InterMat Staff

Ben Whitford (St. Johns, Mich.), the nation's No. 2 junior, has given a verbal commitment to the University of Michigan. Whitford won two state titles while at Marmion Academy, Ill., before transferring back to St. John's, Mich., for his junior season. As a sophomore, Whitford went 41-1 en route to a state championship at 130 pounds. His state title as a freshman came at 119 pounds. Whitford has won double titles in Fargo the past two summers. He also recently captured a title at the Super 32 Challenge.

The third battle may have ended in a knockout, but it was the second of the Edgar v. Maynard trilogy that the World MMA Awards recognized last night at their annual event in Las Vegas. The evening, sponsored by Fighters Only Magazine handed out awards in 21 categories, including such shoe-in's as Promotion of the Year (UFC) and Leading Man of the Year (Dana White). A full list of the evening's nominees and winners: FIGHT OF THE YEAR Nominees: Jose Aldo vs. Mark Hominick at UFC 129, Dominick Cruz vs. Urijah Faber at UFC 132, Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard at UFC 125, Nick Diaz vs. Paul Daley at "Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley," and Diego Sanchez vs. Martin Kampmann at UFC Live 3 Winner: Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard at UFC 125 CHARLES "MASK" LEWIS FIGHTER OF THE YEAR Nominees: Dominick Cruz, Nick Diaz, Dan Henderson, Jon Jones and Anderson Silva Winner: Jon Jones COACH OF THE YEAR Nominees: Rafael Cordeiro, Eric Del Fierro, Cesar Gracie, Greg Jackson and Shawn Tompkins Winner: Greg Jackson KNOCKOUT OF THE YEAR Nominees: Patricky "Pitbull" Freire vs. Toby Imada at Bellator 39, Cheick Kongo vs. Pat Barry at UFC Live 5, John Makdessi vs. Kyle Watson at UFC 129, Lyoto Machida vs. Randy Couture at UFC 129, and Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort at UFC 126 Winner: Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort at UFC 126 BEST LIFESTYLE CLOTHING Nominees: Affliction, Bad Boy, Form Athletics, RVCA and TapouT Winner: TapouT PROMOTION OF THE YEAR Nominees: BAMMA, Bellator Fighting Championships, DREAM, Strikeforce and UFC Winner: UFC BEST TECHNICAL CLOTHING Nominees: Bad Boy, Hayabusa, Jaco, Sprawl and Venum Winner: Bad Boy MMA PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR Nominees: Bruce Buffer, Jacob "Stitch" Duran, Joe Rogan, Bas Rutten and Burt Watson Winner: Joe Rogan FEMALE FIGHTER OF THE YEAR Nominees: Marloes Coenen, Zoila Gurgel, Sarah Kaufman, Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate Winner: Miesha Tate RING ENTRANCE OF THE YEAR Nominees: Yoshihiro Akiyama at UFC 133, Vitor Belfort at UFC 133, Dave Herman at UFC 131, Mark Hominick at UFC 129 and Jason "Mayhem" Miller at DREAM.16 Winner: Jason "Mayhem" Miller BREAKTHROUGH FIGHTER OF THE YEAR Nominees: Donald Cerrone, Daniel Cormier, Phil Davis, Demetrious Johnson and Brian Stann Winner: Donald Cerrone SUBMISSION OF THE YEAR Nominees: Chan Sung Jung vs. Leonard Garcia at UFC Fight Night 24, Pablo Garza vs. Yves Jabouin at UFC 129, Richard Hale vs. Nik Fekete at Bellator 38, Vinny Magalhaes vs. Viktor Nemkov at M-1 Challenge 25, and Tito Ortiz vs. Ryan Bader at UFC 132 Winner: Chan Sung Jung vs. Leonard Garcia at UFC Fight Night 24 RING GIRL OF THE YEAR Nominees: Arianny Celeste, Kelli Hutcherson, Brittney Palmer, Chandella Powell and Mercedes Terrell Winner: Arianny Celeste LEADING MAN OF THE YEAR Nominees: Scott Coker, Lorenzo Fertitta, Marc Ratner, Bjorn Rebney and Dana White Winner: Dana White INTERNATIONAL FIGHTER OF THE YEAR Nominees: Michael Bisping, Alexander Gustafsson, Joachim Hansen, Alistair Overeem and Dennis Siver Winner: Alistair Overeem GYM OF THE YEAR Nominees: Alliance MMA, Black House, Jackson's MMA, Roufusport and Xtreme Couture Winner: Black House REFEREE OF THE YEAR Nominees: Herb Dean, "Big" John McCarthy, Dan Miragliotta, Josh Rosenthal and Mario Yamasaki Winner: Herb Dean COMEBACK OF THE YEAR Nominees: Marloes Coenen vs. Liz Carmouche at "Strikeforce: Feijao vs. Henderson," Cheick Kongo vs. Pat Barry at UFC Live 5, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (career), Tito Ortiz (career) and Joe Warren vs. Joe Soto at Bellator 27 Nominees: Cheick Kongo BEST TECHNICAL EQUIPMENT Nominees: Bad Boy, Everlast, Hayabusa, Rival and Venum Winner: Everlast MEDIA SOURCE OF THE YEAR Nominees: "Inside MMA" on HDNet, MMAFighting.com, "MMA Live" on ESPN, MMAjunkie.com and Sherdog.com Winner: MMAjunkie.com MMA JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR Nominees: John Morgan, Gareth A. Davies, Josh Gross, Ariel Helwani and Ben Fowlkes Winner: Ariel Helwani

LEBANON, Ill., -- The McKendree University wrestling team only dropped two matches in a 31-9 win over Cumberland University (Tenn.) on Wednesday night. The Bearcats improved to 2-0 overall and will travel to Kenosha, Wis., on Saturday, December 3rd for the Wisconsin Open hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Parkside. Junior Tyler Orr (Mattoon, Ill./Mattoon) defeated Eddie Ortiz in a 5-0 decision at 125 pounds to give McKendree a 3-0 lead out of the gate. Freshman Dylan Viglasky followed suit at 133 pounds and gave the Bearcats a 7-0 lead by earning a 9-1 major decision win over Ethyn Holbrook. Cumberland cut the deficit to 7-6 following a forfeit win at 141 pounds, but McKendree rattled off three straight wins to extend its lead. Redshirt sophomore Devin Patterson (Mattoon, Ill./Mattoon) defeated Andy Schoultz by decision, 14-7, at 149 pounds to make the score 10-6, and sophomore Josh Ballard (Troy, Ill./Triad) edged Zeke Hunt in a 9-7 decision at 157 pounds to push the lead out to 13-6. Freshman Tim Gilbert (St. Mary's, Ga./Camden County) defeated Cody Bleaken by technical fall, 15-0, at 165 pounds to give the Bearcats an 18-6 advantage with only four matches remaining. A decision victory by the Bulldogs at 174 pounds cut the McKendree lead to 18-9, but the Bearcats rattled off three straight victories to seal the dual match win. Redshirt junior Kyle Reid (Belleville, Ill./Belleville East) defeated Cody Linton by major decision, 18-5, at 184 pounds to give McKendree a 22-9 lead, and junior Andrew Davis (Loves Park, Ill./Harlem) defeated Jesse Green by decision, 5-2, at 197 pounds to extend the lead to 25-9. Redshirt freshman Ross Janney (Daleville, Ind./Yorktown) put an exclamation mark on the win by pinning Joe Hill in 41-seconds to bring the final score to 31-9. McKendree University 31, Cumberland University (Tenn.) 9 Matches started at 125 pounds Results: 125- Tyler Orr (Mattoon, Ill./Mattoon) (McK) def. Eddie Ortiz (CU), Dec. 5-0 (3-0) 133- Dylan Viglasky (McK) def. Ethyn Holbrook (CU), MD, 9-1 (7-0) 141- Derek Lunsford (CU) by forfeit (7-6) 149- Devon Patterson (McK) def. Andy Schoultz (CU), Dec. 14-7 (10-6) 157- Josh Ballard (Troy, Ill./Triad) (McK) def. Zeke Hunt (CU), Dec., 9-7 (13-6) 165- Tim Gilbert (St. Mary's, Ga./Camden County) (McK) def. Cody Bleaken (CU), TF 15-0 (18-6) 174- Scott Stewart (CU) def. Luis Alba (Kissimmee, Fla./Cypress Creek) (McK), Dec., 7-3 (18-9) 184- Kyle Reid (Belleville, Ill./Belleville East) (McK) def. Cody Linton (CU), MD, 18-5 (22-9) 197- Andrew Davis (Loves Park, Ill./Harlem) (McK) def. Jesse Green (CU), Dec., 5-2 (25-9) HWT- Ross Janney (Daleville, Ind./Yorktown) (McK) pinned Joe Hill (CU), Fall 0:41 (31-9)

MARSHALL, Minn. -- The Southwest Minnesota State wrestling team used three pins and two major decisions cruising to a 32-9 victory over St. Olaf College in its season-opening dual on Wednesday night in Marshall. SMSU improves to 1-0 in dual matches this season while the Oles fall to 1-1 in dual matches in the young season. Travis Borchert, Martin Hagen and Todd Klemz each earned wins by fall for the Mustangs and Jake Begin and Micah Larson each earned major decisions to help the Mustangs take a large lead over the Oles. Borchert got the Mustangs on the board early in the match earning a win by fall at 6:48 over St. Olaf's Wesley Azariah. Borchert led 8-2 after two periods and fought off a comeback by Azariah who came within 11-7 before being pinned by Borchert late in the bout. SMSU led the Oles 6-0 after the 125-pound bout. SMSU extended its lead to 9-0 after Justin Reinsma (133 pounds) earned a hard fought 9-5 decision over Ian Peppel. Reinsma improved his season record to 9-8, giving the Mustangs a 9-0 advantage in the match. St. Olaf got on the board in the 141-pound bout when Ryan Timmerman, who finished third at the NCAA Division III national tournament last season, earned a 4-1 decision over Ethan Hildebrandt. The Mustangs rebounded at 149 pounds using a 12-9 decision by Codie Lane over Thomas Mork to take a 12-3 lead in the match. St. Olaf cut SMSU's lead in half at 12-6 after Jake Bohler earned an 11-5 decision over Blaine Miller in the 157-pound match. Begin (165 pounds) extended SMSU's lead to 16-6 earning a 13-0 major decision over Collin Jergenson. Begin improves to 9-1 on the season with the win. The Oles kept themselves in the match after James Roach defeated Trent Molacek in the 174-pound bout earning three points for his team winning a 7-4 decision. SMSU led 16-9 heading into the 184-pound bout. Larson rebounded for the Mustangs with a 13-5 major decision over Andrew Rudd in the 184-pound bout to give the Mustangs a 20-9 lead. Martin Hagen (197 pounds) put the match on ice for the Mustangs pinning Elliot Courchain at 4:28 to give the Mustangs a 26-9 lead. Klemz capped off the match with a win by fall at 6:48 to give the Mustangs a 32-9 victory over St. Olaf. Southwest Minnesota State will pick up action on Saturday participating in the Dragon Open in Moorhead, Minn. beginning at 10 a.m. SMSU picks up dual action on the road taking on Morningside (Iowa) at 7 p.m. on Dec. 7. Results: 125 – Travis Borchert def. Wesley Azariah, by fall 6:48, SMSU leads 6-0 133 – Justin Reinsma def. Ian Peppel, 9-5 decision, SMSU leads 9-0 141 – Ryan Timmerman def. Ethan Hildebrandt, 4-1 decision, SMSU leads 9-3 149 – Codie Lane def. Thomas Mork, 12-9 decision, SMSU leads 12-3 157 – Jake Bohler def. Blaine Miller, 11-5 decision, SMSU leads 12-6 165 – Jake Begin def. Collin Jergenson, 13-0 major decision, SMSU leads 16-6 174 – James Roach def. Trent Molacek, 7-4 decision, SMSU leads 16-9 184 – Micah Larson def. Andrew Rudd, 13-5 major decision, SMSU leads 20-9 197 – Martin Hagen def. Elliot Courchain, by fall 4:28, SMSU leads 26-9 285 – Todd Klemz def. James Noneman, by fall 6:48, SMSU leads 32-9

ABERDEEN, S.D. -- In their first dual meet action of the season, the Northern State Wolves rode five pins and an open weight forfeit to a 39-12 team victory over the visiting Dakota Wesleyan Tigers Wednesday night in non-conference wrestling action. NSU won six of the eight contested victories, the lone loss coming on a Dusty Paulsen fall over NSU redshirt freshman Terrance Fox at 141 pounds. The two teams split open weight matches with DWU's Ross Hoksbergen taking the 197 pound class and the nation's top-ranked Matt Meuleners picking up the tab in the heavyweight division. Anthony Bruno (125), Beau Voegeli (149), Blake Lundgren (165) and Chad Gibson (184) all earned wins by fall, including first period pins by Voegeli and Gibson. Sophomore Ian Muirhead earned a 5-4 win at 133 pounds on the strength of a riding time point. Muirhead escaped trouble late in the third period as DWU's Richard Rios nearly picked up a defensive pin before Muirhead wriggled away as time ran out on Rios' efforts. Neil Sell (157) and senior Donnie Bowden (174) also earned decisions over their respective opponents to give the Wolves victories in the final five contested weight classes. Bowden picked up his second straight win over the Tigers' Tyler Sarringar with an 11-6 decision. The two battled to a high-scoring 19-13 decision when they met earlier this season at the DWU Open Tournament on Nov. 12. Bowden earned his first dual victory in two years after missing the 2010-11 season with a knee injury. The Wolves, now 1-0 in dual meets this season, will go back on the road on Saturday to take on Chadron State in another non-conference match-up. Action in that dual is set to begin at 4 p.m. (MST).

Bluejay Wrestlers Sink Augustana 29-12 Elmhurst College Wrestling Email to a Friend | Print 11/30/2011 8:52:00 PM ELMHURST, Ill. - The Elmhurst College wrestling team, ranked 12th in the latest NWCA poll, improved to 3-0 in dual meet competition with a 29-12 victory over Augustana College. The Bluejays began the day with a 6-0 lead after Mark Johnson received a forfeit at 125 pounds. Dalton Bullard put Elmhurst up 10-0 by scoring a 13-1 major decision over Steven Poffenberger. Jake Denhof followed with a 16-2 major victory over Greg Gogonas at 141 pounds. Augustana (1-1), ranked 27th in the latest NWCA poll, got on the scoreboard at 149 pounds when Alberto Quiros upended the Bluejays' Ryan Earley 7-3. Mike Grice put the Bluejays on top 17-3 midway through the dual when he defeated David Tessiatore 8-1 at 157 pounds. The Vikings' Matt Burns toppled Elmhurst's Yousef Al-Ghoul 8-4 at 165 pounds. Elmhurst scored back-to-back wins by pin at 174 pounds and 184 pounds. Danny Balderas, ranked fourth in the latest NWCA poll, pinned Connor Cummings in 2:14 at 174 pounds to give Elmhurst a 23-6 lead. Joe Rau, ranked third in the NWCA poll, followed by pinning Seth Whan in 2:52 to put the Bluejays up 29-6. Augustana closed out the dual with back-to-back victories. Jordan Richardson toppled Danny Varags 10-3 at 197 pounds. The Vikings' John Scraidt defeated Elmhurst's Mike McNeil 8-6 in overtime at 285 pounds. Results: 125 - Mark Johnson (EC) received forfeit 133 - Dalton Bullard (EC) def. Steven Poffenberger 13-1 major 141 - Jake Denhof (EC) def. Greg Gogonas 16-2 major 149 - Alberto Quiros (AC) def. Ryan Earley 7-3 157 - Mike Grice (EC) def. David Tessiatore 8-1 165 - Matt Burns (AC) def. Yousef Al-Ghoul 8-4 174 - Danny Balderas (EC) pinned Connor Cummings in 2:14 184 - Joe Rau (EC) pinned Seth Whan in 2:52 197 - Jordan Richardson (AC) def. Danny Vargas 10-3 285 - John Scraidt (AD) def. Mike McNeil 8-6 (OT)

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan wrestling program will host a free wrestling clinic on Sunday, Dec. 11, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Cliff Keen Arena. The clinic, the first of the 2011-12 season, is open to all ages and skill levels and will feature technique instruction from Olympic hopefuls Josh Churella and Jimmy Kennedy as well as members of the Wolverine team. No registration is necessary, and video cameras will be permitted. As a Wolverine wrestler (2005-08), Churella wrapped up his collegiate career with a 124-21 record -- ranking 15th among Michigan's all-time wins leaders -- and three All-America citations. He boasted a career-best 31-5 record during his junior season; the same year he advanced to the 149-pound final at the NCAA Championships. Churella began his career at 141 pounds, where he won a Big Ten title and earned All-America honors as a freshman. Kennedy was a three-time All-American at the University of Illinois (2007-09, '11), placing fifth at 141 pounds as a senior after earning back-to-back top-five NCAA finishes at 133 pounds during his sophomore and junior seasons. His career record of 119-24 ranks eighth in Illini program history. Both wrestlers are currently training in Ann Arbor, Mich., for the 2012 London Olympic Games. Churella ranks third on USA Wrestling's 66kg/145.5-pound freestyle ladder after twice placing third at the World Team Trials (2010, '11). Kennedy, in his first full year of freestyle competition, ranks ninth at 60kg/132 pounds. He took second at 2010 University World Team Trials and, more recently, fourth at the 2011 Sunkist Kids International Open. Following the clinic, the Wolverines will square off against Wisconsin for their 2011-12 home opener at Cliff Keen Arena. The Big Ten Conference dual is slated for a 2 p.m. start, and all clinic participants will receive free admission to the meet and a food voucher. Accompanying parents and coaches are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance via the U-M Ticket Office. For any further information regarding the clinic, please contact the Michigan wrestling office at 734-647-0248 or email mfsears@umich.edu.

MOUNT PLEASANT -- The Central Michigan wrestling program returns to McGuirk Arena this weekend, hosting back-to-back dual meets to open the home schedule. The weekend begins with a top-20 matchup when No. 4 Minnesota travels to Mount Pleasant to face the No. 19 Chippewas Friday at 7:30 p.m. CMU welcomes Ohio to McGuirk Arena Saturday at 7 p.m. in the Mid-American Conference opener for both teams. "We're really excited about the opportunity to compete at home this weekend," said CMU head coach Tom Borrelli. "Our home crowd has always been good to us. This is our first match in front of them this season, and we're really excited for that." Minnesota will be the first top-five ranked team to visit Mount Pleasant since Nebraska in 2009. All 10 probable starters for the Golden Gophers are ranked in the top 20 nationally in their respective weight class. Ohio handed the Chippewas their only Mid-American Conference loss a year ago, a 21-17 decision in Athens. CMU, Ohio and Kent State ended the 2010-11 season in a three-way tie atop the MAC standings. Follow the Action: Fans can follow both of this weekend's duals on CMUChippewas.com. Both duals will be streamed live through the CMU Sports Zone on CMUChippewas.com, and live match updates will be provided on Facebook.com/CMUWrestling and on Twitter @CMUWrestling. Live match scoring also will be available through trackwrestling.com. Twitter Reminder: You've already found the social media home for CMU Athletics at cmuchippewas.com/socialmedia, but you can now receive specific game updates during home CMU events by including event-specific hashtags in all tweets related to the event. Include the hashtag #CMUMINN to join the conversation between fans, media and CMU Athletics during Friday's dual, and #CMUOHIO for Saturday's dual. iPad2 Giveaway: All fans in attendance at Friday's dual meet against Minnesota will be eligible to win an iPad2 courtesy of CMU Athletics. Fans will receive a raffle ticket as they enter McGuirk Arena, and CMU head coach Tom Borrelli will draw the winning ticket in a video posted on Facebook.com/CMUWrestling on Monday. Pre-Match Tailgate at O'Kelly's: The CMU wrestling program is hosting a pre-match tailgate on Friday at O'Kelly's in Mount Pleasant. The event begins at 5:30 p.m. and is open to the public. Food and drink specials will be offered to those in attendance. CMU vs. Minnesota: CMU is seeking their first win over the Golden Gophers, who lead the all-time series 11-0. Last season, victories at 184 and 197 pounds carried Minnesota to a 21-17 come-from-behind win over CMU at the Northern Quad. Friday's dual marks Minnesota's first trip to Mount Pleasant. CMU vs. Ohio: The Chippewas lead the all-time series over Ohio, 22-17. CMU had won 12 straight in the series until the Bobcats used a pair of defensive falls to upset the Chippewas, 21-17, in Athens last season. The Chippewas shut out Ohio, 40-0, in the teams' last meeting in Mount Pleasant two years ago. In the Rankings: Central Michigan is ranked No. 19 in this week's NWCA/USA Today poll. Minnesota is ranked No. 4 in the NWCA/USA Today poll and No. 3 in the InterMat tournament strength rankings. Ohio is not ranked in either poll. The NWCA poll is voted on by a nationwide pool of head coaches and based on perceived dual meet strength, while the InterMat team rankings are based on individual weight class rankings. Individuals ranked in the top 20 nationally of their respective weight classes by InterMat: Central Michigan 125: No. 19 Joe Roth 157: No. 19 Donnie Corby 184: No. 9 Ben Bennett 285: No. 9 Peter Sturgeon Minnesota 125: No. 2 Zach Sanders 133: No. 6 David Thorn 141: No. 13 Nick Dardanes 149: No. 13 Dylan Ness 157: No. 9 Jake Deitchler 165: No. 8 Cody Yohn 174: No. 8 Logan Storley 184: No. 5 Kevin Steinhaus 197: No. 3 Sonny Yohn 285: No. 2 Tony Nelson Ohio 174: No. 15 Nick Purdue 285 No. 12 Jeremy Johnson CMU vs. the Top 5 in Mount Pleasant: CMU is 1-2-2 at home against top-five opponents since the start of the 2005-06 season: Dec. 11, 2005: No. 2 Michigan, L, 22-14 Dec. 9, 2006: No. 2 Missouri, L, 31-9 Jan. 7, 2007: No. 3 Hofstra, T, 18-18 Jan. 20, 2008: No. 4 Michigan, W, 21-13 Jan. 25, 2009: No. 4 Nebraska, T, 17-17 CMU vs. the MAC: The Chippewas have won 66 of their last 69 conference duals dating back to the 1998-99 season. CMU has won at least a share of 12 of the last 13 MAC titles and 10 straight conference tournament championships. Roth Enters the Rankings: Sophomore 125-pounder Joe Roth is now 15-2 overall and ranked No. 19 nationally at 125 pounds. Roth has won six straight matches and 12 of his last 13. He was the only Chippewa to post a perfect 4-0 mark at Northeast Duals last weekend. Coming Up: CMU travels to Buffalo next Saturday, Dec. 10, for a Mid-American Conference dual match against the Bulls.

LINCOLN, Neb. -- Head Coach Mark Manning and the Husker wrestling program have announced the signings of four high school seniors and one junior college athlete who plan to enroll and compete at Nebraska beginning with the 2012-13 season. This year's class includes four wrestlers that have won state championships, and one wrestler that qualified for the NCAA tournament as a true freshman in 2010-11. The signees also include Howells, Neb., native and three-time Nebraska state champion Eric Coufal. Two of the recruits are ranked inside the top 85 nationally, according to InterMat. 2011-12 Nebraska Wrestling Signees (bold weights indicate projected college division) Eric Coufal, Howells, Neb. (Howells) - 125/133 Coufal is the next wrestler to sign a letter-of-intent with the Huskers, continuing a strong connection between the Nebraska wrestling program and Howells High School. Coufal will begin his senior season with hopes of becoming only the state's 17th four-time state champion. A member of the NWCA Class D Academic All-State team as a junior, Coufal won his third state championship in as many years by pinning Garrett Bowder in 5:20 in the state final to finish his season 49-0. As a freshman he won the 103-pound state championship, before winning the 112-pound Class D title his sophomore year to help him rack up 124 career wins to go with no losses. Coufal will project as a 125 or 133 pounder. Frank Cagnina, Hillsdale, N.J. (Iowa Central CC/Lehigh/Queen of Peace) - 133 Cagnina will come to Nebraska from Iowa Central Community College after transferring from Lehigh following his true freshman season. Cagnina will bring a wealth of experience to the Huskers as he qualified for the NCAA tournament at 133 pounds in his only season with the Mountain Hawks in 2011. The Hillsdale, N.J., native finished his season with a 20-6 overall record and nine major decision victories. Cagnina was a highly rated recruit coming out of Queen of Peace High School where he was a three-time state champion and owned a 162-4 career record. Cagnina won the 103-pound state title as a freshman, before winning state titles his junior and senior seasons at 125 and 130 pounds, respectively. Cagnina went 82-0 during his last two seasons in high school. Ranked second nationally in his weight class and No. 20 overall, Cagnina was a Super 32 finalist two times and captured the title in 2009. Ben Morgan, Forest Lake, Minn. (Forest Lake) - 133 Morgan is a five-time state qualifier for Forest Lake High School and won the 2008 112-pound Class AAA state championship as an eighth grader to finish his year with a 44-3 record. The No. 84 overall recruit in the country according to InterMat, Morgan has racked up 196 career victories during his five year career, which included varsity seasons in seventh and eighth grade. In 2009, Morgan took third at the state meet at 119 pounds and has placed third in both 2010 and 2011 at 130 pounds to help him become the school's all-time wins leader. Morgan is the son of 1996 U.S. Olympic wrestler Gordy Morgan. Tim Lambert, Forest Hills Mich. (Forest Hills Eastern) - 125 The No. 2 ranked wrestler at 120 pounds and No. 35 recruit nationally, Lambert has finished in the top five at the Michigan state wrestling tournament for three consecutive seasons. Lambert took home third place as a junior by going 61-1, after recording a second place finish as a sophomore. Lambert finished in fifth place as a freshman. This summer, Lambert made a strong showing at the Junior Nationals in Fargo, N.D., pinning Cory Clark from Iowa to take third place honors. Lambert owns the Michigan state high school record for most three-point nearfalls in a season with 125 in 2010-11, breaking his own record of 109 which he did in 2009-10. Lambert has a 178-5 overall record entering his senior season. McCoy Newberg, Franklin, Tenn. (Independence) - 174/184 The first recruit to join the Husker program from the state of Tennessee since Matt Keller in 2002-03, Newberg is a two-time state placer at the DI Tennessee state wrestling championships, including a first-place finish his junior season at 160 pounds. Newberg finished his junior year with a 51-2 record and won the Most Outstanding Wrestler award in his division for his efforts on the mat. Newberg was dominant during his state championships season, recording 157 takedowns, 23 pins and 11 technical falls. As a sophomore, Newberg finished third at the state championships which helped him reach his 129 career win total. Newberg is a two-time NHSCA All-American, including a second place finish in 2009 as a freshman.

ITHACA, N.Y. -- The No. 5 Big Red wrestling team travels to Las Vegas, Nev. this weekend in search of its second-straight team title at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Cornell brings five nationally ranked wrestlers into the weekend with junior Kyle Dake holding the top spot at 157 pounds. Thirty-four teams will compete for the team title with 12 schools ranked in the top 30 teams by InterMat. Wrestling begins at 12 p.m EST. Cornell Lineup 125: No. 6 Frank Perrelli 133: Nick Pena 141: No. 12 Mike Nevinger 149: No. 12 Craig Eifert 157: No. 1 Kyle Dake 165: Marshall Peppelman 174: Billy George 184: No. 3 Steve Bosak 197: Lukasz Stala HWT: Maciej Jochym 30th Annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational Friday, Dec. 4 - Saturday, Dec. 5, 2011 Las Vegas Convention Center ~ Hall C-5 Event Schedule (All times PST) Friday, Dec. 4 9 a.m. - Pigtail Round, Round 1, Round 2, Consolation Pigtails and Consolation Round 1 7 p.m. - Quarterfinals and Consolation Round 2 and 3 Saturday, Dec. 5 9 a.m. - Consolation Round 4 10 a.m. - Semi-Finals and Consolation Round 5, Consolation Semi-Finals, Consolation Finals (3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th) 3 p.m. - Championship Finals 1st and 2nd Teams Competing Air Force Army Arizona State Boise State Brown No. 19 Cal Poly Cal State Bakersfield California Baptist No. 5 Cornell Drexel No. 24 Edinboro Harvard Hofstra Indiana No. 22 Kent State Menlo College No. 8 Michigan Navy Nebraska Nebraska-Kearney North Carolina Northern Colorado North Dakota State North Idaho College No. 10 Ohio State No. 14 Oregon State No. 14 Pittsburgh San Francisco State No. 12 Stanford Utah Valley West Virginia Western Wyoming Wisconsin No. 13 Wyoming AT THE HELM Rob Koll, the David R. Dunlop '59 Head Coach of Wrestling, begins his 19th season as mentor of the Cornell wrestling program. In that time, Koll has amassed a 207-74-5 overall record in duals and has led the Big Red to 12 Ivy League titles. Cornell has captured five EIWA team championships and earned 36 EIWA individual titles. This season he helped Cornell to its first ever National Duals title Jan. 8-9, 2011 in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Koll, a four-time All-American and former NCAA champion, has helped Big Red wrestlers to capture seven individual NCAA titles and 40 All-America honors. Follow the Action Fans can follow the Big Red throughout the season by Twitter. Cornell coaches will keep fans updated match-by-match throughout the weekend at www.twitter.com/bigredwrestling. Another great way to follow the Big Red throughout the season is to become a fan on Facebook. The team reached its goal of 10,000 fans this summer. Mat Town Open Over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, eight Big Red grapplers headed to the Lock Haven Mat Town USA Open. Eight wrestlers placed in the top six including: Nick Pena (3rd, 133), Joe Stanzione (6th, 141), Ryan Dunphy (3rd, 149), Michael Alexander (5th, 174), Lukasz Stala (3rd, 197), Stryker Lane (1st, HWT) and Oney Snyder (5th, HWT). Last Year In Sin City The Big Red finished in first place at the Las Vegas Invitational last season after placing second in 2009. Mack Lewnes '11 (174), Steve Bosak (184) and Cam Simaz (197) all won individual titles in their respective weight classes. At 165 pounds, Justin Kerber '11 placed second. Also placing for Cornell was Frank Perrelli (fifth, 125), Chris Villalonga (eighth, 141) and DJ Meagher (sixth, 157). The Big Red finished with 140 team points and was trailed by Wisconsin (101.5), Boise State (100), Oklahoma (99) and Illinois (91). Second-Straight Title The Big Red wrestling team won the team title at the Body Bar Invitational after crowning three champions. Kyle Dake (157), Billy George (174) and Steve Bosak (184) all won titles in their individual weight classes. Frank Perrelli (125) and Mike Nevinger (141) both took second, while Joe Stanzione (133), Craig Eifert (149) and Marshall Peppelman (165) placed fifth. Heavyweight Maciej Jochym finished in sixth place. All Things Ivy With another 5-0 season against Ancient Eight foes, the Big Red won its ninth-straight Ivy League title last season. Cornell had an impressive 10 wrestlers earn All-Ivy honors. Cam Simaz was named Ivy League Wrestler of the Year. Simaz was joined by Frank Perrelli (125), Mike Grey '11 (133), Kyle Dake (149), Mack Lewnes '11 (174), Steve Bosak (184) on the first-team. Corey Manson '11 (141) and DJ Meagher (157) earned second-team nods, while Stryker Lane was honorable mention at heavyweight. Next Time Out The Big Red will break for the winter holidays, but Cornell will return to action on Jan. 1-2 at the Southern Scuffle in Chattanooga, Tenn.

The Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, one of the nation's premier college wrestling events, takes place Friday and Saturday at the Las Vegas Convention Center. This year's field includes 10 teams ranked in the InterMatWrestle.com Top 25, with No. 5 Cornell leading the way. The Big Red captured the team title at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational last year. Over 70 ranked wrestlers are expected to compete at this year's event, including two returning NCAA Division I champions. InterMatWrestle.com will be providing a live chat throughout the two-day event for fans to follow all the action. Wrestling gets underway on Friday at 9 a.m. PT. The quarterfinal round is scheduled for 7 p.m. PT on Friday. Wrestling begins on Saturday at 10 a.m. with the semifinal round. The finals are slated for 3 p.m. PT on Saturday. Below is a weight-by-weight preview of this year's event. 125: Ranked Wrestlers (8): No. 3 Nic Bedelyon (Kent State), No. 6 Frank Perrelli (Cornell), No. 7 Trent Sprenkle (North Dakota State), No. 12 Michael Martinez (Wyoming), No. 13 Steve Bonanno (Hofstra), No. 16 Anthony Zanetta (Pittsburgh), No. 18 Shane Young (West Virginia), No. 20 Tyler Iwamura (CSU Bakersfield) Synopsis: Kent State's Nick Bedelyon, an All-American in 2009, is off to a strong start this season. He is 11-0 with two pins, three technical falls, and a major decision. Bedelyon's most notable victory this season came over Oklahoma's Jarrod Patterson at the NWCA All-Star Classic. Cornell's Frank Perrelli was fifth at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational a year ago, and will be one of the favorites to reach the finals this year. He fell to Bedelyon 9-4 in the finals of the Body Bar Invitational on Nov. 19. North Dakota State's Trent Sprenkle has been wrestling well, with his only two losses coming to No. 2 Zach Sanders of Minnesota. Wyoming's Michael Martinez has been fourth at this event, and has to be considered a threat. 133: Ranked Wrestlers (10): No. 4 Logan Stieber (Ohio State), No. 5 Ryan Mango (Stanford), No. 10 A.J. Schopp (Edinboro), No. 11 Zac Stevens (Michigan), No. 15 Colin Johnston (West Virginia), No. 16 Aaron Kalil (Navy), No. 17 Ridge Kiley (Nebraska), No. 18 Steven Keith (Harvard), No. 19 James Roberts (Oregon State), No. 20 Shelton Mack (Pittsburgh) Synopsis: Ohio State's Logan Stieber and Stanford's Ryan Mango are the two most accomplished wrestlers in this weight class. Stieber, a Junior World silver medalist, battled injuries last season, which contributed to his sixth-place finish at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational a year ago. He is now healthy and wrestling as well as any wrestler in the country. Mango, an All-American last season at 125 pounds, moved up to 133 pounds this year and has started the season 7-0. Edinboro's A.J. Schopp is a tough freshman who enters the tournament with a 10-0 record. Michigan's Zac Stevens is 5-1, with his only loss coming to Schopp. 141: Ranked Wrestlers (9): No. 1 Kellen Russell (Michigan), No. 2 Boris Novachkov (Cal Poly), No. 5 Michael Mangrum (Oregon State), No. 10 Tyler Small (Kent State), No. 12 Mike Nevinger (Cornell), No. 14 Evan Henderson (North Carolina), No. 15 Hunter Stieber (Ohio State), No. 17 Mitchell Port (Edinboro), No. 20 Nathan Pennesi (West Virginia) Synopsis: This weight class features perhaps the most anticipated potential matchup of this year's Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational: Top-ranked Kellen Russell of Michigan versus No. 2 Boris Novachkov of Cal Poly. The two met in both the finals of the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, and the NCAA finals last season, with Russell winning both meetings by the identical score of 3-2. Russell is 5-0 this season, while Novachkov is 7-0. Oregon State's Michael Mangrum, a two-time NCAA qualifier, will be looking to play spoiler. He has started his season 8-0. Kent State's Tyler Small, who is ranked 10th, has a 12-1 season record with wins over the No. 11, No. 12, and No. 17 wrestlers. North Carolina's Evan Henderson, Ohio State's Hunter Stieber, and Edinboro's Mitchell Port are three freshmen to watch. 149: Ranked Wrestlers (9): No. 3 Tyler Nauman (Pittsburgh), No. 5 Cole Von Ohlen (Air Force), No. 6 Eric Grajales (Michigan), No. 7 Scott Sakaguchi (Oregon State), No. 11 Cole Schmitt (Wisconsin), No. 12 Craig Eifert (Cornell), No. 15 Cam Tessari (Ohio State), No. 17 Taylor Walsh (Indiana), No. 19 Ian Miller (Kent State) Synopsis: This is one of the most wide open weight classes at this year's Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Pitt's Tyler Nauman is the lone All-American at this weight class, but four of the nation's top 10 wrestlers are expected to compete, plus three nationally ranked freshmen. Nauman, a senior, enters the event with a 7-0 record. One of his wins came against Michigan's Eric Grajales, a Big Ten runner-up and top contender in this weight class. Oregon State's Scott Sakaguchi has started his sophomore season 8-0 after winning 26 matches as a freshman. Wisconsin's Cole Schmitt placed seventh at this event last year, and comes in with a 5-0 record. Cornell's Craig Eifert is 8-1 this season with a win over Minnesota's Dylan Ness. Three nationally ranked freshmen who could be bracket busters in this weight class are Ohio State's Cam Tessari, Indiana's Taylor Walsh, and Kent State's Ian Miller. 157: Ranked Wrestlers (5): No. 1 Kyle Dake (Cornell), No. 7 Walter Peppelman (Harvard), No. 14 Josh Demas (Ohio State), No. 17 Steven Monk (North Dakota State), No. 18 George Ivanov (Boise State) Synopsis: Cornell's Kyle Dake, a two-time NCAA champion, is the prohibitive favorite to win this weight class. Dake has started the season 10-0, which includes tournament titles at the Binghamton Open and the Body Bar Invitational. Interestingly, Dake has yet to win a title at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. He was fourth as a freshman and did not compete last season. One of Dake's top challengers is returning All-American Walter Peppelman of Harvard, who is 7-1 in this season. Ohio State freshman Josh Demas is 7-1,with his only loss coming to No. 5 Jesse Dong of Virginia Tech. North Dakota State's Steven Monk has started the season 8-1, with his lone blemish coming to 2008 Olympian Jake Deitchler of Minnesota in sudden victory. Boise State's George Ivanov, a two-time Division II All-American who transferred from Nebraska-Omaha, is also a top challenger in this weight class. 165: Ranked Wrestlers (7): No. 3 Shane Onufer (Wyoming), No. 4 P.J. Gillespie (Hofstra), No. 10 Robert Kokesh (Nebraska), No. 12 Gabe Burak (Northern Colorado), No. 16 Ben Jordan (Wisconsin), No. 17 Joe Booth (Drexel), No. 18 Dan Yates (Michigan) Synopsis: Two returning All-Americans, Wyoming's Shane Onufer and Hofstra's P.J. Gillespie, headline this weight class. Onufer is 6-0 this season, but dropped an unofficial match to Maryland's Josh Asper at the NWCA All-Star Classic. Onufer was a runner-up at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational two seasons ago. Gillespie, like Onufer, comes in with a 6-0 season mark. Onufer edged Gillespie, 7-6, at the NCAAs last season. Nebraska's Robert Kokesh has followed up a 34-1 redshirt season by winning six of his first seven matches as a starter for the Huskers. His lone loss came to Onufer, 6-2. Northern Colorado's Gabe Burak, a transfer from Penn, has looked strong in the early part of the season. Burak went 3-2 at the NCAAs last season, losing in the round of 12 to Gillespie. 174: Ranked Wrestlers (6): No. 1 Nick Amuchastegui (Stanford), No. 4 Nick Heflin (Ohio State), No. 7 Ryan DesRoches (Cal Poly), No. 11 Justin Zeerip (Michigan), No. 18 Oscar Huntley (Navy), No. 19 Ethan Headlee (Pittsburgh) Synopsis: Stanford's Nick Amuchastegui, an NCAA runner-up last season who is undefeated this season, will be the odds on favorite to win a title in Las Vegas at this weight class. Ohio State's Nick Heflin, an NCAA qualifier last season as a freshman, is off to an 8-0 start this season. Heflin fell to Amuchastegui, 6-1, at the NCAAs last season. Cal Poly's Ryan DesRoches, a two-time NCAA qualifier, is 6-0 this season and will be looking to improve upon on his third-place finish at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational last year. Michigan's Justin Zeerip is undefeated this season with his most recent win coming against Pitt's Ethan Headlee, another wrestler expected to contend in this weight class in Las Vegas. 184: Ranked Wrestlers (7): No. 3 Steve Bosak (Cornell), No. 4 Joe LeBlanc (Wyoming), No. 10 Josh Ihnen (Nebraska), No. 12 Jake Swartz (Boise State), No. 13 Luke Rebertus (Navy), No. 16 Matt Ryan (West Virginia), No. 18 Ben Clymer (Hofstra) Synopsis: Cornell's Steve Bosak, a returning All-American, will be looking for his second straight Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational title. The third-ranked Bosak has looked sharp over the first month of the season. He dominated returning All-American Kevin Steinahus, 8-2, in Cornell's first dual meet of the season. A day later, he cruised to a title at the Body Bar Invitational. One wrestler standing in Bosak's way this weekend is Wyoming's Joe LeBlanc, a two-time All-American who is ranked fourth nationally, one spot below Bosak. LeBlanc picked up a win at this year's NWCA All-Star Classic over Central Michigan's Ben Bennett. LeBlanc was third at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational two seasons ago. Nebraska's Josh Ihnen, an NCAA round of 12 finisher the past two seasons, has proven that he can wrestle with the best and should not be counted out. He lost to LeBlanc, 6-4, early last season. Boise State's Jake Swartz and Navy's Luke Rebertus are both NCAA qualifiers who placed at this event a year ago. 197: Ranked Wrestlers (6): No. 4 Chris Honeycutt (Edinboro), No. 5 Matt Powless (Indiana), No. 7 Matt Wilps (Pittsburgh), No. 12 Taylor Meeks (Oregon State), No. 17 Andrew Campolattano (Ohio State), No. 19 Ryan Smith (Cal Poly) Synopsis: This weight class is intriguing because of the mix of proven upperclassmen and young talent. Edinboro's Chris Honeycutt and Indiana's Matt Powless are returning All-Americans and NCAA title contenders. Honeycutt was an NCAA fifth-place finisher last season at 184 pounds, but moved up this season and been impressive in going 10-0. Powless placed third at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational last year, losing only to eventual champion Cam Simaz of Cornell, who will not be competing at this year's event. Powless is currently 10-0. Pitt's Matt Wilps, an NCAA qualifier in 2010, is coming off a redshirt season in which he went 18-2. He has started this season 7-1, with his only loss coming to Honeycutt. Oregon State's Taylor Meeks and Ohio Stat's Andrew Campolattano are impressive freshmen who should figure into the mix. 285: Ranked Wrestlers (9): No. 6 Levi Cooper (Arizona State), No. 8 Clayton Jack (Oregon State), No. 11 Tucker Lane (Nebraska), No. 13 Zac Thomusseit (Pittsburgh), No. 14 Ben Apland (Michigan), No. 15 Ernest James (Edinboro), No. 16 Brendan Barlow (Kent State), No. 18 Kyle Frey (Drexel), No. 20 J.T. Felix (Boise State) Synopsis: This is truly a wide open weight class. Nine of the nation's top 20 heavyweights are expected to be in Las Vegas, but only two of the nine are ranked in the top 10. Arizona State's Levi Cooper, a returning All-American, defeated NCAA champion Zack Rey of Lehigh last weekend at the Journeymen/ASICS Northeast Duals. Oregon State's Clayton and Nebraska's Tucker Lane are both three-time NCAA qualifiers looking to finish on the NCAA podium in March. Jack reached the semifinals of last year's Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Pitt's Zac Thomusseit is a two-time NCAA qualifier who moved up from 197 pounds. Michigan's Ben Apland was a finalist at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational a year ago.

The UFC's first Countdown show away from SPIKE has been scheduled for Fuel TV. Countdown to 140 featuring the camps and preparation of UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon "Bones" Jones and top challenge Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida is set to premier Wednesday, Dec. 7 at 7 p.m. ET/PT. Replays of the show will be aired Thursday, December 8th at 1 a.m ET/PT and December 9th at 5 p.m. ET/PT. Also featured on the UFC 140 card from Rodgers Center in Canada will be former UFC champion Frank Mir and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, as well as a light heavyweight matchup between Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and former champ Tito Ortiz. The full card can be found at UFC.com

Here We Go ... again ... well, most likely. The Rashad Evans vs. Phil Davis fight originally planned for UFC 133 will be the co-main event for UFC on FOX 2 January 28th, according to ESPN. The light heavyweight fight will be on Evans' home turf. The New York-native and former standout wrestler at Michigan State is a part-time resident of Chicago. Evans has been recovering from a knee injury. Davis is perfect in his MMA career and is coming off a unanimous decision victory over Antonio Rogerio Nogueira in March.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Purdue senior Matt Fields was named the Big Ten Wrestler of the Week on Tuesday after an outstanding 4-0 performance at the Journeymen/Asics Northeast Duals on Saturday at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, N.Y. Fields scored 22 of a possible 24 team points on the day, notching a major decision and three pins, including a fall in the Boilermakers' 24-22 upset of No. 14 American University. With eighth-ranked sophomore Cashé Quiroga recovering from an injury suffered at the Eastern Michigan Open, Fields has held down the 133-pound starting spot for the Boilermakers and posted an 8-4 record so far this season. He has a team-best four falls and is tied for the team lead with a pair of major decisions. "Matt has been an outstanding member of our team for the last four seasons and it's great to see him have this kind of success as a senior," said Purdue head coach Scott Hinkel. "The goal is to win every match, and this weekend Matt achieved that goal in dominant fashion. We're fired up for him, but want to make sure he continues wrestling like this." Fields opened up Saturday with an 11-0 major decision over Binghamton's Patrick Hunter, coming out on top of scrambles for three takedowns and cradling Hunter for a three-point nearfall in the third period. He trailed Rutgers' Daniel White, 2-1, heading to the third period, but took a 4-2 lead on a three-point nearfall and then stuck White at 6:32 for the six team points. Fields' final two opponents weren't able to make it out of the first period as he stuck Lehigh's Chris Dinnien in 2:52 and needed just 43 seconds to pin American's Chris Brienza. With his impressive weekend, Fields has moved on to the Purdue Career Record lists in a trio of categories: ranking ninth all-time with 151 back points, tied for 17th at Purdue with 27 reversals and standing 19th with 16 career falls. He is the first Boilermaker to earn Big Ten Wrestler of the Week honors since Colton Salazar earned the award on Nov. 10, 2009, after winning the Eastern Michigan Open. Fields and the Boilermakers continue their season Thursday at Northern Illinois.

WATERLOO, Iowa -- The National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable and the Iowa Women's Foundation will host the women's national freestyle wrestling team on Saturday, Dec. 3. The women's team will visit the museum following a week-long training camp in Iowa City. The athletes visiting the museum are expected to compete at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials, which will be held at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City on April 21-22. Terry Steiner, a 1993 NCAA champion at Iowa and USA Wrestling's National Women's coach, is returning to the state as the leader of the U.S. women's wrestling program. A wrestling demonstration by the women's team will be held at 9 a.m. in the Dan Gable Teaching Center, which is located inside the Dan Gable Museum. This event is free and open to the public. The museum is located at 303 Jefferson St. in Waterloo.

Terry Steiner and John Oostendorp will go “On the Mat” this Wednesday, Nov. 30. "On the Mat" is a presentation of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum. The show can be heard live on the Internet at www.kcnzam.com or locally in Northeast Iowa each Wednesday from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. CT on AM 1650, The Fan. An archive of the show can be found on www.themat.tv. E-mail radio@wrestlingmuseum.org with any questions or comments about the show. Steiner is USA Wrestling's National Women's wrestling coach. He was an NCAA champion for Iowa in 1993. Steiner will be in Iowa this week at a training camp for many of the top Olympic hopefuls in women's freestyle wrestling. Oostendorp is the current head wrestling coach at Coe College. He was an All-American at heavyweight for Iowa in 1992 and 1993. Oostendorp was also a member of the U.S. Greco-Roman World team in 1995.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- The Purdue wrestling team continues its dual campaign this Thursday, heading to DeKalb, Ill. to face Northern Illinois University (NIU) at Victor E. Court in the NIU Convocation Center at 7 p.m. (CT). The Boilermakers sit at 2-4 in dual competition after going 1-3 at last weekend's Journeymen/Asics Northeast Duals, while the Huskies are 3-2 on the year following a 2-1 performance at the Hoosier Duals on Saturday. The Boilermakers look to rebound from a disappointing performance in New York last weekend, winning just 14 matches on Saturday. Senior Matt Fields led the Purdue effort at 133 pounds, scoring 22 of a possible 24 team points with a major decision and three pins, while freshman Braden Atwood was 3-1 at 184 pounds and fellow rookie Drake Stein was 2-1 at 174 pounds. “We weren't happy with the way we wrestled at the Northeast Duals, but we learned some things and we came away with some positives,” said Purdue head coach Scott Hinkel. “Thursday is another opportunity to correct some of our mistakes and get back on the winning path.” NIU is fresh off a solid performance in Bloomington, where they posted wins over Campbell and SIU-Edwardsville, 22-14 and 25-7, respectively, but fell to the hosts, 22-12. The Huskies are led by 20th-ranked fifth-year senior 184-pounder Brad Dieckhaus, who swept his three bouts on Saturday to open his individual season. Dieckhaus won the 2011 MAC Championship en route to an NCAA Championships bid, where he finished 1-2. Others to look out for in the NIU lineup include 8-1 sophomore Nick Smith at 125 pounds, 2-0 sophomore Kevin Fanta at 141 pounds and 6-3 freshman Tyler Loethen at 157 pounds. Boilermaker standouts Cashé Quiroga and A.J. Kissel remain questionable for Thursday's contest as neither competed at last weekend's duals in New York. Quiroga is eighth in the nation at 133 pounds, while Kissel is 11th at 197 pounds. Things get tougher for the Old Gold and Black this week as they'll be without 10th-ranked junior Ivan Lopouchanski at 149 pounds on Thursday as he was injured in loss to No. 9 Donnie Vinson of Binghamton, Lopouchanski's first loss as a Boilermaker. Fields has been solid in Quiroga's absence, putting together an 8-4 mark including four pins and a pair of major decisions. He's given up just three escapes in 12 matches and is second on the team with six reversals. Atwood has begun tripping tongues across the nation as well, earning recognition from four national polls this week after his 15-3 major decision over No. 20 Nat Schiedel of Binghamton on Saturday. He's been ranked between 18th and 25th in the nation at 184 pounds, and looks to takedown his second ranked opponent of the season in Dieckhaus. Other Boilermakers to keep an eye on this weekend include Stein, sophomore Kyle Mosier and senior Roger Vukobratovich. At 6-3 on the season, Stein has five bonus-point victories, and his three falls are good for second on the team. Mosier is 7-4 on the year at 165 pounds, including an 11-7 decision over returning NCAA Qualifier Matt Kaylor of Binghamton. Mosier was second at the Eastern Michigan Open this year and three of his four losses have come to Top-15 ranked opponents. Vukobratovich is 6-4 so far this season, including a 5-3 victory over No. 17 Mike McClure of Michigan State, and has surrendered just three takedowns in his 10 contests. One of those came at the hands of sixth-ranked Levi Cooper of Arizona State and the other two to fourth-ranked defending NCAA Champion Zach Rey of Lehigh, while Vukobratovich has amassed 16 takedowns of his own. Thursday's match will be webcast live by the Huskies at: http://www.niuhuskies.com/allaccess/?media=281255, while live results will be available courtesy of TrackWrestling.com. In addition, there will be live play-by-play updates at the @PurdueWrestling Twitter account.

OSHKOSH, Wis. -- The UW-Stevens Point wrestling team could not overcome an early 16-0 deficit on Tuesday evening and fell 25-14 to the Titans of UW-Oshkosh at the Kolf Sports Center. The host Titans jumped in front early thanks to four straight victories. Joe Mileski (Gladstone, MI/Gladstone) recorded a 13-4 victory at 133 pounds to give UWSP its first points of the evening. Jordan Kust (Clintonville, WI/Shawano) added a 10-2 victory at 141 pounds to cut the deficit to 16-8. A pair of Titan wins at 149 and 157 pounds put the dual out of reach for the 25th-ranked Pointers, who closed the evenings with victories by Jordan Schulte (Mosinee, WI/Mosinee) at 165 and Ryan Conat (New London, WI/New London) at 174. UW-Stevens Point (1-1) returns to action with three dual matches December 3 at the UW-La Crosse 4x2 duals. Results: 184 Sam Engelland (UWO) Defeated Dan Diebitz (UWSP), 12-3 4/04 0/00 197 Jody VanLaanen (UWO) Defeated Andy Borchardt (UWSP), 19-5 4/08 0/00 285 Jason LaPlante (UWO) Defeated Matt Cuadra (UWSP), 6-3 3/11 0/00 125 Carl DeLuca (UWO) Defeated Ryan Osse (UWSP), 24-8 5/16 0/00 133 Joe Mileski (UWSP) Defeated Zachary Mueller (UWO), 13-4 0/16 4/04 141 Jordan Kust (UWSP) Defeated Alex Mueller (UWO), 10-2 0/16 4/08 149 Jose Quintana (UWO) Pinned Shane Sweeney (UWSP), 6:24 6/22 0/08 157 Nazar Kulchytskyy (UWO) Defeated Ben Strobel (UWSP), 13-6 3/25 0/08 165 Jordan Schulte (UWSP) Defeated Trevor Dyreson (UWO), 8-6 (OT) 0/25 3/11 174 Ryan Conat (UWSP) Defeated Dan Schiferl (UWO), 10-5 0/25 3/14

The No. 3 Peacocks opened their home schedule with a dual in Dorman Gym this evening against the Warriors of Waldorf College. After the Warriors picked up wins at 125, 157, 165 and 174 pounds to take a 13-12 lead, Upper Iowa put their hopes on the sturdy backs of their upper weights and the veteran crew of wrestlers responded with three pins to push the final margin to seventeen points, 30-13. Upper Iowa tied the dual at 133 pounds where Duane Richardson posted a controlled 4-0 decision thanks to a takedown in the first period, an escape and a ride time point. Blake Hilmer kept the momentum on the home team's side winning a 3-0 decision with a takedown and escape to put the Peacocks up 6-3. Jordan Rinken made the most of his first appearance in front of the home crowd posting an impressive win by fall. At the time of the fall (5:44) Rinken was ahead 18-5 and on the verge of more near fall points when he pinned Emmanuel Del Castillo's shoulders to the mat. After the fall, the Peacocks led the dual by a 12-3 count. The Warriors fought back with a major decision victory at 157 pounds and a pair of decisions at 165 and 174 to take a 13-12 lead with three matches remaing. The lead lasted a whopping 17 seconds as Mitch Schultz used a throw to put Steven DelGado on his back and record a pin just 17 seconds into the match. Not to be outdone, Carl Broghammer followed with a win by fall over Brock Binversie 2:17 into the first period and Zach Rosol closed out the night with a pin in the second period (3:44) against Jacob Combs. The UIU upper weights backed up their national recognition in preseason polls with impressive season debuts in Dorman. The Peacocks will now head west to the University of Northern Iowa this Satruday for the UNI Open before heading out to Indianapolis for the Midwest Classic on December 18-19. Results: 125 Bo Bettinson (Waldorf (Iowa)) won by decision over Chris Paulus (Upper Iowa) 6-2. 133 Duane Richardson (Upper Iowa) won by decision over Dillon Spates (Waldorf (Iowa)) 4-0. 141 Blake Hilmer (Upper Iowa) won by decision over Jeff Ohnemus (Waldorf (Iowa)) 3-0. 149 Jordan Rinken (Upper Iowa) won by pin over Emmanuel Del Castillo (Waldorf (Iowa)) 5:44. 157 Jeremy Padilla (Waldorf (Iowa)) won by major decision over Trevor Duke (Upper Iowa) 12-4. 165 Rashad Moss (Waldorf (Iowa)) won by decision over Blake Sorensen (Upper Iowa) 2-1. 174 Gabe Vasquez (Waldorf (Iowa)) won by decision over Wade Gobin (Upper Iowa) 7-4. 184 Mitch Schultz (Upper Iowa) won by pin over Steven DelGado (Waldorf (Iowa)) 0:17. 197 Carl Broghammer (Upper Iowa) won by pin over Brock Binversie (Waldorf (Iowa)) 2:17. 285 Zach Rosol (Upper Iowa) won by pin over Jacob Combs (Waldorf (Iowa)) 3:44.

ADA, Ohio -- Junior Mick Letcher and freshmen Michael Pawlitz and Cody Lovejoy each registered pins, leading No. 23-ranked Ohio Northern to a 38-7 victory over Mount Saint Joseph Tuesday night in a non-conference dual wrestling meet at the ONU Sports Center. The Polar Bears improve to 2-3, while the Lions fall to 1-1. Northern won eight of the 10 weight classes, including the first five of the night. Freshman Cole Cochran got ONU on the board first with a forfeit win at 125 pounds. Junior Jeremy Jones used a third period escape to post a 3-2 victory at 133 pounds to put ONU up 9-0. At the 141-pound weight class, sophomore Ryan Fowler had two 3-point near falls in the second period to take a 9-5 lead and went on to post a 10-6 decision, giving the Polar Bears a 12-0 advantage. Freshman Kyle Brezovec got a first period takedown and 3-point near fall and made it stand up, as he improved to 2-0 on the season with a 6-1 victory at 149 pounds, extending ONU's lead to 15-0. After an MSJ major decision at 157, Letcher improved to 2-0 on the year with a quick pin in 1:22 at 165 pounds and ONU's lead was 21-4. With the Polar Bears leading 21-7, junior All-American and No. 6-ranked Kyle Kwiat sealed the match for ONU with a tech fall victory at 184 pounds. Kwiat used three first period near falls to build an early 11-0 lead and won 17-0 in 6:00. Pawlitz remained undefeated at 5-0 and posted his fourth pin of the season, winning by fall at 3:59 at the 197-pound weight class. Lovejoy won by fall in 3:41 at heavyweight after leading 12-0 in the second period. The Polar Bears will return to action Saturday when they host the 31st annual ONU Invitational at the ONU Sports Center. Results: 125 -- Cole Coleman (ONU) won by forfeit 133 -- Jeremy Jones (ONU) dec. Ed Sanders, 3-2 141 -- Ryan Fowler (ONU) dec. Wayne Black, 10-6 149 -- Kyle Brezovec (ONU) dec. Joe Conrad, 6-1 157 -- Tom Fehring (MSJ) maj. dec. Dylon Gregg, 14-3 165 -- Mick Letcher (ONU) pinned Cory Disbennett, 1:22 174 -- Nicholas Manning (MSJ) dec. Billy Painter, 5-0 184 -- #6 Kyle Kwiat (ONU) tech fall Alec Camp, 6:00 (17-0) 197 -- Michael Pawlitz (ONU) pinned Logan Andriot, 3:59 285 -- Cody Lovejoy (ONU) pinned Robert Grogan, 3:41 Exhibition Matches: 133 -- Cole Cochran (ONU) dec. William Bryant, 5-0 141 -- Tevin Byers (MSJ) dec. Austin Nelson, 11-9 (ot) 149 -- Pat Piszker (ONU) dec. Alexander Jung, 8-2 157 -- Evan Samad (MSJ) maj. dec. Brandon Howes, 15-1 157 -- Ryan Ouzts (ONU) maj. dec. Anthony Catanzarile, 16-4 184 -- Dominic Owens (ONU) dec. Justin Meineke, 3-2 285 -- D.J. Recknagel (ONU) pinned Nathan Islamovsky, 2:33

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Coe jumped out to a 36-0 lead, including an upset over the top-ranked wrestler in the country at 125 pounds, in a 42-3 win over Buena Vista Tuesday night. Coe tallied 107 points in the dual, while giving up just 19 to the Beavers. Sophomore Jimmy Gotto (Epworth, Iowa/Western Dubuque) kicked things off for the Kohawks at 125 pounds. In his first match as a full-time starter, replacing the graduated two-time National Champion Clayton Rush, Gotto upset No. 1-ranked Austin Mogg with a 9-5 decision. Gotto trailed 4-2 in the first period before getting a takedown in the final seconds to tie the match at the end of the period. Gotto scored the only points of the second period with a takedown. Mogg started the third period on the bottom and escaped, but a Gotto takedown ended the match. Senior Jordan Westfall (Riverside, Iowa/Highland) scored seven points in the first period and added eight more in the second for a 15-0 technical fall over Michael Berardesco at 133 pounds. Two-time returning national qualifier Chris LeClere (Coggon, Iowa/North-Linn) led 2-1 at the end of the first period, but scored five in the second and nine in the third for a 16-2 major decision over Steven Gustchenritter at 141 pounds. The Kohawks got back-to-back 15-0 technical falls from seniors James Locke (Minneapolis, Minn./South) and Dale Handley (Toddville, Iowa/Alburnett) at 149 and 157 pounds. Both matches ended in the second period, as both Locke and Handley recorded two three-point nearfalls in the first period. Senior Nick LeClere (Coggon, Iowa/North-Linn) recorded Coe's fourth technical fall of the night at 165 pounds with a 16-1 victory over Seth Shatto. LeClere recorded nearfall points in all three periods of the match. Coe's lead was extended to 36-0 at 174 pounds, as Scott King (Tipton, Iowa/Tipton) won by forfeit. Freshman Ryan Sheldon (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Kennedy) improved to 8-0 in his career with an 11-4 decision over Demetrius Heard at 184 pounds. In one of the most exciting matches of the night, freshman Donnie Horner (Blue Springs, Mo./Blue Springs) gave fifth-ranked Brian Broll all he could handle. After a scoreless first period, Horner scored the first points of the match on a reversal in the second period. Broll started the third period on the bottom and cut Horner's lead to 2-1 with an escape before taking a 3-2 lead on a takedown. Horner escaped and got a takedown of his own to take a 5-3 lead before Broll escaped again and took down Horner. Horner was able to escape, but couldn't get a final takedown late in the match, as Broll won 7-6 on riding time. At heavyweight, junior Alex Burkle (Coggon, Iowa/North-Linn) took a 4-0 lead on a takedown and two nearfall points before pinning Jacob Nelson in 1:40. Handley and Nick LeClere hit milestone wins on the night, as they both earned their 70th wins as a Kohawk. Handley, a 2010 national qualifier, is 70-35 in his career and has won seven-straight matches. LeClere, a two-time All-American and National Runner-Up last season, is now 70-13 in his career. The Kohawks return to action on Saturday, as they travel to the Simpson Invitational in Indianola. Results: 125 - #8/9 Jimmy Gotto (Coe) won by decision over #4/1 Austin Mogg (Buena Vista) 9-5 133 - Jordan Westfall (Coe) won by tech fall over Michael Berardesco (Buena Vista) 4:18 15-0 141 - #6/7 Chris LeClere (Coe) won by major decision over Steven Gutschenritter (Buena Vista) 16-2 149 - #3/3 James Locke (Coe) won by tech fall over Kaine Leighty (Buena Vista) 4:20 15-0 157 - #9/6 Dale Handley (Coe) won by tech fall over Hunter St. John (Buena Vista) 3:24 15-0 165 - #1/1 Nick LeClere (Coe) won by tech fall over Seth Shatto (Buena Vista) 6:24 16-1 174 - #6/5 Scott King (Coe) won by forfeit 184 - Ryan Sheldon (Coe) won by decision over Demetrius Heard (Buena Vista) 11-4 197 - #7/5 Brian Broll (Buena Vista) won by decision over Donnie Horner (Coe) 7-6 285 - #6/6 Alex Burkle (Coe) won by pin over Jacob Nelson (Buena Vista) 1:40

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- University of Iowa and USA wrestling fans are encouraged to arrive early at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Friday. They'll be able to pick up their Olympic Trials promotional items and watch the United States women's national team perform a freestyle wrestling demonstration before Iowa's 7 p.m. dual with Illinois. Fans that purchased 2011-12 Hawkeye wrestling season tickets AND the VIP Package for the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials can pick up the limited edition Dan Gable Olympic bobblehead beginning at 5:30 p.m. near section A on the Carver-Hawkeye Arena concourse. Pre-purchased USA Wrestling/Iowa Hawkeye t-shirts will also be distributed. T-shirts and will not be available for purchase on site. You must have ordered the commemorative t-shirt in advance. The United States women's wrestling team will perform a demonstration from 6:30-6:50. Terry Steiner, head coach of the women's national team and a 1993 NCAA Champion and three-time All-American at Iowa, returned to Iowa City this week to lead the training session for the women's national team inside the Dan Gable Wrestling Complex. In addition to Friday's demonstration, the national team will also be special guests at the Iowa City and Coralville CVB annual business luncheon Thursday. Steiner's group includes 18 athletes expected to compete at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials, which will be held at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, April 21-22. Tickets to the event can be purchased at hawkeyesports.com and iowacitytolondon.com. Fan unable to attend the Iowa vs. Illinois dual may pick up their Dan Gable Olympic bobblehead and commemorative t-shirt at the Iowa City/Coralville Area Convention & Visitors Bureau beginning Monday, Dec. 5. Visit iowacitycoralville.org for CVB information.

Deep football runs impact winter sports Due to the way the fall and winter sports seasons align, when the football team makes a deep run in the state playoffs, it cuts into the winter sports season. In looking at things from a big picture perspective, come state tournament series time in February (or March), the impact will be virtually immaterial. Even with the deepest of playoff runs, winter sports participants will have had ample time to integrate and acclimate into the season, and prime themselves for state tournament glory. However, in the micro world of the national high school wrestling landscape, every single event and week is scrutinized from a ranking perspective. Additionally, many of the major big field events, which help to provide national ranking perspective, are held during the first month of the season. Even though, I try to account for varying circumstances with respect to personnel in analyzing results, it is an imperfect process. Non-performance, or the failure to capitalize in key events, can impact the national team rankings. Here is a look at how some of the top wrestling programs football success have impacted the present wrestling season, and/or could have thrown even a greater dent into things. No. 2 St. Edward, Ohio saw its football team eliminated from the playoffs on Nov. 12 in the second round. Given a week off for transition, wrestlers on the football team will have two full weeks of practice before the season opening competitions, and three weeks for the Ironman. If the defending state champions on the gridiron had reached the state final again this year, they would have been playing that game this coming weekend. With two nationally ranked wrestlers -- No. 11 Domenic Abounader (182) and No. 7 Greg Kuhar (285) -- on the football team, one would not have seen them in the wrestling lineup for this coming weekend or Ironman. No. 17 Allen, Texas, had its football team eliminated from the playoffs on Nov. 19 in the second round. Headed into the Class 5A Division 1 playoffs, the Eagles were a nationally ranked squad. If they had reached the state final, this game would have been played on Dec. 15. Those wrestlers on the football team would have been out of the picture for all December competition (Mid-America Nationals and Kansas City Wrestling Classic most notably); and only had two weeks of practice, after a presumed week off for transition, headed into the Cheesehead Invitational in early January. Key wrestlers that also play football include No. 9 Oliver Pierce (160), two-time state champion Nick Cobb (195), and state placer Shane Drulman (220). No. 26 Pittsburgh Central Catholic, Pa., had its football team eliminated from the playoffs on Nov. 18 in the third round. A state championship game for the Vikings football squad, which was nationally ranked, would have been played on Dec. 17. That date also happens to be the first day of the Beast of the East; therefore, those wrestlers on the football team would have missed the Ironman, Beast of the East, and in all reality the POWERade at the end of December as well. Impacted wrestlers would have included No. 13 Perry Hills (195) and returning POWERade placer Zach DeLuca (285). No. 30 Montini Catholic, Ill., saw its football team finish off a state championship campaign in Class 5A (there are 8 football classifications in Illinois) this past weekend. Even though the Broncos did not feature a nationally ranked wrestler among their football-wrestling dual sport participants, they are significantly impacted. The back four wrestlers in their lineup were all contributors to that state championship team -- Anthony Ferraro (182), David Sarkan (195), Edgar Ruano (220), and Jaleel Johnson (285). The Broncos have a potentially key dual meet scheduled for this coming weekend against Marist, Ill., and travel to Ohio for the Walsh Ironman next weekend; and will most likely do so without those four projected starters. Brian Murphy (Photo/Dave Jedlicka, jedicheetah.com)No. 34 Glenbard North, Ill., was eliminated in the Class 8A (big-school division) state semifinals on Nov. 19. The Illinois wrestling season started this past weekend, and coach Mark Hahn started the season without the services of some key wrestlers that were on the football team. In so doing, the Panthers were upended in dual meets by Lincoln Way East and Minooka this past Wednesday before an underwhelming second-place finish at the Conant Invitational on the weekend. Accounting for a week of transition, those wrestlers will have two weeks of practice under their belts before traveling to Brandon, Fla., on Dec. 9 and 10 for a two-day tournament. Impacted wrestlers include at minimum No. 3 Brandon Murphy (152) and Mario Rodriguez (145-160). Huskies with big weekend haul at Conant The 32nd Annual Chris Hruska Wrestling Classic hosted by Conant High School just outside of Chicago, Ill., had its bevy of stars dominating the show. Foremost among the stars was the performance of No. 32 Oak Park River Forest, Ill., making a statement against a tough opening weekend tournament field. The Huskies were led by championship performances from Jake O'Mara (138) and No. 3 Sam Brooks (182) among 12 placing wrestlers on the way to scoring 270 team points. Of the ten other Huskies place winners, seven lost just once on the weekend in finishing second or third. Runner-up finishes came from Larry Early (126), Emonte Logan (220), and Marq Brumant (285); while Colin Rogers (145), Devonte Mahomes (152), Michael Woulfe (160), and Joe Ariola (170) earned third place finishes. Brooks was one of three high profile wrestlers to earn tournament titles with four falls on the weekend. For Brooks, those four falls came within the first two periods after earning a 21-4 technical fall in his first round match. At 195 pounds, No. 4 Gage Harrah of Crystal Lake Central, Ill., was on the mat for all of 1:17, earning four falls in blitzing his way to a Hruska Classic championship. Finally at 220 pounds, No. 1 Josh Marchok of Schaumburg, Ill., also had four first period falls on the way to a title; his falls came in a combined 3:44. Finishing second place in the team standings was No. 34 Glenbard North, Ill., with 178-1/2 points. As described above, the Panthers were short-handed due to their football team's state semifinal appearance; but it still would not have been enough to upend the Huskies. The sole championship for Glenbard North came from No. 5 (at 120) Jered Cortez up at 126 pounds. Eight other Panthers placed, three of them either second or third, and another three earning fourth place. Chris Gonzales (120) took home a second place finish, while Richard Browne (113) and Jon Marmolejo (132) each earned third place. Other weight class champions were Wayne Yuan (106) from Naperville North, Ill.; Aaron Kohlberg (113) and Joe Caprio (170) from Rolling Meadows, Ill.; No. 10 (at 113) Matt Garrelli from Oak Park Fenwick, Ill., winning at 120; No. 8 Eddie Klimara (132) from Providence Catholic, Ill.; Jake O'Mara (138) from Oak Park River Forest, Ill.; Eddie Gonzalez (145) from Meta Valley, Ill.; Tim Noverini (152) from St. Charles North, Ill.; Feral Sewara (160) from Lake Park, Ill.; and James Buss (285) from De La Salle, Ill.. View brackets and team standings. Cougar Invitational Dates: Friday, Dec. 2 and Saturday, Dec. 3 Location: Tampa Convention Center (Tampa, Fla.) Top Teams: No. 4 Brandon, Fla.; No. 25 Collins Hill, Ga.; Camden County, Ga.; Osceola, Fla.; and Springstead, Fla. Notable Wrestlers: 106: No. 6 Sean Russell (Collins Hill, Ga.); No. 10 Dylan Lucas (Brandon, Fla.); Ariel Dominguez (Osceola, Fla.) 113: James Flint (Brandon, Fla.); Ryan Millhof (Collins Hill, Ga.); Darshawn Sharpe (Valdosta, Ga.); Skylar Moody (Lake Gibson, Fla.) 120: Isaiah Varona (South Dade, Fla.); Drew Ferguson-Mitchell (Collins Hill, Ga.) 126: No. 4 Rossi Bruno (Brandon, Fla.); Marshawn Sharp (Valdosta, Ga.); Esteban Gomez-Rivera (Belen Jesuit, Fla.) 132: No. 6 Kevin Norstrem (Brandon, Fla.); Steve Bradtmuller (Collins Hill, Ga.); Jake Spengler (Lake Highland Prep, Fla.) 138: No. 3 Tyler Liberatore (Wharton, Fla.); Fox Baldwin (Osceola, Fla.); Brandon Jorge (Lake Gibson, Fla.); Spencer Rickman (Collins Hill, Ga.) 145: No. 18 Cody Ross (Springstead, Fla.); Aaron Hartman (Palm Harbor University, Fla.); Eric Bach (Tampa Prep, Fla.) 152: Austin Trott (Camden County, Ga.); Eric O'Neil (Winter Springs, Fla.); Travis Berridge (Brandon, Fla.) 160: No. 6 Clark Glass (Brandon, Fla.) 170: No. 4 Geordan Speiller (Pine Castle Christian, Fla.); Jacob Haydock (Brandon, Fla.) 182: Gray Jones (Camden County, Ga.); Kyle Koziel (Brandon, Fla.); Daniel Santil (South Dade, Fla.) 285: No. 2 Doug Vollaro (Pine Castle Christian, Fla.); No. 9 John Dreggors (Springstead, Fla.) Ray Oliver Tournament Dates: Friday, Dec. 2 and Saturday, Dec. 3 Location: The McDonogh School (Owings Mills, Md.) Top Teams: No. 31 Caesar Rodney, Del.; Archbishop Spalding, Md.; McDonogh, Md. Notable Wrestlers: 106: No. 13 Brent Fleetwood (Smyrna, Del.) 113: John Archangelo (Smryna, Del.); Zach Howell (Caesar Rodney, Del.); Michael Still (Archbishop Spalding, Md.) 120: Micah Hight (Caesar Rodney, Del.); Thomas Payne (Poquoson, Va.) 126: Kaleb Lemaire (Caesar Rodney, Del.); Xavi Ramos (McDonogh, Md.) 132: Alfred Bannister (Archbishop McNamara, Md.); Daniel Sanchez (Georgetown Prep, Md.); Matt Kibblehouse (Salesanium, Del.); Jeffrey Ogburn (Poquoson, Va.) 138: Cole Graves (Archbishop Spalding, Md.); Daniel Downes (St. Mark's, Del.); Max Wilt (Caesar Rodney, Del.) 145: No. 19 Jack Clark (McDonogh, Md.); Will Switzer (Archbishop Spalding, Md.); Stephen Jackson (Caesar Rodney, Del.) 152: Toby Hague (McDonogh, Md.) 160: Zach Boyles (Smyrna, Del.); Bryce Pappas (St. Mary's, Md.) 170: Jay Matheus (Caesar Rodney, Del.); Troy Murtha (Georgetown Prep, Md.) 182: Ryan Wolfe (Caravel Academy, Del.); Spencer Neff (Good Counsel, Md.); DeVaunje Smith (Archbishop Spalding, Md.); Pierce DeMarreau (Caesar Rodney, Del.) 195: Kevin Marvel (McDonogh, Md.); Shane Cockerlie (Gilman, Md.) 220: No. 2 Kyle Snyder (Good Counsel, Md.) 285: Roman Braglio (McDonogh, Md.); Ryan Schneider (Georgetown Prep, Md.) Blazer Invitational Tournament Dates: Saturday, Dec. 3 Location: Gardner-Edgerton High School (Gardner, Kan.) Top Teams: No. 14 Iowa City West, Iowa; No. 22 Southeast Polk, Iowa; Skutt Catholic, Neb.; Pittsburg, Kan. Notable Wrestlers: 106: Reese Cokeley (St. James Academy, Kan.) 113: No. 8 Phillip Laux (Iowa City West, Iowa); John Slobuth (Skutt Catholic, Neb.); Zak Hensley (St. James Academy, Kan.) 120 - Ernest Willis (Iowa City West, Iowa) 126: No. 2 Cory Clark (Southeast Polk, Iowa); No. 18 (at 132) Jack Hathaway (Iowa City West, Iowa); TJ Stokes (Gardner Edgerton, Kan.) 132: No. 3 Thomas Gilman (Skutt Catholic, Neb.); No. 15 (at 138) Dakota Bauer (Iowa City West, Iowa); Skyler Wood (Platte County, Mo.); Ben Randolph (Shawnee Mission East, Kan.); Dylan Buchheit (Southeast Polk, Iowa) 138: Kegan Wakefield (Iowa City West, Iowa) 145: Grady Gambrall (Iowa City West, Iowa); Aaron Seybold (Pittsburg, Kan.); Dustin Williams (Gardner Edgerton, Kan.) 152: Zane Sackett (Skutt Catholic, Neb.); Connor Middleton (Olathe Northwest, Kan.) 160: No. 7 Justin Koethe (Iowa City West, Iowa); Dylan Blackford (Southeast Polk, Iowa); Grant Randall (Skutt Catholic, Neb.); Rory Haug (Olathe North, Kan.) 170: No. 5 Alex Meyer (Southeast Polk, Iowa); Blaine Hill (Shawnee Mission East, Kan.); Brett Koehn (Pittsburg, Kan.) 182: Spencer Wilson (Lawrence Free State, Kan.); Casey Martin (Southeast Polk, Iowa) 195: No. 6 Willie Miklus (Southeast Polk, Iowa); Mickey Pelfrey (Iowa City West, Iowa); Alex Stockton (Gardner Edgerton, Kan.) 220: Bud Smith (Southeast Polk, Iowa) 285: Broc Bennett (Pittsburg, Kan.); Josh Jones (Southeast Polk, Iowa) Show Me Showdown Date: Friday, Dec. 2 Matchup: No. 29 Kearney, Mo. vs. No. 41 Blue Springs, Mo. Potential Key Matches: 120: Seth Brayfield (Kearney) vs. Daniel Lewis (Blue Springs) 138: Grant Leeth (Kearney) vs. Darick Lapaglia (Blue Springs) 145: Tanner Minder (Kearney) vs. Greg Hegarty (Blue Springs) Nationally Ranked Wrestler: No. 3 (at 113) Jaret Singh (Kearney) Keith Young Invitational Wrestling Classic Date: Saturday, Dec. 3 Location: Cedar Falls High School (Cedar Falls, Iowa) Top Teams: No. 10 Bettendorf, Iowa; Mason City, Iowa; Waverly-Shell Rock, Iowa; West Des Moines Valley, Iowa; Denver-Tripoli, Iowa Notable wrestlers (listed based on weight classes from rankings published by The Predicament, all wrestlers from Iowa): 106: No. 17 Jake Koethe (West Des Moines Valley); Kaz Onoo (Mason City); Dan Kelly (Cedar Falls); Quinn Tonne (Denver-Tripoli) 113: No. 15 (at 106) Fredy Stroker (Bettendorf) 120: No. 7 Dylan Peters (Denver-Tripoli); Tyler Willers (Pleasant Valley); Andres Gonzales (Mason City); Andrew Steiert (Waverly-Shell Rock); Drake Swarm (Bettendorf); Drew Mangrich (Don Bosco) 126: No. 6 (at 120) Eric Devos (Waverly-Shell Rock); Jacob Woodard (Bettendorf); Dylan Rhoads (Don Bosco) 132: No. 11 Brandon Sorensen (Denver-Tripoli); No. 20 Kyle Larson (West Des Moines Valley); Luke Kremer (Cedar Rapids Kennedy); Logan Ryan (Bettendorf); Austin Demuth (Don Bosco) 138: Connor Ryan (Bettendorf); Gunner Wolfensperger (Denver-Tripoli); Blake Spotts (Mason City); Mike Wallace (Cedar Rapids Jefferson); Spencer Derifield (Waverly-Shell Rock) 145: Kolton Rottink (Waverly-Shell Rock); Bubba Hernandez (Bettendorf); Cory Chapin (Denver-Tripoli) 152: Blake Letney (Pleasant Valley); Clint Underwood (West Des Moines Valley); Jordan Baskerville (Cedar Rapids Kennedy) 160: Trey Lewis (West Des Moines Valley); Colby Vance (Bettendorf); Mitch Bowman (North Scott); Max Krieger (Mason City); Shane Williams (Cedar Rapids Kennedy); Garrett Smith (Denver-Tripoli) 170: Terry Stover (Waverly-Shell Rock); Chase Shedenhelm (Denver-Tripoli) 182: No. 10 (at 195) Jared Bartel (Mason City); Bryan Levsen (Bettendorf); Tarin Phillips (West Des Moines Valley); Adam Walther (Waverly-Shell Rock) 195: Keaton Jurevitz (Bettendorf); Zach Rahnavardi (Cedar Falls); Cegan Long (North Scott) 220: Nate Shaw (Bettendorf); Louis Gutierres (West Des Moines Valley); Tim Schiffer (Mason City) 285: Kaleb Staack (Waverly-Shell Rock); Zach Henaman (West Des Moines Valley)

PHILADELPHIA -- Drexel Wrestling Head Coach Matt Azevedo has announced the signing of six student-athletes for the 2012-13 season on Tuesday. Matt Cimato, Steven Elicegui, Jason Fugiel, Gage Harrah, Clayton Lutzow, and Connor Moran will join the Dragons next fall. Fugiel, Harrah, and Lutzow all hail from Crystal Lake, Illinois. This group of wrestlers marks Azevedo and his staff's the first recruiting class at Drexel. The incoming class will expand throughout the year. "I am very excited about this year's recruiting class,” said Azevedo. “These six talented young men will make an immediate impact on our team. They will add a great intensity and energy to our room. I expect a lot of great things from this group on and off the mat." Cimato will join his brother, 141-pounder Frank, at Drexel next year. At 149 pounds, the La Salle College High standout was the 2011 Powerade Champion and received Fila and Junior National All-American honors. He took third place at 140 pounds in the Pennsylvania State Tournament and fourth in the 2010 Beast of the East. Cimato is currently ranked 6th in the nation. Elicegui, the 2011 Nevada Sportsman of the Year, is a two time Nevada State Champion, and a three-time Neveda State place winner. The Wooster High School product was the 2011 Junior USA Wrestling Regional Freestyle and Greco Champion. Fugiel was the 2011 Illinois State runner-up at 145 pounds. He also placed fourth in the Iowa Folkstyle Nationals and placed third in the Freestyle States. Harrah is currently ranked 2nd in the nation and is the 26th ranked senior over all. He was the 2011 Illinois State Champion also placing fourth as a sophomore. The 184/197 pounder is a Cadet National Champion and a three time All-American. Harrah is also a Fila place winner. Lutzow has a combined career record of 71-25. He placed fourth at the 2011 Illinois State Tournament at 130 pounds. Moran, the 165/174 pounder, is currently the top ranked senior in his class academically at Pennsylvania's Solanco High School. On the mat, he placed third at Powerade and fifth at 171 pounds in the Pennsylvania State Tournament. Moran is also the Escape Rock Champion.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Senior Kyle John, the 16th-ranked wrestler at 157 pounds, has been selected as the Atlantic Coast Conference Wrestler of the Week following three victories at the Northeast Duals to help the 12th-ranked Terrapins go unbeaten for first time in five trips to the event. The Coopersburg, Pa., native is a first-time recipient, but is the second Terp to be selected this season. Junior Josh Asper earned the award for the week of Nov. 14. At the Northeast Duals, John improved his record to 7-2 with three victories including an 11-1 major decision over then-No. 19 David Bonin of Northern Iowa. John opened the meet with a 12-2 major decision over Bucknell's John Regan, and closed the event with 17-0 technical fall over Malcolm Martin of Central Michigan. The Terps return to the mat on Friday, Dec. 2 at 7 p.m. to take on No. 14 American at Comcast Pavilion.