InterMat Staff

One of the great characters in the sport of wrestling, Barron Bremner, will be the radio show guest this Wednesday. “On the Mat" is a presentation of the Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum and can be heard live on the Internet at www.kcnzam.com or locally in Northeast Iowa each Wednesday from 5:05 - 6:00 PM Central time on AM 1650, The Fan. Feel free to e-mail radio@wrestlingmuseum.org with any questions or comments about the show. Bremner wrestled for the University of Iowa in the late 1950s and went on to have successful coaching and administrative stints at both Cornell College and Coe College from 1959 through 2001. Bremner will be the special guest at the Dan Gable Wrestling Institute & Museum’s breakfast social on Friday, February 5th at the Marriott Hotel in Cedar Rapids. This event will showcase the wrestling programs of Cornell and Coe; who wrestle their annual dual meet at Cornell in Mount Vernon, Iowa that night.

WEXFORD, Pa. -- For the second-straight week, a Waynesburg University wrestler was named the top performer in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC). Sophomore Jared Roberts was named PAC Wrestler of the Week after dominating a pair of opponents during an impressive two-match stretch for the Yellow Jackets. In a conference contest at Washington & Jefferson, Roberts dispatched Eric Kohr by 15-2 major decision as the visitors rolled to a 35-9 win on Friday. The Washington native looked even more impressive the following night by pinning Stephen Terwillinger of Penn State-Dubois in just 53 seconds during a 38-6 Jacket victory. Roberts is the fourth different Yellow Jacket to be named PAC Wrestler of the Week. Waynesburg has taken home the award a total of six times during the nine weeks that the honor has been given out. The Yellow Jackets return to the mats on Saturday, Jan. 30, when they travel to West Liberty State College to face the 12th-ranked team in Division II of the NCAA.

The American University wrestling team dominated Drexel to the tune of a 40-6 victory Tuesday night in Bender Arena, improving its current win streak to four matches. Seven Eagles won with bonus points highlighted by No. 4 Mike Cannon, No. 12 Kyle Borshoff and Daniel Mitchell who each recorded falls. No. 17 Jasen Borshoff took to the mat first at 125 lbs. and posted an impressive 26-10 tech-fall over Yi-Ming Law in just 4:40. J. Borshoff built a 15-5 lead over Law after one period, scoring six takedowns and adding three back points. Five more takedowns in the second period and an addition point for riding time gave J. Borshoff the tech-fall, 26-10. Thomas Williams followed J. Borshoff at 133 lbs. and posted a 12-2 major decision over Joshua Yurasits. After a scoreless first period, Williams scored a takedown and six back points in the second for an 8-1 lead. He finished the match off with an escape, takedown and one additional point for riding time to get the 12-2 major decision. Drexel got on the board at 141 lbs. as Shane Fenningham took a 5-1 decision over Nick Pitas, moving the team score to 9-3. K. Borshoff put American back on track at 149 lbs., scoring his third fall of the year at the 1:48 mark. The 2009 All-American overpowered John Mcdermott off the opening whistle, scoring a quick takedown and three back points to take a 5-0 lead. K. Borshoff added three more back points before scoring the fall midway through the period. No. 3 Steve Fittery gave American an 18-4 lead in the team scores with an 18-4 major decision over Joe Booth at 157 lbs. Fittery held a 5-2 lead after period one and narrowly missed adding back points as time expired before he could get the count. Leading 8-2 after the second, the junior added an escape, takedown and two sets of back points in the third and with riding time advantage took the major decision, 18-4. Alex Rinaldi scored Drexel's second and final victory of the night with a 6-3 decision at 165 lbs. over Tanner Shaffer. Phillip Barreiro then began a stretch of four straight American victories to close out the dual, scoring a 6-1 decision over Rob Brooks at 174 lbs. Cannon gave the Eagles a 28-6 advantage in the team scores with a second period fall over Justin Wieller at 184 lbs., his seventh fall of the year and fourth in as many matches. The two-time All-American scored a takedown off the opening whistle and proceeded to ride Wieller for the remainder of the first period. Cannon opened the second with a takedown off a reshot and then locked Wieller up in a cradle for the fall at the 4:19 mark. Freshman Daniel Mitchell made a successful debut at 197 lbs., earning a first period fall over Jack Callendar in his first match of the year. Mitchell scored a takedown less than one minute into the action and used a hammer lock midway through the period to turn Callendar for the fall. Blake Herrin received a forfeit at heavyweight, moving the final score to 40-6 in favor of the Eagles. Cannon improved to 17-1 on the season with his victory, moving his career record to 109-18. He is now one win shy of tying 2007 NCAA National Champion Josh Glenn, '08, for second place on American's career wins list. K. Borshoff is now 16-2 on the season and 89-33 for his career, placing him two victories shy of tying Bret Ruth, '98, and Mark Snuffin, '89, for fifth all-time. Fittery is now 24-1 on the year and is riding an 18-match win streak. J. Borshoff improved to 16-4 while Williams' overall record now stands at 15-9. Tuesday night's victory improved the Eagles dual meet record to 6-6 on the year and was the team's fourth straight victory. American will be back in action again on Thursday, January 28, as the team travels to Binghamton, N.Y. The Eagles and Bearcats are set to hit the mat at 7:00 p.m. Results: 125: #17 Jasen Borshoff (AU) tech-fall Yi-Ming Law (DU), 26-10 4:20, 5-0 133: Thomas Williams (AU) maj. dec. Joshua Yurasits (DU), 12-2, 9-0 141: Shane Fenningham (DU) dec. Nick Pitas (AU), 5-1, 9-3 149: #12 Kyle Borshoff (AU) fall John McDermott (DU), 1:48, 15-3 157: #3 Steve Fittery (AU) maj. dec. Joe Booth (DU), 18-4, 19-3 165: Alex Rinaldi (DU) dec. Tanner Shaffer (AU), 6-3, 19-6 174: Phillip Barreiro (AU) dec. Rob Brooks, 6-1, 22-6 184: #4 Mike Cannon (AU) fall Justin Wieller (DU), 4:19, 28-6 197: Daniel Mitchell (AU) fall Jack Callendar (DU), 1:56, 34-6 HWT: Blake Herrin (AU) win by forfeit, 40-6

Upsets of ranked wrestlers swing balance of meet to Graham After a dominating team championship at the Top Gun Tournament -- even without the services of a pair of state finalists -- Graham, OH traveled north to the Cleveland area to take on St. Edward, OH in the first part of a three week dual meet bonanza. This match featuring the defending state champions in Division I playing host to the champions of Division II was the nightcap of a basketball-wrestling doubleheader. Though higher ranked in the Amateur Wrestling News Prep 40, Graham entered the dual meet as the overall underdog -- with St. Edward favored in eight of the fourteen contested matches. The evening started at 135 pounds, a weight class in which Graham was favored -- but one that St. Edward hoped to score an upset in. However, takedowns in the second and third period for Graham sophomore Isaac Jordan would be the difference in a 5-2 victory over fellow sophomore Mark Martin. The next match, at 140 pounds, featured another battle of sophomores -- where it was Graham sophomore Felipe Martinez, ranked seventh nationally, scoring a pin in 1:46 against returning state qualifier Matt Van Curen. An unexpected strategic curveball was thrown in by Graham with the next two weight classes. The Falcons weighed in freshman Robert Mannier at 145 and junior state runner-up Matt Stephens at 152, which was a switch from their normal positions in the lineup. In the match at 145, St. Edward sent out senior reserve Eric Madsen, who was able to secure a 5-0 victory reducing the Graham dual meet lead down to 9-3 after three matches. Upset number one came in this next match at 152 pounds, where it was a rematch of the third place bout in the 145 pound weight class at the Walsh Ironman. In that meeting, Anthony Salupo (St. Edward) -- now ranked 15th nationally -- defeated Stephens by a 7-6 score. This time, Salupo bumped up one weight class to meet Stephens and went out to a 3-1 lead in the second period. However, Stephens scored a takedown in the last half of the period and was able to ride Salupo out for the duration of the second period. An escape and subsequent takedown for Stephens made the margin 6-3. Salupo would score a very late reversal and then cut Stephens loose right after that in hopes for a last second takedown that was not to be. The final score was 7-5 for Stephens, and after a team point was deducted from Graham for wrestler misconduct, the team score was 11-3. Things more or less went to plan over the next five matches -- Graham getting wins at 171, 189, and 215; while St.. Edward secured wins from third-ranked Nick Sulzer at 160 in a battle of state champions and Greg Kuhar at 285. However, Graham had wins by injury default and major in that stretch; while St. Edward was only able to muster a major decision out of a pair of matches where they were hoping for three or four bonus points. With the score 24-10, St. Edward had a shot being favored on paper in four of the last five matches, including the battle at 103 pounds of nationally-ranked wrestlers. Freshman Dean Heil -- ranked eighth nationally for St. Edward -- scored the first takedown of the match and had a 2-1 lead with about 30 seconds left in the first period. Graham's sophomore Ryan Taylor -- ranked 18th nationally - would score the first of two takedowns on throw-by's at this point and end the first period with a 3-2 advantage. Heil escaped to start the second, and Taylor scored another late takedown to end the second period. After multiple attempts to score with a cradle in the third period, Taylor was able to break the grip and score a go-ahead reversal to make it 6-4. Heil would subsequently escape, but still trailed 6-5 late in the match. Having to go for desperation throw, Taylor was able to trap Heil and secure the fall at the 5:56 mark of the match. The team score was now 30-10 in favor of the Falcons, and things were functionally over. Freshman sensation Bo Jordan of Graham knocked off No. 1 Jamie Clark of St. Edward at 130 pounds (Photo/Bob Tuneberg/BuckeyeWrestling.com)A second period pin by fifth-ranked Nick Brascetta (Graham) at 119 pounds would officially clinch the dual meet for Graham. However, the buzz was only beginning to creep into the gymnasium for the final match of the night. Making his return to the mats after injury precluded him from competition since the first weekend of December was the top-ranked wrestler in the nation at 130 pounds, St. Edward senior Jamie Clark. The opponent would be 17th-ranked Bo Jordan. Despite giving up the match's first takedown, it was the freshman Jordan able to secure takedowns in the second and third periods to earn a 6-3 victory and cap off a 39-20 statement of a dual meet victory. This serves as a prelude to Saturday night's home dual meet against the nation's top-ranked team Blair Academy, NJ. The next weekend, Graham will wrestle Wadsworth, OH -- a team that has already beaten St. Edward this season; the Grizzles are currently ranked first in Ohio's big-school division. Blair Academy sweeps at NHSCA Final Four, but closer than expected In preparation for this coming weekend's journey to Graham, OH -- Blair Academy, NJ made their annual trek to Easton, PA for the NHSCA Final Four of Wrestling. The format this year was an eight team field split into two pools of four teams. The champions of each pool wrestled for first place, while there was a second match in the final group for the evening. However life was not easy for Blair Academy, as they narrowly escaped defeat in their second round pool match against Collins Hill, GA -- ranked 12th nationally by Amateur Wrestling News. Despite winning eight of the fourteen matches, Blair only won the dual meet by a 33-30 margin. Key to Collins Hill's near upset was a win by second period fall at 103 pounds from Drew Ferguson against 10th ranked Max Hvolbeck. However, going 3-0 in matches decided by two points or less saved the day for Blair; these included a 5-3 victory from the nation's top-ranked 140 pound wrestler Chris Villalonga up at 145 pounds against Joel Smith, Brad Bishop winning 3-2 over Pat Riley at 160 pounds, and freshman sensation Brooks Black with a 2-1 victory over Thomas Delain at 285. Blair Academy also lost in six of 14 matches against Benton, PA during the opening dual meet of the day. However, they won the match by a much more convincing 43-25 score. The most notable individual match was at 119 pounds, where ninth-ranked Mark Grey (Blair Academy) upended 13th ranked Mike Rhone 8-3. In the final dual meet of the round-robin, it was a 42-18 victory for Blair over Long Branch, NJ -- which is ranked 34th by AWN. Bishop Lynch, TX -- ranked 16th by AWN - was the opponent for Blair Academy in the evening final match. The Friars made it to the final with a 49-21 victory over Franklin, MA; a 30-30 win based on criteria (eight wins to six) over Easton, PA; and a 46-23 victory over 37th ranked High Point Regional, NJ. The highlight match of the afternoon was Trey Adamson upending 12th ranked John Guzzo (High Point) 2-1 at 160 pounds. The evening final saw Blair Academy defeat Bishop Lynch by a 46-15 score. In the only head-to-head match of ranked wrestlers, second-ranked Michael Evans (Blair Academy) upended 19th ranked Stephen McPeek 7-2. In addition, Brad Bishop (Blair Academy) beat Adamson 4-3 one match after Adamson's upset victory over the nationally ranked Guzzo. Only three Bishop Lynch wrestlers won matches -- Case Garrison (130), Chris Mears (145), and 13th ranked Tanner Eitel (171). The day's other dual meet involving nationally ranked teams occurred in the opening round where Collins Hill upended Long Branch 27-22. Despite going 1-5 in matches decided in overtime or by one point in regulation - Collins Hill still won the dual meet. The squads split matches 7-7, but Collins Hill had three wins with bonus points (pin, technical fall, major decision) while Long Branch only had one major decision victory. Other scores for the event included Collins Hill over Easton 45-12, Easton 42-20 over Franklin, Collins Hill 54-25 over Benton, High Point 51-9 over Franklin, High Point 48-14 over Easton, and Long Branch 42-19 over Benton. Battle of Hawkeye State elite yields interesting results Six of the top eight teams in Iowa's Class 3A -- according to rankings done by ThePredicament.com -- convened this past weekend at Urbandale High School for the Ed Winger Invitational. With top ranked Waverly Shell-Rock not in the field, it was a chance for those behind in the poll to thrive. Second-ranked Iowa City and third-ranked Bettendorf led the field with seven total wrestlers finishing in the top three, and each was able to muster two champions. Weight class bracket winners for tournament champion Bettendorf were Bo Schlosser (135) and Brody Berrie (285), Dominic Chase (140) came in second, while four others came in third; three wrestlers also finished in fifth place, as the squad scored 200-1/2 team points. Iowa City West got weight class titles from Justin Koethe (152) and second in the nation Nick Moore (160), Kegan Wakefield (103) and Jon Skarda (119) were runners-up, three others finished in third, while two other wrestlers placed (fourth and sixth). Iowa City West came in second place with 190-1/2 points. Despite a tournament high four champions and five finalists, the hosts from Urbandale, IA were able to do no better than fourth place in the standings with 160 points. Winning titles for the host squad were Colby Knight (103), Chris Murphy (119), Gabriel Moreno (140), and fourth in the nation Michael Moreno (171). Evan Knight -- ranked sixth nationally at 189 -- finished second to Matt Riley of Des Moines Roosevelt, IA losing in the final 8-5. This was a reversal of last year's state final in which Knight emerged with a 7-3 victory. The hosts had one other wrestler take fourth, and two others finish sixth. Finishing third in the standings was North Scott, IA despite the fact that they were unable to secure a champion from four finalists -- Connor Ryan (112), Adam Perrin (125), Walt Gillmor (171), and Ben Nagle (215). Other placers for North Scott took third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and sixth -- as the team scored a total of 171 points. Highlighting the tournament were two additional upsets of nationally-ranked wrestlers. In the semifinal at 112 pounds, 18th ranked Jack Hathaway (Iowa City West) fell by a 2-0 score against Connor Ryan. Ryan then lost in the final to defending state champion Cory Clark (Southeast Polk, IA) 9-4. At 152 pounds, 13th ranked Michael Kelly (Cedar Falls, IA) was upended 6-4 by Justin Koethe in the championship match, who had previously beaten Joey Trizzino (Bettendorf) in the semifinal round. Those three wrestlers are the top three at 152 pounds in Iowa's Class 3A. The featured weight class bracket was at 171 pounds, where three nationally-ranked wrestlers populated the bracket. Eighth-ranked Gilmor (North Scott) met 17th ranked Mikey England (Centerville, IA) by a 13-6 score. However, fourth-ranked Michael Moreno would defeat Gilmor 7-5 in the championship final -- a match that could preview the Class 3A state final. Rounding out the tournament champions were Cory Clark (112) and Dylan Blackford (130) from Southeast Polk, IA; 20th ranked John Meeks (125) and Matt Riley (189) from Des Moines Roosevelt; and David Kellogg (145) and Trevor Voelker (215) representing DC Grimes, IA. Champions = not near championship, No champions = championship? Thirty-two teams from six states convened for the Top of the Rockies Tournament hosted by Centaurus High School in Colorado; only one had multiple champions, and only three in all had even three wrestlers competing in the championship match. Despite having no wrestler win a weight class bracket -- Grand Island, NE emerged with the tournament title scoring 178 points. Key to the Islanders' success was three tournament runners-up, and eight total placing in the top six. Finishing second in their weight for Grand Island were Andrew Riedy (119), Alan Taylor (189), and Nate Westerby (215). Conversely, the only team with multiple champions could only muster a fifth place finish in the tournament standings with 151-1/2 points. Winning titles for Ponderosa, CO were ninth ranked Jake Snider (145), Steven Kelly (152), and Austin Gabel (171). However, only two other wrestlers placed in the top six -- one was third, and the other took sixth. Finishing second was another team without a champion -- Roosevelt, CO scoring 163 points. Their only finalist was Jade Lopez, a runner-up at 103 pounds. However, the squad had six other wrestlers place in the top six; one in third, two in fourth, two in fifth, and one in sixth. A close third in the team standings was Rio Rancho, NM with 159 points. Louis Trujillo -- ranked fourth in the nation -- scored their title in the 130 pound weight class; the squad also had three wrestlers take third, with one each finishing in fifth and sixth. Other nationally-ranked wrestlers to win weight class titles were No. 15 Matthew Gurule (112) from Grand Junction Central, CO and No. 10 Connor Medbery (215) from Loveland, CO. The only upset of a nationally-ranked wrestler came in the 140 pound weight class where Travis Himmelman from Conifer, CO defeated Ryne Cokeley from St. James Academy, KS 8-3 in the final; Cokeley was ranked 19th at 145 pounds. Rounding out the weight class champions were Emilio Martinez (103) from Greeley West, CO; Courtland Hacker (119) from Broomfield, CO; Taylor Moeder (125) from St. James Academy, KS; Casey Lynn (135) from Montezuma Cortez, CO; Robert Pickrell (160) from Northridge, CO; Tommy Thoman (189) from Green River, WY; and Gage Boyd (285) from Pomona, CO. The week ahead ... *No. 1 Blair Academy, NJ @ No. 3 Graham, OH -- Saturday evening, 7:00 p.m. EST *Shore Conference Tournament -- Wednesday evening at various sites, Saturday at Southern Regional (3 p.m. EST semifinals/5:30 p.m. EST final). No. 36 Long Branch, NJ and No. 40 Jackson Memorial, NJ are the top two seeds; and also rank second and third per rankings in The Star-Ledger. Three other teams in the top 11 of New Jersey state rankings will compete in this event. A potential quarterfinal dual meet Wednesday night would be Southern Regional, NJ hosting Brick Memorial, NJ. The other state ranked team is Howell, NJ. *New Jersey Coaches Association All-Star Invitational -- Sunday afternoon, 3:00 PM at Brick Memorial. Three bouts feature a pair of nationally-ranked wrestlers. No. 13 Jordan Beverly (Point Pleasant Boro, NJ) meets No. 14 Ryan Dunphy (Passaic Valley, NJ) at 145 pounds, though both are ranked at 140; No. 6 Nick Visicaro (Long Branch, NJ) bumps up one weight class to meet No. 7 Ryan Callahan (Walkill Valley, NJ) at 171 pounds; and No. 3 Andrew Campolattano (Bound Brook, NJ) faces No. 13 Billy George (Long Branch, NJ) at 189 pounds. *Reser's TOC -- Friday and Saturday. This is the top tournament in the state of Oregon, and features the best teams and individuals from across all classifications. All individual wrestler rankings are based on the InterMat national high school wrestling rankings, team rankings per Amateur Wrestling News as of last week (except in the week ahead section, which reflect those from this week).

EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa. -- The Rutgers wrestling team remains undefeated in 2010 as it knocked off East Stroudsburg, 20-15, Monday night at the Koehler Fieldhouse. The Scarlet Knights (14-4-1) have gone 10 straight matches without a loss, the longest streak since the 1992-93 season when the Scarlet Knights went 11 straight matches from late November to late January without a defeat. RU won five matches against East Stroudsburg (7-6) despite resting six starters. The win improves the Scarlet Knights all-time record over the Warriors to 18-11-1. Rutgers head coach Scott Goodale is a perfect 3-0 against East Stroudsburg. “We gave some guys an opportunity to wrestle tonight,” said Goodale. “Some guys took advantage of it and now we have to focus on a big match against Virginia.” Redshirt freshmen Joseph Langel (Howell, N.J.) and Daniel Rinaldi (Lodi, N.J.) earned major decisions. Redshirt senior Lamar Brown (Red Bank, N.J), freshman Cullen Isenberg (Stewartsville, N.J.) and sophomore Trevor Melde (Hewitt, N.J.) also claimed victories. Langel improved his team-best win streak to 12 by picking up a 14-4 major decision against David Luthy. The victory improves Langel’s record to 21-5 and 9-2 in dual play. Rinaldi defeated Devon Passman by a 12-4 major decision to improve to 21-6 and 13-4 in dual action. Melde is now on an eight-match win streak after taking down Adam Hluschak by a 9-5 decision. Melde owns a 20-5 overall record and 14-2 mark in dual competition this season. . Brown picked up his 10th dual win by earning a 6-3 decision over Ed Ebewo. Isenberg won only his second dual match of the season by a medical forfeit. Rutgers returns home for its next match when it looks to “Pack the RAC” this Friday when it hosts No. 23 Virginia at the Louis Brown Athletic Center. The contest is set to begin at 6:30 p.m. Results: 125: Joe Langel (RU) major dec. David Luthy (ES) 14-4 4-0 133: Cullen Isenberg (RU) med. forfeit Andrew Arnold (ES) 10-0 141: Trevor Melde (RU) dec. Adam Hluschak (ES) 9-5 13-0 149: Eddie Stephenson (ES) dec. Kellen Bradley (RU) 3-2 13-3 157: Thad Frick (ES) dec. Braden Turner (RU) 6-3 13-6 165: Jeff Jacobs (ES) dec. Matt Rigoglioso (RU) 6-0 13-9 174: Dan Rinaldi (RU) major dec. Devon Passman (ES) 12-4 17-9 184: Shane Mallory (ES) dec. Jesse Boyden (RU) 5-1 17-12 197: Lamar Brown (RU) dec. Ed Ebewo (ES) 6-3 20-12 HWT: Will Weaver (ES) dec. Sean DeDeyn (RU) 6-3 20-15

One of the most influential wrestling figures from the Cedar Rapids area will be honored on Friday, Feb. 5, 2010, at a breakfast hosted by the Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum. The breakfast will take place at the Cedar Rapids Marriott at 8:30 a.m. Barron Bremner will be recognized for his contributions to Cornell College and Coe College. Bremner coached at Cornell for 16 seasons and Coe for seven, compiling an overall dual meet record of 196-39-3. Bremner is a member of Coe’s and Cornell’s athletic hall of fame and a member of the NCAA Division III Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame. The Barron Bremner Outstanding Athlete Awards are given annually by Coe to the top male and female athlete at the college. Cornell head coach Mike Duroe and Coe head coach John Oostendorp will also be speakers at the breakfast. Dan Gable, namesake of the Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum, will also be in attendance. Gable coached Iowa to 15 NCAA titles during his 21-year tenure as the head wrestling coach from 1977-1997. In 1972 he won the Olympics without surrendering a point. “Wrestlers from these two schools have contributed a great deal, and not just to the sport,” said Jim Brown, Cedar Rapids business owner and coordinator of the event. “They have gone on to teach our children, run our businesses and lead our communities. I'm thrilled with the opportunity to honor these schools and the sport of wrestling.” The breakfast will take place the morning of the Coe vs. Cornell dual. The meet will be held at the Richard and Norma Small Multi-Sport Center on the Cornell Campus in Mount Vernon. Coe and Cornell host the NCAA Division III NCAA tournament. The tournament will be held at the US Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids on March 5-6. Tickets for the breakfast are $15 per person with all proceeds being donated to the wrestling programs at Coe and Cornell. Doors will open at 8:15 and the breakfast will be from 8:30 – 9:00. The program will last until approximately 9:45 and is sponsored by Body Bar Systems. For more information, or to order tickets, call the Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum at (319) 233-0745 or e-mail orders@wrestlingmuseum.org.

FOXBORO, MA -- Jeff Parker is a big, tough guy. That's what made him a perfect fit for the University at Buffalo. Jeff ParkerIn 2004, Parker came to the Amherst campus and immediately, he fit in on campus. He found a balance, symmetry between his friends, his schoolwork and his sport -- wrestling. For Parker, it was the perfect fit. After a year in which he had to pick up the pieces of his wrestling career, he found a home at Buffalo, along with a couple of his best friends to this day, Mike Ragusa and Mike Shannon. Parker, at 25, has already had plenty of unpleasant conversations in his life. There are two, though, that really stick out. The first came on his first day of college in 2003. The second came this summer. During the first, he was told that Binghamton University was dropping its wrestling program. During the second, he was told the marble-like core inside his neck was a sign of melanoma -- skin cancer. Like with many challenges in life, Parker looked back at that first conversation in the months that followed the second one and it provided him hope, courage and once again, the conviction to keep fighting, one day at a time. Jeff Parker (Photo/UB Sports Information)"Losing the team at Binghamton, at the time, it was horrible," Parker said. "But in the end, it almost turned out positive. I could've quit wrestling right then." He didn't. He stayed on a Binghamton team that was rapidly dismembering while his teammates either quit or looked for somewhere else to wrestle. It was a tough year, one in which he lost just about twice as many times as he won, one that made him question how much he really wanted to wrestle. It would have been easy to walk away. Instead, he listened to the advice of his best friend in high school, Mike Ragusa, who told him that he'd love it at the University at Buffalo. Parker would have a chance to earn the starting job at heavyweight, but he'd also be pushed by some pretty good wrestlers in Harold Sherrell and 197-pound All-American Kyle Cerminara. Those wrestlers were older, though, and Parker could fit nicely into Buffalo's plans for the years ahead. From his first day on campus, it was as if he had a newfound delight in the sport of wrestling. When he was around the wrestling room and not sparring, the smile was ever-present. With a second chance, Parker made the most of it, doubling his win total from his freshman year to his sophomore year. Even when a plan was hatched that forced him to redshirt during his junior year, Parker took it in stride. In fact, he never even considered it a negative. It gave him a chance to make sure he could graduate at UB while being on a scholarship for four years. It gave him a chance to get better. And, Parker knew, it gave an opportunity to Sherrell to find a permanent spot in the lineup for his fifth year at the school. When a hip pointer forced him out of practice late during that redshirt year, once again, Parker knew he had a choice to make. He couldn't walk without pain, but he never gave it a second thought. He worked to get healthy. He worked to get back on the mat. Jeff Parker (Photo/UB Sports Information)In his final two years at Buffalo, Parker won 50 matches. He posted 27 wins as a senior, served as a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, earned the "Ideal Bull" award and a spot on the Academic All-MAC wrestling team. By the time he graduated, Parker had left his mark. His toughness led the Bulls back from one of its worst seasons under head coach Jim Beichner in 2006-07 to leading the Bulls to a 9-7-1 record in his senior season. Parker even secured the winning season by posting a major decision in his final dual meet, an 11-3 win over a Binghamton wrestler, the same school that had dropped its program four years earlier before bringing it back a year after Parker and Shannon left for Buffalo, to give the Bulls a 20-16 win. In a way, it was the perfect end to Parker's wrestling career that five years earlier had been cast in such doubt. Soon after graduation, Parker got a job as a construction manager for the Kraft Group in his hometown of Foxboro, Mass., and he also started to coach junior varsity wrestling at Franklin High School. "Everything was going fine," Parker said. "I was acting like a normal 24-year old -- going to the gym, coaching wrestling and then I felt this thing like a marble inside my neck. I went to see the doctor and went through all the tests. Around the fourth of July, I found out it was melanoma." He had surgery to remove the cancer and went through chemotherapy and things looked clear until doctors found that the cancer has spread to other parts of his body, including his liver before his last round of chemo. It would've been easy for Parker to give up, but like with so many things in life, he didn't. The only time he has missed work were to keep doctorâs appointments. He wouldn't just sit on the couch, something he said he got from the children he saw seeing the doctors with him. "Anytime you have cancer, you're going to see other people with it," Parker said. "To see the kids, who you know are sick, just get out of their car, grab their crutches and get going into the doctors with smiles on their faces because they don't know any better, it gives you a bit more perspective." Parker knows his fight isn't over. He has been selected into a special trial and every three weeks he is given an injection. Jeff Parker (Photo/UB Sports Information)"Hopefully, it shrinks the cancer and beats it," he said. "If it wasn't for a couple side effects, I wouldn't even know I had anything." That's good because Parker has other things to worry about. When talking to him on the phone two weeks ago, he was just hoping the wrestling team that he coaches at Franklin High School, where he is the junior varsity coach, would beat King Phillip Regional, where Ragusa is the head coach, so he could have bragging rights over his lifelong friend. The defending state champion Franklin did beat King Phillip, 48-17. Here's hoping it isn't even close to the last win Parker gets, on the mats or in life. For his part, Parker said he is positive he won't feel sorry for himself, won't have regrets in his fight against cancer. And of course, like so many other times in his life, he won't give up. "I'm not a person who feels sorry for myself," he said. "There are a lot of people who have it a lot worse and they don't feel sorry for themselves." Tough guys rarely do. The University at Buffalo athletic department and wrestling program is holding the benefit, Takedown Cancer on Jan. 30 in support of former UB wrestler, Jeff Parker. Parker, a 2008 UB graduate who is currently battling melanoma through an experimental trial, said that he is honored that the benefit is going to increase cancer awareness throughout the Western New York and Massachusetts wrestling communities. Proceeds from the event will benefit Carly's Club in Buffalo, part of the Roswell Park Cancer Center, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, MA, Jeff's hometown as well as Parker's family for fees not covered by insurance.

PITTSBURGH -- Duquesne University today announced a strategic restructuring of its varsity sports program in an effort to maximize financial resources and ensure sustained athletic success. The move will reduce the number of varsity sports from 20 to 16 and keep all related scholarship and operational funding within the athletic department. "Focusing on and strengthening a core group of sports will maximize our ability to compete at the highest level, enhance the student athlete experience, and better utilize existing funding," said Greg Amodio, Duquesne athletic director. More than $1M will be reallocated annually throughout the athletics program as a result of the move, which will discontinue baseball, men's swimming, men's golf and wrestling. "This action is in no way meant to diminish the dedication, effort or ability of these fine student athletes, coaches and alumni. They have contributed greatly to Duquesne athletics and to the vitality and history of the University," Amodio said. As many as 70 student athletes will be affected by the elimination of these sports. Four full-time and one part-time coaching position will be eliminated. All coaches will remain on contract through June 2010. The student athletes currently participating in the affected sports who plan to complete their undergraduate education at Duquesne University will continue to receive their athletic scholarships at their current levels for a period equal to their remaining eligibility. The athletic department will also assist athletes in these sports that choose to transfer to another institution. "The decision follows an extended period of comprehensive research," Amodio said. "Although it is an extremely difficult move, it will place the athletics program in the very best position to be successful in the future," he said, adding that this will better align the programs offered with the department's operational budget and donor base. "The fiscal challenges facing collegiate athletic departments across the country require making difficult decisions to ensure viability," he said. "We are committed to maintaining a financially prudent athletics program while providing our student athletes with a positive environment to achieve their academic and athletic aspirations." Duquesne University athletics currently serves more than 475 students with a $10.8 million operating budget.

Corvallis, Ore. -- Seniors Keegan Davis (Salem, Ore.) and Dan Brascetta (Aurora, Colo.) set the tone early for the No. 22 Oregon State wrestling team, leading the Beavers to a 32-7 victory over Nebraska on Sunday afternoon in legendary Gill Coliseum in front of a crowd of 1,795. “They pulled off what we wanted,” head coach Jim Zalesky said. “Each match we were favored in we won, and pulled off a couple of matches we probably weren’t favored in. That’s what you want to do. Clayton Jack found a way to win. Sometimes you just have to find a way, and he found a way. At 174 pounds, we knew it was going to be a tough match – a big match for Covington. We knew he was working his way up, and I thought he looked good. I know he’s wrestled the kid before and got beaten by that guy before, so it’s good to come here and get a win for him.” Starting the meet off at 157 pounds, Davis earned his fifth major decision, 30th victory of the season and extended his current winning streak to nine matches over Tyler Koehn, easily cruising to the 13-3 victory, scoring often and quickly. With his victory, Davis takes sole possession of 28th all-time for career wins with 86. Brascetta added one to the win column for his last match in legendary Gill Coliseum with a 15-9 decision over James Nakashima, nearly calculating the major decision at 165 pounds to give Oregon State the early 7-0 advantage. But the biggest match of the day might have been 11th-ranked junior Colby Covington’s (Springfield, Ore.) 2-1 thriller over No. 3 Stephen Dwyer at 174 pounds. The two wrestlers went through 3:14 before Dwyer took the 1-0 lead on an escape. Covington tied things up early in the third period, adding one on a Dwyer technical violation, locking hands to take the lead. With the fans on their feet, legendary Gill Coliseum erupted as Covington handed Dwyer only his third loss of the season, while Covington tallied his 30th, improving his streak to seven straight. Nebraska threatened in the next two matches, picking up a decision and a major decision to cut Oregon State’s lead to three, bringing another big match at the heavyweights. Fourteenth-ranked sophomore Clayton Jack (Vacaville, Calif.) fell behind early, 3-0, through the second period before earning one back on an escape in the third. But with about 30 seconds left in the match, Jack turned No. 14 Tucker Lane on his back, and with the help of the crowd, tallied his 12th fall of the season, 21st career, as time expired to put the Beavers back up 16-7. Looking to keep his perfect dual meet record alive, No. 16 redshirt sophomore Jason Lara (Midway City, Calif.) scored early, but David Klingsheim tied things up in the second at four all at 125 pounds. Lara wriggled out for the escape, followed by a pair of Lara takedowns to give him the 9-6 advantage. Klingsheim tallied a takedown but it was too late as time expired, improving Lara to 16-0 in duals with the 9-8 win. Sixteenth-ranked sophomore Kelly Kubec (Lake Stevens, Wash.) improved to 2-0 over C.J. Napier at 133 pounds after defeating him 2-0 at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational in December. After a scoreless first period, Kubec quickly escaped before taking Napier down. Kubec nearly tallied the fall, earning three back points as the second period expired to take the 6-0 lead. A point for riding time gave Kubec the shutout and the Beavers the guaranteed win. Redshirt Mike Mangrum (Auburn, Wash.) improved to 5-0 in major decisions, defeating Mike Koehnlein at 141 pounds with the point of riding time serving to boost the match to a bonus point win. Freshman RJ Pena (Salem, Ore.), ranked 17th, earned the forfeit to wrap up the meet. Oregon State improves to 15-1 with a 7-1 home record. Nebraska falls to 8-7 overall. Oregon State wraps up the 2009-10 season on the road with four duals before the Pac-10 Championships, heading to No. 24 Arizona State first on Sunday, Jan 31. Results: NU OSU 157 Pounds – No. 12 Keegan Davis (OSU) major decision over Tyler Koehn (NU), 13-3 0 4 165 Pounds – Dan Brascetta (OSU) decision over James Nakashima (NU), 15-9 0 7 174 Pounds – No. 11 Colby Covington (OSU) dec over No. 3 Stephen Dwyer (NU), 2-1 0 10 184 Pounds – Josh Ihnen (NU) decision over Ty Vinson (OSU), 8-2 3 10 197 Pounds – No. 2 Craig Brester (NU) major decision over Chad Hanke (OSU), 10-2 7 10 Heavyweight – No. 14 Clayton Jack (OSU) fall over No. 10 Tucker Lane (NU), 6:59 7 16 125 Pounds – No. 16 Jason Lara (OSU) decision over David Klingsheim (NU), 9-8 7 19 133 Pounds – No. 16 Kelly Kubec (OSU) decision over C.J. Napier (NU), 7-0 7 22 141 Pounds – Mike Mangrum (OSU) major decision over Mike Koehnlein (NU), 11-3 7 26 149 Pounds – No. 17 RJ Pena (OSU) wins by forfeit 7 32

STILLWATER, Okla. -- Who is the nation’s best collegiate wrestler? Some say Iowa State’s defending NCAA 197-pound champion and U.S. Freestyle team member Jake Varner. Varner underscored his credentials Sunday, pinning sixth-rated Alan Gelogaev of Oklahoma State on the Cowboy’s mat at 197 pounds to lead No. 2 Iowa State to 20-18 victory over No. 3 OSU in Gallagher-Iba Arena. The Cyclones improve to 9-2 in duals and 2-0 in Big 12 Conference action. The Cowboys fall to 8-2-1. It is Iowa State’s fourth win in its last five matches against Oklahoma State. Varner’s 10th fall of his senior season came at the 4:43 mark of the 197-pound bout. Varner is 20-0 this season while Gelogaev is 21-2. The first period’s score was 0-0 after several fruitless shot attempts by Varner. Gelogaev elected to take the bottom position to begin the second period and the Cyclones’ three-time NCAA finalist ended the top-10 individual matchup with a cradle. ISU head coach Kevin Jackson was pleased with Varner’s effort. “Jake (Varner) is a world-class wrestler,” Jackson said. “For him to come through with the fall is not surprising at all.” The star-studded dual featured top-10 matchups at 125 pounds, 165 pounds, 197 pounds and heavyweight. Iowa State won three of those four matches. No. 5 125-pounder Andrew Long of Iowa State started the dual on a solid note for the Cyclones by scoring a technical fall over ninth-ranked Cowboy Chris Notte, 20-5 (6:59). ISU’s sixth-ranked 165-pounder Jon Reader was victorious over No. 9 Alex Meade of OSU by decision, 7-5. Also adding a decision for ISU was senior 149-pounder Mitch Mueller. The Cyclone controlled OSU’s Quinten Fuentes for the win, 7-2. Another match hero was ISU 157-pounder Andrew Sorenson. The sophomore didn’t stop fighting in his effort to get Cyclone team points. He scored a takedown in the final second of his bout with Oklahoma State’s 13th-ranked Neil Erisman to be victorious by decision, 8-7. “We wrestle to the whistle,” Sorenson said. “The coaches push us every day. That takedown was one of those extra sprints or an extra go in practice.” At dual’s end, ISU’s David Zabriskie couldn’t topple the top-ranked OSU heavyweight Jared Rosholt. The Cowboy was the winner in the bitter rivalry’s latest bout, 8-5. The match was tied 5-5 late in the third period before Rosholt pulled away from the Cyclone senior. Zabriskie leads the series against Rosholt, 5-4. Eleventh-ranked ISU 133-pounder Nick Fanthorpe came up short to Oklahoma State’s sixth-ranked Jordan Oliver, 7-5. No. 8-ranked Cyclone 184-pounder Jerome Ward fell to 13th-ranked Cowboy Clayton Foster by decision, 3-1. The Cyclones continue their road tour with sixth-ranked Cornell for a dual Jan. 31 in Ithaca, N.Y. Mat action starts at noon CST. Results: 125 pounds – No. 5 Andrew Long (ISU) tech. fall No. 9 Chris Notte (OSU), 20-5 (6:59) 133 pounds – No. 6 Jordan Oliver (OSU) dec. No. 11 Nick Fanthorpe (ISU), 7-5 141 pounds – No. 7 Jamal Parks (OSU) pinned Dalton Jensen (ISU), 2:42 149 pounds – No. 10 Mitch Mueller (ISU) dec. Quinten Fuentes (OSU), 7-2 157 pounds – Andrew Sorenson (ISU) dec. No. 12 Neil Erisman (OSU), 8-7 165 pounds – No. 3 Jon Reader (ISU) dec. No. 9 Alex Meade (OSU), 7-5 174 pounds – No. 12 Mike Benefiel (OSU) dec. No. 13 Duke Burk (ISU), 10-4 184 pounds – No. 13 Clayton Foster (OSU) dec. No. 8 Jerome Ward (ISU), 3-1 197 pounds – No. 1 Jake Varner (ISU) pinned No. 6 Alan Gelogaev (OSU), 4:43 HWT – No. 1 Jared Rosholt (OSU) dec. No. 4 David Zabriskie (ISU), 8-5

LOWELL, IN -- The top-ranked University of Iowa wrestling team wrapped up its first Big Ten road trip of the 2009-10 season with a 41-6 victory over #25 Purdue Sunday afternoon at Lowell High School Gymnasium in Lowell, IN. The Hawkeyes (16-0, 2-0 Big Ten) scored team bonus points in seven of their eight wins over the Boilermakers, while collecting their 54th straight dual victory and and their 37th straight win on the road. Purdue (10-5, 0-1 Big Ten) won two bouts in sudden victory and recorded five takedowns in the dual. Iowa jumped out to a 22-0 lead on pins from redshirt freshman Matt McDonough (125) and sophomore Montell Marion (141), a major decision from senior Daniel Dennis (133) and Hawkeye senior Brent Metcalf's win by disqualification at 149. McDonough led Purdue freshman Cashé Quiroga 3-2 in the dual's opening bout before recording the pin in 2:13 to remain undefeated at 22-0 on the season. Dennis picked up his 10th season victory with a 16-5 major decision over Boilermaker junior Akif Eren. Leading 2-0 after the first period, Dennis grabbed six takedowns in the final two periods for the win. Marion pinned Purdue junior Juan Archuleta in 3:53 for his fourth pin of the season and third straight win. Archuleta scored a takedown early in the first period, but Marion quickly escaped and scored a takedown of his own near the end of the period to take a 3-2 lead. Archuleta escaped to start the second period, but Marion recorded the pin to end the match. Metcalf, who improved to 22-0 on the season, won by disqualification when Purdue senior Nick Bertucci was cited for flagrant misconduct at the 4:10 mark. Six team points were awarded to Iowa when Bertucci repeatedly kneed Metcalf in the face while the Hawkeye senior had Bertucci on his back trying to record a fall. Purdue won the first of its two bouts when junior Colton Salazar scored a takedown in sudden victory to beat Iowa junior Jake Kerr, 6-4, at 157. The Hawkeyes responded with three straight wins by seniors Ryan Morningstar (165), Jay Borschel (174) and Phillip Keddy (184) to take a 35-3 lead. Morningstar led 3-0 after the first two periods, and added three takedowns and a point for riding time to beat Boilermaker senior Jason Martin, 10-4. Borschel received a forfeit as his probable opponent - #5 Luke Manuel - was still recovering from injury. The Hawkeye senior remains undefeated at 21-0 this season. Keddy picked up his third straight win with an 11-1 major decision over senior Nick Corpe, improving to 16-5. The Boilermakers responded with one last victory as #11 Logan Brown scored a takedown in sudden victory to beat Hawkeye junior Luke Lofthouse, 3-1, at 197. Lofthouse is wrestling for injured starter Chad Beatty. Iowa ended the dual with senior Dan Erekson making his return to the Hawkeye lineup short and sweet, sticking Purdue freshman Adam Walls in 1:08. A 2009 Big Ten champion and all-American, Erekson made his 2009-10 season debut after sitting out with an injury. Up next for the Hawkeyes is their Big Ten home dual opener. Iowa will host #13 Penn State (9-3-1, 1-0 Big Ten) Friday, January 29 at 7 p.m. and Michigan State (6-21-1, 0-1 Big Ten) Sunday, January 31 at 6 p.m. Both duals will be held at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City. The Iowa-Penn State dual, which will be aired live on Iowa Public Television, has been designated a "Black Out" event. Fans are encouraged to wear black attire to the meet. Tickets purchased in advance for the dual from the UI Athletic Ticket Office (1-800-464-2957, 319-335-9327 or www.hawkeyesports.com) are $13 for adults, $7 for youth and $2 for children ages five and under. Tickets purchased at the dual are $15 for adults, $8 for youth and $2 for children ages five and under. UI students will be admitted for free. The Iowa-Michigan State dual will be streamed live on www.bigtennetwork.com at at 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 for free. A family four-pack ticket promotion is also available for the dual, where families can purchase four tickets to the dual, and four hot dogs and four sodas from the Carver-Hawkeye Arena concession stands for $40. Results: 125 - Matt McDonough (Iowa) pinned Cashé Quiroga (Purdue), 2:13 133 - Daniel Dennis (Iowa) maj. dec. Akif Eren (Purdue), 16-5 141 - Montell Marion (Iowa) pinned Juan Archuleta (Purdue), 3:53 149 - Brent Metcalf (Iowa) won by disqualification by flagrant misconduct over Nick Bertucci (Purdue), 4:10 157 - Colton Salazar (Purdue) dec. Jake Kerr (Iowa), 6-4 SV 165 - Ryan Morningstar (Iowa) dec. Jason Martin (Purdue), 10-4 174 - Jay Borschel (Iowa) won by forfeit 184 - Phillip Keddy (Iowa) maj. dec. Nick Corpe (Purdue), 11-1 197 - Logan Brown (Purdue) dec. Luke Lofthouse (Iowa), 3-1 SV Hwt. - Dan Erekson (Iowa) pinned Adam Walls (Purdue), 1:08

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- No. 19 Illinois won seven of 10 bouts, including a technical fall by No. 2 John Dergo at 184 pounds to begin the dual, as the Illini topped Michigan State 23-12 at Jenison Field House. The Spartans got within two points twice, but a reversal with two seconds left in the bout at 141 by No. 11 Ryan Prater gave the Illini some breathing room and Conrad Polz came up with a clutch 8-4 win at 157 before Joe Barczak’s 3-2 win at 165 sealed the victory. Illinois improves to 6-4 overall, 1-1 in the Big Ten. “The thing that really helped us is that Marty Smith did a great job of fighting and giving himself a chance to win at heavyweight, and John Deneen had a huge win at 125,” Illinois head coach Jim Heffernan said. “Conrad and Barczak both had great wins and it was the first Big Ten win for both of them, and that’s a big deal. I think 157 and 165 were probably toss-ups going in and our guys did a great job of finding ways to win. It was good to get one in the win column in the Big Ten.” Dergo got a takedown in the first minute against Curran Jacobs and Jacobs escaped 25 seconds later, but Dergo quickly got another takedown and added two near-fall points with 1:04 left before riding out Jacobs. Dergo started down in the second and escaped quickly before tacking on three more takedowns to finish the period up 13-3. Jacobs started down in the third and escaped, but Dergo took him down 30 seconds later and added three more back points before tacking on the riding-time point for the 19-4 technical fall and a 5-0 Illini lead. No. 10 Patrick Bond got a takedown with 59 seconds left against Tyler Dickenson at 197 and Dickenson quickly escaped. But Bond tacked on another takedown with 32 seconds left in the first and took a 4-2 lead into the second period after Dickenson managed a late escape. Dickenson started down in the second and escaped after Bond rode him for over a minute, then the Illini senior notched another takedown with 23 seconds. But Dickenson narrowed the gap to 6-4 as he escaped just before time ran out in the period. Bond started down in the third and got out quickly before adding another takedown with 52 seconds left in the match, all but icing the victory. Dickenson escaped but couldn’t manage any late offense as Bond tacked on the riding-time point for the 10-5 win. Smith battled Alan O’Donnell to a scoreless first period before O’Donnell started down in the second and escaped quickly, the only scoring in the stanza. Smith started down in the third and also got out quickly, but O’Donnell recorded a takedown with 1:33 left in the match to go up 3-1. Smith escaped quickly but couldn’t land any shots late as the Spartan took the 3-2 win. Deneen fell behind early at 125 against Eric Olanowski, giving up a takedown at 2:34 and getting ridden by the Spartan for over a minute before escaping. Deneen started down in the second and Olanowski was cautioned for the third time, giving up a point and tying the bout 2-2. Deneen worked into a reversal with 1:24 left and got a three-point near-fall with 20 seconds left. Olanowski scored a reversal before time ran out, though, to cut Deneen’s lead to 7-4 after a six-point period by the Illini junior. Olanowski started down in the third and Deneen rode him for much of the period before tacking on three more back points and the riding-time point for an 11-4 win, pushing Illinois’ lead to 11-3. At 133, Michigan State’s top-ranked Franklin Gomez scored a takedown against Daryl Thomas with 1:52 left in the first period and rode Thomas before finally turning the Illini redshirt-freshman and getting the pin with six seconds left in the first period, cutting the Illini’s margin to 11-9. But Prater responded with a key 6-4 win at 141. Prater got a takedown with 1:39 left in the first against Dan Osterman and rode out the Spartan for a 2-0 lead after three minutes. The Illini junior started down in the second and escaped after 15 seconds for the period’s only scoring and a 3-0 lead. The pair started neutral in the third and Osterman got a takedown with 1:34 left but Prater escaped with just under a minute remaining to make his lead 4-2. Osterman kept fighting, thought, tying the match 4-4 with a takedown at the 34-second mark. But Prater got into one of his signature scrambles and rolled through for the reversal with two seconds left in the match for the 6-4 win and a 14-9 lead in the team score. At 149, No. 20 Eric Terrazas took on No. 13 David Cheza. After a scoreless first period, Cheza started down in the second and finally kicked away form Terrazas after 29 seconds. Neither wrestler could land any shots in the period and Terrazas started down in the third. But despite a few close calls, the Illini sophomore wasn’t able to break free as Cheza rode him out for the 2-0 win, cutting Illinois’ lead to 14-12. Polz faced Anthony Jones Jr. at 157 and the two combined for a few flurries of action in the first period but neither wrestler landed a shot and they went scoreless to the second period. Polz started down in the second and got out in eight seconds, but Jones Jr. fought back with quick shot at the edge of the mat and landed a double-leg to go up 2-1. Polz escaped after a restart to tie the match then got in on a single and fought through Jones Jr.’s attempt to fend it off, going up 4-2 with 20 seconds left in the period. He rode out the Spartan and Jones Jr. started down in the third, getting out in nine seconds to cut Polz’ lead to 4-3. Polz shot into a single-leg into a high crotch before tossing Jones Jr. over his shoulder for the takedown. Jones Jr. escaped but Polz fought off a shot on the edge of the mat and circled around him for the final takedown before riding him out. Polz came up with the clutch 8-4 win and moved Illinois’ lead to 17-12. At 165, Barczak locked up with Kyle Bounds and the two traded shots before finishing the period scoreless. Barczak started down in the second and escaped in 21 seconds for a 1-0 lead. Bounds took a shot on the edge but Barczak spun out of bounds to fend it off. Barczak got a similar high crotch on the edge but Bounds sprawled out of bounds to keep away the Illini junior. Bounds started down in the third and escaped quickly but Barczak got a quick single-leg and finished it for the takedown and a 3-1 lead with 1:30 left. Bounds escaped with 1:10 left to cut Barczak’s lead to 3-2 and started shooting, but Barczak locked up a front headlock each time and held off the Spartan for the 3-2 win, pushing Illinois’ advantage to 20-12 and sealing up the victory. In the day’s final match at 174, No. 14 Jordan Blanton squared off with Ian Hinton and Hinton shot right off the whistle, but Blanton sat the corner and finished the takedown for a 2-0 lead. Blanton cut him loose with 1:44 left in the period and Hinton got the single-leg at the edge, but Blanton fended him off and got a neutral restart. Blanton got a good shot toward the MSU bench and circled around for the takedown in the final seconds, taking the 4-1 lead after three minutes. Blanton started down in the second and got out quickly before Hinton took another sloppy shot and Blanton stopped him and spun around for the takedown to go up 7-1. After being unable to turn Hinton right away, Blanton cut him loose. Blanton had a front headlock on the edge and went for a pass-by but Hinton slipped behind him for the takedown, cutting Blanton’s lead to 7-4 as the second period ended. Hinton started down in the third and Hinton escaped as Blanton tried to turn him. Blanton took a shot and appeared to sit the corner and was awarded the takedown, but the referees conferred and waved off the takedown. Hinton got in deep on a single to a high crotch but Blanton flattened out and circled around, looking for the decisive takedown and getting it with 14 seconds left. Hinton got a late reversal but Blanton added the riding time for a 10-7 win and a 23-12 team victory. The Illini continue Big Ten action next weekend when they travel to No. 11 Indiana Friday at 6 p.m. CT and head to Northwestern Sunday at 2 p.m. Sunday’s dual will be televised by the Big Ten Network on a same-day delay, with it airing Sunday at 6 p.m. CT. Results: 184: No. 2 John Dergo (ILL) tech. fall Curran Jacobs (MSU), 19-4 (5-0) 197: No. 10 Patrick Bond (ILL) dec. Tyler Dickenson (MSU), 10-5 (8-0) HWT: Alan O’Donnell (MSU) dec. Marty Smith (ILL), 3-2 (8-3) 125: John Deneen (ILL) dec. Eric Olanowski (MSU), 11-4 (11-3) 133: No. 1 Franklin Gomez (MSU) pinned Daryl Thomas (ILL), 2:54 (11-9) 141: No. 11 Ryan Prater (ILL) dec. Dan Osterman (MSU), 6-4 (14-9) 149: No. 13 David Cheza (MSU) dec. No. 20 Eric Terrazas (ILL), 2-0 (14-12) 157: Conrad Polz (ILL) dec. Anthony Jones Jr. (MSU), 8-4 (17-12) 165: Joe Barczak (ILL) dec. Kyle Bounds (MSU), 3-2 (20-12) 174: No. 14 Jordan Blanton (ILL) dec. Ian Hinton (MSU), 10-7 (23-12)

NORFOLK, Va. -- A James Nicholson pin in the opening bout and a Chris Brown major decision at the midway point proved to be critical as the No. 25 Old Dominion wrestling team bested Bucknell, 19-16, in a non-conference matchup at the Ted Constant Convocation Center Sunday afternoon. Old Dominion improves to 8-3-1 overall, while Bucknell falls to 8-4 on the year. Nicholson, ranked No. 3 by WIN and No. 7 by Intermat at 125-pounds, gave the Monarchs a comfortable 6-0 cushion with a pin at the 2:11 mark over Bucknell’s Derrik Russell. After a Bucknell win at 133-pounds, redshirt freshman Craig Wilson picked up a critical 3-2 decision over the Bison’s John Regan at 141-pounds. Trailing 1-0 midway through the second period, Wilson scored a takedown, but Regan escaped to tie the score at two going into the third. Wilson wasted little time escaping from down position, gaining neutral position just eight second into the final period. The Farmington Missouri native would hold onto his one-point edge to put the Monarchs up 9-3 in the team scoring. The Bison would take their first lead of the match, 10-9, after No. 7 Kevin LeValley topped ODU’s Cam Watkins by major decision (9-0) and Brantley Hooks upended Monarch freshman Joey Sheridan (8-4). Brown, ranked No. 14 at 165-pounds, had control throughout in his match against Bucknell’s Corey Lear. The only question was could the senior garner a major decision. Leading 8-3 and with well over a minute in riding time, Brown scored a takedown with 20 second remaining in the third period to score the major decision and give the Monarchs the lead back (13-10). Bucknell would tie the match at 13 with a decision at 174-pounds, but ODU sophomore Joe Budi and senior Jesse Strawn both picked up decisions to give the Monarchs a 19-13 edge going into the final bout. At heavyweight, Bucknell’s Joe McMullan tried frantically to pin ODU’s Grant Chapman, but the Monarch freshman fought hard to deny McMullan. Trailing 3-0 in the third period, Chapman choose down and scored a reversal to cut McMullans lead to 3-2. McMullan escaped and netted a late takedown, but Chapman only relinquished three team points by losing a decision which gave the Monarchs the 19-16 win. Old Dominion will next be in action on Sunday, Jan. 31 as the Monarchs welcome Central Michigan to the Ted Constant Convocation Center for a 5:30 match. Results: 125: #7 James Nicholson (ODU) fall Derrik Russell (Bucknell), 2:11 133:#17 Dave Marble (Bucknell) win by decision Justin LaValle (ODU), 6-2 141: Craig Wilson (ODU) win by decision John Regan (Bucknell), 3-2 149: #7 Kevin LeValley (Bucknell) win by major decision Cam Watkins (ODU), 9-0 157: Brantley Hooks (Bucknell) win by decision Joey Sheridan (ODU), 8-4 165: #14 Chris Brown (ODU) win by major decision Corey Lear (Bucknell), 11-3 174: #17 Shane Riccio (Bucknell) win by decision Eric Decker (ODU), 2-1 184: Joe Budi (ODU) win by decision Rob Waltko (Bucknell), 10-6 197: #15 Jesse Strawn (ODU) win by decision Jay Hahn (Bucknell), 7-2 HWT: Joe McMullan (Bucknell) win by decision Grant Chapman (ODU), 6-2

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- After trailing 3-0 to start the match, the No. 4 Ohio State wrestling team won five of the next six bouts en route to defeating No. 13 Penn State, 21-14, Sunday in St. John Arena to open Big Ten Conference action. The Buckeyes improve to 12-1 overall and move to 1-0 in the league. The Nittany Lions drop to 8-4-1 and 0-1 in the conference under first-year head coach Cael Sanderson. After junior Nikko Triggas lost a close 9-7 decision to No. 12 Brad Pataky at 125 pounds, freshman 133-pounder Ian Paddock began the winning stretch for Ohio State with his 13-2 major decision over Bryan Pearsall. The Buckeye from Warsaw, N.Y., nearly shut out Pearsall, but the Nittany Lion was able to record a last minute reversal. Paddock now stands alone in second place on the team with six major decisions. After going 2-2 at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals two weekends ago, No. 3 Reece Humphrey rebounded with an impressive 22-7 technical fall over Adam Lynch at 141 pounds. It was Humphrey's team-leading fourth technical fall of the season. In the match, Humphrey, a native of Indianapolis, Ind., recorded nine takedowns, a 2-point nearfall and escape. He complemented that line with a 3:16 riding time advantage. Lance Palmer won the matchup at 149 pounds. In a bout that featured No. 3 vs. No. 5, the Buckeye from Columbia Station, Ohio, used a takedown and a reversal, as well as 1:28 riding time, to secure the 5-3 victory. Up just 12-3, the Buckeyes' Tony Jameson suffered a 10-2 setback to No. 5 Cyler Sanderson at 157 pounds. However, back-to-back wins at 165 and 174 pounds, respectively, would give Ohio State an 18-7 cushion. It was a battle of No. 7 vs. No. 8 at 165 pounds between Buckeye Colt Sponseller and Nittany Lion Dan Vallimont. Sponseller, who hails from Glenmont, Ohio, edged Vallimont, 4-2. Sponseller was down early, 2-0, but consecutive escapes made the score even. Back-to-back stalling calls on Vallimont gave Sponseller a 3-2 lead and coupled with a riding time of 1:34, the 4-2 win. A 12-5 decision by No. 12 Dave Rella over Justin Ortega followed. After a scoreless first period, Rella recorded a pair of takedowns and an escape in the second period to Ortega's lone escape for the 5-1 lead heading into the final frame. Three more Rella takedowns and a 1:35 riding time sealed the Buckeye victory. Penn State was able to cut Ohio State's lead to seven after TC Pendleton, who received the starting nod at 184 pounds, lost a 15-2 major decision to No. 12 David Erwin However, at 197 pounds, C.J. Magrum recorded a 10-6 decision against David Crowell to put the Buckeyes ahead 21-11. The Buckeye from Oak Harbor, Ohio, had a 6-2 lead going into the second period, but Crowell made a comeback in the middle period as Magrum only owned a 6-5 lead. But a takedown, escape and a 3:53 riding time propelled him to his 13th win of the season. In the final match of the afternoon, No. 20 Corey Morrison lost, 10-4, to No. 11 Cameron Wade. Up next, Ohio State will travel to Purdue and Indiana Jan. 29 and Jan. 31, respectively. The Buckeyes and Boil¬ermakers will wrestle at 7 p.m. in Holloway Gymna¬sium. The Scarlet and Gray and Hoosiers will face each other at 2 p.m. in University Gymnasium. Postmatch Notes The match will air on the Big Ten Network at 10 p.m. ET on tape delay. It is the first of four broadcasts that will feature the Buckeyes on the BTN - Ohio State at Purdue Jan. 29 at 11 p.m. ET (tape delay), Ohio State vs. Michigan Feb. 5 at 11 p.m. (tape delay) and Ohio State at Iowa Feb. 19 at 10 30 p.m. ET (tape delay). Ohio State sophomore quarterback Terrelle Pryor served as the honorary captain during the match Sunday. The Buckeyes' next home match at 7 p.m. Feb. 5 vs. Michigan is Military Appreciation Night. Ohio State will take time to recognize those who are currently or were involved in the Armed Services. Also, the evening will feature a tribute to former Buckeye wrestler Ray Mendoza, who died of wounds sustained during Operation Steel Curtain Nov. 14, 2005 in New Ubaydi, Iraq. Mendoza is believed to be the first and only former or current Ohio State student-athlete to die in the war in Iraq. Past Buckeye wrestlers will be recognized as the evening also is alumni night. Results: 125: No. 12 Brad Pataky (PSU) dec. No. 19 Nikko Triggas (OSU), 9-7; 0-3 133: Ian Paddock (OSU) maj. dec. Bryan Pearsall (PSU), 13-2; 4-3 141: No. 3 Reece Humphrey (OSU) tech. fall. Adam Lynch (PSU), 22-7; 9-3 149: No. 3 Lance Palmer (OSU) dec. No. 5 Frank Molinaro (PSU), 5-3; 12-3 157: No. 5 Cyler Sanderson (PSU) maj. dec. Tony Jameson (OSU), 10-2; 12-7 165: No. 7 Colt Sponseller (OSU) dec. No. 8 Dan Vallimont (PSU), 4-2; 15-7 174: No. 12 Dave Rella (OSU) dec. Justin Ortega (PSU), 12-5; 18-7 184: No. 12 David Erwin (PSU) maj. dec. T.C. Pendleton (OSU), 15-2; 18-11 197: C.J. Magrum (OSU) dec. David Crowell (OSU), 10-6; 21-11 285: No. 11 Cameron Wade (PSU) dec. No. 20 Corey Morrison (OSU), 10-4; 21-14

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. -- The No. 9 (NWCA/USA Today) Boise State (10-2 overall, 3-0 Pac-10) wrestling team needed all 10 matches to earn a thrilling victory over Cal State Bakersfield (1-5, 1-4), Saturday (Jan. 23) afternoon, as the Broncos took down the Road Runners 21-17 in Bakersfield, Calif. with a major decision win in the final match of the dual. Boise State opened up the dual with four consecutive wins, giving the Broncos a 14-0 lead. Adam Hall scored first for the Broncos with an 11-3 major decision over Andrew Balch at 157 pounds. Michael Cuthbertson followed that up with an 8-3 decision against Joey Granata in the 165 pound match. Nate Lee extended the Boise State lead to 10-0 at 174 pounds, wrestling to a 10-7 decision over Trevor Hall. Kirk Smith pushed the Bronco lead out even further, beating Mike Larson in a 16-6 major decision at 184 pounds. Boise State's lead would start to dwindle through the next five matches, however, as Bakersfield scored a win by decision at 197 pounds and a technical fall at heavyweight. Alan Bartelli scored crucial points for Boise State in the 125 pound match, beating Frank Lomas 4-1. Boise State would be forced to forfeit the 133 pound match, though, giving six needed points to the Road Runners. Then, in the ensuing 141-pound match, Elijah Nacita evened the score at 17-17 for Bakersfield with a 1-0 decision over Boise State's Eli Hutchison. With just one match remaining, it was up to Boise State's 149-pounder, Jason Chamberlain, to bring home the victory. Chamberlain was up to the task. He rolled past John Cardenas with an 18-7 major decision to give the Broncos their final lead at 21-17. With the win, Boise State improved to 2-0 on their three dual road trip in California this weekend. The Broncos next face No. 16 Cal Poly on Sunday (Jan. 24) in San Luis Obispo, Calif. That dual is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. (PST). Results: 157 - Adam Hall (BSU) maj. dec. Andrew Balch (CSUB), 11-3 165 - Matt Cuthbertson (BSU) dec. Joey Granata (CSUB), 8-3 174 - Nate Lee (BSU) dec. Trevor Hall (CSUB), 10-7 184 - Kirk Smith (BSU) maj. dec. Mike Larson (CSUB), 16-6 197 - Riley Orozco (CSUB) dec. Matt Casperson (BSU), 8-2 HWT - Mitch Monteiro (CSUB) tech fall Sam Zlystra (BSU), 16-1 125 - Alan Bartelli (BSU) dec. Frank Lomas (CSUB), 4-1 133 - Justin Durham (CSUB) wins by forfeit 141 - Elijah Nacita (CSUB) dec. Eli Hutchinson (BSU), 1-0 149 - Jason Chamberlain (BSU) maj. dec. John Cardenas (CSUB), 18-7

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Following a disappointing loss to Navy less than 24 hours ago, the seventh-ranked University of Maryland wrestling team wasted little time in showing its mettle against conference foes North Carolina State and Duke. In front of 814 fans at Comcast Pavilion, the Terrapins downed the Wolfpack 30-10 and handed Duke a 32-9 defeat to improve to 3-0 in Atlantic Coast Conference action. The Terps (15-4), whose last home loss was on Jan. 11, 2009, won seven out of 10 matches against both NC State (5-8) and Duke (2-4) to extend their winning streak at Comcast Pavilion to eight matches. Maryland was led by six wrestlers - Mookie Golden, Kyle John, No. 15 Josh Asper, Corey Peltier, No. 3 Hudson Taylor and Patrick Gilmore - who all went 2-0 on the day. "It's good to see the guys improve and make adjustments from match to match," said head coach Kerry McCoy. "There are still areas where we need to improve, but I thought we fought harder and looked better today than we did last night." Early on, the Terps looked like they would cruise to a win against NC State, as James Knox (125 pounds) and Golden (133) took major decisions in the first two matches of the day. Knox used a late flurry in the final period to turn what had been a close match into an 11-2 major decision. Golden used the momentum to dominate at 133 pounds, scoring a takedown and a near-fall early in the match. Golden didn't allow his opponent, Scott Norris, to score a point and took a 9-0 major decision to give Maryland an early 8-0 lead. But the Wolfpack won the next two matches to get within two points of the Terps. At 141 pounds, Matt Bogusz battled back from a 7-2 deficit against Dale Shull of NC State, tying the match at 9-9 late in the third period, but ultimately lost 12-9. No. 22 Bobby Ward of NC State took an 8-2 decision over Dex Lederer, who was wrestling in his first career dual meet for the Terps, as the Wolfpack brought the score to 8-6. Maryland got some breathing room after John earned a 14-7 decision over Juan Stimpson at 157 pounds. John, who improved to 24-8 on the season, got out to an early 7-1 lead and cruised from there. At 165 pounds, Asper provided another dominant performance for the Terps by controlling his match with Ray Ward throughout. Asper had near-falls twice in the final stanza, and went on to shutout Ward 11-0 as Maryland increased its lead to 15-6. Owen Smith lost 11-2 to Quinton Godley at 174 pounds, but Peltier pinned Cedric Moore in 2:22 at 184 pounds as Maryland put the match out of reach. Taylor won by forfeit and Gilmore got a hard-fought 3-0 win over Eloheim Palma to bring the final tally to 30-10. Against Duke, the Terps found themselves in a similar position - leading 8-6 after four matches. At 125 pounds, Peter Terrezza got the Blue Devils out to an early lead with a 10-4 decision over Pat Strizki. Golden gave Maryland its first lead with a 15-0 technical fall to bring the team score to 5-3 in favor of Maryland. Golden, a senior who has wrestled in place of No. 11 Steven Bell in spurts throughout the season, proved to be a more than capable replacement on Saturday. He earned nine points total for Maryland on the day and didn't allow an opponent to score on him. Matt Bogusz nearly pinned Mike Bell in the first period of the matchup at 141 pounds and went on to an 11-5 decision. Chris Piccolella of Duke took an 8-6 decision over Dex Lederer at 149 pounds, but the Blue Devils had to forfeit matches at 157 and 165 pounds, giving Maryland a commanding 20-6 lead. Peltier, Taylor and Gilmore all capped off their perfect days by winning the final three matches. Peltier took a 7-3 decision over Diego Bencomo at 184, Taylor pinned John Barone in 1:12 at 197 and Gilmore earned an 8-2 decision over Robert Holbrook at heavyweight. "I just told the guys, there are probably only two or three teams in the country that have gone through as tough of a stretch over the last month that we have," said McCoy. "To come out of that stretch nearly unscathed tells me we're ahead of schedule." Maryland next returns to action on Friday, Jan. 29 when it travels to Fairfax, Va., to take on George Mason at 7:00 p.m. No. 7 Maryland 30, North Carolina State 10 125 - James Knox (MD) major dec. Mike Moreno, 11-2 (4-0) 133 - Mookie Golden (MD) major dec. Scott Norris, 9-0 (8-0) 141 - Dale Shull (NCST) dec. Matt Bogusz, 12-9 (8-3) 149 - No. 22 Bobby Ward (NCST) dec. Dex Lederer, 8-2 (8-6) 157 - Kyle John (MD) dec. Juan Stimpson, 14-7 (11-6) 165 - Josh Asper (MD) major dec. Ray Ward, 11-0 (15-6) 174 - Quinton Godley (NCST) major dec. Owen Smith, 11-2 (15-10) 184 - Corey Peltier (MD) pinfall over Cedric Moore, 2:22 (21-10) 197 - No. 3 Hudson Taylor (MD) wins by forfeit (27-10) HWT - Patrick Gilmore (MD) dec. Eloheim Palma, 3-0 (30-10) No. 7 Maryland 32, Duke 9 125 - Peter Terrezza (DUKE) dec. Pat Strizki, 10-4 (0-3) 133 - Mookie Golden (MD) tech. fall over Nick Adamo, 15-0 (5-3) 141 - Matt Bogusz (MD) dec. Mike Bell, 11-5 (8-3) 149 - Chris Piccolella (DUKE) dec. Dex Lederer, 6-2 (8-6) 157 - Kyle John (MD) wins by forfeit (14-6) 165 - No. 15 Josh Asper (MD) wins by forfeit (20-6) 174 - Voris Tejada (DUKE) dec. Owen Smith, 8-3 (20-9) 184 - Corey Peltier (MD) dec. Diego Bencomo, 7-3 (23-9) 197 - No. 3 Hudson Taylor (MD) pinfall over John Barone, 1:12 (29-9) HWT - Patrick Gilmore (MD) dec. Robert Holbrook, 8-2 (32-9)

LOCK HAVEN, Pa. -- Thanks to pins from Jarrod King, Phil Moricone and Shawn Fendone the Edinboro wrestling team picked up a 32-9 win at Lock Haven on Saturday night. The victory extended Edinboro’s Eastern Wrestling League streak without a loss to 28, as the 21st-ranked Fighting Scots are now 26-0-2 during that period. They are now 6-4 on the season and 2-0 in EWL action, while Lock Haven fell to 1-5 and 0-2, respectively. The Fighting Scots won seven of the ten matches, picking up bonus points in five bouts. King got the string started, as he recorded his seventh fall of the season, this one over Kevin Dufresne at 165 lbs. in 4:35. The win boosts King’s record to 29-1. He is ranked third according to Amateur Wrestling News and fourth by InterMat. Phil Moricone followed with a fall at 5:42 over Derek Caldwell at 174 lbs. That boosted Moricone’s record to 13-3 and gave the Fighting Scots a 22-6 lead. Lock Haven’s Jeremie Cook won an 8-2 decision over Ken Massey at 184 lbs., with Massey filling in for starter Pat Bradshaw. Cook’s win pulled the Bald Eagles to within 22-9, but Shaw Fendone matched King for the team lead in falls as he picked up his seventh pin at the 1:55 mark over Harry Turner. The junior is now 11-7. Chris Birchler, ranked 17th by Amateur Wrestling News and 18th by InterMat, finished off the win with a 12-4 major decision over Chris Drummond. That gives the senior a 26-8 record. Edinboro opened the night with a win by Eric Morrill at 125 lbs. The junior, who is ranked seventh by Amateur Wrestling News and eighth by InterMat, improved to 26-4 with an 11-4 decision over Nick Hyatt. Lock Haven evened the match at 3-3 when John Trumbetti brought his record to 23-5 with a 4-2 decision over Ashton Osterberg at 133 lbs. Osterberg is now 14-18. Joel Webster followed with a narrow 1-0 decision against Justin Loudon at 141 lbs., giving the senior a 13-10 record. Kory Bissett, filling in for injured starter Torsten Gillespie, dropped a 6-1 decision to Brock Parker, the PSAC champion, at 149 lbs., knotting the match at 6-6. Freshman John Greisheimer came up with a much-needed win at 157 lbs., registering a 10-2 major decision over Seth Creasy. Greisheimer gave Edinboro the lead for good at 10-6 while improving to 20-16. Edinboro returns to action on Friday, February 5 when Bloomsburg visits McComb Fieldhouse for a key EWL matchup. Results: 125 #8 Eric Morrill (EU) dec. Nick Hyatt (LHU), 11-4 3-0 133 John Trumbetti (LHU) dec. Ashton Osterberg (EU), 4-2 3-3 141 Joel Webster (EU) dec. Justin Louden (LHU), 1-0 6-3 149 Brock Parker (LHU) dec. Kory Bissett (EU), 6-1 6-6 157 Josh Greisheimer (EU) maj. dec. Seth Creasy (LHU), 10-2 10-6 165 #4 Jarrod King (EU) pin Kevin Dufresne (LHU), 4:35 16-6 174 Phil Moricone (EU) pin Derek Caldwell (LHU), 5:42 22-6 184 Jeremie Cook (LHU) dec. Ken Massey (EU), 8-2 22-9 197 Shawn Fendone (EU) pin Harry Turner (LHU), 1:55 28-9 Hwt. #17 Chris Bircher (EU) maj. dec. Chris Drummond (LHU) 12-4 32-9

Philadelphia, Pa. -- Missouri’s 15th-ranked wrestling team won back-to-back duals holding off George Mason and Drexel while improving to 6-4 on the year. Taking on their second and third Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) opponents of the weekend, Missouri topped the Patriots of George Mason, 34-7, and Dragons of Drexel, 31-9. Yesterday, Missouri held off Hofstra, 34-7. “We’ve been in the training phase since Christmas,” Missouri Head Coach Brian Smith said. “Our guys have been working hard and they were tired this weekend. But, they pushed through and we managed three solid team victories this weekend. We’re a young team with a lot of freshmen and sophomores in the lineup. These wins really help build up their confidence.” Four Missouri wrestlers finished the evening duals contested in the Daskalakis Athletic Center with 2-0 records. Junior Todd Schavrien (Poway, Calif.) won both of his 141-pound bouts by decision, besting Jaziah Bethea of George Mason, 14-7, and Shane Fenningham of Drexel, 7-1. Missouri’s 149 pounder, Scott O’Donnell (Kansas City, Mo.), managed a 3-0 showing on the weekend. After earning a 5-2 decision last night against his Hofstra opponent, O’Donnell opened Saturday’s competition with an eight point, 9-1, win by major decision over Brandon Bucher. Later in the night, O’Donnell returned to the mat and held off Brett McCurdy of Drexel, 6-4. All-American Nicholas Marable (Collierville, Tenn.) improved on his standout senior season, winning his fourth match of the year by technical fall, 18-3, against Ty Knepp. Marable’s second bout of the day marked his 28th win of the year and the 109th of his career. Currently tied for ninth on Missouri’s wins list, Marable will take a seven match win streak into Missouri’s Big 12 opener against Nebraska, Jan. 29. Redshirt freshman Brent Haynes of Kansas City, Mo., notched two wins at 197 pounds. Earning a win by forfeit against George Mason, Haynes tacked on an additional six team points to Missouri’s running team total against Drexel, pinning Jack Callendar in 2:13. Missouri wrestlers totaled three falls on the night. Tiger heavyweight Mark Ellis (Peculiar, Mo.) was the first to win by pin, sticking Adam Barnette of George Mason in 49 seconds. Sophomore Dorian Henderson (Columbus, Ga.) recorded his first win by fall of the season, dropping 174-pound opponent Dave Woodall of Drexel in 34 seconds. Missouri’s second fastest fall of the campaign, Henderson is now 20-9. Haynes fall at 197 pounds against Drexel was the third and final of the evening. Done with competition for the weekend, Smith and his Tiger squad will take in the sites of Philadelphia visiting Constitution Hall and the Liberty Bell as well as running the famous “Rocky” stairs, in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, before returning to Columbia Sunday evening. The Tigers will open Big 12 competition Friday, Jan. 29, in Lincoln, Neb., when they take on the Huskers at 7 p.m. (CT).

Today at 2 p.m. EST, No. 13 Penn State will take on No. 4 Ohio State at St. John Arena in Columbus, Ohio. The dual meet will be aired on the Big Ten Network at 10 p.m. EST. Below is a weight-by-weight breakdown of the dual meet. 125: No. 12 Brad Pataky (Penn State) vs. No. 19 Nikko Triggas (Ohio State) Pataky, an NCAA qualifier last season, is 18-5 in this season. He has split matches with both Eric Morrill of Edinboro, who is ranked No. 8, and Jarrod Garnett of Virginia Tech, who is ranked No. 15. Pataky was fifth at the Reno tournament of Champions. Triggas, a two-time NCAA qualifier, has battled inconsistency this season. He is dangerous with his upper body attacks, but seems to struggle against wrestlers with solid leg attacks. He has lost three of his last four matches, but all three of those losses have come to wrestlers ranked in the top six. Bottom Line: Pataky won by major decision, 14-3, against Triggas in their last meeting, which occurred last February. If Pataky stays out of dangerous positions and keeps it basic, he should win this match. Prediction: Pataky (Penn State) dec. Triggas (Ohio State) 133: Bryan Pearsall (Penn State) vs. Ian Paddock (Ohio State) This is one of only two matchups that does not include a ranked wrestler. Paddock, a true freshman, is 15-6, has battled four ranked opponents and lost each of those matches. His most notable win came against Ben Ashmore of Arizona State at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals. Pearsall has struggled mightily this season, going 3-14. He is coming off a win against Illinois, but had lost six straight matches prior to that victory. Bottom Line: Paddock has done very well against unranked opponents, so he should be able to handle Pearsall. Prediction: Paddock (Ohio State) major dec. Pearsall (Penn State) 141: Adam Lynch (Penn State) vs. No. 3 Reece Humphrey (Ohio State) Humphrey, an NCAA runner-up at 133 pounds last March, began the season ranked No. 1 in his new weight class. He was undefeated up until the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals, where he lost back-to-back matches to returning All-American Chris Drouin of Arizona State and talented true freshman Kyle Dake of Cornell. Humphrey bounced back on Day 2 of the event to beat a couple of red-hot wrestlers in Dalton Jensen of Iowa State and Mike Thorn of Minnesota. Lynch is 6-8 on the season, but has had some big pins this season, including one on Friday night against No. 11 Ryan Prater of Illinois. Bottom Line: Humphrey is the superior and should dominate Lynch. Prediction: Humphrey (Ohio State) major dec. Lynch (Penn State) 149: No. 5 Frank Molinaro (Penn State) vs. No. 3 Lance Palmer (Ohio State) This is perhaps the most anticipated matchup of the dual meet. Both are returning All-Americans. Palmer, a three-time All-American, was fourth at the NCAA Championships last season, while Molinaro was eighth at 141 pounds. Palmer comes in with a 17-1 record. His only official loss came to Wisconsin's second-ranked Kyle Ruschell, 3-1, in the finals of the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Molinaro won his first 21 matches to start the season before dropping a match at the Virginia Duals to No. 4 Kyle Terry of Oklahoma. Bottom Line: Expect this to be a tight, low scoring battle. Both wrestlers are very strong and tough to score on. Palmer is one of the best wrestlers in the country from the top position. Molinaro's lone loss came against a wrestler Palmer beat this season. Prediction: Palmer (Ohio State) dec. Molinaro (Penn State) 157: No. 5 Cyler Sanderson (Penn State) vs. Tony Jameson (Ohio State) Sanderson, a 2008 All-American, finished his junior season on a sour note, failing to earn All-American honors after being ranked inside the top eight most of the season. His decision to transfer to Penn State from Iowa State came under scrutiny, but he has thrived in his new environment. He is currently 20-2 and ranked No. 5. His losses have come to No. 1 J.P. O'Connor of Harvard and No. 4 Jesse Dong of Virginia Tech. Jameson, a four-time Ohio state champion, is 3-2 this season in official matches. He had a key pin against Cornell at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals. Bottom Line: Sanderson is wrestling at a high level and should contend for an NCAA title this season, while Jameson is still getting his feet wet in Division I college wrestling. This is by far Jameson's toughest match of his young career. Penn State will be looking for bonus points here. Prediction: Sanderson (Penn State) major dec. Jameson (Ohio State) 165: No. 8 Dan Vallimont (Penn State) vs. No. 7 Colt Sponseller (Ohio State) If the match at 149 pounds is the most anticipated matchup of the dual meet, this matchup is a close second. Vallimont was an All-American in 2008, finishing third at 157 pounds. He moved up to 165 pounds midway through last season, but failed to earn All-American honors, losing in the round of 12. Sponseller, a junior, compiled an impressive 48-12 record through his first two season, but only has one NCAA appearance and no All-American honors to show for it. Last season, he climbed to as high as No. 2 in the country, but finished fourth at the Big Ten Championships and failed to place at the NCAA Championships as the No. 6 seed. Bottom Line: This match is a tossup. The two split matches last season. Sponseller won the first in early February, but Vallimont came back to win the second at the Big Ten Championships. Both have close losses to Edinboro's Jarrod King this season. Should be tight one. Prediction: Vallimont (Penn State) dec. Sponseller (Ohio State) 174: Justin Ortega (Penn State) vs. No. 12 Dave Rella (Ohio State) Rella, an NCAA qualifier last season, comes into today's match with a 15-6 mark. His most notable win came against then-No. 10 Ryan Patrovich of Hostra. He placed seventh at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Ortega has lost four straight matches and comes in with a 6-11 record. Bottom Line: Rella should win this match. Ortega has been competitive against several ranked opponents this season, but is coming off a technical loss to No. 14 Jordan Blanton of Illinois. Look for Ortega to try to slow the pace of the match. If he can do that, he might be able to avoid giving up bonus points against Rella. Prediction: Rella (Ohio State) dec. Ortega (Penn State) 184: No. 12 David Erwin (Penn State) vs. No. 10 Mike Pucillo (Ohio State) Coming into the season, most would have considered Pucillo a virtual lock to win this match. After all, Pucillo is a three-time All-American and 2008 NCAA champion, while Erwin has had an injuring-plagued career and has never qualified for the NCAA Championships. Due to the fact that Pucillo is having the most frustrating season of his career and Erwin is having his most impressive season makes this match somewhat of a tossup. Pucillo has more losses this season (four) than he has had the past two seasons combined (three). Erwin began the season unranked and made his first appearance in the rankings on December 8. He has steadily climbed in the rankings since then. He is coming off a 6-4 sudden victory loss to No. 2 John Dergo of Illinois, a wrestler who has also beaten Pucillo. Bottom Line: Pucillo may not be at the top of his game right now, but he is still as as tough to beat as anyone in the weight class. Erwin has been solid for the Nittany Lions, but look for a determined Pucillo to win this one in front of the Buckeye faithful. Prediction: Pucillo (Ohio State) dec. Erwin (Penn State) 197: Clay Steadman/David Crowell (Penn State) vs. C.J. Magrum (Ohio State) Magrum comes in with a 17-6 record on the season. He has quality wins over Joe Kennedy of Lehigh and Riley Orozco of Cal State Bakersfield. Steadman is 8-8, while Crowell is 17-9. Bottom Line: Magrum will be favored against whoever Penn State puts out on the mat. Don't expect bonus points in this one. Prediction: Magrum (Ohio State) dec. Steadman (Penn State) 285: No. 11 Cameron Wade (Penn State) vs. No. 20 Corey Morrison (Ohio State) Wade has been solid all season, compiling a record of 13-5 … with four of those losses to wrestlers ranked inside the top 10. Morrison got off to a slow start this season, losing three of his first six matches. But he is now starting to come into his own. At the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals, Morrison went 3-1, which included victories over No. 17 Eric Nye of Arizona State, 2007 All-American Josh Arnone of Cornell, and NCAA qualifier Ben Berhow of Minnesota. Bottom Line: Wade is certainly the favorite in this match based on the fact that he beat Morrison in a head-to-head meeting last season, 14-8, and has wins over two opponents Morrison lost to this season. Prediction: Wade (Penn State) dec. Morrison (Ohio State) Dual Meet Prediction: Ohio State 20, Penn State 13

The Minnesota wrestling team won their second straight to open the Big Ten season, dropping just two decisions to host Michigan this evening (Jan. 23) en route to their 30-6 win. As he did a night ago, Zach Sanders (Wabasha, Minn.) started things off strong for the Gophers, with a major decision at 125 to give Minnesota (7-4) an early 4-0 lead. No. 6 Sanders beat Michigan's (4-9) Sean Boyle 14-5 for his third straight win and his third major decision of the year. Taking the lead from Sanders, Thane Antczak (Prairie Farm, Wis.) rolled as well in his match at 133. Starting for the fourth straight match, Antczak earned his first career win in a dual with his 11-5 decision over Zach Stevens. The 11 points scored in the match represent a career high for the redshirt freshman as he extended the Gophers lead to 7-0. With ranked wrestlers at 141 and 149 the Gophers racked up 10 points over the next two matches to take a 17-0 lead. Sixth ranked Mike Thorn (St. Michael, Minn.) scored his fourth major decision of the season with a 13-5 win at 141. Thorn bet Mark Weber to win his sixth in the last seven matches, and his 17th on the season against just three losses. Ahead 11-0, Mario Mason (Moorestown, N.J.) put the exclamation point on the Gophers' match-opening run with his first career pin at 149. Early in the second period, No. 18 Mason got the fall over Mark Boyer, also snapping a rare three-match losing streak. After Michigan got on the board at 157, Cody Yohn (Alamosa, Colo.) got his first career win at 165 with a 6-0 shutout at the expense of Aaron Hynes. Hynes was fifth at 157 at last season's Big Ten Championships, but fell to Yohn who was wrestling just his second career match at 165. A match later at 174, Scott Glasser (Bismarck, N.D.) clinched the won for Minnesota with a decision in a match-up of two top-20 opponents. No. 8 Glasser scored a 5-2 win over No. 16 Justin Zeerip to put Minnesota ahead 23-3 with just three matches left, eliminating the chance of a comeback by the Wolverines. Kaleb Young (Tenstrike, Minn.) won at 184, with a 6-5 decision over Hunter Collins. Collins entered the match with a 14-5 record before falling to Young. In another match-up of ranked opponents, No. 16 Sonny Yohn (Alamosa, Colo.) dropped a narrow 5-2 decision to No. 9 Anthony Biondo. The loss snaps a three-match winning streak for Yohn, and of his seven losses this season, six have come to ranked opponents. Finally, Ben Berhow (Hayward, Minn.) capped the meet with a major decision at heavyweight. Berhow hung a 14-5 score on Ben Appland for the final 30-6 team score. Berhow also won his second straight and improves to 10-0 in Big Ten competition over the last two seasons. The 7-4 Gophers return home next weekend for the first time since Jan. 3. On Jan. 29, Wisconsin visits Williams Arena or a 7:00 p.m. match, and on Jan. 31 Purdue comes to the Sports Pavilion for a 2:00 p.m. contest. When the Gophers and Boilermakers face off on the 31st, it will be the Gopher Wrestling Endowment Meet, and all ticket proceeds from the match will go directly to the Gopher Wrestling Scholarship fund. Just by coming to the meet you can help secure the future of Golden Gopher Wrestling. Results: 125 -- #6 Zach Sanders (Minn) major dec. Sean Boyle, 14-5 Minn, 4-0 133 -- Thane Antczak (Minn) dec. Zac Stevens, 11-5 Minn, 7-0 141 -- #6 Mike Thorn (Minn) major dec. Mark Weber, 13-5 Minn, 11-0 149 -- #18 Mario Mason (Minn) pinned Mark Boyer, 3:43 Minn, 17-0 157 -- Dave Johnson (U-M) dec. Joe Grygelko, 6-4 SV Minn, 17-3 165 -- Cody Yohn (Minn) dec. Aaron Hynes, 6-0 Minn, 20-3 174 -- #8 Scott Glasser (Minn) dec. Justin Zeerip, 5-2 Minn, 23-3 184 -- Kaleb Young (Minn) dec. Hunter Collins, 6-5 Minn, 26-3 197 -- #9 Anthony Biondo (U-M) dec. #16 Sonny Yohn, 5-2 Minn, 26-6 Hwt -- Ben Berhow (Minn) major dec. Ben Apland, 14-5 Minn, 30-6

Hempstead, N.Y. -- Eight Tiger wrestlers won their matches in 15th-ranked Missouri’s 34-7 victory over Hofstra in Hempstead. N.Y. With the win, Missouri improves to 4-4 on the year, while the Pride fall to 5-7-2. The Tigers are now 5-0 in the all-time series with Hofstra. Opening the dual at heavyweight, Missouri earned a quick six team points as Dominique Bradley (Blue Springs, Mo.) accepted a win by forfeit. Bradley is now a perfect 4-0 in duals this season. True freshman Eric Wilson (Centennial, Colo.) collected his first career win as a member of Missouri’s 10-man lineup. Battling Jaime Fanco at 125 pounds, Wilson shut out his Pride opponent, 3-0, Missouri’s only win of the night by shutout. Back-to-back true freshmen made starts for Missouri. Brad Wisdom (Farmington, Mo.) who has seen time at 125 pounds for the Tigers, competed at 133 pounds, winning a major decision, 13-5, over Jeff Rotella. Ranked as high as 19th in the nation, Todd Schavrien (Poway, Calif.) won a 14-3 major decision against Luke Vaith. Schavrien has the second most wins by major decision of his Tiger teammates at six. Scott O’Donnell (Kansas City, Mo.) returned to the Tiger lineup at 149 pounds for the first time since Missouri’s Nov. 20 contest against Purdue. Winning his match against Tyler Banks, 5-2, O’Donnell helped the Tigers to a 20 point advantage over the Pride. Missouri’s Patrick Wright (Grand Ledge, Mich.) entered his 157 pound match with No. 19 Jonny Bonilla-Bowman with a 1-0 advantage over the Hofstra wrestler, having bested him at the 2008 Missouri Open. The two exchanged shots, but Bowman came out the winner, 21-10. Sixth-ranked All-American Nicholas Marable (Collierville, Tenn.) earned his eighth dual victory and improved to 26-2 on the year holding off P.J Gillespie, 7-4 at 165 pounds. Sophomore Dorian Henderson (Columbus, Ga.) added an additional five team points with his 19-2 win by technical fall over Jon Rothman. Henderson’s match ended in 5:28. Seventeenth ranked 197-pounder Brent Haynes (Kansas City, Mo.) closed out the dual with a win by fall. Haynes stuck Anthony Tortora in 2:38 to seal Missouri’s fourth win of the year. The Tigers will return to the mat and take on George Mason at 5:30 p.m. (CT) followed by a 7 p.m. (CT) dual against Drexel. Both duals will be held in Philadelphia, Pa., at the Daskalakis Athletic Center. Results: 285 – Dom Bradley (MU) win by forfeit 125 – Eric Wilson (MU) dec. Jaime Franco (Hofstra), 3-0 133 - Brad Wisdom (MU) maj. dec. Jeff Rotella (Hofstra), 13-5 141 – #19 Todd Schavrien (MU) maj. dec. Luke Vaith (Hofstra), 14-3 149 – Scott O’Donnell (MU) dec. Tyler Banks (Hofstra), 5-2 157 - #19 Jonny Bonilla-Bowman (Hofstra) maj. dec. Patrick Wright (MU), 21-10 165 – #6 Nicholas Marable (MU) dec. P.J. Gillespie (Hofstra), 7-4 174 –#10 Dorian Henderson (MU) tech fall Jon Rothman (Hofstra), 19-2 (5:28) 184 – Ben Clymer (Hofstra) dec. Todd Porter (MU), 4-3 197 – #17 Brent Haynes (MU) WBF Anthony Tortora (Hofstra), 2:38

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team, under the guidance of head coach Cael Sanderson, returned home for the first time in nearly three months and thrilled over 4,500 fans in a packed Rec Hall. No. 13 Penn State won seven of ten bouts against No. 19 Illinois and rode a pin from senior Adam Lynch (Mifflinburg, Pa.) to a 24-11 victory over the Illini. The Nittany Lions roared out of the gates, getting a quick 7-3 win from No. 12 Brad Pataky (Clearfield, Pa.) at 125. Nittany Lion freshman Bryan Pearsall (Lititz, Pa.) got his first Penn State dual meet win, holding on for a 13-12 victory at 133. The near capacity Rec Hall crowd was then sent into a frenzy when Lynch pinned No. 11 Ryan Prater at the 3:56 mark. The stunning fall put the Nittany Lions up 12-0. All-American Frank Molinaro (Barnegat, N.J.), ranked No. 5 at 149, then downed No. 20 Eric Terrazas 5-1 and All-American Cyler Sanderson (Heber City, Utah), ranked No. 5 at 157, got a 9-4 win to put Penn State up 18-0 heading into halftime. All-American Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.), ranked No. 8 at 165, came out of the intermission and put Penn State up 21-0 with a 10-3 decision. Illinois got on the scoreboard at 174 as No. 14 Jordan Blanton got a five-point technical fall over freshman Justin Ortega (Oxford, Pa.) at 174. The marquee bout of the evening pitted No. 12 David Erwin (Urbana, Ohio) against No. 2 John Dergo of Illinois. Erwin took the second-ranked Illini to extra time before Dergo was able to get a takedown and escape with a 6-4 (sv) win. Illini Patrick Bond, ranked No. 10 at 197, got a 9-5 win over Clay Steadman (McKean, Pa.) at 197, cutting Penn State's lead to 21-11. Sophomore Cameron Wade (Twinsburg, Ohio), ranked No. 11 at heavyweight, capped off the evening with an 8-1 win at heavyweight to give the Nittany Lions the 24-11 victory. Penn State won seven of ten bouts, Illinois won the takedown battle 20-18 and the Nittany Lions had three bonus points to Illinois' two. Penn State is now 9-3-1 on the year, 1-0 in Big Ten duals. Illinois is 5-4, 0-1 Big Ten. The Nittany Lions leave tomorrow morning and head to Columbus, Ohio, to get set for Sunday's dual at No. 3 Ohio State. Match-time in Columbus is set for 2 p.m. Penn State's next home dual is on Feb. 5 when Northwestern invades Rec Hall for a 7 p.m. match-up. Single event tickets will cost $8 for adults and $6 for youth. Group sales are available once again for groups of 15 people or more. Group prices are $4 in advance and $5 walk-up. Fans can purchase tickets by calling 1.800.NITTANY between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays. All Penn State events will once again air live on Forever Broadcasting's WRSC?(1390 AM) or 3WZ (95.3 FM) and on www.GoPSUsports.com as well. The 2009-10 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline. Results: 125: #12 Brad Pataky PSU dec. John Deneen UI, 7-3 3-0 133: Bryan Pearsall PSU dec. Daryl Thomas UI, 13-12 6-0 141: Adam Lynch PSU pinned #11 Ryan Prater UI, WBF (3:56) 12-0 149: #5 Frank Molinaro PSU dec. #20 Eric Terrazas UI, 5-1 15-0 157: #5 Cyler Sanderson PSU dec. Conrad Polz UI, 9-4 18-0 165: #8 Dan Vallimont PSU dec. Joe Barczak UI, 9-4 21-0 174: #14 Jordan Blanton UI tech. fall Justin Ortega PSU, 22-7 (6:26) 21-5 184: #2 John Dergo UI dec. (sv) #12 David Erwin PSU, 6-4 (sv) 21-8 197: #10 Patrick Bond UI dec. Clay Steadman PSU, 9-5 21-11 285: #11 Cameron Wade PSU dec. Marty Smith UI, 8-1 24-11 Attendance: 4,883 Records: Penn State 9-3-1 (1-0 Big Ten); Illinois 5-4 (0-1 Big Ten) Up Next for Penn State: at No. 3 Ohio State, Sunday, Jan. 24, 2 p.m. BOUT-BY-BOUT: 125: Junior Brad Pataky (Clearfield, Pa.), ranked No. 12 at 125, took on Illinois' John Deneen. Pataky wasted no time getting a takedown, scoring less than :20 into the bout. The Clearfield native then put together a strong ride, working Deneen's arms into a turning combination. Pataky rolled the Illini for two near fall points at the 1:30 mark and then forced Deneen into a first stall warning. Two more back points at the minute mark put Pataky up 6-0 with 2:45 in riding time after a solid ride out. Pataky chose down to start the second period. After nearly reversing Deneen before a stalemate forced a reset, Pataky forced Deneen into a technical violation to move out to a 7-0 lead. Deneen managed to maintain control of Pataky for the entire period. Pataky led 7-0 with :42 in riding time after two periods. Deneen chose top to start the final period, looking to turn Pataky and avoid giving up a major. Pataky needed an escape to clinch a major. But it was Deneen who would pick up two back points and a riding time point to make the final 7-3. Pataky's decision put Penn State up 3-0 early. 133: Freshman Bryan Pearsall (Lititz, Pa.) took to the mat at 133 to battle Illini Daryl Thomas. Pearsall got in on an early shot but Thomas stepped out of trouble, countered and went up 2-1 with a solid single leg takedown at the 2:20 mark. Pearsall got his takedown shortly thereafter and nearly turned Thomas for back points. Thomas fought off the pinning combination, but Pearsall maintained control of the Illini. He then reset himself and turned Thomas again, this time picking up three near fall points and the :40 mark. The Nittany Lion freshmen was reversed, however, just as the period ended. Still, the solid period had Pearsall up 6-4 with :59 in riding time. Thomas chose neutral to begin the second period. Pearsall exploded through a high shot, controlling Thomas' shoulders and taking him to the mat for another takedown and an 8-4 lead. But Thomas reversed Pearsall once again to cut the Lion's lead to 8-6 with 1:25 left. A Pearsall escape gave him a 9-6 lead with 1:00 to go. Neither man scored the rest of the way and Pearsall led 9-6 with 1:00 in riding time heading into the final period. Pearsall chose down to start the third period and escaped to a 10-6 lead. Thomas quickly took Pearsall down and cut him loose at the 1:40 mark to cut the lead to 10-8. Another takedown and cut gave Pearsall an 11-10 lead . Pearsall was taken down again and cut loose, giving Pearsall a 13-12 lead with :40 left. Thomas looked to score with just seconds left, but Pearsall managed to tie the Illini up and kill the clock for the final seconds to post a thrilling 13-12 decision. The win put Penn State up 6-0. 141: Senior Adam Lynch (Mifflinburg, Pa.) faced off against Illinois' Ryan Prater, who entered the bout ranked No. 11 nationally at 141. Prater got the bout's first takedown at the 2:10 mark and put together a strong ride. The ranked Illini rode Lynch out to lead 2-0 with 2:10 in riding time after the first period. Lynch chose neutral to begin the second period. Lynch nearly scored early in the period, almost tossing Prater to the amt for two points, but the talented Illini countered the move and maintained his lead. Prater tried to shoot, but Lynch quickly countered and turned the ranked Illini to his back, first getting the takedown and then thrilling the Nittany Lion faithful with a pin at the 3:56 mark. The upset victory put Penn State up 12-0 after three b outs. 149: All-American Frank Molinaro (Barnegat, N.J.), ranked No. 5 at 149, met No. 20 Eric Terrazas in one of two bouts pitting ranked foes against each other. The duo traded early shots with neither man finding a chance to score until Molinaro nearly got two points at the 1:00 mark. But action moved out of bounds and the bout remained scoreless. Terrazas, who was undefeated at11-0, took a late shot but Molinaro was able to slide out of bounds and keep things scoreless heading into the second period. Molinaro chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. Terrazas was hit with a first stall warning at the 1:10 mark as Molinaro was the aggressor, taking shot after shot as he looked for an opening. The Nittany Lion All-American exploded through a double leg to take a 3-0 lead with :35 left in the period. He then rode the Illini out to lead 3-0 with :31 in riding time after two periods. Terrazas chose down to start the final period, quickly escaping to a 3-1 deficit. Molinaro got in on a high single, looking to score again. But Terrazas managed to work his way out of bounds to keep the bout close at 3-1. Molinaro thrilled a capacity Rec Hall crowd with one more takedown to post a 5-1 win. The victory put Penn State up 15-0. 157: Nittany Lion Cyler Sanderson (Heber City, Utah), ranked No. 5 at 157, met Illinois freshman Conrad Polz. Sanderson clipped Polz ankle and worked his way into a 2-0 lead with an initial takedown. Sanderson cut the Illini loose right away and turned into his opponent, looking for another takedown. The All-American added a second takedown and then rode Polz out for a 4-1 lead with a 1:11 riding time edge heading into the second period. Polz chose down to start the second period and escaped to a 4-2 deficit with 1:40 left in the period. Sanderson picked Polz lower leg one more time and took a 6-2 lead with :30 left. A solid ride out allowed the Nittany Lion to carry that lead, with 2:00 in riding time, into the final period. Sanderson chose down to start the final period and quickly escaped to a 7-2 lead. Sanderson tried to counter a slight shot by Polz, but the Illini was able to step behind the Nittany Lion and get his first takedown, cutting Sanderson's lead to 7-4. With a riding time point guaranteed, Sanderson steadily worked his way to an escape and an 8-4 lead with :30 left. Sanderson countered a late Polz shot and forced a tie-up that killed the clock, giving the Nittany Lion a 9-4 win. The victory put the Nittany Lions up 18-0 heading into halftime. 165: Senior Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.), ranked No. 8 at 165, took on Illinois' Joe Barczak. Vallimont wasted little time in taking a 2-0 lead, driving through the Illini's lower legs for takedown. Barczak worked his way to an escaped but Vallimont countered with another quick takedown, stepping around behind Barczak to lead 4-1 with 1:00 left to wrestle. Vallimont then put together a dominating ride, keeping Barczak down for the rest of the period to lead 4-1 with 1:36 in riding time after one period. Vallimont chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 5-1 lead. Vallimont gained control of Barczak's right leg and worked his way through his waste for a 7-1 lead with another takedown. A short ride out allowed the Nittany Lion All-American to carry a 7-1 lead with 1:55 in riding time into the third period. Barczak chose down to start the third period and escaped to a 7-2 deficit. But Vallimont quickly took the Illini down and cut him loose to lead 9-3 with 1:20 remaining. Looking for a major, Vallimont shot low on Barczak, forcing a scramble that ended in a stalemate with :22 left to wrestle. Vallimont could not break through Barczak's defense and posted, with the riding time point, a 10-3 decision. The win put Penn State up 21-0. 174: Freshman Justin Ortega (Oxford, Pa.) faced off against No. 14 Jordan Blanton at 174. Blanton quickly took Ortega down to lead 2-0 less than :15 into the bout. Blanton then put together a strong ride, maintaining control of Ortega for 1:02 before the Nittany Lion escaped to a 2-1 deficit. Blanton added a second takedown with 1:30 left and then turned Ortega to his back for three back points at the 1:00 mark to lead 7-1. Ortega escaped to a 7-2 deficit. Leading 7-2 with nearly two minutes in riding time, Blanton chose down to start the second period. A quick escape gave the Illini an 8-2 lead. Blanton added two quick takedowns and a cut to lead 12-3 before a blood time forced a stoppage at the 1:16 mark. An Ortega escape made the score 12-4, but Blanton quickly took Ortega down and added two back points to lead 16-4 with :49 left in the stanza. Blanton allowed Ortega to escape and added another takedown to lead 18-5, with 2:05 in riding time, heading into the final period. Ortega chose down to start the final period and escaped to an 18-6 deficit. Blanton got another takedown at the 1:08 mark, cut Ortega loose and then took him down one more time for a 22-7 technical fall at the 6:26 mark. The five points put the Illini on the board but Penn State led 21-5. 184: In another match-up between ranked opponents, senior David Erwin (Urbana, Ohio) met Illinois senior John Dergo at 184. Erwin entered the bout ranked No. 12 while Dergo was a lofty No. 2. Dergo got the first takedown, turning a low single into a scramble and an eventual takedown just under a minute into the bout. Erwin worked his way to an escape and cut the lead to 2-1 midway through the period. Erwin shot low late in the period, but Dergo stepped back and out of trouble. Down 2-1 after one period, Erwin chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 2-2 tie. Erwin forced another scramble, gaining control of Dergo's ankles and working his way around the second-ranked Illini to get his takedown to lead 4-2 with 1:04 left. Dergo worked his way to an escape, cutting Erwin's lead to 4-3 as action resumed in the center circle with :40 left in the middle period. Trailing 4-3, Dergo chose down to start the third period. Riding time was not a factor. Erwin put together a strong ride, keeping control of the Illini until Dergo escaped at the 1:10 mark, tying the score at 4-4. Erwin forced the issue as the period ended, but Dergo was able to back out of trouble and send the bout to an extra period. Dergo got a quick takedown, gaining control of Erwin's feet for a 6-4 SV win. 197: Sophomore Clay Steadman (McKean, Pa.) met Illini senior Patrick Bond at 197. Bond entered the dual ranked No. 10 nationally. Bond got an early takedown, forcing Steadman to the mat on the edge of the circle with just over 2:00 left. A quick Steadman escape cut Bond's lead to 2-1 and action resumed in the center circle. Bond added a second takedown at the :15 mark and rode Steadman out to lead 4-1 after the opening period. Bond chose down to start the second period and worked his way to an escape and a 5-1 lead. Another low single allowed Dergo to get a third takedown to lead 7-1, but Dergo got hit with a second stall for hanging on to Steadman's ankle. Steadman then escaped and trailed 7-3 with :25 left. Trailing 7-3, Steadman chose down to start the third period and escaped to a 7-4 deficit. Steadman shot, but Bond deftly countered to get another takedown. He then cut Steadman loose to lead 9-5 at the 1:14 mark. Steadman got in on a high single after a reset, but Bond countered, steadily working his way around behind Steadman. The Nittany Lion sophomore was able to fight off the move, but Bond was able to post a 9-5 decision, cutting Penn State's lead to 21-11. HWT: Sophomore heavyweight Cameron Wade (Twinsburg, Ohio), ranked No. 11 at heavyweight, took on Illinois' Marty Smith. The duo battled evenly for the entire period with neither man finding an opening for a takedown. Scoreless after three minutes, Wade chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. Smith took a low shot at the :45 mark, but Wade was able to quickly step behind the Illini to get the bout's first takedown and take a 3-0 lead. A ride out allowed the Nittany Lion to lead 3-0 with :39 in riding time heading into the final period. Smith chose neutral to start the third period, but was taken down by Wade at the 1:20 mark. Wade cut Smith loose at the :30 mark to a 5-1 lead and began looking for another takedown. Wade picked up another takedown with :15 left and, with a ride out and a bonus point, posted an 8-1 win. The decision gave Penn State a sound 24-11 win.

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa -- The University of Northern Iowa wrestling team opened Western Wrestling Conference action Friday evening with a 35-3 win over Northern Colorado. The Panthers won nine of the 10 matches in the dual. The Panthers dominated the Bears on the mat, registering 27 takedowns to the Bears five. “We had two really great performances at 125 pounds and 157 pounds,” UNI head coach Brad Penrith said. “We’re definitely making progress and being more aggressive. Overall it was a very positive performance by our guys.” Young started the dual with a 3-1 win over Tony Mustari at 125 pounds. Ryan Jauch followed with a 14-8 decision over Casey Cruz. No. 20 Kenny Hashimoto was the lone Bear to notch a victory over the Panthers with a 9-4 decision over Charlie Ettelson. Trent Washington returned from injury to secure a 5-4 win over Justin Gonzales in the 149 pound slot. Tyson Reiner notched a 5-3 victory over Justin Gaethje at 157 pounds followed by a pin by Nick Pickerell at 165 pounds. Jarion Beets claimed a 12-6 decision over Brandon Kammerzell at 174 pounds while Scott Hazen earned a 12-3 major decision over Eric Brennan. The Bears forfeited at 197 pounds and Christian Brantley wrapped up the dual with a 16-6 major decision over Justin Tuell. UNI (5-8, 1-0 WWC) continues WWC action tomorrow evening, hosting South Dakota State. Action from the West Gym is slated to begin at 7 p.m. Results: 125 Terrance Young (UNI) dec. Tony Mustari (UNC), 3-1 133 Ryan Jauch (UNI) dec. Casey Cruz (UNC), 14-8 141 No. 20 Kenny Hashimoto (UNC) dec. Charlie Ettelson (UNI), 9-4 149 Trent Washington (UNI) dec. Justin Gonzales (UNC), 5-4 157 Tyson Reiner (UNI) dec. Justin Gaethje (UNC), 5-3 165 Nick Pickerell (UNI) pinned Kevin O’Brien (UNC), 1:13 174 Jarion Beets (UNI) dec. Brandon Kammerzell, 12-6 184 Scott Hazen (UNI) maj. dec. Eric Brennan (UNC), 12-3 197 Dustin Bauman wins by forfeit 285 Christian Brantley (UNI) maj. dec. Justin Tuell (UNC), 16-6

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. -- A fall by 141-pounder Filip Novachkov and a major decision by 157-pounder Chase Pami sparked No. 15 Cal Poly to a 28-11 victory over Stanford in a Pacific-10 Conference dual wrestling meet Friday night before 637 in Mott Gym. Novachkov needed just one minute to pin Bret Baumbach. He scored a takedown 55 seconds into the match and secured his sixth fall of the season five seconds later, raising his record to 18-4. Pami scored six takedowns, one escape and riding time to earn a 14-5 major decision against Mike Kent, lifting his mark for the year to 20-4. Cal Poly also won four matches by decision and Stanford forfeited at 285 as the Mustangs improved their dual meet record to 6-2 overall and 3-0 in the Pac-10. Stanford fell to 8-6 and 0-1. Mustang winners by decision were Boris Novachkov at 133 pounds, Nick Fisher at 149, Ryan DesRoches at 174 and Ryan Smith at 197. Boris Novachkov was a 10-3 winner over Justin Paulsen to improve to 19-1. He had a major decision in hand before giving up an escape at the buzzer. Fisher earned a 12-6 decision over Tyler Parker and is now 10-2 on the season. DesRoches is 24-6 for the year following his 8-4 win over Jake Johnson and Smith outscored Richard Kessler 14-10 to improve to 14-9. Stanford winners were Ryan Mango at 125 and Nick Amuchastegui at 165, both by decision, and Zack Giesen with a technical fall at 184. Cal Poly will host No. 12 Boise State for another Pac-10 dual meet Sunday at 2 p.m. Boise State improved to 6-1 and 2-0 with a 28-15 win at Cal State Fullerton on Friday night and visits Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday before meeting the Mustangs on Sunday. Results: 125 — Ryan Mango, Fr. (S) (18-10) dec. Micah Ferguson, Soph. (CP) (6-14), 8-6 133 — No. 4 Boris Novachkov, So. (CP) (19-1) dec. Justin Paulsen, Jr. (S) (18-9), 10-3 141 — No. 4 Filip Novachkov, Jr. (CP) (18-4) fall Bret Baumbach, Fr. (S) (10-14), 1:00 149 — Nick Fisher, RFr. (CP) (10-2) dec. Tyler Parker, Sr. (S) (0-5), 12-6 157 — No. 10 Chase Pami, Sr. (CP) (20-4) maj. dec. Mike Kent, Fr. (S) (13-7), 14-5 165 — Nick Amuchastegui, So. (S) (22-4) dec. Travis Rasmussen, RFr. (CP) (11-10), 6-1 174 — Ryan DesRoches, So. (CP) (24-6) dec. Jake Johnson, Sr. (S) (15-12), 8-4 184 — No. 11 Zack Giesen, Jr. (S) (23-3) tech. fall Kelan Bragg, Soph. (CP) (5-7), 19-3 197 — Ryan Smith, Soph. (CP) (14-9) dec. Richard Kessler, Fr. (S) (11-15), 14-10 285 — Jim Powers, Jr. (CP) (10-11) wins by forfeit

MORGANTOWN, WV -- Clarion won six out of ten bouts with wins by Cameron Moran, James Fleming, Hadley Harrison, Steven Cressley , Clint Podish and Alex Thomas as the Golden Eagles defeated West Virginia 20-14 in an EWL matchup. Held at the WVU Coliseum, Clarion raised its overall record to 3-4 and is 1-1 in the EWL, while WVU dropped to 0-7 overall and 0-1 in the EWL. Clarion trailed 6-0 after losing the first two bouts, when Cameron Moran posted a big 9-2 win over Anthony Curcio at 141. Trailing 2-1 in the third, Moran had three, two-point near falls and riding time to get the Eagles on the board. Freshman James Fleming put the Eagles in the lead for good with a 16-4 major decision over Mike Rowe at 149. Fleming had a takedown, three near falls and two reversals to push his season record to 17-5. Captain Hadley Harrison followed with a15-2 major decision over Zachary Cerrone at 157. Harrison jumped out to a 5-0 first period lead, had a takedown in the second, and three takedowns in the third period to dominate his match. Harrison's win raised his season record to 24-6 and gave Clarion an 11-6 lead. After WVU's Donnie Jones won a major decision (13-4) over Nick Milano at 165 to close the team score to 11-10, Clarion won three straight bouts to secure the victory. Steven Cressley scored a takedown 12 seconds into overtime to win a 7-5 decision over Christian Mory at 174. Clint Podish used a third period two point near fall to defeat Matt Weston 4-3 at 184, and Alex Thomas sealed the deal with a 6-4 win over Kyle Rooney at 197. "It was a very gritty win for us, " said 4th year head coach Teague Moore. "We really battled hard tonight and won the close matches we had to have to win the meet." Clarion will wrestle Penn on Saturday at 7pm at North Allegheny High School. Tickets will be available at the door. CLARION NOTES: Harrison's win gives him 88 in his career... The win for Clarion broke an 8-match losing streak to WVU... The series record now stands all-time at 14-17-2 Results: 125- Shane Young (WV) dec. Joe Waltko (CL) 7-2 133- #18 Colin Johnston (WV) dec. Jay Ivanco (CL) 4-3 141- Cameron Moran (CL) dec. Anthony Curcio (WV) 9-2 149- James Fleming (CL) maj. dec. Mike Rowe (WV) 16-4 157- Hadley Harrison (CL) maj. dec.Zachary Cerrone (WV) 15-2 165- Donnie Jones (WV) maj. dec. Nick Milano (CL)13-4 174- Steven Cressley (CL) dec. Christian Mory (WV) 7-5ot 184- Clint Podish (CL) dec. Matt Weston (WV) 4-3 197- Alex Thomas (CL) dec. Kyle Rooney (WV) 6-4 HWT- Brandon Williamson (WV) dec. Quintas McCorkle (CL) 8-0