Nebraska's Robert Kokesh finished fourth at the NCAAs, with his only two losses coming to Minnesota's Logan Storley (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)A senior from Wagner, South Dakota, Kokesh comes in with a stellar 105-14 career record to go along with a third and fourth-place finish at the past two NCAA Division I championships. Kokesh finished fourth last year, losing only to Minnesota's Logan Storley in two matches that went to the tiebreaker.
From Oakdale, Pennsylvania, Wilps will be the second wrestler in his family to compete in the event and eighth Pittsburgh Panther wrestler overall. Panther wrestlers are 3-4 overall in the event with Wilps' older brother Matt last appearing in 2012 where he pinned Penn State's Quentin Wright at 197 pounds. Wilps comes in with a career record of 70-28 and he's a two-time NCAA qualifier. He was seventh at the 2014 NCAA Division I championships.
Kokesh and Wilps have met twice during their college career, with Kokesh picking up both victories. Kokesh's first win came back in December of 2011 where he pinned Wilps in 20 seconds. The second time they met was much closer, as Kokesh defeated Wilps 2-1 in the tiebreakers in the consolation quarterfinals at last year's NCAA Division I Championships in Oklahoma City.
Wilps won the Atlantic Coast Conference at 174 pounds last year, the first year Pittsburgh competed in the conference.
Kokesh's participation in the All-Star Classic will mark the 23rd time a Husker has wrestled in the event. He'll join teammate James Green, who will wrestle Ian Miller at 157 pounds. It'll be the first time since 2009 a Husker has wrestled in the event. Nebraska holds an overall record of 11-10 individually with the two most recent wins coming in 2009 at Fullerton, California where Jordan Burroughs and Stephen Dwyer earned individual victories. Also in 2009, Craig Brester competed at 197 pounds.
"So far, we've got seven matchups with a total of 14 All-Americans at the All-Star Classic," said NWCA Executive Director Mike Moyer. "Pittsburgh has been a rising program in the East the past several years and has a lot of great tradition, while Nebraska, as we know, is always a team pushing for a trophy at the end of the season."
To purchase tickets to the event, click here for the Penn Athletic Ticket Office.
The event will be streamed live by the NWCA's live streaming partner Flowrestling. Fox College Sports will air the event on television via tape-delay no less than 10 times during the season, starting two weeks after the event has completed. These broadcasts are paid for by Rothschild, a leading global financial advisory based in New York City with offices in Washington, Los Angeles and Houston.
Hibiclens and Resilite will again support the event as associate sponsors. The Rothman Institute and the United Association (UA) Group will also make 1,500 tickets available for local students (K-12) throughout southeastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland.
Follow on Social Media!
For more information on the All-Star Classic, visit www.theallstarclassic.com and follow the NWCA on Facebook and Twitter. Fans can join the discussion with the #NWCAClassic hashtag. Fans should keep an eye on the discussion as there will be contests and interactive discussions about the event via Twitter and Facebook!
Competing wrestlers will be eligible for the Outstanding Wrestler Award, presented by the Wrestlers in Business Network - Atlanta Chapter.
Announced Matchups:
125: Nahshon Garrett, Jr. (Cornell) vs. Joey Dance, So. (Virginia Tech)
133: A.J. Schopp, Sr. (Edinboro) vs. Mason Beckman, Jr. (Lehigh)
141:
149: Jason Tsirtsis, So. (Northwestern) vs. Josh Kindig, Sr. (Oklahoma State)
157: James Green, Sr. (Nebraska) vs. Ian Miller, Jr. (Kent State)
165:
174: Robert Kokesh, Sr. (Nebraska) vs. Tyler Wilps, Sr. (Pittsburgh)
184: Gabe Dean, So. (Cornell) vs. Jack Dechow, So. (Old Dominion)
197:
285: Nick Gwiazdowski, Jr. (N.C. State) vs. Mike McMullan, Sr. (Northwestern)
Showcase matchups to be announced
About the NWCA
Founded in 1928, the NWCA strives to promote and provide leadership for the advancement of amateur wrestling, primarily at the scholastic and collegiate levels. The association is headquartered in Manheim Pa. The three core competencies are coaching development, student-wrestler welfare, and promotion/advocacy. The NWCA has 10,000 members and educational programs that serve 230,000 students each year. www.nwcaonline.com NWCA on Facebook | NWCA on Twitter
About the University of Pennsylvania
Established in 1740, the University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League research university located in Philadelphia. Incorporated as The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania, Penn is one of 14 founding members of the Association of American Universities and is one of the nine original Colonial Colleges. The school was founded by Ben Franklin. Penn is ranked among the top research universities in the world.
About Wrestlers in Business/Wrestlers in Business Philadelphia
The Group Wrestlers in Business is a non-profit organization that strives to unite the thousands of wrestlers that have retired from the sport and are now in their respective careers. It started as a networking group on LinkedIn. Since then, the group has evolved into a more prominent, member-focused organization that cares about supporting current & former wrestlers and the sport. Their mission is to establish a community of wrestlers who commonly share in the interest of helping each other in business and in life, while supporting and strengthening the sport that made us who we are today. www.wrestlersinbusiness.org
Wrestlers in Business Philadelphia is a newly formed group who will kick-off their Chapter events with a Social Event in September followed by All-Star Classic. A 14-member Board has been elected led by President Anthony Stagliano and he is joined by distinguished names in the wrestling and business community including four members who have long ties to the University of Pennsylvania; Roger Reina who is playing a prominent role in the promotion of the All-Star Classic, Gary Baker, Andy Matter and Chris Hanlon. www.wrestlersinbusiness.org/chapters/philadelphia-pa
About the United States Marine Corps
On November 10, 1775, the Marine Corps was established by the Second Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Since then, the Marine Corps, through service on land, in air, and at sea, have acquitted themselves with the greatest distinction, winning new honors on each occasion until the term "Marine" has come to signify all that is highest in military efficiency and soldierly virtue. Whether facing our nation's foes or conducting humanitarian relief and disaster recovery operations at home or abroad, today's Marine Corps stands ready to continue in the same proud tradition of faithful service to the United States. For more information, visit www.Marines.com.
About Rothman Institute
Rothman Institute is a private orthopaedic practice dedicated to providing communities with high-quality, compassionate, and affordable musculoskeletal care that is grounded in evidence-based medicine, the results of which will exceed expectations. Rothman Institute orthopaedists treat patients at 20 locations in the Philadelphia-region, including orthopaedic urgent care clinics in Marlton, NJ and Limerick, PA. With experts in orthopaedic sub-specialties including spine, hip and knee, foot and ankle, shoulder and elbow, hand and wrist, sports medicine, physical medicine and rehabilitation, orthopaedic oncology and trauma, the Rothman Institute is internationally recognized for excellence in clinical treatment methods, research, education and technology. Consistently recognized as national and regional "Top Docs," the Rothman Institute is proud to be official team physicians for several professional, college and high school teams. For more information about the Rothman Institute please call 1-800-321-9999 or visit www.RothmanInstitute.com.
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