InterMat Staff

(photo courtesy of Mark Lundy; LutteLens.com) Friday 02/11 South Dakota State DEF Northern Colorado 29-9 Iowa State DEF Northern Iowa 16-15 North Dakota State DEF Little Rock 30-9 Wyoming DEF Air Force 21-17 Saturday 02/12 Missouri DEF Arizona State 19-14 West Virginia DEF Utah Valley 21-16 Iowa DEF Oklahoma State 23-9 Sunday 02/13 Air Force DEF CSU Bakersfield 25-9 Cal Poly DEF Air Force 27-18 South Dakota State DEF Little Rock 43-3 North Dakota State DEF Northern Colorado 22-13 Iowa State knocks off Northern Iowa What a dual! This one lived up to the hype and then some. It ultimately all came down to one major decision for 197 lber Yonger Bastida being the difference and giving Iowa State the one-point dual win over Northern Iowa. Missouri beats Arizona State Missouri seems to be on a bit of a roll after back-to-back wins over ranked opponents. Last week it was Oklahoma State and this week it was Arizona State; two teams that both won trophies at the NCAA tournament last year. Have they turned a corner after taking some hits early in the season? We'll know a lot more this week after they wrestle Iowa State on Wednesday.

2021 NCAA champion AJ Ferrari (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Today, on his weekly coaches show on OSU Max, Oklahoma State head coach John Smith confirmed that 2021 NCAA champion AJ Ferrari would miss the remainder of the 2021-22 season due to injury. Two weeks ago, Ferrari and OSU cross country All-American Isai Rodriguez were injured as Ferrari was passing a vehicle on a two-lane highway. At the time, Ferrari's condition was listed as "fair", and there was hope that he would return this year. Smith also indicated that Ferrari would have surgery with the goal of returning for the 2022-23 season. There will be more information as archived audio of coach Smith's interview becomes available.

Rutgers All-American Sebastian Rivera (top) (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) We've only got one week left in the college wrestling season, so it's time to revisit our Hodge Trophy standings. Each week, for the last month, little-by-little wrestlers have dropped from the ranks of the unbeaten, basically eliminating themselves from the Hodge Trophy discussion. While an unbeaten record isn't the “be-all, end-all,” you have to go back to Brent Metcalf (Iowa) in 2007-08 to find a Hodge Trophy winner without a perfect mark. With the kind of competition expected for the award this season, having a loss along the way is probably a deal-breaker. Before we meet the candidates, revisit the actual Hodge criteria: 1. Record 2. Number of Pins 3. Dominance 4. Past Credentials 5. Quality of Competition 6. Sportsmanship/Citizenship 7. Heart So, as we consider the criteria for the award and the voting tendencies of past Hodge races, we present the top-seven list of 2021-22 Hodge Trophy candidates. 7) David Carr (Iowa State) - 16-0; 69% Bonus Points, 4 falls; 4 techs The returning 157 lb national champion is looking as good as ever, with a bonus point rate that is slightly higher than in 2021, when he was a finalist for the award. His fall number has already matched his total from last season. Carr is on a 47-match winning streak with one more regular-season bout looming against Missouri on Wednesday. Barring a loss between now and the NCAA Tournament, Carr will surely go into nationals as the #1 seed, something that was different from a year ago. Then he was the third seed. Either way, he'll likely have to contend with two-time Big Ten champion Ryan Deakin (Northwestern), who is responsible for Carr's only loss of his collegiate career. Though it's totally coincidental and has no bearing on the award or voting, no 157 lber has ever won the Hodge. 6) Carter Starocci (Penn State) - 14-0; 71% Bonus Points; 2 falls; 5 techs Once again, we have another returning champion who is currently undefeated in Carter Starocci. What Starocci has going for him is the star power atop the 174 lb weight class. He avenged a loss to Michael Kemerer (Iowa) in the 2021 Big Ten finals, by downing Kemerer in the NCAA title match. A few weeks ago, Starocci held on by the slimmest of margins to get by Kemerer in tiebreakers. To win another title, Starocci will likely have to beat the Hawkeye at least once, maybe twice. Looking past Kemerer, the weight class also features a pair of past NCAA finalists in #3 Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) and #4 Hayden Hidlay (NC State). Both are currently unbeaten, though they are set to square off Sunday. Should Starocci run through this gauntlet without a loss, he should get strong consideration. He has almost tripled his bonus point from his redshirt freshman year, which was 25%. 5) Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) - 18-0; 72% Bonus Points, 5 falls; 5 techs In our last update, Yianni Diakomiahlis was curiously not included in our top-ten candidates. At the time, Diakomiahlis did not have a single fall, which is paramount for this award. Since then, Yianni has hit the Ivy League portion of his schedule, which is not as imposing at 149 lbs. He's capitalized with five falls and a tech since. What Diakomihalis has going for him is the past credentials criteria. He is the only two-time champion returning and is currently riding a 65-match winning streak. Yianni also has made a Senior World team while still active in college. Though these are incredible achievements, they typically haven't been factored in as much for past winners until their senior seasons (Dake, Stieber, Dieringer). One criterion that could work for and against Yianni is the “quality of competition.” 149 lbs isn't entirely as loaded with title contenders as some other weights. Aside from a meeting with Sammy Sasso (Ohio State), there aren't multiple title contenders like at 141, 165, 174, that make for a memorable, meatgrinder bracket. Now, the flip-side is that guys at those weights have a higher probability for a loss, which generally knocks you out of consideration. 4) Aaron Brooks (Penn State) - 14-0; 71% Bonus Points, 3 falls; 1 tech Aaron Brooks has pretty similar stats to his teammate, Carter Starocci. He'll also have to contend with a legit title contender at the Big Ten and possibly NCAA finals in Myles Amine (Michigan). Brooks last month against quality, conference competitors has been staggering. He has majored All-American's Taylor Venz (Nebraska) and John Poznanski (Rutgers), along with top-20 fixtures Kyle Cochran (Maryland) and DJ Washington (Indiana). His dominance of such high-caliber competition separates him from Starocci and others. We also have to think about PSU having multiple candidates, which could lead to a split-vote situation if Brooks, Starocci, Nick Lee, and Roman Bravo-Young all repeat as champions. 3) Keegan O'Toole (Missouri) - 16-0; 81% Bonus Points; 6 falls; 2 techs In the purest sense of the award, Keegan O'Toole may be your favorite if we did a blind resume test. Without the name and career achievements of Yianni or Gable, O'Toole may put together the most Hodge-worthy campaign of any of these contenders. O'Toole leads all of our finalists with six falls and has an 81% bonus point rate, which is excellent. Like Starocci, O'Toole has a deep weight class which could either help or hinder his chances. Getting by a potential NCAA field that includes a quarterfinal against #7 Anthony Valencia (Arizona State), combined with a semifinal against #3 Shane Griffith (Stanford)/#6 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin), before a final facing #1 Evan Wick (Cal Poly)/#4 Carson Kharchla (Ohio State)/#5 Alex Marinelli (Iowa), is quite impressive. Now there's the chance that any of them could knock off O'Toole. Until then, the Tiger should be able to pad his bonus numbers in the early rounds of the Big 12 and NCAA Championships. 2) Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) - 21-0; 86% Bonus Points, 2 falls; 11 techs Along with O'Toole, the Hodge candidate getting the most buzz surrounding his 2021-22 output is Sebastian Rivera. His bonus point percentage leads everyone on this list, not named Gable Steveson. Last year, Rivera may not have been a full-sized 141 lber and his results were good, just a little below his typical standards. In 2021-22, they have taken off. Over the course of Rivera's career, his best bonus percentage came in 2018-19, when he finished at 59%. Last season it dipped to 33%. So for Rivera to garner serious consideration for the award, he'll have to capture the title at 141 lbs. That's a tall task considering returning champ, Nick Lee (Penn State) is currently ranked number one and Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) is right behind him. Last season, Rivera dropped both contests against Lee, though one came in sudden victory. As stated earlier, it looks like Rivera is on a different level anyways. A senior, winning an elusive national title and having to go through some version of Lee/Eierman multiple times and a gaudy bonus point percentage would make plenty of voters think twice before casting votes. 1) Gable Steveson (Minnesota) - 10-0; 100% Bonus Points, 1 fall; 3 techs Nothing has changed at the top of our Hodge Trophy rankings as Gable Steveson is still number one. Steveson has finished the regular season undefeated and with bonus points in all ten of his contests. Despite the lack of matches, Steveson has wrestled the highest quality competition possible. He has wins over #3 Mason Parris (Michigan), #4 Tony Cassioppi (Iowa), #10 Lucas Davison (Northwestern), #11 Trent Hillger (Wisconsin), #12 Christian Lance (Nebraska), #13 Tate Orndorff (Ohio State). His closest match during this time was a nine-point win over Davison. As always, putting up those types of numbers at heavyweight should carry more weight (pardon the pun). The biggest positive factor for Steveson's side is his Olympic gold medal. That doesn't happen everyday in college wrestling! He also shared the trophy in 2021 with Spence Lee, which also adds to his list of “past credentials.” Like 2021, his other achievements should overshadow a lack of falls. In 2021, he only had four in 15 total matches. And that was before he had the Olympic gold on his resume.

The CIF (California) State Championship Finals (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) I spent this weekend in Macon, Georgia, at the state tournament watching as boys and girls took to the mat, giving it every single ounce of effort they could muster up. I saw tears of defeat, screams of triumph, untimely injuries and I saw hearts break, as dreams were destroyed. I had this moment of clarity sitting outside, as I watched athletes leave the arena with their heads hanging in disappointment; what matters most is not the medal, it's not even the final six minutes on the mat, but it is the journey that got you there. Some of these competitors were wrestling in their final match ever - hoping for an outcome that would solidify their dedication over the course of the last 10-12 years. They wanted to prove all of their sweat and blood, the injuries, the early morning runs, the extra lifts, the excruciating weight cuts and the commitment to training; they wanted to prove it was all worth it. In this one-man (or woman) sport, all eyes are on you, and so is the pressure. That pressure to perform during the state tournament, during your last tournament of your wrestling career, it can feel as though it weighs a thousand pounds. So many shook it off or carried it well, blowing through their opponents one by one; others fought, battled past the point of pure exhaustion and pushed themselves to their victory one match at a time until they were handed a medal to signify their job well done. So wrestler, in a sport where there can only be one winner, one champion, I realize a state tournament leaves a trail of heartbreak for so many others. If that was you, the one who didn't win, the wrestler who still hungers for a different outcome, I'm writing to remind you, you're efforts did not go unnoticed; Your commitment was not unseen. The principles this sport taught you, the character it helped you to develop, even if you don't realize yet, they are more of a reward than you know. Dedication, perseverance, discipline, self-awareness, resilience, commitment, grit and mindset - these are all necessary in life, all valued far more than a medal or state title, and they are yours because you worked for them, you earned them, you sacrificed to learn them. A medal is great; it's an achievement you should be proud of. Being a state champ, that's no small task, but neither is having the guts to get out there and wrestle, to give it all you got, to win or lose, know you gave it your all with no regrets. You see, along the way, you formed friendships that will last a lifetime; you had practices that were so hard you threw up, your coach yelled so much he was hoarse the next day, you pushed yourself so hard you didn't know it was possible - you overcame. The loss this weekend may sting for just a bit longer, but soon you can laugh, and you will for years to come, as you think back on all the ridiculous antics your teammates did, all of the predicaments you got yourself out of with a move your coach told you never to use. You will smile as you remember that final match in your high school gym, the rides home from practice with your friends blasting their favorite song, your parent's face after you pinned your opponent, your coaches voice telling you, "good job!" One day all the memories you made, the relationships you've built, those will be cherished far more than any medal that ends up in your bedroom drawer. So to those who didn't finish the way you planned, I hope you know you didn't leave that arena empty-handed. You did not waste years on a sweaty mat just to go home with shattered dreams. The journey that brought you to that final tournament, to those last few minutes on the mat, that is the prize, the real award, and I pray you cherish all it taught you.

Michigan State All-American Rayvon Foley (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Saturday's Dual Results Brown 22 Long Island 12 125 - Hunter Adrian (Brown) dec Robbie Sagaris (Long Island) 3-2 133 - Nicky Cabanillas (Brown) dec Kaelen Francois (Long Island) 5-2 141 - Tim Levine (Brown) fall Devin Matthews (Long Island) 149 - Drew Witham (Long Island) dec Blake Saito (Brown) 7-5SV 157 - Jack Bokina (Brown) dec Rhise Royster (Long Island) 8-4SV 165 - Blake Bahna (Long Island) dec AJ Corrado (Brown) 3-0 174 - Drew Clearie (Brown) maj Ryan Ferro (Long Island) 19-6 184 - James Araneo (Brown) maj James Langan (Long Island) 11-4 197 - Nunzio Crowley (Long Island) dec Cade Wilson (Brown) 4-2 285 - Tim Nagosky (Long Island) dec Lear Quinton (Brown) 6-3 Cornell 28 Binghamton 12 125 - Greg Diakomihalis (Cornell) dec Nick Curley (Binghamton) 13-9 133 - Dom LaJoie (Cornell) dec Anthony Sobotker (Binghamton) 5-2 141 - JJ Wilson (Cornell) fall Christian Gannone (Binghamton) 1:51 149 - Mike Venosa (Cornell) dec Mike Zarif (Binghamton) 4-2 157 - Hunter Richard (Cornell) tech Tyler Martin (Binghamton) 20-4 165 - Brevin Cassella (Binghamton) dec Jake Brindley (Cornell) 7-2 174 - Jacob Nolan (Binghamton) dec Andrew Berreyesa (Cornell) 6-3 184 - Jonathan Loew (Cornell) maj Cory Day (Binghamton) 12-3 197 - Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) maj Sam DePrez (Binghamton) 12-4 285 - Joe Doyle (Cornell) fall Brendan Furman (Cornell) 3:19 Harvard 24 Hofstra 19 125 - Beau Bayless (Harvard) dec Dylan Acevedo (Hofstra) 4-0 133 - Dillon Murphy (Harvard) dec Matthew Templeton (Hofstra) 3-0 141 - Michael Jaffe (Harvard) maj Justin Hoyle (Hofstra) 15-5 149 - Lukus Stricker (Harvard) fall Michael Leandrou (Hofstra) 1:57 157 - Trevor Tarsi (Harvard) maj Joe McGinty (Hofstra) 12-3 165 - Ricky Stamm (Hofstra) maj Alex Whitworth (Harvard) 11-1 174 - Joshua Kim (Harvard) maj Ericson Velasquez (Hofstra) 18-5 184 - Charles Small (Hofstra) InjDef Leo Tarantino (Havard) 197 - Trey Rogers (Hofstra) fall Luke Rada (Harvard) 1:30 285 - Zachary Knighton-Ward (Hofstra) dec Jeffrey Crooks (Harvard) 15-8 Hofstra 37 Sacred Heart 15 125 - Jacob Venezia (Sacred Heart) fall Jacob Moon (Hofstra) 3:44 133 - Anthony Petrillo (Sacred Heart) dec Matthew Templeton (Hofstra) 5-3 141 - Justin Hoyle (Hofstra) tech Chris Naegele (Sacred Heart) 18-3 149 - Michael Leandrou (Hofstra) tech William Bianchi (Sacred Heart) 18-2 157 - Joe McGinty (Hofstra) fall David Tufankiljan (Sacred Heart) 2:40 165 - Ricky Stamm (Hofstra) maj Ryan Bollentino (Sacred Heart) 16-3 174 - Joe Sacco (Sacred Heart) FFT 184 - Charles Small (Hofstra) fall Sebastian Ford (Sacred Heart) 3:19 197 - Trey Rogers (Hofstra) tech Logan Michael (Sacred Heart) 27-12 285 - Zachary Knighton-Ward (Hofstra) FFT Penn 20 Princeton 13 125 - Patrick Glory (Princeton) maj Ryan Miller (Penn) 12-2 133 - Michael Colaiocco (Penn) dec Nick Kayal (Princeton) 15-11 141 - CJ Composto (Penn) maj Danny Coles (Princeton) 17-4 149 - Carmen Ferrante (Penn) dec Lenny Merkin (Princeton) 6-4SV 157 - Quincy Monday (Princeton) dec Doug Zapf (Penn) 3-1 165 - Lucas Revano (Penn) maj Jake Marsh (Princeton) 12-4 174 - Nick Incontrera (Penn) dec Nate Dugan (Princeton) 11-4 184 - Travis Stefanik (Princeton) dec Neil Antrassian (Penn) 8-4 197 - Luke Stout (Princeton) dec Cole Urbas (Penn) 13-9 285 - Ben Goldin (Penn) dec Matt Cover (Princeton) 10-4 Virginia 30 Duke 9 125 - Patrick McCormick (Virginia) tech Ty Naquin (Duke) 18-3 133 - Brian Courtney (Virginia) dec Drake Doolittle (Duke) 8-2 141 - Dylan Cedeno (Virginia) maj Patrick Rowland (Duke) 10-1 149 - Josh Finesilver (Duke) fall Jarod Verkleeren (Virginia) 6:38 157 - Jake Keating (Virginia) dec Wade Unger (Duke) 4-1 165 - Justin McCoy (Virginia) dec Gabe Dinette (Duke) 8-3 174 - Matt Finesilver (Duke) dec Justin Phillips (Virginia) 6-0 184 - Michael Battista (Virginia) maj Vincent Baker (Duke) 20-8 197 - Jay Aiello (Virginia) tech Kaden Russell (Duke) 18-2 285 - Quinn Miller (Virginia) dec Jonah Niesenbaum (Duke) 3-1 Lehigh 21 Bucknell 12 125 - Sheldon Seymour (Lehigh) dec Brandon Seidman (Bucknell) 2-1 133 - Kurt Phipps (Bucknell) dec Satoshi Abe (Lehigh) 11-5 141 - Darren Miller (Bucknell) dec Drew Munch (Lehigh) 8-2 149 - Max Brignola (Lehigh) dec Kolby DePron (Bucknell) 6-3 157 - Nick Delp (Bucknell) dec Luca Frinzi (Lehigh) 2-0 165 - Zach Hartman (Bucknell) dec Brian Meyer (Lehigh) 10-3 174 - Jake Logan (Lehigh) dec Sam Barnes (Bucknell) 9-5 184 - AJ Burkhart (Lehigh) dec Logan Deacetis (Bucknell) 5-1 197 - JT Davis (Lehigh) dec Mason McCready (Bucknell) 8-3 285 - Jordan Wood (Lehigh) fall Luke Niemeyer (Bucknell) :57 Rutgers 31 Maryland 13 125 - Dylan Shawver (Rutgers) tech Tommy Capul (Maryland) 16-0 133 - King Sandoval (Maryland) fall Devon Britton (Rutgers) :59 141 - Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) tech Danny Bertoni (Maryland) 20-3 149 - Mike Van Brill (Rutgers) dec Michael North (Maryland) 6-0 157 - Robert Kanniard (Rutgers) maj Conner Decker (Maryland) 13-1 165 - Andrew Clark (Rutgers) tech Gaven Bell (Maryland) 16-0 174 - Dom Solis (Maryland) maj Connor O'Neill (Rutgers) 10-1 184 - Kyle Cochran (Maryland) dec John Poznanski (Rutgers) 9-4 197 - Greg Bulsak (Rutgers) fall Chase Mielnik (Maryland) 2:11 285 - Boone McDermott (Rutgers) dec Zach Schrader (Maryland) 3-1 West Virginia 21 Utah Valley 16 125 - Killian Cardinale (West Virginia) dec Taylor LaMont (Utah Valley) 3-2 133 - Haiden Drury (Utah Valley) maj Lucas Seibert (West Virginia) 14-3 141 - Ty Smith (Utah Valley) dec Caleb Rea (West Virginia) 5-1 149 - Jeffrey Boyd (West Virginia) dec Sam Edelblute (Utah Valley) 2-0 157 - Jaxon Garoutte (Utah Valley) dec Alex Hornfeck (West Virginia) 4-2 165 - Peyton Hall (West Virginia) fall Danny Snediker (Utah Valley) 2:56 174 - Dennis Robin (West Virginia) fall Kekana Fouret (Utah Valley) 2:06 184 - Jacob Armstrong (Utah Valley) dec Anthony Carman (West Virginia) 11-9 197 - Evan Bockman (Utah Valley) dec Jackson Moomau (West Virginia) 7-2 285 - Michael Wolfgram (West Virginia) dec Chase Trussell (Utah Valley) 11-4 Rider 21 George Mason 13 125 - Tyler Klinsky (Rider) dec Ben Monn (George Mason) 4-1 133 - Richie Koehler (Rider) dec Michael Rapuano (George Mason) 6-3 141 - Quinn Kinner (Rider) dec Shawn Nonaka (George Mason) 7-3 149 - Alex Madrigal (George Mason) maj Bryan Miraglia (Rider) 9-1 157 - Avery Bassett (George Mason) dec Cole McComas (Rider) 8-2 165 - Michael Wilson (Rider) dec Tyler Kocak (George Mason) 3-0 174 - Corey Connelly (Rider) dec Logan Messer (George Mason) 8-6 184 - Kyle Davis (George Mason) dec Evan Vasquez (Rider) 9-3 197 - Jon List (George Mason) dec Azeem Bell (Rider) 3-1SV 285 - David Szuba (Rider) fall Austin Stith (George Mason) 1:01 Ohio 34 SIU Edwardsville 6 125 - Oscar Sanchez (Ohio) dec Austin Macias (SIU Edwardsville) 8-1 133 - Gio DiSabato (Ohio) FFT 141 - Kyran Hagan (Ohio) FFT 149 - Alec Hagan (Ohio) dec Caleb Tyus (SIU Edwardsville) 3-1 157 - Jordan Slivka (Ohio) fall Max Kristoff (SIU Edwardsville) 5:14 165 - Cardeionte Wilson (SIU Edwardsville) dec Sean O'Dwyer (Ohio) 6-3 174 - Sal Perrine (Ohio) dec Kevin Gschwendtner (SIU Edwardsville) 9-5 184 - Zayne Lehman (Ohio) maj Sergio Villalobos (SIU Edwardsville) 11-1 197 - Carson Brewer (Ohio) dec Ryan Yarnell (SIU Edwardsville) 6-0 285 - Colton McKiernan (SIU Edwardsville) dec Jordan Greer (Ohio) 3-2 Iowa 23 Oklahoma State 9 125 - Trevor Mastrogiovanni (Oklahoma State) dec Jesse Ybarra (Iowa) 6-5 133 - Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) dec Austin DeSanto (Iowa) 5-3 141 - Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) dec Carter Young (Oklahoma State) 6-1 149 - Max Murin (Iowa) dec Kaden Gfeller (Oklahoma State) 5-2 157 - Kaleb Young (Iowa) dec Wyatt Sheets (Oklahoma State) 4-1 165 - Alex Marinelli (Iowa) dec Travis Wittlake (Oklahoma State) 3-2 174 - Michael Kemerer (Iowa) dec Dustin Plott (Oklahoma State) 6-1 184 - Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) dec Abe Assad (Iowa) 9-2 197 - Jacob Warner (Iowa) maj Gavin Stika (Oklahoma State) 11-3 285 - Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) maj Luke Surber (Oklahoma State) 9-1 Missouri 19 Arizona State 14 125 - Brandon Courtney (Arizona State) dec Noah Surtin (Missouri) 10-5 133 - Michael McGee (Arizona State) dec Connor Brown (Missouri) 8-6 141 - Ethan Turner (Missouri) dec Mykey Ramos (Arizona State) 3-1 149 - Kyle Parco (Arizona State) dec Josh Edmond (Missouri) 3-2 157 - Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) dec Jarrett Jacques (Missouri) 3-1SV 165 - Keegan O'Toole (Missouri) fall Anthony Valencia (Arizona State) 5:52 174 - Peyton Mocco (Missouri) tech Zane Coleman (Arizona State) 21-6 184 - Jeremiah Kent (Missouri) dec Josh Nummer (Arizona State) 6-2 197 - Rocky Elam (Missouri) dec Kordell Norfleet (Arizona State) 4-2 285 - Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State) dec Zach Elam (Missouri) 8-1 Sunday's Dual Results Nebraska 23 Illinois 11 125 - Jeremiah Reno (Nebraska) maj Dane Durlacher (Illinois) 10-2 133 - Lucas Byrd (Illinois) maj Dominick Serrano (Nebraska) 12-4 141 - Chad Red Jr (Nebraska) dec Dylan Duncan (Illinois) 7-1 149 - Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) dec Chrisitan Kanzler (Illinois) 6-1 157 - Peyton Robb (Nebraska) dec Joe Roberts (Illinois) 3-2 165 - Danny Braunagel (Illinois) maj Bubba Wilson (Nebraska) 12-2 174 - Mikey Labriola (Nebraska) maj DJ Shannon (Illinois) 11-3 184 - Zac Braunagel (Illinois) dec Taylor Venz (Nebraska) 12-6 197 - Eric Schultz (Nebraska) dec Matt Wroblewski (Illinois) 6-2 285 - Christian Lance (Nebraska) dec Luke Luffman (Illinois) 7-4 Michigan 24 Michigan State 13 125 - Nick Suriano (Michigan) maj Tristan Lujan (Michigan State) 14-3 133 - Rayvon Foley (Michigan State) dec Dylan Ragusin (Michigan) 7-2 141 - Stevan Micic (Michigan) dec Matt Santos (Michigan State) 10-3 149 - Kanen Storr (Michigan) dec Peyton Omania (Michigan State) 5-4 157 - Will Lewan (Michigan) dec Chase Saldate (Michigan State) 3-2 165 - Cameron Amine (Michigan) dec Caleb Fish (Michigan State) 5-1 174 - Logan Massa (Michigan) tech Nate Jimenez (Michigan State) 17-1 184 - Myles Amine (Michigan) dec Layne Malczewski (Michigan State) 8-4 197 - Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) maj Bobby Striggow (Michigan) 17-7 285 - Brad Wilton (Michigan State) fall Zachery Nemec (Michigan) 1:36 The Citadel 38 Bellarmine 3 125 - Malik Hardy (The Citadel) dec Jack Parker (Bellarmine) 11-4 133 - Jake Rotunda (The Citadel) fall Brandon Lucas (Bellarmine) 1:17 141 - Jackson Bradford (The Citadel) FFT 149 - Ethan Willis (The Citadel) dec Mitch Collica (Bellarmine) 6-1 157 - Dazjon Casto (The Citadel) tech Alex Rhine (Bellarmine) 17-1 165 - Selwyn Porter (The Citadel) dec Devan Hendricks (Bellarmine) 6-4SV 174 - Eric Beck (Bellarmine) dec Cole Burke (The Citadel) 6-1 184 - Ben Haubert (The Citadel) dec Sam Schroeder (Bellarmine) 6-3 197 - Ben Stemmet (The Citadel) dec Bryant Wilkinson (Bellarmine) 10-6 285 - Michael McAleavey (The Citadel) FFT Ohio State 34 Indiana 3 125 - Mailk Heinselman (Ohio State) maj Jacob Moran (Indiana) 10-2 133 - Brock Hudkins (Indiana) dec Dylan Koontz (Ohio State) 5-3 141 - Dylan D'Emilio (Ohio State) maj Cayden Rooks (Indiana) 10-2 149 - Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) dec Graham Rooks (Indiana) 3-1 157 - Isaac Wilcox (Ohio State) dec Jonathan Kervin (Indiana) 3-2 165 - Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) maj Kasper McIntosh (Indiana) 20-6 174 - Ethan Smith (Ohio State) maj Nick South (Indiana) 19-6 184 - Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) fall Sean Grim (Indiana) 2:25 197 - Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) dec Nick Willham (Indiana) 3-1 285 - Tate Orndorff (Ohio State) dec Jacob Bullock (Indiana) 8-3 Bloomsburg 27 Cleveland State 18 125 - Logan Heil (Cleveland State) maj Bronson Garber (Bloomsburg) 14-1 133 - Cole Rhone (Bloomsburg) dec Jake Manley (Cleveland State) 4-2 141 - Josh Mason (Bloomsburg) fall Hunter Olson (Cleveland State) 2:39 149 - Cade Balestrini (Bloomsburg) fall Joey Caprella (Cleveland State) 1:39 157 - Alex Carida (Bloomsburg) fall Ryan Granger (Cleveland State) 4:44 165 - Riley Smucker (Cleveland State) maj Trenton Harder (Bloomsburg) 16-2 174 - Anthony Rice (Cleveland State) maj Matt Benedetti (Bloomsburg) 12-3 184 - DeAndre Nassar (Cleveland State) dec Bruno Stolfi (Bloomsburg) 3-2 197 - Ben Smith (Cleveland State) maj David Tuttle (Bloomsburg) 19-7 285 - Shane Noonan (Bloomsburg) fall Daniel Bucknavich (Cleveland State) 2:42 Penn 35 Drexel 8 125 - Ryan Miller (Penn) dec Antonio Mininno (Drexel) 8-3 133 - Jaxon Maroney (Drexel) dec Kelly Dunnigan (Penn) 7-4 141 - CJ Composto (Penn) FFT 149 - Anthony Artalona (Penn) fall Tyler Williams (Drexel) 4:52 157 - Doug Zapf (Penn) dec Parker Kropman (Drexel) 8-3 165 - Lucas Revano (Penn) dec Evan Barczak (Drexel) 4-3 174 - Mickey O'Malley (Drexel) fall Nick Incontrera (Penn) 184 - Neil Antrassian (Penn) dec Bryan McLaughlin (Drexel) 15-12 197 - Cole Urbas (Penn) tech Santino Morina (Drexel) 17-2 285 - Ben Goldin (Penn) fall Liam Dietrich (Drexel) 1:22 Lock Haven 24 Edinboro 16 125 - Anthony Noto (Lock Haven) fall Chris Merlo (Edinboro) 4:26 133 - Gable Strickland (Lock Haven) dec Cameron Soda (Edinboro) 7-2 141 - Gabe Willochell (Edinboro) maj Tyler Dilley (Lock Haven) 9-1 149 - Ryan Burgos (Edinboro) fall DeShawn Farber (Lock Haven) 5:50 157 - Ben Barton (Lock Haven) tech PJ Gohn (Edinboro) 27-9 165 - Ashton Eyler (Lock Haven) maj Dylan Kohn (Edinboro) 18-4 174 - Tyler Stoltzfus (Lock Haven) dec Joey Arnold (Edinboro) 7-0 184 - Ethan Ducca (Edinboro) dec Colin Fegley (Lock Haven) 3-2 197 - Cody Mulligan (Edinboro) dec Parker McClellan (Lock Haven) 6-3 285 - Isaac Reid (Lock Haven) dec Max Millin (Edinboro) 8-1 Central MIchigan 28 Buffalo 10 125 - Brock Bergelin (Central Michigan) dec Tristan Daugherty (Buffalo) 3-0 133 - Derek Spann (Buffalo) maj Vince Perez (Central Michigan) 9-0 141 - Dresden Simon (Central Michigan) fall Ben Freeman (Buffalo) 2:51 149 - John Arceri (Buffalo) dec Corbyn Munson (Central Michigan) 8-7 157 - Johnny Lovett (Central Michigan) dec Michael Petite (Buffalo) 3-1SV 165 - Tracy Hubbard (Central Michigan) dec Noah Grover (Buffalo) 4-2 174 - Bret Fedewa (Central Michigan) dec Jay Nivison (Buffalo) 2-0 184 - Peter Acciardi (Buffalo) dec Ben Cushman (Central Michigan) 4-2 197 - Aaron Bolo (Central Michigan) maj Sam Mitchell (Buffalo) 9-0 285 - Matt Stencel (Central Michigan) fall Toby Cahill (Buffalo) 2:33 Appalachian State 19 Campbell 13 125 - Caleb Smith (Appalachian State) dec Korbin Meink (Campbell) 3-1SV 133 - Codi Russell (Appalachian State) dec Dom Zaccone (Campbell) 9-5 141 - Shannon Hanna (Campbell) dec Heath Gonyer (Appalachian State) 4-2SV 149 - Jonathan Millner (Appalachian State) dec Josh Heil (Campbell) 3-2 157 - Cody Bond (Appalachian State) maj JoJo Aragona (Campbell) 14-5 165 - Will Formato (Appalachian State) dec Troy Nation (Campbell) 7-2 174 - Thomas Flitz (Appalachian State) dec Austin Murphy (Campbell) 2-1 184 - Caleb Hopkins (Campbell) dec Barrett Blakely (Appalachian State) 5-4 197 - Chris Kober (Campbell) dec Wyatt Miller (Appalachian State) 3-1SV 285 - Taye Ghadiali (Campbell) maj Michael Burchell (Appalachian State) 15-5 Chattanooga 47 VMI 0 125 - Fabian Gutierrez (Chattanooga) fall Cam Chicella (VMI) 1:08 133 - Brayden Palmer (Chattanooga) fallPatrick Maglathlin (VMI) 0:56 141 - Franco Valdes (Chattanooga) maj Frederick Junko (VMI) 14-3 149 - Noah Castillo (Chattanooga) maj Luke Fegly (VMI) 14-2 157 - Lincoln Heck (Chattanooga) tech Seth Fillers (VMI) 16-1 165 - Andrew Nicholson (Chattanooga) maj Blake Showers (VMI) 11-2 174 - Carial Tarter (Chattanooga) dec Jon Hoover (VMI) 10-5 184 - Thomas Sell (Chattanooga) dec Maxwell Gourley (VMI) 9-2 197 - Matthew Waddell (Chattanooga) fall Tyler Mousaw (VMI) 1:51 285 - Matthias Ervin (Chattanooga) fall Josh Evans (VMI) 4:57 Chattanooga 49 Presbyterian 0 125 - Fabian Gutierrez (Chattanooga) dec Benny Gomez (Presbyterian) 5-0 133 - Brayden Palmer (Chattanooga) fall Dominic Chavez (Presbyterian) 4:32 141 - Franco Valdes (Chattanooga) fall Khalid Brinkley (Presbyterian) 2:32 149 - Noah Castillo (Chattanooga) tech Reid Stewart (Presbyterian) 21-6 157 - Lincoln Heck (Chattanooga) tech Michael Ramirez (Presbyterian) 17-2 165 - Andrew Nicholson (Chattanooga) dec Zachary Phillips (Presbyterian) 6-0 174 - Carial Tarter (Chattanooga) maj Sean Getty (Presbyterian) 15-4 184 - Thomas Sell (Chattanooga) fall David Bertrand (Presbyterian) 3:36 197 - Matthew Waddell (Chattanooga) tech Aiden Jean (Presbyterian) 20-4 285 - Matthias Ervin (Chattanooga) fall Will Pontoon (Presbyterian) 3:29 North Dakota State 22 Northern Colorado 13 125 - Jace Koelzer (Northern Colorado) maj Ryan Henningson (North Dakota State) 12-4 133 - Kellyn March (North Dakota State) dec Dyson Kunz (Northern Colorado) 10-4 141 - Andrew Alirez (Northern Colorado) dec Dylan Droegemueller (North Dakota State) 4-0 149 - Chris Sandoval (Northern Colorado) dec Gaven Sax (North Dakota State) 3-2 157 - Jared Franek (North Dakota State) maj Nathan Moore (Northern Colorado) 11-2 165 - Luke Weber (North Dakota State) tech Nick Knutson (Northern Colorado) 17-2 174 - Austin Brenner (North Dakota State) dec Damen Pape (Northern Colorado) 4-2 184 - DJ Parker (North Dakota State) maj Xavier Vasquez (Northern Colorado) 13-2 197 - Owen Pentz (North Dakota State) dec Alan Clothier (Northern Colorado) 10-3 285 - Jacob Seely (Northern Colorado) dec Michael Nelson (North Dakota State) 4-2 South Dakota State 43 Little Rock 3 125 - Tanner Jordan (South Dakota State) fall Jayden Carson (Little Rock) 4:45 133 - Gabe Tagg (South Dakota State) dec Jaylen Carson (Little Rock) 11-4 141 - Clay Carlson (South Dakota State) maj Conner Ward (Little Rock) 13-3 149 - Joey Bianchi (Little Rock) dec Daniel Kimball (South Dakota State) 7-4 157 - Kenny O'Neill (South Dakota State) dec Austin Keal (Little Rock) 2-1 165 - Tanner Cook (South Dakota State) dec Tyler Brennan (Little Rock) 7-1 174 - Cade DeVos (South Dakota State) fall Triston Wills (Little Rock) 4:56 184 - Cade King (South Dakota State) fall Tanner Mendoza (Little Rock) 1:29 197 - Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State) fall Brooks Sacharczyk (Little Rock) 1:12 285 - AJ Nevills (South Dakota State) fall Josiah Hill (Little Rock) 4:09 Cal Poly 27 Air Force 18 125 - Antonio Lorenzo (Cal Poly) dec Jared Van Vleet (Air Force) 8-2 133 - Sidney Flores (Air Force) InjDef Abe Hinrichsen (Cal Poly) 141 - Lawrence Saenz (Cal Poly) dec Cody Phippen (Air Force) 6-3 149 - Legend Lamer (Cal Poly) fall Dylan Martinez (Air Force) 2:25 157 - Giano Petrucelli (Air Force) dec Brawley Lamer (Cal Poly) 6-1 165 - Evan Wick (Cal Poly) tech Trey Brisker (Air Force) 17-1 174 - Sam Wolf (Air Force) dec Adam Kemp (Cal Poly) 3-1SV 184 - Bernie Truax (Cal Poly) InjDef Jake Thompson (Air Force) 197 - Trent Tracy (Cal Poly) maj Cole Forrester (Air Force) 10-0 285 - Wyatt Hendrickson (Air Force) fall Samuel Aguilar (Cal Poly) 2:13 Cal Poly 21 CSU Bakersfield 18 125 - Antonio Lorenzo (Cal Poly) maj Eddie Flores (CSU Bakersfield) 12-4 133 - Chance Rich (CSU Bakersfield) InjDef Abe Hinrichsen (Cal Poly) 141 - Lawrence Sanez (Cal Poly) maj Louie Ramos (CSU Bakersfield) 11-2 149 - Legend Lamer (Cal Poly) dec Josh Brown (CSU Bakersfield) 11-6 157 - Brock Rogers (CSU Bakersfield) dec Brawley Lamer (Cal Poly) 4-2 165 - Evan Wick (Cal Poly) tech Bradley Harper (CSU Bakersfield) 23-8 174 - Albert Urias (CSU Bakersfield) dec Nathan Tausch (Cal Poly) 3-2 184 - Bernie Truax (Cal Poly) tech Jacob Hansen (Cal Poly) 20-4 197 - Josh Loomer (CSU Bakersfield) dec Trent Tracy (Cal Poly) 3-2 285 - Jacob Sieder (CSU Bakersfield) dec Samuel Aguilar (Cal Poly) 7-2 Air Force 25 CSU Bakersfield 9 125 - Jared Van Vleet (Air Force) dec Eddie Flores (CSU Bakersfield) 10-3 133 - Sidney Flores (Air Force) dec Chance Rich (CSU Bakersfield) 3-2 141 - Cody Phippen (Air Force) maj Louie Ramos (CSU Bakersfield) 11-0 149 - Josh Brown (CSU Bakersfield) dec Dylan Martinez (Air Force) 4-2 157 - Giano Petrucelli (Air Force) dec Brock Rogers (CSU Bakersfield) 4-2 165 - Trey Brisker (Air Force) dec Bradley Harper (CSU Bakersfield) 7-1 174 - Albert Urias (CSU Bakersfield) dec Sam Wolf (Air Force) 8-6SV 184 - Jake Thompson (Air Force) dec Jacob Hansen (CSU Bakersfield) 4-3 197 - Josh Loomer (CSU Bakersfield) dec Cole Forrester (Air Force) 4-1 285 - Wyatt Hendrickson (Air Force) fall Jacob Sieder (CSU Bakersfield) :57 Northwestern 22 Northern Illinois 12 125 - Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern) dec Bryce West (Northern Illinois) 8-6SV 133 - Chris Cannon (Northwestern) fall Mikey Kaminsky (Northern Illinois) 4:24 141 - Frankie Tal-Shahar (Northwestern) dec Jaivon Jones (Northern Illinois) 9-5 149 - Yahya Thomas (Northwestern) maj Anthony Cheloni (Northern Illinois) 16-5 157 - Anthony Gibson (Northern Illinois) dec Trevor Chumbley (Northwestern) 5-0 165 - Izzak Olejnik (Northern Illinois) dec David Ferrante (Northwestern) 6-2 174 - Mason Kauffman (Northern Illinois) dec Troy Fisher (Northwestern) 5-4 184 - Brit Wilson (Northern Illinois) dec Jon Halvorsen (Northwestern) 6-1 197 - Andrew Davison (Northwestern) dec Tristen Gauman (Northern Illinois) 10-3 285 - Lucas Davison (Northwestern) Terrese Aaron (Northern Illinois) 2-1

Kennedy (left) and Korina Blades (photo courtesy of Jim Thrall; MatFocus.com) Saturday night, before the festivities took place at the “Bout at the Ballpark,” the Blades sisters, Kennedy and Korina, made their college decision public. They will attend Arizona State University and train with the Sunkist Kids as they pursue their international goals. The final three choices for the sisters came down to ASU, Iowa, North Central College. In the latest national rankings, released by USA Wrestling, Kennedy is rated as the third pound-for-pound high schooler in the nation, while Korina comes in at number five. Korina is the top-ranked 138 lber in the country, while Kennedy is second at 164 lbs. As of now, Arizona State does not offer women's wrestling; however, they have a large contingent of high-level women training with the Sunkist Kids and coach Mark Perry. Helen Maroulis, Kayla Miracle, and Forrest Molinari are some of the notables that currently train with the Sunkist Kids. Kennedy and Korina are from Illinois, but have spent their high school careers at Pennsylvania's Wyoming Seminary. Both sisters made the 2021 Junior World Team and came back from Ufa, Russia, with hardware. Kennedy struck gold at the 72 kg weight class, while Korina brought home bronze at 62 kg. Each has made a Cadet and Junior World Team already. As just a high school junior, Kennedy made the finals of the Olympic Team Trials, before falling to the eventual gold medalist Tamyra Mensah-Stock. The sisters have combined to win four titles in Fargo, with Kennedy capturing 16U and Junior titles in 2019, after winning 16U in 2018. Korina was a 16U champ in 2019, as well.

Iowa's Alex Marinelli faces All-American Travis Wittlake at the Bout at the Ballpark (photo courtesy of Mark Lundy; LutteLens.com) Iowa 23 Oklahoma State 9 125 - Trevor Mastrogiovanni (Oklahoma State) dec Jesse Ybarra (Iowa) 6-5 133 - Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) dec Austin DeSanto (Iowa) 5-3 141 - Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) dec Carter Young (Oklahoma State) 6-1 149 - Max Murin (Iowa) dec Kaden Gfeller (Oklahoma State) 5-2 157 - Kaleb Young (Iowa) dec Wyatt Sheets (Oklahoma State) 4-1 165 - Alex Marinelli (Iowa) dec Travis Wittlake (Oklahoma State) 3-2 174 - Michael Kemerer (Iowa) dec Dustin Plott (Oklahoma State) 6-1 184 - Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) dec Abe Assad (Iowa) 9-2 197 - Jacob Warner (Iowa) maj Gavin Stika (Oklahoma State) 11-3 285 - Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) maj Luke Surber (Oklahoma State) 9-1 Team USA Women 14 International All-Stars 5 50 kg - Victoria Anthony (USA) over Madison Parks (Canada) 10-0 53 kg - Jacarra Winchester (USA) over Dom Parrish (USA) 5-2 57 kg - Helen Maroulis (USA) over Karla Godinez Gonzalez (Canada) 8-0 62 kg - Kayla Miracle (USA) over Ana Godinez Gonzalez (Canada) 6-5 76 kg - Justina DiStasio (Canada) over Victoria Francis (USA) 7-1 Team USA Men 44 International All-Stars 1 57 kg - Thomas Gilman (USA) over Darian Cruz (Puerto Rico) 11-0 61 kg - Daton Fix (USA) over Guesseppe Rea (Ecuador) 10-0 65 kg - Joey McKenna (USA) over Kamal Begakov (Tajikistan) 10-0 70 kg - James Green (USA) over Dillon Williams (Canada) 10-0 74 kg - Jason Nolf (USA) over Mitch Finesilver (Israel) 11-0 79 kg - Jordan Burroughs (USA) over Nestor Taffur (Colombia) 11-0 86 kg - Zahid Valencia (USA) over Noel Torres (Mexico) 10-0 92 kg - Kollin Moore (USA) over Evan Ramos (Puerto Rico) 10-0 97 kg - Kyle Snyder (USA) over Zbigniew Baranowski (Poland) 12-0 125 kg - Nick Gwiazdowski (USA) over Zach Merrilll (Puerto Rico) 10-0 97 kg Greco-Roman - G'Angelo Hancock (USA) over Ahmed Hassan (Egypt) 13-3

Mitch Finesilver (left), Justina DiStasio (center), Darian Cruz(photos courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) by Richard Mann The freestyle side of this Saturday's Bout at the Ballpark event took a big hit when Iran pulled out of the event. Despite this last-minute change, the organizers were able to put together an International All-Star team in order to face off against Team USA. While the Iran match was set to feature several toss-up bouts, the American freestyle side should be heavily favored in all 10 weights against this international squad. Let's get to know the assembled team that will be facing off against the likes of Daton Fix, Jordan Burroughs and Kyle Snyder. 57 kg: Darian Cruz (Puerto Rico) Cruz was a three-time All-American for Lehigh and won the NCAA title at 125-pounds in 2017. Along the way, he scored an upset over Saturday's opponent Thomas Gilman, then of Iowa. After finishing college, Cruz made the transition to freestyle and initially represented the U.S. In 2020, he won a bronze medal at the Pan American Championships after falling to the eventual champion and U23 World champion Reineri Andreu (Cuba). Cruz attempted to qualify for the Olympic Trials, but ended up finishing fourth at the Last Chance Qualifier. This past December, he won a spot on the Puerto Rican national team and will represent the country going forward. Gilman and Cruz have wrestled multiple times on the freestyle circuit following their historic NCAA tournament match. Their most recent meeting came in 2020 on the first Nittany Lion Wrestling Club show. While Cruz held his own early, Gilman took the match over and finished with a 14-4 match-termination victory. NLWC Event 61 kg: Giusseppe Rea (Ecuador) Rea wrestled collegiately at Wilkes, where he finished with a 121-29 record and was a Division III All-American. He is currently an assistant coach for Muhlenberg. Rea represented Ecuador at both the 2021 Pan American Championships and World Championships in the 57 kg weight class. At the 2021 World Championships, he won his first match over Gamal Al-Sabri (Yemin) before falling against eventual silver medalist No. 9 Alireza Sarlak (Iran) to make the repechage. His bid for a bronze medal came up short against Aryan Tsiutryn (Belarus). Earlier this week, Rea had a dominant performance at Penn RTC's Summit 3 event. He scored a combined 27 points on the way to picking up a pair of match termination victories over Thomas Fischer (Switzerland) and Harvey Ridings (Great Britain) Penn RTC 65 kg: Kamol Begakov (Tajikistan) The Tajikistan representative finished fifth at the 2012 Cadet Asian Championship and currently trains at the Scarlet Knights Wrestling Club. In 2019, he wrestled in both the Bill Farrell and Dave Schultz tournaments. At the Schultz, he went 2-2 with victories over Ben Whitford and Earl Hall. Begakov recently tried his hand at some folkstyle as he entered the 2021 Shorty Hitchcock Memorial Open back in November. He made the finals with an impressive victory over recent Army starter Thomas Deck before coming up short against Clarion's Seth Koleno in the finals. Begakov was also in action earlier this week on the Penn RTC show. In his only bout, he scored an 11-1 victory over Valentin Damour (France). Penn RTC 70 kg: Dillon Williams (Canada) Williams is a two-time bronze medalist at the Pan American Championships for Canada. In 2020, he added another bronze at the Pan American Olympic Qualification tournament but failed to qualify the weight. Williams represented Canada at both the 2017 and 2018 editions of the U23 World Championships as well as the 2019 World Championships, but he failed to bring home a medal from either competition. Pan-American Championships 74 kg: Mitch Finesilver (Israel) Finesilver was a four-time NCAA qualifier for Duke, who finally broke through and finished fourth as a senior to become an All-American. At that tournament, he picked up victories over Parker Kropman, Cole Martin, Jared Prince, Matt Kolodzik and Pat Lugo. Finesilver then chose to represent Israel on the international scene. In 2021 he won a bronze medal at the European Championships with victories over Davud Alizalau (Belarus), Malik Amine (San Marino), and Valentin Borzin (Moldova). He also entered the 2021 World Championships, but dropped his first match against Azamat Nurykau (Belarus) and failed to medal. On Monday, Finesilver split a pair of matches on the Penn RTC show. He dropped an 8-2 match against former Missouri wrestler Joey Lavallee but defeated Iman Kang (Canada) via a 10-0 match termination victory. Penn RTC 79 kg: Nestor Taffur (Colombia) Taffur wrestled collegiately for Boston University, where he was a two-time NCAA qualifier and EIWA champion. As a senior, he finished with a 37-4 record, and he ended his career as the program's leader in wins with 119. Taffur represents Colombia on the international circuit and recently picked up a silver medal at the 2021 Pan American Championships. He faced off against Team USA's Thomas Gantt in the finals and dropped an 8-0 match. At the 2021 World Championships, Taffur won his first match over Jasmit Phulka (Canada) before falling against former world champion Khetag Tsabolov (Serbia). Taffur was also in action on the Penn RTC show as he dropped a pair of matches against Lavallee and former Virginia Tech wrestler David McFadden. Penn RTC 86 kg: Noel Torres (Mexico) In 2018 Torres became the first national champion in any sport for Newman University as he won the Division II title at 184 pounds. He finished the season with a 46-5 record, including a decision victory over Division I qualifier Keegan Moore then of Oklahoma State. He has since wrestled for Mexico on the international scene. At the 2021 Pan American Championships, he dropped his first match against David Taylor, but bounced back to defeat Juan Garcia (Colombia) to take bronze. Torres also competed at the recent World Championships. He won his first match over Mark Onguyesi (Kenya) before falling against Taimuraz Friev (Spain). 2021 Pan-American Championships 92 kg: Evan Ramos (Puerto Rico) Ramos was a two-time Division II All-American for Shippensburg who finished fourth at 197 in 2018. He won a bronze medal at the 2019 Pan American Championships after dropping his first match 11-1 against Kyle Snyder and rebounding with an 8-5 win over Canada's Jordan Steen. 2019 Pan-American Championships 97 kg Zbigniew Baranowski (Poland) Baranowski is probably most experienced member of the international team. He wrestled in his first senior-level World Championships back in 2014. In 2019, he won a silver medal at the European Championships and followed that up with another silver at the 2020 Individual World Cup. At the most recent World Championships, he defeated Erhan Yaylaci (Turkey) before being eliminated by eventual bronze medalist Osman Nurmagomedov (Azerbaijani). While Saturday's match against Snyder takes place a 97 kg, Baranowski's best results have come down at 92 kg or even 86 kg. At the Penn RTC event, Baranowski wrestled twice. He defeated Scottie Boykin via a 7-3 score and dropped a 7-0 match against Hayden Zillmer. Penn RTC 125 kg: Zach Merrill (Puerto Rico) Merrill began his college wrestling career at Cal Baptist, where he was a two-time NCWA national champion. He then transferred to Oklahoma, where he was never really able to crack the starting lineup, but he did go 38-6 in two seasons with the Sooners. As a senior in 2015, he finished second at the Reno Tournament of Champions after losing to teammate Ross Larson in the finals. Merrill tried to qualify for the Olympics through both the Pan American Olympic Qualifier and the World Qualification tournament. He came the closest at the continental event, where he finished third with wins over Angel Pacheco (Cuba) and Luis Vivenes (Venezuela). Pan-American Olympic Qualifier Women's Freestyle by Earl Smith Like the men's freestyle portion of the card, the women's card took a big hit this week when the Mongolian team backed out of the competition. Event organizers scrambled and were able to come up with a strong squad composed mainly of either Canadian or former Simon Fraser wrestlers to oppose our women's team. 50 kg - Madison Parks (Canada) Parks is a veteran that has been pushing to make the Canadian Senior team for almost a decade, before breaking through last year and making the world team. She went 1-1 in Oslo, with a fall over Miglena Selishka (Bulgaria) in the Round of 16 before falling to Emilia Vuc (Romania) in the quarters. Parks would finish seventh. In each of the last two years, Parks has competed at the Pan-American Championships, taking eighth in 2020 and fifth in 2021. She'll face American Victoria Anthony. 53 kg - Dom Parrish (USA) It will be a Final X 2019 rematch at 53 kg between Jacarra Winchester and Dom Parrish. In that series, Winchester took both bouts from Parrish (10-0 and 8-3), and went on to capture a world title just a few months later. Parrish was a two-time WCWA champion for Simon Fraser and has a ton of international experience. She has competed at the U23 World Championships on three occasions and fell in the bronze medal match in 2018. Parrish finished third at the 2020 Olympic Trials in the 53 kg weight class won by Winchester. 57 kg - Karla Godinez Gonzalez (Canada) Current Simon Fraser senior Karla Godinez Gonzalez is ranked number one in the latest NCAA women's national rankings. Recently Godinez Gonzalez captured a title at the Menlo Open without surrendering a point in four matches to maintain her unbeaten record. Last year, Godinez Gonzalez claimed silver medals at both the City of Sassari Tournament and the Yasar Dogu. In 2019, she wrestled for a bronze medal at the U23 World Championships. Godinez Gonzalez will get a significant step up in competition, from the college ranks, as 2016 Olympic Gold medalist Helen Maroulis is her opponent tonight. 62 kg - Ana Godinez Gonzalez (Canada) Perhaps the best match of this entire event could be the 62 kg clash between Ana Godinez Gonzalez and 2021 World bronze medalist Kayla Miracle. Miracle's Canadian counterpart has some hardware of her own from 2021, as she captured a gold medal at the U23 World Championships in a weight class that featured American Emma Bruntil. Godinez Gonzalez also has a Junior World bronze medal from 2019. These two have a history as they met on a standalone card last year and Miracle got her hand raised after an 8-0 win. 76 kg - Justina DiStasio (Canada) This could be the weight class where the Canadians are favored as they will send out 2018 72 kg world champion Justina DiStasio. The three-time Pan-American champion has a long track record for success, including another Senior world medal (bronze) in 2017. Injuries and the presence of 2016 Olympic champion Erica Wiebe have prevented DiStasio from having even more of an impact internationally over the last few years. DiStasio and Victoria Francis are no strangers, as Francis was in the 2017 weight class where DiStasio took world bronze. The Canadian has also won their most recent matchups. Greco-Roman 97 kg - Ahmed Hassan (Egypt) The lone Greco-Roman bout will feature 2021 World bronze medalist (that has a good sound to it) G'Angelo Hancock versus 2017 Egyptian world team member Ahmed Hassan. Since that time, Hassan has put on significant size to be able to compete with Hancock at 97 kg. That world team appearance came at 75 kg.

157 lbers Wade Unger (left) and Jake Keating (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Virginia at Duke Both teams are looking to rebound after lopsided losses last week and are coming in ready to fight. Brian Courtney had a tough loss after a great week against North Carolina and is looking to get back in the win column. The only ranked vs ranked match will also feature two wrestlers who are looking to get back on track. Josh Finesilver had a very uncharacteristic match last week and was pinned by Bryce Andonian in the first 30 seconds. Verkleeren is battling through a tough stretch in one of the toughest weight classes in the ACC. I think the two actually match up well and this should be a good match. The other match I'm keeping an eye on is at 157; Keating is coming off a huge win over Ed Scott and Wade Unger has been battling in the ACC and punched through his first conference win with an upset of Connor Brady. 125: Patrick McCormick vs. Logan Agin/Ty Naquin McCormick is coming off a loss to Jakob Camacho last week and is favored on paper over both Logan Agin and Ty Naquin-who the Blue Devils sent out for the first time last week. This match will be critical for seeding at the ACC tournament. 133: #20 Brian Courtney vs. Drake Doolittle Courtney dropped a tough one to Kai Orine last week; in a close match, Orine was able to catch him on his back for a four-count that broke the match open. Doolittle has had a rough go in the ACC so far and is looking to pick up his first win. 141: Dylan Cedeno vs. Parker Decker/Patrick Rowland Cedeno is entering the match after falling to Ryan Jack by a riding time in a great match last week. He has wrestled very well in back-to-back weeks against tough competition and is looking to get his hand raised for the first time after a long injury break. Rowland was held scoreless in an 8-0 major decision loss to Collin Gerardi last week and is also looking for his first ACC win. 149: #31 Jarod Verkleeren vs. #14 Josh Finesilver 149 in the ACC is a top-tier weight with five ranked wrestlers, including #3 Tariq Wilson and #5 Bryce Andonian. This is the marquee match of the dual and the only ranked matchup. Verkleeren had a solid start to the season, but has a 1-2 record in ACC competition with a win over Luke Kemerer and losses to Zach Sherman and Tariq Wilson. Finesilver also started the year on an impressive run, but has stumbled in ACC competition; he is 1-2 with losses to Wilson and Andonian and a sudden victory win over #17 Zach Sherman. 157: #27 Jake Keating vs. Wade Unger Keating is coming off a big upset of then #10 Ed Scott in a wild match. It was back-and-forth early, before Scott locked a cradle that Keating fought off for over a minute; Keating came back in the third to pick up a late takedown for the win. Unger has been impressive in his effort in losses to Austin O'Connor and Ed Scott before breaking through last week with a last-second takedown win over Connor Brady. Unger has been picking up steam and improving throughout the year and seems to be figuring it out at the right time. 165: #23 Justin McCoy vs. Gabe Dinette McCoy enters after losing his first match of the season last week to Thomas Bullard. He has looked great all year, but looked less aggressive and offensive last week than he is typically. He's looking to rebound against Dinette, who is 0-3 in conference with losses to Bullard, Sonny Santiago and Clayton Ulrey. 174: Justin Phillips vs. #16 Matt Finesilver Phillips came into ACC competition on a great run and won his first conference match with a pin of James Lledo before running into the buzzsaws of Hayden Hidlay and Clay Lautt to drop his last two matches. Finesilver started the year as one of the hottest wrestlers in the country, but has had a brutal stretch in ACC competition with #9 Clay Lautt, #4 Hayden Hidlay and #3 Mekhi Lewis. All the matches have been competitive and Finesilver has continued to show off his phenomenal defense throughout this run and he is looking to break this streak to get his first ACC win. 184: #25 Michael Battista vs. Vince Baker Battista started the season on an 11-1 run, including an ACC win over Gregg Harvey before losing to #18 Gavin Kane and #3 Trent Hidlay. He's looking to get back on his attack this week after struggling to get to his offense the past two matches. Baker enters at 10-14 and is winless in the ACC with losses to Kane and Hidlay as well as #10 Hunter Bolen. 197: #17 Jay Aiello vs. Kaden Russell Aiello entered ACC competition undefeated before dropping his first match to #6 Nino Bonaccorsi. He won his next bout against #31 Max Shaw by a major decision before dropping a sudden victory decision last week to #16 Isaac Trumble. He's looking to return to the win column against Baker, who enters at 13-11 on the year with ACC losses to Shaw, Trumble and #28 Dakota Howard. 285: #32 Quinn Miller vs. Jonah Niesenbaum Miller comes in at 10-6 on the year and 1-2 in the ACC with a decision win over Brandon Whitman and decision losses to Jake Slinger and #26 Tyrie Houghton. Niesenbaum is 15-8 on the year and 1-2 in the ACC with a win over Whitman and losses to Houghton and #14 Nathan Traxler. This should be a good battle to end the dual with both guys capable of some solid offense when they are in attack mode.

Columbia University's staff (photo courtesy of Tony DiMarco) Friday Duals Columbia 27 Harvard 3 125 - Joe Manchio (Columbia) dec Beau Bayless (Harvard) 3-2 133 - Angelo Rini (Columbia) dec Dillon Murphy (Harvard) 6-3 141 - Matt Kazimir (Columbia) dec Michael Jaffe (Harvard) 2-0 149 - Danny Fongaro (Columbia) maj Lukus Stricker (Harvard) 11-1 157 - Andrew Garr (Columbia) dec Trevor Tarsi (Harvard) 4-2 165 - Phil Conigliaro (Harvard) dec Josh Ogunsanya (Columbia) 5-3 174 - Nick Fine (Columbia) dec Joshua Kim (Harvard) 7-5 184 - Brian Bonino (Columbia) dec Luke Rada (Harvard) 3-1SV 197 - Sam Wustefeld (Columbia) dec Nick Marcenelle (Harvard) 3-0 285 - Dan Conley (Columbia) dec Jeffrey Crooks (Harvard) 9-2 Columbia 37 Brown 0 125 - Joe Manchio (Columbia) dec Hunter Adrian (Brown) 3-1 133 - Angelo Rini (Columbia) maj Nicky Cabanillas (Brown) 11-3 141 - Kenny Duschek (Columbia) dec Tim Levine (Brown) 6-2 149 - Danny Fongaro (Columbia) dec Blake Saito (Brown) 7-2 157 - Andrew Garr (Columbia) dec AJ Corrado (Brown) 10-3 165 - Josh Ogunsanya (Columbia) FFT 174 - Nick Fine (Columbia) FFT 184 - Brian Bonino (Columbia) dec James Araneo (Brown) 8-6 197 - Sam Wustefeld (Columbia) dec Cade Wilson (Brown) 5-1 285 - Dan Conley (Columbia) dec Lear Quinton (Brown) 7-2 Bellarmine 19 Presbyterian 18 125 - Jack Parker (Bellarmine) dec Jacob Brasseur (Presbyterian) 7-3 133 - Dominic Chavez (Presbyterian) FFT 141 - Brandon Lucas (Bellarmine) dec Khalid Brinkley (Presbyterian) 13-10 149 - Mitch Collica (Bellarmine) maj Michael Ramirez (Presbyterian) 14-4 157 - Reid Stewart (Presbyterian) dec Alex Rhine (Bellarmine) 8-4 165 - Devan Hendricks (Bellarmine) dec Zachary Phillips (Presbyterian) 4-1 174 - Eric Beck (Bellarmine) fall Bryton Goering (Presbyterian) 1:38 184 - David Bertrand (Presbyterian) dec Sam Schroeder (Bellarmine) 5-3 197 - Aiden Jean (Presbyterian) dec Bryant Wilkinson (Bellarmine) 9-5 285 - Will Pontoon (Presbyterian) dec Charlie Cadell (Bellarmine) 3-1 Kent State 25 Bloomsburg 16 125 - Jake Ferri (Kent State) maj Bronson Garber (Bloomsburg) 16-3 133 - Cole Rhone (Bloomsburg) FFT 141 - Josh Mason (Bloomsburg) fall Louis Newell (Kent State) 1:53 149 - Kody Komara (Kent State) dec Cade Balestrini (Bloomsburg) 2-0 157 - Alex Carida (Bloomsburg) maj Robert Pryhocki (Kent State) 14-2 165 - Brady Chrisman (Kent State) maj Trenton Harder (Bloomsburg) 18-6 174 - Michael Ferree (Kent State) maj Matt Benedetti (Bloomsburg) 17-6 184 - Colin McCracken (Kent State) maj Bruno Stolfi (Bloomsburg) 14-2 197 - Tyler Bates (Kent State) dec David Tuttle (Bloomsburg) 4-0 285 - Jacob Cover (Kent State) dec Shane Noonan (Bloomsburg) 11-6 Michigan 37 Indiana 3 125 - Nick Suriano (Michigan) fall Jacob Moran (Indiana) 5:34 133 - Dylan Ragusin (Michigan) dec Brock Hudkins (Indiana) 6-3 141 - Stevan Micic (Michigan) dec Cayden Rooks (Indiana) 10-4 149 - Graham Rooks (Indiana) dec Kanen Storr (Michigan) 4-1 157 - Will Lewan (Michigan) dec Derek Gilcher (Indiana) 3-2 165 - Cameron Amine (Michigan) dec Kasper McIntosh (Indiana) 3-2 174 - Logan Massa (Michigan) tech Nick South (Indiana) 20-5 184 - Myles Amine (Michigan) tech Sean Grim (Indiana) 22-3 197 - Patrick Brucki (Michigan) dec Nick Willham (Indiana) 3-1SV 285 - Mason Parris (Michigan) fall Jacob Bullock (Indiana) :25 Princeton 20 Lehigh 16 125 - Patrick Glory (Princeton) dec Sheldon Seymour (Lehigh) 9-4 133 - Nick Kayal (Princeton) InjDef Malyke Hines (Lehigh) 141 - Connor McGonagle (Lehigh) dec Danny Coles (Princeton) 3-2 149 - Max Brignola (Lehigh) dec Marshall Keller (Princeton) 3-1 157 - Quincy Monday (Princeton) maj Luca Frinzi (Lehigh) 12-3 165 - Brian Meyer (Lehigh) dec Jake Marsh (Princeton) 5-3 174 - Jake Logan (Lehigh) dec Nate Dugan (Princeton) 7-0 184 - Travis Stefanik (Princeton) maj AJ Burkhart (Lehigh) 15-4 197 - Luke Stout (Princeton) dec JT Davis (Lehigh) 6-3 285 - Jordan Wood (Lehigh) maj Matt Cover (Princeton) 12-1 Lock Haven 32 Cleveland State 6 125 - Anthony Noto (Lock Haven) tech Logan Heil (Cleveland State) 21-5 133 - Jacob Manley (Cleveland State) dec Gable Strickland (Lock Haven) 6-3 141 - Tyler Dilley (Lock Haven) maj Hunter Olson (Cleveland State) 11-0 149 - Connor Eck (Lock Haven) dec Joey Caprella (Cleveland State) 8-2 157 - Ben Barton (Lock Haven) tech Ryan Granger (Cleveland State) 19-3 165 - Ashton Eyler (Lock Haven) dec Riley Smucker (Cleveland State) 10-3 174 - Tyler Stoltzfus (Lock Haven) fall Anthony Rice (Cleveland State) 5:45 184 - Colin Fegley (Lock Haven) dec DeAndre Nassar (Cleveland State) 3-2 197 - Ben Smith (Cleveland State) maj Parker McClellan (Lock Haven) 8-0 285 - Isaac Reid (Lock Haven) dec Daniel Bucknavich (Cleveland State) 5-3 Northwestern 24 Michigan State 16 125 - Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern) dec Tristan Lujan (Michigan State) 4-0 133 - Rayvon Foley (Michigan State) dec Chris Cannon (Northwestern) 6-2 141 - Frankie Tal-Shahar (Northwestern) dec Matt Santos (Michigan State) 3-1SV 149 - Yahya Thomas (Northwestern) dec Peyton Omania (Michigan State) 5-3 157 - Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) fall Chase Saldate (Michigan State) 4:33 165 - Caleb Fish (Michigan State) fall David Ferrante (Northwestern) 2:20 174 - Troy Fisher (Northwestern) maj Nate Jimenez (Michigan State) 12-4 184 - Layne Malczewski (Michigan State) maj Jack Jessen (Northwestern) 15-2 197 - Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) dec Andrew Davison (Northwestern) 4-3 285 - Lucas Davison (Northwestern) tech Brad Wilton (Michigan State) 19-4 Franklin & Marshall 29 Millersville 10 125 - Gio Diaz (Franklin & Marshall) maj Bryce Beatty (Millersville) 13-2 133 - Devin Flannery (Millersville) dec Pat Phillips (Franklin & Marshall) 6-4SV 141 - Wil Gil (Franklin & Marshall) fall Danny Capozzoli (Millersville) :48 149 - Cristiaan Dailey (Franklin & Marshall) maj Elijah Tuckey (Millersville) 14-4 157 - Jonathan Parrilla (Millersville) dec Chase McCollum (Franklin & Marshall) 9-2 165 - Brandon Connor (Millersville) maj Anthony Micci (Franklin & Marshall) 14-4 174 - John Crawford (Franklin & Marshall) dec Guy DeLeonardis (Millersville) 5-0 184 - James Conway (Franklin & Marshall) dec Anthony Giampietro (Millersville) 11-8 197 - Mike Waszen (Franklin & Marshall) tech Daniel Pereira (Millersville) 18-0 285 - Vincenzo Pelusi (Franklin & Marshall) maj Jordan Espinosa (Millersville) 11-1 NC State 26 Pittsburgh 9 125 - Jakob Camacho (NC State) maj Gage Curry (Pittsburgh) 15-6 133 - Micky Phillippi (Pittsburgh) dec Kai Orine (NC State) 4-1 141 - Cole Matthews (Pittsburgh) dec Ryan Jack (NC State) 3-1 149 - Tariq Wilson (NC State) dec Dan Mancini (Pittsburgh) 6-3 157 - Ed Scott (NC State) dec Elijah Cleary (Pittsburgh) 6-2 165 - Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) dec Thomas Bullard (NC State) 4-3 174 - Hayden Hidlay (NC State) tech Hunter Kernan (Pittsburgh) 18-0 184 - Trent Hidlay (NC State) tech Gregg Harvey (Pittsburgh) 22-7 197 - Isaac Trumble (NC State) dec Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) 2-0 285 - Tyrie Houghton (NC State) dec Jake Slinger (Pittsburgh) 9-4 Rider 16 Clarion 15 125 - Tyler Klinsky (Rider) dec Joey Fischer (Clarion) 6-4 133 - Richie Koehler (Rider) dec Mason Prinkey (Clarion) 8-1 141 - Quinn Kinner (Rider) dec Seth Koleno (Clarion) 4-2 149 - Brent Moore (Clarion) dec Bryan Miraglia (Rider) 5-2 157 - Kyle Shickel (Clarion) dec Cole McComas (Rider) 8-2 165 - Michael Wilson (Rider) dec Kolby Ho (Clarion) 9-2 174 - John Worthing (Clarion) dec Shane Reitsma (Rider) 7-3 184 - Max Wohlabaugh (Clarion) dec Evan Vasquez (Rider) 9-2 197 - Matt Correnti (Rider) maj Brett Wittmann (Clarion) 11-3 285 - Tyler Bagoly (Clarion) dec David Szuba (Rider) 8-6 Gardner-Webb 32 The Citadel 9 125 - Aedyn Concepcion (Gardner-Webb) dec Malik Hardy (The Citadel) 6-1 133 - Todd Carter (Gardner-Webb) fall Jake Rotunda (The Citadel) 6:42 141 - Trevon Majette (Gardner-Webb) maj Jackson Bradford (The Citadel) 15-2 149 - Brandon Bright (Gardner-Webb) dec Ethan Willis (The Citadel) 6-5 157 - Dazjon Casto (The Citadel) dec Taylor Parks (Gardner-Webb) 7-4 165 - Rodrick Mosley (Gardner-Webb) dec Selwyn Porter (The Citadel) 3-1SV 174 - Evan Schenk (Gardner-Webb) dec Ben Haubert (The Citadel) 8-5 184 - Jha'Quan Anderson (Gardner-Webb) maj Cole Burke (The Citadel) 10-1 197 - Samuel Mora (Gardner-Webb) fall Ben Stemmet (The Citadel) 3:31 285 - Michael McAleavey (The Citadel) fall Peyton McComas (Gardner-Webb) 2:44 Virginia Tech 23 North Carolina 11 125 - Sam Latona (Virginia Tech) dec Spencer Moore (North Carolina) 10-5 133 - Korbin Myers (Virginia Tech) dec Joe Heilmann (North Carolina) 8-2 141 - Kizhan Clarke (North Carolina) dec Collin Gerardi (Virginia Tech) 6-2 149 - Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech) maj Zach Sherman (North Carolina) 16-6 157 - Austin O'Connor (North Carolina) tech Connor Brady (Virginia Tech) 25-10 165 - Clayton Ulrey (Virginia Tech) dec Isaias Estrada (North Carolina) 4-2 174 - Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) dec Clay Lautt (North Carolina) 6-2 184 - Gavin Kane (North Carolina) dec Hunter Bolen (Virginia Tech) 3-1SV 197 - Dakota Howard (Virginia Tech) maj Mark Chaid (North Carolina) 13-5 285 - Nathan Traxler (Virginia Tech) dec Brandon Whitmann (North Carolina) 5-1 Davidson 23 VMI 12 125 - Cam Chicella (VMI) dec Hale Robinson (Davidson) 7-1 133 - Kyle Gorant (Davidson) tech Patrick Maglathlin (VMI) 16-0 141 - Nick Cambria (Davidson) dec Freddy Junko (VMI) 8-5 149 - Gavin Damasco (Davidson) fall Luke Hart (VMI) 4:27 157 - Bryce Sanderlin (Davidson) dec Seth Fillers (VMI) 4-2 165 - Blake Showers (VMI) dec Jaden Hardrick (Davidson) 7-4 174 - Jon Hoover (VMI) dec Steven Newell (Davidson) 3-1 184 - Gavin Henry (Davidson) dec Max Gourley (VMI) 6-1 197 - Tyler Mousaw (VMI) dec Finlay Holston (Davidson) 9-6 285 - Mitchell Trigg (Davidson) dec Josh Evans (VMI) 8-4 North Dakota State 30 Little Rock 9 125 - Jayden Carson (Little Rock) dec Lucas Rodriguez (North Dakota State) 7-1 133 - Kellyn March (North Dakota State) fall Jaylen Carson (Little Rock) 1:46 141 - Dylan Droegemueller (North Dakota State) dec Conner Ward (Little Rock) 4-1 149 - Joey Bianchi (Little Rock) dec Gaven Sax (North Dakota State) 4-3 157 - Jared Franek (North Dakota State) tech Austin Keal (Little Rock) 16-1 165 - Luke Weber (North Dakota State) dec Tyler Brennan (Little Rock) 6-1 174 - Austin Brenner (North Dakota State) dec Triston Wills (Little Rock) 9-8 184 - DJ Parker (North Dakota State) maj Tanner Mendoza (Little Rock) 10-0 197 - Owen Pentz (North Dakota State) fall Brooks Sacharczyk (Little Rock) 1:19 285 - Josiah Hill (Little Rock) dec Michael Nelson (North Dakota State) 9-5 Iowa State 16 Northern Iowa 15 125 - Brody Teske (Northern Iowa) dec Kysen Terukina (Iowa State) 6-3 133 - Kyle Biscoglia (Northern Iowa) dec Ramazan Attasauov (Iowa State) 8-2 141 - Ian Parker (Iowa State) dec Cael Happel (Northern Iowa) 9-5 149 - Jarrett Degen (Iowa State) dec Colin Realbuto (Northern Iowa) 6-2 157 - David Carr (Iowa State) dec Derek Holschlag (Northern Iowa) 11-4 165 - Austin Yant (Northern Iowa) dec Isaac Judge (Iowa State) 5-0 174 - Lance Runyon (Northern Iowa) dec Joel Devine (Iowa State) 1-0 184 - Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) dec Marcus Coleman (Iowa State) 7-2 197 - Yonger Bastida (Iowa State) maj John Gunderson (Northern Iowa) 21-8 285 - Sam Schuyler (Iowa State) dec Carter Isley (Northern Iowa) 3-1 South Dakota State 29 Northern Colorado 9 125 - Jace Koelzer (Northern Colorado) dec Tanner Jordan (South Dakota State) 5-2 133 - Gabe Tagg (South Dakota State) maj Dyson Kunz (Northern Colorado) 15-2 141 - Clay Carlson (South Dakota State) dec Andrew Alirez (Northern Colorado) 9-5 149 - Chris Sandoval (Northern Colorado) dec Daniel Kimball (South Dakota State) 4-2 157 - Nathan Moore (Northern Colorado) dec Kenny O'Neill (South Dakota State) 4-2SV 165 - Tanner Cook (South Dakota State) fall Nick Knutson (Northern Colorado) 1:23 174 - Cade DeVos (South Dakota State) maj Damen Pape (Northern Colorado) 17-6 184 - Cade King (South Dakota State) dec Xavier Vasquez (Northern Colorado) 6-2 197 - Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State) maj Alan Clothier (Northern Colorado) 15-6 285 - AJ Nevills (South Dakota State) fall Robert Winters (Northern Colorado) 1:45 Illinois 32 Wisconsin 10 125 - Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) fall Dane Durlacher (Illinois) 3:31 133 - Lucas Byrd (Illinois) maj Kyle Burwick (Wisconsin) 16-5 141 - Joe Zargo (Wisconsin) dec Dylan Duncan (Illinois) 8-6SV 149 - Austin Gomez (Wisconsin) fall Christian Kanzler (Illinois) :42 157 - Garrett Model (Wisconsin) dec Joe Roberts (Illinois) 5-1 165 - Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) maj Danny Braunagel (Illinois) 11-1 174 - DJ Shannon (Illinois) fall Andrew McNally (Wisconsin) 4:55 184 - Chris Weiler (Wisconsin) dec Zac Braunagel (Illinois) 8-2 197 - Braxton Amos (Wisconsin) maj Matt Wroblewski (Illinois) 10-0 285 - Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) maj Luke Luffman (Illinois) 10-2 Wyoming 21 Air Force 17 125 - Jared Van Vleet (Air Force) dec Brendon Garcia (Wyoming) 6-2 133 - Sidney Flores (Air Force) dec Darrick Stacey (Wyoming) 6-3 141 - Darren Green (Wyoming) dec Cody Phippen (Air Force) 7-5 149 - Jaron Jensen (Wyoming) dec Dylan Martinez (Air Force) 6-5 157 - Jacob Wright (Wyoming) dec Giano Petrucelli (Air Force) 4-1 165 - Trey Brisker (Air Force) InjDef Cole Moody (Wyoming) 174 - Hayden Hastings (Wyoming) maj Sam Wolf (Air Force) 10-0 184 - Tate Samuelson (Wyoming) dec Jake Thompson (Air Force) 4-3 197 - Stephen Buchanan (Wyoming) tech Calvin Sund (Air Force) 21-5 285 - Wyatt Hendrickson (Air Force) tech Terren Swartz (Wyoming) 18-3 Ohio State 24 Minnesota 14 125 - Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) dec Patrick McKee (Minnesota) 10-6 133 - Jake Gliva (Minnesota) dec Brady Koontz (Ohio State) 4-1 141 - Dylan D'Emilio (Ohio State) fall Jake Bergeland (Minnesota) 5:24 149 - Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) dec Michael Blockhus (Minnesota) 10-4 157 - Isaac Wilcox (Ohio State) InjDef Brayton Lee (Minnesota) 165 - Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) dec Cael Carlson (Minnesota) 8-6 174 - Ethan Smith (Ohio State) dec Bailee O'Reilly (Minnesota) 11-8 184 - Isaiah Salazar (Minnesota) dec Rocky Jordan (Ohio State) 10-8 197 - Michial Foy (Minnesota) dec Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) 5-3 285 - Gable Steveson (Minnesota) tech Tate Orndorff (Ohio State) 19-4

(photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) NCAA Division I Wrestling Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) - Through Matches of Feb. 6 15 match minimum vs. Division I opponents required to be ranked 125 POUNDS 1 Patrick McKee Minnesota Big Ten 2 Joey Prata Oklahoma Big 12 3 Brandon Courtney Arizona St. Pac 12 4 Devin Schroder Purdue Big Ten 5 Anthony Noto Lock Haven MAC 6 Drake Ayala Iowa Big Ten 7 Justin Cardani Illinois Big Ten 8 Caleb Smith App State SoCon 9 Ryan Miller Penn EIWA 10 Dylan Shawver Rutgers Big Ten 11 Noah Surtin Missouri Big 12 12 Fabian Gutierrez Chattanooga SoCon 13 Jaret Lane Lehigh EIWA 14 Antonio Lorenzo Cal Poly Pac 12 15 Joey Fischer Clarion MAC 16 Gage Curry Pittsburgh ACC 17 Tyler Klinsky Rider MAC 18 Jake Ferri Kent St. MAC 19 Jacob Moran Indiana Big Ten 20 Oscar Sanchez Ohio MAC 21 Brock Bergelin Central Mich. MAC 22 Logan Heil Cleveland St. MAC 23 Tristan Lujan Michigan St. Big Ten 24 Tristan Daugherty Buffalo MAC 25 Tanner Jordan South Dakota St. Big 12 26 Brandon Seidman Bucknell EIWA 27 Jacob Allen Navy EIWA 28 Patrick McCormick Virginia ACC 29 Hunter Adrian Brown EIWA 30 Spencer Moore North Carolina ACC 31 Eddie Flores CSU Bakersfield Pac 12 32 Bryce West NIU MAC 33 Maximillian Leete American EIWA 133 POUNDS 1 Lucas Byrd Illinois Big Ten 2 Michael McGee Arizona St. Pac 12 3 Dylan Ragusin Michigan Big Ten 4 RayVon Foley Michigan St. Big Ten 5 Brayden Palmer Chattanooga SoCon 6 Josh Koderhandt Navy EIWA 7 Michael Colaiocco Penn EIWA 8 Kyle Biscoglia UNI Big 12 9 Joseph Heilmann North Carolina ACC 10 Anthony Madrigal Oklahoma Big 12 11 Angelo Rini Columbia EIWA 12 Joe Olivieri Rutgers Big Ten 13 Haiden Drury Utah Valley Big 12 14 Devan Turner Oregon St. Pac 12 15 Micky Phillippi Pittsburgh ACC 16 Dominic LaJoie Cornell EIWA 17 Ramazan Attasauov Iowa St. Big 12 18 Richie Koehler Rider MAC 19 Sidney Flores Air Force Big 12 20 Jake Gliva Minnesota Big Ten 21 Codi Russell App State SoCon 22 Matt Ramos Purdue Big Ten 23 King Sandoval Maryland Big Ten 24 Trey Crawford Missouri Big 12 25 Kyle Gorant Davidson SoCon 26 Brendon Fenton Kent St. MAC 27 Job Greenwood Wyoming Big 12 28 Anthony Sobotker Binghamton EIWA 29 Kyle Burwick Wisconsin Big Ten 30 Giovanni DiSabato Ohio MAC 31 Garett Lautzenheiser West Virginia Big 12 32 Todd Carter Gardner-Webb SoCon 33 Derek Spann Buffalo MAC 141 POUNDS 1 Clay Carlson South Dakota St. Big 12 2 Dresden Simon Central Mich. MAC 3 Sebastian Rivera Rutgers Big Ten 4 Allan Hart Missouri Big 12 5 Jakob Bergeland Minnesota Big Ten 6 Cole Matthews Pittsburgh ACC 7 Grant Willits Oregon St. Pac 12 8 Andrew Alirez Northern Colo. Big 12 9 Matt Kazimir Columbia EIWA 10 Joseph Zargo Wisconsin Big Ten 11 CJ Composto Penn EIWA 12 Gabe Willochell Edinboro MAC 13 Cael Happel UNI Big 12 14 Kyran Hagan Ohio MAC 15 Seth Koleno Clarion MAC 16 Parker Filius Purdue Big Ten 17 Kaden Cassidy George Mason MAC 18 Dylan D`Emilio Ohio St. Big Ten 18 Ryan Anderson Binghamton EIWA 20 Cody Phippen Air Force Big 12 21 Thomas Deck Army West Point EIWA 22 Saul Ervin SIUE MAC 23 Heath Gonyer App State SoCon 24 Angelo Martinoni CSU Bakersfield Pac 12 25 Cayden Rooks Indiana Big Ten 26 Matt Santos Michigan St. Big Ten 27 Jaivon Jones NIU MAC 28 Wilfredo Gil Franklin & Marshall EIWA 29 Louis Newell Kent St. MAC 30 Tyler Hunt Navy EIWA 31 Josh Mason Bloomsburg MAC 32 Caleb Rea West Virginia Big 12 33 Danny Bertoni Maryland Big Ten 149 POUNDS 1 Sammy Sasso Ohio St. Big Ten 2 Yianni Diakomihalis Cornell EIWA 3 Mike Van Brill Rutgers Big Ten 4 Kyle Parco Arizona St. Pac 12 5 Marcus Robinson Cleveland St. MAC 6 Beau Bartlett Penn St. Big Ten 7 Josh Finesilver Duke ACC 8 Max Brignola Lehigh EIWA 9 Josh Edmond Missouri Big 12 10 Jarod Verkleeren Virginia ACC 11 Brent Moore Clarion MAC 12 Lukus Stricker Harvard EIWA 13 Colin Realbuto UNI Big 12 14 Jaron Jensen Wyoming Big 12 15 Alec Hagan Ohio MAC 16 Corey Crooks Oregon St. Pac 12 17 Corbyn Munson Central Mich. MAC 18 Michael Blockhus Minnesota Big Ten 19 Christian Kanzler Illinois Big Ten 20 Ryan Burgos Edinboro MAC 21 Alex Madrigal George Mason MAC 22 John Arceri Buffalo MAC 23 Gaven Sax North Dakota St. Big 12 24 Graham Rooks Indiana Big Ten 25 Dylan Martinez Air Force Big 12 26 Kolby DePron Bucknell EIWA 27 Patrick Ryan American EIWA 28 Dan Mancini Pittsburgh ACC 29 Noah Castillo Chattanooga SoCon 30 Christopher Sandoval Northern Colo. Big 12 31 Nick Lombard Binghamton EIWA 32 Josh Brown CSU Bakersfield Pac 12 33 Daniel Kimball South Dakota St. Big 12 157 POUNDS 1 Josh Humphreys Lehigh EIWA 2 Brayton Lee Minnesota Big Ten 3 Jared Franek North Dakota St. Big 12 4 Quincy Monday Princeton EIWA 5 Elijah Cleary Pittsburgh ACC 6 Jacori Teemer Arizona St. Pac 12 7 Doug Zapf Penn EIWA 8 Kendall Coleman Purdue Big Ten 9 Connor Brady Virginia Tech ACC 10 Justin Thomas Oklahoma Big 12 11 Markus Hartman Army West Point EIWA 12 Chase Saldate Michigan St. Big Ten 13 Hunter Willits Oregon St. Pac 12 14 Alex Carida Bloomsburg MAC 15 Andrew Cerniglia Navy EIWA 16 Garrett Model Wisconsin Big Ten 17 Michael Petite Buffalo MAC 18 Jarrett Jacques Missouri Big 12 19 Dazjon Casto The Citadel SoCon 20 Jordan Slivka Ohio MAC 21 Ed Scott NC State ACC 22 Derek Holschlag UNI Big 12 23 Andrew Garr Columbia EIWA 24 Johnny Lovett Central Mich. MAC 25 Ben Barton Lock Haven MAC 26 Terrell Barraclough Penn St. Big Ten 27 Cody Bond App State SoCon 28 Joseph Roberts Illinois Big Ten 29 Alex Hornfeck West Virginia Big 12 30 Avery Bassett George Mason MAC 31 Parker Kropman Drexel EIWA 32 Giano Petrucelli Air Force Big 12 33 Robert Kanniard Rutgers Big Ten 165 POUNDS 1 Peyton Hall West Virginia Big 12 2 Austin Yant UNI Big 12 3 Julian Ramirez Cornell EIWA 4 Keegan O`Toole Missouri Big 12 5 Luke Weber North Dakota St. Big 12 6 Dean Hamiti Wisconsin Big Ten 7 Philip Conigliaro Harvard EIWA 8 William Formato App State SoCon 9 Carson Kharchla Ohio St. Big Ten 10 Riley Smucker Cleveland St. MAC 11 Joshua Ogunsanya Columbia EIWA 12 Jake Wentzel Pittsburgh ACC 13 Brian Meyer Lehigh EIWA 14 Zach Hartman Bucknell EIWA 15 Caleb Fish Michigan St. Big Ten 16 Izzak Olejnik NIU MAC 17 Dan Braunagel Illinois Big Ten 18 Thomas Bullard NC State ACC 19 Lucas Revano Penn EIWA 20 Brevin Cassella Binghamton EIWA 21 Evan Barczak Drexel EIWA 22 Cael Carlson Minnesota Big Ten 23 Ashton Eyler Lock Haven MAC 24 Tyler Brennan Little Rock Pac 12 25 Tracy Hubbard Central Mich. MAC 26 Clayton Wilson Nebraska Big Ten 27 Dalton Harkins Army West Point EIWA 28 Noah Grover Buffalo MAC 29 Andrew Nicholson Chattanooga SoCon 30 Cameron Pine Clarion MAC 31 Jon Park Navy EIWA 32 Isaac Judge Iowa St. Big 12 33 Clayton Ulrey Virginia Tech ACC 174 POUNDS 1 Mekhi Lewis Virginia Tech ACC 2 Bailee O`Reilly Minnesota Big Ten 3 Michael O`Malley Drexel EIWA 4 Cade DeVos South Dakota St. Big 12 5 Chris Foca Cornell EIWA 6 Mikey Labriola Nebraska Big Ten 7 Matt Finesilver Duke ACC 8 Sam Wolf Air Force Big 12 9 Nick Incontrera Penn EIWA 10 Hayden Hastings Wyoming Big 12 11 Anthony Mantanona Oklahoma Big 12 12 Sal Perrine Ohio MAC 13 Gerrit Nijenhuis Purdue Big Ten 14 Jake Logan Lehigh EIWA 15 Mason Kauffman NIU MAC 16 Troy Fisher Northwestern Big Ten 17 Aaron Olmos Oregon St. Pac 12 18 Jacob Nolan Binghamton EIWA 19 Nick Fine Columbia EIWA 20 Hunter Kernan Pittsburgh ACC 21 Benjamin Pasiuk Army West Point EIWA 22 Tyler Eischens Stanford Pac 12 23 Austin Brenner North Dakota St. Big 12 24 Josh Kim Harvard EIWA 25 Dominic Solis Maryland Big Ten 26 Dennis Robin West Virginia Big 12 27 John Worthing Clarion MAC 28 Bret Fedewa Central Mich. MAC 29 Justin Phillips Virginia ACC 30 Logan Messer George Mason MAC 31 Michael Ferre Kent St. MAC 32 Triston Wills Little Rock Pac 12 33 Tyler Stoltzfus Lock Haven MAC 184 POUNDS 1 Parker Keckeisen UNI Big 12 2 Jonathan Loew Cornell EIWA 3 Kyle Cochran Maryland Big Ten 4 Hunter Bolen Virginia Tech ACC 5 Trey Munoz Oregon St. Pac 12 6 Michael Battista Virginia ACC 7 John Poznanski Rutgers Big Ten 8 Brit Wilson NIU MAC 9 Layne Malczewski Michigan St. Big Ten 10 Taylor Venz Nebraska Big Ten 11 Max Lyon Purdue Big Ten 12 Caleb Hopkins Campbell SoCon 13 Donnell Washington Indiana Big Ten 14 Darrien Roberts Oklahoma Big 12 15 Anthony Carman West Virginia Big 12 16 Jeremiah Kent Missouri Big 12 17 Cade King South Dakota St. Big 12 18 Charles Small Hofstra EIWA 19 Deanthony Parker Jr North Dakota St. Big 12 20 Jacob Thompson Air Force Big 12 21 Neil Antrassian Penn EIWA 22 Christopher Weiler Wisconsin Big Ten 23 Bryan McLaughlin Drexel EIWA 24 David Key Navy EIWA 25 Zayne Lehman Ohio MAC 26 Colin McCracken Kent St. MAC 27 Jacob Hansen CSU Bakersfield Pac 12 28 Barrett Blakely App State SoCon 29 Vincent Baker Duke ACC 30 Austin (AJ) Burkhart Lehigh EIWA 31 Gavin Henry Davidson SoCon 32 Ben Cushman Central Mich. MAC 33 Peter Acciardi Buffalo MAC 197 POUNDS 1 Stephen Buchanan Wyoming Big 12 2 Max Dean Penn St. Big Ten 3 Rocky Elam Missouri Big 12 4 Greg Bulsak Rutgers Big Ten 5 Jacob Cardenas Cornell EIWA 6 Lou Deprez Binghamton EIWA 7 Cameron Caffey Michigan St. Big Ten 8 Jake Woodley Oklahoma Big 12 9 Yonger Bastida Iowa St. Big 12 10 Patrick Brucki Michigan Big Ten 11 Thomas Penola Purdue Big Ten 12 Jacob Koser Navy EIWA 13 Tanner Sloan South Dakota St. Big 12 14 JT Brown Army West Point EIWA 15 Nick Willham Indiana Big Ten 16 Andrew Davison Northwestern Big Ten 17 Luke Stout Princeton EIWA 18 Will Feldkamp Clarion MAC 19 Owen Pentz North Dakota St. Big 12 20 Braxton Amos Wisconsin Big Ten 21 Michial Foy Minnesota Big Ten 22 Cody Mulligan Edinboro MAC 23 Jaron Smith Maryland Big Ten 24 Cole Urbas Penn EIWA 25 Aaron Bolo Central Mich. MAC 26 Trey Rogers Hofstra EIWA 27 JT Davis Lehigh EIWA 28 Cody Howard Virginia Tech ACC 29 Ben Smith Cleveland St. MAC 30 Tyler Mousaw VMI SoCon 31 Trent Tracy Cal Poly Pac 12 32 Kaden Russell Duke ACC 33 Sam Mitchell Buffalo MAC HEAVYWEIGHT 1 Jordan Wood Lehigh EIWA 2 Lucas Davison Northwestern Big Ten 3 Luke Luffman Illinois Big Ten 4 Nathan Traxler Virginia Tech ACC 5 Christian Lance Nebraska Big Ten 6 Tyrie Houghton NC State ACC 7 Matt Stencel Central Mich. MAC 8 Trent Hillger Wisconsin Big Ten 9 Lewis Fernandes Cornell EIWA 10 Gary Truab Oregon St. Pac 12 11 Brandon Metz North Dakota St. Big 12 12 Michael McAleavey The Citadel SoCon 13 AJ Nevills South Dakota St. Big 12 14 Jake Slinger Pittsburgh ACC 15 Ben Goldin Penn EIWA 16 Josh Heindselman Oklahoma Big 12 17 Zachary Knighton-Ward Hofstra EIWA 18 Michael Wolfgram West Virginia Big 12 19 Jacob Bullock Indiana Big Ten 20 Tyrell Gordon UNI Big 12 21 Joe Doyle Binghamton EIWA 22 Boone McDermott Rutgers Big Ten 23 Mitchell Trigg Davidson SoCon 24 Michael Woulfe Purdue Big Ten 25 Shane Noonan Bloomsburg MAC 2 26 Riley Smith Navy EIWA 27 Jonah Niesenbaum Duke ACC 28 Zach Schrader Maryland Big Ten 29 David Szuba Rider MAC 30 Josiah Hill Little Rock Pac 12 31 Isaac Righter American EIWA 32 Brandon Whitman North Carolina ACC 33 Michael Burchell App State SoCon

When you think of Philadelphia sports, what do you envision? The Philly Phanatic? Allen Iverson's step-over on Tyronn Lue? Maybe, Rocky Balboa running up the Art Museum steps in that famous movie scene? The infamous “E-A-G-L-E-S. Eagles!” chant? Perhaps you've heard of the Eagles fans throwing snowballs at Santa Claus. Philadelphia is a passionate city – especially when it comes to its sports teams. They love a good rivalry. Any Eagles fan cannot stand the Dallas Cowboys. Phillies fans are not fond of the Mets and the Braves. On the rarest of occasions, the “City of Brotherly Love” is not so welcoming. Maybe you don't like sports, and you're more of a foodie. Cheesesteaks top the list when it comes to “Philly foods.” Even cheesesteak spots have their own rivalries. Pat's and Geno's both claim to have the best cheesesteak in the city, as seen on numerous TV shows. Right across the street from one another; each place with lines that zig and zag like airport security. We can argue forever about which spot has the best cheesesteak in the city. Hint – it's neither one of these… But I digress. If you enjoy a delicious cheesesteak, and a good sports rivalry, boy, do I have something in store for you! First, let's set the scene. When the wrestling community thinks of Philly, the Pennsylvania Regional Training Center (PRTC) probably comes to mind. The Pennsylvania RTC is actively helping Olympic-level athletes achieve their dreams. It is a joint effort between Drexel University and the University of Pennsylvania. This is not the only instance where two schools come together to form a partnership in this way. What makes this one special is that these schools are literally walking distance apart. Mostly separated by Chestnut Street, it can be difficult at times to tell where one campus starts and the other begins. It's the only Division I dual meet where the visiting team can walk to the match. The rivalry did not gain steam until Drexel entered the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association conference in the 2013/14 season. Before this, the Dragons were in the now-disbanded CAA wrestling conference. Because they joined, it would make more sense to wrestle their neighbor and conference opponent on a yearly basis. Therefore, Coach Matt Azevedo and Penn head coach at the time, Rob Eiter, decided to make it interesting and add some bragging rights to the rivalry. And the Abner's Cheesesteak Trophy was born. Abner's is the sponsor of the trophy, since they arguably make the best cheesesteak in University City (the area of Philadelphia in which both schools are located). As an added bonus, they were always open late so one could enjoy the greasy, cheesy goodness on the way home from a late-night out. Or so I've heard… How did the idea of a cheesesteak trophy come to fruition? The coaches wanted this trophy to “characterize the city of Philadelphia,” in the words of Coach Matt Azevedo. First, the idea of the Liberty Bell came to mind. What's more “Philadelphia” than that? In my honest opinion, even as a guy who loves history, the Liberty Bell is a little too boring, and maybe expected. They wanted something fun and a little out of the ordinary. Then the crazy idea came about. A woodworker connected to the programs offered to carve a cheesesteak out of wood and place it on top of the trophy. After consideration, they agreed upon the cheesesteak trophy. I love the idea of the trophy being something unique, and different – much like their partnership with the PRTC. I guess you can say the Liberty Bell idea slipped through the cracks… I talked to both current head coaches, Matt Azevedo (Drexel) and Roger Reina (Penn) and they both had very similar statements regarding this rivalry. Both used the terms “friendly” and “competitive.” They have a mutual respect for each other's programs, coaches, athletes, etc. When it comes to the partnership, Coach Reina added, “We are setting the standard of partner-school RTCs.” There have been a few other cases where this type of partnership was attempted, and most have either disbanded or have not quite had the success the PRTC has had, in terms of sticking together. “We are also co-hosting the 2025 NCAA Championships in Philadelphia. Our partnership is more than just the PRTC.” Coach Reina continued, “We are working to bring up the entire wrestling community in and around the city.” The addition of the Pennsylvania Regional Training Center has helped grow the Philadelphia chapter of the Wrestlers in Business Network. It has grown to be one of the largest, if not the largest, in the United States. The excitement of the wrestling community in the area has significantly increased. You cannot discuss the Philadelphia wrestling community without mentioning Penn's Director of Operations, Kevin McGuigan. His Twitter handle is literally “@WrestlingPhilly.” If there is anyone to ask about how the PRTC has impacted the area, it is him. Kevin stated, “the Senior athletes provide examples of leadership and adhering to core values while they train and compete. Through combined practices and mentoring, these organizations all work together in developing future leaders from the Philly Wrestling community.” This effort, in conjunction with the Beat the Streets – Philadelphia Chapter, has helped raise up the community, both on and off the mat. The community is really coming together. It's tighter than it's ever been. Kevin continued, “There is holistic growth and interaction among the (PRTC) team. There is camaraderie and a family-like atmosphere.” What a unique scenario this creates. Essentially, the match-up is almost between “teammates” from separate universities. Unfortunately, I graduated from Drexel just before the PRTC was picking up steam. Since I never got to experience a match quite like this in my day, my main question is, “Is this similar to any other match – or is it different?” Both Coach Azevedo and Coach Reina discussed why the match is a little different than any other match. “Familiarity” was the word both coaches used. This is what makes this match so close every year. When wrestlers gain a familiarity with each other, the scores tend to be closer after each bout they wrestle. This is no secret to the wrestling world. These guys train with one another in the offseason and during the year. Obviously, there is no better scouting report available. Actually, “getting a feel” for an opponent is more advantageous than simply watching said opponent on film. Any wrestler can attest to that. Looking at the match this season, both coaches agreed all ten matches are important. However, they both concurred there were a few that stood out. At 125lbs, Ryan Miller of Penn defeated Kyle Waterman in overtime at the Keystone Classic in November. Since then, Miller has climbed the rankings to 26th in the nation. Expect Waterman to look for revenge as the underdog. Another wrestler looking for revenge is Penn's Nick Incontrera at 174lbs. Now ranked 23rd, he will square off against 11th ranked Mickey O'Malley of Drexel. O'Malley had a first-period fall at the Keystone Classic. Another match with two ranked opponents is at 165lbs. Lucas Revano of Penn will take on Evan Barczak of Drexel, ranked 24th and 26th, respectively. Revano won the first tight match-up in November. We've only discussed three bouts; all of them happen to be rematches. It's easy to see how both teams can become so acquainted with one another outside of the practice room, as well as being training partner inside it. This is the 8th meeting in the last 9 seasons; every year seems to build more excitement and competitiveness. What does this mean for the future of this rival match? Both Coach Azevedo and Reina brought up the fact that both programs have been on the rise as of late. In the future, when both programs are nationally ranked, the dual could potentially be set more into the national spotlight. Personally, I'd love to see the trend of outdoor matches be introduced to this dual meet. Imagine this match occurring earlier in the year (due to warmer weather) outside in a neutral Philadelphia location. Why not put down a mat with a backdrop of the Liberty Bell, or Independence Hall? Incorporate a cheesesteak lunch truck serving up some cheesy, greasy goodness for the crowd. Maybe add in some mascot shenanigans to really capture the Philadelphia sports scene, while including some of the historical aspects that make this city so vital. The local community would love to see something like this. Until then, the matches will rotate between the Palestra on Penn's Campus and the DAC at Drexel. This year's match will be held on Sunday, February 13th, at the Palestra. The action will start at noon. Television coverage of the match will be on NBC Sports Philadelphia for those with cable. You can also watch on ESPN+. Be prepared for a tight match, as the last few years have been very close. Since the trophy's origin, Penn won the first two meetings. Drexel has since won five in a row. Will Drexel extend the win streak and make the lengthy two-block haul with the trophy in hand? Or will Penn come away victorious and keep the trophy on the south side of Chestnut Street?

(photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) While the regular season is winding down, it's not time for March and the tournament's just yet. There is still another couple of weeks worth of dual-action and, as is normally the case, the Big Ten has a handful of high-quality duals slated for Friday night. Below are the four Big Ten duals this evening, how to watch them, noticed matches for which to pay extra attention, and previous meetings between the wrestlers involved. #3 Michigan at Indiana - 7:00 (B1G+) Link: B1G+ Must-Watch Matches: 133 lbs: #7 Dylan Ragusin (Michigan) vs. #10 Brock Hudkins (Indiana) 184 lbs: #2 Myles Amine (Michigan) vs. #17 DJ Washington (Indiana) The biggest match of this dual takes place at 133 lbs as a top-ten clash is looming. Dylan Ragusin has been very consistent after dropping a pair of bouts at the Michigan State Open, the first weekend of the season. Since then, he's gone 12-2 and won the CKLV Invitational. His opponent isn't a totally unfamiliar face, as he and Brock Hudkins met in dual action last year at 125 lbs. The true freshman, Ragusin, got the win 6-4 and it was one of only two matches for Hudkins all year. This season he's been limited, but did score a huge 5-3 win over 2019 All-American Rayvon Foley in the Michigan State dual. The bout at 184 lbs may not go off since DJ Washington appeared to suffer an injury in the Purdue dual (January 29th) and hasn't been in action since. Northwestern at #15 Michigan State - 7:00 (B1G+) Link: B1G+ Must-Watch Matches: 133 lbs: #8 Chris Cannon (Northwestern) vs. #11 Rayvon Foley (Michigan State) 157 lbs: #2 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) vs. #17 Chase Saldate (Michigan State) 197 lbs: #7 Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) vs. #29 Andrew Davison (Northwestern) This will be the first half of a challenging weekend's worth of action for Foley, who takes on All-American Chris Cannon on Friday and Ragusin on Sunday. Should Foley win either (or both), he'll shake off the memories of the Hudkins loss and prove himself to be a key contender at 133. But for now, Foley will focus on Cannon, a CKLV runner-up to Ragusin and an AA as a freshman. Cannon has proven to be reliable in a close decision, which also means his opponents are typically in the match. Foley is 22-2 on the year and his loss to Hudkins was his only one since the first week of November. Another Spartan with a gaudy record is Chase Saldate at 157 lbs. He has generally beat the guys below him in the rankings, but is looking for “that one” big win. Knocking off, undefeated #2 Ryan Deakin would certainly fit the bill. While Deakin's bonus point percentage has been higher in past years, he has only had one opponent stay within three points of him this year. Though both were in the same weight class last season, they did not meet. One of the hottest wrestlers at a difficult-to-predict 197 lb weight class is Cameron Caffey, a winner of six straight matches. All of which came against conference foes and two were ranked in the top ten (Max Dean - Penn State and Greg Bulsak - Rutgers). 9-6 Andrew Davison has been tasked with slowing down Caffey. In Davison's last outing, he defeated Maryland's Jaron Smith, who was fresh off a big upset, himself. While Caffey and Davison have never met, the Spartan beat Davison's younger brother, Lucas, at the 2021 Big Ten Championships. Illinois at #13 Wisconsin - 8:00 (B1G+) Link: B1G+ Must-Watch Matches: 125 lbs: #6 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) vs. #25 Justin Cardani (Illinois) 149 lbs: #7 Austin Gomez (Wisconsin) vs. #29 Christian Kanzler (Illinois) 165 lbs: #6 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) vs. #29 Danny Braunagel (Illinois) 184 lbs: #21 Zac Bruanagel (Illinois) vs. #27 Chris Weiler (Wisconsin) 285 lbs: #11 Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) vs. #15 Luke Luffman (Illinois) Right off the bat, we should get the third installment of 125 lber's Eric Barnett and Justin Cardani. Last year, Barnett started the year with a 3-1 loss to Cardani; however, he turned the table with a major decision at Big Ten's. Who will be able to exert their will, the high-scoring Barnett or the defensive-minded Cardani? A solid weekend with wins over a pair of returning national qualifiers boosted Christian Kanzler into the national rankings for the first time in his career. He'll have his hands full with one-loss Austin Gomez at 149 lbs. Saturday, Dean Hamiti suffered his first collegiate loss at the hands of Alex Marinelli. We'll see how Hamiti rebounds against Danny Braunagel. The Illini veteran also represents the first collegiate opponent who has faced Hamiti twice. Can Braunagel and the Illini staff make the necessary adjustments to reverse a 10-0 major decision from the MatMen Open? Danny's twin brother, Zac, also has a semi-familiar opponent in Chris Weiler (Wisconsin). The two clashed early in the 2021 season and it was Weiler who was victorious. Despite that result, Zac has been much more consistent than Weiler, who is looking to bring his season record up to .500. We'll close with perhaps the most competitive bout of the dual. Trent Hillger and Luke Luffman have met three times during college, with Hillger leading the series, 2-1. Luffman's lone with came early last season and Hillger returned the favor with a first period fall at Big Ten's. This is the front half of a weekend set with duals against #11 and #12 (Christian Lance) for Luffman. He'll be pushing for a spot in the top ten with two wins. #8 Ohio State at #14 Minnesota - 9:00 (Big Ten Network) Must-Watch Matches: 125 lbs: #9 Patrick McKee (Minnesota) vs. #11 Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) 141 lbs: #15 Jake Bergeland (Minnesota) vs. #20 Dylan D'Emilio (Ohio State) 149 lbs: #2 Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) vs. #30 Michael Blockhus (Minnesota) 157 lbs: #4 Brayton Lee (Minnesota) vs. #33 Jashon Hubbard (Ohio State) 174 lbs: #7 Ethan Smith (Ohio State) vs. #18 Bailee O'Reilly (Minnesota) 184 lbs: #6 Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) vs. #20 Isaiah Salazar (Minnesota) 285 lbs: #1 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) vs. #13 Tate Orndorff (Ohio State) The rankings at 125 lbs are very volatile based on the depth of its competitors this season. Two of the more consistent components at the weight have been All-American Patrick McKee and Malik Heinselman. McKee's 16-5 record shows that his third-place finish in St. Louis was no fluke. He is looking to bounce back after losing three of his past four contests. Seeing Heinselman could propel him back to his winning ways. Over the years, McKee has dominated his Buckeye counterpart, winning all three previous matches, with a 5-1 win being the closest of the three. Now, the two did not meet last year and Heinselman continues to improve so, he could break through and get his first win versus McKee. The top-20 contest at 141 lbs may not occur since Jake Bergeland was out of the Gopher lineup last week. He's had a breakout year with a win over Stevan Micic (Michigan) and a 15-5 record lined with no “bad” losses. 149 and 157 lbs are slated to include ranked wrestlers clashing; however, both weights feature possible national champions against opponents ranked in the 30's. After 125 lbs, maybe the match of the night will be at 174 lbs. Bailee O'Reilly has solidified this spot with a third-place finish at the Southern Scuffle and his only dual losses have come to All-Americans. He'll see another this evening with Ethan Smith. Smith typically wrestles close matches against good competition, so I'd expect a close bout. Regardless of who Ohio State sends out at 184 lbs, they should make for a good match opposite Isaiah Salazar. Kaleb Romero has been banged up and Rocky Jordan stepped in last weekend and knocked off All-American John Poznanski (Rutgers). He'll face young Isaiah Salazar, who is looking to get back on the winning track after falling to Max Lyon (Purdue) Sunday. Last Friday, Salazar had his best win, to date, when he downed Zac Braunagel. Tonight's dual will mark the last home event in the illustrious career of Gable Steveson. The 2020 Olympic gold medalist has already cemented himself as one of the all-time greats of a Minnesota program that had prided itself on producing top-flight big men. Following the NCAA Championships, Steveson will follow former Gopher heavyweight Brock Lesnar's footsteps and test the waters of the WWE. Before then, Steveson will have to contend with 2021 All-American Tate Orndorff. Orndorff is in the midst of a difficult last month that will see him face four of the top five 285 lbers in the nation. When he and Steveson met last year, the Gopher bested him 19-4 in a technical fall. With it being the final match in front of the home crowd, expect Steveson to post a similar score or push for a fall.

The Northern Iowa coaching staff (photo courtesy of Mark Lundy; LutteLens.com) Friday 02/11 Northern Colorado at South Dakota State 7:00pm Iowa State at Northern Iowa 6:00pm Little Rock at North Dakota State 7:00pm Wyoming at Air Force 8:00pm Saturday 02/12 Missouri at Arizona State 7:00pm Iowa vs Oklahoma State (at Arlington, TX) 6:30pm Utah Valley at West Virginia 1:00pm Sunday 02/13 Air Force at CSU Bakersfield 2:00pm Air Force at Cal Poly 4:00pm Little Rock at South Dakota State 2:00pm Northern Colorado at North Dakota State 2:00pm (All times Central) Big Showdown in Iowa The buildup for this one has been a bit of a slow burn. After a few early losses, Northern Iowa's upset of Oklahoma State followed up by wins over Oklahoma, Air Force, and WVU, has raised expectations for Panther fans. This all while Iowa State has simultaneously emerged as the #1 team in the Big 12 conference. Suddenly with all of the chaos across the other teams in the conference, Northern Iowa-Iowa State could be viewed as the dual of the year in the Big 12. Should be a packed house in Cedar Falls on Friday night. Can Missouri continue their momentum? Missouri knocked off Oklahoma State in Columbia this past weekend and has a chance to get another big win at Arizona State this weekend. Arizona State has wins over OU, Virginia Tech, Oregon State, and Stanford this season and looks to possibly be the top dog in the PAC-12 again this year after a top four finish at the NCAA tournament last season. This would be a monster win for Missouri that could help them continue some of their current momentum as we move closer to the postseason.

3x NCAA All-American Hayden Hidlay of NC State (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Plenty of questions poured into the mailbox this week, so why not do a super-sized bag for the big weekend. Before we get to that, shame on the NJSIAA for taking the girls state tournament out of Atlantic City. I realize there's nothing you can do about it now, but let's not make this mistake again; then we can forget this whole blunder even happened. Enough about them, let's get to you. It's the readers that make this little corner on internet work and I thank you all for that. Which matchup are you most excited to see over the next month and a half? Both Wrestling & Wrestling Twitter matchups. @KyleDNixon Without a doubt, it's Patrick Glory and Nick Suriano. Two of the top-five New Jersey wrestlers of the past decade seem to be on a collision course for the right to be crowned champion in March. A two-year overlap in high school, at separate weights, kept them from ever meeting and through an unlikely series of events, we may finally get it in 2022 of all years. Nick looks as good as ever and Pat seems to never level off and just keeps improving. The stingy defense and calculated shots of Suriano vs the high-octane offense and wild scrambling of Glory. Give me the damn match already. For Wrestling Twitter? Perhaps I'm hypocritical in saying this, but it's getting a little too hostile out there and we need to settle down and show some love. Especially this close to Valentine's Day. You wanna join a cult? @BulldogTCOB I kind of feel like I joined about four already in the last few years, but if you got something better, then I'm all ears. Are we doing religion? Little-known movies? 80's metal? Whatever it is, I'm easy to brainwash. Should Hayden Hidlay tear a shirt off prior to every dual and then do a flex show after every win? @Rhino184 Yes and yes. I first nicknamed HH the human muscle because he looks like one fully formed muscle in perfect proportion. Now he goes up two classes keeping the same form, only bigger! His brother ate a hoagie on the mat once, so the prop gags run in the family. Perhaps we see something in the grudge match against Virginia Tech coming up, though I'm not sure HH is up for messing around before facing Mekhi Lewis. Speaking of the Raleigh Wolf.... What is the official Jagger Bag Super Bowl prediction? @Hidlaymania The Big Game! I almost forgot it was this Sunday after all the commotion of the week. My heart is with the Bengals, as I've always liked them and love seeing a franchise get their first ring. That being said, I think the Rams have too much firepower on offense and a defense that can rattle the young superstar, Joe Burrow, into making some mistakes. Give me Los Angeles 27-20 with Cincy possessing the ball at the end for maximum drama. Are you taking heads in the coin toss? @BvillaD2Wrestle I'm a tails man and yes, I'll be betting on the coin toss as I do every year. What teams are gonna finish 3-5 at NCAAs (in order)? @PelikanHead NC State Michigan Oklahoma State with Ferrari; Cornell if no Ferrari What matches or rematches are you most looking forward to at the B1G tourney and what is your favorite deli in Jersey??? Bagel @MrPatMineo Sebastian Rivera vs the field at 141. We all know the story. All the big guns evaded him one way or another and he bonused the hell out of everyone else. Will he beat these guys? I don't know. Can he beat these guys absolutely? All I know is, he looks full-sized for the weight now and wrestling the best he's ever wrestled. Final season with no free-year safety net, plus the fire that's burning inside Seabass, make him one of the most intriguing guys to watch next month. My favorite deli, hands down, is Ted's North in Paramus. Best fries you'll ever have. Real ones know. What fits should I pull this weekend? @gallardo_rachel You're asking a guy whose current fit went out of style in 1989. Denim forever. The girls on my team are consistently among the hardest-working kids in the room. Why do high school athletic associations continue to treat them as an underclass? @endorob Because things take time. We know the sport is growing on the girl's side. I predict that by the end of the decade, it will explode on a global level, judging by the foundation of talent being built right now. Keep working. There's a sectional semifinal between two of the top ten teams in your home state…why, or how, are there forfeits? @wrestlingbypir8 Your guess is as good as mine, matey. When these teams load up on the best talent in the state, I sort of expect to see a full lineup, but I'm not privy to the inner workings so I'm sure there's a valid reason for it. If I'm ballin on a budget, what're the go-to cigs? @muddy_noah Is Basic still a thing? Merit maybe? Who is the @umichwrestling athletic trainer and why is his hair the greatest thing I've ever seen? @Kirbolajuwon I don't know, but you've piqued my interest and I will keep my eyes peeled for this mane. Well, that's it for this super-sized bag. Enjoy the game formerly known as the NFL-AFL Championship Game. I may hit the Jersey Mike's Arena for some Rutgers-Maryland action, you know, just for an appetizer.

Daton Fix (left) and Austin DeSanto at the 2021 NCAA Championships (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) While the international freestyle dual between the U.S. and Iran fell through, the collegiate dual between No. 2 Iowa and No. 11 Oklahoma State will still headline Saturday's Bout at the Ballpark event. The Cowboys are on a bit of a skid having lost three of their last four duals. However, the annual rivalry match remains one of the highlights of the college season. The following is a weight-by-weight prediction of the match. 125: No. 7 Trevor Mastrogiovanni/Alex Yokubaitis (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 12 Drake Ayala/Jesse Ybarra (Iowa) Injuries are likely to have a big impact on this match. Mastrogiovanni suffered an ankle injury last Friday against South Dakota State's Tanner Jordan, but he was able to hold on for the 2-1 victory. However, he sat out Sunday's match against Missouri. For the year, Mastrogiovanni has gone 12-1 with his only loss coming against No. 18 Kysen Terukina (Iowa State). He holds impressive wins over No. 9 Patrick McKee (Minnesota) and No. 19 Brody Teske (Northern Iowa). Yokubaitis, who filled in against Missouri, is only 3-3 on the year with all three of his victories coming over lower division opposition. Multiple-time NCAA champion Spencer Lee was originally supposed to make one more run at a title. However, after giving it a shot at the National Collegiate Duals back in December, he opted to end his season and get surgery. Iowa then pulled the redshirt from three-time Iowa state champion Ayala. He put up multiple impressive wins, but has now also suffered an injury. Ybarra, who filled in early for Lee, has been reinserted into the lineup. The multiple-time Arizona state champion is 5-4 for the season, but only one of his wins came against a Division I opponent. It seems unlikely that Iowa is going to send out Ayala at this point. Oklahoma State could take an early lead and perhaps take bonus points if Mastrogiovanni is able to go. If he can't Ybarra would likely be able to defeat Yokubaitis. Considering the gravity of this event, it seems likely that the Cowboys will send Mastrogiovanni. Prediction: Mastrogiovanni (Oklahoma State) decision over Jesse Ybarra 133: No. 2 Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 3 Austin DeSanto (Iowa) After winning a silver medal at the 2021 World Championships, Fix returned to Oklahoma State looking for his third finals appearance and first title. This season he has won all 14 of his matches and picked up bonus points in 10 of those matches, with signature wins over No. 17 Malyke Hines (Lehigh) and No. 18 Kyle Biscoglia (Northern Iowa). DeSanto is already a four-time NCAA qualifier and a two-time All-American. He has gone 13-1 so far in his last season for the Hawkeyes. DeSanto's lone loss on the season came against returning national champion No. 1 Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) via a 3-2 score. He has since bounced back with a 26-11 technical fall over Kyle Burwick (Wisconsin). This will be the third meeting between Fix and DeSanto. Their first encounter came in the 2019 edition of this rivalry. Fix was able to get his escape in the second period and then rode out the third for a 2-0 victory. Desanto got another shot at Fix in last year's NCAA semifinals. This time Fix scored a first-period takedown and held on for a 3-2 victory. While DeSanto was able to get out on bottom in the second match, Fix's defense was on full display. It will be interesting to see if DeSanto changes up his tactics, but in the end, Fix should be able to lean on his defense and win another close one. Prediction: Fix (Oklahoma State) decision over DeSanto (Iowa) 141: No. 21 Carter Young (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) Young signed with Northwestern out of high school. This past summer, he placed third at the World Team Trials with victories over Nahshon Garrett, Tyler Graff and Seth Gross. Then in September, he transferred to Oklahoma State and stepped into the lineup as a true freshman. The Stillwater native has gone 8-4 and picked up victories over No. 23 Cael Happel (Northern Iowa) and Connor McGonagle (Lehigh). Eierman is about to finish his third season with Iowa after previously spending four seasons with Missouri. He sat out his first year with the Hawkeyes and then finished second at the NCAA tournament this past season. So far this season, he has gone 13-1 with his only defeat coming in a rematch of the NCAA finals against No. 1 Nick Lee (Penn State). In the bout, he scored a last-second takedown to send the match to sudden victory but ultimately lost in the extra period. Since that defeat, Eierman bounced back with a 13-5 major decision over Joseph Zargo (Wisconsin) last weekend. Young has been able to keep it close with some of the top wrestlers at this weight, but he has not really been able to break through. On the other hand, Eierman has let some of his opponents hang around during this year. As always, the Hawkeye has the ability to make a difference from the top position. If he is able to implement that offense here, bonus points are not out of the question. Prediction: Eierman (Iowa) decision over Young (Oklahoma State) 149: No. 13 Kaden Gfeller (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 10 Max Murin (Iowa) Gfeller qualified for the NCAA tournament in 2019 as a redshirt freshman. Since then, he has bounced in and out of the lineup, but it looks like he has finally locked down a spot this year. Gfeller lost his first match on the year against No. 12 Jaden Abas (Stanford), but he then rattled off 12-straight victories including wins over No. 30 Michael Blockhus (Minnesota), No. 21 Jarrett Degen (Iowa State), No. 23 Josh Edmond (Missouri) and Dom Demas. Murin has twice made the round of 12 at the NCAA tournament, and he is hoping to break through and become an All-American this year. He has started this season with a 7-2 record. Not only is that a solid record, but his schedule has also been tough. Murin already holds wins over Ian Parker (Iowa State), No. 19 Beau Bartlett (Penn State) and No. 11 Yahya Thomas (Northwestern). Last month, he nearly upset No. 2 Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) as he scored a late reversal to go up 2-1, but the scrambly Sasso reversed him back to escape with the 3-2 victory. This might turn out to be one of the most evenly contested matches of the dual. Both wrestlers are having resurgent seasons. However, a slight edge should be given to Murin. He appears to have figured out a strategy that works for him as he has limited opportunities for his opponents and made a difference in the top position. It is a toss up but look for Murin to pull this one out. Prediction: Murin (Iowa) decision over Gfeller 157: No. 18 Wyatt Sheets (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 12 Kaleb Young (Iowa) For his first couple of seasons for the Cowboys, Sheets filled in as necessary. However, for the last three years he has held down the spot at 157-pounds. He qualified for the NCAA tournament for the first time in 2020 and became an All-American last season with an eighth-place finish. Sheets started this season with an 8-1 mark, but then dropped three-straight matches. Young is a two-time All-American in his final year with the Hawkeyes. He had a very tough start to this season as he lost five of his first seven matches against Division I opponents. However, since a loss against No. 4 Brayton Lee (Minnesota), in early January, Young has settled down and won six-straight bouts. The results have not always been flashy, but he has relied on his defense and managed matches on the way to victories. This will be the fourth match between these two wrestlers. Young holds a 2-1 advantage in the series. Sheets is a plus rider, and Young has struggled when forced to work from the bottom. However, in their last meeting the Hawkeye showed he can mostly avoid that riding and pulled out a 3-2 victory. Look for a similar result here. Prediction: Young (Iowa) decision over Sheets (Oklahoma State) 165: No. 8 Travis Wittlake (Oklahoma State) vs No. 5 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) In his first two years as a starter, Wittlake has gone 50-5 and finished fourth at last year's NCAA tournament to become an All-American. He holds a 9-3 record this season, but he missed some time with an injury. Wittlake returned from a brief hiatus in late January, and has gone 2-2 with wins over decision victories over No. 31 Isaac Judge (Iowa State) and No. 33 Tanner Cook (South Dakota State) as well as losses against No. 12 Austin Yant (Northern Iowa) and No. 2 Keegan O'Toole (Missouri). Marinelli has been a mainstay of the Iowa lineup for years. Last year, he went 7-1 on the season but dropped out of the NCAA tournament with injury and his bid for a third All-American season came up short. Marinelli is back for a final run, and he has gone 16-1 with his only loss coming against No. 4 Carson Kharchla (Ohio State). Marinelli seemed to have the match in hand after building riding time in the third period, but Kharchla escaped and scored a late takedown to pull out the 3-2 victory. Since that defeat, Marinelli has returned to form with back-to-back victories over No. 11 Brady Berge (Penn State) and No. 6 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin). Wittlake and Marinelli met once before. It was a one-takedown match that Marinelli won via a 3-2 score. It took the Iowa wrestler some time to break down Wittlake's defenses, but he was the one coming forward and looking for offense throughout. Since it appears as if Wittlake is still dealing with an injury, this bout should favor Marinelli. Prediction: Marinelli (Iowa) decision over Wittlake (Oklahoma State) 174: No. 10 Dustin Plott (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 2 Michael Kemerer (Iowa) Plott qualified for the NCAA tournament last year as a true freshman. He had a strong start to this season as he began by winning his first nine matches including victories over No. 11 Michael O'Malley (Drexel), No. 19 Anthony Mantanona (Oklahoma) and No. 15 Hayden Hastings (Wyoming). However, he has split his last four bouts. While he has picked up recent victories over No. 25 Joel Devine (Iowa State) and No. 12 Cade Devos (South Dakota State), he has also lost to No. 20 Lance Runyon (Northern Iowa) and Sean Harman (Missouri). Kemerer is a seventh-year senior and still one of the top wrestlers in college. The three-time All-American has gone 6-1 on the season and his only defeat came against No. 1 Carter Starocci (Penn State). The match was truly a battle of will as neither wrestler was able to crack the other's prolific defense. After multiple challenges and reviews, Starocci ultimately won in tie breaker. Kemerer got back on track last weekend with a major decision over No. 26 Andrew McNally (Wisconsin). Against Starocci, Kemerer showed that he has plenty left in the tank. He might not jump on opponents from the start the way he used to, but in the absolute worst case scenario, he should be able to depend on his defense. Plott presents some interesting challenges, but against Kemerer this might be a struggle to keep it to a regular decision. Prediction: Kemerer (Iowa) major decision over Plott (Oklahoma State) 184: No. 11 Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 15 Abe Assad (Iowa) After qualifying for the NCAA tournament for Edinboro in 2017, Geer transferred to Oklahoma State where he has become a two-time All-American. So far this season, he has built an 11-3 record. He hit a rough patch recently that saw him drop back-to-back matches against No. 4 Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) and No. 7 Marcus Coleman (Iowa State). However, last weekend, he scored a 2-0 decision over No. 24 Jeremiah Kent (Missouri). Assad qualified for the NCAA tournament as a true freshman back in 2020 and sat out last year with an injury. He is 10-4 for his sophomore season and coming off a 4-2 decision over No. 27 Chris Weiler (Wisconsin). Assad went to overtime earlier this year against No. 6 Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) but ultimately lost. He also picked up impressive wins over No. 28 Max Lyon (Purdue), No. 21 Zac Braunagel (Illinois) and Jack Jessen (Northwestern). While Assad has taken some losses this year, he has proved that he belongs in the rough Big Ten 184-pound weight class. However, for his career, he has only two victories over All-American wrestlers and none this season. Geer will have an experience edge, and that should be enough to guide him to a victory here. Iowa fans likely expect Assad to pull that one out, and that possibility is certainly on the table. Prediction: Geer (Oklahoma State) decision over Assad (Iowa) 197: Gavin Stika (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 4 Jacob Warner (Iowa) No. 1 AJ Ferrari's car accident and subsequent injury have pressed Stika into service. Since joining the starting lineup, he has gone 1-3 with a victory coming over John Gunderson (Northern Iowa). Prior to starting, Stika competed down at 184 pounds this season where he went 12-3 and placed third at the Reno Tournament of Champions. Warner is a two-time All-American who finished fourth at the last NCAA tournament. He dropped his first match against a Division I opponent this year, No. 14 Younger Bastida (Iowa State), but he has since settled down and now holds a 12-2 record. Two weeks ago, Warner held a lead over No. 2 Max Dean (Penn State). However, the Penn State wrestler turned things around in the third period. Warner returned to form last weekend with a 3-1 victory over Junior World champion No. 22 Braxton Amos (Wisconsin). In all likelihood, Warner's ability to reattack and ride should be more than enough to carry him to a victory here. If he is able to possibly score a tilt from the top position, he could easily find himself in bonus territory. This is an unfortunate bout for Oklahoma State as they would likely be the favorites here if Ferrari was in the lineup. Prediction: Warner (Iowa) decision over Stika (Oklahoma State) 285: No. 31 Luke Surber (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 4 Anthony Cassioppi (Iowa) Surber is the latest in a long line of 197-pound wrestlers to move up to heavyweight for the Cowboys. Last year at the lower weight, he went 8-1 competing in open tournaments and extra matches. This year he has started the whole way for Oklahoma State at heavyweight. Surber's season record currently stands at 8-6, but he is 1-4 in his last five matches with his only victory coming over No. 24 AJ Nevills (South Dakota State). Cassioppi finished third at the last NCAA tournament and appears to be one of the best heavyweights in the country yet again this season. Despite uncharacteristically dropping his debut match of the season against Jack DelGarbino (Princeton), the Hawkeye has gone 11-2 with his only other loss coming against Olympic champion No. 1 Gable Steveson (Minnesota). Two weeks ago, he scored a key victory over No. 5 Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) who was riding high off a victory over No. 3 Mason Parris (Michigan) at the time. While Surber being undersized might actually help him against some heavyweight since he will have a quickness and agility advantage. However, that certainly will not be the case against Cassioppi. The Iowa wrestler is extremely tough on top, and he could easily turn this one over for a fall. Prediction: Cassioppi (Iowa) major decision over Surber (Oklahoma State)

Chad Red Jr (left) and Dylan Duncan at the 2021 NCAA Championships (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) As we approach the last two weeks of the collegiate regular season, there are some incredible individual matchups brewing this weekend. These contests will go a long way in determining the next set of rankings along with potential conference and NCAA seeding, since those events are right around the corner. We've gone through each dual and picked out the possible matches between ranked wrestlers and identified one match-per weight as the “most important.” Please note, that if a match is omitted, then we have some reason to believe that one or more parties will not wrestle this weekend. 125 lbs #2 Patrick Glory (Princeton) vs. #26 Ryan Miller (Penn) - Saturday #2 Patrick Glory (Princeton) vs. #27 Jared Lane (Lehigh) - Friday #4 Brandon Courtney (Arizona State) vs. #17 Noah Surtin (Missouri) - Saturday #6 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) vs. #25 Justin Cardani (Illinois) - Friday #9 Patrick McKee (Minnesota) vs. #11 Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) - Friday #14 Jakob Camacho (NC State) vs. #30 Gage Curry (Pittsburgh) - Friday #18 Kysen Terukina (Iowa State) vs. #19 Brody Teske (Northern Iowa) - Friday #23 Korbin Meink (Campbell) vs. #24 Caleb Smith (Appalachian State) - Sunday Most Important Match: #10 Killian Cardinale (West Virginia) vs. #16 Taylor LaMont (Utah Valley) - Saturday This is the only potential matchup between returning All-Americans at 125 lbs this weekend. Each has missed significant mat time this year and doesn't have many bouts against top competition. More importantly, the difference between number's 10 and 16 at 125 lbs, is razor-thin. A win for LaMont could send him rising up the ranks again. 133 lbs #2 Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) vs. #3 Austin DeSanto (Iowa) - Saturday #5 Korbin Myers (Virginia Tech) vs. #23 Joe Heilmann (North Carolina) - Friday #7 Dylan Ragusin (Michigan) vs. #10 Brock Hudkins (Indiana) - Friday #7 Dylan Ragusin (Michigan) vs. #11 Rayvon Foley (Michigan State) - Sunday #9 Micky Phillippi (Pittsburgh) vs. #14 Kai Orine (NC State) - Friday #18 Kyle Biscoglia (Northern Iowa) vs. #27 Ramazan Attasauov (Iowa State) - Friday Most Important Match: #8 Chris Cannon (Northwestern) vs. #11 Rayvon Foley (Michigan State) - Friday So Fix/DeSanto is clearly the biggest match of the week; however, we've seen it already a few times. And win or lose, both will be on the shortlist of NCAA title contenders at 133 lbs. What I want to know is, “where Rayvon Foley fits in.” The 2019 All-American is in his first year at 133 and has amassed an impressive 22-2 record. One of his two losses was via decision to #10 Brock Hudkins, which has kept him out of the top ten. Foley's matches against Chris Cannon and Dylan Ragusin are huge opportunities to prove he's ready for a potential top-eight seed at nationals. 141 lbs #2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) vs. #21 Carter Young (Oklahoma State) - Saturday #5 Real Woods (Stanford) vs. #27 Angelo Martinoni (CSU Bakersfield) - Thursday #6 Andrew Alirez (Northern Colorado) vs. #13 Clay Carlson (South Dakota State) - Friday #6 Andrew Alirez (Northern Colorado) vs. #29 Dylan Droegemueller (North Dakota State) - Sunday #7 Ian Parker (Iowa State) vs. #23 Cael Happel (Northern Iowa) - Friday #8 Cole Matthews (Pittsburgh) vs. #24 Ryan Jack (NC State) - Friday #9 Kizhan Clarke (North Carolina) vs. #22 Collin Gerardi (Virginia Tech) - Friday #15 Jake Bergeland (Minnesota) vs. #20 Dylan D'Emilio (Ohio State) - Friday #27 Angelo Martinoni (CSU Bakersfield) vs. #31 Lawrence Saenz (Cal Poly) - Sunday Most Important Match: #4 Dylan Duncan (Illinois) vs. #10 Chad Red Jr. (Nebraska) - Sunday This will be the fourth meeting between Dylan Duncan and Chad Red Jr. The three-time NCAA All-American from Nebraska holds a 2-1 edge over his Illini counterpart. Duncan, however, holds the most recent win, a 3-0 shutout at the 2021 NCAA Championships en route to his fifth-place finish. Duncan has dealt with a lingering injury that kept him out of the Illinois lineup until February 6th, so we don't have much information on him this season. Another bout with a veteran like Red Jr should go a long way into determining where Duncan falls in the pecking order at 141 lbs. 149 lbs #2 Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) vs. #30 Michael Blockhus (Minnesota) - Friday #5 Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech) vs. #17 Zach Sherman (North Carolina) - Friday #7 Austin Gomez (Wisconsin) vs. #29 Christian Kanzler (Illinois) - Friday #8 Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) vs. #29 Christian Kanzler (Illinois) - Sunday #9 Kyle Parco (Arizona State) vs. #23 Josh Edmond (Missouri) - Saturday #10 Max Murin (Iowa) vs. #13 Kaden Gfeller (Oklahoma State) - Saturday #14 Josh Finesilver (Duke) vs. #31 Jarod Verkleeren (Virginia) - Saturday Most Important Match: #4 Jonathan Millner (Appalachian State) vs. #6 Josh Heil (Campbell) - Sunday Simply put, this may be one of the biggest matches in the recent history of the Southern Conference. In a league that rarely crowns All-Americans, it's not very often that we see two of the top-six wrestlers in the nation clashing during a SoCon bout. That's the case as Jonathan Millner and Josh Heil take the mat. The two last battled in the finals of the conference tournament last season. Millner took a 2-0 decision and went on to the seventh seed at nationals. This is also a swing bout in the dual between these heated rivals. Whoever gets their hand raised will give their team a massive step towards a SoCon regular-season title. 157 lbs #2 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) vs. #17 Chase Saldate (Michigan State) - Friday #3 Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) vs. #21 Jarrett Jacques (Missouri) - Saturday #4 Brayton Lee (Minnesota) vs. #33 Jashon Hubbard (Ohio State) - Friday #5 Austin O'Connor (North Carolina) vs. #26 Connor Brady (Virginia Tech) - Friday #8 Quincy Monday (Princeton) vs. #20 Doug Zapf (Penn) - Saturday #9 Will Lewan (Michigan) vs. #17 Chase Saldate (Michigan State) - Sunday #11 Ed Scott (NC State) vs. #19 Elijah Cleary (Pittsburgh) - Friday #12 Kaleb Young (Iowa) vs. #18 Wyatt Sheets (Oklahoma State) - Saturday Most Important Match: #7 Josh Humphreys (Lehigh) vs. #8 Quincy Monday (Princeton) - Friday Old rivals will renew acquaintances Friday in a match that will have conference and NCAA seeding implications. Josh Humphreys and Quincy Monday already have met five times at the collegiate level. Humphreys holds a 3-2 edge, but two of those wins came during the 2018-19 season. In wrestling, familiarity can breed low-scoring tactical matches. Despite these two's history, points tend to be scored when Humphreys/Monday meet. Three of their five bouts have exceeded 14 total points. Whoever wins is likely the #1 seed at the EIWA Championships, which is important because #20 Doug Zapf probably looms on the bottom half of the bracket and he's responsible for Humphreys only loss of the year (which was avenged last weekend). A day later, Monday will face Zapf. 165 lbs #5 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) vs. #8 Travis Wittlake (Oklahoma State) - Saturday #6 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) vs. #29 Danny Braunagel (Illinois) - Friday #12 Austin Yant (Northern Iowa) vs. #31 Isaac Judge (Iowa State) #15 Phil Conigliaro (Harvard) vs. #19 Josh Ogunsanya (Columbia) - Friday #16 Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) vs. #22 Thomas Bullard (NC State) - Friday #18 Zach Hartman (Bucknell) vs. #25 Brian Meyer (Lehigh) - Saturday #24 Lucas Revano (Penn) vs. #26 Evan Barczak (Drexel) - Sunday #27 Bubba Wilson (Nebraska) vs. #29 Danny Braunagel (Illinois) - Sunday Most Important Match: #2 Keegan O'Toole (Missouri) vs. #7 Anthony Valencia (Arizona State) - Saturday This is a rematch of the 2021 NCAA consolation quarterfinals. After a hobbled Anthony Valencia secured his elusive All-American honor for the first time, he was paired with the explosive true freshman from Mizzou. That affair ended up one-sided as a match could be in the favor of Keegan O'Toole, 16-1. I wouldn't expect the same result Saturday. Valencia is a week removed from losing a one-point shootout to 2021 national champion, Shane Griffith, while O'Toole downed All-American Travis Wittlake. While O'Toole got the win, he didn't necessarily look like his normal, explosive self, as he came off a two-week layoff. 174 lbs #3 Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) vs. #9 Clay Lautt (North Carolina) - Friday #7 Ethan Smith (Ohio State) vs. #18 Bailee O'Reilly (Minnesota) - Friday #8 Adam Kemp (Cal Poly) vs. #30 Sam Wolf (Air Force) - Sunday #11 Mickey O'Malley (Drexel) vs. #23 Nick Incontrera (Penn) - Sunday #15 Hayden Hastings (Wyoming) vs. #30 Sam Wolf (Air Force) - Friday #20 Lance Runyon (Northern Iowa) vs. #25 Joel Devine (Iowa State) - Friday Most Important Match: #2 Michael Kemerer (Iowa) vs. #10 Dustin Plott (Oklahoma State) - Saturday Just a few weeks ago, Dustin Plott was cruising and undefeated and this match looked like maybe it would be a toss-up. Since Plott has dropped two of his last four matches, one to unranked Sean Harmon (Missouri) and another against Lance Runyon (Northern Iowa), who saw his first action of the year. So is Plott closer to the wrestler who started 9-0 and looked poised to make the podium, or is he one that will have to scrap just to make the Big 12 finals? Michael Kemerer is rounding into top form after missing the first half of the season. He's tallied bonus points in four of his six wins and looks a lot like the wrestler that won the 2021 Big Ten title and entered St. Louis unbeaten. 184 lbs #2 Myles Amine (Michigan) vs. #17 DJ Washington (Indiana) - Friday #2 Myles Amine (Michigan) vs. #19 Layne Malczewski (Michigan State) - Sunday #6 Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) vs. #17 DJ Washington (Indiana) - Sunday #6 Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) vs. #20 Isaiah Salazar (Minnesota) - Friday #8 John Poznanski (Rutgers) vs. #16 Kyle Cochran (Maryland) - Saturday #9 Taylor Venz (Nebraska) vs. #21 Zac Braunagel (Illinois) - Sunday #10 Hunter Bolen (Virginia Tech) vs. #18 Gavin Kane (North Carolina) - Friday #11 Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) vs. #15 Abe Assad (Iowa) - Saturday #21 Zac Braunagel (Illinois) vs. #27 Chris Weiler (Wisconsin) - Friday #23 Travis Stefanik (Princeton) vs. #31 Neil Antrassian (Penn) - Saturday Most Important Match: #4 Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) vs. #7 Marcus Coleman (Iowa State) - Friday Suddenly, the dual between #5 Iowa State and #22 Northern Iowa is turning out to be one of the biggest of the weekend. One of the headliners of this in-state battle is at 184 lbs between All-American Parker Keckeisen and resurgent Marcus Coleman. While Coleman has qualified for nationals three times, he's bounced between 174-197 lbs during his time with ISU and never looked like a podium contender. That was until this year, where he's reeled off a 14-1 record and has wins over two past AA's. The only opponent to defeat Coleman this year? Keckeisen in their first event of the year, the Daktronics Open. The Panther has continued to impress after taking third in the country as a freshman. Like last season, a close loss to NCAA champion Aaron Brooks is the only thing standing between Keckeisen and a perfect record. 197 lbs #6 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) vs. #16 Isaac Trumble (NC State) - Friday #7 Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) vs. #11 Patrick Brucki (Michigan) - Sunday #7 Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) vs. #29 Andrew Davison (Northwestern) - Friday #10 Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State) vs. #25 Alan Clothier (Northern Colorado) - Friday #12 Greg Bulsak (Rutgers) vs. #30 Jaron Smith (Maryland) - Saturday #13 Louie DePrez (Binghamton) vs. #19 Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) - Saturday #23 Owen Pentz (North Dakota State) vs. #25 Alan Clothier (Northern Colorado) - Sunday #28 Max Shaw (North Carolina) vs. #31 Dakota Howard (Virginia Tech) - Friday Most Important Match: #8 Rocky Elam (Missouri) vs. #9 Kordell Norfleet (Arizona State) - Saturday The ever-changing 197 lb weight class! Another enticing match from the top-ten non-conference meeting between Arizona State and Missouri comes here as Rocky Elam and Kordell Norfleet toe the line opposite each other, once again. Norfleet was seeded third but fell in the quarters, then ran into a red-hot Elam in the bloodround and fell via major decision. Norfleet has missed some time this year and hasn't been a part of the chaos that regularly occurs at this weight. Elam recently lost back-to-back matches for the first time in his collegiate career, but may have righted the ship in Mizzou's win over Oklahoma State. 285 lbs #2 Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State) vs. #19 Zach Elam (Missouri) - Saturday #4 Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) vs. #31 Luke Surber (Oklahoma State) - Saturday #7 Jordan Wood (Lehigh) vs. #33 Matthew Cover (Princeton) - Friday #11 Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) vs. #16 Luke Luffman (Illinois) - Friday #12 Christian Lance (Nebraska) vs. #16 Luke Luffman (Illinois) - Sunday #17 Lewis Fernandes (Cornell) vs. #20 Joe Doyle (Binghamton) - Saturday #29 Ben Goldin (Penn) vs. #33 Matthew Cover (Princeton) - Saturday Most Important Match: #1 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) vs. #13 Tate Orndorff (Ohio State) - Friday Really, there isn't a marquee, must-watch of a match at 285 lbs this week. Luke Luffman has a challenging Friday/Sunday swing with a pair of top-12 opponents. Considering his current ranking, a win or two will obviously help his stock and possibly put him on the bottom half of the Big Ten bracket (away from Gable Steveson). Speaking of Gable. We wanted to point out that Friday's matchup with Tate Orndorff will be his last in front of the home fans at Minnesota. The last time Steveson and Orndorff met, it was a 19-4 tech for the Olympic gold medalist. I'd expect Steveson would want to make his last home bout memorable with either a quick fall or a dominant tech.

Virginia Tech heavyweight Nathan Traxler (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Duke at #10 Virginia Tech The Blue Devils made the trek north to face the Hokies in Cassell Coliseum. On paper, this dual leaned heavily to the Hokies with a couple big matchups featuring the Finesilver brothers. The product on the mat mirrored that pretty well, with the Hokies taking the dual 42-3. I had a few big takeaways from the dual. First--Wade Unger is figuring it out. He has looked strong and feisty in all three ACC duals and finally broke through this week, knocking off #21 Connor Brady with a last-second takedown--I'm interested to see what he does the rest of the season. Two--Matt Finesilver has impressive defense and was able to keep Mekhi from finishing on some very deep shots. The other takeaway from this match is that Mekhi Lewis is incredibly good at making adjustments within the match--it's so fun to watch him figure things out throughout the match. Finally--Bryce Andonian is a Bad Man. I know I've said it before, but the feel he has on the mat is otherworldly and this allows him to be comfortable in putting himself in some wildly uncomfortable situations. A 20-second pin of Josh Finesilver is bananas. No other way to say it. 125: Ty Naquin vs #20 Sam Latona This one was Latona early and often. He picked up two takedowns and a two-point nearfall in the first to open a 6-1 lead. Latona started the second with a reversal and took Naquin straight to his back for four to stretch it to a 12-1 lead. After a Naquin escape, Latona snagged a nice ankle pick and was able to take Naquin over for another four count to finish the tech fall 18-2 in the second period. 133: Drake Doolittle vs. #5 Korbin Myers Duke did not send out a wrestler at 133 and Korbin Myers took the win by forfeit. 141: Patrick Rowland vs. #22 Collin Gerardi After two minutes of hand fighting, Gerardi threw Rowland by from an underhook and started a very awkward scramble. Gerardi was able to come out on top to pick up the takedown at the end of the period. After an early escape, Gerardi was able to sit the corner on a Rowland shot to get the takedown and take a 5-0 lead into the third. Rowland went neutral to start the third. Gerardi got another takedown and rode out the period to take the 8-0 major decision. 149: #14 Josh Finesilver vs. #5 Bryce Andonian This was circled to be the match of the night and it delivered--but not in the way that I think anyone expected. I've said many times to not look away while Bryce Andonian is on the mat and this match highlighted that. My description will not do this justice-go watch the match. Finesilver shot in on a low single and sat Andonian to his hip. Andonian threaded through the crotch to lock up Finesilver's ankle, then rolled to his right. He elevated the leg and caught Finesilver on his back--Andonian worked up from the waist and was able to catch the arm and flatten Finesilver out for the 21-second pin. Absolutely bonkers. If anyone was wondering if BA was back to full strength, I think he answered that question here. 157: Wade Unger vs. #21 Connor Brady This match marks three weeks in a row of Unger putting out an impressive effort--and it finally paid off for him here with his first ACC win. Brady got a takedown very early in the first and Unger got a quick escape for the only points of the period. Unger got an escape to start the second for the only point of that period to make it 2-2 going into the third. Unger put on a strong ride to start the period but didn't quite get to the minute mark for riding time before Brady got an escape. What followed was a minute plus of pretty boring wrestling with not a lot of attempts made by either wrestler. On a restart with 18 seconds left, Brady seemed to think that he had the match in hand when Unger shot in on a low single with less than 10 seconds left--he picked it up and snagged the other ankle on the edge to get the winning takedown with 1 second remaining on the clock. Great effort by Unger and what seemed to be a mental lapse by Brady, who has been able to close out big matches this year. 165: Gabe Dinette vs. Clayton Ulrey Great action to start this match as Ulrey picked up a takedown off an outside single followed by a quick escape by Dinette. Ulrey then hit a solid high crotch to get his second takedown and went into the second period up 4-2. Ulrey got a quick escape to start the second and Dinette got in on a great high crotch but was unable to finish. On the restart, Ulrey quickly finished a beautiful high crotch of his own. After the Dinette escape, Ulrey grabbed another takedown and rode out the period to go into the third up 9-3. After an early Dinette escape, Ulrey got another takedown and moved riding time over a minute before Dinette got free. Ulrey added another takedown and rode out the period to take the 14-5 major decision. 174: #15 Matt Finesilver vs. #3 Mekhi Lewis This was the second marquee matchup in the dual and it lasted a bit longer than the first. Mekhi finished his first takedown off a reshot, followed by a quick escape for Finesilver. Finesilver showed some great defense, fending off a Lewis shot late in the first. He added an escape early in the second to tie the score at 2. Mekhi hit a beautiful go behind on a shallow shot from Finesilver, but he was again able to use his solid defense to keep Lewis from getting the takedown. Mekhi got a quick escape to take the lead in the third. Lewis again got in deep on a reshot, this time, he was able to drive through Finesilver's whizzer to get the takedown--Lewis's in-match adjustments continue to be impressive. Lewis then showed off his top skills and put on a smothering ride to finish the period on top and add a riding time point to win 6-2. 184: Vince Baker vs. #10 Hunter Bolen Bolen has been on a mission since returning from injury. He got a quick pin of Gregg Harvey last week and put on an offensive display in this one. Bolen got an early takedown and a turn for four to take a 6-0 lead into the second. He added another takedown in the second and was close to additional swipes, but didn't get the turn. In the third, he got an early reversal to go up 10-0. He then added another set of four backpoints and rode out for the 15-0 tech fall. 197: Kaden Russell vs. #32 Dakota Howard I thought this could be a fun one with the ability that both of these guys have to score in bunches and they both seem to have unending gas tanks. Howard struck first with an early takedown. Russell got the escape and Howard added a second takedown to go into the second up 4-2. Russell got an escape to start the second, then Howard hit a beautiful double leg and held Russell for a two count--Coach Lanham challenged the count and won the challenge, so Howard was up 6-3. After another escape, Howard was right back in on the single leg but was unable to finish on the edge. On the restart, he hit another quick double, but Russell was able to roll through and nearly got his own takedown, but neither was able to gain control. Howard got a quick escape in the third and finished a single leg midway through the period. He was able to push riding time over a minute before the escape and the match ended as a 10-5 decision for Howard. 285: Jonah Niesenbaum vs #14 Nathan Traxler Traxler continues to impress as a Hokie. He picked up an early takedown on a beautiful low-level single and trapped the leg--almost like he was moving into a lace. From there, he was able to keep the leg trapped and turk the bottom leg to take Niesenbaum over and get the pin in just over two minutes. Traxler seems to be gaining momentum and could be a real factor in the postseason on the national level. Virginia at #4 NC State We came into this dual thinking that the Wolfpack were heavily favored, but they made an impressive statement in Reynolds on Friday. Up and down the lineup, they wrestled great, complete matches and seemed to have answers for everything the Hoos threw at them in the 32-2 victory. Their defense seemed to be on another level in this dual and they were able to keep several UVA wrestlers from finishing shots that seemed like sure takedowns. A couple takeaways: One--Reynolds is a rowdy environment and is a great atmosphere for wrestling--I was supposed to be there opening weekend, but, well, you know… SO I'm really looking forward to being down for the VT dual. Hard to think that this atmosphere didn't help fuel some of the upsets the Wolfpack came away within this dual. Two-the youth of the Wolfpack have a clear sense of maturity; six of their starters are freshmen or sophomores, but they wrestle with the confidence of upperclassmen. 125: Patrick McCormick vs. #14 Jakob Camacho There wasn't a lot of action to start off the match; Camacho picked up a takedown with a minute left in the first and rode out the period. Camacho got an escape to start the second and was in on another takedown and again rode out the period to go into the 3rd with a 5-0 lead. Camacho gave McCormick the escape in the third and got in on a deep shot--Camacho scrambled out and got in on McCormick's legs to get a takedown on the edge. Camacho gave the point to go neutral again and was back on a shot quickly to get another takedown; that sequence was repeated again and Camacho rode out to pick up the 12-3 major decision. 133: #22 Brandon Courtney vs. #15 Kai Orine Courtney was coming off two big wins and ACC Wrestler of the Week honors, while Orine was off a dominant win over Drake Doolittle. Orine got a clean takedown midway through the first and Courtney was able to get a quick escape. Orine got in on another shot and Courtney created a long scramble to get a stalemate. Orine got an escape to start the second and got in deep on another shot. Courtney created another scramble and was able to come out on top in this one to finish the takedown and ride out the period to tie the score at 3 going into the third. Courtney got a quick escape to take the lead 4-3. He then tried to get to a duck under, but Orine caught the head and drove through to put him on his back for the takedown and four big swipes to take the 9-4 lead with 45 seconds left. Orine was able to hold Courtney down for the rest of the period but was called for locked hands at the buzzer to finish with a 10-5 decision. 141: Dylan Cedeno vs. #24 Ryan Jack Jack started the first period strong, picking up a takedown off a low single--he then had a great ride to end the period up 2-0. Cedeno got his turn on top and had a strong ride for the first 30 seconds of the period when the second official signaled for an illegal cutback; Jack was given the penalty point, but the call was reviewed by the officials and overturned. On the restart, Jack was able to escape. Jack snagged another low single, but Cedeno was able to scramble back to get on his own shot before Jack locked up for a stalemate. The third period started with Jack up 3-0; he started with another strong ride to get his riding time up before Cedeno got the escape. Cedeno picked up the pace and was in on a shot that went out of bounds before he was able to counter a shallow shot by Jack to finish a takedown and tie the score with 3 seconds left--but he didn't have enough time to erase the riding time and Jack earned the 4-3 decision. 149: #30 Jarod Verkleeren vs #3 Tariq Wilson Tariq looked much more aggressive than he has in his last few matches; he threw by from an underhook to get a takedown in the opening minute of the match. After a Verk escape and some hard hand fighting, Tariq got in on another shot and looked to finish the takedown on the edge--Coach Popolizio argued the call but didn't have a brick to challenge. Tariq almost finished another double on the edge, but time ran out in the first before he could get control. Wilson put on an amazing ride for the entire second period and was awarded a point for stalling to go up 3-1 into the third. Wilson got a quick escape to start the period and was able to fend off a deep shot by Verk on the edge and ended the match with a 5-1 decision with riding time. I like how aggressive Tariq was on his feet and major kudos to Verkleeren for the fight he showed the entire match; he fought off several deep shots from Tariq and was in on a couple shots of his own that he wasn't able to finish on the edge. 157: #29 Jake Keating vs. #10 Ed Scott You could tell pretty quickly that this match was going to be a fun one! Within the first 30 seconds, there were throw attempts from both wrestlers and they spent the first two minutes of the match threatening upper body from ties. Scott went for a headlock at the two-minute mark and Keating was able to pop his head and go behind for the takedown. Scott got the immediate escape and was in on a single leg but unable to finish before the buzzer. Keating got the escape to start the period and they were both back in on upper body ties. Scott dropped in and was able to pick up the leg of Keating, then locked up a cradle from standing and rolled through to put Keating on his back with 1:20 left in the period. Scott got the swipes, but Keating's shoulders were up on Scott, so he couldn't get the fall. Scott adjusted and rolled through two more times but was unable to get Keating flat. After over a minute of fighting the cradle, Keating was able to pop his head and get behind Scott for the reversal with 4 seconds left to end the period 7-5 in favor of Scott. What a wild period! Scott got a quick escape in third to stretch the lead, then Keating locked him up and hit an outside trip to get the takedown. Keating immediately cut him and, after a short fight, was able to drop from a body lock to snag the ankles on the edge to tie it at 9 with a minute left. Keating cut again and shot in with 45 seconds left, when Scott created a scramble. Keating was able to break the grip and get the takedown with 13 seconds left to take the 11-10 lead. Scott fought for the escape and got a short break for bloodtime. With the restart at 6 seconds, Scott rolled through and was almost able to get the reversal, but the buzzer sounded to give Keating the upset win 11-10. UVA was docked a team point when Coach Garland animatedly voiced his displeasure at a blood stoppage with short time left after Keating took the lead--pretty solid vertical leap from Garland on that one. 165: #17 Justin McCoy vs. #21 Thomas Bullard We had great action early with both guys in on shots in the first period; the first exchange was stopped for potentially dangerous and McCoy was able to counter a Bullard shot but couldn't fully get the go behind for the takedown. Bullard got a quick escape to start the second and McCoy got in deep on a couple shots but wasn't able to finish a takedown. McCoy got an early escape to tie it at 1 in the third. Bullard shot a low single from space and was able to work through the scramble of McCoy to lock up a cradle to get the takedown. Bullard was able to fend off a couple reversal attempts and rode McCoy out to pick up the 4-1 win. 174: Justin Phillips vs. #4 Hayden Hidlay This was a quick one as Hidlay continues his march through ACC competition. Hidlay finished on a single in the first 30 seconds and went to work on top. He got his first set of nearfall with a 2-on-1, then switched to a bar for two more sets of four before finishing the pin right before the buzzer in the first. It was impressive. 184: #25 Michael Battista vs. #3 Trent Hidlay Out of the gate, Hidlay was attacking with his frenetic pace. In the first 28 seconds, he finished his first takedown from an underhook. Battista got the escape and Hidlay was immediately back in on a single for his second takedown. After another escape, Hidlay finished another takedown from his underhook. Another Battista escape at 19 seconds remaining and Hidlay continued to push the pace and picked up his fourth takedown of the period and rode out for an 8-3 lead going into the second. Battista got an escape to start the second, then was hit for his second stall when he went out of bounds, while tied up. Battista got in on his first shot on the edge but was stretched out--Hidlay hipped in and drug through him to get the takedown. Hidlay rode out the period to go into the 3rd with an 11-4 lead and over two minutes of riding time. Hidlay got the escape to stretch the lead to 8 and was working to another shot from his underhook when Battista was hit for stalling again going out of bounds. Hidlay shot in on a shallow double then limp armed out of a Battista whizzer to pick up another takedown. Battista got another escape and Hidlay nearly finished another takedown before time ran out. Hidlay picked up a 16-5 major decision to get another BONUS point win on his record. 197: #13 Jay Aiello vs. #20 Isaac Trumble This was a fantastic match that had big momentum swings. Aiello was up early with a single in the first and was in on a second shot, but Trumble did an amazing job using his length in the scramble to get the takedown and rideout. Aiello got a nice reversal to start the second and was working to turn Trumble when it was stopped for potentially dangerous. Aiello then put on a strong ride to finish the period on top and went into the 3rd with a 4-3 lead. Aiello continued to work from the top in the third, pushing riding time over a minute and a half with about a minute left in the match. On the restart, Coach Popolizio threw the brick to challenge a mat return--it was overruled on the review. On the restart, Aiello threw in a leg and was trying to flatten out Trumble, when he got loose on the hip and Trumble was able to sit through for the reversal with 10 seconds left. Aiello sat back in and nearly had the reversal at the buzzer--Coach Garland challenged that he had control, but it was overruled. With riding time, the score was tied at 5 and went to sudden victory. In the extra frame, we were treated to a phenomenal, nearly 90 second-long scramble that had both wrestlers almost finishing the takedown on multiple occasions. Aiello dropped in deep on a single and Trumble again used his length incredibly well to create an advantage and sit the corner. Aiello countered and got nearly behind Trumble with his leg lifted, but he was able to keep the whizzer in and drop Aiello back to the mat. From there, he was again able to use his length to get to the ankle and get squared up--then shot in on a double and was able to finish the takedown for the upset. I highly recommend rewatching that scramble. High-level work from the big guys. 285: #31 Quinn Miller vs. #26 Tyrie Houghton After several wild matches in a row, we had a slower-paced match at heavyweight. With no points scored in the first, Houghton got a quick escape in the second, then we had a couple minutes of hand fighting and trading upper body ties. Miller got an early reversal in the third to take a 2-1 lead, but Houghton got a quick escape to tie it up. Miller shot in deep on a single leg with about 30 seconds left and Houghton was able to sprawl and got enough separation to get behind for the takedown and rode Miller out for the 4-2 win. #23 Pittsburgh at #18 North Carolina I got the chance to see this one up close and I'm glad I did because it was a great dual. The teams were pretty evenly matched and the dual was back and forth throughout before the Tar Heels pulled away late to win 19-12. There was a great atmosphere in Carmichael and the Tar Heels did a fantastic job of honoring their seniors and sending them out on a good note. I've got a few big takeaways from this dual. One--I've said it before and I will keep saying it: it does not look pleasant to wrestle Jake Wentzel. He is an absolute monster on top. Two--Joe Heilmann was one heck of an ace to have up the sleeve for Coleman Scott. Heilmann was battling for the starting spot with Jaime Hernandez, who started the season 6-0, before an injury. Now that he has the spot solidified, he goes out and beats Micky Phillippi. He'll have another big chance to make some noise this week facing Korbin Myers. Finally--Cole Matthews is going to be trouble and now the rest of the country is finally starting to take notice. He handed Clarke his first loss of the year and ran his streak to 8 straight and he has looked phenomenal for the entire season. Matthews has real potential to be high on the podium in March. 125: #31 Gage Curry vs. Spencer Moore This definitely wasn't an offensive showcase to start the dual. The first period was scoreless--Curry got in on an outside single, but Moore was able to kick/roll/funk out of it-it was an odd one. Moore got an escape in the second, but that's about it for that period. Curry picked up a quick escape in the third and started to push the pace. He got to an outside single and picked up the leg on the edge-Moore was able to whizzer out, but got called for stalling going out of bounds. Curry got in on two more deep shots in the third, but Moore was able to scramble out. In sudden victory, Moore took a half shot early--Curry took a counter shot when Moore sprawled he was called for his second stall and Curry got the win on the penalty point 2-1. Curry was certainly the aggressor and the first stall was a good call. However, I didn't like the second call when I saw it in person, and I didn't agree with it when I rewatched the dual. Moore was advancing the entire 30 seconds of sudden victory and had a shot attempt. He was engaged with Curry when he sprawled on the shot attempt--not sure what else he is supposed to do there. This was the start of an inconsistent evening of stall calls that seemed to perplex both coaching staffs at times. Pitt 3 UNC 0 133: #7 Micky Phillippi vs #23 Joe Heilmann I told you this would be a fun one to watch!! Phillippi got in deep midway the first, but Heilmann was able to dive-roll through and lock it up for a stalemate. Phillippi got an escape after a short ride from Heilmann. He got in deep on another shot and Heilmann tried to roll through--somehow, he got to rear standing without putting a hand down and was able to pull Phillippi's leg up at the end of the period to keep him from finishing the takedown--it was a wild scramble. Heilmann started down in the third and was able to hit a switch and pick up Phillippi's leg, but he kicked out before giving up a reversal. Phillippi took another shot and Heilmann reshot to a low single and worked his way up to finish a double leg for the takedown. Gavin threw the brick to challenge that Heilmann locked hands, but it was overturned--I'd love any official to give me an explanation as to how it wasn't locked hands though--my dm's are open! Phillippi was able to get an escape and made several attempts to get to Heilmann's legs but wasn't able to get a takedown. Heilmann pulled off a big upset, 3-2, on his home mat. He did a phenomenal job of countering Phillippi's ties and that seemed to make a big difference in the match. Pitt 3 UNC 3 141: #17 Cole Matthews vs. #6 Kizhan Clarke I had this one pegged as the match of the night and it delivered. Matthews continued his amazing run and gave Clarke his first loss of the season. Matthews had a beautiful low single takedown midway through the first. He had about 30 seconds of riding time when Coach Scott threw the brick to challenge an illegal mat return. It feels like we've had about 93 of these in the past 3 weeks, but the call was upheld that the return was legal. Clarke was able to get an escape on the restart and it was 2-1 going into the 2nd. Matthews got a quick escape to start the period and the rest of the two minutes was hand fighting and half shots. Clarke got an escape to start the third to bring it within a point and started picking up his pace and trying to get more offensive. Clarke got to an outside single on the edge, but Matthews was able to keep the action moving out of bounds. Matthews held great position and was able to keep Clarke off his legs with solid hand fighting to move his win streak up to 8 and give Clarke his first loss of the season. Pitt 6 UNC 3 149: Dan Mancini vs. #20 Zach Sherman Sherman continues to look better and better. He got a takedown off a quick double and rode out the last 30 seconds of the first period. In the second, he got a quick escape and shot in on another double from space and finished through a scramble attempt by Mancini to go up 5-0. Mancini got the escape to start the third and got in on a shot of his own, but Sherman was able to create a scramble and get the takedown. Mancini got the escape and Sherman pushed to get a major, but was unable to get another takedown and won a 7-2 decision. Pitt 6 UNC 6 157: #19 Elijah Cleary vs. #6 Austin O'Connor After a minute of solid hand fighting to start the match, Cleary hit a nice outside single and picked up the leg, but O'Connor was able to block him off and whizzer on the edge to keep him from scoring. O'Connor got the escape at the start of the second and tried to throw by, but Cleary was able to snag a leg to get the stalemate. Starting the third, O'Connor was focused on getting the riding time over a minute. In an early scramble, Cleary nearly kicked out and on the return, the Pitt staff was adamant that there was a locked hands on O'Connor, but they didn't have a brick to throw and the officials didn't take a second look--they were facing away from my seat so I couldn't tell, and the camera angle was from behind on the stream. O'Connor was able to stack up 1:30 of riding time before Cleary got the escape and was able to weather a flurry from Cleary to pick up the 2-1 win with a riding time point. Pitt 6 UNC 9 165: #14 Jake Wentzel vs. Michael Goldfelder Goldfelder made his ACC debut against NCAA finalist Jake Wentzel--Sonny Santiago has gotten the previous two ACC duals. Wentzel got a takedown midway through the first and had the start of a lot of punishing top work in the match. Wetzel rode out the first, and through multiple blood stoppages, the second period as well--he wasn't able to get any turns but did get a stalling point. Going into the third, it was 3-0 with 3:25 of riding time. He got a quick escape to go up 4-0 and started pushing for bonus points. He added another takedown with 30 seconds left; he gave up the escape and while unable to get another takedown to get the major, he got another stalling point to end the match with an 8-1 decision. Pitt 9 UNC 9 174: Hunter Kernan vs. #13 Clay Lautt We saw lots of upper body ties and half-throw attempts, but no points scored in the first. Lautt got the escape to start the second, but that was the only point scored. Kernan got the escape to start the third but, midway through, surrendered a stalling point as well as a takedown to Lautt to give him a 4-1 lead. Kernan added a late escape to end the match with a 4-2 decision for Lautt. Pitt 9 UNC 12 184: #31 Gregg Harvey vs. #21 Gavin Kane This match had some action and got the crowd on their feet in Carmichael. Both guys got after it immediately and both were in on shallow shots several times in the first minute. Harvey got the first points with a quick ankle pick. Kane got the escape and shot in on a quick double-he picked Harvey up to finish and Harvey was able to roll out briefly, but Kane was able to catch him and finish the shot--it was a great sequence you should watch if you haven't yet! Harvey got the escape and Kane dropped in on a leg to pick up another takedown with 14 seconds left. He rode out the period but was called for stalling on a 5 count on the leg in the last 5 seconds of the period--this was held up on review though the clock seemed to be at 4 seconds when he started the count--again, my dm's are open if anyone can provide clarity. The score was 5-3 going into the 2nd. Harvey got an escape to go to 5-4, but Kane was immediately back in on the legs to get another takedown. Harvey got another escape and Kane picked up the tempo. Kane had an emphatic finish on his next takedown to go up 9-5. Kane cut him and was back in to finish another shot on the edge to be up 11-6; Kane rode out the period to have 1:07 in riding time going into the 3rd. Kane started with an escape and was back in on the legs again to pick up another takedown to go up 14-6. Harvey kept fighting and was able to get to Kane's legs a couple times but couldn't finish--he earned a stalling point to make the score 14-8 with 30 seconds left. Harvey dropped in on another shot that got a stalemate and with seven seconds, Kane kept pushing and finished another takedown at the buzzer to get the major decision. Phenomenal effort on the part of Kane this whole match, he's been incredibly impressive the last two weeks. Pitt 9 UNC 16 197: #7 Nino Bonaccorsi vs #29 Max Shaw Another match of Nino doing Nino things. Bonaccorsi has to be one of the most quietly consistent wrestlers in the country--just wrestles his matches and racks up wins. Nino got an early takedown on a low single from space and put on a strong ride to rack up two plus minutes of riding time to finish the period on top. Nino rode for the first 30 seconds of the period then cut Shaw loose but immediately got back in on another single shot from space. He couldn't finish on the edge before Shaw hit the floor--the officials called a takedown initiall, but took it away on review. Bonaccorsi got in on another single on the edge but Shaw was able to fend him off at the end of the period. Bonaccorsi got a reversal in the third to stretch it to a 4-1 lead and went to work again on top. Shaw gave up a point on a second stall--much to the dismay of Coleman Scott, who was pleading the case for Shaw from the bench. Bonaccorsi rode out the rest of the period but Shaw kept him from getting any backpoints in the 7-1 decision. Pitt 12 UNC 16 285: Jake Slinger vs. Brandon Whitman Both heavyweights were pretty evenly matched on paper and it played out that way in the match. The first period was slow until Whitman dropped in on a low single with 30 seconds left, then worked through a nice scramble to finish the takedown. Whitman got a quick escape in the second to open it to 3-1. Slinger shot to a low single then Whitman reshot and started a 40-second scramble to end the period without either scoring. Whitman tried to get the riding time up to start the third but Slinger was able to escape then was able to get a go behind off a fake to even the score at 3 with 30 seconds left. Whitman and his glorious mustache were able to get a quick escape and fend Slinger off for the remainder of the period to take the 4-3 decision. Final Score: Pitt 12 UNC 19

Cornell 184 lber Jonathan Loew (photo courtesy of Tony DiMarco) Below is a recap of last week's EIWA action, with individual news and highlights worth noting. Notable News Army upsets #15 Lehigh Jonathan Loew of Cornell earns EIWA Wrestler of the Week Glory wins a wild one in a highly anticipated matchup with Arujau Brignola of Lehigh gets redshirt pulled to fit into line-up at 149lbs Josh Ogunsanya upsets returning NCAA runner-up Wentzel of Pitt Cornell wins 18th Ivy League title in 19 years, 41st overall Penn wins 8 of 10 matches to hand Lehigh first loss at home on the year American The Eagles took the trip to Lewisburg to face off against Bucknell Max Leete (125) continued his winning ways with a solid win over Seidman At 174lb, Tim Fitzpatrick earned a decision, as did Isaac Righter at heavyweight Boxscore: Bucknell 29 - American 9 125: Max Leete (AU) dec. Brandon Seidman (Bucknell), 4-2 (AU 3-0) 133: Kurt Phipps (Bucknell) dec. Jack Maida (AU), 7-4 (Tied 3-3) 141: Darren Miller (Bucknell) major dec. Ethan Szerencsits (AU), 14-2 (Bucknell 7-3) 149: Kolby DePron (Bucknell) dec. Patrick Ryan (AU), 6-3 (Bucknell 10-3) 157: Nick Delp (Bucknell) dec. Ryan Zimmerman (AU), 7-0 (Bucknell 13-3) 165: #14 Zach Hartman (Bucknell) pinned Breon Phifer (AU), 1:29 (Bucknell 19-3) 174: Tim Fitzpatrick (AU) dec. Sam Barnes (Bucknell), 3-2 (Bucknell 19-6) 184: Logan Deacetis (Bucknell) pinned Colin Shannon (AU), 1:33 (Bucknell 25-6) 197: Mason McCready (Bucknell) major dec. Carsten Rawls (AU), 13-3 (Bucknell 29-6) 285: Isaac Righter (AU) dec. Luke Niemeyer (Bucknell), 8-1 (Bucknell 29-9) The Eagles hung in there against a very tough Bucknell. Leete has been picking it up lately, assuming new assistant Coach Joey Dance has been working with him nonstop. Many of the losses were due to bad matchups for the Eagles. Where American had a bright spot in the lineup, Bucknell seemed to have something a little brighter. The Eagles are steadily improving at the right time. Army Army hosted 15th ranked Lehigh in a home dual, adding another victory in upset fashion At 174lb, Ben Pasiuk had a nice win over Logan Sahm Abdulrazzaq earned a victory over Burkhart Both Corey Shie (141) and Markus Hartman (#24 - 157) had pins to help seal the deal At 149lb, Matthew Williams stepped in for an injured Ogunsanya to win 3-2 over a tough Brignola Boxscore: Army 24 - Lehigh 13 165: #24 Brian Meyer dec. over #28 Dalton Harkins, 2-1 174: Ben Pasiuk dec. over Jake Logan, 4-3 184: Sahm Abdulrazzaq dec. over AJ Burkhart, 5-1 197: #26 J.T. Brown dec. over JT Davis, 5-2 HWT: #7 Jordan Wood dec. over Brandon Phillips, 6-0 125: Sheldon Seymour MD over Ryan Chauvin, 14-4 133: #16 Malyke Hines dec. over Dominic Carone, 4-0 141: Corey Shie fall over Connor McGonagle, 0:51 (6-0) 149: Matthew Williams dec. over Max Brignola, 3-2 157: #24 Markus Hartman fall over Luca Frinzi, 4:55 (7-0) The Black Knights won all the close ones and earned two pins enroute to pull the upset victory. Many may not have expected this, as Lehigh has been cruising lately - which has earned them a 15th spot in the dual meet rankings. Army was winless until a week ago; but we know this is due to their insane strength of schedule. Sure, Lehigh was missing #8 Humphreys at 157lb, but he would have needed a tech fall to tie, and a pin to win over a tough Hartman. Army is looking great with less than a month until conferences. All the adversity in the first half of the season is paying off. Binghamton - no action last week Brown - no action last week Bucknell Bucknell was on the road to square off against Navy. Then, the Bison hosted American, winning seven of ten bouts. Bucknell won five straight from 133lb to 165lb against American thanks to Phipps (133), Miller (#26 - 141), DePron (149), Delp (157), and Hartman (#14 - 165). Hartman added another pin on the year Against Navy, Brandon Seidman (125lb) won in overtime against Allen Zach Hartman (#19 - 165), Darren Miller (#26 - 141), and Kolby DePron were winners by decision against Navy Boxscore: Bucknell 12 - Navy 21 165: #19 Zach Hartman (BU) dec. over Val Park (NAVY) 7-1 174: Cael Crebs (NAVY) dec. over Sam Barnes (BU) 9-2 184: Hunter Johns (NAVY) dec. over Logan Deacetis (BU) 6-2 197: #27 Jacob Koser (NAVY) fall over Mason McCready (BU) 3:49 285: Ryan Catka (NAVY) dec. over Luke Niemeyer (BU) 5-0 125: Brandon Seidman (BU) dec. over Jacob Allen (NAVY) 3-1 (SV-1) 133: #26 Josh Koderhandt (NAVY) dec. over Kurt Phipps (BU) 7-1 141: #26 Darren Miller (BU) dec. over Tyler Hunt (NAVY) 5-2 149: Kolby DePron (BU) dec. over Jonathan Miranda (NAVY) 8-3 157: #26 Andrew Cerniglia (NAVY) dec. over Nick Delp (BU) 9-3 Boxscore: Bucknell 29 - American 9 125: Max Leete (AU) dec. Brandon Seidman (Bucknell), 4-2 (AU 3-0) 133: Kurt Phipps (Bucknell) dec. Jack Maida (AU), 7-4 (Tied 3-3) 141: Darren Miller (Bucknell) major dec. Ethan Szerencsits (AU), 14-2 (Bucknell 7-3) 149: Kolby DePron (Bucknell) dec. Patrick Ryan (AU), 6-3 (Bucknell 10-3) 157: Nick Delp (Bucknell) dec. Ryan Zimmerman (AU), 7-0 (Bucknell 13-3) 165: #14 Zach Hartman (Bucknell) pinned Breon Phifer (AU), 1:29 (Bucknell 19-3) 174: Tim Fitzpatrick (AU) dec. Sam Barnes (Bucknell), 3-2 (Bucknell 19-6) 184: Logan Deacetis (Bucknell) pinned Colin Shannon (AU), 1:33 (Bucknell 25-6) 197: Mason McCready (Bucknell) major dec. Carsten Rawls (AU), 13-3 (Bucknell 29-6) 285: Isaac Righter (AU) dec. Luke Niemeyer (Bucknell), 8-1 (Bucknell 29-9) Bucknell improved to 12-4 on the year, and 7-2 in the conference after defeating American on Sunday. It was a nice bounce back win after a loss to a very tough Navy team on the road. I've said it before, this Bison team is sneaky good. The lower and middle weights are really picking it up as the year continues. It seems like Seidman and Phipps are right on the cusp of being ranked nationally. A few more wins and they'll find themselves there. Columbia The Lions dropped a road dual against 19th ranked Pittsburgh. Joshua Ogunsanya (#23 - 165) pulled off the upset over returning NCAA runner-up Wentzel At 184, Brian Bonino had a ranked win over Harvey (#31) Boxscore: #19 Pittsburgh 30 - Columbia 5 125: No. 31 Gage Curry (PITT) def. No. 28 Joe Manchio (COL) dec. 5-1 133: No. 7 Micky Phillippi (PITT) def. No. 25 Angelo Rini (COL) dec. 9-3 141: No. 18 Cole Matthews (PITT) def. No. 19 Matt Kazimir (COL) F (0:33) 149: Dan Mancini (PITT) def. Dominic Rossetti (COL) SV 3-1 157: No. 19 Elijah Cleary (PITT) def. Andrew Garr (COL) maj. 14-2 165: No. 23 Joshua Ogunsanya (COL) def. No. 14 Jake Wentzel (PITT) OT2 4-2 174: Hunter Kernan (PITT) def. Nick Fine (COL) dec. 2-0 184: Brian Bonino (COL) def. No. 31 Gregg Harvey (PITT) dec. 3-1 197: No. 7 Nino Bonazzorsi (PITT) def. Joe Franzese (COL) TF 18-3 285: Jake Slinger (PITT) def. Danny Conley (COL) dec. 6-0 This was somewhat of a matchup nightmare for Columbia, as their strengths in the lower weights were outmatched by Pitt's. Pitt took the first three matches, taking any chance of an upset pretty much off the table. Pitt is obviously a tough team and were expected to win, but some of those matches Columbia would love to have another crack at. The Lions are still a tough team with a great head coach. They will be peaking in the next few weeks. Expect them to perform well at conferences. Cornell (#7) The Big Red had a big weekend on the road with matches at #25 Princeton, #19 Penn, and Drexel. At 184lb, Jonathan Loew (#15 - 184) had himself a great weekend beating two ranked opponents Jacob Cardenas (#19 - 197) and Lewis Fernandes (#17 - 285) were also undefeated on the weekend Yianni Diakomihalis (#1 - 149) had a tech, a major, and a first period fall Adam Santoro earned a win over Kropman of Drexel at 157lb Boxscore: #11 Cornell 21, #20 Princeton 12 165: Jake Marsh (Princeton) won by decision over #8 Julian Ramirez (Cornell), 7-6 174: #12 Chris Foca (Cornell) won by decision over Nate Dugan (Princeton), 10-4 184: #15 Jonathan Loew (Cornell) won by decision over #20 Travis Stefanik (Princeton), 5-2 197: #19 Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) won by decision over #18 Luke Stout (Princeton), 3-1 (sv1) HWT: #17 Lewis Fernandes (Cornell) won by major decision over Matt Cover (Princeton), 13-4 125: #2 Patrick Glory (Princeton) won by decision over #3 Vito Arujau (Cornell), 11-9 133: #30 Dom LaJoie (Cornell) won by decision over Nick Kayal (Princeton), 4-1 141: Danny Coles (Princeton) won by decision over JJ Wilson (Cornell), 8-5 149: #1 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) won by technical fall over Marshall Keller (Princeton), 16-0 (2:04) 157: #11 Quincy Monday (Princeton) won by decision #25 Hunter Richard (Cornell), 8-4 Boxscore: #11 Cornell 20, Penn 12 165: #25 Lucas Reveno (Penn) won by decision over Jake Brindley (Cornell), 9-2 174: #12 Chris Foca (Cornell) won by decision over #26 Nick Incontrera (Penn), 4-2 184: #15 Jonathan Loew (Cornell) won by decision over #32 Neil Antrassian (Penn), 5-4 197: #19 Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) won by decision over Cole Urbas (Penn), 6-1 HWT: #17 Lewis Fernandes (Cornell) won by decision over #29 Ben Goldin (Penn), 2-0 125: #3 Vito Arujau (Cornell) won by major decision over #26 Ryan Miller (Penn), 10-2 133: #17 Michael Colaiocco (Penn) won by decision over #30 Dom LaJoie (Cornell), 8-4 141: #16 CJ Composto (Penn) won by decision over JJ Wilson (Cornell), 5-1 149: #1 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) won by major decision over #27 Anthony Artalona (Penn), 10-2 157: #20 Doug Zapf (Penn) won by decision over #25 Hunter Richard (Cornell), 4-2 Boxscore: #11 Cornell 32, Drexel 12 165: #27 Evan Barczak (Drexel) won by decision over Jake Brindley (Cornell), 4-1 174: #16 Mickey O'Malley (Drexel) won by injury default over #12 Chris Foca (Cornell) 184: #15 Jonathan Loew (Cornell) won by fall over Bryan McLaughlin (Drexel), 6:59 197: #19 Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) won by technical fall over Santino Morina (Drexel), 16-0 (5:19) HWT: #17 Lewis Fernandes (Cornell) won by technical fall over Eli Anthony (Drexel), 18-0 (2:06) 125: Greg Diakomihalis (Cornell) won by decision over Kyle Waterman (Drexel), 7-3 133: Jaxon Maroney (Drexel) won by decision over #30 Dom LaJoie (Cornell), 5-4 141: JJ Wilson (Cornell) won by major decision over Jared Donahue (Drexel), 12-1 149: #1 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) won by fall over Tyler Williams (Drexel), 0:27 157: Adam Santoro (Cornell) won by decision over Parker Kropman (Drexel), 8-7 The Big Red are still the Ivy League champs. Under the first-year head coach, Mike Grey, the team has not lost a step. Now ranked 7th nationally, they are expecting to be in that top five conversation at NCAAs. Ramirez seemed to have been injured, not wrestling on Sunday against Penn and Drexel. Foca lost by injury default to O'Malley of Drexel. Let's hope they heal up and are full strength for EIWAs, as Penn, Princeton, and Lehigh are looking to take home the first-place trophy. Drexel The Dragons had three home conference duals. They won two of them Mickey O'Malley (#11 - 174) was 3-0 on the week with one pin. His marquee match with Foca (#12) of Cornell was stopped due to an injury to Foca At 133, Jaxon Maroney came off of injury last week, winning all three bouts this week. This includes a win over Lajoie (#30) of Cornell Both Jared Donahue (141) and Tyler Williams (149) won two matches Evan Barczak (#27 - 165) was undefeated in all three matches At 157lb, Parker Kropman earned two wins as well Boxscore: Drexel 27, Hofstra 13 174: Mickey O'Malley def. Ericson Velesquez, Fall 0:59, Drexel leads 6-0 184: Charles Small def. Bryan McLaughlin, 7-6 Dec, Drexel leads 6-3 197: Trey Rogers def. Santino Morina, 17-6 MD, Hofstra leads 7-6 285: Zach Knighton-Ward def. Liam Dietrich, Fall 2:06, Hofstra leads 13-6 125: Kyle Waterman def. Jacob Moon, 10-2 MD, Hofstra leads 13-10 133: Jaxon Maroney def. Matt Templeton, 8-2 Dec, Tie Score 13-13 141: Jared Donahue def. Justin Hoyle, 9-6 Dec, Drexel leads 16-13 149: Tyler Williams def. Mike Leandrou, 15-0 TF, Drexel leads 21-13 157: Parker Kropman def. Joe McGinty, 7-3 Dec, Drexel leads 24-13 165: Evan Barczak vs Ricky Stamm, 6-1 Dec, Drexel wins 27-13 Boxscore: Drexel 30, LIU 6 174: Mickey O'Malley def. Ryan Ferro, 5-2 Dec, Drexel leads 3-0 184: Bryan McLaughlin def. James Langan, 9-2 Dec, Drexel leads 6-0 197: Nunzio Crowley def. Santino Morina, 4-0 Dec, Drexel leads 6-3 285: Tim Nagosky def. Eli Anthony, 9-2 Dec, Tie score 6-6 125: Antonio Mininno def. Robbie Sagaris, 8-6 Dec, Drexel leads 9-6 133: Jaxon Maroney def. Kaelen Francois, Fall 1:39, Drexel leads 15-6 141: Jared Donahue wins by forfeit, Drexel leads 21-6 149: Tyler Williams def. Drew Witham, 5-0 Dec, Drexel leads 24-6 157: Parker Kropman def. Rhise Royster, 10-3 Dec, Drexel leads 27-6 165: Evan Barczak def. Blake Banha, 4-0 Dec, Drexel wins 30-6 Boxscore: #11 Cornell 32, Drexel 12 165: #27 Evan Barczak (Drexel) won by decision over Jake Brindley (Cornell), 4-1 174: #16 Mickey O'Malley (Drexel) won by injury default over #12 Chris Foca (Cornell) 184: #15 Jonathan Loew (Cornell) won by fall over Bryan McLaughlin (Drexel), 6:59 197: #19 Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) won by technical fall over Santino Morina (Drexel), 16-0 (5:19) HWT: #17 Lewis Fernandes (Cornell) won by technical fall over Eli Anthony (Drexel), 18-0 (2:06) 125: Greg Diakomihalis (Cornell) won by decision over Kyle Waterman (Drexel), 7-3 133: Jaxon Maroney (Drexel) won by decision over #30 Dom LaJoie (Cornell), 5-4 141: JJ Wilson (Cornell) won by major decision over Jared Donahue (Drexel), 12-1 149: #1 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) won by fall over Tyler Williams (Drexel), 0:27 157: Adam Santoro (Cornell) won by decision over Parker Kropman (Drexel), 8-7 The Dragons looked tough against an injured Hofstra squad; and did their job against LIU. They are almost in the clear with injuries now that Maroney is back in the line-up, who made a statement with his win over Lajoie. Tyler Williams has looked very tough lately up at 149lb. This team will come around and form into final shape soon. If they become healthy, they will end up with a bunch of guys on the EIWA podium. Franklin & Marshall The Diplomats hosted McDaniel to a dual. They took no prisoners, winning all nine of the contested matches. Nearly all F&M wrestlers walked away with bonus points. Boxscore: Franklin & Marshall 44, McDaniel 6 125: Gio Diaz (F&M) TF Alex DuFour (MCD); 6:37 (18-0) (5-0) 133: Pat Phillips (F&M) TF Nicolas Jones (MCD); 4:08 (16-0) (10-0) 141: Wil Gil (F&M) TF Joe McKneely (MCD); 4:09 (18-1) (15-0) 149: Cristiaan Dailey (F&M) WBF Tyriel Jefferson (MCD); 1:53 (21-0) 157: Chase McCollum (F&M) TF Deontae Frederick (MCD); 4:45 (18-0) (26-0) 165: Alexander LaVeck (MCD) winner by forfeit (26-6) 174: Noah Fox (F&M) dec. Michael Bromley (MCD); 9-7 (29-6) 184: James Conway (F&M) WBF Valentino Pryor (MCD); Fall 2:41 (35-6) 197: Mike Waszen (F&M) dec. Jaedyn Harris (MCD); 5-3 (38-6) 285: Cenzo Pelusi (F&M) WBF Eric Ward (MCD); 2:26 (44-6) This was a nice beatdown that F&M needed to give out. It is good to have a competition like this where you can work on the confidence of some techniques. This will be a good momentum swing for their Rupp Cup match against their longtime rival, Millersville (D2). The Diplomats are 7-1 on the year, and still 2-0 in the EIWA. I am hoping to see them get a few wrestlers on the podium at conferences. Harvard - no competition last week Hofstra The Pride returned from a two-week layoff due to some COVID-related issues. The upper three of Hofstra were the only winners for The Pride. Charles Small (184) had a win over NCAA qualifier Bryan McLaughlin Trey Rogers (197) and Zach Knighton-Ward (#18 - 285) both had bonus point wins. Boxscore: Drexel 27, Hofstra 13 174: Mickey O'Malley def. Ericson Velesquez, Fall 0:59, Drexel leads 6-0 184: Charles Small def. Bryan McLaughlin, 7-6 Dec, Drexel leads 6-3 197: Trey Rogers def. Santino Morina, 17-6 MD, Hofstra leads 7-6 285: Zach Knighton-Ward def. Liam Dietrich, Fall 2:06, Hofstra leads 13-6 125: Kyle Waterman def. Jacob Moon, 10-2 MD, Hofstra leads 13-10 133: Jaxon Maroney def. Matt Templeton, 8-2 Dec, Tie Score 13-13 141: Jared Donahue def. Justin Hoyle, 9-6 Dec, Drexel leads 16-13 149: Tyler Williams def. Mike Leandrou, 15-0 TF, Drexel leads 21-13 157: Parker Kropman def. Joe McGinty, 7-3 Dec, Drexel leads 24-13 165: Evan Barczak vs Ricky Stamm, 6-1 Dec, Drexel wins 27-13 As mentioned, this was Hofstra's return after a few weeks off. Having to not be allowed in the room for over a week is a concern for any team when it comes to conditioning and weight-cutting. The Pride have also been injured on top of it. This was not their best line-up, but they battled regardless. They came for the challenge, but ended up on the short end of the stick. They will continue to improve now that they have been in the room consistently. Lehigh (#20) The Mountain Hawks welcomed Penn on Friday night. They hit the road and competed at Army on Sunday. They went 0-2 on the weekend. Jordan Wood (#7 - 285) was 2-0 on the weekend. Josh Humphreys (#7 - 157) revenged his only loss of the year to Zapf of Penn. At 125lb, we saw Sheldon Seymour come away with a victory over Army Boxscore: Penn 24, No. 14 Lehigh 7 165: Lucas Revano (Penn) dec. Brian Meyer (Lehigh) 5-5, rt, tb1 174: Nick Incontrera (Penn) dec. Jake Logan (Lehigh) 10-5 184: Neil Antrassian (Penn) dec. AJ Burkhart (Lehigh) 9-6 197: Cole Urbas (Penn) dec. JT Davis (Lehigh) 3-1 285: Jordan Wood (Lehigh) major dec. Ben Goldin (Penn) 11-3 125: Ryan Miller (Penn) dec. Jaret Lane (Lehigh) 5-0 133: Michael Colaiocco (Penn) dec. Malyke Hines (Lehigh) 7-6 141: CJ Composto (Penn) dec. Connor McGonagle (Lehigh) 5-4 149: Anthony Artalona (Penn) dec. Max Brignola (Lehigh) 4-3 157: Josh Humphreys (Lehigh) dec. Doug Zapf (Penn) 4-0 Boxscore: Army West Point 24, No. 14 Lehigh 13 165: Brian Meyer (Lehigh) dec. Dalton Harkins (Army) 2-1 174: Ben Pasiuk (Army) dec. Jake Logan (Lehigh) 4-3 184: Sahm Abdulrazzaq (Army) dec. AJ Burkhart (Lehigh) 5-1 197: JT Brown (Army) dec. JT Davis (Lehigh) 5-2 285: Jordan Wood (Lehigh) dec. Brandon Phillips (Army) 6-0 125: Sheldon Seymour (Lehigh) major dec. Ryan Chauvin (Army) 14-4 133: Malyke Hines (Lehigh) dec. Dominic Carone (Army) 4-0 141: Corey Shie (Army) fall Connor MCGonagle (Lehigh) 0:51 149: Matt Williams (Army) dec. Max Brignola (Lehigh) 3-2 157: Markus Hartman (Army) fall Luca Frinzi (Lehigh) 4:06 Lehigh has performed better. It's weird how wrestling works. They defeat Cornell a month ago, this weekend they got manhandled by Penn and lost to Army. This is not a knock on Penn or Army, by any means. It looks like Lehigh's training cycle has these guys possibly in a valley before they peak. If there is any team in the conference who can perform their best when it matters most, it's the Mountain Hawks. Let's hope they have a short memory, as they have Princeton and Bucknell coming to town. I highly doubt the coaching staff would ever allow a team of this caliber drop four straight dual meets to conference opponents. Long Island The Sharks were on the road and wrestled both Philadelphia teams of Drexel and Penn. Nunzio Crowley (197) came away with a win over Drexel, and did not compete against Penn At 285lb, Tim Nagosky earned a win over Drexel. Boxscore: Drexel 30 - LIU 6 174: Mickey O'Malley (DREX) def. Ryan Ferro (LIU) 5-2 Dec 184: Bryan McLaughlin (DREX) def. TJ Frandan (LIU) 9-2 Dec 197: Nunzio Crowley (LIU) def. Santino Morina(DREX) 4-0 Dec 285: Tim Nagosky (LIU) def. Eli Anthony (DREX) 9-2 Dec 125: Antonio Mininno (DREX) def. Robbie Sagaris (LIU) 8-6 Dec 133: Jaxon Maroney (DREX) def. Kaelan Francois (LIU), Fall 1:39 141: Jared Donahue (DREX) wins by forfeit 149: Tyler Williams (DREX) def. Drew Witham (LIU), 5-0 Dec 157: Parker Kropman (DREX) def. Rhise Royster (LIU), 10-3 Dec 165: Evan Barczak (DREX) def. Blake Bahna (LIU), 4-0 Dec Boxscore: Penn 50 - LIU 0 165: #21 Lucas Revano (PENN) dec. Blake Bahna (LIU) MD 24-10, 174: #18 Nick Incontrera (PENN) dec. Ryan Ferro (LIU) TF 19-4, 184: #32 Neil Antrassian (PENN) dec. T.J. Franden (LIU) MD 16-3 197: #29 Cole Urbas (PENN) dec. Karl Osmond-Bouyer (LIU) TF 17-2 285: #29 Ben Goldin (PENN) dec. Tim Nagosky (LIU) fall 125: Blair Orr (PENN) dec. Robbie Sagaris (LIU) fall 133: #9 Michael Colaiocco (PENN) dec. Kaelan Francois (LIU) TF 19-3 141: #16 CJ Composto (PENN) wins by forfeit 149: #20 Anthony Artalona (PENN) dec. Drew Witham (LIU) TF 16-1 157: #20 Doug Zapf (PENN) dec. Rhise Royster (LIU) MD 17-6 The Sharks were outmatched by two tough teams this weekend. They had some close matches against Drexel, but the Penn match was a different story. Against Drexel, both Ferro and Sagaris proved they can wrestle with some of the better guys in the conference in O'Malley and Waterman. Like I've said before, give this team some time to grow. Navy The Midshipmen hosted both Bucknell and Clarion to duals this weekend. At 184lb, both Hunter Johns and David Key won their lone match Jacob Koser (#27 - 197) had two wins, one via fall Ryan Catksa (285) performed well with two wins At 133lb, Josh Koderhandt (#26) was also undefeated Andrew Cerniglia (#26 - 157) was 2-0 on the weekend also Boxscore: Bucknell 12 - Navy 21 165: #19 Zach Hartman (BU) dec. over Val Park (NAVY) 7-1 174: Cael Crebs (NAVY) dec. over Sam Barnes (BU) 9-2 184: Hunter Johns (NAVY) dec. over Logan Deacetis (BU) 6-2 197: #27 Jacob Koser (NAVY) fall over Mason McCready (BU) 3:49 285: Ryan Catka (NAVY) dec. over Luke Niemeyer (BU) 5-0 125: Brandon Seidman (BU) dec. over Jacob Allen (NAVY) 3-1 (SV-1) 133: #26 Josh Koderhandt (NAVY) dec. over Kurt Phipps (BU) 7-1 141: #26 Darren Miller (BU) dec. over Tyler Hunt (NAVY) 5-2 149: Kolby DePron (BU) dec. over Jonathan Miranda (NAVY) 8-3 157: #26 Andrew Cerniglia (NAVY) dec. over Nick Delp (BU) 9-3 Boxscore: Navy 33 - Clarion 8 141: Seth Koleno dec Tyler Hunt (NAVY), 10-8 sv // Navy 0, Clarion 3 149: Jonathan Miranda (NAVY) fall John Altieri, 4:17 // Navy 6, Clarion 3 157: #26 Andrew Cerniglia (NAVY) fall Kyle Schickel, 2:56 // Navy 12, Clarion 3 165: Val Park (NAVY) injury default Cam Pine, 1:10 // Navy 18, Clarion 3 174: John Worthing dec Cael Crebs (NAVY), 6-4 sv // Navy 18, Clarion 5 * 184: David Key (NAVY) dec Max Wohlabaugh, 3-0 // Navy 21, Clarion 5 197: #27 Jacob Koser (NAVY) dec Will Feldkamp, 16-11 // Navy 24, Clarion 5 285: Ryan Catka (NAVY) dec Ty Bagoly, 2-0 // Navy 27, Clarion 5 125: Joey Fischer dec Jacob Allen (NAVY), 4-1 // Navy 27, Clarion 8 133: #26 Josh Koderhandt (NAVY) fall Alex Blake, 4:51 // Navy 33, Clarion 8 * Clarion was deducted a team point for control of mat area (bench) Navy won over two tough teams this weekend. As we know, Bucknell is very tough - especially in the EIWA. Clarion has won many matches this year in their conference as well. It looks like Navy is coming around. We saw Crebs wrestle twice at 174, and Catka go twice at heavyweight. These guys used to split time at their weights - maybe things are finally settled. We will keep an eye on that. Less than one month from conferences, it looks like Coach Kolat is getting this team ready! Penn The Quakers wrestled 3 matches this weekend, they went 2-1 only losing to Cornell. Lucas Reveno (#25 - 165), Michael Colaiocco (#17 - 133) and CJ Composto (#16 - 141) were the 3 lone Quakers to win all three matches this weekend. Boxscore: #11 Cornell 20, Penn 12 165: #25 Lucas Reveno (Penn) won by decision over Jake Brindley (Cornell), 9-2 174: #12 Chris Foca (Cornell) won by decision over #26 Nick Incontrera (Penn), 4-2 184: #15 Jonathan Loew (Cornell) won by decision over #32 Neil Antrassian (Penn), 5-4 197: #19 Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) won by decision over Cole Urbas (Penn), 6-1 HWT: #17 Lewis Fernandes (Cornell) won by decision over #29 Ben Goldin (Penn), 2-0 125: #3 Vito Arujau (Cornell) won by major decision over #26 Ryan Miller (Penn), 10-2 133: #17 Michael Colaiocco (Penn) won by decision over #30 Dom LaJoie (Cornell), 8-4 141: #16 CJ Composto (Penn) won by decision over JJ Wilson (Cornell), 5-1 149: #1 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) won by major decision over #27 Anthony Artalona (Penn), 10-2 157: #20 Doug Zapf (Penn) won by decision over #25 Hunter Richard (Cornell), 4-2 Boxscore: Penn 24, No. 14 Lehigh 7 165: Lucas Revano (Penn) dec. Brian Meyer (Lehigh) 5-5, rt, tb1 174: Nick Incontrera (Penn) dec. Jake Logan (Lehigh) 10-5 184: Neil Antrassian (Penn) dec. AJ Burkhart (Lehigh) 9-6 197: Cole Urbas (Penn) dec. JT Davis (Lehigh) 3-1 285: Jordan Wood (Lehigh) major dec. Ben Goldin (Penn) 11-3 125: Ryan Miller (Penn) dec. Jaret Lane (Lehigh) 5-0 133: Michael Colaiocco (Penn) dec. Malyke Hines (Lehigh) 7-6 141: CJ Composto (Penn) dec. Connor McGonagle (Lehigh) 5-4 149: Anthony Artalona (Penn) dec. Max Brignola (Lehigh) 4-3 157: Josh Humphreys (Lehigh) dec. Doug Zapf (Penn) 4-0 Boxscore: Penn 50 - LIU 0 165: #21 Lucas Revano (PENN) dec. Blake Bahna (LIU) MD 24-10, 174: #18 Nick Incontrera (PENN) dec. Ryan Ferro (LIU) TF 19-4, 184: #32 Neil Antrassian (PENN) dec. T.J. Franden (LIU) MD 16-3 197: #29 Cole Urbas (PENN) dec. Karl Osmond-Bouyer (LIU) TF 17-2 285: #29 Ben Goldin (PENN) dec. Tim Nagosky (LIU) fall 125: Blair Orr (PENN) dec. Robbie Sagaris (LIU) fall 133: #9 Michael Colaiocco (PENN) dec. Kaelan Francois (LIU) TF 19-3 141: #16 CJ Composto (PENN) wins by forfeit 149: #20 Anthony Artalona (PENN) dec. Drew Witham (LIU) TF 16-1 157: #20 Doug Zapf (PENN) dec. Rhise Royster (LIU) MD 17-6 Penn surprised a lot of people, including me, when they beat down Lehigh the way they did. Winning 8 of 10 matches at Grace Hall in Bethlehem is no easy task. Even though they lost to Cornell, their performance was still something to be proud of. The Quakers proved they belong in that top 3 contention at conferences. With a 5-2 record, with only losses to top 10 teams, this team has exceeded many expectations. We knew they would be good in the near future, but as far as I can tell - the future is now. Princeton The Tigers hosted Ivy League foe Cornell on Saturday, then made the short trip to wrestle Rider on Sunday Patrick Glory (#1 - 125) won the marquee matchup over Arujua (#3) of Cornell At 157lb, Quincy Monday (#11) won two matches by decision over the weekend Jake Marsh (165) defeated Ramirez (#8) of Cornell in an upset Boxscore: #11 Cornell 21, #20 Princeton 12 165: Jake Marsh (Princeton) won by decision over #8 Julian Ramirez (Cornell), 7-6 174: #12 Chris Foca (Cornell) won by decision over Nate Dugan (Princeton), 10-4 184: #15 Jonathan Loew (Cornell) won by decision over #20 Travis Stefanik (Princeton), 5-2 197: #19 Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) won by decision over #18 Luke Stout (Princeton), 3-1 (sv1) HWT: #17 Lewis Fernandes (Cornell) won by major decision over Matt Cover (Princeton), 13-4 125: #2 Patrick Glory (Princeton) won by decision over #3 Vito Arujau (Cornell), 11-9 133: #30 Dom LaJoie (Cornell) won by decision over Nick Kayal (Princeton), 4-1 141: Danny Coles (Princeton) won by decision over JJ Wilson (Cornell), 8-5 149: #1 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) won by technical fall over Marshall Keller (Princeton), 16-0 (2:04) 157: #11 Quincy Monday (Princeton) won by decision #25 Hunter Richard (Cornell), 8-4 Boxscore: #20 Princeton 33 - Rider 7 125: #1 Patrick Glory (P) wins by major decision over Tyler Klinsky ®, 15-3 (P leads 4-0) 133: No. 31 Richie Koehler ® wins by decision over Brandon Spellman (P), 5-3 (P leads 4-3) 141: No. 29 Quinn Kinner ® wins by major decision over Danny Coles (P), 15-2 (R leads 7-4) 149: Marshall Keller (P) wins by decision over Cole McComas ®, 5-2 (Tied 7-7) 157: #8 Quincy Monday (P) wins by decision over Alec Bobchin ®, 7-2 (P leads 10-7) 165: Blaine Bergey (P) wins by major decision over Michael Wilson ®, 14-5 (P leads 14-7) 174: Nate Dugan (P) wins by decision over Shane Reitsma ®, 12-7 (P leads 17-7) 184: #22 Travis Stefanik (P) wins by fall over Evan Vazquez ®, 1:31 (P leads 23-7) 197: #17 Luke Stout (P) wins by fall over Azeem Bell ®, 3:32 (P leads 29-7) 285: Matt Cover (P) wins by major decision over David Szuba ®, 19-7 (P leads 33-7) The Tigers held their own against Ivy League champs, Cornell. With one more upset, they may have pulled out the team win. They dominated their in-state rival Rider the following day. I love where this team is at. With guys like Coles, Marsh, and Dugan really stepping up as of late, this team could just find themselves in the EIWA title hunt. This well-dressed coaching staff has this team rockin' and rollin'. Sacred Heart The Pioneers traveled to the Keystone state to square off against Bloomsburg Sacred Heart's lone wins came from Raf Lievano (149) and Joe Accousti (197) Boxscore: Bloomsburg 36 - Sacred Heart 6 125: Bronson Garber (BU) def. Jacob Venezia (SHU) Decision 12-6 133: Cole Rhone (BU) def. Kyle Randall (SHU) Fall 6:21 141: Josh Mason (BU) def. Chris Naegele (SHU) Fall 149: Raf Lievano (SHU) def. Cade Balestrini (BU) Decision 7-6 157: Alex Carida (BU) def. Nick Palumbo (SHU) SV-1 3-1 165: Trenton Harder (BU) def. Brandon Teresa (SHU) Decision 8-3 174: Matt Benedetti (BU) def. Joe Sacco (SHU) Decision 2-0 184: Buridano Stolfi (BU) def. Alex Marciniak (SHU) Fall 2:16 197: Joe Accousti (SHU) def. David Tuttle (BU) Decisition 9-2 285: Shane Noonan (BU) def. Nick Copley (SHU) Fall 3:22 The Pioneers fought hard in this match. Palumbo (157) lost in overtime to another national qualifier. He typically has some of the better results from the squad. Expect him to be a force again at EIWAs. They still have three more dual meets to improve upon this performance. Coach Clark will have these guys ready for conferences. I'd expect them to have a few place finishers on the podium.

Penn 133 lber Michael Colaiocco (photo courtesy of Tony DiMarco) When I first thought of it, I knew it was probably going to be a bad take. I thought, what the hell, I'll ask it anyway and put it into the #MatScoutsDynasty Fantasy group chat to see what kind of response it got. I'll say… it was mixed. The take: Conference duals should happen closer to the beginning of the season rather than the end of the season.' Now, don't get me wrong. I love the dual half of the season, because I love duals in general. I think they are the more marketable and an easier-to-understand format for non-diehards or new viewers. There is something also extremely entertaining seeing things like ACC's "Friday Night Duals" or the Big Ten's double-headers on Fridays and Sundays. But, Use the Big Ten Conference as an example. No question that they are the premier conference in Division 1 Wrestling and every match is a battle. What gets me though, is that wrestlers will take on out of conference teams and participate in tournaments around the country (for the most part, when it isn't duck season) only to then have about six or seven weeks of one or maybe two matches a week against competitors you will see again at the end of that time in the conference tournament. Even though the drama it creates is entertaining (who didn't want to see Vincenzo Joseph and Alex Marinelli LESS), it gets a little redundant. What about spacing out the conference duals from November into February? Obvious exceptions for bigger duals like Penn State vs. Iowa (essentially the Collegiate National Duals Championship bout) can be scheduled in late January or February which, then sets up Conference Tournament storylines. Maybe by spacing out conference duals with non-conference duals will decrease ducking? Instead of knowing that "Wrestler A" is going to get a #1 seed for the Conference Tournament and thus sits against questionable matchups towards the end of the season, maybe it helps revert back to "the old days" of having to create a resume and body of work to substantiate your seed for the tournament. Now, wrestlers would actually have to compete in November and December instead of waiting for the back half of the season to actually step on the mat because "March is all that matters." One member of the Dynasty league said it perfectly, though… "it should be a split f-ing season" (I won't say who it is, but for a 16-year-old, he talks like a sailor…. maybe Saylor is more appropriate?) Anyway, it's probably a bad take. But at least it's a take? On to Week 15 "Congrats" if you made the Winner's Bracket in your WrestleStat League! "Way to go" if you made the Middle-Of-The-Pack bracket, and "Sucks to Suck" if you didn't make it into the postseason. No major tournaments are listed at this time and nothing like an Edinboro Open or Last Chance Open (that's next week) in the shadows where there would be a lot of D1 team participation. Remember, only matches against D1 competition count for points. Aside from the unicorn situation of Top-10 team with three duals in one weekend, a lot of teams only have one, maybe two duals on the docket which means there's less room for error. You can't hide behind the random tournament to boost your scores and compensate for others lacking in your lineup. Now, you did what you had to do to make it into the Top-4 for playoffs, but if you were in the lucky situation of being "locked" into the top four, hopefully, you did some forward-thinking. By that, I mean scouting ahead to Week 15 and 16, looking for the best matchup and maybe adding them now instead of risking maybe not getting them later. Good luck to all! Wrestlers I Like This Week Wrestler (School)- competition for the week [Proj Score] *organized by tournament name first, then by school name* 125: Fabian Gutierrez (Chattanooga)- Vs Presbyterian, Vs VMI [+10] Anthony Noto (Lock Haven)- Vs Cleveland State, @ Edinboro [+8] Nick Suriano (Michigan)- @ Indiana, Vs Michigan State [+8] Pat Glory (Princeton)- @ Lehigh, Vs U Penn [+8] Antonio Lorenzo (Cal Poly)- Vs Air Force, Vs CSU Bakersfield [+7] Joe Manchio (Columbia)- Vs Brown, Vs Harvard [+6] Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern)- @ Michigan State, Vs Northern Illinois [+6] Vitali Arujau (Cornell)- Vs Binghamton [+5] Dylan Shawver (Rutgers)- Vs Maryland [+5] Sam Latona (Virginia Tech)- Vs North Carolina [+4] Brandon Courtney (Arizona State)- Vs Missouri [+3] Joseph Fischer (Clarion)- @ Rider [+3] Jake Ferri (Kent State)- @ Bloomsburg [+3] Jakob Camacho (NC State)- @ Pittsburgh [+3] Oscar Sanchez (Ohio)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+3] 133: Michael Colaiocco (U Penn)- @ Princeton, Vs Drexel [+8] Gabriel Tagg (South Dakota State)- Vs Northern Colorado, Vs Little Rock [+8] Brayden Palmer (Chattanooga)- Vs Presbyterian, Vs VMI [+7] Angelo Rini (Columbia)- Vs Brown, Vs Harvard [+7] Lucas Byrd (Illinois)- @ Wisconsin, @ Nebraska [+7] Gable Strickland (Lock Haven)- Vs Cleveland State, @ Edinboro [+7] Richie Koehler (Rider)- Vs Clarion, Vs George Mason [+7] Kellyn March (North Dakota State)- Vs Little Rock, Vs Northern Colorado [+6] Chris Cannon (Northwestern)- @ Michigan State, Vs Northern Illinois [+6] Michael McGee (Arizona State)- Vs Missouri [+5] Gio Disabato (Ohio)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+5] Brian Courtney (Virginia)- @ Duke [+5] Codi Russell (Appalachian State)- Vs Campbell [+4] Derek Spann (Buffalo)- @ Central Michigan [+4] Kyle Gorant (Davidson)- @ VMI [+4] Joey Oliveri (Rutgers)- Vs Maryland [+4] Jaydin Eierman (Iowa)- Vs Oklahoma State [+3] Jake Gliva (Minnesota)- Vs Ohio State [+3] Mickey Phillippi (Pittsburgh)- Vs NC State [+3] Haiden Drury (Utah Valley)- @ West Virginia [+3] Korbin Myers (Virginia Tech)- Vs North Carolina [+3] 141: Josh Mason (Bloomsburg)- Vs Kent State, Vs Cleveland State [+8] Matthew Kazimir (Columbia)- Vs Brown, Vs Harvard [+8] CJ Composto (U Penn)- @ Princeton, Vs Drexel [+8] Stevan Micic (Michigan)- @ Indiana, Vs Michigan State [+7] Francisco Valdes (Chattanooga)- Vs Presbyterian, Vs VMI [+6] Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers)- Vs Maryland [+5] Gabe Willochell (Edinboro)- Vs Lock Haven [+4] Allan Hart (Missouri)- @ Arizona State [+4] Dylan Cedeno (Virginia)- @ Duke [+4] Ryan Anderson (Binghamton)- @ Cornell [+3] Dresden Simon (Central Michigan)- Vs Buffalo [+3] Ian Parker (Iowa State)- @ UNI [+3] Jake Bergeland (Minnesota)- Vs Ohio State [+3] Kizhan Clarke (North Carolina)- @ Virginia Tech [+3] Cole Matthews (Pittsburgh)- Vs NC State [+3] Real Woods (Stanford)- Vs CSU Bakersfield [+3] 149: Sammy Sasso (Ohio State)- @ Minnesota, Vs Indiana [+8] Legend Lamer (Cal Poly)- Vs Air Force, Vs CSU Bakersfield [+7] Noah Castillo (Chattanooga)- Vs Presbyterian, Vs VMI [+7] Marcus Robinson (Cleveland State)- @ Lock Haven, @ Bloomsburg [+7] Yahya Thomas (Northwestern)- @ Michigan State, Vs Northern Illinois [+7] Blake Saito (Brown)- @ Columbia, @ Long Island [+6] Anthony Artalona (U Penn)- @ Princeton, Vs Drexel [+6] Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell)- Vs Binghamton [+5] Alex Madrigal (George Mason)- @ Rider [+4] Ridge Lovett (Nebraska)- Vs Illinois [+4] Tariq Wilson (NC State)- @ Pittsburgh [+4] Alec Hagan (Ohio)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+4] Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech)- Vs North Carolina [+4] Austin Gomez (Wisconsin)- Vs Illinois [+4] Kyle Parco (Arizona State)- Vs Missouri [+3] Jarrett Degen (Iowa State)- @ UNI [+3] Mike Van Brill (Rutgers)- Vs Maryland [+3] Jaden Abas (Stanford)- Vs CSU Bakersfield [+3] Jaron Jensen (Wyoming)- @ Air Force [+3] 157: Jared Franek (North Dakota State)- Vs Little Rock, Vs Northern Colorado [+8] Ryan Deakin (Northwestern)- @ Michigan State, Vs Northern Illinois [+8] Weston Wichman (Chattanooga)- Vs Presbyterian, Vs VMI [+7] Ben Barton (Lock Haven)- Vs Cleveland State, @ Edinboro [+7] Dazjon Casto (The Citadel)- Vs Gardner-Webb, Vs Bellarmine [+6] Hunter Richard (Cornell)- Vs Binghamton [+4] David Carr (Iowa State)- @ UNI [+4] Peyton Robb (Nebraska)- Vs Illinois [+4] Austin O'Connor (North Carolina)- @ Virginia Tech [+4] Jordan Slivka (Ohio)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+4] Robert Kainnard (Rutgers)- Vs Maryland [+4] Jake Keating (Virginia)- @ Duke [+4] Cody Bond (Appalachian State)- Vs Campbell [+3] Jacori Teemer (Arizona State)- Vs Missouri [+3] Johnny Lovett (Central Michigan)- Vs Buffalo [+3] Avery Bassett (George Mason)- @ Rider [+3] Brayton Lee (Minnesota)- Vs Ohio State [+3] Ed Scott (NC State)- @ Pittsburgh [+3] Garrett Model (Wisconsin)- Vs Illinois [+3] Jacob Wright (Wyoming)- @ Air Force [+3] 165: Evan Wick (Cal Poly)- Vs Air Force, Vs CSU Bakersfield [+8] Cam Amine (Michigan)- @ Indiana, Vs Michigan State [+7] Luke Weber (North Dakota State)- Vs Little Rock, Vs Northern Colorado [+7] Carson Kharchla (Ohio State)- @ Minnesota, Vs Indiana [+7] Tanner Cook (South Dakota State)- Vs Northern Colorado, Vs Little Rock [+7] Drew Nicholson (Chattanooga)- Vs Presbyterian, Vs VMI [+6] Lucas Revano (U Penn)- @ Princeton, Vs Drexel [+6] William Formato (Appalachian State)- Vs Campbell [+4] Chris Foca (Cornell)- Vs Binghamton [+4] * if he wrestles Shane Griffith (Stanford)- Vs CSU Bakersfield [+4] Justin McCoy (Virginia)- @ Duke [+4] Peyton Hall (West Virginia)- @ Utah Valley [+4] Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin)- Vs Illinois [+4] Zach Hartman (Buckenell)- @ Lehigh [+3] Cameron Pine (Clarion)- @ Rider [+3] Julian Ramirez (Cornell)- Vs Binghamton [+3] Keegan O'Toole (Missouri)- @ Arizona State [+3] Austin Yant (UNI)- Vs Iowa State [+3] Clayton Ulrey (Virginia Tech)- Vs North Carolina [+3] 174: Logan Massa (Michigan)- @ Indiana, Vs Michigan State [+8] Tyler Stoltzfus (Lock Haven)- Vs Cleveland State, @ Edinboro [+7] Cade DeVos (South Dakota State)- Vs Northern Colorado, Vs Little Rock [+7] Ethan Smith (Ohio State)- @ Minnesota, Vs Indiana [+6] Logan Messer (George Mason)- @ Rider [+4] Peyton Mocco (Missouri)- @ Arizona State [+4] Michael Labriola (Nebraska)- Vs Illinois [+4] Hayden Hidlay (NC State)- @ Pittsburgh [+4] Sal Perrine (Ohio)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+4] Andrew McNally (Wisconsin)- Vs Illinois [+4] John Worthing (Clarion)- @ Rider [+3] Michael Kemerer (Iowa)- Vs Oklahoma State [+3] Tyler Eichens (Stanford)- Vs CSU Bakersfield [+3] Scott Joll (West Virginia)- @ Utah Valley [+3] Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech)- Vs North Carolina [+3] Hayden Hastings (Wyoming)- @ Air Force [+3] 184: Myles Amine (Michigan)- @ Indiana, Vs Michigan State [+7] Bernie Truax (Cal Poly)- Vs Air Force, Vs CSU Bakersfield [+7] Matthew Waddell (Chattanooga)- Vs Presbyterian, Vs VMI [+7] Cade King (South Dakota State)- Vs Northern Colorado, Vs Little Rock [+7] Charles Small (Hofstra)- Vs Harvard, Vs Sacred Heart [+6] Brit Wilson (Northern Illinois)- @ Northwestern [+5] Caleb Hopkins (Campbell)- @ Appalachian State [+4] Ethan Ducca (Edinboro)- Vs Lock Haven [+4] Jeremiah Kent (Missouri)- @ Arizona State [+4] Trent Hidlay (NC State)- @ Pittsburgh [+4] Tate Samuelson (Wyoming)- @ Air Force [+4] Taylor Venz (Nebraska)- Vs Illinois [+3] Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State)- Vs Iowa [+3] Michael Battista (Virginia)- @ Duke [+3] 197: Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State)- Vs Northern Colorado, Vs Little Rock [+8] Owen Pentz (North Dakota State)- Vs Little Rock, Vs Northern Colorado [+8] Ben Smith (Cleveland State)- @ Lock Haven, @ Bloomsburg [+7] Trey Rogers (Hofstra)- Vs Harvard, Vs Sacred Heart [+7] Tyler Mousaw (VMI)- Vs Davidson, @ Chattanooga [+7] Luke Stout (Princeton)- @ Lehigh, Vs U Penn [+6] Stephen Buchanan (Wyoming)- @ Air Force [+5] Chris Kober (Campbell)- @ Appalachian State [+4] Will Feldkamp (Clarion)- @ Rider [+4] Jacob Warner (Iowa)- Vs Oklahoma State [+4] * if no Ferrari Yonger Bastida (Iowa State)- @ UNI [+4] Eric Schultz (Nebraska)- Vs Illinois [+4] Greg Bulsak (Rutgers)- Vs Maryland [+4] Evan Bockman (Utah Valley)- @ West Virginia [+4] Nick Stemmet (Stanford)- Vs CSU Bakersfield [+3] Jay Aiello (Virginia)- @ Duke [+3] Braxton Amos (Wisconsin)- Vs Illinois [+3] 285: Wyatt Hendrickson (Air Force)- Vs Wyoming, Vs Cal Poly, Vs CSU Bakersfield [+13] Michael McAleavey (The Citadel)- Vs Gardner-Webb, Vs Bellarmine [+9] Mason Parris (Michigan)- @ Indiana, Vs Michigan State [+9] Grayson Walthall (Chattanooga)- Vs Presbyterian, Vs VMI [+8] Zachary Knighton-Ward (Hofstra)- Vs Harvard, Vs Sacred Heart [+8] Lucas Davison (Northwestern)- @ Michigan State, Vs Northern Illinois [+8] Isaac Reid (Lock Haven)- Vs Cleveland State, @ Edinboro [+7] Jordan Wood (Lehigh)- Vs Princeton, Vs Bucknell [+7] Ben Goldin (U Penn)- @ Princeton, Vs Drexel [+7] Matt Stencel (Central Michigan)- Vs Buffalo [+4] Anthony Cassioppi (Iowa)- Vs Oklahoma State [+4] Gable Steveson (Minnesota)- Vs Ohio State [+4] Quinn Miller (Virginia)- @ Duke [+4] Nathan Traxler (Virginia Tech)- Vs North Carolina [+4] Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State)- Vs Missouri [+3] Lewis Fernandes (Cornell)- Vs Binghamton [+3] Sam Schuyler (Iowa State)- @ UNI [+3] Trent Hillger (Wisconsin)- Vs Illinois [+3] Think I missed someone? Disagree with someone on the list or their projection? Want to know our thoughts on a matchup? Let me know! Win the week!

(photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) We've got a great slate of duals over the next week. An incredible 52 duals are on the schedule for Wednesday-Sunday. Since it can be difficult to figure out where and when to watch all of these events, InterMat has put together a list of all of the live-streamed events occurring this weekend. Below are the dates/times and how to watch each match. All times are eastern Wednesday, February 9: Duke at Gardner-Webb, 6:00 PM ESPN+ Thursday, February 10: CSU Bakersfield at Stanford, 8:00 PM Pac-12 Network Friday, February 11: Harvard at Columbia, 5:30 PM ESPN+ Bellarmine at Presbyterian, 6:00 PM Kent State at Bloomsburg, 7:00 PM PSAC Digital Network Brown at Columbia, 7:00 PM ESPN+ Michigan at Indiana, 7:00 PM B1G+ Princeton at Lehigh, 7:00 PM FloWrestling Cleveland State at Lock Haven, 7:00 PM PSAC Digital Network Northwestern at Michigan State, 7:00 PM B1G+ Franklin & Marshall at Millersville, 7:00 PM Ville Sports Network NC State at Pittsburgh, 7:00 PM ACC Network Clarion at Rider, 7:00 PM ESPN+ Gardner-Webb at The Citadel, 7:00 PM ESPN+ North Carolina at Virginia Tech, 7:00 PM ACC Network Extra Davidson at VMI, 7:30 PM ESPN+ Little Rock at North Dakota State, 8:00 PM NDSU All-Access Iowa State at Northern Iowa, 8:00 PM FloWrestling Northern Colorado at South Dakota State, 8:00 PM FloWrestling Illinois at Wisconsin, 8:00 PM B1G+ Wyoming at Air Force, 9:00 PM FloWrestling Ohio State at Minnesota, 9:00 PM Big Ten Network Saturday, February 12: Brown at Long Island, 12:00 PM NEC Front Row Binghamton at Cornell, 1:00 PM ESPN+ Harvard at Hofstra, 1:00 PM Hofstra YouTube Penn at Princeton, 1:00 PM ESPN+ Virginia at Duke, 2:00 PM ACC Network Extra Bucknell at Lehigh, 2:00 PM FloWrestling Maryland at Rutgers, 2:00 PM Big Ten Network Utah Valley at West Virginia, 2:00 PM ESPN+ Sacred Heart at Hofstra, 3:00 PM Hofstra YouTube Rider at George Mason, 7:00 PM ESPN+ SIU Edwardsville at Ohio, 7:00 PM ESPN+ Iowa vs. Oklahoma State at Arlington, TX, 7:30 PM FloWrestling Missouri at Arizona State, 8:00 PM Pac-12 Network Sunday, February 13: Michigan State at Michigan, 12:00 PM B1G+ Illinois at Nebraska, 12:00 PM Big Ten Network Drexel at Penn, 12:00 PM ESPN+ Bellarmine at The Citadel, 12:00 PM ESPN+ Cleveland State at Bloomsburg, 1:00 PM PSAC Digital Network VMI at Chattanooga, 1:00 PM ESPN+ Lock Haven at Edinboro, 1:00 PM FloWrestling Indiana at Ohio State, 1:00 PM B1G+ Buffalo at Central Michigan, 2:00 PM ESPN+ Presbyterian at Chattanooga, 2:30 PM ESPN+ Campbell at Appalachian State, 3:00 PM The Grind (Rokfin) Air Force vs. CSU Bakersfield at Cal Poly, 3:00 PM Northern Colorado at North Dakota State, 3:00 PM NDSU All-Access Little Rock at South Dakota State, 3:00 PM FloWrestling Air Force at Cal Poly, 5:00 PM Cal Poly All-Access Northern Illinois at Northwestern, 5:00 PM B1G+ CSU Bakersfield at Cal Poly, 7:00 PM Cal Poly All-Access

#1 ranked 61 kg world champion Abasgadzhi Magomedov(Photo/WrestlersAreWarriors.com) 57 KG In the Yarygin finals, #3 (61) Ramiz Gamzatov avenged his loss from December's 61 KG Umakhanov tournament finals to #2 (61) Akhmed Idrisov for gold. Bronze medalists were #3 Azamat Tuskaev and returning Yarygin runner-up Musa Mekhtikhanov. Important results were Gamzatov beating Tuskaev, 2020 61 KG Russian nationals bronze medalist Zhargal Damdinov and 2021 Umakhanov tournament runner-up Magomed Abdurakhmanov. Idrisov's path to the finals saw him beat Kezhik Seden, Zanabazar Zandanbud (MGL), Abzal Okenov (KAZ) and Mekhtikhanov. Returning world team member #2 Abubakar Mutaliev was upset in his opening round match by Kyrgyzstan national champion Almaz Smanbekov (KGZ), who was eliminated in his next match by #3 Azamat Tuskaev. The Yarygin made for some pretty significant changes in the rankings, with champion Gamzatov taking the #2 spot and runner-up Idrisov taking #3. Mutaliev falls three spots, down to #5, for failing to place after losing to Almaz Smanbekov (KGZ). 2021 national runner-up Nachyn Mongush made his return to 57 KG, and didn't compete, but still slots in at #6 based on his past wins over #4 Azamat Tuskaev and Belek-Ool Kuzhuget. Damdinov is back in the rankings at #8 for beating 2021 Umakhanov tournament runner-up #5 Magomed Abdurakhmanov and Musa Mekthikhanov is back in the rankings at #9 for beating #6 Aleksey Kopylov. 61 KG Reigning world champion #1 Abasgadzhi Magomedov won his first Yarygin title in a hotly contested 8-7 bout against 2021 Junior world bronze medalist Fedor Baltuev. Bronze medalists at the Yarygin were #5 (INT) Zelimkhan Abakarov (ALB) and Abdurakhman Rasulov. #2 Akhmed Idrisov, #3 Ramiz Gamzatov and #4 Nachyn Mongush all moved back down to 57 KG and have been removed from the 61 KG rankings. #6 Muslim Mekhtikhanov and #8 Artur Chebodaev move up four and five spots respectively to #2 and #3 with the removal of Idrisov, Gamzatov and Mongush. Mekhtikhanov won their head-to-head matchup at the Yarygin. Semyon Vladimirov debuts in the rankings at #4 for beating U-23 national runner-up #5 Akhmed Zubairov. Fedor Baltuev returns to the rankings at #6 after finishing as runner-up at the Yarygin, where he won matches of note over Abdurakhman Rasulov and Ulukbek Zholdoshbekov, with the Zholdoshbekov match being significant for Zholdoshbekov having beaten #10 Nodar Arabidze the previous match. Remember that Arabidze had upset Baltuev in the 2021 national quarterfinals after Baltuev had upset Abakarov and 2019 national bronze medalist Dinislam Takhtarov. #7 Magomed Magomedov was removed from the rankings because I put in the wrong Magomed Magomedov and he was not Magomed Aripovich Magomedov, but some random Magomed Magomedov, who wasn't worthy of a ranking. Yarygin bronze medalist Abdurakhman Rasulov is in the rankings at #8 for beating 2019 U-23 world champion Ulukbek Zhodloshbekov (KGZ) and Dmitry Rinchinov (BLR). Rakhman Mintullaev is at #9 for taking bronze in December at the Umakhanov, where he teched Zholdoshbekov. 65 KG 2021 Junior world champion #4 Shamil Mamedov continued his fantastic start to his senior career with gold at the Yarygin over two-time 61 KG national runner-up Ramazan Ferzaliev. Bronze medalists at the Yarygin were Ibragim Ibragimov and #8 (INT) Islam Dudaev (ALB). After initial struggles adjusting to 65 KG that saw him lose to Abdulmazhid Kudiev, Alik Khadartsev and Gadzhimurad Omarov in 2021 at the Ali Aliyev, Yarygin and Umakhanov tournaments, Ferzaliev finally put together a dominant domestic showing that called back to his days as a 61 KG standout. Ferzaliev beat Junior national runner-up Ibragim Abutalimov, U.S. Olympic Trials runner-up #12 (INT) Joey McKenna (USA), two-time world bronze medalist #3 Akhmed Chakaev and Ibragimov to make the finals. Ferzaliev's impressive Yarygin run skyrockets him up from unranked to #4 domestically. #3 Shamil Mamedov's path to the Yarygin finals was paved with wins over 2021 world bronze medalist #9 (INT) Tulga Tumur Ochir (MGL), #10 Ibragim Abdurakhmanov, 2020 European runner-up Nyurgun Skryabin (BLR) and Dudaev. Ibragimov had a very impressive showing at the Yarygin, beating the likes of 2021 U-23 national runner-up Muslim Sadulaev, returning Yarygin bronze medalist Chaiian Mongush, #7 Bulat Batoev and McKenna to take the #5 spot in the rankings. Remember that Ibragimov beat McKenna, who beat Chakaev in repechage. Bulat Batoev enters the rankings at #7 for beating #5 Abulmazhid Kudiev. Other important results of note were 2020 61 KG Yarygin bronze medalist Kezhik Chimba beating returning Yarygin champion Alik Khadartsev in the qualification round and then losing to Chakaev in his next match. 70 KG #6 Viktor Rassadin won the Yarygin title over #8 Anzor Zakuev. Bronze medalists at the Yarygin were #3 Kurban Shiraev and Ruslan Zhendaev. Rassadin moves up three spots to #3 for beating Shiraev at the Yarygin. #4 David Baev moved up to 74 KG, where he failed to place after losing to #6 (74) Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov. #5 Rezuan Kazharov falls five spots to #10 for losing to #9 Alexei Borovitski. 2017 70 KG national runner-up Magomed Dibirgadzhiev is back in the rankings at #8 for beating Borovitski. 2019 Junior world bronze medalist Alan Kudzoev is in the rankings at #7 for beating #13 (INT) Alec Pantaleo (USA) and #8 Magomed Dibirgadzhiev. 2020 Russian nationals bronze medalist Zhendaev is in the rankings at #6 for beating Kudzoev for Yarygin bronze. Zakuev moves up three spots in the rankings to #5 for beating #6 Zhendaev, Kudzoev and Dibirgadzhiev to make the Yarygin finals. 74 KG 2021 U-23 world champion #6 Cherman Valiev beat #10 (INT) Jason Nolf (USA) to win the 74 KG Yarygin title. Bronze medalists at the Yarygin were #5 Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov and #3 Timur Bizhoev. Important domestic results were Valiev beating Gazimagomedov and Aznaur Tavaev. Bizhoev beat 2021 Umakhanov tournament runner-up #10 Akhmad Shakhbanov but lost in the semis to Nolf to fall one spot in the rankings to #4 after Valiev beat Nolf in the finals. #4 (70) David Baev debuts in the 74 KG rankings at #7 behind Gazimagomedov, who pinned him at the Yarygin. Soslanbek Budaev takes the #8 spot in the rankings for beating 2021 Umakhanov tournament champion #9 Mokhamad Nasirkhaev. 79 KG Returning world bronze medalist #1 Radik Valiev won the Yarygin over returning national champion #4 Malik Shavaev. Bronze medalists at the Yarygin were 2019 world bronze medalist Gadzhi Nabiev and Dmitri Zainidinov. Valiev went through an absolute gauntlet to make the Yarygin finals beating #5 Amanulla Gadzhimagomedov, #14 (INT) Arsalan Budazhapov (KGZ), 2019 world bronze medalist Gadzhi Nabiev and 2021 US World team trials runner-up #7 (INT) Alex Dieringer (USA). Shavaev made the Yarygin finals off wins over #3 Akhmed Usmanov, 2020 national runner-up Gadzhimurad Alikhmaev and Dmitri Zainidinov. Other important domestic results from the Yarygin were; Dmitri Kuprin beating #2 Atsamaz Sanakoev; Zainidinov beating Gadzhimurad Alikhmaev and #8 Kakhaber Khubezhty, Nabiev beating Gadzhimagomedov, Alikhmaev beating #3 Akhmed Usmanov. The changes of the Yarygin see Valiev hold down his top spot, Shavaev move up two spots to #2, Nabiev returns to the rankings at #3, Zainidinov takes the #4 spot, Alikhmaev fills in at #5, #3 Akhmed Usmanov fall three spots to #6, Kuprin debut at #7 and Sanakoev fall six spots to #8. 86 KG #2 Dauren Kurugliev won the Yarygin over #10 Amanulla Rasulov. Bronze medalists at the Yarygin were Ada Bagomedov and #8 Zahid Valencia. Kurugliev's path to the Yarygin finals saw him defeat Slavik Naniev, returning Yarygin champion #7 Magomedsharif Biyakaev, 2021 Umakhanov tournament champion #4 Khabil Khashpakov and Ada Bagomedov. #10 Amanulla Rasulov used a clutch semifinal upset over Valencia to make the Yarygin finals and pick up the biggest win of his career. Bagomedov had an excellent Yarygin that saw him beat Khashpakov and Musalaliev to debut in the rankings at #3; Former #3 Magomed Ramazanov has been removed from the rankings as he has transferred to Romania. #10 Amanulla Rasulov moves up four spots in the rankings to #6 for making the Yarygin finals and beating Valencia, who beat #9 (INT) Azamat Dauletbekov (KAZ), who beat #7 Akhmed Gadzhimagomedov in his opening match. 92 KG Guram Chertkoev won the Yarygin over Tamerlan Tapsiev. Bronze medalists at the Yarygin were #6 Alan Bagaev and Tazhudin Mukhtarov. Chertkoev is back in the rankings at #4 for beating Tamerlan Tapsiev, Mukhtarov and #5 Azamat Zakuev; Tapsiev is in the rankings at #5 for beating Bagaev. Mukhtarov debuts in the rankings at #7 for beating Zakuev for bronze. Zakuev falls three spots to #8 for losing to #4 Chertkoev and Mukhtarov. 97 KG Returning World and Olympic runner-up #2 (INT) Kyle Snyder (USA), won the Yarygin over #4 Shamil Musaev. Bronze medalists at the Yarygin were #8 (INT) Elizbar Odikadze (GEO) and Igor Ovsyannikov. #2 (INT) Kyle Snyder (USA) made the Yarygin finals after wins over David Dzhugaev, Igor Ovsyannikov and Soslan Dzhagaev. Musaev made the Yarygin finals off of wins over Odikadze (GEO), #5 Ali Aliyev, Bakhdaulet Almentay (KAZ) and #8 Erik Dzhioev. Other important results from the Yarygin were; Dzhioev over Aliyev; Aliyev over Russian nationals bronze medalists #3 Aslanbek Sotiev and Khokh Khugaev. The changes to the domestic rankings from the Yarygin were; Musaev to #3, #3 Aslanbek Sotiev falls three spots to #6, Dzhioev moves up four spots to #4 and 2019 Russian nationals runner-up Ovysannikov returns to the rankings at #9. 125 KG #5 Anzor Khizriev won the Yarygin over Vitali Goloev. Bronze medalists at the Yarygin were Alen Khubulov and #8 Tamerlan Rasuev. Khizriev made the Yarygin finals with wins over Oleg Boltin (KAZ), Arsamag Zaseev and Khubulov. Goloev made the Yarygin finals with wins over Boltin, Khasan Khubaev, #4 Shamil Sharipov and #8 Tamerlan Rasuev. Other significant results from the Yarygin were; Boltin beating #6 Alan Khugaev and Khubulov beating Boltin (KAZ) for bronze. Here are the changes to the domestic rankings after the Yarygin; Khizriev moves up one spot to #4 after winning the Yarygin; Goloev is back in the rankings at #5; Sharipov falls four spots to #8; Khubulov debuts at #6. Pound for Pound #14 Cherman Valiev climbs up eight spots in the rankings to #6 after winning the 74 KG Yarygin over #7 Timur Bizhoev and #8 Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov. #19 Shamil Mamedov climbs up six spots in the rankings to #13 after winning the 65 KG Yarygin. Notable removals from the pound for pound are: #16 Akhmed Chakaev (losses to #24 Ramazan Ferzaliev and #12 (INT) Joey McKenna at 65 KG Yarygin), #20 Abdulmazhid Kudiev (loss to Bulat Batoev at 65 KG Yarygin), #21 Murshid Mutalimov (past losses to #16 Akhmed Chakaev and #20 Abdulmazhid Kudiev) and #22 Magomed Ramazanov (transferred to Romania). New additions to the rankings are: Viktor Rassadin at #18 (beat #12 Kurban Shiraev and won the 70 KG Yarygin), Radik Valiev at #20 (won the 79 KG Yarygin), 2019 57 KG national champion Ramiz Gamzatov (won the 57 KG Yarygin over #23 Akhmed Idrisov), 2020 57 KG national bronze medalist Akhmed Idrisov at #23 (57 KG Yarygin runner-up) and Ramazan Ferzaliev at #24 (65 KG Yarygin runner-up).

Ohio 174 lber Sal Perrine (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Bloomsburg: On Sunday, the Huskies swept both of their matches, defeating Sacred Heart 36-6 and York College 37-9. Seven Huskies went a perfect 2-0 on the weekend. Bronson Garber (125) won by a 12-6 decision over Jacob Venezia of Sacred Heart and a 9-4 decision over Jared Kuhns of York. Cole Rhone (133) pinned Kyle Randall of Sacred Heart in 6:21 and Wilfred Jimenez of York in 5:56. Josh Mason (141) also had two falls. He pinned both Chris Naegele of Sacred Heart and Tyson McDuffey of York in the opening period. Alex Carida (157) won by 3-1 in sudden victory over 2021 NCAA qualifier Nick Palumbo of Sacred Heart and by a 12-2 major decision over Eric Hutchinson of York. Trenton Harder (165) topped Brandon Teresa of Sacred Heart by an 8-3 decision and Timothy Sparks of York 10-8. Bruno Stolfi (184) also posted two falls. He pinned Alex Marciniak of Sacred Heart in 2:16 and Jake Hipps of York in 3:50. Shane Noonan (HWT) pinned Sacred Heart's Nick Copley of Sacred Heart and had a 16-2 major decision over Brock Hofler of York. The Huskies will be back in action on Friday, February 11th, at 7:00pm against Kent State at the Nelson Field House. Buffalo: The Bulls topped inner-conference competitors, Northern Illinois, 17-15 in nail-biting fashion. Five Bulls came away with a win. Derek Spann (133) triumphed over Lucian Brink by a 17-2 technical fall. Ben Freeman (141) won by a 3-2 decision over Javion Jones. Michael Petite defeated Anthony Gibson by a 7-4 decision. Sam Mitchell (197) topped Tristan Guaman by a 7-2 decision. Toby Cahill (HWT) won via a 5-2 decision over Colin Jagielski. The Bulls will be back in action against Central Michigan on Sunday, February 13th at 2:00pm in Mount Pleasant, Michigan. Central Michigan: Once again, the Chippewas extended their win streak, which now stands at ten matches, topping Edinboro 26-9 and Kent State 32-9. Six Chippewas swept their duals this weekend, going a perfect 2-0. Brock Bergelin (125) defeated Chris Merlo of Edinboro by a 10-2 major decision and Jake Ferri of Kent State by a close 8-7 decision. Johnny Lovett (157) won by a 5-2 decision over PJ Gohn of Edinboro and a 20-5 technical fall over Robert Pryhocki of Kent State. Tracy Hubbard (165) topped Dylan Kohn of Edinboro by a 9-4 decision and Brady Chrisman of Kent State by a 7-4 decision. Bret Fedewa (174) triumphed over Joey Arnold of Edinboro by a 3-0 decision and Michael Ferree of Kent State by a 17-2 technical fall. Ben Cushman (184) defeated Ethan Ducca of Edinboro by a 4-1 decision and Enrique Munguia of Kent State by fall in 1:30. Matt Stencel (HWT) won by a 12-4 major decision over Max Millin of Edinboro and by fall in 1:14 over Jacob Cover of Kent State. The Chippewas will compete on Sunday, February 13th, against Buffalo at 2:00pm. Cleveland State: On Saturday, the Vikings dropped a tough loss to Ohio, 27-12. Four Vikings defeated their opponents from Athens. Logan Heil (125) triumphed over Oscar Sanchez by a close 1-0 decision. Jacob Manley (133) won by a 5-2 decision over Gio DiSabato. Riley Smucker (165) shutout Sean O'Dwyer 3-0. Ben Smith (197) emerged victorious in an 11-10 barnburner over Carson Brewer. The Vikings will be back in action on Friday, February 11th, against Lock Haven at 7:00pm. Clarion: The Eagles went 1-2 this weekend, defeating George Mason 22-15 before falling to both SIU Edwardsville 23-18 and Navy 33-8. Joey Fischer (125) was the only Eagle to sweep all three matches, improving his overall record to 19-9. This weekend, he topped Ben Monn of George Mason by a 10-2 decision, Austin Macias of SIU Edwardsville by a 14-5 major decision, and Jacob Allen of Navy by a decision of 4-1. Four Eagles went 2-1 on the weekend. Seth Koleno (141) defeated Kaden Cassidy of George Mason by a 7-4 decision and Tyler Hunt of Navy 10-8 in sudden victory. Cameron Pine (165) won by an 8-2 decision over Tyler Kocak of George Mason and 3-2 over SIU Edwardsville's Cardeionte Wilson. John Worthing (174) topped Logan Messer of George Mason by a 5-3 decision and Cael Crebs of Navy 6-4 in sudden victory. Will Feldkamp (197) added two falls. One over Jon List of George Mason and a second against Ryan Yarnell of SIU Edwardsville. The Eagles will wrestle on Friday, February 11th, at 7:00pm at Rider. Edinboro: On Friday, the Fighting Scots fell short to Central Michigan 26-9. Two Fighting Scots had impressive wins over their inner-conference counterparts. Gabe Willochell (141) pinned a top-ten opponent in Dresden Simon by fall in 2:35. Cody Mulligan (197) won by a 6-1 decision over Cade Dallwitz. The Fighting Scots will wrestle Sunday, February 13th, at 1:00pm against Lock Haven in The McComb Fieldhouse. George Mason: The Patriots went 1-1 this weekend, splitting their matches with conference foes. The Patriots lost to Clarion 22-15 and defeated SIU Edwardsville 30-7. Three Patriots topped their opponent, going a perfect 2-0 on the weekend. Michael Rapuano (133) defeated Mason Prinkey of Clarion by a 10-3 decision and received a forfeit against SIU Edwardsville. Avery Bassett (157) won by a 15-11 decision over Kyle Shickel of Clarion and a 2-0 decision over Max Kristoff of SIU Edwardsville. Kyle Davis (184) triumphed over Max Wohlabaugh of Clarion by a decision of 5-3 and Sergio Villalobos of SIU Edwardsville by fall in 3:38. The Patriots will host Rider on Saturday, February 12th, at 7:00pm. Kent State: The Golden Flashes went 0-2 this weekend, losing to Ohio 25-10 and Central Michigan 32-9. Six Golden Flashes had six wrestlers each pick up one win. Jake Ferri (125) defeated Oscar Sanchez of Ohio by a decision of 8-3. Brendon Fenton (133) won by a 7-3 decision over Ja'Kerion Merritt of Central Michigan. Kody Komara (149) upset #26 Corbyn Munson of Central Michigan by a 7-3 decision. Brady Chrisman (165) won by an 18-6 major decision over Sean O'Dwyer of Ohio. Colin McCracken (184) defeated Ohio's Zayne Lehman 4-1. Tyler Bates (197) topped Cade Dallwitz of Central Michigan by a 3-1 decision. The Golden Flashes will travel to Bloomsburg University on Friday, February 11th, at 7:00pm. Lock Haven: On Sunday, the Eagles defeated Rider 24-10. Seven Eagles topped their opponents. Anthony Noto (125) won by a major decision of 13-5 over Tyler Klinsky. Ben Barton (157) handled Alec Bobchin with a 12-4 major decision. Ashton Eyler (165) dominated Michael Wilson with a 16-7 major decision. Tyler Stoltzfus (174) won by a 4-2 decision over Shane Reitsma. Colin Fegley (184) defeated Evan Vasquez by a 6-1 decision. Parker McClellan (197) topped Azeem Bell by a decision of 8-4. Isaac Reid (HWT) won by a 6-1 decision over David Szuba. The Eagles will return to action on Friday, February 1tth against Cleveland State at 7:00pm. Northern Illinois: The Huskies dropped a hard-fought battle to Buffalo, 17-15. Five wrestlers came away with a win. Bryce West (125) defeated Tristan Daugherty by a decision of 4-1. Anthony Cheloni (149) used a razor-thin 1-0 decision to down John Arceri. Izzak Olejnik (165) topped Noah Grover by a 4-0 decision. Mason Kauffman (174) triumphed over Jay Nivison by a 5-4 decision. Brit Wilson (184) blanked Pete Acciardi 5-0. Northern Illinois is slated to compete on Sunday, February 13th, at Northwestern at 12:00pm. Ohio University: This weekend, the Bobcats swept both of their matches, defeating Kent State 25-10 and Cleveland State 27-12. Five Bobcats went a perfect 2-0. Kyran Hagan (141) topped Louis Newell of Kent State by a 1-0 decision and received a forfeit from Cleveland State. Alec Hagan won by a 7-4 decision over Kody Komara of Kent State and by 3-1 in sudden victory over #29 Marcus Robinson of Cleveland State. Jordan Slivka (157) pinned Robert Pryhocki of Kent State and received a forfeit from Cleveland State. Sal Perrine (174) defeated Michael Ferree of Kent State by a 13-8 decision and Anthony Rice of Cleveland State by a decision of 10-5. Jordan Greer (HWT) won by a 6-3 decision over Jacob Cover of Kent State and John Kelbly of Cleveland State, 8-3. The Bobcats will be back in action on Saturday, February 12th, at 7:00pm at Cleveland State. Rider: The Broncs dropped both of their matches this weekend, falling to Lock Haven 24-10 and a non-conference clash with in-state rival, Princeton 33-7. Two Broncs paved the way for their team, going a perfect 2-0. Richie Koehler (133) defeated Gable Strickland of Lock Haven by a 3-2 decision and Brandon Spellman of Princeton by a 5-3 decision. Koehler improves to 14-6 this season. Quinn Kinner (141) tallied a pair of major decisions. 8-0 over Tyler Dilley of Lock Haven and 15-2 over Princeton's Danny Coles. Kinner improves to 11-5 this season. The Broncs will hold their Senior Night on Friday, February 11th, at 7:00pm against Clarion. SIU Edwardsville: The Cougars split their matches this weekend, topping Clarion 23-18 before falling short to George Mason 30-7. Two Cougars defeated both of their opponents in convincing fashion. Caine Tyus (149) won by a 10-2 major decision over John Altieri of Clarion and by an 8-0 major over Shawn Nonaka of George Mason. Colton McKiernan (HWT) downed Tyler Bagoly of Clarion by a 3-2 decision and Austin Stith of George Mason, 4-0. The Cougars are slated to compete on Saturday, February 12th at 6:00pm at Ohio. MAC Preview: Wednesday, February 8th - Sunday, February 13th Friday, February 11th, 2022 Kent State @ Bloomsburg (7:00pm) Cleveland State @ Lock Haven (7:00pm) Clarion @ Rider (7:00pm) Saturday, February 12th, 2022 Rider @ George Mason (7:00pm) SIU Edwardsville @ Ohio (7:00pm) Sunday, February 13th, 2022 Cleveland State @ Bloomsburg (1:00pm) Lock Haven @ Edinboro (1:00pm) Buffalo @ Central Michigan (2:00pm) Northern Illinois @ Northwestern (4:00pm)

Missouri 285 lber Zach Elam (Photo/Mark Lundy; LutteLens.com) Friday 2/4 Oklahoma State DEF South Dakota State 29-6 Wyoming DEF Northern Colorado 21-15 Oklahoma DEF Little Rock 37-3 Iowa State DEF West Virginia 31-9 Northern Iowa DEF Air Force 31-6 Saturday 2/5 Iowa State DEF Air Force 27-12 Northern Iowa DEF West Virginia 31-10 Sunday 2/6 Oklahoma DEF South Dakota State 16-15 Missouri DEF Oklahoma State 21-20 Oklahoma State-Missouri lives up to the hype I talked about this last week, but in the preseason, this was the dual of the year for the Big 12. Even though it ultimately lost some of its luster with both teams taking a few losses leading up to it, and a number of top guys out with injuries, it was a down-to-the-wire barnburner. Back-and-forth wins up and down the lineup setup for a potential tie going into the last match. Back-to-back falls at heavyweight and 125 for Missouri gave the Tigers a six-point lead over the Cowboys (with criteria). Daton Fix had a chance to tie the dual late, but Trey Crawford held off a pin from Fix and only gave up a tech fall, ending in a final score of 21-20. Both teams will look to get the last laugh at the Big 12 tournament coming up in March in Tulsa. The KO heard ‘round the wrestling world Oklahoma had a pretty solid weekend as far as on the mat performance goes. A blowout win over Little Rock and a nice 16-15 victory over a South Dakota State team with wins over Northern Iowa and Missouri this season on Sunday. But that's not really what anyone's talking about with OU this week. One big topic of conversation is two-time Big 12 champion Dom Demas entering the transfer portal and the other one is the 174-pound match against Little Rock. In a video that can be readily found circulating on the internet, Little Rock's Triston Wills is up 4-1 when Anthony Mantanona hooks an arm underneath his chin and another over his back attempting what looks somewhat like a modified version of a snake mixed with a guillotine choke. Eventually Wills goes limp, clearly passed out, then Mantanona throws him to his back and gets a fall. The refs did not stop what looked like a clearly illegal hold, and to make matters worse, reviewed the call and deducted a team point from Little Rock. Mantanona's intentions with the move are up for debate, but the clearest failure to me here is with the officials. How neither saw the choke nor did anything to stop it is unbelievable! A clear failure to protect the athlete in the most basic sense.

USA Wrestling - Bout at the Ballpark presented by Kubota, international pairings finalized, with International All-Star and U.S. freestyle teams set USA Wrestling has completed the international lineup for the Bout at the Ballpark, presented by Kubota, set for Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas on February 12. Bout at the Ballpark is the first of its kind event with elite collegiate and international wrestlers performing at one competition. Team USA will also bring an elite group of athletes to compete against International All-Stars side-by-side during the college match. Team USA will feature numerous talented World and Olympic Medalists. The day will also include one Greco-Roman match. Bout at the Ballpark will also include college dual matches between Oklahoma State University and University of Iowa. These two colleges have won the most NCAA team titles in wrestling. In addition to the men's freestyle competition, two of the world's best women's freestyle nations will battle when Team USA faces Mongolia, in a six-match dual meet at the Olympic weight classes. Please note, Bout at the Ballpark will now start at 6:00 p.m. due to the exciting addition of the women's freestyle matches between Team USA and Mongolia. Doors will open as scheduled at 5:00 p.m., with parking lots opening at 4:00 p.m.. Fans are encouraged to arrive early in order to not miss an exciting Opening Ceremony. With the Iran Wrestling Federation announcing it was not coming to compete, a team of athletes from around the world has been organized to face the United States men's athletes. The International All-Stars represent nine different nations from four different continents (Europe, Pan America, Asia and Africa). The U.S. men's freestyle team was also finalized, with two-time World bronze medalist Nick Gwiazdowski named to the open position at 125 kg. In addition, 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials runner-up, past U.S. Open champion and multiple age-group World medalist Joey McKenna will compete at 65 kg and 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials runner-up, 2021 World Team Trials runner-up and two-time age-group World medalist Kollin Moore will compete at 92 kg for Team USA. These athletes are mostly training in the United States in preparation for international competition, many with U.S. Regional Training Centers. Seven of the 11 athletes were successful wrestlers within the U.S. college wrestling system, and a number are now coaching on the college level. Included in the group is 2017 NCAA champion Darian Cruz of Lehigh, who competes for Puerto Rico at 57 kg. Other international athletes who competed in college include Giusseppe Rea of Ecuador at 61 kg (Wilkes), Mitch Finesilver of Israel at 74 kg (Duke), Nestor Taffur of Colombia at 79 kg (Boston University), Noel Torres of Mexico at 86 kg (Newman), Evan Ramos of Puerto Rico at 92 kg (Shippensburg) and Zach Merrill of Puerto Rico at 125 kg (Oklahoma and California Baptist). An international opponent has been determined in the 97 kg Greco-Roman match to face 2021 World bronze medalist G'Angelo Hancock of the United States, 2017 Egyptian World Team member Ahmed Hassan of Egypt. Among the European athletes, Zbigniew Baranowski of Poland at 97 kg was a 2019 European silver medalist and competed in the 2016 Olympic Games. Israel's Finesilver was a bronze medalist at the 2021 European Championships and was a 2017 Maccabiah Games champion. Medalists from past Pan American Championships events include Cruz of Puerto Rico at 57 kg, Dillon Williams of Canada at 70 kg, Taffur of Columbia at 79 kg, Torres of Mexico at 86 kg and Ramos of Puerto Rico at 92 kg. Team USA at the Bout in the Ballpark is loaded, featuring three Olympic champions in Jordan Burroughs (men's freestyle, 79 kg), Kyle Snyder (men's freestyle, 97 kg) and Helen Maroulis (women's freestyle, 57 kg). There are five past World champions, Burroughs, Snyder, Maroulis, Thomas Gilman (men's freestyle, 57 kg) and Jacarra Winchester (women's freestyle, 53 kg). Nine of the U.S. athletes have won Senior World or Olympic medals. This unique event will also feature an NCAA Div. I dual meet between the two most successful programs in history, Oklahoma State University and the University of Iowa. Bout at the Ballpark, presented by Kubota, will be the first event at Globe Life Field, the Home of the Texas Rangers, to feature an international competition. The two wrestling mats will be located between the areas of pitcher's mound and second base and will be placed on raised stages to improve sightlines from the seating bowl. Tickets for Bout at the Ballpark, presented by Kubota, start as $15 and are available at texasrangers.com/wrestling. INTERNATIONAL PAIRINGS FOR BOUT AT THE BALLPARK, PRESENTED BY KUBOTA Men's freestyle pairings 57 kg - Thomas Gilman (USA) vs. Darian Cruz (Puerto Rico) 61 kg - Daton Fix (USA) vs. Giusseppe Rea (Ecuador) 65 kg - Joey McKenna (USA) vs. Kamal Begakov (Tajikistan) 70 kg - James Green (USA) vs. Dillon Williams (Canada) 74 kg - Jason Nolf (USA) vs. Mitch Finesilver (Israel) 79 kg - Jordan Burroughs (USA) vs. Nestor Taffur (Colombia) 86 kg - Zahid Valencia (USA) vs. Noel Torres (Mexico) 92 kg - Kollin Moore (USA) vs. Evan Ramos (Puerto Rico) 97 kg - Kyle Snyder (USA) vs. Zbigniew Baranowski (Poland) 125 kg - Nick Gwiazdowski (USA) vs. Zach Merrill (Puerto Rico) Women's freestyle pairings 50 kg - Victoria Anthony (USA) vs. Namuuntsetseg Tsogt-ochir (Mongolia) 53 kg - Jacarra Winchester (USA) vs. Khulan Batkhuyag (Mongolia) 57 kg - Helen Maroulis (USA) vs. Bolortuya Khurelkhuu (Mongolia) 62 kg - Kayla Miracle (USA) vs. Narangerel Erdenesukh (Mongolia) 68 kg - Kennedy Blades (USA) vs. Delgermaa Enkhsaikhan (Mongolia) 76 kg - Victoria Francis (USA) vs. Ariunjargal Ganbat (Mongolia) Greco-Roman pairing 97 kg - G'Angelo Hancock (USA) vs. Ahmed Hassan (Egypt)