InterMat Staff

STILLWATER, OK -- Hawkeye seniors Joe Johnston (157) and Paul Bradley (184) competed at the 40th annual NWCA All-Star Classic presented by the United States Marine Corps Monday night in Stillwater, OK. Both wrestlers lost close matches in the competition. Johnston faced Illinois' Alex Tirapelle in what was a rematch of the 2005 NCAA Championship quarterfinals. Johnston scored an escape in the second period, but Tirapelle tied the match at 1-1 with an escape of his own to start the third period. Tirapelle then scored a takedown with 1:15 left in the match. Johnston escaped to make the score 3-2, but could not score in the final minute. Tirapelle received a point for riding time to win, 4-2. Tirapelle is now 4-2 against Johnston in his career. Bradley lost to Illinois' Pete Friedl, 4-3, in the first meeting between the two. Friedl scored a takedown in the first period and an escape in the second to take a 3-0 lead. Bradley scored an escape and a takedown late in the third period, but Friedl escaped with 30 seconds left for the 4-3 win. Iowa will open the 2005-06 dual meet season Saturday at Arizona State. Match time is scheduled for 8 p.m. (CT) in Tempe, AZ. The Sun Devils are 3-1-0 on the season.

Junior Cole Konrad handed two-time defending NCAA Champion Steve Mocco of Oklahoma State his first loss since his freshman season at the NWCA/Marines All-Star Classic on Monday night in Stillwater, Okla. Konrad earned a 4-1 double overtime decision at heavyweight. Senior All-American Matt Nagel also defeated defending NCAA Champion Johny Hendricks of Oklahoma State by a 5-3 decision at 165 pounds. In double overtime, Konrad earned a penalty point after Mocco was called for hooking his hands to take a 2-1 lead and then scored a reversal with nine seconds to go to earn the 4-1 victory. Mocco has not lost a collegiate match since the championship match of his freshman year in 2002. Mocco had defeated Konrad in all three meetings a year ago, including an overtime victory in the finals at the NCAA Championships. At 165 pounds, Nagel avenged a loss to Hendricks last season with a 5-3 victory. In sudden death overtime, Nagel earned a takedown with four seconds to go to earn the win. At 133 pounds, Cal Poly's Darrell Vasquez defeated Minnesota All-American Mack Reiter by the score of 6-3. Vasquez took a 4-1 first-period lead on a pair of takedowns and held on for the win. This was the 40th annual NWCA/Marines All-Star Classic. The event attempts to pit the top two wrestlers in each weight class. The Golden Gophers begin their dual meet season on Saturday at the Northeast Duals.

STILLWATER, Okla. -- Oklahoma State hosted the 40th annual NWCA All-Star Classic presented by the United States Marine Corps on Monday night, but its wrestlers struggled in front of the home crowd of 4,854 inside Gallagher-Iba Arena. Jake RosholtThe key to success was being an underdog as the lower ranked wrestler won seven of the ten matches. Of the six matches involving the top-ranked wrestler at their weight class, Jake Rosholt was the only one to come out victorious when he defeated Joel Flaggert at 197. The night started with a heavyweight exhibition match involving two Division II wrestlers. Tervel Dlagnev of Nebraska-Kearney scored a 6-3 decision over Central Oklahoma's Josh Leadingfox. Then the All-Stars took the mat starting with Oklahoma's third-ranked Sam Hazewinkel and Michigan State's fourth-ranked Nick Simmons. Hazewinkel scored twice on shots initiated by Simmons and used it to propel him to a 6-3 victory. The round of upsets started at 133 where fourth-ranked Darrell Vasquez of Cal Poly, who sat out all of last season with an illness, used two first period takedowns to stun Minnesota's third-ranked Mack Reiter. Second-ranked Nate Gallick of Iowa State defeated Oklahoma's top-ranked Teyon Ware for the fifth time in his career. Ware's only victory over Gallick came in the NCAA finals last season. Zack Esposito was the first Cowboy to take the mat at 149. Esposito scored the first points over Michigan's Eric Tannenbaum with a reversal in the second period. However, in the third period Tannenbaum got a reverse of his own that put Esposito on his back for a four-point move and a 5-3 lead in the match. Tannenbaum added a takedown and finished off the upset with a 7-3 decision over No. 1 Esposito. Alex TirapelleIllinois' Alex Tirapelle showed why he was a two-time All-American before last season as he defeated Iowa's top-ranked Joe Johnston. Johny Hendricks was OSU's second top-ranked wrestler to hit the mat when he faced Minnesota's Matt Nagel at 165. The bout was the first overtime match of the night. Neither wrestler could score in the first sudden victory period, and both wrestlers added escapes in the tiebreaker period. Hendricks had the riding time advantage heading into the second round of overtimes, but it did not matter as Nagel scored a takedown with four seconds left in the second sudden victory period and won 5-3. Third-ranked Jake Herbert of Northwestern was one of the few matches that held to form as he controlled Nebraska's Jacob Klein from the beginning and earned an 8-5 decision. Illinois' Pete Friedl scored the first takedown on Iowa's Paul Bradley. Bradley eventually tied the match, but Friedl took the lead with an escape with 35 seconds remaining and No. 4 defeated No. 2 at 184. It was Bedlam at 197 with the top two wrestler being from Oklahoma State and Oklahoma. OSU's Rosholt jumped out to a 4-0 lead with a takedown and a reversal and coasted over OU's Flaggert. "My match was OK," Rosholt said. "I did not stay focused for the whole seven minutes. That is something I identified that I need to work on." OSU's Steve Mocco and Minnesota's Cole Konrad went at it at heavyweight in the last match of the night. The two wrestlers went into a tiebreaker, but this time the result was different then the past few times. Konrad took a one point lead when Mocco was called for locked hands, and Konrad iced it when he scored a reversal to earn a 4-1 overtime decision over top-ranked Mocco. "Tonight, OSU wrestlers had trained hard for this and did everything we could, but we didn't do it hard enough," Oklahoma State 165-pounder Hendricks said afterward. "We did not do the extras, like myself. I thought I was doing what I needed to do, but tonight showed me that even if you work hard, it doesn't mean anything. You have to work smart too. Tonight, we did not do what we needed to, but we have time to change and that's the main thing." 40th annual NWCA All-Star Classic presented by the United States Marine Corps Monday, Nov. 21, 2005 Stillwater, Okla. • Gallagher-Iba Arena Attendance: 4,854 125 -- Sam Hazewinkel, (Oklahoma) dec. Nick Simmons, (Michigan State), 6-2 133 -- Darrell Vasquez (Cal Poly) dec. Mack Reiter (Minnesota), 6-3 141 -- Nate Gallick (Iowa State) dec. Teyon Ware (Oklahoma), 3-1 149 -- Eric Tannenbaum (Michigan) dec. Zack Esposito (Oklahoma State), 7-3 157 -- Alex Tirapelle (Illinois) dec. Joe Johnston (Iowa), 4-2 165 -- Matt Nagel (Minnesota) dec. Johny Hendricks (Oklahoma State), 5-3 174 -- Jake Herbert (Northwestern) dec. Jacob Klein (Nebraska), 8-5 184 -- Pete Friedl (Illinois) dec. Paul Bradley (Iowa), 4-3 197 -- Jake Rosholt (Oklahoma State) dec. Joel Flaggert (Oklahoma), 8-3 Hwt -- Cole Konrad (Minnesota) dec. Steve Mocco (Oklahoma State), 4-1 Exhibition Match: Hwt -- Tervel Dlagnev, (Nebraska-Kearney) dec. Josh Leadingfox, (Central Oklahoma), 6-3 Related: RevWrestling.com correctly predicts seven of the 10 matches, including Darrell Vasquez over Mack Reiter and Cole Konrad over Steve Mocco upsets. Read Story.

There were few surprises at the Green - White Wrestle Offs Saturday, November 19 at Bowen Field House. Returning starters Phillip Plowman (133), Nick Conklin (141), Jermaine Thompson (149), Tony Lyssiotis (197) and Charlie Walker (285) all reclaimed their starting roles. Conklin, who is struggling early in the season, had the toughest tome of it and went into overtime to defeat junior Ahmed Joumma, who has wrestled well in open tournaments recently. True freshman Sean Clair grabbed the starting spot at 125 when he pinned fellow freshman Jack Cassedy to start the meet. At 157 newcomer Justin Brandel defeated Quinn Guernsey and at 165 redshirt freshman R. J. Pratt defeated Don Funk. In an exhibition at 174/184, Josh Lewis beat transfer John McClure. The Green edged the White squad 17-16.

OMAHA, Neb. -- Members of the Virginia Tech wrestling team competed in the Kaufman-Brand Open, hosted by The University of Nebraska Omaha, at Lee & Helene Sapp Fieldhouse all day Saturday. The one-day event is the nation's largest single-day collegiate meet. The field was broken into two brackets - an Open Division and a 20&Under Division. In the Open Division, senior David Hoffman, fresh off a title at the West Virginia Open, continued his strong start with a title at the 141-pound class by going 5-0. Brent Metcalf (149 pounds) and Steve Borja (184 pounds) both took third place for the Hokies. Mike Faust placed sixth at the heavyweight class. In the 20&Under Division, Tech's Iowa connection came through, picking up two titles and a runner-up finish. Dan LeClere took the title at 141 pounds, Jay Borschel won the 174-pound class and Joe Slaton took second at 133 pounds. Additionally, John Laboranti took fourth place at 197 pounds. 125 pounds: Tech had two wrestlers compete in the Open Division. Sophomore Justin Staylor went 0-2 on the day. He opened with a 17-2 technical fall loss to Mimi Miller of Bacone before falling 5-4 to Dustin Greenmeyer of Fort Hays State. Redshirt sophomore Christian Smith went 1-2 on the day. He opened with a 2-0, sudden victory over Chris Trampe of Augustana. He then dropped a 4-2 decision in the tiebreaker to Bryce Leonhardt of Wyoming and a 6-3 decision to Luke Magnani of Iowa. 133 pounds: The Hokies had two wrestlers compete in the 20&Under Division in this weight class. Wrestling unattached, Slaton, a freshman from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, went 5-1 to place second. He opened with a 10-3 win over Wyoming's Cory VomBaur before beating Mike Bizzle of Oklahoma State, 3-2. He then downed Shawn Tsutsumi of Dana, 5-2 and picked up a 10-2 major decision over Tony Valdez of Iowa Central. In the semifinals, he beat Max Hiatt of Northern Illinois, 5-1. In the finals, he lost to Kenny Jordan of Nebraska-Lincoln, 4-2. Representing Tech, Sheridan Moran went 2-2 on the day. He opened with an 11-3 major decision over Sonny Silva of Dana before losing a 14-3 major decision to Daniel Dennis of Iowa. He bounced back with a 6-5 win over Josh Prichard of Luther College before being eliminated with a 9-5 loss to Skylair Lappe of Chadron State. 141 pounds: Wrestling in the Open Division, Hoffman continued his early-season success at a new weight class by winning his second title in as many weeks. He opened with a 15-8 decision over Greg Romano of Nebraska Lincoln before beating Northern Iowa's Ryan Osgood, 6-2. In the quarterfinals, he beat Kyle Evans of Central Oklahoma 5-1 before downing Dustin Hinchsberger of Wartburg, 4-2, to reach the finals. There, he upset 13th-ranked Alex Tsirtis of Iowa with a 14-3 major decision in which he got back points, to claim the title. Hoffman has bumped up from 133 pounds and is now 10-0 on the year at this new weight. Not to be outdone, LeClere, a freshman from Coggin, Iowa, wrestled unattached in the 20&Under Division and won that title by going 5-0. He opened with a 3:16 fall of Bacone's Travis Kirby before beating Nick Kulseth of South Dakota State, 4-2. He then picked up a 15-5 major decision over Justin Lemmer of Chadron State. In the semifinals, he held on for a 6-5 win over Northern Iowa's Brett Robbins. In the finals, he beat Nebraska-Omaha's Sim Bribieseca, 3-1, to claim his first collegiate title. 149 pounds: Wrestling unattached in the Open Division, Metcalf didn't disappoint in his first major tournament, taking third place by going 5-1. He opened with a 14-9 decision over Cater Downing of Wyoming before beating Justin Wood of Central Oklahoma, 11-4. He then downed Ryan King of Augustana, 10-6 before falling in a controversial semifinal match. Wrestling national No. 4 and senior Ty Eustice of Iowa, he fell 2-1 after the referee gave a penalty point to Eustice because of a headgear grab by Metcalf. In the wrestlebacks, he pinned BJ Jackson of Oklahoma State at the 2:33 mark and then picked up a 9-3 win over Indiana's Andy Haukenberry to take third. 157 pounds: Wrestling unattached in the Open Division, freshman Dave Kiley went 1-2 on the day. He opened with a loss to an Independent Addison Negley, coming in a fall at 1:49. He bounced back to beat David Crowley of Oklahoma State, 7-1, but was eliminated with a 5-3 loss to John Latham of Chadron State. 165 pounds: The Hokies had two wrestlers in the 20&Under Division at this class. Mark Czarny went 0-2, falling 4-0 to Keenan McCurdy of Nebraska-Kearney and 8-3 to Zach Sikes of Central Oklahoma. Wrestling unattached, T.H. Leet went 2-2. He opened with a 6-4 loss to Kevin Wainscott of Oklahoma State before coming back to pick up a 9-1 major decision over John Terronez of Buena Vista. After beating Taylor May of Nebraksa-Kearney, 4-2, he was eliminated when he fell 3-2 to Isaac Copeland of Dana. 174 pounds: Wrestling unattached in the 20&Under Division, Borschel, a freshman from Marion, Iowa, went 5-0 to claim his first collegiate title. He opened with two pins, a 3:45 fall of Wyoming's Dan Barone and a 3:50 fall of Iowa's Jacob Neuzil. He then picked up a 4-0 win over Dan Hospodka of Nebraska-Kearney. In the semifinals, he pinned Craig Brester of Nebraska-Lincoln at the 3:58 mark before earning a 17-6 major decision in the title match over Tommy McCarty of Labette. 184 pounds: Wrestling unattached in the Open Division, Borja took third place by going 5-1. He started with a 16-4 major decision over Jon Westerby of Chadron State before beating Derek Lalowski of Northern Illinois, 6-3. After picking up a 3-0 win over KC Walsh of Boise State, he fell to Jason Lulloff of Wisconsin-Lacrosse, 9-2. In the wrestlebacks, he pinned Oklahoma State's Clay Keher at the 1:03 mark and then beat Oklahoma State's Jack Jensen 5-3 to take third. 197 pounds: Tech had two guys go in the 20&Under Division at this class. Representing Tech, Laboranti went 4-2 in placing fourth. He opened with a pin at the 1:59 mark over Chad Emery of St. Cloud State before picking up a 4-2 decision over Alec Bonander of Luther College. He then picked up a 3-1 decision over Jared Shelton of Oklahoma State. In the semifinals, he dropped a 13-3 major decision to Levi Wofford of Nebraska-Lincoln. In the wrestlebacks, he beat Tim Winker of Wisconsin-LaCrosse, 5-1, but was pinned in the third-place match by Dan Erekson of Iowa at the 1:49 mark. Wrestling unattached, Matt Woods went 2-2. He lost his opener 7-1 to Jon Jones of Iowa Central, but then won two straight. He pinned Chad Woods of St. Cloud State at the 1:16 mark and then picked up a 4-2 decision over Andy Moore of Wisconsin-LaCrosse before getting pinned by Dan Erekson of Iowa at the 1:28 mark. 285 pounds: Wrestling in the Open Division, Faust took sixth place. The redshirt senior opened with a 6-4 win over Joe Sapp of Northern Illinois before he beat Ryan Fuller of Iowa, 5-2. In the semifinals, he lost in three overtimes to No. 7 Matt Fields of Iowa, 6-5. He then lost two straight in the wrestlebacks, a 3-1 sudden victory defeat to Tervel Diagnev of Nebraska-Kearney and a medical forfeit to Jared Rosholt of Oklahoma State. Wrestling unattached in the 20&Under Division, Mark Logan went 2-2. In his opener, he fell 6-2 to Jordan Hein of Wisconsin. He bounced back to pin William Weber of Labbette at the 2:36 mark before beating Jake Madrinich of Luther College, 13-9. He was eliminated when he was pinned by John Miller of Labatte at the 1:21 mark. The Hokies will now open the dual meet portion of their schedule next week, participating in the Journeyman/Brute Northeast Collegiate Duals in Guilderland Center, N.Y., on Saturday, Nov. 26. Tech will open with No. 6 Minnesota (9:30 a.m.), followed by No. 13 Central Michigan (11:30 a.m.), American (1:30 p.m.) and No. 3 Pitt-Johnstown of Division II (5 p.m.).

OMAHA -- Sophomore Roger Kish and true freshman Dustin Schlatter claimed titles at the Kaufman- Brand Open in Omaha, Neb., on Saturday night. Kish won the 184-pound title in the open division, while Schlatter earned the 149-pound crown in the 20-and-under division. The Kaufman-Brand Open is the largest single-day collegiate wrestling event in the nation. Kish remained perfect on the season with four straight wins, including a 5-3 decision against Wisconsin-Lacrosse's Jason Lullof in the finals. Kish posted his second major decision of the tournament by an 11-1 score against John Koonns of Minnesota State- Mankato in the semifinals. Five other Golden Gophers placed in the open division. Junior Andrew Domingues is attempting to replace two-time All-American Bobbe Lowe at 125 pounds. He claimed second in the tournament after being narrowly defeated by fifth-ranked Coleman Scott of Oklahoma State in the finals, 4-2. Sophomores C.P. Schlatter (157) and Gabriel Dretsch (174) placed fourth, while sophomore Manuel Rivera (141) and redshirt freshman Travis Lang (125) placed fifth. In the 20-and-under division, Dustin Schlatter cruised to the finals with three pins, a technical fall and a major decision. He claimed the title with a 14-7 decision against Northern Iowa's Joseph Cornejo. The top recruit in the nation, Schlatter is expected to be in the starting lineup next week when Minnesota begins its dual meet season at the Northeast Duals. Minnesota also had two more true freshmen place in the 20-and-under division. Bloomington native Jayson Ness earned second place at 125 pounds after a slim 3-2 loss against Oklahoma State's Tyler Shinn in the finals. Glencoe native Nate Matousek placed fifth at 165 pounds. The Golden Gophers return to the road next week when they travel to New York for the Northeast Duals. Golden Gopher Placewinners Open Division: 1st – Roger Kish (184) 2nd - Andrew Domingues (125) 4th – C.P. Schlatter (157) 4th – Gabriel Dretsch (174) 5th – Travis Lang (125) 5th – Manuel Rivera (141) 20-and-Under Division: 1st – Dustin Schlatter (149) 2nd – Jayson Ness (125) 5th – Nate Matousek (165) )

Columbia, Mo. -- Competing at the sixth-annual Missouri Open, eight Tigers wrestled their way to the championship match of their bracket, marking the most grapplers Head Coach Brian Smith has placed in the final round since the tournament's inception. Competing unattached, three more Missouri wrestlers earned a spot in the championship match of the freshman/sophomore division. One of five Tigers to win their first Missouri Open title, junior Ben Askren (Hartland, Wis.) ran his season-opening streak to 10 wins in a row. Dominating the 174-pound bracket, Askren utilized a series of single-leg takedowns to build a 20-6 lead over Matt Winterhalter of Illinois before pinning his opponent in the third period. Continuing his impressive performance, Askren turned the tables on a takedown attempt by opponent Eric Ring of Edinboro, making his third pin of the day 3:25 into the match. Ranked No. 1 in the nation, Askren finished the day with a technical fall over No. 19 Donny Reynolds of Illinois, 25-10. A last-second takedown in the semifinal round earned Austin DeVoe (Columbus, Kan.) a spot in the championship bout, and the senior seized the opportunity. Wrestling at 125 pounds, DeVoe utilized two early takedowns to gain a lead over opponent Ricky Deubel of Edinboro, then held on to beat Deubel, 7-4, and win Missouri's first Open title of the day. After two Tigers grappled to the top of the 141-pound bracket, senior Chris McCormick (Leawood, Kan.) and sophomore Josh Wagner (Milton, Wis.) wrestled to a 0-0 stalemate in the first period. McCormick ended the second period with a takedown and two-point near fall to eventually win the title. Competing in the most exciting championship match of the day, redshirt-freshman Raymond Jordan (New Bern, N.C.) earned a 3-1 overtime victory over No. 19 Alex Clemens of Edinboro to capture the title at 184 pounds. Rounding out the list of Tigers who recorded Missouri Open championships, No. 5 Matt Pell (Luxemburg, Wis.) pinned his first two opponents of the day, then finished the tournament by beating Jarrod King by injury default. Three Tigers finished second on the day. Returning Open champion Tyler McCormick, a sophomore from Leawood, Kan., lost to Shawn Bunch of Edinboro in the final, 9-4, dropping a tough match to the No. 1 wrestler in the nation at 133 pounds. Wagner and Michael Chandler (High Ridge, Mo.), who was forced to forfeit the title bout due to injury, also placed second on the day. Competing unattached in the freshman/sophomore division, freshman John Olanowski (Virginia Beach, Va.) beat five opponents on the day to earn the title at 125 pounds. Dane Espinosa (Neosho, Mo.) took second place at 149 pounds, losing a tightly fought championship match to Chad Terry of Oklahoma by a 1-0 score. Wrestling in the final match of the all-day tournament, freshman heavyweight Mark Ellis (Peculiar, Mo.) earned the freshman/sophomore title with an escape and a takedown in the final period to beat Illinois' John Wise 4-3. In two weeks the Tigers travel to Las Vegas to compete in the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, a prestigious two-day tournament held Dec. 2-3. For complete results of the Missouri Open please visit www.mutigers.com.

The NWCA All-Star Classic, which takes place tonight at 7 p.m. (CST) in Stillwater, Oklahoma, has become the most exciting early season event in college wrestling. Before last season, the event took place at the midpoint of the season (like a traditional all-star event). Since it is considered an exhibition, the All-Star Classic does not count against the wrestler's win-loss records. All 20 wrestlers competing have been NCAA All-Americans -- with five of those wrestlers being defending NCAA champions. Two of the match-ups, 141 pounds and heavyweight, will be rematches from last year's NCAA finals. Oklahoma State, the three-time defending NCAA champions, will have the most representation with all four of their defending NCAA champions competing. Here is a match-by-match breakdown of the 40th annual All-Star Classic: 125: Sam Hazewinkel (Oklahoma) vs. Nick Simmons (Michigan State) These two wrestlers have opposite builds and opposite wrestling styles -- but similar accolades. Both are two-time All-Americans. Both are returning conference champions in power conferences. Both are U.S. National Team members (Hazwinkel is on the Greco-Roman team, Simmons is on the freestyle team). They were the top two seeds at last year's NCAA Tournament -- and both lost in the semifinals. These two met twice last season and both matches were won by Hazewinkel. Their first meeting was at the NWCA All-Star Classic, where Hazwinkel shutout Simmons, 2-0. Hazewinkel then beat Simmons again in the third-fourth place at the NCAA Tournament, 6-3. Both Simmons and Hazewinkel have tournament titles under their belts this season. Simmons won the Eastern Michigan and Michigan State Opens, while Hazewinkel won the SUNY-Brockport/Oklahoma Gold Classic. Expect to see another tight match. RevWrestling.com Prediction: Simmons decision over Hazewinkel 133: Mack Reiter (Minnesota) vs. Darrell Vasquez (Cal Poly) Interestingly enough, like the 125-pound match, these two have opposite wrestling styles, but similar accolades. Both reached the NCAA semifinals as freshmen and placed fourth (Vasquez in 2004, Reiter in 2005). Vasquez, who missed last season because of illness, is extremely slick on his feet with great leg attacks. Reiter, on the other hand, is punishing on the mat and a great pinner. Reiter, though, struggles with wrestlers who are better on their feet than him (which Vasquez is), but often times overcomes it with his aggressiveness, tough mat wrestling, and bottomless oxygen tank. Ironically, Vasquez's former high school teammate, Nathan Morgan of Oklahoma State, defeated Reiter at the Kaufman-Brand Open last season. RevWrestling.com Prediction: Vasquez decision over Reiter 141: Teyon Ware (Oklahoma) vs. Nate Gallick (Iowa State) These two wrestlers certainly know each others styles well -- as they have met five times over the past two seasons. Although Gallick leads the all-time series 4-1, Ware won when it mattered most -- in the NCAA finals. Both wrestlers, despite their impressive credentials, have very conservative styles. Both get scrutinized by wrestling fans for not opening up and defeating marginal Division I wrestlers by more points. Ware is the better athlete, but Gallick is the better technician. One takedown might be enough to win this match. RevWrestling.com Prediction: Gallick decision over Ware 149: Zack Esposito (Oklahoma State) vs. Eric Tannenbaum (Michigan) You can certainly make a case for Esposito being the best pound-for-pound wrestler in the country. The defending NCAA champion has no glaring weakness. He is quick and explosive on his feet. He can scramble with the best. He's tough on the mat. Plus, he is one of the most entertaining wrestlers in the country to watch. Tannenbaum, who placed fourth at the NCAA Tournament as a freshman, is going to be a great one … likely a future NCAA champion. Esposito defeated Tannenbaum, 7-2, in the NCAA semifinals last March. RevWrestling.com Prediction: Esposito decision over Tannenbaum 157: Alex Tirapelle (Illinois) vs. Joe Johnston (Iowa) Tirapelle, a two-time All-American, had the most disappointing performance of his career at last year's NCAA Tournament, where he failed to place as the No. 1 seed. Johnston, on the other hand, had the most impressive performance of his career at last year's NCAA Tournament, where he finished as the national runner-up -- coming through as the No. 8 seed. These two Big Ten foes met three times last season. Tirapelle won the first two meetings (9-5 and 7-5), but Johnston came back to upset Tirapelle in the NCAA quarterfinals, 6-5, on his way to the finals. These two have opposite builds. Tirapelle is long and lanky, whereas Johnston is short and stocky. If Tirapelle wrestles like he should, and conditioning doesn't play much of a factor, he should come out on top. RevWrestling.com Prediction: Tirapelle decision over Johnston 165: Johny Hendricks (Oklahoma State) vs. Matt Nagel (Minnesota) Most wrestling fans across the country would much rather see Troy Letters of Lehigh or Ryan Churella of Michigan battle Hendricks, the defending NCAA champion. But both Letters and Churella opted not to compete. Regardless, Nagel, a returning All-American for Minnesota, is still a formidable opponent who is certainly capable of wrestling with Hendricks. In fact, he proved that last December when he lost a 5-3 decision in overtime to Hendricks. Nagel has good defense, wrestles a conservative style, and doesn't take a lot of risks. Hendricks is the better technician and should win this match, but he's had letdowns in the past (losses to John Sioredas of Tennessee-Chattanooga and Jacob Klein of Nebraska last season), so an upset loss here certainly isn't out of the question. RevWrestling.com Prediction: Hendricks decision over Nagel 174: Jake Herbert (Northwestern) vs. Jacob Klein (Nebraska) Herbert had a phenomenal freshman campaign for the Wildcats. He reeled off 22-straight victories to begin the season, won a Midlands crown, finished runner-up at the Big Tens, and placed third at the NCAA's. Klein, a 2004 All-American, is moving up weight class for his senior season to test the waters at 174 pounds. Both Herbert and Klein have looked strong in the early part of this season. Herbert won the Michigan State Open in convincing fashion, while Klein dominated Ben Gilliland of Boise State, 17-5, in his 174-pound debut on Friday night. Most matches that Klein wrestles against top opponents are close, and this match should be no exception. RevWrestling.com Prediction: Herbert decision over Klein 184: Paul Bradley (Iowa) vs. Pete Friedl (Illinois) Bradley, a two-time All-American, is a wrestler who relies much more on his strength than his technical skills. Friedl, who is moving up from 174 pounds, is the polar opposite. He's very technically sound and doesn't rely on strength. Friedl has stated that his biggest asset as wrestler is his technical knowledge. If Friedl can get his offense rolling, Bradley won't be able to keep up. RevWrestling.com Prediction: Friedl decision over Bradley 197: Jake Rosholt (Oklahoma State) vs. Joel Flaggert (Oklahoma) Rosholt will be vying for his third NCAA this season. The Idaho native doesn't receive the fanfare of teammates Esposito or Mocco -- partly due to the fact that he has been known to drop a few matches prior to the NCAA Tournament. But Rosholt is a big-match wrestler. When the spotlight is on, he is at his best. Last season, Flaggert lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, but battled all the way back to become an All-American by placing fourth. Rosholt dominated Flaggert in their only meeting last season -- coming away with a 14-4 major decision. RevWrestling.com Prediction: Rosholt major decision over Flaggert Hwt: Steve Mocco (Oklahoma State) vs. Cole Konrad (Minnesota) These two probably know each other's styles better than they know their own styles. Mocco and Konrad met three times last season -- and all three matches were won by Mocco in overtime. The two met again at the World Team Trials last June in Ames, Iowa, where Mocco won another barnburner. There's no question that Konrad is every bit as skilled as Mocco, but he has come up just short in every meeting. In May, Konrad defeated former World champion Alexis Rodriguez of Cuba to win a Pan American Games gold medal, which should give him added confidence this season. RevWrestling.com Prediction: Konrad decision over Mocco LiveSportsVideo.com will web cast the NWCA 40th Annual All-Star Classic presented by the United States Marine Corps. To order the event, click here.

OMAHA, Neb. -- Oklahoma State opened the wrestling season by winning three individual titles at the Kaufman/Brand Open on Saturday night in Omaha, Neb. In the Open Division, Coleman Scott and Nathan Morgan both won four matches to claim the tournament title. Scott defeated Minnesota's Andrew Domingues, 4-2, to win at 125, while Nathan Morgan took down Central Oklahoma's Earl Jones, 3-2, in the 133-pound final. Kevin Ward defeated Minnesota's eighth-ranked CP Schlatter, 4-3, to advance to the semifinals at 157 where he met nemesis Joe Johnston of Iowa. Ward dropped an 8-3 decision to Johnston and finished third after defeating Schlatter in the third-place match. Brandon Mason lost early to Iowa State's David Bertolino, but wrestled back through the consolation bracket to defeat Bertolino and Minnesota's 14th-ranked Gabe Dretsch to claim third-place. Clay Kehrer eliminated teammate Rusty Blackmon at 184 and finished fifth. Jack Jensen lost to Virginia Tech's Steve Borja in the third-place match and finished in fourth-place. Jake Rosholt advanced to the championship match and defaulted in the finals to finish in second-place. Jake's brother Jared defeated Virginia Tech's Mike Faust for fifth-place in the heavyweight bracket. Also placing in the tournament for the Cowboys were Daniel Frishkorn and B.J. Jackson who both finished in sixth-place at 141 and 149, respectively. In the 20 & Under Division, Tyler Shinn recorded a fall and a major decision on his way to the title at 125 where he defeated Minnesota's Jayson Ness, 3-2. Mike Bizzle posted a 5-2 record at 133, but fell one victory short of placing. Kevin Wainscott recorded two falls at 165 and finished fourth after losing to Nebraska-Omaha's Ross Taplin in the third-place match. Zack Esposito, Johny Hendricks and Steve Mocco all took the weekend off as they prepare to wrestle the best wrestler in their weight class in the 40th annual NWCA All-Star Classic presented by the Unites States Marine Corps on Monday night in Gallagher-Iba Arena. The first match is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

STILLWATER, Okla. -- The National Wrestling Coaches Association has announced the lineups for the 40th annual NWCA All-Star Classic presented by the United States Marine Corps to be held inside Oklahoma State's Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater, Okla. on Nov. 21. Twenty All-Americans will be wrestling, including five defending national champions. Two weight classes will have a rematch of the 2005 national title match. Host Oklahoma State will be represented by its four returning champions. Oklahoma will send three wrestlers to Stillwater to compete in the event as well. Oklahoma's two-time All-American Sam Hazewinkel will meet Michigan State's Nick Simmons. This is a rematch of the consolation final that Hazewinkel won at the 2005 NCAA Championships. Hazewinkel defeated Simmons, 2-0, in last year's All-Star Classic. In a rematch of last year's national title match at 141, two-time national champion Teyon Ware of Oklahoma will meet Big 12 rival and two-time Big 12 champion Nate Gallick of Iowa State. OSU's defending national champion at 149, Zack Esposito, will square off with Michigan's Eric Tannenbaum. Esposito defeated Tannenbaum in the NCAA semifinals last season. Johny Hendricks is the second Cowboy to take the mat. Hendricks, a two-time All-American and defending national champion at 165, will face Minnesota's Matt Nagel, who is coming off of a sixth-place finish last year. It will be Bedlam at 197 when OSU's two-time national champion Jake Rosholt will meet OU's Joel Flaggert. Rosholt won his second national title last season, while Flaggert went on to earn his first All-America honor with a fourth-place finish. Rosholt won their only meeting last season with a major decision in a dual back in December. Steve Mocco will be the last Oklahoma State wrestler to trot out onto the mat when he faces Minnesota's Cole Konrad in a rematch of last year's national title match. Mocco beat Konrad three times last season, all in overtime. At 133, Minnesota's Mack Reiter will square off against Darrell Vasquez of Cal Poly. Reiter finished fourth last season, while Vazquez took the year off due to an illness. Vasquez finished sixth at the 2004 NCAA Championships. Returning national runner-up Joe Johnston of Iowa will meet Illinois' two-time All-American Alex Tirapelle. Johnston defeated Tirapelle, two-time Big Ten champion, in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament. Tirapelle is the only wrestler in the classic who did not place in the 2005 NCAA Tournament. Jacob Klein of Nebraska will take the mat at 174 after wrestling at 165 last season. Klein will face Northwestern's Jake Herbert. Herbert is coming off of a third-place finish at the NCAA Championships. Paul Bradley of Iowa will take the mat against Illinois' Pete Friedl. Bradley finished fifth at the 2005 NCAA Championships, while Friedl is bumping up a weight after he finished fourth at 174. Central Oklahoma's Josh Leadingfox will take on Nebraska-Kearney's Tervel Diagnev in a traditional exhibition match. The honorary coaches for the event are OSU's own John Smith, Northwestern's Tim Czyewski, Dana College's Steve Costanzo and Labette Community College's Joe Renfro.

MADISON, Wis. -- The No 15 Wisconsin wrestling team (3-0-0, 1-0-0 Big Ten Conference) upset No. 12 Penn State (3-1-0, 0-1-0 Big Ten) in both teams' Big Ten opener. Penn State jumped out to a 9-0 lead, but the Badgers answered, winning five of the last seven bouts to win the match, 19-15. The win marks the first time UW has beaten the Nittany Lions since the 2001-02 season. "I think our young guys really showed a lot of poise today, good things happened for us and we stepped up when we needed to," said head coach Barry Davis. "The team has been really dedicated and focused all season, both in the workout room and in competition, its nice to see it pay off." The bout began at 174 lbs. with Badger tri-captain Kelly Flaherty (Big Lake, Minn.) falling to James Yonushonis, 5-3. No. 10 Flaherty tied the match at 3-3 at the end of the second period, but Yonushonis earned a stalling point followed by an escape in the third, to earn the win. Penn State earned two more victories at the 184 lbs. and 197 lbs. weight classes. UW's Matt Maciag (Sussex, N.J.) fell to Neil Bretz, 11-5 at 184 lbs. Dallas Herbst (Winneconne, Wis.) almost upset No. 6 Phil Davis, but was unable to hang on in the tiebreaker, losing 8-7 at 197 lbs. The momentum shifted in the heavyweight match up, as Kyle Massey (Champlin, Minn.) pinned Penn State's Joel Edwards at 4:11. At the end of the first, Massey and Edwards were tied at 2-2, both earning points from takedowns. A little over half way into the second, Massey gained control over No. 19 Edwards, pinning him at 4: 11, for Massey's fifth pin of the season. With the win the Badgers were on the board, but still trailed 9-6. Collin Cudd quickly changed that, with his four-point major decision victory over Brad Pataky at 125 lbs. A River Falls, Wis., native Cudd jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first and never looked back, winning the match 13-1. Wisconsin now led 10-9. However, the Nittany Lions roared back, taking the next two matches and regaining the lead. The Badgers' Zach Tanelli (Millburn, N.J.) was unable to hang on against Jake Strayer at 133 lbs., losing 7-5. Penn State's No. 16 DeWitt Driscoll then defeated Tony Turner (Spring Green, Wis.) at 141 lbs., 5-0. With the Badgers down 15-10, tri-captain Tyler Turner (Spring Valley, Wis.) upset No. 14 James Woodall in sudden victory overtime to put the dual within reach. No. 17 Turner trailed 4-1 at the end of the first, but was able to tie the match with a take down in the third, followed by a takedown in overtime to win 8-6. No. 15 Craig Henning, of Chippewa Falls, Wis., followed suit with an exciting win over No. 10 Nathan Galloway at 157 lbs. Henning, a sophomore, upset Galloway, 5-3 in the second tiebreaker round. The bout was tied at one apiece going into overtime, where neither wrestler scored. In the first tiebreaker both men scored reversals, leaving the match tied at 3-3. After another scoreless sudden victory period, Henning notched another reversal in the second tiebreaker. Galloway couldn't answer, giving Henning the 5-3 victory. With the Badger win, UW took the lead 16-15, with one match remaining; No. 20 Jake Donar sealed the win after downing PSU's Phil Bomberger at 165 lbs. Donar and Bomberger were tied at the end of the second, but with two takedowns, a two-point near fall and riding time the Badger prevailed, winning 11-5. The victory secured the Badgers' first Big Ten victory, 19-15. Wisconsin has the week off before heading the Cliff Keen Invite in Las Vegas, Dec. 2-3. Last season four Badgers placed at the tournament while the team finished ninth overall. Check uwbadgers.com for the latest updates.

STROUDSBURG, Pa. -- Cain Velasquez won the heavyweight division and Patrick Pitsch finished second at 165 pounds to pace the No. 10 Arizona State University wrestling team at the 2005 East Stroudsburg Open Saturday in Stroudsburg, Pa. The tournament, which did not record team scores, featured numerous East Coast teams, including competitors from Penn State, Lehigh, Lock Haven and North Carolina. Velasquez marched through the tournament with a perfect 5-0 record on the day and defeated Jake Lininger (Shippensburg) in the finals after Lininger took an injury default. Velasquez won three bouts by major decision and another by fall en route to his first tournament title of the season. Pitsch and Ryan Bader (197) also placed in the tournament with Pitsch reaching the finals of the 165 division before taking a medical forfeit to finish second. Pitsch won his first two bouts by major decision and his next three by decision to reach the finals. Bader opened the tournament with a win by fall and then by decision before injury forfeiting his final three bouts for a sixth-place finish. Also competing for the Sun Devils on the day were Jeremy Mendoza (2-2 at 125), Adam Hickey (2-2 at 133), Pat Payne (1-2 at 149), Kevin Gaughan (2-2 at 157), Jamie Robbins (3-2 at 174), Alex Pavlenko (1-2 at 174) and Jason Trulson (3-2 at 184). After their first two weeks of action took place on the road, the Sun Devils will open their home slate Saturday, Nov. 26, when they play host to No. 5 Iowa for a 6 p.m. dual at Wells Fargo Arena.

OMAHA, NE -- Hawkeye senior Ty Eustice (149) and freshman Ryan Morningstar (157) were Iowa's two individual champions at the 2005 Kaufman-Brand Open in Omaha, NE. Iowa sent 26 competitors to Saturday's tournament, which featured 650 wrestlers from 42 teams, making it the nation's largest single-day collegiate tournament. It was Eustice's first competition of the season, while Morningstar placed third at last week's Spartan Open in Dubuque. Eustice scored a major decision and four decisions en route to his 149-pound open division title, improving to 5-0 on the season and 88-26 in his career. Morningstar scored two pins, a technical fall and two decisions on his way to the 20-and-under division title at 157. He is now 9-1 on the season. Also placing for Iowa in the open division were sophomore Alex Tsirtsis (141-2nd), senior Joe Johnston (157-2nd), junior Eric Luedke (165-3rd), senior Cole Pape (165-4th) and sophomore Matt Fields (Hwt.-2nd). Placing for the Hawkeyes in the 20-and-under division were freshmen Thomas Magnani (125-5th), Daniel Dennis (133-5th), Jacob Neuzil (174-5th) and Dan Erekson (197-3rd), and redshirt freshman Michael Bucklin (Hwt.-6th). Johnston (157) and senior Paul Bradley (184) are scheduled to face two Illinois opponents at Monday's 40th annual NWCA All-Star Classic in Stillwater, OK. The meet, presented by the United States Marine Corps, will start at 7 p.m. (CT) at Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater, OK. Johnston is set to face Alex Tirapelle, while Bradley is set to wrestle Pete Friedl. Johnston has a 2-3 career mark against Tirapelle, scoring his most recent win (6-5) in the quarterfinals of the 2005 NCA Championships. It will be the first meeting between Bradley and Friedl. Bradley competed in the 2004 event, losing a 3-2 decision to West Virginia's Greg Jones. The Hawkeyes will open the 2005-06 dual meet season Saturday at Arizona State (3-1). Match time is scheduled for 8 p.m. (CT). OPEN DIVISION IOWA PLACEWINNERS 141 - First Place - David Hoffman (Virginia Tech) maj. dec. Alex Tsirtsis (Iowa), 14-3 149 - First Place - Ty Eustice (Iowa) dec. Mike Grimes (N. Illinois), 3-2 157 - First Place - Trent Paulson (Iowa St.) dec. Joe Johnston (Iowa), 4-0 165 - Third Place - Eric Luedke (Iowa) dec. Cole Pape (Iowa), 5-4 Hwt. - First Place - Les Sigman (Neb.-Omaha) dec. Matt Fields (Iowa), 9-2 20-AND-UNDER DIVISON IOWA PLACEWINNERS 125 - Fifth Place - Thomas Magnani (Iowa) dec. Kyle Russell (Wisconsin), 11-8 133 - Fifth Place - Daniel Dennis (Iowa) dec. Max Hiatt (N. Illinois), 6-1 157 - First Place - Ryan Morningstar (Iowa) dec. Joe Ellenberger (Neb.-Kearney), 4-3 174 - Fifth Place - Jacob Neuzil (Iowa) dec. Josh Zabel (Wis.-LaCrosse), 9-2 197 - Third Place - Dan Erekson (Iowa) pinned Johny Laboranti, 1:49 Hwt. - Fifth Place - Jordan Hein (Wisconsin) dec. Michael Bucklin (Iowa), 8-6

One of the more anticipated potential match-ups at this year's Fullerton Open featured two 125-pound sophomore standouts: Chad Mendes of Cal Poly and Tanner Gardner of Stanford. The bout did materialize last night in the finals and didn't disappoint. Gardner, who redshirted last year, had looked impressive while wrestling in open tournaments, while Mendes performed well a weight class up, filling in at 133 once All-American Darrell Vasquez was forced to sit out the season due to illness. But with Vasquez back in the lineup this year and Gardner no longer redshirting, the two crossed paths. Chad Mendes of Cal Poly claimed the title at 125 pounds by defeating Tanner Gardner of Stanford (photo by John Sachs).Mendes struck first with an opening period takedown, followed by a Gardner escape. In the second stanza, Gardner went up 4-2 with a mid-period takedown of his own, only to see Mendes cut the lead to 4-3 with an escape. As the period was winding down, Mendes got in on another shot and scored a tying point when Gardner used an illegal scissors lock to defend. Mendes retook the lead in the third 5-4 with an escape, but and rather than just hold on, Mendes scored a second takedown to increase his advantage to 7-4. Gardner did escape, but the match ended 7-5. Although the match was the first time the two had met in college competition, the two faced each other in the 2002 NHSCA Senior Nationals (also won my Mendes). "He's improved a lot since then." Said Mendes. "I'm happy about the win. I feel great." When asked about dropping to 125 after a season at 133 (where he won two matches at the NCAA Tournament), he said, "It's been a hard cut, but I've been doing it right and that's what makes the difference." Cal Poly head coach, John Azevedo concurred and praised Mendes' discipline with regard to his weight. "He's going a great job and when you do it right, you're not going to feel drained." The finals featured a number of other exciting matches. At 157, Sean Reilly of Cal State Fullerton won the title on his home mat with a pin following a high amplitude throw in the first period. Mat skills proved useful to Cal Poly's Ryan Halsey, who grinded out a hard fought 1-0 win Tyler Bernacchi of UC Davis. Halsey rode Bernacchi the entire second period (the tournament did NOT keep riding time) and then escaped early in the third for the only scoring in the bout. Matt Monteiro of Cal Poly pinned C.B. Dolloway to win the 197-pound title (photo by John Sachs).At 197, Matt Monteiro of Cal Poly scored a first period fall, but not after being initially taken down by C.B. Dolloway of Arizona State (who won this tournament last year at 184). Heavyweight Tyrell Blanche of Menlo College (listed as a 197-pounder on their Web site) found himself undersized against the massive Cody Parker of Fresno State (a transfer from Oregon). However, Blanche used his amazing speed to score three takedowns and win 6-2. A number of finals match did not take place as wrestlers left to catch planes before the (late evening) finals. Additionally, a number of placement matches featured double defaults as wrestlers from the same school elected not to face each other. The 141 pound bracket (the largest in the field with 47 entrants) wrestled only the fifth/sixth place match and had double defaults for first, third and seventh. But that isn't to say that the bracket lacked action. In the quarterfinals, number one seed Steve Esparza of Cal Poly found himself down 6-2 to Fresno State's Garrett Spooner entering the third period. Esparza rallied with two takedowns to tie the match 7-7 and rather than try and ride out to send the match into overtime, he went for a turn and won in regulation 10-7. In the semis, Esparza ran into Cal Davis's Derek Moore (up from 133 last year) who won the bout with exceptional mat wrestling, turning Esparza in the second for three nearfall points and then getting a reversal late in the third. All American Brian Stith of Arizona State (sixth last year at the NCAAs) was the No. 1 seed at 157, won his first two matches, but then injury defaulted in the third round. Aforementioned 133-pound All American Darrell Vasquez of Cal Poly (fourth at the 2004 NCAAs) sat the competition out in order to rest for his appearance in Monday night's All Star Classic meet, where he'll meet Mack Reiter of Minnesota (4th at the 2005 NCAAs). About holding Vasquez, Azevedo said "It wasn't a tough decision. We didn't want him to go through the grind of this tournament." With regard to Vasquez's chances in the match, teammate Mendes, who faced Reiter in the quarters of last year's NCAAs (won by Reiter 8-3) said, "I think Darrell has a good shot. I wrestle with him every day and he's amazing." Fullerton Open Final Results: 125 -- Chad Mendes (SLO) dec. Tanner Gardiner (Stan), 7-5 133 -- Tommy Vargas (CSU Bak) dec. Omar Gaitan (UCD), 7-2 141 -- Derek Moore (UCD) and Jeff Bristol (UCD), double default 149 -- Anthony Baza (CSU Bak) dec. Jeff Owens (SLO), 6-3 157 -- Shawn Reilly (CSF) pinned Kyle Bickford (Menlo), 2:26 165 -- Brian Busby (CSU Bak) by default over Frank Richmond (UCD) 174 -- Ryan Budd (Titan WC) by default over Ken Cook (UCD) 184 -- Ryan Hasley (SLO) dec. Tyler Bernacchi (UCD), 1-0 197 -- Matt Montiero (SLO) pinned C B Dolloway (unatt), 0:54 Hwt -- Tyrell Blanche (Menlo) dec. Cody Parker (FSU), 6-2

MINNEAPOLIS -- Minnesota All-Americans Matt Nagel and Cole Konrad claimed titles at the Auggie Open on Saturday on the campus of Augsburg College. The duo, along with Mack Reiter, will next travel to Stillwater, Okla., for the NWCA/Marines All-Star Classic on Monday night. Nagel went 3-0 in the 165 pound bracket and won the title with a 9-5 decision against Augsburg's Ryan Valek. Nagel pinned the Auggies' Brandon Klukow in 3:24 in his first match and then advanced to the finals with a 6-5 decision against Dubuque's Cole Williams. Konrad had little trouble in the heavyweight bracket as he won the title by default against Augsburg's Andrew Neumann. Konrad needed just 45 seconds to pin St. John's Jason Finley in his first match. He then posted a technical fall over Tim Johnson in the semifinals. In Monday's all-star exhibition, Nagel will face defending NCAA Champion Johny Hendricks of Oklahoma State, while Konrad will meet two-time champion Steve Mocco of Oklahoma State in a rematch of last year's NCAA Finals. The Classic will be aired tape- delay on College Sports Television on Wednesday.

EAST STROUDSBURG -- East Stroudsburg University's Nate Nauroth finished second at the 39th annual ESU Open, Saturday at Koehler Fieldhouse. More than 450 wrestlers participated in the event which featured 11 hours of wrestling on 10 mats. The University of North Carolina's Spencer Nadalski finished third at heavyweight and won the pin award with six falls in 7:12. Matt Kocher, wrestling unattached out of the University of Pittsburgh, was the Outstanding Wrestler after winning at 157. Nauroth, a 133-pounder, pinned Gabe Mastrangelo of Gloucester County Community College in 4:54 then scored a 16-1 technical fall over Jared Brown. He advanced to the quarterfinals with a 5-2 victory over Bryan Heller and moved into the semifinals by beating Darren Murray 6-3. Nauroth edged Matthew Delorenzo of Columbia 3-2 in the semifinals but lost top Robbie Preston of Harvard in the finals, 9-7. Dave Sullivan, an ESU freshman wrestling unattached, also placed, finishing 7th at 174. Sullivan beat John Heleniak 7-2 in the opening round then stopped Hake Beitz of Montclair 11-1. He moved into the quarterfinals with a 2-1 win over Harvard's Joe Bechold but lost to Mike Patrovich of Hofstra, 18-8 in the quarters. Patrovich won the weight class and Sullivan took seventh with a 7-2 win over Joe Bechtold of Harvard. No team scores were kept but Hofstra crowned three champs, Chris Vondruska at 165, Patrovich at 174 and Joe Rovelli at 184. Penn State's Tom Haas won 125, Preston of Harvard won 133, Sean Markey of The Citadel won 141, Jordan Leen, unattached, won 149, Kocher won 157, Corey Jacoby of Shippensburg won at 197 and Arizona State's Cain Velasquez was the heavyweight winner.

ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- The Navy wrestling team won six of 10 titles and had 23 placewinners to cruise to its second straight Navy Classic team championship on Saturday afternoon in Annapolis. The Mids outscored second-place West Virginia by 67.5 points, 151-83.5, for their 14th title in the 28 years of the event. Navy won at 125, 133, 149, 174, 197 and heavyweight. Navy also earned four second-place and four third-place finishes. "The good guys won and top to bottom, we performed well in a lot of weight classes," said Navy head coach Bruce Burnett. "Our depth was very good today and we had some upsets, which was also good to see. We are still making some technical mistakes, but the younger guys are getting better and that is the encouraging thing." Navy's first title came from senior Mike Kohler (Annapolis, Md.) at 125 pounds. Kohler went 4-0 on the day in his first competition of the year, defeating Rutgers' Ryan Jablonski in the finals, 5-3. Kohler won two matches by decision, one by major decision and one by fall. Also at 125 pounds, freshman Caleb Levee (Mandeville, La.) finished third, recording a 3-1 record including a 8-6 overtime victory over teammate Alex Usztics (Dauphin, Pa.) in the consolation finals. At 133 pounds, junior Brad Canterbury (Blue Bell, Pa.) won his first Navy Classic title with a pin over Davidson's Jim Avola in 5:23 in the finals. Canterbury won his quarterfinal-round match over Davidson's Patrick Coman, 13-0, then slipped by George Mason's Will Powars, 4-3, in the semifinals. Junior John Cox (Grand Haven, Mich.) dominated the 149-pound weight class for his second straight title, pinning West Virginia's Larry Hall in the finals in 2:28. Cox won one match by major decision and one by decision, before earning his third pin of the year. Cox improved to 12-2 on the season. At 174 pounds, Matt Stolpinski (Westfield, Mass.) went 4-0 to run his record to 12-2 on the season, defeating West Virginia's Kurt Brenner in the finals, 5-3, after cruising in his first three matches. He defeated Duquesne's Mark Himes, an NCAA qualifier a year ago, 9-1, in the second round and McDaniel's Andrew Winfield, who is ranked eighth in NCAA Division III, 11-5, to advance to the finals. At 197 pounds, Navy's Antonio Miranda (Eugene, Ore.) was an upset winner. Miranda upset second-seeded Jared Villers of West Virginia in the quarterfinals, 7-6, routed Rutgers' Karim Mahmoud, 15-7, in the semifinals, and defeated Navy freshman Tyler Moyer (Bremerton, Wash.) in the finals, 6-4. Lastly, at heavyweight, ninth-ranked Tanner Garrett (Tulsa, Okla.) pushed his record to 12-0 with four wins on the day and his second straight Navy Classic title. Garrett won his first three matches by major decisions, before defeating teammate Ed Prendergast (St. Louis, Mo.) in the finals, 8-4. Garrett's career record now stands at 83-28, moving him into 17th place on the school's all-time wins list. "Cox, Stolpinski and Garrett looked very strong today, and Kohler and Miranda scoring upset wins was very encouraging," said Burnett. "We are just really pleased with the outcome. We recognize the mistakes we made today and are going to do what it takes to get better. It was a very good day for this program." Navy's second-place finishes included John Jarred (Kansas City, Mo.) at 157 pounds, who lost to top ten-ranked Matt Lebe of West Virginia, 6-3, in the finals. The loss was Jarred's first of the year after opening the 2005-06 campaign winning his first 12 matches. Chris Pogue (Chesapeake, Va.) finished second at 184 pounds, losing to Rutgers' ninth-ranked 184-pounder Rudy Medini, 3-2, in the finals. Also finishing second were Moyer and Prendergast. Navy will be off for two weeks, before heading to Piscataway, N.J., on Dec. 3, for its first EIWA Conference dual meet, against Rutgers. The following day, Navy will compete in the Penn State Open.

ITHACA, N.Y. - The Big Red wrestling team kicked off the season by playing host to the Body Bar Invitational at Newman Arena on Saturday. Cornell took the team championship, outscoring second-place Oregon State by 42.5 points, finishing at 138. Troy Nickerson (125), Mike Mormile (133), Dustin Manotti (157), Luke Hogle (174), Joe Mazzurco (184) and Jerry Rinaldi (197) all took the title in their respective weight brackets. Cornell was the only squad to have multiple first-place finishers. Steve Anceravage had an impressive run through the 165 pound bracket, advancing to the championship bout before falling to Pitt's Justin Nestor. Joey Hooker, the fourth seed in the same bracket, took third place after losing to Nestor in the semi-finals and then defeating Slippery Rock's Jason Cardillo. Josh Arnone also took home a third-place finish in the 184 pound bracket. In all, the Big Red had 11 wrestlers finish in the top five of their brackets. Oregon State finished second in the 11-team field with a final score of 95.5. The Beavers finished with three runners-up and two third-place finishers. Kent State, Purdue and Pitt rounded out the top five. The Big Red will take a short break from competition before heading to Las Vegas, Nev., to compete in the Las Vegas Invitational. At last year's Las Vegas Invite, the Big Red took fifth place with two individual titles.

OMAHA -- Three-time defending national champion Les Sigman's heavyweight title highlighted the Mavericks' performance as the nation's largest single-day collegiate wrestling tournament came to an end Saturday night at the Kaufman-Brand Open at Sapp Fieldhouse on the UNO campus. Over 700 wrestlers from 41 teams competed in open and a 20 and under divisions. Also taking home a championship for UNO was 197-pound freshman Jacob Marrs in the 20 and under division. Top-ranked Sigman defeated Iowa's Matt Field, ranked seventh in the NWCA preseason poll, 9-2 to take home the title. Sigman recorded falls in his first two matches and a technical fall in the semifinal to be named the outstanding wrestler in the open division. Marrs topped Nebraska-Lincoln's Levi Wofford 8-4 to win his title. Oklahoma State's Tyler Shinn was named the outstanding wrestler in the under 20 division with a championship at 125 pounds. Awards for most falls went to Carson-Newman's Chuck Robinson in the 20 and under division and Husker Mike Rowe (133) in the open division. Robinson pinned five wrestlers in 3:46 and Rowe earned three pins in 10:16. UNO freshman Cody Garcia finished fourth in the 125-pound U-20 division with wins over Division I opponents Cory Fish (Boise State) and Kyle Ruschell (Wisconsin). Maverick 141-pound freshman Yasiim Bribieseca finished second in the open division and freshman Ross Taplin finished third. The No. 1 Mavericks will next compete in the Northern Iowa Open December 3.

MADISON, Wis. -- The No. 15 Wisconsin wrestling team defeated Lock Haven, 45-3, in the season's second team dual. Five pins highlighted the non-conference match-up Saturday in Lock Haven, Pa. Wisconsin improved to 2-0 while Lock Haven dropped to 2-2. The dual started at the 133 lbs. weight class with redshirt freshman Zach Tanelli (Millburn, N.J.) earning a major decision over Casey Moore, 14-2. Senior Tony Turner (Spring Valley, Wis.) followed up with another major decision (11-1) over Clint Shirk at 141 lbs. to put the Badgers head 8-0. At 149 lbs., No. 17 Tyler Turner (Spring Valley, Wis.) battled two periods against the higher ranked No. 13 Joshua Medina before starting down in the third to score an escape and then takedown and win by decision, 3-0. At 157 lbs., No. 15 Craig Henning (Chippewa Falls, Wis.) pinned Seth Martin in 4:13. At 165, No. 20 Jake Donar (Cuba City, Wis.) scored three two-point near falls before time ran out for a major decision over Brock Jardine, 9-0. Wisconsin marked pins in the next four bouts. No. 10 Kelly Flaherty (Big Lake, Minn.) turned a 6-2 deficit around in the second period with two three-point near falls to lead 11-6 after two and finished the job pinning Derrick Morgan in 5:36. At 184 lbs., Matt Maciag (Sussex, N.J.) pinned his man in 3:31. At 197 lbs., redshirt freshman Dallas Herbst (Winneconne, Wis.) made fast work of Troy Charles pinning him in under a minute (0:56). At heavyweight, Kyle Massey (Champlin, Minn.) just missed the minute mark pinning Tim Meyers in 1:06. Wrapping up the dual, No. 17 Collin Cudd (River Falls, Wis.) narrowly missed a win with a 5-2 loss to No. 18 Obenson Blanc. Wisconsin wrestles again Sunday in its first Big Ten Conference match-up vs. Penn State in University Park, Pa. The first bout is set to begin at noon.

Frank Richmond pinned Risto Marttinen of Cal State Fullerton 1:16 into the 165-pound match for the key victory in UC Davis' 25-9 Pac-10 wrestling victory Friday afternoon in Titan Gym. Davis evened its record at 1-1 overall and is 1-0 in the Pac-10 while Fullerton fell to 0-2 and 0-1. After spotting the Aggies the first four bouts, Fullerton had the momentum after decisions by Morgan Atkinson at 149 and Shawn Reilly at 157. But Richmond racked up a quick 6 team points to the delight of the vocal wrestlers in attendance from his alma mater, Kennedy High of La Palma, who were part of a crowd of about 1,500 on High School Wrestlers Day. In simultaneous bouts, Menlo College defeated Embry-Riddle, 19-16, in an NAIA battle while Santa Ana College easily handled Fresno City College, 34-6 in a south-north battle of community college powers.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan wrestling team set its 2005-06 starting rotation at the annual Maize and Blue Intrasquad on Friday (Nov. 18) at Cliff Keen Arena. After preliminary matches were held in practice throughout the preceding week, the intrasquad featured the final round of wrestleoffs at eight different weight classes. A pair of new U-M starters emerged from the intrasquad meet as sophomore/freshmen Steve Luke (Massillon, Ohio/Perry HS) and Tyrel Todd (Bozeman, Mont./Bozeman HS) each swept his respective series at 157 and 194 pounds. Luke struck quickly in his final bout against junior/sophomore Jeff Marsh (Dexter, Mich./Dexter HS), scoring a takedown just 20 seconds into the opening frame to take the lead for good. Marsh knotted the score at 2-2 with a pair of escapes, but Luke regained the advantage with an early escape in the third frame, giving him the final 3-2 edge. Todd used a balanced attack against junior/sophomore Omar Maktabi (Iowa City, Iowa/West HS), scoring a takedown early in the first period and adding another with just 10 seconds remaining in the final frame. The Wolverine freshman also registered 2:15 in riding time to gain an extra point and the 6-2 victory. The final round of wrestleoffs left one weight class unresolved as the 197-pound series between fifth-year senior Willie Breyer (Oxford, Mich./Oxford HS), the returning starter, and sophomore/freshman Casey White (Commerce, Mich./Walled Lake Central HS) is locked up at 1-1. White needed extra time to even the series in this evening's final round, holding Breyer without an escape in the second tiebreaker to claim a 3-2 win. The two Wolverines prepared to square again after a 30-minute break, but Breyer was unable to compete due to injury. The starting job will be determined in a final wrestleoff during the next week. The meet opened and closed at the 125-pound weight class as both wrestleoff matches between junior Jim Shutich (Rockford, Mich./Rockford HS) and freshman Michael Watts (Riverton, Utah/Riverton HS) were contested. Shutich won both matches by slim margins, using a third-period reversal each time to come from behind and win 4-3 and 4-2. Senior/junior Mark Moos (Lorain, Ohio/St. Edward HS) shut out freshman Justin Chrzanowski (Metamora, Mich./Lapeer West HS) 5-0 at 133 pounds on the strength of an early takedown and second-period reversal. Moos earned 1:11 in riding time after holding the advantage for most of the opening frame. Returning junior/sophomore All-Americans Josh Churella (Northville, Mich./Novi HS) and Eric Tannenbaum (Naperville, Mich./North HS) won handily at 141 and 149 pounds, respectively, to resume their starting roles. Churella scored six takedowns against junior/sophomore Brad Cusumano (Utica, Mich./Utica HS) and added 3:40 in riding time to earn a 14-4 major decision victory. Tannenbaum registered a pair of first-period takedowns and added another in the second en route to an 8-2 decision over freshman Braden L'Amoreaux (Clarkston, Mich./Clarkston HS). Rounding out the evening's matches at 174 pounds, senior/junior Nick Roy (Wall, N.J./Wall HS) tallied a 9-5 decision against sophomore/freshman Cody Waters (Adrian, Mich./Adrian HS) behind four takedowns, three of which came in the first period. Michigan will kick off the season next Saturday (Nov. 26) in a Big Ten Conference dual against Penn State in State College, Pa. The meet is slated for a 1 p.m. start at Rec Hall.

LINCOLN -- The 17th-ranked Nebraska wrestling team notched its 11th-straight season-opening victory with a 27-9 win over Boise State Friday night at the NU Coliseum. The Huskers won seven of the ten matches in the dual, including four bonus-point victories. NU head coach Mark Manning was pleased with what he saw from the Huskers. "I like the enthusiasm we showed tonight," Manning said. "I thought our guys were a little excited to get in front of the crowd." After losing the first match of the dual, NU put the contest away with three straight bonus-point wins. The streak started with an impressive varsity debut by 157-pound redshirt freshman wrestler Chris Oliver. Oliver defeated Johnny Nunez by fall with 21 seconds left in the second period. Marc Harwood followed with a 13-4 major decision victory over Boise State's Lex Case. Harwood showed his dominance in the match early by jumping out to a 9-3 lead in the first three minutes of the match. Jacob Klein also notched a major decision victory at 174 pound. The fifth-ranked Klein defeated Ben Gilliland, 17-5. While Harwood got off to a fast start in his match, Klein finished his match strong, outscoring Gilliland 10-2 in the final two minutes of the match. "Klein was focused and ready to go for the season," Manning said. "He had good intensity tonight." With a 14-3 lead, NU suffered its second setback of the night at 184 pounds, but followed with three straight wins. Third-ranked B.J. Padden began his senior season with a 2-1overtime win over Casey Phelps. The match was tied at one after Padden's second period escape was answered by Phelps in the third. After a scoreless sudden victory period, Padden was able to ride Phelps for 30 seconds and then notch an escape 12 seconds into the tiebreaker period. Heavyweight Jon May gave Nebraska its second straight overtime win with a 3-1 triumph over Andy Patrick. May took Patrick down with eight seconds to go in the sudden victory period to clinch the victory and give the Huskers a 20-6 lead. In his varsity debut, redshirt freshman Paul Donahoe clinched the dual for Nebraska with an 18-8 major decision win over Cory Fish. In the final four minutes of the match, Donahoe outscored Fish 12-4. After eighth-ranked Scott Jorgensen won for Boise State at 133 pounds, Dominick Moyer closed the dual for NU with an 8-1 victory over Jordan Brock. Moyer ran off the last seven points of the match. Next up for Nebraska is the Kaufman-Brand Open Saturday at Sapp Fieldhouse in Omaha, Neb., starting at 9 a.m.

NORMAN, Okla. -- This weekend the Sooners travel to Columbia, Mo., to compete in the teams sixth Missouri Open on Sunday Nov. 20 "This is an outstanding tournament for our wrestlers to be competing in because of the level of talent that will be at the event," said head coach Jack Spates. The event is scheduled to take place in the Hearnes Center on the campus of the University of Missouri. This will be the Sooners second open tournament of the season after taking the team title last weekend at the SUNY-Brockport/Oklahoma Gold Classic. "Wes Roberts will be making his season debut which is very exciting for Wes and the entire team," Continued Spates. Jarrod King and Shane Vernon are also becoming better every week so this gives them a chance to improve as well." Also Competing this weekend will be Eastern Illinois, Edinboro, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri and Old Dominion. Results will be updated once an hour on Missouri's athletic website www.mutigers.com. Last year the Sooners placed nine wrestlers along with five individual champions in the Missouri Open. Sam Hazewinkel (125), Teyon Ware (141), Matt Storniolo (149), Austin David (197) and Jake Hager (HWT) won individual championships in their respective weight classes. The Sooners will be returning home next week to host the 35th annual Oklahoma Open on Thanksgiving weekend.

MADISON, Wis. -- The No. 16 Wisconsin wrestling team heads to Pennsylvania for two dual meets this weekend. The Badgers will face Lock Haven on Saturday, Nov. 19, followed by the first Big Ten Conference match of the season against No. 8 Penn State on Sunday, Nov. 20. Wrestling is set for noon on both days. UW is 8-2 all-time against Lock Haven and last defeated the Eagles in 2003, 28-15. Last season LHU finished 6-8 overall and were 3-3 in conference action. Against Penn State, the Badgers are 4-10 all-time. Last facing the Nittany Lions during the 2003-04 season, UW fell, 24-15 at the UW Field House. PSU placed 23rd at the 2005 NCAA Championships and finished 10-10 overall, 3-5 in Big Ten action. On Sunday, Nov. 13 both Lock Haven and Penn State competed at the Pennsylvania State Duals Tournament, hosted by PSU. The Nittany Lions won the tournament in exciting fashion, upsetting then-No. 8 Lehigh University, 18-17. Lock Haven placed third, going 2-1 on the day. Wisconsin will bring 13 wrestlers to Pennsylvania, two of which are undefeated this season. Redshirt freshman Zach Tanelli (Millburn, N.J.) is 4-0 at 133 lbs., while Kyle Massey, from Champlin, Minn. is 5-0 at heavyweight. Collin Cudd (River Falls, Wis.) hopes to improve on their 4-1 records this season. Cudd will compete at 125 lbs. At 141 lbs. Wisconsin will bring Ed Gutnik and Tony Turner, both seniors on the squad. Gutnik, out of Iselin, N.J., is 3-2 this year, placing fourth at the Pointer Open. A native of Spring Valley Wis., Turner finished second at the Dubuque Open going 4-1 on the day. Joining his brother is junior captain Tyler Turner (Spring Valley, Wis.), who will wrestle at 149 lbs. Sophomore Craig Henning, of Chippewa Falls, Wis., will wrestle at 157 lbs. Jake Donar (Cuba City, Wis.) and Dallas Herbst (Winneconne, Wis.) are traveling as well, competing at 164 lbs., and 197 lbs., respectively. Fellow captain, Kelly Flaherty will compete at 174 lbs. Matt Maciag (Sussex, N.J.) will also make the trip wrestling at 184 lbs. Penn State boasts ranked wrestlers at eight of the 10 weights: At 133 lbs. Jake Strayer is ranked 16th; DeWitt Driscoll at is 16th at 141 lbs.; James Woodall is No. 8 at 149 lbs.; Nathan Galloway is No. 10 at 157 lbs.; James Yonushonis is 17th at 174 lbs.; Eric Bradley holds the top spot at 184 lbs.; Phil Davis is fifth at 197 lbs. and Joel Edwards is 11th at heavyweight. Lock Haven also has wrestlers named in the most recent individual rankings. At 125 lbs., Obe Blanc is ranked 17th in the polls, while Joshua A. Medina is No. 16 at 149 lbs. and Seth Martin is No. 20 in the 157 lbs. weight class. Results from both Lock Haven and Penn State can be found on uwbadgers.com. Live stats for Lock Haven and Penn State can be accessed by clicking the names.