InterMat Staff

Four-time All-American Jaydin Eierman (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Well, here we are over three months in on the mailbag and I have to be honest, I didn't know if I could make it past three weeks. I feel like we're settling into a groove here and apparently, there are awards that will further feed my ego, so my drive to better is sky-high. So strap in because it's time to earn some hardware and annoy the real writers out there. Seth Duckworth! I'm coming for you! But seriously, congrats Seth on winning NWMA Journalist of the Year. I'm honored to use your parking spot when you're at one of your other fifteen jobs. To your questions, and there were plenty of them. What does Jags make of Jaydin Eierman's start to the year? Bonus rate is sub 50% for the first time since 2017. Concerned? @Rhino184 So Jaydin Eierman, who's still undefeated, won a few matches by an outcome that was apparently not up to snuff with wrestling fans. Well, let me ask you this. Who says his opponents haven't just got better? The Riddler has been in school so long now he's nearly done a full four-year cycle at two schools. I assume he's hit his peak at folk and really isn't going to improve anymore at this point. Meanwhile, his competition is still getting better and you know he's getting every guy's best match, so no cakewalks here. His main concern now is March and that elusive title. Might there be some bumps in the road along the way? Sure, it's a tough season and his first full season since 2019. Maybe he's trying some new methods of preparation. Perhaps he's not showing his full hand on the mat. Either way, I still expect him in the semifinals on Friday night, likely against an opponent he's familiar with, and it's on him to get the job done. Jaydin's a pro's pro; he knows this. I'm not that concerned. With the continued success of #JaggerNight at the Jersey Mike's Arena, do you see a partnership budding between yourself and @RUWrestling? Clearly, it was a hit with fans. I had several celebrities ask me when the next one would be.@UWW_Creative Jagger Night at Rutgers was huge! On Twitter, that is. With the masks and the lack of indoor smoking, I was able to move about the arena unnoticed. But my boys showed up to kick some butt and we all had a good time watching it. I hope to make it back soon to watch with my dudes Brian and Dan and maybe then they'll get to crack some skulls when the paparazzi mob me at the turnstiles. Long-time listener, first-time question tweeter. How long till @keithgavin84 is verified on Twitter? And will it be before or after he turns the Pitt program into a perennial top-ten program?@babygravy3rdtry No real coach concerns themself with getting verified. (But I do, make it happen, Willie!) He or she knows the best way to that blue check is with success. Two finalists last year and another guy with a win over Micic leads me to believe he's doing something right over there. What they need is that one big recruit to put them over the top and open the floodgates to that top Western PA talent. If he makes that happen, I'm thinking top-ten every year. What does it feel like to be the hottest man on wrestling Twitter? @Gut_Bench69 So hot I went up in flames a while back. I appreciate the compliment and I guess I was alright for my age level, but now I'm hideous. Not as much a question but …. Discuss @MTorriero and his Twitter explosion. @Jkos11 Sheesh..has anyone burst onto the scene quite like Mike has? Ever wanted a running count of follows? Mike's got you. Ever wanted to be publicly shamed for not liking tweets? Mike's got you. I don't know what Mike's endgame is here, but I'm strapped in and ready to see how it gets there. That's all I can really say. Who the hell is Mike Torriero? @JonnyG7613 You're dead, man. You're so dead. Which Portillo are you taking & who wins @GVWrestling or @loperwrestling? @bvillaD2wrestle Family drama in the Great Plains! In the rarest of circumstances, twin brothers Justin and Joshua Portillo will be locking horns this Saturday as NAIA juggernaut Grand View travels to D2 powerhouse Nebraska-Kearney for an interpromotion dual meet. Not since Bret and Owen Hart squared off at WrestleMania X have we anticipated blood being spilled by men who share the same blood. Ok, maybe we want to see the Pauls bash each other, but that's beside the point. I have no idea how many sibling matches we've had in college. I'm not sure Jason Bryant even knows. This one should be fun as neither seems interested in holding anything back. I spoke to the brothers to see how their nerves were heading in and they do not seem to be rattled in the least. Slightly older brother Justin had this to say: “Last time we got into a fight, he called for our mom. This seven long minutes of pain, he will have nowhere to hide.” Interesting. Not to be outdone on the mat or by trash talk, Joshua chimed in with this: “The second twin is always the better one and that's a known statistical fact.” He's right. I googled it. With any luck, this will end up with proud papa Regino Portillo dragging them off the mat by the ears like the old days. Need your go-to order at the bagel shop. I'll hang up and listen. @damonfick Always a dozen, without a doubt. You never know what might happen. All-everything bagels, of course, but I'll mix in some plain in case I'm hosting communists that day. He's got a foking mailbag Man (facepalming emoji) @Tork76 It's more like extended Twitter replies, but my code still works at HQ. Well, that's about it for this week. I wanted to keep going, but you'll stop caring eventually, so I don't want to wear you out. An action-packed weekend with round one of the NFL playoffs and tons of great duals that appear to be full-steam ahead as of press time. Mix in a frozen Northeast and most of you don't have any excuse to do anything else, so fire up those screens. Take it sleazy, everyone.

Wisconsin freshman Dean Hamiti (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) One of the main storylines of the 2021-22 collegiate wrestling season has been the extra year of eligibility doled out by the NCAA, which has led to some sixth-year super seniors (and beyond). Those seniors, that otherwise would have moved on, have made for some stacked weight classes. For instance, at 141 lbs, the top-three wrestlers #1 Nick Lee (Penn State), #2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa), #3 Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers), all have already qualified for four NCAA Tournaments. In a normal circumstance, all three would not be wrestling in 2021-22. Additionally, #4 Stevan Micic has been aided by a regular redshirt, two Olympic redshirt years, and the free year. Sticking with 141 lbs, other members of the top ten that would have normally exhausted their eligibility include #5 Dylan Duncan (Illinois), #7 Kizhan Clarke (North Carolina), and #9 Chad Red Jr. (Nebraska). So with all of the super-seniors back for one last ride, what are some of the unintended consequences of their return? One seemed to be, fewer opportunities for true freshmen to stand out. My hypothesis was that the 2021-22 season would feature less prominent freshmen getting thrust into starting roles, because of the presence of their highly-decorated veteran counterparts. The first step was to determine who exactly gets the label of prominent or blue-chip freshmen? While the exact number could probably vary on a yearly basis, for the sake of this study, let's say that blue-chip freshmen are those ranked in the top-25 of their graduating class of high school. The easy part was figuring out which true freshmen have been given the green light this year. As the idea for this article was just a thought in my head, only Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) and Carter Young (Oklahoma State) had been stripped of their redshirts and allowed to compete immediately. That seemed like an extremely low number; just two of the top-25 seniors in the country had broken into their respective starting lineups as freshmen. Before I could get pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard), Spencer Lee announced he would not be able to continue the 2021-22 campaign and Drake Ayala was pulled from redshirt, bringing the total up to three. So what does three mean? Is that higher/lower/equal to past years? Let's find out. Since the Class of 2013 (the first year of availability for MatScouts BigBoard), 5.5 of these “blue-chip” true freshmen have initially competed. That's vibes with my initial instinct that three was a low number. A big variable that was excluded in this exercise was counting wrestlers from the Class of 2020. Since the 20-21 season was counted as a free year, many true freshmen were used in dual action and it did not impact their eligibility, like it would in a typical year. Just for argument's sake, 13 wrestlers from the Class of 2020 got the nod from their schools in the 2021 postseason. That number would be higher than any other year surveyed. It still is not an apples-to-apples comparison, because some many now have started had it been a normal year. To take it a step further for the Class of 2021 (the current true freshmen). Let's see how many have been blocked by a sixth-year (or more) senior. #5 Shayne Van Ness (Penn State) - 2021 NCAA champion Nick Lee is back at 141 lbs. It's reasonable to think that if Lee was unavailable, some combination of Bartlett and Van Ness would have handled 141/149. #8 Chance Lamer (Michigan) - Chance Lamer has competed at 141 and 149 lbs this year. At both weights, the Wolverines have wrestlers who have taken advantage of extra eligibility (Micic and Kanen Storr). While they have depth in this area, it's a possibility that Lamer may have gotten the call this year. #9 Alejandro Herrera-Rondon (Oklahoma) - Sixth-year senior Justin Thomas is Oklahoma's current starter at 157 lbs. Herrera-Rondon certainly would have been in the mix without Thomas in the lineup. #13 Cael Valencia (Arizona State) - Both of ASU's main options as 174 lbs have freshman eligibility, so Valencia is not blocked. With the Sun Devils in the NCAA trophy hunt, there's still the possibility we see Valencia this season. #16 Wyatt Henson (Iowa) - Starter Jaydin Eierman is in his seventh year of collegiate competition. His return certainly could have prevented Henson from starting immediately, though Hawkeye head coach Tom Brands can be reluctant to start true freshmen. #18 Caden McCrary (North Carolina) - The Tar Heels have Clarke at 141 lbs, who is a super-senior. It's not a lock that McCrary would have gotten the nod, as there are plenty of options for Coleman Scott's team in this range. #20 Cooper Flynn (Virginia Tech) - At first glance, it may not seem like Cooper Flynn was impacted by the extra year, but how about this? It's evident that 2021 All-American Sam Latona is huge for 125 lbs and will need to go up in the future. If AA Korbin Myers didn't return this year, maybe Latona is already up. If so, that would open a slot for either Flynn or possibly Eddie Ventresca to start at 125. Without the extra year of eligibility, it's not a given that all seven of these blue-chippers would have been starting in year one, but a few of them would have, for sure. Now, we have to remember, just because a wrestler is currently in redshirt, doesn't mean he'll stay there for the remainder of the year. Mark Hall made his official debut on January 20th. Mason Parris came out of redshirt during Michigan's first dual in January of 2019. Below are wrestlers since the Class of 2013 that competed immediately as true freshmen. Those that delayed enrollment for a year/grayshirted are not included. Numbers next to a wrestler's name indicate their ranking within their respective class. 2021 (3) #4 Drake Ayala (Iowa) #6 Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) #11 Carter Young (Oklahoma State) 2019 (7) #3 Andrew Alirez (Northern Colorado) #5 Jordan Decatur (Ohio State) #6 JoJo Aragona (Rutgers) #11 Ryan Anderson (Centenary) #16 Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) #19 Michael Colaiocco (Penn) #24 Reece Witcraft (Oklahoma State) 2018 (4) #1 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) #3 Mason Parris (Michigan) #12 Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) #17 Patrick Glory (Princeton) 2017 (5) #2 Spencer Lee (Iowa) #3 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) #9 Nick Lee (Penn State) #14 Quentin Hovis (Navy) #17 Austin DeSanto (Drexel) 2016 (9) #1 Mark Hall (Penn State) #2 Nick Suriano (Penn State) #9 Luke Pletcher (Ohio State) #10 Isaiah White (Notre Dame) #11 Jack Mueller (Virginia) #12 Drew Hughes (Michigan State) #13 Mitch McKee (Minnesota) #19 Matt Correnti (Rutgers) #22 Dakota Geer (Edinboro) 2015 (4) #5 Myles Martin (Ohio State) #7 Joseph Smith (Oklahoma State) #10 Kaid Brock (Oklahoma State) #15 David McFadden (Virginia Tech) 2014 (4) #1 Kyle Snyder (Ohio State) #8 Micah Jordan (Ohio State) #20 Tyler Smith (Bucknell) #21 Ryan Millhof (Oklahoma) 2013 (11) #2 Zain Retherford (Penn State) #4 Joey Dance (Virginia Tech) #5 J'den Cox (Missouri) #9 Adam Coon (Michigan) #13 Eric Morris (Harvard) #14 Domenic Abounader (Michigan) #18 Edgar Bright (Pittsburgh) #21 Mike Racciato (Pittsburgh) #22 Brandon Jeske (Old Dominion) #24 Russell Parsons (Army West Point) #25 Anthony Collica (Oklahoma State)

Jonathan Millner (left) and Josh Finesilver (Millner photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com; Finesilver photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The Blue Devils will host in-state foe Appalachian State in Durham on Thursday night. Duke is off to their best start since 2014-2015, bringing a 6-4 record into the second half, and are looking to add to the win column. I've been very impressed with the scrappiness of this Duke squad and the ability of teammates to pick up for each other if someone has a down performance. They have been great about earning bonus points at any opportunity they can; five starters have a bonus rate of 40% or above. Logan Agin, Josh Finesilver, and Kaden Russell have a 50% bonus rate and Matt Finesilver is sitting at a 62% bonus rate. This is how they have had team success this year, but it will be tough to get bonus points against a stingy Mountaineer squad. 149 will be the marquee matchup of the night with #5 Jonathan Millner from App State squaring off with #8 Josh Finesilver. Finesilver is 21-1 on the year, with his only loss coming to the All-American from Boone. They also met in the bloodround last year at the NCAA tournament, with Millner also coming out on top. Finesilver has been incredible since that loss, winning 16 straight matches and earning the title at the Southern Scuffle; it feels like he has the momentum going right now to flip the result from the last two matches. The other ranked matchup will be at 174, where #13 Josh Finesilver will face #31 Thomas Flitz. Finesilver is 21-2 on the season, with both of his losses occurring at the Southern Scuffle. He was able to finish the tournament with a big win and captured back some of the momentum from the losses. Flitz has a couple nice wins on the year, but this should be Finesilver's for the taking and possible bonus points. The other two matches I'm keeping an eye on; at 125, Logan Agin returns on a three-match win streak to face #27 Caleb Smith. The other is at 165. Gabe Dinette has looked good in his last few matches and seems to be getting in stride in Durham. It will be interesting to see where he is against #21 Will Formato.

2x NCAA runner-up Daton Fix (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) As it has been in the past few seasons, we have seen more and more situations of top wrestlers not wrestle in duals and tournaments or wrestlers medically forfeiting out of competitions before hitting tougher/higher-ranked opponents. It's a bad story we seem to re-read every season. Compound that with the recent situation of schools canceling and postponing duals due to the recent precautions with COVID. Since my last article, several other programs have postponed or canceled their scheduled competitions for this week (Week 11), though not to the degree of last week (so far). This isn't going to be a rant on "how to fix the system" or how "wrestlers today don't love the sport" (like Kirk Herbstreit's comments). It's more of a short, succinct reminder. Wrestling isn't like football or basketball that has that next level with lucrative contracts or guaranteed salaries. There is the Senior level, which has grown by leaps and bounds in the past few years, but it's nothing close to a guarantee except for a few. With the quick (and often misguided) trigger fingers in athletic departments today, any dual, tournament, season, even program, can be taken away in an instant (See Boise State, Eastern Michigan, Fresno State, Old Dominion, and the attempt on Stanford as recent examples). Even though we joke about Stevan Micic, Michael Kemerer, and Demetrius Romero getting AARP cards before they graduate, the truth is that those four (maybe five) years go by fast. Enjoy the time you have competing NOW. Don't look back years from now about matches that shoulda, coulda, woulda. And that's all I have to say about that. Anyway, on to week 11. Duals, Duals, Duals, and more Duals. That's the theme of this week as 72 of the 78 D1 teams are in competition (originally scheduled) and 17 of the Top-20 from last season's NCAAs also are slated to take the mat. There are a few non-scheduled tournaments this week, but entries are slowly being disclosed. Turn those notifications to "ON" to updates and changes. Got a question? Got a Recommendation? Let me know and message me@FantasyD1wrestl. Wrestlers I Like This Week Wrestler (School)- competition for the week [Proj Score] *organized by tournament name first, then by school name* 125: Anthony Noto (Lock Haven)- Virginia Duals, Vs Cal Baptist, Vs Bloomsburg [+14] Taylor LaMont (Utah Valley)- Vs North Dakota, Vs South Dakota, Vs Air Force [+11] Brock Bergelin (Central Michigan)- Vs American, Vs Cambell, Vs CSU Bakersfield [+9] Fabian Gutierrez (Chattanooga)- Virginia Duals [+9] Tristan Daugherty (Buffalo)- @ Hofstra, @ Long Island [+7] Pat McKee (Minnesota)- Vs Nebraska, Vs Wisconsin [+7] Joey Prata (Oklahoma)- Virginia Duals [+7] Vito Arujau (Cornell)- Vs Army [+4] Nick Suriano (Michigan)- @ Ohio State [+4] Noah Surtin (Missouri)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+4] Brody Teske (UNI)- @ Northern Colorado [+4] Brandon Kaylor (Oregon State)- Vs Little Rock [+4] Sam Latona (Virginia Tech)- Vs George Mason [+4] Joseph Fischer (Clarion)- Vs Cleveland State [+3] Drew Hildebrandt (Penn State)- Vs Rutgers [+3] Devin Schroder (Purdue)- Vs Michigan State [+3] Logan Ashton (Stanford)- Vs Little Rock [+3] 133: Daton Fix (Oklahoma State)- Vs Columbia, Vs West Virginia (@WVU) [+10] Derek Spann (Buffalo)- @ Hofstra, @ Long Island [+9] Tony Madrigal (Oklahoma)- Virginia Duals [+7] Austin DeSanto (Iowa)- @ Northwestern, @ Illinois [+6] Joshua Koderhandt (Navy)- @ Lehigh, @ Hofstra [+6] Anthony Sobotker (Binghamton)- Vs Drexel [+4] Dylan Ragusin (Michigan)- @ Ohio State [+4] Connor Brown (Missouri)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+4] Kyle Biscoglia (UNI)- @ Northern Colorado [+4] Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State)- Vs Rutgers [+4] Korbin Myers (Virginia Tech)- Vs George Mason [+4] Todd Carter (Gardner-Webb)- @ Bellarmine [+3] Rayvon Foley (Michigan State)- @ Purdue [+3] Devan Turner (Oregon State)- Vs Little Rock [+3] Jackson DiSario (Stanford)- Vs Little Rock [+3] 141: Dresden Simon (Central Michigan)- Vs American, Vs Cambell, Vs CSU Bakersfield [+10] Matthew Kazimir (Columbia)- Vs Oklahoma State, Vs West Virginia (@WVU), Vs Lehigh [+10] Jaydin Eierman (Iowa)- @ Northwestern, @ Illinois [+9] Kaden Cassidy (George Mason)- @ VMI, @ Virginia Tech [+8] Ryan Anderson (Binghamton)- Vs Drexel [+4] Seth Koleno (Clarion)- Vs Cleveland State [+4] Grant Willits (Oregon State)- Vs Little Rock [+4] Clay Carlson (South Dakota State)- Vs Utah Valley [+4] Real Woods (Stanford)- Vs Little Rock [+4] Sidney Flores (Air Force)- @ Utah Valley [+3] Wil Gil (Franklin & Marshall)- @ Davidson [+3] Stevan Micic (Michigan)- @ Ohio State [+3] Allan Hart (Missouri)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+3] Chad Red (Nebraska)- @ Minnesota [+3] Andrew Alirez (Northern Colorado)- Vs UNI [+3] Parker Filius (Purdue)- Vs Michigan State [+3] Cole Matthews (Pittsburgh)- Vs Arizona State [+3] 149: Josh Heil (Campbell)- Vs American, Campbell, & Central Michigan (@CMU) [+15] Alex Madrigal (George Mason)- @ VMI, @ Virginia Tech [+8] Kyle Parco (Arizona State)- @ Pittsburgh, @ Princeton [+8] Kaden Gfeller (Oklahoma State)- Vs Columbia, Vs West Virginia (@WVU) [+8] Manzona Bryant (Lehigh)- Vs Columbia, Vs Navy [+7] John Aceri (Buffalo)- @ Hofstra, @ Long Island [+6] Peyton Omania (Michigan State)- @ Purdue [+4] Josh Edmond (Missouri)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+4] Sammy Sasso (Ohio State)- Vs Michigan [+4] Zach Price (South Dakota State)- Vs Utah Valley [+4] Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell)- Vs Army [+3] Ridge Lovett (Nebraska)- @ Minnesota [+3] Yahya Thomas (Northwestern)- Vs Iowa [+3] Alec Hagen (Ohio)- @ Northern Illinois [+3] Cory Crooks (Oregon State)- Vs Little Rock [+3] Austin Gomez (Wisconsin)- @ Minnesota [+3] 157: Justin Thomas (Oklahoma)- Virginia Duals [+13] Johnny Lovett (Central Michigan)- Vs American, Vs Cambell, Vs CSU Bakersfield [+9] Wyatt Sheets (Oklahoma State)- Vs Columbia, Vs West Virginia (@WVU) [+7] Chase Saldate (Michigan State)- @ Purdue [+4] Jarrett Jacques (Missouri)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+4] Hunter Willits (Oregon State)- Vs Little Rock [+4] Will Lewan (Michigan)- @ Ohio State [+3] Ryan Deakin (Northwestern)- Vs Iowa [+3] 165: Justin McCoy (Virginia)- Virginia Duals [+14] Troy Nation (Campbell)- Vs American, Campbell, & Central Michigan (@CMU) [+13] Alex Marinelli (Iowa)- @ Northwestern, @ Illinois [+8] Anthony Valencia (Arizona State)- @ Pittsburgh, @ Princeton [+7] Austin Eyler (Lock Haven)- Virginia Duals, Vs Cal Baptist, Vs Bloomsburg [+7] Jared Franek (North Dakota State)- @ Utah Valley, @ Wyoming [+7] Travis Wittlake (Oklahoma State)- Vs Columbia, Vs West Virginia (@WVU) [+6] Keegan O'Toole (Missouri)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+5] Izzak Olejnik (Northern Illinois)- Vs Ohio [+4] Tanner Cook (South Dakota State)- Vs Utah Valley [+4] Shane Griffith (Stanford)- Vs Little Rock [+4] Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin)- @ Minnesota [+4] Rodrick Mosley (Gardner-Webb)- @ Bellarmine [+3] Tracy Hubbard (Central Michigan)- Vs American, Vs Cambell, Vs CSU Bakersfield [+3] Carson Kharchla (Ohio State)- Vs Michigan [+3] Clayton Ulrey (Virginia Tech)- Vs George Mason [+3] 174: Michael O'Malley (Drexel) - @Binghamton, @ Brown) [+8] Michael Kemerer (Iowa)- @ Northwestern, @ Illinois [+8] Anthony Mantanona (Oklahoma)- Virginia Duals [+8] Austin Murphy (Campbell)- Vs American, Campbell, & Central Michigan (@CMU) [+7] Dustin Plott (Oklahoma State)- Vs Columbia, Vs West Virginia (@WVU) [+7] Carter Starocci (Penn State)- Vs Rutgers [+4] Garrit Nijenhuis (Purdue)- Vs Michigan State [+4] Cade DeVos (South Dakota State)- Vs Utah Valley [+4] Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech)- Vs George Mason [+4] John Worthing (Clarion)- Vs Cleveland State [+3] Peyton Mocco (Missouri)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+3] Tyler Eischens (Stanford)- Vs Little Rock [+3] 184: Caleb Hopkins (Campbell)- Vs American, Campbell, & Central Michigan (@CMU) [+17] Darrien Roberts (Oklahoma)- Virginia Duals [+12] Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State)- Vs Columbia, Vs West Virginia (@WVU) [+8] Abe Assad (Iowa)- @ Northwestern, @ Illinois [+7] Jonathan Loew (Cornell)- Vs Army [+4] Jeremiah Kent (Missouri)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+4] Parker Keckeisen (UNI)- @ Northern Colorado [+4] Trey Munoz (Oregon State)- Vs Little Rock [+4] Travis Stefanik (Princeton)- Vs Arizona State [+4] Hunter Bolen (Virginia Tech)- Vs George Mason [+4] Aaron Brooks (Penn State)- Vs Rutgers [+3] Taylor Venz (Nebraska)- @ Minnesota [+3] Brit Wilson (Northern Illinois)- Vs Ohio [+3] 197: Levi Hopkins (Campbell)- Vs American, Campbell, & Central Michigan (@CMU) [+15] Jake Woodley (Oklahoma)- Virginia Duals [+12] AJ Ferrari (Oklahoma State)- Vs Columbia, Vs West Virginia (@WVU) [+9] Jacob Warner (Iowa)- @ Northwestern, @ Illinois [+6] Jay Aiello (Virginia)- Virginia Duals [+6] Louis DePrez (Binghamton)- Vs Drexel [+4] Rocky Elam (Missouri)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+4] Nick Stemmet (Stanford)- Vs Little Rock [+4] Tyler Mousaw (VMI)- Vs George Mason [+4] Braxton Amos (Wisconsin)- @ Minnesota [+4] Pat Brucki (Michigan)- @ Ohio State [+3] Eric Schultz (Nebraska)- @ Minnesota [+3] Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State)- Vs Utah Valley [+3] 285: Josh Heindselman (Oklahoma)- Virginia Duals [+12] Matt Stencel (Central Michigan)- Vs American, Vs Cambell, Vs CSU Bakersfield [+11] Gable Steveson (Minnesota)- Vs Nebraska, Vs Wisconsin [+8] Zachary Knighton-Ward (Hofstra)- Vs Buffalo, Vs Navy [+7] Anthony Cassioppi (Iowa)- @ Northwestern, @ Illinois [+7] Jordan Wood (Lehigh)- Vs Columbia, Vs Navy [+7] Luke Surber (Oklahoma State)- Vs Columbia, Vs West Virginia (@WVU) [+7] Cohlton Schultz (Arizona State)- @ Pittsburgh, @ Princeton [+6] Wyatt Hendrickson (Air Force)- @ Utah Valley [+5] Joe Doyle (Binghamton)- Vs Drexel [+4] Taye Ghadiali (Campbell)- Vs American, Campbell, & Central Michigan (@CMU) [+4] Mason Parris (Michigan)- @ Ohio State [+4] Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State)- Vs Rutgers [+4] Nathan Traxler (Virginia Tech)- Vs George Mason [+4] Lewis Fernandes (Cornell)- Vs Army [+3] Zach Elam (Missouri)- @ SIU-Edwardsville [+3] Michael Woulfe (Purdue)- Vs Michigan State [+3] Gary Traub (Oregon State)- Vs Little Rock [+3] AJ Nevills (South Dakota State)- Vs Utah Valley [+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 David Jablonski; Dayton Daily News) COLUMBUS, Ohio - In a historic move Thursday, the Ohio High School Athletic Association Board of Directors voted unanimously to add girls wrestling and boys volleyball as emerging sports beginning with the 2022-23 school year. In addition, the board voted to move girls and boys lacrosse out of the emerging sports category into the list of OHSAA recognized sports, and also committed to discuss partnering with a group to provide a tournament in Esports (gaming). The Ohio High School Wrestling Coaches Association has been conducting a girls wrestling tournament since 2020, and the Ohio High School Boys Volleyball Association has been conducting its tournament since 1988. "The OHSAA has been talking with the boys volleyball and girls wrestling leaders for several years and we are now in the position to bring these two sports into the OHSAA," said OHSAA Executive Director Doug Ute. "This move will help those sports continue to grow and allow those student-athletes to compete for an OHSAA state championship. It gives more kids opportunities and that is the mission of the OHSAA." As emerging sports, girls wrestling and boys volleyball will be administered like the OHSAA's current 26 recognized sports, but will have additional requirements according to OHSAA General Sports Regulation 16 that could lead to full sanctioning in the future. "We will look to keep a very similar format for the girls wrestling and boys volleyball tournaments as what the coaches associations have been doing," Ute said. "The girls wrestling state tournament is held in mid-February and the boys volleyball state tournament is held in the spring. We have not yet developed tournament regulations, but we'll start working on that so that those two sports hit the ground running next fall for the start of the 2022-23 school year." The OHSAA added lacrosse in 2016 and the sport has continued to grow and now moves out of the emerging sports category, effective immediately. With the addition of girls wrestling and boys volleyball, the number of OHSAA sports grows to 28, with 14 for girls and 14 for boys. The OHSAA has been in conversation with Esports, as it has grown rapidly at both the high school and college level in the last several years. The OHSAA will look to partner with a group that specializes in Esports, similar to how the OHSAA partnered with Varsity Spirit for its sideline cheerleading competition that was held for the first time this past December.

Ian Parker (left) and Angelo Martinoni (photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) A midweek treat aims to help us forget the matches that “were to be” as CSU Bakersfield travels to the heartland to face the #8 Cyclones of Iowa State. The late addition for both teams, scheduled for 5pm Pacific in Ames, Iowa (LIVE on ESPN+), provides the Roadrunners a serious tune-up ahead of the “Chippewa Challenge” event this weekend, when Central Michigan alum, Coach “Lightning” Luke Smith will introduce his Bakersfield team to his old stomping grounds in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, in the form of three duals against fellow Chippewa-led programs in Central Michigan, Campbell, and American. Before the Roadrunners can enjoy Smith's homecoming, however, they'll need to focus their efforts against a resurging Iowa State lineup that may feature as many as five returning NCAA qualifiers – a defending National Champion among them. The Cyclones could potentially field eight-ranked competitors, with the marquee match likely to be at 141lbs, where #27 Angelo Martinoni of Bakersfield could square off against 3x NCAA Qualifier and sixth-year senior, #11 Ian Parker. #16 Chance Rich may have his work cut out for him against currently unranked but talented Ramazan Attasauov, a Russian-native who has brought a unique flair in his approach to American collegiate wrestling. Although Iowa State wrestlers are favored, on paper, at the majority of weights, it is also true that there are just as many opportunities for upsets on the part of the Roadrunners. Currently, unranked Albert Urias (174) has spent time in the national rankings this season and a quality victory over #20 Joel Devine would put him right back in the conversation, while Brock Rogers will have his hands full with a Hodge-hunting David Carr at 157lbs. To bookend the lineups, Eddie Flores (125) will have a quality opponent in #24 Kysen Terukina, while either Jake Andrews or Jacob Sieder will aim to take out #29 Sam Schuyler at heavyweight. Potential Lineups 125: Eddie Flores (CSU Bakersfield) vs. #24 Kysen Terukina (Iowa State) 133: #16 Chance Rich vs. Ramazan Attasauov 141: #27 Angelo Martinoni OR Louie Ramos vs. #11 Ian Parker 149: Josh Brown vs. #23 Jarrett Degen 157: Brock Rogers vs. #1 David Carr 165: Augustine Garcia vs. Austin Kraisser OR Isaac Judge 174: Albert Urias vs. #20 Joel Devine OR Julien Broderson 184: Jacob Hansen vs. #9 Marcus Coleman 197: Josh Loomer OR Mateo Morales vs. #13 Yonger Bastida 285: Jake Andrews OR Jacob Sieder vs. #29 Sam Schuyler

2022 Southern Scuffle champion Cade DeVos (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Thursday 01/06 Iowa State DEF Northwest Kansas Tech 56-0 Friday 01/07 Northern Colorado at Cal Poly-Postponed Saturday 01/08 Oklahoma State DEF Little Rock 35-6 Sunday 01/09 Northern Iowa vs. Wyoming at South Dakota State-Extra matches only Wyoming at South Dakota State-Extra matches only ADDITIONAL MATCHES 125: Tanner Jordan (SDSU) dec. Brendon Garcia (WYO), 6-4 125: Tanner Jordan (SDSU) dec. Jake Svihel (WYO), 3-2 133: Gabriel Tagg (SDSU) tech. fall Darrick Stacey (WYO), 19-1 (4:07) 133: Job Greenwood (WYO) dec. Trayton Anderson (SDSU), 3-0 149: Jaron Jensen (WYO) dec. Daniel Kimball (SDSU), 4-2 157: Colin Realbuto (UNI) dec. Kenny O'Neil (SDSU), 8-2 165: Cooper Voorhees (WYO) dec. Jack Thomsen (SDSU), 6-4 [SV-1] 165: #29 Tanner Cook (SDSU) def. Cooper Voorhees, by fall 2:40 285: Terren Swartz (WYO) dec. Bowen McConville (SDSU), 5-3 285: #23 A.J. Nevills (SDSU) dec. Terren Swartz (WYO), 8-2 South Dakota State DEF Northern Iowa 27-13 Binghamton vs. West Virginia vs Virginia Tech-Round Robin Final Results 133: No. 32 Anthony Sobotker (BU) SV Michael Dolan (WV), 4-2. 141: Ryan Anderson (BU) TF Caleb Rea (WV), 16-0. 149: Nick Lombard (BU) FALL George Johnson (WV) 157: Alex Hornfeck (WV) FALL Tyler Martin (BU) 165: Brevin Cassella (BU) WFF No. 11 Peyton Hall (WV) 174: Scott Joll (WV) FALL Jacob Nolan (BU) 184: Anthony Carman (WV) FALL Sam DePrez (BU) 197: No. 11Lou DePrez (BU) FALL Jackson Moomau (WV) 285: No. 20 Joe Doyle (BU) FALL No. 22 Michael Wolfgram (WV) 285: Tristan Kemp (WV) 3OT WIN Over Collin Burns (BU). (RT) 133: Christian Gannone (BU) DEC Michael Dolan (WV), 5-0 141: Ryan Anderson (BU) MD Lucas Seibert (WV), 9-1. 184: Anthony Carman (WV) FALL Cory Day (BU) 133: No. 4 Korbin Myers (VT) major dec. Fr. Michael Dolan (WVU), 17-5 141: Sam Hillegas (VT) won by fall Caleb Rea (WVU), [T - 2:47] 149: Kylan Montgomery (VT) dec. Trey Johnson (WVU), 7-1 157: No. 16 Connor Brady (VT) dec. Alex Hornfeck (WVU), 8-6 165: Clayton Ulrey (VT) won by forfeit 174: No. 3 Mekhi Lewis (VT) dec. Scott Joll (WVU), 10-4 184: Anthony Carman (WVU) major dec. Simeone Holmes (VT), 10-1 197: Andy Smith (VT) dec. Jackson Moomau (WVU), 9-5 HWT: No.13 Nathan Traxler (VT) dec. No. 20 Michael Wolfgram (WVU), 5-2 141 Sam Hillegas (VT) major dec. Lucas Seibert (WVU), 14-4 California Baptist at Stanford-Canceled Northern Colorado at CSU Bakersfield-Postponed Iowa State at Arizona State-Canceled Best Event: South Dakota State over Northern Iowa 27-13 We got one complete in-conference dual off this weekend and this was it. There were a few guys missing here, but this was a solid conference win for South Dakota State that was anchored by falls from Tanner Cook and Cade Devos. Biggest Storyline: Everything getting canceled/postponed Unfortunately, this is a reality we're probably going to see some more of in the sport this season. Duals will be canceled/postponed and replaced by individual matchups slotted in their place. It's not good. It's not good for fans, it's not good for the sport, all the way around, it's just not good. That said, I have no idea what you do about it?! So, it's something we're probably just going to have to deal with it to an extent.

Wisconsin's 149 lber Austin Gomez (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) The Top-10 performances from the last week in the Big 10 Conference: 1. Austin Gomez, Wisconsin - A very formal welcome back to the show to you, Mr. Gomez. He knocked off both Rutgers' Mike Van Brill, a two-time NCAA qualifier, and Northwestern's Yahya Thomas, a returning All-American, this weekend. Gomez took Yahya down twice in the third period to win, 8-6, then took Van Brill feet-to-back in the third for a crucial 11-1 major decision. The Badgers won both duals, too, 19-15 over Northwestern, and 19-14 over Rutgers. Scared money don't make money. 2. Michael DeAugustino, Northwestern - Made his season debut this week, and all he did was beat a pair of All-Americans. On Friday, DeAugustino won 9-5 over Wisconsin's Eric Barnett, using a reversal and four-point turn in the second period to seize the lead. On Sunday, he took Minnesota's Patrick McKee feet-to-back in the third period to turn a 6-2 deficit into a 6-6 tie, then turned him again in the final 30 seconds for two more quick back points and won, 8-7. Another tremendous welcome back. 3. Michael Kemerer, Iowa - Tom Brands officially let the Kem Daughg out. Kemerer made his long-awaited season debut this weekend too, and very casually opened a can on both Minnesota's Bailee O'Reilly and Purdue's Gerrit Nijenhuis, beating both by a combined 26-2. He scored three takedowns in a 9-2 win over O'Reilly on Friday night, then rolled up a 17-1 technical fall on Nijenhuis on Sunday, turning a 2-1 first-period lead into a 13-1 advantage by the end of the second thanks to a cradle that netted a takedown and four back points. Pretty spry performance from an old man. 4. Drew Hildebrandt, Penn State - One more valiant return to kick off this week's list. Drew Hildebrandt, an All-American at 125 pounds last year for Central Michigan, made his Penn State debut this weekend. He won twice, including a 98-second pin in his very first match in Nittany Lion blue. His second victory was a workmanlike 6-2 win over Indiana's Jacob Moran. Penn State needs big points from this dude to win what's expected to be a hotly-contested team race in March. 5. Pat Brucki, Michigan - Took down a returning NCAA finalist in Pittsburgh's Nino Bonaccorsi - as if this weight isn't already weird enough - rallying from an early Bonaccorsi takedown to win, 6-3. Brucki went escape-takedown in the second period to lead 4-2, then added another in the third period to ice it. 6. Aaron Brooks, Penn State - AB was honored as the league's wrestler of the week for the third time this season after beating both Indiana's #8 DJ Washington (Indiana) and #12 Kyle Cochran (Maryland) this weekend. He major'd them both by a combined 32-11 - 13-4 over Washington, 19-7 over Cochran - and scored 13 takedowns between both matches while allowing just one. He's ranked #1 for a reason. 7. Gerrit Nijenhuis, Purdue - Yes, we talked about how Nijenhuis lost big to Kemerer, but did you SEE his big 6-4 win over Nebraska's Mikey Labriola on Friday night? This was a back-and-forth thriller. Nijenhuis led 2-0 in the first, then Labriola stormed to a 4-2 lead in the second, then Nijenhuis escaped, and went escape-takedown in the third to win. Combine this result with Max Lyon's upset win over Taylor Venz (more on that in a second), and that's partly how the Boilermakers beat Nebraska for the first time since 1985. Not bad, guys. 8. Drake Ayala, Iowa - Iowa's superstar true freshman rebounded from a Friday night defeat to knock off then-No. 5 Devin Schroder for his first win in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. It's pronounced EYE-YALL-UH, for those who don't know, and Young Drizzy scored a pair of takedowns and clocked more than three minutes of riding time for the first of many big wins in Iowa's all-black singlet. Welcome to the show, young man. Let the good times roll. 9. Brayton Lee, Minnesota - Lee closed Minnesota's loss to Iowa on Friday night with a dramatic 4-3 win over Kaleb Young. After surrendering a takedown out of a scramble in the first period, Lee scored a takedown with less than 30 seconds left and rode Young out to win. That levels their all-time series at 2-2, and all four matches have been decided by a single point. Wild. 10. Max Lyon, Purdue - Previously mentioned Lyon's win, but he was previously 0-3 against Venz during his collegiate career, so this 7-2 win on Friday night was a nice monkey off Lyon's back. He led 4-0 after a takedown in the first period and escapes in both the second and third. Venz scored to close within 4-2, but Lyon went escape-takedown to ice another crucial win for the Boilermakers' upset win.

2020 NAIA National Duals champion Life University(photo courtesy of NWCA) NAIA Women's Wrestling took a back seat to no one when it came to competitiveness, strategic moves and upsets at the nation's biggest dual tournament last week. The top 5 NAIA teams in the country, and 7 of the top 10, showed up in Louisville for the NWCA National Duals, and they were ready to rock. Here's a recap, with a look at the surprises and the upsets. The 1st seed went to #1 Campbellsville, while the 4th seed went to #5 ranked Grand View. Campbellsville looked the part in a 45-2 thrashing of #7 Indiana Tech in the quarterfinals. Grand View battled to a 26-19 win over #5 Texas Wesleyan 26-19 in the quarterfinals, but in the semifinals, it would be Campbellsville who would prevail with the 26-18 win to move to the finals. On the other side were #2 Life University and #3 Southern Oregon. SOU downed #8 University of the Cumberlands 34-10 in the quarters, while Life knocked off #14 Baker University 33-10. In the semis, it would be Life with the 28-15 victory over SOU. That set up a final between Campbellsville and Life. Life would lead by 1 point going into the final match, between Campbellsville's 6th ranked Liliana Vergara and Life's 7th ranked Gabrielle Hamilton at 191. Hamilton secured the fall, giving Life the 25-19 victory and the NWCA championship. Perhaps the most impressive thing about Life's championship performance is that they started each dual with a 5 point deficit, as they did not have a 101 for the tournament. In the 3rd place match, Southern Oregon dispatched Grand View by winning 7 of 10 bouts, and #5 Texas Wesleyan held seed by defeating #14 Baker University 27-21. Oh yeah, there were some moves and a number of upsets. Here are some of the ones we noted (rankings courtesy of the most recent NAIA Coaches' Poll with apologies to any I missed): At 101, Indiana Tech's #7 Sydney Kutzke had a tough outing. She held her own against Providence's #1 Ivy Navarro, losing 8-3, but was taken down by Campbellsville's unranked Mia Diaz and Cumberlands' unranked Elizabeth Dosado. At 109, another unranked Campbellsville wrestler, Kelsey Bilz, should make an appearance in the next rankings after taking down Indiana Tech's #5 Tehani Soares and Grand View's #14 Chloe Krebsbach. #5 Soares also had a tough outing, also dropping matches to Missouri Baptist's #12 Jessica Corredor and Texas Wesleyan's #6 Jasmine Godinez. Campbellsville's McKayla Campbell, ranked #4 at 109, has not wrestled there yet this year. But at 116, she did find Life's Payton Prussin, ranked #1 at 109, who moved up for the tournament, and they delivered a wild one - 19-14 for Prussin. You might think Prussin won't stay there long, with teammate Salyna Shotwell ranked #1 at 116, but Shotwell bumped up to 123 for the event - and 123 is the only weight at which Life does not have a ranked wrestler. Or maybe not. While Shotwell did pin Campbellsville's ninth-ranked Jacqueline Ghent at 123, she lost to Baker's #2 Nichole Moore 1-5. Notably, SOU bumped 116 #3 Tara Othman up to wrestle Shotwell, but Shotwell prevailed, 10-6. While she wasn't able to knock off Shotwell, #9 Ghent did upset Grand View's 6th ranked Adrienna Turner. Another wrestler who bumped up for the event was SOU's Carolina Johnson, ranked #6 at 116. The move paid off, as she went 3-0, including a 9-3 victory over Grandview's 6th ranked Turner at 123. Not an upset, but you always love to see a 2 vs 3, and we got that at 123 when Baker's #2 Nichole Moore beat Texas Wesleyan's #3 Devin Patton. An interesting thing happened at 130/136, as Texas Wesleyan's Mea Mohler, #1 at 130, went up to 136, and teammate Lexi Basham, #2 at 136, went down to 130. The move fared well, as both wrestlers went 5-0 during the 2-day event. Another move here last week was Grand View's Andrea Schlabach, ranked #7 at 136, going down to 130 for the event. She lost 8-4 to Basham (#2, 136), but she turned around and pinned Campbellsville's Angela Vitiritti, #2 at 130. Also at 136 - recall that Life won the championship in the last match of the dual - it helped that #14 Olivia Mottley upset Campbellsville's #6 Randi Robison in that final dual. Earlier, Mottley also upset SOU's #8 Julissa Taitano. At 143, just a couple of matches of real note. Campbellsville's #5 Emma Walker downed Grand View's #3 Alexis Gomez in an 8-8 tie. Not a colossal upset, to be sure, but in her next match, Gomez would go out and get the fall against SOU's Emily Se, who moved up to 143. Se holds the 3rd ranking at 130, but she has yet to compete there this year, having wrestled 24 matches at 136. Louisville marked her first appearance at 143. There was a big move at 155, as Baker's Kaylynn Albrecht, ranked 8th at 170, dropped down and teched Missouri Baptist's #3 Tiyahna Askew. Also at 155, we got one of those #1-#2 matches you hope for at an event like this, as SOU's #1 Sienna Ramirez outlasted Life's #2 Destinee Rivera 4-1. More action at 170, starting with Life's #4 Jordan Nelson earning a 6-1 win over Baker's #5 Elisa Robinson. Shortly after that, Robinson was upset by Cumberland's #10 Chamira Cooper. And in the big one at 170, Grand View's #3 Abby McIntyre teched Texas Wesleyan's #1 Brittyn Corbishley. Finally, there was one big upset at 191, as SOU's unranked Karrah Smith pinned Cumberlands' #3 Jesse Kirby. All this tells us is what we already know - rankings mean nothing when you step inside the circle. And at the end of the day, what happens in January doesn't really mean much. A lot of these matches are likely to be repeated in February and March in the conference and national championships Let's wrestle!

(photo courtesy of Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) We've got a great slate of duals over the next week. A staggering 65 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. Wednesday, January 12: CSU Bakersfield at Iowa State, 8:00 PM ESPN+ Thursday, January 13: Appalachian State at Duke, 7:00 PM ACC Network Extra Friday, January 14: Franklin & Marshall at Davidson Davidson All-Access Chattanooga vs. Virginia at Virginia Duals 1:00 PM FloWrestling Kent State vs. Maryland at Virginia Duals 1:00 PM FloWrestling Oklahoma vs. Lock Haven at Virginia Duals 1:00 PM FloWrestling Chattanooga vs. Maryland at Virginia Duals 3:00 PM FloWrestling Kent State vs. Oklahoma at Virginia Duals 3:00 PM FloWrestling Lock Haven vs. Virginia at Virginia Duals 3:00 PM FloWrestling Buffalo at Long Island, 5:00 PM NEC Front Row Bucknell at Harvard, 6:00 PM ESPN+ Drexel at Brown, 7:00 PM ESPN+ Cleveland State at Clarion, 7:00 PM Clarion Rokfin Columbia at Lehigh, 7:00 PM FloWrestling Michigan at Ohio State, 7:00 PM Big Ten Network Arizona State at Pittsburgh, 7:00 PM ACC Network Extra Illinois at Rutgers, 7:00 PM BIG+ George Mason at VMI, 7:30 PM ESPN+ Northern Iowa at Northern Colorado, 8:00 PM FloWrestling Iowa at Northwestern, 8:00 PM BIG+ Nebraska at Minnesota, 9:00 PM Big Ten Network North Dakota State at Utah Valley, 9:00 PM FloWrestling Iowa State at Wyoming, 9:00 PM FloWrestling Little Rock at Oregon State, 10:00 PM Pac-12.com Saturday, January 15: Chattanooga vs. Kent State at Virginia Duals 10:00 AM FloWrestling Bucknell at Brown, 12:00 PM ESPN+ California Baptist at Bloomsburg, 1:00 PM Army West Point at Cornell, 1:00 PM ESPN+ Buffalo at Hofstra, 1:00 PM YouTube Kent State vs. Virginia at Virginia Duals 2:00 PM FloWrestling Navy at Lehigh, 2:00 PM FloWrestling California Baptist vs. Lock Haven at Bloomsburg, 3:00 PM Sacred Heart at Harvard, 3:00 PM ESPN+ Oklahoma vs. Virginia at Virginia Duals 4:00 PM FloWrestling George Mason at Virginia Tech, 4:00 PM ESPN+ Drexel at Binghamton, 5:00 PM ESPN+ Lock Haven at Bloomsburg, 5:00 PM Maryland vs. Oklahoma at Virginia Duals 6:00 PM FloWrestling Michigan State at Purdue, 7:00 PM B1G+ Air Force at Utah Valley, 7:00 PM FloWrestling Ohio at Northern Illinois, 8:00 PM NIU All-Access Little Rock at Stanford, 8:00 PM Pac-12.com South Dakota State at Utah Valley, 9:00 PM FloWrestling Sunday, January 16: American vs. Campbell at Central Michigan, 11:00 AM CSU Bakersfield at Central Michigan, 11:00 AM ESPN+ Arizona State at Princeton, 12:00 PM ESPN+ Columbia vs. Oklahoma State at West Virginia, 12:00 PM ESPN+ American at Central Michigan, 1:00 PM ESPN+ Campbell vs. CSU Bakersfield at Central Michigan, 1:00 PM Presbyterian at VMI, 1:00 PM ESPN+ Oklahoma State at West Virginia, 1:30 PM ESPNU Edinboro at Cleveland State, 2:00 PM Wisconsin at Minnesota, 2:00 PM B1G+ Missouri at SIU Edwardsville, 2:00 PM ESPN+ Gardner-Webb at Bellarmine, 3:00 PM American vs. CSU Bakersfield at Central Michigan, 3:00 PM Campbell at Central Michigan, 3:00 PM ESPN+ Columbia at West Virginia, 3:00 PM ESPN+ North Dakota State at Wyoming, 3:30 PM FloWrestling Iowa at Illinois, 4:00 PM Big Ten Network Iowa State vs. Montana State-Northern at Belgrade, MT, 4:00 PM Navy at Hofstra, 4:00 PM YouTube Rutgers at Penn State, 5:00 PM ESPNU Iowa State vs. Providence at Belgrade, MT, 6:00 PM

Bucknell's 141 lber Kurt Phipps (Photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Below is a recap of last week's EIWA action, with individual highlights worth noting. Notable News Lehigh remains at the top of the EIWA. Jake Logan and AJ Burkhart each upset ranked opponents back-to-back to help Lehigh defeat Cornell. Army adds another last-minute road match against a ranked opponent to their schedule. Aidan Conner pins Isaac Trumble (#13 – 197). American – no action last week Army The Black Knights traveled to Lancaster, PA, to compete in the Franklin & Marshall Open on Friday. They had 29 wrestlers in action at the open. Then, they headed west across the beautiful state of Pennsylvania to Pittsburgh to take on #25 Pittsburgh on Sunday. Mark Montgomery earned 2nd place at 133lb. He had a win over Dylan Chappell of Bucknell. At 141lb, Julian Sanchez walked away with 6th place. He had a first-round loss to Zach Redding (#17) of Iowa State. Then, he rallied off 5 straight wins, including a win over ranked teammate Corey Shie (#33). PJ Ogunsanya (#23 – 149) was the champion. He had a great win over former Cadet World Champion Jarod Verkleeren of Virginia in the finals. Markus Hartman (#28 – 157) took home silver. He had two falls, a major, and a decision en route to the finals. Also, at 157lb, Nate Lukez earned 5th place after losing in the first round. He defeated Jack Bokina of Brown and Ben Barton of Lock Haven. At 165lb, Dalton Harkins finished in 6th place. He had a loss to Clayton Ulrey of Virginia Tech. At 174lb, Ben Pasiuk (#29) wrestled six matches, plus received a FFT in his final bout. His only loss on the day was to Nick Fine of Columbia. He had an EIWA win over Shane Finney of Navy. Sahm Abdulrazzaq was the runner-up at 184lb. He had two EIWA victories over Cory Day of Binghamton and Dom Mata of Harvard. Also, at 184lb, Daniel Lawrence wrestled to a 4th place finish. He also had a win over Mata of Harvard. JT Brown (#25 – 197) lost first round to Dakota Howard (#33) of Virginia Tech. He won five consecutive matches for a 5th place finish. Boxscore: Pittsburgh 29 – Army 10 165: #13 Jake Wentzel (Pitt) dec. #32 Dalton Harkins (Army), 1-0 174: #29 Ben Pasiuk (Army) pins Hunter Kernan (Pitt), 4:37 184: #31 Gregg Harvey (Pitt) dec. Sahm Abdulrazzaq (Army), 6-4 197: #8 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pitt) dec. #25 J.T. Brown (Army), 8-4 285: Jake Slinger (Pitt) dec. Brandon Phillips (Army), 5-0 125: #31 Gage Curry (Pitt) maj. dec. Ryan Chauvin (Army), 12-4 133: #7 Micky Phillippi (Pitt) maj. dec. Mark Montgomery (Army), 14-5 141: #23 Cole Matthews (Pitt) pins Thomas Deck (Army), 2:59 149: #23 P.J. Ogunsanya (Army) maj. dec. Luke Kemerer (Pitt), 15-5 157: #21 Elijah Cleary (Pitt) dec. #28 Markus Hartman (Army), 4-2 With 29 competitors at the F&M Open, the Black Knights had a few weight classes with multiple placers. They have depth that many teams wish they had. Ogunsanya is still competing at a high level. Once again, Army added a dual meet last-minute to compete against the 25th ranked Pitt Panthers. These guys may be the most battle-tested squad in the country. I was talking to Coach Ward at the open, and someone came up to him and said, “I love watching your guys wrestle. They wrestle hard for seven minutes. I love it” I couldn't agree more. Binghamton The Bearcats were on the road all weekend. First, they battled Lehigh Friday night. They returned to action on Sunday wrestling round-robin-style matches against Virginia Tech and West Virginia, at Virginia Tech. Ryan Anderson continued his winning ways at 141lb against Lehigh. Nick Lombard (149lb) earned a solid 5-0 win over Jimmy Hoffman, who was an EIWA runner-up last season. At 174lb, Jacob Nolan defeated Jake Logan in sudden victory. The following night, Logan had a win over #10 Chris Foca of Cornell. At 197, Lou Deprez (#11) won in dominant fashion over Lehigh. Even though Joe Doyle (#20 – 285) lost the bout, he did have the only takedown over Jordan Wood (#8). Boxscore: No. 21 Lehigh 24, Binghamton 14 125 – Jaret Lane (Lehigh) Fall Nick Curley (BU) 0:48. Lehigh leads 6-0. 133 – No. 20 Malyke Hines (Lehigh) dec. No. 32 Anthony Sobotker (BU) 8-4. Lehigh leads 9-0. 141 – Ryan Anderson (BU) dec. Drew Munch (Lehigh) 6-4. Lehigh leads 9-3. 149 – Nick Lombard (BU) dec. Jimmy Hoffman (Lehigh) 5-0. Lehigh leads 9-6. 157 – No. 7 Josh Humphreys (Lehigh) tech fall Tyler Martin (BU) 16-0, 2:39. Lehigh leads 14-6. 165 – No. 25 Brian Meyer (Lehigh) dec. Brevin Cassella (BU) 4-3. Lehigh leads 17-6. 174 – Jacob Nolan (BU) dec. Jake Logan (Lehigh) 6-4, SV. Lehigh leads 17-9. 184 – AJ Burkhart (Lehigh) major dec. Sam DePrez (BU) 12-4. Lehigh leads 21-9. 197 – No. 11 Lou DePrez (BU) tech fall Eli Grape (Lehigh) 24-5, 7:00. Lehigh leads 21-14. 285 – No. 8 Jordan Wood (Lehigh) dec. No. 20 Joe Doyle (BU) 3-2. Lehigh wins 24-14. Binghamton's matches against Virginia Tech and West Virginia were wrestled, but no team scores were kept. See results below: 133: No. 32 Anthony Sobotker (BU) SV Michael Dolan (WV), 4-2. 141: Ryan Anderson (BU) TF Caleb Rea (WV), 16-0. 149: Nick Lombard (BU) FALL George Johnson (WV) 157: Alex Hornfeck (WV) FALL Tyler Martin (BU) 165: Brevin Cassella (BU) WFF No. 11 Peyton Hall (WV) 174: Scott Joll (WV) FALL Jacob Nolan (BU) 184: Anthony Carman (WV) FALL Sam DePrez (BU) 184: Cory Day (BU) DEC Simeone Holmes (VT), 1-0. 197: No. 11 Lou DePrez (BU) FALL Jackson Moomau (WV) 285: No. 20 Joe Doyle (BU) FALL No. 22 Michael Wolfgram (WV) 285: Tristan Kemp (WV) 3OT WIN Over Collin Burns (BU). (RT) 133: Christian Gannone (BU) DEC Michael Dolan (WV), 5-0 125: No. 16 Sam Latona (VT) TF Nick Curley (BU), 22-7. 7:00 133: No. 5 Korbin Myers (VT) MD Anthony Sobotker (BU), 13-1. 141: Ryan Anderson (BU) DEC Sam Hillegas (VT), 4-0. 149: Nick Lombard (BU) DEC Kylan Montgomery (VT), 8-2. 157: No. 23 Connor Brady (VT) FALL Tyler Martin (BU) 165: Clayton Ulrey (VT) DEC Brevin Cassella (BU), 6-1. 174: No. 4 Mekhi Lewis (VT) FALL Jacob Nolan (BU) 184: Simeone Holmes (VT) DEC Sam DePrez (BU), 14-8. 197: No. 12 Lou DePrez (BU) DEC Andy Smith (VT), 10-4. 285: No. 13 Nathan Traxler (VT) FALL Joe Doyle (BU) 133: Brandon Wittenburg (VT) FALL Christian Gannone (BU) 141: Ryan Anderson (BU) MD Lucas Seibert (WV), 9-1. 184: Anthony Carman (WV) FALL Cory Day (BU) The Bearcats had a good weekend, overall. It seems like this team is starting to hit their stride. A ten-point loss to Lehigh is nothing to hang your head about. Doyle won the takedown battle with Wood of Lehigh, but lost the match overall. Then he won via fall over Wolfgram (#22) of West Virginia. Both matches are a great confidence boost for him. Ryan Anderson is on a roll lately, winning all four matches this weekend. I am excited for this team. Brown The Bears took the trip to Pennsylvania to compete in the F&M Open on Friday. They had one placewinner, but still won many matches. Cade Wilson was the only placer for the Bears. He earned 6th place at 197lb. His two losses came to ranked opponents in JT Brown (#25) of Army and Dakota Howard (#33) of Virginia Tech. Blake Saito went 2-2 on the day at 149lbs. At 165lb, Harrison Trahan won three of his five matches. Hunter Adrian also won three matches on the day while competing at 125lb. Also winning three matches, Jack Bokina (157lb) had a nice day. Ricky Cabanillas lost in the quarters to runner-up Jarod Verkleeren of Virginia. He won 3 matches on the day at 149lbs. At 141lb, Tim Levine lost to Kizhan Clarke (#7) of North Carolina in the first round. He ended his day winning 3 matches. The Bears got a lot of matches in on Friday, which is what they need. They may not have had as many place finishers as they'd like, but they had a number of guys win at least three matches. It's the little things that this team needs to focus on in order to keep improving. Coach Beckerman recently hired 2X NCAA Champ, Jesse Delgado, to the staff. He is providing a nice spark, especially at the lower-weight classes. This team will keep getting better. Bucknell The Bison traveled to the state of New York to dual both LIU and Hofstra. They won both matches. They had a few competitors at the F&M open as well. The lone placewinner at the open was Dylan Chappell at 133lb. He had a win over previous EIWA placer Angelo Rini of Columbia as he placed 3rd. Brandon Seidman (125), Kurt Phipps (133), Kolby DePron (149), and Nick Delp (157) all went 2-0 on the day in their duals. Boxscore: Bucknell 29 – LIU 10 125: Brandon Seidman (BU) dec. over Robbie Sagaris (LIU) 3-2 133: Kurt Phipps (BU) maj. dec. over Bryce Cockrell (LIU) 10-0 141: Noah Levett (BU) maj. dec. over Devin Matthews (LIU) 12-1 149: Kolby DePron (BU) maj. dec. over Drew Witham (LIU) 13-3 157: Nick Delp (BU) fall over James Johnston (LIU) 2:09 165: Blake Bahna (LIU) dec. over Matt Kidwell (BU) 7-3 174: Ryan Ferro (LIU) maj. dec. over Sam Barnes (BU) 11-3 184: Logan Deacetis (BU) maj. dec. over T.J. Franden (LIU) 9-1 197: Mason McCready (BU) maj. dec. over Karl Osmond-Bouyer (LIU) 14-3 285: Tim Nagosky (LIU) dec. over Luke Niemeyer (BU) 5-2 Boxscore: Bucknell 21 – Hofstra 15 125: Brandon Seidman (BU) dec. over Jacob Moon (HU) 3-1 (SV-1) 133: Kurt Phipps (BU) dec. over Ty Cymmerman (HU) 4-2 141: Justin Hoyle (HU) dec. over Noah Levett (BU) 8-6 149: Kolby DePron (BU) fall over Michael Leandrou (HU) 2:20 157: Nick Delp (BU) dec. over Joe McGinty (HU) 5-1 165: Ricky Stamm (HU) dec. over Matt Kidwell (BU) 7-3 174: Sam Barnes (BU) inj. default over Ross McFarland (HU) 6:13 184: #27 Charles Small (HU) dec. over Logan Deacetis (BU) 8-2 197: Trey Rogers (HU) dec. over Mason McCready (BU) 3-2 285: #19 Zachary Knighton-Ward dec. over Luke Niemeyer (BU) 6-2 The Bison went 2-0 on the day. More impressively, they beat a tough Hofstra team without their 18th ranked stars Zach Hartman (165) and Darren Miller (141). They jumped out to an early lead against Hofstra, which was enough to overcome Hofstra's strong upper third of the lineup. DePron and Delp have been hot lately in the middle of the lineup. Bucknell has a nice-looking squad. They will be battling to finish in the top 5 at conferences, which I think is doable with a full-strength lineup. Columbia The Lions traveled to wrestle at the F&M Open on Friday. Then hosted Long Island on Sunday. At 141lb, Matt Kazimir (#14) was the highest placer for the Lions, ending his day in fourth. He had wins over Tyler Hunt of Navy and Michael Jaffe of Harvard before suffering a loss to Gabe Willochell of Edinboro. Angelo Rini and Zach Witmer (133) both shared a 6th place finish. Also finishing in 6th was Nick Fine at 174lb. He defeated Pasiuk (#29) of Army and then beat his own teammate Aaron Ayzerov. The Lions earned a shutout victory over LIU, coming away with 5 pins. Boxscore: Columbia 46 – LIU 0 149: Danny Fongaro (Columbia) def. Drew Witham (LIU) maj. 14-2 157: Andrew Garr (Columbia) def. James Johnston (LIU) dec. 8-2 165: No. 22 Joshua Ogunsanya (Columbia) def. Blake Bahna (LIU) fall (2:37) 174: Nick Fine (Columbia) def. Ryan Ferro (LIU) fall (4:11) 184: Brian Bonino (Columbia) def. Gavin Claro (LIU) fall (4:45) 197: Michael Baker (Columbia) def. Karl Bouyer (LIU) fall (2:42) 285: Danny Conley (Columbia) def. Timothy Nagosky (LIU) dec. 2-0 125: No. 19 Joe Manchio (Columbia) def. Robert Sagaris (LIU) dec. 3-2 133: Angelo Rini (Columbia) def. Bryce Cocknell (LIU) fall (3:17) 141: No. 14 Matt Kazimir (Columbia) def. Devin Matthews (LIU) dec. 4-0 The Lions wrestled only their second dual meet on Sunday. They lost to (#4) Michigan in November. With such a variety of results, it is tough to tell where this team ranks in the EIWA. With three ranked wrestlers, this team most likely ends up in the middle tier of the conference. Once they start competing against EIWA teams, we'll find out more about where they stand. I like what I've seen from them thus far. Cornell (#9) The Big Red took the trip to Bethlehem, PA, to dual Lehigh on Saturday afternoon. Julian Ramirez (#9 - 165) and Vito Arujau (#2 - 125) both had decisions over ranked opponents. Jacob Cardenas (#18 – 197) and Yianni Diakomihalis (#1 – 149) each earned bonus-point victories. Boxscore: No. 17 Lehigh 18, No. 8 Cornell 15 157: #9 Josh Humphreys (Lehigh) dec. Hunter Richard (Cornell) 9-2 165: #9 Julian Ramirez (Cornell) dec. #25 Brian Meyer (Lehigh) 3-2 174: Jake Logan (Lehigh) dec. #10 Chris Foca (Cornell) 5-2 184: AJ Burkhart (Lehigh) dec. #13 Jonathan Loew (Cornell) 7-6 197: #18 Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) major dec. Eli Jones (Lehigh) 19-4 285: #8 Jordan Wood (Lehigh) dec. #18 Lewis Fernandes (Cornell) 9-3 125: #2 Vito Arujau (Cornell) dec. #11 Jaret Lane (Lehigh) 9-3 133: #20 Malyke Hines (Lehigh) dec. #31 Dom LaJoie (Cornell) 10-4 141: Connor McGonagle (Lehigh) dec. Cole Handlovic (Cornell) 3-2 149: #1 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) tech fall Steven Storm (Lehigh) 21-6, 5:35 The Big Red had a long lay-off, as most starters did not wrestle since before Christmas break at the Collegiate Duals. It definitely showed against the Mountain Hawks of Lehigh. Cornell lost a few matches they were favored to win on paper. This is not an excuse, just an observation from a neutral bystander. Am I worried about them? Heck, no. They still have the firepower to take the EIWA title, but there are other schools who think otherwise. Expect the Big Red to bounce back in a big way. Drexel – no action last week Franklin & Marshall – no action last week Harvard The Crimson sent a limited roster to compete at the F&M Open in Lancaster, PA. Dom Mata (184) was the team's highest placer on the day. He went 3-1. His lone loss was to Sahm Abdulrazzaq of Army in the semifinals. At 149lb, Robert Groves won two of his four matches on the day. In addition, the Crimson had nearly a dozen wrestlers win at least one match. They brought a majority of non-starters, so we expected them to take some losses. Getting mat-time is important for the young competitors, as they may have their number called at any time due to injury or COVID protocols. Harvard returns to a dual meet-focused schedule this weekend and will have their starters back on the mat. I am intrigued to see them compete against EIWA teams. Hofstra The Pride hosted the Bucknell Bison to a dual on Saturday afternoon. Hofstra won five matches by decision, while Bucknell had two matches with bonus-point wins, which was the ultimate difference. Grabbing wins were Justin Hoyle (141), Ricky Stamm (165), Charles Small (#27 – 184), Trey Rogers (197), and Zachary Knighton-Ward (#19 – 285). One thing to note, Trey Rogers joined Ricky Stamm as the team's only two current wrestlers with 50 career wins. Boxscore: Bucknell 21, Hofstra 15 125: Brandon Seidman (Bucknell) dec. Jacob Moon (Hofstra), 3-1 (SV-1) 133: Kurt Phipps (Bucknell) dec. Ty Cymmerman (Hofstra), 4-2 141: Justin Hoyle (Hofstra) dec. Noah Levett (Bucknell), 8-6 149: Kolby DePron (Bucknell) WBF Michael Leandrou (Hofstra), 2:20 157: Nick Delp (Bucknell) dec. Joe McGinty (Hofstra), 5-1 165: Ricky Stamm (Hofstra) dec. Matt Kidwell (Bucknell), 7-3 174: Sam Barnes (Bucknell) inj. default Ross McFarland (Hofstra), 6:13 184: #27 Charles Small (Hofstra) dec. Logan Deacetis (Bucknell), 8-2 197: Trey Rogers (Hofstra) dec. Mason McCready (Bucknell), 3-2 285: #19 Zachary Knighton-Ward (Hofstra) dec. Luke Niemeyer (Bucknell), 6-2 The Pride split matches with Bucknell, but did not gain the bonus points needed to come away victorious. The injury at 174lb to McFarland did not help either – hopefully, he is okay and back competing soon. The Pride have two ranked wrestlers, plus Stamm and Rogers have been ranked at some point this season. This team has the potential to be in the top 5 in the conference. If they can stay healthy, and win a match or two, they shouldn't on paper; I like them to be in the top 5. Lehigh (#21) The Mountain Hawks hosted Cornell to a dual on Saturday afternoon. They wrestled incredibly well in front of their home crowd to win six of ten bouts. Jake Logan (174) and AJ Burkhart (184) pulled the two biggest upsets of the night for Lehigh, which helped propel them into victory. Logan defeated #10 Foca, while Burkhart beat #13 Loew. Logan and Burkhart both had losing records coming into this bout. Boxscore: No. 17 Lehigh 18, No. 8 Cornell 15 157: #9 Josh Humphreys (Lehigh) dec. Hunter Richard (Cornell) 9-2 165: #9 Julian Ramirez (Cornell) dec. #25 Brian Meyer (Lehigh) 3-2 174: Jake Logan (Lehigh) dec. #10 Chris Foca (Cornell) 5-2 184: AJ Burkhart (Lehigh) dec. #13 Jonathan Loew (Cornell) 7-6 197: #18 Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) major dec. Eli Jones (Lehigh) 19-4 285: #8 Jordan Wood (Lehigh) dec. #18 Lewis Fernandes (Cornell) 9-3 125: #2 Vito Arujau (Cornell) dec. #11 Jaret Lane (Lehigh) 9-3 133: #20 Malyke Hines (Lehigh) dec. #31 Dom LaJoie (Cornell) 10-4 141: Connor McGonagle (Lehigh) dec. Cole Handlovic (Cornell) 3-2 149: #1 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) tech fall Steven Storm (Lehigh) 21-6, 5:35 The Mountain Hawks came ready to wrestle on Saturday. The home crowd was intense, making the atmosphere even more amazing. This rivalry is always passionate, and the results are always close. Lane at 125lb impressed me. He rode out Arujau the entire second period, while Arujau dominated the match on their feet. I believe Lane will close this gap next time. He's an All-American threat with his mat skills. Lehigh is in the hunt to claim yet another EIWA title in March. Long Island The Sharks hosted Bucknell on Saturday. On Sunday, they took the short trip to Columbia for a dual. At 125lb, Robbie Sagaris lost both matches via 3-2 decision. Seidman of Bucknell is very tough, while Manchio of Columbia is #19 in the nation. He is right in the mix with these guys. Ryan Ferro (174) had a major decision against Bucknell. Blake Bahna (165) and Tim Nagosky (285) both had decisions against Bucknell. Boxscore: BUCKNELL 29, LIU 10 125: Brandon Seidman (B) def. Robbie Sagaris (LIU), dec 3-2 133: Kurt Phipps (B) def. Bryce Cockrell (LIU), major dec, 10-0 141: Noah Levett (B) def. Devin Matthews (LIU), major dec., 12-1 149: Kolby DePron (B) def. Drew Witham (LIU), major dec. 13-3 157: Nick Delp (B) def. James Johnston (LIU), fall (2:09) 165: Blake Bahna (LIU) def. Matt Kidwell (B), dec. 7-3 174: Ryan Ferro (LIU) def. Sam Barnes (B), major dec. 11-3 184: Logan Deacetis (B) def. T.J. Franden (LIU) major dec., 9-1 197: Mason McCready (B) def. Karl Osmond-Bouyer (LIU), major dec. 14-3 285: Tim Nagosky (LIU) def. Luke Neimeyer (B), dec. 5-2 Boxscore: COLUMBIA 46, LIU 0 149: Danny Fongaro (Columbia) def. Drew Witham (LIU) maj. 14-2 157: Andrew Garr (Columbia) def. James Johnston (LIU) dec. 8-2 165: No. 22 Joshua Ogunsanya (Columbia) def. Blake Bahna (LIU) fall (2:37) 174: Nick Fine (Columbia) def. Ryan Ferro (LIU) fall (4:11) 184: Brian Bonino (Columbia) def. Gavin Claro (LIU) fall (4:45) 197: Michael Baker (Columbia) def. Karl Osmond-Bouyer (LIU) fall (2:42) 285: Danny Conley (Columbia) def. Tim Nagosky (LIU) dec. 2-0 125: No. 19 Joe Manchio (Columbia) def. Robbie Sagaris (LIU) dec. 3-2 133: Angelo Rini (Columbia) def. Bryce Cockrell (LIU) fall (3:17) 141: No. 14 Matt Kazimir (Columbia) def. Devin Matthews (LIU) dec. 4-0 The Sharks came away with a handful of wins against Bucknell. Ferro is winning a bunch of matches lately. It looks like Crowley at 197 was out for these matches, who has had the best results up to this point in the season. Sagaris at 125lb looks to be in the mix with the mid-tier of EIWA wrestlers. They have some talent, and I'm looking forward to seeing them develop. The Sharks have some ground to gain on the EIWA, and it will not come overnight. Navy The Midshipmen sent 24 wrestlers to compete at the Franklin & Marshall Open. At 125lb, Jacob Allen, earned 2nd place. He had three wins by decision for his finals loss. Andrew Cerniglia (#20 – 157) won three matches before injury defaulting out in the semifinals. At heavyweight, Ryan Catka earned 6th place. He had two decision losses to Nathan Taylor of Lehigh-unattached. Sammy Starr won three matches at 165lbs. Also at 165lbs, Val Park won four of his six matches. Navy is a tough team. They wrestle hard in all positions, and wrestle the entire seven minutes at a high pace. They may not have had the results they wanted at the open, but they were in the majority of matches they lost. Cerniglia's injury could be a huge blow to the team, if he is out for an extended period of time. Let's hope he heals up, as he is the team's highest-ranked wrestler at the moment. With a slate of duals upcoming, it will be fun to see them compete against more EIWA competition. Penn – no action last week Princeton The Tigers welcomed #5 North Carolina State to a home dual on Sunday afternoon. With three coaches out with COVID-related protocols, volunteer assistant Nate Jackson was acting head coach. Boxscore: NC State 32, Princeton - 9 285: Tyrie Houghton (NCSU) wins by decision over Matt Cover (P), 6-3 125: Jakob Camacho (NCSU) wins by FFT 133: Jarett Trombley (NCSU) wins by major decision over Nick Masters (P), 11-3 141: #15 Ryan Jack (NCSU) wins by major decision over Danny Coles (P), 14-3 149: #3 Tariq Wilson (NCSU) wins by decision over Marshall Keller (P), 6-4 157: #11 Ed Scott (NCSU) wins by decision over #5 Quincy Monday (P), 6-4 165: Jake Marsh (P) wins by decision over AJ Kovacs (NCSU), 5-4 174: #5 Hayden Hidlay (NCSU) wins by technical fall over Nate Dugan (P), 17-2 (7:00) 184: #3 Trent Hidlay (NCSU) wins by major decision over #22 Travis Stefanik (P), 17-4 197: Aidan Conner (P) wins by fall over #13 Isaac Trumble (NCSU), 2:44 The Tigers dealt with some adversity, between injuries and COVID-related issues. They still found a way to make the dual happen, even though they were outmatched on paper. Props to the Princeton community for making it happen, as they easily could have canceled the dual. Keller gave #3-ranked Wilson all he could handle at 149lb. Marsh had a nice debut in his 165lb match. The big takeaway was Conner at 197lb pinning a ranked opponent. That is a great win for Luke Stout's (#16) backup. The Tigers have a bunch of talent on the team. They will be in that top 3 conversation at EIWAs in March. Sacred Heart – no action last week

Edinboro's 141 lber Gabe Willochell (Photo courtesy of Edinboro athletics) Buffalo Tri-Meet: The Bulls hosted Cleveland State and SIU-Edwardsville in a tri-meet on Sunday in Alumni Arena. Buffalo swept both Cleveland State (19-17) and SIUE (24-12), going a perfect 2-0 on the day. Cleveland State had a solid win over SIUE-Edwardsville (24-15), and a close loss to Buffalo (19-17), going 1-1. SIUE dropped both matches, losing to Buffalo (24-12) and Cleveland State (24-15), going 0-2. Buffalo had three standout wrestlers, all of which went a perfect 2-0 on the day, leading the Bulls to a sweeping victory. Derek Spann (133) had a win over Cleveland State by forfeit and over Matt Malavsky of SIUE by fall in 2:04. Hunter Shaut (157) defeated Caleb Cass of Cleveland State by a 6-1 decision, and Max Kristoff of SIUE by a 10-5 decision. Jay Nivison triumphed over Anthony Rice of Cleveland State with a 7-4 decision and Kevin Gschwendtner of SIUE with a 5-3 decision. Spann improves to 10-6, Shaut to 7-6, and Nivison is now 12-6 this season. Cleveland State had five wrestlers who went 2-0 on the day. Logan Heil (125) had a win over Jordan Reyes of Buffalo by technical fall, and Austin Macias of Edwardsville by a decision of 7-5. Marcus Robinson (149) defeated John Arceri of Buffalo by a 7-5 decision, and Caleb Tyus of SIUE by a 7-5 decision. Riley Smucker (165) won by decision over Noah Grover of UB 6-3 and by forfeit over SIUE. DeAndre Nasser (184) defeated Pete Acciardi of Buffalo 3-2 and Sergio Villlalobos of SIUE 4-3 in tiebreakers. Ben Smith (197) won by decision over Sam Mitchell of Buffalo 5-2, and Ryan Yarnell of SIUE 5-1. Heil improves to 6-6, Robinson moves up to 10-2, Smucker is now 11-1, Nassar climbs to 10-3, and Smith gets to 9-3 this season. SIU-Edwardsville had two wrestlers go 2-0 on the day, sweeping their matches against Buffalo and Cleveland State. Saul Ervin (141) defeated Hunter Olson of Cleveland State by technical fall and Ben Freeman of Buffalo by a 2-1 decision. Colton McKiernan (HWT) won by decision over Daniel Bucknavich of Cleveland State 6-0 and Toby Cahill of Buffalo 1-0. Ervin improves to 12-3, and teammate McKiernan improves to 9-5 this season. Edinboro: Two Fighting Scots had a noteworthy weekend, placing at the Franklin & Marshall Open. Gabe Willochell (141) placed second on the podium, while teammate Ryan Burgos (149) took fourth. The two wrestlers have been leading the charge at Edinboro this year. Willochell improves to 14-6 this season, and Burgos improves to 10-8. Two of Willochell's four wins came over past NCAA qualifiers (Matt Kazimir - Columbia and Zach Redding - Iowa State).

NC State 157 lber Ed Scott (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Duke: The Blue Devils were off this week and will return to action on Thursday when they welcome the Appalachian State Mountaineers in Durham. North Carolina: The Tar Heels sent eight wrestlers to the Franklin and Marshall Open last week. The day was highlighted by two wrestlers bringing home titles--#7 Kizhan Clarke at 141 and #27 Max Shaw at 197. Clarke remained undefeated on the year--9-0 against D1 competition--and wrapped up his championship with three decision wins and a major decision in the finals. Clarke has been a solid addition to the Tar Heel lineup since his transfer and provides another consistent leader in the lineup. Shaw improved his record to 6-2 against D1 competition while winning five matches on the day, including two tech falls to win the title at 197. Shaw picked up wins over three conference foes on the day from Pittsburgh, NC State and VT. Freshman Spencer Moore also found the podium on the day, finishing in 6th after going 3-2 on the day. The Tar Heels are off until 1/21 when they open ACC competition hosting Duke. North Carolina State: The #5 Wolfpack invaded Jadwin Gym and took a decisive team win over the Princeton Tigers. They won eight of ten matches en route to a 38-9 win over the #19 Tigers. Unfortunately, one of the more anticipated matches of the dual didn't happen; #10 Jakob Camacho received a forfeit and did not face #1 Patrick Glory. At 133, Jarrett Trombley won by major decision, as did #15 Ryan Jack at 141. #3 Tariq Wilson took a 6-4 decision over a very scrappy Marshall Keller at 149. In the biggest match of the day, #11 Ed Scott continued his run of dominance to start the year and knocked off #5 Quincy Monday 6-4. Scott showed his offensive prowess with takedowns in both the second and third period to seal the ranked win. This is his second straight top-10 win and third straight ranked win. Ed Scott has definitely been one of the stories of the season for the Wolfpack. He has emerged as a dominant force at 157 and is earning his place, climbing up the national rankings. At 165, AJ Kovacs bumped from 157 to fill the spot for the Wolfpack. He wrestled very well up a weight but lost on a riding time point 5-4. Into the teeth of the lineup, #5 Hayden Hidlay dominated with a 17-2 tech fall, followed by #3 Trent Hidlay controlling #22 Travis Stefanik to earn a 17-4 major decision. Mark this down as another dual where both brothers get BONUS. In an unexpected turn, #13 Isaac Trumble was pinned in the first period by Aidan Conner to give the Tigers their final points of the match. At 285, Owen Trephan got the nod and took a 6-3 decision over Matthew Cover. The Wolfpack will be off next week and are preparing to open ACC competition by hosting the #10 Virginia Tech Hokies to open conference duals on 1/21. Pittsburgh: The #21 Panthers welcomed both Army and #3 Michigan to Fitzgerald Fieldhouse on Sunday and treated the crowd to some big matches. They opened the day with the Black Knights from Army and had a solid performance across the team to take the 29-10 win. The dual started at 165 with #13 Jake Wentzel snatching a 1-0 decision over #32 Dalton Harkins. Hunter Kernan was pinned by #29 Ben Pasiuk at 174 before the Panthers started a run of six wins in a row. #31 Gregg Harvey won by decision at 184, followed by #8 Nino Bonaccorsi getting a ranked win with a decision over #25 JT Brown 8-4. At 285, Jake Slinger won by decision before a streak of bonus-point wins at the lower weights. #31 Gage Curry won by major at 125, followed by another from #7 Micky Phillippi at 133. #23 Cole Matthews got his first of two big wins on the day with a pin over Thomas Deck. #23 PJ Ogunsanya took a major decision win over Luke Kemerer for the final Army win of the day. The dual wrapped up with a ranked win for #21 Elijah Cleary taking a decision over #28 Markus Hartman. The second dual of the day was a battle with #3 Michigan. The Wolverines have a formidable lineup and are putting themselves in position to be on the podium in March--the lineup is equally strong as a dual team and as a tournament team. The dual opened with back-to-back pins for Michigan--#6 Logan Massa at 174 over Hunter Kernan and #2 Myles Amine over Nicholas Meglino at 184. In one of the most anticipated matches of the dual, #9 Patrick Brucki gave #8 Nino Bonaccorsi his second loss of the season with a 6-3 decision. At 285, #2 Mason Parris picked up a major decision over Jake Slinger. The much-discussed Michigan debut for National Champion Nick Suriano ended with a major decision for the Wolverine over #31 Gage Curry. The second half of the dual started better for the Panthers with #7 Micky Phillippi winning by decision at 133. In a seismic upset across the national landscape, #23 Cole Matthews put on a display of offense and scrambling to knock off #3 Stevan Micic. Matthews was dialed in from the whistle and wrestled arguably his best match of the year against his most formidable opponent. It was an impressive performance by Matthews and the win gives him tremendous momentum moving into ACC competition. The team momentum was short-lived as Dan Mancini lost by decision at 149, followed by #21 Elijah Cleary losing a tight 3-1 decision to #15 Will Lewan at 157. The dual ended with #13 Jake Wentzel getting his hand raised with a victory by forfeit. Michigan 29 Pittsburgh 12 Pittsburgh has another top-10 team making the trek to the Fitzgerald Field House on Friday as they welcome the #6 Arizona State Sun Devils. There will be some solid matchups in this dual that we will dive into later this week. Virginia: The Cavaliers sent a squad to the F&M Open on Friday made up of starters, backups and redshirts. The Hoos brought four placewinners back to Charlottesville. Jarod Verkerleeren finished in second at 149 after a strong performance. Verk picked up three tech falls and a pin en route to the title match against #18 PJ Ogunsanya of Army. Ogunsanya won in the finals 4-3 in a tight match. Also making the finals was #29 Quinn Miller at 285. Miller won four bouts, including a decision over #27 Riley Smith of Navy, before getting pinned by a very dangerous #7 Wyatt Hendrickson of Air Force in the finals. Hendrickson is 11-0 on the season with a 100% bonus rate and nine pins--very impressive stats for the big guy. Also placing for the Hoos was Patrick McCormick at 125. Patches won three matches, including two by major, before falling in the semis to Jacob Allen of Navy. He took third after a disqualification by Jared Van Vleet of Air Force in the bronze match. The final placer was Denton Spencer at 157; he won three matches, including a pin, before falling in the semis to #28 Markus Hartman of Army by pin. He won the third-place match by medical forfeit by #18 Andrew Cerniglia of Navy. The other big note for the tournament was the return of Vic Marcelli at 174 and the debut of Gabe Christenson, a transfer from Iowa at 197. Both went 3-2 on the day and Coach Garland was very optimistic about their performance. The Hoos will travel east on I64 to the Virginia Duals this weekend. Virginia Tech: The Hokies hosted a modified tri-meet with Binghamton and West Virginia on Sunday in Cassell Coliseum and picked up wins in 16 of 21 matches wrestled on the day. #16 Sam Latona looked great in his first match of the second half of the season. He racked up 8 takedowns and earned back points to win by tech fall 22-7. #5 Korbin Myers went 2-0 on the day, winning both by major decision and not allowing a takedown in either match. His first win was a 13-1 controlling victory over #32 Anthony Sobotker of Binghamton. At 141, Sam Hillegas returned to the starting lineup for the Hokies and went 2-1 on the day. He lost 4-0 to Ryan Anderson of Binghamton, but then picked up a pin over Caleb Rea and a major decision over Lucas Seibert of West Virginia. Colin Gerardi has been manning 141 and has looked great this season; adding Hillegas gives them another weapon--with an impressive top game at 141, going into conference duals. Kylan Montgomery went 1-1 on the day, filling in at 149 for Bryce Andonian. At 157, #23 Connor Brady improved to 11-2 on the year, going 2-0 on the day with a decision and a first-period pin. Clayton Ulrey won a decision over Brevin Casella of Binghamton and received a forfeit from West Virginia when Peyton Hall did not wrestle. #5 Mekhi Lewis continued to look dominant, going 2-0 with a 10-4 decision and a pin. Virginia native Simeon Holmes was in at 184 for the Hokies and went 1-2 on the day. At 197, Andy Smith saw his first dual action of the year in Cassell and split matches, winning by decision over Jackson Moomau of West Virginia and losing by decision to #12 Louie DePrez of Binghamton. #13 Nathan Traxler had another big day for the Hokies, winning both matches over ranked opponents. He controlled the pace in the first match against Binghamton and finished a first-period pin over #20 Joe Doyle. He followed that up with a match that was closer on the scoreboard than on the mat, winning by decision 5-2 over Michael Wolfgram of West Virginia. The Hokies are off next week and will travel to Raleigh to face the Wolfpack to open ACC duals on 1/21.

J'den Cox at the 2019 World Championships (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The Cliff Keen Wrestling Club has added two-time world champion J'Den Cox to its senior-level freestyle roster, the club announced on Monday (Jan. 10). Cox has claimed five total Olympic and world medals since 2016. "Everyone looks forward to J'Den's full-time arrival to Ann Arbor," said Michigan head coach Sean Bormet. "His work ethic and achievements speak for themselves, and he is hungry to be the best in the world again this cycle. In addition to all his international accolades, J'Den is also a three-time NCAA champion and will be able to relate exceptionally well to his collegiate training partners. This is the overall RTC balance that continues to elevate wrestling in the United States and at Michigan. "Thanks to all of our supporters, we are building one of the best wrestling environments on the planet here at Michigan. J'Den already has a long-standing, close relationship with Coach [Kevin] Jackson, and the rest of our coaching staff is excited to begin working with him." Cox won back-to-back world titles at 92kg in 2018 and 2019. He defeated Belarus' Ivan Yankouski, 4-1, in his 2018 gold-medal match and then in 2019, he did not sacrifice a point through four matches at the world championships, ultimately beating Iran's Alireza Karimi, 4-0, for gold. He was named the 2019 John Smith Award winner as USA Wrestling's Freestyle Wrestler of the Year. Cox claimed 86kg Olympic bronze in 2016 while still in college and followed with world bronze at the same weight in 2017 before transitioning up to 92kg. Most recently, Cox earned 92kg bronze at the 2021 world championships last October. Cox captured three NCAA titles during his career at Missouri (2014-17), winning at 197 pounds as a freshman, junior and senior. He was a four-time NCAA All-American, taking fifth place at 197 pounds as a sophomore (2015). He finished second in Hodge Trophy voting after his senior season. He compiled a 136-5 record in college, including a near-perfect 61-1 mark over his last two seasons, and earned bonus points in nearly 60 percent of his wins. He was a four-time MAC champion and three-time MAC Wrestler of the Year. He was named Mizzou's Male Athlete of the Year in 2016 and 2017 and, in 2020, the Tigers named Cox their Male Athlete of the Decade. Originally from Columbia, Missouri, Cox will relocate to Ann Arbor this month.

Little Rock's 174 lber Triston Wills (right) (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) A previously populated schedule for the Pac-12 was left nearly barren after COVID cancellations. The lone event across the conference this past week was a home-dual for Little Rock, which saw the Trojans play host Coach Neil Erisman's alma mater, the #3 Cowboys of Oklahoma State. Little Rock vs. #3 Oklahoma State (January 8th) In front of a program-best crowd of 1,524, the Trojans were tested by a star-studded Cowboys lineup. The defenders managed two bout wins as it confronted eight-ranked opponents, including national runner-up, #2 Daton Fix (133) and national champion, #1 AJ Ferrari (197), in an eventual 35-6 Cowboy victory. The Trojans took advantage of the "holes" in the Cowboy lineup, earning victories against the only unranked Cowboys on the mat that evening. At 149lbs, Oklahoma State's Joey Sanchez stepped in for #15 Kaden Gfeller, and Little Rock's Joey Bianchi was ready for him. A four-point first period, on a takedown and turn, coupled with a second period rideout was good enough for a 5-0 decision victory for Bianchi. The other victory for the Trojans came at 174lbs, when standout Triston Wills squared off against Cowboy Jalin Harper (traditionally a 157), who stepped in for #8 Dustin Plott. Wills employed a second period, six-point reversal and riding-time to prevail over Harper, 7-1. A pair of Trojans performed well despite losing their respective bouts. Leading off the dual at lightweight, Jayden Carson scored the first takedown and earned a crucial third-period escape to avoid conceding riding-time, holding #9 Trevor Mastrogiovanni to an 8-3 decision. At 165lbs, Tyler Brennan used a four-point third period to counter an attempt at a major from #5 Travis Wittlake. Down 5-0 with riding-time for Wittlake in the final period, Brennan earned back-to-back escapes as Wittlake pursued the major. Down 7-2, Brennan scored a takedown in short time to halt Wittlake's advance, eventually conceding a 9-4 decision. Coach Erisman was proud of his program, despite the loss. The ability to bring such a large crowd, in the context of dozens of canceled events, was a victory to go alongside the individual match victories for the Trojans. Regarding the meet, Erisman reinforced the intent of Little Rock to wrestle against the best competition available. "This is why we wrestle the schedule that we do. We have an incredibly tough dual schedule. When you win here, it's for real. We're wrestling top teams in the country." And quite the schedule it is set to be. This upcoming weekend, Little Rock will travel to the traditional conference region to face #23 Oregon State (on January 14th) and Stanford (on January 15th), followed by a road trip to North Carolina the week after, when they will face Virginia Military Institute and Appalachian State (both on January 21st) followed by #22 North Carolina (on January 23rd). With the wrestling gods' blessing, each of those meets will come to pass.

Northwestern's 125 lber Michael DeAugustino (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) When doing college rankings, some Mondays only require a slight touch-up with a fine-toothed comb, while others require a massive overhaul. Weekends with super-tournaments like the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational or the Midlands (MatMen)/Scuffle can typically mandate that a few weight classes get blown up and we start over from scratch. It's rarer that these types of wholescale reworkings come during the dual season, but that's what we have after the first full week of January 2022. While wacky results were aplenty up-and-down the rankings slate, look no further than the top-five for some potentially head-scratching results. From Friday-Sunday, seven top-five wrestlers suffered losses, which will undoubtedly shake up rankings at their respective weights. While this is may have been unexpected, maybe we should have seen it coming. It was the first full weekend of intra-Big Ten competition and of the seven big upsets we're highlighting, five came in B1G on B1G action. 125 #4 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) #5 Devin Schroder (Purdue) Not only will the top-tier of 125 lbs look different after losses by Eric Barnett and Devin Schroder, but the next set of rankings will also include Nick Suriano (Michigan) and Drew Hildebrandt (Penn State). But that's for a different day. Barnett was the victim of #17 Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern), who proved to be a buzzsaw in his season debut. This looks like a much bigger upset on paper than in real life. DeAugustino drifted down the rankings after having no 2021-22 data to work with. He was a 2021 Big Ten fifth-place finisher and the #12 seed at nationals. He lived up to that billing by advancing to the NCAA Round of 12, where he fell to Sam Latona (Virginia Tech) in sudden victory. DeAugustino finished his weekend with another top-ten win and second over an AA this weekend, when he knocked off Patrick McKee (Minnesota), 8-7. Last season, DeAugustino split matches with McKee and did not face Barnett. In the most anticipated bout of Iowa and Purdue's Sunday dual meet, Devin Schroder led things off by taking on Drake Ayala. Two nights earlier, Ayala was taken out of redshirt and inserted into the Hawkeyes lineup for a dual with Minnesota. Ayala fought valiantly, but ultimately fell to McKee. The young Hawk showed he has a short memory and rebounded by getting a pair of takedowns and riding time on the Purdue veteran. He never needed to go on bottom, which was Schroder's best position. Friday, Ayala and DeAugustino will square off. 141 #3 Stevan Micic (Michigan) Monday saw Stevan Micic make his season debut and compete at 141 lbs for the first time in his long collegiate career. Micic responded with an 8-6 win over Julian Chlebove (Arizona State), that was a bit of an anomaly in folkstyle and appeared closer than the actual match was. The Wolverines and Pittsburgh hastily put together a dual meet slated for Sunday after the Panthers Friday match with Penn was canceled due to Covid concerns with the Quaker team. That meant Micic's second test at 141 lbs would come against two-time NCAA qualifier #23 Cole Matthews. Matthews hung an eye-popping 11-5 defeat on Micic, one that was strongly due to the scrambling ability of the Panther 141 lber. He notched a takedown off a Micic attack, after a prolonged flurry. Matthews later blew the match open after putting Micic on his back for four points. The three-time All-American Wolverine, was slowly attempting to stand up; however, Matthews briefly looked for a cradle, before sucking Micic back for exposure points. This one will hurt Micic as #1 and #2 Nick Lee (Penn State) and Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) are both Big Ten wrestlers that are unbeaten, as is #4 Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers). 149 #4 Yahya Thomas (Northwestern) Last season, Yahya Thomas took the country by storm when he finished third in the country at 149 lbs, despite needing an at-large berth to qualify for nationals and being saddled with the #25 seed. This year, he has been much more consistent and was 6-1 heading into Friday night's dual with Wisconsin and their 149 lber, Austin Gomez. Gomez missed the entire 2021 campaign as he was set to retire from a host of injuries. In the offseason, Gomez decided to give it another shot and transferred to Wisconsin. He's been great for Chris Bono's team, up a few weight classes and even made the MatMen finals. In Friday's bout, Thomas and Gomez exchanged takedowns in the second period, before the Badger pulled away in the third. A pair of final stanza takedowns by Gomez tilted the match in his favor and he hung on to win, 8-6. Looking at the Big Ten, returning conference champ Sammy Sasso is clearly the class of the league. After Sasso, there are a handful of wrestlers who could vie for a spot in the finals. It's conceivable that these two could meet in a Big Ten semifinal; however, there still is a lot of action between now and March. 157 #5 Quincy Monday (Princeton) Moreso than any indictment of Quincy Monday, I believe this is a statement on the continued growth of Ed Scott. The second-year freshman Scott continues to impress. He had a breakout performance at the Collegiate Duals, edging Jarrett Jacques (Missouri) before pinning Kaleb Young (Iowa) in the pool finale. This time, Scott gave up the first takedown to Monday, but later responded by getting a hustle takedown after a half-shot by the Tiger. He would go ahead by looking for his trademark headlock. Although it didn't land, he generated a flurry which resulted in the go-ahead takedown. Once the smoke clears after the conference tournaments, we'll see if this match ends up having seeding implications. Both have imposing opponents standing in the way of a respective conference title. Monday needs to go through Josh Humphreys (Lehigh) and Scott has 2021 NCAA champion Austin O'Connor (North Carolina) in the way of an ACC title. 174 #3 Mikey Labriola (Nebraska) Perhaps the most unexpected of these upsets came at 174 lbs in Purdue's dual with Nebraska. There #21 Gerrit Nijenhuis and the Boilermakers went on the road and dropped the #8 Cornhuskers. Nijenhuis' 6-4 win over #3 Labriola was one of the difference makers. Nijenhuis got on the board first as he came out atop a scramble between the two, in the opening period. The Boilermaker almost added more points as he was inches away from putting Labriola on his back after securing the takedown. After a back-and-forth second period, the match was left to be decided in the third. Once again, the two were engaged in a crazy scramble and it was Nijenhuis who came out on top. Nijenhuis managed to ride out Labriola and get his hand raised in a battle of former Pennsylvania state champions. The win was so surprising because of Labriola's consistent track record. Last year, he suffered a loss to Bernie Truax (Cal Poly) at nationals (before avenging it for third place) and Carter Starocci (Penn State). In 2019-20, his only losses came to All-American types like Mark Hall (Penn State), Michael Kemerer (Iowa), Jordan Kutler (Lehigh), Bryce Steiert (Northern Iowa), Devin Skatzka (Minnesota), Dylan Lydy (Purdue). With a match against Logan Massa (Michigan) still on Labriola's schedule, he can probably still get the third seed at the Big Ten's. That could set up a match with Nijenhuis perhaps in the conference quarters. 285 #5 Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) The final upset in a wild dual between the Badgers and Wildcats took place at 285 lbs, where #5 Trent Hillger went down at the hands of #14 Lucas Davison (Northwestern). This was one that maybe we should have seen coming, as Davison has continued to improve since moving up from 197 lbs. Throughout his collegiate career, Hillger has been known as one of the better Big Ten heavyweights from the top position. In this bout, it was Davison's whose mat wrestling made the difference. In the second period, Hillger was on top and threw in boots, which is normal for him. Maybe Davison's experience at the lower weights made him more equipped to deal with such a strategy and he was able to catch a leg, elevate it and eventually turn it into a reversal. In the third period, Davison turned the table and rode Hillger for the entire period. Prior to the buzzer, Davison almost had the Badger in nearfall criteria. As of now, it's difficult to see either penetrating the top-three in the league with Steveson, Parris, Kerkvliet currently atop the weight class. That means barring a monumental upset, we could see these two tangle again somewhere deep in the Big Ten consolations. These were top #10 ranked wrestlers that were upset over the weekend as well: 125: #7 Patrick McKee (Minnesota); 8-7 to DeAugustino 174: #10 Chris Foca (Cornell); 5-2 to Jake Logan (Lehigh) 184: #10 Taylor Venz (Nebraska); 7-2 to #23 Max Lyon (Purdue) 197: #8 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh); 6-3 to #9 Patrick Brucki (Michigan)

(Photo/King Athletics) A familiar face finished atop the NWCA National Dual Championships NCAA Women's division. King University dominated the field, downing three top-ten teams and winning their fifth-ever dual championship; however, it was the school's first since 2017. Over the course of five duals, King only lost seven individual matches. Here are some of the notable moments from the tournament and we're not just limited to King University! McKendree's Alara Boyd, ranked #1 at 155, dropped to 143 and beat King's 5th ranked London Houston. The move may simply have been for dual purposes, but it could change things at 143. If she does stay down, that should push her teammate, #2 Kayla Morano, up to #1, but there was a hitch. King's Ashlynn Ortega, ranked #2 at 143, bumped up to 155 and beat Morano. We're not sure if she plans to stay there, but she was pinned by 143 #1 Katie Lange (Augsburg) in her only previous action this season. King's Samara Chavez, #5 at 116 behind teammate #2 Sage Mortimer, dropped to 109 and beat #2 Pauline Granados. Not only did Chavez defeat Granados, but she also downed #4 Sydney Petzinger (North Central) in a 10-8 brawl. Speaking of Mortimer - McKendree's Felicity Taylor, who had opened the season ranked #2 at 116, but fell out because she had not competed - did. And she teched Mortimer with hellacious leg lace. Another wrestler ranked early but dropped out for non-competition appeared in style. 116 pre-season #3 Jaslynn Gallegos (Presbyterian) came out and beat #4 Kendra Ryan (North Central) and #6 Aliyah Rollins (McKendree). King's 101 #2 Jaclyn McNichols won not 1 but 2 matches by scoring the last point, 1-1 over #5 Brooke Thurber (UWSP) and 3-3 over pre-season #3 McKendree's Lizette Rodriguez. A win - or 2 - is a win. That's even more notable because McKendree's unranked Rodriguez came in and beat 101 #3 Sam Miller (Presbyterian). Rodriguez had fallen out of the rankings when she began the season at 109. At 109, not an upset but fun to watch, #4 Sydney Petzinger and #5 Natalie Reyna have now wrestled 4 times this season, with Petzinger making it 2-2 with the fall in Louisville. Tiffin's Sugey Ceja, #3 at 116, had a mixed tournament, losing by tech to unranked Gabriela Ramos Diaz (Limestone) and by fall to Mortimer, but also managing wins over #4 Ryan and #6 Rollins. It would have been nice to see her match up with Presbyterian's Gallegos. The committee might keep an eye on Diaz. She bumped up to 123 and teched UWSP's Abby Nelson, she lost 6-3 to Mortimer and she bumped up again to 123 and went a wild 6 minutes with Lindenwood's #6 Cayden Condit (20-12). Augsburg's 136 #5 Nina Kemu Makem upset King's #1 Ana Luciano in pool play. Luciano came back to beat #4 Sara Sulejmani (North Central) and #3 Skye Realin 7-4 (McKendree) in the team semifinals and finals. Unranked Tiera Jimerson (North Central) avenged a pin from Tiffin's Taylor Hites in Vegas with a fall of her own, and followed that up with a pin of King's 5th ranked Tiffany Baublitz. And at 170, King's #3 Cheyenne Bowman upset #1 Yelena Makoyed (North Central), 9-6.

Lehigh's NCAA qualifier Jake Logan (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Saturday's Dual Results Bucknell 29 Long Island 10 125 - Brandon Seidman (Bucknell) dec Robbie Sagaris (Long Island) 3-2 133 - Kurt Phipps (Bucknell) maj Bryce Cockrell (Long Island) 10-0 141 - Noah Levett (Bucknell) maj Devin Matthews (Long Island) 12-1 149 - Kolby DePron (Bucknell) maj Drew Witham (Long Island) 13-3 157 - Nick Delp (Bucknell) fall James Johnston (Long Island) 2:09 165 - Blake Bahna (Long Island) dec Matt Kidwell (Bucknell) 7-3 174 - Ryan Ferro (Long Island) maj Sam Barnes (Bucknell) 11-3 184 - Logan Deacetis (Bucknell) maj TJ Franden (Long Island) 9-1 197 - Mason McCready (Bucknell) maj Karl Osmond-Bouyer (Long Island) 14-3 285 - Tim Nagosky (Long Island) dec Luke Niemeyer (Bucknell) 5-2 Bucknell 21 Hofstra 15 125 - Brandon Seidman (Bucknell) dec Jacob Moon (Hofstra) 3-1SV 133 - Kurt Phipps (Bucknell) dec Ty Cymmerman (Hofstra) 4-2 141 - Justin Hoyle (Hofstra) dec Noah Levett (Bucknell) 8-6 149 - Kolby DePron (Bucknell) fall Michael Leandrou (Hofstra) 2:20 157 - Nick Delp (Bucknell) dec Joey McGinty (Hofstra) 5-1 165 - Ricky Stamm (Hofstra) dec Matt Kidwell (Bucknell) 7-3 174 - Sam Barnes (Bucknell) InjDef Ross McFarland (Hofstra) 184 - Charles Small (Hofstra) dec Logan Deacetis (Bucknell) 8-2 197 - Trey Rogers (Hofstra) dec Mason McCready (Bucknell) 3-2 285 - Zachary Knighton-Ward (Hofstra) dec Luke Niemeyer (Bucknell) 6-2 Lehigh 18 Cornell 15 125 - Vito Arujau (Cornell) dec Jaret Lane (Lehigh) 9-3 133 - Malyke Hines (Lehigh) dec Dom LaJoie (Cornell) 10-4 141 - Connor McGonagle (Lehigh) dec Cole Handlovic (Cornell) 3-2 149 - Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) tech Steven Storm (Lehigh) 21-6 157 - Josh Humphreys (Lehigh) dec Hunter Richard (Cornell) 9-2 165 - Julian Ramirez (Cornell) dec Brian Meyer (Lehigh) 3-2 174 - Jake Logan (Lehigh) dec Chris Foca (Cornell) 5-2 184 - AJ Burkhart (Lehigh) dec Jonathan Loew (Cornell) 7-6 197 - Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) tech Eli Jones (Lehigh) 19-4 285 - Jordan Wood (Lehigh) dec Lewis Fernandes (Cornell) 9-3 Ohio State 27 Michigan State 14 125 - Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) dec Tristan Lujan (Michigan State) 6-2 133 - Rayvon Foley (Michigan State) tech Will Betancourt (Ohio State) 16-0 141 - Jordan Hamdan (Michigan State) dec Klay Reeves (Ohio State) 5-3 149 - Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) fall Jaden Enriquez (Michigan State) 5:39 157 - Chase Saldate (Michigan State) dec Jashon Hubbard (Ohio State) 4-2 165 - Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) maj Caleb Fish (Michigan State) 14-6 174 - Ethan Smith (Ohio State) tech Nate Jimenez (Michigan State) 24-9 184 - Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) fall Marty Larkin (Michigan State) 3:24 197 - Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) dec Rocky Jordan (Ohio State) 7-2 285 - Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) dec Brad Wilton (Michigan State) 10-3 Oklahoma State 35 Little Rock 6 125 - Trevor Mastrogiovanni (Oklahoma State) dec Jayden Carson (Little Rock) 8-3 133 - Daton Fix (Oklahoma State) tech Jaylen Carson (Little Rock) 17-2 141 - Carter Young (Oklahoma State) maj Conner Ward (Little Rock) 14-4 149 - Joey Bianchi (Little Rock) dec Joey Sanchez (Oklahoma State) 5-0 157 - Wyatt Sheets (Oklahoma State) tech Austin Keal (Little Rock) 15-0 165 - Travis Wittlake (Oklahoma State) dec Tyler Brennan (Little Rock) 9-4 174 - Triston Wills (Little Rock) dec Jalin Harper (Oklahoma State) 7-1 184 - Dakota Geer (Oklahoma State) tech Tanner Mendoza (Little Rock) 18-0 197 - AJ Ferrari (Oklahoma State) fall Brooks Sarcharczyki (Little Rock) 2:39 285 - Luke Surber (Oklahoma State) maj Josiah Hill (Little Rock) 10-2 Sunday's Dual Results Campbell 47 Bellarmine 3 125 - Korbin Meink (Campbell) dec Jack Parker (Bellarmine) 11-4 133 - Domenic Zaccone (Campbell) fall Max Dansereau (Bellarmine) 1:11 141 - Shannon Hanna (Campbell) FFT 149 - Chris Rivera (Campbell) FFT 157 - Matthew Dallara (Campbell) dec Alex Rivera (Bellarmine) 4-0 165 - Troy Nation (Campbell) fall Devan Hendricks (Bellarmine) 1:24 174 - Austin Murphy (Campbell) FFT 184 - Sam Schroeder (Bellarmine) dec Shane Quick (Campbell) 6-5 197 - Levi Hopkins (Campbell) fall Bryant Wilkinson (Bellarmine) 1:11 285 - Taye Ghadiali (Campbell) tech Charlie Cadell (Bellarmine) 19-4 Cleveland State 24 SIU Edwardsville 15 125 - Logan Heil (Cleveland State) dec Austin Macias (SIU Edwardsville) 7-5 133 - Jake Manely (Cleveland State) fall Matt Malavsky (SIU Edwardsville) 5:41 141 - Saul Ervin (SIU Edwardsville) tech Hunter Olson (Cleveland State) 18-2 149 - Marcus Robinson (Cleveland State) dec Caleb Tyus (SIU Edwardsville) 7-5 157 - Max Kristoff (SIU Edwardsville) maj Caleb Cass (Cleveland State) 11-3 165 - Riley Smucker (Cleveland State) FFT 174 - Kevin Gschwendtner (SIU Edwardsville) dec Anthony Rice (Cleveland State) 4-2 184 - DeAndre Nassar (Cleveland State) dec Sergio Villalobos (SIU Edwardsville) 4-3TB 197 - Ben Smith (Cleveland State) dec Ryan Yarnell (SIU Edwardsville) 5-1 285 - Colton McKiernan (SIU Edwardsville) dec Daniel Bucknavich (Cleveland State) 6-0 Buffalo 24 SIU Edwardsville 12 125 - Austin Macias (SIU Edwardsville) dec Jordan Reyes (Buffalo) 4-2 133 - Derek Spann (Buffalo) fall Matt Malavsky (SIU Edwardsville) 2:04 141 - Saul Ervin (SIU Edwardsville) dec Ben Freeman (Buffalo) 2-1 149 - John Arceri (Buffalo) dec Caleb Tyus (SIU Edwardsville) 6-3 157 - Hunter Shaut (Buffalo) dec Max Kristoff (SIU Edwardsville) 10-5 165 - Noah Grover (Buffalo) FFT 174 - Jay Nivison (Buffalo) dec Kevin Gschwendtner (SIU Edwardsville) 5-3 184 - Sergio Villalobos (SIU Edwardsville) dec Pete Acciardi (Buffalo) 3-2TB 197 - Sam Mitchell (Buffalo) dec Ryan Yarnell (SIU Edwardsville) 3-1 285 - Colton McKiernan (SIU Edwardsville) dec Toby Cahill (Buffalo) 1-0 NC State 32 Princeton 9 125 - Jakob Camacho (NC State) FFT 133 - Jarrett Trombley (NC State) maj Nick Masters (Princeton) 11-3 141 - Ryan Jack (NC State) maj Danny Coles (Princeton) 14-3 149 - Tariq Wilson (NC State) dec Marshall Keller (Princeton) 6-4 157 - Ed Scott (NC State) dec Quincy Monday (Princeton) 6-4 165 - Jake Marsh (Princeton) dec AJ Kovacs (NC State) 5-4 174 - Hayden Hidlay (NC State) tech Nathan Dugan (Princeton) 17-2 184 - Trent Hidlay (NC State) maj Travis Stefanik (Princeton) 17-4 197 - Aidan Conner (Princeton) fall Isaac Trumble (NC State) 2:44 285 - Tyrie Houghton (NC State) dec Matthew Cover (Princeton) 6-3 Minnesota 23 Northwestern 9 125 - Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern) dec Patrick McKee (Minnesota) 8-7 133 - Chris Cannon (Northwestern) dec Jake Gliva (Minnesota) 6-3 141 - Jakob Bergeland (Minnesota) dec Frankie Tal-Shahar (Northwestern) 2-0 149 - Yahya Thomas (Northwestern) dec Michael Blockhus (Minnesota) 6-1 157 - Brayton Lee (Minnesota) FFT 165 - Cael Carlson (Minnesota) FFT 174 - Bailee O'Reilly (Minnesota) dec Troy Fisher (Northwestern) 9-5 184 - Sam Skillings (Minnesota) dec Jon Halvorsen (Northwestern) 4-2 197 - Michial Foy (Minnesota) fall Brendan Devine (Northwestern) 4:45 285 - Gable Steveson (Minnesota) maj Lucas Davison (Northwestern) 13-4 Pittsburgh 29 Army West Point 10 125 - Gage Curry (Pittsburgh) maj Ryan Chauvin (Army West Point) 12-4 133 - Micky Phillippi (Pittsburgh) maj Mark Montgomery (Army West Point) 14-5 141 - Cole Matthews (Pittsburgh) fall Thomas Deck (Army West Point) 3:00 149 - PJ Ogunsanya (Army West Point) maj Luke Kemerer (Pittsburgh) 14-5 157 - Elijah Cleary (Pittsburgh) dec Markus Hartman (Army West Point) 4-2 165 - Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) dec Dalton Harkins (Army West Point) 1-0 174 - Ben Pasiuk (Army West Point) fall Hunter Kernan (Pittsburgh) 4:38 184 - Gregg Harvey (Pittsburgh) dec Sahm Abdul Razzaq (Army West Point) 6-4 197 - Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) dec JT Brown (Army West Point) 8-4 285 - Jake Slinger (Pittsburgh) dec Brandon Phillips (Army West Point) 6-0 Michigan 29 Pittsburgh 12 125 - Nick Suriano (Michigan) maj Gage Curry (Pittsburgh) 18-7 133 - Micky Phillippi (Pittsburgh) dec Jack Medley (Michigan) 5-2 141 - Cole Matthews (Pittsburgh) dec Stevan Micic (Michigan) 11-5 149 - Cole Mattin (Michigan) dec Dan Mancini (Pittsburgh) 9-4 157 - Will Lewan (Michigan) dec Elijah Cleary (Pittsburgh) 3-1 165 - Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh) FFT 174 - Logan Massa (Michigan) fall Hunter Kernan (Pittsburgh) 2:18 184 - Myles Amine (Michigan) fall Nicholas Meglino (Pittsburgh) :46 197 - Patrick Brucki (Michigan) dec Nino Bonaccorsi (Pittsburgh) 6-3 285 - Mason Parris (Michigan) maj Jake Slinger (Pittsburgh) 14-4 Wisconsin 19 Rutgers 14 125 - Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) dec Dylan Shawver (Rutgers) 8-4 133 - Joey Olivieri (Rutgers) dec Kyle Burwick (Wisconsin) 4-3 141 - Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) tech Joe Zargo (Wisconsin) 19-3 149 - Austin Gomez (Wisconsin) maj Mike Van Brill (Rutgers) 11-1 157 - Garrett Model (Wisconsin) dec Robert Kanniard (Rutgers) 13-8 165 - Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) dec Andy Clark (Rutgers) 10-4 174 - Andrew McNally (Wisconsin) dec Jackson Turley (Rutgers) 6-1 184 - John Poznanski (Rutgers) dec Chris Weiler (Wisconsin) 12-5 197 - Greg Bulsak (Rutgers) dec Braxton Amos (Wisconsin) 8-7 285 - Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) dec Boone McDermott (Wisconsin) 6-3 South Dakota State 27 Northern Iowa 13 125 - Tanner Jordan (South Dakota State) dec Kyle Gollhofer (Northern Iowa) 4-3 133 - Kyle Biscoglia (Northern Iowa) maj Caleb Gross (South Dakota State) 10-2 141 - Clay Carlson (South Dakota State) dec Cael Happel (Northern Iowa) 11-4 149 - Daniel Kimball (South Dakota State) dec Tristan Lara (Northern Iowa) 9-5 157 - Derek Holschlag (Northern Iowa) dec Kenny O'Neill (South Dakota State) 7-1 165 - Tanner Cook (South Dakota State) fall Cayd Lara (Northern Iowa) 1:24 174 - Cade DeVos (South Dakota State) dec Pat Schoenfelder (Northern Iowa) 10-6 184 - Cade King (South Dakota State) fall Dajun Johnson (Northern Iowa) 1:55 197 - Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) fall Nic Casperson (South Dakota State) 4:12 285 - AJ Nevills (South Dakota State) dec Tyrell Gordon (Northern Iowa) 4-3 Penn State 29 Indiana 11 125 - Drew Hildebrandt (Penn State) dec Jacob Moran (Indiana) 6-2 133 - Brock Hudkins (Indiana) tech Baylor Shunk (Penn State) 18-3 141 - Cayden Rooks (Indiana) dec Brandon Meredith (Penn State) 9-4 149 - Beau Bartlett (Penn State) dec Graham Rooks (Indiana) 6-4 157 - Derek Gilcher (Indiana) dec Tony Negron (Penn State) 4-1 165 - Creighton Edsell (Penn State) maj Sammy Cokeley (Indiana) 11-3 174 - Carter Starocci (Penn State) fall Sean Grim (Indiana) 2:07 184 - Aaron Brooks (Penn State) maj Donnell Washington (Indiana) 13-4 197 - Max Dean (Penn State) maj Nick Willham (Indiana) 9-1 285 - Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) tech Jacob Bullock (Indiana) 20-3 Columbia 46 Long Island 0 125 - Joe Manchio (Columbia) dec Robbie Sagaris (Long Island) 3-2 133 - Angelo Rini (Columbia) fall Bryce Cockrell (Long Island) 3:17 141 - Matt Kazimir (Columbia) dec Devin Matthews (Long Island) 4-0 149 - Dan Fongaro (Columbia) maj Drew Witham (Long Island) 14-2 157 - Andrew Garr (Columbia) dec James Johnston (Long Island) 8-2 165 - Josh Ogunsanya (Columbia) fall Blake Bahna (Long Island) 2:37 174 - Nick Fine (Columbia) fall Ryan Ferro (Long Island) 4:11 184 - Brian Bonino (Columbia) fall Gavin Claro (Long Island) 4:45 197 - Michael Baker (Columbia) fall Karl Bouyer (Long Island) 2:42 285 - Danny Conley (Columbia) dec Tim Nagosky (Long Island) 2-0 Iowa 36 Purdue 4 125 - Drake Ayala (Iowa) dec Devin Schroder (Purdue) 6-1 133 - Matt Ramos (Purdue) maj Jesse Ybarra (Iowa) 11-1 141 - Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) dec Parker Filius (Purdue) 7-6 149 - Max Murin (Iowa) maj Trey Kruse (Purdue) 10-2 157 - Kaleb Young (Iowa) maj Cooper Noehre (Purdue) 12-4 165 - Alex Marinelli (Iowa) tech Hayden Lohrey (Purdue) 22-7 174 - Michael Kemerer (Iowa) tech Gerrit Nijenhuis (Purdue) 17-1 184 - Abe Assad (Iowa) dec Max Lyon (Purdue) 6-3 197 - Jacob Warner (Iowa) dec Thomas Penola (Purdue) 3-0 285 - Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) fall Michael Woulfe (Purdue) 1:14

Drake Ayala (right) and Devin Schroder (Photos/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) How to Watch: January 9th, Big Ten Network (3pm EST) We didn't have much time to speculate or continue this will he/won't he game regarding Iowa's replacement for three-time NCAA champion Spencer Lee. On Friday night, Tom Brands unleashed blue-chip, true freshman Drake Ayala at 125 lbs opposite returning All-American Patrick McKee (Minnesota). Starting a true freshman has been a rarity during Brands' tenure, so sending out Ayala in the first dual without Lee speaks volumes to how the staff views Ayala. Through 13 matches in his first year in Iowa City, Ayala has compiled a 10-3 record, with all three losses coming to 2021 NCAA third-place finisher McKee. In each contest, Ayala has never looked out of place or outclassed. He's hung with, and even led the All-American, which has given many observers the indication that Ayala could flip this result with more time in the Iowa room and experience against DI competition. That's what we're looking at today; Ayala's path for the remainder of the regular season and the Big Ten Championships. By the time the conference meet rolls around, in early March, he'll undoubtedly be battle-tested as the Hawkeye schedule is loaded with potential tests at the 125 lb weight class. Starting today! At 3pm (eastern), on the Big Ten Network, Ayala will tangle with two-time Big Ten runner-up Devin Schroder (Purdue). The Boilermaker veteran is currently ranked fifth in the nation and possesses one of the most dangerous top games at this weight. Many freshmen struggle on the mat, so this will be a considerable test for Ayala. January 14th - #17 Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern) The 2021 NCAA Round of 12 finisher did not see action this year before Friday evening. DeAugustino made his presence known and took out returning All-American #4 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) in his debut. He is definitely ranked lower than his abilities indicate, more of a function of a lack of data for the 2021-22 season. January 16th - #24 Justin Cardani (Illinois) The 2020 NCAA qualifier is coming off a title at the MatMen Open, where he downed a pair of ranked wrestlers. January 21st - #14 Malik Heinselman (Ohio State) The much-improved Heinselman currently sports an 11-1 record and is looking to improve upon his fourth-place finish at the 2021 Big Ten Championships. While known as being slick on his feet, Heinselman has been more well-rounded during this campaign. January 28th - Drew Hildebrandt (Penn State) This will be a colossal matchup in one of the most-anticipated duals of the year. Hildebrandt made his PSU debut on Friday with a pin against Maryland, but it remains to be seen what kind of shape he's in. If anywhere close to his 2021 form that led to a fourth-place finish at NCAA's, Hildebrandt will be a huge test for Ayala. February 5th - #4 Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) The third 2021 All-American on Ayala's schedule, Barnett presents a different challenge from some of the other opponents. He's capable of scoring points in bunches and with big moves, so he may be the most dangerous of the crew. February 12th - #9 Trevor Mastrogiovanni (Oklahoma State) The Iowa/Oklahoma State match is one that will take place at the Texas Rangers' stadium (Globe Life Field) alongside a dual with Team USA/Iran. #3 Oklahoma State is one of the few teams with enough balance to perhaps defeat the Hawkeyes. This bout between Ayala and undefeated Trevor Mastrogiovanni is likely one that propels the winner to a team victory. February 20th - #23 Liam Cronin/Jeremiah Reno (Nebraska) If this final dual with Nebraska represents a “let up” for Ayala in the schedule, that tells you just how difficult is upcoming slate is. Returning national qualifier and #13 seed at NCAA's, Cronin, is 3-3, but hasn't competed since the Daktronics Open in late November. Since then, Reno has gotten the call and is 3-6, overall. March 5/6th - Big Ten Championships #4 Barnett, #5 Schroder, #7 McKee, #14 Heinselman, #17 DeAugustino, #23 Cronin, #24 Cardani, #25 Jacob Moran (Indiana), #30 Dylan Shawver (Rutgers). Plus, currently unranked Nick Suriano (Michigan) and Hildebrandt.

Virginia Tech 157 lber Connor Brady (Photo/Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Duke: The Blue Devils are off this week and will return to action against Appalachian State next week. North Carolina: The Tar Heels sent a limited squad to the F&M Open made up of attached and unattached wrestlers. We will have a full breakdown of the results next week. North Carolina State: The #5 Wolfpack travels to New Jersey this weekend--they were supposed to dual Rider Saturday and #19 Princeton Sunday, but the Rider dual was canceled due to COVID precautions within the Rider program. The dual against the Tigers will be a good one, though! There are potentially three ranked versus ranked matchups in the dual, starting with a huge match at 125. #10 Jakob Camacho will face #1 Patrick Glory. Camacho will be facing the #1 wrestler for the second match in a row; he lost a decision to Spencer Lee of Iowa at the Collegiate Duals. Since Lee is done for the season with knee surgery, Patrick Glory slides up to the top spot. Camacho is 7-2 on the year and Glory is 4-0, including a major decision win over #5 Devin Schroder of Purdue. The next big match is at 157 with #11 Ed Scott squaring up with #5 Quincy Monday. Scott is 13-0 on the year and is coming off of two ranked wins at the Collegiate Duals-#24 Jarrett Jacques and #12 Kaleb Young. Monday is 8-1 with wins over #6 Peyton Robb, #15 Will Lewan and #12 Kaleb Young; his only loss is to #2 Ryan Deakin at CKLV. We will see if Scott is able to continue his impressive start to the year and pick up another signature win or if the experience of Monday will make the difference for the Tigers. The final potential ranked match is at 184 with #3 Trent Hidlay matching up with #22 Travis Stefanik--I say potential because Nick Reenan is also listed as a potential starter for the Wolfpack. Stefanik is 4-1 on the year, with his best win over #23 Max Lyon of Purdue; his only loss on the season is to #10 Taylor Venz of Nebraska. Hidlay is undefeated on the year and has been dominant with five of his six wins by BONUS. The Wolfpack should be able to win this dual handily, but Jadwin Gym can be a tough place to wrestle a scrappy Princeton squad. It will be a good test for the Wolfpack to have another tough dual on the road before they settle in for ACC competition starting January 21st when they host Virginia Tech. Pittsburgh: The Panthers were scheduled to face Penn in an in-state battle, but due to COVID precautions, that dual was canceled. Coach Gavin wasn't content with having a weekend off, so he got on the phone and found two other coaches who had teams ready to scrap. Army and Michigan will make the trip to Pittsburgh for a late scheduled-but great day of wrestling. Against Army, there will be some solid matches, including multiple ranked matchups. At 141, #23 Cole Matthews will hit #33 Corey Shie. Then at 157 #21 Elijah Cleary will face #28 Markus Hartman. Cleary is coming off of winning the championship at the MatMen Open and is arguably wrestling the best he ever has for the Panthers. Hartman will be a good test to see if Cleary continues his more offensive style. #13 Jake Wentzel will look to get a solid start to the second half of the season against #32 Dalton Harkins. Finally, at 197 #8 Nino Bonaccorsi will square off with #25 JT Brown. Pitt is favored on paper, but Army is always tough and will get scrappy with any team they face. Against the Wolverines, we will see some big matches from start to finish. 125: #31 Gage Curry vs. #18 Jack Medley (don't think we see Suriano yet) 133: #7 Micky Phillippi vs. #8 Dylan Ragusin 141: #23 Cole Matthews vs. #3 Stevan Micic 149: Luke Kemerer/Dan Mancini vs Cole Mattin 157: #21 Elijah Cleary vs. #15 Will Lewan 165: #13 Jake Wentzel vs #10 Cam Amine 174: Hunter Kernan vs #6 Logan Massa 184: #31 Gregg Harvey vs. #2 Myles Amine 197: #8 Nino Bonaccorsi vs #9 Patrick Brucki 285: Jake Slinger vs. #2 Mason Parris As you can see, there is a lot of firepower in this dual. If Pitt is ready to go like they were at MatMen Open, this will be a very entertaining dual. Phillippi/Ragusin and Bonaccorsi/Brucki alone would be worth the price of admission. But there are great matchups up and down the lineup--a lot of potential for Pitt to make some statements going into ACC duals. Really looking forward to this one. Kudos to Coach Gavin, Coach Ward and Coach Bormet for making this happen on short notice. Virginia: The Hoos sent a limited team to the F&M Open to get some mat time, including the return of Vic Marcelli. We will have a full breakdown of the results next week. Virginia Tech: The Hokies host a tri in Blacksburg on Sunday, welcoming Binghamton and West Virginia. They will be heavily favored in both duals, but there will be some great matchups to pay attention to throughout the day. There was a last-minute change to the format; instead of official duals between the three teams, it will be run as a round-robin event to maximize mat time for multiple wrestlers; official team scores will not be kept. Official lineups have not been released, so all of these matches are potential matchups. Against Binghamton, there are a couple matches to keep an eye on. At 133, #6 Korbin Myers will face #32 Anthony Sobotker. At 197, #12 Louie Deprez will face Andy Smith and at 285, #14 Nathan Traxler will wrestle #20 Joe Doyle. Against the Mountaineers, Sam Latona will have a chance to set the tone for the second half of the season against All-American #6 Killian Cardinale. Latona is 2-0 against Cardinale--both wins were one-point decisions. Latona has struggled to start the year, but we have all seen that he is capable of beating almost anyone when he is on; I'm hopeful that he was able to reset and rest over break and comes back in top form. At 165, Clayton Ulrey will face a very hot #11 Peyton Hall coming off a 4-1 run at the Southern Scuffle-losing only to Keegan O'Toole of Mizzou. The final ranked matchup will be the second of the day for Nathan Traxler as he faces #22 Michael Wolfgram. The Hokies will look to get some mat time for wrestlers who were out the first half of the season--so look out for Andy Smith and the potential return of Sam Hillegas at 141. The Hokies will face George Mason in the Moss Arts Center dual next week before ACC duals begin.

2021 79 kg world champion Jordan Burroughs (Photo/Tony Rotundo; WrestlersAreWarriors.com) 57 KG #9 Abubakar Mutaliev (RUS) took the Umakhanov tournament title in a 9-6 victory over 2018 Alans bronze medalist Magomed Abdurakhmanov (RUS). Finishing with bronze at the Umakhanov was 2019 Russian Nationals runner-up Muslim Sadulaev (RUS) and Aleksey Kopylov (RUS). Sadulaev returns to the rankings at #16 for beating 2021 Yarygin runner-up Musa Mekhtikhanov (RUS) along with his past wins over #1 (61) Abasgadzhi Magomedov (RUS) and Mutaliev, but doesn't rise higher because of his loss to Mutaliev in the quarters. Abdurakhmanov is ranked #17 for beating Aleksey and Petr Kopylov (RUS) after Petr had beaten U-23 Russian Nationals champion Ramazan Abdurakhmanov (RUS) in the round of 16. Abdurakhmanov also has a win to his name over 2021 Russian Nationals runner-up #10 (61) Nachyn Mongush (RUS) from the 2020 Russian Junior National championships. The end of the year saw the final national championships go down for Turkey, Japan, Uzbekistan, Georgia and Azerbaijan. Muhammad Karavus (TUR) won the Turkish national championships over Ahmet Karavus (TUR). Bronze medalists were Mehmet Yuce (TUR) and Ahmet Peker (TUR). 61 KG world bronze medalist #3 Toshihiro Hasegawa (JPN) made the cut down to 57 KG to win the Emperor's Cup over Yuto Takeshia (JPN), while 2019 Junior world champion Toshiya Abe (JPN) finished bronze. Hasegawa takes the #15 spot in the rankings. #5 Gulomyon Abdullaev (UZB) won the Uzbekistan national championships. 2019 Dan Kolov champion Beka Bujiashvili (GEO) won the Georgian National Championships over Roberti Dingashvili (GEO) with a 10-0 tech fall. 2021 European bronze medalist Afghan Khashalov (AZE) won the Azerbaijan national championships over U-23 world champion #17 Aliabbas Rzazade (AZE) to return to the rankings at #18. Muhammad Abdullaev (AZE) and Tofik Aliyev (AZE) took bronze. #4 Reza Atri (IRI) lost by tech fall to 61 KG world champion #1 (61) Abasgadzhi Magomedov (RUS) in the finals of the Iranian Club Cup at 61 KG. 61 KG There was a ridiculous amount of shake-ups for this month, so it's best to address the big shift in the top ten first and foremost. 2020 57 KG Russian Nationals bronze medalist #13 (57) Akhmed Idrisov (RUS) is now #2 after winning the Shamil Umakhanov tournament over 2019 57 KG Russian Nationals champion #10 (57) Ramiz Gamzatov (RUS). Idrisov being ranked #2 ahead of current world runner-up in Daton Fix (USA) seems strange, but the reason for this is that, when you compare H2H wins and resumes, Idrisov and Gamzatov beat out Fix. Idrisov's wins since 2019 over #9 (57) Abubakar Mutaliev (RUS), #10 (57) Azamat Tuskaev (RUS), 3x European champion Giorgi Edisherashvili (AZE), 2x U-23 world champion Reineri Andreu Ortega (CUB), 2x world bronze medalist #14 (57) Bekhbayar Erdenebat (MGL), #3 Ramiz Gamzatov (RUS) and 2021 world bronze medalist #7 (57) Aryan Tyutrin (BLR) far outweigh Daton's resume of a win over an inconsistent #2 (57) Thomas Gilman in 2019, Reineri Andreu Ortega (CUB) in 2019 and then beating #6 Arsen Harutyunyan (ARM) and #9 Ravinder Ravinder (IND) at world's. 2019 world champion #7 Beka Lomtadze (GEO) moved up to 65 KG for the Georgian national championships, where he beat Edemi Bolkvadze (GEO) 2-1 in the finals. He has been removed from the rankings. 2021 U-23 European champion Taimuraz Vanishvili (GEO) won the Georgian national championships by forfeit over Otari Gogava (GEO). 2021 Asian champion Jahongirmirza Turobov (UZB) won Uzbekistan nationals and is back in the rankings at #7 as is Asian Championships runner-up Adlan Askarov (KAZ) at #8. Why they're able to come back in is because of the exit of a lot of the top 10 guys and because of 3x World/Olympic medalist #12 Nurislam Sanayev (KAZ) had beaten Turobov back in June of 2021 at the Ziolkowski and when Sanayev was upset by #14 Taras Markovych (UKR) later in June, it bumped down Turobov and Askarov in the rankings a major way until they were out altogether. The bronze medalists of the Umakhanov tournament were Bashir Magomedov (RUS) and Rakhman Mintullaev (RUS). Bashir Magomedov debuts in the rankings at #12 for beating #14 Taras Markovych (UKR) and 2020 Russian Nationals bronze medalist Zhargal Damdinov (RUS). 2021 57 Grand Prix of Deglane runner-up Islam Bazarganov (AZE) won the Azerbaijan national championships over Tural Huseynov (AZE), with Intigam Valizada (AZE) and Murad Kagverdiyev (AZE) taking bronze. 2021 International Ukrainian Tournament champion #8 Akhmednabi Gvarzatilov (AZE) has been removed from the rankings as he moved up to 65 KG, where he finished as the runner-up at the Azerbaijan national championships to 2021 65 KG Junior world runner-up Ziraddin Bayramov (AZE). Ryuto Sakai (JPN) earned the biggest win of his career, when he upset 2016 57 KG Olympic silver medalist Rei Higuchi (JPN) in the finals of the Emperor's Cup. Kodai Ogawa (JPN) finished with bronze. 2021 world bronze medalist #3 Toshihiro Hasegawa (JPN) moved down to 57 KG, where he won the Emperor's Cup over Yuto Takeshita (JPN) and was removed from the 61 KG rankings. #10 (57) Ramiz Gamzatov (RUS) takes the #6 spot in the rankings after his runner-up finish at the Umakhanov tournament to #2 Akhmed Idrisov (RUS). Gamzatov is able to take the #6 spot off the strength of wins over #9 (57) Abubakar Mutaliev (RUS), Islam Bazarganov (AZE) and #16 (57) Muslim Sadulaev (RUS). #1 Abasgadzhi Magomedov (RUS) went 2-0 competing at the Iranian Club Cup, beating #4 (57) Reza Atri (IRI) and Reza Momeni (IRI). Two-time 57 KG world medalist #12 (57) Suleyman Atli (TUR) won the Turkish national championships over Nebi Uzen (TUR) with Recep Topal (TUR) and Ahmet Tash (TUR) taking bronze. Atli makes his return to the 61 KG rankings at #15 while Nebi Uzen (TUR) takes the #16 spot over two-time European bronze medalist #17 Recep Topal (TUR). 65 KG 2021 Junior world champion Shamil Mamedov (RUS) had an absolutely huge December to put himself in the top 10 of 65 KG. Mamedov first beat 70 KG U-23 world bronze medalist #14 (70) Nicolai Grahmez (MDA) at Wolnik 7 and followed it up with a Umakhanov title at 65 KG over #10 Murshid Mutalimov (RUS) and #14 Ibragim Abdurakhmanov (RUS). Mamedov's big December culminates with him debuting in the rankings at #8. The other results of note from the Umakhanov tournament was U-23 world runner-up #14 Ibragim Abdurakhmanov (RUS), finishing runner-up to #8 Shamil Mamedov (RUS) with Gadzhimurad Omarov (RUS) and #10 Murshid Mutalimov (RUS) finishing in bronze. Omarov, who took 5th at the 2021 Russian Nationals, returns to the rankings at #15 after beating 2021 Ali Aliyev runner-up Ramazan Ferzaliyev (RUS) in his opener and for his wins from 2021 Russian Nationals over #14 Ibragim Abdurakhmanov (RUS) and 2019 Russian Nationals bronze medalist Julian Gergenov (RUS). 2019 61 KG Junior world champion Kaiki Yamaguchi (JPN) won the Emperor's Cup over Ryoma Anraku (JPN), with Yujiro Ueno (JPN) finishing with bronze. 2021 Junior world runner-up Ziraddin Bayramov (AZE) won the Azerbaijan national championships over 2021 61 KG International Ukrainian Tournament champion Akhmednabi Gvarazatilov (AZE) with Seymur Dzhabrailov (AZE) and Kanan Geybatov (AZE). 2019 61 KG world champion Beka Lomtadze (GEO) won Georgian nationals over Edemi Bolkvadze (GEO). Muenir Recep Aktas (TUR) won the Turkish national championships over Hamza Alaca (TUR) with Mensur Bayoglu (TUR) and Ertugrul Kahveci (TUR) taking bronze. U-23 world bronze medalist #14 Cavit Acar (TUR) has been removed from the rankings for his upset loss in the round of 16 to Mehmet Soyler (TUR). There were two big matches at Wolnik 7 with #7 Akhmed Chakaev (RUS) beating #16 Nachyn Kuular (RUS) and #11 Ismail Musukaev (HUN) beating Ramazan Ferzaliev (RUS). 2021 world champion #5 Zagir Shakhiev (RUS) went 1-1 at the Iranian Club Cup beating Hasan Moradgoli (IRI) and losing to Tokyo Olympian Morteza Ghiasi Cheka (IRI), who takes the #12 spot for his win over Shakhiev. Abbos Rakhmonov (UZB) won Uzbekistan nationals. 2019 world runner-up #11 Daulet Niyazbekov (KAZ) has retired and was removed from the rankings. 70 KG Two-time Russian Nationals bronze medalist #5 Kurban Shiraev (RUS) won the Umakhanov tournament over #13 Viktor Rassadin (RUS). Bronze medalists at the Umakhanov were Anzor Zakuev (RUS) and Alan Kudzoev (RUS). #8 (65) Shamil Mamedov (RUS) beat #14 Nicolai Grahmez (MDA) in a showcase match at Wolnik 7. Levan Kelekhsashvili (GEO) won Georgian Nationals over 2019 U-23 world champion Mirza Skhulukhia (GEO). Begijon Kuldashev (UZB) won Uzbekistan nationals. Selahattin Killicsallyan (TUR) won Turkish nationals over Budak Cuneyt (TUR) with Servet Coskun (TUR) and Sefa Aksoy (TUR) taking bronze. 2019 U-23 world bronze medalist Daud Ibragimov (AZE) enters the rankings at #20 after winning Azerbaijan nationals over Asker Mamadaliev (AZE) with Ali Rahimzade (AZE) and Murad Evloev (AZE) finishing bronze. Taishi Narikuni (JPN) won the Emperor's Cup over Hikaru Tokada (JPN) with Ryosuke Kera (JPN). Two-time 70 KG world champion #8 (74) Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov went 2-0 at the Iranian Club Cup down at 70 with wins over #17 Erfan Elahi (IRI) and Farhad Nuri (IRI). 2021 Junior world runner-up #18 Dzhabrail Gadzhiev (AZE) moved up to 74 KG, where he was the Azerbaijan national runner-up to Turan Bayramov (AZE) and was removed from the rankings. 74 KG #1 Zaurbek Sidakov (RUS) won a rematch of the 2021 Olympic finals against #2 (79) Magomedkhabib Kadimagomedov (BLR) 6-1 at the Alrosa Cup to maintain his spot on the top. #2 (79) Magomedkhabib Kadimagomedov (BLR) had a busy December, competing at the Alrosa Cup against #1 Zaurbek Sidakov (RUS), where he lost 6-1 and then going to Iran for the World Club Cup where he went 1-1 up at 79 KG and beat world runner-up #6 Mohammad Nokhodilarimi (IRI) but lost to U-23 world bronze medalist #15 Ali Savadkouhi (IRI). Kadimagomedov is now ranked #2 up at 79 KG behind reigning world champion #1 Jordan Burroughs (USA). 2021 world bronze medalist #6 Timur Bizhoev (RUS) went 2-0 competing at the Iranian Club Cup, beating Jamal Safar (IRI) and 2016 70 KG world bronze medalist Mostafa Hosseinkhani (IRI). Daichi Takatani (JPN) won the Emperor's Cup of Kirin Kinoshita (JPN), with Masaki Sato (JPN) taking bronze. Turan Bayramov (AZE) beat Dzhabrail Gadzhiev (AZE) in the finals of the Azerbaijan national championships, with Joshgun Azimov (AZE) and Namus Orudzhev (AZE) taking bronze. 2021 70 KG Asian championships runner-up Sirojiddin Khasanov (UZB) won Uzbekistan Nationals. 2019 U-23 world bronze medalist Giorgi Sulava (GEO) won Georgian nationals. Jason Nolf (USA) got the biggest win of his career when he dominated former world champion Khetag Tsabolov (SRB) at Wolnik 7. Two-time World/Olympic medalist #17 Soner Demirtas (TUR) moves up two spots in the rankings to #15 after winning Turkish nationals over Samet Ak (TUR). Ak makes his debut in the rankings #17 for upsetting world bronze medalist #15 Fazli Eryilmaz (TUR) in the semifinals with Eryilmaz falling three spots to #18 after his 5th place finish. Bronze medalists at Turkish nationals were Ismet Ciftci (TUR) and Tarik Gur (TUR). There were some shake-ups on the back-end of the rankings after the Umakhanov tournament. Mohamad Nasirkhaev (RUS) debuts in the rankings at #11 after winning gold over #12 Akhmad Shakhbanov (RUS) in the finals. Bronze medalists at the Umakhanov were #20 Islambek Orozbekov (KGZ) and #16 Magomed Dibirgadzhiev (RUS). So Nasirkhaev gets #11 in the rankings for beating #16 Magomed Dibirgadzhiev (RUS) and #12 Akhmad Shakhbanov (RUS) after Shakhbanov had upset 2021 Yarygin champion #12 Aznaur Tavaev (RUS) to make the finals. Islambek Orozbekov (KGZ) makes the rankings at #18 for beating Tavaev 4-4. 79 KG 2021 74 KG Olympic runner-up #2 (74) Magomedkhabib Kadimagomedov (BLR) made the move back up to 79 KG, where he went 1-1 competing at the Iranian Club Cup, beating 2021 world runner-up #6 Mohammad Nokhodilarimi (IRI) and losing to U-23 world bronze medalist #15 Ali Savadkouhi (IRI). Kadimagomedov slots in at the #2 slot in the rankings based off wins over #2 (74) Kyle Dake (USA), #3 (74) Taimuraz Salkazanov (SVK), #4 (74) Frank Chamizo (ITA), #8 (74) Magomedrasul Gazimagomedov (RUS) and #5 (86) Magomed Ramazanov (RUS). Ali Savadkouhi (IRI) moves up six spots in the rankings to #9 behind U-23 world champion Magomed Magomaev, who beat him at the 2021 U-23 world championships. #13 Atsamaz Sanakoev (RUS) skyrocketed himself into the top 5 by beating past Russian National champions #5 Akhmed Usmanov (RUS) and #10 Malik Shavaev (RUS) to make the finals of the Umakhanov tournament before beating 2020 Asian champion #14 Arsalan Budazhapov (KGZ) for gold. Sanakoev's title run at the Umakhanov puts him firmly in the #5 spot behind Russia's 2021 world bronze medalist #4 Radik Valiev (RUS). Other important results from the Umakhanov saw #3 Gadzhi Nabiyev (RUS) move up to 86 KG, where he lost in his opening match to Ada Bagomedov (RUS) along with #5 Akhmed Usmanov (RUS) taking bronze over #10 Malik Shavaev (RUS) in a rematch of the 2021 Russian Nationals finals and 3x Russian Nationals medalist Kakhaber Khubezhty (RUS) take bronze over Iusup Aidaev (RUS). Khubezhty returns to the rankings at #14 Arsalan Budazhapov (KGZ), who beat him in the semifinals. The other important results were #10 Malik Shavaev (RUS), upsetting #7 Amanulla Gadzhimagomedov (RUS) and Magomednabi Magomedov (RUS) upsetting #19 Azret Ulimbashev (RUS) in repechage. Muhammet Akdeniz (TUR) captured gold at the Turkish national championships over Nuri Temur (TUR), with Abdulla Aslan (TUR) and Shamil Ozak (TUR) taking bronze. 2017 70 KG U-23 European champion Gadzhimurad Omarov (AZE) won the Azerbaijan national championships over 2011 74 KG world bronze medalist Ashraf Ashirov (AZE) with Soslan Tigiev (AZE) and Sabuhi Amiraslanov (AZE) taking bronze. Yudai Takahashi (JPN) won the Emperor's Cup over Kosuke Yamakura (JPN) with Takahiro Murayama (JPN) finishing with bronze. Vladimieri Gamkrelidze (GEO) won Georgian nationals over Evsem Shivelidze (GEO). Jasurbek Usmonokhunov (UZB) won Uzbekistan nationals. 86 KG Khabil Khashpakov (RUS) and #16 Alan Zaseev (RUS) made a huge impact on the rankings after their standout performances at the Umakhanov tournament. Khashpakov upset 2021 Yarygin champion #8 Magomedsharif Biyakaev (RUS) to make the finals, while Zaseev beat 2021 Russian Nationals bronze medalist #6 Akhmed Gadzhimagomedov (RUS) to make the finals. In their finals match, Khabil was able to use a clutch last-second takedown to take the victory over Zaseev. Khashpakov fills in the #6 spot in the rankings while #16 Alan Zaseev (RUS) moves up nine spots in the rankings to #7. Bronze medalists at the Umakhanov were Gadzhimagomedov (RUS) and #12 Magomedsharif Biyakaev (RUS). The other big mover from the Umakhanov was three-time Russian Nationals bronze medalist #19 Arsenali Musalaliev (RUS), who moves up nine spots to #10 for beating #7 Javrail Shapiev (UZB) in his opening round match. Shapiev falls four spots to #11 behind Musalaliev. The Turkish national championships saw 2018 world runner-up Fatih Erdin (TUR) reclaim his spot at the top with a win over Batukhan Kish (TUR) in the finals. Most importantly, Erdin picked up an 8-5 win over Tokyo Olympian #12 Osman Gocen (TUR) in the semifinals to return to the rankings at #15. Taking bronze at the Turkish national championships was #16 Osman Gocen (TUR) and Sezay Arsalan (TUR). Shota Shirai (JPN) won the Emperor's Cup over Taisei Matsuyuki (JPN), with Yajuro Yamasaki (JPN) taking bronze. Orkhan Abasov (AZE) won the Azerbaijan national championships over Muhammad Abdulkhalikov (AZE) with Kamran Tagiyev (AZE) and Gadzhimurad Magomedsaidov (AZE) finishing with bronze. 74 KG Tokyo bronze medalist Bekzod Abdurakhmanov (UZB) won Uzbekistan nationals up at 86 KG. Tarsan Maisuradze (GEO) won Georgian nationals over Bagrati Gagnidze (GEO). 2021 World and Olympic bronze medalist #3 Artur Naifonov (RUS) went 2-0 competing at the Iranian Club Cup, beating Hadi Vafaeipour (IRI) and Alireza Saberian (IRI). 92 KG #20 Alan Bagaev (RUS) made a huge run through the Umakhanov tournament to catapult himself into the top 10. Bagaev's back-to-back last-second victories over #17 Soslan Ktsoev (RUS) and #7 Azamat Zakuev (RUS) let him move up thirteen spots in the rankings to #7. Finishing as runner-up at the Umakhanov was #8 Azamat Zakuev (RUS) while Ashkaab Sadulaev (RUS) and #20 Soslan Ktsoev (RUS) finished with bronze. 2019 97 KG Junior world bronze medalist Feyzullah Akturk (TUR) made his presence known at 92 KG with a Turkish national title over Ahmet Bilici (TUR). Akturk's #11 spot in his debut in the rankings comes off the strength of a semifinal win over #10 Erhan Yaylaci (TUR). Finishing with bronze at the Turkish national championships was #12 Erhan Yaylaci (TUR) and Samet Ozarslan (TUR). Miriani Maisuradze (GEO) debuts in the rankings at #18 after beating 2019 world bronze medalist #16 Irakli Mtsituri (GEO) in the Georgian national finals. Sosuke Takatani (JPN) won the Emperor's Cup over Takuma Otsu (JPN), with Yuto Izudtsu (JPN) finishing with bronze. Abduljalil Shabanov (AZE) won the Azerbaijan national championships over Fuad Mailov (AZE) with Javad Galandarov (AZE) and Fazil Hasanov (AZE) taking bronze. 2019 Junior Asian Championships runner-up Ajiniyaz Saparniyazov (UZB) won Uzbekistan nationals. 97 KG 2021 Olympic and World runner-up #2 Kyle Snyder (USA) had a strong showing in his trip to Russia, winning gold at the Umakhanov over 2021 Junior European runner-up Ali Aliyev (RUS). Bronze medalists at the Umakhanov were Aslanbek Sotiev (RUS) and Ashkab Boltukaev (RUS). Changes from the Umakhanov were Aliyev debuting in the rankings at #17 for beating Ashkab Boltukaev (RUS) and Maxim Tolmachev (RUS) and two-time Russian Nationals runner-up Aslanbek Sotiev (RUS) returning to the rankings at #15 for beating #15 Shamil Musaev (RUS) for bronze. #1 Abdulrashid Sadulaev (RUS) was dominant in a showcase match at the Alrosa Cup, beating 2019 world bronze medalist Magomedgadzhi Nurov (MKD) confidently. 2019 Russian Nationals champion #9 Vladislav Baitsaev transferred to Hungary. 2018 world bronze medalist #7 Elizbar Odikadze (GEO) won Georgian nationals over Givi Matcharashvili (GEO). 2019 125 KG world bronze medalist Khasanboy Rakhimov (UZB) won Uzbekistan nationals at 97 KG. Takashi Ishiguro (JPN) won the Emperor's Cup over Keivan Yoshida (JPN), with Shohei Yamasaki (JPN) taking bronze. 2021 Yarygin champion Magomedkhan Magomedov (RUS) took part in the Azerbaijan national championships due to them being an open competition and took gold over 2018 92 KG U-23 world champion Shamil Zubairov (AZE) with Zafar Aliyev (AZE) and Islam Ilyasov (AZE) finishing with bronze. Burak Shahin (TUR) won Turkish nationals over Mustafa Sessiz (TUR) with Oktay Ciftci (TUR) and Ibragim Bolukbasi (TUR) taking bronze. 125 KG Tokyo Olympian #8 Sergey Kozyrev (RUS) won by pin over 2021 world bronze medalist Lkhagvagerel Munkhtur (MGL) at the Alrosa Cup. #4 Zelimkhan Khizriev (RUS) won the Umakhanov tournament over Kazbek Khubulov (RUS). Bronze medalists were #11 Dzianis Khramiankov (BLR) and Tamerlan Kumyshev (RUS). One important chain of results was #11 Dzianis Khramiankov (BLR) beating 2020 Russian Nationals champion #14 Alan Khugaev (RUS) and then being beaten by #4 Zelimkhan Khizriev (RUS). Georgian heavyweight Giorgi Meshvildishvili (GEO) won the Azerbaijan national championships over Rakhid Kamidli (AZE) with Javid Sadigov (AZE) and Aydin Akhmedov (AZE) finishing with bronze. Yunus Emre Dede (TUR) won the Turkish national championships over Salim Erkan (TUR) with Hamza Ozkaradeniz (TUR) and Younes Bandirma (TUR) taking bronze. Taiki Yamamoto (JPN) won the Emperor's Cup over Hiroto Ninomiya (JPN) with Kai Shutto (JPN) taking bronze. Solomon Manashvili (GEO) won Georgian nationals. Sardorbek Kholmatov (UZB) won Uzbekistan nationals. Pound for Pound The final top ten pound-for-pound in 2021 are Zaurbek Sidakov (RUS), Abdulrashid Sadulaev (RUS), Zavur Uguev (RUS), Takuto Otoguro (JPN), Gadzhimurad Rashidov (RUS), Magomedkhabib Kadimagomedov (BLR), Kyle Dake (USA), Hassan Yazdani Charati (IRI), David Taylor (USA) and Taimuraz Salkazanov (SVK).

Northern Iowa's national qualifier Austin Yant (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Eastern Time (Local Time in Parentheses) Saturday 01/08 Oklahoma State at Little Rock, 8:30 PM (7:30 PM) Sunday 01/09 Northern Iowa vs. Wyoming at South Dakota State, 12:00 PM (11:00 AM) Wyoming at South Dakota State, 1:30 PM (12:30 PM) Northern Iowa at South Dakota State, 3:00 PM (2:00 PM) Binghamton vs. West Virginia at Virginia Tech, 2:00 PM West Virginia at Virginia Tech, 4:00 PM Best Event: Wyoming and Northern Iowa at South Dakota State Starting at 12 Eastern,you have three big duals between a few of the Big 12's top teams. It's not Missouri-Oklahoma State that everyone is already highly anticipating for next month, but these are three very good programs that have all been jockeying for position just behind the Oklahoma States of the conference the past few years, and all should have a lot of competitive and exciting matches in these duals. While Wyoming and South Dakota State both have some talented upperweights that should hit, all three have solid, balanced lineups. Best Single Dual: Iowa State vs. Arizona State This one has been canceled!

Louisville, Kentucky – It's been over nearly 3,000 days since Grand View University lost a dual meet. It's been over 4,000 since the school lost a dual to another NAIA school. Grand View continued its college wrestling record win streaks on Friday night at the Kentucky International Convention Center in Louisville at the 2022 NWCA Multi-Division National Dual Meet Championships. Results & Brackets Men's Divisions Brackets | Women's Divisions Brackets The Vikings improved to 7-0 on the season and continued the school's dominance at the National Duals, winning its 10th consecutive title. Grand View topped rival Life University 21-10 in the finals for the third straight year. Coach Nick Mitchell got creative in the early going, bumping up four-time All-American Justin Portillo up to 133 pounds, opening the door for Esco Walker to knock off returning NAIA national champion Brandon Orum in the dual's opening match. Walker, an NAIA runner-up last year at Cumberland University at 133 pounds, fell behind early, but used a set of nearfall points and a late takedown to set the tone early for the Vikings. Portillo, ranked second at 125 pounds, picked off Hunter Sparks 3-2 at 133 pounds. Sickness played a role as both Grand View 133-pounders were fighting a bug, causing Mitchell to get creative “We've got to make a change here (at 133) and Portillo clearly fought his butt off,” said Mitchell. “You realistically think going into it, you're going to split those matches, but Esco coming out and gets that late takedown after getting ridden, then Portillo, that's what you love about him, he fights.” That momentum, combined with winning three matches by three points or less were key to the Vikings' 10th title in a row. It wasn't all bad news in the finals for Life University as a whole, though. The Running Eagles' women's team came away victorious in the NAIA women's division, getting a fall from Gabrielle Hamilton at 191 pounds to win the school's first National Duals title in any division with a 26-19 win over top-seeded Campbellsville. “That moment for Gabby, this was her first tournament coming back after a torn ACL and she worried she wasn't good enough,” explained Life head coach Ashley Flavin. “She was worried that she couldn't do it anymore and the team couldn't rely on her anymore. For her, it showed her where she's at. To see Gabby battle back through everything and for her to look at me and say ‘no, I want to do it, I can do it.' It's incredible.” The dual's most festive match came at 116 pounds where a pair of past NAIA women's champions met. The match could only be described as bonkers. Prussin built an 8-0 lead and was about to finish a takedown to earn a 10-point technical superiority, but Campbellsville's McKayla Campbell threw Prussin to her back for four points and then built a 14-11 lead before Prussin rallied to score eight straight to end with a 19-14 marathon of freestyle wrestling. For Flavin, the journey to this moment was full-circle. “Back in 2008, I was the first OW of the women's tournament and now I'm the first female to win a national title of any kind … is kind of a lot. For me as a person, it's incredible. From a personal standpoint, from a professional standpoint being able to do it with my husband is amazing. (Life assistant coach) Christian is such an important part of our program and to be able to coach with him is more than I could have ever dreamed and for our team, it's been slow but fast. We started at the bottom and now we're here. They've put in the time and they've put in the work. We were off for 10 days due to Covid, we gave up a forfeit in every dual and (the team) battled back and did it anyway. It's a testament to them really.” When the NWCA added Division II and Division III to the mix in 2002, Central Oklahoma won the inaugural Division II dual meet title. They hadn't won one since – until Friday. On a day where St. Cloud State set a new NCAA record for consecutive dual meet wins at 77, Central Oklahoma ended the hours-old record with a 19-14 win over the Huskies in the finals, snapping St. Cloud State's National Duals title run at four in a row as well. The Bronchos started the dual with a crucial victory at 125 pounds as Paxton Rosen beat St. Cloud State's Paxton Creese 6-1, but the dual hinged on two Broncho overtime wins. UCO's Brik Filippo and Hunter Jump picked up takedowns in sudden victory at 149 pounds and 165 pounds that helped give UCO its first title in over 20 years. “Our guys have been gritty all year,” said Central Oklahoma head coach Todd Steidley. “We had three starters out and two were going to wrestle, but they were throwing up before we went on the mat, so we put backups in and they went out there and did a great job. That's been the strength of our team all year – our depth has helped us a lot. The moment wasn't too big for us. Our guys really wrestled hard and yesterday, I was concerned about being too conservative.” “The things you circle are the Midwest Classic, National Duals, Regioanls and the National Tournament,” said Steidley. “The National Duals keeps you going, we're proud to be apart of the National Duals. It's a great event.” In Division III, UW-La Crosse won its first National Duals crown, topping Wabash 31-9. The Eagles put space between them and the Little Giants early, winning the first five bouts, including Brandon Murphy's overtime victory over All-American Carlos Champagne at 125 pounds. “I'm so happy for our guys as we don't have any superstars on this team just a bunch of guys that believe in each other and believed they can win this tournament from the day they stepped in the arena,” said UW-La Crosse head coach Dave Malecek. “It was a goal was just to get the opportunity to wrestle in Kentucky as we didn't get the opportunity to wrestle at the NCAA‘s or the NWCA championships last year so we took full advantage of being able to compete for the National Duals title.” King University's women's team returned to the top of the podium for the first time since 2017, knocking off rival McKendree 25-19 to win the NCAA women's division. Crucial wins by King's Ashlynn Ortega at 155 and Cheyenne Bowman at 170 pounds pushed King to the title down the stretch. McKendree 114-pounder Felicity Taylor did pick up a victory in one of the dual's most anticipated matches, beating King freshman Sage Mortimer 10-0. For King head coach Jason Moorman, it was nice to be back at the top. “Everyone's dealing with some adversity with Covid and I've felt like we've always tried to be the best with everyting we've faced,” said Moorman. “We have a special group – great freshmen and they competed so well. Great seniors – great sophomores and juniors in between.” “We talked all week about this not falling in your lap, you have to go take it,” said Moorman. “It was a simple message right before the finals and I couldn't be more prouder.” “It's been McKendree and Simon Fraser the last couple years, so we have to find our way to stay hungry and improve and we have a great culture and we bring people in that add to that great culture,” said Moorman. Rochester Community & Technical College captured the championship in the NJCAA division, sweeping four duals in a round-robin format among non-scholarship schools in the division. The Yellowjackets won the school's first-ever title after previously finishing second in 2020. RCTC was dominant in its 45-0 opening win against Garrett and followed with solid wins over Joliet Junior College (34-15), Niagara (29-20) and Jamestown 29-15. The 2022 U.S. MARINE CORPS/NWCA Multi-Division National Dual Meet Championships was presented by ARMS Software, Capitol Construction & Defense Soap and was hosted by NUWAY. FINALS DIVISION II CENTRAL OKLAHOMA 19, ST. CLOUD STATE 14 125 – Paxton Rosen (Central Oklahoma) over Paxton Creese (St. Cloud State) Dec 6-1 133 – Tanner Cole (Central Oklahoma) over Daniel Valeria (St. Cloud State) Dec 6-0 141 – Joey Bianchini (St. Cloud State) over Peter Rolle (Central Oklahoma) TF 18-3 149 – Brik Filippo (Central Oklahoma) over Jake Barzowski (St. Cloud State) SV-1 3-1 157 – Ty Lucas (Central Oklahoma) over Anthony Herrera (St. Cloud State) Dec 9-8 165 – Hunter Jump (Central Oklahoma) over Devin Donovan (St. Cloud State) SV-1 3-1 174 – Dominic Murphy (St. Cloud State) over Anthony Des Vigne (Central Oklahoma) TB-1 2-1 184 – Heath Gray (Central Oklahoma) over Cade Linn (St. Cloud State) Maj 13-5 197 – Noah Ryan (St. Cloud State) over Alex Kauffman (Central Oklahoma) Dec 5-1 285 – Kameron Teacher (St. Cloud State) over Braden Morgan (Central Oklahoma) Dec 6-2 DIVISON III UW-LA CROSSE 31, WABASH 9 125 – Brandon Murphy (UW-La Crosse) over Carlos Champagne (Wabash) SV-1 5-3 133 – Sawyer Sarbacker (UW-La Crosse) over Blake McGee (Wabash) Dec 3-0 141 – Tyler Shackle (UW-La Crosse) over Andrew Sinkovics (Wabash) Fall 1:21 149 – Jake Mandt (UW-La Crosse) over TJ Driessens (Wabash) SV-1 8-6 157 – Nolan Hertel (UW-La Crosse) over Tyson Nisley (Wabash) Maj 12-3 165 – Kyle Hatch (Wabash) over Seth Brossard (UW-La Crosse) Dec 9-2 174 – Luke Clark (UW-La Crosse) over Raymond Arebalo (Wabash) Dec 5-0 184 – Kayln Jahn (UW-La Crosse) over Charles Baczek (Wabash) Fall 1:42 197 – Jack Heldt (Wabash) over Isaac Lahr (UW-La Crosse) Fall 3:59 285 – Ben Kawczynski (UW-La Crosse) over Isaiah McWilliams (Wabash) Dec 7-1 NAIA MEN GRAND VIEW 21, LIFE 10 125 – Esco Walker (Grand View) over Brandon Orum (Life) Dec 6-4 133 – Justin Portillo (Grand View) over Hunter Sparks (Life) Dec 3-2 141 – Shea Ruffridge (Grand View) over Jacob Ruiz (Life) Dec 3-1 149 – Denver Stonecheck (Life) over Trevor Anderson (Grand View) Dec 5-2 157 – Giovanni Bonilla (Grand View) over Jack Bass (Life) Dec 5-2 165 – Sid Ohl (Life) over Marty Margolis (Grand View) Maj 10-2 174 – Casey Randles (Grand View) over Asher Eichert (Life) Dec 8-2 184 – Ben Lee (Grand View) over Myles Starke (Life) Dec 2-1 197 – Zane Lanham (Life) over Owen Braungardt (Grand View) Dec 6-5 285 – Greg Hagan (Grand View) over JJ Perez (Life) Dec 5-3 NCAA WOMEN KING 25, MCKENDREE 19 101 – Jaclyn McNichols (King) over Lizette Rodriguez (McKendree) Dec 3-3 109 – Samara Chavez (King) over Pauline Granados (McKendree) Fall 2:46 116 – Felicity Taylor (McKendree) over Sage Mortimer (King) TF 10-0 123 – Cheyenne Sisenstein (King) over Caitlyn Thorne (McKendree) Fall 2:02 130 – Montana Delawder (King) over Cameron Guerin (McKendree) Dec 9-6 136 – Ana Luciano (King) over Skye Realin (McKendree) Dec 7-4 143 – Alara Boyd (McKendree) over London Houston (King) Fall 1:34 155 – Ashlynn Ortega (King) over Kayla Marano (McKendree) Dec 5-1 170 – Cheyenne Bowman (King) over Joye Levendusky (McKendree) Dec 5-2 191 – Sydnee Kimber (McKendree) over Nia Crosdale (King) Fall 0:27 NAIA WOMEN LIFE 25, CAMPBELLSVILLE 19 101 – Mia Diaz (Campbellsville) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf 109 – Kory Phillips (Life) over Kelsey Bilz (Campbellsville) Dec 9-8 116 – Peyton Prussin (Life) over McKayla Campbell (Campbellsville) Dec 19-14 123 – Salyna Shotwell (Life) over Jacqueline Ghent (Campbellsville) Fall 1:41 130 – Katlyn Pizzo (Campbellsville) over Briana Kellin (Life) Inj 0:41 136 – Olivia Mottley (Life) over Randi Robison (Campbellsville) Dec 4-3 143 – Emma Walker (Campbellsville) over Angie Prado (Life) Fall 1:49 155 – Destinee Rivera (Life) over Brelane Huber (Campbellsville) Dec 7-1 170 – Jordan Nelson (Life) over Leilani Martinez (Campbellsville) Dec 9-0 191 – Gabrielle Hamilton (Life) over Liliana Vergara (Campbellsville) Fall 5:35 NJCAA FINAL (dual between first and second-place finishing teams) ROCHESTER 29, NIAGARA 20 125 – Tony Kuhn (Niagara) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf 133 – Cael Bartels (Rochester) over Cole French (Niagara) Dec 12-8 141 – Parker Dobrocky (Rochester) over Zachary Ash (Niagara) TF 20-5 149 – Nikalis Voelker (Niagara) over Owen Pharo (Rochester) Dec 4-2 157 – Frankie Gissendanner (Niagara) over William VonRuden (Rochester) TF 18-3 165 – Zach Wells (Rochester) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf 174 – Walker ingham (Rochester) over Cortez Henderson (Niagara) Fall 0:50 184 – Justin McDougald (Niagara) over Unknown (Unattached) Forf 197 – Colton Krell (Rochester) over Warren Mcdougald (Niagara) Dec 5-2 285 – Armani Tucker (Rochester) over Maurice Jackson (Niagara) Fall 1:10 Questions related to historical polls can be sent to Jason Bryant at jason@bryantwrestling.com

Purdue's national qualifier Gerrit Nijenhuis (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) Friday's Dual Results Penn State 46 Maryland 0 125 - Drew Hildebrandt (Penn State) fall Zach Spence (Maryland) 1:38 133 - Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) tech King Sandoval (Maryland) 16-1 141 - Nick Lee (Penn State) tech Danny Bertoni (Maryland) 18-1 149 - Beau Bartlett (Penn State) fall Michael North (Maryland) 4:48 157 - Tony Negron (Penn State) maj Lucas Cordio (Maryland) 11-2 165 - Creighton Edsell (Penn State) dec Gaven Bell (Maryland) 7-1 174 - Carter Starocci (Penn State) dec Dom Solis (Maryland) 8-3 184 - Aaron Brooks (Penn State) maj Kyle Cochran (Maryland) 19-7 197 - Max Dean (Penn State) tech Kevin Makosy (Maryland) 20-5 285 - Greg Kerkvliet (Penn State) tech Zach Schrader (Maryland) 18-3 Lehigh 24 Binghamton 14 125 - Jaret Lane (Lehigh) fall Nick Curley (Binghamton) :48 133 - Malyke Hines (Lehigh) dec Anthony Sobotker (Binghamton) 8-4 141 - Ryan Anderson (Binghamton) dec Drew Munch (Lehigh) 6-4 149 - Nick Lombard (Binghamton) dec Jimmy Hoffman (Lehigh) 5-0 157 - Josh Humphreys (Lehigh) tech Tyler Martin (Binghamton) 16-0 165 - Brian Meyer (Lehigh) dec Brevin Cassella (Binghamton) 4-3 174 - Jacob Nolan (Binghamton) dec Jake Logan (Lehigh) 6-4SV 184 - AJ Burkhart (Lehigh) maj Sam DePrez (Binghamton) 12-4 197 - Louie DePrez (Binghamton) tech Eli Grape (Lehigh) 24-5 285 - Jordan Wood (Lehigh) dec Joe Doyle (Binghamton) 3-2 Iowa 22 Minnesota 10 125 - Patrick McKee (Minnesota) dec Drake Ayala (Iowa) 8-6 133 - Austin DeSanto (Iowa) dec Jake Gliva (Minnesota) 7-5 141 - Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) dec Jake Bergeland (Minnesota) 6-2 149 - Max Murin (Iowa) dec Michael Blockhus (Minnesota) 3-1 157 - Brayton Lee (Minnesota) dec Kaleb Young (Iowa) 4-3 165 - Alex Marinelli (Iowa) dec Cael Carlson (Minnesota) 6-5 174 - Michael Kemerer (Iowa) dec Bailee O'Reilly (Minnesota) 9-2 184 - Abe Assad (Iowa) maj Sam Skillings (Minnesota) 12-4 197 - Jacob Warner (Iowa) dec Michial Foy (Minnesota) 6-4 285 - Gable Steveson (Minnesota) maj Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) 17-7 Rutgers 29 Indiana 7 125 - Dylan Shawver (Rutgers) maj Jacob Moran (Indiana) 13-2 133 - Brock Hudkins (Indiana) dec Devon Britton (Rutgers) 6-0 141 - Sebastian Rivera (Rutgers) maj Cayden Rooks (Indiana) 19-5 149 - Mike Van Brill (Rutgers) dec Graham Rooks (Indiana) 6-2 157 - Robert Kanniard (Rutgers) dec Derek Gilcher (Indiana) 9-7 165 - Andy Clark (Rutgers) dec Sammy Cokeley (Indiana) 3-0 174 - Jackson Turley (Rutgers) tech Sean Grim (Indiana) 20-2 184 - John Poznanski (Rutgers) dec Donnell Washington (Indiana) 4-2 197 - Greg Bulsak (Rutgers) maj Nick Willham (Indiana) 9-1 285 - Jacob Bullock (Indiana) maj Boone McDermott (Rutgers) 9-1 Purdue 18 Nebraska 15 125 - Devin Schroder (Purdue) tech Jeremiah Reno (Nebraska) 17-0 133 - Matt Ramos (Purdue) dec Alex Thomsen (Nebraska) 3-1 141 - Parker Filius (Purdue) maj Tucker Sjomeling (Nebraska) 12-2 149 - Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) dec Trey Kruse (Purdue) 10-3 157 - Jevon Parrish (Nebraska) dec Cooper Noehre (Purdue) 5-3SV 165 - Bubba Wilson (Nebraska) dec Hayden Lohrey (Purdue) 3-1 174 - Gerrit Nijenhuis (Purdue) dec Mikey Labriola (Nebraska) 6-4 184 - Max Lyon (Purdue) dec Taylor Venz (Nebraska) 7-2 197 - Eric Schultz (Nebraska) dec Thomas Penola (Purdue) 5-2 285 - Christian Lance (Nebraska) dec Michael Woulfe (Purdue) 11-4 Wisconsin 19 Northwestern 15 125 - Michael DeAugustino (Northwestern) dec Eric Barnett (Wisconsin) 9-5 133 - Chris Cannon (Northwestern) dec Kyle Burwick (Wisconsin) 4-0 141 - Frankie Tal-Shahar (Northwestern) dec Joe Zargo (Wisconsin) 5-4 149 - Austin Gomez (Wisconsin) dec Yahya Thomas (Northwestern) 8-6 157 - Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) dec Garrett Model (Wisconsin) 8-3 165 - Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) maj Erich Byelick (Northwestern) 13-1 174 - Andrew McNally (Wisconsin) dec Troy Fisher (Northwestern) 3-1 184 - Chris Weiler (Wisconsin) maj Jon Halvorsen (Northwestern) 8-0 197 - Braxton Amos (Wisconsin) tech Brendan Devine (Northwestern) 20-5 285 - Lucas Davison (Northwestern) dec Trent Hillger (Wisconsin) 4-3

Tony Cassioppi (left) and Gable Steveson in the 2021 NCAA semifinals (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com) InterMat's Big Ten Spotlight Matchup 285 lbs: #1 Gable Steveson (Minnesota) vs. #6 Tony Cassioppi (Iowa) How to Watch: January 7th, Big Ten Network (9pm EST) You may not have realized it yet, but we're in the midst of a golden era of heavyweights in college wrestling. Eight different 285 lbers have represented the United States of American at an age-group World Championship event and returned with a medal of some sort. Five of them are world champions. Friday night, on the Big Ten Network, two of those champions are set to clash as traditional superpowers #1 Iowa and #13 Minnesota do battle. These storied programs have combined to win eight NCAA team titles since the year 2000, with only three other programs (Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Penn State) winning during that span. The most recent team championship winner was Iowa, who still looms as the returning champions and are top-ranked in a dual format. The Hawkeyes are looking to make a statement, in this, the first match since the announcement that two-time Hodge Trophy winner, Spencer Lee, would miss the remainder of the 2021-22 season. A traditional dual meet starts at 125 lbs and works its way up weight-by-weight to bigger competitors. Having a great heavyweight is like having the proverbial “ace in the hole.” Competitive duals end up coming down the final match and knowing you have a significant advantage at 285 lbs is a bit of a security blanket. Both coaching staffs for Iowa and Minnesota typically start duals with the feeling that their respective big man will chip in with at least a win, but is often good for bonus points. Friday will be different, as both teams typically have a presence from a dominant big man. The homesteading Hawkeyes will send out #6 Tony Cassioppi; while the Gophers will counter will top-ranked #1 Gable Steveson. With Spencer Lee out of the picture this year, the biggest star in college wrestling is the man Lee shared the 2021 Hodge Trophy with, Steveson. Within a six-month period, Steveson won his first NCAA title, followed by a Pan-American Championship and an Olympic gold medal. In doing so, Steveson unseated two of the world's most dominant heavyweights, Taha Akgul (Turkey) and Geno Petriashvili (Georgia). The two had previously accounted for every gold medal won at 125 kg at a World or Olympic event since 2014. Not only did Steveson win, but he did so with style. He thrashed Akgul in the semifinals, before staging a surreal comeback against Petriashvili in the gold medal bout. Since Tokyo and the Olympics, Steveson has signed an NIL deal with the WWE and is a central figure in their “Next in Line” program. He's made no secret of his desire to join WWE and many thought he'd strike while the iron was hot and try his hand at “sports entertainment” after winning Olympic gold. The changes to NIL have made it possible for Steveson to capitalize on his likeness, while returning to Minneapolis to try and win another NCAA title, while competing alongside his Gopher teammates. So far this season, Steveson has only appeared in two matches. However, both contests featured ranked opponents #24 AJ Nevills (South Dakota State) and #31 Luke Surber (Oklahoma State). The Gopher superstar majored Surber (20-7) and teched Nevills (22-6). He heads into Friday with a 36-match winning streak and a 70-2 career mark. Despite the hefty credentials on Steveson's behalf, don't expect Tony Cassioppi to back down. The Hawkeye big man was an NCAA third-place finisher in 2021 and has a 38-7 career record, himself. Cassioppi, a double Pan-American Junior champion in 2017 and 2018, stepped up to the U23 level this fall and became a world champion. Cassioppi clinched his gold medal with a fall in the world finals, his second of the tournament. Throughout his career, Cassioppi has proven to be one of the more dangerous pinners in his weight class. Last season, he had five in only 13 wins after posting seven as a freshman. Cassioppi is coming off a Collegiate Duals tournament that saw him paired off with two past All-Americans in pool competition, before beating an upstart Tyrie Houghton (NC State) and clinching a team win over #5 NC State. Cassioppi and Steveson are no strangers; they have squared off four times at the collegiate level. In 2019-20, Cassioppi managed to hold Steveson to regular decision wins in both their dual meet and the Big Ten Tournament. Last year, Steveson extended his margin of victory to nine points in dual competition and ten in the NCAA semifinals. Will the Olympic champion continue to assert his dominance against the great heavyweight from Iowa or can Cassioppi start to cut into his lead? The rest of the card: 125 - Jesse Ybarra/Drake Ayala (Iowa) vs. #7 Patrick McKee (Minnesota) How will the Hawkeyes officially start life after Lee (at least for 2021-22)? Ybarra has gotten the call in dual competition and is 5-1, while blue-chip true freshman Ayala just placed third at the Southern Scuffle. Both of his losses this year, have come to…..Patrick McKee. The 2021 NCAA third-place finisher McKee is 13-1 and was a champ at the Scuffle. 133 - #3 Austin DeSanto (Iowa) vs. #24 Jake Gliva/Aaron Nagao (Minnesota) Austin DeSanto has been a consistent cog in the Iowa lineup, winning all ten of his 2021-22 matches, with bonus points in eight of those outings. Jake Gliva appeared to have sewn up the starting role with a 9-4 start, but Aaron Nagao made a surprising run to the Scuffle finals last weekend. 141 - #2 Jaydin Eierman (Iowa) vs. #19 Jake Bergeland (Minnesota) The Collegiate Duals saw Jaydin Eierman pushed twice in three matches and both were relatively unexpected. Does he return to his dominant ways at home? Bergeland has been a steadying influence at a weight that appeared unsettled for Minnesota, as the season began. 149 - #12 Max Murin (Iowa) vs. #25 Michael Blockhus (Minnesota) If Minnesota pulls the upset, team-wise, it likely happens because of a big win here from Michael Blockhus. The Iowa-native returns to his home state and is looking to knock off veteran Max Murin. Conversely, the home crowd could propel Murin to turn in his best performance. 157 - #12 Kaleb Young (Iowa) vs. #4 Brayton Lee (Minnesota) Kaleb Young is looking to get back on the winning track after a 1-2 showing at the Collegiate Duals. Unfortunately, he has a formidable competitor awaiting in All-American Brayton Lee. Although Lee is ranked higher and unbeaten, he did drop two of three to Young in 2021. 165 - #1 Alex Marinelli (Iowa) vs. #19 Andrew Sparks/Cael Carlson (Minnesota) 133/141 and 165 are spots where Iowa could conceivably tally bonus points, which could come in handy with Steveson looming at 285 lbs. Alex Marinelli currently sits atop a weight class that may be the deepest, in terms of legit title contenders. He'll have to contend with the tandem of either Sparks or Carlson. Sparks only saw action in one match at the Scuffle, while Carlson defeated a returning Big 12 champion on his way to third place. 174 - #2 Michael Kemerer/Brennan Swafford (Iowa) vs. #23 Bailee O'Reilly/Jared Krattiger (Minnesota) The delayed return of NCAA finalist Michael Kemerer and an injury to Nelson Brands have forced Tom Brands to take Brennan Swafford out of redshirt. Swafford has been solid at 12-6 and was sixth at the Scuffle. This will be his Carver-Hawkeye debut. One of the wrestlers to defeat Swafford at the Scuffle was Bailee O'Reilly, who was a 5-2 winner and finished in third. He or Jared Krattiger should get the call here. Signs out of Iowa indicate we could see Kemerer make his season debut. 184 - #18 Abe Assad (Iowa) vs. #28 Isaiah Salazar/Sam Skillings (Minnesota) The Collegiate Duals were where Abe Assad got back into dual competition for Iowa for the first time since February of 2020. Assad shined as a true freshman and was the 11th seed at the NCAA Championships. Minnesota is expected to counter with second-year freshmen Sam Skillings. He is 2-1 this season. #28 Isaiah Salazar defaulted out of the Scuffle, in sixth-place and was not listed on the Gophers probables. 197 - #5 Jacob Warner (Iowa) vs. #30 Michial Foy (Minnesota) Before getting to the main event, we have a match that will probably be closer than it appears on paper. Jacob Warner continues to be a possible title contender at a deep 197 lbs weight class. The two-time NCAA All-American is 6-1 this season picked up a clutch win that helped put the Hawkeyes in position to defeat #5 NC State. Michial Foy is a Harper College transfer that has grabbed hold of an uncertain weight for Minnesota. In only his second dual, Foy upset a then, top-ten opponent in South Dakota State's Tanner Sloan.