InterMat Staff

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The Indiana wrestling team scored a dramatic, 21-15 conference victory over No. 23 Michigan on Friday, Feb. 9. The Hoosiers got pins from Angel Escobedo and Brandon Becker in the victory, while senior Josh Buuck posted a last-second win at heavyweight to secure the victory for IU. With the Hoosiers holding an 18-15 lead heading into the heavyweight match, Buuck and Casey White went back-and-forth in a struggle for the victory. White held a 9-6 lead in the closing seconds, but Buuck scored a reversal with 10 seconds to go, then added a three-point near fall as time expired to tally an 11-9 win, giving the Hoosiers (11-4, 2-3 Big Ten) the match. IU nearly claimed victory after the 197-pound match, as freshman Nathan Everhart took No. 19 Nick Roy into sudden victory with the score tied 1-1, but Roy scored a takedown 32 seconds into the overtime to take three points. That followed a 184-pound bout between No. 11 Marc Bennett and No. 4 Tyrel Todd, with Todd taking a 13-7 decision. The Hoosiers got out to a quick start, as Escobedo posted his 13th pin of the season at 125, dropping Michael Watts in 6:08. Escobedo moved his season record to 27-4 with the victory. No. 20 Andrae Hernandez then posted a 3-1 decision over Chris Diehl at 133 to make the score 9-0 in favor of the home squad. Michigan's Justin Chrzanowski trimmed the deficit to 9-3 with a win over Scott Kelly at 141. In the 149-pound match, No. 18 Matt Coughlin took undefeated Josh Churella to the brink, sending the match into overtime tied 2-2. But Churella posted an escape in sudden victory to grab three points for the Wolverines. Becker followed with his fourth pin of the season, falling Braden L'Amoreaux in the second period at the 4:32 mark. Becker is now 21-5 on the year with a 3-2 mark in Big Ten competition. Trevor Perry moved to 5-0 in the Big Ten with a decisive 10-4 victory over Jordan Sherrod at 174. Perry nearly pinned his opponent in the first period, but Sherrod was able to stave off the offensive, giving Perry only a two-point near fall. The redshirt freshman is now 17-6 on the season. At 165, Max Dean took No. 2 Eric Tannenbaum down to the wire, earning an escape with 1:35 to go in the third. Dean, however, could not tally a decisive takedown, and Tannenbaum posted a 3-2 victory. The Hoosiers are back in action on Sunday, Feb. 11, when they host Northwestern at 2 p.m. EST at University Gym. The dual will be the final home event of the season and the final home meet in Buuck's career.

A win by fall by freshman heavyweight Cameron Browne in the final match of the night gave the 21st-ranked Nebraska wrestling team a dramatic 21-15 win against No. 14 Oklahoma Friday night at the McCasland Field House in Norman, Okla. With the dual tied at 15 after nine matches, Browne took down the Sooners' Brad Farmer 53 seconds into the first period before pinning Farmer 28 seconds later to give Nebraska its first Big 12 dual victory of the season. The Huskers sprinted to a 15-9 lead after winning four of the first six matches. Paul Donahoe got Nebraska out to a fast start with his pin of Henry Roman at 125 pounds. Donahoe, who leads the team with 11 wins by fall this season, built a 7-1 lead on the strength of two takedowns and a nearfall before pinning Roman with 29 seconds to go in the first period. After a setback at 133 pounds, Dominick Moyer rebuilt Nebraska's lead to six with a 4-0 win over Kyle Terry at 141 pounds. After 6:05 of scoreless wrestling, Moyer broke the tie with an escape, then added a takedown two seconds later to seal the win. A loss at 149 pounds would again cut the Huskers' lead to three at 9-6, but back-to-back wins from Chris Oliver and Stephen Dwyer would give Nebraska some breathing room. Oliver defeated Will Rowe at 157 pounds, 6-2. Rowe took a 2-0 lead with a takedown midway through the first period, but Oliver would take control of the match in a dominant second period in which he scored a takedown and a three-point nearfall. Stephen Dwyer got back on the winning track with a 4-1 win over Shane Seibert at 165 pounds. Facing his seventh straight ranked opponent, Dwyer clinched his first victory over ranked opposition with a reversal with 57 seconds remaining that broke a 1-1 tie and gave Nebraska a 15-9 lead with four matches remaining. Three straight Sooner victories would tie the dual at 15 before Browne earned a win by fall to seal the dual victory. Nebraska (8-6) returns home to take on top-ranked Minnesota on Sunday at 1 p.m. at the NU Coliseum in the final home dual of the year for the Huskers. Video of the dual will be streamed on HuskersNside.

ITHACA, N.Y. -- The Big Red wrestling team completed its 25th straight Ivy League win Friday night when it dominated No. 16 Penn, 28-13. Cornell, ranked 13th in the nation, won seven of the ten matches. The Big Red picked up two upset wins with Joey Hooker defeating No. 10 Matt Harrington at 174 pounds, and sophomore Josh Arnone pinning No. 13 Lior Zamir in the 184 pound weight class. The match opened at 165 pounds with No. 10 Steve Anceravage taking on the Quakers' No. 17 Zach Shanaman. Shanaman was the first to score making a takedown at 1:12, and with an escape by Anceravage, the score was 2-1 in favor of the Penn wrestler after the first period. Anceravage started in the down position in the second and tied the match with the only point of the second by evading Shanaman's grasp. Penn took back the lead when Anceravage was called for a second stalling violation, and with an escape from his down position, Shanaman was ahead, 4-2. With 30 seconds left in the match, Shanaman made the vital takedown, keeping control of Anceravage for only 12 seconds before he fought back to the neutral position. With seven seconds left, Shanaman received his second stalling call and the Big Red wrestler could tie it with a takedown, but time ran out giving Penn an early 3-0 team lead. Next on the mat was unranked senior Joey Hooker facing No. 10 Matt Harrington of Penn. The match at 174 had a similar first period to the previous weight class with Harrington having a 2-1 lead after the first period. The Penn wrestler started the second down on the mat and only needed 13 seconds to make his escape. After 30 seconds of neutral wrestling, Hooker tied the match making his first takedown of the night, but Harrington would quickly grab it back making the escape ending the second with a 4-3 lead. Hooker started the third on the mat, and with an escape of his own once again had the score tied . With a Penn takedown followed by another Cornell escape, with a 1:30 left in the match, Hooker was once again down by a point. Hooker took control of the match scoring four points with two late takedowns to which Harrington could only earn a point with an escape, allowing Hooker to win a 9-7 decision. Sophomore Josh Arnone would wrestle in just his second dual match of his career at 184 pounds for the Big Red. The unranked wrestler would meet No. 13 Lior Zamir, with the two remaining scoreless after three minutes. Arnone started the second in the down position, and the two wrestlers would be locked in two stalemates before Arnone would maneuver Zamir onto his back. With one second left in the second period, Arnone earned the pin, giving Cornell a 9-3 team lead. At 197 pounds, senior All-American Jerry Rinaldi would prove to be too much for Penn's Jack Sullivan. From the moment the referee blew his opening whistle, No. 3 Jerry Rinaldi took control of the match. With six takedowns, Rinaldi manhandled Sullivan to a 15-3 victory. Zach Hammond would find similar success for the Big Red at heavyweight when he would take on Penn's Ben Reiter. Hammond made four takedowns of his own, and with an escape, a point for Reiter stalling, and one for 1:08 in riding time, Hammond easily won a 10-3 decision. Cornell would increase its team lead to 16-3. Penn would see its hopes of ending Cornell's quest for a fifth-straight Ivy title fade as the match headed into the bout at 125 pounds. No. 2 Troy Nickerson would take the mat with No. 16 Matt Eveleth. Nickerson made two takedowns in the first period to take a 4-1 early lead. The Big Red sophomore All-American would keep the score table busy for the remainder of the match racking up his points with a variety of takedowns and nearly pinning Eveleth twice. Nickerson would take his five team points at 6:24 when he would earn the tech fall by going up 24-5. Taking the mat next would be the 133 pound weight class with No. 3 Adam Frey squaring off against No. 1 Matt Valenti of Penn. Frey entered the match with an unblemished 12-0 record to start off his rookie season. The two wrestlers were scoreless until halfway through the first period when Valenti caught Frey in his clutches and with one wrong turn had the Big Red wrestler pinned in 1:30. Freshman Corey Manson would take to center stage next for the Big Red to wrestle Brett McCurdy to a scoreless opening three minutes. McCurdy would choose the down position to start the second period, and with a wrong move by Manson, would make the reversal for two points. With an escape and a takedown Manson would take the lead, and win the match by a final decision of 4-3. Cornell would head to the 149 pound weight class with a 24-9 lead. No. 4 ranked Jordan Leen faced unranked Rick Rappo, with the Penn wrestler getting off to a quick lead with a takedown 17 seconds into the match. That would be the last time that the Quakers would see Rappo ahead as Leen immediately took back control of the match. The Big Red grappler would continue to rack in the points making takedowns and letting Rappo earn just one point with an escape. Leen was looking to earn the tech fall but time ran out on his quest. With 11 takedowns, Leen would get four points for his 25-12 major decision. The final match of the night would be at 157 pounds with the Big Red's Drake Hovis meeting No. 20 Matt Dragon. Luck would be in favor of Dragon for the first period with an early takedown, he trapped Hovis, twice looking for the pin but only walking away with the nearfalls and an 8-0 lead. Dragon started the second period down, and Hovis kept control for 30 seconds before he earned a point with an escape. Hovis earned his only points of the match with a takedown with 38 seconds left in the period. Dragon would earn a late 13-2 major decision for the Quakers, but Cornell would win the match by a final score of 28-13. The Big Red will wrestle its final home match of the season Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. when it will face another Ivy opponent, Princeton.

AMES, Iowa -- Seniors Trent (157) and Travis (165) Paulson, Grant Turner (174) and Kurt Backes (197) registered their final victories in Hilton Coliseum as third-ranked Iowa State defeated Rider, 38-6 Friday night. ISU won nine of 10 bouts, five of which resulted in bonus points and tallied 33 takedowns. ISU's record now stands at 10-3. "The seniors did a great job and they wrestled hard and scored a lot of points," head wrestling coach Cael Sanderson said. "The team performed at a really high level, they got after it and we're going to be hard to beat." At 157-pounds, Trent Paulson used two takedowns and a three-point nearfall to register his 105th career win, a 9-0 major decision over Nathan Galloway. After a scoreless first period, the third-ranked Paulson scored an escape and a takedown in the second to take a 5-0 lead. Starting the third period from neutral, Paulson took Galloway down and nearly pinned him, but was awarded a three-point nearfall. The shutout by the two-time All-American is his second of the season. Paulson improves his mark to 19-4. "It was awesome," Paulson said. "All of the family and friends have been here since square one and supported me. I'm happy where I'm at. The time at Iowa State seemed to go by way too fast." Travis Paulson followed up his twin brother's performance with a 5:44 stick of Robbie Morrison at 165 pounds. Paulson, ranked third, registered three takedowns in the opening period, taking a 6-2 advantage. During the second period he added three more takedowns to go up 13-4 on the Bronc. Morrison escaped to begin the final three minutes, but Paulson, a two-time All-American, answered with a takedown that led to his first pin of the season. Paulson is two wins shy of becoming the 33rd Cyclone to reach 100-career victories. His record stands at 20-4 in his senior campaign. "It's been great to cap it off with a pin for the fans," Paulson said. "I knew my conditioning in the third period would pay off and I just kept the offense going." Turner picked up his 10th win of the season with a dramatic 6-5 decision of No. 8 Doug Umbehauer. Umbehauer put the first points on the board with an escape to begin the second period, but Turner replied with a takedown. Umbehauer escaped again to even the score, 2-2. Turner, a native of Johnston, took the lead for good in the final three minutes with two escapes and a takedown. "I've enjoyed every opportunity to come out here and represent ISU," Turner said. "I give it my best when I'm out there and it's great to go out with a win. The fans in Hilton Coliseum are the best to wrestle for in the country, no question. The atmosphere, the fans are understanding, appreciative and Cael's got this program going in the right direction." Backes became the 32nd Iowa State grappler to reach the 100-career victories plateau as he decisioned No. 14 T.J. Morrison, 8-3. Backes battled back from an early 2-0 deficit by scoring a reversal and a takedown to take a 5-3 lead into the final period. He scored a two-point nearfall midway through the third period to seal the win. The Neshanic Station, N.J. native is 20-4 on the season. "The Hilton experience has just gotten better and better," the All-American said. "It's a big honor to be even mentioned in the same group as Cael (Sanderson) and many other wrestling greats. I've put in the work in the room and I've progressed to where I think I should be." Nick Fanthorpe and Jake Varner provided the Cyclones with pins at 125- and 184-pounds, respectively. Fanthorpe, ranked eighth, stuck Thomas Lorenzo in 3:14 to pick up his fourth pin of the year and is now 20-7. Varner tallied his 11th pin, sticking Mike Miller in 6:04. Ranked fifth at 184 pounds, Varner improves to 22-4 this season. Six seniors were honored prior to the dual: the Paulsons, Turner, Backes, Mike Somsky and Richard Schopf. The Iowa State wrestling team will travel to Columbia, Mo., to take on the second-ranked Missouri at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Hearnes Center.

The St. Cloud State wrestling team dropped a tough 25-13 decision at St. John's University on Friday, Feb. 9 in Collegeville. The loss drops SCSU's dual match record to 3-6 on the season. The next match for the Huskies will take place at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 15 against NCC rival Minnesota State Mankato at Halenbeck Hall in St. Cloud. If you can't make it out to the match, make sure you check back at the Husky Home Page for details on how to watch the live video stream of this event on the web. In action against SJU, the Huskies' gained a solid 13-7 win by Sonny Silva at 133-pounds against Tim Thompson. SCSU also saw Grant Johnson roll to a 3-1 win over SJU Zach Anderson at 149-pounds. The SCSU middle weights continued to show well with a 15-3 win at 157-pounds by Adam Minnette over SJU's Grant Lydon. The final SCSU win of the day went to Nick Wilkes at 184-pounds. He gained a solid 9-3 decision over SJU's Andrew Staberg.

DeKALB, Ill. -– Fifth-ranked Central Michigan University out-scored Northern Illinois 18-0 over the final four matches to claim a 27-9 Mid-American Conference wrestling victory on the road Friday night. The Chippewas, who have now won 22 consecutive conference duals, improve to 15-4-1 overall, 3-0 in the MAC with the victory. The two teams split the match's first six bouts before CMU took over in the top four weight classes. Brandon Sinnott put the Chippewas in front for good with a 5-3 decision over Danny Burk at 174, and CMU tacked on six team points when Duke Burk injury defaulted at 184 pounds. Wynn Michalak gave CMU an insurmountable lead in the team score by pinning Nick McClone at 197. The fall, Michalak's seventh of the season and second in as many matches, stretched the CMU lead to 24-9. Bubba Gritter closed the night with an 8-2 decision over David Benner at heavyweight. Two of Northern Illinois' individual victories came in rematches from the finals of the 2006 MAC Championships. NIU's Pat Castillo avenged a loss to Luke Smith in last year's 125-pound conference final, claiming a 3-2 decision over Smith Friday night. Smith posted a 6-1 overtime decision at the 2006 MAC Championships. At 165 pounds, Johnny Galloway was an 8-2 winner over CMU's Trevor Stewart; Galloway also defeated Stewart in the 165-pund conference championship match last season. Redshirt freshman Tony D'Alie collected his first career MAC victory at 141 pounds, claiming an 8-4 decision over the Huskies' Justin Metcalf. Conor Beebe (133 pounds) and Andy Keller (157) also claimed wins for the Chippewas. CMU closes the regular season with a pair of MAC duals next week. The Chippewas visit Ohio Thursday, Feb. 15, then host Kent State Sunday, Feb. 18.

Columbia, Mo. -- Competing in the first annual Beauty and the Beast event on the Hearnes Center floor, the second-ranked Missouri wrestling team bested Northern Iowa, 36-13, to improve to 11-1 on the season in front of a record-setting 6,197 fans. Finishing the dual in exactly one hour, the Tigers claimed wins in seven weight classes with three Missouri grapplers scoring falls. In the other half of the evening event, the 19th-ranked Missouri gymnastics team took a 194.775 victory over instate opponent Southeast Missouri State, 192.7. Redshirt freshman John Olanowski (Virginia Beach, Va.) started the dual strong at 125 pounds for Missouri earning a 9-1 win by major decision over Grant Ruge. Olanowski came close to shutting out his Panther opponent, scoring eight points in the first two periods combined. With Ruge choosing down to start the third period, he was able to escape in two seconds to score his only point of the match. Notching his 17th fall in his true freshman season, 141 pounder Ashtin Primus (South Connelsville, Pa.) stuck Mike Whisler in 26 seconds giving the Tigers an additional six team points. The fall was Primus' fastest of the season beating his previous best (Jacob Wadley, Lindenwood) by 11 seconds. In a battle between two athletes selected wrestler of the week in their respective conference, seventh-ranked junior Josh Wagner (Milton, Wis.) held off UNI's Ryan Osgood, 11-0, at 149 pounds. Wagner put Osgood on his back twice scoring five nearfall points, combined with two takedowns and 2:29 of riding time for the win. Osgood was named wrestler of the week after managing a 5-3 win over ninth-ranked Mike Grimes of Northern Illinois in last week's competition. The win was Wagner's fourth consecutive dating back to his fall in 1:03 over Nebraska Cornhusker Robert Sanders, Jan. 28. Senior Ben Askren (Hartland, Wis.) grabbed the attention of the crowd pinning Alex Dolly in 3:25. The fall was his 24th of the season and puts him one away from the Missouri season record he set one year ago. To date, Askren has recorded 86 wins by way of fall. The defending National Champion also improved the Tiger career record to 142 with 76 of those wins coming consecutively. Fifth-ranked sophomore Raymond Jordan (New Bern, N.C.) fed off of the energy of the crowd and added four team points to the Tiger total (24-13) with a 13-1 win by major decision over Dallas Mitchell at 184 pounds. Following the sophomore, redshirt freshman Maxwell Askren (Hartland, Wis.), ranked No. 1 in the nation at 197 pounds, wrapped up the dual by pinning Andrew Anderson in 2:41. A UNI forfeit at heavyweight gave Missouri the final 36-13 win. "I am happy about the consistency of our wrestling team," Head Coach Brian Smith said. "We're one of the best in the country. Our group always shows up and we did again tonight. I was hoping to see our team keep focus with the two events going on at the same time. I wanted to see how they dealt with the environment because the atmosphere is like that of the NCAAs." The Tigers will close out their Big 12 regular season with a 2 p.m. (CT) dual against third-ranked Iowa State Sunday, Feb. 11, in the Hearnes Center. Both teams enter the dual with spotless 3-0 league records and eight wrestlers ranked in their respective weight class. The dual will be televised live on KZOU (channel 28 for Columbia residents) with a rebroadcast available Saturday, Feb. 17 at 7 p.m. (CT) and Friday, Feb. 23, at Noon on Fox Sports Midwest. Fans attending the event can purchase a $2 if they were black or gold to the event. A win over Iowa State on Sunday would mark Missouri's first-ever sweep in a conference in the 62 year history of the wrestling program.

The top-ranked University of Minnesota wrestling team paid a tribute to its three seniors by crushing No. 20 Michigan State, 35-4, on Friday night at the Sports Pavilion. Senior Cole Konrad gave the 2,431 fans in attendance a lasting memory by pinning Alan O'Donnell in 1:36 in the final home match of his collegiate career as the Golden Gophers won nine of 10 matches on the night to post an undefeated record at home (6-0) for the fifth time in head coach J Robinson's tenure. Minnesota also remained unbeaten in the Big Ten at 6-0 with its 17th straight win. Prior to the meet, Konrad vowed to give Gopher fans something a little extra special in his final match in Minneapolis, and he delivered by dominating O'Donnell. Konrad took the Spartan wrestler down just seven seconds into the match and simply overpowered him, rolling O'Donnell to his back to get the fall in 1:36. Brothers Dustin and C.P. Schlatter also contributed bonus points for the Gophers, with Dustin earning a tech fall over Tim Hammer at 149 pounds and C.P. pinning Tony Greathouse in 2:46. Fourth-ranked Jayson Ness continued to run like a machine as he defeated the eighth straight ranked opponent he has faced with an entertaining 8-5 decision over No. 5 Franklin Gomez. The two wrestlers battled back-and-forth throughout the first two periods, and with the match tied at five with just over a minute remaining, Ness scored the winning takedown to give Minnesota an early 3-0 advantage. Michigan State won its only match of the night at 133 pounds, with No. 2 Nick Simmons getting a major decision over Mike Thorn, 13-0. Thorn wrestled hard throughout the match but simply lacked the experience to challenge Simmons. It didn't matter, as the Gophers finished off the Spartans by winning the final eight bouts of the night in dominating fashion. What appeared to be an evenly contested match early on at 141 pounds, second-ranked Manuel Rivera turned it up a notch and went after No. 4 Andy Simmons in the third period. Leading 2-0, Rivera finished Simmons off with a pair of takedowns in the final stanza and added the riding time advantage to earn a 7-2 decision. With the win, Rivera improved to 32-0 on the season and gave Minnesota the lead for good. At 149, top-ranked Dustin Schlatter scored on a quick shot on Tim Hammer early in the first and never looked back. Schlatter scored nine takedowns, one escape and a two-point near fall in the match, adding the bonus point for over three minutes of riding time to get the tech fall, 22-7. C.P. Schlatter followed by putting on a clinic against Tony Greathouse at 157. Schlatter used a series of takedowns and escapes to build a 12-5 lead over Greathouse before working the MSU wrestler to his back to get the fall in 2:46 and put Minnesota up 17-4 in the dual. Sophomore Tyler Safratowich, who had defeated three straight ranked opponents entering the night, had to come from behind to defeat Michigan State's Rocky Cozart. Safratowich fell behind 7-2 after Cozart scored a takedown and three-point near fall in the first minute of the match. From there however, Safratowich proved he was the better conditioned wrestler, gradually working his way back into the match while visibly wearing Cozart down. After a Cozart takedown early in the third, Safratowich trailed 10-5, but he scored three takedowns in the final 1:10 to send the match into overtime. It was all Safratowich in the sudden victory period, as he scored the winning takedown 29 seconds in to win 14-12. No. 13 Gabriel Dretsch followed with a 10-5 decision over Greg Goidosik at 174 to seal the match for Minnesota, and Roger Kish and Yura Malamura added wins to give Minnesota a 29-4 lead before Konrad stole the spotlight at heavyweight. At intermission, the Gophers recognized Konrad, along with fellow seniors Danny Williams and Juan Martinez for their contributions to the wrestling program over the last five years. Minnesota travels to Lincoln, Neb., to take on the 21st-ranked Cornhuskers on Sunday at 1 p.m. Live video of the meet will be available in the Gold Zone, courtesy of HuskersNSide.

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Top-ranked Ryan Lang (North Royalton, Ohio/St. Edward) is ready to make his return to the mat as the 12th-ranked Wildcats head to Indiana to take on the 22nd-ranked Hoosiers at 2 p.m. Sunday. Lang has not wrestled since he won the 141-pound title at the Midlands Championships on Dec. 30 and Sunday will mark the first time since Nov. 18 that Lang and top-ranked 184-pounder Jake Herbert (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) will both be in the dual lineup. The 'Cats are 6-0 when both wrestle. Quoting Coach Cysewski "We have some matches that didn't go our way at Midlands and we'd like to turn those around," head coach Tim Cysewski said. "When we are at full strength, our lineup can compete with any team in the country." Last Time Out True freshman Brandon Precin (Orland Park, Ill./Carl Sandburg) upset Penn State's seventh-ranked Mark McKnight to start the dual, but the Nittany Lions controlled the middle weights to defeat the 10th-ranked Wildcats Friday night, 25-8. Top-ranked Jake Herbert (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) put on a show in his home state, winning by major decision at 184 lbs. Sunday against Ohio State, Northwestern led 16-12 heading into the final two matches, but the Buckeyes won the last two bouts to top the Wildcats at St. Edward High School, 18-16. Herbert won the showcase match of the afternoon, topping Ohio State's third-ranked Mike Pucillo at 184 lbs., 11-5. The Buckeyes took an early 9-0 lead, but the Wildcats fought back to lead 13-12 with a win by Dustin Fox at heavyweight. Precin extended the lead to 16-12 with a win at 125, but OSU took the last two bouts to win the dual, 18-16. Scouting the Hoosiers No. 22 Indiana enters the weekend in the middle of a four-match losing streak, dropping contests to Illinois, Ohio State, Minnesota and N.C. State. The Hoosiers scored a victory against Purdue, 25-12, to open the Big Ten slate. Indiana features five ranked grapplers and are strong in all parts of the lineup. Matt Coughlin is ranked 18th at 149 lbs. and Brandon Becker is seventh at 157. Angel Escobedo, ranked seventh at 125 lbs., took home a Midlands title earlier this season while 133-pounder Andrae Hernandez cracked the top-20 in the rankings this week. Senior Marc Bennett is 11th at 184. Keep Your Eye On 125: #20 Precin (NU) vs. #7 Escobedo (IU) 133: Metzler (NU) vs. #20 Hernandez (IU) 184: #1Herbert (NU) vs. #11 Bennett (IU) Truly Spectacular True freshman Brandon Precin has started every dual match for the 'Cats this season at 125 lbs. and has been a solid contributor in tournament action. Precin started the Big Ten season with losses against Illinois and Iowa, but has won his last three matches, including a win over Penn State's seventh-ranked Mark McKnight last weekend. The freshman is 28-10, 14-4 in dual matches and is currently ranked 20th by InterMat. Herbert's Playground Jake Herbert has owned the Big Ten in his two-plus seasons wrestling in the conference. The 184-pounder has not lost a Big Ten dual match since the 2004-05 season and owns a 20-1 career mark in conference. Herbert is 5-0 in Big Ten duals this year and made a big statement last weekend. He scored a 22-7 technical fall against Penn State before cruising to an 11-5 decision over Ohio State's third-ranked Mike Pucillo.

Hi everyone, it has been a while since my last blog entry. We wrestled Penn State last weekend and that match did not go how we planned. We thought that each match was going to be close going in and that the meet was going to come down to the end. With Lang out again, we knew that our lineup wasn't at full-strength. So, we knew someone needed to pick it up and get a win that on paper we weren't supposed to get. The match started off great. It was my homeboy Mark McKnight (grew up and wrestled with him since we were 10 and he is an Angry Fish team member along with Philly Phil Davis) vs. Brandon Precin. It seems to me that the studs in wrestling all know each other. Phil Davis vs. Mike Tamillow and Brandon Precin vs. Mark McKnight … who do ya root for? Easy, you root for your teammates, but I always want to see Angry Fish do it up when they aren't going against NU. For me, I sat back and enjoyed the show as Brandon gave McKnight all he could handle and ended up winning the match. I am just glad to know that Mark won't be reading this blog because he doesn't believe in reading this kind of stuff. So it went down like this: Brandon beat Mark and from there it was downhill for us. I was the only other guy to come out victorious. On the bright side, I had over 50 friends and family come to the match. They told me that they like reading this blog … they support me in what I do and I love it when I have people in the crowd cheering for me. My mom and dad sort of had a reunion in State College, so I know that they had a good time. I actually think that Ty Moore was conflicted the most because he had to cheer for me and the Angry Fish guys … we should have him wear a double knit sweater with NU and PSU embroidered on the front and back. After that, we flew to Cleveland for our Ohio State dual. The night before our match, we got to watch St. Eds wrestle Blair Academy for the high school national championship. Eds won by bumping a guy to win at 152's. It was great high school wrestling. We know that several of these guys will someday come to Evanston to go to school, so it was important for us to be there. Jake Herbert (Photo/Stephen J. Carrera)Our dual against Ohio State came down to the wire. But being without Lang, we lost the last match at 141. I mean, we lost the dual, which we're not happy at all about … but our 133 back-up (James Kohlberg) lost to J Jaggers, 7-5, and he had him on the ropes at the end of the match. My match was a challenge. Mike Puccillo gave me a seven-minute battle and he made me work for all of my points. After the first, I was only up 2-1 with the ride. 4-2 at the end of the second. In the third, I got going and ended up getting three takedowns for an 11-5 final. It was a good match for the fans, but I am ready for the next time. I want to get my takedowns early. Finally, I have to talk about the Chicago Cup. I saw the US team get crushed by the Russians on Tuesday night. It was good for me, because I have an idea of where I need to be internationally. I want to be in the event next year and I want to get myself ready to win an Olympic medal. Our own assistant coach, Bill Scherr put the event on and it was crazy (in a good way). He had over 6,500 people in Welsh-Ryan Arena for a first time event. Bill is a stud, oh yeah, he's pretty smart too. That's all for now, Jake Herbert Past Entries: Entry 7 (1/24/07) Entry 6 (1/10/07) Entry 5 (12/13/06) Entry 4 (11/29/06) Entry 3 (11/16/06) Entry 2 (11/1/06) Entry 1 (10/17/06)

ITHACA, N.Y. -- The Big Red wrestling team returns to Ithaca this weekend for its final home matches of the season to be held at the Friedman Wrestling Center Feb. 9-10. Friday's match will feature No. 13 Cornell taking on No. 16 Penn at 7 p.m., and at 1 p.m. on Saturday, the Big Red will wrestle Princeton. College Sports Television will air Friday's match on Monday, Feb. 12 at 9 p.m. All Things Ivy After winning the last four Ivy championships, Penn stands to be the biggest obstacle in Cornell's quest for the fifth. Last season the Big Red won a 20-12 contest; Penn last defeated the Big Red on Feb. 2, 2002, 21-9, which is the Big Red's last loss in Ivy competition. Cornell first met the Quakers during the 1907-08 season and lead the series, 73-12-1. Leading the all-time series, 44-15, over Princeton, the Tigers last defeated the Big Red during the 1985-86 season. Matchup at 133 The EIWA wrestler to remain undefeated throughout the season, rookie Adam Frey will have his biggest test thus far when he faces No. 1 ranked Matt Valenti on Friday. Valenti is 19-2 this season and will face No. 3 ranked Frey who holds a 12-0 record and is 7-0 in dual matches. The victor will look to take the top seed at the EIWA tournament. The Quakers Penn travels to Ithaca after defeating Harvard, 28-12, last weekend. The Big Red and the Quakers top the Ivy leaderboard in an early tie for first place. Ranked 16th in the nation, Penn has wrestlers ranked in six weight classes and is 7-5 overall this season. The Tigers Princeton enters the weekend still looking for its first win after starting 0-14, 0-7 EIWA. Last weekend the Tigers lost a 36-7 match to Harvard. Friday night Princeton will face Columbia in New York, N.Y. In the City The Big Red picked up two crucial wins last Saturday when it defeated No. 5 Hofstra, 22-18, and No. 24 Columbia, 30-9. Cornell won six matches against the Pride at the New York Athletic Club, with its victory being led by Luke Hogle's 12-4 upset win at 184 pounds against No. 7 Joe Rovelli. At Columbia, the Big Red took seven matches, winning two by major decision and two by fall. Sophomore Drake Hovis recorded his first collegiate pin against Devin Messanko at 157 pounds. Five Cornell wrestlers went 2-0 for the day, and rookie Frey remained flawless with his 12-0 record at 133. Sophomore Jordan Leen recorded his 50th career win with his 5-3 decision over No. 14 Mitch Smith, and senior Jerry Rinaldi now ranks seventh in the Cornell record books with 107 career wins. The New York State Championships Nine Cornell wrestlers represented the Big Red at the New York State Championships held Jan. 19-20 at the University of Buffalo. The Big Red walked away with six placewinners and nineteen total wins. Big Red Placewinners: 133: Nick Bridge, 5th 149: Brian Alves, 5th 157: John Basting, 7th 165: Mike Mackie, 6th 184: Matt Panasevich, 2nd (B Bracket) 197: Carl Landers, 8th NWCA All-Star Classic Senior Jerry Rinaldi was all set to wrestle Penn State's Phil Davis at the All-Star Classic in Dallas, Texas. Rinaldi won the exhibition match by forfeit because Davis failed to make weight. The duo bouted on Jan. 7 in a dual match with Davis winning a 5-0 decision. Troy Nickerson was also invited but was unable to make the trip. Up Next for the Big Red Cornell will travel to Cambridge, Mass. next weekend to take on Harvard in a Friday night match.

GAFFNEY, S.C. – Kelly Anundson's pinfall proved to be the winning points as No. 16 Newberry College defeated Limestone College 25-21 on Thursday evening at the Timken Center. In a see-saw match throughout the evening, Newberry (15-5-1) fell behind in team points 9-0 as Saints (7-11) wrestler Trey Moss and Matt Hall scored a decision and pinfall respectively. Newberry cut Limestone's lead to three as Pete Matsko pinned Nathan Carmack in the first period. The Indians took a 10-9 lead after Dwayne Tolleson recorded two takedowns and three near falls to beat Riley Pike 11-3 in the 141-pound division. In the 149-pound weight class, Dustin Baynes squeaked out a close match with Latra Collick with a riding time of 1:84. Mike Bush added another victory for Limestone with a pinfall against Jesse Creed in the 157-pound weight class. Brandon Kelly increased the Indian's team score to 13 with a 7-3 decision over Greg Satterfield. No. 7-ranked Quinn Tolbert gave his team a 19-18 advantage as he scored a pinfall over Todd Neptune in the first period of the 174-pound competition. However, Limestone's Dan Scanlan, the No. 7- ranked wrestler in the 184-pound weight class, defeated Keeno Griffin, 3-0, as the Saints retook the lead at 21-19. In the deciding match of the night, Anundson scored the match-winner, pinning Mike Walsh in 4:43 in the 197-pound weight class. Newberry will travel to Anderson, S.C. next Thursday to grapple Anderson University. First match is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.

ALAMOSA, Colo. -- Freshmen started it. Seniors ended it. Now they want more. A 22-3 run triggered by a quick first-period pin by redshirt freshman Joey Deaguero (Commerce City, Colo.) at 141 pounds was more than enough to give the Adams State College wrestling team a convincing 25-13 victory over visiting Chadron State College on Thursday night in Plachy Hall. The victory allowed the Grizzlies, ranked sixth in the NCAA Division II National Wrestling Coaches Association Poll, to win their final home dual of the season while taking over sole possession of first place in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference standings with a perfect 6-0 league mark, the team's best in their NCAA Division II (1992-93/Present) era. Now 7-1 overall, ASC will travel to Kearney, Neb. to face top-ranked Nebraska-Kearney (15-1, 5-0 RMAC) on Saturday at 7 p.m. (CST) in what will amount to the RMAC Dual Meet Championship. The Eagles, ranked 17th in the country and coached by 2005 ASC Athletics Hall of Fame Inductee Dr. Scott Ritzen, fell to 9-8-1 overall and to 2-3 in conference duals. Deaguero's pin of Eagle sophomore Skylair Lappe came just 1 minute and 11 seconds into the 141-pound match and gave the Grizzlies a 9-4 lead that they would never relinquish as coach Jason Ramstetter's squad completed a perfect season at home for the first time 1995-96, when they went 3-0. Deaguero now has 10 pins on the year and leads the team with a 25-11 record. Redshirt freshman Noomis Jones (Arvada, Colo.) then kept the momentum going with a thrilling come-from-behind win over returning national qualifier Mark Pfeifer at 149 pounds. Down 6-3 nearing the end of the second period, Jones picked up a reversal to close the gap to 6-5. Jones then scored the winning-takedown with just 15 seconds left in the match while improving to 15-10 overall and to 6-2 in duels as the Grizzlies went up 12-4. Mike Gallegos (Alamosa, Colo.), ranked fifth in the nation at 157 pounds, yet another redshirt freshman, then held on for a 7-6 win over Jared Webster as the Grizzlies went up 15-4. Gallegos, who scored a pair of reversals in a wild second period, is now 15-2 on the year. Webster, one of previous national qualifiers in the Eagle lineup, fell to 24-13. After the intermission, the Eagles temporarily stopped the bleeding as Brett Hunter, ranked seventh in the nation, scored a 6-2 win over Evan Copeland (Las Cruces, N.M.) at 165 pounds. Hunter is now 26-13 while Copeland fell to 23-9. James Reynolds (Monte Vista, Colo.), one of two Grizzly seniors wrestling in front of a home crowd for the final time in his career, then claimed a 8-5 decision over Mark Weingart while picking up his 20th win of the season. Now 20-11, Reynolds was tied at 4 early in the third period before getting a takedown and near fall to close out the win. "I wanted to win at all costs," Reynolds said. "I've wrestled him a few times before and know the kind of shots he likes to take and what works against him. I was just trying to stay consistent throughout the match." Leading 18-7 in the dual, the Grizzlies sealed the win as Jared Deaguero (Commerce City, Colo.), ranked third in the nation, dominated Willy Jones in a 14-0 major decision win. Deaguero, ranked third in the country, is now 12-4 overall and has claimed a victory in all six of ASC's RMAC duals scoring bonus-point wins in all but one of those victories. Deaguero scored eight near fall points in the second period alone and nearly got another turn in the late-going that would have given him a technical fall. However, Jones got back to his base, saving a team point that ultimately did not matter in the least. Senior Casey Woodall (Morenci, Ariz.) then ran his winning streak to 11 as he capped a perfect 4-0 home season with a convincing 13-7 decision over Josh Majerus. Woodall led 6-1 in the first period before surrendering escapes while building a 12-5 lead. With riding time in the bag, Woodall nearly scored a major decision but made a wrong move as Majerus scored one of CSC's four reversals to save another team point. Eagle heavyweight Shane Odell then capped the dual by pinning ASC's Jeff Schossow (Morenci, Ariz.) with just 2.5 seconds left in the second period. Schossow was leading 5-3 at the time after out-muscling Odell to score a pair of first-period takedowns while building a 4-1 lead. However, an Odell reversal in the second period eventually led to Eagle victory. The Grizzlies also received a win from 125-pound redshirt freshman Arsenia Barksdale (Norfolk, Va.) to open the dual. Barksdale, ranked third in the nation at that weight class, defeated eight-ranked Devlon Webb by a 4-2 count. He was down 2-1 in the second period but escaped and went into the third period tied at 2. Barksdale, now 18-3 overall and 12-0 while representing the Grizzlies, rode Webb for that entire period, drawing two stalling penalties while racking up 1:43 in riding time. The Eagles then took their only lead of the dual (4-3) as Sergio Palomo bested ASC freshman Kevin Schmitt (Arlington, Texas) by a 9-1 major decision margin before Deaguero's pin got the Grizzlies going once again.

NORFOLK, VA -- The Monarchs won a decisive 31-10 match against the Hokies of Virginia Tech Thursday night. As The Ted opened the doors to ODU wrestling fans for the first time, the team did not disappoint the home town fans winning seven of the ten bouts. The wins included another pin for sophomore David Mendoza, two major decisions by win leaders Chris Brown and Ryan Williams, and a technical fall for senior Christian Staylor. The Monarchs improve to 11-6 while dropping Virginia Tech's record to just 5-10. The Monarchs would take the lead immediately as Virginia Tech forfeited the 125-lb. weight class leading right into Staylor's matchup at 133-lbs. The redshirt senior was across the mat from Tech's Sheridan Moran. Moran was 9-7 on the season, but Staylor methodically shut out the Hokie. With just seconds remaining on the clock Staylor earned a nearfall that put him up 14-0. With the riding time advantage, Staylor notched his third technical fall of the season and the Monarchs held a quick 11-0 lead in team points. Ryan Williams would extend the lead in the 141-lb. matchup as he earned a 9-1 major decision over Matt Rosen. The major is his fifth on the season as he is currently riding a three-match winning streak. Kaylen Baxter squeaked a 7-6 victory from Jon Bonilla-Bowman. Bowman had a 16-8 overall mark coming into the bout and Baxter had been struggling. The two wrestled even for much of the first and second period. In the third, Baxter earned a critical take down to put him up two points with just under twenty seconds remaining. The riding time advantage was in favor of Bowman making the final score 7-6. Red shirt freshman Chris Brown finished out the first half with another major decision. Brown leads the team with 12 major decisions and 31 wins in his rookie campaign. He defeated Derek Gallagher of Tech 17-7. With ODU holding a commanding 22-0 lead, the Hokies did not quit. They scored victories in each of the next three bouts. Eric Decker defeated ODU junior Nick Pullano 5-3 in the 165-lb. matchup. In the 174-lb. class, Derek Coffey gave Hokie leader Steve Ratley a run for his money before losing by way of the riding time advantage. In 22 wins, it was just Ratley's second regular decision, winning 3-2. And in the 184-lb. weight class, Virginia Tech cut the lead to 12 with the score at 22-10. Steve Borja disposed of freshman Jesse Strawn in a major decision 18-7. However, the Monarchs would seal it in the 197-lb. weight class. Sophomore sensation David Mendoza earned his 11th pin of the year when he put both of Kevin O'Connor's shoulders on the mat 3:42 into the bout. Mendoza improves his season record to 30-7 with the win and is currently riding a seven-bout win streak. The pin gave the Monarchs the win as Matt Pellar would win the heavyweight division 6-1 and make the final score 31-10. Old Dominion returns to action again at The Ted Constant Convocation Center this Sunday afternoon starting at 4:00pm. They will host American University who is 8-8 on the season with a match against Maryland Friday night. The match Sunday will, like Thursday's match, be streamed live via Monarch All-Access through the ODU website, odusports.com.

BLOOMSBURG -- The Bloomsburg University wrestling team fell 24-10 to sixth-ranked Edinboro on Thursday night in Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) action at Bloomsburg. The final score was no indication of how close the match was with two weight classes being decided in overtime and six of the ten matches on the night being decided by two points or less. Tenth-ranked Mike Sees (Northumberland/Shikellamy) gave Bloomsburg a 4-0 team lead with a major decision over Edinboro's Greg Sill at 125 lbs. Sees opened with a first period takedown to lead 2-0 and then added six points in the second period and four more in the third to seal the 12-4 win. At 133 pounds, a close match ended in sudden victory as Edinboro's Ricky Deubel eeked out a 4-3 win over Ricky Donald (Millville/Millville). After a scoreless first period, Deubel took a 2-0 lead on a takedown. Donald later escaped to cut the lead to 2-1, however, Donald tied it up with an escape with 1:20 in the third. After three scoreless overtime periods, Deubel used a takedown with :10 second left in the fourth extra period to record the 4-3 sudden victory and cut the team score to 4-3. Another match was extended into overtime as Bloomsburg's Darren Kern (Pennsburg/Upper Perkioman) defeated Daryl Cocozzo at 141 lbs. Kern fell behind 0-2 in the first period, but battled back to take the lead at 4-3. However, riding time at the end of the third period tied the match at 4-4 before Kern's takedown earned the 6-4 sudden victory. The win extended the Bloomsburg lead to 7-3. In the 149-lb bout, fifth-ranked Gregor Gillespie pulled out a narrow win over Bloomsburg's Matt Moley (Phoenixville/Spring-Ford). Moley had a 2-1 lead after the first period, but Gillespie used a near fall to take a 4-2 lead in the second. Later in the period a takedown from Moley knotted it a 4-4. In the third, Gillespie's takedown with :15 seconds left gave him a 6-5 victory and closed the Bloomsburg lead to 7-6. Edinboro took the team lead at 157-lbs when 10th ranked Matt Hill defeated Bloomsburg's Dennis Bermudez (Saugerties, NY/Saugerties). Hill dominated the first period taking a 2-0 lead. However, Bermudez battled back in the second, scoring an escape and a takedown to gain a 3-2 advantage. Hill then used an escape to tie the score at 3-3 at the end of the second period. In the third, Hill took a 6-3 before Bermudez once again tied, this time at 6-6. The pair traded escapes to move the match score to 7-7 but the period ended with Hill earning a point from riding time to give him the 8-7 win. The Fightin' Scots extended their lead to 15-7 on a pin from eighth-ranked Deonte Penn at 165-pounds. Penn had a 9-2 advantage before pinning the Huskies' Ricky Schmelyum (New Oxford/Bermudian Springs) at 4:17 to earn the victory. In the 174-lb. match, Edinboro's 20th-ranked Phil Moricone defeated Andrew Jordan (Newark, DE/St. Marks). Moricone took the lead 2-0 in the first period and after a scoreless second he earned seven third period points to win the 9-3 decision. With Moricone's win, Edinboro pushed the lead to 18-7. With a tight 2-1 victory by seventh-ranked Alex Clemsen over Bloomsburg's Nate Shirk (Middleburg/Middleburg) at 184 lbs, Edinboro's lead was extended to 21-7. The match stayed scoreless until Clemsen earned a point off of an escape in the second period. In the third, Shirk tied it at 1-1 with an escape but Edinboro was awarded a point on a BU stall to give Clemsen the 2-1 win. A 4-2 win from Edinboro's Jim Gibson at 197 pounds extended the team lead to 24-7. P.J. DiStefano (Whitehall/Whitehall-Coplay) held the advantage early, but in the second period, Gibson scored on a takedown to tie the match at 2-2. In the third period Gibson added a reversal to win the match 4-2. In the heavyweight match, 11th-ranked Mike Spaid (Perkiomenville/Boyertown) earned a 4-0 win over Edinboro's Joe Fendone. After a scoreless first period, Spaid scored on a reversal with :27 seconds left in the second to take a 2-0 lead. In the third, Spaid scored on a takedown to give him a 4-0 lead but it wasn't enough as the match ended 24-10 in favor of Edinboro. The win improves Edinboro to 14-1 and 3-0 in the EWL while the loss moves Bloomsburg's record to 10-8 on the season, 3-2 in the EWL. The Huskies are back in action at the Nelson Field House on Sunday when Bloomsburg takes on Drexel at 1:00 p.m.

DeKalb, Ill. -- The Northern Illinois wrestling team (3-3-1, 2-1) returns home to take on the fifth ranked Central Michigan Chippewas (14-4-1, 2-0) Friday night after a successful road trip in which the Huskies defeated Old Dominion and tied Northern Iowa. This will be the forty-ninth meeting between these two teams and Central Michigan holds a slight 24-22-2 advantage over Northern Illinois in the all-time series. Head coach Dave Grant said of CMU, "We've had a very competitive schedule so far and Central Michigan is one of the toughest opponents we'll face." The Fifth ranked Chippewas come into this week's meet having won an impressive 21 consecutive conference dual meets and 45 of the last 46 MAC dual meets. The Huskies were the last MAC team to beat Central Michigan. The win came in 2003 when NIU edged the Chippewas in DeKalb by a score of 16-15. One look at Central Michigan's lineup shows why they are the fifth ranked team in the country. CMU's probable starting lineup is loaded with eight wrestlers ranked in the top-twenty nationally, with four of those wrestlers ranked in the top-ten. CMU is lead by heavyweight Bubba Gritter, ranked second in the nation. Gritter is joined in the top ten by the Sinnott brothers, Brandon and Christian, along with Wynn Michalack. The Huskies will counter CMU's potent lineup with a quartet of ranked wrestlers led by Johnny Galloway (13-2, 3-0), ranked as high as ninth in the country at 165. Galloway will be backed by Pat Castillo (19-11, 3-0), ranked as high as seventeenth at 125, Mike Grimes (20-6, 2-0), ranked as high as twelfth at 149, and Duke Burke (20-6, 3-0), ranked as high as eighteenth at 184. But, if the Huskies hope to repeat the success of 2003 they will need more than big performances by their top four wrestlers. Coach Grant said the key to victory for NIU is, "We need every one of our guys firing on all cylinders." The most interesting matches of the meet pit a pair of brothers against each other. NIU's Burk brothers, with a combined record of 36-13, will go up against CMU's Sinnott brothers who have a combined record of 42-11. Danny Burk (16-7, 3-0) will square off against Brandon Sinnott (18-6, 2-0) at 174 and Duke Burk (20-6, 3-0) will battle Christian Sinnott (18-6, 2-0) in the very next match at 184 pounds. Both sets of brothers are undefeated in MAC competition and the Burk brothers each carry a five match winning streak into the showdown. The Huskies will finish their regular season by hosting Eastern Michigan, Eastern Illinois and Southern Illinois in the Convocation Center on Sunday February 18th at 10:00 a.m. For further information contact Matt Stiles at niuwrestlingsid.com.

MADISON, Wis. -- After a two-week road stretch, the No. 6 Wisconsin wrestling team (18-1-0, 4-1-0 Big Ten) returns home to play host to No. 10 Illinois (8-1-0, 4-1-0 Big Ten) at 1 p.m. Sunday at the UW Field House. Wrestling fans 18 and under will receive free admission to the match, as part of Youth Day. The Illinois-Wisconsin match up will feature six bouts in which both grapplers are ranked. The key battle will be at 157 lbs., where No. 3 Craig Henning (Chippewa Falls, Wis.) faces top-ranked Mike Poeta of Illinois. Both wrestlers have perfect conference records and excellent overall marks, with Henning at 22-1 and Poeta at 16-2 this season. At 133 lbs., No.14 Zach Tanelli (Milburn, N.J.) will look to score his third upset in conference action as he takes on No. 8 Jimmy Kennedy. Tanelli has an 18-3 overall record while Kennedy is 22-3 this season. No. 10 Kyle Ruschell will also have a tough match as he faces 12th-ranked Cassio Pero at 141 lbs. Pero is a two-time NCAA qualifier and a senior captain for the Illini. Ruschell, a freshman out of Crittenden, Ky., is having a breakout season with a 24-4 overall mark. At 149 lbs., tri-captain No. 8 Tyler Turner (Spring Valley, Wis.) faces familiar foe No. 11 Troy Tirapelle. The pair met last year in the regular-season dual, with Turner defeating Tirapelle 10-4. However, Tirapelle later avenged his loss, defeating Turner 6-5 in the first round of the Big Ten championships. A pair of ranked freshmen will battle at the 184-lb. weight class as No. 11 Trevor Brandvold (River Falls, Wis.) faces No. 16 John Dergo of Illinois. Brandvold is 12-4 on the year while Dergo is 18-7. The final ranked battle is at 197 lbs., where No. 11 Dallas Herbst (Winneconne, Wis.) faces No. 20 Patrick Bond. Herbst, a sophomore tri-captain, is 21-4 on the year with 14 pins. Bond is 8-4 on the season and 2-3 in conference action. Illinois is also ranked at 125 lbs. and 165 lbs. with No. 6 Gabel Flores and No. 13 Roger Smith-Bergsrud, respectively. Flores, who is 17-2 this year, will face Collin Cudd (River Falls, Wis.) who is 17-7 overall this season. Jake Donar (Cuba City, Wis.) will have his hands full with Smith-Bergsrud. Donar is 8-11 overall and 6-9 in dual competition, while Smith-Bergsrud is 23-6 overall and 4-1 in the Big Ten. Results will be available for Sunday's match on uwbadgers.com. Those unable to attend will be able to watch all the action livestreamed on uwbadgers.com. Simply click the Webcast tab on the Video Guide button at the top of the page and select wrestling. For a breakdown of all of the match-ups click the PDF link below. Fans are also reminded that Wisconsin Idol will be taking place at next Friday's match against Minnesota. If you would like to participate please contact Marie at polzer@wisc.edu.

Colorado Springs, Colo. -– USA Judo is pleased to announce that for the first time ever the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Judo will be held simultaneously with the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Wrestling, June 15-16, 2008 in Las Vegas, Nev. "This is a great opportunity for us to showcase judo to the wrestling community in the U.S. We have had some great success with wrestlers moving into judo and making an impact in our sport," said USA Judo CEO Jose H. Rodriguez (Colorado Springs, Colo.) "This is indeed a perfect Olympic Trials marriage and it will all happen in Las Vegas! I have had the opportunity to put on events with USA Wrestling Executive Director Rich Bender and his staff in the past, and I know that they put on first-class tournaments. This is a win-win proposition for both judo and wrestling!" The U.S. Olympic Team Trials for all sports is a collaborative, three-way partnership between the U.S. Olympic Committee, the National Governing Bodies and the Local Organizing Committees. The Trials will be held at the Thomas and Mack Center on the campus of the University of Nevada – Las Vegas and will feature contests in each of the 14 Olympic judo weight divisions as well as the 18 Olympic wrestling weight classes in the three Olympic styles (men's freestyle, men's Greco-Roman, women's freestyle) to be contested at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. With eight athletes expected to compete in the Trials for each weight division, as many as 112 judo players will be eligible for berths on the U.S. Olympic Team. USA Wrestling expects almost 200 wrestlers to participate in the U.S. Olympic Team Trials. "We are very excited that USA Judo will host their Trials in Las Vegas in conjunction with the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Wrestling," said Rich Bender (Colorado Springs, Colo.), USA Wrestling Executive Director. "This promises to be a can't miss weekend for wrestling and judo fans, as well as the general sport fan. Combining the two events, allows both sports an opportunity to cross-promote our teams and programs to a much larger spectator and media base." USA Judo has held several key events in Las Vegas during recent years, including the highly successful 2001-04 U.S. Open Championships. "I am extremely happy that USA Judo will be showcasing our top athletes in Las Vegas in 2008 in conjunction with USA Wrestling," said USA Judo President Dr. Ron Tripp (Norman, Okla.) "Coming from a strong wrestling background into the sport of judo, it will be wonderful to have an opportunity to enjoy both sports at their pinnacle events of the Olympic quadrennium at the same time. In my first term as President, one of my initial actions was to move the U.S. Open from Colorado Springs to the mega entertainment capitol of the world, Las Vegas. The combination of the wrestling and judo Olympic Trials together in Las Vegas will bring things full circle as I fulfill my Presidential service in 2008." The local organizers for the Trials are Las Vegas Events which has played host to hundreds of major sporting events, including the National Finals Rodeo, NASCAR Nextel Cup and Craftsman Truck Series events, NHRA Drag Racing, USA Basketball Men's Senior National Team Training and Exhibition, the Las Vegas Bowl, PBR World Finals, Vegoose Music Festival and the signature New Year's Eve production, America‘s Party. "Las Vegas is proud to become the host city for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Judo," said Pat Christenson (Las Vegas, Nev.), President of Las Vegas Events. "The combination of judo and wrestling will provide fans an opportunity to see these great athletes compete for berths on the U.S. Olympic Team. There is a great deal of synergy between the two sports, so fans will have a chance to see both disciplines set against the backdrop of Las Vegas, the most exciting city in the world." About Las Vegas Events Founded in 1983, Las Vegas Events, Inc. has grown with Las Vegas as the city has emerged as one of the world's top special event and resort destinations. A private, not-for-profit organization, LVE is funded by hotel room tax and serves as the exclusive major special events agency for the city. Since 1991, Las Vegas Events has produced, presented or supported more than 300 events, which have driven more than 2.8 million visitors to the area, resulting in an economic impact of more than $1.6 billion. www.lasvegasevents.com

INDIANAPOLIS -- The NCAA announced Thursday that the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championship finals on March 10 in Kearney, Nebraska, will be televised on CSTV: College Sports Television (channel 610 on DirecTV/channel 152 on DISH Network). The championship finals will also be available live for free online at www.NCAAsports.com/dii. The show will air tape-delayed Sunday, March 11, 9 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., Eastern time. The two-day championship will be held at the Health and Sports Center on the campus of the University of Nebraska at Kearney, March 9-10. "We are extremely excited and pleased to have the national exposure that CSTV will provide to our great championship, it is such a great statement for all Division II athletes that CSTV has given us this opportunity" said Tony Cipollone, chair of the NCAA Division II Wrestling Committee and assistant athletics director at Mercyhurst College. "We are looking forward to a great championship and the opportunity to showcase the balance of Division II student-athletes to the nation." This will mark the first year of national television coverage for the Division II Wrestling Championship. Altitude Sports Network (channel 644 on DirecTV/channel 410 on DISH Network) will also broadcast the event, same-day tape-delayed at 11:30 p.m., Eastern time. The event will be syndicated and all clearances will be listed on www.NCAASports.com/broadcast as agreements are reached. Tickets for the event are available via the Nebraska-Kearney ticket office at 308/865-1563.

Marshall, MO -- The Dana wrestlers completed the regular season Wednesday evening against NAIA ninth-rated Missouri Valley College. Dana won four out of the first five matches, but needed a win at 285 pounds to seal a 25-18 win for the Vikings. Craig Trampe (SR, Ord, Neb.) capped off his final dual as a Viking with a thrilling win over Brandon Nice. Trampe put together a takedown and near fall combination in overtime to win a major decision 19-10. Garrett Harding of Missouri Valley pulled off an upset at 133 pounds. Harding escaped with a 3-2 win over top-rated Burke Barnes (JR, Lake Stevens, Wash.). Dana came away with two quick wins at 141 and 149 pounds. Brian Graham (FR, Kansas City, Mo.) made quick work of Darrell Lubbert at 141 pounds. Graham pinned Lubbert in 59 seconds. Terrence Almond (SR, Pelham, Ga.) bumped up to 149 pounds to square off against Aaron Hayden. Almond would not be on the mat for long as he applied a cradle to Hayden and recorded a fall in 40 seconds. The 157-pound match saw fifth-rated Jason Bilinski (JR, Pittsgrove, N.J.) take on fourth-rated Chad Jennings. Bilinski fell behind 3-0 early, but battled back with a takedown and nearfall to defeat Jennings, 6-3. The next four matches went in Missouri Valley's favor. Bulla Tuzon (FR, Wailuku, Hawaii) lost a 6-0 decision to Chris Jones at 165. Josh Ghobadpoor (FR, Dahlonega, Ga) was matched up against 2006 All-American Jake Oberfoell. Ghobadpoor lost a close decision to Oberfoell, 9-5. Webster Farris (JR, Nebraska City, Neb.) was pinned at 184 pounds by Daniel Price in 2:42. At 197, Missouri Valley bumped up their top-rated 184 pound wrestler, Jasper Lockett, to take on fifth-rated Wade Jordan (JR, Coulee City, Wash.). Lockett earned a 7-3 decision over Jordan. Dana held a slim 19-18 lead going into the heavyweight bout. Jesse Boggs (FR, Deming, N.M.) left no doubt in anyone's mind who won the dual. Boggs pinned Wade Empting in 4:45 to seal the victory for Dana. The victory ends Dana's dual season with a 12-2 record. The only two dual losses were against the top NAIA program Lindenwood and the defending NCAA Division II champion Nebraska-Omaha. Dana looks to win the first official Great Plains Athletic Conference tournament in Mitchell, S.D., on Saturday. The Vikings have won four "unofficial" GPAC tournaments.

NORMAN, Okla. -- The No. 8/14 Oklahoma wrestling team (9-5, 0-3 Big 12) will host the No. 21/22 Nebraska Cornhuskers (7-6, 0-3 Big 12) Friday at 7 p.m. in the Howard McCasland Field House. "This is going to be a very tough dual with a very well coached Nebraska team," head coach Jack Spates said. Last season the Sooners knocked off the Huskers in Lincoln by a score of 19-16. Oklahoma comes into the fourth Big 12 dual of the season trying to earn its first win. Last Sunday the Sooners dropped a 24-14 decision to Missouri. Oklahoma leads the all-time series with the Cornhuskers 34-15-3. Jack Spates is 8-5 all-time versus Nebraska. "We know that we have to wrestle tougher than we have been recently and I believe that we will," Spates said. After the Nebraska match Oklahoma will have wrestled five of its last seven matches against teams in the top-25. The Sooners are 2-4 in those matches. "This match will be a tough test but we have to come ready to wrestle because it won't get any easier for us on Sunday," Spates continued. Oklahoma is still without two of its starters as No. 1 Sam Hazewinkel (125-pounds) and Joe Comparin (133-pounds) still recover from injuries sustained earlier in the season. Comparin has been out since the Lone Star Duals (Jan. 6) and Hazewinkel has been out since the NWCA National Duals (Jan. 13). The Sooners next travel to Stillwater, Okla. as they face the No. 4/4 Oklahoma State Cowboys at 3 p.m. Sunday inside Gallagher-Iba arena.

Adam Frey had already written an impressive wrestling resume before arriving at Cornell University: NHSCA Senior National champ. Freestyle and Greco-Roman national champ. Five-time freestyle and Greco All-American. Winner of four athletic letters at Blair Academy. Adam FreyAs of this writing, the 133-pound starter at Cornell has a 12-0 record, including an individual title at the 2006 Southern Scuffle. Perhaps just as impressive, Adam is winning other challenges off the mat. He's back in full force after missing his entire first season at Cornell after major shoulder surgery last year. He's overcoming battles to make weight. And he's earning high marks in a challenging major -- government -- at an Ivy League school. It started with A beat-down … Like so many top-flight wrestlers, Adam Frey was introduced to the sport at an early age -- 6 years old, to be exact. However, his reason may be unique. "I kept getting beat up on the school bus," the Pittsburgh native discloses. "I was only about 40 pounds, a complete nerd, really shy… I saw a flyer about a wrestling program, so I asked my dad about it. He had been a wrestler. He said, 'No, it's too tough for you.' But I kept at him. 'You told me I could do anything if I put my mind to it.' He finally gave in." "At first I wanted to quit. But mom wouldn't let me. Dad decided to help coach me. We'd work out together in the basement. My next season I was 40-3. I guess it worked out for me." Breaking away … to Blair Throughout Adam's young life, his father Jerry worked out with him and coached him. When it was time to think about high school, Jason Robison -- a two-time NCAA All-American for Edinboro, now head coach at Washington & Jefferson -- recommended Blair Academy in New Jersey. "I loved the school on my first visit," says Adam. "They helped me succeed as a wrestler and prepared me academically for college." "Blair made me tough," Adam continues. "It's a challenging school. And, I was 15 years old, living away from home. But that made me mentally strong. It helped me become more independent. Taught me how to get things done." When asked about the wrestling program at Blair -– a school that has turned out eventual NCAA champs Steve Mocco and Zack Esposito, and All-Americans Mark Perry and Cory Cooperman, among others -- Adam Frey's immediate response is, "It's awesome!" Then the wrestler who was a starter all four years at Blair adds, "We went at it hard. I took my share of whuppings in that room. But it was great to have that level of workout partners and quality coaching." While at Blair Academy, Adam Frey started to make a name for himself throughout the United States. His final two years of high school, Adam earned back-to-back titles at the Beast of the East tournament. At the 2005 Dapper Dan Wrestling Classic -- the annual event that pits the best high school mat stars of Pennsylvania against the top preps in the rest of the country -- Adam pinned Steve Bell of Pennsylvania at 4:55 of their 130-pound match… and pinned down Outstanding Wrestler honors as well. A few weeks later, Adam claimed the 130-pound title at the 2005 NHSCA Senior Nationals, defeating Joey Slaton of Iowa, 10-5, in the finals. In a published interview after the 2005 Senior Nationals, Blair head wrestling coach Jeff Buxton said, "This is a very deserving win for Adam. He has worked hard all year and trained correctly for four years at Blair. With our track record at Blair, I am expecting Adam to join the ranks of Mocco, Esposito and Perry in the college ranks." Making the connection with Cornell With those impressive folkstyle credentials -- not to mention national titles in freestyle and Greco-Roman competition his senior year -- Adam Frey was ranked as the top recruit in his weight class, generating considerable interest among top college wrestling programs. Interestingly, at first, Cornell University was not at the top of Adam's college wish list. "There was ten feet of snow the first time I went up there," jokes the Big Red wrestler, who seriously considered other Ivy League schools. Rob KollCornell's head coach Rob Koll and his staff were persistent. As Adam puts it, "(Blair) Coach Buxton said something like, 'Would you please humor the guy at Cornell and at least talk to him?'" "I spoke to Coach Koll on the phone -- we hit it off well." Cornell came calling on Adam Frey at Blair, where, according to Adam, his Belgian sheep dog -- who weighs approximately the same as the sought-after wrestler –- made a grab for Cornell assistant coach Steve Garland. That wasn't the end of the adventure for the Cornell staff. "My dad would tell visiting coaches to climb a rope in the front yard," says Adam. "Coach Koll did it in his suit." Things went well on that visit, so Adam went to Ithaca, New York for an official visit to the Cornell campus. "Coach Koll and I went fishing," according to Adam. "I felt like we bonded well." "We made sure we left no stone unturned in our quest to get Adam to come here," says Koll. Koll got his Frey … as part of a recruiting class that included Troy Nickerson, and was ranked as high as fourth-best by the wrestling media. Shouldering a serious injury, then surgery Sadly, just as the 2005-06 wrestling season was getting started, disappointing news concerning Adam Frey came out of Cornell: he had been diagnosed with a torn labrum and a split bicep tendon, and would require surgery to repair the damage. The surgery was performed between semesters, so that Adam could stay in class. And, while the surgery was deemed a success, Adam missed the entire season. Recovery seems to be complete. "Things are a lot better now," says Adam. Referring to the shoulder, Adam says, "It's strong, it's flexible." "I now have a different outlook about competing. I consider myself lucky to be wrestling." Back in action From his on-the-mat performance so far this season, Adam Frey seems to be back in fine form. As of this writing, he has a perfect 12-0 record, and is now ranked fourth at 133 pounds by RevWrestling.com. When asked what he thought this season's high points were, Adam immediately focused on two key matches at the 2006 Southern Scuffle, the post-Christmas tournament hosted by the University of North Carolina-Greensboro: His quarterfinals match against Matt Keller of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, and the semifinals bout vs. Navy's Joe Baker. In talking about the match vs. Keller, the No. 1 seed at the Scuffle, Adam said, "I was thinking, 'This is my first big match in two years.'" The Cornell 133-pounder, who was seeded eighth in the tournament followed up with, "(Keller's) a real goer … I was hurting pretty much, but it helped me realize that I could indeed compete at this level." At the end of the match, Adam Frey edged Matt Keller 10-9 to advance. Adam Frey (Photo/Darl Zehr)Boosted by his performance against the top-ranked Moc, Adam admits to being perhaps a bit overconfident in the next match vs. Baker. "I figured 'I just beat the top-ranked guy, this guy can't be as tough.' Before I knew it, I fell behind 6-2, feeling the effects of the prior match. However, I got through it," says Adam, securing a 10-9 victory over the fourth-seeded Navy wrestler. In the finals at the Southern Scuffle, Adam went up against second-seeded Evan Sola of North Carolina … and, wrestling what he described as "a good technical match," the Big Red wrestler came out on top 4-2 to take the 133-pound title. Dealing with weighty issues … and thriving Adam concedes that the following week, in a dual meet with Penn State, "it was tough to make weight" for his match with Jake Strayer, in which he had to "work hard to get the win" against the eighth-ranked Nittany Lion 6-5. "He's had struggles with his weight," says Coach Koll. "He seems to have it under control now … We're working with him regarding issues with food and working out. He thrives on training, doing extra workouts. He'll be in three times today … It's like tempering steel; the more you work with it, the harder and tougher it becomes." Cornell assistant coach Cory Cooperman concurs. "Adam's intense about working out. He likes to go up against coaches, testing himself. Doesn't back down against anyone. I really make him work. I don't let him score; I give him all the defense I can." "He has so much power as a wrestler," Cooperman adds. "He has incredible, physical 'man strength' and he's not even lifting here -- we're concentrating on cardio and wrestling … He's mentally tough, too. The way he came back against the Navy kid at the Southern Scuffle, being down 6-2, is a prime example of that." "He's the total package." The future for Frey Ask Adam Frey about his goals, and the government major immediately responds, "I hope to get into politics. Since I've been three I've wanted to be President." He chuckles at that comment, then follows up with, "I want to do my part to make the world a better place. I think I can do that via politics." Adam Frey (Photo/Darl Zehr)"I want to go into law school," Adam continues. "Ideally, I want to graduate from here with honors, then go to Cornell Law (School), and continue my wrestling career." "I'd like to help coach while pursuing my academic goals. That way, I could train, and share what I've learned. Give back to the sport." When asked about wrestling career goals, Adam says, "Sure, I have aspirations of making an Olympic team. I'll pursue it to the best of my ability with my sights on 2012, maybe 2008 if things work out that way." Coach Koll backs up Adam's dreams: "I don't see a limit to what he can achieve."

RALEIGH, N.C. –- Jeremy Colbert scored a pin at 184 pounds, and Ryan Goodman scored the winning team points with a decision at 197 Wednesday night as NC State defeated North Carolina 25-12 in Atlantic Coast Conference wrestling action at Reynolds Coliseum. The win was the Wolfpack's second in a row and raised the team's record to 9-7 overall and 2-2 in ACC matches. North Carolina fell to 7-7 overall and 4-2 in the ACC. UNC's Drew Forshey opened the match with a quick takedown of the Wolfpack's Taylor Cummings, and wound up with two takedowns in each of the first two periods en route to a 9-3 decision, giving the Tar Heels a 3-0 lead in the team scoring. Forshey improved to 17-7 with the win, while Cummings fell to 8-10. Eleventh-ranked Evan Sola upped the UNC lead to 6-0 with a 6-0 decision over Garrett Cummings at 133. Sola got a takedown midway through the first period and stayed on top for most of the match, racking up more than three minutes of riding time. Sola improved to 11-3 with the win. Cummings dropped to 12-10. The Wolfpack got on the scoreboard with Darrion Caldwell's major decision over Mike Rappo at 141 pounds. Caldwell scored a takedown just seconds into the match, then scored three near falls to take an 8-0 lead before Rappo managed an escape. Caldwell got another takedown at the end of the period for a 10-1 lead after one period. Rappo began the second period with a takedown and a near fall to cut the lead to 10-5, but Caldwell escaped and worked Rappo for three more takedowns before the match was over. The win for Caldwell lifted his record for the season to 12-3. Rappo dropped to 11-12. The Tar Heels made it three matches out of four with Vincent Ramirez's 4-2 decision over Joe Caramanica. With the bout tied at 2-2 after two periods, Ramirez began the third period in the down position, avoided giving up back points out of a Caramanica cradle hold, then scored a bout-winning reversal midway through the period. Ramirez improved to 13-8 with the win, while Caramanica dropped to 12-8. The Wolfpack caught a huge break at 157 pounds when North Carolina's Ben Fiacco appeared to pull his right hamstring with four seconds left in the second period of his bout with 18th-ranked Kody Hamrah. Hamrah had an 8-4 lead at the time, but with Fiacco unable to continue, Hamrah was declared the winner by injury default and the Wolfpack got six huge points on the scoreboard to take a 10-9 lead. Hamrah improved to 15-6 with the win, while Fiacco dropped to 14-12. At 165 pounds, 13th-ranked Keegan Mueller took a 2-0 decision over the Wolfpack's Obie Simpson to put the Tar Heels back in front at 12-10. Mueller won the match by riding out Simpson for the entire two minutes of the second period, then escaping to start the third. Mueller improved to 25-6 with the win. Simpson dropped to 7-8. NC State went back in front 13-12 with Rick Brownlee's 3-1 decision over Deon Barrett at 174. Browlee broke a 1-1 tie in the third period with a takedown with 41 seconds remaining in the bout. Brownlee upped his record to 5-7 with the win. The bout was Barrett's first action of the 2006-07 season. Colbert applied the backbreaker when he pinned Daniel Llamas at the 4:09 mark. Colbert had a 3-1 lead after a first-period takedown and an escape to start the second period. When Llamas tried to use an inside leg move to score a takedown, Colbert locked Llamas's shoulders and took him down directly to his back. He got the pin seconds later, with 51 seconds left in the period. Colbert improved to 6-9 with the win, while Llamas dropped to 3-7. Colbert's pin gave the Wolfpack a 19-12 lead with two bouts remaining, meaning the Tar Heels had to win both and record at least a major decision in one of the two. Goodman made that a moot point by clinching the team victory with a 3-0 decision over David Dashiell at 197. Goodman took a 2-0 lead with a reversal to start the second period, and earned one point for riding time. That was the only scoring in the bout at NC State took a 22-12 lead with one bout remaining. Goodman improved to 15-2 with the win. Dashiell fell to 2-2. The heavyweight bout proved to be superfluous to the team scoring, but with the Nos. 9 and 10 wrestlers in the country squaring off, it was an important match, and NC State's Jainor Palma, ranked ninth, defeated 10th-ranked Spencer Nadolsky 2-1. Both wrestlers had an escape, but Palma got the win as Nadolsky was penalized a point for a head slap in the second period. NC State returns to action this weekend with bouts on Friday night at Virginia and on Saturday at George Mason. Both matches will begin at 7 p.m.

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. -- The Rutgers wrestling team won its 10th win of season with a 25-15 non-conference victory over Sacred Heart on Wednesday night at the College Avenue Gym. The 10-win season is the first for the Scarlet Knights since the 2003-04 campaign when RU finished the season 10-4. The Scarlet Knights are 10-4 on the season, including a 5-2 mark in the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA). "It feels great to have gotten 10 wins this year," said head coach John Sacchi. "This team is young and I really didn't know what to expect from them. They've exceeded my expectations. I'm very pleased with how our season has gone and how much improvement we've made." The Scarlet Knights were led by freshman Chris Norrell (Phillipsburg, N.J.) who posted his eighth pin of the season at 157 pounds. Norrell trailed 2-0 after Sacred Heart's Michael Hartman scored on a takedown. At the 1:19 mark, Norrell scored a reversal and earned nearfall points at the close of the period, owning a 4-2 lead heading into the second. After selecting the defensive position, the rookie reversed Hartman just 12 seconds in, and turned him at the 1:29 mark to get the fall. Rutgers took a 6-0 lead after a forfeit at 125 pounds and never trailed. Junior Kyle Milanese (Delran, N.J.) recorded a 9-5 decision at 141 pounds to extend the RU lead to 9-3. After a win by the Pioneers at 149 pounds and Norrell's pin, the Scarlet Knights owned a 15-6 advantage at the half-way point in the match. At 165 pounds, sophomore Matt Pletcher (Eastampton, N.J.) recorded a 6-1 decision over Sacred Heart's Patrick Nappi and junior Mike Whalen (Lake Hiawatha, N.J.) followed it up with a major decision victory at 174 pounds. Whalen led 6-1 after two periods on three takedowns and scored an escape from the defensive position just four seconds into the final period to take a 7-1 lead. After another takedown at the 48-second mark, the Pioneers' Jed Giguere scored on an escape, but Whalen earned a point for riding time (3:23) to get the bonus points for the Scarlet Knights. Sophomore Lamar Brown (Red Bank, N.J.) won a 3-2 decision at 197 pounds, the final win of the night for RU. Following a scoreless opening stanza, Sacred Heart's Kevin Fox took a 1-0 lead on an escape at the 1:52 mark in the second. Brown selected the defensive position in the third and tied the match, 1-1, with an escape just four seconds in. With 1:05 remaining, Brown scored a takedown, and despite a Fox escape, held on for the win. The Scarlet Knights will wrap up EIWA competition on Saturday, Feb. 10, when they travel to Lehigh University. Match time is slated for 2:00 p.m.

SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- After capturing his second individual title of the season at the All-Academy Championships last Saturday, senior Sam Alvarenga has been named Southern Conference Wrestler of the Week, as announced by the League office on Wednesday afternoon. Alvarenga becomes the second VMI grappler to be so honored in as many weeks, after classmate Scott Buhman earned the award last week. Alvarenga (Springfield, Va./Thomas Edison) went 3-0 in the 149 lb. weight class to capture the first All-Academy Championship of his career. On Saturday, Alvarenga first pinned Merchant Marine's Matt Dolby in 3:47 before scoring a major decision against Coast Guard's Bryan Radik (15-7). In the championship, Alvarenga defeated Navy's Joel Ahern for the second time this season, this time by a 7-2 count. Earlier this season, Alvarenga won the 149 lb. weight class of the Nittany Lion Open, and was ranked as high as 18th at 149 in the Intermat Rankings thanks to a 15-match win streak. With a 28-5 record this season, Alvarenga leads the team in wins, while only two more wins would make him the fourth VMI wrestler to post multiple 30-win seasons at the Institute. Two more wins would also move him into fifth-place in career wins at VMI, as he currently sports a 106-42 overall mark. Alvarenga and the VMI wrestling team returns to the mats on Friday night, as they travel to Harrisonburg to take on James Madison in a 7 p.m. match. Just two days later, the Keydets square off with Southern Conference foe Chattanooga on the road at 2 p.m.