InterMat Staff

FAIRFIELD, CT -- The Bloomsburg University wrestling team won its sixth straight match easily downing Sacred Heart University, 39-3, on Wednesday. The Huskies won the first three bouts, including a win by fall from 133 pounder Nick Wilcox (Greene, NY, Greene Central)to take a 13-0 lead. After Sacred Heart got on the board with a win at 149 pounds, Bloomsburg won the final six matches with Chris Smith (Mineral, Va., Chancelor) at 165 pounds and Nate Graham (Selkirk, NY, Ravena) at 184 pounds both getting wins by fall. For Graham, ranked 25th by the Wrestling Report.com, it was his second straight victory by fall. Frank Hickman (Castle Hayne, NC, E.L. Laney), ranked 33rd by the Wrestling Report.com, won his second straight match by major decision when he posted a 13-3 victory at 157 pounds,while Mike Dessino (Middlesex, NJ, Middlesex) at 174 pounds also posted a win by major decision. The six match winning streak is the longest for the Huskies since 2000-01 when the team won eight straight matches. Bloomsburg, now 10-2, will wrestle at the University of Pennsylvania on Sunday at 1 p.m. Results: 125 – Sean Boylan (BU) maj. Andrew Polidore (SHU), 19-5 133 – Nick Wilcox (BU) pinned Anthony Ricco (SHU), 4:44 141 – Derek Shingara (BU) dec. Justin Belanger (SHU), 4-1 149 – Joe Evangelista (SHU) dec. Matt Hicks (BU), 5-4 157 – Frank Hickman (BU) maj. dec. Anthony Priore (SHU), 13-3 165 – Chris Smith (BU) pinned Sam Sheppard (SHU), 2:05 174 – Mike Dessino (BU) maj dec. Jonathon Rizzitello (SHU), 8-0 184 – Nate Graham (BU) pinned Sam Morrison (SHU), 2:03 197 – Richard Perry (BU) dec. Brandon Lapp (SHU), 5-0 285 – Zac Walsh (BU) dec. Jordan Miron (SHU), 4-0

NC State won six of 10 bouts, including a pin by heavyweight Eloheim Palma in the decisive final match of the evening, and defeated Rider 21-14 in a dual wrestling match Wednesday at Lawrenceville, N.J. The Wolfpack won four of the first five bouts to take a 12-4 lead, but needed a 4-2 decision from sophomore 197-pounder KaRonne Jones over Joe Ferber to take a 15-14 team lead heading into the heavyweight bout. Palma pinned Evan Craig at the 4:54 mark to make the final margin of victory seven points. Senior 149-pounder Darrion Caldwell, back in action after missing 16 months following shoulder surgery, had to battle to take out Zac Cibula by a 10-7 decision. Caldwell, the 2009 NCAA champion, led 5-4 heading into the third period before pulling away in the final two minutes. He improved to 2-0 on the season and 96-12 for his career, tying him with Mike Lombardo for second place in school history for career wins. Sylvester Terkay won 122 matches from 1990-93. Junior 141-pounder Darrius Little won a 10-4 decision over Aaron Nestor to improve his record to 17-6, and junior 157-pounder Colton Palmer took a 6-3 decision over Ramon Santiago to improve to 16-8. The victory evened NC State’s dual-match record to 2-2 on the season. The Broncs fell to 3-4. The Wolfpack will be back home at Reynolds Coliseum on Friday for intrasquad matches in Beauty and the Beast, a combined exhibition with the NC State gymnastics team. Admission is free and the public is encouraged to attend. The Pack will return to action on Saturday with four matches at the NC State Duals, beginning at 1 p.m. at Reynolds Coliseum. NC State will lead off the afternoon vs. Anderson, then will take on Mercyhurst at 2:30, Campbell at 4, and North Dakota State at 7. Admission to the duals is free. Results: 125 - Pedram Rahmatabadi (NCS) dec. Chuck Zeisloft, 10-8 133 - Jimmy Kirchner (RU) major dec. Conor Hovis, 17-6 141 - Darrius Little (NCS) dec. Aaron Nestor, 10-4 149 - Darrion Caldwell (NCS) dec. Zac Cibula, 10-7 157 - Colton Palmer (NCS) dec. Ramon Santiago, 6-3 165 - Jim Resnick (RU) major dec. Colin Genthert, 12-0 174 - Rob Morrison (RU) dec. Quinton Godley, 3-1 (ot) 184 - James Brundage (RU) dec. Nijel Jones, 8-3 197 - KaRonne Jones (NCS) dec. Joe Ferber, 4-2 Hwt - Eloheim Palma (NCS) pinned Evan Craig at 4:34

NORMAN, Okla. -- Oklahoma Head Wrestling Coach Jack Spates, who is in his 18th season with the Sooners, announced today that he plans to retire from the position at the end of the current season. “This is something that I had planned for quite a while,” Spates said. “Our wrestlers, recruits and my friends and colleagues are aware that this is the direction I plan to take. “I’ve been blessed by my tenure at OU. I’ve worked with the greatest kids, athletic director and president. I will leave with a smile on my face. It’s a young man’s game and a sport that requires tremendous passion and energy and I feel God is leading me in another direction at this time.” That direction may involve ministerial work. Spates received a master’s degree in theology and education from Baptist Bible Seminary in 1980. “About eight years ago, God brought me back to faith and I’m very excited about the plans that He has for me,” Spates said. “I anticipate that those plans are in the ministry and probably campus ministry.” OU President David L. Boren said Spates impact reached outside of wrestling. “Coach Spates has made a great contribution to the University of Oklahoma, not only as a coach but also as a mentor and role model,” Boren said. “The entire university community is grateful for his many years of service. We wish him well in the future.” Joe Castiglione, OU’s Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Program and Athletics Director, said Spates was inspirational with his enthusiasm. “I congratulate Jack on a wonderful career and on all his notable accomplishments within the sport of wrestling,” he said. “He has been a successful and passionate advocate for the Sooners and the sport for many years. His daily enthusiasm for the job has not only been refreshing, it has been inspiring. “He has led our program to national prominence and further secured Oklahoma’s name among the top wrestling programs. We are and will always be grateful for Jack’s leadership and know that he will continue to be a positive influence on those he mentors in the future.” Spates’ start in wrestling was the result of a high school prank. Spates was 15 years old and just 90 pounds when some of his friends signed his name to a wrestling team form without his knowledge. “I could never have envisioned the career I’ve had in the sport,” he reflected. “Wrestling has been so special to me and has impacted by whole life. “And I am so proud to have been associated with the University of Oklahoma. I will always be a Sooner.” Spates’ OU mark currently stands at 235-96-12, including a 5-1 mark this season. Including his time as head coach at Cornell, he is 309-110-13. He has been honored three times as Big 12 Coach of the Year and was the 2006 National Coach of the Year. He has coached two Big 12 conference team titles, 53 All-Americans and six national champions at OU. He has also led 30 Oklahoma wrestlers to individual Big 12 titles. Under Spates’ direction, the Sooners have accepted six team trophies over the last nine seasons as a top-four finisher at the NCAA Tournament. He is also third among active head coaches for most All-Americans produced during his tenure with 53. Spates became the University of Oklahoma's 12th head wrestling coach in 1993. At that time, OU's average finish at the NCAA Championships was 23rd over the previous three seasons. Recently, his Sooner teams have placed in the nation's top four in six of the past nine seasons, including third-place finishes in 2002, 2003, 2005 and 2006. Not only has Spates built programs into regional and national powers, he has also served as a mentor to several Division I head coaches. Among those are Rob Koll, head coach at Cornell, and Brian Smith, head coach at Missouri, both of whom were assistants to Spates. As a wrestler, Spates won the New York State Championship and placed third in the nation, becoming a high school All-American. As a collegiate wrestler at Slippery Rock, he claimed the collegiate national championship in 1973 and was NCAA runner-up the following year at 118 pounds. He compiled a 118-8 career record, the second-best win total in school history. Subsequently, Spates was inducted into the Slippery Rock Athletic Hall of Fame. Spates began coaching as the head assistant at Baptist Bible College in 1975. He quickly earned a reputation as a builder of programs when he helped lead the small private school to six conference championships. After leaving Baptist Bible College in 1981, Spates entered the business world before returning for one year as an assistant coach at Pittsburgh where he helped direct the Panthers to their first winning season in five years. From there, Spates served as head assistant coach at the U.S. Military Academy. While Spates was West Point, the Black Knights attained their highest ever NCAA finish (13th) and were ranked as high as No. 11 during the 1987 season. Spates helped recruit Army's highest-rated class, which was judged No. 7 in the nation. He was also named runner-up for national assistant-coach-of-the-year honors. Spates became the head coach at Cornell in 1988. During his five years with the Big Red, he became Cornell's all-time winningest coach by percentage. S pates compiled a 74-14-1 record and developed a program that offered no scholarships into an Eastern and national power. His last two Cornell teams dominated the Eastern Championships, crowning nine individual champions. Cornell also steadily improved at the NCAA Championships, rising from no national placing to finishes of 20th, 15th and 10th place. Spates was named New York Collegiate Coach of the Year, Eastern Coach of the Year and New York State Wrestling Man of the Year. Spates also wears many hats outside the world of wrestling. He graduated magna cum laude from graduate school and was awarded the Greek Award for Proficiency in the Koine Greek Language as well as the Literacy Award for Dissertation of Publishable Quality. Spates' dedication to education is still evident today as his program regularly produces Academic All-Big 12 and Academic All-America selections. Author of the highly-acclaimed wrestling book Mat Snacks: Wrestling Stories to Feed the Spirit and Tickle the Funny Bone, Spates has developed a reputation as a motivational speaker for businesses, schools and civic clubs. Spates is also a songwriter who has written ballads for all six of his national champions. Spates, a native of Smithtown, NY, and his wife, Barby, reside in Norman. He is the proud father of four children: Jessica, Jeremy, Justin and Jenilyn. Castiglione said that a national search will be conducted to identify Spates’ successor.

Loaded field meets at Clash for team glory While the potential match between No. 1 Apple Valley, Minnesota (also champions of The Clash the last two years) and No. 4 Brandon, Florida is the talk of the national wrestling community, there is much more to discuss heading into The Clash IX this coming Friday and Saturday in Rochester, Minnesota. Thirteen schools in the 32-team field are ranked in the Fab 50, while there are 30 individuals in the field that are also nationally ranked. During the last five editions of The Clash, the tournament committee has awarded $1,000 college scholarships to approximately five deserving wrestlers -- in addition to recognizing the top performing team and individuals during the course of the two-day competition. That will continue this coming year as well. Wrestling on the first day of the Clash, which is tomorrow, is split into four 8-team brackets that are wrestled during two sessions. Brackets "A" and "B" are wrestled during the morning (9 a.m., 11 a.m., and 1 p.m. Central Time), while Brackets "C" and "D" are wrestled in the late afternoon (4 p.m., 6 p.m., and 8 p.m. Central Time). Teams will wrestle in three dual meets to determine their position for the three matches of round-robin wrestling on Saturday. Round-robin wrestling on Saturday is split into the same morning and late afternoon time blocks. Teams that earn a top four finish wrestle in the late afternoon against those with the corresponding finish on Friday; while those in the bottom four wrestle on Saturday morning. A top four finish is guaranteed by winning the opening dual match on Friday. The following teams appear in the Fab 50: Bracket A: No. 1 Apple Valley, Minnesota; No. 21 Roseburg, Oregon; and No. 39 Bettendorf, Iowa Bracket B: No. 4 Brandon, Florida; No. 35 Glenbard North, Illinois; and No. 44 Grand Island, Nebraska Bracket C: No. 10 Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin; No. 42 Kasson-Mantorville, Minnesota; No. 46 Montini Catholic, Illinois; and No. 48 Carl Sandburg, Illinois Bracket D: No. 6 Simley, Minnesota; No. 13 Waverly-Shell Rock, Iowa; and No. 45 St. Michael-Albertville, Minnesota The following individuals are ranked in their respective weight classes: 103: No. 16 Kyle Gliva (Simley, Minnesota) 112: No. 19 Jordan Kingsley (Apple Valley, Minnesota) 119: No. 5 Thomas Gilman (Skutt Catholic, Nebraska) and No. 14 Eric Devos (Waverly-Shell Rock, Iowa) 125: No. 11 Kevin Norstrem (Brandon, Florida); No. 13 Dakota Trom (Apple Valley, Minnesota); and No. 20 Tanner Werner (Waverly-Shell Rock, Iowa) 130: No. 11 Joey Gosinski (Glenbard North, Illinois); No. 12 Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minnesota); No. 13 Rossi Bruno (Brandon, Florida); and No. 15 Ben Morgan (Forest Lake, Minnesota) 135: No. 4 Tyler Liberatore (Brandon, Florida) and No. 9 Matt Kelliher (Apple Valley, Minnesota) 140: No. 4 Jake Sueflohn (Arrowhead, Wisconsin); No. 6 Jake Short (Simley, Minnesota); No. 10 Brandon Kingsley (Apple Valley, Minnesota); No. 16 Brian Murphy (Glenbard North, Illinois); and No. 20 Bo Schlosser (Bettendorf, Iowa) 152: No. 1 Destin McCauley (Apple Valley, Minnesota); No. 6 Stephen Robertson (Montini Catholic, Illinois); No. 9 Cody Caldwell (Waverly-Shell Rock, Iowa); and No. 13 Clark Glass (Brandon, Florida) 160: No. 4 Steven Keogh (Apple Valley, Minnesota) and No. 6 Wally Figaro (Brandon, Florida) 171: No. 6 Jake Waste (Apple Valley, Minnesota) and No. 16 Austin Gabel (Ponderosa, Colorado) 189: No. 4 Devin Peterson (Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin) 285: No. 1 Cody Krumwiede (Waverly-Shell Rock, Iowa); No. 12 Brodie Berrie (Bettendorf, Iowa); and No. 13 Chris Lopez (Carl Sandburg, Illinois) For First Day Brackets: http://www.clashmn.com/Clash9/Clash9Brackets.htm Direct Link to the event as it happens: http://www.trackwrestling.com/teamtournaments/VerifyPassword.jsp?tournamentId=396009 "Team advancement" -- The original: the 31st Virginia Duals For the 31st time, the Peninsula Wrestling Association will host the Virginia Duals at the Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, Virginia. The event will again feature two divisions of college, three divisions of high school, and new this year is a middle school division. This is the seventeenth year for the National high school division, and the sixteenth year for the American and Black & Blue high school divisions. The National division is the premier high school bracket, and features sixteen -- more or less -- elite high school programs from across the country. This year, there are six nationally-ranked teams: No. 10 Wyoming Seminary, Pennsylvania; No. 26 Canon-McMillan, Pennsylvania; No. 27 Christiansburg, Virginia; No. 31 Cox, Virginia; No. 40 South Plainfield, New Jersey; and No. 41 Nazareth, Pennsylvania. These six teams are also the top six seeds. Wyoming Seminary is the top seed, with Canon-McMillan and South Plainfield seeded fourth and fifth respectively. In the bottom half of the draw, Christiansburg is the second seed, while Nazareth and Cox are seeded third and sixth. St. Mark's, Delaware (seeded eighth) will be seeking to defend the championship; Nazareth was runner-up last year, and tournament champions in 2007; while Christiansburg had been in five consecutive Virginia Duals championship matches prior to last year (champions in 2008 and 2009). The following individuals are ranked within their respective weight classes: 112: No. 1 Anthony Ashnault (South Plainfield, New Jersey); No. 3 Conner Schram (Canon-McMillan, Pennsylvania); and No. 9 JR Wert (Christiansburg, Virginia) 119: No. 7 Joey Dance (Christiansburg, Virginia) and No. 8 Dominick Malone (Wyoming Seminary, Pennsylvania) 130: No. 2 Zach Horan (Nazareth, Pennsylvania); No. 7 Brandon Jeske (Cox, Virginia); and No. 20 Solomon Chisko (Canon-McMillan, Pennsylvania) 145: No. 8 Blake Roulo (Matoaca, Virginia); No. 15 Henry Carlson (Cox, Virginia); and No. 17 Nick Catalano (Canon-McMillan, Virginia) 152: No. 19 Eric Morris (Wyoming Seminary, Pennsylvania) and No. 20 David Wesley (St. Christopher's, Virginia) 285: No. 18 Terrance Jean-Jacques (Wyoming Seminary, Pennsylvania) National Division Bracket: http://virginiaduals.org/2011_NationalHS_Bracket.pdf American Division Bracket: http://virginiaduals.org/2011_American_Bracket.pdf Black & Blue Division Bracket: http://virginiaduals.org/2011_B&B_Bracket.pdf Results will be available on Track Wrestling throughout the competition tomorrow and Saturday A tournament almost as old as high school wrestling itself Twenty-four teams from Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico will convene upon Geary, Oklahoma for what has to be the nation's oldest high school wrestling tournament. The 67th annual Geary Invitational features many unique traditions that are as old as the event itself. Two of those in particular would be the fact that there is no seeding, which means the expected feature matchups can happen at any time; and there is the opportunity for wrestlers that take third to challenge for true second place, if they did not compete against the defeated finalist earlier in the tournament. A pair of teams in the field is nationally ranked -- No. 19 Tulsa Union, Oklahoma, and No. 36 Broken Arrow, Oklahoma -- while a third team (Claremore, Oklahoma) was in the team rankings earlier this season. Four wrestlers in the field are nationally ranked, including a pair in the 160 pound weight class -- No. 7 Kyle Crutchmer (Tulsa Union, Oklahoma) and No. 16 Zach Skates (Broken Arrow, Oklahoma). Also in the rankings is No. 16 Calib Freeman (Claremore, Oklahoma) at 112 pounds and No. 13 Chase Ferman (Broken Arrow, Oklahoma) at 135. Another potential big-time match could happen at 119 pounds, with a pair of two-time state champions, both only juniors at present, possibly in the bracket: Josh Walker (Tulsa Union, Oklahoma) and Kyle Garcia (Choctaw, Oklahoma). Best from the Golden State "Battle for the Hat" With two of the traditional major in-season tournaments in the state of California both being contested next week, as opposed to one in each of the two weeks after this one, it will be the Doc Buchanan Invitational hosted by Clovis High School that serves as the ultimate pre-test for the best wrestlers and teams in California. The top seven teams in the December edition of state rankings compiled by The California Wrestler, including three nationally-ranked teams -- No. 7 Bakersfield, No. 9 Clovis, and No. 23 Oakdale -- are in this field. The following nationally-ranked wrestlers are in the field: 103: No. 19 Isaiah Locsin (Live Oak, California) 119: No. 15 Stevan Knoblauch (Clovis West, California) 125: No. 4 Alex Cisneros (Selma, California); No. 6 Fabian Garcia (Turlock, California); and No. 7 Vince Rodriguez (Clovis North, California) 135: No. 18 Chris Mecate (Redlands East Valley, California) 140: No. 8 Nick Pena (Selma, California) and No. 14 Isaiah Martinez (Lemoore, California) 145: No. 18 David Ferry (Oakdale, California) 160: No. 5 Vinny Waldhauser (Oak Ridge, California) and No. 9 Justin Lozano (Selma, California) 171: No. 4 Bryce Hammond (Bakersfield, California); No. 12 Zach Nevills (Clovis, California); and No. 14 Nikko Reyes (Clovis West, California) 189: No. 7 Lucas Sheridan (De La Salle, California) For further coverage of the tournament -- links to streaming video and updated results -- check out the Clovis Wrestling website, http://www.cloviswrestling.com. Competition on both days starts at 9:00 a.m. Pacific Time (12 noon in the east), with finals slated for 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time on Saturday evening. Ohio State Duals The Ohio High School Wrestling Coaches Association (OHSWCA) sanctions the unofficial dual meet state championship in the Buckeye State for each of the three divisions. Eight teams in each division will be after the championships, which will be held this Sunday at three different locations across the state. No. 47 Wadsworth will be after a third consecutive State Duals championship in Division I; however, standing in their way will be No. 5 St. Edward and No. 18 Massillon Perry. The fifth-ranked Eagles are the top seed, and also pretty clear favorites to make the championship match. On the other hand, the two-time defending champion Grizzlies will have to be a very young, but formidable, Cincinnati Moeller squad in the opening round just to advance to a collision with Massillon Perry in the semifinal. Perennial champions in Division II, No. 3 St. Paris Graham will yet again serve as hosts for this event and are the strong favorites. Nominal challenges should come in the semifinal from Walsh Jesuit and in the final from Oak Harbor, though the Falcons should claim yet another trophy. In Division III, there will be a new champion as Cuyahoga Hts. did not qualify for this year's event; however, the clear favorite is St. Peter Chanel, which is coming off a title at the Brecksville Holiday Invitational Tournament just last week. Updated Fab 50 team rankings released The updated national Fab 50 team rankings were posted yesterday. Apple Valley, Minnesota remains in the number one position after winning the Cheesehead with nine finalists but only one champion. Moving up to the second position, from the number three ranking, is Blair Academy, New Jersey. The Buccaneers had five champions in that tournament. New to the Fab 50 this week is No. 41 Nazareth, Pennsylvania; No. 48 Carl Sandburg, Illinois; and No. 50 Crown Point, Indiana.

The collegiate wrestling season is a grind. Many of the nation's best wrestlers will miss twenty five percent of their season due to injury. Most coaches will have gone batty from stress by the start of the conference schedule. Like the competitors they love to write about, wrestling journalists can also suffer the strain of a tough season on the mat. We start the year with such promise. Witty criticisms and prognostications we hope will make us seem clairvoyant come March. But by December the reality starts creeping in that we are fallible, too. Though journalists typically don't like to admit mistakes, I think there should be some level of corrective behavior among our profession, just as there is with any good wrestler or coach. It's the least I can do seeing that it's always been much easier to write a column than it is to strap on the boots and take a whipping six days a week. Joe McFarland (Michigan) "McFarland, who recently helped raise the money for and plan the massive stand-alone Bahna Wrestling Center in Ann Arbor, is likely on a short leash if he doesn't improve the team's showing at Big Tens and NCAAs." -- T.R. Foley, Oct. 15, 2010 Joe McFarland (Photo, Tony Rotundo, Tech-Fall.com)My biggest dork-up of the season was thinking McFarland should be worried about the performance of his team after the 52nd-place finish last year at NCAAs. While there were indicators of trouble, I didn't take into account that McFarland and his staff have always developed wrestlers and that his big recruits were still young. The 11th-ranked Michigan squad has shown growth across the weight classes, with solid performances from No. 9 heavyweight Ben Apland to No. 18 Zac Stevens. Oh yeah, he's also coaching the No.1 ranked 141-pound wrestler in Kellen Russell, who many predicted (not me) would be bested by Penn State upstart Andrew Alton. Rande Stottlemyer (Pittsburgh) "There is no area of America with more folkstyle wrestling talent than Western Pennsylvania and Rande Stottlemyer is responsible for holding onto that talent." -- T.R. Foley, Oct. 15, 2010 While Pitt should still be concerned about losing recruits to Penn State, the Hall of Fame coach's conference title was well-earned and rather than a flash of brilliance, might be the indicator of new energy in the program. The 26th-ranked Panthers are actually healthier than that paltry ranking with redshirting 197-pounder Matthew Wilps recently winning Midlands. The team has swagger and should be in the running to repeat their conference topping run of 2010. Anthony Robles (Arizona State) "If Sanders can stay off bottom and avoid getting underneath Robles he should pull off a close decision." -- T.R. Foley, Nov. 19, 2010 Anthony Robles (Photo/Tony Rotundo, Tech-Fall.com)I stand by the prediction insomuch as the Sun Devil senior had lost to Minnesota's Zach Sanders in a close match last season. However, what I couldn't have realized was that Robles somehow went from good to silly good on top. I don't want to hear any bull crap from critics who claim having only one leg is an advantage. There is no room in the discussion for that narrow-minded bastardization of Robles' accomplishments. Instead, the real discussion should be whether or not an undefeated NCAA title run will be enough to secure him the Hodge. His domination of opponents is possibly the most complete in the country, even better than David Taylor. Basically, I missed the memo on how much the Arizona native had improved over the summer. Brandon Precin and Matt McDonough beware. Germane Lindsey (Ohio) "Lindsey is talented and will again be an All-American, but in a matchup with Bailey he's short on experience and practice room competition. Assuming a healthy and motivated Bailey (and why not?), this won't be very close." -- T.R. Foley, Nov. 19, 2010 I was overzealous in my endorsement of Oklahoma Sooner Zack Bailey heading into his NWCA All-Star Classic matchup with the Ohio stud. While I did think that Bailey would prevail, a fall was highly unlikely. Lindsey is a hard worker with good work on his feet and bottom work that would make it difficult for any opponent to wrangle their way into a fall, much less Bailey who is not much of a pinner. Best of luck to the always-entertaining Lindsey. Penn State Freshmen (David Taylor, Ed Ruth, Andrew Alton) "Top 10 Impact Freshmen: (1) Logan Stieber (Ohio State), (2) Chris Perry (Oklahoma State), (3) David Taylor (Penn State), (4) Chris Villalonga (Cornell), (5) Ed Ruth (Penn State), (6) Jake Deitchler (Minnesota), (7) Josh Kindig (Oklahoma State), (8) Jake Swartz (Boise State), (9) Derek St. John (Iowa), (10) Marshall Peppelman (Cornell). Honorable Mention: Eric Grajales (Michigan), Mike McMullen (Northwestern), David Thorn (Minnesota), Jon Fausey (Virginia), Andrew Alton/Dylan Alton (Penn State)." -- T.R. Foley, Oct. 5, 2010 David Taylor (Photo/Cliff Fretwell)David Taylor, Ed Ruth and Andrew Alton should have been 1-2-3. With only two losses between the three wrestlers as of Jan. 1, there are no freshmen candidates more dominant than this trio. Their success has been the catalyst for the message boards and prognosticators to speculate about the chances of Penn State competing for the NCAA team title in 2011. I was hesitant to list all Penn State freshmen in the top five, a feeling I now regret as they are ripping through their competition with a bevy of falls and tech falls. I guess it makes me wonder: Could this Penn State team finish with three NCAA champion freshmen? What would that mean for legacy of Coach Cael? Is this along with Cornell indicative of a shift in talent eastward? Are we witnessing the apocalypse? For now I'm tapped of predictions. There's too much wrestling to be wrong about and I don't like recycling column ideas.

BOONE, N.C. -- The 12th-ranked Virginia Tech wrestling team rolled to a pair of victories Tuesday night, beating host Appalachian State 39-7 and dominating Cambpell, 48-0. With the wins, the Hokies move to 8-2 overall and head into this weekend’s big tournament with a little momentum. In the opener, Jarrod Garnett got things started with a pin and then freshman Devin Carter picked up a technical fall. Chris Diaz picked up a five-point win and then Brian Stephens pinned his man to make it 20-0. Jesse Dong made his official season debut with a pin at 157 pounds. He had wrestled unattached the first semester, posting a 14-1 mark. Pete Yates made his season debut at 165 pounds, but suffered a 6-4 loss in sudden victory to previously ranked Kyle Blevins. At 174 pounds, Matt Epperly picked up a quick pin of Brandon Lietz. John Dickson lost 14-5 at 184 pounds to make it 32-7. Chris Penny and David Marone each picked up wins, a decision by Penny and a major decision by Marone, to account for the final score. In the second match of the night, Garnett and Carter continued their hot streaks with each picking up a pin. Diaz earned a technical fall and then Stephens pinned his man to make it 23-0. Dong poured it on with a technical fall and then Yates rebounded from a tough opening loss with a technical fall. Nick Vetterlein went at 174 pounds and picked up a 13-6 win for the Hokies. Dickson pinned Justin Sparrow at 184 pounds and then Penny recorded a major decision to make it 45-0 and Marone finished things up with a decision to wrap up the 48-0 win. With his two wins, Diaz now has 98 for his career and can join the 100-win club this weekend. Tommy Spellman, ranked 16th in the country at 184 pounds, was held out for the night to rest up, but should be ready to roll this weekend. Tech will head to Cedar Falls, Iowa, for its biggest weekend of the season at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals. The seventh-seeded Hokies will open with unseeded, but 17th-ranked Central Michigan in the opener Saturday at 11 a.m., local time (noon Eastern). #12 Virginia Tech (7-2) 39, Appalachian State (3-5) 7 125: #11 Jarrod Garnett (VT) fall Tony Gravely 133: #8 Devin Carter (VT) tech fall Chris Johnson, 21-4 141: #5 Chris Diaz (VT) dec. Mike Kessler, 7-2 149: #9 Brian Stephens (VT) fall Russ Benner 157: #5 Jesse Dong (VT) fall Travis Puckett 165: Kyle Blevins (ASU) dec. #14 Pete Yates, 6-4 (SV) 174: Matt Epperly (VT) fall Branden Lietz 184: Austin Trotman (ASU) maj. dec. John Dickson, 14-5 197: Chris Penny (VT) dec. Paul Glover, 7-3 285: David Marone (VT) maj. dec. Marc Tyson, 11-0 #12 Virginia Tech (8-2) 48, Campbell (0-4) 0 125: #11 Jarrod Garnett (VT) fall Tanner Bidelspach 133: #8 Devin Carter (VT) fall Gabriel Gardner 141: #5 Chris Diaz (VT) tech fall Brad Merriman, 16-0 149: #9 Brian Stephens (VT) fall Darien Peele 157: #5 Jesse Dong (VT) tech fall Jake Fose, 16-1 165: #14 Pete Yates (VT) tech fall Joel Caudill, 19-4 174: Nick Vetterlein (VT) dec. Ryan Ham, 13-6 184: John Dickson (VT) fall Justin Sparrow 197: Chris Penny (VT) dec. John Merickel, 7-4 285: David Marone (VT) dec. Parker Burns, 7-0

Takedown Wrestling Media’s Scott Casber, and his broadcast team, will have the call at the 2011 Cliff Keen/NWCA National Duals, live, from the UNI dome in Cedar Falls, Iowa. On January 8, 2011, livesportsvideo.com will LIVE stream 5 featured mats, featuring some of the best teams in the country, from all divisions! Live action from the event will be available on LiveSportsVideo.com for a pay-per-view subscription of $5.00. Click here to order and watch the games. Based in Syracuse, N.Y., LiveSportsVideo.com was founded by Bob Feldmeier, Sr. and Jake Feldmeier, both former student-athletes at Princeton, and holds U.S. Patent Number 7,340,765 for streaming and archiving sports online. Any wrestling program choosing to stream their content online can utilize this service for free. Please Contact Westbrook Shortell for more information. Takedown Wrestling Media was started 14 year ago as a single one-hour radio program broadcast from Clear Channel's KXNO studios in Des Moines. TDR quickly added Internet distribution of its audio format and over time began to broadcast live events along with its weekly program. Founder Scott Casber is well-known throughout the wrestling community, speaking to wrestling groups around the country and promoting the sport wherever he can. TDR TV was born as an addition to the radio program, initially available only on the Internet, but now available on 31 different web sites, as well as 7 different cable systems serving over 7.2 million homes. More information can be found at: Takedownradio.com The National Wrestling Coaches Association, established in 1928, is a professional organization dedicated to serve and provide leadership for the advancement of all levels of the sport of wrestling with primary emphasis on scholastic and collegiate wrestling programs. The membership embraces all people who are interested in amateur wrestling.

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- The University Iowa Athletic Department has reinstated Hawkeye junior Montell Marion to the Hawkeye wrestling team. This reinstatement will allow the Marion to practice with the team. A decision on whether or not Marion will be allowed to compete for the Hawkeyes will be made at a later date. Marion was suspended from the Hawkeye wrestling team May 5, 2010, for violations of the University of Iowa Athletic Department student-athlete code of conduct. Montell Marion (Photo/Morgan Hennessy)"I want to thank the University of Iowa, Gary Barta, Fred Mims and Tom Brands for giving me this opportunity to prove myself worthy," said Marion. "I understand that there will be some mixed emotions about me rejoining the team, but I am confident that my actions will demonstrate that the University has made the right decision in providing me with this opportunity." "This decision has been made because of the positive steps that Montell has made in his life," said University of Iowa Head Wrestling Coach Tom Brands. "It is a continuing process and there is always a lot of work to do. In the last seven months, Montell has demonstrated that he knows there is work to do and that work will continue. I feel confident that Montell’s actions will show that the correct decision has been made." Marion posted a 37-9 record in two seasons with the Hawkeyes. He picked up his first all-America honor last season, placing second at 141 pounds at the 2010 NCAA Championships. The Des Moines, IA, native placed third at the 2010 Big Ten Championships. "Montell has made some poor decisions and he continues to pay a significant price," said University of Iowa Director of Athletics Gary Barta. "With that said, I’m proud of the changes he is making in his life. I support the plan that has been put in place and, more importantly, I’m encouraged with his commitment going forward. I would take great pride in one day watching Montell walk across the graduation stage."

LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ -- George Mason University 197 Cayle Byers, Hofstra University 133 Lou Ruggirello and Old Dominion University 125 James Nicholson are the Colonial Athletic Association Wrestlers of the Month for all competition in December, 2010. Byers, a junior from Chugiak, Alaska, beat the number one ranked wrestler in the nation of Kent State on his way to a runner-up finish in the Southern Scuffle, losing on a tie breaker in the finals to the second ranked wrestler from Cornell. Byers improved to 16-1 on the season and is ranked second by Amateur Wrestling News, third by InterMat and WIN. Ruggirello, a senior from Walden, NY, went 10-2 in December. He went 4-1 at Cliff Keen, losing 2-0 to the third ranked wrestler from Wisconsin, and defeated three top-20 wrestlers. Ruggirello finished runner-up at the Southern Scuffle, losing in the finals to the ninth ranked wrestler from Penn. Ruggirello improved to 14-3 on the season and is ranked fifth by AWN and InterMat, eighth by WIN. Nicholson, a senior from Des Moines, Iowa, went 5-0 in December, winning his weight class at the Sourthern Scuffle. He defeated a top 20 wrestler from Oregon State and a top 10 wrestler from Minnesota to improve to 14-0 on the season. Nicholson is ranked fourth in the nation.

Bloomsburg's Frank Hickman won a major decision over Colton Palmer in the final match Tuesday afternoon to stave off an NC State rally and preserve a 28-18 victory for the Huskies at Nelson Field House. The Huskies (9-2) jumped to an 18-0 lead after four matches thanks in large measure to pins by Nathan Graham at 184 pounds and Jacob Dabashinsky at 197. The Pack (1-3) then won four out of the next five bouts to pull within striking distance heading into the finale, but Hickman got off to a quick start in his bout with Palmer and went on to win by a 13-5 major decision. After Bloomsburg jumped to the 18-0 lead, sophomore Eloheim Palma (5-2) got NC State on the scoreboard with a 3-1 decision over Zach Walsh. Redshirt-sophomore Pedram Rahmatabadi (7-5) cut the lead to 18-9 by pinning Sean Boylan in 43 seconds in the match at 125 pounds. Nick Wilcox stopped the Wolfpack's momentum with a pin of freshman Conor Hovis at 133 pounds, forcing NC State to record pins in two of the final three matches just to force a tie. Junior 141-pounder Darrius Little (16-6) got three points back with a 6-1 decision over Derek Shingara. The decision also avenged a 4-1 loss that Little suffered at the hands of Shingara last week at the Southern Scuffle. Darrion Caldwell, the 2009 national champion at 149 pounds, was up next. Caldwell was making his season debut for the Pack after missing 16 months due to shoulder surgery. He looked to be in midseason form, rolling up a 12-0 lead on Josh Roosa before pinning him at the 4:54 mark. The pin was 51st in Caldwell's career. He now needs four more to pass Tab Thacker (1981-84) for second place in school history in career falls. The victory was the 95th for Caldwell, which places him one shy of tying Mike Lombardo (1985-88) for second place in school history. Sylvester Terkay (1990-93) holds the school records for career pins (64) and career victories (122). At 95-12, Caldwell's career winning percentage now stands at .888, placing him in third place in the Wolfpack record book, just .001 behind Thacker (92-11-1) and .009 behind Terkay (122-14). NC State returns to the mat Wednesday with a 4 p.m. match at Rider. Results: 165 - Josh Veltre (BU) dec. Colin Genthert, 8-3 174 - Mike Dessino (BU) dec. Quinton Godley, 7-2 184 - Nathan Graham (BU) pinned Nijel Jones at 1:22 197 - Jacob Dabashinsky (BU) pinned KaRonne Jones at 6:56 Hwt - Eloheim Palma (NCS) dec. Zach Walsh, 3-1 125 - Pedram Rahmatabadi (NCS) pinned Sean Boylan at 0:43 133 - Nick Wilcox (BU) pinned Conor Hovis at 4:49 141 - Darrius Little (NCS) dec. Derek Shingara, 6-1 149 - Darrion Caldwell (NCS) pinned Josh Roosa at 4:54 157 - Frank Hickman (BU) major dec. Colton Palmer, 13-5

EDMOND, Okla. -- Nebraska-Omaha stayed No. 1 in the NCAA Division II wrestling rankings and will take the favorite’s role into this weekend’s NWCA Division II National Duals in Cedar Falls, Iowa, according to the NCAA Division II Wrestling Coaches Association poll that was released Tuesday. The two-time defending national champion Mavericks received seven of eight first-place votes in balloting of coaches from around the country to finish with 159 points. UNO has been No. 1 in every poll the past two-plus seasons. St. Cloud State (Minn.) collected the other first-place vote and stayed second with 153 points. Augustana (S.D.) remained third with 140 points, followed by Western State (Colo.) and Newberry (S.C.). Rounding out the top 10 is Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.), Minnesota State, Nebraska-Kearney, Central Oklahoma and Grand Canyon (Ariz.). Sixteen teams will compete in the NWCA Division II National Duals, which open Saturday morning and run through Sunday afternoon at the UNI Dome on the Northern Iowa campus. Joining Nebraska-Omaha in the field will be No. 2 St. Cloud, No. 3 Augustana, No. 4 Western State, No. 5 Newberry, No. 7 Minnesota State, No. 9 Central Oklahoma, No. 10 Grand Canyon, No. 11 Upper Iowa, No. 12 Wisconsin-Parkside, No. 13 North Carolina-Pembroke, No. 14 Findlay and No. 20 San Francisco State along with Central Missouri, Limestone (S.C.) and Minnesota State-Moorhead. The top 20 poll, with points and the teams’ last ranking following by the top-eight rankings at each weight: Rank School (State) Points Last Ranking 1. Nebraska-Omaha 159 1st 2. St. Cloud State (Minn.) 153 2nd 3. Augustana (S.D.) 140 3rd 4. Western State (Colo.) 131 4th 5. Newberry (S.C.) 129 5th 6. Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 106 9th 7. Minnesota State 105 6th 8. Nebraska-Kearney 100 8th 9. Central Oklahoma 99 12th 10. Grand Canyon (Ariz.) 97 11th 11. Upper Iowa 88 10th 12. Wisconsin-Parkside 70 13th 13. North Carolina-Pembroke 64 20th 14. Findlay (Ohio) 61 7th T15. West Liberty (W. Va.) 43 14th T15. Fort Hays State (Kan.) 43 15th 17. Adams State (Colo.) 29 16th 18. Ashland (Ohio) 27 17th 19. East Stroudsburg (Pa.) 14 18th 20. San Francisco State (Calif.) 10 19th Others receiving votes: Belmont Abbey (N.C.), Colorado State-Pueblo, Gannon (Pa.), Minnesota State-Moorhead, Southwest Minnesota. NCAA Division II Individual Rankings 125 Pounds 1. Andy Forstner, Minnesota State 2. Russell Weakley, North Carolina-Pembroke 3. Trevor Franklin, Upper Iowa 4. Alex Meger, Augustana (S.D.) 5. Josh Smith, Nebraska-Kearney 6. Connor McDonald, Newberry (S.C.) 7. Alex Johns, Indianapolis (Ind.) 8. Ben Sergent, Findlay (Ohio) 133 Pounds 1. Kyle Pedretti, Upper Iowa 2. Todd Wilcox, Grand Canyon (Ariz.) 3. Ryan Link, Pittsburgh-Johnstown 4. Aldon Isenberg, Fort Hays State (Kan.) 5. B.J. Young, Newberry (S.C.) 6. Michael Magaha, Limestone (S.C.) 7. Cody Gillenwater, Central Missouri 8. Trison Graham, Central Oklahoma 141 Pounds 1. Jay Sherer, Augustana (S.D.) 2. Mario Morgan, Nebraska-Omaha 3. Andre Harrison, Fort Hays State (Kan.) 4. Dalton Jensen, Nebraska-Kearney 5. Naveed Bagheri, San Francisco State (Calif.) 6. Jimmy Savala, Chadron State (Neb.) 7. Gabe Suarez, St. Cloud State (Minn.) 8. Deral Brown, Newberry (S.C.) 149 Pounds 1. Esai Dominguez, Nebraska-Omaha 2. T.J. Hepburn, Nebraska-Kearney 3. Nate Herda, Augustana (S.D.) 4. Jeremy Espinoza, Findlay (Ohio) 5. Dale Debacco, Newberry (S.C.) 6. Josh Hensley, Adams State (Colo.) 7. Mitchell Means, Fort Hays State (Kan.) 8. Jesse Snider, Colorado Mines 157 Pounds 1. George Ivanov, Nebraska-Omaha 2. Marcus Edgington, Augustana (S.D.) 3. Dillon Bera, Wisconsin-Parkside 4. Seth Phalen, West Liberty (W.Va.) 5. Sean Byrnes, Newberry (S.C.) 6. John Sundgren, St. Cloud State (Minn.) 7. Cory Dauphin, Central Oklahoma 8. Justin Morris, Western State (Colo.) 165 Pounds 1. Josh Shields, Mercyhurst (Pa.) 2. Tad Merritt, St. Cloud State (Minn.) 3. Jake Varilek, Belmont Abbey (N.C.) 4. Derrick Adkins, Central Oklahoma 5. Joey Wilson, Nebraska-Kearney 6. Matt Gille, Wisconsin-Parkside 7. Gavin Nelson, Augustana (S.D.) 8. Justin Grant, Colorado State-Pueblo 174 Pounds 1. Luke Rynish, Wisconsin-Parkside 2. Anthony Petrella, Gannon (Pa.) 3. Ryan Pankoke, Nebraska-Omaha 4. Victor Carazo, Grand Canyon (Ariz.) 5. Tim Darling, Kutztown (Pa.) 6. Shamus O’Grady, St. Cloud State (Minn.) 7. Ben Becker, Minnesota State 8. Mason True, Findlay (Ohio) 184 Pounds 1. Bryant Blanton, Newberry (S.C.) 2. Charlie Pipher, Western State (Colo.) 3. Aaron Norgren, Minnesota State 4. Aaron Denson, Nebraska-Omaha 5. Mic Berg, St. Cloud State (Minn.) 6. Brady Anderson, Mary (N.D.) 7. Ryan Becerra, Grand Canyon (Ariz.) 8. Tanner Keck, Central Oklahoma 197 Pounds 1. Donovan McMahill, Western State (Colo.) 2. Ty Copsey, Augustana (S.D.) 3. Mitch Knapp, West Liberty (W.Va.) 4. Luke McPeek, Adams State (Colo.) 5. Jarrett Edison, Central Oklahoma 6. Carl Broghammer, Upper Iowa 7. Frank Morgan, King (Tenn.) 8. Daniel Stevenson, Findlay (Ohio) 285 Pounds 1. Jacob Kahnke, St. Cloud State (Minn.) 2. Charlie Alexander, Western State (Colo.) 3. Ben Hohensee, Nebraska-Kearney 4. Matt Meuleners, Northern State (S.D.) 5. Taylor Escamilla, Nebraska-Omaha 6. J.D. Ramsey, West Liberty (W.Va.) 7. Chris Dempsey, Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 8. Brian Rodas, Southwest Minnesota

BUIES CREEK, N.C. -- Former Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary and Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy (CVCA) prep stars Rocco Caponi and Jarrad Turner – both natives of Ohio - have been named Assistant Wrestling Coaches with the rising Campbell University Wrestling program, Head Coach Joe Boardwine announced this week. Rocco Caponi was a State Champion, Walsh Ironman Tournament Runner-Up, 2x State Finalist and Junior National Freestyle Champion for St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio. He then put together a highly successful career spanning five years at the University of Virginia. While with the Cavaliers, he won three Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) titles and qualified for the NCAA Division I Championships four times. Caponi was ranked as high as 6th in the nation in NCAA D 1 and posted a 40-2 record going into the 2008 NCAA Championships. "We're excited to have Rocco as an important part of our program," said first-year head coach Joe Boardwine. "His experience as a competitor is very valuable, and having dominated the ACC, he brings a wealth of knowledge to our team. He helped take Virginia from the basement of the ACC to the top, and that's something our guys and new recruits can learn from. Building a high-level program from the ground-up is our exact goal here at Campbell." Caponi won over 110 matches during his UVA career while wrestling mostly in the 184-pound weight class. "I am very happy to become part of the Campbell University family," said Caponi. "I truly believe through hard work we will bring this program into the national spotlight. It is a privilege and an honor to work around so many great people in such a lovely setting." Caponi earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Virginia in 2008, and also received his Master's of Education in Educational Psychology from UVA in 2009. Jarrad Turner comes to Campbell University as the new Assistant Athletic Director for Marketing and Promotions in addition to serving as an Assistant Wrestling Coach. As Campbell's top athletic marketing officer, Turner oversees the marketing and promotions efforts for all of Campbell's 20 athletic programs including game promotions, print and electronic media advertising sales, licensing, and merchandising. Turner served as the Assistant Athletic Director for Marketing at Mercer University in Georgia prior to joining Campbell's administrative team. Turner was a standout for CVCA in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. He was a Medina Invitational Champ, NHSCA High School All-American and a two-time placer at the prestigious Walsh Ironman Tournament. From CVCA, Turner wrestled for the Nittany Lions of Penn State in the Big 10 conference, where he was a Freestyle All-American at the University Nationals and a 4-year letter winner. "I am thrilled to welcome Jarrad Turner to Campbell and to our growing wrestling program as an Assistant Wrestling Coach," said Head Coach Joe Boardwine. "I trained Jarrad in high school– so I've known him for a long, long time. He has something important to teach our guys - because he is a great success story of what is possible in college wrestling…. If you are willing to work hard at our sport for years – you can pass up the competition. Even if someone is beating you in high school –if you discipline yourself to work hard enough for long enough……you will go much further in D 1 wrestling than they do. If you want it bad enough – it is only a matter of time," Boardwine asserted. Turner was a very successful NCAA D 1 coach while serving as the Graduate Assistant Coach for the Kent State Golden Flashes' during that program's upswing into the Top 25. Turner earned two Bachelors degrees from The Pennsylvania State University and a Masters degree in Sports Administration from Kent Sate University. "What's great about Jarrad is he is a terrific example for our wrestlers as both a bright, successful professional and also a high-level wrestler," said Boardwine. "He provides our program with yet another important person – in addition to all the support we already have - who really wants to see our wrestling program in the Top 25 in the nation." For the first time, Campbell University Wrestling now has three coaches employed at CU working on the CU Wrestling program in an official capacity. "I'm excited to be at Campbell and back working with Coach Joe (Boardwine)," Turner stated. "He has a championship vision for the wrestling program and very good plans laid out to accomplish that vision. It's going to be a lot of fun. This is a growing, thriving university. The whole athletic department and broader university are ready to take the athletic program to another level," Turner concluded. New Campbell Head Coach Joe Boardwine and his assistants, Rocco Caponi and Jarrad Turner, each live on the CU campus in Buies Creek, North Carolina. "I love the fact that we are all right here on campus," said Head Coach Joe Boardwine. "Our wrestlers have continuous access to mentoring, coaching and training at a very high-level. Combine that with Campbell's 1:19 full professor-to-student ratio – and our wrestlers have the kind of one-on-one attention that leads to D 1 wrestling and academic excellence. They're not just a number."

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- Virginia 174-pound senior Chris Henrich (Lansdale, Pa.) has been named the Atlantic Coast Conference Wrestler of the Week for the second time this season and the fourth time in his career following a second-place finish at the Southern Scuffle last week. Henrich was the lone finalist among ACC competitors at the Scuffle, taking runner-up honors to Penn State's Ed Ruth, who knocked off both No. 2 ranked Henrich and No. 1 ranked Mack Lewnes of Cornell en route to being named the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler. Henrich cruised in his other four matches, winning three by major decision or tech fall and one in a medical forfeit. He also picked up a fall in UVa's Dec. 18 dual at Campbell, needing less than one period to pin Peter Comis. Henrich now has 115 career wins and needs just one victory to match the school record, set by Mike Krafchick (1991-95). Henrich, a native of Lansdale, Pa., was also named ACC Co-Wrestler of the Week on Nov. 30, sharing the honor with Maryland's Mike Letts. Virginia returns to dual action on Friday, taking on Buffalo at 11 a.m. at the Virginia Duals in Hampton.

USA Wrestling's Jason Bryant and Jeff Byers, the voice of Penn State wrestling, will go "On the Mat" this Wednesday, January 5. "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 5:05 - 6:00 PM CST on AM 1650, The Fan. E-mail radio@wrestlingmuseum.org with any questions or comments about the show. Bryant works at USA Wrestling as the Coordinator of Grassroots and Social Media. He will preview the Virginia Duals and the National Duals events taking place this weekend. Byers is the play-by-play voice for Penn State wrestling. Each Wednesday he hosts the Cael Sanderson show. Byers will provide an update on this year's surging Penn State team.

Nebraska senior Jordan Burroughs was named the Big 12 Wrestler of the Week on Monday, Jan. 3, for the second time this season for his efforts at the Midlands Championships on Dec. 29-30, in Evanston, Ill. Burroughs has been named Big 12 Wrestler of the Week four times in his career and twice this season after earning the award on Dec. 13. No.2 Burroughs won the 165-pound title of the Midlands Championships, improving his season record to 18-0. The senior defeated his first four opponents of the tournament by bonus points, including two technical fall victories over Luke Miller (Ohio Northern) and Robert Nash (Michigan State) to open the tournament. In the finals, Burroughs broke returning national champion and No. 1 Andrew Howe's (Wisconsin) 48-match winning streak to capture the title with a 10-7 decision. Burroughs was awarded the Dan Gable Most Outstanding Wrestler award for his efforts on the mat and was also the highest individual point scorer of the tournament. For the season, Burroughs has collected seven technical fall victories and six victories by pin. Burroughs and the Huskers return to action on Saturday, Jan. 15, when they travel to Grand Prairie, Texas to wrestle in the Lone Star Duals. Nebraska is set to dual Stanford, Brown and Utah Valley. 2010-11 BIG 12 WRESTLERS OF THE WEEK/MONTH November: Jordan Oliver, OSU, So., 133 December 6: Jon Morrison, OSU, Fr., 125 December 13: Jordan Burroughs, NU, Sr., 165 December 20: Todd Schavrien, MU, Sr., 141 January 3: Jordan Burroughs, NU, Sr., 165

St. Cloud State University sophomore Shamus O'Grady (Coon Rapids) was named as the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference wrestler of the week on Jan. 3. O'Grady earned the award thanks to his 4-0 record at the Grand Canyon Duals on Jan. 1 in Phoenix, Ariz. O'Grady helped guide the No. 2-ranked Huskies to a perfect 4-0 record at the Grand Canyon Duals, which included wins over Chadron State, Mesa State, No. 8 Nebraska-Kearney and Kutztown. O'Grady was 4-0 on the day, which included two pins, one win by a technical fall and one win by a forfeit. O'Grady now owns a 15-2 record this winter. O'Grady pinned Trent Zempel of Chadron State at 4:55; he then won by tech fall over Zak Slotten of Mesa State 20-3; he followed that up with a pin over Drew Comito of #8 Nebraska-Kearney at 1:49 and then won by forfeit in the dual against Kutztown. This marks the third time this season that a St. Cloud State University wrestler has gained NSIC Wrestler of the Week honors. The Huskies (7-0) will return to action on Jan. 8-9 with a trip to the NWCA Division II National Duals in Cedar Falls, Iowa. This elite meet will pit the Huskies against the nation's top NCAA Division II teams in a dual tournament format. Teams slated to participate in the 2011 tournament are Augustana, Central Oklahoma, Central Missouri, Findlay, Grand Canyon Univ, Limestone, MSU- Mankato, MSU-Moorhead, Newberry, San Fancisco St, St. Could State, UNC - Pembroke, Nebraska Omaha, UW - Parkside, Upper Iowa and Western State.

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wrestling team posted a 20-18 win at Ohio tonight. UTC (5-6) led for most of the match, but needed to come from behind in the final bout to get the victory. The Mocs were cruising along with a 16-3 lead with just four matches to go before the Bobcats (3-3) came roaring back. Ohio posted back-to-back pins at 285 and 125 to get right back in the match. Sophomore Prescott Garner (West Linn, Ore.) was dominating the 125 match with a 9-0 lead. He was caught in an awkward position on top of Ohio's Gabriel Ramos and Ramos was given the defensive pin. That loss shocked Chattanooga, as they would have to rely on true freshmen in each of the last two matches to get the win. Holding on to a 16-15 lead, UTC frosh Adam Wilson (Atlanta, Ga.) stepped on the mat for his collegiate debut at 133. He fought hard and avoided costly bonus points, but went down to Gavin Moore 7-1. Ohio took the lead for the first time on the night, 18-16 with one match left. The 141 contest looked like it might feature two ranked opponents in Chattanooga senior Cody Cleveland (Tullahoma, Tenn.) and the Bobcats' Germane Lindsay. Cleveland is No. 7 in the nation but is still recovering from a hamstring injury. Lindsay is ranked 14th but was also out of action. That left the deciding match up to true freshman Shawn Greevy (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) for UTC and Bobcat junior Heath Allen. Greevy controlled the action from the opening whistle and scored the game-winning 13-0 major decision. "We wrestled hard tonight," stated UTC Head Coach Heath Eslinger. "I was proud of the way Adam and Shawn responded. It is a road win against a tough opponent and I will take it." Chattanooga opened the evening with three straight decisions from sophomores Alex Hudson (Marietta, Ga.) and Josh Condon (Powder Springs, Ga.) and junior Dan Waddell (Chattanooga, Tenn.). Hudson saw his first action of the season, starting at 149. Condon scored his team-leading 16th win of the year at 157, improving to 16-4 overall. Junior Jason McCroskey (Soddy Daisy., Tenn.) and sophomore Niko Brown (Kissimmee, Fla.) also posted wins at 184 and 197, respectively. The Mocs are back in action this weekend when they travel to the Virginia Duals. Action will take place Jan. 7-8 in Virginia Beach, Va. Chattanooga is back at home on Jan. 29, hosting the Citadel in Maclellan Gym at 2:00 p.m. (E.S.T.). Results: 149: Alex Hudson (UTC) - Dec. 6-0 - Darrin Boing (Ohio) - UTC 3-0 157: Josh Condon (UTC) - Dec. 6-1 - Casey Gordon (Ohio) - UTC 6-0 165: Dan Waddell (UTC) - Dec. 6-3 - Kyle Dilley (Ohio) - UTC 9-0 174: Nick Purdue (Ohio) - Dec. 7-2 - Brandon Wright (UTC) - UTC 9-3 184: Jason McCroskey (UTC) - Dec. 11-5 - Ryan Garringer (Ohio) - UTC 12-3 197: Niko Brown (UTC) - MD 13-5 - Kyle Sanders (Ohio) - UTC 16-3 285: Jeremy Johnson (Ohio) - Fall 2:21 - Matt Lettner (UTC) - UTC 16-9 125: Gabriel Ramos (Ohio) - Fall 2:58 - Prescott Garner (UTC) - UTC 16-15 133: Gavin Moore (Ohio) - Dec. 7-1 - Adam Wilson (UTC) - Ohio 18-16 141: Shawn Greevy (UTC) - MD 13-0 - Heath Allen (Ohio) - UTC 20-18

Photo/NWCADivision I, Division III, and NAIA brackets for the 2011 NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals were released on Monday night. The event takes place Saturday and Sunday at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Division I Division II (Coming Soon) Division III NAIA NJCAA (Coming Soon) Women (Coming Soon)

Depth beats out aces at Cheesehead Invitational The much anticipated collision between defending national champion Apple Valley, Minnesota (currently ranked first nationally) and perennial national champion Blair Academy, New Jersey (ranked third nationally) happened on the last two days of 2010. Even with five champions, including the season debut of Evan Silver (ranked No. 1 in the preseason at 119 pounds) down at 112 pounds, Blair Academy was not able to overcome the surreal depth of Apple Valley. Champions for Blair included No. 6 Joey McKenna (103), Silver at 112, No. 3 Mark Grey (125), No. 2 Austin Ormsbee (135), and No. 5 Brooks Black (285). The Buccaneers also had a runner-up finish from No. 9 Todd Preston at 130 pounds, and five other wrestlers place inside the top nine (third, fourth, fifth, seventh, and ninth) in totaling 652 points. However, the entry match, pool, and then bracket format emphasizes the overall depth that a team possesses. In a field with 29 nationally-ranked wrestlers and eight teams ranked inside the top 25, to have 13 wrestlers finish in the top six of their weight class (and all in the top nine) would be beyond impressive and almost surreal. None the less, that is what Apple Valley did to close out 2010. Even though No. 1 Destin McCauley (152) was the only champion for the Eagles, eight other wrestlers finished as runners-up: No. 13 Dakota Trom (125), No. 12 Mark Hall (130), No. 10 Brandon Kingsley (140), Daniel Woiwor (145), No. 4 Steven Keogh (160), No. 6 Jake Waste (171), and Matt Hechsel (189). Other place finishes for Apple Valley were a pair in fifth, a pair in sixth, and one in ninth -- as the squad totaled 734-1/2 points. Finishing third in the team standings was No. 8 Simley, Minesota with 559-1/2 points anchored by their lone champion Micah Barnes, who knocked off No. 4 Keogh 2-1 in the final at 160 pounds. Nine other wrestlers finished inside the top eight, including a trio each in third and fourth place -- among those were No. 16 Kyle Gliva (103) finishing third and No. 6 Jake Short (140) taking fourth. A relatively close fourth place with 526-1/2 points was No. 14 Clovis, California anchored by their pair of finalists in Zach (171) and Nick (285) Nevills. Zach, a junior ranked 12th nationally, upended No. 6 Waste 3-2 in the tiebreaker; while Nick, a freshman, lost to No. 5 Black 2-1 (this was the second one-point win for Black over Nick Nevills in the tournament). Eight other wrestlers also finished inside the top nine (third, fourth, two fifth, two sixth, seventh, and ninth). There was a rather close battle for places five through seven in the standings between No. 10 Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, No. 5 Wyoming Seminary, Pennsylvania, and No. 12 Marmion Academy, Illinois. Finishing fifth was Wisconsin Rapids with 491-1/2 points anchored by tournament champion No. 4 Devin Peterson (189); eight other wrestlers finished in the top nine (two third, fourth, fifth, sixth, two seventh, and ninth). Sixth place went to Wyoming Seminary with 477 points, anchored by champion No. 8 Dominick Malone (119) along with runner-up finishes from No. 19 Eric Morris (152) and AJ Vizcarrando (215). Seven other Blue Knights finished in the top nine (two third, fifth, seventh, and three ninth). Despite having the third most finalists in the tournament, it was not enough for Marmion Academy to finish above seventh place. The Cadets were led by champion No. 3 Ben Whitford (130); while No. 17 Johnny Jimenez (103), No. 6 Jered Cortez (112), and George Fisher (119) earned runner-up finishes. Only five other Marmion wrestlers had a top eight finish (fourth, two seventh, and two eighth). Rounding out the tournament champions were a trio of Badger State natives -- No. 4 Jake Sueflohn (140) of Arrowhead, No. 1 Alex Dieringer (145) of Port Washington, and Jordan Gruettner (215) of Muskego. Also of note was that No. 25 Montini Catholic, Illinois finished ninth with 300-1/2 points; the Broncos are still without state champion Kevon Powell (119) and a couple of other starters. Full Results: http://www.trackwrestling.com/predefinedtournaments/VerifyPassword.jsp?tournamentId=1233009 Unkind hosts at the POWERade The convergence of seven nationally-ranked teams and 22 ranked teams upon Canon-McMillan High School just outside of Pittsburgh did its part to answer questions about where teams and individuals stood after the first part of the scholastic season. However, in attempting to answer questions, the 44th annual POWERade Christmas Wrestling Tournament seemed to create more chaos. Twelve days after finishing second at North Canton to No. 41 Wadsworth in a weaker tournament, the hosts Canon-McMillan (ranked 42nd nationally) asserted its strength to distance themselves from one of the strongest tournament fields that will be seen all year long. The Big Macs used six placers, including five inside the top three, to assert their dominance with 194-1/2 points. Champions were Colt Shorts (103), No. 3 Conner Schram (112), and Cody Klempay (285); No. 20 Solomon Chisko (130) finished second; while No. 17 Nick Catalano (145) took home third place. The next two teams in the standings tied for a tournament high seven placers. No. 16 Central Dauphin, Pennsylvania had won this event the three prior years. However, with only three of those finishing in the top three, the Rams fell slightly short of the title finishing second with a total of 182 points. No. 5 Kenny Courts (189) was their lone champion, and was truly dominant with three technical falls and a pin among the five victories. Even without a champion, No. 28 Pittsburgh Central Catholic, Pennsylvania used an impressive showing by their middle-weights and upper-weights to finish third with 161-1/2 points. From 140 pounds on back, the Vikings had placers at every weight except 171 pounds led by runner-up finishes from Eric Nutter (145) and Lorenzo Thomas (152). No. 2 Jason Luster (160) and Perry Hills (189) finished third, a pair of wrestlers took fifth, while another took seventh. A pair of unranked teams with four placers each finished in fourth and sixth place. Walsh Jesuit, Ohio took fourth led by championships from No. 5 Johnni DiJulius (130) and No. 3 Nate Skonieczny (135). Solanco, Pennsylvania had four place-winners in the top five, including Super32 Challenge runner-up Dan Neff (140) taking second and Thomas Haines (215) -- ranked 16th among Class of 2014 wrestlers -- earning a fifth place finish. Three nationally-ranked teams each had five medalists to finish fifth, seventh, and eight respectively. No. 35 Burrell, Pennsylvania -- led by No. 12 Travis McKillop, champion of the 160 pound weight class -- took fifth with 141-1/2 points. They also had another champion in Brian Beattie (215), while Dakota DesLauriers (171) earned a runner-up finish. McKillop had one of the more impressive tournanment runs with two pins, an 8-1 victory over state runner-up Aaron McKinney (West Allegheny, Pennsylvania), a 7-4 victory over No. 2 Luster, and then a 4-3 victory over No. 3 Cody Wiercioch (Charleroi, Pennsylvania). Defending tournament champion Wiercioch had not given up a point in the tournament prior to the final. No. 30 Christiansburg, Virginia was led by a pair of runners-up in finishing seventh with 132-1/2 points. No. 9 JR Wert (112) lost a razor thin 1-0 decision to No. 3 Schram; while No. 7 Joey Dance (119) lost another ultimate tiebreaker match to No. 1 Jimmy Gulibon (Derry Area, Pennsylvania), this time the score was 2-1. Finishing in eighth place was No. 21 Collins Hill, Georgia with 123 points; the Eagles had medalists finishing in third, fourth, and a trio taking sixth place. Rounding out the nationally-ranked teams in the standings was No. 32 LaSalle, Pennsylvania with 114-1/2 points anchored by tournament champion No. 18 Matt Cimato (140), whose tournament was sparked by a 6-4 semifinal victory over No. 3 Evan Henderson (Kiski Prep, Pennsylvania). Other weight class champions included No. 1 Gulibon (119); No. 1 Nico Megaludis (125) of Franklin Regional, Pennsylvania; No. 7 Pete Baldwin (145) of Osceola, Florida; No. 10 Chance Marsteller (152) of Kennard Dale, Pennsylvania; and Nick Bonnacorsi (171) of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. With his fourth POWERade championship -- this one coming on the strength of three technical falls, a 16-3 major decision, and an 8-1 victory over No. 9 Geoff Alexander (Shady Side Academy, Pennsylvania) in the final -- Megaludis joined an elite club of two others and was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Wrestler. Full Results: http://poweradewrestling.com/2010/Brackets.pdf Upsets mark Granite City Holiday Tournament No. 47 Neosho, Missouri out-pointed No. 44 Minooka, Illinois to win the Granite City Holiday Tournament. Without three starters, including No. 9 Terrell Wilbourn (140), No. 39 Francis Howell Central, Missouri struggled to an eleventh place finish with 303-1/2 points. Led by three champions -- Nate Rodriguez (119), Blake Stauffer (171), and Dallas Smith (189) -- Neosho scored 616 points to win the tournament. They also had eight other wrestlers finished in the top seven; Riley Plew (285) took second, one took third, one in fourth, three in fifth, and two in seventh. Minooka had one champion in upset specialist Kalvin Hill (160), who defeated No. 17 Dylan Reel (Washington, Illinois) 8-5 in the semifinals. Corbet Oughton (112) and Jake Residori (152) finished as runners-up, while eight others finished in the top nine of this pool-to-bracket event. The featured finals match of the tournament saw No. 8 Zane Richards (Carbondale, Illinois) defeat No. 4 Cody Brewer (Oak Park, Missouri) 9-3 at 130 pounds in a battle of wrestlers with very strong Fargo resumes. The Northmen from Oak Park had three other wrestlers in the finals at this tournament, after having five champions in their last major event at the Kansas City Wrestling Classic; Noah Teaney (103) and Hashem Omari (215) won titles, while Cain Salas (135) earned a runner-up finish. The other team with multiple champions was West Aurora, Illinois, who had Nicholas Drendel (125) and Greg Jacquez (140) earn top of the podium finishes. Rounding out the tournament champions were James Krischke (112) of Fort Zumwalt West, Missouri; Jacob Gregerson (135) of the host school, Granite City, Illinois; Devonte Mahomes (145) of Oak Park River Forest, Illinois; Mike Kissell (152) of Whitfield, Missouri; and Nick Tufts (285) of Northwest, Missouri. Full Results: http://www.trackwrestling.com/predefinedtournaments/VerifyPassword.jsp?tournamentId=1315009 Red Wings rule roost at Goordich TOC No. 14 St. John’s, Michigan asserted their dominance in what is arguably Michigan’s best in-season tournament. The Red Wings were led by six champions in scoring 224 points: No. 12 Zac Hall (103), No. 8 Jacob Schmitt (112), Josh Pennell (125), Travis Curley (145), Jordan Wohlfert (152), and No. 1 Taylor Massa (160). Finishing second were No. 38 Detroit Catholic Central, Michigan with 201 points on the strength of five finalists and four third place finishes. Champions for the Shamrocks were TJ Fagan (119) and Alec Mooradian (135). Dundee, Michigan finished in a relatively close third place with 186-1/2 points on the strength of five finalists, including three champions -- No. 17 Joe Rendina (130), Chris Rau (140), and No. 15 Justin Heiserman (189). Other tournament champions were No. 7 Jordan Thomas (171) and Justin Zimmer (285) from Greenville, and Chris Nash (215) from Roseville. Outstanding Wrestler for the lower-weights went to Rendina, as he became a four-time tournament champion; while Massa was OW for the upper-weights, as he won for the third time in as many years. Full Results: http://michigangrappler.com/files/High_School/HS1011/results/Dec29/2010GOODRICHTOC.pdf More upsets in the Land of Lincoln While the absolute dominance of No. 33 Crystal Lake Central, Illinois at the Lincoln Holiday Tournament last week came as no surprise, the championship finals matchup of state champions at 152 pounds did provide a somewhat major one. It was a collision between two-time state champion No. 7 Joey Kielbasa (Crystal Lake Central, Illinois) and two-time state finalist No. 4 Max Schneider (Chicago Lane Tech, Illinois), who had not lost since the state final his freshman year in 2009. Both wrestlers came into the finals with falls in their three prior matches. After a scoreless first period, Schneider chose the down position; after securing near fall points earlier in the second period, Kielbasa would score the fall right at the midpoint of the second period. With that result, Kielbasa earned Outstanding Wrestler honors for the tournament, as well as most falls in the least time with four in 6:25. Full Results: http://www.illinoismatmen.com/2010-11/tournaments/lincoln/lincoln.pdf In dual meet action, Carl Sandburg, Illinois traveled to No. 26 Glenbard North, Illinois this past Wednesday and left with a 30-22 upset victory. The Eagles came home with victories in eight of the fourteen matches, including a 3-1 record in one-point matches. Carl Sandburg was runner-up last year in the state dual meet tournament, while Glenbard North has finished third in the last two years. It is likely that these two teams will be in the same half bracket at dual meet state Full Recap: http://www.illinoismatmen.com/forum/showthread.php?t=34258 Tone set for Buckeye State wrestling during the holidays Both of the major holiday wrestling tournaments in Ohio served as strong statements for the teams that emerged as champions. At the Medina Invitational, No. 6 St. Edward used a 13-3 record in championship semifinal and finals matches to create 80 points of separation from No. 15 Massillon Perry in the team standings (288 to 208). The Panthers were 1-7 in the semifinal round, including a 0-5 mark against St. Edward; their lone championship came from Zach Dailey at 140 pounds. The six St. Edward champions were Edgar Bright (112), No. 19 Dean Heil (119), Matt Van Curen (145), Domenic Abounader (152), Ty Walz (215), and No. 11 Greg Kuhar (285). Heil came up with a key 5-4 victory over No. 18 Mitch Newhouse of Massillon Perry in the semifinal round on a late reversal. Outstanding wrestler honors went to No. 2 Ian Miller (152) of Oak Harbor and No. 8 Alex Utley (189) of CVCA. Other weight class titles went to No. 1 Nathan Tomasello (103) of CVCA, Dillon Campbell (125) of Harrison, Josh D’Urso (130) of Springboro, Dan Mirman (135) of Medina Highland, and Jake Cramer (171) of Oak Harbor. At the Brecksville Holiday, team championship honors went to St. Peter Chanel, Ohio -- which was able to upend two-time defending tournament champions Wadsworth, Ohio by a 191-167 team point score. Finishing second or third at the state tournament seven times in the last ten years, the Firebirds are looking for their first state title since 1988; while No. 41 Wadsworth won the big-school state title last season, ending the 13 year grip that St. Edward had on the title. Key to the tournament title for Chanel was a 7-2 record in championship semifinal and final matches, along with having six of their seven medalists finishing inside the top three. Champions for Chanel were Aaron Assad (103), Danny Orrill (145), and Cody Walters (160); Joey Keifer (152) finished second; while Jon Schafer (189) and Kennedy Smith (215) finished third. Wadsworth had a pair of champions in No. 8 Kagan Squire (125) and No. 6 Nick Tavanello (215). Tavanello won the premier match of the finals 3-1 on a late takedown against No. 9 Logan Erb of Wapakoneta, Ohio, in a battle of defending state champions. While Wadsworth had seven placers, like Chanel; their other five place-winners finished fourth or below. The terrific trio for Monroeville all dominated the competition at their weight classes on the way to championships. No. 1 Hunter Stieber (135) had three pins, a technical fall, and a 10-0 major decision; No. 3 Chris Phillips (171) was held to decisions in his last three matches, but still did not give up an offensive score; while No. 2 Cam Tessari (140) scored pins in his last four matches after a 16-0 technical fall in the opening match to become only the third four-time champion in tournament history. Tessari also left with two other big pieces of hardware, most falls in the least time (4 in 6:46) and Outstanding Wrestler honors. Rounding out the weight class champions were No. 4 George DiCamillo (112) of St. Ignatius, Vinny Pizzuto (119) of Jackson-Milton, No. 18 Brent Fickel (130) of Padua, Jimmy King (152) of Lake Catholic, No. 13 Ian Korb (189) of Cincinnati Elder, and Garrett Gray (285) of Oregon Clay. Korb earned a 3-1 victory in overtime against No. 18 Chaz Gresham of Goshen in the championship final. Medina Results: http://www.baumspage.com/medina/res10.htm Brecksville Results: https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B17ZUASlYiliODk3YWEyM2ItODE5MC00M2Y0LWE0OGItNDVjYjhmMWExMDZi&hl=en Lehigh Valley rivals dominate pair of holiday tournaments Perennial favorites in Pennsylvania’s District XI, No. 17 Easton and Nazareth dominated their respective holiday tournaments, each taking home four championships on the way to tournament titles. Easton made their 27th trip to the Manheim Lions Holiday Wrestling Tournament, and came home with their 17th title -- including 11 in the last 12 years. Winning weight classes for the Red Rovers were Kyle Baker (103), Joey Rizzolino (140), No. 13 Mitch Minotti (145), and Jalal Paige (285); while Peter Stanley (112), Ricky RIzzolino (125), and Anthony Minotti (152) finished as runners-up. It was a close battle for second place between Robinson, Virginia and Reynolds, Pennsylvania as each had four finalists. Robinson earned that position with 157 points on the strength of weight class titles from Dallas (112) and Jake (119) Smith as well as Wes Jones (160); Santiago Valdez (130) finished in second place. Reynolds was third place with 151 points anchored by championships from No. 2 Mason Beckman (125) and Dylan Durso (130), while Adam Matthews (135) and Justin Rhodes (145) finished in second place. With four wins by technical fall, Beckman was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Wrestler for the second straight year. Rounding out champions at Manheim were Michael DePalma (135) of Jeanette, Tyle Parsons (152) of Erie Cathedral Prep, Jake Taylor (171) of Bald Eagle Area, Matt McCutcheon (189) of Kiski Area, and Brandon Bradney (215) of Fort LeBeouf. Using the return of two of their star wrestlers, Nazareth traveled to the Bethlehem Holiday Wrestling Tournament and dominated the field with four champions and seven other place-winners in totaling 220 points. Champions for the Blue Eagles were No. 2 Zach Horan (130) and Aaron Bradley (285), along with Franco Ferraina (125) and Ryan Krecker (160) who was each making their season debuts. There was a close three team battle for second place between Northampton, Pennsylvania; St. Mark’s, Delaware; and Council Rock South, Pennsylvania. Despite just a single finalist in champion John Lambert (152), and only seven other placers, the Konkrete Kids were able to muster 177-1/2 points to finish in second place. With nine total placers, and three finalists, St. Mark’s finished in third place with 168 points. Josh Snook (171) was the sole champion for the Sparants, while Tyler Pendergast (130) and Patrick Cassidy (285) each were runners-up. Fourth place in the standings, despite ten total medalists, went to Council Rock South with 166 points. Matt Martoccio (145) was their sole champion, while Connor Moore (140) finished as runner-up. Other weight class champions included Brett Martino (103) and Anthony Cabrera (112) of Bethlehem Liberty; Chad Walsh (119) and TJ Miller (140) of Camden Catholic, New Jersey; No. 6 Steve Spearman (135) of Erie McDowell; Tyler Mauger (189) of Boyertown; and No. 2 (at 189) Andrew Campolattano of Bound Brook, New Jersey. Manheim Brackets: http://media.lehighvalleylive.com/sports_impact/other/mFinal%20Brackets.pdf Bethlehem Holiday Classic Brackets: https://sites.google.com/site/hurricaneholidayclassic/brackets Oviedo outlasts field to win home tournament No. 49 Oviedo, Florida was able to outlast 25 other teams, including eight that finished inside the top ten at their state tournaments last year, in winning the 9th annual Zac Jarzynka Memorial Ironman in front of its home crowd. Four Lions wrestlers -- No. 15 Geordan Speiller (160), Lee Wildes (171), Carlos Martinez (215), and No. 9 Doug Vollaro (285) -- earned weight class titles among their group of ten medalists as Oviedo scored a total of 260-1/2 points. Despite six finalists, No. 27 Springstead, Florida was only able to earn a second place finish in the tournament with 245-1/2 points. This was due to two reasons -- the Eagles only had nine total placers, and they were only able to earn a split from their championship matches. Winning weight class titles were Virgil Toms (130), Nick Soto (135), and Shawn Landgraff (152); while No. 3 Richie Bliss (103), Cody Ross (140), and John Dreggors (285) finished as runners-up. In fact, the three second place finishers lost to wrestlers that were selected as Outstanding Wrestlers for the tournament. Dylan Lucas, an eighth-grader for Tampa Bay Christian, earned a fall over Bliss in the final, and was named Outstanding Wrestler among lower-weights; Austin Trott of Camden County, Georgia scored a 4-3 decision over Ross, and was named OW for middle-weights; while Vollaro defeated Dreggors 3-2 in overtime, and was named OW for upper-weights. Gray Jones (189) joined Trott as a weight class champion for the Camden County, Georgia -- which finished in third place as a team with 242-1/2 points. They also had runner-up finishes from Nigel Hamilton (119) and Tim Gilbert (160) among their ten total placers. Rounding out the weight class champions were Lucas at 103; Zach Whitmire (112) of Dr. Phillips, Florida; Mark Gulesian (119) of Christopher Columbus, Florida; Taz Torbit (125) of Parkview, Georgia; and Ramiro Rojas (145) of Braddock, Florida. Full Results: http://www.trackwrestling.com/predefinedtournaments/VerifyPassword.jsp?tournamentId=1263009 High Point dominates weather-delayed Mustang Classic The best individual bracket event during the regular season in New Jersey was delayed almost one full week due to extreme winter weather conditions. However, this did not change the fact that No. 20 High Point is clearly the state’s best team (excluding No. 3 Blair Academy, which competes among National Prep teams). The Wildcats were dominant at the Mustang Classic hosted by Brick Memorial with six finalists, five of whom emerged as champions. And that came with No. 14 John Guzzo (160) not wrestling, and with No. 14 Nick Francavilla (125) leaving the tournament with an injury default in the quarterfinal round. Standing atop the podium for High Point were Justin Bellis (112), Bill Hagany (119), Joe Gaccione (145), No. 19 Ethan Orr (171), and No. 17 William Smith (285), while Drew Wagnehoffer (140) earned a runner-up finish. On the other hand, it was a disappointing tournament for No. 48 Timber Creek, New Jersey, which was only able to muster three wrestlers in the top four -- Nick Virgilio (125) and Brandon Keller (125) finishing third, and Kevin Birmingham (135) taking home fourth place. Rounding out the weight class champions were Michael Bohling (103) of Sayreville; Kyle Casaletto (125) of Southern Regional, who was named Outstanding Wrestler; Anthoy Perrotti (130) and Frank Marotti (152) of West Essex; No. 5 Jeff Canfora (135) and No. 11 Devon Gobbo (140) of Delbarton; Anthony Dawson (160) of Paulsboro; No. 10 James Fox (189) of St. Peter’s Prep; and Adrew Marr (215) of Wall.

EDINBORO, Pa. -- Edinboro’s Chris Honeycutt (North Ridgeville, OH/St. Edward) has been named the Eastern Wrestling League Wrestler of the Week following his outstanding performance at the Southern Scuffle. Honeycutt repeated as the 184 lb. champion, winning all six of his matches, with two coming against ranked opponents. The junior entered the tournament ranked second by both InterMat and Amateur Wrestling News and boosted his record to 11-0. Honeycutt missed the first month of the season while rehabbing following offseason shoulder surgery. A year ago Honeycutt competed unattached while redshirting. He won the 184 lbs. title with an upset of top-seeded Dustin Kilgore of Kent State. This time around he had to defeat third-ranked Steve Bosak of Cornell in the finals. He handed Bosak (18-1) his first loss of the season with a 7-2 decision. Following a scoreless first period Honeycutt started the second period in the down position. He would take a 2-0 lead with a reversal, with Bosak escaping with just over a minute remaining. Honeycutt added a takedown with thirty seconds remaining and ended the second period with a 4-1 lead. Bosak cut the lead to 4-2 with an escape with a minute left, but Honeycutt registered his second takedown off a Bosak shot with approximately 20 seconds to go to clinch the win. With a point for riding time Honeycutt prevailed 7-2. Honeycutt opened the Southern Scuffle with a 7-5 decision over Antonio Giogio of North Carolina. In the second round he pinned Campbell’s John Merickel at 2:02. That was followed by a 13-2 major decision over John Dickson of Virginia Tech. In the quarterfinals he bested Keith Witt of Kent State 6-0, and a 6-4 decision over 15th-ranked Luke Rebertus of Navy set up the finals bout with Bosak. Edinboro is back in action on Friday, January 7 and Saturday, January 8, competing in the Virginia Duals.

Mark Hall turns 14 years old in January, but you would never know it from talking to him or watching him wrestle. He's mature beyond his years both on and off the wrestling mat. Mark Hall (Photo/Jeff Beshey, The Guillotine)Hall grew up Michigan, spent part of last year in Kentucky, and moved with his father to Minnesota this past November. He is a seventh-grader at Falcon Ridge Middle School, but wrestles varsity at 130 pounds for the nation's No. 1 high school wrestling program, Apple Valley. Minnesota got its first look at the seventh grade phenom at this year's annual Minnesota Christmas Tournament, which took place Dec. 17-18 at the UCR Regional Sports Center in Rochester. Hall, who is ranked as the No. 1 junior high school wrestler in the country by InterMat, stole the show at an event filled with Division I prospects, state champions, and state placewinners. Hall dominated the competition en route to winning the title at 130 pounds. His most notable victory, the one that that had state and national wrestling forums buzzing, came in the semifinals when he crushed Forest Lake junior Ben Morgan, a state champion, Junior National freestyle All-American, and nationally-ranked wrestler. After a scoreless first period, Hall put Morgan on his back early in the second period to go up 5-0 before cruising to a 10-0 shutout victory. Mark Hall (Photo/Jeff Beshey, The Guillotine)"When I say this I mean no disrespect to Ben Morgan because he's a cool kid," prefaced Hall. "But when I put Ben on his back, the whole crowd went silent. When it went silent, I knew that I had him beat because he's not used to being down 5-0 and eventually 8-0 going into the third period. After winning, I was like, yeah, I won, but I'm going to have to keep working hard because I know he's going to be working hard to beat me." Apple Valley coach Jim Jackson believes that it's an intangible quality that has allowed Hall to be so successful at the high school level at such a young age. "I think his demeanor has really helped him," said Jackson. "It's a calm confidence. Nothing rattles him. His demeanor blows me away." Growing up in Michigan Mark Hall grew up in Davison, Michigan, a suburb of Flint and located 50 miles north of Detroit. Davison High School became a wrestling powerhouse in Michigan under the direction of head coach Roy Hall (no relation to Mark Hall), a Davison alum and former Michigan State wrestler who took over the program in 1997. The Davison wrestling program has produced NCAA Division I champions and All-Americans, including Brent Metcalf (Iowa), Paul Donahoe (Nebraska/Edinboro), and Jon Reader (Iowa State). "Roy (Hall) is a great coach," said Mark Hall's father, who is also named Mark. "You don't produce the people that he has without being a great coach and a great person. He'll do anything for you." Mark Hall's love for wrestling was fostered at a young age by one of his first coaches in the Davison youth program, Chase Metcalf, older brother of two-time NCAA champion and U.S. World Team member Brent Metcalf. Mark Hall with Chase Metcalf and Brent MetcalfChase was a two-time state champion, NHSCA Nationals champion, and Junior Nationals champion. Many believe Chase was a more talented wrestler than Brent, but didn't have the drive of his younger brother at the college level. After spending two years at the University of Michigan where he wrestled for the Wolverines, Chase Metcalf returned home and began coaching wrestling in Davison. Chase Metcalf became much more than a youth wrestling coach to Mark Hall. "We had practice at my house and then afterwards we would just hang out and play Xbox," said Hall. "He always took me out to eat with his family. Chase was a brother to me, or even like a second father to me. I was always hanging around him. I just loved him." On Sept. 8, 2005, Mark Hall's world was shaken when Chase Metcalf, who had just turned 21 years old, died in an automobile accident. Some of Chase's wrestling belongings were passed onto Hall, including his Fargo (Junior Nationals) stop sign, and wrestling bag, which Hall uses to this day. Hall, who was 8 years old at the time, took a month and a half off from wrestling. According to his father, "That was a hard time for Mark. He just couldn't get over it for a little bit." Mark HallWhen Hall did return to the mat, his attitude toward training had changed. "Chase pushed me one hundred and ten percent every single practice," said Hall. "Once he died, I started pushing myself even harder every single practice. It hurt to know that he wasn't there to push me anymore, so I had to it myself. It was sort of like a maturity thing. I can't have people watching out for me. I have to do things myself sometimes." Hall continued to progress as a wrestler in Michigan. His father took him to wrestling events and wrestling camps all over the country. He was getting 250-plus matches a year. Often times he would compete in older age groups, in addition to his own age group, just for more competition. He won virtually everything there was to win as a youth wrestler, including Tulsa Nationals, Tulsa Kickoff Classic, Reno Worlds, Liberty Nationals, Border War Nationals, and Ohio Tournament of Champions. "We always tried to get him the toughest kids to wrestle," said his father. "It doesn't matter if you win or lose. If you lose, that's a good learning tool. It makes you work harder because it shows that you're not the best out there." Moving to Kentucky and wrestling varsity Last year, Hall began his seventh-grade year at Davison Middle School, where he played football. In the winter, Hall moved to Union, Kentucky, located near Cincinnati, to wrestle for Ryle High School. The Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) prohibits seventh and eighth-graders from competing at the high school varsity level, but the Kentucky High School Athletic Association (KHSAA) allows it. "Going to junior high tournaments wouldn't have benefited him," said Hall's father. The Halls chose Ryle not only for the opportunity to compete at the high school varsity level, but also because of the workout partners and wrestling schedule. Mark Hall wrestling Myron Bradbury"He had great workout partners there at the time, plus eighty percent of Ryle's matches were in Ohio," said Mark's father. "They went to tough tournaments. They went to two tournaments that had 48 teams and saw teams like Graham." Hall finished last season with a 42-3 varsity record at Ryle. He was a Kentucky state runner-up at 119 pounds, losing in the state finals to Myron Bradbury, a senior. Hall had split matches with Bradbury, an NHSCA Nationals runner-up, during the regular season, but lost the final meeting. The Halls returned to Michigan after the wrestling season. Last spring and summer, Hall continued to raise eyebrows with his performances. He defeated two-time California state champion and nationally-ranked Alex Cisneros at America's Cup last June. Moving to Minnesota and wrestling for Apple Valley In November, the Halls made another move, this time from Michigan to Minnesota to allow Mark Hall the opportunity to wrestle for the nation's No. 1 high school wrestling program, Apple Valley. Mark Hall (Photo/Jeff Beshey, The Guillotine)The primary reason for coming to Apple Valley, according to Mark Hall's father, was the workout partners. Apple Valley has several nationally-ranked wrestlers who are close to Hall in weight. "After I got a job in Minnesota and we decided to come to Apple Valley, we didn't even know if he would be in the lineup," said Hall's father, a former wrestler himself who finished as a state runner-up in Michigan. "But we knew that he would have all these great workout partners to practice with all year. If he didn't ever step on the mat as a varsity wrestler, he would still be so much better." Hall's first live-go when he arrived at Apple Valley was with Destin McCauley, the nation's No. 1 recruit by InterMat. "That was a real eye-opener for me," Hall said of wrestling McCauley. "It showed me that I have a lot of things that I need to work on." Hall admits that he took some poundings in the Apple Valley wrestling room when he first arrived, battling nationally-ranked wrestlers like McCauley, Dakota Trom, Matt Kelliher, and Brandon Kingsley. But he knew immediately that Apple Valley is where he needs to be to accomplish his wrestling goals. "I knew right from the get-go that as soon as I stepped on the mat with all these ranked wrestlers that I had to be here to get to where I want to be," said Hall. Initially, the plan was for Hall to wrestle at Davison High School in Michigan when he reached ninth grade. But that plan, at least for now, has changed. "I'm almost one hundred percent sure that we're going to stay here at Apple Valley," said his father. "You can't get better competition. You can't get better workout partners. There are so many great coaches on staff working with the kids. Plus, all the Apple Valley wrestlers and coaches are great people." Jackson has noticed improvements in Hall even in the short time he has been at Apple Valley. Jim Jackson talks to Mark Hall (Photo/Jeff Beshey, The Guillotine)"I really believe he has already improved," said Jackson. "I don't know how to say that because people think that I'm trying to take credit. I'm not trying to take any credit. It's his workout partners. That makes a huge difference. You're only as good as the people around you." If there is one thing that people need to know about Mark Hall's father, it's that he will do whatever he feels is best for his children, regardless of what other people think. He has moved his son all over the country to give him the best opportunities to succeed. He also held his son back in school to help ensure that he's ready for college when the time comes. "I did that because I don't want my son going to college at 17 years old," said his father. "I even held my daughter back. I don't want my son 600 miles away, being 17 years old, doing stupid stuff, or being led around by older kids. I want him to be mature enough to handle it." With success comes scrutiny. There are those who question Hall's father's motives for moving his son all over the country to wrestle or holding him back in school. These things happen everywhere. But Mark Hall's situation is magnified even more because it's happening at Apple Valley, a highly-successful program that has benefited from transfers over the years. Jackson understands the animosity toward the Apple Valley program, but it's the animosity toward individuals, like Mark Hall and his father, that really bothers him. "People are going to do what they think is best for their son or daughter," said Jackson. "To me, there's absolutely no one in a position to judge anybody at all. It's not their right to do that. You don't have to agree with it. And you have a right to your opinion. But to pass judgment on a family is not right. That's one thing that will bother me all the time." Mark Hall (Photo/Jeff Beshey, The Guillotine)The truth is ... those who choose to focus on whether Mark Hall should be in seventh grade or eighth grade, or on something negative, are missing a great story about a great kid. "He's very humble," said Jackson. "Very hard working. Very respectful. The teachers love him. He's just a great kid." As for his talents on the wrestling mat, they're freakish. "At the Christmas Tournament he really opened people's eyes," said Jackson. "People were like, 'Holy cow. Now what?'" Mark Hall's story is just getting started. Jackson believes the sky is the limit for what he can accomplish in the sport. The soon-to-be 14-year-old has high goals in the sport. "I want to be a six-time state champion," said Hall. "I want to win Fargo six or eight times, however many times I can win it. I want to be the next four-time NCAA champion. I want to wrestle in the Olympics too." This story also appears in the Dec. 31 issue of The Guillotine. The Guillotine has been covering amateur wrestling in Minnesota since 1971. Its mission is to report and promote amateur wrestling at all levels -- from youth and high school wrestling to college and international level wrestling. Subscribe to The Guillotine.

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Oklahoma State wrestling coach John Smith became the first coach in OSU’s storied history to hit the 300-win mark for his career after leading the Cowboys to a 40-4 win over No. 24 Arizona State at Wells Fargo Arena Sunday. The win improved Smith’s career record to 300-44-5 in his 20 years at the helm of his alma mater. With the win, OSU improved to 4-0 on the year. Arizona State dipped to 3-2 on the season. Sunday’s win improved the Cowboys to 3-0 against opponents ranked in the top 25 this year. The Sun Devils never had a chance in the dual, as they forfeited the 149 and 157-pound weight classes, resulting in a 12-0 Cowboy lead before the dual even started. Including the two wins by forfeit, the Cowboys won nine of the 10 bouts and bagged 22 takedowns in the dual to Arizona State’s three. Returning Oklahoma State All-Americans Clayton Foster (16-3 major decision over Luke Macciaroli) and Jordan Oliver (4:39 pin over David Prado) were both bonus-point winners, as was Luke Silver, who dominated Kalin Goodsite before finishing a 3:11 pin. In addition to the bonus-point wins, other highlights were provided by freshman heavyweight Blake Rosholt, who toppled Levi Cooper by a 4-3 score; freshman 165-pounder Dallas Bailey, who won a wild 6-5 decision over Te Edwards and junior 174-pounder Mike Benefiel, who was a 6-3 winner over Eric Starks. “Another good win at heavyweight for Blake Rosholt, but I do think he shut it down a little bit when he had the lead,” Smith said. “I loved Dallas Bailey’s match,” Smith said. “He, Mike Benefiel and Jordan Oliver all wrestled from start to finish. I really liked those three matches. Jordan put on a clinic by pushing hard with takedowns and I liked that Dallas Bailey and Mike Benefiel took the action to and scored the key points against pretty good wrestlers.” The Cowboys return to action when they compete at the National Duals in Cedar Falls, Iowa on Jan. 8-9. Oklahoma State will not know who it will face until seedings for the event are released later this week. Results: 184: No. 11 Chris Perry (OSU) dec. Jake Meredith (ASU); 5-4 197: No. 4 Clayton Foster (OSU) MD Luke Macciaroli (ASU); 16-3 285: Blake Rosholt (OSU) dec. Levi Cooper; 4-3 125: No. 3 Anthony Robles (ASU) MD No. 6 Jon Morrison (OSU); 11-0 133: No. 1 Jordan Oliver (OSU) fall David Prado (ASU); 4:39 141: No. 19 Luke Silver (OSU) fall Kalin Goodsite (ASU); 3:11 149: No. 4 Jamal Parks (OSU) won by forfeit 157: Neil Erisman won by forfeit 165: No. 9 Dallas Bailey (OSU) dec. Te Edwards (ASU); 6-5 174: No. 9 Mike Benefiel (OSU) dec. Eric Starks (ASU); 6-3 Bout Play-by-Plays 184: No. 11 Chris Perry (OSU) dec. Jake Meredith (ASU); 5-4 With the dual starting at 184 pounds, Oklahoma State’s Chris Perry opened things with a 5-4 win over Jake Meredith. Perry opened the scoring with a takedown in the waning moments of the first period. The two had gone back and forth for the final minute of the first period before Perry was eventually credited with the takedown. Perry started the second period in the down position and worked to get a reversal to increase his lead to 4-0. He cut Meredith loose to bring the score to 4-1. Perry started the third position in the top position, but a Meredith reversal brought the score to 4-3. Meredith mounted up enough riding time to send the bout to overtime, but Perry worked his way free for an escape with 11 seconds remaining to open up a 5-3 advantage. Meredith’s 1:17 of riding time brought the final to 5-4. 197: No. 4 Clayton Foster (OSU) MD Luke Macciaroli (ASU); 16-3 It didn’t take fifth-ranked Clayton Foster long to impose his will on Arizona State freshman Luke Macciaroli during his 16-3 major decision victory, as Foster stormed in for a double-leg takedown in the early-going, then followed that up with a two-point nearfall to race out to a 4-0 lead in the first minute of the bout. He added another two-point nearfall just before the period ended to take a 6-0 advantage into the second period. Foster started the second period in the down position and escaped quickly, then bagged another takedown to go up, 9-0. Foster worked aggressively for the pin, but Macciaroli escaped late in the period to bring the score to 9-1. Macciaroli elected to start the third period in a neutral position, but Foster added two more takedowns and a two-point nearfall plus 3:41 of riding time to seal his 16-3 major decision win. 285: Blake Rosholt (OSU) dec. Levi Cooper (ASU); 4-3 Surrendering approximately 45 pounds to his opponent, Cowboy freshman Blake Rosholt was a 4-3 upset winner over No. 20 Levi Cooper of Arizona State. Rosholt opened the scoring with a takedown on the edge of the mat in the first period, but was unable to mount any real riding time as Cooper powered his way up for an escape to bring the score to 2-1. With Rosholt in the top position to start the second period, Cooper connected on a Granby roll to score a reversal and take a 3-2 lead. Rosholt escaped to tie the score at 3-3. Rosholt was in the down position to start the third period and escaped to regain the lead at 4-3. Cooper threatened a single-leg takedown late in the third period, but Rosholt fought hard enough to prevent the scoring bid from Cooper and secure his second win over a ranked opponent in as many tries. 125: No. 3 Anthony Robles (ASU) MD No. 6 Jon Morrison (OSU); 11-0 Oklahoma State freshman Jon Morrison lost an 11-0 major decision to No. 3 Anthony Robles in the featured bout of the dual. One of the favorites to win the NCAA title this year, Robles showed why with an early takedown and an overwhelming rideout in the first period. Along the way, Morrison was slapped for stalling to bring the score to 3-0 in favor of Robles. Morrison chose a neutral start to the second period, but Robles just added to his lead with another takedown and rideout to take his advantage to 5-0. Morrison started the third period in the top position and was powerful in his ride of Robles, but let up for just a moment, and Robles turned back into him for a reversal, then added a three-point nearfall as the clock hit zeroes to extend his lead to 10-0. When Robles’s 2:17 of riding time was tacked on, the Sun Devil All-American was an 11-0 winner. 133: No. 1 Jordan Oliver (OSU) fall David Prado (ASU); 4:39 After watching his teammate get majored in the previous bout, Oklahoma State’s Jordan Oliver responded by pinning David Prado in 4:39. Oliver was the man from the start, bagging a whopping five takedowns and a two-point nearfall in the first period alone to take a 12-4 lead after the first three minutes. Oliver added five more takedowns in the second period before locking Prado up in a cradle and scoring the fall at the 4:39 mark. Including his win over Prado on Sunday, Oliver now has 27 takedowns in his four dual bouts this season. 141: No. 19 Luke Silver (OSU) fall Kalin Goodsite (ASU); 3:11 In perhaps the most explosive showing of his career, Luke Silver scored two takedowns, a two-point nearfall and a three-point nearfall in the first period alone in his demolition of Kalin Goodsite. Silver started the second period in the down position and exploded through to get a reversal and turn it into a pin at the 3:11 mark. 149: No. 4 Jamal Parks (OSU) won by forfeit 157: Neil Erisman (OSU) won by forfeit 165: No. 9 Dallas Bailey (OSU) dec. Te Edwards (ASU); 6-5 Oklahoma State freshman Dallas Bailey continued his trend of wild matches with a 6-5 win over Te Edwards of Arizona State. After a wild scramble in the first period, Edwards scored a takedown, only to be reversed by Bailey. With Bailey in control, Edwards nearly scored a defensive fall, but Bailey fought it off before being reversed himself to fall behind, 4-2. Bailey started the second period in the down position and escaped to bring the score to 4-3. After another wild flurry, Bailey scored his first takedown of the bout to seize a 5-4 lead. The third period started with Bailey on top and the Cowboy freshman built his riding time advantage up to over 1:00 before Edwards got free for the escape to tie the score at 5-5. Bailey’s 1:27 of riding time made the Cowboy was a 6-5 winner. 174: No. 9 Mike Benefiel (OSU) dec. Eric Starks (ASU); 6-3 Oklahoma State’s Mike Benefiel put a cap on the dual with a 6-3 win over Eric Starks. Benefiel connected on a fireman’s carry to score a takedown early in the first period. Starks got free for an escape to bring the score to 2-1. With Benefiel in the down position to start the second period, he escaped, then scored another takedown to go up, 5-1. Starks escaped again to trim Benefiel’s advantage to 5-2. Starks escaped to start the third period, but Benefiel’s 2:05 riding time advantage sealed the Cowboy’s 6-3 win.

Event: UFC 125: Resolution Venue: MGM Grand Garden Arena (Las Vegas) Date: January 1, 2011 Let's get this New Year off to a rockin' start with a plateful of winners as we try to find weaknesses in the Vegas betting line. It is the UFC Monster's mission to help readers make a profit from mixed martial arts wagering. Because of the narrow base of MMA bettors and the difficulty in oddsmakers staying ahead of the fans, investment opportunities often present themselves for the astute handicapper. So let's get to work and break down the Vegas line as it pertains to tonight's UFC 125 card. The UFC starts out this New Year with a very competitive fight card featuring the lightweight title match between two former collegiate wrestling standouts, champion Frankie Edgar (13-1) from Clarion and Gray "The Bully" Maynard (10-0) from Michigan State. Edgar's only loss was a non-title affair with Maynard two years ago. In that fight, the Bully earned his nickname as he used his size and power to dominate in a clear decision victory. That's why oddsmakers have made Maynard the favorite despite the fact that he's the challenger. Maynard's style isn't a good fit for Edgar, or so the bettors believe. But we know how hard a worker Edgar is, as he outscored the legendary B.J. Penn in two consecutive fights, and that may be the case here, as well. Of the combined 23 wins that these two fighters have, 16 have been by decision. Neither fighter is a finisher, and the UFC likes finishers. The value may actually lie with the champion here, but I see it being very difficult for Edgar to use his technical boxing skills for five rounds to avoid a collision course with Maynard. Maynard will eventually bring Edgar to the mat and that's when it gets ugly. A close decision goes the way of Maynard as he covers the –145 impost. Bet the prop bet that this fight goes the distance. Middleweight Chris "The Crippler" Leben (25-6 with the orange hair) is a crowd favorite. Winning three in a row, Leben has looked like a Zombie unable to be stopped by a human being. His hands of lead work well with his head of stone. Surprising, this banger is amazingly good on the ground and can lock a submission up in seconds. Brian "The All American" Stann (9-3) will have his hands full. The Iraq War veteran has shown a determination and striking ability that makes for an interesting fight. A tattooed punk against a clean-shaven, patriot ex-Marine. Hmmmmm. I like Leben here despite the –160 price, which I think is fair. Leben owns the Octagon experience, and his confidence has grown recently with his impressive wins. This exciting fight will end in the second round when Leben connects with a powerful left hook that ends it. Light heavyweight Brandon Vera (11-5) has lost five of his last eight fights, and most recently to Jon Jones and Randy Couture. He is fighting for his UFC life tonight, and his first class Muay Thai skills give him a chance. But Thiago Silva (14-2) will be more than happy to oblige a slugfest. Silva slits your throat with his powerful and sudden knockout abilities. And the Brazilian is also a black belt in jui-jitsu. His only losses have been to Lyota Machida and Rashad Evans. Nothing to be ashamed of. In what could be a very exciting and active fight, I think Thiago will have the inside edge to win this, if he can avoid the relentless leg kicks that Vera will administer. I'm looking for a third-round KO from Silva, but a judge's decision for Vera wouldn't surprise me. Thiago will have to fight a smart fight to win. Vera is a cagey veteran fighting for relevance in a deep weight class of fighters. Take Thiago Silva and lay the –135. Nate Diaz (13-5 with 9 submissions) is moving up in weight again to fight as a welterweight against undefeated Dong Hyun Kim (13-0-1), a dirty boxing striker, who effectively controls his opponent's body. But doing that with Diaz won't be easy. This is a classic striker against submission fight. But Diaz likes to paw as well. His awkward looking striking is getting better and his lanky frame and long reach create problems. The key here is for him to realize that his best shot is with a takedown to the mat and some of that Cesar Gracie jui-jitsu. Ego often gets in the way and makes good fighters forget their strengths as they try to stand and strike with a macho flair. I like Diaz here at +110 underdog odds. The weight won't matter as Diaz's game is all arms and legs. I hope to see a third round submission by triangle choke. Lightweight and former Pride champion Takanori Gomi (32-6) is coming off a stunning first-round KO over Tyson Griffin, the first man to put him out. Tonight, Gomi is matched up with the very popular crowd-pleasing Clay "The Carpenter" Guida (27-11), whose moppy hair and aggressive attacking make him a UFC icon. You get your money's worth when Guida fights, and this should be no exception. This should be everybody's favorite for "Fight of the Night." Make that prop bet if you can. I think Guida's 12 fights inside the Octagon (7-5) will be the difference here. Gomi is on foreign soil. Guida wins a decision. At –150 I think the price is reasonable. That finishes up the main card, now let's take an abbreviated look at the undercard. If you can figure out how to get ION TV, you can watch the next two fights for FREE. No lightweight hits harder than Jeremy Stephens (18-6). And his opponent Marcus "The Irish Hand Grenade" Davis (17-7) will stand and trade punches with him. Davis is a great boxer, but Stephens wrestling will be the difference here. Stephens by second round ground-and-pound TKO. Lay the –255 on Stephens. Former WEC fighter Josh Grispi (14-1) should show a stronger skill set in beating another WEC fighter Dustin Poirier (8-1). Grispi by second-round choke to cash at –260. Veteran Phil "The New York City Badass" (13-12) Baroni has lost his last five fights in the Octagon. He is lethal early with devastating punching power, but easily gases as the fights wear on. He has become gold for those who bet against him. Brad Tavares (6-0) is a green unkown, and hopefully good enough to get Baroni into the empty zone. Tavares at –210 by third-round TKO is the play here. Dan Roberts (11-1 with 8 submissions) will lock one up on Greg Soto as a slight –110 'dog. Roberts wins by rear-naked choke in the first round. Former WEC champion Mike Brown (24-6) was on quite a run, including beating Uriah Faber twice, before getting dethroned by the amazing Jose Aldo. Tonight's task isn't easy against 15-1 Diego Nunes, but I believe Brown has the wrestling savvy to control where this fight takes place. Brown –260 by decision. Chiropractor and former three-time AA from Minnesota Jacob Volkmann (11-2) should outwrestle 40-year old veteran Antonio McKee (25-3-2, with 18 decisions), who is making his UFC debut. Volkmann wins a decision as a generous +190 underdog. Now let's see what we can do with our "fictitious" $1000 bankroll. Let's lay $116 to win $80 on "The Bully" Gray Maynard. Let's lay $96 to win $60 on Chris "The Crippler" Leben. Let's lay $95 to win $70 on Thiago Silva. Let's lay $60 to win $66 on Nate Diaz, Nick's younger brother. Let's lay $90 to win $60 on Clay "The Carpenter" Guida. Let's lay $102 to win $40 on Jeremy Stephens. Let's lay $130 to win $50 on Josh Grispi. Let's lay $105 to win $50 on Brad Tavares to send the NY Badass packing. Let's lay $44 to win $40 on Dan Roberts. Let's lay $130 to win $50 on Mike Brown and wish we bet more! Let's lay $30 to win $57 on the Minnesota chiropractor, Jacob Volkmann. So, in all we are risking $998 to try and win $623. We will need some luck and we will need some fighters to simply fight to their form. I like our chances of showing a profit! Don't forget to share your profits with your local youth wrestling program, where tomorrow's champions are born. Enjoy the fights. I know I will.

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Led by titles from redshirt sophomore Tyler Graff (133 lbs.) and junior Travis Rutt (184 lbs.) the No. 4 Wisconsin wrestling team placed second at the 48th annual Midlands Championships on Thursday. Also helping the Badgers’ to a second-place finish was redshirt sophomore Cole Schmitt (149 lbs.) and junior Andrew Howe (165 lbs.), who each took second in their respective weight classes at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Wisconsin (95.5 points) was just eight points short of the first place title, obtained by Missouri with 103.5 points. The Cardinal and White’s second-place finish at this year’s Midlands Championships is tied for best finish at the event in school history. Wisconsin also placed second in 1987 with 70.50 points behind top finisher Sunkist Kids WC (105.75 points). Entering the championship round, the Badgers had four wrestles in the finals, the most of any team in the tournament. To kick off the day, No. 3 seed Graff advanced to the 133 lbs. championship after defeating Central Michigan’s No. 4 seed Scotti Sentes, 7-2. Graff captured his second-straight Midlands title at 133 lbs. after defeating Illinois' No. 2 seed BJ Futrell, 13-6, in the championship match. With the title, Graff is the only Badger on the 2010-11 roster to have won back-to-back Midlands titles. As the No. 3 seed, Rutt came out big in the semifinals when he defeated No. 2 seed Lehigh's Robert Hamlin, 6-4, at 184 lbs. In the championship match, Rutt captured the Midlands title for the first time in his career after defeating No. 4 seed Josh Ihnen (Nebraska), 4-3. With titles from Graff and Rutt, the Badgers have now garnered two top individual finishes at the last three Midlands Championships. At 165 lbs., No. 1 seed Howe cruised to a 12-3 major decision over Missouri’s No. 5 seed Zach Toal in the semifinal match. However, Howe competed in one of the most anticipated matches of the night against Nebraska’s Jordan Burroughs (No. 2 seed), the defending 2009 NCAA Champion at 157 lbs. Heading into the match, Howe was riding a 51-0 winning-streak, but his impressive run came to an end when he fell to Burrough’s, 10-7. The last time Howe dropped a collegiate match was on March 21, 2009 when he came up short in a 3-2 decision against Edinboro’s Jarrod King to finish second at the 2009 NCAA Championships at 165 lbs. Wrapping up the Badgers in the championships was Schmitt at 149 lbs. In Thursday morning’s semifinals, No. 6 seed Schmitt upset Northwestern’s No. 2 seed Andrew Nadhir, 9-4 to earn him a trip to the title match for the first time in his career. In a hard-fought battle, Schmitt walked away with second place after dropping a 4-0 decision to No. 1 seed Kevin LeValley (Nebraska) in the final match of the day. The lone Badger still in the wrestlebacks on Thursday, No. 10 seed Ben Jordan's journey to third place came to an end after he fell to No. 6 seed Rutgers' Alex Caruso, 6-2 at 174 lbs. Jordan finishes the 2010 Midlands with a 3-2 record. Wisconsin hits the mat once again when the squad travels to the NWCA National Duals in Cedar Falls, Iowa Jan. 8-9.

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Cal Poly junior Boris Novachkov captured the 141-pound championship while his brother, senior Filip Novachkov, settled for fourth place at 133 pounds on the final day of competition in the 46-team Midlands Championships on Thursday night in Northwestern University's Welsh-Ryan Arena. Boris Novachkov won by medical forfeit in the championship final as his opponent, top-seeded Jimmy Kennedy of Illinois, was injured in his semifinal-round match and could not answer the bell. In the semifinals, second-seeded Boris Novachkov scored a reversal in overtime to beat Tyler Nauman of Pittsburgh. After a scoreless first period, Novachkov earned 1 minute, 23 seconds of riding time before Nauman escaped in the second period. Novachkov escaped in the third period, but lost his riding time advantage, forcing overtime. The first period of overtime again was scoreless. Nauman escaped in the second period but Novachkov's reversal in the final period proved decisive. Novachkov is now 17-1 on the year. Filip Novachkov, trying to avenge two earlier losses this season to Central Michigan's Scott Sentes, instead dropped a 5-1 decision in the consolation finals. Earlier in the day, Filip Novachkov earned a trio of wins in the wrestlebacks. Seeded fifth at 133 pounds, Novachkov pinned No. 10 Nathan McCormick of Missouri in 3:30, decisioned Ridge Kiley of Nebraska 7-0 and earned a spot in the consolation final with a 10-7 win over third-seeded Tony Ramos of Iowa. Novachkov is now 6-4 for the season, with three of the losses to Sentes -- a 7-2 decision in the Las Vegas Invitational earlier this month, a fall in overtime (7:55) in Wednesday's quarterfinals and Thursday night's 5-1 setback. At 165 pounds, Mustang junior Ryan DesRoches lost his fifth-round wrestleback match against Aaron Janssen of Iowa, 13-8, and was eliminated Thursday afternoon. DesRoches is 24-4 on the year. Cal Poly finished 11th in the team standings with 56.5 points. Missouri claimed the team title with 103.5 points, followed by Wisconsin (95.5), Lehigh (93), Iowa (91) and Pittsburgh (82.5). Fifteen of the nation’s top 24 college wrestling teams (NWCA Coaches Poll) were entered in the two-day tournament, including No. 4 Wisconsin, No. 7 Iowa, No. 8 Oklahoma and No. 9 Illinois. In addition to Cal Poly, the Pac-10 Conference was represented by No. 24 Arizona State (which finished 35th) along with Stanford (16th) and Cal State Bakersfield (24th). A total of 26 teams in the Midlands field had 97 ranked wrestlers (Amateur Wrestling News individual rankings), including four top-ranked matmen, five ranked No. 2 and 51 in the top 10.