2007 NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals
Location: Cedar Falls, Iowa
Arena: UNI-Dome
Date: Saturday-Sunday, Jan. 13-14
Radio: Takedownradio.com will be broadcasting the National Duals all day Saturday and Sunday.
Webcast: LiveSportsVideo.com will provide a free webcast of the NWCA National Duals on Sunday, Jan. 14th. The webcast start times are: 11a.m. for the semifinal rounds, 1 p.m. for placing rounds and 3 p.m. for the finals.
First Round Match-ups
#1 Missouri vs. Penn
#2 Minnesota vs. Cornell
#3 Hofstra vs. Nebraska
#4 Oklahoma State vs. Northern Iowa
#5 Iowa vs. UC-Davis
#6 Iowa State vs. Michigan
#7 Oklahoma vs. Central Michigan
#8 Northwestern vs. West Virginia
NOTES TO KNOW
National Duals History
This will be the 11th straight year that Minnesota has competed in the National Duals. The Golden Gophers have won the title four times: 1998, 2001, ‘02 and ‘06. Minnesota also finished second in 1999 and 2000 and third in 1997 and 2005. The Gophers hold a 36-12 record all-time at the National Duals.
A Look Back
Cole Konrad pinned two-time NCAA Champion Steve Mocco to give the second-ranked Golden Gopher wrestling team a 21-14 upset of top-ranked Oklahoma State in the finals at the 2006 National Duals. Konrad ended Mocco's 85-match winning streak, while the Golden Gophers snapped the Cowboys' 30-match winning streak as they won their fourth National Duals title and first since 2002.
Konrad earned his first official win over the OSU wrestler en route to being named the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler, capping a memorable tournament for himself and the rest of the Gophers.
Minnesota advanced to the championship match with a 20-15 victory over No. 9 Central Michigan in the semifinals. Konrad was again the hero, with his 9-1 major decision over Bubba Gritter giving the Gophers the victory. With the win, Minnesota advanced to finals of the National Duals for the first time since 2002.
To Be the Best...
The Golden Gophers are well aware of what it's going to take to become the No. 1 team in the country. Outside of themselves, Minnesota has faced each of the top-five teams in the nation in some form or another already this season. Hofstra, currently ranked third in the nation, handed Minnesota its only loss of the season, 18-17, at the Northeast Duals. The Gophers rode a huge wave of momentum into the holiday break after defeating then-top ranked Oklahoma State and current No. 4 Iowa State within three days of each other. Immediately out of the break, No. 1 Missouri narrowly edged the Gophers at the Southern Scuffle in Greensboro, N.C., claiming the team title by a final score of 179.5-176.
With the top nine teams in the nation all competing at this weekend's tournament, Minnesota hopes to re-gain the top ranking by capturing its second straight National Duals title and fourth in the last seven years.
Striving 4 Perfection
Heading into the National Duals, four Minnesota wrestlers are still undefeated on the season. Manuel Rivera, ranked No. 5 nationally at 141 pounds, is 22-0 with five pins, five major decisions and one tech fall. Top-ranked Dustin Schlatter is 17-0 with two pins, one major and seven tech falls at 149. Roger Kish, No. 2 at 184 pounds, is also 17-0 with eight pins, one major decision and one tech fall. Top-ranked heavyweight Cole Konrad is 13-0 with six pins and two major decisions.
Minnesota has not had four undefeated wrestlers at this point in the season since five Gophers were still perfect heading into the National Duals in 1997-98. Among that group was current assistant coach Brandon Eggum.
Top Billing
The National Duals will feature eight of the 10 top-ranked wrestlers in the nation, including Minnesota's Dustin Schlatter (149) and Cole Konrad (Hwt). Other top-ranked wrestlers include: Missouri's Ben Askren (174) and his brother Max (197), Northwestern's Ryan Lang (141) and Jake Herbert (184), Oklahoma's Sam Hazewinkel (125) and Oklahoma State's Johny Hendricks (165).
The Road Ahead
If the seeds hold true, the Gophers will get a chance to avenge their season-opening loss to Hofstra in the semifinals. A victory over the Pride could set up a showdown between Minnesota and top-ranked Missouri in the finals on Sunday at 3 p.m. First, Minnesota must get through Cornell and the winner of No. 7 Oklahoma/Central Michigan on Saturday.
Matches We'd Like to See
125 - Jayson Ness could potentially see three of the top five wrestlers in the nation in his first three matches of the tournament. First up is No. 3 Troy Nickerson of Cornell. Round two could bring top-ranked Sam Hazewinkel of Oklahoma, followed by a possible rematch with David Tomasette Hofstra in the semis. Ness' only three losses of the season have come against wrestlers currently ranked in the top five, including one each to Nickerson and Tomasette. He would like nothing more than to avenge one or both in helping Minnesota to the title.
133 - Mike Thorn's most intriguing match will come in the first round against No. 5 Adam Frey.
141 - It is unlikely Manuel Rivera will get a shot at top-ranked Ryan Lang of Northwestern, but a number of top 10 opponents are still scattered throughout the field. The one Rivera is most likely to see is No. 9 Charles Griffin of Hofstra. Rivera won a 5-1 decision over Griffin at the Northeast Duals.
149 - If Minnesota and Oklahoma both advance to the second round, all eyes will undoubtedly be on the match-up between top-ranked Dustin Schlatter and No. 2 Matt Storniolo. Schlatter topped Storniolo, 3-0, earlier this year at the All-Star Classic, but this would be their first official meeting of the season. Schlatter defeated Storniolo, 5-1, in the semifinals of last year's NCAA Championships.
157 - C.P. Schlatter (if he's healthy) vs. anybody... or another Tyler Safratowich upset.
165 - Jeremy Larson entered the rankings at No. 19 this week. There's a good chance he could face another ranked opponent in every one of his matches.
174 - Gabriel Dretsch could also see a ranked opponent in every round, possibly culminating with top-ranked Ben Askren in the finals. If Oklahoma State is able to reach the finals, another Dretsch-Brandon Mason bout would also be entertaining.
184 - Much like Rivera, Roger Kish will not likely get a chance to face Northwestern's top-ranked Jake Herbert, but No. 6 Joe Rovelli of Hofstra and No. 5 Raymond Jordan of Missouri may be awaiting on Sunday.
197 - True freshman Brent Eidenschink will get his first dual meet start this weekend. His reward - if the top seeds in the tournament hold up, he could potentially face four of the top seven wrestlers in the country.
Hwt - Upsets abound are about the only hope for top-ranked Cole Konrad to see any ranked competition. Central Michigan would have to knock off Oklahoma in the first round for Konrad to see No. 5 Bubba Gritter. The only other ranked wresters are in the top half of the bracket.
He Keeps Going and Going and...
Senior heavyweight Cole Konrad has a chance to tie the school record for consecutive wins this weekend. With 54 consecutive victories dating back to the beginning of last season, Konrad trails only Tim Hartung, who set the record at 58 in 1999.
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