InterMat Staff

Earl Jones has an impressive set of accomplishments on the mat: A three-time Kansas high school state champion. A two-time junior college national champion. Ranked third in the 133-pound weight class in an early December 2005 NCAA Division II poll as a wrestler for the University of Central Oklahoma. Earl JonesAll these accomplishments are all the more impressive when you realize that Earl is missing the lower portion of his right leg. Earl was just seven years old when he lost part of his leg after being bitten by a horse. He wears a prosthetic device for walking and other off-the-mat activities, but not during matches. Earl competes on his knees; however, because he is 5'10" and tall in the body, he does not give up anything in terms of height when facing his opponents. Earl was already a wrestler at a club in his hometown of Coffeyville, Kansas at the time of the injury. When asked if there was ever any consideration of giving up the sport, Earl says, "I sat out one season. My folks didn't think I would continue wrestling." When asked if opponents might not have expected much from him before a match, Earl told the Edmond (Oklahoma) Sun, "I'm sure they probably underestimated me at first. It was a little difficult when I first started out. There are advantages to my situation and obviously disadvantages to it." In the same article, Central Oklahoma's head coach David James is quoted as saying, "He's a neat kid. He's just a good, tough ole kid. He's not looking for any special treatment or anything like that. The reason he's successful is he does the right things. He's here at practice and enjoys what he's doing." During a phone interview, Earl reaffirmed that sentiment with this statement: "I'd rather have folks know me as a good, solid wrestler than as the guy with one leg." Success from the Start Earl Jones got an early start in wrestling, taking up the sport at the age of three. Earl found early success, winning eight state kids titles in his native Kansas before his sixteenth birthday. At Field Kindley High School in Coffeyville, Earl won three Kansas state titles at three different weight classes against three different opponents … and just missed claiming the championship his freshman year, placing second. He concluded his high school career with an impressive 148-6 record. Earl Jones won two national junior college titles at Labette Community College (photo by Johnnie Johnson). After high school, Earl stayed close to home for the first two years of college, attending Labette Community College, about thirty minutes from Coffeyville. At Labette, Earl continued his winning ways, compiling a 56-6 record, and bringing home two national junior college titles. As a freshman, Earl won the NJCAA championship at 125 pounds. In his second year, Earl not only won the 133-pound crown, but he also earned Outstanding Wrestler honors to cap off a near-perfect 27-1 sophomore season … and helped lead Labette to a national team title. We're Not in Kansas Anymore For his junior year, Earl transferred to the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond, a Division II program, knowing that there was already a returning All-American at 133, Jared Henning. "I knew it would be tough," Earl told the Edmond Sun. "Of course Henning is a tough guy. But I thought I could hang right there with him." The two have wrestled each other at least three times outside practice session matches: • In the Blue vs. Bronze intrasquad dual in early November, the incumbent Henning won 3-1 with a takedown in the second sudden victory period. • At the Central Missouri State Open on November 13, Earl got revenge with a 4-3 victory over his teammate. • A couple weeks later, the two faced off yet again, this time in the finals at the Fort Hayes State Open. At this early December tournament in Kansas, Earl gained a 3-2 overtime win. Neither Broncho scored in the one-minute sudden victory period; in the first 30-second tiebreaker, Earl scored an escape … then rode his teammate/opponent in the second tiebreaker to secure the victory. For now, Central Oklahoma will be alternating between Earl Jones and Jared Henning, giving the team incredible power at 133. Taking On Some of the Best in the Midwest Early in his first year at the Division II school, Earl has found himself up against impressive opponents -- including a number of Division I wrestlers -- and served up some surprises along the way. Earl earned third place in his weight class at the Central Missouri State Open -- a one-day tournament with nearly 400 wrestlers from as far away as Stanford -- by defeating Amond Prater of the University of Missouri, 4-2, in the consolation finals. Earl Jones defeated several Division I opponents on his way to a runner-up finish at the Kaufman-Brand Open in Omaha.One week later, at the Kaufman-Brand Open, Earl opened the tournament with a 4-3 win over Oklahoma State's Justin Porter … then followed that by beating Jesse Sundell of Iowa State, ranked thirteenth in the nation, by the score of 9-6. In the quarterfinals, Earl upset eighth-ranked Scott Jorgensen of Boise State … then shut out Iowa State's Nick Gallick, 3-0, in the semifinals. Earl fell just short of the title, losing in the finals to seventh-ranked Nathan Morgan of Oklahoma State, 3-2. In a published interview after the Kaufman-Brand Open, Central Oklahoma head coach David James said, "Earl and Heath (Jolley, the Bronchos' 197-pounder) both did a great job for us. The tournament is a meat grinder and it takes a toll on you, but those two guys stepped up and wrestled well." Stepping Up to the Sooners On November 30, Central Oklahoma opened its dual-meet season by hosting the University of Oklahoma at Hamilton Fieldhouse. The wrestlers from Norman were not the most gracious guests; the Sooners (ranked second in Division I at the time) trounced the Bronchos, 32-6, winning half their matches by major decision, and another by fall. It wasn't all bad for the Bronchos, who had two wrestlers win their bouts … one of them being Earl Jones. That night, the UCO 133-pounder secured a solid win over Sooner Trey Blakely. Earl got to work early, scoring a takedown in the first nine seconds of the match. In the second period, Earl got another takedown, then added an escape and a riding time point to make the final score 6-1. "It was a golden opportunity for our guys to wrestle a team of this caliber in the University of Oklahoma," coach James said to the Edmond Sun. "I am very pleased and glad that we picked up two wins. Earl Jones … wrestled hard and did a great job." All this success is paying dividends for Earl -- and his team. In a NCAA Division II Wrestling Coaches' Association poll released December 7, Earl was ranked third in the 133-pound weight class … and the University of Central Oklahoma Bronchos have moved up to fifth in the team rankings. Looking Forward When asked about his goals for the rest of the season, Earl Jones is straightforward: "I hope to win a national title, and help put my team on top, too. Other than our loss to OU, we're looking pretty tough, doing well at the opens." In looking beyond college, Earl is not interested in a career in freestyle or Greco-Roman competition -- "at least not right now" according to Jones. He would like to use his major -- physical education -- to become a wrestling coach at the high school or college level. "I would want to follow the example of my coaches, and be a strong motivator," says Earl. Earl Jones would like to get into coaching after he is done competing (photo by Johnnie Johnson).Earl sees a lot of benefits of being a wrestler that he would pass along to those he'd coach. "Wrestling teaches you discipline," says Earl. "Once you start something, you stick with it. You don't stop because it's hard." Not at all surprising from a wrestler who's been surprising wrestling fans -- and his opponents -- during his long career, starting as a kid in Coffeyville … then as a junior college phenom … and now as a Division II competitor.

Sophomore C.P. Schlatter has been named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week after helping lead Minnesota to victories over No. 7 Iowa State and No. 19 Nebraska. Schlatter won both of his matches to improve to 16-2 overall and 7-0 in the dual meets. Last Friday vs. the Cyclones, Schlatter upset top-ranked Trent Paulson, 5-4, at 157 pounds. It was the first time a Minnesota wrestler had defeated a top-ranked wrestler in a dual since Jacob Volkmann upset Tyrone Lewis of Oklahoma State on Feb. 22, 2004. Schlatter added a 12-5 decision against Nebraska's Chris Oliver on Sunday. The Golden Gophers are now 7-0 on the season and climbed to No. 2 in the latest W.I.N. Magazine rankings. Minnesota is off until it travels to Greensboro, N.C., for the Southern Scuffle on Dec. 29-30. The Golden Gophers will host Arizona State at the Sports Pavilion on Tuesday, Jan. 3.

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. -- Despite missing a number of key athletes due to sickness and injury, the Cal State Bakersfield wrestling squad put together an impressive showing, defeating Pac–10 foe Portland State 45–6 in a dual meet at the Icardo Center Wednesday afternoon. The Roadrunners won nine matches, scoring bonus points in all but two, en route to their first dual victory of the season. Overall, it was a day of firsts for Bakersfield, which improved to 1–1 on the season and 1–0 in the Pac–10. Four wrestlers picked up their first collegiate dual meet victories while another scored the first technical fall of his career. Freshman Zack Bigboy (Minneapolis, Minn./Kennedy HS) picked up his first collegiate dual win with a 19–4 tech fall win over Bricen Takabe at 125. That victory was followed by a pair of forfeit victories to freshman Thomas Kimbrell (Dawsonville, Georgia/Dawson County HS)—his first collegiate victory—and junior Matt Schumm (Corona, Calif./ Centennial HS). Junior Brandon Doyle (Ramona HS) kept the streak going by scoring his first collegiate win via tech fall at 149 pounds, with a 19–2 win over Adam Duryee. Senior Carlo Franciotti (San Jose, Calif./St. Francis HS) recorded his first dual meet victory in his four years with the Roadrunners, edging out Kainoa Casco by a 10–7 count at 157. Franciotti, who has been wrestling behind a number of talented athletes at CS Bakersfield, made good on his first chance in the spotlight, scoring a pair of three–point near falls in the final period for the victory. Pin specialist Brian Busby (San Diego, Calif./Scripps Ranch HS) extended his undefeated streak with a pin in just 31 seconds over Chris Feist at 165 pounds. The senior, who is off to a 6–0 start, barely gave the fans time to cheer for the takedown before he was able to get Feist on his back. No. 14–ranked Christian Arellano (Moreno Valley, Calif./Canyon Springs HS) had no trouble in recording a 15–0 tech fall win over Brian Lemmon at 174 pounds, needing just 4:35 to record his sixth victory of the season. Freshman Garth Wara (Madera HS) recorded his first collegiate victory while wrestling up a weight at 184. Wara, who was called upon to replace Brandon Ceremello at 184 pounds, wrestled well against Ben Blessing for the 11–4 win. After the Roadrunners had to forfeit at 197 due to a pair of sick wrestlers, junior Eric Parker (Ramona HS) put an exclamation point on the victory by recording his first pin of the season. Parker took down Steve Fittinger just five seconds into the match, but had trouble turning his opponent through the first period. In the second, Parker scored the escape and quickly took Fittinger down again before recording the fall at 3:36. Portland State, which falls to 1–4 on the season and 0–2 in the Pac–10, faces Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo later Wednesday night. Bakersfield travels to Reno for the annual Tournament of Champions on Sunday (Dec. 18).

Joining us on America's Wrestling Radio talk show this week: Coach Steve Patton of Minnesota's Classic "The Clash" Troy Sunderland -- Head Coach of Penn State Nittany Lions Joe McFarland -- Head Coach the University of Michigan Wolverines Tim Brassfield -- Ex. Director of the Oklahoma City All Sports Association Arno Niemand -- Founder of Body Bar (Bodybars.com) Company celebrates 16 years Randy Lewis and John Rizzutti of InsideTexasWrestling.com Join us LIVE at Takedownradio.com or archived at your convenience throughout the week. This has the earmark of a great show. If you have comments feel free to call in during the broadcast at 866-333-5966. Remember, the show is broadcast from 10 AM to 12 Noon CST NO shows December 24th or December 31st during the holidays. Takedown Radio will present LIVE coverage of the annual Midlands Tournament. Join Scott Casber, Steve Foster, Greg Zafros and a cast of thousands LIVE from Welsh Ryan Arena Dec 29th and 30th. Free! Thanks to our great sponsors. Just a note to thank you, our listeners, for staying with us during the year. We will be with you for more action in years to come. May God bless you and keep you! Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year to you all! Scott Casber

Team Rankings 1 Wis.–La Crosse (2-1) 2 2 Wartburg (5-0) 3 3 Augsburg (2-0) 1 4 Brockport State (1-0) 4 5 Luther (3-0) 5 6 College of New Jersey (2-0) 6 7 Elmhurst (1-0) 23 8 Loras (1-1) 7 9 York (Pa.) (5-3) 9 10 Wis.–Stevens Point (6-1) 10 11 Olivet (6-0-1) NR 12 Lycoming (5-2-1) 12 13 Cortland State (1-1) 13 14 Norwich (2-1) 17 15 Johnson&Wales (R.I.) (4-0) NR 16 Ithaca (1-1) 18 17 Springfield (1-1) 8 18 Oswego State (1-1) 14 19 Wilkes (1-1) 19 20 St. John's (Minn.) (0-1) 20 21 Coe (1-0) 21 22 Heidelberg (2-0) NR 23 McDaniel (3-2) 22 24 Augustana (Ill.) (2-1) 24 25 John Carroll (2-1) 11 26 Cornell College (7-3) 16 27 Delaware Valley (2-2) 25 28 Dubuque (6-1) 28 29 Manchester (5-0) NR 30 Roger Williams (6-2) NR Individual Rankings 125 1. Terry Morgan Sr. Loras 2. Brian Dempsey Jr. College of New Jersey 3. Ty Klofta Sr. Ohio Northern 4. Brandon McDonough So. Johnson & Wales 5. Nate Hansen Jr. Luther 6. Tom Gagon Fr. Elmhurst 7. Chris Heilman Sr. Cornell College 8. John Spinner Sr. Oswego State 133 1. Tony D'Ambra Sr. Brockport State 2. Mike Lopez Sr. Luther 3. Justin Hulegaard So. Buena Vista 4. Matt Smith Fr. Johnson & Wales 5. Joe Jewett Fr. Oswego State 6. Zach McKray Fr. Wartburg 7. Derek Goduto Sr. Montclair State 8. Jordan Kolinsky So. Wis.-La Crosse 141 1. Dustin Hinschberger Sr. Wartburg 2. Mike Gaeta Jr. Springfield 3. David Silva Sr. Elmhurst 4. Joel Burdick Sr. Wis.-Stevens Point 5. Mike Rohewetz So. Wis-LaCrosse 6. Dan Song Sr. USMMA 7. Paul LeBlanc Fr. Cortland State 8. Mike Conklin Sr. Norwich University (sr) 149 1. Matt Pyle Jr. Luther 2. Jacob Naig So. Wartburg 3. Jared Evans Jr. Augsburg 4. Jason Brew Fr. Olivet 5. Jason Roush Jr. Mount St. Joseph 6. Kyle Forness Fr. Buena Vista 7. Jeff Keske Fr. Augustana (Ill.) 8. Don Ooton Jr. Brockport State 157 1. Ryan Valek Sr. Augsburg 2. Tony Howard Sr. McDaniel 3. Steve Martell So. Johnson&Wales 4. Cole Williams Sr. Dubuque 5. Derek Sikora Sr. Wis.-Eau Claire 6. Corey Murphy Jr. Thiel College 7. Dustin Blevin Sr. Wartburg 8. Tim Palmer Fr. Wis.-La Crosse 165 1. Joe Galante Jr. College of New Jersey 2. Shaheim Bradshaw So. Brockport State 3. Carl Amerine Sr. Wilmington College 4. Tyler Ludwig Sr. Elmhurst College 5. Bobby Gingerich Sr. North Central 6. Jeremy Anderson So. Augsburg 7. Ross Needham Jr. Wis.-La Crosse 8. Jake Rivers Sr. Norwich 174 1. Stephon Sair Jr. Cortland State 2. Josh Chelf So. Wis.-La Crosse 3. Matthias Keib Sr. Ithaca College 4. Ryan Hagerty Sr. Loras 5. Jeff Harrington So. College of New Jersey (so) 6. Andrew Winfield Fr. McDaniel 7. Josh Rupprecht Sr. Elmhurst 8. Jake Beitz Sr. Montclair State 184 1. Duane Bastress Sr. York (Pa.) 2. Ryan Summers Jr. John Carroll 3. Jason Lulloff Sr. Wis.-La Crosse 4. Akeem Carter Sr. Wartburg 5. Mike Troutman Sr. Ursinus 6. Robert Stubbs Sr. Ithaca 7. Dan Willaert Sr. St. John's (Minn.) 8. Robbie Gotreau So. Augsburg 197 1. Matt Loesch Jr. Muhlenberg 2. Dan Fiecke Sr. St. John's (Minn.) 3. Wally O'Connor So. Augsburg 4. TJ Miller So. Wartburg 5. Jason Reilly Jr. Kings College 6. Willie Weiss Sr. Brockport State 7. Nick Calandrino Jr. Ithaca 8. Phil Archer So. Cortland State 285 1. Blake Gillis Jr. Wartburg College 2. Ryan Allen Sr. Wis.-La Crosse 3. Mike Blair Sr. Trinity (Conn.) 4. Mike Hayes Sr. Wis.-Stevens Point 5. Tommy Snyder Sr. Lycoming 6. Pat Bennett Sr. Brockport State 7. Bryan Kmetz Jr. Baldwin-Wallace 8. Brett Christensen Sr. Simpson

GETTYSBURG, Pa. -- When the 2004-05 season ended the Gettysburg wrestling team finished with nine wins, five more than the previous season. The team will look to build on that improvement throughout the 2005-06 season and finish above .500 for the first time since 1997-98. They are also looking to win Gettysburg's first Centennial Conference (CC) title. "We will be improved this season and our goal is to compete at the conference level," ninth-year coach Troy Dell stated. "I think that is what we've been striving for the past several years and we have some guys now who can help us get over that hump and win a conference championship." There will be more depth on this year's team. "We will fill all of the weight classes this season," said Dell. "We're a little thin in numbers, but outside of that we should be a pretty solid lineup." The team participated in three tournaments early this season and has made strides toward its ultimate goal. The Bullets' solid lineup is led by sophomore Matt Shank (Reedsville, PA/Indian Valley) and freshman Andrew Goldstein (Easton, PA/Easton). Shank moved up to the 149 weight class after finishing second at the CC championships last year at 141. He has seen early season success at the Ithaca Invitational and the Springfield Invitational, placing fourth and fifth, respectively. He currently has an 8-4 record and leads the team in technical falls (1), major decisions (2) and reversals (5). Quickly seeing success at the collegiate level, Goldstein comes from a strong high school program where he placed seventh at the Class AAA state tournament as a senior. He currently leads the Bullets in wins (10), technical falls (1) and takedowns (47). Goldstein, who wrestles at 141, achieved a second-place finish at the King's Monarch Invitational and a fifth-place finish at Ithaca. Senior Mike Pattanite (Tabernacle, NJ/Holy Cross) is following a strong junior campaign in which he finished second at the CC championships in the heavyweight division. This season he has a 7-5 record and marched to a second place finish at the King's Monarch Invitational by pinning three opponents. He leads the team with four pins. Two other Bullets who have had early season success are senior Caleb Seufert (Gaithersburg, MD/Northwest) and sophomore John Leinberger (Great Falls, VA, Langley). Seufert had a second-place finish in the 165 weight class at the King's Monarch Invitational and leads the team in escapes (21). Leinberger, who wrestles at 184, placed sixth at Springfield and pinned three opponents during the tournament. His three pins rank second on the team behind Pattanite. Gettysburg is also relying on the upperclass leadership of seniors Jeff Morgan (Reston, VA/Langley) and Aaron Fuchs (Chester Springs, PA/The Hill School), and junior Alex Emmer (Baltimore, MD/Boys' Latin). Emmer has won four matches, pinning one, while both Morgan and Fuchs have three wins this season. In addition, the Bullets have youth on the roster that is getting great early season experience that will carry over into the CC season. Sophomore Michael Stambaugh (Gettysburg, PA/New Oxford) and freshmen James Stevenson (Wyncote, PA/Cheltenham), Daniel Clarke (Hamilton, NY/Hamilton Central), and Richard Masella (Little Silver, NJ/Red Bank Regional) look poised to have strong CC campaigns. According to Dell, continued success this season will be determined by, "improving, being coachable, taking what is taught in practice and applying it to the mat, and trying to break some old habits and replace them with better ones. That is the way to be successful." Once again, Dell sees Ursinus as the team to beat in the conference. The Bears have won three consecutive conference championships. The coach also thinks McDaniel will be tough again with a strong lineup of middle weight wrestlers. Each CC team brings back a talented squad and last year's addition of Stevens Tech and U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (Kings Point) made the conference even more challenging. The fight for this year's title should prove to be one of the best ever and Gettysburg will be in the thick of the CC title hunt. The Bullets open the CC season facing host Washington and Lee in a quad meet on Jan. 7. The team is also anticipating a quad meet against three conference foes at Johns Hopkins with Muhlenberg and Ursinus on Jan. 21. Gettysburg's only conference match at home is against McDaniel on Feb. 1.

A field of 14 teams makes its way to the Flamingo Las Vegas for the third annual Wartburg Desert Duals Monday, Dec. 19. Action begins at 10 a.m Central Standard Time. A complete tournament schedule and list of participating schools is now available while complete results, updated at the end of each round, will be available through the official Desert Duals web site at http://www.go-knights.net/wrestling/dduals/index.html. The Knights, with a No. 2 ranking in tow, are the highest listed team in the tournament in the Dec. 11 National Wrestling Coaches Association/Brute-Adidas Division III top 25. Luther (No. 5), Elmhurst College of Illinois (No. 7), Johnson and Wales University of Rhode Island (No. 15), Coe (No. 21), Augustana College of Rock Island, Ill. (No. 24), and Dubuque (No. 28) round out the ranked schools in the field. The tournament field is even more impressive with a glance at the NWCA/Brute-Adidas Dec. 11 individual weight rankings. There is at least one ranked wrestler at each weight from participating schools at the Desert Duals and four each at 125, 133 and 149. Knights rewind, notes - Wartburg crowned six individual champions Dec. 10 en route to its 11th consecutive Dick Walker Invitational title. Head coach Jim Miller's squad easily out-distanced runner-up Loras 161.5 to 114 for the top spot. The Knights were led by Outstanding Wrestler awardee Dustin Hinschberger and junior heavyweight Blake Gillis of Spencer, each of whom won their third consecutive individual Dick Walker championship. Hinschberger racked up a major decision, a decision, a fall and a technical fall en route to his title, while Gillis claimed a fall, technical fall and match disqualification before sharing the heavyweight crown with junior teammate Brian Borchers of Holstein. Freshman 133-pounder Zach McKray of Iowa City, sophomore 149-pounder Jacob Naig of Emmetsburg, freshman 184-pounder Romeo Djoumessi of Waverly, junior 197-pounders T.J. Miller of Cedar Falls and Ryan Phillips of Burlington also added individual titles for the Knights. Wartburg has had plenty of success in the Desert Duals. The Knights finished 4-0 in 2004, losing only eight individual matches during the day, and concluded the inaugural tournament in 2003 with a 4-0 record as well, dropping just four individual matches in the process. The Knights, including making a one step jump to No. 2 in the recent NWCA/Brute-Adidas Division III poll, released Monday, Dec. 12, had seven individuals listed in their respective weights. Hinschberger, a two-time defending national champion, and Gillis, a two-time defending national runner-up, were No. 1 at 141 and heavyweight, respectively. McKray made his debut at 133 with a No. 6 ranking, Naig was No. 2 at 149, senior Dustin Bliven of Columbus Junction was No. 7 at 157, senior Akeem Carter of Waterloo, also a two-time defending national champion, was No. 4 at 184, and Miller debuted at 197 with a No. 4 ranking. The complete poll is available at http://www.intermatwrestle.com/college/rankings/d3ranks0506.aspx. Next up – Wartburg heads east for a dual with Delaware Valley College of Doylestown, Penn., Jan. 6 and the North-South Duals, hosted by Ursinus College of Collegeville, Pa., Jan. 7.

State College, Pa. -- The No. 13 Penn State Nittany Lion wrestlers (5-2, 0-2 Big Ten) will trek to Reno, Nev., for the prestigious Reno Tournament of Champions on Sunday, Dec. 18. Action in the team-scored event begins at 9 a.m. local and runs throughout the day with finals set for 8 p.m. Penn State is one of 27 collegiate teams slated to participate and the third-highest ranked of five ranked teams in the field. Penn State is coming off an outstanding two-match road trip that saw it win two duals over two ranked foes by a combined scored of 53-12, winning 16 of 20 contested bouts. The Lions throttled No. 23 Navy 28-6 on Friday, Dec. 9, in a match highlighted by No. 10 James Woodall's 12-3 major decision over No. 14 John Cox of Navy at 149. True freshman David Erwin also made his dual debut with a win at 165. The next night, Penn State trounced No. 25 Penn 25-6. That dual was highlighted by No. 19 Jake Strayer's upset win over No. 6 Matt Valenti at 133. Strayer is a red-shirt freshman. The Nittany Lions improved to 3-2 vs. ranked teams with the two wins and are now undefeated in road duals. Penn State sports four undefeated wrestlers in its dual match line-up. Tim Haas is 8-0 at 125, Strayer is 6-0 at 133, James Yonushonis is 7-0 at 174 and Phil Davis is 6-0 at 197. No. 1 Oklahoma State leads the impressive field in Reno with No. 9 Central Michigan, No. 13 Penn State, No. 14 and Big Ten rival Northwestern and No. 18 Arizona State also participating. Some of the other top Division I programs in the tournament include Boise State, CS-Bakersfield, CS-Fullerton, Fresno State, Pacific, Stanford, Oregon, Tennessee and Wyoming. Penn State will return to action on Friday, Jan. 6, with a 7 p.m. dual at No. 9 Lehigh. The Nittany Lions next home dual is set for Jan. 8 vs. Cornell. Single match tickets can be purchased by visiting the BJC Ticket Center or by calling 814-865-5555 or 800-863-3336. Prices are $5 for adults and $3 for youth and senior citizens. POSSIBLE LINE-UPS - as of 12/12 #13 Penn State Nittany Lions (5-2, 0-2 Big ten) Wt. Name Yr. Hometown/HS 2005-06 Rec. 125 Tim Haas So. Camp Hill, Pa./Cedar Cliff 8-0 133 Jake Strayer Fr. South Fork, Pa./Forest Hills 6-0 141 (#16) DeWitt Driscoll Sr. Connellsville, Pa./Connellsville 5-2 149 (#14) James Woodall Sr. St. Dupont, Pa./Pittston 3-2 157 (#10) Nathan Galloway Jr. State College, Pa./State College 4-3 165 David Erwin Fr. Aurora, Ohio/St. Paris Graham 12-2 174 James Yonushonis Jr. Philipsburg, Pa./Philipsburg-Osceola 7-0 184 Neil Bretz Fr. Carlisle, Pa./Cumberland Valley 1-5 OR (#1) Eric Bradley Sr. Plaistow, N.H./Timberlane 0-0 197 (#6) Philip Davis So. Harrisburg, Pa./Harrisburg 6-0 HWT Aaron Anspach Jr. Columbia, Pa./Columbia 7-7 (#) All rankings listed are USA Today/NWCA as of 11/28 THE COLLEGIATE FIELD for the 2005 Reno T.o.c. (BOLD=RANKED) #18 Arizona State Boise State CS-Bakersfield CS-Fullerton UC-Davis #9 Central Michigan Embry-Riddle Fresno-Pacific Fresno State Lasson JC Newberry Northern State #14 Northwestern #1 Oklahoma State Pacific #13 PENN STATE Portland State Princeton College Southern Oregon Oregon Tennessee Wyoming Upper Iowa Utah Valley State Western Wyoming JC

The season-long journey of two New Jersey high school wrestlers on a collision course with destiny is well documented in Pinned, written by Alfred C. Martino (Harcourt, 2005). Ivan Korske and Bobby Zane come from two very different backgrounds, but struggle with many of the same issues: the daily grind of the wrestling season, making weight, family problems, and the abstract concept of love. Korske, from fictitious Lennings Township, battles the demons of his mother's death while trying to break away from Smalltown, New Jersey. He dreams of wrestling for a Division I college powerhouse, and knows that a state title is his only chance. Fast-paced nightly runs and rage-filled encounters with his coach provide insight into the magnitude of Ivan's intensity. His softer side is revealed when his feelings for Shelley, a lifelong friend, grow stronger. Zane, from Millburn Township, struggles to stay focused on wrestling as his family and social life crumble in front of him. The sour taste of defeat are enough to convince him to reprioritize his life and more clearly focus on what remains of his high school wrestling career. This focus allows Bobby to maximize his potential as a talented wrestler and mature as a young adult. On the mat, Bobby's dedication enables him to ride a red-hot winning streak into the state tournament while taking on the role of Cinderella. The two wrestlers meet in the highly climactic 129-pound New Jersey State Championship final. Martino does a wonderful job of intermeshing the trials and tribulations of high school wrestling while allowing the reader to immerse in the characters. The accuracy with which Martino describes the pains of cutting weight suggest that he wrote the story while sitting on a stationary bike covered from head to toe in a plastic suit. Just as the precision of weight cutting lends credibility to the story, the omission of move-by-move wrestling action allows the reader the imaginative freedom to create the perfect match. Alfred MartinoA connection is made between the reader and the main characters, if only for the short period of time needed to read the book. As a reader, this story brought to the surface many memories that defined a special period in my life in which wrestling alone mattered. Imagining Bobby sitting in a closet with blankets wrapped around him immediately triggered memories of sleepless nights trying to make 103 pounds as a high school freshman. On one particular night, I was able to trick my body into falling asleep, while my psyche mocked me in my dreams with an overflowing bucket of water. The events surrounding Ivan's tumultuous relationship with his coach rekindled controversial episodes involving the administration at my high school. Perhaps Martino would be interested in buying the story rights of a particular southwestern Minneapolis suburb that endured a myriad of better than fiction story lines, including: • An unsuccessful coupe to overthrow the coaching staff • The falling-out of two friends after a season long competition for a spot in the varsity line-up • A team picture scandal involving guns, knives, and baseball bats (cc: David Chase, creator of HBO's The Sopranos) Alfred MartinoThe approach used by Martino to create an aura of invisibility around Ivan Korske struck fear into my heart (and pain into my neck) as I revisited nightmares involving an old nemesis. His identity will remain safe, except to mention that he was roughly the size of Mike Zadick (present day) wrestling at 103 pounds. To this day, I have never felt more outclassed in a match: after toying with me for nearly a minute, this beast sucked the life-breath out of me with a tight-waist and turned me (heels over head) onto my back with a half-nelson. The academic world is still working through the physical laws of nature that were broken during the execution of that single move. This intriguing tale meshes the lives of two young men struggling to reach their goals, and provides the reader with an eye-opening matside view along the way. Most importantly, Pinned brings to life the memories and emotions of anyone who has had the courage to be a successful wrestler.

The Upper Iowa wrestling team's trip to Reno, Nev. this weekend will be anything but a vacation. The Peacocks will compete in the 27-team Reno Tournament of Champions, featuring several top wrestling programs from all divisions, Sunday. The field is highlighted by three-time NCAA Division I defending national champion Oklahoma State University. The Cowboys are currently the top-ranked team in the country and have four top-ranked wrestlers at their respective weight classes. Oklahoma State is joined by #9 Central Michigan, #12 Penn State, #15 Northwestern and #18 Arizona State as Division I top-20 teams in the field. All 10 weight classes will have at least two nationally-ranked D-I wrestlers and four weights have six ranked competitors. Upper Iowa enters the tournament as the 17th-ranked Division II team in the country. Finishing in the top half of this loaded tournament would be a major accomplishment for the Peacocks. Upper Iowa will be led by a pair of seniors in Ralph Acosta and C.J. MacNaught. Acosta was a 2002 All-American at 133 pounds while MacNaught was a National qualifier, narrowly missing All-American status, at 174 pounds. Two-time All-American Brian Black will be replaced in the Peacock lineup by junior Tyson Brown at heavyweight. Brown is coming off a fourth-place finish at the McCready Open Saturday, which included an impressive 8-4 decision over Northern Iowa freshman Mike Zimmerly. Sophomore Kyle Burkle has two individual titles under his belt already this year, winning the 141-pound championships at the Dubuque Spartan Open and the McCready Open. He won all three of his matches by pinfall at the McCready Open. Red-shirt freshman Tyler Mumbulo dropped a 5-3 decision in the 125-pound championship at the McCready Open and finished sixth at Dubuque. Sophomore Tee Adams (149 pounds) and senior Brandon Heying (157) earned fifth-place finishes at the McCready Open. Three sophomores – 165-pounder Brady Hakeman, 184-pounder Matt Norton and 197-pounder Dan Goodson – round out the expected UIU lineup. With 27 schools participating, this is the largest Reno Tournament of Champions to date. Oklahoma State won the 19-team tournament last year. Wrestling gets underway at 9 a.m. at the Reno Livestock Event Center. The championship finals are slated to begin at 6 p.m. Upper Iowa probable starters for Reno Tournament of Champions: 125 – Tyler Mumbulo (RSFr., Bainbridge, N.Y.) 133 – Ralph Acosta (Sr., Orlando, Fla.) 141 – Kyle Burkle (So., Coggon, Iowa) 149 – Tee Adams (So., Bessemer, Ala.) 157 – Brandon Heying (Sr., Sumner, Iowa) 165 – Brady Hakeman (So., La Porte City, Iowa) 174 – C.J. MacNaught (Sr., Walton, N.Y.) 184 – Matt Norton (So., Waverly, Iowa) 197 – Dan Goodson (So., Rochester, Minn.) 285 – Tyson Brown (Jr., Gladbrook, Iowa)

Pitt Johnstown's home wrestling match against Kutztown University that was postponed on December 9 due to a snow storm has been rescheduled for Friday, January 6 at 7:00 p.m. in the Sports Center.

BUFFALO, NY -- Maybe it was a good omen that the weather broke on Friday, that the inches of snow that were supposed to make the University at Buffalo's wrestling team's trip to the Erie Civic Center almost as harrowing an experience as the meet against Edinboro, a team with the nation's top 133-pounder and a ranking of 19th in the latest USA Today/NWCA/InterMat poll. Coming into a match with Shawn Bunch, Edinboro's 2005 national runner-up, junior Mark Budd (Orrville, OH/Orrville) was not a puddle of nerves. He knew exactly what he needed to do. Wrestle perfect for seven minutes. Anyone could tell him that, though. Bunch lost two matches in 2004-05, both to national champion Travis Lee of Cornell. He won his first 16 matches this season, won his 100th career match and wrapped up a title at the Las Vegas Invitational, where Budd had a disappointing 3-2 record while not placing. As Budd loosened up in Gannon University's maroon-matted wrestling room loft, assistant coach Brandon Newill looked at the wrestler and said, "I'm going to miss him when he leaves. He'd run through a wall if we asked him to." With a little more than three hours left to the match time, Newill and head coach Jim Beichner were asking Budd to not only run through a wall, but break down a barrier that had already beaten him three times in his career. In 2004-05, Budd started the season off 13-14, thanks in great deal to three losses to Bunch, once in Las Vegas and twice in dual meets. However, Budd hung tough in each match, with Bunch besting the former Ohio state runner-up 6-4 twice and 6-3 once. After Budd's third loss to Bunch, a 6-3 decision at the Virginia Duals on Jan. 15, the 133-pound sophomore won eight straight matches, picking up a New York State Collegiate Championship and winning four Mid-American Conference dual meets in the process. The turnaround, Budd said, was simply mental preparation. "I started to realize I could win against the better guys and I just started to win." He won two more matches at the MAC Championships and placed third, losing to Northern Illinois' Sam Hiatt, 4-3, in a true-second place match that probably would have earned him an NCAA qualifier. Instead, Budd had a long offseason to work and get ready for this season. In the second tournament, he hit his first snag, a 5-3 loss to Ohio freshman Albert Madsen, a loss which still has Budd ranked fourth in the MAC. Then Budd posted nine straight wins, including a win over Division II's top-ranked wrestler, Findlay's Andy Uhl, 7-3, and a win over nationally-ranked wrestlers Josh Pniewski of Gardner-Webb, Justin Perch of Oregon and Matt Benza of Air Force. After his win over Benza in the round of 32 at Las Vegas, he looked poised to head into the quarterfinals, holding a 6-4 lead against Michigan's Mark Moos, ranked fifth by InterMat/NWCA. However, in the final two seconds, Moos was credited for a two-point near fall and a takedown, giving him the win. "That was a killer," Budd said. "I think that ruined my weekend and made me wrestle worse." Bunch, meanwhile, cruised to the Las Vegas title. Photo of Mark Budd Mark Budd There's an old Chinese proverb that says, "A foolish man can move a mountain." As the clock rolled toward 9:40 pm, after watching Gannon shock Division II powerhouse Mercyhurst in the first dual of the night in the Civic Center, Budd was ready to try to move a mountain that no one but a national champ had gotten the best of in three years. "I just needed to get some takedowns, because last year I couldn't take him down," Budd said. "I took him down once. I figured if I got some takedowns, I could win." It did not start out well as Bunch earned the first takedown. It was the only mistake, however, that Budd made. Budd got the escape to make it 2-1 when the first period ended. Budd had to turn the tide in four minutes. The lead for the national runner-up expanded as Budd chose to be on top to start the second and Bunch earned an escape. Then it happened, Bunch tried to deliver a shot, but Budd countered and got a takedown to tie the score. "I faked a single, cleared his arm and shot a high crotch," Budd said. Bunch earned another escape to make it 4-3 entering the final period. Bunch chose to be on top in the third period, hoping to ride out Budd, but within 30 seconds Budd broke loose tying the score and sending the match into overtime. "I thought he was getting tired," Budd said, after he tied the score. "I figured I was in better condition than him. I thought that was the change, really." It took 7:35, but it finally happened. Bunch once again took a shot and Budd countered, taking Bunch to the ground near the edge of the mat. Budd got both arms around Bunch's legs to seal the takedown with 15 seconds left on the clock. "He could have gone out there and mentally not been where he was in Vegas, but instead he actually surpassed where he was in Vegas," head coach Jim Beichner said. "That's just mental toughness. That's just grit." After three losses to Bunch in his career and after trying to come from behind for six and a half minutes of the match, Budd had earned the victory. He had moved the mountain, and for the first time in Buffalo's Division I era, a wrestler had taken out a No. 1-ranked wrestler. "This isn't a surprise to me that he's beating good guys," Beichner said. "We've known he's capable of that now for a couple of years, but it's really a good time for him to do that because it's right in the middle of the season where he's hopefully starting to feel confident with what he's doing. He's got a lot more guys ahead of him he's going to have to beat in order to be an All-American, but this gives him the foundation that he believes he belongs with these guys."

1. Lehigh 2. Cornell 3. Navy 4. Penn 5. Army 6. American 7. Columbia 8. Harvard 125_ 1. Troy Nickerson, Cornell 2. Jeff Sato, Columbia 3. Andrew Gold, Penn 4. Matt Fisk, Lehigh 5. Jeff Schell, Brown 6. William Simpson, Army 133_ 1. Matt Valenti, Penn 2. Robbie Preston, Harvard 3. Mike Mormile, Cornell 4. Jeff Santo, Lehigh 5. Mattt DeLorenzo, Columbia 6. Nate Nauroth, East Stroudsburg 141_ 1. Cory Cooperman, Lehigh 2. Cesar Grajales, Penn 3. Steve Sutton, Columbia 4. Alex Bimes, East Stroudsburg 5. Steve Adamcsik, Rutgers 6. Spencer Manley, Navy 149_ 1. Trevor Chinn, Lehigh 2. John Cox, Navy 3. Ricky Turk, Columbia 4. Patrick Simpson, Army 5. Tom Kniezewski, American 6. Ansy Iannuzzi, Princeton 157_ 1. Dustin Manotti, Cornell 2. Derek Zinck, Lehigh 3. Adam Brochetti, Navy 4. Andrew Flanagan, Harvard 5. Gene Zannetti, Rutgers 6. Brandon Benson, Army 165_ 1. Troy Letters, Lehigh 2. Muzaffar Abdurakhmanov, American 3. Steve Anceravage, American 4. Craig Dziewiatkowski, Navy 5. Richard Ferguson, Penn 6. Keith Smith, East Stroudsburg 174_ 1. Travis Frick, Lehigh 2. Matt Palmer, Columbia 3. Matt Stolpinski, Navy 4. Lior Zamir, Penn 5. Luke Hogle, Cornell 6. Dave Sullivan, East Stroudsburg 184_ 1. Joe Mazzurco, Cornell 2. Josh Glenn, American 3. Rudy Medini, Rutgers 4. David Helfrich, Lehigh 5. Louis Caputo, Harvard 6. Dustin Wiles, Penn 197_ 1. Jerry Rinaldi, Cornell 2. Paul Velekei, Penn 3. Todd Wisman, Army 4. Paul Weibel, Lehigh 5. Jake Butler, Princeton 6. Andy Adams, Navy 285_ 1. Tanner Garrett, Navy 2. Bode Ogunwole, Harvard 3. Adam loPiccolo, American 4. Nathan Thobaben, Army 5. Tom Curl, Lehigh 6. Adam Karasevicz, East Stroudsburg

Joe Betterman2005 was the year that Joe Betterman really made a name for himself in the wrestling world. Let's look at the highlights: Joe won the 55 kg/121-pound Greco-Roman title at the Dave Schultz Memorial Invitational … and, in October, beat veteran Lindsey Durlacher to win the 2005 Sunkist Kids 55 kg championship. He also earned a place on the U.S. National Team. Very impressive, especially for a 21-year-old who is still in college … and, unlike most of his competitors, only took up wrestling as a freshman in high school. Giving it a Go in Chicago Joe was born on July 12, 1984 in Chicago. He grew up near one of the Windy City's great sports landmarks, Wrigley Field. As a freshman at Lakeview High, he played football … weighing in at just 72 pounds. One of the assistant football coaches suggested he go out for the wrestling team. That first year was rough for Joe. Being considerably lighter than most of his opponents in the lightest weight class -- 103 pounds in Illinois at the time -- Joe confesses, "I did not win any regular-season matches outright during my freshman year. I got some victories because of forfeits because the other team didn't have a guy in my weight class." Joe embarked on a program to make himself a better wrestler. He competed in track and cross country to work on his conditioning. And he wrestled in freestyle and Greco-Roman events in the off-season, placing in Greco competition at the U.S. Cadet Nationals in Fargo. All this work -- and the fact that he put on some solid weight -- made a remarkable difference for his sophomore year at Lakeview, where he compiled a 36-12 record. The improvement continued. By his junior year, Joe had qualified for the Illinois High School State Wrestling Tournament, and earned fifth in Greco at Fargo. Joe capped off his mat career at Lakeview with a sixth-place finish at the Illinois State Championships. When asked if taking up wrestling later than most of his competitors caused problems for him, Joe responded, "Most of my opponents started really young -- some of them before they even started school. I was at a disadvantage at first in high school but not any more." Preparation for the Mat World -- and the Real World Joe Betterman is now six hours north of Chicago, enrolled at Northern Michigan University in Marquette in the Upper Peninsula … and a participant in the U.S. Olympic Education Center (USOEC) Greco-Roman Wrestling Program. Joe is enrolled in NMU's criminal justice program. "I would like a career working in the FBI or forensic science," says Joe. "It's something I've always wanted to do." Joe Betterman is on track to graduate from Northern Michigan University in 2007 (photo by John Sachs).To accommodate his Greco-Roman wrestling training, Joe is on a five-year academic plan, taking twelve class hours a semester with the goal of graduating in 2007. Joe describes a typical day: "Practice starts at 6:45 each morning, then I go to class. Then there's practice again at three." On Wednesdays and Saturdays, there's only one practice session … with no practice on Sunday. The USOEC Greco-Roman Wrestling Program was started in August 1999 with just eight athletes. Today, there are twenty-three wrestlers including Joe Betterman … all full-time students at NMU. The program has come a long way in the past six years. At the 2005 World Team Trials in Ames, Iowa, four USOEC wrestlers earned a place on the U.S. National Team. Joe Betterman was one of the four. (The others: Harry Lester, Adam Wheeler, and Willie Madison.) Heading up the program since 2002 is Ivan Ivanov, a 136.5-pound silver medalist at the 1994 Greco-Roman World Championships who placed fifth at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta competing for his native Bulgaria. Before coming to Michigan, Ivanov served as coach at the Treehouse Athletic Club in Salt Lake City for three years. Assisting Ivanov is Jim Gruenwald, two-time Olympian in Greco-Roman competition. The USOEC Web site features this quote from head coach Ivanov: "Our goal is to recruit the most talented juniors in the U.S. for our program. We have excellent training and educational facilities, good food, resources for travel, and solid support from USA Wrestling. When you put it all together, the USOEC program has all the tools needed to develop Olympic wrestlers." It's probably safe to say that Joe agrees with his coach. When asked about his participation in the USOEC Greco-Roman Wrestling Program, Joe says, "It's an incredible facility. It's all focused on Greco. I get expert coaching, and the opportunity to work out with the best Greco wrestlers in the country." A Memorable Dave Schultz Memorial Joe Betterman's ongoing development as a Greco-Roman wrestler mirrors that of the USOEC. Among his early accomplishments: 2003-04 FILA Junior Nationals champion… sixth at the 2004 U.S. Nationals … second at the New York Athletic Club Christmas International Open… and 2004-05 University Nationals champ. 2005 got off to a great start for Joe. At the Dave Schultz Memorial Invitational in February, he took on some of the best wrestlers in the world – "I didn't wrestle a single American" says Joe -- and proved to be the better man, winning the 55 kg title. Joe recounts some of the high points of the tournament in Colorado Springs: "In my semifinals match against Sweden (Niklas Lovkvist), I got a takedown in the last eight seconds to win the match." "In the finals against the Belarussian (Aliaksei Shaipak) -- who had beat Lindsey Durlacher in the semifinals -- I won the match with a headlock in the last ten seconds." It was a come-from-behind win. Joe lost the first period to Shaipak 1-0. In the second, Joe used a front-headlock throw to win the period 3-3. In the third, Joe employed the headlock again to win the period 4-1 -- and the match. In a published interview at the Dave Schultz tournament, Joe said, "Last year I took fifth here. This year I was first, and placed ahead of people ranked ahead of me. The Belarussian beat me at the Kit Carson International last week. It was good to come in and get a win from him. You can't give up. My coaches all tell me to never give up. If you are losing, you have to try anything in the last few seconds." Kissed by Success at the Sunkist Kids After the high of winning the Dave Schultz, Joe placed fifth at the U.S. Nationals, and third at the U.S. World Team Trials. But the 2005 Sunkist Kids/ASU International Open in October made up for those mid-year disappointments. In the semifinals, Joe easily handled Duane Martin of the U.S. Army 7-0, 6-1 to move into the finals … where he faced Lindsey Durlacher, the top-ranked U.S. Greco wrestler in the 55 kg weight class who won the 2005 World Team Trials. But Joe Betterman prevailed over the 31-year-old defending Sunkist Kids champ 2-1, 6-2 to take the Sunkist title -- the first time Joe had defeated Durlacher. "The reverse body lift is really good for me," says Joe. "That's how I beat Lindsey." Joe Betterman defeated Lindsey Durlacher at the Sunkist Kids/ASU International Open.In November, Betterman and Durlacher faced each other again, this time at the New York Athletic Club's Holiday Championships. In the rematch of the two NYAC wrestlers, Durlacher got revenge, winning the 55 kg title 3-1, 1-1. It was the second straight year that Joe placed second at the NYAC end-of-year event. A Wider World Beckons Joe considers himself blessed to be a part of the USOEC Greco-Roman Wrestling program. "I get a full scholarship for my college education to prepare me for life after wrestling," says Joe. "I've also gained the opportunity to see the world -- places like Bulgaria, France, Turkey, Poland, London." "Getting to train overseas is very helpful," Joe adds, "I've come to see that European wrestlers tend to be more technical, while U.S. wrestlers are usually in better condition." What are Joe's wrestling goals? "I want to make the world team, and I want to compete in the 2008 Olympics, and maybe in Olympics beyond that," says Joe. "I hope to have a long career in wrestling. Many guys ten years older than me are still competing, still winning." Looks like the FBI might just have to wait for its Betterman.

Team 1. Cal Poly 2. Arizona St. 3. Oregon St. 4. Boise St. 5. Oregon 6. UC Davis 7. Cal State Bakersfield 8. Stanford 9. Cal State Fullerton 10. Portland St. Individual 125 Pounds 1. Jeremy Mendoza (Arizona St.) 2. Chad Mendes (Cal Poly) 3. Tanner Gardner (Stanford) 4. Eric Stevenson (Oregon St.) 5. Marcos Orozco (UC Davis) 6. Brandon Zoteway (Cal State Bakersfield) 133 Pounds 1. Scott Jorgensen (Boise St.) 2. Darrell Vasquez (Cal Poly) 3. Justin Pearch (Oregon) 4. Omar Gaitan (UC Davis) 5. TJ Dillashaw (Cal State Fullerton) 6. Tommy Vargas (Cal State Bakersfield) 141 Pounds 1. Derek Moore (UC Davis) 2. Steve Esparza (Cal Poly) 3. Jeremy Larson (Oregon St.) 4. Skyler Woods (Oregon) 5. Tommy Owen (Boise St.) 6. Matt Schumm /Jeremy Doyle (Cal State Bakersfield) 149 Pounds 1. Tyler Sherfey (Boise St.) 2. Pat Payne (Arizona St.) 3. Anthony Baza (Cal State Bakersfield) 4. Jeff Owens (Cal Poly) 5. Josh Zupancic (Stanford ) 6. Orlando Perez (Oregon St.) 157 Pounds 1. Brian Stith (Arizona St.) 2. Scott Loescher (Stanford) 3. Tony Hook (Oregon St.) 4. Shawn Reilly (Cal State Fullerton) 5. Ryan Williams (Cal Poly) 6. Dustin Noack (UC Davis) 165 Pounds 1. Joey Bracamonte (Oregon) 2. Pat Pitsch (Arizona St.) 3. Brian Busby (Cal State Bakersfield) 4. Frank Richmond (UC Davis) 5. Ray Blake (Stanford) 6. Risto Marttinen (Cal State Fullerton) 174 Pounds 1. Jeremy Larson (Oregon St.) 2. Chet McBee (Oregon) 3. Christian Arellano (Cal State Bakersfield) 4. Ken Cook (UC Davis) 5. Ian Murphy/Ryan Budd (Cal State Fullerton) 6. Yuri Kalika (Cal Poly) 184 Pounds 1. Shane Webster (Oregon) 2. Ryan Halsey (Cal Poly) 3. Jesse Taylor (Cal State Fullerton) 4. KC Walsh (Boise St.) 5. Ryan Hagen (Stanford) 6. Tyler Bernacchi (UC Davis) 197 Pounds 1. Ryan Bader (Arizona St.) 2. Casey Phelps (Boise St.) 3. Matt Monteiro (Cal Poly) 4. Dan Pitsch (Oregon St.) 5. Elliot Kelly (UC Davis) 6. Chris Chambers (Cal State Fullerton) Heavyweight 1. Cain Velasquez (Arizona St.) 2. Andy Patrick (Boise St.) 3. Ty Watterson (Oregon St.) 4. Eric Parker (Cal State Bakersfield) 5. Arturo Basulto (Cal Poly) 6. Chris Dearmon (Oregon)

TEMPE, Ariz. -- For the second tournament in a row, the No. 18 Arizona State University wrestling team (3-2, 1-0 Pac-10) heads to Nevada for competition, this time taking part in the 2005 Reno Tournament of Champions to be held Sunday, December 18, at the Reno Livestock Event Center in Reno, Nev. The event will serve as the final action of 2005 and the final individual tournament until the 2006 Pac-10 Championships later in the season. THE INVITED Twenty-seven teams, including five ranked in the Top 25 of the latest NWCA/USA Today Division I rankings, will be on hand Sunday at the 2005 Reno Tournament of Champions. Three-time defending national champion and top-ranked Oklahoma State will join No. 9 Central Michigan, No. 12 Penn State, No. 15 Northwestern and No. 18 Arizona State in the field that has a strong mix of all divisions of collegiate wrestling. Eight of the 10 teams that currently make up the Pac-10 Conference will send competitors to the mat, including ASU, Boise State, Cal State Bakersfield, Cal State Fullerton, Portland State, Stanford, UC Davis and Oregon (the two member institutions not competing are Cal Poly and Oregon State). TOUGH INDIVIDUALS With several top teams headed to the event, several wrestlers ranked in the national Top 20 will be on the mats this weekend. The 133, 157, 174 and 197 weight classes each boast six wrestlers holding Top 20 ranks while the weight class with the least representation is 184 with two. Brian Stith, ranked No. 8 this week, is the highest ranked entrant in the 157 class while both No. 11 Patrick Pitsch (165) and No. 4 Cain Velasquez (285) are the second-highest in their respective divisions. Overall, five wrestlers ranked No. 1 in the nation will be on hand to compete in the tournament. LOOKING BACK: RENO 2004 Last year in Reno, the Sun Devils finished second to eventual national champion Oklahoma State, 163.5-103.0, and was seven points ahead of third-place Fresno State's 96.0 points. Six Sun Devils placed in the Top 6 with Brian Stith (157), C.B. Dollaway (184) and Cain Velasquez (285) each falling in the finals of their respective weight classes to finish second overall. Ryan Bader (197) took third, Patrick Williams (149) was fourth and Patrick Pitsch (165) finished sixth to round out the placers for Arizona State. RENO HISTORY Arizona State will compete in the Reno Tournament of Champions for the sixth year in a row and will look to keep alive its streak of Top 3 finishes as it has place either second or third each of the five previous years. The Sun Devils were runners-up to Oklahoma State in 200, 2003 and 2004 while finishing third in 2001 behind Missouri and OSU and third in 2002 behind OSU and Edinboro. THE LINEUP Here are the Sun Devils that have entered into the 2005 Reno Tournament of Champions this weekend at the Reno Livestock Events Center: Jeremy Mendoza (125), Adam Hickey (133), Jason Robbins (141), Pat Payne (149), Brian Stith (157), Kevin Gaughan (157), Patrick Pitsch (165), Jamie Robbins (174), Alex Pavlenko (174), Jason Trulson (184), Ryan Bader (197) and Cain Velasquez (285). Each team is allowed to enter up to 13 athletes in the tournament with the Sun Devils sending 12 to compete. MR. 100 Heading into his senior season, Ryan Bader stood 88-34 in his career with the Sun Devils. So far this season, Bader has compiled an 11-2 record to bring his career mark to 99-36, leaving him one victory shy of 100 career wins. If he can win one bout in his hometown this weekend, he will become the 21st Sun Devil to reach the century mark. The last ASU wrestler to reach the milestone mark of 100 victories was current assistant coach Eric Larkin, who finished his career with 123 victories, tying him for the sixth-most wins in school history. CLOSING IN Ryan Bader's chase for 100 victories is not the only place in the record books he is nearing in on. Following the first five duals of the season, Bader is 4-1 and has improved his career dual record to 41-19 overall. His win total ties him for the 19th-most in program history with John Ginther, who went 41-10-3 from 1985-89. With at least 13 duals remaining on the schedule in 2006, Bader could reach the Top 10 in dual victories, needing just 10 more wins to tie for 10th overall. Joining him in this chase is another senior, Jeremy Mendoza. After going 5-0 in duals so far this season, Mendoza improved to 31-15 overall in his dual meet career and will need 10 more on the season to crack into the Top 20. INSIDE TRACK Each week throught the 2005-06 season, Sun Devil Assistant Coach Aaron Simpson will provide an inside look at the team as he submits journal entries to thesundevils.com. Visit the wrestling page on the official athletic web site of Arizona State Athletics to see what Coach Simpson has to say about a previous meet, the team's preparations and other interesting facts and stories about the Sun Devils. VELASQUEZ DOMINATING AGAIN Senior heavyweight Cain Velasquez has proved why he is a threat to win the NCAA title this season as he has opened his final collegiate campaign with a dominating 14-1 record. So far this season, his lone loss came in a 6-1 decision loss to No. 3 Greg Wagner of Michigan in the finals of the Las Vegas Invitational. If the Reno Tournament of Champions goes according to national rankings, Velasquez could meet two-time defending national champion Steve Mocco of Oklahoma State in the finals. That meeting would be the second in a row at the tournament as Mocco won 6-1 last year, one of only five losses for the Sun Devils' big man. FIVE IN DOUBLE DIGITS Through two tournaments and five duals, five members of the starting line up have secured at least 11 victories or more so far in 2005 and will look to add to that this weekend in Reno. Both Patrick Pitsch (165) and Cain Velasquez (285) lead the team with 14 victories on the season with 14-3 and 14-1 records, respectively, while Jeremy Mendoza (125), Pat Payne (149) and Ryan Bader (197) have compiled 11-1, 11-6 and 11-2 records, respectively. BRINGING THE PAYNE Pat Payne has waited a long time to get out on the mats for the Sun Devils and, following a slow start in tournament action, has really shown his talents recently. After redshirting two years ago then sitting out all of last year with an injury, Payne currently stands 11-6 on the season following a big showing in Las Vegas. Payne, who entered the tournament with a 4-4 record with two losses in sudden victory overtime, got off on the wrong foot in Vegas as he dropped a tough 3-1 decision in the first round. Relegated to the consolation bracket, Payne reeled off six victories in a row, including four without allowing a point to be scored on him, as he marched through the wrestle backs to finish fifth. Of his six losses this season, four were by two points or less. TOUGH TIME For the second dual in a row, the Sun Devils took to the mats to face a Top 8 nationally ranked team and, unfortunately for ASU, dropped a dual decision, this time falling to No. 5 Iowa, 26-13. ASU, who also fell at No. 8 Lehigh, 29-7, will also face several other Top 25 teams this season, including No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 6 Minnesota, No. 7 Iowa State and No. 21 Cal Poly. Also, the Sun Devils have a chance to face other top ranked teams while competing in the NWCA National Duals. LIGHTING UP THE SCOREBOARD Of the 30 bouts contested at the Portland State Duals, 17 victories recorded by ASU wrestlers earned bonus points in the team race. Combined, the Sun Devils won five bouts by fall (six points), three by technical fall (five points), seven by major decision (four points) and two by injury default or forfeit (six points). Conversely, only two bouts were won in a dual with No. 8 Lehigh with one victory ending in a major decision for Cain Velasquez. THE FALL GUY Last year, Patrick Pitsch went 24-15 in his first season of action for the Sun Devils. In those 39 bouts, Pitsch did not pin an opponent. In his first match of the 2005-06 season, Pitsch collected his first pin as he defeated Marshall Cook with the fall at 5:42. His pin was one of five recorded by ASU wrestlers at the PSU Duals the first weekend of the season. THE FALL GUY - PART II Patrick Pitsch may have recorded the first fall of his collegiate career earlier this season, but several Sun Devils have made pinning their opponents a habit this season. So far, 13 falls have been recorded by Arizona State grapplers with five coming from Cain Velasquez (285) and another three from the opposite end of the weight class spectrum, Jeremy Mendoza (125). Velasquez, who took over the team lead from Mendoza, pinned his first three opponents at the Las Vegas Invitational en route to the finals and second place showing. PAC PLACEMENTS Stanford, the host of the 2006 Pac-10 Championships, released updated rankings for the conference December 12 with six Sun Devils holding positions in the Top 6 and the team sitting second in the team rankings behind Cal Poly. Jeremy Mendoza (125), Brian Stith (157), Ryan Bader (197) and Cain Velasquez (285) are each ranked No. 1 in their respective weight classes while Pat Payne (149) and Patrick Pitsch (165) each sit second. This week's rankings mark the first time this season Payne has been in the Top 6 as well as the first time both John Espinoza (133) and C.B. Dollaway (184) have not been ranked. Both unranked wrestlers are expected back in the line up in January. DEFENDING CHAMPS Arizona State won the 2005 Pac-10 Wrestling Championships to not only capture its second crown in three years, but also the 15th in the history of the program. Brian Stith (157) upset Matt Gentry of Stanford, the defending Pac-10 and NCAA champion, to win his weight class and earn Outstanding Wrestler of the Championships. Cain Velasquez (heavyweight) also secured a title, the first of his career, before being named as the Pac-10 Wrestler of the Year. C.B. Dollaway (184) and Ryan Bader (197) each advanced to the finals of their respective weight classes before placing second. Thom Ortiz was selected Coach of the Year after leading the team to its 15th Pac-10 title. RETURNING ALL-AMERICANS Arizona State has three All-Americans returning to its lineup this season, including a pair of first-time honorees from a year ago. Last year, Brian Stith earned his first national accolade by placing sixth at 157 pounds while Cain Velasquez took fifth in the heavyweight division to earn his first honor. Ryan Bader is the Sun Devils' third All-American returning after earning the acclaim in his sophomore campaign of 2003-04. LAST TIME OUT The Sun Devils got off to a slow start before making a late charge and finishing fifth overall at the 2005 Cliff Keen/Las Vegas Invitational December 2-3 at the Cashman Center in Las Vegas. Jeremy Mendoza (125) and Cain Velasquez (285) each advanced to the finals of their respective weight classes before finishing second overall to lead the Sun Devils as five total Arizona State representatives placed in the event. Also placing for the Sun Devils were Pat Payne (149) in fifth, Patrick Pitsch (165) in fourth and Ryan Bader (197) in third. NEXT TIME OUT Following the holiday break, the Sun Devils will return to dual action on the road as they travel to Minneapolis, Minn., for a January 4 showdown with the Golden Gophers of Minnesota. The Big Ten powers are ranked No. 5 in the NWCA/USA Today Coaches' Poll and are 7-0 on the year. Four days later, the Sun Devils play host to the Sun Devil Duals with conference foe UC Davis and No. 7 Iowa State, led by former ASU head coach Bobby Douglas, coming to Wells Fargo Arena.

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Thanks to an unblemished record at the Dec. 4 Nittany Lion Open, North Carolina junior heavyweight Spencer Nadolsky was named Co-Atlantic Coast Conference Wrestler of the Week Monday. Currently ranked No. 14 by InterMat, Nadolsky went 5-0 and placed first at Penn State's Nittany Lion Open to run his season record to 19-2 and claim his first individual title at Carolina. The Holland, Mich., native opened with a pin of Paul Burser of Edinboro in 5:31 and followed with a 6-0 decision over Jeff Barker of Buffalo in the second round. Nadolsky then posted an 11-0 major decision over Joe Farina of Penn State and a 3-2 win over Virginia Tech's Mike Faust in the semifinals. Nadolsky followed with his second pin of the day in the final, a defeat of Navy's Ed Prendergast in 2:35. He leads the Tar Heels with nine pins on the season. Nadolsky, who shares this week's honor with NC State's Ryan Goodman, is the second Tar Heel to earn the league's weekly accolade this season. Redshirt freshman Vincent Ramirez claimed the honor Nov. 28. Nadolsky, Ramirez and the Tar Heels return to action Sunday at the Clairon Duals.

Hempstead, NY -- Six Hofstra wrestlers posted double-victories, including two wins by fall by senior Mike Patrovich, as the 20th-ranked Pride recorded a 33-12 victory over Harvard and a 36-9 victory over Columbia in dual matches at the Hofstra Arena Sunday night. Hofstra improves to 2-1-1 on the season while both the Crimson and the Lions fall to 0-1. Patrovich, ranked seventh at 174-pounds, improved to 13-1 on the season with a fall over Harvard's Wesley Walker in 6:20 and a fall over Columbia's sixth-ranked junior Matt Palmer in 6:46. Hofstra sophomore Charles Griffin (12-2) made his dual match debut this season with a tech fall over Harvard's Thomas Picarsic and a win by fall over Columbia's Steve Sutton in 3:42. Pride sophomore Joe Rovelli (14-3) posted major decision victories wrestling up a class at 197 over Harvard's Jon Butler and Columbia's Orrin Kleinhenz. Hofstra juniors James Strouse (14-5), who is ranked 19th at 157, and unranked Chris Vondruska (13-3), at 165-pounds, each posted a decision and a major decision. Junior John Manarte, who also wrestled up a class at 149, posted two decisions to improve to 11-5 on the season. The Pride will return to action on Monday, January 2 when they host the second-ranked Wolverines of the University of Michigan at Hofstra Arena at 7 p.m..

The National Wrestling Hall of Fame & Museum has announced the selection of the Class of 2006 Distinguished Members to be inducted at its annual Honors Weekend Banquet and Induction Ceremony June 3, 2006 in Stillwater, Oklahoma. The event will mark the 30th anniversary Class of the Hall of Fame & Museum. Four wrestling greats will be added as Distinguished Members in 2006. They are: · Terry Brands of Colorado Springs, Colo. · Josiah Henson of Tulsa, Okla. · Tricia Saunders of Phoenix, Ariz. · Pat Smith of Stillwater, Okla. This historic group of inductees includes the first woman chosen as a Distinguished Member. In addition, all three of the other inductees are brothers of wrestling greats who have already been inducted as Distinguished Members. Included is the first four-time NCAA Div. I champion in wrestling history (Smith), a four-time World champion and wrestling pioneer (Saunders), a two-time World champion and Olympic medalist (Brands) and an Olympic medalist and Olympic referee (Henson). The Hall of Fame's Board of Governors approved these selections at its semi-annual meeting held in Las Vegas on December 1, 2005. "I want to thank our Board of Governors and the various screening and selection committees involved in the six-month process that determines our honorees for induction. This is another exceptional class of inductees whose merits transcend our sport," said Lee Roy Smith, Executive Director of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame & Museum. Brands will join twin brother Tom Brands as a Distinguished Member. He was a World champion in freestyle wrestling in 1993 and 1995, and captured an Olympic bronze medal at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. Brands won World Cup and Pan American Games titles. He was a three-time finalist and two-time NCAA champion for the Univ. of Iowa. Brands currently works as USA Wrestling's National Freestyle Resident Coach. Henson's older brother Stanley Henson is a Distinguished Member. Henson won a bronze medal in freestyle wrestling at the 1952 Olympic Games in Helsinki, Finland. He went on to be a respected international wrestling official, becoming the first American to officiate at the Olympics in the 1956 Games in Melbourne, Australia. Henson was a long-time leader in U.S. wrestling and the Olympic movement. He was an undefeated wrestler and two-time EIWA champion for the U.S. Naval Academy. Saunders becomes the first woman inducted as a Distinguished Member. She won four World gold medals and a World silver medal in women's freestyle wrestling, and completed her freestyle wrestling career without ever having lost to an American opponent. Saunders was the first U.S. wrestler to win a World gold medal in women's wrestling. She also served as the coach of the 2004 U.S. Olympic team in women's wrestling, the first time that the sport was in the Olympic Games. Saunders is considered a pioneer in the development of women's wrestling. Smith will join his older brother, John Smith, as a Distinguished Member. He became the first wrestler in history to win four NCAA Div. I national titles, competing for Oklahoma State Univ. He won his historic fourth NCAA title at the 1994 NCAA Championships held in Chapel Hill, N.C. Smith was a member of two Oklahoma State teams that won NCAA team titles. Along with brothers Lee Roy and John, the Smiths became the first set of three brothers to claim NCAA titles. He won four conference titles, and holds the Oklahoma State record for consecutive matches without a loss. Smith placed second in the 1996 U.S. Olympic Trials behind three-time Olympian Kenny Monday. He serves on the coaching staff at Oklahoma State, which has won three straight NCAA team titles. Complete biographies of the inductees will be posted each day this week on TheMat.com (www.themat.com), with Brands on Tuesday, Henson on Wednesday, Saunders on Thursday and Smith on Friday. Additional honorees will be selected and announced in January in the categories of Outstanding American, Order of Merit, Medal of Courage, and Outstanding Official.

Columbia, Mo. -- Continuing their successful opening to the season, the No. 13 Missouri wrestling team defeated Ohio State 25-13, Sunday, Dec. 11, in front of 625 spectators at the Hearnes Center. Wrestling to a draw through the first four minutes of action at 133 pounds, sophomore Tyler McCormick (Leawood, Kan.) ended the stalemate by escaping Reece Humphrey's hold with 31 seconds left in the second period. Building a lead, McCormick took down Humphrey with 12 seconds left in the period to earn a 3-0 advantage heading into the third. Able to hold on for the victory, McCormick's 3-0 decision gave Missouri a 9-0 lead after Ohio State forfeited the 125-pound bout. Following his brother's victory with an impressive bout, senior Chris McCormick (Leawood, Kan.) stretched Missouri's lead to 12 by earning a 9-6 decision over T. J. Enright at 141 pounds. After Enright opened the scoring with a takedown at 2:37, McCormick roared back to take the lead by making an escape, a takedown and a three-point nearfall and earn a 6-2 lead heading into the second period. Fighting off a spirited comeback by Enright, McCormick tallied three more escapes before time ran out to record the victory. After Ohio State earned victories at 149 and 157 pounds, junior Matt Pell (Luxemburg, Wis.) wasted no time establishing a lead at 165 pounds, posting three takedowns in the first period to open a 6-2 lead over Nathaniel Augustson. Ranked No. 4 in the nation, Pell increased his lead in the second period to 11-2, then finished the match with a three-point nearfall and 5:18 of riding time to post a 15-2 major decision. Wasting no time after Pell's match, junior Ben Askren (Hartland, Wis.) pinned Charlie Clark in just 39 seconds. The career falls record holder at Missouri, Askren's cradle was the 50th pin he's recorded in a Tiger singlet. Continuing the Tigers streak with one of the most exciting matches of the afternoon, redshirt freshman Raymond Jordan (New Bern, N.C.) fought off a spirited attempt by Blake Maurer to earn an 8-6 decision, stretching the Tigers lead to 25-6. After a takedown by Maurer tied the score midway through the third period, Jordan's escape gave him the advantage and 1:27 of riding time accounted for the final points of the bout. "We wrestled well today, but there are still some things we can improve on," Head Coach Brian Smith said. "We scored a lot of early points in a couple of matches but allowed our opponents to get back into the bout, which shows that we need to wrestle hard for the full seven minutes. Tyler McCormick had one of the best matches of the day, wrestling to his strengths and beating an opponent that scored seven points against him at the Las Vegas Invitational last week." The Tigers are back in dual action next week, traveling east to wrestle Pittsburgh and West Virginia Dec. 19-20. Missouri comes back to the Hearnes Center Jan. 6 against Eastern Illinois.

MOUNT PLEASANT -- Michigan scored three consecutive wins late in the match to pull away in a 22-14 dual match win over No. 9 Central Michigan University on Sunday before 1,846 fans in Rose Arena. The loss snaps CMU's 19-match home winning streak. The teams split the first six pairings and the score was knotted at 10 before the second-ranked Wolverines strung together three straight victories to build an insurmountable lead. Ryan Churella, ranked third in this week's USA Today/NWCA/InterMat poll, pinned CMU's Justin Petrone at 165 to start the run. Nick Roy and Tyrel Todd then posted decisions over Brandon Sinnott (7-6) and Christian Sinnott (3-2), respectively, to boost the Michigan lead to 22-10. No. 3 Greg Wagner's 4-1 decision over No. 13 Bubba Gritter at heavyweight opened the match and gave Michigan an early 3-0 lead. A decision by Matt Steintrager at 125 and major decision by Jason Borrelli at 133, however, put the Chippewas in front, 7-3. Borrelli tallied seven third-period points, and earned the riding time point, for his major. Michigan evened the score on a major decision by Josh Churella at 141 and took the lead, 10-7, when No. 5 Eric Tannenbaum earned a 10-5 decision over No. 6 Mark DiSalvo. Eric Neil knotted the score for the third time when he rallied for a 6-4 decision at 157. Neil scored a takedown with 20 seconds left in the third period to seal the win. Michigan put the match out of reach with one-point decisions at 174 and 184. Riding time provided the decisive point in Roy's 7-6 victory, while Todd withstood a late flurry from Christian Sinnott to hang on for a 3-2 win. CMU will take this week off for final exams before competing in the Reno Tournament of Champions in

The fifth-ranked Golden Gopher wrestling team (7-0-0) won seven of 10 matches en route to a 27-11 victory against No. 19 Nebraska on Sunday afternoon at the Sports Pavilion. Sophomore Gabriel Dretsch upset No. 5 Jacob Klein at 174 pounds to propel Minnesota to the win. The Cornhuskers entered the match unbeaten at 3-0 after upsetting second- ranked Michigan on Friday. Minnesota jumped ahead early and never looked back as redshirt freshman Travis Lang opened the match with a pin in 3:34 against Paul Donahoe at 125 pounds. With a 5-2 lead, Donahoe started the second period on the bottom. Lang earned the fall just 34 seconds later. Lang won his second straight match after getting his first career start on Friday against Iowa State. The Golden Gophers increased the lead to 9-0 as third-ranked Mack Reiter defeated Patrick Aleksanyan, 5-0. Reiter could not get any offense going as Aleksanyan was penalized for stalling three times in the match. Reiter remained unbeaten on the year with an 11-0 record. After Dominick Moyer earned Nebraska's first win with a 10-2 major decision against Charles Lloyd at 141, true freshman Dustin Schlatter answered with a 14-4 major decision against Nebraska's Robert Sanders at 149 pounds. Schlatter collected his first takedown just six seconds into the match and never looked back as he improved to 16-1 on the year. Sophomore C.P. Schlatter followed with a 12-5 decision against Chris Oliver at 157 pounds. Schlatter fell behind after an Oliver takedown, but tied the match immediately with a first period reversal. With the match tied at two, Schlatter took control of the bout with four third-period takedowns. Schlatter is now 16-2 on the year, including a perfect 7-0 mark in dual meets. Following intermission, Nebraska's Marc Harwood upset No. 4 Matt Nagel, 3-2, at 165 pounds. Harwood used a first-period takedown and a third-period escape to hand Nagel his third straight loss. The win cut the Golden Gopher lead to 16-7. Harwood is a sophomore from Lakefield, Minn. Dretsch put to rest any hope of a Cornhusker comeback with a dominating 12-4 major decision against Klein at 174 pounds. Dretsch held a 6-1 advantage in the first period after a pair of takedowns and a near fall. Klein was unable to muster any offense in the match as he lost for the first time this year. Dretsch improved to 6-1 in the dual meet season. Sophomore Roger Kish gave Minnesota more breathing room with an 11-5 decision against Brandon Browne at 184 pounds. Kish opened the second period with a reversal to take a commanding 6-1 lead. After third-ranked B.J. Padden gave Nebraska its final victory with a 16-6 major decision against Justin Bronson at 197 pounds, second-ranked Cole Konrad closed out the dual with a 16-5 major decision against 20th-ranked Jon May at heavyweight. Konrad improved to 13-0 on the year and has now won 42 of his last 43 matches. May is a Hutchinson, Minn., native. "From Friday to today, I thought our team stepped it up another notch," head coach J Robinson said. "We're continuing to get better and better with each match. Travis (Lang) gave us a boost at the beginning. On paper, it's a match he's not supposed to win, but to his credit he went out there and got the pin. That seemed to change the whole dynamic of the match." The Golden Gophers are off until Dec. 29 when they travel to Greensboro, N.C., for the Southern Scuffle.

This weekend's Walsh Ironman Tournament at Walsh Jesuit kicked off the wrestling season with a bang to say the least. With all the highly ranked wrestlers there, the one thing that was established was that rankings meant little. Upsets were plentiful. The great thing about a tournament like this is that because bragging rights were what was on the line, not a state title, or national title, you saw more wrestlers really getting after it rather than wrestling not to lose. The following is a weight-by-weight recap of the highlights of the past weekend: 103 -- David Taylor used a third period takedown to prevail over Boris Novachkov of California in a battle of Cadet Nationals champion versus Junior Nationals champion. However, the real drama came in Taylor's semifinal win over Cadet Nationals runner-up Ben Sergent. Sergent opened that bout with a quick takedown and then added an escape in the second to extend his lead to 3-0 going into the third. David Taylor of St. Paris Graham (Ohio) is the No. 1-ranked freshman in the Rev High School Power Rankings (photo by Jon Malinowski).That's when Taylor turned it up a notch. After a quickly escaping and immediately scoring a takedown, Taylor kicked Sergent out, to trail 4-3 with about a minute remaining. Taylor was soon in on what appeared to be a routine takedown, albeit the go-ahead takedown. However, instead of settling for two points, Taylor converted his takedown into what might be described as a standing half nelson against the much taller Sergent. For a moment, it looked like a freshman mistake -- but Taylor exploded into the move and put Sergent onto his back, for a final tally of 8-4. Sergent also came out on the wrong end of a great consolation semifinal bout against Danny Genetin of Massillon Perry. Leading and controlling the entire match, Sergent was overly aggressive in attempting a "barrel roll," and Genetin opportunistically stepped over him for the fall. Genetin would go on to take third with a fall over tough Steve Mitcheff 112 -- It happens at big tournaments without fail. There is one wrestler who the "buzz" is about all weekend long. You hear numerous fans in the bleachers talking about that one amazing wrestler. At the Ironman, that wrestler was the superb freshman from Lakewood St. Edward's, Collin Palmer. Palmer started his Saturday with a 10-1 win over two-time Cadet National Freestyle champion Anthony Valles. He followed that up with an 11-0 shellacking of defending Ironman champion Jayk Cobbs of Great Bridge. He had not allowed an offensive point. Suffice it to say that he was considered a lock by the crowd. Nikko Triggas of California completely dominated the competition at the Walsh Ironman (photo by Jon Malinowski).Perhaps no one noticed that in the other semifinal, powerful Nikko Triggas of California had just demolished Pennsylvania AAA state champ Chris Sheetz by a score of 14-3. In their final, Palmer gave up an early takedown. Seemingly trying to regain his invincible status, he then tried an unnecessarily risky move from the bottom and wound up giving up two back-points. Triggas then powered his way to a cradle and scored two more back-points. At this point, it seemed that the wheels came off for the freshman phenom from St. Ed's. Trying to make up points, he made increasingly risky attempts at a reversal -- and Triggas had an answer for each, wracking up several more near falls. The final tally was a shocking 13-2. In the end, it was the junior from California who served notice that he is the real deal. Look for Palmer to rebound at Beast of the East next week. 119 -- In what was perhaps the most dissatisfying final of the night, Aaron Hart of St. Paris Graham was awarded a highly-unpopular penalty point at the buzzer to prevail, 2-1, against Boris Novachkov, the same score he beat another California star, Caleb Flores, by in the semifinals. In the end, little was settled except that the top four guys at this weight- Hart, Novachkov, Mele (who lost 4-3 to Novachkov), and Flores were all about even. 125 -- No one can dispute that Lakewood St. Ed's Keith Sulzer knows how to win. Sulzer trailed the entire match with No. 1-seeded Ian Moser in the semis, but scored a late takedown to pull out a 4-3 win. He then seemed to be outwrestled in his finals bout with Ben Jordan of St. Paris Graham, but in the end it was Sulzer who got his hand raised with a 2-1 victory. However, it was the sophomore Jordan who was the real story of the tournament at this weight. The son of former four-time state champion, two-time NCAA champion, and Ohio state representative Jim Jordan, the younger Jordan has mastered the same head inside single that his dad was noted for (he used to refer to it as the "angle knee drop" as I recall from wrestling camps as a youth). He showed an ability to penetrate the defenses of top upperclassman on his feet at will. First, he handled Cadet Nationals champion Kellen Russell of Blair Academy by a score of 9-3. Next, he scored the only two takedowns of the bout to beat a tough Quentin Keyes of Walsh Jesuit 5-3. In his final, trailing 2-1 going into the third period, his coach (his uncle Jeff Jordan) advised him to choose neutral. Perhaps Coach Jordan did not feel confident that his wrestler could escape from Sulzer, but against as solid a defensive wrestler as he was facing, it seemed like a strategic error. Young Jordan was never quite able to finish his single against the crafty Sulzer -- but look for big things from this young wrestler in the future. Frishkorn pinned FILA Cadet Nationals champion Coby Boyd of St. Paris Graham in the quarterfinals, but lost to Californian Billy Murphy in the Walsh Ironman finals.130 -- In a final of two of the highest ranked wrestlers in the Rev Power Rankings, Billy Murphy scored the only takedown against Jordan Frishkorn of Great Bridge to prevail, 3-2, in a final that was frankly somewhat disappointing. The real fireworks in this weight came in the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds. First, after a scoreless first period, Frishkorn stuck FILA Cadet Nationals champion Coby Boyd of St. Paris Graham. Boyd had previously pinned another elite Ohio sophomore, Chase Skonieczny of Walsh Jesuit, in the first period of their second round match-up. Murphy's match-up with former Ohio state champion Adam Kriwinsky (who was defeated in the finals by Jordan last year) was perhaps the best match of the day. Through the first two periods, Murphy looked like a hammer, scoring four takedowns and physically dominating to take an 8-4 lead late in the second period. At that point, Murphy got sloppy trying to extend his lead to 10-4, and instead Kriwinsky capitalized, scoring the takedown to cut the lead to 8-6. At this point there was a huge momentum shift -- as Kriwinsky seemed to realize he was not out of his league after all- and Murphy started wrestling not to lose. The final score was Murphy hanging on for a 10-9 win. Kriwinsky later knocked off Boyd 5-4 to serve notice that his match with Murphy was not an aberration. However, he lost for third against Skonieczny (who Boyd had pinned). 135 -- Upper Perkiomen junior Zack Kemmerer, who has yet to place higher than fifth in the Pennsylvania State Tournament, knocked off three former Ohio state champions en route to the title. First, he knocked off Shawn Harris of St.Edward's with a late takedown in a 3-1 bout that was probably his toughest of the tournament. He then handled Pat McLemore by a score of 9-4. In the finals, he scored the only two takedowns in a 5-3 win over Kevin Lipp, the NHSCA Juniors Nationals champion. Junior National Freestyle All-American Max Shanaman was upset by Brian Martin of Montini and then beaten by McLemore. He then avenged his loss to Martin for fifth. Harris seemed to have shot his energy in his war with Kemmerer and was eliminated in the next round. 140 -- Outstanding Wrestler Matt Dunn was perhaps the biggest story of the tournament. Dunn first rallied to defeat Cadet National Freestyle champion Mario Mason in overtime in a superb quarterfinal bout. After defeating Matt Lerer in the semis, he was pitted against three-time state champion Lance Palmer of St. Ed's. This was probably the best bout of the finals. Dunn led 3-0 going into the third period after a Palmer attempt at a granby-type maneuver landed him on his back. Palmer quickly took Dunn down and turned him with his wicked power half for two back-points for a 4-3 lead. With about thirty seconds to go, Palmer broke down Dunn and threw the legs in. The match appeared to be over as Dunn was flat on his stomach and Palmer working, or at least appearing to work for a power-half. And then the ref called a stalemate. With fifteen seconds to go, Dunn was given a fresh start. Whether this was the appropriate call or not, he made the most of his opportunity, and when Palmer tried to suck him back into a crab ride, Dunn reversed him to his back for the 7-4 win. Lest you think this was a fluke, remember that Dunn was within ten seconds of beating Adam Frey at last year's Ironman. Clearly, the kid is for real. 145 -- In one of the most impressive finals performances of the night, junior Sean Nemec of Lakewood St. Edward's dominated Travis Blasco of Blair, 6-2. Nemec scored all three takedowns with solid leg attacks and yielded just two escapes. This was a reversal of their match from the previous season, when Blasco defeated Nemec in the deciding match of the Blair/St. Ed's dual meet. Freshman Andrew Clement of Christianburg parlayed his funky style to a fourth place finish. Expect to hear his name a lot in the future. 152 -- Junior Eric Medina of Blair Academy was perhaps the most impressive wrestler of the tournament. In his semifinal, he went up against Jason Welch of California, the No. 1-rated sophomore in the Rev Power Rankings in the most anticipated semifinal of the day. Welch is very good on his feet with a funky style. However, at least on this day, Medina had an answer for everything Welch attempted. Medina took Welch down numerous times in scrambles, often to his back, and was approaching a technical fall when he finally stuck Welch. In the finals, Medina powered his way to a 9-6 win over Josh Rohler which was not nearly as close as the score. Rohler looked uncharacteristically sluggish. 160 -- The final was a dead-even struggle between two of the nation's best 160's, David Rella and Mac Lewnes. Adding to the drama was the fact that the tournament was held at Rella's home school, Walsh Jesuit. In the end, Lewnes spoiled the occasion with an 8-7 victory. Three-time state champion Matt Epperly of Christianburg finished a disappointing fifth place. 171 -- Unseeded Eric Cameron of Cincinnati Moeller established himself as one of the best 171's in the nation. First, he took out No. 1-seeded Ian Heinisch by a 12-6 score. He then shellacked Andrew Hoffer of Christianburg, 10-1, in the semis. His finals match with Brian Roddy of Lakewood St. Edward was one of the best of the night. Cameron scored the go-ahead escape to take a 10-9 lead with about 20 seconds left, forcing Roddy to try an unsuccessful desperation headlock, for a 12-9 final. Probably the best kid in this weight was Rob Waltko of North Allegheny. Waltko dominated the entire bout with Roddy, only to get cradled and pinned in the third period. He then came back and took third, winning by technical fall over tough sophomore Cody Mangrum, who had lost to Roddy, 8-5, in their semifinals, for third. 189 -- The unheralded John Weakley of Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy in Ohio put on a takedown clinic against highly-rated David Green of Oviedo in the finals, prevailing 14-5. As explosive as they come, look for big things from this junior. 215 -- Junior Cody Gardner of Christianburg cemented his claim to being the best 215 in the country by demolishing all comers, including a 14-4 finals win over Garrett Goebel in the finals. Goebel is only a sophomore and has a great future ahead of him. Hwt -- Oviedo's No. 1-ranked heavyweight, Kenny Lester, did not disappoint. Lester scored four first-period falls in five matches, including the finals, en route to the title. Look for Sophomore John Hiles of Columbus St. Francis DeSales to become a household name in wrestling circles. Hiles suffered a one-point loss to Matt Richardson in the second round but stormed back for third, avenging his loss to Richardson and handling state champion/Cadet Nationals runner-up Cameron Wade by a score of 8-4. Teams -- The race between St. Ed's and Blair was tight as expected. It came down to the 152-pound final between Blair Academy's Eric Medina and Josh Rohler. A Rohler win would have meant a tie for first place. However, Medina took it to Rohler and Blair maintained their status as the No. 1 team in the nation for now. A newcomer to the status to the elite teams in the nation is ever-improving Christianburg, Virginia. A public school, Christianburg finished fourth place. They will be even better next year as they only graduate three seniors. In summary, those who are close to the Ironman should make the trip to see some of the finest high school wrestling in the nation. This year's tournament was better than ever!

CORVALLIS, Ore. -- Ty Watterson's win at heavyweight - which wasn't assured until the final seconds - gave Oregon State a 20-18 win over Oregon in Pacific-10 wrestling Friday night at Gill Coliseum. In both of OSU's duals this season, Watterson has given the Beavers (2-0 overall, 1-0 Pacific-10) the victory in the night's final match. "I think anybody that does that, they get a little more glory and they really don't deserve it," said Watterson, whose major decision at 18th-ranked Hofstra had given the Beavers an 18-17 win in November. "I know that the team has done the work to get us in there close, and hopefully I can come out with the win and win the meet for the team." The win before 1,437 fans in the Civil War, presented by Northwest Dodge Dealers, gives the Beavers a 102-24-4 record against the Ducks (0-1, 0-1) in a series dating back to 1915. OSU's next action will be Dec. 17 at the Nebraska Duals, when OSU takes on Nebraska and Dana. The Beavers won six of the night's 10 matches and got major decisions from 125-pounder Eric Stevenson and Derek Kipperberg, who was wrestling up a weight in the absence of an injured 157-pounder Tony Hook. But Friday's dual wound up being more of a nail-biter than seemed likely as the 197-pound match got underway with Oregon State leading 17-12. OSU 197-pounder Dan Pitsch, ranked 20th in the nation by Amateur Wrestling News, had jumped to a 4-1 lead over Oregon's Shaun Dee in the first period but Pitsch rolled through a takedown and Dee caught him in an awkward position, pinning him in 2:00 to put Oregon up 18-17. "We were talking about that right before - ‘All right, we're up by five, maybe we'll be up by eight or nine, and then it turned around totally and we were down by a point going into it. So that definitely was a shock to the system," Watterson said. Said OSU head coach Joe Wells: "It was a little more exciting than I anticipated." Watterson, ranked 17th in the National Wrestling Coaches Association/InterMat poll and 16th by Amateur Wrestling News, then was taken down by the Ducks' Chris Dearmon midway through the first period. Watterson responded with an escape and a takedown by the end of the period, though, and a scoreless second period kept it 3-2 in Watterson's favor going into the third period. Watterson escaped to start the period, fought off several attacks by Dearmon, and then recorded a takedown and two-point near fall in the final 20 seconds to wrap up an 8-2 win. Watterson improved to 10-3 this season. Stevenson got OSU started with an 11-3 major decision over Beau Malia, improving to 13-3 this season. OSU 133-pounder Bobby Pfennigs also missed the meet due to injury and Oregon's Justin Pearch, ranked 15th nationally by AWN, evened the team score by beating Jake Gonzales - who was wrestling up a weight - 20-7 at 133. The next three matches seemingly put Oregon State in control. OSU 141-pounder Kyle Larson beat Skyler Woods 8-2, Beaver 149-pounder Orlando Perez blanked Stewart Bogart 5-0 and Kipperberg shut out Cyle Hartzell 8-0. Kipperberg, a junior college transfer, improved to 6-2 this season as he got his first taste of the Civil War. "It's awesome," he said. "I loved every minute of it - I can't wait to get back there on their home turf and do it again." Kipperberg had known since early in the week that he might be required to move up to 157 for a night to replace Hook, who is ranked 17th nationally by both NWCA/IM and AWN. "I wanted to be as prepared as I could," Kipperberg said. "Tony Hook has huge shoes to fill - he's an unbelievable wrestler." That run of three straight wins gave OSU enough of a cushion to withstand Dee's pin and major decisions by Oregon 165-pounder Joey Bracamonte and 184-pounder Shane Webster, both of whom are ranked eighth by NWCA/IM and seventh by AWN. OSU also picked up a victory from 174-pounder Jeremy Larson. "I was really inspired by Orlando Perez and Derek Kipperberg in the first half of the meet," OSU head coach Joe Wells said. "And Eric Stevenson did a nice job getting control, he really set the tone and got everybody fired up. It could have been a close match and he dominated. "And I was very inspired by Ty. He was shooting, he took the risk and he came back and took the risk again and made it work. That's what it's about - getting better and learning from your mistake. I was pleased with how we wrestled."

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The Indiana wrestling team opened dual action on Dec. 10, hosting the Hoosier Duals at Assembly Hall on the campus of Indiana University. The Hoosiers grappled to a commanding victory over Eastern Illinois and Gardner-Webb by scores of 36-3 and 37-3, respectively, to kick off the season 2-0. "It was a great chance to get back on the mat," head coach Duane Goldman said. "I was pleased with our performance and it gets us started off on a good foot." The Hoosiers dropped only two bouts on the day to dominate the Hoosier Dual competition. As a team, IU posted three pins, three technical falls, three major decisions, one forfeit and 11 decisions. Defending national champion and top-rated Joe Dubuque remained unbeaten on the year posting two wins. Senior Dubuque first pinned Cortney Robert of Gardner-Webb in his first bout of the morning followed by a victory by forfeit against Eastern Illinois. Dubuque is 6-0 on the season. At 133, sophomore Andrae Hernandez saw action in his first dual meet bouts of his career, going 2-0 on the day. IU first-year starter posted a technical fall against Eastern Illinois' Tony Metzger, 23-6, after taking the close decision against Josh Pniewski (Gardner-Webb), 5-4. Hernandez stands at 10-2 on the season. Senior Nick Spatola (141) started slow in his first bout against A.J. Renteria (EIU) before running away with a victory, posting a technical fall, 18-2. Spatola followed the performance with a decision over Casey Carrino (Gardner-Webb), 8-2. The Cincinnati, Ohio native stands at 7-5 on the season. Junior Matt Cooper (149) fell to Daniel Elliot of Gardner-Webb, 3-2, in a close battle, but rebounded in his next match to claim a sudden victory win against Chris Smith (EIU), 4-1. On the season, Cooper holds an 8-2 record. At 157, All-American Brandon Becker continues to return to his NCAA form from a year ago, this time disposing of Eastern Illinois' Tyler Williams by fall at the 0:32 mark. The IU sophomore then took a commanding 6-0 decision over Adam Glaser (Gardner-Webb). On the season, Becker remains unbeaten with a record of 5-0. In an impressive start to the dual season, NCAA qualifier Max Dean (165) posted a fall and major decision in his two bouts of the Hoosier Duals. Against Andy Mangiaguerra (EIU), Dean cruised to a major, 22-9, victory before pinning Dave Pelsang (Gardner-Webb) at the 5:03 mark to complete the performance. Sophomore Dean improved to 7-3 on the season with the effort. Facing a tough competitor in Eastern Illinois' Kenny Robertson, sophomore Marc Bennett (174) battled to a 4-1 loss to the 11th-ranked grappler in the country. Bennett kept with one of the nations best through two periods before Robertson sealed the deal in the third. However, Bennett did not walk away empty-handed, defeating Chad Davis (Gardner-Webb) by a decision of 7-4. Bennett's performance moved him to 5-4 on the season. Starting at the 184-pound division, sophomore Justin Curran (184) went 2-0 defeating Greg Perz and Brandon Beach in consecutive bouts. Against Perz, Curran used a combination of defense and offense to overcome the Panther grappler, 10-8. In a much heated battle, Curran needed extra periods, three to be exact, to seal the win against Davis (Gardner-Webb), 7-4. Curran is currently 9-2 on the young season. Two-time NCAA qualifier Brady Richardson (197) went undefeated on the day to extend his senior-season record to 11-2. Richardson opened the day with a decision over Terron Williams of Eastern Illinois, before grappling to a major decision over Brent Blackwell (Gardner-Webb), 13-5. Rounding out the Hoosier competitors at 285, sophomore Dave Herman looked sharp against Danny Perez (EIU), taking the match 5-2. Herman seemed to just be warming up, following the low scoring bout with a major decision over Brandon Schweitzer, 12-3. Herman improved to 14-4 on the season. The Hoosiers return to action on Sunday, Dec. 18, at the FITE Duals at Rich East High School in Park Forrest, Ill. Action is set to get underway at 11 a.m.