InterMat Staff

Event: UFC 107: Penn vs. Sanchez Venue: FedExForum (Memphis, Tennessee) Date: December 12, 2009 Tonight BJ Penn will defend his lightweight belt against Diego “Nightmare” Sanchez in UFC 107’s main event. The UFC Monster is on vacation in Seattle. Off of a successful UFC 106 prediction preview, let’s see what we can do tonight with the eleven (11) matches scheduled. Short on time, I will advance to the fictitious $1000 bankroll. Unfortunately, there will be little room for error, as I like all the favorites in tonight’s card … and in mixed martial arts fighting, that can be a dangerous proposition. Money management and smart distribution of risk will determine our outcome. In the words of Mike Goldberg, "And, here we go!" … Let’s lay $275 to win $100 on BJ Penn (-275) to submit Diego Sanchez in the third Let’s lay $120 to win $60 on Frank Mir (-200) to submit Cheik Kongo by choke in first. Let’s lay $120 to win $60 on Kenny Florian (-200) to win decision over Clay Guida. Let’s lay $100 to win $80 on Stefan Struve (-125) to chokeout Headhunter Paul Buentello. Let’s lay $ 80 to win $20 on Jon Fitch (-400) to win decision over Mike Pierce. Let’s lay $ 42 to win $40 on Wilson Gouveia (-105) to KO Alan Belcher in the second. Let’s lay $ 80 to win $20 on Johny Hendricks (-400) to KO Ricardo Funch in the second. Let’s lay $120 to win $40 on Rousimar Palhares (-300) to submit Lucio Linhares in first. Let’s lay $ 65 to win $20 on Matt Wiman (-325) to ground-and-pound Shane Nelson. Let’s lay $ 72 to win $30 on edgar Garcia (-240) to KO Marques Johnson in the first. Let’s lay $ 26 to win $20 on TJ Grant to win a close decision over Kevin Burns. In total we are risking $995 to win $430. That’s why they call it gambling. GOOD LUCK and enjoy the fights. I know I will. And, please don’t forget to support your local youth wrestling program, where future champions are born.

Brookings, S.D. -- The Huskers raced to a 22-0 lead and won all six competed matches, as the 12th-ranked Nebraska wrestling team returned to the win column with a 46-6 victory over South Dakota State at the Swiftel Center on Saturday afternoon. The Huskers moved to 5-2 on the season and have now won seven straight over the Jackrabbits. Nebraska did not allow a point until a forfeit at 157 pounds and was in control from the start after early bonus-point victories from freshman C.J. Napier (133) and junior Mike Koehnlein (141). Napier had one of two pins for Nebraska on the day, as the Huskers tallied five bonus-point victories. Napier improved his record to 12-5 with his pin at 133 pounds over Tyler Johnson in 3 minutes, 40 seconds. Napier has won three of his last four matches, including two bonus-point victories. Koehnlein also earned his 12th win of the season with his 12-2 major decision over Dustin Walraven at 141 pounds. No. 3 Stephen Dwyer remained undefeated in dual action (7-0), as he produced Nebraska’s other fall at 174 pounds, pinning Joe Rasmussen in 2 minutes, 19 seconds. Dwyer has five pins this season, second on the team behind Craig Brester (6). Brester was part of the only match-up of ranked wrestlers, as he defeated No. 9 Tyler Sorenson by decision (8-2) at 197 pounds. Brester moved to 13-0 and now has four wins over ranked opponents this season. No. 9 Tucker Lane tallied his first technical fall win of the season with a 19-4 victory over Jeremy Swier at Heavyweight. Junior James Nakashima earned his first dual victory with an 11-3 major decision win over Weston Blasius at 165 pounds. The Dwight, Ill., native is a newcomer to the Husker lineup after starting three matches at last weekend’s Las Vegas Invitational and dropping a hard-fought 8-3 decision to No. 4 Dustin Schlatter of Minnesota on Thursday night. Nebraska won three matches by forfeit (125, 149, 184), as several South Dakota State wrestlers are fighting through a skin infection, while the Jackrabbits won the 157-pound bout with NU’s Jordan Burroughs absent due to personal family reasons. Nebraska returns home for the first time in a month when the Huskers host a double-dual against No. 6 Central Michigan and Nebraska-Kearney next Saturday, Dec. 19 at the NU Coliseum. The Chippewas and Lopers will begin the day's action at 10 a.m., followed by Husker duals vs. Central Michigan and Nebraska-Kearney with 10-minute breaks between each match. Results: 125 – David Klingsheim (NU) wins by forfeit (NU 6, SDSU 0) 133 – C.J. Napier (NU) wins by fall over Tyler Johnson (SDSU), 3:40 (NU 12, SDSU 0) 141 – Mike Koehnlein (NU) wins by major decision over Dustin Walraven (SDSU), 12-2 (NU 16, SDSU 0) 149 – Chris Hacker (NU) wins by forfeit (NU 22, SDSU 0) 157 – Nick Flynn (SDSU) wins by forfeit (NU 22, SDSU 6) 165 – James Nakashima (NU) wins by major decision over Weston Blasius, 11-3 (NU 26, SDSU 6) 174 – No. 3 Stephen Dwyer (NU) wins by fall over Joe Rasmussen (SDSU), 2:19 (NU 32, SDSU 6) 184 – Josh Ihnen (NU) wins by forfeit (NU 38, SDSU 6) 197 – No. 2 Craig Brester (NU) wins by decision over No. 9 Tyler Sorenson (SDSU), 8-2 (NU 41, SDSU 6) 285 – No. 9 Tucker Lane (NU) wins by technical fall over Jeremy Swier (SDSU), 19-4 (46, SDSU 6)

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern director of athletics and recreation Jim Phillips and head wrestling coach Tim Cysewski have announced a reorganization of the coaching staff effective June 1, 2010. Current associate head coach Drew Pariano will be promoted to the position of head coach while Cysewski, whose wrestlers won four individual NCAA championships and 12 Big Ten championships during his 20-year tenure at the helm, will remain on NU's staff as the top assistant coach. "Over the last 28 years, Tim Cysewski has worked tirelessly to develop Northwestern student-athletes into outstanding wrestlers and people," Phillips said. "We could not be more thankful for his dedication to the Wildcat wrestling program and we are thrilled to have him remain a fixture at Northwestern. Drew Pariano's passion for coaching mirrors that of Tim's and we look forward to watching Drew coach his alma mater and continue the program's momentum, both in winning championships on the mat and in recruiting top-level student-athletes." Pariano will take over for the program's all-time winningest coach in Cysewski, who spent eight seasons as an assistant at NU before being elevated to head coach. In 1990, his first season in charge at Northwestern, he coached Jack Griffin to the school's first individual title since 1973. Griffin's title helped the Wildcats place a program-best fourth at the 1990 NCAA Championships, a feat that Cysewski's squad duplicated in 2007 when it qualified six wrestlers and placed four All-Americans including national champion Jake Herbert. Over the last five seasons, NU has enjoyed an incredible run of five consecutive top-15 national finishes with 12 All-Americans and three individual national champions. In all, Cysewski qualified 88 wrestlers for the national tournament and placed 27 All-Americans during his time as head coach. Cysewski, an All-American and five-time Midlands champion as a competitor at Iowa, was named the 2008 FILA Junior/University Person of the Year and has been a mainstay on the United States' international team coaching staffs throughout his career. Additionally, Cysewski's teams at NU have consistently led the Big Ten and been at or near the top nationally in graduation rate and team GPA. Last year, the Wildcats ranked seventh among all Division I wrestling programs and tops in the Big Ten with a team GPA of 3.161. "I feel extremely confident about the direction in which I have led the program but in recent years have been trying to evaluate what might be the appropriate time for me to take a less active role," Cysewski said. "There's no doubt that I'm handing the program off to one of the hardest working coaches in the sport in Drew Pariano and I know he is ready for this challenge. Northwestern has been a special place for my family and me for 28 years and we've enjoyed devoting our time to the Wildcat wrestling family. I'm excited to continue contributing to the team's success and working with our student-athletes on a daily basis." Pariano, the 2008 NWCA Division I Assistant Coach of the Year, has played a key role in Northwestern wrestling's resurgence on the national stage during the past five years. Alongside Cysewski, he worked closely with Wildcat wrestlers as they brought home a total of six individual Big Ten championships as well as an individual national championship in each of the last three seasons. Pariano continued to mentor Herbert, a 2009 silver medalist at the Freestyle World Championships, during his Hodge Trophy-winning senior season in 2008-09. "I am honored that the University, Dr. Phillips and Tim Cysewski are entrusting me with the opportunity to be the head coach at a school where I spent so much of my career," said Pariano, a 2000 NU alum who is in his fifth season as a member of the Wildcat coaching staff. "Tim's been instrumental in my development as a coach as far back as my time as a student-athlete wrestling for him at Northwestern, he bleeds Northwestern purple and he will remain a huge part of this program's success. It is because of him and the support of the athletic department that I am 100 percent confident in our ability to consistently train Big Ten and NCAA champions at Northwestern." Off the mat, Pariano has established himself as one of the nation's premier recruiters at each stop in his career. Last month, Pariano helped the NU staff assemble the No. 2-ranked 2010 recruiting class in the country, a group that includes six wrestlers ranked among the top-10 nationally in their respective high school weight classes by InterMat. Pariano's recruiting coups also include two-time Illinois state champ Brandon Precin (2006) from nearby Orland Park as well as Jason Welch (2007), the winner of the Junior Dan Hodge Trophy as the top high school wrestler in the country. "Tim is the perfect mentor for me and I will continue to learn from him each and every day," Pariano said. "We have always been close and Tim's emphasis on working together for a common goal is what has helped make NU a national power." A three-time NCAA qualifier and Midlands place-winner as a student-athlete at NU, Pariano returned to Evanston in 2005 and began making an immediate impact on all facets of the program. Pariano's coaching ventures also extended beyond the Northwestern campus, as he served as the director of the University and FILA Cadet National Championships and the coach of an Ohio Junior National dual meet team that placed third nationally. Pariano's arrival on staff at Northwestern was preceded by a two-year stint as the head coach at Cornell College in Iowa, where his recruiting and mentorship sparked the Rams' turnaround into a perennial contender in Division III. Pariano began his coaching career as an assistant at John Carroll University in his native Cleveland. He helped the Blue Streaks win two Ohio Athletic Conference titles and place in the top 25 of the NCAA Division III Championships three times. As a standout high school wrestler, Pariano was a three-time state champion and a two-time Most Outstanding Wrestler honoree at the Ohio state championship meet. He currently resides in Evanston. Northwestern's accomplished coaching staff of Cysewski, Pariano and first-year assistant coach Matt Storniolo will be continuing the 2009-10 campaign on Thursday, Dec. 17, when the Wildcats travel to face Cleveland State. What They're Saying About Drew Pariano ... Kerry Volkmann, Hall of Fame coach at John Carroll University and mentor to Drew Pariano: "John Carroll was the benefactor to be associated with one of the great wrestling families in Ohio and the United States. Drew and (his brother) Anthony were part of John Carroll's wrestling process for six consecutive seasons. Anthony did an outstanding job as a graduate assistant and we were fortunate to have Drew to follow in his footsteps. Drew's enthusiasm for wrestling and recruiting helped maintain our tradition of excellence in wrestling, and helped elevate him into his first collegiate head coaching experience at Cornell College in Iowa. I am excited about his elevation to the head job at Northwestern. I am sure he will continue to be a blessing to your program as he was to ours." Bill Scherr, Vice President of Goldman Sachs, former NCAA champion, USA Wrestling coach and Northwestern assistant coach: "I have always had all the respect in the world for Coach Cysewski and for the way he built Northwestern into a national power. Drew is one of the best and brightest young coaches in the country and Northwestern is lucky to have him." Jake Herbert, two-time NCAA champion and Hodge Trophy winner at Northwestern as well as a 2009 World Freestyle silver medalist: "To Drew there is no offseason or end of the day because he is constantly coaching and working to improve the program at Northwestern. He knows that to be a successful wrestler you need to live the lifestyle on and off the mat. Drew embodies that idea and he will not rest until NU is the best wrestling program for years to come. I can speak for all my teammates when I say that we were always proud to go out and wrestle not only for NU but for Tim Cysewski because he was and always will be one of the top coaches in the country."

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- The No. 7 University of Maryland wrestling team returned to College Park to compete at home for the first time in over a month and didn’t disappoint, easily defeating Penn 32-6 in front of 436 fans Friday night at Comcast Pavilion. The Terps won eight of 10 matches to improve their record to 7-1 on the season, which marks the best start by Maryland since it opened the season 9-1 in 1994-95. “I’m very happy with how the first part of the season has gone,” said head coach Kerry McCoy. “Obviously the perfectionist in me wishes we were undefeated and thinks that we could and should be undefeated. But I’m really happy with where we are because we’re not wrestling our best and we’re having good results, and our guys are improving every week. The situations that are costing us matches are tactical, but there aren’t too many people we’re going against that are just straight better than us.” The Terps were out to a lead before anyone had the chance to wrestle. A forfeit by Penn at heavyweight gave Maryland a 6-0 edge entering the 125-pound match between James Knox and Mark Rappo. After Knox got an early takedown, Rappo countered with a reversal to knot the match at two. The two battled back and forth for much of the match, and with the score tied at four late in the third period, Knox earned two points for a takedown and picked up one more in riding time, giving him the 7-4 decision and a 9-0 lead for Maryland. Penn pulled the match to 9-6 by taking two close decisions at 133 and 141 pounds, but that would be the only points the Quakers would earn. Jon Kohler earned an early takedown for a 2-0 lead in his match against Troy Hernandez, and nearly pinned him midway through the second period. In control for most of the match, Kohler took a 10-3 decision to increase Maryland’s lead to 12-6. At 157 pounds Kyle John dominated Jake Hunter throughout the match on his way to a 16-4 major decision. Ranked No. 19 in the nation, Kohler had five takedowns as Maryland stretched the lead to 16-6. Josh Asper had perhaps the toughest test in taking on Gabe Burak at 165 pounds, who entered the match 18-2 on the season. Asper nearly ended the match by pin in the first period, but a reversal by Burak kept him alive. The two battled back and forth for the final two periods, but Asper came out on top with a 12-7 decision. No. 6 Mike Letts clinched the win for Maryland by earning a 7-4 decision over Scott Giffin at 174 pounds. Corey Peltier followed that with a 9-0 major decision over Harrison Cook at 184 pounds, setting up the finale at 197 pounds. No. 3 Hudson Taylor, who last week set the Maryland career record for wins (140) and pinfalls (72), needed just 49 seconds to pin Micah Burak. It was the 14th pin of the season for Taylor, who ran his record to 18-0. Maryland gets two weeks off for finals and Christmas break before returning to action on Dec. 27 at the Wilkes Open in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. Two days later, the Terps head to Evanston Ill. to compete at Midlands. Results: HWT – Patrick Gilmore (MD) wins by forfeit (6-0) 125 – James Knox (MD) dec. Mark Rappo, 7-4 (9-0) 133 – Bryan Ortenzio (UP) dec. Mookie Golden 6-5 (9-3) 141 – Zack Kemmerer (UP) dec. Matt Bogusz, 10-4 (9-6) 149 – Jon Kohler (MD) dec. Troy Hernandez, 10-3 (12-6) 157 – Kyle John (MD) major dec. Jake Hunter, 16-4 (16-6) 165 – Josh Asper (MD) dec. Gabe Burak, 12-7 (19-6) 174 – No. 6 Mike Letts (MD) dec. Scott Giffin, 7-4 (22-6) 184 – Corey Peltier (MD) major dec. Harrison Cook, 9-0 (26-6) 197 – Hudson Taylor (MD) pinfall over Tyler Blakely, 0:49 (32-6)

LEXINGTON, Va. -- VMI won four of the final five matches en route to a 21-15 dual victory over Gardner-Webb on Friday evening at The Thunderdome. The Keydets (1-2) trailed 12-5 after five matches, with only a technical fall victory by sophomore David Yost putting VMI on the scoreboard. VMI’s comeback began at 165 lbs., where sophomore Matthew Brock, wrestling up a weight class, rode out David Pelsang in both the second and third periods to score a 1-0 win. Sophomore Andrew Szymborski scored a 9-1 major decision at 174 lbs. to tie the match at 12, before Jonathan Velazquez moved the Bulldogs (0-6) back on top with a 9-3 decision at 184 lbs. With VMI guaranteed a forfeit win at heavyweight, a win by Keydet junior Ronnie Ellsworth at 197 lbs. would clinch the victory for the hosts. Facing Travis Porter in a rematch from last year’s dual, Ellsworth moved on top 2-0 with a takedown just over two minutes into the match. Porter escaped early in the second period, but Ellsworth did the same early in the third to push the margin to 3-1. Neither wrestler scored again, though Ellsworth netted a bonus point on riding time to make the final score, 4-1. With the match tied, Keydet junior Josh Wine walked out for the heavyweight match and was unopposed, clinching VMI’s 21-15 victory. “It’s great to get the win, it’s been a while,” said VMI head coach John “Rocky” Trudgeon. “We were really in about every match. I told the guys before the match that I thought we could win every weight. Obviously we didn’t, but we wrestled really hard. Matt Brock had a great win, he did what he had to do. I felt bad for John (Pope), Mike (Long) and Joe (Munno). They all lost tight matches, and Luke (Todd) even had a chance and made one wrong move. We had really been struggling with our confidence, and it’s nice for them to know that they can do it.” The match began at 125 lbs., where GWU’s Michael Slaughter jumped out to a 9-2 lead through one period. John Pope fought back for VMI, though, cutting the lead to 13-11 in the closing seconds, though his attempts at a final-second takedown came up empty. Richie Spicel also led 9-2 after three minutes on the mat at 133 lbs. for GWU, though Keydet sophomore Luke Todd rallied to bring the final margin to 9-5. Yost followed at 141 lbs. with his 18-2 major decision to put VMI on the scoreboard, 6-5. Brothers Ryan and Alex Medved advanced GWU’s lead to 12-5 with a pair of narrow wins. At 149 lbs., VMI senior Michael Long took a 4-2 advantage just before the end of the second period, but Ryan Medved tied the match late in the third period to send it to overtime. In the first sudden victory period, Long nearly scored an early takedown, but Medved countered with two points of his own 40 seconds in to score the 6-4 win. Alex Medved followed with an 11-8 decision over Joe Munno at 157 lbs., giving the Bulldogs their largest lead of the night at 12-5. VMI returns to action on Dec. 29-30, competing at the Southern Scuffle in Greensboro, N.C. Results: 125- Michael Slaughter (GWU) dec. John Pope (VMI), 13-11; GWU 3-0 133- Richie Spicel (GWU) dec. Luke Todd (VMI), 9-5; GWU 6-0 141- David Yost (VMI) tech. fall Morgan McDaniel (GWU), 18-2 (6:40); GWU 6-5 149- Ryan Medved (GWU) dec. Michael Long (VMI), 6-4 (SV1); GWU 9-5 157- Alex Medved (GWU) dec. Joe Munno (VMI), 11-8; GWU 12-5 165- Matt Brock (VMI) dec. David Pelsang (GWU), 1-0; GWU 12-8 174- Andrew Szymborski (VMI) maj. dec. Blake Salyer, 9-1; Tied 12-12 184- Jonathan Velazquez (GWU) dec. Evan Dill (VMI), 9-3; GWU 15-12 197 – Ronnie Ellsworth (VMI) dec. Travis Porter (GWU), 4-1; Tied 15-15 285 – Josh Wine (VMI) forfeit; VMI 21-15 Attendance- 479

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- No. 14 Penn State blasted its way through the home standing West Virginia Mountaineers, winning seven of ten bouts to post a 33-12 win in Morgantown. Penn State picked up three straight pins heading into the midway point to coast to victory. Junior Brad Pataky (Clearfield, Pa.), ranked No. 7 at 125, got things off to a good start with an 11-5 win over WVU's Shane Young. The Mountaineers got a major decision at 133 before head coach Cael Sanderson's crew unleashed a flurry of pins to put the bout out of reach. Sophomore Colby Pisani (Ridgway, Pa.), All-American Frank Molinaro (Barnegat, N.J.) and All-American Cyler Sanderson (Heber City, Utah) each got pins to put Penn State up 21-4. Pisani got his pin at the 5:28 mark, No. 6 Molinaro got his at the 5:22, and No. 3 Sanderson got his early in the first at the 2:22 mark. All-American Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.) followed with a hard fought 4-3 win over senior Donnie Jones to put Penn State up 24-4. The Mountaineers got a win at 174 to cut Penn State's lead to 24-7, setting up the bout's marquee match-up at 184. Senior David Erwin (Urbana, Ohio) made short work of No. 19 Matt Ryan of WVU, however, dominating the match from start to finish and posting a 7-1 win. West Virginia got a forfeit win at 197 before Cameron Wade (Twinsburg, Ohio), ranked No. 13 at HWT, pounded WVU's Brandon Williamson 2-0. Williamson was disqualified for unsportsmanlike behavior as the bout ended, actually giving Wade a six point win and giving Penn State a 33-7 victory. Penn State dominated the dual in every aspect, winning the takedown battle 16-8. The Nittany Lions also notched 12 bonus points to only one for WVU. Penn State is now 5-1, having won five straight, while the Mountaineers fall to 0-3. The Nittany Lions return to action tomorrow night at No. 24 Pittsburgh. The dual at Pitt begins at 7 p.m. Penn State's next home dual is set for Jan. 22 when it hosts Illinois at 7 p.m. in Rec Hall. 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: #7 Brad Pataky PSU dec. Shane Young WVU, 11-5, 3-0 133: Colin Johnston WVU maj. dec. Bryan Pearsall PSU, 13-4, 3-4 141: Colby Pisani PSU pinned Anthony Curcio WVU, WBF (5:28), 9-4 149: #6 Frank Molinaro PSU pinned Brandon Loro WVU, WBF (5:22), 15-4 157: #3 Cyler Sanderson PSU pinned Ryan Goodman WVU, WBF (2:22), 21-4 165: #9 Dan Vallimont PSU dec. Donnie Jones WVU, 4-3, 24-4 174: Chance Litton WVU dec. Justin Ortega PSU, 5-2, 24-7 184: #14 David Erwin PSU dec. #19 Matt Ryan WVU, 7-1, 27-7 197: Cameron Gallaher WVU win by forfeit, 27-13 HWT: #13 Cameron Wade PSU win by disq. Brandon Williamson WVU, 27-12* *WVU loses team point for unsportsmanlike conduct Attendance: 1,136 Records: Penn State 5-1, West Virginia 0-3 Up Next for Penn State: at No. 24 Pittsburgh, Saturday, December 12, 7 p.m. Bout by Bout 125: Junior Brad Pataky (Clearfield, Pa.), ranked No. 7 at 125, took on West Virginia's Shane Young. Pataky looked to turn a shoulder lock into a cement mixer early, but Pataky rolled too far on the move and Young was able to come out on top for a quick takedown and a 2-0 lead at the 2:08 mark. Pataky escaped quickly to cut the lead to 2-1 and then spent the next minute fighting off two solid Young double legs to stay close. Pataky got his first takedown at the :40 mark, working around the WVU freshman to take a 3-2 lead. Pataky then used a good tight waste to keep Young face down on the mat for the ride-out and a one point lead after one period. Pataky chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 4-2 lead. The Lion junior then turned into Young and kept the pressure on the Mountaineer grappler, forcing him towards the edge of the mat while looking for an opening. Pataky countered a Young double leg and, after a short scramble, got a takedown at the 1:03 mark to go up 6-2. Another ride-out allowed Pataky to carry a 6-2 lead with 1:12 in riding time into the third period. Young chose neutral to start the third period, but Pataky once again turned strong shoulder work into a takedown and an 8-3 lead (after cutting Young loose). Young slipped behind Pataky at the 1:25 mark to cut into the Lion's lead and then rode him long enough to kill Pataky's time advantage. Pataky escaped with :58 left to lead 9-5. Young gained control of Pataky's ankle and nearly took him down, but Pataky countered the move and got a final takedown with just :02 left to grab an 11-5 win, putting Penn State up 3-0. 133: Freshman Bryan Pearsall (Lititz, Pa.) got the nod at 133 for Penn State, where he took on undefeated sophomore Colin Johnston of West Virginia. Johnston quickly opened up a 2-0 lead with a takedown at the 2:25 mark. Johnston then gained control of Pearsall's shoulders, turned him to his back and nearly pinned the young Lion. Pearsall managed to fight off his back but trailed 5-0 after giving up the three near fall points. Pearsall escaped and Johnston quickly took him down again to up his lead to 7-1 with the ride-out. Trailing 7-1, Pearsall chose top to start the second period hoping to find a way to turn the Mountaineer and get back points of his own. Pearsall put together a very strong ride, working the riding time edge down below a minute while looking for an opening to pick up back points. Johnston finally worked his way to an escape with :05 left to lead 8-1 heading into the third period. Johnston chose neutral to start the final period and quickly got in on Pearsall's ankles. But the Lion freshman worked his way around behind Johnston to cut the lead to 8-3, but the WVU grappler quickly reversed Pearsall to up his lead to 10-3. Pearsall needed an escape to avoid giving up a major and got out with :35 left, cutting the WVU lead to 10-4. Pearsall tried a high single, but Johnston countered and got a takedown on the edge of the mat with :12 left to take a 12-4 lead. Johnston then rode the Lion out and, with the riding time point, got a 13-4 major, giving WVU a 4-3 lead. 141: Sophomore Colby Pisani (Ridgway, Pa.) met West Virginia's Anthony Curcio at 141. Pisani used a low single to grab a 2-0 lead at the 1:36 mark. Pisani then maintained control of Curcio for the rest of the period, nearly picking up a two point near fall in the process. Trailing 2-0, Curcio chose down to start the second period. But Pisani was able to add to his riding time edge, maintaining control and then getting Curcio in a headlock and nearly pinning him. Pisani picked up the three point near fall and took a 5-1 lead, but the Lion sophomore called for a quick injury timeout. Pisani returned for a reset at the center circle with a 5-1 lead and 2:12 in riding time at the 1:20 mark. Pisani countered a Curcio under hook and sent the WVU man to his back for another takedown and two more near fall points to lead 9-1 with :23 left. Pisani tried to turn a cradle into a pin, but Curcio countered for a reversal, cutting the PSU lead to 9-3 heading to the final stanza. Pisani chose down to start the period and quickly reversed Curcio. The reversal was followed quickly by a headlock and a pin for Pisani at the 5:28 mark and the Nittany Lions led 9-4. 149: All-American Frank Molinaro (Barnegat, N.J.), ranked No. 6 at 149, took on WVU's Brandon Loro. Molinaro used a quick cement mixer to try and turn Loro and, while not getting the near fall, took a 2-0 lead with 1:43 left. Molinaro almost turned Loro with split scissors, but the Mountaineer was able to fight off his back and keep the score close at 2-0. Molinaro rode Loro out and led by two with 1:43 in riding time. He then chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 3-0 lead. Molinaro spent the next minute fighting off a Loro single leg. After breaking free, Molinaro used a high double to get a second takedown, add two back points, and lead 7-0 with under :30 left in the period. Another Molinaro ride-out gave the Lion a 7-0 lead with 2:32 in riding time after two periods. Loro chose neutral to start the third, only to get taken quickly to his back and pinned by Molinaro. The Lion All-American got the fall at the 5:22 mark to put Penn State up 15-4. 157: All-American Cyler Sanderson (Heber City, Utah), ranked No. 3 at 157, met West Virginia sophomore Ryan Goodman. Sanderson used a scrambling double leg on the edge of the mat to take a 2-0 lead with 2:15 left in the opening period. Goodman escaped seconds later, only to have Sanderson use a swift ankle pick to gain control of Goodman and up his lead to 4-1 with 1:44. Goodman escaped once again, but Sanderson was relentless, forcing the Mountaineer to the edge of the mat while shooting low to try and pick up another takedown. Sanderson hit a standing cradle and took Goodman to his back for another takedown and, after a brief scramble, got Penn State's third straight pin. This one came at the 2:22 mark and put the Nittany Lions up 21-4. 165: All-American Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.), ranked No. 9 at 165, took on WVU senior Donnie Jones in a key battle at 165. Jones got the first takedown of this marquee match up, taking a 2-0 lead with 2:16 left in the first period. Vallimont escaped at the 1:48 mark to cut the lead to 2-1 and turned into Jones, looking for his first takedown. Vallimont picked up his offensive pace but could not work through Jones' defense as the Mountaineer was able to step back from every Vallimont shot. Leading 2-1, Jones chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 3-1 lead. Vallimont was nearly taken down again by Jones, but the Lion All-American was able to scramble out of bounds and stay close, forcing a reset at the 1:06 mark. Vallimont used his quickness to counter a Jones shot, slip behind the WVU senior, and tie the bout up with a nice takedown at the :40 mark. Vallimont then rode the Mountaineer out to keep the bout tied 3-3 heading into the final period. Vallimont chose down to start the final stanza and quickly escaped to a 4-3 lead. The senior duo both worked collar ties for the bulk of the final period, with each man taking solid low shots but not connecting for a decisive takedown. Vallimont was able to hold off a furious late Jones charge, picking up a stall warning but maintaining his slim lead and escaping with a 4-3 win. The decision put Penn State up 24-4. 174: Freshman Justin Ortega (Oxford, Pa.) took to the mat at 174 to meet WVU senior Chance Litton. Ortega countered an early Litton shot, nearly turning a protracted scramble in front of the Penn State bench into a takedown of his own. But Litton was able to work his way out of bounds and keep the match scoreless. After a reset at the 2:00 mark, the duo continued hand fighting, looking for position. But neither man would find an opening until Litton slipped a high single into an upper body lock. But Ortega was outstanding, able to maintain his feet and force a reset with :25 left. Scoreless after the opening three minutes, Ortega chose down to start the middle period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. Litton shot low on Ortega, forcing the Lion into a stall and then rolling through the young Lion for an initial takedown and a 2-1 lead. Ortega escaped to a 2-2 tie with :40 left and action returned to the middle of the mat. The Lion freshman tried to turn a shoulder lock into a takedown late in the period, but Litton was able to fight off the move and keep things tied 2-2. Litton chose down to start the final period, but Ortega was able to belly Litton out and maintain control of the action. Ortega kept control of Litton until a Litton escape with :58 left. The point put the WVU senior up 3-2 with riding time not a factor. Ortega shot, looking for a late takedown, but Litton was able to counter the scrambling shot and walk away with a hard-fought 5-2 win. Penn State led the dual 24-7. 184: Senior David Erwin (Urbana, Ohio), ranked No. 14 nationally at 184, met No. 19 Matt Ryan of West Virginia in the dual's only match-up between two ranked foes. Erwin was steady out of the gates, using a low double to take a 2-0 lead with 1:56 left in the opening period. The Lion senior then put together a solid ride, breaking the ranked Mountaineer down and building up a solid riding time edge with a cross body ride. Erwin's superb work on top led to a ride-out, a 2-0 lead and 1:55 in riding time after the first period. Erwin chose down to start the second period and quickly worked his way to his feet, with Ryan still clinging to his back. Erwin easily shook the Mountaineer off and turned the move into a reversal and a 4-0 lead. Erwin cut Ryan loose at the :58 mark, looking for another chance to score. Ryan gained control of Erwin's ankle, looking for his first takedown, but Erwin deftly countered the move, worked his way around behind Ryan and nearly scored again. But time ran out and Erwin led 4-1 heading into the final period. Ryan chose neutral to start the third and Erwin continued to set the tempo, pressuring Ryan as he looked for another takedown. Erwin, with a secured bonus point, fought off two Ryan high singles and, on the second one, worked his way around behind Ryan for another takedown and a 6-1 lead with :25 left. Erwin spent the bout's final seconds trying to turn Ryan to his back. But Ryan was able to stay off his back. Still, the 7-1 win gave Penn State a 27-7 lead. 197: The Nittany Lions forfeited the 197-pound weight class, allowing WVU 's Cameron Gallaher to pick up the win and six team points. Penn State sophomore Clay Steadman (McKean, Pa.) was suspended for two duals due to violation of team rules. The forfeit cut Penn State's lead to 27-13. HWT: Sophomore Cameron Wade (Twinsburg, Ohio), ranked No. 13 at heavyweight, met West Virginia junior Brandon Williamson. Wade and Williamson spent the opening period hand fighting and working collar ties in an effort to find an opening to score. But each man was able to hold the other off and the bout moved to the second period tied 0-0. Wade chose down to start the second stanza. Williamson maintained control of Wade for 1:05, but was called for stalling twice in the process. That, along with the Wade escape, gave the Lion sophomore a 2-0 lead. Williamson gained control of Wade's right ankle, but the Lion was able to step over top the WVU junior and force a scramble for the rest of the period. Trailing 2-0, Williamson chose down to start the third period, but Wade was able to control the bigger WVU wrestler. Wade spent the bulk of the period trying to turn Williamson. While not managing to get any back points, Wade's dominating ride allowed the Nittany Lion sophomore to post a convincing 2-0 win. Williamson bit Wade on the arm at the end of the bout and was disqualified as the last seconds expired. The disqualification win for Wade, plus WVU's loss of a team point, gave Penn State a 33-12 win over the Mountaineers.

Event Air Date Air Time Midlands Wednesday, December 30 All Day Sunday, January 3 at 7:00pm Oklahoma State at Iowa Saturday, January 16 8:00pm Sunday, January 17 -- 7:00pm Indiana at Wisconsin Friday, January 22 8:00pm LIVE Penn State at Ohio State Sunday, January 24 2:00pm Same Day Delay -- 7:00pm Ohio State at Purdue Friday, January 29 7:00pm Same Day Delay -- 11:00pm Illinois at Northwestern Sunday, January 31 3:00pm Same Day Delay - 7:00pm Minnesota at Illinois Friday, February 5 8:00pm LIVE Michigan at Ohio State Friday, February 5 7:00pm Same Day Delay -- 11:00pm Purdue at Michigan State Sunday, February 7 1:00pm Same Day Delay -- 7:00pm Iowa at Minnesota Sunday, February 14 7:00pm LIVE Ohio State at Iowa Friday, February 19 8:00pm Same Day Delay -- 12:00am Michigan at Northwestern Sunday, February 21 7:00pm LIVE Iowa at Wisconsin Sunday, February 21 2:00pm Same Day Delay -- 11:00pm Big Ten Championships Sunday, March 7 2:00pm LIVE

CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio -- Day 1 is in the books at the 2009 Walsh Ironman at Walsh Jesuit High School in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. Below are the team standings and the quarterfinal pairings. Team Standings: POINTS-QUARTERFINALS-CONSOLATIONS T1 St. Edward OH 73.5 4 6 T1 Graham OH 73.5 7 3 3 Bishop Lynch TX 72.5 5 4 4 Wyoming Seminary PA 71.5 3 7 5 Blair Academy NJ 71 8 1 6 Central Mountain PA 65.5 5 3 T7 Wadsworth OH 57.5 4 5 T7 Broken Arrow OK 57.5 3 4 9 Montini Catholic IL 55 4 4 10 Smyrna DE 51 2 4 11 Oak Harbor OH 46 2 3 12 Christiansburg VA 45 3 2 13 Broomfield CO 44.5 0 4 T14 Moeller OH 42 2 3 T14 Clovis CA 42 4 2 T14 Council Rock South PA 42 4 1 17 Mt. Carmel IL 41.5 1 3 18 Reynolds PA 41 2 4 19 Massillon Perry OH 40.5 1 5 20 Padua OH 37 3 2 T21 Burrell PA 36 1 3 T21 Monroeville OH 36 3 0 23 St. Ignatius OH 34.5 3 0 T24 Blue Mountain PA 34 2 3 T24 Fauquier VA 34 2 1 T24 Parkersburg South WV 34 0 2 T24 Walsh Jesuit OH 34 2 3 T28 Derry Area PA 33.5 1 4 T28 Kiski Prep PA 33.5 3 0 30 Shady Side Academy PA 33 2 2 31 Selma CA 28.5 1 3 T32 Brecksville OH 28 3 1 T32 CVCA OH 28 3 1 T32 Elyria OH 28 1 1 T32 North Allegheny PA 28 0 2 T36 Calvary Chapel CA 25 1 3 T36 Mingus AZ 25 1 3 38 Troy Christian OH 24 0 2 39 Caesar Rodney DE 22.5 0 2 40 Westerville North OH 20.5 1 1 41 Bishop Gorman NV 17.5 2 0 42 Gilroy CA 17 1 1 T43 Findlay OH 14 2 0 T43 University School OH 14 2 0 45 Germantown Academy PA 11 0 2 46 Miamisburg OH 10 1 0 47 Streetsboro OH 9 0 1 T48 Aurora OH 8 1 0 T48 Foothill PC CA 8 1 0 T48 Westlake OH 8 1 0 51 Quincy CA 7.5 1 0 52 Lawrenceville NJ 7 1 0 53 Marlow OK 6 1 0 54 San Lorenzo Valley CA 5 0 1 55 Fairless H 4 1 0 56 Hopewell VA 1 0 0 Quarterfinal Pairings 103: Kevon Powell (Montini Catholic) vs. Ryan Taylor (Graham) Dean Heil (St. Edward) vs. Billy Rappo (Council Rock South) Maxwell Hvolbeck (Blair Academy) vs. Nathan Tomasello (CVCA) Judson Preskitt (Bishop Lynch) vs. George Dicamillo (St. Ignatius) 112: Evan Silver (Blair Academy) vs. Daniel Gaytan (Clovis) Ryan Brooks (Marlow) vs. Jimmy Gulibon (Derry) Alex Cisnersos (Selma) vs. Joey Dance (Christianburg) Corey Keener (Blue Mountain) vs. Dominick Malone (Wyoming Seminary) 119: Hunter Stieber (Monroeville) vs. Geoff Alexander (Shadyside) Nick Brascetta (Graham) vs. Ty Mitch (Aurora) Kagan Squire (Wadsworth) vs. Mark Grey (Blair Academy) Mason Beckman (Reynolds) vs. Jerome Robinson (St. Ignatius) 125: Logan Stieber (Monroeville) vs. Ryan Hunsberger (Fauquier) Joey Vogelsburg (Bishop Lynch) vs. Johnni Dijulius (Walsh Jesuit) Jesse Delgado (Gilroy) vs. Matt Rappo (Council Rock South) Dyllan Durso (Reynolds) vs. Devin Carter (Christianburg) 130: Cody Pack (Quincy) vs. Nate Skonieczny (Walsh Jesuit) Todd Preston (Blair Academy) vs. Frank Marelloti (Shadyside) Nick Lawrence (Westlakd) vs. Brent Fickel (Padua) Colton Rasche (Montini Catholic) vs. Gus Sako (St. Edward) 135: Cam Tessari (Monroeville) vs. Alec Dieter (Clovis) Shawn Fayette (Miamisburg) vs. Jordan Rich (Central Mountan) Simon Kitzis (Wyoming Seminary) vs. Drew Hammer (Moeller) Troy Silver (Bishop Lynch) vs. Zach Epperly (Christianburg) 140: Chris Villalonga (Blair Academy) vs. Brian Brill (Central Mountain) Evan Henderson (Kiski Prep) vs. Cody Broomall (Smyma) Matt Martoccio (Council Rock South) vs. Shane Foster (Massillon Perry) Ian Miller (Oak Harbor) vs. Stephen Robertson (Montini Catholic) 145: Andrew Alton (Central Mountain) vs. Robert Henderson (Kiski Prep) Matt Stephens (Graham) vs. Logan Addis (Mingus) Brandon Sommers (CVCA) vs. Anthony Salupo (St. Edward) Connor Miller (Fauquier) vs. Brad Squire (Wadsworth) 152: Dylan Alton (Central Mountain) vs. Harrison Hightower (University School) David Habat (St. Ignatius) vs. Jason Luster (Kiski Prep) Steven Hernandez (Bishop Gorman) vs. Travis Gallegos (Foothill) Jesse Shanaman (Blair Academy Academy) vs. Brandon Rolnick (Lawrenceville) 160: Nick Sulzer (St. Edward) vs. Kyle Ryan (Graham) Trey Adamson (Bishop Lynch) vs. Josh Demas (Westerville North) Zach Skates (Broken Arrow) vs. Brad Wukie (University School) Konner Witt (Oak Harbor) vs. Pierce Harger (Moeller) 171: Michael Alexander (Findlay) vs. Josh Linden (Brecksville) Huston Evans (Graham) vs. Alex Utley (CVCA) Charles Argue (Mount Carmel) vs. Johnny Field (Bishop Gorman) Zach Nevills (Clovis) vs. Todd Gaydosh (Padua) 189: Michael Evans (Blair Academy) vs. Anthony Ruggiero (Smyma) Cody Johnson (Broken Arrow) vs. Tommy Burriel (Clovis) Stephen McPeek (Bishop Lynch) vs. Jason Gott (Elyria) Bobby Lavelle (Council Rock South) vs. Max Thomusseit (Graham) 215: William Knowles (Calvery Chapel) vs. Joe Getto (Padua) Mark Meyer (Graham) vs. Brian Beattie (Burrell) Beau Wenger (Fairless) vs. Spencer Willet (Brecksville) Brook Gosch (Blue Mountain) vs. Nick Tavanello (Wadsworth) 285: Terry Williamson (Broken Arrow) vs. Brooks Black (Shadyside) Ross Ferraro (Montini Catholic) vs. Ben Buzzelli (Wadsworth) Zach Corl (Central Mountain) vs. Max Gladstone (Findlay) Billy Vaughan (Brecksville) vs. Michael McMullen (Wyoming Seminary)

This Saturday, December 12, the Big Ten Network will be airing the 44th NWCA All-Star Classic Presented by the Wrestling Alumni – College of William and Mary. The viewing time for the event is currently set for December 12, at 6 p.m. EST. For more scheduling information check the Big Ten Networks website at http://www.bigtennetwork.com/schedule/index.asp. The NWCA All-Star Classic took place on November 22, and was held at Cal State Fullerton, in an effort to help raise awareness and funds for the program to remain at Cal State Fullerton. Catch the action and athlete interviews by tuning in on Saturday night. The results of the event are as follows: 125: No.4 Zach Sanders (Minnesota) dec. No.5 James Nicholson (Old Dominion) 7-5 133: No.4 Daniel Dennis (Iowa) dec. No.8 Steve Bell (Maryland) 9-8 141: No.4 Alex Krom (Maryland) dec. Adin Duenas (Cal State Fullerton) 8-0 149: No.4 Kyle Borshoff (American) dec. No.3 Lance Palmer (Ohio State) 3-2 157: No.1 Jordan Burroughs (Nebraska) dec. No.5 Matt Moley (Bloomsburg) 10-4 165: No.5 Jonathan Reader (Iowa State) maj. dec. No.6 Andrew Rendos (Bucknell) 11-2 174: No.6 Stephen Dwyer (Nebraska) dec. No.5 Chris Henrich (Virginia) 7-6 184: No.1 Max Askren (Missouri) dec. No.5 Josh Patterson (Binghamton) 14-7 197: No.1 Jake Varner (Iowa State) dec. No.2 Craig Brester (Nebraska) 5-3 285: No.6 Mitch Monteiro (Cal State Bakersfield) dec. No.5 David Zabriskie (Iowa State) 4-3 Featured Bouts: 184: No.13 Zach Giesen (Stanford) dec. Enoch Francois (Cal Baptist University) 3-1 OT

As the wrestling season's start is fast approaching, InterMat will be taking fans across the United States of America on a tour of scholastic wrestling. Between now until the middle of November, InterMat will introduce you to the top senior wrestlers in the 49 states with scholastic wrestling. From Alaska to Florida, and from Maine to California, you will gain exposure to the potential stars of future NCAA Championships. The rankings within this article do not necessarily reflect those done by InterMat. Kansas once again made a splash in 2010 by placing four seniors in Division I programs and nine in Division II. In what was projected as a rebuilding year, 2011 has plenty of talent. This class has almost 100 Fargo wins to its credit! Headlining the class are a pair of teammates in three-time state champ and nationally-ranked Ryne Cokeley and Fargo Greco champion and double All-American Taylor Moeder. Throw in another multiple Fargo AA Daniel DeShazer and you have a trio that would rival any state in the nation! 1. Ryne Cokeley High School: St. James Academy Projected 2010-11 High School Weight Class: 160 Projected College Weight Class: 157/165 Ryne CokeleyAnalysis: With a career record of 124-11, Cokeley is chasing his fourth Kansas state title. He is one of the most heralded wrestlers in Kansas history with 36 total Fargo wins! He has beaten 52 former state champions across the nation. He carries a 41-13 career Cadet and Junior Dual record, going undefeated in 2008 and 2010, making the USA National Teams both years. Cokeley placed second at Virginia Beach in the 2010 NHSCA Junior Nationals and was the FILA Cadet Pan American Games gold medalist. The Future Olympian rankings have listed him as first, third, and third in his first three years. This kid is a machine in practice and has sought out competition from coast to coast. It's been a pleasure being one of his biggest fans. Division I awaits! 2. Taylor Moeder High School: St. James Academy Projected 2010-11 High School Weight Class: 145 Projected College Weight Class: 141/149 Analysis: Moeder had a breakout season in 2010. Capping off his 40-1 junior season and second state championship, he was crowned with the Fargo Junior National Greco title! He then returned to the Fargo podium in freestyle, placing fourth to complete a dream season. Taylor also placed fourth at the NHSCA Folkstyle Junior Nationals in Virginia. We all knew of his Kids division accolades with four Kids state titles, six-time placer at Tulsa Nationals, and a Cliff Keen Kickoff championship, but he was the best-kept secret in Kansas until splashing onto the national scene this year. He had the Kansas faithful raising eyebrows when he moved up a weight at the Derby Invitational and stopped Chase Nitcher's 71-match winning streak. His career high school record is 117-9 and he is no longer under the radar with Division I coaches. One last point: His Duck Under should be on a training video! 3. Daniel DeShazer High School: Wichita Heights Projected 2010-11 High School Weight Class: 130 Projected College Weight Class: 125/133 Daniel DeShazerAnalysis: DeShazer is a four-time Fargo All-American, including a Greco Roman finalist in 2008! With a career record of 92-3, he is a two-time state champion and a three-time finalist. He has been a powerful contributor to our Kansas National Dual teams at all levels. He dominated most of his youth career, placing at many national tournaments and winning Kids state six times. He is the younger brother of former four-time Kansas state champ and NCAA qualifier Tristen DeShazer of Northern Illinois. DeShazer has a rare athleticism that makes him a crowd favorite and is a lock to land in a prominent college program. 4. Zack Tanenbaum High School: Blue Valley North Projected 2010-11 High School Weight Class: 135/140 Projected College Weight Class: 133/141 Analysis: Tanenbaum is a two-time state champion with a career record of 115-10. He also made the state finals as a freshman. He has made the Deans list every year at Blue Valley North High School and carries a 3.9 GPA. He was the 2010 Brute adidas Nationals champion and is a two-time Kansas Triple Crown winner. He is a multi-sport athlete, winning the 2007 Kansas State Judo championship as well as earning a varsity football letter in 2009. Tanenbaum has competed for the Schoolboy, Middle School, Cadet and Junior National Kansas dual teams and had seven freestyle/Greco-Roman wins this year at Fargo. He is the younger brother of current Division I wrestler Jake Tanenbaum of Cal Poly. 5. Jake Gentzler High School: Andover Central Projected 2010-11 High School Weight Class: 125/130 Projected College Weight Class: 125/133 Analysis: Gentzler is a two-time state champion and three-time finalist. He has a career record of 112-9. Along with being a three-time regional champion, he also has three league championships while being named Outstanding Wrestler at two regionals. On the national level, Gentzler is a Brute adidas Nationals champion in 2008 and two-time USAW Folkstyle Nationals placer. He carries a 3.25 GPA. 6. Spencer Blew High School: Lansing Projected 2010-11 High School Weight Class: 140 Projected College Weight Class: 141 Analysis: Spencer is a two-time state champion with a career record of 109-16. He is a phenomenal athlete that carried his Kids division domination into high school. He is a two-time Brute adidas All-American and is a multi-sport athlete, competing in varsity football, track and lacrosse. He is also a member of the National Society of High School Scholars. 7. Symon Seaton High School: Basehor-Linwood Projected 2010-11 High School Weight Class: 130 Projected College Weight Class: 133 Analysis: Seaton is a three-time state placer, bringing home a state title in 2010. Capping off a stellar junior season of 34-2, he competed with the Junior National Dual Team in OKC and was a Junior National Team member in Fargo. With a career record of 96-15, Seaton placed third as a freshman in a loaded 112 bracket. 8. Dylan Penka High School: Bishop Carroll Projected 2010-11 High School Weight Class: 171 Projected College Weight Class: 174 Analysis: Penka is a three-time state placer. He is a two-time USAW Folkstyle Nationals AA, placing third in 2009 and fifth in 2010. He has placed in every high school tournament that he has entered. Previous to his Cadet days, he won two Greco and two freestyle USAW national championships. Penka scored a 31 on his ACT and has received interest from coaches at the Division I level. He has many weapons to call on, but watch out for his headlock! It is a crowd pleaser. 9. Chase Sanchez High School: Emporia Projected 2010-11 High School Weight Class: 160/171 Projected College Weight Class: 157/165 Chase SanchezAnalysis: Sanchez is a two-time state placer for Emporia High School, contributing to the program's back-to-back Class 5A state championships. He is a multiple-time state freestyle and Greco-Roman champion, winning the Triple Crown in 2009. In 2009, Sanchez landed on the podium as a Fargo All-American in Greco. He won two more matches this year in the Junior Greco division, giving him 11 career Fargo wins. He was also a Cadet National Dual Team member both years and is a multi-sport athlete, playing strong safety on the football team. Sanchez carries a 3.25 GPA and wants to pursue a secondary education degree, planning to teach science as well as coaching wrestling or serving as an athletic director or principal. 10. Kyle Johnson High School: Columbus Projected 2010-11 High School Weight Class: 130 Projected College Weight Class: 125/133 Analysis: Johnson is a three-time state placer, making the finals each of his last two years. With 89 high school wins, he has had many memorable matches including a tough overtime loss to Moeder in the 2010 state finals. As a junior, his path to the state finals included wins over Seaton, as well as Fargo All-American Brandon Charbonneau. Johnson is also a three-year letter winner in Football and carries a 3.11 GPA. Honorable Mention: Troy Bainter (Norton) Tyler Baughman (Lansing) Cody Beasley (Wichita Campus) Mario Corado (Pittsburg) Colton Eck (Andale) Zach Hoehn (Wellsville) Trey Houlden (Goddard) Ethan Mumaw (Jefferson West) Dillon Salmans (Hoxie) Dillon Scanlon (Lansing)

Minneapolis -- The Minnesota wrestling team won six of the first seven matches tonight (Dec. 10) against Nebraska on their way to a 28-14 dual meet victory. Ranked sixth in the country entering the match, Minnesota (2-1) was coming off their first loss of the season last weekend. Facing another top-25 opponent in No. 12 Nebraska (4-2), Minnesota responded in a big way as five straight wins through the heart of the order sealed the win with three still left on the table. The match of the night came at heavyweight, where the Gophers No. 11 ranked Ben Berhow (Hayward, Minn.) met up with the Huskers No. 7 ranked Tucker Lane. The only match of the night to feature two ranked wrestlers lived up to the hype. Lane scored first and led most of the match, holding a 6-5 lead late in the third period. Trailing by one halfway through, Berhow was able to score a takedown for his first lead of the match at 7-6. Now long after, however, Lane escaped to tie the match at 7-7, which is where it would stay at the end of regulation. Working overtime for the second time this season against Lane, as well as the second straight match, Berhow was able to come out on top, scoring a takedown in the first overtime for the 9-7 win. With the decision, Berhow snapped a two-match losing skid, and tied the match at 6-6. His victory started a run of five straight for the Golden Gophers, that ended with Mario Mason (Moorestown, N.J.) earning a decision to seal the match. At 149, Mason's match began with the Gophers leading 22-6, with just three matches left after his. Mason and his opponent, Chris Hacker struggled through a scoreless first period, before Mason was able to get on the board with an escape in the second. In the low scoring match, Mason managed just two more points on a takedown, but it was all he needed as he only allowed one for the 3-1 win, running his season record to 7-0. With the score now at 25-6 with just three weights left, the match win was wrapped up for the Gophers. The stretch of 125, 133 and 141 worked out to 16-0 Gopher advantage, effectively putting the match out of reach. Zach Sanders (Wabasha, Minn.) broke a 6-6 tie and put the Gophers up for good at 11-6 with his 23-8 tech fall victory over David Klingsheim. Sanders improves to 7-0 with his second tech fall fof the season. At 133, Jayson Ness (Bloomington, Minn.) continued his dominance, improving to 10-0 while notching his 12th consecutive victory. In what has almost become a habit for Ness in his senior campaign, he dispelled his opponent the first period with a fall just 1:10 into the match. The win was the 127th of his career, moving him past former Gopher, and current assistant coach, Luke Becker for sole possession of 10th place all-time at Minnesota with 127 career wins. Mike Thorn (St. Michael, Minn.) blew the match open with his tech fall win at 141, extending his lead to 19-4 before the match was called in the third period. Thorn improved to 6-1 on the season, getting back in the win column after his first loss of the season last week. The Gophers last win came at 165, as Dustin Schlatter (Massillion, Ohio) scored his first victory of the season with an 8-4 win over James Nakashima. A pair of first period take downs were all Schlatter needed as he never trailed, adding insurance points at the match went on. The Gophers improve to 2-1 on the season, beating their highest ranked opponent since knocking off No. 5 ranked Ohio State last season on Feb. 21. Just a few days off and Minnesota is back on the mat, as they travel to Northern Colorado on Dec. 13 for a 3:00 p.m. dual. The Bears enter the match with an 0-5 record. Then it will be some well deserved off time for the Gophers as they get a break from competition until Dec. 29 and 30 when they are at the Southern Scuffle in Greensboro, N.C. Results: 184: No.18 Sonny Yohn (MINN) dec. Josh Ihnen (NU), 8-4 / 3-0 197: No.2 Craig Brester (NU) pin Joe Nord (MINN), 1:10 / 3-6 HWT: No.11 Ben Berhow (MINN) dec. No.7 Tucker Lane (NU), 9-7SV1 / 6-6 125: No.4 Zach Sanders (MINN) tech. David Klingsheim (NU), 6:23;23-8 / 11-6 133: No.2 Jayson Ness (MINN) pin Ridge Kiley (NU), 2:50 / 17-6 141: No.6 Mike Thorn (MINN) tech. Mike Koehnlein (NU), 6:48;19-4 / 22-6 149: No.9 Mario Mason (MINN) dec. Chris Hacker (NU), 3-1 / 25-6 157: No.1 Jordan Burroughs (NU) tech Joe Grygelko (MINN), 6:23;24-9 / 25-11 165: No.4 Dustin Schlatter (MINN dec. James Nakashima (NU), 8-4 / 28-11 174: No.3 Stephen Dwyer (NU) dec. Scott Glasser (MINN), 9-3 / 28-14

WEST POINT, NY-Rider won five of 10 bouts but a pair of major decisions by the two nationally ranked Broncs was the difference in a win against the Black Knights Thursday evening. "It was a very tight match that went back and forth all night long," said Rider head coach Gary Taylor. "Army is a good, solid team." Rider senior Ed Bordas (Montgomery, NY/Valley Central), ranked 18th in the nation, and sophomore Tyler Smith (Phillipsburg, N.J./Belvidere), ranked 19th in the nation, won my major decisions to give Rider the come-from-behind victory. "The majors helped, big time," Taylor said, "the two big guys coming through." Smith improves to 12-6 with the victory. "Tyler has his confidence up," Taylor said. "He is wrestling like the kid we recruited. We knew he was capable of this. He has a lot of ways to hurt you, to score various points. And he always has the capability to pin you as well." Red-shirt freshman Zac Cibula (Luxenburg, Wis./Casco) was trailing before winning 9-5 to cut the Army (0-2) lead to 16-14, and junior Rob Morrison (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cedar Cliff) won the final bout for the victory. "Zac and Robbie both had a nice finish," Taylor said. "Zac was trailing with 18 seconds left and took the kid down and put him to his back. If he doesn't win that one it wouldn't matter what Robbie did. They both finished the match out." Cibula, who was in the same weight class as two-time national qualifier Michael Kessler (Randallstown, MD/Owings Mills) last year, red-shirted his first year at Rider and is 8-5 this season. "Zac is doing very well this year," Taylor said. "He's a very competitive kid. He really hates to lose and he wrestles hard." Cibula was a four-time Wisconsin State Champion at Luxenburg High School, where he compiled a 195-11 record. "He won a lot in high school and now he's winning a lot in college right now," Taylor said. "I'm very pleased with the way he is wrestling. He works hard and wrestles hard and is very coachable." Kessler, who moved down a weight this year, lost to Army's Matt Kyler, an All-American two years ago who is currently ranked 10th in the nation. Junior Ilyass Elmsaouri (Camp Hill, PA/Cedar Cliff) also won to give Rider (3-3) an 11-6 lead. "Ilyass pulled out a match which really helped us," Taylor said. Rider freshman Jim Resnick (Media, Pa./Penncrest) lost the opening bout 7-6. "I feel bad for Jimmy," Taylor said. "He out-wrestled the kid for five minutes and had him beat but got turned in the third period and couldn't get out of it. But he's showing a lot of improvement. By the end of this year he is going to be very good." The Broncs are now off until the prestigious Midlands Tournament December 29-30. Results: 174: Ryan Mergen (A) dec. Jim Resnick, 7-6 0-3 184: Colin Wittmeyer (A) dec. Joe Ferber, 5-1 0-6 197: #19 Tyler Smith (R) major dec. Casey Hedash, 13-3 4-6 285: Ed Bordas (R) major dec. Alan Lutterman, 10-2 8-6 125: Ilyass Elmsaouri (R) dec. Lance Penhale, 2-1 11-6 133: Jordan Thome (A) dec. Jimmy Kirchner, 8-5 11-9 141: Casey Thome (A) major dec. Aaron Nestor, 15-2 11-13 149: #10 Matt Kyler (A) dec. Michael Kessler, 10-3 11-16 157: Zac Cibula (R) dec. Rudy Chelednik, 9-5 14-16 165: Rob Morrison (R) dec. Eric Gobin, 2-0 17-16

IOWA CITY, IA -- The top-ranked University of Iowa wrestling team (9-0) recorded six pins and three major decisions en route to a 48-3 win over Northern Iowa (3-4) Thursday night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The 45-point victory margin is Iowa's largest in the 79-year series, and the win was Iowa Head Coach Tom Brands' 85th career victory. "That was a team that was focused on tonight, focused on what they needed to do," said Brands. "It was a good step for us. That doesn't mean it will be automatic next time, but I have to give those guys credit. The win was lopsided, but that's what it needs to be - that's what it's about. For the most part, our guys can feel good about tonight's performance, but we can definitely build on this." The Hawkeyes, who picked up their 47th straight dual win and 20th consecutive victory in Carver-Hawkeye Arena, collected 29 takedowns on the evening, allowing just one for the Panthers. It was the third time this season that Iowa pinned six opponents in a dual, duplicating their efforts against Iowa Lakes and Southern Illinois Edwardsville at the Iowa City Duals on Nov. 20. Iowa decked seven opponents that day against Cornell College. Hawkeye redshirt freshmen Matt McDonough (125) and Nate Moore (133), sophomore Montell Marion (141) and senior Brent Metcalf (149) gave the Hawkeyes a convincing 24-0 lead with their pins. McDonough had a 9-2 lead before sticking Caleb Flores in 4:38 to improve to 9-0 on the season. Moore, who was filling in for senior starter Daniel Dennis, made the most of his dual meet debut by scoring a first-period pin over Ryan Jauch in 2:42. Marion, who was also making his first dual appearance in a Hawkeye singlet, built a 6-2 lead over Trent Washington before decking him in 3:28. Metcalf had a 14-2 lead over Trevor Kittleson before recording the fall in 3:49 and improving to 9-0. The Hawkeye senior 149-pounder has seven pins this season and 38 in his career. He only needs two more to break into Iowa's top 10 career pins list. Junior Aaron Janssen took Iowa into the intermission with an 11-1 major decision over Tyson Reiner at 157. It was Janssen's 15th career win and his first major decision of the season. Seniors Ryan Morningstar (165) and Jay Borschel (174) got the Hawkeye fans back on their feet with second-period pins, giving Iowa a 40-0 lead. Morningstar led 1-0 going into the third period before recording the fall over David Bonin in 5:32. Borschel, who is 9-0 on the season, had a 5-0 lead over Jarion Beets before recording the pin in 4:44 to pick up his 70th career win. Major decisions from seniors Phillip Keddy (184) and Chad Beatty (197) built the Hawkeye lead to 48-0. Keddy recorded the most takedowns of the night (6) in his 14-5 win over Andy O'Loughlin, while Beatty tallied five takedowns in his 15-5 victory over Dustin Bauman. Northern Iowa's Christian Brantley recorded the Panther's only win and takedown of the night, scoring a 3-2 decision over Hawkeye sophomore Blake Rasing at heavyweight to end the dual. Up next for Iowa is a trip to the 46th annual Midlands Championships, which will be held Dec. 29-30 in Evanston, IL. The Hawkeyes are the defending team champions and have won the most team titles (20) in the 46-year history of the meet. All matches will be held at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Northwestern University's campus. Results: 125 - Matt McDonough (I) pinned Caleb Flores (UNI), 4:38 133 - Nate Moore (I) pinned Ryan Jauch (UNI), 2:42 141 - Montell Marion (I) pinned Trent Washington (UNI), 3:28 149 - Brent Metcalf (I) pinned Trevor Kittleson (UNI), 3:49 157 - Aaron Janssen (I) maj. dec. Tyson Reiner (UNI), 11-1 165 - Ryan Morningstar (I) pinned David Bonin (UNI), 5:32 174 - Jay Borschel (I) pinned Jarion Beets (UNI), 4:44 184 - Phillip Keddy (I) maj. dec. Andy O'Loughlin (UNI), 14-5 197 - Chad Beatty(I) maj. dec. Dustin Bauman (UNI), 15-5 Hwt. - Christian Brantley (UNI) dec. Blake Rasing (I), 3-2

Mo Lawal

Mark Perry

Georges St. Pierre

Philadelphia, PA -- All-session passes for the 2011 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia will go on sale Thursday, March 18, 2010. The championships are scheduled for March 17-19, 2011. Lower bowl all-session tickets, which cover all six sessions, will be priced at $165. Tickets in the center sections of the upper bowl will be available for $150, while upper bowl end zone seats will sell for $135. Tickets can be purchased at the Wachovia Center box office, online at www.comcasttix.com, or by phone at 866/298-4200. The Wachovia Center’s capacity for wrestling is 17,366. The NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships’ three-day, six-session attendance record is 97,336, set in St. Louis in 2009. "The MAAC is excited to again be hosting the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships with Rider University. It is an honor to be able to bring college wrestling to Philadelphia and have all its fans in the east be able to easily access tickets,” said MAAC Commissioner Richard J. Ensor. “Philadelphia is a special host city with all its historical sites and other attractions, but especially so because of its great sports fans, who we hope will come out and attend the championship.” "Rider University has a strong tradition in wrestling, and we are extremely proud and excited to be the host institution for the 2011 NCAA Wrestling Championships in Philadelphia” Don Harnum, Director of Athletics at Rider, said. “We anticipate this prestigious championship to be a tough ticket, and I would strongly encourage all local wresting fans to purchase tickets as early as possible." The MAAC and Rider University previously co-hosted the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships at the Pepsi Arena in Albany, New York in 2002. The two parties have also worked together to host the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship at Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton, New Jersey. The MAAC and Rider hosted one of the first- and second-round sites in 2006 and the 2009 Trenton Regional. The Philadelphia region has a proud wrestling history, having hosted the first collegiate tournament in 1905. Since 1928, Pennsylvania and New Jersey have combined to host 13 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. This history has helped the sport grow at all age levels in the region. Pennsylvania and New Jersey are both ranked in the top-10 in the nation in total high school participation and in total number of collegiate programs. The official logo for the 2011 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships was also unveiled today. It was developed by the NCAA. For more information on the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, visit www.ncaa.com/wrestling.

SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- The Citadel sophomore Odie Delaney has been selected as the Southern Conference Wrestler of the Week for all competition from December 2-8. Wrestling in the 197-pound weight class, Delaney was 6-2 for the week with both of his losses coming against nationally-ranked competition. After falling to Erik Schuth of Ohio, Delaney rebounded by pinning Cleveland State’s Jeff Schuller. At the Penn State Open, Delaney went 5-1, winning all five matches by virtue of the pin on his way to a fifth place finish. On the season, Delaney is 15-3 overall and 2-1 in dual matches, including one major decision and 12 pins. The 12 pins is tied for first nationally among all weight classes and all divisions for the 2009-10 season. 2009-10 Southern Conference Wrestlers of the Week Dec. 2 Jake Young, Chattanooga Dec. 9 Odie Delaney, The Citadel

Bridgewater, Mass. - The 25th ranked Johnson & Wales University wrestling team posted a 22-19 victory against Bridgewater State in a Pilgrim League contest at the Kelly Gymnasium on Wednesday evening. Johnson & Wales erased a 19-9 deficit by winning the final three bouts of the night capped off by an 8-1 win by freshman Humphrey Swift (Danbury, Conn.) in the heavyweight class. Junior Brennan Ward (Waterford, Conn.) got the rally started with a pin at 184 to cut the deficit to 19-15. Senior Patrick McCrohan (Berkley, Mass.) then posted a 3-2 decision at 197 pounds to pull the Wildcats to within a point at 19-18 and set the stage for Swift's match-ending victory. Johnson and Wales jumped out to a 9-3 lead as a Brian Conley (Egg Harbor Twp, N.J.) pin at 125 in a time of 3:52 and a John Donaleski (Bellville, N.J.) 12-10 victory at 141 pounds gave the Wildcats the early advantage. Bridgewater State then won four straight bouts with freshman Sean Fields (Norwalk, Conn.) posting a 13-5 major decision win at 149. Senior 157-pounder Frank Cammisa (Danbury, Conn) followed with an 8-2 decision to give BSC a 10-9 lead. A 9-3 decision by junior Ethan Raymond (Middlebury, Vt.) and a pin by junior 174-pounder Zachary Bates (Leyden, Mass.) increased the Bears' advantage to 19-9. Swift then recorded the 8-1 major decision to propel JWU to the 22-19 win. With the win Johnson & Wales improves to 3-1 overall and 2-0 in the Pilgrim League while Bridgewater State is now 0-1 overall, 0-1 in league matches. The Wildcats will compete in a quad match at WPI on Sunday at noon. Results: 125 Brian Conley (JWU) WBF Dan Palmer (BSC) 3:52 6-0 133 Ken Francis (BSC) def. James Soprano (JWU) 7-1 6-3 141 John Donaleski (JWU) def. Derek Grant (BSC) 12-10 9-3 149 Sean Fields (BSC) def. Michael Bove (JWU) 13-5 9-7 157 Frank Cammissa (BSC)def. Anthony Pierro (JWU) 8-2 9-10 165 Ethan Raymond (BSC) def. Alex Shea (JWU) 9-3 9-13 174 Zachary Bates (BSC) WBF Colin Lenhardt (JWU) 3:19 9-19 184 Brennan Ward (JWU) WBF Michael Aiken (BSC) 6:07 15-19 197 Patrick McCrohan (JWU) def. Greg Tanny (BSC) 3-2 18-19 285 Humphrey Swift (JWU) def. Sam Fritz (BSC) 8-1 22-19

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Notre Dame College (Ohio) remained at No. 1 in the second edition of the NAIA Wrestling Coaches' Top 20 Poll, the NAIA announced Tuesday. The Falcons earned 101 points with 10 wrestlers listed among the top-12 individuals in their respective weight class. California Baptist moves to No. 2 with 85.5 points and are followed by No. 3 Missouri Valley with 84 points, No. 4 Great Falls (Mont.) with 82.5 points and Southern Oregon at No. 5 with 78 points. Notre Dame boasts a ranked wrestler in every weight class except 133 pounds and heavyweight. A pair of Falcon grapplers are ranked at the top of their weight class, with Adam Koballa headlining 141 pounds and Thomas Straughn topping 157 pounds. At 125, Tyler Savage and Dante Rini are listed second and third, respectively. Jeffrey Pelton is the other Falcon grappler ranked among the top three, coming in third at 149 pounds. Second-ranked California Baptist has eight individuals ranked, including the No. 1 at 174 pounds and the No. 2 heavyweight. Enock Francois tops the 174 pounders and heavyweight Joshua Marquez is listed second. Like Notre Dame, the Lancers have a pair of wrestlers ranked in the same weight with Christopher Knowland joining Francois at 174. McKendree, ranked sixth in the team standings, sports a pair of No. 1s with 165-pounder Aaron Winning and Andrew Sanchez at 197 pounds. Other schools with top-ranked grapplers include No. 5 Southern Oregon’s Mitchell Lofstedt (125), Cameron Ream of No. 8 Oklahoma City (133), No. 7 Grand View’s (Iowa) Matt Burns (149), Michael French of No. 4 Great Falls and No. 10 Cumberland’s (Tenn.) Byron Stewart (HWT). The poll was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the groupings. The next poll will be announced on Dec. 22. Team Rankings: Rank School Name Total Team Points 1 Notre Dame (Ohio) 101 2 California Baptist (Calif.) 85.5 3 Missouri Valley (Mo.) 84 4 Great Falls (Mont.) 82.5 5 Southern Oregon (Ore.) 78 6 McKendree (Ill.) 77 7 Grand View (Iowa) 63 8 Oklahoma City (Okla.) 56 8 Lindenwood (Mo.) 56 10 Cumberland (Tenn.) 37.5 11 Campbellsville (Ky.) 31.5 12 Dana (Neb.) 30 13 Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) 29.5 14 Dickinson State (N.D.) 29 15 Montana State-Northern (Mont.) 27.5 16 Missouri Baptist (Mo.) 26 17 Jamestown (N.D.) 20.5 18 Northwestern (Iowa) 19 19 Morningside (Iowa) 15 20 Simon Fraser (B.C.) 13.5 20 Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) 13.5 Others receiving votes: Waldorf (Iowa) 10; Hastings College (Neb.) 7.5; Menlo (Calif.) 6.5; Cumberlands (Ky.) 2.5; Baker (Kan.) 2; William Penn (Iowa) 2. Individual Rankings: Wt Rank Total Points First Name Last Name School Group 125 1 80 Mitchell Lofstedt Southern Oregon (Ore.) West Group 125 2 64 Tyler Savage Notre Dame (Ohio) East Group 125 3 49.5 Dante Rini Notre Dame (Ohio) East Group 125 4 43 Angel Olea Dickinson State (N.D.) North Group 125 5 42.5 Chauncey Philipps California Baptist (Calif.) West Group 125 6 27 Paul Hansen Missouri Valley (Mo.) Central Group 125 7 26.5 Zach Muery Missouri Baptist (Mo.) East Group 125 8 19.5 Clayden McKim Dana (Neb.) North Group 125 9 17.5 Jason Moorhouse Menlo (Calif.) West Group 125 10 10 Kidd Gomaz Oklahoma City (Okla.) Central Group 125 11 8 Akmal Adilov Great Falls (Mont.) West Group 125 12 4.5 Sean Blumhardt Jamestown (N.D.) North Group 133 1 72 Cameron Ream Oklahoma City (Okla.) Central Group 133 2 65.5 Wade Lowe McKendree (Ill.) East Group 133 3 57.5 Ryan Luu Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) West Group 133 4 53 Tommy Pretty Campbellsville (Ky.) East Group 133 5 35.5 Joseph Michel Jamestown (N.D.) North Group 133 6 34.5 Anton Prater Missouri Baptist (Mo.) East Group 133 7 24.5 Robert Costa Dana (Neb.) North Group 133 8 17 John Rojas California Baptist (Calif.) West Group 133 9 15 Gary Brooks Missouri Baptist (Mo.) East Group 133 9 15 Travis Evans Grand View (Iowa) Central Group 133 11 5.5 Joshua Chang Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) West Group 133 12 2 Eric Garcia Menlo (Calif.) West Group 133 12 2 Jesse Knott Missouri Valley (Mo.) Central Group 141 1 80 Adam Koballa Notre Dame (Ohio) East Group 141 2 57 Michael Davis Cumberland (Tenn.) East Group 141 3 56.5 Drew Smith Morningside (Iowa) North Group 141 4 45 Jordan Harer Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) North Group 141 5 39 Ian Millan California Baptist (Calif.) West Group 141 6 37 Eric Graham Missouri Valley (Mo.) Central Group 141 7 33.5 Mitchell Newcomer Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) West Group 141 8 24 Barry Johnson Southern Oregon (Ore.) West Group 141 9 9.5 Adam Manz Dana (Neb.) North Group 141 10 6 Nick Coffman Grand View (Iowa) Central Group 141 10 6 Christian Martinez Menlo (Calif.) West Group 141 12 4.5 Jeff Steele Cumberlands (Ky.) East Group 149 1 80 Matt Burns Grand View (Iowa) Central Group 149 2 64 Samuel Schmitz Lindenwood (Mo.) East Group 149 3 54 Jeffrey Pelton Notre Dame (Ohio) East Group 149 4 50 Byron Kuylen Great Falls (Mont.) West Group 149 5 35.5 Brian Graham Missouri Valley (Mo.) Central Group 149 6 31.5 Benjamin Garcia California Baptist (Calif.) West Group 149 7 24.5 Ryan Jahn McKendree (Ill.) East Group 149 8 23 Levi Price Northwestern (Iowa) North Group 149 9 14 Ashtin Primus Notre Dame (Ohio) East Group 149 10 10.5 Andrew Carrillo Dana (Neb.) North Group 149 11 6 Trace Billet Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) West Group 149 12 3 Danny Hutcheson Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) North Group 157 1 80 Thomas Straughn Notre Dame (Ohio) East Group 157 2 64 Nikolas Turner Oklahoma City (Okla.) Central Group 157 3 53 Tommie Norton/Hooper Southern Oregon (Ore.) West Group 157 4 51 Joseph Cornejo Missouri Valley (Mo.) Central Group 157 5 38 Ross Mosher Great Falls (Mont.) West Group 157 5 38 Ryan Tuzon Dana (Neb.) North Group 157 7 19.5 Tyler Chang Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) West Group 157 8 19 Brian Oeschner Lindenwood (Mo.) East Group 157 9 13 Jose Serrato Dickinson State (N.D.) North Group 157 10 12.5 Josh Swanson William Penn (Iowa) Central Group 157 11 6 James Casadaban Cumberland (Tenn.) East Group 157 12 3.5 Josh Emmett Menlo (Calif.) West Group 165 1 80 Aaron Winning McKendree (Ill.) East Group 165 2 64 Brad Lower Grand View (Iowa) Central Group 165 3 54 John Murray Lindenwood (Mo.) East Group 165 4 50 Lamar Reed California Baptist (Calif.) West Group 165 5 40 Chris Chionuma Lindenwood (Mo.) East Group 165 6 31 David Dwyer McKendree (Ill.) East Group 165 7 23 James Linker Campbellsville (Ky.) East Group 165 8 14 Noah Hatton Great Falls (Mont.) West Group 165 8 14 Mark Meyer Oklahoma City (Okla.) Central Group 165 10 12.5 Pat Nord Jamestown (N.D.) North Group 165 11 8 Kevin Hardy Notre Dame (Ohio) East Group 165 12 4 Ty Knowler Grand View (Iowa) Central Group 174 1 80 Enock Francois California Baptist (Calif.) West Group 174 2 64 Brendon DeCock Great Falls (Mont.) West Group 174 3 54 Preston McKinney Missouri Valley (Mo.) Central Group 174 4 47.5 Glenn Rhees Grand View (Iowa) Central Group 174 5 35.5 Austin Vanderford Southern Oregon (Ore.) West Group 174 6 30 Austin Ouellette Montana State-Northern (Mont.) West Group 174 7 21.5 Kurt Wolff Notre Dame (Ohio) East Group 174 8 18.5 Jameon Rush Hastings College (Neb.) North Group 174 9 17.5 Christopher Knowland California Baptist (Calif.) West Group 174 10 12 Clarence Jordan Baker (Kan.) Central Group 174 11 10.5 Damion Stephenson Cumberlands (Ky.) East Group 174 12 6 Anthony Clay Jamestown (N.D.) North Group 184 1 80 Michael French Great Falls (Mont.) West Group 184 2 64 Evan Hinebaugh Montana State-Northern (Mont.) West Group 184 3 52 Clete Hanson Simon Fraser (B.C.) West Group 184 4 46 Spencer Adams Campbellsville (Ky.) East Group 184 5 40.5 Jesse Alter Missouri Valley (Mo.) Central Group 184 6 34.5 Chris Platt Southern Oregon (Ore.) West Group 184 7 28.5 Chad Williams Missouri Valley (Mo.) Central Group 184 8 19 Jacob Oberfoell Missouri Baptist (Mo.) East Group 184 9 17.5 Mark Peiffer Dana (Neb.) North Group 184 10 8 Alex Denman Notre Dame (Ohio) East Group 184 11 5.5 Brian Block Morningside (Iowa) North Group 184 12 4.5 Thomas Tuck Lindenwood (Mo.) East Group 197 1 80 Andrew Sanchez McKendree (Ill.) East Group 197 2 60.5 Alex Calvi Great Falls (Mont.) West Group 197 3 56.5 Nicholas Leither Northwestern (Iowa) North Group 197 4 47.5 Jake Kallestad Dickinson State (N.D.) North Group 197 5 42.5 Jeff Roman Waldorf (Iowa) Central Group 197 6 37 Justin Rau Grand View (Iowa) Central Group 197 7 24 Ronald Lee Southern Oregon (Ore.) West Group 197 8 14.5 Derek Foore Notre Dame (Ohio) East Group 197 9 13 Evan Mattingly Montana State-Northern (Mont.) West Group 197 10 11.5 Brandon Hudiburgh Hastings College (Neb.) North Group 197 11 5.5 Charlie Gibbs Missouri Valley (Mo.) Central Group 197 12 3.5 Scott Lucas Great Falls (Mont.) West Group 285 1 76 Byron Stewart Cumberland (Tenn.) East Group 285 2 68 Joshua Marquez California Baptist (Calif.) West Group 285 3 54 John Bates Southern Oregon (Ore.) West Group 285 4 43 Corey Johnson Oklahoma City (Okla.) Central Group 285 5 38 Willie Wiggins Lindenwood (Mo.) East Group 285 6 31.5 Travis Ewart Missouri Valley (Mo.) Central Group 285 7 30 Willie Hernandez Jamestown (N.D.) North Group 285 8 27.5 Cedric Powell McKendree (Ill.) East Group 285 9 12.5 Michael Wakim Missouri Baptist (Mo.) East Group 285 10 6 Michael Johnson Missouri Valley (Mo.) Central Group 285 11 5.5 Frank Lopez Dickinson State (N.D.) North Group 285 12 3.5 Jonathan Wilbourne Dana (Neb.)

Dan Henderson

The 16th edition of the Walsh Ironman yet again features a star studded field. Six wrestlers ranked number preseason number one in their weight class are scheduled to compete. In addition, two other No. 1- ranked wrestlers are out due to injury, while another top ranked wrestler is competing but up one weight class (at 112, ranked first at 103). What: The 16th Walsh Ironman Where: Walsh Jesuit High School -- Cuyahoga Falls, OH When: Friday 12-11-09 and Saturday 12-12-09 Schedule: Preliminary rounds (up to the quarterfinals) start at 1:00 p.m. ET on Friday afternoon; Saturday morning wrestling starts at 10:00 AM with the quarterfinals, the semifinals will follow, as will all consolation matches including those for seventh place; matches for first, third, and fifth will be wrestled Saturday evening starting at 6:30 p.m. Tournament Web site: http://www.walshironman.com Special Honoree: Harry Lester will be honored as the Ironman Legacy Award winner this year. Lester, while wrestling at CVCA was a three-time Ironman champion and four-time Ohio state champion. Since then, he has won multiple World Championship medals in Greco-Roman for the United States. InterMat Coverage: InterMat will be providing live blog coverage of all three sessions, available from the InterMat home page. In addition, a wrap-up will be provided on Friday night, with a finals game story to be published on Sunday. 103: Nationally-Ranked Wrestlers: No. 9 Ryan Taylor (Graham, OH); No. 11 Kevon Powell (Montini Catholic, IL); No. 15 Max Hvolbeck (Blair Academy, NJ); No. 16 Dean Heil (St. Edward, OH); and No. 17 Nathan Tomasello (CVCA, OH). Commentary: This opening weight class is unlike ones from previous years where the field was talent-laden with multiple elite level wrestlers that were proven commodities. Based on the preliminary seedings, the two highest ranked wrestlers would meet in a Saturday morning quarterfinal; Taylor is seeded ninth, while Powell is the tournament's top seed. Awaiting the winner of that match would likely be the freshman Heil, a finalist in the three major Roller World of Wrestling tournaments last season. The other side of the draw includes Hvolbeck, Tomasello, and George DiCamillo (St. Ignatius, OH). DiCamillo placed last year at the Walsh Ironman, and finished third in the Super 32 this past fall. DiCamillo vs. Tomasello would be the quarterfinal with Hvolbeck awaiting the winner in the semifinal. Friday Match to Watch: Taylor vs. Cody Stainbrook (Streetsboro, OH). This could be a preview of the medium-school division state final in Ohio this coming season. Predicting a Finals Match: Taylor (Graham) over Hvolbeck (Blair Academy) 112: Nationally-Ranked Wrestlers: No. 1 Evan Silver (Blair Academy, NJ); No. 3 Jimmy Gulibon (Derry Area, PA); No. 4 Alex Cisneros (Selma, CA); No. 13 Dominick Malone (Wyoming Seminary, PA); No. 1 (at 103) Joey Dance (Christiansburg, VA); and No. 13 (at 103) Daniel Gayton (Clovis, CA). Commentary: The bracket in this weight class happens to be relatively balanced between halves and quarters. After losing a very close semifinal bout to Hunter Stieber in this weight class last year, the top-ranked Silver is favored to win his first Ironman title. However, reaching the final could be a challenge, as one of the Keystone State's finest -- Gulibon -- is the likely semifinal opponent; though Gulibon would have to get past a projected quarterfinal against fellow state champion Ryan Brooks (Marlow, OK). The bottom half of the draw is led by another one of the nation's best sophomores, a state champion from the Golden State -- Cisneros. His road to the final involves likely matches against Dance and Malone, a pair of Cadet National freestyle All-Americans. Unseeded Wrestler to Watch: Dean O'Bourke (Calvary Chapel, CA). Friday Match to Watch: Dance vs. Stephen Myers (Moeller, OH). This is a battle of freshmen who were Cadet National freestyle All-Americans during the summer and are proven in Roller World of Wrestling events. Predicting a Finals Match: Silver (Blair Academy) over Cisneros (Selma) 119: Nationally-Ranked Wrestlers: No. 2 Hunter Stieber (Monroeville, OH); No. 2 (at 112) Jerome Robinson (St. Ignatius, OH); No. 3 Ty Mitch (Aurora, OH); No. 8 Kagan Squire (Wadsworth, OH); No. 11 Mark Grey (Blair Academy, NJ); and No. 14 Nick Brascetta (Graham, OH). Commentary: Two of the sport's clichés hold true here -- styles make matches, and draws make tournaments. There is a group of seven wrestlers, the six that are nationally ranked and Mason Beckman (Reynolds, PA) that are a cut above the field. Based on past histories, the favorite would have to be Stieber. Based on the bracket, it is very likely that one of the semifinals will place Stieber against two-time state champion and Junior National freestyle champion Mitch. While a Mitch vs. Brascetta quarterfinal is a battle of nationally ranked wrestlers, it is one that Mitch should win. In fact, when these two met in the 2008 state semifinal at 103 pounds, Mitch won 14-7. Saturday morning in the bottom half of the bracket is going to be full of fireworks. Starting with projected quarterfinal bouts placing Robinson against Beckman and Squire against Grey. While Robinson would be considered a pre-match favorite against Beckman; should Beckman be able to get the match onto the mat, it would be big-time advantage to Beckman. Squire and Grey are two of the nation's finest sophomores, and Grey is my pick to pull off an upset based on the rankings. Friday Match to Watch: Mitch v Greg Flourony (Fauquier, VA). Flournoy placed 8th at the very tough 119 pound weight class at the recent Super 32. Predicting a Finals Match: H. Stieber (Monroeville) over Robinson (St. Ignatius) 125: Nationally-Ranked Wrestlers: No. 1 Logan Stieber (Monroeville, OH); No. 2 Devin Carter (Christiansburg, VA); No. 5 (at 119) Jesse Delgado (Gilroy, CA); and No. 15 Gus Sako (St. Edward, OH). Commentary: With many viewing Logan Stieber as the best wrestler in America, there comes a prevailing notion that he is some sort of untouchable. However, there is a wrestler in this weight class that has improved leaps and bounds in the last fifteen months and could bust that paradigm. The wrestler being discussed is Devin Carter, who won the Ironman at 112 last year with an 8-4 victory over the younger Stieber (Hunter). Carter bookended this championship with Super 32 titles, and also was a Junior National freestyle runner-up this past summer. That being said, Carter does not exactly have smooth sailing to a match with Stieber on Saturday night. Standing in the way is Delgado, a California state champion and two-time Cadet National freestyle All-American, in what is likely to be a semifinal bout. Looking through Stieber's half of the bracket, it is likely to be a semifinal date against a two-time Ohio state finalist -- either Sako or Johnni DiJulius (Walsh Jesuit, OH). DiJulius beat Sako two times in 2007-08, while Sako has the Fargo AA to his credit. Unseeded Wrestler to Watch: State qualifier Matt Rappo (Council Rock South, PA). Friday Match to Watch: Sako vs. Chase Ferman (Broken Arrow, OK). Ferman is a very funky wrestler who placed seventh in last year's Ironman. Predicting a Finals Match: L. Stieber (Monroeville) over Carter (Christiansburg) 130: Nationally-Ranked Wrestlers: No. 1 Jamie Clark (St. Edward, OH); No. 13 Colton Rasche (Montini Catholic, IL); and No. 16 (at 125) Tyler Rauenzahn (Blue Mountain, PA. Commentary: Clark is favored to repeat as Ironman champion, and should not be truly challenged along the way. His path is likely to include a quarterfinal against either Garrison or Skonieczny, and a semifinal bout against Penn State verbal commit Frank Martelotti (Shady Side Academy, PA). Martelotti was third at state the last two years after winning the title as a freshman. The bottom half of the draw includes nationally ranked wrestlers Rauenzahn and Rasche as the sixth and seventh seeds respectively. Nick Lawrence (Westlake, OH) is a two-time state finalist in the big-school division, and the second seed. Cody Pack (Quincy, CA) had great Fargo success early in his career but has failed to place at state the last two years, partly due to injury. Unseeded Wrestlers to Watch: Todd Preston (Blair Academy, NJ) and Eric Morris (Wyoming Seminary, PA). These two unseeded wrestlers, who have the potential to make a dent into placement positions, could play a key role in the team race this year -- be it sealing the deal yet again for Blair or putting Wyoming Seminary into the lead group conversation. Friday Matches to Watch: Rauenzahn v Brent Fickel (Padua, OH) and Case Garrison (Bishop Lynch, TX) vs. Nate Skonieczny (Walsh Jesuit, OH). Fickel was an Ironman quarterfinalist last year as a freshman. Garrison placed in the Ironman as a freshman, while Skonieczny was a state runner-up. Predicting a Finals Match: Clark (St. Edward) over Rauenzahn (Blue Mountain) 135: Nationally-Ranked Wrestlers: No. 2 Felipe Martinez (Graham, OH); No. 3 Austin Ormsbee (Blair Academy, NJ); No. 5 Cam Tessari (Monroeville, OH); No. 7 Simon Kitzis (Wyoming Seminary, PA); No. 12 Luke Goettl (Mingus, AZ); No. 14 Shawn Fayette (Miamisburg, OH); and No. 10 (at 130) Nick Pena (Selma, CA). Notable: No. 1 Josh Dziewa (Council Rock South, PA) is a scratch due to injury. Commentary: Despite the absence of the nation's top-ranked wrestler at this weight, this field is absolutely loaded with talent. In fact, there will be many very talented wrestlers not going to place in this weight bracket. However, the four wrestlers ranked inside the top seven of this weight class are the ones that stand a cut above, and should be in the semifinals on Saturday afternoon. The bottom bracket semifinal between Martinez and Ormsbee could be crucial in the team battle, and is arguably a de facto final of sorts. In order to make that semifinal, Martinez is most likely going to have to beat fellow state champion Fayette -- a wrestler that he beat 3-2 at the GMVWA tournament last year. Ormsbee would have the Rich v Dailley winner in his quarterfinal. In the top bracket, Tessari is likely to advance to the semifinal through a quarterfinal bout against fellow junior Pena, who has placed in single-class California during his first two years of high school. The other quarterfinal would place Kitzis against Goettl. While Goettl has had great success in Fargo, his performance in folkstyle at Ironman and Reno last year was somewhat disappointing. The Junior National freestyle All-American and Beast of the East champion is my pick to win that bout. Unseeded Wrestlers to Watch: Freshmen sensations Zach Epperly (Christiansburg, VA) and Austin Matthews (Reynolds, PA). Friday Match to Watch: Jordan Rich (Central Mountain, PA) vs. Zach Dailley (Massillon Perry, OH). Rich placed last year at the Ironman, fourth at state the last two years, and was one match away from placement honors in Fargo (JN FS) and at the Super 32. However, Dailley beat Rich almost two months ago at the preseason Lock Haven Open. Predicting a Finals Match: Martinez (Graham) over Tessari (Monroeville) 140: Nationally-Ranked Wrestlers: No. 2 (at 145) Chris Villalonga (Blair Academy, NJ); No. 17 (at 135) Stephen Robertson (Montini Catholic, IL); and No. 18 (at 135) Caleb Ervin (Union County, KY). Notable: No. 1 Josh Kindig (Blue Mountain, PA) is a scratch due to injury. Commentary: With Kindig out of this weight class, things are very clear for Villalonga to become a three-time Ironman champion. Of interest will be the bracket matches not involving Villalonga, as there is incredible balance in this weight -- do "eenie, meenie, minie, mo" to pick the matches in this bracket, and pay very close attention to the happenings on Friday and in all rounds of this bracket. Unseeded Wrestlers to Watch: State qualifiers Connor Dempsey (Westlake, OH) and Matt Van Curen (St. Edward, OH). Friday Matches to Watch: Robertson vs. Matt Martoccio (Council Rock South, PA); Travis Shaffer (Derry Area, PA) vs. Nate Ball (Wadsworth, OH); Evan Henderson (Kiski Prep, PA) vs. Isaac Jordan (Graham, OH); and Ian Miller (Oak Harbor, OH) vs. Brian Brill (Central Mountain, PA). Predicting a Finals Match: Villalonga (Blair Academy) over Shaffer (Derry Area) 145: Nationally-Ranked Wrestlers: No. 1 Andrew Alton (Central Mountain, PA); No. 10 Cody Rodebaugh (San Lorenzo Valley, CA); and No. 15 Anthony Salupo (St. Edward, OH). Commentary: Unlike 140, this weight is not very deep overall. However, also unlike 140, this weight is relatively strong at the top. The top half of this draw will be dominated by defending champion Andrew Alton, who happens to be the strong favorite for a repeat title. However, in the bottom half of the draw is three relatively similar wrestlers in terms of ability. Rodebaugh is a defending state champion and All-American at the NHSCA Junior Nationals. The very talented Salupo was a disappointing third at state, and sixth at NHSCA Junior Nationals. Brad Squire (Wadsworth, OH) was state champion as a freshman and Ironman champion as a sophomore, but has fallen short of hopes in the last 1-1/2 seasons -- losing a state final in 2008 and spending 2008-09 battling around injuries. Squire is the two seed and likely to face the Rodebaugh vs. Salupo quarterfinal winner in a semifinal. As a note of interest, Rodebaugh pinned Salupo in a consolation semifinal at NHSCA Junior Nationals. In the top half, look for a semifinal involving Alton against Matt Stephens (Graham, OH). Predicting a Finals Match: A. Alton (Central Mountain) over Rodebaugh (San Lorenzo Valley) 152: Nationally-Ranked Wrestlers: No. 1 Dylan Alton (Central Mountain, PA); No. 3 Brandon Rolnick (Lawrenceville, NJ); No. 5 (at 145) Steven Hernandez (Bishop Gorman, NV); No. 9 David Habat (St. Ignatius, OH); No. 7 (at 160) Jason Luster (Kiski Prep, PA); No. 10 (at 160) Travis Gallegos (Foothill-PC, CA); No. 14 Jesse Shanaman (Blair Academy, NJ); and No. 17 Harrison Hightower (University School, OH). Commentary: The reputation of the Walsh Ironman is made on weight classes such as these -- eight nationally ranked wrestlers seeking eight places in the bracket. It is possible that there might not be as many nationally ranked wrestlers at the season-ending NHSCA Senior Nationals in this type of weight class. The top seed is defending champion Dylan Alton, who projects to have a second consecutive Ironman quarterfinal bout against Hightower. Last year, this match was a pin. The other projected quarterfinal in this half has Luster meeting Habat, which is a rematch of last year's third place bout won 3-1 by Luster. A matchup that of New Jersey Prep School stars is one of the quarterfinals on bottom, with Rolnick favored to advance over Shanaman. The other quarterfinal is a battle of west coast stars with a pair of top 100 Class of 2010 recruits in Hernandez and Gallegos set to do battle. The double Junior National All-American, and two-time NHSCA grade-level champion, Hernandez is favored here. Unseeded Wrestler to Watch: State champion Rich Eva (Christiansburg, VA). Friday Matches to Watch: Hightower vs. Cody Allala (Hopewell, VA); these wrestlers met in the 2008 Super 32 with Hightower dominating the battle of future state champions. Shanaman v Kenny Boyles (Smyrna, DE); Boyles was a Junior National Greco-Roman All-American this past summer. Predicting a Finals Match: D. Alton (Central Mountain) over Rolnick (Lawrenceville) 160: Nationally-Ranked Wrestlers: No. 3 Nick Sulzer (St. Edward, OH); No. 6 (at 171) Josh Demas (Westerville North, OH); No. 11 (at 152) Pierce Harger (Moeller, OH); and No. 18 (at 152) Zach Skates (Broken Arrow, OK). Commentary: While there are four nationally ranked wrestlers in this weight, three of them stand out as a cut above the rest of this field. The three top 100 Class of 2010 recruits from the Buckeye State will battle it out this weekend, and possibly in the big-school state tournament; however, one would have to think someone moves up to an easier 171 pound weight class by season's end. The draw sets up for a state finals rematch in the top semifinal with Sulzer facing Demas. Sulzer beat Demas in the ultimate tiebreaker in the late December Medina Invitational final, before Demas won on a great counter takedown late in the state final. The quarterfinal match for Sulzer most likely will be against another state champion in Kyle Ryan (Graham, OH); while Demas projects to face the mercurial but talented Trey Adamson (Bishop Lynch, TX). On paper, Harger should have a very easy path through to the semis where he would be favored to make the final against Skates, Wukie, or Moon. Unseeded Wrestler to Watch: State qualifier Sheldon Brandenburg (Wadsworth, OH). Friday Match to Watch: Brad Wukie (University School, OH) vs. Chris Moon (Wyoming Seminary, PA). This battle places two talented wrestlers that fell short of their expectations in 2008-09 against each other to start 2009-10. Predicting a Finals Match: Sulzer (St. Edward) over Harger (Moeller) 171: Nationally-Ranked Wrestlers: No. 1 Chris Phillips (Monroeville, OH); No. 12 Tanner Eitel (Bishop Lynch, TX); and No. 18 Matthew Cunningham (Shady Side Academy, PA). Commentary: Unlike last year, there is no real challenger to the nation's top Class of 2011 wrestler Chris Phillips -- an Ironman champion in 2007 before finishing third last year after a semifinal loss to Ed Ruth. That was the only loss of Phillips' two-year career to date. The likely semifinal for Phillips would be against one of two state runners-up, either Alex Utley (CVCA, OH) or Huston Evans (Graham, OH). Utley is the pick in that match. The bottom half should be more interesting with Cunningham drawing a tough projected quarterfinal against Zach Nevills (Clovis, CA), who finished fifth in single-class California as a freshman. In that other bottom quarter, the very talented Eitel comes back into play after missing last season is projected to face baseball star Johnny Field (Bishop Gorman, NV). Unseeded Wrestlers to Watch: Michael Alexander (Findlay, OH) and Justin Lozano (Selma, CA). Alexander was a state placer in Ohio's big-school division, while Lozano was a state qualifier in single-class California and placed fourth at 160 in the Super 32. Friday Matches to Watch: Eitel vs. Charles Argue (Mount Carmel, IL); Utley vs. Jay Wieller (Wyoming Seminary, PA). Predicting a Finals Match: Phillips (Monroeville) over Eitel (Bishop Lynch) 189: Nationally-Ranked Wrestlers: No. 3 (at 171) Michael Evans (Blair Academy, NJ); No. 5 Max Thomusseit (Graham, OH); and No. 16 Steven McPeek (Bishop Lynch, TX). Notable: No. 2 Morgan McIntosh (Calvary Chapel, CA) is a scratch due to injury sustained during the offseason. Commentary: Despite the absence of McIntosh, a top five wrestler in the Class of 2011, this weight still features a pair of elite wrestlers in Evans and Thomusseit -- both are top 30 recruits in the Class of 2010. Each is likely to have one legitimate challenger on their way to a finals match. Evans has a projected date with two-time state placer Tommy Burriel (Clovis, CA); while Thomusseit should meet against McPeek (Bishop Lynch, TX). However, McPeek has a quarterfinal bout against Bobby Lavelle (Council Rock South, PA) that he should not overlook; Lavelle is a NHSCA Junior National runner-up. Friday Match to Watch: Thomusseit vs. Joe Tayse (Massillon Perry, OH). This is the true definition of "baptism by fire" for one of the best freshman upperweights in the nation; Tayse has to face a physically-imposing veteran wrestler in Thomusseit. Predicting a Finals Match: Evans (Blair) over Thomusseit (Graham) 215: Nationally-Ranked Wrestlers: No. 12 Tank Knowles (Calvary Chapel, CA). Commentary: Compared to many an Ironman past, this year's upper-weight classifications are rather thin in terms of quality depth. There are only four wrestlers that could be argued as nationally significant in this weight class. Leading the way here is the lone ranked wrestler -- Knowles - who was fourth at state last year as a sophomore, and a runner-up at the Reno Tournament of Champions. His likely semifinal opponent is Brian Beattie (Burrell, PA), who likewise took fourth in his state tournament as a sophomore and was runner-up at NHSCA Sophomore Nationals. The other half of the bracket features a pair of wrestlers that took third in their state tournaments last year; Nick Tavanello (Wadsworth, OH) and Beau Wenger (Fairless, OH). Of note on each is that Tavanello was a Cadet National freestyle runner-up this past summer, while Wenger lost a 3-1 bout against Thomusseit in the state semifinal. As a result, this weight class is a bastion of opportunity for less credentialed wrestlers to make themselves known as an Ironman placer. Predicting a Finals Match: Knowles (Calvary Chapel) over Tavanello (Wadsworth) 285: Nationally-Ranked Wrestlers: No. 6 Mike McMullan (Wyoming Seminary, PA); No. 16 Ben Buzzelli (Wadsworth, OH); and No. 19 Terry Williamson (Broken Arrow, OK). Commentary: The favored wrestler in this weight is the second seed McMullan, a National Prep champion last season. Navigating another thin weight class, his path should be one with limited roadblocks. The likely semifinal match is against Zach Corl (Central Mountain, PA), Max Gladstone (Findlay, OH), or Louis Barragan (Gilroy, CA). Corl was a Cadet National double All-American this past summer, eighth in his state tournament, but a runner-up in last year's Ironman; Gladstone is a two-time state qualifier and finished fourth at the NHSCA Junior Nationals this past spring; while Barragan is a two-time state qualifier. The top half of this draw projects to a semifinal between two national ranked wrestlers in a match of polar opposites. The top seed Williamson was a state champion at 285 after bumping up from the 215 pound weight class at mid-season. On the other hand, Buzzelli is a two-time state placer at 285, and is cutting weight in order to make this classification. Friday Match to Watch: Corl vs. Barragan. Predicting a Finals Match: McMullan (Wyoming Seminary) over Williamson (Broken Arrow)

Nebraska coach Mark Manning will tell you that there's no doubt in his mind that Craig Brester, a senior 197-pounder for the Cornhuskers, would have been an NCAA champion last year and this year at heavyweight. Craig Brester reached the NCAA finals last season at 197 pounds before falling to Big 12 rival Jake Varner of Iowa State (Photo/Tech-Fall.com)"That's how much I believe in him," says Manning. Brester, an unheralded recruit out of high school, hails from Howells, Nebraska, the same small town with a population of just over 600 people that produced Brad Vering, a 2000 NCAA champion for the Cornhuskers, Olympian, and World silver medalist in Greco-Roman. So what did Manning see in Brester out of high school that he liked? "That he had a tremendous work ethic," says Manning. "He had a lot of toughness to him. He had the will to win. That's what I saw in him." As a four-year starter for the Cornhuskers, Brester has compiled a career record of 90-18 and earned All-American honors the past two seasons. Last season, Brester finished as the NCAA runner-up at 197 pounds, losing a close 2-1 decision in the NCAA finals to Jake Varner of Iowa State, a wrestler he beat two weeks prior at the Big 12 Championships. An impressive resume for any college wrestler, but especially for an invited walk-on that wasn't even on the radar of most Division I college wrestling coaches. "When I came out of high school, I wanted to earn a scholarship on the team," says Brester. "I walked on here. I just worked as hard as I could. I did whatever the coaches asked of me. Good things happen when you do that. That's pretty much what happened. Just listening to coaches, doing what they tell me to, just putting everything into it, and slowly I saw that I was making advances and getting better and better ... and it put me to where I'm at today." Brester and the No. 12 Cornhuskers will head to Minneapolis on Thursday to take on No. 5 Minnesota. Nebraska is coming off a fifth-place finish this past weekend at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, but that came largely without the services of defending NCAA champion Jordan Burroughs (157), who had four teeth damaged in his opening-round match, which caused him to get root canals and default out of the tournament. Burroughs is expected to be in the lineup on Thursday night against Minnesota. David KlingsheimNebraska placed fourth at the 2009 NCAA Championships, but has six new starters in its lineup, including true freshmen David Klingsheim and C.J. Napier at 125 and 133 pounds respectively. Both were ranked among the Top 30 recruits in the country by InterMat from the Class of 2009. Klingsheim was a four-time California state placewinner, California state champion, and a Junior Nationals double All-American in Fargo this past summer. Napier was a three-time Kansas state champion and three-time All-American at Cadet & Junior Nationals. Both are off to solid starts (Klingsheim is 8-4 and Napier is 11-5), but both failed to place at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational this past weekend. "Both are pretty talented freshmen," said Manning. "They're still learning how to wrestle at this level and win close matches. They have a ways to go, but they've really made a lot of progress the last two, three weeks. You only get better when you're out there. You can talk all about it when you're a redshirt, but until you actually compete as a redshirt freshman, you don't get that much better. They're getting better right now. They're getting mentally tougher. They're building up resiliency that you need whether you're a freshman or a redshirt freshman. Both are pretty mentally tough kids. They have taken some hard knocks, but they've have bounced back. That's what I look for. They have good character. They've got some resiliency to them. They're only going to get better. I believe in both those guys." Both true freshmen have tall orders on Thursday night against Minnesota. Klingsheim will face No. 4 Zach Sanders, a returning All-American, while Napier will battle No. 2 Jayson Ness, a three-time All-American. Mark ManningNebraska started the season ranked No. 7 by InterMat, but fell in the rankings after losing 18-15 to Lehigh at the ASICS Journeymen/Brute Northeast Duals on November 28. "Six guys have never been in the lineup," said Manning. "There's going to be some growing pains. You take the good with the bad. They're not always going to click on every dual meet. We showed a lot of improvement last weekend (at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational). We had five guys in the round to place. They all lost, but they went 5-2 on the tournament. They didn't go 0-2. They're making progress. Just trying to build consistency in their performances. Therefore, that's what we're really focused on ... Being consistent every time out." Minnesota is coming off a 21-8 defeat against Oklahoma State on Friday night, a dual meet that saw seven Gophers lose, including Dustin Schlatter, a three-time All-American, NCAA champion, and U.S. World Team member. Minnesota will be without the services of 2008 Olympian Jake Deitchler for the dual meet. Deitchler, who is ranked No. 12 at 157 pounds, has yet to compete this season, but the Gophers are hoping to have him back competing at the Southern Scuffle December 29-30 in Greensboro, North Carolina. While Manning and the Cornhuskers have a great deal of respect for Minnesota and what the program has accomplished, they're not about to take a backseat. "They have won some national championships, but we have been there right there with them," says Manning. "They're well-coached. We have a lot of respect for their program. But we don't take a backseat to them. We have done some good things too." Below is a weight-by-weight breakdown of the dual meet. 125: David Klingsheim (Nebraska) vs. No. 4 Zach Sanders (Minnesota) Sanders, a returning All-American, is 6-0 this season and has been impressive in all of his matches. He had a gutty, come-from-behind victory over No. 5 James Nicholson of Old Dominion at the NWCA All-Star Classic ... and was dominant against No. 12 Chris Notte of Oklahoma State, winning 11-5. Look for Sanders to get to his offense early and often, and wear out the true freshman from California. Klingsheim has shown glimpses of his potential, but is coming off a disappointing 0-2 performance at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Prediction: Sanders (Minnesota) by Major Decision 133: C.J. Napier (Nebraska)/Ridge Kiley (Nebraska) vs. No. 2 Jayson Ness (Minnesota) Napier was completely dominated in his college debut against Wisconsin's Tyler Graff, who won by technical fall, 26-10. He bounced back to win the Kaufman-Brand Open in the amateur division. Napier won four matches at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and came up one victory shy of placing. Kiley, a redshirt freshman who is 6-4 this season, is another option for Manning. But regardless of whether it's Napier or Kiley, Minnesota will be looking for and expecting bonus points from Ness, a three-time All-American. Ness is the all-time pins leader at Minnesota and has pinned eight of nine opponents this season ... and will be looking to make it nine of ten on Thursday night. Prediction: Ness (Minnesota) by Pin 141: Mike Koehnlein (Nebraska) vs. No. 6 Mike Thorn (Minnesota) Koehnlein was a two-time junior college All-American at Cerritos College (CA) who is in his first season with the Cornhuskers. He enters Thursday's match with a record of 11-5, but has yet to beat a ranked opponent. He is 0-3 against ranked opponents, with those losses coming by four, five, and six points. Thorn proved last season that he can compete with the best wrestlers in the country, but he has also proved to be inconsistent down the stretch. Thorn has a wide-open style and loves to put points on the scoreboard. Prediction: Thorn (Minnesota) by Decision 149: Chris Hacker (Nebraska) vs. No. 9 Mario Mason (Minnesota) Hacker, who is coming off a season that was cut short by a hip injury, is 11-3 this season and won the Kaufman-Brand Open in the elite division, a weight class that included three-time NCAA qualifier Mitch Mueller of Iowa State. However, despite Hacker's impressive record, he has yet to beat a ranked opponent and has been dominated by lesser opponents than Mason. This will the home debut for Mason, a talented freshman from Blair Academy in New Jersey. Mason has been successful at every age group level ... and has wins in freestyle over several college standouts, including Jason Chamberlain (Boise State), Kellen Russell (Michigan), Kyle Dake (Cornell), Tyler Nauman (Pittsburgh), and Kevin LeValley (Bucknell). He's very strong on his feet and can score with a lot of different attacks. Prediction: Mason (Minnesota) by Major Decision 157: No. 1 Jordan Burroughs (Nebraska) vs. Joe Grygelko (Minnesota)/Brian Peterson (Minnesota) Burroughs, the defending NCAA champion at 157 pounds, is in the conversation for best pound-for-pound college wrestler in the country. He won arguably the nation's toughest weight class last season that included NCAA champions Jordan Leen of Cornell and Gregor Gillespie of Edinboro, as well as two-time NCAA runner-up Mike Poeta of Illinois. Burroughs is extremely quick and explosive on his feet ... and freakishly strong. He broke some teeth at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational this past weekend, which caused him to default out of the competition, but he has recovered well and is expected to compete on Thursday night. Grygelko has shown a lot of heart filling in for the Gophers, as has Peterson, but Burroughs is on different level and should pick up bonus points in this match. Prediction: Burroughs (Nebraska) by Technical Fall 165: Tyler Koehn (Nebraska)/James Nakashima (Nebraska) vs. No. 4 Dustin Schlatter (Minnesota) With Stephen Dwyer moving up to 174 pounds this season, it left a bit of a void at 165 pounds for the Cornhuskers. They have used a few different wrestlers in this weight class this season, but it will likely be either Koehn or Nakashima against Minnesota. Koehn is 9-4 this season with no notable wins, while Nakishima, a junior college national champion last season, made his season debut at the Cliff keen Las Vegas Invitational, where he went 1-2. Schlatter, a three-time All-American and 2006 NCAA champion, made the U.S. World Team this past summer. He's as talented and technically sound as they come. When Schlatter gets his offense going, he's nearly unbeatable. But sometimes he wrestles a bit tight and lets inferior wrestlers hang around. That happened last Friday when Schlatter gave up an early takedown (off his own move) against Oklahoma State's Alex Meade and was never able to get his offense going as he dropped a 3-2 decision in his first match of the season. Prediction: Schlatter (Minnesota) by Major Decision 174: No. 3 Stephen Dwyer (Nebraska) vs. Scott Glasser (Minnesota) Dwyer, a three-time NCAA qualifier and 2008 All-American, has made a smooth transition moving up from 165 to 174 pounds this season. He defeated returning All-American Chris Henrich of Virginia at the NWCA All-Star Classic. He was runner-up at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, losing 5-3 to No. 1 Mack Lewnes of Cornell in the finals. Glasser, like Dwyer, made the move up from 165 to 174 pounds this season. Glasser has battled injuries throughout his career, which has led to inconsistency. Last season, Glasser won 12 of his first 13 matches, but struggled mightily at the end of the season, losing 15 of his last 19 matches. Glasser is 8-1 this season, but has yet to see a ranked opponent. Dwyer defeated Glasser in the early part of last season, 6-4, in the finals of the Kaufman-Brand Open. Prediction: Dwyer (Nebraska) by Decision 184: Josh Ihnen (Nebraska) vs. No. 18 Sonny Yohn (Minnesota) Expectations were high entering this season for Ihnen after a redshirt season that saw him go 24-5. But this season has been a bit rocky for Ihnen. In 11 matches this season, he has faced four ranked opponents, and with the exception of a 3-2 loss to No. 11 David Craig of Lehigh, Ihnen has not been competitive in any of those matches while being outscored 40-6. Yohn, who is coming off an up and down freshman campaign, was impressive in his first eight matches this season, going 8-0 against marginal competition. But last Friday, in his first test of the season, Yohn was dominated by No. 10 Clayton Foster of Oklahoma State, 13-1, in a match that many expected to be competitive. This is one of the most crucial matches in the dual meet. If the Cornhuskers are going to pull out the dual meet victory, they need to win this match. Prediction: Yohn by Decision 197: No. 2 Craig Brester (Nebraska) vs. Joe Nord (Minnesota)/Kaleb Young (Minnesota) Brester, an NCAA runner-up last season, is at the top of his game right now. He's 11-0 and is coming off a tournament title at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Brester appears to be on a collision course to once again meet Big 12 rival Jake Varner of Iowa State in the NCAA finals. The two could potentially meet three times before the NCAA Championships, though ... at the National Duals, a February 21 dual meet, and at the Big 12 Championships. Minnesota has struggled to find consistency at this weight class ever since Damion Hahn, a two-time NCAA champion and four-time All-American, graduated in 2004. Ryland Geiger, who was one of the nation's top recruits from the Class of 2008, was expected to take over after a redshirt season ... but left the program before the start of the season. Nord, a former heavyweight, or Young, who has been competing at 184 pounds, will likely get the start for the Gophers. Brester has picked up bonus points in seven of his 11 matches this season ... and should be able to do so on Thursday night. Prediction: Brester by Major Decision 285: No. 7 Tucker Lane (Nebraska) vs. No. 11 Ben Berhow (Minnesota) Lane and Berhow have proven to be solid Division I heavyweights. Both were NCAA qualifiers last season and both should be in the mix for All-American honors in a deep heavyweight class. But neither wrestler has been able to break into the upper echelon of Division I heavyweights. Lane has had Berhow's number, winning two matches against him last season and picking up another victory over him this season at the Kaufman-Brand Open. Prediction: Lane (Nebraska) by Decision Dual Meet Prediction: Minnesota 24, Nebraska 15

Craig Brester

Daniel Dennis