InterMat Staff

Kevin Dresser

Scott Hinkel

Brad Penrith

Today at 2 p.m. CST, No. 24 Illinois will face Northwestern at Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston Illinois. The dual meet will be broadcast today on the Big Ten Network (same day tape delay) at 6 p.m. CST. Illinois comes in with a 6-5 dual meet record, while Northwestern is 5-7-1. Both teams are coming off losses to No. 14 Indiana. Indiana topped Northwestern, 31-9, on January 24, and defeated Illinois, 22-13, on Friday. Below is a weight-by-weight breakdown of the dual meet. 125: John Deenen (Illinois) vs. Levi Mele (Northwestern) Deenan, a junior, has compiled a 7-8 record in his first season as a starter. He has been competitive with some ranked wrestlers this season, but has been completely dominated when he has faced opponents ranked in the top five. He lost one-point matches to No. 11 Michael Martinez of Wyoming and No. 17 Jasen Borshoff of American, but suffered technical fall losses to No. 1 Angel Escobedo of Indiana and No. 5 Andrew Long of Iowa State. Mele, a freshman who joined the Northwestern program after a two-year Mormon mission, is 7-6 on the season. However, only one of Mele's victories this season came against a Division I opponent. Bottom Line: Deenan dominated Mele, 13-0, last month at the Midlands. Look for Deenan to get bonus points for the Illini. Prediction: Deenan (Illinois) major dec. Mele (Northwestern) 133: Daryl Thomas (Illinois) vs. Eric Metzler (Northwestern) Metzler has been a four-year starter for the Wildcats, but has struggled at the Big Ten Championships, going 0-2 each of the past three seasons. He comes into Sunday's dual meet with a 9-6 record and has won his last three matches. Thomas, a redshirt freshman, is 12-12 on the season, but has dropped his last four matches. Bottom Line: Metzler is the more proven wrestler and should win this match. Prediction: Metzler (Northwestern) dec. Thomas (Illinois) 141: No. 15 Ryan Prater (Illinois) vs. Bobby Joyce (Northwestern) Prater, a returning NCAA qualifier, has been up and down this season. He was fifth at the Midlands and has quality wins this season over No. 5 Montell Marion of Iowa, NCAA qualifier Dan LeClere of Iowa, and No. 19 Todd Schavrien of Missouri. He brings an 11-5 record into Sunday's match, but was pinned in three of his losses and lost by technical fall in another. Joyce, a junior, has struggled this season, compiling a record of 1-12. Bottom Line: Prater should win this match handily and pick up bonus points. Prediction: Prater (Illinois) major dec. Joyce (Northwestern) 149: No. 20 Eric Terrazas (Illinois) vs. No. 14 Andrew Nadhir (Northwestern) This is the marquee matchup of the dual meet as it is the only matchup that pits two ranked wrestlers against each other. Nadhir is coming off a season in which he went 14-12 and placed sixth at the Big Ten Championships. His biggest win last season came in the second round of the Big Ten Championships when he upset three-time All-American Lance Palmer of Ohio State, 9-8. He has put together a nice junior campaign thus far, compiling a record of 18-4 and earning a No. 14 ranking. Terrazas started the season 11-0. He dropped matches last weekend to No. 5 Frank Molinaro of Penn State and No. 13 David Cheza of Michigan State, but bounced back on Friday to edge 2007 All-American Matt Coughlin of Indiana. Bottom Line: Expect this to be a competitive match that could go either way. Nadhir won the meeting last season, 7-5, on February 6, 2009. Both are ranked in the top 20, but only Nadhir has a win over a ranked opponent. Prediction: Nadhir (Northwestern) dec. Terrazas (Illinois) 157: Conrad Polz (Illinois) vs. Kevin Bialka (Northwestern) Polz, a redshirt freshman, started the season at 165 pounds before making the move down to 157 pounds at the Midlands. While wrestling at 165, Polz, a three-time Illinois state champion, showed promise, beating two-time NCAA qualifier Donnie Jones of West Virginia and wrestling No. 6 Nick Marable of Missouri to a one-point match. Polz had a disappointing Midlands wrestling at 157 pounds, going 1-2 and failing to place. He has gone 2-3 since the Midlands and carries an overall record of 13-11. Bialka, a true freshman, is 9-10 on the season. Bottom Line: This is a battle of two freshmen who are both Illinois natives. Polz may be a slight favorite, but expect it to be a competitive match. Prediction: Polz (Illinois) dec. Bialka (Northwestern) 165: Joe Barczak (Illinois) vs. Robert Kellogg (Northwestern) Barczak started his college career playing football at Monmouth College before transferring to Illinois to wrestle. The junior is 11-8 this season and has faced four wrestlers ranked in the top 10. Kellogg moved down to 165 pounds this season after being the starter as a freshman for the Wildcats last season at 174 pounds. He was 12-14 last season and comes into today's match with an 8-11 season mark. Bottom Line: This match is virtually a tossup. Prediction: Barczak (Illinois) dec. Kellogg (Northwestern) 174: No. 14 Jordan Blanton (Illinois) vs. Brian Roddy (Northwestern) Blanton was an NCAA qualifier last season at 184 pounds, but made the move down to 174 pounds this season. He is 15-3 on the season, but has only beaten one ranked opponent this season (No. 15 Dorian Henderson of Missouri). Although he failed to place at the Midlands, both of his losses were one-point losses to multiple-time NCAA qualifiers (No. 6 Luke Manuel of Purdue and Duke Burk of Iowa State). He is coming off a victory over Indiana's Trevor Perry. Roddy suffered a leg injury at the Eastern Michigan Open on November 7, which kept him out of the lineup for a month and a half. He has won five of his last six matches as the dual meet starter. His most notable wins this season have come against two-time NCAA qualifier Marcus Effner of Cleveland State and Perry, a three-time NCAA qualifier. Bottom Line: This should be a great match as both are wrestling well right now. Prediction: Blanton (Illinois) dec. Roddy (Northwestern) 184: No. 2 John Dergo (Illinois) vs. Aaron Jones (Northwestern) Dergo is ranked No. 2 for a reason ... He has been impressive all season. He is currently 23-2 on the season and captured a Midlands title as the fifth seed in one of the deepest weight classes. His only losses have come to No. 1 Kirk Smith of Boise State (6-4 SV) and No. 3 Max Askren of Missouri. He avenged the loss to Askren in the semifinals of the Midlands. Jones has faced the difficult task of stepping into a spot vacated by the program's most accomplished wrestler ever, two-time NCAA champion Jake Herbert. Jones is 8-10 on the season. His most impressive match this season may have been his two-point loss to 2009 NCAA runner-up Mike Miller of Central Michigan at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals. Bottom Line: Dergo has become a serious threat to win an NCAA title in his senior season after coming up short of All-American honors the past three seasons. Look for Dergo to get bonus points against Jones. Prediction: Dergo (Illinois) major dec. Jones (Northwestern) 197: No. 9 Patrick Bond (Illinois) vs. John Schoen (Northwestern) Bond has been one of the most inconsistent performers in the country throughout his career. The three-time NCAA qualifier has beaten several highly-ranked opponents throughout his career, but he also has his fair share of head-scratching losses. He started his Big Ten dual meet season with two victories last weekend, but dropped a match on Friday to unranked Matt Powless of Indiana. Bond placed sixth at the Midlands last month. Schoen is in his second season as a starter for the Wildcats after going 6-20 last season as a freshman. He comes into today's match with an 11-8 record, but he has dropped three of his last four matches. His most notable victory came against Missouri's Brent Haynes, a talented freshman was ranked for the first half of the season. Bottom Line: Bond should win this match, but look Schoen to battle him tough. Prediction: Bond (Illinois) dec. Schoen (Northwestern) 285: Pat Walker (Illinois) vs. Marcus Shrewsbury (Northwestern) Walker, a redshirt freshman, has gone 10-12 this season after a redshirt campaign that saw him go 11-6. Walker is an athletic big man who competed at 215 pounds in high school. He was a three-time Illinois state placewinner and also a two-time All-State performer in football. Shrewsbury, a true freshman, started the season at 184 pounds, but moved up to heavyweight after the Midlands. He has gone 1-3 since moving up to heavyweight and has an overall season record of 4-8. Bottom Line: Walker has had a better season and has a size advantage, which makes him the favorite in this match. Prediction: Walker (Illinois) dec. Shrewsbury (Northwestern) Dual Meet Prediction: Illinois 27, Northwestern 6

The University of Minnesota wrestling team notched a well deserved win this evening (Jan. 29), with a 20-18 victory over Wisconsin. Fifth-ranked Minnesota (8-4, 3-0) entered the match fresh off two wins in the first weekend of Big Ten action, and were at home for the first time since Jan. 3. Wisconsin (5-7, 1-1), meanwhile, came into the match with a No. 12 national ranking and won 21-18 over Indiana in their last outing. The 10 individual matches were split by the Gophers and Badgers, with the first six decisions alternating between teams. The dual meet started at 141, and Wisconsin was the first to win back-to-back matches at 184 and 197. Minnesota, though, answered with wins at 125 and heavyweight to all but seal the match. After their wins at 184 and 197, the Badgers took their first, and only, lead of the night at 14-13, with just three matches to go. With Wisconsin holding the momentum, the Gophers' Ben Berhow (Hayward, Minn.) took the mat at heavyweight against Eric Bungenhagen. A close match saw Bungenhagen hold a 3-1 lead entering the third period. An escape by Berhow brought him within before a stalling call on Bungenhagen tied the match at 3-3. A raucus crowd cheered as Berhow then scored a takedown late in the match for the win, also giving his team the lead for good at 16-14. With the lead back in hand, the Gophers' Zach Sanders (Wabasha, Minn.) put the match all but out of reach for the Badgers. A tech fall for Sanders would have sealed the win with a match left, but he got the next best thing with a major decision to put Minnesota up 20-14 with one to go. A pair of near falls blew the match open for Sanders in his way to a 17-3 win. Mike Thorn (St. Michael, Minn.) opened the match with a quick tech fall at 141, scoring a 19-4 win over Wisconsin's Cole Schmitt with nine seconds left in the second period. Thorn nearly had the pin, but a near fall before time expired was enough to end the match and give the Gophers a 5-0 lead out of the gate. At 157 came the much anticipated return of Dustin Schlatter (Massillion, Ohio) as well as his debut at a new weight class. With a No. 2 national ranking and an 8-1 record at 165, Schlatter garnered similar results with his first match at 157. Schlatter rang up 12 points in a 12-3 victory over Greg Burke to win his ninth straight. Scott Glasser (Bismarck, N.D.) was the final Gopher to crack the win column this evening and his 14-5 major decision over Jimmy Duffy at 174 gave Minnesota a 13-8 lead heading into the intermission. Glosser notched six takedowns in his match, while surrendering none, on his way to the win. The Gophers now open Big Ten action 3-0 for the second straight season, while also avenging their 2009 loss to the Badgers. Minnesota returns to action on Sunday, Jan. 31 for a 2:00 p.m. tilt with Purdue in the Sports Pavilion. A win on Sunday would give the Gophers their first 4-0 start since 2006-07 when they went undefeated through the Big Ten season. When the Gophers host the Boilermakers on Sunday, it will be the Minnesota Wrestling Endowment Meet, and all ticket proceeds from the match will go directly to the Gopher Wrestling Scholarship fund. As a century of excellence is celebrated, this the a chance for Wrestling fans to ensure the next 100 years of Golden Gopher Wrestling and directly impact the career of the student athletes. For tickets just visit www.GopherSports.com or call 1-800-U-GOPHER Results: 141: #4 Mike Thorn (MINN) tech. Cole Schmitt (WIS), 19-4;4:51 / 5-0 149: #2 Kyle Ruschell (WIS) maj. #18 Mario Mason (MINN), 11-3 / 5-4 157: Dustin Schlatter (MINN) maj. Greg Burke (WIS), 12-3 / 9-4 165: #1 Andrew Howe (WIS) maj. Cody Yohn (MINN), 15-5 / 9-8 174: #8 Scott Glasser (MINN) maj. Jimmy Duffy (WIS), 14-5 / 13-8 184: #16 Travis Rutt (WIS) dec. Kaleb Young (MINN), 5-3 / 13-11 197: #8 Trevor Brandvold (WIS) dec. #14 Sonny Yohn (MINN), 4-2 / 13-14 HWT: Ben Berhow (MINN) dec. Eric Bugenhagen (WIS), 5-4 / 16-14 125: #6 Zach Sanders (MINN) maj. Drew Hammen (WIS), 17-3 / 20-14 133: #8 Tyler Graff (WIS) tech. Thane Antczak (MINN), 29-14 / 20-18

FAIRFAX, Va. -- The 10th-ranked University of Maryland wrestling team earned its 16th win of the season Friday night, dominating George Mason by winning nine of 10 matches en route to a 35-6 victory. Maryland won the first six matches of the meet to take a 21-0 lead before George Mason was able to get on the board, as the Terps cruised to their seventh win in the last eight tries. At 16-4 on the season, Maryland is one victory shy of tying the school record for wins in a season. The Terps went 17-6 in 1990 and 17-5 in 2007. "I feel good about how the guys wrestled and the results we got," said head coach Kerry McCoy. "They didn't make it easy for us, but what I'm really happy about is our guys scored a lot of points and really fought hard. We want guys to push the pace and score a lot of points and that's what they did." Pat Strizki got Maryland out to a good start, taking an 8-4 decision over Brian Wright at 125 pounds. The Terps then got major decisions in the next two matches. No. 11 Steven Bell got a 12-4 major decision over Denny Herndon and Matt Bogusz took a 12-3 major over Jaaziah Bethea at 141 pounds, as Maryland took an 11-0 lead. George Mason looked like they would win the match at 149 pounds as Brandon Bucher took a 7-0 lead over Jon Kohler with just over a minute left in the first period. But Kohler fought all the way back and won the match 11-9. "We're never out of a match," said McCoy. "Jon could have rolled over, but he kept fighting and got the win, and that was a real spark for us. That's exactly the type of effort I'm looking for." Kyle John kept the Terps rolling with an 11-5 decision over Aaron Keeton at 157 pounds, and No. 15 Josh Asper increased Maryland's lead to 21-0 with a 15-4 major decision at 165 pounds. Owen Smith fell to Mendbagana Tovuujav at 174 pounds, but the Terps won the final three matches in a contest that was never in doubt. Corey Peltier took a 10-3 decision at 184 pounds, No. 3 Hudson Taylor won by forfeit and Patrick Gilmore capped off the evening with a 15-0 technical fall in the heavyweight match. Maryland returns home on Saturday, Feb. 6, to take on No. 19 Virginia Tech at 7 p.m., the first of three straight home matches. The Terps also host American on Feb. 12 at 7 p.m. before finishing their home schedule against Hofstra on Feb. 14 at 1 p.m. Results: 125 - Pat Strizki (Maryland) dec. Brian Wright, 8-4 (3-0) 133 - No. 11 Steven Bell (Maryland) major dec. Denny Herndon, 12-4 (7-0) 141 - Matt Bogusz (Maryland) major dec. Jaaziah Bethea, 12-3 (11-0) 149 - Jon Kohler (Maryland) dec. Brandon Bucher, 11-9 (14-0) 157 - Kyle John (Maryland) dec. Aaron Keeton, 11-5 (17-0) 165 - No. 15 Josh Asper (Maryland) major dec. Ty Knepp, 15-4 (21-0) 174 - Mendbagana Tovuujav (Mason) fall Owen Smith, 4:30 (21-6) 184 - Corey Peltier (Maryland) dec. Andrew Rock, 10-3 (24-6) 197 - No. 3 Hudson Taylor (Maryland) wins by forfeit (30-6) 285 - Patrick Gilmore (Maryland) tech. fall Hunter Manspile, 15-0, 5:58 (35-6)

IOWA CITY, IA -- The top-ranked University of Iowa wrestling team used wins at eight weights to beat #13 Penn State, 29-6, Friday night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in front of 8,923 fans. Iowa (17-0, 3-0 Big Ten) held Penn State (9-5-1, 1-2 Big Ten) to its lowest team point total of the season, while picking up its 55th straight dual win. Iowa jumped out to a 7-0 lead with wins from redshirt freshman Matt McDonough (125) and senior Daniel Dennis (133). McDonough, who is ranked fourth in the country, improved to 23-0 with a 7-2 decision over Penn State junior Brad Pataky. McDonough scored three takedowns and rode #11 Pataky the entire third period for the win. Dennis, who is ranked between fourth and ninth in the nation, followed with a 17-7 major decision over unranked Nittany Lion freshman Bryan Pearsall. The Hawkeye senior snatched seven takedowns while allowing none, improving to 11-1 this season. Unranked senior Adam Lynch scored Penn State's first takedowns of the night and the first upset of the dual when he defeated fifth-ranked Hawkeye sophomore Montell Marion, 8-6, in sudden victory at 141. Marion trailed 5-2 early in the third period, but scored two takedowns in less than one minute to force the match into sudden victory. Lynch scored a takedown off a scramble in sudden victory for the win. The Hawkeyes rolled off wins at the next four weights - including an upset at 157 pounds - to build a 23-3 lead. Top-ranked senior Brent Metcalf picked up his 95th career victory and 12th pin of the season when he stuck fifth-ranked Penn State sophomore Frank Molinaro in 3:59. Metcalf, who remains undefeated at 23-0, led 12-4 before taking Molinaro to his back and scoring his 43rd career pin. Unranked Hawkeye junior Jake Kerr got the nod at 157, pulling off a 4-2 upset over Penn State senior Cyler Sanderson, who is ranked between third and fifth in the nation. Sanderson led 1-0 after the first two periods, but Kerr scored a reversal and two nearfall points to take a 4-1 lead. Sanderson escaped with 1:30 left in the match, but neither wrestler scored again despite several scrambles. Iowa junior Ryan Morningstar, who is ranked fifth or sixth in the country, used an escape and riding time point to defeat #8 Dan Vallimont, 2-0 at 165. Morningstar is 18-3 on the season. Hawkeye senior Jay Borschel, who is ranked first or second in the nation, improved to 22-0 with a 14-2 major decision over Penn State freshman Justin Ortega at 174. Borschel scored four takedowns and four nearfall points in the match. The Nittany Lions posted their second and final win of the night at 184 when senior David Erwin, who is ranked between #11-#13 in the nation scored a 6-4 upset over Iowa senior Phillip Keddy, who is ranked seventh or eighth. Keddy scored the bout's first takedown to take a 2-0 lead, but Erwin escaped and scored a takedown of his own to lead 3-2. Keddy escaped to tie the score at 3-3 at the end of the first period. Erwin's second-period escape gave him a 4-3 lead, but Keddy escaped early in the third period to tie the score at 4-4. Erwin scored a takedown with less than a minute left to take a 6-4 lead, and held on for the win. Iowa closed out the dual with wins at the last two weights. Hawkeye junior Luke Lofthouse picked up his 25th career victory with a 5-2 decision over Penn State sophomore Clay Steadman at 197. Lofthouse scored the bout's only takedown, and added an escape and two stalling points for the win. Iowa senior heavyweight Dan Erekson ended the dual with a 6-1 decision over #11 Cameron Wade of Penn State, collecting his 55th career win. Erekson, who was wrestling his first match of the season at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, scored two first-period takedowns and added another in the second for the win. Up next for Iowa is Sunday evening's dual with Big Ten foe Michigan State (7-3-1, 1-2 Big Ten) at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Match time is set for 6 p.m. (CT). The Spartans posted a close 17-15 victory over intra-state rival Michigan Friday night at Ann Arbor. The Iowa-Michigan State dual will be streamed live on www.bigtennetwork.com at a cost of $2.99. Tickets purchased in advance are $10 for adults, and $5 for youth, while tickets purchased at the dual are $12 for adults and $6 for youth. UI students and children ages five and under will be admitted free. A family four pack ticket promotion is also available, where fans can purchase four tickets to the dual, and four hot dogs and four sodas from the Carver-Hawkeye Arena concession stands for $35. Fans are encouraged to purchase the family four pack in advance from the UI Athletic Ticket Office (1-800-464-2957, 319-335-9327 or www.hawkeyesports.com). Results: 125 - Matt McDonough (I) dec. Brad Pataky (PSU), 7-2 133 - Daniel Dennis (I) maj. dec. Bryan Pearsall (PSU), 17-7 141 - Adam Lynch (PSU) dec. Montell Marion (I), 8-6 SV 149 - Brent Metcalf (I) pinned Frank Molinaro (PSU), 3:56 157 - Jake Kerr (I) dec. Cyler Sanderson (PSU), 4-2 165 - Ryan Morningstar (I) dec. Dan Vallimont (PSU), 2-0 174 - Jay Borschel (I) maj. dec. Justin Ortega (PSU), 14-2 184 - David Erwin (PSU) dec. Phillip Keddy (I), 6-4 197 - Luke Lofthouse (I) dec. Clay Steadman (PSU), 5-2 Hwt. - Dan Erekson (I) dec. Cameron Wade (PSU), 6-1

LARAMIE, Wyo. -- The fourth-ranked Oklahoma State wrestling team made it a Rocky Mountain sweep by picking up a 31-3 win over Wyoming Friday night at Wyoming's Arena Auditorium. Earlier in the day, the Pokes were 41-3 winners at Northern Colorado. With its two wins Friday, Oklahoma State improved to 10-2-1 on the year. Wyoming fell to 6-3 overall. For the most part, the dual was close, with six bouts decided by four points or less. In the one weight class where Wyoming was favored going into the dual, OSU 184-pounder Clayton Foster was a 10-5 winner over sixth-ranked and returning All-American Joe LeBlanc in sudden victory. With Foster holding a 2-0 lead and in the top position to start the third period, LeBlanc scored a reversal to tie the score at two. Foster escaped to go up, 3-2 and then things got wild. LeBlanc took Foster down to take a 4-3 lead and after Foster was slapped with a stalling point, LeBlanc held a 5-3 edge. With two seconds left, Foster escaped and his riding time point brought the score to 5-5 and sent the bout into overtime. LeBlanc initiated the action in the sudden victory period, but Foster worked and scored a takedown of his own and turned it into a five-point move with a three-point nearfall to claim his most impressive win of the year. Ninth-ranked Cowboy Chris Notte opened the dual with a tough 3-2 win over 10th-ranked Michael Martinez of Wyoming in one of the dual's featured bouts. Friday's dual marked the third time this season that the two faced each other this season, as Notte claimed a 13-3 major decision win over Martinez in the third round of the Reno Tournament of Champions in December, then came back to pin Martinez in 3:20 in the third-place bout at that same event. It was a lot closer score Friday, but the end result was the same. In another of the other anticipated bouts of the dual, OSU's Alex Meade picked up an 8-6 win over No. 11 Shane Onufer. Meade raced out to a 7-2 lead and fought Onufer off the rest of the way to claim his win. Friday night's dual was a matchup of teacher vs. apprentice, with OSU coach John Smith pitting his team against that of former Cowboy champion Mark Branch. In Wyoming's previous time out, Branch's bunch knocked off reigning Big 12 co-champion Nebraska by a comfortable 29-10 margin. Oklahoma State returns to action when it hosts Northern Iowa at 7:30 p.m. on Thurs., Feb. 4 in Gallagher-Iba Arena. No. 4 Oklahoma State 31, Wyoming 3 125: No. 9 Chris Notte (OSU) dec. No. 10 Michael Martinez (UW); 3-2 133: No. 6 Jordan Oliver (OSU) dec. Cory VomBaur (UW); 4-3 141: No. 8 Jamal Parks (OSU) dec. Chase Smith (UW); 8-1 149: Cole Dallaserra (UW) dec. Luke Silver (OSU); 3-0 157: No. 13 Neil Erisman (OSU) MD Jimmy Belleville (UW); 13-0 165: No. 9 Alex Meade (OSU) dec. No. 11 Shane Onufer (UW); 8-6 174: No. 10 Mike Benefiel (OSU) dec. Brock Smith (UW); 7-3 184: No. 12 Clayton Foster (OSU) dec. No. 6 Joe LeBlanc (UW); 10-5 SV 197: No. 6 Alan Gelogaev (OSU) dec. Alfonso Hernandez (UW); 3-2 285: No. 1 Jared Rosholt (OSU) fall L.J. Helbig (UW); 2:31 125: Ninth-ranked Cowboy Chris Notte opened the dual with a tough 3-2 win over 10th-ranked Michael Martinez of Wyoming in one of the dual's featured bouts. Martinez stalked Notte throughout the first period, but didn't generate any real offense and was unable to muster any points. Notte opened the scoring with an escape early in the second period. Notte was slapped with a stalling call midway through the second period to even the score at one point apiece. Martinez took the down position to start the third period and Notte was able to get a two-point nearfall before Martinez got free for an escape. Neither wrestler was able to score again and riding time was no factor in Notte's 3-2 win. 133: In a matchup of an OSU freshman vs. a Wyoming senior, youth was served with Jordan Oliver scoring a 4-3 win over Cory VomBaur. Oliver scored a quick takedown in the first period, but VomBaur escaped, then opened the second period with an escape to tie the score at two. Oliver took the down position to start the third period and wasn't able to do anything of note from the down position until he scored the key move of the bout with a reversal at the 13-second mark. VomBaur's riding time point capped the scoring. 141: Tulsa Union HS graduate Jamal Parks was dominant in his 8-1 win over Wyoming's Chase Smith. Parks scored an early takedown and didn't let Smith out for the remainder of the first period, building up 2:15 of riding time in the process. Parks took the down position to open the second period and broke free immediately to take a 3-0 lead. He extended his lead to 5-0 when he converted a single-leg shot into a takedown. Smith elected the top position to start the third period and Parks made him pay for that decision by scoring a quick reversal to extend his lead to 7-0. A Smith escape and Parks' 3:10 riding time advantage brought the final score to 8-1. 149: Seeing his first varsity action of the year, OSU's Luke Silver lost a 3-0 decision to Cole Dallaserra. Last year's starter at 149 pounds, Silver has been plagued by injuries this year. After an uneventful first period, Dallaserra slapped a hard ride on Silver for the duration of the second period. With Silver on top to start the third, Dallaserra hit a switch and scored a reversal to go up, 2-0. Dallaserra suffocated Silver for the remainder of the bout and when his 2:50 riding time advantage was factored in, Dallaserra was a 3-0 winner. 157: Facing a dangerous freshman, OSU's Neil Erisman was a 13-0 major decision winner over Jimmy Belleville. Erisman opened the scoring with a quick takedown, then turned it into a four-point move when he scored a two-point nearfall. Erisman then hit a cheap tilt and got another two-point nearfall just before the buzzer sounded to end the first period. In the down position to start the second, Erisman added to his lead when he connected on a switch to get a reversal and go up, 8-0. Belleville tried to roll out of Erisman's control, but Erisman caught him and scored another two-point nearfall to extend his lead to 10-0 after two periods. With a neutral start to the third, Erisman scored another takedown to take a 12-0 advantage. When Erisman's 4:34 riding time advantage was added, he was a 13-0 winner. 165: In one of the most anticipated bouts of the dual, OSU's Alex Meade picked up an 8-6 win over No. 11 Shane Onufer. After a slow start, Meade got a hold on Onufer's leg, then grabbed the second leg to finish his takedown and go up, 2-1. Onufer escaped quickly on the restart, but was taken down again by Meade before the end of the first. Meade took the down position to start the second stanza and escaped quickly to go up, 5-1. The third period started with Onufer in the down position and he escaped to bring the score to 5-2. Meade then separated the score with another takedown, but after Onufer escaped, Meade was slapped with a stalling point and Onufer bagged a takedown of his own, Meade's advantage dwindled to 7-6. Onufer cut Meade loose, but was unable to muster any more offense, with Meade leaving as the 8-6 winner. 174: After being taken down early in the bout, OSU's Mike Benefiel regrouped to claim a 7-3 win over Brock Smith. Benefiel escaped quickly, then hit a takedown of his own and added over 1:40 of riding time in the first period to take a 3-2 lead into the second. Benefiel broke free for an early escape to start the second period and extend his lead to 4-2. Neither wrestler had any real offense for the remainder of the period. Smith took the down position to start the third stanza and got loose to get the escape and trim Benefiel's lead to 4-3. Benefiel crushed Smith's chances with a third period takedown that brought the score to 6-3 and when his 3:04 of riding time was added, Benefiel was a 7-3 winner. 184: In the one weight class where Wyoming was favored going into the dual, OSU's Clayton Foster was a 10-5 winner over sixth-ranked and returning All-American Joe LeBlanc in sudden victory. Foster tweaked his already-injured shoulder early in the bout and required injury time. From that point on, he fought off takedown attempt after takedown attempt from LeBlanc for the rest of the first period. Despite the fact that LeBlanc was the aggressor, Foster was able to pitch a first-period shutout. Foster took the down position to start the second period and hit a switch move to score a reversal and go up, 2-0. Foster rode LeBlanc out for the remainder of the period. With Foster on top to start the third, LeBlanc failed in his attempt for a defensive fall, but was able to score a reversal to tie the score at two. Foster escaped to go up, 3-2 and then things got wild. LeBlanc took Foster down to take a 4-3 lead and after Foster was slapped with a stalling point, LeBlanc held a 5-3 edge. With two seconds left, Foster escaped and his riding time point brought the score to 5-5 and sent the bout into overtime. LeBlanc initiated the action in the sudden victory period, but Foster worked and scored a takedown of his own and turned it into a five-point move with a three-point nearfall to claim his most impressive win of the year. 197: In one of the more uneventful bouts of the dual, Alan Gelogaev claimed a 3-2 win over Alfonso Hernandez. Gelogaev scored the lone takedown of the bout in the first period and surrendered an escape to cap the first period scoring at 2-1. The two wrestlers traded escapes to open the second and third periods respectively, and that was it in terms of scoring. Hernandez had his chances to score in the third, but Gelogaev kept him at bay to seal his victory. 285: Top-ranked Jared Rosholt pinned converted 184-pounder L.J. Helbig in 2:31 for his second first-period pin of the day. Rosholt snapped Helbig down in the first period and worked for the fall before eventually securing a full-body press to have the official slap the mat.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The fourth-ranked Ohio State wrestling team won eight matches en route to a 35-6 win over Purdue Friday night at Holloway Gymnasium in West Lafayette, Ind. The Buckeyes recorded a pin, technical fall and three major decisions to collect eight bonus points plus three because of a Boilermaker forfeit at 174 pounds. The match will air on the Big Ten Network at 11 p.m. ET Friday night. Ohio State moves to 13-1 overall and 2-0 in the Big Ten and Purdue is now 10-6 and 1-2 in the conference. Seven consecutive wins from 133-184 pounds appeared to be the main storyline of the night - starting with freshman Ian Paddock's 8-0 shutout over Akif Eren to senior tri-captain Mike Pucillo's 13-1 major decision over Nick Corpe at 184 pounds. Paddock, a native of Warsaw, N.Y., accumulated most of his points in the second period after a scoreless opening round. Paddock used an escape, takedown and a 2-point nearfall to take a five-point lead into the third period. He then sealed the victory with another takedown and a riding time of 1:36. With the Buckeyes up 4-3, Reece Humphrey, also a senior tri-captain, had his hands full with Juan Archuleta at 141 pounds. Entering the match fourth on the team in wins with 22, Archuleta took Humphrey to sudden victory after both grapplers managed an escape a piece in regulation. However, Humphrey, a Lawrence North High School product out of Indianapolis, Ind., scored a takedown in sudden victory for his team-leading 22nd win of the year. Lance Palmer, who is riding a 10-match win streak, beat Sam Patacsil, 10-1, at 149 pounds. The Buckeye senior tri-captain from Columbia Station, Ohio, jumped out to a 4-1 advantage after the first period. No scoring in the second period ensued, but Palmer scored a takedown, 3-point nearfall and compiled a riding time of 4:58 in the victory. At 157 pounds, Tony Jameson secured his first-career Big Ten win against Colton Salazar, 5-2. Jameson, who hails from Youngstown, Ohio, was down, 2-1, entering the third period. A reversal in the final frame put the Buckeye up 3-2 and he never looked back. Two stalling calls on Salazar gave Jameson a point, coupled with a 2:52 riding time. It was all Colt Sponseller vs. Jason Martin at 165 pounds as the Buckeye from Glenmont, Ohio, amassed eight takedowns, a 2-point nearfall, an escape and a riding time of 2:08 in the win. Sponseller also was awarded a point based on two Purdue stalls. Purdue forfeited the 174-pound bout and Ohio State owned a 25-3 lead with three matches remaining. At 184 pounds, Pucillo relinquished just an escape to Corpe in his 13-1 victory. In addition to collecting 3:33 of riding time, Pucillo, who hails from Strongsville, Ohio, recorded the following: four takedowns, 3-point nearfall and escape. After a Boilermaker win at 197 pounds, senior heavyweight Corey Morrison ended the evening on a high note courtesy of his 5:20 pin of Adam Walls. The Buckeye from Shaker Heights, Ohio, owned a 9-2 lead on a pair of takedowns and escapes, as well as a 3-point nearfall, before the pin. Junior 125-pounder Nikko Triggas dropped a 7-1 decision to Cashé Quiroga and C.J. Magrum suffered a 4-0 setback to No. 10 Logan Brown at 197 pounds. The Buckeyes will now make the trip to Bloomington, Ind., where they will face No. 14 Indiana at 2 p.m. in University Gymnasium. The Hoosiers defeated No. 24 Illinois Friday night, 22-13, in Bloomington. Live updates of the Buckeyes' match vs. the Hoosiers will be available at www.iuhoosiers.com Results: 125 Cashé Quiroga (Purdue) dec. No. 18 Nikko Triggas (Ohio State), 7-1 133 Ian Paddock (Ohio State) mdec. Akif Eren (Purdue), 8-0 141 No. 2 Reece Humphrey (Ohio State) dec. Juan Archuleta (Purdue), 3-1sv 149 No. 3 Lance Palmer (Ohio State) mdec. Sam Patacsil (Purdue), 10-1 157 Tony Jameson (Ohio State) dec. Colton Salazar (Purdue), 5-2 165 No. 7 Colt Sponseller (Ohio State) techfall. Jason Martin (Purdue), 21-6 (7:00) 174 Purdue Forfeit 184 No. 9 Mike Pucillo (Ohio State) mdec. Nicholas Corpe (Purdue), 13-1 197 No. 10 Logan Brown (Purdue) dec. C.J. Magrum (Ohio State), 4-0 285 Corey Morrison (Ohio State) pinned Adam Walls (Purdue),5:20

PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- The Rutgers wrestling team pushed its unbeaten streak to 11 by knocking off No. 23 Virginia, 25-12, in dramatic fashion Friday night in front of 1,655 fans at the Louis Brown Athletic Center. The Scarlet Knights (15-4-1) claimed seven wins against the Cavaliers (13-5). The victory improves RU’s all-time record over VU to a 3-2 advantage. The 11-match unbeaten streak is the longest for RU since it went the same distance in the 1992-93 season from late November to late January. “Great win for this school and our program,” said Rutgers head coach Scott Goodale. “Wins like this, and this environment is what I envisioned when I came here. It was exciting. The fans were great and the atmosphere is what college wrestling is all about.” 26th-ranked Joseph Langel (Howell, N.J.) opened Friday’s contest by pushing his winning to 13 by claiming an 8-4 decision over 22nd-ranked Ross Gitomer. The redshirt freshman owns a 22-5 record, including a 10-2 mark in dual action. No. 16 Billy Ashnault (South Plainfield, N.J.) extended Rutgers lead to 6-0 by defeating Matt Snyder by a 6-4 decision. The RU newcomer now owns a 20-8 record, including a 14-4 record in dual competition. The Cavaliers got on the scoreboard at 141 when 27th-ranked Derek Valenti picked up a 6:39 pin fall over 22nd-ranked Trevor Melde (Hewitt, N.J.) to knot the score at 6-6. Melde was leading 6-4 before the pin. The loss snapped an eight match winning streak for the RU sophomore. At 149, redshirt junior David Greenwald (Union, N.J.) regained the lead for the Scarlet Knights by earning a 10-1 major decision over David Ebbott. The major decision is only the second of the season for Greenwald. 157-pounder Daryl Cocozzo (Malvern, Pa.) continues to dominate in dual action, as he put the crowd on their feet heading into intermission by dropping Dan Gonsor with a 4:39 pin fall to give RU a 16-6 advantage at the midway point. Following the intermission, sophomore Gregory Zannetti (Edison, N.J.) continued the RU momentum by claiming a 2-0 victory over Pat Riley to balloon the squad’s lead to 19-6. No. 28 Daniel Rinaldi (Lodi, N.J.) held his own against fourth-ranked Chris Henrich in the 174 match, but Henrich won by a 7-1 decision to trim RU’s lead to 19-12. The biggest match of the night came at 197 when 18th-ranked redshirt senior Lamar Brown (Red Bank, N.J.) went up against 17th-ranked redshirt senior Brent Jones. The two fifth-year warriors battled back and forth and the match went to four overtimes before Brown captured the 14-8 record to seal the victory for RU. Redshirt junior and 10th-ranked Dominick Russo (Netcong, N.J.) capped off the exciting victory with a 7-3 decision over Jack Danilkkowicz to give Rutgers the 25-12 victory.Russo leads Rutgers with 24 wins. Rutgers will have little time to celebrate as the team is back on the mat Saturday night when it returns to College Ave Gym to host Navy for a 6 p.m. match. Results: 125 #26 Joseph Langel (RU) dec. #22 Ross Gitomer (VU), 8-4 3-0 133 #16 Billy Ashnault (RU) dec. Matt Snyder (VU) 6-4 6-0 141 #27 Derek Valenti (VU) pins #22 Trevor Melde (RU) 6:39 6-6 149 David Greenwald (RU) major. dec. David Ebbott (VU) 10-1 10-6 157 Daryl Cocozzo (RU) pins Dan Gonsor (VU) 4:39 16-6 165 Gregory Zannetti (RU) dec. Pat Riley (VU) 2-0 19-6 174 #4 Chris Henrich (VU) dec. #28 Daniel Rinaldi (RU) 7-1 19-9 184 #20 Mike Salopek (VU) dec. Daniel Seidenberg (RU) 6-3 19-12 197 #18 Lamar Brown (RU) dec. #17 Brent Jones (VU)14-8 (4ot) 22-12 285 #10 Dominick Russo (RU) dec. Jack Danilkowicz (VU) 7-3 25-12

Lincoln, Neb. -- The Missouri wrestling team (7-4, 1-0 Big 12) opened its Big 12 season with a hard fought win over the Huskers (8-8, 0-1 Big 12), 22-16. This marks the first dual victory for the Tigers in Lincoln since a 24-16 win in 2001. Missouri improves to 7-4, notching their first conference win of the season. Missouri took home six of the ten matches on the night as sophomore Patrick Wright (Grand Ledge, Mich.) started the night off with a 4-0 decision for the Tigers, to open up a 3-0 Missouri lead. No. 6 Nicholas Marable (Collierville, Tenn.) was the next Tiger to record a win at 165 pounds, posting a 14-5 major decision over James Nakashima. The victory put Missouri ahead, 7-0, after the first two matches. No. 3 Maxwell Askren (Hartland, Wisc.) used four takedowns and a reversal to help record a 13-7 decision over the Huskers' Josh Ihnen at 184 pounds, and No. 8 Mark Ellis (Peculiar, Mo.) took the victory at HWT with a 7-2 decision over No. 19 Tucker Lane. As the match returned to the top of the lineup, the Huskers slowly began to close in on Missouri's 13-10 lead. After an 11-6 loss by freshman Eric Wilson (Centennial, Colo.) at 125 pounds, the Tigers found themselves tied at 13 entering the last three matches of the night. With a narrow victory at 133 pounds, the Huskers pulled ahead by three and took their first lead of the night. Todd Schavrien (Poway, Calif.) put the Tigers back in position to win, getting just one takedown to claim the match 3-1 over Nebraska's Mike Koehnlein, and tie the team score at 16. Nebraska forfeited the final match of the night at 149 pounds, giving the Tigers six points and a 22-16 victory. Missouri will return home for competition next weekend for the first time since November to take on Big 12 opponent No. 9 Oklahoma in the fourth annual Beauty and the Beast meet. Wrestling will begin at 7 p.m., with eleventh-ranked Missouri women's gymnastics competing simultaneously on the Hearnes Center floor beginning at 6:30 p.m. Results: 125: David Klingsheim (NU) decision Eric Wilson (MU), 11-6 133: C.J. Napier (NU) decision Nathan McCormick (MU) 4-3 141: Todd Schavrien (MU) decision Mike Koehnlein (NU) 3-1 149: Scott O'Donnell (MU) win by forfeit 157: Patrick Wright (MU) decision Tyler Koehn (NU), 4-0 165: No. 6 Nicholas Marable (MU) major decision James Nakashima (NU), 14-5 174: No. 4 Stephen Dwyer (NU) fall No. 15 Dorian Henderson (MU), 2:10 184: No. 3 Maxwell Askren (MU) decision Josh Ihnen (NU), 13-7 197: No. 2 Craig Brester (NU) major decision. No. 15 Brent Haynes, 14-4 HWT: No. 8 Mark Ellis (MU) decision No. 19 Tucker Lane (NU), 7-2

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The #14 Indiana University wrestling team (13-1, 2-1) defeated #24 Illinois (6-5, 1-2), 22-13, Friday night inside University Gym. The Hoosiers won six of 10 bouts on the night, including Matt Powless's 4-2 decision over #9 Patrick Bond at 197 pounds. Indiana never trailed in the match as top-ranked Angel Escobedo pushed the Cream and Crimson ahead 5-0 right from the get-go with a 22-6 technical fall of John Deenen in the 125-lbs. opening bout. Escobedo improves to 25-0 overall and 3-0 in Big Ten action with the win. Matt Ortega then added to the IU lead in the subsequent match-up, avenging a loss earlier this season to Illinois' Daryl Thomas. The second time around, Ortega came away with the `W' in a 7-4 decision to put the Hoosiers up 8-0. The Fighting Illini bounced back immediately by taking the next two bouts, including a sudden victory in the 149-pound match. Both Illinois wins were via decision, cutting the IU lead to 8-6 heading into the 157-lbs. scuffle. Back-to-back victories by Bloomington High School South grads, #6 Kurt Kinser and #13 Paul Young, resulted in a nine-point lead at 15-6. Young picked up bonus points with his 11-2 major decision over Joe Barczak. The two-match swings continued at 174- and 184-lbs. as Illinois snagged those two weight classes. U of I closed the gap to 15-13 with a pair of matches left. The trend continued, however, and the Hoosiers sealed the deal by taking the final two bouts. It was déjà vu for Hoosier wrestling fans during the 197-lbs. match as Matt Powless found himself tied up with a nationally-ranked wrestler with just seconds remaining. Last season against Purdue, Powless' takedown of then-#13 Logan Brown with just two seconds remaining not only gave him the win, but also virtually clinched the team victory by putting Indiana ahead by six points with one match remaining. He one-upped himself this year, taking down #9 Patrick Bond with a lone tick left on the clock, breaking a 2-2 stalemate and giving his Hoosiers an 18-13 edge with second-ranked and still undefeated heavyweight Nate Everhart waiting on deck. Everhart then capped off the night by remaining unbeaten at 26-0, picking up his seventh major decision of the season. Results: 125 lbs.- #1 Angel Escobedo (IU) tech falls John Deenen (ILL), 22-6 (Team Score: 5-0) 133 lbs.- Matt Ortega (IU) dec. over Daryl Thomas (ILL), 7-4 (8-0) 141 lbs.- #15 Ryan Prater (ILL) dec. over Danny Monaco (IU), 7-2 (8-3) 149 lbs.- #20 Eric Terrrazas (ILL) dec. over Matt Coughlin (IU), 3-1 SV (8-6) 157 lbs.- #6 Kurt Kinser (IU) dec. over Conrad Polz (ILL), 4-0 (11-6) 165 lbs.- #13 Paul Young (IU) maj. dec. over Joe Barczak (ILL), 11-2 (15-6) 174 lbs.- #14 Jordan Blanton (ILL) dec. over Trevor Perry (IU), 7-3 (15-9) 184 lbs.- #2 John Dergo (ILL) maj. dec. Eric Cameron (IU), 15-6 (15-13) 197 lbs. - Matt Powless (IU) dec. over #9 Patrick Bond (ILL), 4-2 (18-13) 285 lbs.- #2 Nate Everhart (IU) maj. dec. over Pat Walker (ILL), 11-2 (22-13)

BLACKSBURG -- No. 7 Central Michigan scored bonus points in the final two bouts to rally past No. 15 Virginia Tech, 21-17, in a nonconference dual Friday night. The victory was CMU's third straight and improved the Chippewas' overall record to 11-2. Virginia Tech falls to 14-3 overall. The Hokies posted five victories in a span of six bouts to take a 17-11 lead into the 197-pound matchup between CMU's Eric Simaz and Virginia Tech's Chris Penny. Simaz scored an 8-0 major decision to draw the Chippewas within 17-15, and Virginia Tech's void at heavyweight allowed CMU to complete the comeback. CMU took an early 7-0 lead with victories at 125 and 133 pounds. No. 9 Matt Steintrager scored takedowns in both of the first two periods in a 7-4 decision over No. 14 Jarrod Garnett at 125 pounds. It was Steintrager's second victory over Garnett this season. Ninth-ranked Scotti Sentes followed Steintrager with a 13-0 major decision over Brock LiVorio at 133 pounds. Tenth-ranked Chris Diaz's 7-4 decision over Conor Beebe at 141 pounds was the first of four straight victories for the Hokies that gave the hosts a 13-7 lead. Included in the run were a pair of upsets: unranked Brian Stephens scored a pair of takedowns and three back points in the third period of a 12-7 decision over No. 11 Tony D'Alie at 149 pounds, and unranked Matt Epperly was a 6-3 winner over No. 17 Tyler Grayson at 165 pounds. CMU and Virginia Tech traded major decisions at 174 and 184 pounds, with CMU's 10th-ranked Ben Bennett (174) and the Hokies' 19th-ranked Tommy Spellman (184) earning victories. That set the stage for Simaz, who posted his second major decision in his last three matches. The Chippewas are back in action Sunday, visiting No. 25 Old Dominion at 5:30 p.m. Results: 125: No. 9 Matt Steintrager (CMU) dec. No. 14 Jarrod Garnett, 7-4 133: No. 9 Scotti Sentes (CMU) maj. dec. Brock LiVorio, 13-0 141: No. 10 Chris Diaz (VT) dec. Conor Beebe, 7-4 149: Brian Stephens (VT) dec. No. 11 Tony D'Alie, 12-7 157: No. 4 Jesse Dong (VT) maj. dec. Donnie Corby, 10-0 165: Matt Epperly (VT) dec. No. 17 Tyler Grayson, 6-3 174: No. 10 Ben Bennett (CMU) maj. dec. Taylor Knapp, 10-0 184: No. 19 Tommy Spellman (VT) maj. dec. Dillon Kern, 13-2 197: Eric Simaz (CMU) maj. dec. Chris Penny, 8-0 285: No. 3 Jarod Trice (CMU) wins by forfeit

Tonight No. 5 Minnesota hosts No. 13 Wisconsin at Williams Arena in Minneapolis at 7 p.m. CST. The dual meet will be streamed live on BigTenNetwork.com. The Gophers come into tonight with a dual meet record of 7-4, while the Badgers are 5-6. The two programs split duals last season. The Gophers won the first meeting at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals, 22-15, but the Badgers came back to win the second meeting, 19-15, in Madison, Wisconsin. Below is a weight-by-weight breakdown of tonight's dual meet. 125: Drew Hammen (Wisconsin) vs. No. 6 Zach Sanders (Minnesota) Sanders, who is ranked No. 6, is coming off two dominant wins last weekend against Michigan State and Michigan. He comes in with an 18-3 mark. Hammen has been struggling. He is currently 5-13 on the season, but has lost his last seven matches. Bottom Line: Sanders defeated Hammen, 10-4, last season. This time Sanders should get bonus points against the struggling Hammen. Prediction: Sanders (Minnesota) major dec. Hammen (Wisconsin) 133: No. 8 Tyler Graff (Wisconsin) vs. Thane Antczak (Minnesota) Graff, a redshirt freshman, made his Big Ten dual season debut last weekend with a 25-10 technical fall against Matt Ortega of Indiana. Last month, Graff accomplished the rare feat of winning a prestigious Midlands title as a freshman. He comes into the match with a record of 18-4. With three-time All-American Jayson Ness still sidelined because of an injury, Antczak gets the start. He was dominated by No. 1 Franklin Gomez, 12-2, last Friday, but bounced back the next day to beat Michigan's Zach Stevens, 11-5. Bottom Line: Graff has completely dominated every unranked opponent he has faced this season, so there is no reason to believe he won't pick up bonus points against Antczak. Prediction: Graff (Wisconsin) technical fall Antczak (Minnesota) 141: No. 20 Cole Schmitt (Wisconsin) vs. No. 4 Mike Thorn (Minnesota) Thorn has been one of the most consistent performers this season in a weight class filled with inconsistent wrestlers. He is 17-3 on the season with his losses coming to No. 1 Kyle Dake of Cornell, No. 2 Reece Humphrey of Ohio State, and No. 8 Jamal Parks of Oklahoma State. Schmitt, a redshirt freshman, is starting to come into his own after a bit of a shaky start to a season that saw him lose four of his first eight matches. He broke into the rankings last week for the first time this season. His most notable wins came at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals when he knocked off returning All-Americans Chris Drouin of Arizona State and Alex Krom of Maryland. Bottom Line: Both Thorn and Schmitt are wrestling with a lot of confidence right now, which makes for an intriguing matchup. Thorn has been dominating opponents ranked outside the top 10 all season, including major decisions over No. 12 Elijah Nacita of Cal State Bakersfield, No. 14 Dalton Jensen of Iowa State, and No. 16 Cole VonOhlen of Air Force. A Thorn major decision would not be earth shattering, but Schmitt is wrestling well and the gut feeling is that he keeps it competitive. Prediction: Thorn (Minnesota) dec. Schmitt (Wisconsin) 149: No. 2 Kyle Ruschell (Wisconsin) vs. No. 18 Mario Mason (Minnesota) Ruschell has beaten every wrestler he has faced this season with the exception of Iowa's Brent Metcalf, who defeated him in the finals of the Midlands. He is currently 20-1 on the season. Mason, a Blair Academy product, is still trying to find his way in Division I college wrestling. His age group wrestling resume is littered with impressive victories, including a win over current No. 1 at 141 Kyle Dake at the FILA Junior Nationals last April. Mason has a solid record of 12-5, but he has not yet defeated a ranked opponent. He looked lethargic through the first two periods against Michigan State's 13th-ranked David Cheza last Friday, but stormed back in the third period, using some slick takedowns, and nearly pulled out the victory. Bottom Line: Ruschell is wrestling at a very high level right now. He beat Lance Palmer of Ohio State in the finals of the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Palmer defeated Mason, 7-1, at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals. Ruschell isn't known for picking up a lot of bonus points. He usually wins his matches with workman-like efforts. Mason certainly possesses the tools to keep this match competitive, but whether he does keep it competitive remains to be seen. Prediction: Ruschell (Wisconsin) dec. Mason (Minnesota) 157: Greg Burke (Wisconsin) vs. No. 2 Dustin Schlatter (Minnesota) Schlatter, a three-time All-American, NCAA champion, and U.S. World Team member, is expected to make his 157-pound season debut tonight after wrestling the first half of the season at 165 pounds. He has been sidelined due to injury since his victory over Jon Reader of Iowa State on January 3. Burke is 4-13 on the season and has lost his last four matches, giving up bonus points in his last three matches. Bottom Line: Schlatter is one of the nation's elite wrestlers. He is technically sound and very difficult to score on, but the knock on him since he won an NCAA title as a true freshman has been his lack of offense at times against top competition. Look for Schlatter to overwhelm Burke tonight and put a lot of points on the scoreboard. Prediction: Schlatter (Minnesota) technical fall Burke (Wisconsin) 165: No. 1 Andrew Howe (Wisconsin) vs. Cody Yohn (Minnesota) Howe, an NCAA runner-up last season as a true freshman, has compiled a perfect 21-0 record this season. He won both the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and the Midlands. Yohn wrestled at 174 pounds (and 184 pounds once) through the first two months of the season. He made his debut at 165 last weekend and split matches against Michigan State and Michigan. He comes into tonight's match with a record of 17-8. Bottom Line: Howe, who is ranked No. 1 in the country, has his sights set on winning an NCAA title after reaching the NCAA finals last season. The jury is still out on Yohn. His results at 174 pounds were respectable and obviously the Minnesota coaching believes in him enough to ask Schlatter to move down a weight class. Tonight will be a good gauge for the freshman Yohn. Prediction: Howe (Wisconsin) major dec. Yohn (Minnesota) 174: Jimmy Duffy (Wisconsin) vs. No. 8 Scott Glasser (Minnesota) Glasser has been one of the biggest surprises in college wrestling this season. Last season, while competing at 165 pounds, he struggled with injuries, lost 15 of his last 19 matches, and went 0-2 at the Big Ten Championships. He moved up to 174 pounds this season and finally appears to be healthy. After knocking off ranked opponent after ranked opponent, Glasser has climbed to No. 8 in the rankings and carries a record of 23-4. Duffy has an overall record of 3-15 on the season and has lost his last six matches. Bottom Line: This is a matchup of two wrestlers going in opposite directions. Glasser is one of the nation's hottest wrestlers, winning 14 of his last 15 matches, while Duffy has struggled mightily. Look for Glasser to come out and dominate in this one. Prediction: Glasser (Minnesota) major dec. Duffy (Wisconsin) 184: No. 16 Travis Rutt (Wisconsin) vs. Kaleb Young (Minnesota) Rutt, a Minnesota native, will be returning to his home state to take on follow Minnesotan Young. Rutt made the Junior World Team in Greco-Roman this past summer. He wrestled as a true freshman last season for the Badgers, going 9-15 at 174 pounds. Moving up to 184 pounds this season, Rutt lost three of his first four matches to begin this season. But the true sophomore has been gaining confidence. He has won five of his last six matches ... with the only loss during that stretch coming to No. 1 Kirk Smith of Boise State. He is currently 9-5 on the season and ranked No. 16. Young is 7-8 on the season, but is coming off a victory over Michigan's Hunter Collins. Bottom Line: These two Minnesota natives met twice last season with Rutt winning both matches by decision. The second match came down to sudden victory. This one should be competitive, but Rutt is certainly the favorite based on his head-to-head wins and higher ranking. Prediction: Rutt (Wisconsin) dec. Young (Minnesota) 197: No. 8 Trevor Brandvold (Wisconsin) vs. No. 14 Sonny Yohn (Minnesota) Brandvold looked great in his Big Ten dual meet opener last Friday, winning 10-1 over Indiana's Matt Powless. He missed the first month and a half of the season due to injury, but has been wrestling well this season. He dropped his first match at the Midlands, but came back to win six matches in the consolation bracket and place fourth. He comes into tonight's match with a 10-3 mark and No. 8 ranking. Yohn has been up and down this season, but has been ranked in the top 20 most of the season. He lost to No. 11 Anthony Biondo of Michigan for the second time this season last weekend. Bottom Line: This is a match that Wisconsin will likely need to win in order to have a chance to win this dual meet. At the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals, Brandvold defeated Eric Simaz of Central Michigan, who defeated Yohn at the same event. For Brandvold, it's a match he is expected win. For Yohn, it would be a big confidence booster if he can beat a wrestler ranked in the top 10. Prediction: Brandvold (Wisconsin) dec. Yohn (Minnesota) 285: Eric Bugenhagen (Wisconsin) vs. Ben Berhow (Minnesota) Berhow, a returning NCAA qualifier, is coming off a weekend in which he won two matches convincingly against Michigan State and Michigan. He was ranked in the top 20 this season until his disappointing performance at the Southern Scuffle, where he lost 10-3 to Eloheim Palma of North Carolina State and was pinned by Michigan's Ben Apland. (He avenged the loss to Apland last Saturday.) He then dropped three matches at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals. Bugenhagen moved up two weight classes this season and has been a serviceable heavyweight for the Badgers, compiling a season record of 10-13. However, he has lost six of his last seven matches. Bottom Line: Berhow should handle the struggling Bugenhagen. Prediction: Berhow (Minnesota) dec. Bugenhagen (Wisconsin) Dual Meet Prediction: Minnesota 19, Wisconsin 18

On Friday, No. 4 Ohio State will travel to West Lafayette, Indiana and wrestle its first Big Ten Conference road dual meet of the season against Purdue at 7 p.m. EST. The event will be broadcast on tape delay on the Big Ten Network on Friday at 11 p.m. EST. The Buckeyes come in with a 12-1 dual meet record, while the Boilermakers are 10-5. Below is a weight-by-weight breakdown of Friday night's dual meet. 125: No. 18 Nikko Triggas (Ohio State) vs. Cashé Quiroga (Purdue) Last Sunday, Triggas showed marked improvement from last season against Penn State's Brad Pataky, losing a hard-fought 9-7 battle. Pataky thumped Triggas, 14-3, last season. Triggas has done well against unranked opponents this season and has struggled with ranked opponents. Quiroga may be an unranked true freshman, but he is certainly a formidable opponent. This past summer, Quiroga captured a prestigious Junior Nationals freestyle title in Fargo. He comes into this match with a 19-7 mark. He has yet to beat a ranked opponent, but he has been competitive with some. He lost by one point to No. 8 Eric Morrill of Edinboro and two points to No. 14 Jarrod Garnett of Virginia Tech. Bottom Line: This is an intriguing match. For Triggas, it's an opportunity to gain some momentum and begin to separate himself from the middle tier of 125-pounder in the conference. For Quiroga, it's an opportunity to pick up his first conference victory and knock off his first ranked opponent in the process. Prediction: Triggas (Ohio State) dec. Quiroga (Purdue) 133: Ian Paddock (Ohio State) vs. Akif Eren (Purdue) Paddock was dominant in his victory over Penn State's Bryan Pearsall on Sunday, winning by major decision, 13-2. Efren, on the other hand, was dominated in his last outing, losing 15-6 to Iowa's sixth-ranked Dan Dennis. Paddock has won seven of his last nine, while Efren has lost four of his last five. Bottom Line: This will be a good test for the true freshman Paddock. Efren is an experienced competitor who has shown that he can battle with highly-ranked opponents. Both Paddock and Efren had similar results against No. 10 Danny Mitcheff of Kent State. Paddock lost by three points to Mitcheff, while Efren lost by four. On paper, this match is virtually a tossup at this point. Prediction: Paddock (Ohio State) dec. Efren (Purdue) 141: No. 2 Reece Humphrey (Ohio State) vs. Juan Archuleta (Purdue) Humphrey, who is 21-2 on the season, looked great in his last match, scoring early and often, winning by technical fall, 22-7, over Penn State's Adam Lynch. He suffered a back injury at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals, but is now healthy and wrestling with a lot of confidence. Archuleta has been knocking on the rankings door for most of the season. He broke into the rankings once this season, coming in at No. 20 on December 8, but he has not been able to get back in the rankings. He has wins this season over No. 12 Elijah Nacita of Cal State Bakersfield, No. 17 Seth Ciasulli of Lehigh, and No. 19 Todd Schavrien of Missouri. Bottom Line: With the way Humphrey is wrestling right now, it would be difficult to envision him losing this match. Archuleta has only given up bonus points once this season, which occurred Sunday when he was pinned by Iowa's fifth-ranked Montell Marion. Humphrey is the obvious pick, but expect Archuleta to be game. Prediction: Humphrey (Ohio State) dec. Archuleta (Purdue) 149: No. 3 Lance Palmer (Ohio State) vs. Sam Patacsil (Purdue) Palmer, a three-time All-American, is coming off a 5-3 victory over No. 5 Frank Molinaro of Penn State. He has won nine straight matches ... with his last (and only) official loss coming on December 4 to Wisconsin's second-ranked Kyle Ruschell in the finals of the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Patacsil comes from perhaps the most famous wrestling family in Purdue history. His father, brother, uncle, and grandfather all wrestled for the Boilermakers. He comes in with an 18-10 mark on the season, but he has yet to beat a ranked opponent. Interestingly, Patacsil has a victory this season over Lance Palmer's younger brother, Collin, at the Cleveland State Open, while Lance had two victories over Patacsil's older brother, Jake, last season. Bottom Line: Palmer has his sights set on winning a national title this season, while Patacsil will be looking to qualify for his first NCAAs in his final campaign. Patacsil avoided bonus points against second-ranked Ruschell, so it is certainly not out of the question for him to avoid giving up bonus points against Palmer. Prediction: Palmer (Ohio State) major dec. Patacsil (Purdue) 157: Tony Jameson (Ohio State) vs. Colton Salazar (Purdue) You would be hard-pressed to find a more inconsistent wrestler in the country this season than Salazar. A quick glance at his notable wins this season might have you scratching your head as to why he is not ranked ... that is, until you look at his losses. He has wins over No. 6 Kurt Kinser of Indiana and No. 7 Bryce Saddoris of Navy, but eight losses, with three of those being major decision losses to unranked opponents. Jameson, a redshirt freshman, is 3-3 and coming off a 10-2 loss to No. 5 Cyler Sanderson of Penn State. Bottom Line: Salazar, a two-time NCAA qualifier, is certainly the favorite in this match. But which Salazer will show up? The one who beat Kinser and Saddoris? Or the one who was thumped by Derek St. John of Iowa and Mallie Shuster of Kent State? Prediction: Salazar (Purdue) dec. Jameson (Ohio State) 165: No. 7 Colt Sponseller (Ohio State) vs. Jason Martin (Purdue) Sponseller is coming off a win over No. 8 Dan Vallimont of Penn State, a wrestler who defeated him at the Big Ten Championships last season. He is 18-3 on the season and wrestling well. Martin comes in with a 6-12 record, but has been competitive with several ranked wrestlers. Of the five ranked wrestlers Martin has faced, only one has been able to score bonus points against him. He is coming off a 10-4 loss to No. 5 Ryan Morningstar of Iowa. Bottom Line: Sponseller is known for pushing the pace and wearing out his opponents with his superior conditioning. Look for him to push the pace in this match while looking for bonus points. Prediction: Sponseller (Ohio State) major dec. Martin (Purdue) 174: No. 12 Dave Rella (Ohio State) vs. No. 6 Luke Manuel (Purdue) This is perhaps the most anticipated individual matchup in the dual meet. Manuel, a two-time NCAA qualifier, has built a very impressive 32-2 record this season. He sat out last weekend's dual against Iowa with a knee injury, but indications are that he will wrestle on Friday night. His only losses this season have come to No. 4 Stephen Dwyer of Nebraska and No. 9 Colby Covington of Oregon State. However, he avenged the loss to Covington the very next day. Manuel has won his last 11 matches. Rella is having the most consistent season of his career. He has beaten several ranked opponents this season, including Covington, who he beat 11-4. When he gets to his offense, he is tough to beat. Bottom Line: Expect a tight battle that could be decided by a takedown. Prediction: Manuel (Purdue) dec. Rella (Ohio State) 184: No. 9 Mike Pucillo (Ohio State) vs. Nick Corpe (Purdue) Pucillo, who comes in with a 13-4 record and No. 9 ranking, was held out of last weekend's dual against Penn State because of a skin infection. He is expected to go on Friday night. Corpe is 15-12 on the season, but he has lost four of his last five matches. He lost 13-4 to No. 5 Dustin Kilgore of Kent State at the Wendy's Duals on January 17, and then was hammered by No. 7 Phil Keddy of Iowa, 11-1, last weekend. Bottom Line: Puccillo should handle Corpe. Prediction: Pucillo (Ohio State) major dec. Corpe (Purdue) 197: C.J. Magrum (Ohio State) vs. No. 10 Logan Brown (Purdue) Brown, a two-time NCAA qualifier, has wrestled a brutal schedule this season, facing many of the nation's top 197-pounders, including No. 2 Craig Brester of Nebraska and No. 3 Hudson Taylor of Maryland twice. He is 26-6 on the season. Brown placed fifth at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, but failed to place at the Midlands Championships. Last weekend, Brown defeated Iowa's Luke Lofthouse in sudden victory, 3-1. Magrum, a redshirt freshman, picked up a win last weekend against Penn State in his first Big Ten dual meet. He is currently 13-8 on the season and has quality wins over No. 17 Joe Kennedy of Lehigh and two-time NCAA qualifier Riley Orozco of Cal State Bakersfield. Bottom Line: Brown is the more accomplished and battle-tested wrestler, which makes him the favorite in this match. But Magrum certainly has the tools to battle with Brown. Prediction: Brown (Purdue) dec. Magrum (Ohio State) 285: Corey Morrison (Ohio State) vs. Adam Walls/Roger Vukobratovich (Purdue) Morrison, a returning NCAA qualifier, has bounced in and out of the rankings all season. He has some quality wins over ranked wrestlers ... and all eight of his losses have come against ranked wrestlers. He is coming off a 10-4 loss to No. 11 Cameron Wade of Penn State. Walls, a redshirt freshman, is 11-18 on the season, while Vukobratovich, a junior, is 2-2 and has not competed since the Eastern Michigan Open in early November. Bottom Line: Morrison should dominate whoever Purdue puts out on the mat. Prediction: Morrison (Ohio State) major dec. Walls (Purdue) Dual Meet Prediction: Ohio State 25, Purdue 9

Over the last three seasons, much has been discussed about a hypothetical dual meet between Blair Academy, NJ and Graham, OH. The talk came to a head after the 2007 Walsh Ironman, a tournament in which Graham defeated Blair Academy. Would the two teams considered the two best in America at that time agree to a dual meet? Nothing materialized during the 2007-08 season. The talk came up again after the 2008 Walsh Ironman when Blair Academy emerged as champion after a two year lapse of not winning the tournament (St. Edward, OH won the December 2006 tournament to spark their 2007 mythical national championship). Yet again, nothing came about in the way of a dual meet. However, during the offseason an agreement was reached that Blair Academy would travel to Graham for a dual meet. This matchup features the last two national championship teams, and could easily play a significant role in determining this year's mythical national champion. The Blair Academy squad -- winners of this year's Ironman, Beast of the East, and NHSCA Final Four of Wrestling -- will come to Graham High School seeking another notch on a season that for them hopefully ends in a repeat national championship, which would be an eighth in 10years. However, this weekend's opponent is a very formidable one. Graham -- second in the Walsh Ironman this year -- is after an upset, which could put them in a position to win their second national title in three seasons. The Falcons have established themselves as a perennial power, seeking a tenth consecutive state tournament championship. They have also beaten the legendary St. Edward program in dual meets the last three seasons. On Saturday at 7:00 p.m. EST the collision will occur. The teams last met in dual meet competition during the 2003-04 season at the NHSCA Final Four of Wrestling. Blair Academy won that meeting -- the only one in their respective histories -- by a 38-21 score taking nine of 14 matches. The following is an analysis of the expected matchups should both teams send out their "normal" starting lineups. Rankings represent those published by InterMat as of January 22, 2010. 103: No. 10 Max Hvolbeck (Blair Academy) vs. No. 18 Ryan Taylor (Graham) Hvolbeck won a 6-4 decision in the consolation semifinals of the Walsh Ironman. Expect a similar result this time around. However, as a point of caution, Taylor comes in off a pin over No. 8 Dean Heil (St. Edward), a match in which he led 6-5 prior to the late sequence leading to the fall; while Hvolbeck was upset at the NHSCA Final Four of Wrestling, as Drew Ferguson (Collins Hill, GA) won by fall with a cradle in the second period. Prediction: Hvolbeck (Blair Academy) dec. Taylor (Graham) (3-0 Blair Academy) Note: This is the type of match that Graham needs to pull off in order to increase the likelihood of an upset victory in the dual meet. 112: No. 1 Evan Silver (Blair Academy) vs. Connor Casady (Graham) Silver has been dominant this season in winning titles at the Walsh Ironman, Beast of the East, and Bethlehem Holiday Wrestling Classic. Casady came back from injury last week to make his season debut, losing by a major decision to a fellow freshman from St. Edward. Prediction: Silver (Blair Academy) pins Casady (Graham) (9-0 Blair Academy) 119: No. 9 Mark Grey (Blair Academy) vs. No. 5 Nick Brascetta (Graham) If you looked at the respective wrestlers' raw talent ability and complete resumes, you would presume that Grey would be superior by a somewhat significant margin. However, that is not at all the case when you match these two wrestlers on the mat. In the last two seasons at the Walsh Ironman, Brascetta has won both meetings -- at 103 pounds in the final of the 2008 Walsh Ironman, and a 3-1 decision in the consolation semifinals this year at 119 pounds. Prediction: Brascetta (Graham) dec. Grey (Blair Academy) (9-3 Blair Academy) 125: Russell Parsons (Blair Academy) vs. Sheldon Kegley (Graham) This is a battle of freshman against senior. Both wrestlers failed to place at the Walsh Ironman, exiting in the same round on Friday evening. One of the lower profile matches of the evening, this is the type of match that Graham must win to have any chance of pulling off an upset victory in their home gym. Prediction: Kegley (Graham) dec. Parsons (Blair Academy) (9-6 Blair Academy). 130: Todd Preston (Blair Academy) vs. No. 17 Bo Jordan (Graham) The freshman sensation Jordan was one of two key Graham wrestlers that did not compete at the Walsh Ironman in early December. Preston placed fourth at the Ironman while failing to place at the Beast of the East, and also did not wrestle last weekend at the NHSCA Final Four. On the other hand, the freshman sensation Jordan came up with one of the season's signature upsets last weekend beating top-ranked Jamie Clark (St. Edward) by a 6-3 score. Prediction: Jordan (Graham) dec. Preston (Blair Academy) (9-9 Tie) Note: If Jordan could somehow squeeze a bonus point victory here, not super likely though, it could have an impact in the course of the dual meet. 135: No. 3 Austin Ormsbee (Blair Academy) vs. Isaac Jordan (Graham) The junior Ormsbee is a two-time National Prep champion and has returned to the mats with a vengeance after missing all three major tournaments for Blair in the month of December. At last weekend's NHSCA Final Four, Ormsbee went 4-0 with wins by pin, two major decisions, and a convincing 10-3 decision. The sophomore Jordan placed fourth in the 140 pound weight class at the Walsh Ironman. Prediction: Ormsbee (Blair Academy) dec. Jordan (Graham) (12-9 Blair Academy) 140: No. 1 Chris Villalonga (Blair Academy) vs. No. 7 Felipe Martinez (Graham) The top-ranked Villalonga, ranked third overall in the senior class, had not lost a scholastic match since late December of 2006 -- which was during his freshman year. Competing against Blair Academy's rigorous schedule, this means he is a three-time champion at the National Prep Championships, Walsh Ironman, and Beast of the East. The sophomore Martinez was the other impact Graham wrestler not in the lineup at Ironman; however, he was a finalist at 130 pounds as a freshman where he was upended 6-1 by Villalonga. For those seeking an upset here, the hope is that Martinez is able to get his big-move offense going against an opponent that has seemed flat at times this year in spite of being a superlative wrestler Prediction: Villalonga (Blair Academy) dec. Martinez (Graham) (15-9 Blair Academy) 145: Jack Weldoyn (Blair Academy) vs. Matt Stephens (Graham) While Stephens is not a nationally ranked wrestler, he did place fourth at the Walsh Ironman and upset 15th ranked Anthony Salupo (St. Edward) last weekend. In addition, Stephens -- like his older brother Brian, now at Virginia Tech -- is a very physical and proficient wrestler on his feet that can wear out an opponent. Prediction: Stephens (Graham) pins Weldoyn (Blair Academy) (15-15 Tie) 152: No. 8 Jesse Shanaman (Blair Academy) vs. Robert Mannier (Graham) Going against a young wrestler that has struggled to some extent this year, Shanaman is going to be hunting for the fall. Shanaman has only one loss on the season, to Dylan Alton (Central Mountain, PA) in the Walsh Ironman final, while winning titles at the Beast of the East and Bethlehem Holiday Wrestling Classic. Prediction: Shanaman (Blair Academy) pins Mannier (Graham) (21-15 Blair Academy) 160: Brad Bishop (Blair Academy) vs. Kyle Ryan (Graham) The senior Bishop is a native of Ohio coming back to his home state, and seeks a match victory that would serve to minimize realistic hopes of Graham poaching the upset victory in the dual meet. Bishop failed to place at both the Ironman and Beast before taking only seventh at the Bethlehem Holiday Wrestling Classic. Ryan -- a junior and defending state champion -- placed fourth at the Walsh Ironman, but is only recently coming back from injury that kept him out for two weekends in early January. Prediction: Ryan (Graham) dec. Bishop (Blair Academy) (21-18 Blair Academy) 171: Marino Orlandi (Blair Academy) vs. Huston Evans (Graham) The sophomore Evans was a state runner-up last season, and placed fourth in the Walsh Ironman losing two one point matches along the way. Like Ryan, Evans just recently came back from an injury; however, his injury only forced him out of one competition. Facing an opponent that did not make a significant impact in any of his tournaments this year, the ability for Evans to score bonus points -- ideally a fall -- could play a crucial role if this dual meet ends up split at seven matches apiece. Prediction: Evans (Graham) major dec. Orlandi (Blair Academy) (22-21 Graham) 189: No. 2 Michael Evans (Blair Academy) vs. No. 5 Max Thomusseit (Graham) These two senior wrestlers are among the pre-eminent in the weight class and in the senior class as a whole; Evans ranked 7th among seniors overall, and Thomusseit 32nd. These wrestlers met in the final at the Walsh Ironman with Evans taking home a 6-2 decision, one of seven that he has against ranked wrestlers in an undefeated season to date. Prediction: Evans (Blair Academy) dec. Thomusseit (Graham) (24-22 Blair Academy) 215: Dillon Hoffman (Blair Academy) vs. Mark Meyer (Graham) Both wrestlers seasons started at the Walsh Ironman -- the senior Hoffman placed eight, while the junior Meyer failed to place. Since then, Hoffman has failed to contend for placement at his next two tournaments while Meyer has earned placement finishes. In addition, Hoffman lost 22-6 at the Walsh Ironman in the consolation bracket to Anthony Wise (Massillon Perry, OH); this is a wrestler that Meyer has lost to twice this year, but by much closer margins (5-1 and an overtime decision). Prediction: Meyer (Graham) dec. Hoffman (Blair Academy) (25-24 Graham) 285: Brooks Black (Blair Academy) vs. Lucas Williams (Graham) Should this be the last weight class, and the dual meet is in play, it is a huge advantage to Blair with the freshman sensation Black. This young man has finished third at the Walsh Ironman and Beast of the East already. The senior Williams did what he was asked to in the dual meet last week against Greg Kuhar (St. Edward) -- which was to keep the score close and stay off of his back, a hidden key in that dual meet victory. Prediction: Black (Blair Academy) major dec. Williams (Graham) (28-25 Blair Academy) Dual Meet Prediction: Blair Academy 28, Graham 25 However, as most big dual meets show, teams will not send out their normal lineups. Two factors that could play a crucial role in such a potentially tight meet are the starting weight class and the coin toss (deciding which team has to present their wrestler first at a given weight class). Special InterMat contributor Dan Ransick will be present at Graham High School covering the event, and will provide some post-match perspectives.

Minneapolis, Minn. -- University of Minnesota head wrestling coach J Robinson announced today that three-time All-American and former national champion Dustin Schlatter (Massillion, Ohio) will be moving weight classes from 165 to 157. Dustin Schlatter (Photo/The Guillotine)“With the loss of Jake Deitchler (Anoka, Minn.), and after talking with the other coaches, I decided this move will help strengthen the line-up," head coach J Robinson said. "When I approached Dustin with the idea, he just said he would do 'whatever is best for the team.' I think this shows a great leadership decision by Dustin that makes a statement of how our team is to him." Robinson added, "We've also moved Cody Yohn (Alamosa, Colo.) down to 165, and I feel this will make our lineup stronger." In his first season at 165, Schlatter ran off an 8-1 record and stands ranked at No. 2 in the country. Earlier this month, he was ranked No. 4, but jumped up two spots after beating then No. 3 Jon Reader of Iowa State. In his last four matches, Schlatter has beaten four ranked opponents, and was champion at the Southern Scuffle. Before Deitchler decided come back to Minnesota from USA Wrestling and compete this season for the Gophers, Schlatter was set to wrestle at 157. When Deitchler committed, Schlatter moved up to help the team, and he is doing so again by moving down. Schlatter spent his three previous seasons at Minnesota competing at 149, winning the 2006 national championship as a true freshman, the first Gopher to do so. From 2006-08 he was a three-time All-American at 149 before taking the 2008-09 season off in preparation for the World Championships, which Schlatter qualified for and competed in this past September. His career as a Golden Gopher has been defined by success as his 108-8 career record marks the third best winning percentage in program history, and he is the only one among the top-three with over 100 career wins. Schlatter will make his debut at 157 on Jan. 29 when Minnesota hosts Wisconsin in Williams Arena at 7:00 p.m.

John Hartupee

This Saturday's edition of TDR will be broadcast live from the Arizona State wrestling room from 9 to 11 AM CST. You can watch and listen or just listen at Takedownradio.com. Please Join us. This show will highlight the exciting changes and growth at Arizona State and within the Pac 10. Joining me on the show will be Sun Devil Head Coach Shawn Charles and his staff, several wrestlers and others. TDR and AZWrestler.com to Broadcast Arizona State Vs. Oregon State Meet Live On Sunday, TDR will join with AZWrestler.com to broadcast the afternoon meet between Arizona State and Oregon State in a classic battle between Pac 10 powers. Pre Match show starts at 1:30 PM Mountain time Live from the Wells Fargo Arena on the campus of the Sun Devils of Arizona State. The Broadcast team: GT Taylor- 2 x NCAA All American at AZ State (92). GT is also the color commentator of the Arizona State HS Championships. Tony Pagliocco- Co-Owner AZWrestler.com. Founded in 1998, AZWrestler.com is a pioneer in Arizona online wrestling news. The site's mission is to provide up to date news for the entire state of Arizona and to help develop opportunities for wrestlers of all ages. By focusing on building a social community with the latest technologies, AZWrestler strives to grow Arizona's wrestling community. Web: www.azwrestler.com Phone: 480-363-7382 E-mail support@azwrestler.com Scott Casber- Founder and Host of Takedown Wrestling Media- Radio and TV programs. You can watch and listen to TDR programming at Takedownradio.com. TDR TV is available on 26 of wrestling's top web sites and at Intermatwrestle.com Mike Bombela - Camera operator courtesy of AZWrestler.com Please note that Episode 42 of TDR TV is now up on all the top web sites around the country and is available for your viewing. TDR every week! It's appointment Radio and TV! Join us at Takedownradio.com. America's Wrestling Radio Talk Show airs on Supertalk 1570 in Michigan, AM 1460 KXNO in Iowa, on a radio station near you or on line at many of our broadcast partners around the world including Intermatwrestle.com. TDR "the Radio Program" airs 9 AM to 11 AM CST every Saturday morning we look forward to having you listen. Thank you!

Now's here's a winning idea: Buy a ticket to attend a college wrestling event, and know that 100% of your money will go directly to fund scholarships for wrestlers ... and help ensure the long-range success of the host program. The University of Missouri and Oregon State have hosted events like this with great success. Now the University of Minnesota is hosting a scholarship fundraiser of its own, as the Golden Gophers welcome Big Ten rival Purdue to the Sports Pavilion on Sunday, January 31 at 2 p.m. Central. The dual meet will be broadcast on a tape delay on the Big Ten Network at 10:00 p.m. Central on Sunday. At this dual meet -- dubbed the Gopher Wrestling Endowment Meet -- all ticket proceeds will go directly to the Minnesota Wrestling Scholarship fund. As the University of Minnesota wrestling program celebrates its 100th year, the money collected at the end-of-January dual meet will ensure the program will continue to be strong into its second century by continuing to provide scholarship opportunities to worthy scholar-athletes. How Minnesota came to host the Endowment Meet "Missouri did a similar event last season," said Joe Russell, long-time assistant coach at Minnesota. "I talked to Kevin Roberts (assistant coach) at Oregon State to learn more about the event they held earlier this season. I sent an email to University of Minnesota Athletic Director Joel Maturi, and he agreed to it quickly ... They're supportive of what we're doing, and thinking about the long-term stability of the program." Joe Russell (Photo/The Guillotine)"Endowments are the foundation of any athletic department and any program," Maturi said in an article announcing the event. "Our long-range goal is to endow all athletic scholarships in our wrestling program. We truly appreciate all who will attend the meet to assist us in our goal." The details of the Gopher Wrestling Endowment Meet the fell into place quickly, according to coach Russell. "Our Development Office called other schools to see how they did things. Here's how it'll work at our event: The Ticket Office sends a check for the total amount collected for the dual to Development, who will then assure that it all goes toward scholarships for wrestlers." As Russell explained, fully 100% of the money collected at the January 31 dual will go to the scholarship fund. He also made clear that a ticket purchase for the Purdue dual is NOT tax deductible, in that the fan is receiving something of value -- great wrestling action -- in exchange for the ticket purchase. "Minnesota wrestling fans should be excited to know that their ticket money is going to support individual wrestlers." "J Robinson (Minnesota head coach) encourages us to take risks, and try new things," Russell continued. J Robinson (Photo/The Guillotine)In fact, Robinson, promotion-minded head coach at Minnesota, said in the announcement article about the event, "It is a great opportunity for the wrestling community to do two things that can demonstrate the power of wrestling. First, having a great fan base will show how important wrestling is in Minnesota, and second, it is every fan's wish for their donation to go directly to wrestling. This accomplishes both goals. It doesn't get any better." Learning from the success of the Tigers ... The Minnesota wrestling program is modeling its fundraiser on similar events hosted by Missouri and Oregon State. For the opening dual meet for the 2008-2009 season against Hofstra, the Missouri Tigers held an event called Wrestling Supports Wrestling. As head coach Brian Smith explained it, the idea came from a position of strength: self-endow the program while it's still thriving. Brian Smith (Photo/Tech-Fall.com)"At the time, programs like Arizona State and University of Oregon were being eliminated," said Smith in an interview for this article. "Sadly, college wrestling tends to be reactive, rather than proactive. We decided to be proactive, and generate support while our program is still healthy ... Putting away money for the future." In a 2008 article announcing the event, coach Smith explained how sports like wrestling can be hurt when revenues from traditional big-money sports take a hit: "Suddenly basketball and football teams sell no season tickets and schools have to cut programs. Usually wrestling is one of the first to go. So I want to put the sport in a position where people will say, ‘Well, that program is pretty well-off so let's leave it alone.'" Missouri's Wrestling Supports Wrestling event attracted about 1,500-2,000 fans, and generated approximately $12,000-$15,000 for the Tigers' wrestling endowment fund, "despite being up against hunting season," coach Smith said in the interview for this article. Brian Smith cited an added benefit: "We've received bigger checks from our alums who were aware of our fundraiser event ... We now have money coming in to grow the program." ... and the Beavers Oregon State had its first scholarship fundraising event early this season -- Sunday, November 22, 2009 -- in a three-way meet hosting Wisconsin and Boise State. "We had read about Missouri's event," said Kevin Roberts, assistant wrestling coach for the Oregon State Beavers. "We have a Wrestling Endowment Fund, and wanted to continue to add to it. This is so important, especially as tuition, travel and other expenses of running a college wrestling program continue to grow." Jim Zalesky"Coach (Jim) Zalesky talked to the administration about it, and they bought into it right away." "We had over 3,000 attend our event," according to Roberts. (The event was held at Gil Coliseum on the Corvallis campus.) "Usually we average about 1,000 fans. With that boost in attendance, we took in about $30,000 for our fund." "It was a win-win for the administration and for our Endowment Fund." According to Roberts, some considerable thought was put into selecting the right event for Oregon State's scholarship fundraiser. "We wanted to have it before the high school wrestling season, so we could encourage high school wrestlers and their families and friends to attend." Kevin Roberts (Photo/Dennis Wolverton)"We also tried to pick teams that would be good draws," continued Roberts. "When we promoted our event, we were positive. We made it clear that were not in trouble, which, out here, with the loss of wrestling programs at (University of) Oregon and Portland State, was a very important message to communicate. We made it clear that Oregon State has one of the biggest wrestling endowments in the nation, and wanted to build on that endowment, to perpetuate the program." "We hope to make it an annual event (at Oregon State)." In talking about the upcoming event at Minnesota, Missouri head coach Brian Smith said, "It's great for wrestling fans. You get see the highest level of folkstyle wrestling with two Big Ten teams. You'll see elite college athletes in action for the price of a movie ticket, or a fraction of the cost of seeing a big-time college football game. And it's all for a great cause." The University of Minnesota's Gopher Wrestling Endowment Meet vs. Purdue will be held Sunday, January 31 at 2 p.m. at the 5,700-seat Sports Pavilion on campus. Tickets may be purchased online at GopherSports.com or by phone 1-800-UGOPHER, or at the gate.

Andrew Long

Rob Koll

From: Mike Moyer, Executive Director, National Wrestling Coaches Association Re: Call to Action: Save Duquesne Wrestling Date: January 27, 2010 As many of you have probably already heard, the Duquesne University administration announced that it plans to discontinue Duquesne's intercollegiate wrestling program immediately following the 2010 NCAA Championships. It is very important that the local, regional, and national wrestling community express support for wrestling to the Duquesne administration via emails, phone calls, or faxes. As important as it is to express support, we must be polite and respectful in any communications with Duquesne. Although this whole situation is unfair, our side will be penalized for unsportsmanlike behavior: we cannot afford to be rude or disrespectful. Here is the contact information for the people to contact: Dr. Charles Dougherty President Duquesne University Administration Building Room 510 600 Forbes Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15282 Phone: 412.396.6668 Email: president@duq.edu Marie Milie Jones Chairman, Board of Trustees Duquesne University Phone: (412) 396-6061 Email: sinagrar@duq.edu Greg Amodio Athletic Director Duquesne University Palumbo Center 600 Forbes Avenue Pittsburgh PA 15282 Phone: 412-396-6565 Email: amodiog@duq.edu Please be sure to convey the following speaking points in a very respectful way and in your own words. We really want to hold them accountable for explaining why they would make such a decision to eliminate wrestling without first reaching out to the wrestling community and alumni for financial support: The "Quick Facts" section of the Duquesne University Website states: "In a survey of colleges and universities covering 42 states, DUQUESNE was among 135 selected for the 1997-98 Honor Roll of Character-Building Colleges that emphasizes moral and spiritual development." Speaking Point: Few, if any, activities build and/or reveal character better than intercollegiate athletics, and wrestling is arguably one of the top character-building and character-revealing intercollegiate sports. • One of Duquesne's clearly stated objectives in its mission statement is "service to the community." Speaking Point: Historically, the Duquesne University wrestling program has played a major role in replenishing the depleted pool of high school and middle school teachers/wrestling coaches in western Pennsylvania. In fact, there are currently 19 active teachers and/or wrestling coaches at the youth and/or scholastic levels who are alums of Duquesne University. The WPIAL is arguably one of the strongest high school wrestling areas in America. • One of the stated reasons the administration used to justify the elimination of wrestling was its inability to be competitive as a partially funded program. Speaking Point: On average, approximately 80-85% of all D-I schools with a wrestling program will advance at least one wrestler to the NCAA's each year. This is primarily because we have approximately 260,000 high school wrestlers and only 220 NCAA member institutions (83 NCAA D-I colleges) with wrestling teams. Speaking Point: Duquesne University has a rich wrestling tradition under Coach Hartupee as evidenced by the fact that he has advanced 37 wrestlers to the NCAA Division I championships over the past 16 years. • One of the stated reasons the administration used to justify the decision to eliminate wrestling was Title IX compliance. Speaking Point: The Office of Civil Rights has clearly stated that it is a disfavored practice to eliminate men's sports to comply with Title IX. The spirit and intent of Title IX is to increase opportunities for women, not eliminate opportunities for men. Indeed, eliminating men's teams does not help Title IX compliance at all, unless the school reaches participation proportionality. Even with these cuts, Duquesne does not reach participation proportionality. Speaking Point: In addition to participation proportionality, the Office of Civil Rights also requires scholarship proportionality, and the wholesale elimination of male athletes threatens Duquesne's compliance with scholarship proportionality. • One of the stated reasons the administration used to justify the elimination of wrestling (and three other sports) is "financial savings." Speaking Point: By NCAA standards, wrestling has one of the lowest "costs per student-athletes" of any male sport. If the administration provided some time, a substantial portion of the wrestling budget could be raised through private donations. Speaking Point: Even without scholarships, several IVY League wrestling programs (i.e. Cornell, Harvard, Penn, etc) are among our most nationally competitive wrestling programs. This is also shows that strong students can excel in wrestling. • One of the stated reasons the administration used to justify the elimination of wrestling (and three other sports) is Duquesne's inability to provide all current student-athletes with an overall quality experience. Speaking Point: Some of our nation's top political, military, corporate, and community leaders were athletes in traditional Olympic sports. These sports more closely support the educational mission of schools like Duquesne, and the athletes persevere and flourish in spite of lacking a fully equitable "overall quality experience." Duquesne should not use its own underfunding as a reason to de-fund these teams entirely. • Moreover, Duquesne should take great pride in knowing that its wrestling team placed in the "Top 10" eight of the past eleven years in the NWCA Team Academic Rankings.

Johnny Cobb

Dan Callahan