InterMat Staff

San Luis Obispo, Calif. -- The Stanford wrestling team picked up another conference win tonight, downing the Cal Poly Mustangs, 27-16, at Mott Gymnasium in San Luis Obispo, Calif. The Cardinal won six of ten bouts to improve to 12-3 on the year and 5-2 in the Pac-10. With 12 wins, the Cardinal continues to build on its impressive win total. The dozen wins are the most in over three decades, and mark the second best single-season total in program history. Stanford jumped out to a quick lead in the dual and never looked back. Freshman Austin Quarles (1-10) claimed a forfeit in the 125-pound bout to start off the night. Wrestling up a weight class at 133 pounds, senior Tanner Gardner (33-1) then earned a 14-2 major decision over Boris Novachkov for his 33rd win on the year. Gardner is now just three wins shy of matching Matt Gentry's career win record (138). Cal Poly answered with a win by fall at 141 pounds, as the Mustangs' top-ranked and undefeated Chad Mendes pinned freshman Max Rosefigura (12-11) in 33 seconds. The Mustangs crawled within one when Eric Maldonado edged redshirt freshman Lucas Espericueta (22-9) at 149 pounds, 5-2. Senior Josh Zupancic (31-5) prevented the Mustangs from catching up with a win at 157 pounds, extending his season-best win streak to 12 matches. The Akron, Ohio native earned his sixth pin of the year with a second period win by fall over Stephen Thalin. The win, secured in 4:48, was the 31st of the season for No. 10 Zupancic and boosted the Cardinal lead to 16-9. Wrestling in his first collegiate dual, redshirt sophomore Kyle Pubols (0-1) dropped a 9-0 major decision to Cal Poly's Ryan Williams at 165 pounds. From there, Stanford rallied to the finish. Junior Luke Feist (11-9) started a powerful three-bout rally that was capped by a decisive win by sophomore Jake Johnson (23-9). Feist earned a 9-3 decision over Mike Williams at 174 pounds, and sophomore Zack Giesen (22-6) followed with a 5-0 decision over Ernie Varela. Johnson emphatically sealed the Stanford victory, crushing Cal Poly's Arturo Basulto with an 18-2 technical fall. In the final bout of the night, Jim Powers topped Stanford senior Phillip Doerner (16-17), 6-1. Stanford returns to the mat on Sunday, when the team will face No. 24 Cal State Fullerton in Burnham Pavilion. The dual will be the last at home for the Cardinal this season. Seniors Tanner Gardner, Josh Zupancic, Phillip Doerner, Bobby Pease and Mark Shughart will all be recognized prior to the match.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- No. 10 Penn State, under the direction of head coach Troy Sunderland, posted a thrilling 20-14 win over No. 6 Michigan in front of over 4,000 fans in Rec Hall. With Penn State leading by three heading into the final bout, junior heavyweight John Laboranti (Pittston, Pa.) avoided a dual meet draw and clinched the win with a last second takedown in a 6-4 sudden victory decision. Penn State bolted out to an early lead in the dual, winning the first three bouts in exciting fashion. Senior Mark McKnight (McDonald, Pa.) posted a 3-1 win at 125 and senior co-captain Tim Haas (Camp Hill, Pa.) notched a critical 8-3 victory at 133. Then true freshman Garrett Scott (Alexandria, Pa.) brought over 4,000 Nittany Lion faithful to their feet with a stunning 4-3 win over No. 4 Kellen Russell of Michigan in the 141-pound bout. The three wins gave PSU and early 9-0 lead, but Michigan would come roaring back. Defending national finalist Josh Churella posted a 9-3 upset win over No. 4 Bubba Jenkins (Virginia Beach, Va.) at 149 before Nittany Lion Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.), ranked No. 2 at 157, grabbed an 8-6 win over Michigan's Jeff Marsh. Down 12-3, Michigan's three strongest weights paid dividends as the Wolverines got a major from No. 3 Steve Tannenbaum at 165 before No. 4 Steve Luke escaped with a hard-fought 3-2 win over No. 17 David Erwin (Urbana, Ohio) of Penn State at 174. No. 2 Tyrel Todd then got a major at 184 and the Wolverines had roared all the way back to take a 14-12 lead. Nittany Lion All-American Phil Davis (Harrisburg, Pa.) made Michigan's lead short-lived with a dominating 15-0 technical fall over No. 14 Anthony Biondo at 197. The five point win put Penn State up 17-14 and set up the final bout's fireworks. Laboranti took to the mat against Michigan's Chad Bleske, needing a win to secure the team victory while Bleske could force a draw in the dual with a win of his own. The bout was tied 4-4 after regulation with each wrestler getting a takedown and two escapes. With just :10 left in the sudden victory period, Laboranti gained control of Bleske's left ankle on the edge of the mat. As time wound down, Laboranti worked to pull the Wolverine into the circle and with just :03 left, pulled him in just enough to reach forward, control his right foot, and get the dual clinching takedown with just :01 left. The 6-4 sudden victory secured the 20-14 win. Penn State moves to 11-5 on the year, 3-3 in Big Ten action, while Michigan falls to 15-5, 2-2. The Nittany Lions will welcome two Big Ten teams to Rec Hall next weekend. Michigan State visits Penn State on Friday, Feb. 15, in a 7 p.m. dual that will air live to a Big Ten Network national audience. Purdue then comes to Rec Hall on Sunday, Feb. 17, for a 1 p.m. match-up. Tickets for all regular season duals are on sale now at the athletic department ticket office in the Bryce Jordan Center. Single-dual tickets are $5 for adults and seniors and $3 for students 18 and under. Penn State students with a proper student ID are admitted free! Fans can call 814-863-1000 or 800-833-5533 to order single-dual or season tickets. All Penn State duals will be broadcast locally on WBLF 970 AM and WKVA 920 AM and streamed live at www.GoPSUsports.com. All home duals will feature a live video webcast and live scoring at www.GoPSUsports.com as well. BOUT-BY-BOUT: 125: Nittany Lion senior Mark McKnight (McDonald, Pa.), ranked No. 10 at 125, met Michigan's Michael Watts in the dual's first bout. Watts took the first shot of the bout, but McKnight countered the effort, worked himself behind Watts and forced a stalemate at the 2:24 mark. The quick offensive effort by Watts energized McKnight, who then quickly got in on Watts' legs after the reset and, after a scramble, nearly turned the Wolverine to his back. But Watts managed a stalemate at the 1:15 mark. With :45 left in the opening period, McKnight gained control of Watts' right foot and after a brief tangle on the edge of the mat, got the takedown with :18 left to go up 2-0. McKnight then managed to keep control of Watts, riding him out to carry the 2-0 lead into the second stanza. McKnight chose bottom to begin the next period but could not break free of Watts until the :40 mark. The escape gave him a 3-0 lead but Watts had 1:00 in riding time. Watts tried to get his first points late in the period with a solid shot but McKnight moved out of trouble to keep his 3-0 lead. Watts chose down to start the third period and it was McKnight's turn to put together a strong performance on top, keeping Watts under control until only :32 remained. Watts' escape cut McKnight's lead to 3-1, but that was all the scoring there would be. McKnight's 3-1 decision gave Penn State an early 3-0 lead. 133: Senior co-captain Tim Haas (Camp Hill, Pa.) took on Wolverine Chris Diehl in the 133 pound match-up. Haas quickly broke out to a lead with a textbook double-leg takedown at the 2:34 mark. Diehl escaped to a 2-1 deficit after Haas worked up a :44 time advantage. Haas then used a single leg on the edge of the mat to go up 4-2 with 1:06 left in the period (after another Diehl escape). Looking to build on his lead, Haas completed another single leg, then lifted Diehl up and put him down to the mat for a 6-2 lead with :22 left. Haas then rode the Wolverine out to carry that lead into the second period. Diehl chose down to start the middle stanza and quickly escaped to a 6-3 deficit. Diehl got in deep on Haas' left thigh, but the Nittany Lion senior countered, worked behind Diehl and got a takedown of his own with 1:10 left in the period. Haas then rode Diehl out and lead 8-3 with 2:48 in riding time heading into the final period. Up by five, Haas chose down to begin the final stanza. Diehl then put together a strong ride, keeping control of Haas for the entire period, trying to turn the Nittany Lion to no avail. Haas' offensive fireworks in the first two periods gave the Nittany Lion senior a hard-fought 8-3 win and put Penn State up 6-0. 141: In one of the bout's most anticipated match-ups, Penn State true freshman Garrett Scott (Alexandria, Pa.) met Michigan freshman Kellen Russell at 141. Russell entered the bout with a 23-3 record and ranked No. 4 nationally. The talented duo spent the first seconds looking for scoring chances and it was Russell who got the first points with a quick grab of Scott's ankles on the edge of the mat. Scott quickly escaped to a 2-1 deficit after a reset with 1:55 left in the bout. Russell shot low on Scott, nearly gained control of the Lion and Scott countered with a near throw and takedown on the edge of the mat. But action moved out of bounds with :22 left, forcing a reset, and Russell led 2-1 after one period. Scott chose down to start the second period and nearly pinned Russell while escaping to a 2-2 tie. While not getting the call for the fall, Scott's action energized a packed Rec Hall. While Scott became the aggressor, Russell was able to play defense and keep the bout tied after two periods. Russell chose down to start the third period. A decision that would come back to haunt the Wolverine. After a brief struggle, Scott turned Russell to his back for two near fall points and, after another attempt to turn Russell, the Wolverine managed to escape, cutting Scott's lead to 4-3 with 1:14 left to wrestle. Russell worked hard for a final takedown to try and grab the lead, but Scott managed to hold the Wolverine off and post a thrilling 4-3 win. The victory gave the Nittany Lions a 9-0 lead after just three bouts. 149: In another marquee match-up, Nittany Lion sophomore Bubba Jenkins (Virginia Beach, Va.) put his No. 4 ranking at 149 on the line against defending national runner-up Josh Churella, who entered the bout ranked No. 8. Churella had the first scoring chance of the match, getting control of Jenkins' left leg and nearly completing a cradle. But Jenkins scrambled, first out of the cradle and forced a stalemate without giving up any points. A reset was called with :43 left in the opening period and Churella once again gained control of Jenkins' right leg. But the Nittany Lion sophomore was strong, breaking free on the edge of the mat and sending keeping things scoreless after one period. Churella chose down to begin the second period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. After Jenkins got called for a stall warning, Churella worked in for a strong double leg takedown to take a 3-0 lead. But Jenkins quickly reversed the Wolverine and cut the lead to 3-2 with :31 left. Churella escaped to up his lead to 4-2 and then, quickly took Jenkins down to push his lead to 6-2 with :22 left. The Wolverine All-American then rode Jenkins out to carry the 6-2 lead into the final period. Down by four, Jenkins chose down to begin the third period and quickly escaped to a 6-3 deficit. Needing multiple takedowns, Jenkins shot quickly on Churella. But Churella countered, moved behind Jenkins and got a takedown of his own to go up 8-3. He then kept control of Jenkins for the remaining minute-plus and posted a strong 9-3 win with the riding time point. The decision gave Michigan its first points, cutting Penn State's lead to 9-3. 157: Penn State's Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.), ranked No. 2 at 157, took on Michigan's Jeff Marsh in the next bout. Vallimont was coming off his first loss to No. 1 Mike Poeta of Illinois last Sunday while Marsh was coming off an upset win over Poeta two days prior to that. Vallimont quickly turned on the offense, taking a 2-0 lead with 2:22 left with a strong double leg takedown. Marsh escaped with 2:00 left to wrestle. A minute later, Vallimont added a second takedown to up his lead to 4-2 after a Marsh escape. Down by two, Marsh chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 4-3 deficit. But Vallimont continued his offensive onslaught, adding another double leg takedown to lead 6-4 (after another Marsh escape). Marsh countered a Vallimont shot and got a takedown of his own with just :15 left to tie the bout at 6-6 after two periods. Vallimont chose down to start the final stanza and, after a brief tussle, escaped to a 7-6 lead with 1:20 left in the bout. After a reset, Vallimont worked to ice the bout by completing a takedown. But during the process, Marsh got called for an illegal hold and Vallimont posted a hard-fought 8-6 win. The victory put Penn State up 12-3 heading into intermission. 165: With starter Dave Rella (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio) out with a slight injury, freshman Michael Lorenzo (Bellefonte, Pa.) made his Penn State dual meet debut at 165 against No. 3 Eric Tannenbaum. Tannenbaum looked to be the aggressor early and opened up an early lead with a takedown at the 2:29 mark. Lorenzo cut the lead to 2-1 with an escape at the 1:52 mark. Tannenbaum added another takedown at the 1:12 mark, upping his lead to 4-1. The Wolverine All-American then turned Lorenzo to his back for three near fall points before riding the Nittany Lion freshman out. Down 7-1, Lorenzo chose down to start the second period. After a minute of work, Tannenbaum turned Lorenzo again for three more back points and tried to pin the Nittany Lion, working fully for :30 to try and pin him. But Lorenzo would not go down without a fight, not giving up the fall. Up 10-1 with a bonus point assured, Tannenbaum chose neutral to begin the third period and quickly took Lorenzo down to up his lead to 12-1 with 1:30 left to wrestle. Tannenbaum need another near fall to try and grab a technical fall, but once again, Lorenzo would not allow the All-American to turn him. Lorenzo fought hard off the bottom against huge odds and gave up only a 13-1 major decision to the fourth-ranked Wolverine. The major cut Penn State's lead to 12-7. 174: Penn State sophomore David Erwin (Urbana, Ohio), ranked No. 17 at 174, met No. 4 Steve Luke. Luke broke out to an early 2-0 lead with a quick takedown at the 2:25 mark. But Erwin escaped with 1:40 left to cut the lead to 2-1 and began working for a takedown of his own. With :50 left, Erwin shot low on Luke's left ankle and gained control for a few seconds, but Luke managed to kick out of the situation and hold his lead. A furious scramble as the period ended nearly resulted in a takedown for each wrestler, but no one scored and Luke kept his 2-1 lead heading into the second period. Up by one, Luke chose down to start the middle stanza and quickly escaped to a 3-1 lead. Erwin was equal to look for the entire period, matching Luke's tempo and looking for an opening of his own. But neither man would give up a takedown and Luke held a 3-1 lead after two periods. Erwin chose down to start the second and quickly escaped to a 3-2 deficit. Luke nearly took Erwin down to up his lead to 5-2, but the Nittany Lion sophomore scrambled out of trouble and kept things close with 1:20 left in the bout. Needing one takedown to grab a stunning upset, Erwin could not break through Luke's defense over the bout's last seconds. While forcing the Wolverine into a stall warning, time ran out on Erwin's efforts and Luke escaped with a hard-fought 3-2 victory. 184: Junior Phil Bomberger (Port Royal, Pa.) took to the mat at 184 against Michigan's Tyrel Todd. Bomberger entered the bout ranked No. 14 while Todd had a lofty No. 2 ranking. Bomberger broke out to an early 2-0 lead on the Michigan All-American with a strong double-leg takedown at the 2:16 mark. Todd escaped to a 2-1 deficit after a reset and then Todd took a 3-2 lead after a scramble in the middle of the mat, securing the takedown with 1:32 left in the opening period. Bomberger then escaped to a 3-3 tie with 1:04 left in the opening period and action moved back to the center circle. Bomberger shot at Todd's right thigh but Todd countered the move, worked behind Bomberger for a go-ahead takedown at the :35 mark. A ride out gave Todd a 5-3 lead with :56 in riding time after the first period. Todd chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 6-3 lead. But Todd was undaunted, getting a fourth takedown on the edge of the mat to lead 8-4 lead after letting Bomberger up. Bomberger once again shot and Todd countered the move for a 10-4 lead. Three near fall points later and Todd led 14-3 with just under 1:00 left in the second period. Todd then rode Bomberger out to carry the 14-3 lead into the final period. Down by 11, Bomberger chose down to start the final period but could not break free of Todd's strong work up top until only :25 left. Bomberger shot low for a takedown to avoid a major, but Todd once again scored off a counter move, worked behind Bomberger and got the final points as time expired. The 16-5 major decision gave Michigan its first lead of the night, a 14-12 edge heading into the final two bouts. 197: Three-time All-American Phil Davis (Harrisburg, Pa.), ranked No. 3 at 197, met No. 14 Anthony Biondo of Michigan. Biondo took the first shot, but Davis countered and got the bout's first takedown with 1:56 left. With a 2-0 lead, Davis began looking for back points and, after a brief tussle, turned the ranked Wolverine for three near fall points and a 5-0 lead with 1:00 left. Then, in typical Davis fashion, the Nittany Lion finished a cradle and picked up three more points, nearly pinning Biondo in the process. Up 8-0 with nearly 2:00 in riding time, Davis chose down to start the second period. Biondo managed to maintain control of Davis for more than half the second period, keeping control of the Nittany Lion until Davis reversed the Wolverine with :25 left to take a 10- lead. Davis then rode Biondo out to hold that lead, with :54 in riding time, heading into the final period. Biondo chose top to start the third period, hoping to keep out of Davis' grasps and avoid a pin. But once again, Davis stood up, worked behind Biondo and reversed the Wolverine to take a 12-0 lead with 1:35 left. With 1:23, Davis turned Biondo once again for three near fall points and posted a 15-0 technical fall at the 5:58 mark. The five points allowed Penn State to retake the lead, 17-14, with one bout left. HWT: Penn State junior John Laboranti (Pittston, Pa.) put his No. 18 ranking on the line at HWT against Michigan's Chad Bleske. With Laboranti needing a win to secure the dual meet and Bleske needing a win (or more) to force a tie (or steal a win), it was the Nittany Lion who was the early aggressor. Laboranti nearly got a go-ahead takedown on the edge of the mat a minute in, but Bleske fought out of trouble. With 1:00 left, Laboranti shot low and Bleske's feet, but the Wolverine stepped aside and behind the Lion big man to get a takedown of his own and lead 2-1 after the Laboranti escape. Neither man scored again and the Wolverine led 2-1 after one. Bleske then chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 3-1 lead. With 1:40 left, Laboranti got in on Bleske's right leg and forced a furious scramble. After :30 of work, Laboranti go the tying takedown with 1:05 left, knotting the score at 3-3. Bleske escaped to a 4-3 lead after a reset and action continued in the center circle. Trailing 4-3 after two periods, Laboranti quickly escaped to a 4-4 tie with :40 left and began looking for the dual clinching takedown. Laboranti forced Bleske back to the edge of the mat over the last 1:30 but could not break through the Wolverine's defense. With neither wrestler scoring, the bout remained tied after three periods and went to a sudden victory period tied 4-4. With :10 left, Laboranti worked in on Bleske's ankle on the edge of the mat and pulled the Wolverine in. Looking to get the left ankle to complete the takedown, the Nittany Lion junior pulled Bleske in and got the dual winning takedown with just :01 left. The 6-4 SV decision gave Penn State a 20-14 win over No. 6 Michigan.

EUGENE, Ore. -- The No. 3 Oklahoma State wrestling team improved to 14-2-1 overall this season with a 33-3 win over Oregon at McArthur Court Friday. The win improved the Cowboys to 15-0-0 all-time against the Ducks. Top-ranked 133-pounder Coleman Scott was stunned by unranked Ryan Dunn, whose takedown with three seconds remaining in the third period fueled the 5-3 upset. The Cowboys were more than able to overcome Scott's defeat, thanks largely to Jack Jensen's pin of Marcus Myers at 184 pounds, Jared Rosholt's 23-8 technical fall win over Charlie Alexander and Neil Erisman's 12-3 major decision win over Kyle Bounds at 157 pounds. Sophomore 141-pounder Brad Neitenbach made his dual match debut for Oklahoma State Friday and used a five-point move in the second period to pick up a 9-8 win over Cody Moulton. Neitenbach stepped in for No. 2 Nathan Morgan, who was resting a leg injury but is expected to return to the lineup shortly. The Cowboys return to action at 2 p.m. Sunday when they face UC Davis at the Pavilion in Davis, Calif. The dual will be broadcast live on 93.7 KSPI FM radio in Stillwater and worldwide via the internet at www.okstate.com. Match-by-Match: 125 pounds: No. 16 Tyler Shinn got things started in the dual by claiming a 6-4 win over Joey Lucas. Shinn recorded a pair of takedowns in the first period and took a 4-1 lead into the second period. Shinn chose down to start the period and notched an escape to score the lone point of the second stanza. Lucas escaped in the third period then added a takedown in the waning moments of the bout, but it wasn't enough as Shinn had 2:08 of riding time to seal the victory. 133 pounds: Top-ranked Coleman Scott saw his 18-match winning streak snapped by Duck junior Ryan Dunn, who scored a takedown with three seconds remaining in the match to pull the upset. Scott notched a first-period takedown before cutting Dunn loose to bring the score to 2-1. An escape by Scott early in the second period increased the Cowboy senior's advantage to 3-1, but he was called for stalling later in the period to bring the score to 3-2. Dunn tied the match at 3-3 early in the third period when Scott let him loose, then with about 25 seconds left, Dunn got in on a single leg and held Scott's leg in the air. Scott bounced around on one leg until Dunn was able to score the decisive takedown with three ticks left. 141 pounds: With Nathan Morgan resting a leg injury, Brad Neitenbach made his dual match debut against Cody Moulton and won a 9-8 decision. Neitenbach stormed in for an early takedown, but Moulton followed an escape with a takedown and a two-point nearfall to take a 5-2 lead. Moulton escaped early in the second period to increase his lead to 6-2. Neitenbach notched a second takedown to bring the score to 6-4, but Moulton escaped shortly thereafter to take a 7-4 lead. Late in the second period, Neitenbach made the decisive move of the match when he caught Moulton and wrapped up his head to notch a takedown and then turned him to his back to take a 9-7 advantage. Moulton escaped early in the third period, but Neitenbach shut him out the rest of the way to pick up a 9-8 win. 149 pounds: OSU senior Ryan Freeman won his third match in his last four outings by picking up a 2-0 win over Elliott Tracy. After a scoreless first period, Freeman scored an escape early in the second period, then suffocated Tracy with a hard ride for the duration of the third period to ice the win. 157 pounds: Neil Erisman racked up his first dual match major decision when he picked up a 12-3 win over Kyle Bounds. Erisman scored five takedowns and added 1:51 of riding time to seal bonus points for the Cowboys. 165 pounds: Stepping in for regular starter Jake Dieffenbach was Kevin Wainscott, who picked up a 9-8 win over Zack Frazier. Wainscott scored two takedowns and four escapes in the bout and added 1:57 of riding time that ended up being the difference. Wainscott held a 4-2 lead going into the final period and swelled his lead to 6-3 after letting Frazier loose then taking him down. However, Frazier responded with a reversal to trim the deficit to 6-5. A Wainscott escape was followed by another Frazier takedown to tie the score at 7-7. Wainscott escaped again, but was then called for stalling to deadlock the score at 8-8 with less than 10 seconds left. With the crowd in a frenzy, Wainscott clamped down to hold a desperate Frazier scoreless for the remainder of the bout and his riding time point ended up being the difference. 174 pounds: No. 8 Brandon Mason held off an upset bid from Ron Lee to pick up a 7-5 win. Mason held a 5-3 lead after one period after scoring a pair of takedowns and getting an escape following a Lee reversal. The lone point of the second period came when Mason notched and escape to go up, 6-3. Lee chose down to open the third period and scored a reversal as Mason tried to run both legs in on him. Mason escaped shortly after the reversal for the final scoring in the bout. 184 pounds: Jack Jensen stacked up on Marcus Myers to pin the Duck senior just 1:25 into the first period. Trailing Jensen by a 2-1 margin, Myers took an ill-advised shot and got in too far on Jensen, who captured Myers' head and stacked him up for the fall. 197 pounds: True freshman Clayton Foster hit the 20-win plateau for the season with a 4-1 win over Shaun Dee. After a scoreless first period, Foster notched an early escape and followed it up with a takedown to go up, 3-0 in the second period. Dee exploded out for an escape in the third period, but that was all he could muster. Foster added 1:27 of riding time to ice the win. 285 pounds: Fueled by a pair of two-point nearfalls in the first period and a take-him-down, cut-him-loose mode of operation, No. 8 Jared Rosholt overwhelmed Charlie Alexander with a dominating 23-8 technical fall win. Rosholt scored an early takedown in the first period and rode Alexander before turning him to his back for a two-point nearfall. Alexander was able to get off his back, but could not escape Rosholt, who turned him to his back a second time before the period ended. Rosholt opened the second period with an escape and added three more takedowns to swell his lead to 13-2 after two periods. Another four Rosholt takedowns in the third period to go with 3:05 of riding time cemented his resounding win.

Sunday, Live From the Hearns Center on the Campus of the Tigers of Missouri, TDR brings to you Live wrestling coverage starting at 1:30 PM CST. Join TDR's Steve Foster, Scott Casber and Ben Askren for the color, the play by play and the excitement for this tremendous meet. Coach Jim Zalesky returns to the midwest with His Oregon Beaver Squad of the Pac-10 to face the Big 12 Powerhouse Missouri Tigers and Coach Brian Smith. With only one day off after facing the Iowa State Cyclones in Ames, and a Saturday studio radio visit with the Takedown Radio Crew, the Beavers will complete this road trip in front of an electric crowd at the Hearns Center. Its always exciting to provide play by play for a meet like this and invite you to join us LIVE Sunday at Takedownradio.com starting at 1:30 PM CST.

DURHAM, N.C. -- The Duke wrestling squad will hit the road for three dual meets on Saturday at Campbell before finally returning home on Sunday to face ACC foe Virginia at 6 p.m. In Buies Creek, N.C., on Saturday, the Blue Devils will square off against Belmont Abbey at 11 a.m., UNC Pembroke at 1 p.m., and Campbell at 3 p.m. Those matches will mark the last three in a string of seven consecutive dual meets away from home and the Sunday contest will be the fourth of five ACC contests for Duke this season. The Blue Devils: Duke is 6-7 this season in duals and 0-3 in ACC action. In their only team-scored tournament of the year, the Blue Devils took 21st place out of 29 teams at the prestigious Southern Scuffle on Dec. 29 and 30 in Greensboro, N.C. Duke's most dominating wrestler at any weight this year has been 184-pound redshirt sophomore captain John Barone, who was named the ACC's wrestler of the week on Nov. 27. Barone's 11-second pin of Mike Walsh of Limestone College on Dec. 1 was the fastest fall in Duke history, breaking an 18-year-old school record. He is 28-4 with 11 falls and a 12-1 mark in duals in 2007-08. Barone is 63-20 overall as a Blue Devil, which is good for ninth place on Duke's all-time winning percentage list with a .759 clip. He is tied for 10th on Duke's single season wins list and is already tied for 20th on the career wins list. He needs seven more victories to eclipse the single season wins record, and there are eight more regular season dual meets and the ACC Tournament to go. Literally every Duke record is under assault this year by the native of Shirley, N.Y. Kellan McKeon will represent Duke at 125 pounds this weekend. The senior captain is 20-12 this season with three falls and two top-four tournament finishes. He is 7-5 in dual meets. Redshirt sophomore Michael Degli Obizzi may see some action at 149 pounds. Degli Obizzi is 15-7 this season with two pins and has a 37-29 career record as a Blue Devil. At 157 pounds, sophomore Voris Tejada will get the nod. Tejada boasts a 25-11 mark this year and is 6-2 in dual meets. He is 44-19 all-time at Duke. Junior captain Addison Nuding should get the call at 165 pounds in at least a couple of Duke's matches this weekend. Nuding is 22-7 on the year with two pins and a 9-3 dual record. He is 12-3 in his last 15 matches and has won six of his last seven. Nuding holds a 44-34 all-time record at Duke. The Opponents: Belmont Abbey is 9-7-1 this season with wins over UNC Pembroke and Kutztown highlighting its slate. UNC Pembroke holds a 5-10 mark this season. The Braves have three strong wrestlers in Joe Mavins (125/133 pounds), Mike Nash (133 pounds) and J.J. Davis (165 pounds). Mavins is 37-4 overall with three pins and a perfect 14-0 record in duals. Nash boasts a 29-6 record, three falls and holds an 11-3 dual meet mark. Davis may be the best of them all, with a 28-5 showing this year, including three pins and a 13-1 record in duals. Campbell is 2-15-1 and 1-5 in the Colonial Athletic Association. The Camels strongest wrestler is sophomore Kelin Bidelspach, who is 19-5 overall with five pins and a 13-4 record in duals at 141 pounds. Virginia is 16-4 in 2007-08 and 1-1 in the ACC. Two of their four losses have come to teams ranked in the top 20--- Michigan and Old Dominion. The Cavaliers took sixth place with 91.5 points in the Southern Scuffle, which is the only tournament it has shared with Duke. Virginia placed fourth at the ACC Tournament in 2007 and returns its individual champion (Rocco Caponi) and both of its second-place finishers (Eric Albright and Kellan Balum). This year, Virginia has three upperweight wrestlers ranked in the top 20 in their weight class. Caponi is currently No. 13 nationally at 184 pounds, and has a 32-2 record with nine pins and a 17-1 mark in dual meets. No. 19 Chris Henrich at 174 pounds is 20-6 and 11-2 in duals on the season. 197-pound Brent Jones holds the No. 20 spot nationally and is 28-9 with 11 falls and a 15-5 showing in dual meets. Sophomore Ross Gitomer at 125 pounds ranks in the top five in the nation with 32 wins and is 15-3 in duals. Most Recent Meetings: Duke and Campbell faced off on Jan. 5 of this year, with the Blue Devils coming away with a 30-12 victory at the N.C. State Duals. Barone, Nuding and redshirt sophomore Ben Wales at 174 pounds all won their matches by fall. The last time Duke and Virginia met was on Feb. 10, 2007. The Cavaliers defeated the Blue Devils in Charlottesville, Va., 26-12. Barone won his match by pin at 174 pounds and current redshirt junior Aaron Glover earned a decision at 165 pounds.

The Loras College Graber Sports Center hosted two incredibly memorable events on Thursday night. In the final dual meet of the 2007-2008, the Duhawks hosted Simpson College and defeated the Storm 35-9. Simpson forfeited the night's opening two matches at 125 and 133 pounds. They followed by winning three of the first four scored matches (141, 149, and 165) to make the score 15-9. Brandon Bauer won a slim 2-1 decision via his riding time point and set the stage for the main match of the night at 184 pounds. Senior Jay Figgins entered his match with Trent Van Dorin of Simpson College tied with Jim Brophy ('96) with 122 career wins. Just seconds into the match Figgins was in control and earned an early take down. At the 00:26 mark of the opening period Figgins pinned the freshmen and claimed the careers wins record. The crowd took time to recognize the senior on "Senior Night" and a delayed smile emerged from the Clinton, Iowa native as referee Bill Roths held his hand up in victory. The Duhawks rolled in the final two matches following Figgins' win with freshmen Alex Grafft and Jeremy Klein earning a fall and technical fall, respectively. Earlier in the night, in a ceremony at the Graber Sports Center, the Loras College community recognized former head wrestling coach Pat Flanagan (1966-1981) for his contributions to the program when they named the team's practice room for him. The hallway on the second floor of Graber now boasts a plaque recognizing the room as the Pat "Flash" Flanagan Wrestling Room. Flanagan left as the program's all time leader in coaching wins with 127.

There has been a time change on the upcoming St.Cloud State University wrestling dual match on Feb. 16, at the University of Mary in Bismarck, N.D. The new start time will be Noon on Feb. 16. The match was originally slated to start at 2 p.m. at Mary, but has now been moved to a Noon start.

EDMOND, Okla. -- Unbeaten Minnesota State-Mankato maintained its perch atop the NCAA Division II Wrestling Coaches' Association poll that was released Thursday. The Mavericks, 16-0-1 in duals, reached No. 1 for the first time in the NCAA Division II rankings two weeks ago and stayed there by a slim two-point margin over Nebraska-Omaha, with those two teams set to square off Saturday night in Omaha. MSU-Mankato received five of the eight first-place votes cast in finishing with 157 points, while UNO had the remaining three first-place votes and 155 points. Adams State (Colo.) rode dual wins over defending national champion Central Oklahoma and Western State (Colo.) to move to No. 3 in the poll with 136 points, one ahead of Nebraska-Kearney. Rounding out the top 10 was Western State, UCO, Newberry (S.C.), Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.), Upper Iowa and Ashland (Ohio). MSU-Mankato has seven of its 10 individuals in the rankings, topped by No. 1 Jason Rhoten at 157 pounds. UNO also has seven ranked wrestlers, with 125 Cody Garcia and 149 Todd Meneely both No. 1. The NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships will be held March 14-15 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and hosted by Upper Iowa. The top 20 poll, with points and their last ranking: Rank School (State) Points Last Ranking 1. Minnesota State-Mankato 157 1st 2. Nebraska-Omaha 155 2nd 3. Adams State (Colo.) 136 5th 4. Nebraska-Kearney 135 4th 5. Western State (Colo.) 126 6th 6. Central Oklahoma 125 3rd 7. Newberry (S.C.) 109 10th 8. Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 107 8th 9. Upper Iowa 96 9th 10. Ashland (Ohio) 79 11th 11. St. Cloud State (Minn.) 67 16th 12. Gannon (Pa.) 66 13th 13. Indianapolis (Ind.) 62 14th 14. Minnesota State-Moorhead 59 7th 15. Mercyhurst (Pa.) 50 12th T16. Findlay (Ohio) 40 15th T16. Chadron State (Neb.) 40 17th 18. Wisconsin-Parkside 25 19th 19. Limestone (S.C.) 14 18th 20. Northern State (S.D.) 10 NR Others receiving votes: Augustana (S.D.), Central Missouri, Fort Hays State (Kan.), Shippensburg (Pa.). NCAA Division II Individual Rankings 125 Pounds 1. Cody Garcia, Nebraska-Omaha 2. Tyler Mumbulo, Upper Iowa 3. Nick Smith, Minnesota State-Mankato 4. Curtis Schurkamp, San Francisco State 5. Arsenia Barksdale, Adams State (Colo.) 6. Joe Mavins, North Carolina-Pembroke 7. Joey Morrison, Nebraska-Kearney 8. Eddie Lopez, Western State (Colo.) 133 Pounds 1. Brandon Reasy, Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 2. Shane Perkey, Indianapolis (Ind.) 3. Craig DeGreef, Wisconsin-Parkside 4. Jesse Cruz, Western State (Colo.) 5. Raymond Dunning, Adams State (Colo.) 6. Tim Elliott, Central Oklahoma 7. Kelly Janke, Minnesota State-Moorhead 8. Kent Pierson, Carson-Newman (Tenn.) 141 Pounds 1. Kyle Evans, Central Oklahoma 2. Steven Fittery, Shippensburg (Pa.) 3. Jeff Rutledge, Nebraska-Kearney 4. Travis Elg, Minnesota State-Mankato 5. Matt Irwin, Indianapolis (Ind.) 6. Tony Washington, Newberry (S.C.) 7. Doug Surra, West Liberty State (W. Va.) 8. Ross Mountour, New Mexico Highlands 149 Pounds 1. Todd Meneely, Nebraska-Omaha 2. Camille DuPont, Western State (Colo.) 3. Brian Pogel, Mercyhurst (Pa.) 4. Tee Adams, Upper Iowa 5. Tommy Abbott, Minnesota State-Mankato 6. Ryan Etherton, Nebraska-Kearney 7. Shane Walton, Minnesota State-Moorhead 8. Colby Robinson, Central Oklahoma 157 Pounds 1. Jason Rhoten, Minnesota State-Mankato 2. Joe Ellenberger, Nebraska-Kearney 3. Muhammad Abdur-Rahman, Ashland (Ohio) 4. Travis Eggers, Upper Iowa 5. Noomis Jones, Adams State (Colo.) 6. Eric Pretto, Southern Illinois-Edwardsville 7. Antonio Guerra, Findlay (Ohio) 8. Andy Lamancusa, Mercyhurst (Pa.) 165 Pounds 1. Zach Lee, Western State (Colo.) 2. Brett Hunter, Chadron State (Neb.) 3. Aaron Denson, Nebraska-Omaha 4. Andy Pickar, Minnesota State-Mankato 5. Kyle Becker, Wisconsin-Parkside 6. Hudson Harrison, Mercyhurst (Pa.) 7. Rockie Stavn, Minnesota State-Moorhead 8. Keenan McCurdy, Nebraska-Kearney 174 Pounds 1. Larry Wilbanks, Western State (Colo.) 2. Evan Copeland, Adams State (Colo.) 3. Marty Usman, Nebraska-Kearney 4. Ross Taplin, Nebraska-Omaha 5. Cory VanGroll, Wisconsin-Parkside 6. Tyler Tubbs, Minnesota State-Moorhead 7. Albert Miles, Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 8. Tim Matheson, Minnesota State-Mankato 
184 Pounds 1. Jared Deaguero, Adams State (Colo.) 2. Brent Pankoke, Nebraska-Omaha 3. Dan Scanlan, Limestone (S.C.) 4. Mike Corcetti, Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 5. Lars Lueders, Western State (Colo.) 6. Heath Jolley, Central Oklahoma 7. Beau Severtson, Augustana (S.D.) 8. Keeno Griffin, Newberry (S.C.) 197 Pounds 1. Josh Majerus, Chadron State (Neb.) 2. Jacob Marrs, Nebraska-Omaha 3. Josh Ohl, Ashland (Ohio) 4. Ty Copsey, Augustana (S.D.) 5. Donavan McMahill, Western State (Colo.) 6. Pat Walsh, Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 7. Jarrett Edison, Central Oklahoma 8. Nick Wilkes, St. Cloud State (Minn.) 285 Pounds 1. Tervel Dlagnev, Nebraska-Kearney 2. Brady Wilson, Minnesota State-Mankato 3. Cy Wainwright, Newberry (S.C.) 4. Dustin Finn, Central Oklahoma 5. Dan Goodson, Upper Iowa 6. Tony Lewis, Nebraska-Omaha 7. Zach Majocha, Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 8. Travis Clark, Findlay (Ohio)

RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- California Baptist University Athletic Director Kevin Steele has announced the hiring of John Petty as the Lancers' first-ever head wrestling coach. John PettyPetty, who has spent the past two seasons at Northwestern College in Orange City, Iowa, will assume his duties immediately as the Lancers prepare to start wrestling in the fall of 2008. "After completing a nationwide search for the inaugural wrestling coach at CBU, we are pleased to announce the hiring of John Petty," said Steele. "John possesses the experience, passion and character we believe will create an outstanding wrestling program and develop champions on the mat and well beyond. Young people will be challenged to excellence in all areas of their lives by a coach who models excellence on a daily basis. It is a pleasure to welcome John to the CBU family." Northwestern is currently ranked No. 10 in the NAIA and are in position to make yet another NAIA National Tournament appearance. In Petty's first year at the helm in 2006-07, the Raiders finished 15th at the national tournament, improving upon the team's 24th place showing in 2006. The Raiders, who were also Great Plains Athletic Conference runners-up, had three NAIA All-Americans, their first All-Americans since 2003 and most in one season since 1998. Northwestern also won the NAIA Champion of Character Sportsmanship Award and were ranked as high as No. 10 during the season. The Raiders had a team GPA of 3.08, which was eighth best in the nation. Prior to taking over at Northwestern, Petty spent three seasons as the head coach at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, Ariz. During his stint there from the 2003-04 season to the 2005-06 season, Petty led the Eagles to three straight Top 10 finishes at the NAIA Tournament, including a fifth place finish in 2006. During that season, the Eagles had a team GPA of 3.09. In 2005, Petty was named regional coach of the year as he led the Eagles to a regional title. The Eagles were also awarded the NAIA Champion of Character Sportsmanship Award at the national tournament that same year. In his three seasons at ERAU, he coached 15 All-Americans and six Scholar-Athletes. In addition to his coaching duties at ERAU, Petty also served as the Director of Athletic Academic Support and has been the NAIA's second vice president of the Wrestling Coaches' Association since 2005. Prior to his stint at Embry-Riddle, Petty spent two years teaching and coaching at the high school level. From 1991-96, Petty served as an aviation officer in the United States Army. "I am honored to have been chosen as the first head coach of the California Baptist University wrestling program," said Petty. "I am excited for the opportunity and look forward to building the program into what it is expected at CBU Athletics—a winner both on and off the competition surface. Character development as well as academic and athletic excellence will be the foundational pillars upon which we will build this program. The resources are here for a successful program, and I look forward to creating relationships and competing for championships here at CBU." Petty wrestled two seasons at Fresno State and then was a five-time U.S. National Open Champion in the Master's Division and a 10-time U.S. National All-American in the same division. He also wrestled two seasons at Fresno City College and was an All-American and team captain for the 1989 state champions. He received his bachelor's of business administration from Fresno State in 1991 and then earned his master's in kinesiology from Fresno Pacific in 2006. Petty and his wife, Sheila, have three daughters, Janaya, Janessa and Jada.

Columbia, Mo. -- Fans interested in attending the 12th annual Big 12 Wrestling Championships in Stillwater, Okla., Saturday, March 8, are encouraged to call the Oklahoma State box office at 1-877-255-4678 to purchase tickets. Reserved tickets for the all-day event are $20, while general admission is $15. Missouri currently has section 101 reserved in Gallagher Iba Arena, and Tiger fans are encouraged to request a seat in the Missouri section when calling to purchase tickets. "It's always great to have a big cheering section," Head Coach Brian Smith said. "Gallagher Iba can be a tough environment to compete in. Having fans there cheering you on really helps the team and provides for a great atmosphere." This marks the second time in Big 12 history that OSU has hosted the prestigious event. The Cowboys last hosted in 2001. Missouri served as host last season and tied a program high second place finish at the event. Currently, all five Big 12 wrestling programs are ranked among the top-20 in the nation, while 37 individual Big 12 grapplers are ranked among their respective weight class. A total of 38 Big 12 wrestlers will advance from tournament competition into the NCAA Championships.

The Stanford wrestling team continues Pac-10 duals this weekend, taking on the Cal Poly Mustangs on Friday and the Cal State Fullerton Titans on Sunday. Friday's match is set for 7 p.m. at Mott Gymnasium in San Luis Obispo. Sunday's match will be held on the Farm, beginning at noon in Burnham Pavilion. Sunday's dual will be the last at home for the Cardinal this season, and the last on the Farm for four seniors, Tanner Gardner, Josh Zupancic, Phillip Doerner and Bobby Pease. All four will be honored prior to the match. The Cardinal (11-3, 4-2 Pac-10) is having one of its best seasons in history. The team's 11 wins are the most in over three decades, and nine of the squad's starters enter the weekend with .500 or better records. Gardner, a two-time All-American and the nation's sixth-ranked 125-pounder, is 32-1 on the year and undefeated in duals. As the Berryton, Kans. native nears the end of his career, he is closing in on two Cardinal records. With 134 career wins, Gardner is just four short of overtaking Matt Gentry as Stanford's career win leader. He is within two pins of matching a single-season pin record set by Chris Horpel in 1975. Gardner leads the Pac-10 in both wins and pins, and is among the top-10 nationally in both categories. Zupancic (30-5), Stanford's other returning All-American and top-10 wrestler, is on a season-high 11-bout win streak. Ranked No. 10 nationally, the 157-pounder has posted four consecutive major decisions, and secured his second-straight 30-win season on Sunday. Three more Stanford wrestlers, sophomore 197-pounder Jake Johnson (22-9), sophomore 184-pounder Zack Giesen (21-6) and redshirt freshman 149-pounder Lucas Espericueta (22-8) are also having impressive seasons. All three have already reached the 20-win plateau, and the trio has racked up a combined 144 dual points. Espericueta leads the Pac-10 and is third in the nation with 11 major decisions on the year. Senior heavyweight Phillip Doerner has already more than doubled his career win total with 16 wins. Cal Poly (5-4, 4-2 Pac-10) finished fourth in the Pac-10 last season, with seven individual placers. All seven of those wrestlers return, including defending Pac-10 Champion Darrell Vasquez at 133 pounds. In addition to its five returning NCAA qualifiers, the Mustangs return Chad Mendes, a former 125-pounder who is now the nation's top-ranked wrestler at 141 pounds. The night's most anticipated match will occur at 157 pounds, where Stanford's No. 10 Zupancic will look to avenge an early season loss to the Mustangs' No. 13 Chase Pami. Cal State Fullerton (9-5, 6-1 Pac-10) finished seventh in the Pac-10 last season, but is one of the strongest teams in the league this year. The Titans are the only Pac-10 team ranked in the USA Today/InterMat/NWCA top-25, coming in at No. 24 nationally this week. All-American heavyweight Wade Sauer (No. 5), leads four Titans who are nationally ranked. TJ Dillashaw (No. 15 at 133 pounds) and defending Pac-10 Champion Morgan Atkinson (No. 10 at 149 pounds) both return from 2007 NCAA appearances, as does 165-pounder Bryan Tice. Senior Ian Murphy rounds out the ranked wrestlers for Fullerton at No. 12 at 184 pounds. The Cardinal wraps up the regular-season at Arizona State on Feb. 17. The team will compete for the Pac-10 Championship, Mar. 2-3 in Eugene, Ore.

#4/4 MINNESOTA (11-5, 2-1) at #11/10 Northwestern (5-6, 1-2) Location: Evanston, Ill. Arena: Thomas Athletic Complex Date/Time: Friday, Feb. 8, 2008, 6:30 p.m. (CST) Television: Friday's dual meet will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network starting at 6:35 p.m. Tim Johnson and Mark Massery will be on the call. #4/4 MINNESOTA (11-5, 2-1) at Purdue (9-4, 1-2) Location: West Lafayette, Ind. Arena: Intercollegiate Athletic Facility Date/Time: Sunday, Feb. 10, 2008, 12:00 p.m. (CST) Live Webcast: A live webcast of the meet will be available via purduesports.cstv.com. Northwestern/Purdue Notes to Know • The fourth-ranked and defending national champion Golden Gopher wrestling team looks to rebound this weekend when they travel to 10th-ranked Northwestern (Friday) and Purdue (Sunday). Friday's tilt will get underway at 6:30 p.m., while Sunday's starts at noon (CST). • Friday night's dual meet wil mark the third time this season the Gophers will appear on the Big Ten Network, tied for the most appearances in the conference (Michigan is also scheduled to have three dual meets aired on the station). Minnesota's Dec. 2 dual with Iowa State was the network's first wrestling broadcast, and last Friday's meet with No. 1 Iowa was also televised live. Tim Johnson and Mark Massery will be on the call Friday. • Friday night, the Golden Gophers lost a tough 20-13 dual meet decision to the top-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes at Williams Arena. Iowa won six of 10 matches, including upsets by No. 9 Dan LeClere (over No. 3 Manny Rivera) and No. 8 Phil Keddy over Minnesota's No. 5 Roger Kish. The win was the first in three years for the Hawkeyes in the series and drops Minnesota's dual meet record to 11-4 (2-1 in the Big Ten) • Sunday, despite picking up key upsets from Tyler Safratowich (165 pounds) and No. 11 Gabriel Dretsch (174 pounds), the Gophers could not pull off the dual meet victory in Stillwater, Okla., falling to the third-ranked Cowboys 18-14. The Gophers won four of six matches, but close losses at 133, 141 and 184 pounds doomed the reigning Big Ten champions to their second loss of the weekend. • Minnesota has been outstanding against this weekend's two opponents, the Wildcats and Boilermakers. The Gophers are 37-13-1 all-time against Northwestern (winning the last eight meetings between the two) and 42-17-2 all-time against Purdue (including 9-1 in their past 10 meetings). • Minnesota is also coming off a successful Big Ten-opening weekend in which they picked up victories over Michigan State (Jan. 25 in East Lansing) and Michigan (Jan. 26 in Ann Arbor). • Seven of Minnesota's 10 normal starters are ranked nationally in their respective weight classes currently. Jayson Ness (No. 1 at 125 pounds), Mack Reiter (No. 5 at 133 pounds), Manny Rivera (No. 3 at 141), Dustin Schlatter (No. 3 at 149 pounds), C.P. Schlatter (No. 7 at 157), Gabe Dretsch (No. 11 at 174) and Roger Kish (No. 10 at 184) all rank among the nation's best. • While the Gophers endured a tough weekend to start February, top-ranked 125-pounder Jayson Ness certainly did not. Ness earned a dominating 14-2 major decision over No. 3 Charlie Falck Friday, his fourth win in as many tries over the Apple Valley (Minn.) graduate, and followed that with another 18-5 major decision over No. 16 Tyler Shinn Sunday in Stillwater. Ness has won 29 consecutive matches (the second-longest active streak in Division I) and needs just three more pins to break current assistant head coach Marty Morgan's single-season mark for most pins by a Gopher (20, set in 1989-90). GOPHERS ENDURE ROUGH WEEKEND Ever since the 2007-08 schedule was released, everyone knew that the weekend of Feb. 1-3 would be a tough one, but few knew how tough. The Gophers lost back-to-back dual meets for the second time already this season, falling 20-14 to No. 1 Iowa Friday night and 18-14 Sunday against Oklahoma State. The Gophers have had more than one losing streak in the same season just twice since 1991-92 (the other year being 2004-05). HAWKEYES TRUMP GOPHERS AT WILLIAMS The Golden Gopher wrestling team dropped a tough 20-13 dual meet decision to the top-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes Friday night at Williams Arena. Two key upsets spurred the Hawkeyes to victory in front of 7,472 spectators, giving them their first win over Minnesota in three years. Things began going awry for the Gophers after Iowa's Joe Slaton defeated Mack Reiter at 133 pounds, followed by an upset victory by Dan LeClere over Minnesota's Manuel Rivera at 141. The Gophers closed the gap to one point after the 165-pound match, but Iowa cemented the victory when No. 8 Phil Keddy upset No. 5 Roger Kish at 184 pounds. It was the first in the series for Iowa against Minnesota since 2005 and their first win at Williams Arena since the 2000 season. LONG TIME COMING The Gophers' 20-13 loss to Iowa Friday night at Williams was the program's first conference dual meet loss in nearly two years, and their first home Big Ten loss in nearly three. Minnesota was an undefeated 8-0 in the Big Ten last year en route to their national championship, and last lost in the conference on Feb. 19, 2006 (19-15 at Michigan. The Gophers' last home Big Ten loss came on February 20, 2005 vs. Illinois (24-13). ‘BOYS TOP CHAMPS IN OK Despite picking up key upsets from Tyler Safratowich (165 pounds) and No. 11 Gabriel Dretsch (174 pounds), the defending national champion Golden Gopher wrestling team could not pull off the dual meet victory Sunday afternoon in Stillwater, Okla., falling to the third-ranked Cowboys 18-14. The Gophers won four of six matches, but close losses at 133, 141 and 184 pounds doomed the reigning Big Ten champions to their second loss of the weekend. In a heated battle between the two programs that have combined to win the past seven NCAA team titles, the Cowboys got the better of J Robinson's Gophers for the first time in the last four meetings between the schools. The victory was the Cowboys' first home win over Minnesota since a 1997, and the home school has won just two dual meets between these two programs since 1998 (the other instance being Minnesota's 21-15 win over OSU last season in Williams Arena). The Gophers have still won eight of their last 12 dual meets with the Cowboys. THE SERIES VS. NORTHWESTERN Minnesota has been the toast of the Big Ten for most of this millennium, as the Gophers have won three national and five conference titles since the year 2000. They have owned a distinct advantage in the series with the Wildcats during that time – Minnesota has won the last eight meetings between the programs and 12 of the last 14 dating back to 1991. The two teams tied (18-18) in 1993. The Gophers are 37-13-1 all-time vs. Northwestern. LAST TIME VS. NORTHWESTERN (1/20/06) The top-ranked Golden Gopher wrestling team won seven of 10 matches in a 24-11 victory against No. 16 Northwestern in the Big Ten opener for both teams on Jan. 20, 2006. The Wildcats jumped ahead 3-0 after eighth-ranked John Velez earned a 6-0 decision against Andrew Domingues at 125 pounds. Minnesota responded with five straight victories, including third-ranked Mack Reiter's 5-2 decision over Daniel Quintela at 133 pounds. The Golden Gophers led 7-3 after Manuel Rivera scored a 14-3 major decision against Marty Gould at 141 pounds. No. 2 Dustin Schlatter put on a clinic with a 17-1 technical fall against Jimmy Kim at 149 pounds, and C.P. Schlatter followed with a 9-4 decision against Greg Hagel at 157 pounds/ Matt Nagel made the score 18-3 with a 3-1 decision against 17th-ranked Will Durkee at 165 pounds. Ninth-ranked Roger Kish defeated 10th-ranked Mike Tamillow, 6-2 at 184 pounds, and top-ranked heavyweight Cole Konrad defeated ninth-ranked Dustin Fox 4-0 to end the meet. Konrad improved his record to 25-0 on the year. THE SERIES VS. PURDUE The Boilermaker wrestling program has not ranked amongst the nation's elite in quite some time (Purdue last finished in the top-five at the Big Ten Championships in 1992), and the J Robinson-led Minnesota Gophers have taken full advantage during that span. The Gophers are 42-17-2 vs. Purdue all-time, and have won nine of the last 10 meetings between the schools. LAST TIME VS. PURDUE (1/28/07) The top-ranked Golden Gopher wrestling team improved to 14-1 on the season and 3-0 in the Big Ten with a convincing 32-9 victory over Purdue on Jan. 28, 2007 at the Sports Pavilion. Minnesota won seven of 10 matches on the day, earning bonus points in six, to hand the Boilermakers their fourth straight loss. Then-fourth ranked Jayson Ness earned a major decision over Brandon Tucker at 125 pounds, and Roger Kish also picked up a 23-8 technical fall. The closest match of the day was top-ranked Dustin Schlatter's 3-2 win over No. 11 Jake Patacsil at 149 pounds. NESS CONTINUES TO SHINE Although the Gophers endured a rough weekend, it was anything but for top-ranked 125-pound sophomore Jayson Ness. The Bloomington, Minn. native continued to establish himself as one of the nation's top overall wrestlers with dominating wins over No. 3 Charlie Falck of Iowa and No. 16 Tyler Shinn of OSU last weekend. Ness is still just three pins shy of the Gophers' single-season mark (he has 17 entering this weekend) and has scored bonus points in an amazing 82 percent of his matches this weekend (23 of 28). His streak of 29 consecutive wins is the second-longest active streak in Division I. Ness has beaten six ranked wrestlers already this season, including two top-five opponents (Falck and then-No. 1 Paul Donahoe of Nebraska). THE GIANT KILLER RETURNS Last season, Tyler Safratowich earned the reputation of being a giant killer after being inserted into the starting lineup at 165 pounds at Indiana on Feb. 2, 2007. Safratowich picked up the first two Big Ten wins of his career with a pair of impressive upsets over ranked opponents, knocking off No. 16 Max Dean of Indiana and No. 13 Roger Smith-Bergsrud of Illinois in his first two starts at 165. While wrestling at 157 pounds earlier that year, Safratowich also upset No. 2 Brian Stith of Arizona State on Jan. 2. Safratowich eventually earned the first NCAA qualification of his career and was just one win shy of earning All-American status, going 2-2 at nationals. This season, Safratowich began the season platooning with redshirt freshman Scott Glasser at 165 pounds, but took over the job after the start of the new year due to a Glasser injury. Since that time, the junior has been a bright spot in the Gopher lineup and broke through with a big win over No. 5 Jake Dieffenbach of Oklahoma State Sunday. Safratowich is 8-9 over the last two seasons against ranked wrestlers and has two wins over top-five opponents. Safratowich's Ranked Victories: Date Opponent (School) Result 11/18/06 #2 Trent Paulson (Iowa State) Med. For 1/2/07 #2 Brian Stith (Arizona State) D, 4-3 2/2/07 #16 Max Dean (Indiana) D, 10-4 2/4/07 #13 Roger Smith-Bergstrund (Ill.) D, 4-0 3/3/07 #17 Chris Vondruska (Ohio State) D, 6-3 3/15/07 #15 Steve Anceravage (Cornell) D, 8-4 12/30/07 #17 Chris Brown (Old Dominion) Med. For. 2/3/07 #5 Jake Dieffenbach (Okl. State) D, 5-1 OT DRETSCH'S TOUGH STRETCH Gopher senior Gabe Dretsch has put together a fine career at Minnesota, going 101-50 and qualifying for nationals three times. This season, the Frazee, Minn. native has gone 22-8 so far this season and is currently ranked 11th nationally at 174 pounds. While Dretsch is a solid 9-5 in dual meets this season, but the caliber of competition he has faced in recent weeks is second to none. Dretsch has faced a whopping 11 ranked wrestlers since Dec. 29, including seven in a row and six from the top 10. Below is a rundown of Dretsch's recent matches against ranked wrestlers: Date Opponent (School) Result 12/29 #14 Alton Lucas (Hofstra) L, 3-4 12/30 #18 Eric Decker (Virginia Tech) W, 5-2 12/30 #11 Steve Anceravage (Cornell) L, 4-7 12/30 #12 Phil Moricone (Edinboro) W, 5-3 1/12 #3 Brandon Sinnot (C. Michigan) W, 6-3 1/13 #5 Brandon Browne (Nebraska) L, 2-3 1/13 #2 Steve Luke (Michigan) L, 3-5 1/25 #2 Steve Luke (Michigan) L, 3-9 1/26 #19 John Murphy (Mich. State) W, P (0:46) 2/1 #2 Jay Borschel (Iowa) L, 3-8 2/3 #7 Brandon Mason (Okl. State) W, 5-3 MARQUEE MATCH-UPS This weekend's pair of dual meets with Northwestern and Purdue are sure to produce plenty of memorable matches, with Friday's meet against the Wildcats of particular interest. Tenth-ranked Northwestern currently boasts six ranked wrestlers, and that dual meet will feature three battles between ranked wrestlers: 125: #1 Jayson Ness (28-0) vs. #5 Brandon Precin (26-3) 141: #3 Manuel Rivera (25-4) vs. #17 Keith Sulzer (11-4) 174: #11 Gabe Dretsch (22-8) vs. #12 Nick Hayes (16-5) The Wildcats will also send out #5 Ryan Lang (149 pounds), #2 Mike Tamillow (197 pounds) and top-ranked heavyweight Dustin Fox.

PISCATAWAY, N.J. -– The Rutgers wrestling program, under the guidance of first-year head coach Scott Goodale, will return to conference action when it faces American on Sunday, Feb. 10, at the College Ave. Gym, starting at noon. The Scarlet Knights (9-6, 4-2) are currently in fifth place in the EIWA, while American (3-11, 1-3) is in ninth place. The Scarlet Knights will be led by junior Matt Pletcher (Eastampton, N.J.) who is 22-4 on the season at 165 pounds with four major decisions, and redshirt senior Steve Adamcsik (Chester, N.J.) who is 21-5 at 141, including a 10-2 mark in duals and a team-high nine major decisions. American will be led by Christopher Stout at 157 pounds, who is 19-10 on the season, and Mike Cannon at 165 who owns an 18-3 record on the season including a 13-1 mark in duals. RU will hold a special ceremony for former head coach John Sacchi during the match. Sacchi retired in May of 2007 after 40 years in coaching, including the past 17 years at Rutgers. He finished with an astonishing 447-162-9 career record, making him the second winningest coach in college wrestling at any level with regard to dual victories. The match between American and Rutgers will begin at noon on Sunday, Feb. 10, at the College Ave. Gym. Admission is free to the public.

SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- Fifth-year senior David Metzler pinned two opponents and posted a major decision on his way to a third-place showing in the 141-pound weight class at the All-Academy Championships, held last Saturday at the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y. For his efforts, Metzler has been named Southern Conference Wrestler of the Week and VMI Athlete of the Week, it was announced on Wednesday. Metzler (Dayton, Va./Turner Ashby) pinned Jon Egan from Norwich in 1:48 and Caleb Levee from Navy in 2:06, while scoring his team-leading fifth major decision of the season with a 16-4 win against James Beshada of Merchant Marine. With his three wins, Metzler became VMI's first 20-match winner this season, currently standing at 20-12. He also moved into the top 20 in VMI career wins, now with a 72-53 career mark. Metzler is VMI's second SoCon Wrestler of the Week honoree this season, joining freshman Josh Wine, who earned the award in December. The VMI wrestling team returns to action on Friday evening, hosting SoCon foe Chattanooga at 7:30 p.m. at The Thunderdome.

NORMAN, Okla. -- The No. 18 Sooners (12-3, 0-2 in Big 12) resume Big 12 competition this weekend in two road duals versus No. 12 Missouri on Friday, Feb. 8, and No. 2 Nebraska on Sunday, Feb. 10. The matchup against the Tigers (7-3-1, 0-1-1 in Big 12) is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m., and the dual versus the Cornhuskers (11-2, 2-0 in Big 12) will begin at 2 p.m. "We are headed back into the battlefield," head coach Jack Spates said. "The Big 12 is the toughest conference in the nation and we are going to have to be hitting on all cylinders this weekend." Oklahoma is coming off an impressive beating of the Sun Devils of Arizona State last Friday night in Norman by a 31-9 final. After losing the first two matches, OU reeled off eight straight victories and 31 unanswered points to take the win. The 12 wins on the season surpass the overall win total of last year's campaign (11 wins). The Sooners boast a season-high seven wrestlers ranked in the Top 20 this week, led by seniors Joshua Weitzel at 184 pounds (No. 6) and Joel Flaggert at 197 pounds (No. 5). Zack Bailey is ranked No. 15 at 141 pounds and Brian Shelton and Will Rowe are No. 13 at 133 and 149 pounds, respectively. Chad Terry at 157 pounds and Max Dean at 165 pounds are both ranked 20th. Nick Marable leads the Tigers, ranked No. 2 at 165 pounds. Raymond Jordan at 184 pounds is ranked No. 5 and Max Askren is No. 9 at 197 pounds. Mark Ellis at heavyweight (No. 11), 125-pounder Michael Chandler (No. 14) and Josh Wagner at 149 pounds (No. 16) are also ranked among the nation's elite. Nebraska also has seven ranked in this week's poll, including five in the Top 10. Leaders for the Cornhuskers are Paul Donahoe at 125 pounds (No. 4), Brandon Browne at 175 pounds (No. 5) and 149-pounder Jordan Burroughs (No. 7). Kenny Jordan at 133 pounds and Vince Jones at 184 pounds are both No. 9. Stephen Dwyer is No. 10 at 165 pounds and Chris Oliver is No. 16 at 157 pounds. "These matches are what we have been training for and our team is eager to compete," Spates said. "It is definitely time for our guys to step up this weekend on the road." Visit SoonerSports.com for full OU wrestling coverage.

The Air Force Academy's Stephen Crozier has been named the Western Wrestling Conference's Wrestler of the Week as announced by league officials. Crozier, a 165-pounder from Monona, Iowa (MFL Mar Mac HS), was the top performer for Air Force this past weekend, taking home the 165-pound title at the All-Academy Championships, hosted by Army. Crozier, seeded second, went 3-0 at the tournament, registering a pair of major decisions before pinning top-seeded Vincent Renaut in a time of 4:14 in the championship bout. He became the first Falcon since 2005 to win an individual title at the All-Academy Championships. Crozier now leads the Falcons with a 23-9 overall record, one more victory than in his first two seasons combined. The Western Wrestling Conference is comprised of seven schools including the Air Force Academy, North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, Northern Iowa, South Dakota State, Utah Valley State and Wyoming. Others nominated: North Dakota State - Eric Hoffman Northern Iowa - Moza Fay South Dakota State - Adam Everson Wyoming - Carter Downing

STILLWATER, Okla. -- In honor of Black History Month in February, the National Wrestling Hall of Fame & Museum has created a new exhibit that will commemorate 50 years of African American success on the mat. "On behalf of the Hall of Fame Board of Governors, I want to express our collective excitement for this educational outreach project that celebrates the heritage of African Americans who have contributed so much to the success of our sport both at home and abroad," said Lee Roy Smith, Executive Director of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. "We believe this exhibit will help inspire young African Americans to follow in the footsteps of these extraordinary individuals who have been successful in both sport and life." It was half a century ago, in 1957, that Simon Roberts from the University of Iowa claimed the first NCAA Wrestling Championship by a black athlete at 147 pounds. Since then, 45 other African American wrestlers have joined him at the top of the podium. Blacks have also won national, world and Olympic wrestling medals and become successful coaches and officials. Wrestling ranks among the most successful individual sports in medals won by black athletes at the NCAA and Olympic levels of competition. "The Wrestling Hall of Fame has been collaborating with the organization that initiated black history month (Association for the Study of African American Life and History) to bring attention to the tremendous historical impact that blacks have had upon the sport," Smith said. The exhibit, which will be on display at the museum in Stillwater for the remainder of 2008, will feature individual biographies and photos of each wrestler along with a narrative chronicling the African American wrestling experience. A traveling exhibit will be featured at the NCAA Division I Championships in St. Louis this March and the Olympic Trials in June in Las Vegas. The Hall of Fame's annual on-line trivia challenge prior to the NCAA Championships will also focus on the legacy of African American wrestling champions in the United States. If you have any questions or would like further information, please contact Lee Roy Smith at the National Wrestling Hall of Fame at 405-377-5243 or lsmith@wrestlinghalloffame.org. You can also visit our website: www.wrestlinghalloffame.org.

Name a state that's known as a hotbed for high school wrestling. Among the usual suspects: Pennsylvania, Ohio, New York, New Jersey, Iowa, Oklahoma. Jon Burns (Photo/Tech-Fall.com)Chances are, the state of North Carolina didn't immediately come to mind … unless you reside (or wrestle) in the Tar Heel State. One high school wrestler is doing his best to raise the profile of prep wrestling in North Carolina … while making a name for himself, too. His name is Jon Burns, RevWrestling.com's top-ranked high school wrestler in the country at 145 pounds. In the past year, the senior at Cardinal Gibbons High School in Raleigh won the North Carolina state championship, as well as titles at the 2007 NHSCA Junior Nationals and at the 2007 Walsh Ironman tournament. It all started with the Twisters Jon Burns grew up in the southern suburbs of Chicago. His first introduction to sports was playing football. "One of the coaches of the Harvey Twisters asked me to come out for wrestling after football season," says Jon. (The Twisters are the Illinois-based wrestling club that launched the mat careers of a number of nationally-renowned wrestlers, including University of Iowa NCAA champs Joe and T.J. Williams.) In fifth grade, Jon's dad was transferred by Ford Motor Company to Georgia, where he continued the football-and-wrestling combination. In eighth grade, the Burns family moved again -- this time to the Raleigh, North Carolina area. "My school didn't have wrestling, so I went out for basketball," according to Jon. "But I didn't make the team." "I didn't get to wrestle again 'til my freshman year at Cary High School." Despite the layoff, Jon didn't lose a step on the wrestling mat. His freshman year at Cary, he compiled a 53-5 record, and placed third at the North Carolina state tournament. As a sophomore, Jon transferred to Cardinal Gibbons … and had to sit out that season. In an article published by the Cary newspaper, Jon was quoted as saying, "It was real tough knowing I couldn't wrestle that year. I went to the state tournament and I watched. I was kind of sad I wasn't able to participate, but I continued to work hard so I would be able to make this year happen." "This year" refers to Jon Burns' junior year, where he put away his football helmet for good and concentrated all his athletic efforts on wrestling. In his first year competing for Cardinal Gibbons, Jon racked up a perfect 65-0 season, and won the 140-pound 1-A/2-A North Carolina state wrestling championship in February 2007. National recognition How do you top a state title? Jon Burns found a way… by claiming the 140-pound crown at the 2007 NHSCA Junior National Wrestling Championships in Virginia Beach in March. The event is open to prep wrestlers in their junior year. The 2007 Junior Nationals attracted over 700 participants … including some of the top high school matmen in the country. Jon's weight class was no exception. In his first bout, he went up against two-time Pennsylvania state qualifier Adam Will, and got a 10-3 victory. In his next two matches, Jon scored two major decisions -- a 14-4 win over Tanner Schaffer, a two-time Maryland state placewinner, and a 13-5 victory over Dan Clarke, a New Jersey All-American. In the quarterfinals, Jon earned an 8-1 win over Austin Cordova, a state titleholder from Texas. Next, it was a battle of the recently-crowned North Carolina state champs. In the semifinals, Jon went up against Michael Williams, the defending 3-A champ from Southern Lee. Williams had a 1-0 lead at the end of the second period … but Jon came roaring back in the third, getting a 8-2 win. Jon's rival for the 140-pound title was Ryan Konz, a three-time Tennessee state placer and All-American … but the Cardinal Gibbons wrestler prevailed, 9-4, to win the Junior National crown. The Man at the Ironman Arguably the biggest highlight of Jon Burns' senior year in high school was winning the 145-pound title at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman Invitational tournament held in December 2007 in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. Jon claimed the championship with a 4-1 win over two-time Ohio state champ Ben Jordan of national wrestling powerhouse St. Paris Graham. Jon Burns defeated then-No. 1 Mario Mason in the semifinals at the Walsh Ironman (Photo/Tech-Fall.com)However, Jon claims his biggest accomplishment was his semifinals victory over Mario Mason, at the time RevWrestling.com's No. 1-ranked senior (overall) in the country from yet another major prep power, Blair Academy of New Jersey. The North Carolinian had been behind 4-0 in the second period when he rallied to score a 7-4 win. In an interview with Rob Sherrill for W.I.N. Magazine, Jon said, "(The third period), I got out, and it was 4-2. He took some injury time. He looked tired to me, or at least that's what I thought. And maybe 15 or 20 seconds later, I took him down and put him on his back, and got a three-count, and now it's 7-4. I rode him out for the rest of the period." When asked what he hit Mason with, Jon replied, "It was kind of a pancake. I just ran through him. He took kind of a weak shot and didn't recover fast enough, and I rushed him, knocked him off his balance, and put him on his back." After defeating two of the best wrestlers from two of the best prep programs in the country, Jon Burns is definitely now on the radar screens of other 145-pounders across the nation. "My coaches say my name's out there now, and everybody's going to try to get me," Jon told W.I.N. Magazine. "I just try to stay focused. If I wrestle my match, and not let anyone take control, I should be fine." Senior season success There's no stopping Jon Burns. So far in his last year at Cardinal Gibbons, he has compiled a 49-0 record … extending his win streak past the 100-match mark. Ask him if there's any pressure to maintain the streak, Jon replies, "I don't let it phase me." "Losing is never an option. I always know that I'm going to win." "I want to let people know that I'm the best," Jon continues, using the same matter-of-fact tone throughout the interview for this profile. There's no hint of cockiness or arrogance in his voice. Also in his voice there's also a quest for continuous improvement, of never being completely satisfied. "When I'm in practice, I try to move up weight sets to better myself. I always try to do more wind sprints than the last time. Go for more takedowns than before. I'm always competing with myself." "I like to try new things during a match, see what works," Jon adds. "I wrestle my own matches. I have control over my matches." "My goal is to always get a pin. It's important for the team -- it means six points. Being a young team, it can make the difference." Jon's passion for pinning is backed up by the stats: In both his freshman and junior year of competition, he scored at least 40 pins each season. "In my junior year, only about three of my matches were regular decisions," says the Cardinal Gibbons senior. A sense of style Ask Jon Burns to describe his wrestling style, and the first thing he mentions is his pre-match preparation routine: "A lot of guys get pumped up, angry. I'm not angry. I'm usually relaxed, laid-back." "I save my energy for the mat. I go out and attack, wrestle my match." Jon is also flexible: "I can be slick, real technical, or physical when I need to be." Jon Burns defeated two-time Ohio state champ Ben Jordan to win the Walsh Ironman"For instance, if I go up against a strong guy, I usually use quickness to get him off-balance." Ask the same question of his coach Stan Chambers, and his first response is to chuckle: "The things he's doing to people, you just can't coach that stuff." "His style is, 'I'm going to beat you and you won't be able to do anything about it.'" "He's a hard worker," continues coach Chambers. "He's honest, straightforward. Gets good grades. Has a good relationship with his parents. Very much a team player. A treat to have around." "He doesn't get the recognition he deserves. Then again, North Carolina doesn't get the recognition it deserves in terms of wrestling. There are lots of great people doing great things here. Jon's success may help bring national recognition to North Carolina wrestling." The recruitment drive Recognition may be coming Jon Burns' way … at least in terms of attracting attention from a wide range of top-flight colleges and universities. All this interest isn't simply because of Jon's success on the mat. He's earned a 3.7 grade point average, is a member of the National Honor Society, and scored over 1500 on the combined SAT. Those stats -- along with his wrestling record -- grabbed the attention of elite schools such as Cornell University, Columbia, and Stanford, as well as the top wrestling programs in the country, including Minnesota. After weighing all his options, Jon chose the University of Nebraska at Lincoln. "(Nebraska head) coach (Mark) Manning came to visit me here," says the highly recruited 145-pound senior. "At the end of October I went out there for a visit. I watched the intrasquad dual, and got a tour of the school. I was especially impressed with the athletic facilities." "Everyone showed they cared about my interests -- not just wrestling, but academics as well." The road ahead What does the future hold for the future Cornhusker? "As for my college major, I'm pretty sure it'll be some business degree," says Jon. "Possibly working towards a career in real estate." Jon Burns (Photo/Tech-Fall.com)And, in terms of wrestling, Jon sums up his goals very succinctly: "NCAA champ. Olympics right after college. Not interested in the WWE or MMA." "Coaching might be in the future, too. I enjoy helping little kids; I've worked with young kids at camp. Right now, I can't see myself coaching in college but who knows?" At the end of our interview, Jon said, "I try to give all the glory to God, my parents, my teammates, and coaches." With all his accomplishments on and off the mat, Jon Burns is not only getting the recognition he deserves … but he's also helping to put the spotlight on wrestling in the state of North Carolina.

NORMAN, Okla. -- Bob Hines, M.D., team doctor for the Oklahoma Sooner wrestling squad, has been appointed as a team physician for the 2008 Summer Olympic wrestling team in Beijing, China. "This is the pinnacle of physician coverage in athletics," Dr. Hines said. "I have been taking care of teams in all areas of the world and this is the highlight of a lot of hard work and dedication." His duties will include caring for all three disciplines of wrestling (men's and women's freestyle, and men's Greco-Roman and Judo). He will also help staff the U.S. training room and medical clinic to assist athletes from all sports. Dr. Hines is in his 14th season as the team doctor for Oklahoma, overseeing all medical needs and surgeries for the squad. "This extraordinary honor is well deserved for Doc Hines," OU wrestling head coach Jack Spates said. "He has devoted countless hours and resources to help athletes from all over the world achieve their dreams. It is only fitting by being named a team physician for the Olympics, that he is achieving one of his own." He also has recently been the team physician for the 2005 and 2007 World Championships of Wrestling and has been part of medical teams in countries such as Iran, Budapest and Turkey. "It is going to be three weeks away from home, but I am really excited for it," Dr. Hines said. "I have been a lot of places, but this is the big one."

LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ -- Kyle Fried of Binghamton University and Jesse Strawn of Old Dominion University have been named the Colonial Athletic Association Wrestlers of the Week, and James Nicholson of ODU and Frankie McLaughlin of George Mason University are the CAA Rookie Wrestlers of the Week, for all competition January 29-February 4. Fried, a senior 149 from Rock Hill, NY (Monroe Woodbury), won all three of his bouts at the Ithaca Duals, including a 12-1 major decision to improve to 11-1 in an injury-riddled season. Strawn, a sophomore 184 from Holton, Kansas (Holton), won both of his matches by fall last week, including a CAA victory over George Mason. The victories were his 28th and 29th of the season and he now has six pins. The pin against American clinched the dual meet victory for the Monarchs, their 15th, the most since 1983-84. Nicholson, a freshman 125 from Des Moines, Iowa (Theodore Roosevelt), went 2-0 last week with a technical fall in the CAA victory over Mason, his fourth tech fall, improving to 5-1 in the CAA. Currently ranked 12th in the nation by InterMat and 13th by Amateur Wrestling News, Nicholson has won 18 of his last 20, the two losses to ranked opponents. McLaughlin, a freshman 157 from Hillsborough, NJ (Hillsborough), returned to the line up from a hand injury to win his CAA bout against ODU, improving to 17-6 on the season.

THIS WEEK Iowa (16-1, 5-0 Big Ten) will hit the road for the second straight week, taking a non-conference road trip out west to face two Pac-10 opponents. The Hawkeyes will face Arizona State (9-5, 3-4 Pac 10) Friday at Copper Canyon High School in Glendale, AZ, at 8:30 p.m. (CT). Iowa will then face Boise State (8-1, 7-1 Pac 10) Sunday at 1 p.m. (CT) at Taco Bell Arena in Boise, ID. ON THE AIR Radio - Steven Grace and two-time Hawkeye NCAA champion and four-time all-American Mark Ironside will call the action live on AM-800, KXIC. All dual meets will be broadcast live, as will action from the Big Ten and NCAA Championships. Live audio broadcasts from all competitions and are available online at www.hawkeyesports.com. Broadcasts are available using the Hawkeye All-Access subscription ($9.95 per month or $79.95 per year) or the CSTV XXL Premium subscription ($119.95 yer year). Internet - Press releases, meet results, audio broadcasts and live video broadcasts from home dual meets are available online at www.hawkeyesports.com. To access live dual scoring for home meets, go to the wrestling schedule page, select the event and click on the Livestats link. Results will be updated after each bout during the dual. Current staff and student-athlete head shots can be found at pics.hawkeyesports.com. ARIZONA STATE SUN DEVILS Arizona State is 9-5 (3-4 Pac-10) with wins over Cal Davis (20-17), Pacific (45-6), Southern Oregon (30-7), Portland State (36-9), Embry-Riddle (35-9), Army (22-13), Grand Canyon (42-10), Pennsylvania (21-17) and Oregon (26-16), and losses to Cal Poly (17-24), Cal State Bakersfield (13-22), Cal State Fullerton (18-26), Oregon State (14-27) and Oklahoma (9-31). Head Coach Thom Ortiz is 74-49-1 in seven years at Arizona State. A Sun Devil alum, Ortiz has led Arizona State to three conference titles in the past six seasons and has been named Pac-10 Coach of the Year three times. He served as an assistant coach at Iowa State for nine seasons. Ortiz is assisted by Eric Larkin (Arizona State, 2003), Brian Stith (Arizona State, 2007) and Zach Roberson (Iowa State, 2004). The Sun Devils are led by redshirt freshmen Anthony Robles (126) and Brent Chriswell (184). BOISE STATE BRONCOS Boise State is 8-1 (7-1 Pac-10) with wins over North Idaho College (40-3), Wyoming (38-3), Cal State Bakersfield (35-6), Cal Poly (26-5), Stanford (21-15), Cal Davis (23-15), Oregon (34-3), Oregon State (24-13) and Portland State (43-0), and a loss to Cal State Fullerton (13-19). The Broncos will test their seven-match winning streak Friday night when they host Great Falls-Montana and Montana State-Northern at Bronco Gym. Head Coach Greg Randall is 48-22 in six seasons at Boise State. Randall was a three-time Iowa all-American at 134 (1984-87), winning the 1984 Big Ten title. He is assisted by Boise State alums Chris Owens (2000) and Kirk White (2000). Boise State is led by junior Tyler Sherfey (157) and freshmen Adam Hall (149), Kurt Swartz (165) and Kirk Smith (184). THE SERIES Arizona State - Iowa leads the series, 22-1-1 and has won the last 16 duals vs. the Sun Devils. The Hawkeyes are 9-1-1 in Tempe. Iowa's last win in the series was 39-3 at the 2007 dual in Iowa City, while Arizona State's was 22-18, in 1988, in Tempe. Boise State - Iowa leads the series, 3-0, but this will be its first dual in Boise. The Hawkeyes won the last meeting (24-13), in 2006, in Iowa City. LAST MEETING - IOWA 39, ARIZONA STATE 3 Tom Brands made his Carver-Hawkeye Arena debut as Hawkeye head coach Nov. 25, 2006, leading the Hawkeyes to a 39-3 victory over Arizona State. A boisterous crowd of 4,905 turned out for the meet. Iowa went 9-1 against Arizona State. The only loss was at 157 pounds, where second-ranked senior Sun Devil Brian Stith scored a takedown in sudden victory to defeat unranked Iowa redshirt freshman Ryan Morningstar, 3-1. Scoring team bonus points for the Hawkeyes were seniors Mario Galanakis (133 - pin), Alex Grunder (149 - technical fall) and Eric Luedke (174 - major decision), junior Matt Fields (Hwt. - forfeit) and redshirt freshman Phillip Keddy (184 - pin). Junior and second-ranked Mark Perry picked up his 50th career win with an 8-4 decision over Arizona State's Patrick Pitsch at 165 to end the dual. Iowa 39, Arizona State 3 174 - Eric Luedke (I) maj. dec. Alex Pavlenko (ASU), 12-1 184 - Phillip Keddy (I) pinned Greg Gifford (ASU), 0:48 197 - Dan Erekson (I) dec. Jason Trulson (ASU), 3-2 Hwt. - Matt Fields (I) won by forfeit 125 - Charlie Falck (I) dec. Tyler Bowles (ASU), 15-9 133 - Mario Galanakis (I) pinned Shawn Jones (ASU), 2:45 141 - Alex Tsirtsis (I) dec. Pat Payne (ASU), 6-2 149 - Alex Grunder (I) tech. fall Cameron Smith (ASU), 22-7 157 - Brian Stith (ASU) dec. Ryan Morningstar (I), 3-1 SV-1 165 - Mark Perry (I) dec. Patrick Pitsch (ASU), 8-4 LAST MEETING - IOWA 24, BOISE STATE 13 Iowa ended its 2005-06 regular season with a 24-13 win over Boise State in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Hawkeyes won six matches and celebrated Senior Night with Trent Goodale, Gable Ruhkala, Ty Eustice, Joe Johnston and Paul Bradley. Iowa 24, Boise State 13 141 - Alex Tsirtsis (I) maj. dec. Jordan Brock (BSU), 11-2 149 - Ty Eustice (I) dec. Tyler Sherfey (BSU), 5-3 157 - Ben Cherrington (BSU) dec. Joe Johnston (I), 18-12 165 - Eric Luedke (I) tech. fall Lex Case (BSU), 18-1 174 - Mark Perry (I) pinned Johnny Nunez (BSU), 1:01 184 - Paul Bradley (I) dec. K.C. Walsh (BSU), 5-2 197 - Casey Phelps (BSU) dec. Dan Erekson (I), 7-3 Hwt. - Andy Patrick (BSU) maj. dec. Michael Bucklin (I), 12-3 125 - Lucas Magnani (I) dec. Cory Fish (BSU), 7-3 133 - Scott Jorgensen (BSU) dec. Daniel Dennis (I), 12-7 PERRY UNDERGOES KNEE SURGERY Senior 165-pounder Mark Perry has undergone knee surgery. The announcement came Jan. 24 from Head Coach Tom Brands. The Stillwater, OK, native, had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee and will miss 2-3 weeks of action. Perry, a three-time all-American, has a career record of 89-15. He currently has a 13-2 record and is ranked first nationally. His nine pins, this season, are best on the team. FAMILY FOUR PACK AVAILABLE The University of Iowa is offering a Family Four Pack ticket package for the Iowa vs. Indiana dual on Feb. 15. The package includes four tickets, four hot dogs and four drinks for $30. Orders can be placed through the University of Iowa Athletic Ticket Office or at 1-800-464-2957, 319-335-9327 or www.hawkeyesports.com. IOWA WRESTLING HISTORY Iowa's overall dual meet record is 823-215-30 (.785) in 96 seasons. The Hawkeyes have won 20 national titles and 31 Big Ten titles. Iowa's 48 NCAA champions have won a total of 74 NCAA individual titles, crowning six three-time and 13 two-time champions. The Hawkeyes' 100 Big Ten champions have won a total of 181 conference titles. There have been seven four-time, 18 three-time and 24 two-time Iowa winners. Iowa's 130 all-Americans have earned all-America status 266 times, including 16 four-time, 28 three-time and 32 two-time honorees. IOWA TICKET INFORMATION Tickets for Iowa's two remaining home duals are on sale at the University of Iowa Athletic Ticket Office or at 1-800-464-2957, 319-335-9327 or www.hawkeyesports.com. University of Iowa students will be admitted free to all matches with a student ID. Tickets purchased in advance are $8 for adults and $4 for youth. Tickets purchased at the event are $10 for adults and $5 for youth. HAWKEYES GO 2-0 ON BIG TEN ROAD TRIP The top-ranked Hawkeyes downed two Big Ten opponents on the road last weekend. Iowa defeated #3/#4 Minnesota (20-13) Friday night at Williams Arena in Minneapolis and then held off #13/#15 Wisconsin (22-20) Sunday afternoon at the UW Field House in Madison. Iowa handed Minnesota (10-4, 2-1) their first Big Ten dual loss, winning six bouts, including two upsets. The dual started at 125 with a highly anticipated match between #1 Jayson Ness of Minnesota and #3 Charlie Falck of Iowa. Ness entered the dual with a 26-0 record and on a 27-match winning streak, while Falck brought an undefeated 15-0 dual mark and his own 12-match winning streak to the mat. Falck scored the first takedown of the match, but Ness scored 14 unanswered points to post a 14-2 major decision and snap Falck's streak and perfect dual record. Iowa responded with wins at the next three weights to build an 11-4 lead. Sophomore Dan LeClere, who is ranked ninth nationally, scored a takedown in the first sudden victory period to upset #3 Manuel Rivera, 9-7 at 141. Sophomore Brent Metcalf was supposed to be part of another big match as he and Minnesota junior Dustin Schlatter are ranked first or second in the nation at 149, depending on the poll. Metcalf instead faced freshman Luke Mellmer, who has filled in for Schlatter since late December due to injury. The Hawkeye sophomore scored a 20-5 match-ending technical fall in 6:17, collecting his 20th season and career win, and extending his winning streak to 17 matches. Minnesota scored wins at 157 and 165 to tighten the team score at 11-10, but an 8-3 win by sophomore Jay Borschel at 174 and sophomore Phillip Keddy's 6-2 upset over #5 Roger Kish at 184 gave Iowa a 17-10 lead. Keddy, who is ranked eighth in the nation, scored his 30th career win. Minnesota scored a decision at 197 to keep the team win within reach, but Hawkeye senior Matt Fields shut down the Golden Gophers with a 7-3 win over Ben Berhow at heavyweight. Iowa used bonus points to beat Wisconsin (11-3-1, 2-2). Each team won five matches, but the Hawkeyes used pins from sophomores Brent Metcalf (149) and Phillip Keddy (184) and a major decision by sophomore Jay Borschel (174) to win their ninth-straight dual. Head Coach Tom Brands picked up his 30th win at Iowa and his 10th win in the Big Ten. The Hawkeyes opened the dual with back-to-back decisions from junior Charlie Falck (125) and sophomore Joe Slaton (133). Wisconsin put its first points on the board at 141 when #7 Kyle Ruschell scored seven points in the third period to beat Hawkeye sophomore Dan LeClere, 8-0. Metcalf extended Iowa's lead to 12-4 with his 4:02 pin of Trevor Bowers at 149. Wisconsin fought back to within one (12-11) on Craig Henning's 2-1 win over Ryan Morningstar at 157 and Jake Donar's 13-1 major decision over redshirt freshman Aaron Janssen at 165. Borschel and Keddy's bonus point wins gave the Hawkeyes a 22-11 lead, but the Badgers weren't finished. Wisconsin scored a pin of its own at 197 and junior heavyweight Kyle Massey upset Hawkeye senior Matt Fields, 6-5, in the afternoon's final bout. Slaton, Metcalf and Borschel remain undefeated at 5-0 in Big Ten duals, while Slaton and Borschel picked up their 20th season and career victories. Metcalf extended his winning streak to 18 matches and picked up his seventh pin of the year. BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIPS TICKETS GO ON SALE Tickets for the 2008 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, to be held at the University of Minnesota's Williams Arena Mar. 8-9 are now available. All-session tickets are $30 and may be purchased through gophersports.com, in person at the Minnesota athletics ticket office in Mariucci Arena or by calling 1-800-846-7437 or 612-624-8080. Single-session tickets, if available, will go on sale March 3. The 2008 Big Ten Wrestling Championships will feature a three-session format, with the Session 1 preliminary matches beginning at 11 a.m. on Mar. 8. Session 2 will get underway at 6 p.m. that same day, and the Session 3 championship matches will start at noon Mar. 9. Doors to Williams Arena open approximately one hour prior to the beginning of each session. Sessions 1 and 2 will feature four mats of action, while Session 3 will have three mats. NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS RETURN TO ST. LOUIS The 2008 NCAA Wrestling Championships are scheduled for Mar. 20-22 at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, MO. The Scottrade Center was the site for the national wrestling tournament in 2000, 2004 and 2005, and will host the event in 2009. The NCAA, University of Missouri and the St. Louis Sports Commission will co-host the event. Sessions I (11 a.m.) and II (6:30 p.m.) will be held Mar. 20, Sessions III (10 a.m. and IV (6 p.m.) will be Mar. 21, and Session V (10 a.m.) and the championship finals (7:30 p.m.) are set for Mar. 22. Tickets to the event are available at (866) 646-8849 or ticketmaster.com. All-session tickets are priced based on seat location. Following is the price breakdown: Plaza: $150 Mezzanine Center & Mezzanine Corner (1st 2 rows): $120 Mezzanine Corner & Mezzanine End (1st 2 rows): $95 Mezzanine End : $60 NEXT COMPETITION Top-ranked Iowa (16-1, 5-0 Big Ten) will host #16 Indiana (12-5, 1-3 Big Ten) Feb. 15 at 7 p.m. and #5/#6 Michigan (15-4, 2-1 Big Ten) Feb. 17 at 8 p.m. Both matches will be held in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Hawkeyes will recognize seniors Matt Fields (Hwt.) and Mark Perry (165) before the Michigan dual. It will be the second meeting for the Hawkeyes and Wolverines this season, as Iowa scored a 23-13 win in the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals semifinals Jan. 13 in Cedar Falls.

LYNCHBURG, Va. -- With a pair of come-from-behind victories on Tuesday evening, the George Mason wrestling team improved to 11-4 on the season, reaching double-digit victories for the first time since the 1996-97 season, when the Patriots captured the CAA Championship. Wrestling at the Vines Center in Lynchburg, Va., Mason defeated Liberty 20-18 and UNC Greensboro 18-17 in a couple of highly-competitive nonconference dual meets. In its first meet of the day, Mason wrestled host Liberty. The Patriots trailed 14-9 heading into the 174-pound match, when senior Randy Oates recorded a fall over Liberty's Aaron Kelley that gave Mason a one-point lead. The lead changed hands again when Liberty's Chris Daggett earned a 16-5 major decision win over sophomore Bill Widener. Trailing by three points, Mason needed at least a major decision at 197 pounds to win the meet. Rather than a major decision, freshman Cayle Byers, currently ranked 16th by InterMat and 20th by Amateur Wrestling News, did even better, recording a technical fall over Nick Knowles to give the Patriots a close 20-18 win. Mason's second meet of the day found the Patriots in a similar situation, trailing entering the final match. This time around, Mason trailed UNC Greensboro by two, 17-15, heading into the 197-pound bout. Byers prevailed again, this time against a much tougher opponent than the first. Wrestling Daren Burns, the 11th-ranked wrestler in the nation according to InterMat and 13th according to Amateur Wrestling News, Byers showed off his tremendous skills, forcing overtime against the seasoned veteran, before giving Mason the 18-17 team victory with a takedown in the extra period to earn his 31st win of the year. George Mason will attempt to extend its winning streak to three when it hits the mat again on Friday, Feb. 15, wrestling at Duquesne at 7 p.m.

EVANSTON, Ill. -- T.C. Dantzler's opponent was the reigning World champion. But that didn't matter one bit. Even if Dantzler was taking on King Kong, there was no possible way he was going to lose. Not in front of his hometown fans at the Chicago Cup. Dantzler pumped his right fist to the crowd as they chanted "T.C., T.C." following his dominating 3-0, 3-1 win over 2007 World champion Yavor Yanakiev at 74 kg/163 lbs. Dantzler keyed the American team to a decisive 5-1 win over Bulgaria on Tuesday night at Northwestern's Welsh-Ryan Arena. "That's what I do – beat World champs," Dantzler said with a laugh. "I'm right where I need to be at this point. It was an unbelievable homecoming for me, coming back and wrestling in front of all my family and friends. It was great to be able to put on a show for them." Dantzler, from nearby Harvey, Ill., was able to crank Yanakiev to his back in the final 30 seconds of the first and second periods en route to sweeping the match which produced the loudest cheers of the evening. Dantzler's win highlighted a huge night for the American Greco-Roman team that won the 2007 World Championships. Dantzler, 37, has made the last five U.S. World Teams and is seeking his first trip to the Olympics this year. Dantzler placed fifth in the World in 2006. "This is a great springboard toward making the Olympic Team," said Dantzler, who was greeted by a long line of well-wishers after his win. "I have to build on this and keep working toward winning that Olympic gold medal. I'm not stopping until I get there." The U.S. women's freestyle team scored a 3-2 win over Poland to start an exciting night of wrestling in the northern suburbs of Chicago. Right before Dantzler's big win in Greco-Roman, American Harry Lester delivered with a big win of his own. Lester, a two-time World bronze medalist, showcased his power and explosiveness in dismantling past World champion Nikolay Gergov 4-1, 6-0 at 66 kg/145.5 lbs. "This was the first time I've wrestled in competition since the World Championships (last September), so I wasn't sure how rusty I would be out there," Lester said. "I felt great out there and it was fun to put a show on for these fans. It's exciting to be part of a great team like this." The night was another memorable homecoming for Lindsey Durlacher of nearby Buffalo Grove, Ill. Durlacher, despite battling the flu, came on strong to defeat Bulgaria's Venelin Venkov 0-4, 3-0, 2-0 at 55 kg/121 lbs. Durlacher beat Venkov in the bronze-medal match at the 2006 World Championships. "It was tough out there and I wasn't feeling my best," Durlacher said. "Once I got into the flow of the match I was in good shape. He's a real tough kid and this was a good win for me in front of the home crowd. Their support gave me a real good boost." U.S. heavyweight Dremiel Byers, a past World champion, put an exclamation point on a superb night for the Americans as he launched Ivan Ivanov with a five-point move to finish off his win at 120 kg/264.5 lbs. Byers picked Ivanov up with a reverse lift and planted him to the mat, setting off a huge ovation in the arena. The U.S. women topped a strong Poland team as Americans Stephanie Murata, Marcie Van Dusen and Stephany Lee picked up victories. Murata beat World bronze medalist Iwona Sadowska, Van Dusen came back to beat World fifth-place finisher Anna Zwirydowska and Lee pinned World University bronze medalist Agnieszka Wieszczek. Murata beat Sadowska 1-0, 2-0. "This was a real good win for me against a tough opponent," Murata said. "This was a fun event and I enjoyed being a part of it. This match gives me a good boost going into the events that I have coming up." Van Dusen, coming off a huge win over five-time World champion and Olympic champion Saori Yoshida of Japan, avenged a loss to her Poland opponent. Van Dusen dropped the first period 1-0, but charged back to dominate the final two periods 3-0, 3-0.

This week's edition of "On the Mat" will feature Mike Finn, Jim Gibbons, and Ryan Hockensmith. "On the Mat" is a weekly wrestling radio program that airs every Wednesday night. This week's broadcast can be heard live from 6-7 p.m. Central Standard Time. The Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum in Waterloo, Iowa, hosts the show. Finn is currently the editor of Wrestling Illustrated Newsmagazine, a position he has held for over four years. Considered one the nation's top wrestling journalists, Finn was named the National Wrestling Media Association's Print Journalist of the Year in 2006. He also co-authored the book "Hawkeye Legends, Lists and Lore." Finn will discuss several of the dual meets that have taken place thus far, including the interstate showdowns that took place between the state of Minnesota and the state of Iowa. Gibbons provides wrestling commentary for Iowa Public Television, The Big Ten Network, and ESPN. In 2003, the National Wrestling Media Association named Gibbons Broadcaster of the Year. Gibbons also competed and coached for Iowa State University. In 1981, Gibbons won an individual NCAA title at 134 pounds. From 1985-1992, Gibbons was the head wrestling coach of the Cyclones, leading his team to an NCAA title in 1987. Hockensmith is currently an associate editor at ESPN The Magazine. He writes regularly on wrestling, boxing, and mixed martial arts for ESPN.com and for ESPN The Magazine. Hockensmith will discuss Brock Lesnar's first fight in the UFC as well as other happenings in the mixed martial arts world. "On the Mat" can be heard live on the Internet at www.kcnzam.com or locally in Northeast Iowa on 1650, The Fan. Feel free to e-mail radio@wrestlingmuseum.org with questions or comments about the show.

WATERLOO, IOWA -- On April 3, 1908, an Iowa farmer by the name of Frank Gotch changed forever the world of wrestling. The native of Humboldt, already the American heavyweight champion, journeyed to Chicago and defeated the legendary Russian Lion, George Hackenschmidt, to win the world's championship. Gotch's victory set off a wild celebration among sports fans in Humboldt, across Iowa and around the nation. In commemoration of his great victory, Frank Gotch Day will be celebrated on April 3, 2008, in Humboldt, Waterloo and at the Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum here. The museum is planning several activities and has invited two legendary wrestling figures, Dan Severn and Dan Gable, to participate. Waterloo Mayor Tim Hurley and Humboldt Mayor Walter Jensen have both declared April 3 as Frank Gotch Day in their respective cities. "This is a very important date in the history of wrestling, and we didn't want it to pass unnoticed," said Mike Chapman, executive director of DGIWIM. "Gotch has had a tremendous impact on wrestling in the state of Iowa, and around the nation. Having these two Dans here is a very special occasion for all wrestling fans." Dan Severn exploded onto the mixed martial arts scene in 1995 when he won the heavyweight world title in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A former amateur wrestling star with a long list of records and titles, Severn was the first superstar of the mixed martial arts world and was given the nickname "The Beast" for his dramatic victories. At the same time, he began wrestling as a professional and eventually won the NWA world heavyweight title – the same title that Frank Gotch won on April 3, 1908, in Chicago. Severn is well known in sporting circles all around the world and has a record of 78-7 in mixed martial arts events. He is one of the top clinicians in the sport and is a member of numerous halls of fame, including the UFC's hall. In 2002, he was given the Frank Gotch Award by the George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame, which is located in the Gable museum. The Gotch award is given annually for contributions to professional wrestling. Competing for over 30 professional wrestling organizations and12 fight promotions, Severn has held over 95 state, national, and international wrestling titles, and has competed in over 4,000 bouts. He has been profiled in such publications as USA Today, People, Karate and Kung Fu Illustrated, Black Belt Magazine, MAD, Full Contact Fighter, and many of the pro wrestling publications. The Internet is full of the Beast's accomplishments, as well as his official web site. Severn also runs a wrestling product company and holds annual wrestling clinics for kids of all ages. He has appeared on "48 Hours," "20/20," "The Gordon Elliot Show," "Nash Bridges," and many commercials. IN THE LATE 1960s, Dan Gable became an Iowa superstar in the same sport, and then won the World amateur championship in 1971 and the Olympics in 1972. At one point, he won 181 consecutive matches over seven years in high school and college. He went on to coach the University of Iowa to 15 NCAA team titles in his 21 year career, and to a record 21 straight Big Ten team titles. He is a member of over a dozen halls of fame, and is the only wrestler in the United States Olympic Hall of Fame. "Dan Gable and Dan Severn have both followed in the footsteps of Frank Gotch and that is very exciting for us at the museum," said Chapman. "We are very honored to have them participate in the celebration." Both Gable and Severn will be at a noon luncheon at the Five Sullivan Center, and then make an appearance at the museum at 2 p.m. There, an oil painting by noted sports artist Dayne Dudley of Tulsa, Oklahoma, will be unveiled, showing Gotch in the epic April 3, 1908, match with Hackenschmidt. A limited number of prints, signed by the artist, will be on sale, with Severn and Gable available to sign them, as well. Also, a 12-mintue documentary on the life of Gotch will be shown, and a new book about Gotch's legacy will be available for the first time. The documentary is the work of Atlas Technologies of Ames, and Mike Chapman authored the book. Copies of the documentary and the book will be available for purchase. At 6 p.m., Severn will hold a three-hour seminar in the Dan Gable Teaching Center in the museum, showing and discussing the techniques of catch wrestling (Gotch's preferred style of wrestling) and mixed martial arts. Both the luncheon and the seminar are open to the public, but will be limited to 100 persons at the luncheon and 30 at the seminar. The cost for the luncheon is $15 and the cost of the Dan Severn seminar is $40. Anyone wishing to reserve spots at either can call the museum at 319-233-0745. Gotch's victory on April 3, 1908, made him the most popular athlete American – the Muhammad Ali of his era. Despite his "killer instinct" in the ring, he was handsome, articulate and charming outside the ring. He starred in a play that went up and down the East Coast and traveled to Europe. President Teddy Roosevelt invited him to the White House. He was a very successful businessman, buying large portions of prime Iowa farmland. On April 9, 1909, Gotch defended his world title in Waterloo, against Dan McLeod. Ironically, the match was held in the Syndicate Theatre, where the Five Sullivans Brothers Center now stands. It drew a sellout crowd of over 2,000 fans. "It was Frank Gotch's popularity that helped start a movement to add wrestling in high schools and colleges, and it was the legacy of Frank Gotch that turned Iowa into a wrestling state," said Chapman. "Many of the "old timers" I interviewed in the 1980s – coaches like Paul Scott of Cornell, Dave McCuskey of Iowa and Dr. Harold Nichols of Iowa State – said Gotch was their hero when growing up." In 1917, Frank was considering a run for governor of Iowa. Then, he was struck down by a kidney ailment. He died on December 16, 1917, in his Humboldt home. His death was front-page news all over the nation. The governor of Iowa, William Harding, attended the funeral. Gotch has had a huge impact on the state of Iowa. Each year, a Frank Gotch kids tournament is held in his hometown. The Hall of Pride in Des Moines has a tribute to his impact on the sport in the state, and the Gable museum has a large section reserved to tell his story, with many items from his great career on display. His roll-top desk and his favorite lounge chair are on display in the library. Frank Gotch Day Schedule (April 3): 12 Noon -- Frank Gotch Luncheon at Five Sullivan Brothers Convention Center (Special Guests: Dan Severn, former NWA world champion and UFC legend, and Dan Gable, America's leading figure in amateur wrestling history) 2:00 p.m. -- Unveiling of new artwork at museum of Frank Gotch's historic match on April 3, 1908, when he won the world heavyweight title, and of new book by Mike Chapman on Gotch's legacy in the world of catch wrestling. 2:15 p.m. -- Debut at museum of the Frank Gotch documentary 6-9 p.m. -- Special clinic on catch wrestling and mixed martial arts by Dan Severn in Dan Gable Teaching Center