title of Ryan's recently completed second book. LIVE WEB STREAMING Live web streaming of Ohio State's match ups against Indiana (Jan. 28) and Michigan State (Feb. 2) are available on ohiostatebuckeyes.com. EXPANDED COVERAGE The NCAA and ESPN announced in October expanded live television coverage of the 2007 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships March 15-17 in Auburn Hills, Mich. For the first time, in the 77-year history of the Division I Wrestling Championships, the Saturday morning medal round will be televised. Scheduled for 10 a.m. EST March 17 on ESPNU, the championships medal round determines the third through eighth place finishers who are honored as All-Americans. The 2007 championships are March 15-17 at the Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, Mich. The University of Michigan and the Detroit Metro Sports Commission will serve as hosts. Tickets for the 2007 championships are available by visiting http://www.detroitsports.org/wrestling/tickets/index.html. UP NEXT The Las Vegas Invitational and the Penn State Open is up next for the Buckeyes. Ohio State will travel to Primm, Nev., for the all day event Dec. 1-2, while some members of the squad will compete at the Penn State Open in State College, Pa., Dec. 3 for that all day tournament.

UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS, Ohio -- Two pins, two major decisions and two decisions early gave Cleveland State a 26-0 lead and the Vikings didn't look back, defeating crosstown John Carroll, 38-3, on Tuesday (Nov. 21) night at the DeCarlo Varsity Center. Junior Mike Hurley (141) and sophomores Marcus Effner (165) and Jeff Schuller (285) registered pins in the victory, which was CSU's only dual meet before the first of the year. Juniors Ryan Riggs (125) and David Armstrong (133) put CSU up, 6-0, after posting decisions and after an 85-second pin by Mike Hurley, the Vikings led, 12-0. Two takedowns in the final 1:14 of the third period gave freshman Shaun Mitchell (149) a 10-2 major decision over John Carroll's Greg Elliott to extend the lead to 16-0. "I'm so proud of our team," head coach Jack Effner said. "We pulled together and beat a very solid team. We wrestled our best tonight." Two freshmen, Kyle Chittick (174) and Benny Balogh (197) were involved in the meet's most exciting bouts, with Balogh scoring a last-second 11-7 decision with a late takedown and three near-fall points, while Chittick fell, 3-2, JCU's Chris Branchen in double overtime in a match were two of the points he surrendered were on escapes when he was on top. Junior Ryan Hurley, who normally wrestles at 149 pounds, wrestled up a weight at 157 but it didn't matter, as the junior improved his season record to 9-1 after an 18-6 major decision over Devon Jurczak. The Vikings led, 20-0, after Hurley's bout. Effner recovered from an early cut over his right eye to pin Steven Bagnowski in 3:34 immediately after Ryan Hurley, setting the stage for Chittick's battle. Senior David Gilkey (184) scored two late takedowns to win, 10-9, to extend CSU's lead to 29-3 before Balogh's bout made it 32-3, and then sophomore Jeff Schuller (285) finished the Blue Streaks off with a pin in 1:15. "Our guys came prepared and well conditioned," Effner said. "They earned their Thanksgiving break." The Vikings will take a breather over the holiday weekend before returning to action on Dec. 3 at the Penn State Open. The tournament is slated for a 9:00 a.m. start.

CEDAR FALLS, IA -- In a night of firsts, the University of Iowa wrestling team edged out Northern Iowa, 18-15, in Cedar Falls. It was Head Coach Tom Brands' first dual victory at the Hawkeye helm and Northern Iowa's first dual wrestling meet in its new McLeod Center. A crowd of 5,831 gathered to watch Iowa extend its winning streak in the series to 31. The Hawkeyes got wins from senior Mario Galanakis (133), redshirt freshman Ryan Morningstar (157), junior Mark Perry (165), senior Eric Luedke (174) and junior Matt Fields (Hwt.). Galanakis scored the only bonus points of the night, pinning redshirt freshman Brett Robbins in 2:50. Morningstar scored a takedown in sudden victory to defeat sophomore Moza Fay, 5-3, and tie the team score at 9-9 at the intermission. Perry, who wrestled in the NWCA All-Star Dual in Dallas, TX, Monday night, scored a 3-0 win and accumulated 3:24 of riding time against senior Nick Baima. Luedke gave Iowa a 15-9 lead -- its largest of the night -- with his 7-4 decision against Alex Dolly. With the scored tied 15-15 going into the heavyweight match, Fields picked up his fourth career win over senior Tyler Rhodes and solidified the team win with a 5-0 decision. Iowa (1-0) will host Arizona State (2-0) Saturday 1:30 p.m. in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Team Rankings: RANK TEAM Record 1. Augsburg College (MN) -- 2. Wartburg College (IA) -- 3. University of Wisconsin – La Crosse (4-0) 4. Luther College (IA) (1-0) 5. Heidelberg College (OH) (1-0) 6. Delaware Valley College (PA) -- 7. State University of New York at Brockport -- 8. North Central College (IL) (3-1) 9. College of New Jersey (2-0) 10. Johnson and Wales University (RI) -- 11. Buena Vista University (IA) (0-1) 12. Coe College (IA) (5-0) 13. Cortland State University of New York (1-0) 14. University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point (4-0) 15. Lycoming College (PA) (1-0) 16. Springfield College (MA) (2-0) 17. Wilkes University (PA) (1-0) 18. York College (PA) (1-3) 19. Cornell College (IA) (3-1) 20. Roger Williams University (RI) -- 21. Loras College (IA) -- 22. Elmhurst College (IL) -- 23. Thiel College (PA) -- 24. University of Wisconsin - Whitewater (1-0) 25. Olivet College (MI) (1-3) 26. New York University (0-2) 27. John Carroll University (OH) (1-0) 28. Ithaca College (NY) -- 29. Oneonta State Univeristy of New York -- 30. University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh (2-1) Individual Rankings: 125 lbs. 1. Nate Hansen Sr. Luther College 2. Chris Heilman Jr. Cornell College 3. Brandon McDonough Jr. Johnson & Wales University 4. Rob Vaccaro Sr. SUNY Brockport 5. Mike Gummerson Jr. Centenary College 6. Mike McInally Fr. R. I. T. 7. Felipe Quiroz So. Wilkes College 8. Tony Pretto So. Elmhurst College 133 lbs. 1. Jafier Vanier Jr. Augsburg College 2. Justin Hulegaard Sr. Buena Vista University 3. David Morgan So. King's College 4. Adam Johnson Jr. North Central College 5. Matt Smith Sr. Johnson & Wales University 6. Brian Zane Sr. Norwich University 7. Ray Sarinelli Jr. College of New Jersey 8. Jacob Helvey Jr. Wartburg College 141 lbs. 1. Mike Gaeta Sr. Springfield College 2. Zach McKray So. Wartburg College 3. Quincy Osbourne Jr. Augsburg College 4. Jared Creason Sr. Coe College 5. Zach Chambers Sr. UW Platteville 6. Mike Conklin Sr. Norwich University 7. Andrew Lacroix Jr. Roger Williams University 8. Rick Laforge Sr. Delaware Valley College 149 lbs. 1. Joe Pflug Jr. Heidleberg College 2. Jacob Naig Sr. Wartburg College 3. Jason Roush Sr. College of Mount St. Joseph 4. Jared Evans Sr. Augsburg College 5. Matt Pyle Sr. Luther College 6. Don Ooton Sr. SUNY Brockport 7. Paul LeBlanc So. Cortland State 8. Jake Rivers Sr. Norwich University 157 lbs. 1. Jeremy Anderson Jr. Augsburg College 2. Ross Needham Sr. UW LaCrosse 3. Elliott Spence Jr. College of Mount St. Joseph 4. Bobby Gingerich Sr. North Central College 5. Joe Galante Sr. College of New Jersey 6. Jacob Malone Sr. Saint John's University 7. Aaron Wernimont So. Wartburg College 8. Mark DiCiccio Sr. Springfield College 165 lbs. 1. Steve Martell Jr. Johnson & Wales University 2. Jerry Bowne Sr. York College 3. Shaheim Bradshaw Jr. SUNY Brockport 4. Derrick Ricker Sr. Messiah College 5. Scott Dorn Sr. UW LaCrosse 6. Brandon McWhinnie Jr. Steven's Institute of Technology 7. Corey Murphy Sr. Thiel College 8. Nate VanDyke Jr. Luther College 174 lbs. 1. Stephon Sair Sr. Cortland State 2. Josh Chelf Jr. UW LaCrosse 3. John Dolan Sr. Williams College 4. Tim Miller So. North Central College 5. Jason Zastrow Sr. Wartburg College 6. Kyle Capella Sr. Ursinus College 7. Andrew Winfield So. McDaniel College 8. John Fralick Sr. Bridgewater State 184 lbs. 1. Jason Lulloff Sr. UW LaCrosse 2. Ryan Summers Sr. John Carroll University 3. Robbie Gotreau Jr. Augsburg College 4. Romeo Djoumessi So. Wartburg College 5. Nicholas Calendrino Sr. Ithaca College 6. Elliott Smith Jr. Springfield College 7. Brett Giehl Jr. SUNY Brockport 8. Jay Figgins Jr. Loras College 197 lbs. 1. Brandon Kelly Sr. Wilkes University 2. TJ Miller Jr. Wartburg College 3. Matt Loesch Sr. Muhlenberg College 4. Ben Strandberg Sr. Buena Vista University 5. Alex Bonander So. Luther College 6. Thomas Sanders Sr. Case Western Reserve University 7. Ryan Fogliano So. Heidelberg College 8. Wally O'Connor Jr. Augsburg College 285 lbs. 1. Blake Gillis Sr. Wartburg College 2. John Miller So. Luther College 3. Ward Brady Sr. Elmhurst College 4. Arkadiy Levitin Sr. Hunter College 5. Trevor Hiffa Jr. Oneonta State 6. Andrew Neuman Sr. Augsburg College 7. Jake Taylor Jr. Oswego State 8. Mark Vandenhoogen Sr. Lakeland College NEXT RANKING: Week of December 10, 2006 Ranking Committee: Mike Howard (Oswego), Rich Husenfus (Norwich), Jim Miller (Wartburg), Kerry Volkmann (John Carroll), Dave Icenhower (College of New Jersey), Chris Walter (UW-Platteville)

WEST POINT, N.Y. -— Brent Smith pinned his opponent at 174 pounds, and eight other Army wrestlers won bouts as the Black Knights rolled past Bucknell, 36-6, Tuesday evening in an EIWA wrestling match at Davis Gym. Army improves to 1-1 (1-0 EIWA), while Bucknell falls to 2-2 (0-1 EIWA). Smith pinned Shane Riccio in 4 minutes, 32 seconds in the 174-pound bout to lead the way for the Black Knights, who rebounded from a 41-0 loss at Hofstra in their season opener. Matthew Kyler, Brian Rowan and Scott Ferguson also picked up "bonus points" for Army. Kyler picked up a 12-4 major decision over David Marble at 133 pounds. Rowan tallied a 20-8 major decision versus Michael Guttilla at 149 pounds. Ferguson scored a 13-4 major decision opposite George Mann at 184 pounds. Whitt Dunning, William Simpson, Christopher Grill, Connor Sanders and Michael Sprigg all earned victories for Army as well. Dunning defeated Greg Hart, 9-4, at 125 pounds, Simpson squeaked by Zach Galligan, 2-0, at 141 pounds, Grill downed Brantley Hooks, 7-3, at 157 pounds, Sanders edged Eric Lapotsky, 4-3, at 197 pounds and Sprigg picked up a win via injury default in the heavyweight bout. Army won the first five bouts of the night, jumping ahead of Bucknell, 16-0. After Andy Rendos pinned John Drew in 2:11 at 165 pounds to pull the Bison to within 16-6, the Black Knights won the final four matchups to secure the 30-point verdict. The Black Knights return to action on Sunday, Dec. 3, at the Nittany Lion Open in State College, Pa.

The weather is getting cold in Nebraska and that means that wrestling season is under way. We opened up our dual season on Oct. 17, when we wrestled Oklahoma City University. It was nice to get back into Gardner-Hawks (Dana's home gym) and wrestle in front of the home crowd. Coach Fergola and some other wrestlers set up an awesome entry for us as the gym lights went out and highlights from last year's national championship season projected on the gym wall. Apparently the new introduction worked as we rolled to a 45-6 victory over the Stars. Although the dual was over, many of us headed right back to work to get off weight for our 7 a.m. weigh-in for the Kaufman-Brand Open in Omaha the next morning. On the following day, we made the 20-minute trip to the Sapp Fieldhouse in Omaha. Following weigh-ins and warm-ups we began arguably the toughest tournament of our season. Although many of our records suffered that day, we gained valuable experience against some of the best guys in the country and many guys are finding their groove. Two Dana wrestlers had already found their groove by the start of the tournament. Freshman Brian Graham suffered only one loss as he brought home a second place medal. Graham also defeated two of the top recruited seniors of 2006 on his journey to the finals of the amateur division. Junior Burke Barnes also had a stellar day. Burke, wrestling in the elite division, mixed it up with some of the best college wrestling has to offer. After dropping a 5-2 decision to Mario Galanakis from the University of Iowa, Burke battled back and placed an outstanding fifth Webster FarrisOur practice room has been overcome by an old, but familiar intensity over the past few weeks. As we began the season reviewing a lot of technique, we are now getting after it. Although technique is still a part of practice we have elevated our level of drilling tremendously and practice moves at a quick pace. Coach Fergola and his staff are challenging us with some new conditioning techniques and of course, still killing us with some of the old stand-byes. A new implementation to our practice and program is our individual session time. A few weeks back, the wrestlers were divided up and assigned to different coaches. Each coach has six to seven wrestlers under his radar. The primary function of this division occurs one day per week (usually Monday or Tuesday) when practice consists of our team warm-up and the remainder of the time we are split into our groups. At this time, the coaches focus on their six or seven guys, and our responsibility is to problem-solve and work with our respective coach. I feel this is a great idea as I have already benefited from getting more one-on-one time with my coach Jimmy Rollins. We arrived for practice on Monday (Nov. 20) and Coach Fergola notified us that we would be off until our two-a-days begin on Monday (Nov.27). However, that doesn't mean the Dana College wrestlers won't be at it over break, as we were given strict orders pertaining to our weight. Although the consequences weren't specified for not maintaining weight, I feel sorry for the person who doesn't. Anyway, I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving! Drive safely and eat some for us grapplers. Train Hard, Webster Farris