InterMat Staff

Madison, Wis. -- The University of Wisconsin wrestling team remains undefeated on the season after going 3-0 at the Northwestern Duals on Sunday in Evanston, Ill. The Badgers (5-0-0) cruised past Division II Indianapolis 43-0, followed by a 29-7 victory over Navy and a win over Division II Cumberland 53-0. UW jumped out to an early lead over the Greyhounds, but the action truly began at 165 lbs. when No. 17 Jake Donar (Cuba City, Wis.) earned a pin over David Walpole at 2:20. The falls would continue as Mike Felling (Hutchinson, Minn.) made his season debut at 174 lbs. with a pin at 2:38 over Mike Jackson. Justin Peterson (Comstock, Wis.) and No. 10 Dallas Herbst (Winneconne, Wis.) followed suit with pins of their own at 184 lbs. and 197 lbs., respectively. At heavyweight, No. 16 Kyle Massey (Champlin, Minn.) competed in his first match for Wisconsin since January. He fell behind early to Jose Navarro, but battled back to win 3-2 to give the Badgers a 43-0 victory. The match against Navy featured exciting bouts at nearly all weight classes. Starting things out was No. 17 Collin Cudd (River Falls, Wis.) against Navy's Alex Usztics at 125 lbs. The match remained close through the first two periods with both grapplers earning 3-point near falls. However, Cudd pulled away in the third to win 16-9 after riding time. Sophomore Zach Tanelli (Milburn, N.J.) also found himself in a tight battle as he faced Brandon Beasley at 133 lbs. No. 17 Tanelli had a narrow one point lead to start the third period before Beasley earned an escape with a minute remaining to tie the score and send the match to overtime. However, Tanelli was aggressive in the overtime period, earning a takedown and three-point near fall to win 6-1. The match at 149 lbs. was highly anticipated as No. 4 Tyler Turner (Spring Valley, Wis.) faced No. 7 John Cox. Turner led 3-1 in to start the third before Cox managed a takedown and escape to lead 4-3, with a minute remaining. Turner quickly responded with an escape of his own to even the score. Then, with two seconds remaining the Badger notched a takedown to win 7-4 after riding time. No. 4 Craig Henning (Chippewa Falls, Wis.) and Donar kept the badgers rolling with victories at 157 lbs. and 165 lbs., respectively. Navy got on the board at 174 lbs. as Matt Stolpinski nabbed a major decision victory over Matt Maciag (Sussex, N.J.) 15-6. The Midshipmen would earn three more points at 184 lbs. with Peterson falling to Antonio Miranda 13-9. However, Wisconsin would end on a positive note after a pin by Herbst at 2:48 against Tyler Mayer at 197 lbs., and a 16-8 major decision victory for Massey at heavyweight. Following the Badgers 29-7 win over Navy, UW faced Cumberland University. Wisconsin bolted out to a 16-0 lead after Cudd earned a major decision victory, Tanelli nabbed a pin and the Bulldogs forfeited at 141 lbs. Sophomore Mike Metzger improved to 3-0 at 157 lbs. after pinning Cumberland's Mike Newberg at 2:21. From there Wisconsin continued to dominate, winning 53-0. Badger wrestling action continues next week as UW heads to Chapel Hill, N.C., for the first annual ACC/Big Ten clash on Nov. 18. Wisconsin will face North Carolina State, Virginia, and North Carolina in the three-dual competition. Check uwbadgers.com for the latest updates and scores.

STILLWATER, Okla. -- Oklahoma State's wrestling team began its push for a fifth-straight NCAA Championship as they downed UC-Davis, 22-9, in Gallagher-Iba Arena in the 2006-07 season opener on Sunday. The Cowboys took seven of the ten matches and were dominant on top as they picked up the riding time point in all seven of the individual victories. The dual started at 149 where the Pokes got a solid performance out of junior B.J. Jackson. The Tuttle, Okla., native took control of the match early with three first-period takedowns against Shawn Harratini. Jackson suffered an injury in third period while riding Harratini but battled through the injury to win, 10-4. Next up was 157 where Cowboy Newly McSpadden picked up the lone bonus-point win of the day when he earned a major decision win over Jon Clark, 15-5. McSpadden had five takedowns in the match. Johny Hendricks, who will be looking for his third-straight national title this season, used his 1:06 of riding time to defeat Dustin Noak, 2-1, at 165. At 174, the match featured two wrestlers ranked in the top 10 as the sixth-ranked Brandon Mason took on fourth-ranked Ken Cook of UC-Davis. Mason used a stalling point, an escape and riding time to win, 3-0, and give the Cowboys a, 13-0, lead in the dual. The Aggies of UC-Davis got on the board at 184 when 15th-ranked Tyler Bernacchi defeated Jack Jensen, 7-1. The most exciting match of the night may have came at 197 where UC-Davis' Elliot Kelly defeated Jared Shelton, 4-3. The match entered the third period with Shelton holding a slim, 1-0, lead. Kelly chose down to start the third period and reversed Shelton with 1:16 left in the match. The Sand Spring, Okla., native countered with a a reversal of his own to take a 3-2 lead. The action was not over as Kelly picked up the third reversal of the period to win the match, 4-3. At heavyweight, Jared Rosholt won his first match as a Cowboy. The redshirt freshman defeated Broc Mafoa, 4-0. Rosholt compiled 1:56 of riding time in the match. The Cowboys got another impressive debut at 125 when Tyler Shinn defeated Marcos Orozco, 7-2. The redshirt freshman was also dominant on top as he picked up 2:01 in riding time. All-American Coleman Scott made his official debut at 133 and picked up a win over 19th-ranked Omar Gaitan, 8-2. Nathan Morgan's debut at 141 did not go as well as the All-American fell to eighth-ranked Derek Moore, 5-2. OSU will return to action on Thursday as they host Michigan State at 7 p.m. in Gallagher-Iba Arena.

Imagine what it must feel like to accomplish something as a seventh-grader that has never been done in the 90-year history of the Minnesota State High School League. Imagine what it must feel like to go over five years (350 matches) without experiencing a single defeat. Imagine what it must feel like to win 24 national titles. Imagine what it must feel like to be named World of Wrestling Wrestler of the Year. Imagine what it must feel like to be on track to win a state-record six individual state high school championships. All before reaching high school. Meet Apple Valley eighth-grader Destin McCauley. Destin McCauley (Photo/The Guillotine)Last March, Destin became the first seventh-grader in Minnesota State High School League history to capture a state wrestling championship when he won the 103-pound Class AAA title. Destin was born on September 25, 1992 in Destin Beach, Florida, which is where the name Destin originated. "His name has nothing to do with destiny or anything like that," said Destin's father, Todd McCauley. "That's what we heard after he won the high school state title." Destin grew up in McCook Lake, South Dakota, a suburb of Sioux City, Iowa. He was a rambunctious and energetic young boy, so Todd and Brandy McCauley wanted to get their son involved in an activity. "There really wasn't anything a 5-year-old boy could do, other than maybe a little T-ball," recalled Todd. "A friend of ours had his boy wrestling, so we decided to sign him up and see how he liked it, and he was successful right away." Destin McCauley (Photo/The Guillotine)Saying he was merely successful right away might be a bit of understatement. In his first year out for the sport, Destin posted a 25-3 record. The next year, as a 6-year-old, he won the prestigious Tulsa Nationals. He quickly became one of the most dominant youth wrestlers in the country, rarely losing, and winning national title after national title. He competed for Team Chargers, a youth wrestling club started by Todd McCauley that trained at Briar Cliff University in Sioux City. As a youth wrestler, Destin captured 24 national titles. He dominated the prestigious Jack Roller World of Wrestling events, winning Tulsa Nationals four times and the Reno World Championships three times. In 2002, he was awarded the highly-respected Trinity Award. In order to win the Trinity Award, a wrestler must win the three toughest national youth wrestling events in the same season: Kickoff Classic, Tulsa Nationals, and Reno World Championships. In 2004, Destin was named World of Wrestling Wrestler of the Year, which is an award presented to the most outstanding wrestler on the World of Wrestling All-Star Team. Jack RollerRoller, who has been running his World of Wrestling events for four decades, has high praise for Destin. "Destin McCauley is a true champion," said Roller. "He has come out victorious in all of the nation's biggest events." Due to the fact that Destin was a South Dakota resident and wrestled in Iowa, he did not compete in the youth state tournaments, only the national events. When Destin was in fifth grade, his friend and club teammate, Eric Devos, moved to Apple Valley. At the time, Todd and Brandy McCauley were looking to move Destin and their high school-age daughter, Sierra, to another school district where the children could maximize their athletic and academic potential. In addition to his wrestling talents, Destin is also a youth state champion in track in the 200 and 400 meters, and a standout football player. Sierra, who is now a junior at Apple Valley, is one of the state's top runners. In 2003, Sierra captured the Class A state cross-country championship as an eighth-grader. Both Destin and Sierra are honor students. The school district in McCook Lake was small (consisting of 250 students K-12) and athletics were not much of a priority, especially not wrestling. "I remember Eric (Devos) telling me how great the wrestling program was at Apple Valley," recalled Destin. "So our family took a trip up there during our winter break and we attended one of the wrestling practices." In December of 2004, the McCauley family made the 340-mile trip from McCook Lake to Apple Valley. They watched wrestling practice and talked to Apple Valley's current head wrestling coach, Jim Jackson, and Apple Valley's former head wrestling coach, Bill Demaray. Demaray is the architect of Apple Valley's mat dominance. He started the wrestling program in 1976 and built it into the state's most successful wrestling program of the modern era. He guided the Eagles to six state team titles, coached 18 individual state champions, and compiled a dual meet mark of 407-70-4. In 1996, Demaray passed the torch to Jackson, who picked up right where Demaray left off. Since taking over as head coach, Jackson has guided Apple Valley to eight state team titles. Destin McCauleyThe McCauleys came away impressed with what they saw and heard while visiting Apple Valley. Still, they weighed their options and considered schools all over the Midwest, including Oak Park (Missouri), Iowa City West, and St. Paris Graham (Ohio). Eventually, they decided that Apple Valley was the best fit. "I think our deciding factor was the coaching staff," said Todd McCauley. "Apple Valley has coaches who wrestle with the kids at every weight. They have 15 coaches." Another key determinants in the McCauleys' decision to move to Apple Valley was the fact that the Minnesota State High School League is one of only three state high school associations that allows seventh and eighth-graders to compete in varsity athletics. Destin, who was entering seventh grade, knew that he ready for varsity competition. Apple Valley was a place where he could get top-flight coaching and an abundance of top-notch training partners. Destin earned a spot in Apple Valley's varsity lineup at 103 pounds through preseason wrestle-offs in November. By December, he was ranked among the top 10 wrestlers in his weight class by The Guillotine. On December 16-17, 2005, Destin competed at the annual Minnesota Christmas Tournament, which is considered to be the toughest individual high school wrestling tournament in Minnesota. The two weeks leading up to the tournament, Destin had been battling an illness, but decided to compete anyway. He entered the tournament undefeated and seeded No. 5 in his weight class, but was upset 6-5 in the first round by Mike Minske of Rochester Mayo. It was his first loss since 2001. Destin lost another one-point match in the consolation quarterfinals of the Christmas Tournament to Eagan's Matt Ashton, but came back to place seventh, avenging his first-round loss to Minske with a technical fall. Jim Jackson"The first time he lost, he kind of lost his composure a little bit," recalled Apple Valley coach Jim Jackson. "One of the big things we worked on was composure. You have to remember, he's not used to losing or being in tough matches." Another thing he wasn't used to was wrestling six-minute matches. In schoolboy competition, Destin's matches were four and a half minutes long, and most of those matches resulted in pins or technical falls. Conditioning was something Destin knew he had to work on if he wanted to achieve his goal of winning a state championship. "My conditioning was always pretty bad," admitted Destin. "During the season I would always stay after practice, doing sprints and doing stairs with my coaches. They just kept training me to get better." Added Jackson, "We made a concerted effort to do extra conditioning and get him to believe that he could wrestle six minutes." It paid off. Destin entered the Minnesota State High School Wrestling Championships last March with a 39-3 record and ranked No. 4 in Class AAA by The Guillotine, while weighing just a pinch over 100 pounds on full feed. He cruised to the state semifinals with a pin and a 14-4 major decision. In the semifinals, he faced No. 1-ranked Luke Vaith of Hastings, a wrestler who defeated him in January at the Kiffmeyer Duals in St. Cloud. This time Destin prevailed with a 5-1 victory. A day later, Destin defeated No. 2-ranked Kurt Ehrhorn of Grand Rapids, 7-5, in the state finals to become first seventh grader in state history to capture an individual state wrestling championship. Destin McCauley (Photo/The Guillotine)"It was probably the best I've ever felt," recalled Destin of his emotions after his finals victory. "It was a great feeling just knowing that I beat a lot of kids way older than me." Destin's father is quick to give credit to the Apple Valley coaching staff. "He just kept getting better and better as the season went on," said Todd McCauley. "He lost three matches, but we felt like it a lot of it had to do with conditioning and not managing his time. He avenged all three of those losses. The coaching staff got him ready and it showed at the end of the season." Jackson, who was named 2002 and 2003 National Coach of the Year by the National Wrestling Coaches Association, believes there are several things that make Destin successful. "His athleticism, work ethic, commitment, and his parents' commitment are amazing," said Jackson. "Those are the things that I believe have made him what he is today. Plus, he excels in all three positions. He's tremendous on his feet and very offensive. He has great defense and is extremely hard to score on. He's quick. He turns people. And very few people have ridden him, especially late in the season." Destin plans to start this season wrestling at 112 pounds, but could eventually move back down to 103 pounds. He's still not sure what his plans are at this point. Whether it's fair or not, many wrestling fans in Minnesota are now putting the cart before the horse and speculating as to whether Destin McCauley can become the state's first six-time state champion. The pressure to win six state titles will most certainly increase with each consecutive state title he adds to his collection. So how will he handle that pressure? "I really believe he'll handle it very well," said Jackson. "I know it's a cliche, but I think he'll take it one match at a time and he'll take it one year at a time. He'll work to get better every day. I see that in him. He works hard. He has some goals set. We don't talk about him being a six-time state champion. We have never talked about it once. I try to avoid that. He knows it's there. We all do." This story also appears in the Nov. 17 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 more information on The Guillotine, click here.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan wrestling team set its 2006-07 starting rotation at the annual Maize and Blue Intrasquad on Friday (Nov. 10) in front of 616 fans at Cliff Keen Arena. After preliminary matches were held in practice throughout the preceding week, the intrasquad featured the final round of wrestleoffs at nine different weight classes. The 157-pound weight class provided the evening's closest battle as junior/sophomore Jeff Marsh (Dexter, Mich./Dexter HS) and fifth-year senior Rob Sulaver (Dearborn, Mich./Dearborn HS) required a third match to decide the series victor. Marsh held the advantage entering the intrasquad meet after defeating Sulaver 5-4 at the Eastern Michigan Open last Saturday (Nov. 4), but Sulaver used a third-period takedown to claim a 4-3 decision in the second meeting and knot the series at one match apiece. The Wolverine pair retook the mat at the conclusion of the 10-match card, 45 minutes after their first match of the evening, and Marsh wasted little time before building a substantial lead, using a bear hug midway through the opening frame to take his opponent to his back for a five-point move. Sulaver fought off the pin and rallied with a takedown in each of the remaining periods, but could not overcome the early deficit as Marsh held on for a 8-5 decision. Two weight classes featured a pair of returning starters vying for a similar role this season. At 125 pounds, fifth-year senior Mark Moos (Lorian, Ohio/St. Edward HS), who wrestled one weight class higher in 2005-06, used four takedowns, including two in the first period, to post a 8-6 decision over last year's 125-pound starter, sophomore Michael Watts (Riverton, Utah/Riverton HS). Watts rallied late in the match, scoring a takedown with 20 seconds remaining, but Moos held on for the win. Junior/sophomore Tyrel Todd (Bozeman, Mont./Bozeman HS) retained his starting spot at 184 pounds, defeating fifth-year senior Nick Roy (Wall, N.J./Wall HS), a three-year starter at 174 pounds, by a 4-0 margin. After a close and scoreless first period, Todd converted on a single leg to score the only points he would need in the closing seconds of the middle frame. By the end of the evening, four new faces had secured starting roles, including a pair of U-M rookies in freshmen Chris Diehl (Burton, Mich./Flint Kearsley HS) and Matt Guhn (Clyde, Ohio/Clyde HS), who each swept his respective series at 133 pounds and heavyweight. Diehl used several combinations of headlocks, counters and go-behinds to convert on six takedowns against fellow freshman Mike Sears (Grand Blanc, Mich./Flint Powers Catholic). Three of those takedowns came in the final frame as Diehl racked up the points -- and 3:23 in riding time -- for a 14-4 major decision. Guhn brought a quick end to his contest against senior/junior Omar Maktabi (Iowa City, Iowa/West HS), using an outside trip to take Maktabi straight to his back and earn the fall at 0:59. Senior/junior Brad Cusumano (Utica, Mich./Utica HS) rounded out the newcomers to the starting lineup with a 10-6 decision over freshman Mark Beaudry (Pueblo, Colo./South HS). Cusamano picked up four takedowns, including three in the first period, and a pair of back points to claim the starting job. Senior/junior co-captains Josh Churella (Northville, Mich./Novi HS) and Eric Tannenbaum (Naperville, Ill./North HS) and junior/sophomore Steve Luke (Massillon, Ohio/Perry HS), all of whom bumped up one or two weight classes over the summer, cruised to victory in their respective wrestleoffs to claim starting roles at their new spots. In an exhibition contest at 149 pounds, Churella earned a 12-2 major decision over sophomore/freshman 157-pounder Braden L'Amoreaux (Clarkston, Mich./Clarkston HS) on the strength of five takedowns and 3:24 in riding time. Tannenbaum and Luke won handily at 165 and 174 pounds, respectively, to resume starting roles two weight classes heavier. Tannenbaum scored five takedowns against sophomore/freshman Mike Milano (Rocky River, Ohio/Rocky River HS) and added 3:24 in riding time to earn a 12-2 major decision victory. Luke registered a pair of first-period takedowns and added another in the second en route to a 7-2 decision over freshman Scott Giffin (Berlin, N.J./Eastern Regional HS). Rounding out the evening's matches at 197 pounds, junior/sophomore Casey White (Commerce, Mich./Walled Lake Central HS) tallied a 9-3 decision against freshman Eddie Phillips (Woodland, Mich./Lakewood HS) behind four takedowns, two of which came in the first period, and 5:11 in riding time. The Wolverines will send a contingent of unattached competitors north to East Lansing, Mich., for the Michigan State Open on Sunday (Nov. 12). The tournament, Michigan's final pre-season tune-up, is slated to begin at 10 a.m. at Jenison Field House.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. -- Two technical falls by University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wrestler Michael Keefe led the UTC wrestling team to a season-opening sweep of Davidson and Virginia Tech Saturday. The Mocs outscored Davidson 46-6 in a Southern Conference dual then defeated Virginia Tech 29-9 in the debut of UTC Head Coach Chris Bono. Against Davidson (0-1), the Mocs claimed all but one match. Sam O'Hair pinned Kyle McKee at 184 pounds for the Wildcats' lone points. Javier Maldonado scored a tech fall over Ben Altman at 125, and Josh Keefe registered an 18-5 major decision over Chris Panfili at 133. Michael Keefe's first tech fall came against Jim Avola at 5:32. Aaron Martin (149) and Nick Lorenzano (197) each pinned their respective opponents, and Seth Garvin (165) and Lloyd Rogers (174) added three team points apiece with decisions. Jake Yost (157) and Eric Rogers (285) each won their matches by forfeit. After dispatching Davidson, the Mocs handed Virginia Tech its first dual loss of the season. The Hokies entered the night with a perfect 4-0 mark. Other than Keefe's second tech fall of the evening, the Mocs (2-0) used major decisions from Maldonado, 2006 All-America Matt Keller (133) and Yost. Maldonado outpointed Sheridan Moran 14-3, Keller was a 15-2 winner over Matt Rosen and Yost recorded a 12-1 win over Matt Epperly. Martin, Garvin and Rogers won their second matches of the evening. Newcomer Mike Marable scored an 8-2 victory at 197 over Tim Miller for his first career win. Virginia Tech earned its nine team points at 184 and 285. Steve Borja pinned Kyle McKee at 184, and Jim Powers blanked Lorenzano 6-0 at heavyweight. The Mocs travel to Columbia, Mo., next Sunday to compete in the Missouri Open at the University of Missouri.

Fargo, ND -- Eleven Cardinal wrestlers picked up wins and seven placed at the 37th annual Bison Open hosted by North Dakota State University in Fargo, ND today. Facing some of the top competition in the nation, including wrestlers from top-ranked Minnesota, Stanford posted 35 total wins across 12 wrestlers. 187 wrestlers competed in the event, representing ten different schools from around the nation. Junior Tanner Gardner remained undefeated, earning four wins and a first place finish at 125 pounds. Gardner defeated Minnesota's Jayson Ness, 1-0, in the final to capture the title. At 157 pounds, junior Josh Zupancic finished in second place, posting four consecutive wins to advance to the final, before being defeated by fifth-ranked CP Schlatter of Minnesota, 3-0. At 165 pounds, two Cardinal wrestlers placed, with junior Scott Loescher finishing second and senior Brian Perry finishing third. Loescher picked up four-straight wins, including three by fall, to advance to the final, where he dropped a decision to Minnesota's Scott Glasser, 6-1. Perry won three-straight before meeting Glasser, but bounced back to win the consolation bracket with a 5-0 decision over Kyle Trout of MSU Moorhead. Sophomore Luke Feist placed third at 174 pounds, pinning Kenny Moenkedick of North Dakota State in 5:13 in the third place match. Freshman Zack Giesen finished the day with a 4-1 record, and took third place with a 3-0 decision over Travis Birhanzl of Southwest State at 184 pounds. Heavyweight Phillip Doerner rounded out the place-winners for the Cardinal, with a fifth-place finish. "I was happy with the overall team performance," said Head Coach Kerry McCoy. "We had some good wins and some tough losses. We got to see some guys that we wouldn't see until the NCAAs, so the trip was definitely worth it." Stanford (1-2) begins conference action on Friday, heading to Cal State Fullerton for its first Pac-10 dual.

NORMAN, Okla. -- The University of Oklahoma wrestling team won the seventh annual SUNY Brockport/Oklahoma Gold tournament for the seventh consecutive year. OU won by 32.5 points as it accumulated 143 team points. Kent State was the runner-up with 109.5 team points. The Sooners also claimed five individual titles. Oklahoma was led by Sam Hazewinkel as he won his fourth straight 125-pound championship. Hazewinkel defeated Mike Sees of Bloomsburg by a fall at the 5:55 mark. In addition to his individual title Hazewinkel also won the Outstanding Wrestler award for the tournament. "I was very pleased overall with the way our team wrestled today," head coach Jack Spates said. "We looked very sharp and saw a lot of good things that we will be able to build on." Shane Seibert won the 165-pound weight class as he defeated Shawn Kitchner of Brown by a major decision of 7-0. Joshua Weitzel claimed the 174-pound weight class title as he defeated Aaron Miller of Kent State by a decision of 5-0. Joel Flaggert earned his second 197-pound Brockport title as he defeated Conner Sanders of Army, by a fall at the 6:34 mark. Brad Farmer earned his first individual title as he defeated Michael Sprigg of Army by a decision of 7-3. Nolan Spring defeated Dan Hilt by a decision of 5-3 for fifth place. Kyle Terry lost in the finals of the 141-pound weight class by a decision of 4-3 to Tony Curto of Bloomsburg. Chad Terry defeated Brian Rowan of Army by a decision of 7-2 for fifth place at 149-pounds. Will Rowe was the runner-up at 157-pounds as he was defeated by Arie Fuhrman of Bloomsburg by a decision of 6-5. Josh Hinton claimed fifth place at 184 pounds as he defeated Tom LaRosa of Kent State by a major decision of 10-2. "Sam looked very dominant in his performance tonight, and I was very impressed with the way he wrestled," Spates continued. Oklahoma stays on the road following Brockport as it travels to the Missouri Open in Columbia, Mo., on Sunday, Nov. 19, for an all day event. The Sooners return home on Saturday, Nov. 25, when they host the Oklahoma Open and wrestle their next home dual on Wednesday, Nov. 29, when the University of Central Oklahoma travels to the Howard McCasland Field House.

Eight Minnesota wrestlers claimed titles today as the Golden Gopher wrestling team opened its season at the Bison Open in Fargo, N.D. Manuel Rivera, Dustin Schlatter, C.P. Schlatter, Gabe Dretsch and Roger Kish all successfully defended their titles from a year ago, while true freshman Scott Glasser earned first place at 165. Joe Nord and Ben Berhow were claimed co-champions in the heavyweight division. Seven other Minnesota wrestlers placed in the top-five in their respective weight classes. Redshirt freshman Jayson Ness, who appears to be the frontrunner to start at 125 pounds, turned in an impressive performance on his way to a runner-up finish. Ness pinned each of his first three opponents before being narrowly defeated, 1-0, by Tanner Gardner in the championship match. In the first round, Ness pinned Mogi Baatar in 1:48 before earning a fall against Brandon Rifa in just 55 seconds. Ness earned a spot in the finals with a pin of NDSU's Mike Meger in 4:55. True freshman Jake Mellmer was solid in his Golden Gopher debut, turning in a third-place finish at 133 pounds, winning each of his final four matches. He began the day with a 4-2 decision over Stanford's Cameron Teitelman before falling to Derek Bomstad of MSU-Mankato. Mellmer won his next match by default before earning consecutive decisions over Brady Schneeberger, Troy McFarland and Shane Hase to claim third place. Manuel Rivera cruised to the 141-pound title with two pins and one major decision. Rivera shut out Josiah Simburger on his way to a 15-0 tech fall in his first match. He then pinned Tyler Faust in 3:50 in the quarterfinals and earned a fall over Greg Skerik in 1:03 to make his way to the finals. Rivera defeated NDSU's Gabe Mooney, 5-1, in the championship match to successfully defend his title from a year ago. Defending national champion Dustin Schlatter picked up right where he left off last year as he dominated the 149-pound weight class. Schlatter gave up just one point on the day, pinning two opponents and earning tech falls in his other two matches. Schlatter began the day with a 16-1 tech fall over Tyler Parker of Stanford. He pinned his next two opponents and before capping his day with a 15-0 tech fall over MSU-Mankato's Johnathan Jimenez in the championship match. Senior Juan Martinez took third place at 149, winning four of five matches on the day. Martinez began with a pin of Johnathan Jimenez in 3:01 in his first match, then claimed an 11-5 decision over Shawn Sneva. After being defeated in the semifinals, Martinez pinned his next opponent in 1:33 and earned a 9-1 major decision over MSU-Mankato's Shane Walton to claim third place. C.P. Schlatter was equally impressive on his way to the 157-pound title. The elder Schlatter brother began his day with a 15-0 tech fall in just 2:41 over Jeremy Welter. He then posted back-to-back major decisions, a 9-1 victory over Ross Malikowski and a 15-3 win over NDSU's Adam Aho. Schlatter defeated Josh Zupancic of Stanford, 3-0, in the finals to earn his second straight title at the Bison Open. Sophomore Tyler Safratowich also turned in a solid showing at 157 pounds, earning a third-place finish. Safratowich posted consecutive 10-2 major decisions in his first two matches before being defeated by Stanford's Zupancic. He claimed a 15-3 major decision over Jacob Malone and then defeated NDSU's Aho in the third-place match. Wrestling unattached, true freshman Scott Glasser, a former five-time North Dakota state champion, was impressive in his debut, pinning three opponents and earning a major decision on his way to the 165-pound title. Glasser earned a fall over Jarret Hall in 1:37 in the first round. He followed it up with a pin of MSU-Mankato's Dustin Nagel in the second round, a 9-1 major decision over Zach Molitor and pin of Stanford's Brian Perry in the semis to earn his place in the finals. Glasser claimed the title with a 6-1 victory over another Stanford wrestler, Scott Loescher, in the finals. Gabe Dretsch successfully defended his 174-pound title at the Bison Open with a solid performance in the season opener. Dretsch defeated Cody Pahan 10-5 in the first round and then claimed a 17-2 tech fall over MSU-Mankato's Eric Roseen in the quarterfinals. He advanced to the finals with an 8-7 decision over Stanford's Luke Feist and then shut out NDSU's Matt Herman, 6-0, to claim the title. Roger Kish cruised to the 184-pound title with three pins and a major decision. Kish began his day with consecutive pins of Eric Wenzel and Tony Neumann in 2:50 and 4:59, respectively. Kish advanced to the finals with a 15-7 major decision over Zach Giesen and finished the day with a pin of NDSU's Matt Wetterling in the finals. Minnesota wrestlers claimed three of the top four spots in the 197-pound division. Wrestling unattached, true freshman Brent Eidenshink earned a runner-up finish in his debut. Eidenshink defeated teammate Justin Bronson in the semis to earn his place in the title match, and Bronson responded by defeating fellow Gopher Chris McPhail in the third-place match. Eidenshink finished the day with a 3-1 record, including one pin. Bronson went 4-1 with a pin, a technical fall and a major decision to his credit, and McPhail posted a 3-2 mark on the day. A pair of Golden Gopher freshman met in the championship match of the heavyweight division. Joe Nord pinned Jacob Evenson in 3:34 and earned a 5-2 decision over Stanford's Phil Doerner to earn his place in the finals where he met teammate Ben Berhow. Berhow advanced to the title match with a 6-1 decision over Joe Facchinni, a 5-2 decision over Evan Hacker and a pin of Jake Morgan in 1:53. Nord and Berhow were claimed co-champions.

DUBUQUE, IA -- Four University of Iowa wrestlers won titles while competing unattached at the Spartan Classic in Dubuque Saturday. Freshman Billy Murphy (133), juniors Mark Perry (165) and Matt Fields (Hwt.) and senior Eric Luedke (174) took home individual tournament titles. Perry recorded the quickest fall of the tournament in his first match, pinning Luke Karner of Knox College in 10 seconds. He totaled two pins, a technical fall and a major decision on the day. Luedke pinned his first three opponents and scored a major decision in the finals. Murphy recorded a pin, technical fall, major decision and decision at 133, while Fields a major decision, technical fall and two decisions at heavyweight. Also placing for Iowa were freshmen Matt Ballweg (2nd-149), Brooks Kopsa (7th-149) and Jake Kerr (165-3rd), and sophomore Dan Erekson (3rd-197). Hawkeye redshirt freshmen Joe Slaton (133), Dan LeClere (141), T.H. Leet (165) and Jay Borschel (174) were scheduled to compete at the Harold Nichols Open in Fort Dodge Saturday. Results were not available a press time.

FARGO, N.D. -- Improving on their runner-up finishes from last year, North Dakota State's Eric Sanders and Jacob Bryce opened up their 2006-07 season by winning individual crowns at the 37th annual Bison Open at the Bison Sports Arena on Saturday, November 11. Sanders, a junior from Wabasha, Minn., defeated Derek Bomstad of MSU Moorhead 9-8 in the championship match at 133 pounds. Sanders went 4-0 on the day which included a pin over Smokey McBride of Concordia College in the second round. Bryce, a sophomore from Glenwood, Minn., won three matches on the day and defeated unattached wrestler Brent Eidenschink in the 197-pound final 5-2. Nine other NDSU wrestlers placed fifth or better at the tournament. Gabe Mooney, Matt Hermann and Matt Wetterling also took runner-up honors. Mooney recorded a pin, technical fall and major decision en route to the finals before losing to Manuel Rivera of Minnesota in the championship match 5-1. Hermann, the lone senior on the Bison squad, loss to three-time Bison Open winner Gabe Dretsch of Minnesota 6-0 at 174 pounds. Roger Kish of Minnesota, the 2005 Division I national runner-up at 184 pounds, pinned Wetterling in 5:10 to win his third Bison Open crown. In his first tournament as a Bison, Eric Hoffman defeated teammate Mike Meger in the third-place match 5-2 at 125 pounds. Along with Meger, Adam Aho also placed fourth. The sophomore went 3-2 for the tournament at 157 pounds. Placing fifth for the Bison were Mike Quamme, Ben Imdieke and Justin LaGosh. Quamme and Imdieke both won by forfeit in the fifth-place match at 157 and 165 pounds respectively and LaGosh beat Jason Finley of St. John's 6-3 at 197 pounds. All-American Tanner Gardner from Stanford won the 125-pound crown, 2005 national champion Dustin Schlatter of Minnesota won his second consecutive Bison Open crown at 149 pounds as did teammate and brother C.P. Schlatter at 157 pounds. Unattached wrestler Scott Glasser won the 165-pound championship and unattached wrestlers Ben Berhow and Joe Nord were co-champions at heavyweight. 187 wrestlers from 10 different schools competed at the event. The Bison will next wrestle at the Kaufman-Brand Open in Omaha, Neb., on Saturday, November 18. Matches are scheduled to begin at 9 a.m.

Philadelphia –- The 2006-07 Drexel wrestling season opened with two victories and one defeat in a quad meet with James Madison, Bucknell and Maryland held at Drexel's John A. Daskalakis Athletic Center. Drexel defeated James Madison, 37-3, topped Bucknell, 26-10, and lost 19-15 to Maryland. The Dragons opened with a victory over Colonial Athletic Association opponent James Madison, 37-3. Reigning CAA Rookie of the Year Steve Mytych opened the match with a convincing technical fall win at 125 pounds over Nhat Nguyen. Fellow sophomore Greg Jensen pinned Shawn Horst in what was a close match. Jensen started the second period on the bottom and executed a reversal and pinned Horst just seconds later. Mark Cartella and Billy Haydt both won their first match after redshirting last season. Cartella fought through an ankle injury to take a 9-2 decision at 149 pounds while Haydt earned a tough 5-2 win at 165 pounds. Cartella would not wrestle in the Dragons' final two matches. Last season's 30-match winners, Ryan Hluschak and Nick Kozar each started his season with a victory. Hluschak earned an 11-4 win while Kozar registered a 14-5 major decision triumph. Sophomore Justin Terhune showed he has recovered from a knee injury that ended his first collegiate season early. Terhune executed a takedown with just 11 seconds remaining in the match to clinch an 8-5 win over Dan Rafeedie. Jon Oplinger and Chris Cowen each earned bonus points for his victory. Oplinger earned a 17-6 major decision win at 197 pounds while Cowen pinned Zack Winfrey to earn the Dragons six points. Bucknell defeated Maryland, 27-14, in the other noon match at the Daskalakis Athletic Center. In the Dragons' second match, Coach Childs' squad defeated Bucknell, 26-10. Mytych opened the match with a major decision victory over Greg Hart, 15-3. Sophomore 141-pounder James Therrien wrestled his first match of the 2006-07 season and earned a 6-1 victory. Kris Park spelled Ryan Hluschak and earned an injury default victory after Park earned a takedown and a near fall and the Bisons' Mike Powers was unable to continue. Kozar picked up his second victory of the day when he earned a 9-4 decision over Shane Riccio. Terhune, Oplinger and Cowen all followed with their second wins of the day as the Dragons finished off the Bison. Oplinger earned his second bonus point of the day for a major decision. In the other 1:30 p.m. match, Maryland defeated James Madison, 35-3. In Drexel's final match of the meet, the Dragons dropped a tough match to Maryland, 22-12. Steve Mytych opened the match with a thrilling 6-5 win in the second tiebreaker. Maryland won the next three matches until Hluschak earned a 5-2 victory for his second triumph of the day. After Maryland won the 165-pound match, Kozar earned his third victory of the day when he broke open a close match with a takedown and near fall with less than one minute remaining in his match to defeat Mike Letts, 8-2. Terhune followed with a hard-fought 7-4 decision over Rich Dipietro. However, Hudson Taylor outpointed Oplinger 3-0 in the 197-pound bout to clinch the match for the Terrapins. In the other match at 3:00 p.m. Bucknell defeated James Madison, 24-9.

Ryan Budd of the Blue beat Alan Reynel, 16-1, for a technical fall at 174 pounds Saturday afternoon to cap the Blue's 33-16 victory over the Orange in Cal State Fullerton's 14-match intrasquad wrestling scrimmage in Titan Gym. The only other bonus points on the day went to T. J. Dillashaw of the Orange for an 11-0 major decision over Nolan Ricman at 133 pounds and to Taylor Smith of the Blue for a 9-0 major decision over Aaron Wilson at 141. The Titans open the season with their annual High School Wrestling Day on Friday, Nov. 17. Fullerton will host Stanford in a Pac-10 bout at 2:30 p.m. simultaneously with a Fullerton-Embry Riddle match and a community college contest between Cerritos and Santa Ana Colleges.

BOONE, N.C. -- Appalachian State opened the 2006 season with a bang on Friday night, scoring seven pins in a 46-3 victory over Wagner in Varsity Gymnasium. ASU, which placed fourth in the Southern Conference Tournament last season, came out of the gates hungry. Freshman Brody Essick (125 pounds), one of three rookies to break into the starting lineup, started the evening with a 15-4 major decision over Wagner's Nick Keshecki. The Mountaineers followed that with six straight pins in the 133 to 174 weight classes: Terreyl Williams, Clinton Swango, Scott Ervin, Eddie and Tommy Hutchinson, and Neal Martin all pinned their opponents within the first two periods. Freshman Brandon Brothers dropped an 8-4 decision to Rob Rivera in the 197 pound weight class for Wagner's only points, but senior Dave Hazell capped the evening with a pin of Angelo D'Amico to finish the 46-3 win. Appalachian (1-0, 0-0) has over a week off until its next meet. The Mountaineers will travel to Philadelphia for the Keystone Classic on Nov. 19.

AMES, Iowa -- In his debut as head wrestling coach, Cael Sanderson guided the Cyclones in a dominating 46-0 win over Buena Vista Friday night at Ames High School. Coming in as the number one recruiting class in 2005 by Amateur Wrestling News, six redshirt freshmen proved themselves by recording wins, four of which resulted in bonus points. Cyler Sanderson (149), Jake Varner (184) and Nick Fanthorpe (125) led the ISU charge as they each recorded season opening pins. "Our guys looked great tonight," first-year head coach Cael Sanderson said. "We are always looking to improve and that is what these early matches are for. It is all about preparation. Our freshmen worked hard out there and showed a lot of effort. They kept wrestling at the end and were able to get points. If they keep doing that, they are going to improve at rapid rates." Recording the first pin of the season was Cyler Sanderson at 149 pounds. In the first period alone, Sanderson took Calvin Barber down four times to put him up 11-5 after the first period. He then opened the second period from the down position and scored a reversal and nearly pinned Barber by scoring a three-point nearfall. He then stuck Barber's shoulders to the mat to take the win by fall at the 3:58 mark. "The win felt great," Sanderson said. "I have been waiting a long time to wrestle for the Cyclones. I am real happy with how my match went and I am looking forward to the rest of the season." Following up Sanderson's performance was two-time All-American Trent Paulson. Paulson, who is ranked second at 157-pounds, scored a 13-4 major decision against Aaron Cook. At 184-pounds, Jake Varner wasted no time as he scored an early takedown on Austin Hayes. Varner, who tallied 132 falls during his prep career, pinned Hayes in a mere 1:07. "The pin felt really good," Varner said. "It was exciting because my adrenaline was pumping. The crowd was great and I wanted to wrestle for the fans. I cannot wait to wrestle in Hilton Coliseum." Moving up from 184-pounds, Kurt Backes added bonus points by scoring a 20-6 technical fall in 4:53 over Brian Stueve. Backes attacked early by taking down Sueve four times in the first period alone and tacking on a two-point nearfall with 10 seconds left. He then scored three more takedowns in the second period, along with a reversal and another two-point nearfall. Closing out the dual at 125-pounds, redshirt freshman Nick Fanthorpe recorded the third pin of the night by sticking Julian Gunnels with 17 seconds left in the match. Fanthorpe began to take control of the match during the second period by taking a four-point lead via takedown and a two-point nearfall. He then took down Gunnels twice more in the third before pinning him. "I knew he was getting tired," Fanthorpe said. "I saw the opportunity and was able to get the pin. I had a lot of fun out there in my first collegiate match." Iowa State will travel to Fort Dodge to take part in the Harold Nichols Open Saturday at Iowa Central Community College. Last season the Cyclones brought back four individual titles. ISU will return to Ames on Nov. 26 as they play host to Arizona State at 7 p.m.

NEWBERRY, S.C. -- Newberry College jumped out to an early lead, but the 18th-ranked Carson-Newman College Eagles made a strong rally in the sixth match earn the 23-18 victory over the 22nd-ranked Indians on Friday evening at Eleazer Arena. Newberry (1-1) jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead when Kelly Anundson in the 197 pound division pinned Tom Minwell in 2:19. Cy Wainwright followed up with another pinfall in 5:35 in the 285 pound division to increase the Indians' lead to 12-0. Carson-Newman (1-0) stormed back winning the next four matches to go up 14-12. The Indians made a valiant rally, but came up short in the final match. Newberry will participate in the Gardner-Webb Quad Meet at Gardner-Webb University tomorrow. The Indians will face Duke University at 1:00 pm, Gardner-Webb at 3:00 pm, and will wrap-up the day against Wagner College at 5:00 pm.

LAWRENCEVILLE -- The family that wrestles together, pins together, and wins together. The Broncs won six bouts, two by fall by the Morrison brothers, to upset 21st ranked Lehigh in the 2006-07 season opener Friday night in a sold out Alumni Gymnasium. "Lehigh is a great team with great tradition," said Rider head coach Gary Taylor. "They've been one of the premier teams for many years." Freshman Rob Morrison (Mechanicsburg, PA/Cedar Cliff), in his first collegiate dual meet, won by fall to give Rider a 15-6 lead. "I wasn't expecting to get a pin at all," said Rob Morrison. "He was a little strong kid and he wasn't letting free. I decided to see what I could do with it. I was hoping back points, but I'll take a pin." Junior T. J. Morrison (Mechanicsburg, PA/Cedar Cliff) won by fall at 197 to seal the victory. "I couldn't be out-done by my littler brother," said TJ Morrison. "I had to get a pin after he got one. That was one of their back-up wrestlers, so once we knew he was wrestling, everyone told me I had to get a pin. I was a little stressed at that. I just wanted to get the win first, and if the pin comes, great." The Morrison brothers are the son of Tim Morrison, an All-American wrestler at Rider in 1983 and a member of the Rider Athletics Hall of fame. The victory was Rider's first over a top-25 team since defeating 24th ranked Kent State 24-17 in 2003. Rider had lost its last eight matches against top-20 teams, including two to Lehigh. "As in any sports you have opportunities," Taylor said. "You either seize the opportunity or you don't. I felt what our kids did a good job of tonight was seizing the opportunity. It was here, we knew we could go with them, but we also knew that they were favored, they were ranked higher. We had the opportunity to knock them off and the kids rose to the occasion and did it." Sophomore Doug Umbehauer (Shamong/Lenape) upset the eighth ranked wrestler in the nation, Dave Helfrich, to give Rider an 18-6 lead. "Umbehauer, in my opinion, was overlooked in all of the rankings," said Taylor, who has five wrestlers nationally ranked on his team to start this season. "He just trains and trains and gives you everything he's got. You could see it in the match. He wore the kid down and wouldn't take no for an answer." Junior Don Fisch (Williamstown/Delsea), ranked seventh in the nation after red-shirting last season, came back from a 5-0 deficit to win at 141, giving Rider a 6-3 lead. "There is always concern but I wasn't concerned Don could come back, I was just concerned in the fact that it was his first time back," said Taylor. Senior Dave Miller (Southampton/Lenape), ranked 16th in the country, won at 157 to break a 6-6 tie. Freshman Matt Bradley (Jackson) won his first collegiate match to tie the score at 3-3. "Bradley certainly stepped up and did a job and beat one of their better kids," Taylor said. Sophomore Mike Kessler (Randallstown, MD/Owings Mills), ranked 20th in the nation, lost to ninth ranked Trevor Chinn of Lehigh. But it was the Morrisons who stole the show Friday night. "The Morrison brothers are strong competitors," said Taylor. "For Robbie to step up particularly as a youngster was great to see. He's a very exciting, likeable, kid. He's very fired up. He's into it and wants to compete hard, and he obviously beat a very good kid. For a true freshman to come in and step up like that showed me a lot." "We've always been real close growing up," said TJ. "It was a perfect fit for him. I'm definitely happy he's here. Having your brother on the same team is fun." "Having my brother here helped me decide to come here," said Rob, "but the coaching staff here at Rider made so much more of an effort to sign me, that is why I came here. They showed the most interest in me." Rider hosts 25th ranked Pittsburgh Tuesday. "Pitt has a very good, balanced team," Taylor said. "It doesn't get any easier." With the Morrison brothers, it looked easy on Friday.

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- It couldn't be written any better: Down five points, last match of the meet and Purdue University senior Nathan Moore stood in the familiar environment of his hometown gymnasium at Perry Meridian High School in Indianapolis, Ind., needing a pinfall to give his team victory. With just 16 seconds left in the first period, Moore achieved the feat, sticking his opponent to give the Boilermakers a come-from-behind, 18-17 victory over Old Dominion University in both squads' season-opening meet. Purdue freshman heavyweight Chris Kasten opened the meet with a 6-4 decision over ODU's David Mendoza, battling back from a 3-2 deficit after the first period and a 4-2 hole after two. Kasten started the final period with an escape to pull within one and, after about a minute of stalemate, dragged Mendoza to the mat for a match-winning takedown. At 125-pounds, 18th-ranked ODU senior Christian Stalzer rode an early lead to a narrow 4-1 win over Purdue junior Brandon Tucker, but 133-pound Purdue freshman Cameron Doggett regained the Boilermakers' lead with a 13-6 victory over ODU freshman Adam Koballa. Continuing his early-season success, Doggett took a demanding 6-1 advantage in the first frame, and extended the margin to 10-3 in the second with his fourth and fifth takedown of the match. However, Koballa avoided the major-decision loss in the third as Doggett finished off with a 13-6 win. Purdue senior Jason Cook went toe-to-toe with ODU's lone returning NCAA qualifier, sophomore Ryan Williams, but came up short in an 11-6 loss at 141-pounds, evening the score at 6-6. Boilermaker sophomore Jake Patacsil followed with a thrilling 7-6 victory at 149-pounds, using the riding-time point to defeat freshman Kaylen Baxter to give Purdue a 9-6 edge. Patacsil surrendered a last-second takedown in the first to fall behind, but locked the count back up in the waning tics of the second with a three-point nearfall. The third period went back-and-forth, leaving the score at 6-6 at the end of the time, but Patacsil held control for most of the match, giving him the win. ODU reknotted the count at 9-9 in the 157-pound bout as freshman Chris Brown topped Purdue first-year Eric Howe in overtime, 7-5, and the Monarchs seemed to take control of the match in the 165-pound matchup as junior Nick Pullano scored a 20-5 technical fall over Purdue rookie Jason Martin. The Boilermakers cut into the five-point gap in the 174-pound match as sophomore Nick Corpe used his slow-and-steady style and a trio of takedowns to overcome ODU freshman Bryan Koz, 6-5. Usually a 165-pounder, Purdue sophomore Aaron Goebel displayed an incredibly gutsy performance in the 184-pound tilt. Despite surrendering almost 20 pounds to ODU freshman Jesse Strawn, Goebel stood his ground and came up just short in a 5-4 loss. Goebel scrambled and escaped to keep the match close the whole way, and scored a spinning takedown late to pull within one, but the important thing was giving up just three team points to the Monarchs to keep Purdue within striking distance. Moore's heroics looked imminent from the start of the final match as he held a 20-pound advantage over ODU freshman Derek Coffey. Like a snarling pitbull, Moore pounced on him and had his shoulders near the mat within the first minute. Coffey twisted, turned and rolled away from trouble several times, but Moore was able to secure a cradle with about a minute left in the first period and finally pressed Coffey's back to the ground at the 2:44-mark. The Boilers earn their eighth season-opening dual win in the last ten years and its second in a row. They return to action next Saturday as they travel to Chapel Hill, N.C. for the ACC/Big Ten Duals.

Muzaffar Abdurakhmanov hasn't been in a wrestling competition in over 7 months. But his memory of that last tournament, the 2006 NCAA Division 1 National Championship, is still very sharp. "When I was wrestling, [the score] was 3-3. I was calm and thinking about one shot, I was working for one shot," Muzaffar explains, describing the 3rd period of his semifinal match against Johnny Hendricks of Oklahoma State. "And then, with 40 seconds to go, when I attacked, he was flipping around on mat. But they gave him a point for stalling. I didn't see the referee; he was standing behind me." With about 20 seconds to go in the match, Abdurakhmanov says, his coach approached the scorers' table, thinking that the scorer had made an error by putting the point on Hendricks' side of the scoreboard. To his surprise, the point had actually been given to Hendricks. "With 20 seconds to go, my coach goes, 'Muz, you're losing.' I was kind of shocked a little bit, you know, 'Why am I losing? It was 3-3.' My coach said, 'I thought they gave you a point because you were attacking and he was flipping on the mat.'" The point actually went to Hendricks? So the referee awarded a stalling point to Hendricks even though Abdurakhmanov was in on Hendricks' leg? "Yeah," answers Abdurakhmanov. He continues. "There's nothing you can do. You can't argue the referee's decision." Hendricks went on to win his next match over Michigan's Ryan Churella by a score of 9-8 and be crowned National Champion. Abdurakhmanov defeated Iowa State's Trent Paulson 7-2 in his next bout, and then he received a victory via medical forfeit over Deonte Penn of Edinboro to finish in third place at 165. It was his senior year of college, and it was the last time he wrestled. All of that will change on Saturday. For the first time since that frustrating NCAA Tournament experience, Muzaffar will be wrestling at the 145-pound weight class in the RPW Regional Qualifier, which will be held in Philadelphia on Nov. 11th. "I want to compete," Abdurakhmanov states. "The last time I competed was at the NCAA's. I miss it. I like to compete." A former Junior National Champion in his native Uzbekistan, Muzaffar came to the United States to wrestle at Colby College, a junior college in Kansas. He credits his former coaches there, Eric Toraya and Steve Lampe, with much of his success. After having success at that level, he went to American University, where he credits much of his success to his head coach there, Mark Cody. Muzaffar AbdurakhmanovSince that last NCAA Tournament, Abdurakhmanov has been mostly training in freestyle wrestling at American University. He is coaching for the program this season while he finishes up his schooling there. The last non-folkstyle competition Abdurakhmanov participated in was the 2004 Sunkist Open, where he finished second to eventual 2004 United States Olympian Joe Williams in the 74 kg freestyle bracket. Muzaffar himself is waiting to become a citizen of the United States, a process which he estimates could take "6 or 7 years." Already 26, Abdurakhamanov will likely be competing under the flag of his native Uzbekistan when he gets back to regularly wrestling in international competitions, something he plans to do starting with the RPW Qualifier in Philadelphia. Muzaffar has experienced great success, both in freestyle and folkstyle wrestling. But will his style translate well to Real Pro Wrestling's format? "I hope so. I don't know," he states candidly. "In wrestling, you never know. Anything can happen. I can't say 'I'm going to beat this guy, or I'm going to beat that guy, or my style is going to work,' because I've never wrestled Real Pro Wrestling. So I don't know. It isn't exactly freestyle. It's like something a little bit freestyle, a little bit Greco, you know?" "We'll see this weekend." We certainly will. And maybe by the end of the weekend, the memory of that match against Hendricks will start to fade just a little bit.

THIS WEEK: North Dakota State University will begin its first run at the NCAA Division I Championships at the 37th annual Bison Open at the Bison Sports Arena on Saturday, November 11. The opening rounds are scheduled to start at 10 a.m. and the anticipated starting time for the final round is 4 p.m. 2005 BISON OPEN: Last year at the Bison Open, 181 wrestlers from 10 different schools wrestled at the tournament. Eric Sanders (133) and Jacob Bryce (197) led the way for the Bison with second-place finishes. Gabe Mooney (149) and Justin LaGosh (197) also placed at the event, finishing fourth and fifth respectively. Wrestling unattached at the tournament last season, first-year wrestlers Zach Molitor (165) took third place and Ryan Adams (141) placed sixth. The top-ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers will also start their season this Saturday in Fargo. Gophers Dustin Schlatter (149) and Cole Konrad (Hwt.) began their national championship runs here last year and are looking to defend their Bison Open titles. Including Schlatter and Konrad, nine Gophers took home individual titles at last year's event. Stanford University will be competing at the event for the first time ever. The Pac-10 school is already 1-2 in three duals this season and features All-American 125-pounder Tanner Gardner. Other schools scheduled to bring competitors include MSU Moorhead, Concordia, Dickinson State, Jamestown College, Mary, Dakota Technical and Community College and Ridgewater Community College. Mary's Jesse Laber was the only non-Gopher to win a championship at the Bison Open last year. The 2005 NAIA national champion defeated NDSU's Bryce in the 197-pound final with a 3-1 decision. WE'RE BACK: North Dakota State returns all 10 starters back from its 2005-06 season. They finished with a 6-6 record. They'll be led this year by team captains Matt Hermann and Matt Wetterling. Hermann, a Burnsville, Minn., native, is a three-year starter that leads the team in career wins with 63. The senior went 8-7 last year overall and 7-5 in dual action. Wetterling, a junior from Willmar, Minn., had a breakout season last year for the Bison, leading the team with a 25-7 record overall, 9-3 in duals. PIN TO WIN: Matt Wetterling was a pinning machine last year for the Bison, sticking 18 of his opponents. His 18 pins tied for ninth overall and third in Division I according to InterMatWrestle.com, a Web site ran by the National Wrestling Coaches' Association. WESTERN WRESTLING CONFERENCE: North Dakota State and six other schools formed the Western Wrestling Conference (WWC). Along with the Bison, charter members of the Western Wrestling Conference will include: the United States Air Force Academy, the University of Northern Colorado, the University of Northern Iowa, South Dakota State University, Utah Valley State College and the University of Wyoming. Last season the Bison went 4-1 against these schools. Their only loss came to Northern Iowa and their dual with SDSU last year was cancelled due to bad weather. To make up for it, the Bison will face the Jackrabbits twice this year. NEWCOMERS: North Dakota State welcomes 13 new student-athletes to their roster including a couple of decorated transfers. Eric Hoffman comes to NDSU via Iowa Central Community College where he was the NJCAA national champion at 125 pounds in 2005. In two years at ICCC, Hoffman compiled a record of 58-12. Ryan Klinger is a transfer from the University of Illinois where he backed up 133-pound All-American Kyle Ott for two years. In high school, Klinger was Illinois state champion and helped lead his high school team to its first ever state team title in 2003. The 11 high school wrestlers that joined the Bison this year have combined for eight state championships in their career, led by Casey Buchholz (North Dakota) and Vince Salminen (Montana), who each won two. POSTSEASON ELIGIBLE: Thanks to an NCAA ruling in September 2004, North Dakota State could reclassify its wrestling team to Division I in three years instead of five, making them eligible for the NCAA West Regional and the Division I Championships this year. NDSU is on track to reclassify in all sports by 2008-09.

Brookings, SD -- The Dana College wrestling team kicked off the 2006-07 season by claiming three champions at the South Dakota State University Daktronics/Warren Williamson Open in Brookings, S.D., Saturday. Returning All-Americans Burke Barnes (Lake Stevens, Wash.) and Terrence Almond (Pelham, Ga.) won their respective weight classes. Barnes claimed the championship at 133 pounds by defeating Jeff Cooley of South Dakota State University, 4-0. En route to his championship, Barnes defeated Josh Henslee of Iowa Central, 8-5, and Beau Penk of NCAA D-II Augustana College, 3-0. In the semi-finals, Barnes scored a major decision over South Dakota State's Nick Kulseth, 13-4. Three-time All-American Almond recorded his first open championship just like Barnes. Almond won the title at 141 by recording victories over Jeff Cargill by fall, David Schiley of NCAA D-II Northern State University, 13-8, Steve Carlson of Minnesota State-Moorhead by fall, NJCAA All-American Joe Soto of Iowa Central, 13-8 and Iowa Central's David Greenwald in the finals, 15-12. Junior Jason Bilinski (Pittsgrove, N.J.) came off his red-shirt year with a bang by winning the title at 157 with a defeat over Northern State's Jesse Wood, 3-1, in overtime. Bilinski's foes en route to the finals were Tallen Wald of Minnesota State-Moorhead by a score of 8-3, Brady Nagel of the University of Mary, 4-3, and Nate Carr Jr. of Iowa Central Community College by a major decision, 11-2. Two other Vikings placed in the top five. All-American Craig Trampe (Ord, Neb.) finished in 5th place at 125 pounds and red-shirt freshman Ryan "Bula" Tuzon (Wailuku, Hawaii) finished in the 4th place spot at 165 pounds. Dana College will return to wrestling action this Saturday at the Harold Nichols Open in Ft. Dodge, Iowa, on the campus of Iowa Central Community College with action starting at 9 a.m. Viking Results 125- Craig Trampe – Ord, Neb. (4-1) 5th place 133- Burke Barnes – Lake Stevens, Wash. (5-0) 1st place 133- Hunter Samuels – Tonganoxie, Kan. (0-2) 133- Brett Brandl – Madison, Neb. (2-2) 141- Terrence Almond – Pelham, Ga. (5-0) 1st Place 141- Shawn Tsutsumi – Kaneohe, Hawaii (3-2) 141- Dan Rowe – Syracuse, Neb. (1-2) 141- Eric Graham – Kansas City, Mo. (4-2) 141- Clayton Wurtele – Nebraska City, Neb. (0-2) 149- Marcos Martinez – Las Vegas, N.M. (2-2) 157- Jason Bilinski – Pittsgrove, N.J. (5-0) 1st place 157- Dan Pray – St. George, Kan. (2-2) 157- Bryson Pascua – Pearl City, Hawaii (0-2) 165- Bula Tuzon – Wailuku, Hawaii (2-2) 4th place 174- Josh Ghobadpoor - Dahlonega, Ga. (1-2) 174- Jordan Davis – Blaine, Minn. (0-2) 184- Tony Palmer – Dennison, Ohio (0-2) 197- Chancy Hansen – Valentine, Neb. (0-2)

Columbia, Mo. -- Missouri wrestling Head Coach Brian Smith announced today that the Tigers have signed six wrestlers for the 2007-08 season, including three from the state of Missouri. Together, Dom Bradley (Blue Springs, Mo.), Trever Collins (Nixa, Mo.), Troy Dolan (Blairsville, Penn.), Dorian Henderson (Columbus, Ga.), Michael Schmitz (Stewartville, Minn.) and Brandon Wiest (O'Fallon, Mo.) have combined for nine state championship titles in their respective weight class. "Our coaching staff has recruited a very talented class," Head Coach Brian Smith said. "We've managed to fill our needs for the future and bring in some of the top wrestlers from across the country. We're all very excited about the potential this class brings to the Missouri wrestling program." A three-time Missouri state qualifier (2003, 2004, 2005) and two-time state champion (2004 at 215 pounds and 2005 at 275 pounds), Bradley is currently ranked No. 1 in the nation by USA Wrestling, Amateur Wrestling News and W.I.N. Magazine. Led by Head Coach Mike Hagerty, Bradley and the Wildcats of Blue Springs High School finished third in the 2005 and 2006 Missouri Class 4 State Championships. During the summer of 2006, Bradley wrestled his way to a Junior National Freestyle title at 275 pounds. Bradley is expected to wrestle at heavyweight for the Tigers. Competing at 171 and 189 pounds, Nixa, Mo., native Collins earned his first Class 3 state title as a sophomore (171 pounds), repeating the feat as a junior at 189 pounds. Expected to grapple at 197 pounds or heavyweight for Missouri, Collins is currently coached by Jason Carter at Nixa High School and stands at No. 11 in the nation by Amateur Wrestling News. Earlier this fall, Collins claimed the Super 32 title at 215 pounds. Dolan becomes the fifth Pennsylvania resident in four years to join the Tiger wrestling program. Currently ranked 11th in the country by W.I.N. Magazine, Dolan closed out his junior campaign with a first place finish at the Pennsylvania State Championship at 119 pounds and stood second in the nation (Intermat) of his classmates. A two-time state champion, Dolan took first at 112 pounds as a sophomore and was named the 2005 Powerade Champion at 119 pounds. Under the direction of Derry Area High School Head Coach Mike Wood, Dolan was crowned the Super 32 Champion in 2006. Dolan is expected to compete at 125 or 133 pounds for Missouri. Expected to wrestle at 174 pounds for the Tigers, Henderson earned back-to-back state titles at 171 pounds in the state of Georgia. Henderson becomes the first Georgia grappler since current senior Amond Prater (Marietta, Ga.) to join the ranks of the Missouri wrestling team. Competing for the Blue Devils of Columbus High School, Henderson and his teammates claimed the 2006 3A state title coached by Larry Morgan. Ranked as high as 11th in the nation at 160-pounds by W.I.N. Magazine, Schmitz opens his senior campaign with the Stewartville Tigers with a 166-31 record. Schmitz finished first at the Minnesota State Championships and Junior National Folkstyle Championships in 2006 while wrestling at 160 pounds, finishing second as a sophomore in 2005. Schmitz is coached by Dennis Kuisle and will likely wrestle at 165 pounds during his time at Missouri. Rounding out the incoming freshmen class, is Missouri native Wiest of Ft. Zumwalt West High School. Coached by former Missouri wrestler Danny Hayes, Wiest is a three-time state runner up and was named the Jaguars nominee for the Wendy's High School Heisman Trophy. Wiest holds a 3.9 grade-point average and is a three-time academic all-conference honoree. "This class has the potential to continue to build on the success our team has achieved over the past few years," Smith said. "Things such as the commitment of our administration, staff and team, combined with our outstanding athletic facilities and strong academics have helped Missouri stand out from some of the other top wrestling programs in the nation." Name Hometown High School Coach Dom Bradley Blue Springs, Mo. Blue Springs Mike Hagerty Trevor Collins Nixa, Mo. Nixa Jason Carter Troy Dolan Blairsville, Penn. Derry Area Mike Wood Dorian Henderson Columbus, Ga. Columbus Larry Morgan Michael Schmitz Stewartville, Minn. Stewartville Dennis Kuisle Brandon Wiest O'Fallon, Mo. Ft. Zumwalt West Danny Hayes

http://mutigers.cstv.com/chat/110906aaa.html Welcome to the weekly mutigers.com moderated wrestling chat! On Monday, Nov. 13, Wrestling Head Coach Brian Smith will stop by to answer your questions about his team and its preparation for the 2006-07 wrestling season! The Q-and-A session with the coach of the nation's third-ranked wrestling team will last approximately 20 minutes. The Nov. 13 chat session with Coach Smith kicks off a season-long campaign (Monday Mat Chat) in which fans will have the opportunity to communicate with various members of the Missouri coaching staff and team. Each chat session will be held Monday at 2:30 p.m. (CT). Mizzou's seventh Head Wrestling Coach, Brian Smith sat down with his team and made a list of goals that he hoped to help the 1998 squad and future Tiger teams accomplish. Over the past eight years, Smith and the 111 men that have come through the varsity program have slowly but surely checked items off the list. Individual Big 12 Champions, improved grade-point averages, record-setting attendances, a top-five national ranking and Missouri's first-ever NCAA National Champion in wrestling were all on Smith's "to-do" list. His unique TigerStyle training program has molded today's team into a national powerhouse looking to contend for the program's first top-five NCAA finish. Smith enters the 2006-07 campaign with an eight-year record of 98-53-1 at Mizzou, and career 100-61-2 mark over nine seasons. While Coach Smith will not by stopping by until Monday afternoon, feel free to submit questions now and we will have them waiting for him when he arrives to chat.

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern is set to host the Northwestern Duals Sunday at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The full-day event begins at 9 a.m. and will feature 11 dual matches on three mats. The 10th-ranked Wildcats will welcome Wisconsin, Navy, the University of Indianapolis, Cornell College (Iowa), Cumberland University (Tenn.) and the University of Chicago. The Wildcats take on Chicago at 11 a.m., Navy at 1 p.m. and Indianapolis at 3 p.m. The 'Cats took four championships at last weekend's Eastern Michigan Open. Juniors Dustin Fox (Galion, Ohio/Galion) at heavyweight, Mike Tamillow (Oak Park, Ill./Fenwick) at 197 lbs., Jake Herbert (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny), ranked No. 1 at 184 lbs. and Ryan Lang (North Royalton, Ohio/St. Edward), top-ranked at 141 lbs all went undefeated. Lang was named this week's Big Ten Wrestler of the Week for his performance. A big story of the open was Wildcat freshman Brandon Precin (Orland Park, Ill./Carl Sandburg) at 125 lbs. who knocked off fourth-ranked and top-seeded Mark Moos of Michigan to start the tournament. The seven-team event will feature NCAA qualifiers, All-Americans and ranked grapplers from various divisioins and conference. Bigelevenwrestling.net has pegged Navy's showdown with both NU and Wisconsin as their "Matches of the Week". A Look at the Teams in the NU Duals: University of Indianapolis Greyhounds: • The Greyhounds are ranked No. 7 in the NCAA Division II Wrestling Coaches Association's preseason poll and return all four All-America wrestlers from last year, a season which saw UIndy finish 10th at the national championships, the highest national finish in the program's history. • All four returning All-Americans are also ranked in their respective weight classes. Shane Perkey, at 133, appears third in the individual rankings. Charlie Pingleton is ranked No. 2 at 149. Mike Jackson, who was the runner-up at 174 pounds in 2005-06, is the preseason No. 4. Jose Navarro is ranked fourth in the heavyweight class. Cornell College Rams: • Cornell, which had a record-setting 15-9-1 dual season a year ago, is ranked No. 16 in Division III. • Junior 125-pounder Chris Heilman is rated third. Heilman, one of eight returning starters for the Rams, was 33-9 last season, placing fourth in the Iowa Conference and seventh in the nation. • Another national qualifier, sophomore 141-pounder Dave Paramski , suffered a hand injury in the preseason and will not be available until January. He was 33-11 with seven falls last season, placing third in the IIAC. • There are six Iowa Conference teams ranked in the top 24 in the preseason - defending national champion Wartburg (second), Luther (fourth), Buena Vista (11th), Coe (12th), Cornell (16th) and Loras (24th). University of Chicago Maroons: • Senior Phil Kruzel is the two-time defending University Athletic Association champion at 174-pounds. • Senior Mike Bishof placed third at the 2006 Great Lakes Regional at 165 lbs. • Sophomore Ben Hart finished fourth at the 2006 Great Lake Regional at 125 lbs. • Senior Andrew Bribriesco and sophomore Tom Nero posted sixth-place finishes at 141 and 285 pounds, respectively, at the 2006 Great Lakes Regional. Navy Midshipmen: • Six Navy wrestlers finished second, while three more placed in the season-opening Eastern Michigan Open. • Returning NCAA qualifier Joe Baker, ranked 13th, made an appearance in the championship bout at 133 pounds. Baker earned a pair of major decisions • Senior Brad Canterbury had a solid showing at 141 pounds where he made his way into the championship match. • Senior John Cox, one-of-three returning NCAA qualifiers, is ranked seventh nationally at 149 lbs. He fell in the championship match at the Eastern Michigan Open. Wisconsin Badgers: • The Badgers kicked off the 2006-07 season by going 2-0 in their double-dual match against Dubuque and UW-Oshkosh. Wisconsin rolled by Dubuque 49-0 before defeating UW-Oshkosh 40-3. • Seven Badger wrestlers earned top-20 rankings this season, with two in the top-five at their respective weight classes. Both Tyler Turner and Craig Henning are ranked No. 4, while Dallas Herbert is ranked 10th. Also receiving rankings were four other Badgers, including heavyweight Kyle Massey, rated 16th. At 125 lb.s Collin Cudd napped a No. 17 ranking. Cumberland Bulldogs: • Cumberland, out of the NAIA has already competed in two events this year. The Bulldogs wrestled at the Lindenwood Open before taking on Newberry College last weekend. Cumberland fell 31-7. • They return three National Qualifiers in Daniel Rosbottom, Luke Borneman and Eric McCray, and All-American Desean Willis. Schedule of Matches: 9 a.m. Mat 1: Cumberland v. Navy Mat 2: Wisconsin v. Indianapolis Mat 3: Cornell College v. Chicago 11 a.m. Mat 1: Cornell College v. Cumberland Mat 2: Northwestern v. Chicago Mat 3: Wisconsin v. Navy 1 p.m. Mat 1: Cornell College v. Indianapolis Mat 2: Northwestern v. Navy Mat 3: Wisconsin v. Cumberland 3 p.m. Mat 1: Cumberland v. Chicago Mat 2: Indianapolis v. Northwestern

The Johns Hopkins wrestling team had been scheduled to compete at the Green Terror Duals this weekend. That match has been postponed and now the Blue Jays will return to action on Tuesday, November 14th at Elizabethtown. For the most up to date wrestlign news and for all your Hopkins sports news, check out www.hopkinssports.com

Oklahoma State's wrestling team is set to open the 2006-07 season on Sunday against the Aggies from California-Davis. It is the first ever meeting between the two school. The match can be heard live on HOT 93.7 FM with Rex Holt and Roger Moore calling the action. The Cowboys are coming off of their fourth straight NCAA title and return three All-Americans from the squad, including 165-pound NCAA Champion Johny Hendricks. All-Americans Coleman Scott and Nathan Morgan are moving up in weight to 133 and 141, respectively. OSU will have plenty of new faces in the lineup as the Cowboys will have six new starters. Scouting the Aggies UC Davis comes to Stillwater to open the 2006-07 campaign. The Aggies boast four wrestlers ranked in the top 20 of their weight class, and are bringing a veteran squad with six seniors in the starting lineup. Three NCAA qualifiers return from last year led by Ken Cook, who is ranked fourth at 174 pounds. Derek Moore returns at 141 where he is ranked eighth, and sophomore Tyler Bernacchi is ranked 15th at 184. Omar Gaitan also appears in the national rankings at No. 19 at 133. Fresh Faces Oklahoma State will have six new starters in the lineup for the 2006-07 season. Redshirt freshmen bookend the lineup with Tyler Shinn at 125 and Jared Rosholt at heavyweight. Junior B.J. Jackson will get his opportunity after sitting behind three-time All-American Zack Esposito the past three years. Newly McSpadden will earn the start at 157. Jack Jensen has limited varsity experience and coach Smith could go with either Brent Parkey or Jared Shelton at 197. Cowboys Selected to Compete in All-Star Classic A pair of Cowboys were selected to represent Oklahoma State in the NWCA All-Star Classic at the Dallas Convention Center in Dallas, Texas on Nov. 20. Johny Hendricks is making his second appearance in the event at 165 pounds, while Coleman Scott is taking part for the first time. Hendricks is set to take on Iowa's Mark Perry in a rematch of the 2005 NCAA finals. Hendricks won that match, 5-2, and defended his title at 165. Perry is a two-time All-American with his runner-up finish in 2005 and a third-place showing last year at 174. Coleman Scott will meet defending NCAA champion Matt Valenti of Pennsylvania. Scott finished fifth at the NCAA Championships last season at 125, and he is currently ranked third in the country at 133. Oklahoma State hosted the NWCA All-Star Classic last year inside Gallagher-Iba Arena. The home crowd saw three Cowboys get upset, including Hendricks who lost an overtime decision to Minnesota's Matt Nagel. Mark Munoz Returns to Stillwater Former Cowboy Mark Munoz returns to Gallagher-Iba Arena where he wrestled at 197 pounds. Munoz was a two-time All-American for OSU from 2000-01. He took third-place as a junior in 2000 before returning to capture the title the following season. Munoz has spent the past couple of seasons as an assistant at UC Davis.