InterMat Staff

DURHAM, N.C. -- The 10th-ranked University of Pittsburgh wrestling team recorded its second shutout of the season in dominant fashion Saturday morning. The Panthers downed the Duke Blue Devils, 50-0, at Card Gymnasium in the ACC opener. With the win, Pitt improves to 6-2 on the year, while the Blue Devils drop to 0-11. Today's 50-point win was the first since 2015 when the Panthers defeated Clarion 51-0. Prior to that, Pitt defeated Millersville, 53-0, in 2010. "We did what we were supposed to do today and that's good," said head coach Keith Gavin. "Now we have a quick turnaround and need to be ready to compete hard again tomorrow." Pitt opened the dual with a 6-0 lead after Duke forfeited 125 pounds. Moving to 133 pounds, redshirt sophomore Micky Phillippi pinned Harrison Campbell in 4:01 for his 17th win of the year. The fall was his second consecutive in duals as he pinned Reece Witcraft last weekend at Oklahoma State. The Blue Devils then forfeited 141 and 149 pounds to give the Panthers a 24-0 lead in the dual. Redshirt senior Taleb Rahmani returned to the win column this morning as he pinned Eric Carter in 4:04 for his 10th win of the year. At 165 pounds, sophomore Hunter Kernan made his dual debut and recorded a 10-3 decision over Wyatt Pfua to give Pitt a 33-0 lead. 174 pounds featured two ranked wrestlers in No. 24 Gregg Harvey and No. 26 Mason Eaglin from Duke. Harvey picked up his 12th win of the year as he won in a 15-6 major decision. Redshirt sophomore Nino Bonaccorsi picked up his 15th win of the year after pinning Kai Blake at 184 pounds. The fall was Bonaccorsi's first of the season and boosted the Panthers to a 43-0 lead. At 197 pounds, redshirt senior Kellan Stout shutout Vincent Baker, 14-0, for a major decision. Junior Cole Rickert completed the shutout as he defeated Jonah Niesenbaum at heavyweight, 3-1. The Panthers have a quick turnaround as they return to Pittsburgh to host Edinboro Sunday, Jan. 26 a 2 p.m. at the Fitzgerald Field House. Results: 125: Louis Newell (UP) wins by forfeit - Pitt leads 6-0 133: #6 Micky Phillippi (UP) pins Harrison Campbell (DU), 4:01 - Pitt leads 12-0 141: Jake Cherry (UP) wins by forfeit - Pitt leads 18-0 149: Luke Kemerer (UP) wins by forfeit - Pitt leads 24-0 157: #28 Taleb Rahmani (UP) pins Eric Carter (DU), 4:04 - Pitt leads 30-0 165: Hunter Kernan (UP) dec. Wyatt Pfau (DU), 10-3 - Pitt leads 33-0 174: #24 Gregg Harvey (UP) maj. dec. #26 Mason Eaglin (DU), 15-6 - Pitt leads 37-0 184: #9 Nino Bonaccorsi (UP) pins Kai Blake (DU), 1:50 - Pitt leads 43-0 197: Kellan Stout (UP) maj. dec. Vincent Baker (DU), 14-0 - Pitt leads 47-0 285: Cole Rickert (UP) dec. Jonah Niesenbaum (DU), 3-1 - Pitt wins 50-0

Augsburg's Emily Shilson gets her hand raised after getting a technical fall (Photo/David Peterson, Minnesota/USA Wrestling) The National Collegiate Athletic Association has approved Full Emerging Sports status for women's wrestling for NCAA Division II and Division III, in a vote of members in Anaheim, Calif. Saturday. The organization Wrestle Like A Girl posted this message on Twitter Saturday afternoon: "Today is a very monumental day in the history of women's collegiate wrestling," said Julia Salata, Wrestle Like A Girl's Collegiate Initiative Programs Manager. "Opportunities continue to expand and this is another step in the right direction. We've had an excellent group of stakeholders, administrators, and personnel who have worked hard to make this possible and will continue to help us move forward to full championship status." Mike Moyer, Executive Director of the National Wrestling Coaches Association, summed up the significance of today's NCAA vote by saying, "Today is a great day for women's wrestling, and all of wrestling." Lisa Goddard McGuirk, Chair of the Women's Wrestling Executive Committee -- and Gannon University Athletic Director -- said that today's NCAA vote "will afford additional opportunities for female student-athletes to pursue their academic and athletic passions at the college level." Last summer, the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics voted to recommend that all three divisions of NCAA governance structure add women's wrestling as an emerging sport effective August 1, 2020. Today's vote regarding NCAA Divisions II and III is the result of that vote six months ago. A similar vote regarding NCAA Division I taking women's collegiate wrestling to Full Emerging Sports status is planned for this April. What's next for women's wrestling in NCAA Division II and III? Now, thanks to Full Emerging Sports status, both D2 and D3 must each have 40 women's intercollegiate wrestling programs to reach championship status. According to Wrestle Like A Girl, there are a total of 22 Division II and III programs, with an additional 11 programs announced for the 2020-21 season, for a total of 33 programs at Division II and Division III schools. Once there are 40 women's programs in each of these divisions, the NCAA would need to maintain championship status for one full year to receive an official NCAA Women's Wrestling Championship.

Spencer Lee won by technical fall at 125 pounds (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) IOWA CITY, Iowa -- Spencer Lee and Austin DeSanto ran out of intermission with consecutive technical falls to send the top-ranked University of Iowa wrestling team past No. 4 Ohio State, 24-10, on Friday night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Lee dominated from start to finish, turning a first-period takedown into 16 nearfall points and using just two minutes, 32 seconds of the first period win 18-0 at 125 pounds. DeSanto gave pause to his 133-pound match, surrendering a takedown in the first seven seconds of the first period. But he quickly escaped and turned the next five minutes, 37 seconds into a DeSanto highlight real -- three takedowns in the first, five in the second, and four more in the third. His 12th and final takedown terminated the match, 27-12. "He is awesome. I told him that is how it's done," said Iowa coach Tom Brands. "You want a definition of how to wrestled a dominating wrestling match. That is how it's done. Twenty-seven points." "From last week to this week I'm more focused. Leaner, meaner, hungry like a wolf," DeSanto said. "I am ready to go. I've got to move my feet off the whistle; you guys saw that. Coming out too rushed. I have to be looser, hands down, be ready." The consecutive wins extended Iowa's halftime lead from 11-3 to 21-3. The dual started at 165 pounds, and Iowa opened with decisions from Alex Marinelli, Michael Kemerer, and Abe Assad. Marinelli used six takedowns to win, 14-10, at 165. Kemerer used two takedowns and two minutes, 50 seconds of riding time to earn a top 10 win at 174. Assad put the 13th largest crowd in Carver history (13,405) on its feet with a deciding takedown in the final minute of 184. Tony Cassioppi claimed a 9-3 win at 285 pounds (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) Ohio State got on the board with a decision at 197, but Tony Cassioppi put momentum back in the Hawkeyes' favor with a 9-3 win at 285. He led 4-1 after one, 5-1 after two, and used a four-point move in the third to nearly end the bout with bonus points. "I have always wanted to wrestle like a smaller guy. Move my feet, score points like guys like DeSanto," Cassioppi said. "I need a little more DeSanto in my wrestling in that third period to get that major. That is something I learned today." Iowa won seven-of-10 bouts overall and held a 27-11 advantage in takedowns. The Hawkeyes are now 5-0 in the Big Ten and have won 44-of-50 matches in those five wins. "Every dual is a statement dual for our team," Lee said. "We are just going out there and wrestling our hardest, proving that we can be the best in the country. Right now, we are. We just have to keep it going. We haven't won nationals yet, have we? We have to keep it going every week, do our best to improve, and be ready for the big show when it comes in March." Ohio State picked up wins at 141 and 149 in the second half, but Kaleb Young ended things with a 4-1 win at 157 pounds. Iowa's 14-point margin of victory was its largest in the series since defeating the Buckeyes, 33-3, in 2011. It was Iowa's largest margin against a top-five team since defeating No. 5 Cornell, 24-8, in 2015. UP NEXT Iowa hosts No. 2 Penn State on Friday, Jan. 31 at 8 p.m. (CT) at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. NOTABLES Iowa wrestlers have a combined record of 44-6 in Big Ten duals, and 69-11 in overall duals this season. Spencer Lee (18-0), Austin DeSanto (12-0), Alex Marinelli (22-0), Abe Assad (4-0), and Tony Cassioppi (5-0) are undefeated in their careers in Big Ten duals. Spencer Lee improved to 10-0 with 10 bonus-point wins. He has won his last five matches by technical fall, outscoring his opponents 84-1. Spencer Lee improved to 15-0 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The 27 points scored by Austin DeSanto are a career high. He scored 26 points two times as a freshman at Drexel. He has scored 20 points or more 20 times in his career. Carter Happel made his first appearance at Carver-Hawkeye Arena since defeating Purdue's Parker Filius, 2-0, on Nov. 24, 2018, at 149 pounds. Happel's last 141-pound appearance at Carver was Fe. 2, 2018, when he pinned No. 10 Tommy Thorn of Minnesota in 6:58. Alex Marinelli improved to 14-0 overall and 15-0 all-time at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. He has a career dual record of 38-0 and a Big Ten dual record of 22-0. Michael Kemerer improved to 8-0 with his third straight win over a top-eight opponent. He has won 28 straight duals. Abe Assad improved to 4-0 since removing his redshirt on Jan. 10. Cash Wilcke made his first appearance at 197 since the 2018 NCAA Championships. In his final match of that tournament, he lost to Kollin Moore, 6-2. Attendance was 13,405, the 13th largest crown is Carver-Hawkeye Arena history. Results: 165 -- #2 Alex Marinelli (IA) dec. #13 Ethan Smith (OSU), 14-10; 3-0 174 -- #2 Michael Kemerer (IA) dec. #8 Kaleb Romero (OSU), 7-1; 6-0 184 -- #7 Abe Assad (IA) dec. #22 Rocky Jordan (OSU), 3-1; 9-0 197 -- #1 Kollin Moore (OSU) dec. Cash Wilcke (IA), 8-3; 9-3 285 -- #3 Tony Cassioppi (IA) dec. #24 Gary Traub (OSU), 9-3; 11-3* 125 -- #1 Spencer Lee (IA) tech. fall #28 Malik Heinselman (OSU), 18-0; 16-3 133 -- #2 Austin DeSanto (IA) tech. fall 18 Jordan Decatur (OSU), 27-12; 21-3 141 -- #1 Luke Pletcher (OSU) major dec. Carter Happel (IA), 14-5; 21-7 149 -- #6 Sammy Sasso (OSU) dec. #1 Pat Lugo (IA), 2-1 TB1; 21-10 157 -- #6 Kaleb Young (IA) dec. #32 Elijah Cleary (OSU), 4-1; 24-10 *Iowa was deducted one team point for control of the mat following the 285-pound match Records: Iowa (8-0, 5-0), Ohio State (7-2, 3-1) Attendance: 13,405

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Junior/sophomore Jack Medley used a third-period takedown to knock off sixth-ranked Michael DeAugustino and clinch the No. 25-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team's 20-17 win against No. 15 Northwestern on Friday night (Jan. 24) at the Wildcats' Welsh-Ryan Arena. It was the Wolverines' second straight win over a ranked opponent; U-M improved to 4-0 in Big Ten Conference duals. Medley avenged an earlier-season loss to DeAugustino with a 3-2 decision in the dual's final bout at 125 pounds. After a scoreless first period and Northwestern escape in the second, Medley evened the score with an escape of his own in the third and immediately came around to convert on a head-in-the-hole takedown to take the lead. Northwestern challenged, and the one-and-two call was confirmed. DeAugustino escaped to narrow the margin, but Medley stalemated a couple late flurries to hang on for the win. It was Medley's best collegiate win to date -- and his third over a ranked opponent this season. He previously fell to DeAugustino, 12-5, in the quarterfinals at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (Dec. 6-7). The Wolverines earned bonus points in each of their other four wins, including three straight major decisions to open the dual, to provide the difference in the 5-5 match split. Fifth-year senior Austin Assad, freshman Cole Mattin and senior/junior Kanen Storr were dominant at 133, 141 and 149 pounds, respectively, to give Michigan an early and sizable lead. Assad set the tone with a 10-0 major decision against Dylan Utterback in the opening bout for his first dual win of the season, scoring on single-leg takedowns in the first and third frames while adding a four-point suck back and rideout -- he finished with 3:54 advantage time -- in the second. Mattin took advantage of several wild scrambles to score five takedowns en route to an 11-3 major decision against Alec McKenna at 141 pounds. With the bonus point in sight, the Wolverine freshman earned three takedowns in the third and accumulated 4:06 in riding-time advantage. Storr, ranked ninth nationally at 149 pounds, followed suit with eight takedowns and a 17-6 major decision against Eric Yang. Storr scored in a variety of ways -- a pair of first-period single legs, two snap downs and two doubles in the second, and two more singles in the third -- and earned 2:46 in riding-time advantage. Storr, who came out of his Olympic redshirt in late December, improved to 4-0 in duals. Sophomore heavyweight Mason Parris, ranked second nationally, picked up the Wolverines' most dominant win of the night with a 20-5 technical fall against Jack Heyob, scoring five takedowns -- all in the first period -- as well as a reversal and a four-point leg turk in the second to end the bout in 5:55. Parris improved to 20-0 on the season, with bonus points in 13 of his 20 wins. Michigan dropped a pair of 4-1 decisions against the Wildcats' other ranked wrestlers in the lineup. Sophomore/freshman Will Lewan, ranked 12th at 157 pounds, fell to top-ranked Ryan Deakin on a first-period takedown and 3:08 riding-time advantage. Fifth-year senior Jackson Striggow similarly fell to 18th-ranked Lucas Davison on a late second-period takedown on the edge -- challenged by Michigan but upheld -- and 1:08 riding-time advantage. The Wolverines will wrap their road trip in Champaign, Illinois, on Sunday (Jan. 26) when they will take on Illinois at 1 p.m. CST at Huff Hall. Results: 133 -- Austin Assad (U-M) major dec. Dylan Utterback, 10-0 -- U-M, 4-0 141 -- Cole Mattin (U-M) major dec. Alec McKenna, 11-3 -- U-M, 8-0 149 -- #9 Kanen Storr (U-M) major dec. Eric Yang, 17-6 -- U-M, 12-0 157 -- #1 Ryan Deakin (NU) dec. #12 Will Lewan, 4-1 -- U-M, 12-3 165 -- Shayne Oster (NU) major dec. Reece Hughes, 14-0 -- U-M, 12-7 174 -- Tyler Morland (NU) major dec. Max Maylor, 14-0 -- U-M, 12-11 184 -- Jack Jessen (NU) dec. #13 Jelani Embree, 7-6 -- NU, 14-12 197 -- #18 Lucas Davison (NU) dec. Jackson Striggow, 4-1 -- NU, 17-12 Hwt -- #2 Mason Parris (U-M) tech. fall Jack Heyob, 20-5 (5:55) -- Tied, 17-17 125 -- Jack Medley (U-M) dec. #6 Michael DeAugustino, 3-2 -- U-M, 20-17

LARAMIE, Wyo. -- It was a banner night on the mat for the Wyoming wrestling team as the Pokes finally got the chance to wrestle in a home dual Friday night and the Cowboys treated the Laramie faithful to quite the show in a 34-3 victory over CSU Bakersfield. Wyoming (5-7) recorded five bonus-point victories on the night, four major decisions and one pin, while winning 9-of-10 bouts against the Roadrunners (2-4). Hayden Hastings, at 174 pounds, got the fall for the Cowboys while Tate Samuelson (184), Stephen Buchanan (197), Brian Andrews (HWT) and Trevor Jeffries (141) all picked up major decision victories. Cole Moody got the dual started at 165 pounds and come up big late in his 4-2 win over Jacob Thalin. Moody scored a reversal with four seconds left in the first period to tie the match at 2-2 and then got an escape in the second to go in front 3-2 before riding Thalin out the entire third period to pick up the riding time bonus and the win. Next, at 174, Hastings pinned Albert Urias in just 1:51. It was Hastings' seventh fall of the season and second in his last three matches and gave the Cowboys a 9-0 lead after two bouts. "It was awesome," said Hastings after the dual. "Wrestling in front of the home crowd, we've been hyping this up for a while now and the turnout was great, the fans are amazing. I like to come out and put on a performance and get the crowd into it. Tonight I didn't mind wrestling second and getting out and going and then sitting back and watch my teammates." Samuelson made it 13-0 UW after his 13-4 major over Josh Loomer. Samuelson recorded five takedowns in the win and scored seven points in the final 1:11 of the third period to lengthen his lead from 6-2 to 13-4 in order to pick up the bonus-point win. Buchanan kept the train rolling with a 14-6 win over CSUB's Dominic Ducharme. Buchanan also got to work late in his match, scoring nine points in the third period alone to earn the major, including registering two takedown in the final 13 seconds. Buchanan also scored five points in the second period and led 5-1 going into the final period. Andrews got the fourth consecutive bonus-point win for the Pokes as he bested Jarrod Snyder 13-3. Andrews did his damage with a pair of four-point nearfalls in the first period and led 10-0 after one. From there, Andrews recorded a pair of third period escapes and then earned the riding time bonus, putting the Pokes up 21-0 as a team. Jake Svihel was able to outlast Alex Hernandez-Figueroa at 125 pounds, winning 8-6. Svihel took a 4-2 lead into the second period, thanks to a pair of first period takedowns. After scoring three more points in the second, Svihel earned an escape with 1:24 left in the third to take an 8-4 lead before surrendering a late takedown. At 133, Montorie Bridges won his eighth consecutive match and 14th out of his last 15 bouts, as he defeated Chance Rich, 7-4. Bridges controlled much of the match, taking a 2-1 lead into the second period. In the second, Bridges got an escape just five seconds into the period and then a takedown late to go up 5-1. In the third, Rich made things interesting with an escape and takedown before Bridges was able to get back to neutral with 26 seconds left and hang on for the riding time bonus. Jeffries' 13-2 win at 141 was the final bonus-point victory of the night for the Cowboys as he bested Angelo Martinoni. Jeffries got to work early, scoring a takedown, a reversal and a four-point nearfall in the first to grab an 8-2 lead. After reversing Martinoni in the second, Jeffries finished him off with a takedown in the third and rode him out the rest of the way, tallying a ride time of 3:43 in the win. Dewey Krueger ended the evening at 157, following up UW's lone loss of the evening with a 5-2 decision over the Roadrunners' Wyatt Gerl. Krueger led most of the match, taking a 2-0 lead via takedown just 28 seconds into the matchup. After a three-point second period, Krueger was able to hang on despite a third period takedown by Gerl, capping off the night for the Pokes. "It was really good to be home, it was a great crowd tonight with a lot of energy," said Head Coach Mark Branch. "I thought our guys came out tonight, especially early and set the tone for our team performance. We had some really strong performances, a lot of bonus points early on which gave us a little breathing room. We put a lot on our guys' shoulders when we're at home. We've got a home crowd we tell them it's their duty to go out and entertain the crowd, not just win, but entertain them," continued Branch. The Cowboys look to continue their momentum later this weekend as they host Utah Valley Sunday at 2 p.m., in Green River in the Outreach Match held at Green River High School. Results: 165: Cole Moody (WYO) dec. Jacob Thalin (CSUB) 4-2 174: No. 10 Hayden Hastings (WYO) Fall Albert Urias (CSUB) 1:51 184: No. 29 Tate Samuelson (WYO) MD Josh Loomer (CSUB) 13-4 197: No. 27 Stephen Buchanan (WYO) MD Dominic Ducharme (CSUB) 14-6 HWT: No. 18 Brian Andrews (WYO) MD Jarrod Snyder (CSUB) 13-3 125: Jake Svihel (WYO) dec. Alex Hernandez-Figueroa (CSUB) 8-6 133: No. 6 Montorie Bridges (WYO) dec. Chance Rich (CSUB) 7-4 141: Trevor Jeffries (WYO) MD Angelo Martinoni (CSUB) 13-2 149: Russ Rohlfing (CSUB) dec. No. 20 Jaron Jensen (WYO) 6-0 157: No. 32 Dewey Krueger (WYO) dec. Wyatt Gerl (CSUB) 5-2

OREM, Utah -- Four bonus-point victories propelled No. 16 Stanford to a 25-19 road win over Utah Valley, Friday, in front of 1,011 fans at Lockhart Arena. Stanford (8-1) and Utah Valley (1-7) each won five bouts, but the Cardinal registered a pair of falls and technical falls to come out on top. Beginning at heavyweight, Utah Valley's Chase Trussell turned in a 4-1 decision over redshirt senior Trevor Rasmussen to give the Wolverines the early 3-0 lead. Stanford freshman Jackson DiSario, the reigning Pac-12 Wrestler of the Week, gave the Cardinal the lead with a fall in 4:36 over Will Edelblute at 125 pounds. It was the sixth fall of the year for the McDonough, Georgia, native, who moves to 17-5 overall and 7-1 in duals. The Wolverines moved back in front momentarily (9-6) after the Cardinal had to forfeit at 133 pounds. Redshirt freshman Real Woods then registered a 16-1 technical fall in 4:40 over Isaiah Delgado at 141 pounds. Ranked No. 4 nationally, Woods led 6-1 after the first. Delgado chose neutral to start the second, giving Woods the opportunity to score. He quickly secured another takedown and was able to turn Delgado for a pair of four near fall calls. Woods moves to 13-1 overall and 4-1 in duals this season. Utah Valley earned the win at 149 pounds, giving it a 12-11 advantage in the team score. Stanford answered as redshirt freshman Tyler Eischens posted his second technical fall of the year, 18-0 (4:02) over Jerry Rubio at 157 pounds. Eisched led 12-0 after the first and Rubio went neutral to begin the second. Eischens scored another takedown and added four near fall points to improve to 18-6 and 6-2 in duals. Redshirt freshman Shane Griffith, who is ranked seventh nationally at 165 pounds, earned a second-period fall over Grant La Mont to extend the team score to 22-12 in favor of the Cardinal. Griffith (21-0) remains undefeated on the season and is tied for the sixth-longest winning streak in program history. The dual came down to 197 pounds, where redshirt junior Nathan Traxler held on to defeat Tanner Orndorff, 10-8. Traxler, who was back in action for the first time since the Southern Scuffle, had a 7-1 lead going into the final period. Orndorff earned an escape to start the third and put his foot on the gas pedal, taking down Traxler three times before time expired. Ranked fifth in the nation, Traxler moves to 16-2 overall and 5-1 in duals. Stanford will resume Pac-12 action next week, traveling to No. 6 Arizona State on Friday, Jan. 31. Results: 125 Jackson DiSario (STAN) fall Will Edelblute (UVU) F4:36 133 Taylor LaMont (UVU) won by forfeit FF 141 #4 Real Woods (STAN) tech. fall Isaiah Delgado (UVU) 16-1 (4:40) 149 Cameron Hunsaker (UVU) dec. Dawson Sihavong (STAN) 7-3 157 Tyler Eischens (STAN) tech. fall Jerry Rubio (UVU) 18-0 (4:02) 165 #7 Shane Griffith (STAN) fall Grant LaMont (UVU) F3:59 174 #13 Kimball Bastian maj. dec. Jared Hill (STAN) 12-4 184 Jacob Armstrong (UVU) dec. Nick Addison (STAN) 7-2 197 #5 Nathan Traxler (STAN) dec. Tanner Orndorff (UVU) 10-8 285 Chase Trussell (UVU) dec. Trevor Rasmussen (STAN) 4-1

FARGO, N.D. – Jaden Van Maanen's pin at 149 pounds lit the fuse as North Dakota State turned over the University of Oklahoma 24-15 in a Big 12 Conference dual on Friday, Jan. 24, before 615 spectators in the Scheels Center. It was the first Bison win in the brief three-match series. NDSU (4-3, 1-1 #Big12WR) is scheduled to wrestle Northern Colorado (1-4, 1-2 #Big12WR) at 3 p.m. Central Time on Saturday, Feb. 1, in Greeley. Van Maanen, a redshirt sophomore from La Crosse, Wis., recorded his fourth pin and seventh win since the start of the New Year at 1:27 over Oklahoma's Jacob Butler. He helped to put the Bison ahead 6-3. Van Maanen improved to 8-10 overall and 2-5 in duals. Jared Franek picked up his fourth win over a nationally-ranked opponent this season with a 3-1 white-knuckler win over No. 16-ranked Justin Thomas. Franek gained an important takedown in the waning seconds of the first period and third period escape to push his record to 17-6 overall and 5-2 in duals. North Dakota State's No. 9-ranked 165 Andrew Fogarty extended the lead to 15-3 with his fifth fall of the season at 3:32. Fogarty saw his first action since the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, and improved to 13-2 overall and 6-0 in duals. Oklahoma (3-3, 1-2 #Big12WR) quickly cut the deficit to 15-9 in the next bout when No. 15-ranked 174 Anthony Mantanona recorded a pin at 4:04, and then bolted out of the intermission to knot the dual at 15-all with wins from 184 Darrien Roberts and No. 12 197-pounder Jake Woodley. However, NDSU responded with a pair of tough-minded decisions from No. 27-ranked heavyweight Brandon Metz and 125-pounder McGwire Midkiff to break the deadlock. Following a scoreless first period, Metz (17-5, 5-1) picked up an early escape in the second and deciding takedown in the third to outlast Josiah Jones 3-2. It was the same script at 125 pounds. Following a scoreless first period, Midkiff kept the top position for the entire second period and then recorded an escape 23-seconds in the third. His 1-minute, 37-seconds of riding time led to a 2-0 decision over Christian Moody. Midkiff improved to 7-3 overall and 2-1 in duals. NDSU No. 10-ranked 133-pounder Cam Sykora jumped out to an early lead in a 6-4 decision to close out the dual. Sykora stands at 8-3 overall, 4-2 in duals. Results: 141: #9 Dom Demas (OU) dec Dylan Droegemueller (NDSU), 11-5 149: Jaden Van Maanen (NDSU) fall Jacob Butler (OU), 1:27 157: Jared Franek (NDSU) dec #16 Justin Thomas (OU), 3-1 165: #9 Andrew Fogarty (NDSU) fall Jose Lao Cooper (OU), 3:32 174: #15 Anthony Mantanona (OU) fall Lorenzo De La Riva (NDSU), 4:04 184: Darrien Roberts (OU) dec TJ Pottinger (NDSU), 4-2 197: #12 Jake Woodley (OU) dec Cordell Eaton (NDSU), 6-2 285: #27 Brandon Metz (NDSU) dec Josiah Jones (OU), 3-2 125: McGwire Midkiff (NDSU) dec Christian Moody (OU), 2-0 133: #10 Cam Sykora (NDSU) dec #21 Anthony Madrigal (OU), 6-4

The Cleveland State University wrestling team jumped out to an early lead and won a few key matches down the stretch to claim a 21-14 win over SIU Edwardsville in Mid-American Conference action Friday evening inside First Community Arena at the Vadalabene Center. CSU won the first three bouts to open up a 10-0 lead. However, Cleveland State then found itself up just one point with three bouts left to go, but two Vikings notched wins to seal the deal. "It was another great team effort from top to bottom," head coach Josh Moore said after securing CSU's seventh win of the season. True freshman Logan Heil got CSU off to a good start at 125 pounds, but it was not smooth sailing for the rookie. He trailed after one period and was tied, 4-4, after five minutes. Starting in the top position for the third, Heil tallied four crucial back points before adding a point for riding time to post a 9-4 win. Redshirt senior Justin Patrick contributed his second straight major decision win at 133. He opened up a 6-0 lead after one period on the strength of four back points and would cruise to an 11-1 win. Redshirt senior Evan Cheek, who was listed among the top 20 in the NCAA rankings released Friday, had a battle at 141 pounds. However, he was able to maintain his composure despite not scoring as much as usual as he held off his foe for a 2-1 win. The hosts would net wins at 149 and 157 to pull within three points in the team scoring. Redshirt freshman Riley Smucker remained in fine form at 165 pounds. After a scoreless first, Smucker rode his opponent for the entire second period. He posted an escape and a takedown in the third before adding a point of riding time for a 4-1 win. After the Cougars claimed a bonus-point win at 174 pounds, Cleveland State led by just a single point. True freshman DeAndre Nassar came up big for the guests at 184 pounds. He trailed after both the first and second period before rallying to tie the bout, and then take the lead with a takedown, in the third period. He held on for a 6-5 victory. "DeAndre is a true freshman, but he handles the pressure of big matches like he has been there many times before," Moore said. Sophomore Ben Smith effectively clinched the dual at 197 pounds as he tallied a pin at the two-minute mark. "We have been working on cradles this week, and it was nice to see Ben execute one and get the fall," Moore added. SIUE used a late takedown at heavyweight to claim a two-point win in a bout that turned out to be an inconsequential to the team outcome. "John Kelbly [at heavyweight] and Gus Sutton [at 149 pounds] wrestled tough matches against nationally ranked competitors and almost pulled the upsets," Moore remarked after those two Vikings lost by a combined five points. Cheek's win was his team-leading 28th and kept him perfect in dual action (7-0). Smith became the second Viking to reach the 20-win mark and tallied his 13th bonus-point victory. Heil, who moved to 4-1 in the MAC, and Smucker, who has won five straight, are tied for third on the team with 18 wins each. Cleveland State will be right back in action Saturday afternoon as it heads to nationally ranked Missouri. QUICK HITS Cleveland State claimed a 21-14 MAC win at SIU Edwardsville Sophomore Ben Smith notched a pin at 197 pounds to clinch the dual Smith tallied his 20th win of the season in the process Redshirt senior Justin Patrick posted his second straight major decision win Redshirt senior Evan Cheek posted his team-leading 28th win Logan Heil, Riley Smucker and DeAndre Nassar all added wins for CSU Both Heil and Nassar came from behind to net their victories Smucker has won five straight matches Results: 125: Logan Heil (CSU) over Gage Datlovsky (SIUE) - 9-4 dec. | CSU leads, 3-0 133: Justin Patrick (CSU) over Jake Blaha (SIUE) - 11-1 MD | CSU leads, 7-0 141: Evan Cheek (CSU) over Saul Ervin (SIUE) - 2-1 dec. | CSU leads, 10-0 149: Tyshawn Williams (SIUE) over Gus Sutton (CSU) - 9-6 dec. | CSU leads, 10-3 157: Justin Ruffin (SIUE) over Nico O'Dor (CSU) - 9-0 MD | CSU leads, 10-7 165: Riley Smucker (CSU) over Chase Deihl (SIUE) - 4-1 dec. | CSU leads, 13-7 174: Kevin Gschwendtner (SIUE) over Chase Archangelo (CSU) - 10-2 MD | CSU leads, 13-11 1 team point deducted from CSU 184: DeAndre Nassar (CSU) over Ryan Yarnell (SIUE) - 6-5 dec. | CSU leads, 15-11 197: Ben Smith (CSU) over Jake McKiernan (SIUE) - Fall 2:00 | CSU leads, 21-11 285: Colton McKiernan (SIUE) over John Kelbly (CSU) - 3-1 dec. | CSU wins, 21-14

BLACKSBURG, Va. -- Led by No. 17 Kennedy Monday's technical fall win over No. 3 David McFadden, No. 12 North Carolina defeated No. 3 Virginia Tech, 23-10 Friday night at Cassell Coliseum. Joey Melendez began the dual with a key upset win over No. 11 Joey Prata. In the first period, Melendez turned Prata and scored four back points, a move that would prove to be the difference-maker. He scored another takedown in the third period on a scramble and won, 8-7, to kick off the night for Carolina. After Virginia Tech won at 133 pounds, Carolina picked up momentum again with wins in back-to-back bouts. Zach Sherman and Austin O'Connor both won with decisions - Sherman's over another ranked opponent (No. 18 Mitch Moore) - to push the team score in UNC's favor, 9-3, after the first four matches. A.C. Headlee kept the winning rolling for Carolina at 157 pounds with a win over No. 18 B.C. LaPrade. The redshirt senior scored a takedown in the second, the match's only takedown. He held on through the third period and won, 3-2. The most notable bout in the match was No. 17 Kennedy Monday's 21-6 technical fall win over No. 3 David McFadden. Monday scored early and often in the first, racking up 10 first-period points with a handful of back points. He rolled and never looked back, utilizing a takedown in the third to end the bout and put five team points on the board for Carolina. Clay Lautt picked up a 4-1 decision over Cody Hughes at 174 pounds, extending the team score lead to 20-3. Virginia Tech's No. 2 Hunter Bolen won with a major decision at 184 pounds over Joey Mazzara, but Brandon Whitman answered with another Carolina win, a 6-4 decision. Virginia Tech took the bout at heavyweight, but Carolina's early heroics were more than enough to send the Tar Heels home the winners, 23-10. Carolina returns to the mat next Friday, January 31 against Duke in Carmichael Arena. The match is set for 7 p.m. Results: 125: Joey Melendez (UNC) dec. #11 Joey Prata, 8-7 - Carolina leads, 3-0 133: Colin Gerardi (VT) dec. Jaime Hernandez (UNC), 4-3 - Tied, 3-3 141: #12 Zach Sherman (UNC) dec. #18 Mitch Moore (VT), 5-2 - Carolina leads, 6-3 149: #2 Austin O'Connor (UNC) dec. Bryce Andonian (VT), 10-4 - Carolina leads, 9-3 157: #19 A.C. Headlee (UNC) dec. #18 B.C. LaPrade (VT), 3-2 - Carolina leads, 12-3 165: #17 Kennedy Monday (UNC) tech fall #3 David McFadden (VT), 21-6 - Carolina leads, 17-3 174: Clay Lautt (UNC) dec. Cody Hughes (VT), 4-1 - Carolina leads, 20-3 184: #2 Hunter Bolen (VT) maj. dec. Joey Mazzara (UNC), 13-4 - Carolina leads, 20-7 197: Brandon Whitman (UNC) dec. Stanley Smeltzer (VT), 6-4 - Carolina leads, 23-7 285: #17 John Borst (VT) dec. Andrew Gunning (UNC), 5-2 - Carolina wins, 23-10

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- The Purdue wrestling team put up a huge road win Friday night, winning 9-of-10 matches on its way to a 37-4 dual win over Maryland at The Pavilion at the Xfinity Center. The Boilermakers put up bonus points in five of the nine wins, including back-to-back pins to close the dual as they improved to 10-2 overall and 3-1 in conference action. The Boilermakers' 34-point margin was their biggest in a conference dual since dealing Wisconsin a 41-3 defeat on Jan. 20, 2012. It was their fourth straight over the Terrapins, all coming since Maryland joined the Big Ten Conference. Purdue wasted no time taking control of the match as No. 6 junior Devin Schroder went out and scored his seventh technical fall of the season, needing 3:40 to roll up an 18-0 win over Brandon Cray. His sixth technical fall of the season over Division I opponents moved him into a tie for fourth place in the nation, coming in a combined 18:58, an average of 3:09 per match. Freshman Travis Ford-Melton used a pair of first-period takedowns to post a 7-4 win at 133 pounds, and sophomore Parker Filius logged his fourth bonus-point win of the season at 141 pounds, blanking Hunter Baxter 11-0. Filius whipped Baxter to his back for six in the first period and then continued tacking on points down the stretch as he pulled away. Senior Nate Limmex and eighth-ranked freshman Kendall Coleman posted back-to-back decisions at 149 and 157 pounds as Limmex downed Michael Doetsch 4-0 and Coleman reeled off four takedowns in a 10-4 victory over No. 24 Jahi Jones. The Terps got their lone win at 165 pounds, but No. 4 senior Dylan Lydy swung the momentum right back at 174, tallying five takedowns in a 12-4 major decision over No. 25 Philip Spadafora. Junior Max Lyon followed with a 7-2 decision at 184, his second straight win, 15th of the year and third in conference action. Senior Christian Brunner and freshman Thomas Penola put the finishing touches on the team win with consecutive falls in the last two matches. Brunner, ranked fifth in the nation at 197, needed only 1:47 to stick Niko Cappello, taking him down and stacking him up for his seventh fall of the year, while Penola, the nation's No. 25 heavyweight, put together a 6-1 lead before sticking Parker Robinson. Purdue will come right back into action Sunday heading to Rutgers for a 1 p.m. ET dual at the Rutgers Athletics Center. The Scarlet Knights toppled Indiana on Friday 29-7, winning 8-of-10 matches and moving to 8-3 overall and 3-2 in conference duals. Results: 125: No. 6 Devin Schroder (PUR) def. Brandon Cray (MD), TF 18-0 (3:40) 133: Travis Ford-Melton (PUR) def. King Sandoval (MD), D 7-4 141: Parker Filius (PUR) def. Hunter Baxter (MD), MD 11-0 149: Nate Limmex (PUR) def. Michael Doetsch (MD), D 4-0 157: No. 8 Kendall Coleman (PUR) def. No. 24 Jahi Jones (MD), D 10-4 165: Kyle Cochran (MD) def. Tanner Webster (PUR), MD 11-0 174: No. 4 Dylan Lydy (PUR) def. No. 25 Philip Spadafora (MD), MD 12-4 184: Max Lyon (PUR) def. Kyle Jasenski (MD), D 7-2 197: No. 5 Christian Brunner (PUR) def. Niko Cappello (MD), Fall 1:47 285: No. 25 Thomas Penola (PUR) def. Parker Robinson (MD), Fall 3:45

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Michigan State wrestling used four bonus point wins on its way to a 25-15 victory over Clarion on Friday evening inside Jenison Field House. The Spartans used bonus point wins from redshirt juniors Matt Santos and Jake Tucker, along with redshirt sophomore Cameron Caffey and redshirt senior Garrett Pepple. "I don't think we wrestled to our potential," said MSU wrestling head coach Roger Chandler. "We are a much better team than that, and I give them (Clarion) credit because they stepped up and they were grittier than us in certain weights. We have to be better, especially going into the Nebraska dual on Sunday. Our guys have to wrestle in their positions and we can't settle for our opponents. That's kind of been the theme that I've been preaching since our first Big Ten meet against Michigan and Rutgers. Some of our guys are doing it, but we have to have all 10 guys do it." The match started at 125 pounds with MSU redshirt senior Logan Griffin taking on Cam Butler. Griffin landed two takedowns and an escape in the second period after a scoreless first. Griffin held Butler, who came into the match with a 5-1 dual record, scoreless in the third frame for the 5-0 shutout. At 133 pounds, Pepple took on Seth Koleno as the two went scoreless after one. Pepple landed an early takedown in the second period before securing a half nelson and wing for the fall at 3:35 in the match to put the Spartans up 9-0 over the Golden Eagles. Santos battled with Alex Blake in the 141 bout, tallying his first major decision of the season at 14-3. Santos came out early with a takedown in the first and added three more in the second to take a 9-2 lead into the third frame. With another takedown and two-point near-fall, Santos earned the 14-3 major decision win over Blake and extended the Spartan lead to 13-0 after three. Redshirt junior Alex Hrisopoulos battled No. 14-ranked Brock Zacherl at 149 pounds, coming up just short, 5-2, giving Clarion its first three points of the match. Tucker registered his 20th win of the season in dominant fashion, rolling past Avery Shay, 16-3, for his ninth bonus point win of the season. Tucker fell behind early after a takedown by Shay, but answered with a takedown and four-point near-fall after landing a cradle. Tucker grabbed another takedown and four-point near-fall for the 16-3 major decision win, his sixth of the season. In the 165 bout, junior Drew Hughes and Mike Bartolo were deadlocked at zero up until the final seconds with Hughes holding a 2:00 advantage in riding time. After a review, Bartolo was awarded a takedown just before the buzzer sounded, giving him the 2-1 win over Hughes. Redshirt freshman Layne Malczewski took thet mat against Max Wohlabaugh at 174 pounds. Malczewski couldn't get anything going early on, giving up two takedowns to Wohlabaugh. After an escape in the second, Malczewski went into the third period trailing 4-2 before battling back with a four-point near-fall to take the lead 6-4. Malczewski rode out the period for the 6-4 win, giving MSU a 20-6 advantage. It was all Caffey in the 184 pound bout with Luke Funck. Caffey started early with four first period takedowns, and ended the match with nine on his way to his third tech fall of season, 23-8 (6:44). With the win, Caffey improved to 18-6 overall and 9-2 in duals. At 197 pounds, redshirt junior Nick May battled with No. 17 Greg Bulsak. May and Bulsak traded takedowns in the first frame, and were all knotted at six after two periods. Bulsak claimed two escape points and a takedown for the 10-7 win. At 285 pounds, redshirt junior Christian Rebottaro took on Ty Bagoly. Rebottaro acted early against Bagoly, who came into the match 10-0 in duals. Rebottaro scored a takedown in the first 30 seconds before Bagoly landed a takedown and secured the win with a fall at 2:11 for the Golden Eagles's fourth win of the day and the 25-15 final score. The Spartans return to Big Ten action when they hit the road for a Sunday dual with No. 7 Nebraska at the Devaney Center on Jan. 26. The match will air on BTN+ with a start time of 3 p.m. EST. Results: 125 - Logan Griffin (MSU) dec. over Cam Butler (CU), 5-0 - MSU leads 3-0 133 - Garrett Pepple (MSU) fall over Seth Koleno (CU), (3:35) - MSU leads 9-0 141 - Matt Santos (MSU) maj. dec. over Alex Blake (CU), 14-3 - MSU leads 13-0 149 - No. 14 Brock Zacherl (CU) dec. over Alex Hrisopoulos (MSU), 5-2 - MSU leads 13-3 157 - No. 22 Jake Tucker (MSU) maj. dec. over Avery Shay (CU), 16-3 - MSU leads 17-3 165 - Mike Bartolo (CU) dec. over Drew Hughes (MSU), 2-1 - MSU leads 17-6 174 - No. 23 Layne Malczewski (MSU) dec. Max Wohlabaugh (CU), 6-4 - MSU leads 20-6 184 - No. 20 Cameron Caffey (MSU) tech fall over Luke Funck (CU), 23-8 (6:44) - MSU leads 25-6 197 - No. 17 Greg Bulsak (CU) dec. over Nick May (MSU), 10-7 - MSU leads 25-9 285 - Ty Bagoly (CU) fall over Christian Rebottaro (MSU), (2:11) - MSU wins 25-15

PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- No. 22 Rutgers wrestling (8-3, 3-2) used eight individual victories to claim a 29-7 win over Indiana (0-6, 0-5) on Friday night in front of 3,718 fans at the RAC. Gerard Angelo (149) picked off No. 16 Graham Rooks, No. 9 Sammy Alvarez (133) and Brett Donner (165) muscled major decisions and Matthew Correnti (HWT) bumped up a weight class to close out the dual with a first-period fall to highlight action for the Scarlet Knights. JoJo Aragona (149), Michael VanBrill (157), No. 20 Billy Janzer (184) and No. 20 Jordan Pagano (197) also added decisions to help RU to its third Big Ten Conference victory of the season and fifth in the all-time series with the Hoosiers. "Every win is important, especially in this conference. I'm fired up about it," said head coach Scott Goodale. "After our first few bouts, we kind of got on a roll which was great to see here in front of our home crowd. Our attention now turns to Sunday's dual against a really good Purdue team." HOW IT HAPPENED • The dual got off to a slow start for Rutgers, as No. 15 Nicolas Aguilar (125) dropped a tight 4-2 decision to Indiana's Liam Cronin. With the score tied 1-1 in the final period, Aguilar conceded a takedown as Cronin added the riding time point to give the Hoosiers a 3-0 lead to begin the dual. The setback halted Aguilar's win streak, as he entered Friday the winner of six consecutive matches. • The Scarlet Knights then took control, winning their next five bouts of the night. Falling behind early in his match and leading just 5-4 at after two periods, Alvarez went to work against Cayden Rooks with two takedowns and a four-point tilt for the 14-5 major. • Aragona also wasted no time in his match with Eddie Bolivar, as his takedown in the closing seconds of the first period gave him a 3-2 lead. Aragona added a huge double at the end of the second period and closed out his bout with a takedown for the 8-4 final. • The biggest result of the night came from Angelo against Graham Rooks, the reigning Big Ten Wrestler of the Week after back-to-back ranked wins last weekend. Angelo was the aggressor throughout, landing the first takedown of the match at the 2:23 mark in the first and nearly locking up the cradle. He then added another takedown and two back points for a 6-2 lead after one. • 149: Angelo got right to work against Graham Rooks, who entered Friday as the reigning Big Ten Wrestler of the Week after he picked up back-to-back ranked wins this past weekend. Angelo caught Rooks with another takedown by the scorer's table at the end of the second and through Rooks on his back in the closing seconds of the third period for the 13-7 final. It was Angelo's second victory over a ranked foe this season and third conference win in 2019-20. • VanBrill's second-period takedown of Fernie Silva gave him a 3-0 decision and RU a 13-3 lead over Indiana at Intermission. • Donner followed the break with arguably his most impressive dual win of the season. Donner landed two first-period takedowns on Davey Tunon, one in the third and finished his 12-3 major decision with two single-leg scores and the riding time point. • After a tough 11-3 loss from Willie Scott (174) against 2019 NCAA qualifier Jake Covaciu, Janzer faced Jake Hinz with the team score at 17-7. Any hopes of an IU comeback were extinguished in the final minute of Janzer's match. With riding time not a factor, Janzer cut Hinz to give his opponent a 4-3 lead with 1:52 to go in the match. As both traded bars, Janzer evaded a Hinz shot and finished an inside trip at the 47 second mark in the final period for the 5-4 final. • Pagano faced Nick Willham in his bout and landed two takedowns in the first period for a quick 4-0 lead. Pagano added an escape and the riding time point for the 6-0 final, as Pagano was in total control with several opportunities to pin his opponent. • Correnti bumped up heavyweight for just the second time this season to face Jake Kleimola. After Kleimola scored the early takedown, Correnti countered and the reversal, then locked up the cradle for his third fall of the season. Results: 125: Liam Cronin (IU) over 15/14/13 Nicolas Aguilar (RU) by decision, 4-2; IU leads 3-0 133: 9/10/9 Sammy Alvarez (RU) over Cayden Rooks (IU) by major decision, 14-5; RU leads 4-3 141: JoJo Aragona (RU) over Eddie Bolivar (IU) by decision, 8-4; RU leads 7-3 149: Gerard Angelo (RU) over 16/22/19 Graham Rooks by decision, 13-7; RU leads 10-3 157: Michael VanBrill (RU) over Fernie Silva (IU) by decision, 3-0; RU leads 13-3 165: Brett Donner (RU) over Davey Tunon (IU) by major decision, 12-3; RU leads 17-3 174: NR/25/27 Jake Covaciu (IU) over Willie Scott (RU) by major decision, 11-3; RU leads 17-7 184: 20/22/26 Billy Janzer (RU) over Jake Hinz (IU) by decision, 5-4; RU leads 20-7 197: 20/18/22 Jordan Pagano (RU) over Nick Willham (IU) by decision, 7-0; RU leads 23-7 285: Matthew Correnti (RU) over Jake Kleimola (IU) by fall (1:26); RU wins 29-7 UP NEXT Rutgers hosts No. 13 Purdue on Sunday for a 1 p.m. match at the RAC.

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The second-ranked NC State wrestling team opened its ACC slate in convincing fashion, posting a 28-9 win over Virginia inside Reynolds Coliseum. After won the first bout at 125 pounds, the Wolfpack (11-0) won seven straight, and won eight of the 10 matches overall. The ACC dual started at 125 pounds. R-Fr. Jakob Camacho scored the lone takedown in the third period, but came up short against #2 Jack Mueller, 5-2. The Pack evened it up in the next bout, as R-Fr. Jarrett Trombley scored his second top-20 win of the season after he got a third period takedown and adding in the ride time point to take out No. 20 Louie Hayes, 4-2. R-Jr. Tariq Wilson followed up with a takedown in all three periods and scored an 8-5 win at 141 pounds. A.J. Leitten got his first ranked win of the season, as his takedown with 15 seconds left, then a mat return, scored a 3-2 win over No. 31 Denton Spencer after the bout was 0-0 going into the third. NC State was deducted a team point for loss of control of the mat during the 149 bout. No. 2 Hayden Hidlay went to work and scored the first bonus point win of the dual, with a four-point near fall in the third, he scored a 15-1 major over No. 27 Justin McCoy. The Pack won four of the first five bouts for a 12-3 lead at the halfway mark. Back-to-back bonus for the Pack, as No. 12 Thomas Bullard scored a pair of third period takedowns and accumulated over four minutes of ride time for the 11-2 win. Back-to-back-to-back bonus, this time a PIN for six team points. No. 14 Daniel Bullard scored a second period takedown and turned it right into a fall at the 4:46 mark. No. 3 R-Fr. Trent Hidlay made it seven straight wins for the Pack as he scored the bout's lone takedown in the first period and claimed a 4-2 win. At 197 pounds, Nick Reenan was forced to injury default in his match against No. 7 Jay Aiello. The Pack closed the dual with a top-25 win at heavyweight for So. Deonte Wilson. Wilson scored a takedown in the second period and used a ride out in the third for the 5-1 win. Up Next NC State will be in road ACC action next weekend, as the Wolfpack will travel to No. 10 Pitt on Saturday, Feb. 1 at 7 p.m. Results: 125: #2 Jack Mueller (UVA) dec. #21 Jakob Camacho; 5-2 – 0-3 133: #26 Jarrett Trombley (NCSU) dec. #20 Louie Hayes; 4-2 – 3-3 141: #12 Tariq Wilson (NCSU) dec. Brian Courtney; 8-5 – 6-3 149: A.J. Leitten (NCSU) dec. #31 Denton Spencer; 3-2 – 8-3^ 157: #2 Hayden Hidlay (NCSU) major dec. #27 Justin McCoy; 15-1 – 12-3 165: #12 Thomas Bullard (NCSU) major dec. Krystian Kinsey; 11-2 – 16-3 174: #14 Daniel Bullard (NCSU) fall Victor Marcelli; 4:46 – 22-3 184: #3 Trent Hidlay (NCSU) dec. Michael Battista; 4-2 – 25-3 197: #7 Jay Aiello (UVA) inj. default #27 Nick Reenan; 1:47 – 25-9 285: #32 Deonte Wilson (NCSU) dec. #24 Quinn Miller; 5-1 – 28-9 ^ - NC State deducted a team point during 149 bout

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The Penn State Nittany Lions (7-1, 4-0 B1G), ranked No. 2 in the latest InterMat Tournament Power Index, downed No. 7 Nebraska (5-3, 0-3 B1G) to begin a rugged 16-day stretch of Big Ten road action. Penn State posted a 20-18 win in front of a record-Nebraska crowd with true freshman Seth Nevills (Clovis, Calif) sealing the deal with a win in the dual's final match-up. Including tonight's dual, Penn State is on a run of four-of-five road duals in 16 days, including action at Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota with a home dual against Maryland splitting the four road dates. Each team won five bouts in the hotly contested battle with Penn State winning the bonus point battle to grab the win. A new Nebraska wrestling record crowd of 5,960 filled NU's Devaney Center. All rankings listed are InterMat. The dual began at 125 where freshman Brandon Meredith (Limerick, Pa.) lost a hard-fought 3-1 sudden victory decision to Nebraska's Alex Thomsen, giving the Huskers an early 3-0 lead in the dual. Sophomore Roman Bravo-Young (Tucson, Ariz.), ranked No. 3 at 133, was winding down a regular decision win over No. 13 Ridge Lovett when he hit on a furious six-point move as the bout ended, nearly pinning the Husker in the process. The takedown, four nearfall points and riding time gave the Lions an 11-3 major decision and gave Penn State a 4-3 lead. Junior Nick Lee (Evansville, Ind.), ranked No. 2 at 141, dominated No. 8 Chad Red Jr. in the next bout. Lee used three takedowns, an escape, a stall point and nearly 4:00 in riding time (3:58) to roll to a 9-1 major decision over the ranked Husker and give Penn State an 8-3 lead. Sophomore Jarod Verkleeren (Greensburg, Pa.) battled No. 14 Collin Purinton at 149. Trailing 3-2 in the third, Verkleeren forced a scramble as he looked for a takedown but was pinned by the ranked Husker at the 5:50 mark. With No. 4 Brady Berge (Mantorville, Minn.) not competing at 157, junior Bo Pipher (Paonia, Colo.) took the mat against No. 11 Peyton Robb. Pipher battled the ranked Husker tough but lost a hard-fought 5-3 decision. Nebraska's two wins to close out the half put Penn State behind 12-8 at intermission. Senior Vincenzo Joseph (Pittsburgh, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 165, dominated No. 5 Isaiah White in the second half's first bout. Joseph used a first period takedown, a second period rideout, an escape, a stall point and 2:00 riding time to post the 5-1 win over White. Senior Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.), ranked No. 1 at 174, then took care of No. 6 Mikey Labriola. Hall rolled his way out to a 6-1 lead and then finished the match by notching a late takedown, locking up a cradle and pinning the ranked Husker at the 6:52 mark to put Penn State up 17-12. True freshman Aaron Brooks (Hagerstown, Md.), ranked No. 6 at 184, suffered his first loss of the season, a tough 9-5 decision to No. 8 Taylor Venz, the veteran Husker junior cutting Penn State's lead to 17-15. Senior Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.), ranked No. 19 at 197, dropped a tough 3-1 decision to No. 8 Eric Schultz as the Husker used a late second period takedown to grab the victory. The Huskers led 18-17 with one bout left. True freshman Seth Nevills (Clovis, Calif.) took on No. 15 Christian Lance, a senior, at 285 with the dual meet in the balance. Nevills was unphased by the moment and dominated the Nebraska senior. After a scoreless first period, Nevills notched a second-period rideout after Lance chose down to start the middle stanza. The Lion freshman escaped to start the third and finished off the dual with a late takedown to post an impressive 4-0 win with 2:11 in riding time. Nevills' impressive performance gave Penn State the 20-18 victory. Penn State won the takedown battle 13-8. With each team winning five bouts, the dual meet came down to bonus points and the Lions won that battle 5-3. Penn State got bonus points off of one pin (Hall) and two majors (Bravo-Young, Lee). Penn State is now 7-1 overall, 4-0 in the Big Ten. Nebraska falls to 5-3, 0-3 B1G. Penn State continues its road trip next Friday, visiting Iowa on Friday, Jan. 31,for another BTN nationally televised dual. Action begins at 9 p.m. Eastern / 8 p.m. Central in Iowa City. Penn State then hosts Maryland two days later on Sunday, Feb. 2, at 2 p.m. in Rec Hall. Penn State Fans are encouraged to follow Penn State wrestling via twitter at @pennstateWREST, on Penn State Wrestling's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewrestling and on Instagram at www.instagram.com/pennstatewrest. This is PENN STATE. WRESTLING lives here. Results: 125: Alex Thomsen NU dec. Brandon Meredith PSU, 3-1 (SV) 0-3 133: #3 Roman Bravo-Young PSU maj. dec. #13 Ridge Lovett NU, 11-3 4-3 141: #2 Nick Lee PSU maj. dec. #8 Chad Red Jr. NU, 9-1 8-3 149: #14 Collin Purinton NU pinned Jarod Verkleeren PSU, WBF (5:50) 8-9 157: #11 Peyton Robb NU dec. Bo Pipher PSU, 5-3 8-12 165: #1 Vincenzo Joseph PSU dec. #5 Isaiah White NU, 5-1 11-12 174: #1 Mark Hall PSU pinned #6 Mikey Labriola NU, WBF (6:52) 17-12 184: #8 Taylor Venz NU dec. #6 Aaron Brooks PSU, 9-5 17-15 197: #8 Eric Schultz NU dec. #19 Shakur Rasheed PSU, 3-1 17-18 285: Seth Nevills PSU dec. #15 Christian Lance NU, 4-0 20-18 Attendance: 5,960 Records: Penn State (7-1, 4-0 B1G); Nebraska (5-3, 0-3 B1G) Up Next for Penn State: Friday, Jan. 31, 2020, at Iowa, 9 p.m. Eastern / 8 p.m. Central (BTN) BOUT-BY-BOUT: 125: Freshman Brandon Meredith (Limerick, Pa.) took on met Nebraska's Alex Thomsen at 125. The duo battled evenly for the first minute plus. Meredith fought off a solid attempt by Thomsen for shoulder control, action moved out of bounds and resumed on a reset with 1:25 on the clock. Meredith took a high single that Thomsen was able to step away from and the bout moved under the 1:00 mark still tied 0-0. Meredith got called for a first stall warning with :20 on the clock and the bout moved to the second period tied 0-0. Thomsen chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. Meredith took a high single, Thomsen countered and nearly took the Lion freshman down, but both wrestlers worked their way to their feet and the bout continued in neutral at the :30 mark. Meredith fought off a late Thomsen effort and trailed 1-0 after two periods. He chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 1-1 tie. Meredith got in on a high single, forcing a scramble on the Nebraska logo. Thomsen fought off the move long enough to force a stalemate and the clock moved below the 1:00 mark. Meredith took another shot, had it countered, nearly re-countered for a takedown but settled for neutral again as the clock hit the :20 mark. Tied 1-1, the bout moved into a sudden victory period. Thomsen quickly used body control to work his way around Meredith and notched the winning takedown for a hard-fought 3-1 (sv) win. 133: Sophomore Roman Bravo-Young (Tucson, Ariz.), ranked No. 3 at 133, met No. 13 Ridge Lovett. Bravo-Young looked to set the pace early, keeping action in the middle of the mat while looking to control tie-ups. Lovett took a quick low shot that forced a scramble in the middle of the mat, but Bravo-Young deftly worked his way around the Husker for an early takedown and a 2-0 lead. Lovett tried to notch a reversal on the edge of the mat, but the Lion fought off the move and settled for a stalemate at the :56 mark. An official review ensued to see if Lovett escaped on the scramble but Bravo-Young maintained control and the bout continued. Bravo-Young cut Lovett loose on the review and led 2-1. Bravo-Young worked the Husker's shoulders to the mat for the first period's final seconds and carried that one-point lead to the second period. Bravo-Young chose neutral to start the second period and went to work on offense. Lovett was able to defend two quick Lion shots and keep the bout close as the clock hit the 1:00 mark. Bravo-Young got in on a low shot and steadily worked his way to a takedown and a 4-1 lead with :19 on the clock. The Nittany Lion sophomore controlled the Husker for the second period's final seconds and led 4-1 heading into the third period with 1:00 in riding time. Lovett chose down to start the third period and Bravo-Young controlled the action from the top position. He cut Lovett loose at the 1:27 mark and led 4-2 with 1:35 in time. Lovett forced Bravo-Young into giving up a stall point with :50 on the clock to cut the lead to 4-3. Bravo-Young then blew the bout open with a late flurry, locking up a cradle with a late shot and taking Lovett to his back for four nearfall points. The late rush, plus 1:42 in riding time, gave Bravo-Young an 11-3 major decision. 141: Junior Nick Lee (Evansville, Ind.), ranked No. 2 at 141, took on No. 8 Chad Red Jr. Lee worked the middle off the mat, looking to find an opening as the first period got underway. Red was able to keep the Lion at arm's length for a minute, but Lee was relentless and took a 2-0 lead with a fast high single at the 1:30 mark. Lee put together a strong ride, working for control of Red's right arm while moving his riding time advantage up to the 1:00 mark. The Lion finished the period on top and led 2-0 with 1:30 in riding time after the opening period. Lee chose down to start the second period and forced Red into a first stall warning :20 in. He quickly escaped on a reset and led 3-0 with 1:04 in riding time at the 1:20 mark. Lee controlled the action in the center of the mat and then blew through a high single to up his lead to 5-0 with :50 left to wrestle. He finished the period on top and led 5-0 after two with 1:57 in time. Red chose down to start the third period and Lee picked up a point on another Red stall. Lee cut Red to a 6-1 score at the :50 mark and went to work for bonus points. Lee finished off the major with a takedown at the :20 mark. The rideout and 3:32 in riding time, gave the Lion junior a 9-1 major. 149: Sophomore Jarod Verkleeren (Greensburg, Pa.) battled No. 14 Collin Purinton at 149. Verkleeren took an early shot that Purinton was able to counter for a takedown and a 2-1 lead after a quick Lion escaped with 1:45 on the clock. Action continued in neutral as the clock moved below the 1:00 mark with neither wrestler connecting on a shot. The Lion sophomore battled Purinton evenly for the rest of the period and trailed 2-1 after the opening stanza. Purinton chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 3-1 lead. Verkleeren countered a slight Purinton shot, tried to use shoulder control to work the Husker's head to the mat but settled for a stalemate with :47 on the clock. The Lion was unable to break through Purinton's defense over the second period's final minute and trailed 3-1 after two. Verkleeren chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 3-2 deficit. Needing a takedown, Verkleeren looked to counter a Purinton shot, forced a scramble that ended with the Husker getting the fall at the 5:50 mark in the third period. 157: With No. 4 Brady Berge (Mantorville, Minn.) not competing at 157, junior Bo Pipher (Paonia, Colo.) faced off against No. 11 Peyton Robb. Robb scored quickly, taking Pipher down for an early 2-0 lead in the opening seconds of the bout. Robb controlled Pipher from the top position as the clock moved down to the 1:30 mark, building his riding time up over the 1:00 in the process. Pipher tried to work his way to his feet but Robb was able to maintain control. Pipher tried to scoot out from underneath the Husker and steadily worked his way to a reversal and a 2-2 tie with :15 left in the period. Pipher finished on top and the bout moved to the second period tied 2-2 (Robb had over 2:00 in riding time. Robb chose down to start the second period. Pipher was able to maintain control, fighting off a reversal attempt once but giving up the reversal with 1:00 on the clock to trail 4-2. Pipher was unable to escape and trailed 4-2 after two. The Lion chose down to start the third period. Robb clinched riding time, forcing Pipher into a first stall warning in the process. Pipher had a reversal attempt defended in the waning seconds, managed a late escape but dropped the 5-3 decision. 165: Senior Vincenzo Joseph (Pittsburgh, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 165, took on No. 5 Isaiah White. Joseph fought off an early White shot and kept the bout scoreless as the first :30 ticked away. The Lion then went to work on offense, controlling the action from the middle of the mat. Joseph was not able to break through White's defense, stepped away from a slight Husker shot and the period hit its midway point. Joseph connected on a high single at the 1:00 mark and steadily worked his way into control of White's other foot for a takedown and a 2-0 lead. White managed an escape seconds later and the bout continued with Joseph leading 2-1. Trailing 2-1, White chose down to start the second period and Joseph went to work on top. The Lion senior maintained control of the Husker senior as the clock hit 1:15. He forced White into a stall warning and pushed his time edge well over 1:00 in the process. Joseph maintained control of White for the rest of the period and led 2-1 with 2:17 in time after two periods. Joseph chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 3-1 lead, still holding 2:00 in time. The Lion went to work on offense, forcing White to the outside circle as the Husker retreated for the next minute plus. Joseph picked up a point on another stall and led 4-1 with :35 on the clock. Joseph finished the bout with White on defense and rolled to the dominating 5-1 win with 2:00 in riding time. 174: Senior Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.), ranked No. 1 at 174, met No. 6 Mikey Labriola. Hall worked the middle of the mat to start the bout, control the action and looking for control up top. Hall controlled Labriola's shoulders, slid his grip down and then tripped the Husker to the mat for a takedown with 1:37 on the clock. Nebraska challenged the takedown call, the call was reversed and action resumed in neutral at the 1:42 mark. The duo battled through the next minute evenly before Hall worked his way in on a high single. The duo scrambled for the next :20 before Hall finished off the takedown to lead 2-0. He rode Labriola out and carried that lead into the second period. Hall chose down to start the second period and deftly reversed the Husker to up his lead to 4-0 with 1:35 on the clock. The Lion maintained control of Labriola long enough to build his time edge up over 1:00, reset himself and finished the period on top to lead 4-0 with 1:39 in time after two. Labriola chose down to start the third period and escaped to a 4-1 score. Hall quickly took the Husker down again and upped his lead to 6-1with 1:20 left. He cut Labriola loose and went looking for bonus points. Hall turned a low shot into a scramble, notched a takedown then locked up a cradle. He quickly set himself for the pin and got the call at the 6:52 mark. 184: True freshman Aaron Brooks (Hagerstown, Md.), ranked No. 6 at 184, faced off with No. 8 Taylor Venz. Brooks went to work quickly, taking Venz down for an early 2-1 lead in the opening seconds of the period. The Lion freshman fought off a Venz shot over the next :20. The Husker escaped on the edge of the mat and Nebraska challenged for a takedown during the flurry. The call stood and the bout continued with Brooks lead 2-1. Venz notched a quick takedown off the reset and Brooks escaped to a 3-3 tie. The Lion used a high shot in the final seconds to force a scramble but Venz was able to fight off the move and the bout moved to the second period tied 3-3. Venz chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 4-3 lead. The Husker worked his way in on a shot and took a 6-3 lead with :45 left in the period. Brooks was unable to escape the Husker ride and trailed 6-3 after two periods. Brooks chose neutral to start the third period. He fought off a Venz shot momentarily but the Husker worked his way for the takedown and an 8-3 lead with 1:33 on the clock. Brooks managed a late reversal but Venz, with 2:17 in time, posted the 9-5 win. 197: Senior Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.), ranked No. 19 at 197, took on No. 8 Eric Schultz. The duo battled evenly for the first minute, with neither wrestler able get control of the action in the middle of the mat. As the clock moved to the 1:10 mark, Rasheed was able to defend a solid Schultz push and keep the bout scoreless after the first three minutes. Schultz chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. Like the first period, neither wrestler was able to find an opening to score over the first half of the second period with the clock ticking below the 1:00 mark. Schultz kept working and as the second period ended, he used a low double to take Rasheed down and lead 3-0 after two periods. Rasheed chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 3-1 score. He looked for an opening to score, but Schultz was able to back away and move the clock down to the :20 mark. Rasheed had one late shot defended and Schultz notched the 3-1 victory. 285: True freshman Seth Nevills (Clovis, Calif.) met No. 15 Christian Lance in the match-up at 285. The duo worked the middle of the mat for the first minute-plus with no scoring in the offing. Nevills took a slight shot at the 1:25 mark but Lance stepped away from it and the action continued in neutral, scoreless towards 1:00. Nevills and Lance battled evenly over the final minute of the opening period and the bout moved to the second stanza tied 0-0. Lance chose down to start the second period and Nevills went to work on top. The Lion freshman controlled the Husker senior for over a minute, putting his riding time point up over 1:00. Lance was able to force a stalemate at the :35 mark, forcing a reset with Nevills still on top. Nevills went back to work on the reset and broke Lance back down to keep control of the ranked Husker senior for the entire period. With 2:00 in time, Nevills chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. Lance got in on a high single at the 1:05 mark but Nevills steadily stepped up and out of trouble to continue to lead 1-0. With a riding time point clinched, Nevills fought off another Lance shot and the clock hit :30. Nevills finished the bout with a final takedown and, with 2:11 in riding time, posted the 4-0 victory to clinch the dual win for Penn State.

EDINBORO, Pa. -- The Old Dominion wrestling team (5-8, 3-2 MAC) won the first six bouts of its match against Edinboro (9-6, 3-4 MAC) on Friday night, cruising to a 24-9 road victory over the Fighting Scots. "I thought all 10 guys competed hard and together as a group," head coach Steve Martin said after the Monarch victory. "We won some tight matches and that is important at this time of the year." The Monarchs earned bonus points in three of the first four bouts of the evening, as No. 18 Killian Cardinale, No. 18 Sa'Derian Perry and Kenan Carter each took down their opponent with major decisions. At 125 pounds, Cardinale earned six takedowns in his fight against Lucas Rodriguez to roll to a 15-5 major decision win. Perry beat Jackie Gold by 11 points in a 13-2 major decision victory in the 141-pound bout. Perry took down Gold four different times and earned two additional points from stalling calls against Gold and one more point from holding the riding time advantage. In the very next bout at 149 pounds, Carter earned the third and final major decision victory for ODU, earning four takedowns against Tyler Vath without allowing the Fighting Scot to earn a point until the third period. In between the three Monarch major decisions, freshman Shannon Hanna II earned a 6-5 decision over Tye Varndell in overtime at 133 pounds. The Monarch, facing a 5-4 loss in the final seconds of two 30-second tie-breaking rounds, managed to take down Varndell with two ticks left on the clock, stealing away the 6-5 decision over the Fighting Scot, who placed fifth in the latest MAC rankings in the weight class. ODU continued to win out of the gate, as No. 14 Larry Early earned a 5-1 win by decision over Peter Pappas at 157 pounds. His senior classmate Shane Jones earned the sixth-straight Monarch victory in the next bout at 165 pounds, as he edged Derek Ciavarro in a 3-2 win by decision, giving ODU a 21-0 lead. At 174 pounds, No. 17 Jacob Oliver ended the Monarch run and put the first Edinboro points on the board after earning a 4-1 win by decision over freshman Alex Cramer. In the 184-pound bout, Antonio Agee clinched the match victory for the Monarchs with a 3-1 win over Cody Mulligan with a sudden-victory takedown, bringing the overall score to 24-3. The Fighting Scots would prevail in the final two bouts, as Dylan Reynolds earned a slim 3-2 decision over Timothy Young at 197 pounds and No. 30 Jon Spaulding took down freshman Jacob Bullock, 4-0. The two Edinboro wins brought the final score to 24-9. "I liked the way that we aggressively wrestled," Martin said. "Both Hanna and Agee showed a lot of grit in how they battled in overtime wins." In total, ODU held a 20-2 takedown advantage over Edinboro and didn't allow the Fighting Scots any bonus points in the victory. Up Next The wrestling Monarchs will stay in Pennsylvania as they take on another MAC East opponent, Clarion on Sunday afternoon, January 26. The match is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. Results: 125: #18 Killian Cardinale (ODU) MD over Lucas Rodriguez (Edinboro) 15-5 133: Shannon Hanna II (ODU) dec. over Tye Varndell (Edinboro) 6-5 (TB-1) 141: #18 Sa'Derian Perry (ODU) MD over Jackie Gold (Edinboro) 13-2 149: Kenan Carter (ODU) MD over Tyler Vath (Edinboro) 10-2 157: #14 Larry Early (ODU) dec. over Peter Pappas (Edinboro) 5-1 165: Shane Jones (ODU) dec. over Derek Ciavarro (Edinboro) 3-2 174: #17 Jacob Oliver (Edinboro) dec. over Alex Cramer (ODU) 4-1 184: Antonio Agee (ODU) dec. over Cody Mulligan (Edinboro) 3-1 (SV-1) 197: Dylan Reynolds (Edinboro) dec. over Timothy Young (ODU) 3-2 285: #30 Jon Spaulding (Edinboro) dec. over Jacob Bullock (ODU) 4-0

SPIRNGFIELD, Mass. -- The Sacred Heart University Wrestling team picked up its third straight win of the year as the Pioneers defeated AIC by a final score of 33-16. SHU will return to action on Sunday Jan. 26 when the Pioneers wrestle at Bucknell. Matches begin at 2:00 p.m. The Pioneers took five wins in the respective duals as first-year Kyle Randall defeated Jacob Marselli by major decision 13-5 in the 125 bout followed by a pair of forfiets in the 133 and 141 bouts. Then in the 174 match, junior Joseph Eiden defeated Jaron Brown by fall with a riding time of 2:52. A dq in the 184 bout and a fall win by sophomore Dante DelBonis in the 285 bout secured the 33-16 win for the Pioneers. Results: 125: Kyle Randall (SAHE) over Jacob Marselli (AIC) (MD 13-5) 133: Anthony Petrillo (SAHE) over (AIC) (For.) 141: Rafael Lievano (SAHE) over (AIC) (For.) 149: Joel Morth (AIC) over Shaun Williams (SAHE)(MD 17-4) 157: Baltazar Gonzalez (AIC) over Antonio Vaquiz (SAHE) (Fall 1:46) 165: Ahmad Sharif (AIC) over John Carlo Broems (SAHE) (Dec 10-4) 174: Joseph Eiden (SAHE) over Jaron Brown (AIC)(Fall 2:52) 184: Kyle Davis (SAHE) over Isaiah collins (AIC) (DQ) 197: Raul Martinez (AIC) over Mark Blokh (SAHE) (Dec 11-8) 285: Dante DelBonis (SAHE) over Alex Britos (AIC) (Fall 4:49) (SAHE Unsportsmenlike -1.0)

Bryce Meredith at Senior Nationals (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Bryce Meredith, two-time NCAA finalist for the University of Wyoming who is currently training to earn a spot on the U.S. men's freestyle Olympic team, is already looking beyond the 2020 Tokyo Games toward a professional mixed martial arts career. Meredith, who started training at the Princeton Wrestling Club and the New Jersey Regional Training Center last August to pursue his Olympic dream, has already taken at least two steps toward an MMA career: first, having recently signed a contract with the management firm Martin Advisory Group (which already represents other wrestlers-turned-MMA-fighters such as Ryan Bader, Michael Chandler, Logan Storley and Robbie Lawler) ... and by revealing his MMA plans to MMAFighting.com. "Pretty much I've known my entire life that I was going to transition into MMA," Meredith told MMA Fighting on Thursday. "You've got to figure out the right time to do it, when you decide that you want to leave wrestling, or if you want to do both for a little bit and then transition into MMA completely as you get the ball rolling. "For me, it's literally been written in stone my entire life." The 24-year-old Meredith would bring an impressive collegiate wrestling background as a three-time NCAA All-American at 141 pounds -- along with experience in both freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling -- into an MMA career. What's more, Meredith offers additional aspects which he sees as advantages in MMA. "I'm 5-9, and I'm probably going to fight at 135 [pounds], so that [makes] me a very long, lengthy 135-pounder with a wrestling background," Meredith explained. "I've talked to other people, I've rolled with other people, and the way the style goes, my wrestling really favors a fighting style of wrestling. "I was known for my mat wrestling. Being able to escape from anybody. My senior year at Nationals, all five of my opponents, nobody chose bottom on me, which in my head was kind of crazy. I was known for being very good on top and bottom and that was one of the reasons why I became so successful in folkstyle wrestling." It appears that Meredith -- who, prior to college, was a four-time Wyoming high school state champ at Cheyenne Central -- has always had a passion for fighting, even as a kid. "I think a lot of wrestlers they've been kind of pushed in the direction -- are you going to do MMA? I don't think a lot of them grew up enjoying the sport, watching it, sparring with people when they were kids," Meredith said. "Obviously, I haven't done a lot of sparring and hitting mitts to where I need to be, but I grew up fighting, being a fan of fighting. "We had fight clubs, because all of my friends were boxers. It's something I've been a fan of and drawn to my entire life." In other words, no matter what happens with Bryce Meredith's Olympic dream, the former Cowboy wrestler appears to have the tools -- and the vision -- to make a name for himself in MMA.

A former professional wrestler who competed for the storied Oklahoma State wrestling program in the late 1950s will be welcomed into a leading pro wrestling hall of fame this summer. The National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum of Waterloo, Iowa announced that Adnan Bin Abdulkareem -- also known as Adnan Alkaissy in his pro wrestling career -- will be inducted into the George Tragos/Lou Thesz Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame during induction weekend on July 23-25, 2020. A native of Iraq, Alkaissy wrestled for the Oklahoma State Cowboys as Adnan Kaisy from February 1958 through March 1959, according to WrestlingStats.com. Adnan KaisyKaisy made history as the first foreign-born athlete to wrestle for head coach Myron Roderick, a few years before Yojiro Uetake of Japan won three NCAA championships for Roderick and his Cowboys in the mid-1960s. (Ninety years ago, Canadian-born Earl McCready claimed three NCAA heavyweight titles under legendary coach Ed Gallagher at Oklahoma State in 1928-30). In his two seasons at Oklahoma State wrestling at heavyweight and at 191 pounds, Kaisy compiled an overall record of 13-6-0. He was a two-time NCAA All-American, placing fourth at 191 at the 1958 and 1959 national championships, and placed third at the 1958 Big Eight conference championships in the "unlimited" weight class. (Until the mid-1980s, there was no top weight limit in what was -- and still is -- generically referred to as the "heavyweight" weight class that now has a limit of 285 pounds.) In addition to his individual accomplishments, Kaisy was a key member of the Oklahoma State wrestling team that won NCAA team titles in 1958 and 1959. While with the Cowboys, Adnan Kaisy wrestled some of the nation's best big men. Among his college mat opponents: University of Oklahoma's Gordon Roesler, 1956 NCAA heavyweight champ, as well as two-time NCAA heavyweight champ Dale Lewis of the Oklahoma Sooners (1960-61) ... University of Nebraska's Dan Brand, bronze medalist in freestyle at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics ... Iowa's Jim Craig, 1959 NCAA champ at 177 pounds ... and Tim Woodin of Michigan State, two-time NCAA runner-up (1958 at 177 pounds; 1959 at 191). Kaisy isn't the only collegiate mat star of the late 1950s to go pro. College rivals Tim Woodin and Dale Lewis also became professional wrestlers. After graduating from Oklahoma State, Kaisy launched his professional wrestling career, where he was known at various times of his career as Sheik Adnan Al-Kaissy, Chief Billy White Wolf and General Adnan. He also worked as a professional wrestling manager. The 80-year-old Alkaissy currently owns and operates the World All-Star Wrestling Alliance with former pro wrestler Ken Patera. (A more detailed presentation of the former Cowboy's pro wrestling career is incorporated into the Tragos/Thesz Pro Hall of Fame announcement .) Prior to coming to the U.S., Kaisy wrestled freestyle in his native Iraq. The George Tragos-Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame is dedicated to successful professional wrestlers who have a background in amateur wrestling. According to the Pistols Firing blog covering Oklahoma State sports, Kaisy will join six other fellow former Cowboy wrestlers who have already been inducted into that Hall of Fame, including Jack Brisco (2001), Leroy McGuirk (2004), Jerry Brisco and Earl McCready (2005), Randy Couture (George Tragos Award, 2014) and Daniel Cormier (George Tragos Award, 2019). All-Access passes for induction weekend are available for $115 until May 31. All-Access Passes provide admission to all events, including a ticket to the Hall of Fame Banquet, a ringside seat at the Impact Pro Wrestling show, if available, and preferred access at the autograph signing. Some events are only open to All-Access Pass holders and distinguished guests. Passes may be ordered by emailing dgmstaff@nwhof.org or calling (319) 233-0745.

Freshman Sammy Sasso is ranked No. 6 at 149 pounds (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) This wild dual meet season continues this weekend. No. 1 Iowa takes on No. 5 Ohio State, while No. 3 Penn State takes on No. 8 Nebraska. In addition to those top duals, there are a variety of intriguing individual matches. The following takes a look at 10 of the best matches going down this weekend. 125: No. 4 Nick Piccininni (Oklahoma State) vs. No. 12 Alex Mackall (Iowa State) Since dropping a match against No. 3 Pat Glory (Princeton), Piccininni has rolled off 10 straight victories including a first-place finish at the Southern Scuffle. He will likely be the favorite in most of the matches remaining in the regular season, but he will need to make a hard charge in the NCAA tournament if he wants to challenge the likes of Glory, No. 2 Jack Mueller (Virginia) and No. 1 Spencer Lee (Iowa). Two weeks ago, Mackall somewhat surprisingly dropped a match against No. 10 Brandon Courtney (Arizona State). However, he rebounded well with a second-period fall over former Iowa State wrestler No. 19 Danny Vega (South Dakota State). On the season Mackall has gone 13-4 with two falls and three technical falls. Piccininni should be able to have an impact on this match with his ability to ride in the top position. The initial scrambles should be tough against Mackall, but if the Oklahoma State wrestler is able to breakthrough, he should be able to rack up the points. Prediction: Piccininni (Oklahoma State) major decision over Mackall (Iowa State) 133: No. 3 Roman Bravo-Young (Penn State) vs. No. 13 Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) Bravo-Young brought an undefeated 11-0 record into Penn State's match against Rutgers last weekend, but he had not actually faced a ranked wrestler on the season. Last weekend he needed to go to sudden victory to knock off No. 9 Sammy Alvarez. After starting strong before somewhat fading last year, it looks like Bravo-Young might be rounding into form this year. Lovett has found a spot in the lineup as a true freshman. He has gone 8-5, but he is currently riding a three-match losing streak. Last weekend he dropped a 7-4 decision against No. 2 Austin DeSanto (Iowa). Despite the current skid, Lovett holds quality wins over No. 15 Todd Small (Iowa State), No. 19 Louie Hayes (Virginia) and Taylor LaMont (Utah Valley). Look for Bravo-Young to be the favorite in this match. Lovett has shown that he is a tough out, but he has not really been able to knock off opponents at this level. Despite this, the match could end up being closer than expected. Prediction: Bravo-Young (Penn State) decision over Lovett (Nebraska) 141: No. 2 Nick Lee (Penn State) vs. No. 8 Chad Red (Nebraska) Lee and Red have a long history that dates back to their high school days. However, they have only wrestled once last year. Lee came in as a big favorite and ended up taking a 5-4 decision. This year Lee has come out of the gates with a ton of momentum and put himself into position for a title run. He holds an 11-0 record, but Red will probably be the best opponent he has faced on the college mats this year. Red has had some very impressive performances this year and dropped some head scratching decisions. That up-and-down pattern has been on full display in his last two matches. Two weeks ago, he dropped a decision against No. 7 Tristan Moran (Wisconsin) after building an early lead. However, last weekend he got it done over No. 9 Max Murin (Iowa) via decision. Lee has been on absolute fire this season. As always, his pace is one of his best assets. Even if Red is able to keep the match close early, look for Lee to pull away in the latter periods and extend his winning streak. Prediction: Lee (Penn State) decision over Red (Nebraska) 149: No. 1 Pat Lugo (Iowa) vs. No. 6 Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) Over the last few weeks Lugo has really cemented himself as the top wrestler at this weight class. Then again, he will likely need to turn back a hard challenge here to hold his spot. Last season these two met at the Midlands, and Sasso escaped with a 6-4 sudden victory win. This year Lugo has been able to win all 13 of his matches, and he has knocked off No. 7 Jarrett Degen (Iowa State), No. 2 Austin O'Connor (North Carolina) and No. 12 Max Thomsen (Northern Iowa). Sasso dropped a two-point match against fellow freshman No. 5 Brayton Lee (Minnesota) at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, but he has gone undefeated since that event. During his current win streak, he has picked up victories over veteran Josh Maruca (Arizona State) and No. 13 Cole Martin (Wisconsin). Lugo has had some trouble in close matches over the last few seasons. However, he seems to have put those issues behind him this year. He will need to show that once again against Sasso if he wants to change the result from last season. Prediction: Lugo (Iowa) decision over Sasso (Ohio State) 157: No. 1 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) vs. No. 12 Will Lewan (Michigan) After a tough end to college season last March, Deakin picked up some surprising upsets on the senior freestyle circuit. He has continued that momentum so far this year. Not only has he won all 11 of his matches so far, but he has also already defeated some of the best wrestlers at this weight class. At the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational he was able to defeat both No. 3 David Carr (Iowa State) and No. 2 Hayden Hidlay (North Carolina State). After going 9-2 in limited action last year as a redshirt, Lewan has put himself in the starting lineup for Michigan this year. He has gone 11-2, but he has not lost since November. He has won his last three matches in Big Ten competition including an overtime victory over No. 20 Jake Tucker (Michigan State). Deakin has been running through people this year. There has been some concern since he went on a bit of a slide around this time last year. However, with his ability to maintain position and pace, it is hard to see Lewan pulling the upset here. Prediction: Deakin (Northwestern) major decision over Lewan (Michigan) 165: No. 3 David McFadden (Virginia Tech) vs. No. 17 Kennedy Monday (North Carolina) Since an early season slip against Ethan Smith (Ohio State), McFadden has looked the part of one of the top wrestlers at 165 pounds. He had an impressive run at the Midlands where he knocked off No. 4 Evan Wick (Wisconsin) and No. 14 Danny Braunagel (Illinois) before eventually falling against No. 2 Alex Marinelli (Iowa). Since that tournament he has won four straight matches and picked up bonus in three. After finishing in the round of 12 as a redshirt freshman two seasons ago, Monday missed a large portion of last year with an injury. He has returned this year, and he will likely once again be on the cusp to become an All-American. Monday has gone 16-4 on the season, and he has also won four straight matches since the Midlands. It is hard to see anyone besides the very best at 165 pounds defeating McFadden this year. He has solid offense and enough scrambling ability to make it a tough day for opponents. Monday has reliable offense, but he does struggle to completely put matches together at times. Prediction: McFadden (Virginia Tech) decision over Monday (North Carolina) 174: No. 7 Devin Skatzka (Minnesota) vs. No. 8 Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) After transferring to Minnesota for his junior season last year, Skatzka became an All-American for the first time with an eighth-place finish. This year he has already built a 23-4 record. He is currently riding a six-match winning streak, which includes five bonus-point victories. Romero had a tough showing at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational that saw him go 1-2 and fail to place. However, other than that event, he has been perfect on the season. In early January, he picked up an impressive 7-3 decision win over No. 10 Anthony Valencia (Arizona State) in what turned out to be the swing match of the dual. Last weekend he defeated No. 9 Joey Gunther (Illinois) via a 6-3 score. These two wrestled earlier this year, and it was about as close as possible When the dust settled, it was Skatzka who walked away with the 1-0 decision victory. It is hard to imagine this match following that same course, but Skatzka showed that he is willing to employ any strategy to win the match. Prediction: Skatzka (Minnesota) decision over Romero (Ohio State) 184: No. 8 Taylor Venz (Nebraska) vs. No. 17 Cameron Caffey (Michigan State) Venz will be looking to get back on track this week after being upset by true freshman Abe Assad (Iowa) last weekend. Prior to that, Venz had appeared to be one of the many contenders for high placement at this weight despite already picking up five losses on the season. Caffey certainly has a style all to himself. He is able to score highlight reel throws and pick up falls, but he will also drop some matches that you might not expect. The Michigan State product has gone 17-6 on the year, and he has already scored eight falls on the year. This should be a very interesting match. Caffey can seemingly score on anyone. However, he will likely struggle on the bottom against Venz. The Nebraska wrestler lost some scrambles last week, so do not be surprised if he comes out a bit more conservative and tries to work from the top position. Prediction: Venz (Nebraska) decision over Caffey (Michigan State) 197: No. 1 Kollin Moore (Ohio State) vs. No. 6 Jacob Warner (Iowa) Moore seems to be the favorite to run away with the title at this weight. He has started his senior season with an 18-0 record, and he has already knocked off the likes of No. 14 Kordell Norfleet (Arizona State), No. 20 Jordan Pagano (Rutgers). No. 12 Thomas Lane (Cal Poly) and No. 5 Nathan Traxler (Stanford). Iowa fans likely keep thinking that Warner has turned the corner. However, every breakthrough win seems to come with a loss that brings him back down to earth. After pulling away late and scoring an 8-2 decision over No. 7 Christian Brunner (Purdue), Warner returned the following week to drop a match against No. 8 Eric Schultz (Nebraska). The loss to Schultz was extra surprising considering he bested him twice last season. These two met last year in the Big Ten tournament, and Moore took a 5-2 victory. While that lead is nowhere near insurmountable, Warner really struggles to create his own offense against high level wrestlers. If Moore is smart and conservative with his attacks, that should deprive Warner of offense and hold onto the victory. Prediction: Moore (Ohio State) decision over Warner (Iowa) 285: No. 13 Jere Heino (Campbell) vs. Jamarcus Grant (Oregon State) Both Campbell and Heino are having solid seasons that are somewhat under the radar. The heavyweight has gone 15-4 on the year and defeated the likes of No. 14 Gannon Gremmel (Iowa State) and No. 17 John Borst (Virginia Tech). All four of his losses have come against wrestlers currently ranked in the top 12. Grant has not been able to wrestle his way into the heavyweight rankings, and his record only stands at 13-13. However, he has had some very impressive showings despite being somewhat undersized. With the right kind of draw, Grant is someone who could find a way to qualify through the Pac 12 and make the NCAA tournament. Obviously Heino should be the favorite here, but Grant is certainly an underrated guy at this point, and an upset is not entirely out of the question. Prediction: Heino (Campbell) major decision over Grant (Oregon State)

The United World Wrestling media team met this week in Switzerland to plan coverage for the 2020 season, including our strategy for the Olympic Games in Tokyo. And after a few days, I'm feeling really confident in what our team will provide fans over the next 11 months. Minutia of our team's strategy aside, the discussion reminded me that the community will need to be as focused, if not more focused, on engaging with the Olympic products in 2020 than they did in 2016. Everyone remembers that it was the 2020 Games that the IOC had briefly chosen to be the first without the sport of wrestling. What a nice benchmark if we happened to be one of the most watched, shared, and discussed sports in Tokyo. For American fans the biggest complication to enjoying and engaging in the Games is that the time change isn't wonderful for taking in the matches live and engaging in conversation about the matches. The day's schedule is certain to challenge those who enjoy sleep, with rounds running from 10 p.m. until 1:30 a.m. ET for the qualification and 5:15 a.m. until 9 a.m. for the semifinals and finals. While the majority of fans have jobs that prevent them from staying up through the night, the schedule isn't terrible for fans that feel they can operate off four hours of sleep. Those who nap for a few hours before the first session could even find themselves slipping into a healthy early-morning routine. No matter your ability to be up at the exact times on each day of the competition, it is vital that the community engage in the Olympic conversation. The interactions of the fans with the stories, photos, videos, broadcasts and social media surrounding the Games are well-tracked by the IOC and impacts the overall perception of our sport's health. In the coming weeks I'll pass along the list of hashtags, accounts, and sites that are tracked by the IOC, to include their Olympic.org redirects. While our staff and partners are sure to create incredible content from the Games, remember that we can't create highlight videos of the action -- only photos, stories, and interviews (and those have to be taken outside the Olympic venue!). We have a plan to keep you entertained and informed, but we will need you the fans to stay engaged in the process from July 15 to Aug.15. Doing so will help us stay relevant and show our popularity versus similar sports (see judo). The wrestling community is without comparison in the Olympic movement. Passionate, well-informed, and ready to watch anytime, anywhere. Even though we have a fire in our gut for the sports, we have to also recognize that have a much smaller pool of fans than soccer, basketball, gymnastics and swimming. If we want to turn heads then it's all our shared responsibility to share, like, tweet, retweet, watch, and comment and focus our energies in a way that will show a sizable following. As for the action you might miss due to the schedule we are hoping to do the same as we did for the Rio Olympic Games and embed matches on our site within a few hours. We will look to get this approved, but it takes a lot of logistics and even more in the way of convincing conversations. Wrestling is one of the only sports where fans want to watch early qualification and repechage action the same as they do finals. We can't do it alone so please feel free to share your ideas for Olympic coverage in the comments or in an email. I'd love to hear more about ways we can connect and make this the year wrestling is at the center of the Olympic conversation. To your questions … Kyle Snyder at the 2019 World Championships in Nur-Sultan (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Q: Cause for concern after Kyle Snyder was dominated by Mohammad Mohammadian? Or do you chalk it up partly to the change in training situation/style? -- Mike C. Foley: Yikes. Yes, but I don't think Snyder is alone in having to be worried about Mohammadian. He's on the same level as Sadulaev in terms of size, strength, flexibility and quickness. He has had mixed results since coming back from his four-year suspension for steroids, but the guy we saw in Rome is every bit capable of beating Sadulaev in Tokyo. The change to Snyder's training was not responsible for that loss. He's on a trajectory and is solving some issues in his game. By competing he learns his weaknesses and his strengths. Remember that Snyder has never lost to the same opponent twice in freestyle. Could that change? Yes. But that shows he's often willing to adapt to styles and is incredibly coachable after mistakes. Maybe the 2018 loss to Sadualev, the 2019 loss to Sharifov and the 2020 loss to Mohammadian are all positive in that he gets them out of the way before Tokyo? Q: The scholarship limit for Division I schools is 9.9. How would you feel about the NCAA increasing that for any school that starts a women's wrestling program? It would be a big incentive to any school wanting to be a contender and could also work to grow the sport for women and overall. -- Brenton M. Foley: The future of men's and women's wrestling will be tied together through their ability to comply with Title IX. That should include the equal distribution of scholarship funds. To ensure that compliance schools will need to ensure women are given 9.9 scholarships and equal institutional support. But it'll take full recognition by the NCAA before any Division I school can offer a scholarship to a female athlete in good faith. If they aren't able to compete or have the coaching they need to succeed as an athlete then it would be mostly symbolic, and for women's wrestling the time of meaningless symbolism has ended. It's time for systemic change. Let's hope that the NCAA Emerging Status designation leads us to those meaningful improvements. MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME Burroughs' first world title Bajrang beats Oliver Q: Did you see that kid's dad come running on the mat? -- Conor M. Foley: I want to start by extending my thoughts to the wrestler whose father acted like a buffoon. Not only was this kid just slammed (in a now-viral video), but his father then embarrassed him in front of teammates, friends, and now the internet. Add to that shame, the very real consequence that his father will now be facing prison time, extensive fines, and possible loss of employment. This young wrestler is innocent and if anything showed guts in immediately returning to the referee's position after the slam -- a sign to me that he's a tough boy. There is little doubt that the issues facing youth sports at-large, tend to be acutely felt in wrestling. The tempers that sometimes flare at volleyball games or on the baseball field are both intensified and more accessible because of how close bad actors can get to the action, and how inherently violent the actions of athletes tend to be. Maybe we haven't seen something as grotesque as what happened in this viral video, but we've also seen screaming, shoving, intimidation of referees and more. Let's use this as a learning tool to share within our communities. This is the ultimate lesson in what not to do and how one boneheaded act of aggression can ruin your career, jeopardize your family's future, and embarrass those you love the most. Q: Should Kyle Dake now be considered the favorite to make the U.S. Olympic team? Or is Jordan Burroughs still the man to beat at 74 kilograms in the United States because of his accomplishments and past record vs. Dake? -- Mike C. Foley: The king is dead! Long live the king! The only recent change is that Dake showed the ability to win matches at 74 kilograms against a number of decent wrestlers. His tournament was filled with positives (domination of Soner Demirtas in the finals) and negatives (no takedowns, sluggish in first two matches). Being his first time down to weight the sluggishness could be predicted, though it says something about his mental strength that he was still able to win while under duress. While it's certain that Zaurbek Sidakov is a favorite against Burroughs, I don't see Dake having the advantage against America's most consistent freestyle wrestler in 30 years. Burroughs isn't out on the world stage losing to random wrestlers year after year. His only two losses since the 2018 Yasar Dogu have been on razor-thin step outs against the two-time world champion Sidakov. Since that Dogu loss to Frank Chamizo, Burroughs has gone 3-0 against him and been otherwise untouchable by the rest of 74-kilogram field. Dake has a tough road to be the USA representative in Tokyo! He has to beat the scale, stay healthy, win the challenge tournament, then beat the defending world bronze medalist in a best-of-three. I think given the advantage Burroughs is given in the process he is the odds favorite to earn the spot on the Olympic team in 2020. Q: With the NCAAs so close to the Last Chance Qualifier (Pennsylvania)/Olympic Trials, do you think we could see some wrestlers not at their best in March because their primary focus is on freestyle/weight management? Gross, for example, is competing in a college weight class that is eight pounds above his freestyle weight. -- Mike C. Foley: Who does this most affect? Spencer Lee, Jack Mueller, Seth Gross, and … There is limited impact on most of the wrestlers, since most aren't true favorites to win at the Olympic Team Trials. You could make an argument for Spencer Lee and Jack Mueller, but their weight is more or less the same as their collegiate requirement. Gross, with that big cut after the NCAA Championships, has to keep it in mind, but I'd imagine that Coach Bono will ensure he remains focused on the NCAA title since how he competes there will set the tone for his performance in State College. For Zahid Valencia, the weight is pretty similar and he should be able to win the NCAA title without peaking in early March. He might be able to train through with a focus on the Olympic Team Trials and see little to no competitive difference on the mats in Minneapolis. The bigger concern for Zahid would just be injury.

RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- Technical falls by Bernie Truax and Tom Lane powered Cal Poly to a 19-16 victory over California Baptist in a non-conference dual wrestling meet Thursday night inside Van Dyne Gym. Truax blanked Cole Pruitt 18-0 before the first period ended at 165 pounds and Lane earned a 17-2 technical fall midway through the second period versus Arick Lopez at 197, giving the Mustangs four bonus points and the team victory. Each team won five matches but the host Lancers earned just one bonus point on a major decision. With the win, Cal Poly improves to 3-4 for the season and avenges a 28-10 loss to the Lancers a year ago. California Baptist fell to 3-7. Truax is 11-9 on the year after picking up his third technical fall of the season. He scored a takedown just 19 seconds into the match followed by a quartet of four-point near falls, finishing the bout in 2 minutes, 5 seconds. Lane overcame a takedown in the opening 23 seconds with an escape, takedown and four-point near fall for a 7-2 lead after the first period. The senior added a takedown and pair of four-point near falls in the second period before the match was halted at 3:22. Lane's win improved his record to 13-3 and gave Cal Poly a 19-13 lead and the Mustangs held on for the team victory. Cal Baptist jumped to a 7-0 lead with a major decision and decision before Cal Poly claimed four straight bouts to turn things around. Decisions by Wyatt Cornelison at 141, Joshy Cortez at 149 and Brawley Lamer at 157 gave Cal Poly a 9-7 lead and Truax followed with his technical fall for a 14-7 Mustang cushion. Cornelison edged Adam Velasquez 4-2 in overtime, overcoming a 2-1 deficit in the sixth period with an escape with 21 seconds left and a takedown with one second to go. Cornelison is 15-7 for the season. Cortez (pictured above) earned a marathon 4-3 decision over AJ Raya. Each wrestler earned an escape in regulation and the match went into overtime tied at 1-1. Cortez and Raya also tallied escapes in the first series of overtime periods, remaining deadlocked at 2-2. Raya was penalized for locking hands midway through the eighth period and Cortez added an escape for a 4-2 lead. Cortez gave up an escape with 14 seconds left in the ninth period but held on for the win, evening his record at 8-8. Lamer continued the Mustang run with a 6-0 decision at 157, notching a first-period takedown, second-period escape and third-period takedown plus riding time. Lamer is 7-9 for the year. The technical fall by Truax gave Cal Poly a 14-7 advantage. Lancer wins at 174 (7-1 decision) and 184 (6-5 decision) closed the Mustang lead to 14-13 before Lane virtually clinched the dual meet for Cal Poly with his technical fall. California Baptist needed a fall at 285 to salvage a 19-19 draw but mustered just a 5-1 decision. Cal Poly is off next week, returning to action with dual meets on the road at Northern Colorado on Feb. 7 and Air Force on Feb. 9. Results: 125: Dilan Atjun (CBU) maj. dec. Benny Martinez (CP) 9-1 133: Christian Nunez (CBU) dec. Cole Reyes (CP) 7-5 141: Wyatt Cornelison (CP) dec. Adam Velasquez (CBU) 4-2 OT 149: Joshy Cortez (CP) dec. AJ Raya (CBU) 4-3 2 OT 157: Brawley Lamer (CP) dec. Zach Rowe (CBU) 6-0 165: Bernie Truax (CP) tech fall Cole Pruitt (CBU) 18-0, 2:05 174: Jacob Cooper (CBU) dec. Nathan Tausch (CP) 7-1 184: Garrett Strang (CBU) dec. Trent Tracy (CP) 6-5 197: Tom Lane (CP) tech. fall Arick Lopez (CBU) 17-2, 3:22 285: Zach Schrader (CBU) dec. Sam Aguilar (CP) 5-1

BOONE, N.C. -- With a standing-room-only crowd surrounding the wrestling mat in Varsity Gym, App State pitched a P5 shutout. The Mountaineers posted a 45-0 home victory against in-state ACC program Duke on Thursday night, running their winning streak to six straight duals with a dominant performance. Unofficially No. 28 in this week's NWCA Coaches Poll based on their high placement in the others receiving votes category, App State (6-2) beat a Power Five-level program for the seventh time since the start of the 2015-16 season and registered a shutout win against one for the first time in at least three decades. Thomas Flitz's 9-4 decision against 24th-ranked Mason Eaglin at 174 pounds highlighted a sweep that included wins from App State teammates Sean Carter (125 pounds, forfeit), Codi Russell (133, second-period pin), Bradley Irwin (141, forfeit), Jonathan Millner (149, tech fall), Matt Zovistoski (157, decision), Will Formato (165, decision), Julian Gorring (184, tech fall), Paul Carson (197, decision) and Cary Miller (heavyweight, tech fall). "Thomas Flitz, he just had a great performance tonight wrestling an opponent he had lost to earlier in the year and one that's nationally ranked," said head coach JohnMark Bentley, who received a commemorative plaque from Doug Gillin recognizing career win No. 100 on the same night he posted his 103rd victory with the Mountaineers. "There's no doubt about it, the crowd here tonight in Varsity Gym was something I think helped push him over the edge. The crowd was fired up. It's probably one of the biggest crowds I've ever seen here in Varsity Gym. When you get a lot of your teammates, they're scoring a lot of points and putting a lot of points on the board, then you get a chance to go out and earn a victory like that, it's pretty special. It was a great night in Varsity Gym." Zovistoski moved into a tie for seventh place in App State history with his 94th career win, and Miller climbed into a tie for ninth place with his 85th career victory. Flitz, who had dropped a 9-5 decision against Eaglin at the Mountaineer Invitational in early November, improved to 22-10 this season with his second win against a ranked opponent and a second straight home victory against an opponent who had defeated him in their last meeting. A week after beating Lock Haven's Jared Siegrist with a takedown in the Tiebreaker-2 period, Flitz led 4-1 after one period and 6-3 after two periods against Duke's Eaglin. Bloodied and bandaged because of a delay-causing cut that required stitches, he added another takedown in the third and energized the crowd by slamming Eaglin to the mat on back-to-back escape attempts in the waning seconds. "We keep getting crowds like this over and over again, and it's awesome because I know we feed off of it," Flitz said. "It hypes us up even more and makes us want to put on a great show." Early forfeits in favor of Carter and Irwin were sandwiched around a pin from Russell, who improved to 7-1 in dual appearances this year with his victory against Harrison Campbell. Millner was ahead 21-6 when his match ended against Wade Unger, who had lost 15-11 against Millner at the Mountaineer Invitational, and Zovistoski earned an 8-3 decision against Eric Carter. After the intermission, Formato used a reversal late in the second period against Wyatt Pfau to move ahead 4-0 in a 7-0 decision. Gorring followed Flitz's win with a 18-3 tech fall against Kai Blake, and Carson's 9-5 decision against Vincent Baker preceded Miller's 18-3 tech fall against Jonah Nisenbaum to end the dual. Carson held a 6-5 lead in the third period when Baker put himself in position to execute a go-ahead takedown, but Carson avoided trouble and posted his own takedown to take control. The 2019-20 wrestling season is presented by Hungry Howies. The Mountaineers will be back in action Saturday when they host the Appalachian Open in Varsity Gym. Results: 125: Sean Carter (APP) won by forfeit 133: Codi Russell (APP) def. Harrison Campbell (DU), fall, 3:23 141: Bradley Irwin (APP) won by forfeit 149: #20 Jonathan Millner (APP) def. Wade Unger (DU), 21-6 tech fall 157: #18 Matt Zovistoski (APP) def. Eric Carter (DU), 8-3 dec. 165: Will Formato (APP) def. Wyatt Pfau (DU), 7-0 dec. 174: Thomas Flitz (APP) def. #24 Mason Eaglin (DU), 9-4 dec. 184: Julian Gorring (APP) def. Kai Blake (DU), 18-3 tech fall 197: Paul Carson (APP) def. Vincent Baker (DU), 9-5 dec. 285: #24 Cary Miller (APP) def. Jonah Niesenbaum (DU), 18-3 tech fall

ACC wrestling fans will enjoy a dedicated night of programming on ACC Network (ACCN), the 24/7 national platform dedicated to ACC sports, throughout the remainder of the regular season as Friday Night Duals begin on Friday, January 24. Five straight Fridays of ACC dual matches highlight the winter wrestling season starting with No. 12 North Carolina at No. 3 Virginia Tech on Jan. 24, at 7 p.m. ET. The Tar Heels host Duke the following week (Jan. 31, 7 p.m.), and the Cavaliers travel to No. 10 Pitt on Friday, Feb. 7 (7 p.m.). A potential top-five dual between No. 3 Virginia Tech and No. 5 NC State is slated for Friday, Feb. 14 (7 p.m.), while the Wolfpack is set to grapple with Duke in Durham, on Friday, Feb. 21 (7 p.m.), to round out the ACC dual season on ACCN. The coverage is the most television exposure ever for ACC wrestling. This marks most television exposure ever for ACC wrestling. Shawn Kenney and Rock Harrison, whom have called multiple ACC Wrestling Championships, will be on the call for all five regular season Friday Night Duals this season. ACC Wrestling Championship Coverage Additionally, ACC Network will carry the finals of the 2020 ACC Wrestling Championship live from Petersen Events Center at Pitt on Sunday, March 8, beginning at 7 p.m., marking the first time the event will be televised on an ESPN network. Preliminary round matches will be available on ACC Network Extra (ACCNX), ACCN's digital platform available on the ESPN App. Since 2013, the Hokies have won four ACC titles, the Wolfpack owns two and the Cavaliers one. Weekly ACC Wrestling Guests Featured on Packer and Durham Packer and Durham, ACCN's signature morning show weekdays from 7-10 a.m., will have at least one wrestling guest (student-athlete or coach) each week previewing matches airing exclusively on ACCN. Ranked Teams, Individuals The ACC has four teams ranked in the latest NWCA rankings, including two among the top five (No. 3 Virginia Tech and No. 5 NC State) and all four in the top 12 (No. 10 Pitt and No. 12 North Carolina). The Wolfpack and Hokies are also two of three teams nationally which own unbeaten dual match records at this stage of the season. Individually, four ACC wrestlers are ranked No. 2 nationally in their weight classes by InterMat -- Virginia's Jack Mueller (125), North Carolina's Austin O'Connor (149), NC State's Hayden Hidlay (157) and Virginia Tech's Hunter Bolen (184). Overall, a total of 24 ACC wrestlers currently hold top-20 weight class rankings. About ACC Network Owned and operated by ESPN in partnership with the Atlantic Coast Conference, ACC Network (ACCN) is a new 24/7 national network dedicated to ACC sports that launched on August 22, 2019. Approximately 450 live contests including 40 regular-season football games, 150 men's and women's basketball games, and 200 other regular-season competitions and tournament games from across the conference's 27 sponsored sports will be televised annually, plus a complement of news and information shows and original programming. Together, the ACCN and its digital platform, ACC Network Extra (ACCNX), will feature 1,350 ACC events in its first year. ESPN has been televising ACC content since 1979 and has exclusive rights to every conference-controlled game across all sports and championships. Carriage agreements are in place with the following video providers: AT&T U-Verse, AT&T TV NOW, Cox, DIRECTV, DISH Network, Google Fiber, Hulu Live TV, Optimum, PlayStation Vue, Sling TV, Spectrum TV, Suddenlink, TVision, Verizon Fios, Vidgo, YouTube TV, members of the NCTC, NRTC and Vivicast, among others. All ACCN programming is also be available on the ESPN app to authenticated subscribers. Fans interested in learning more about ACCN can visit www.GetACCN.com.

Noah Adams won the Southern Scuffle and was named Outstanding Wrestler (Photo/Sam Janicki, SJanickiPhoto.com) A college wrestling season never goes according to script. It wouldn't be much fun if it did. This season has been no exception. There have been plenty of significant twists and turns during the 2019-20 NCAA campaign. And there will be many more as we move closer to March's NCAA Championships in Minneapolis. Here are some of the top surprises we've witnessed already during an entertaining collegiate season: Reversal of fortune for Noah Adams West Virginia's Noah Adams posted a 19-15 record last season. He's looked like a different wrestler this season while winning all 24 of his matches. Adams is now ranked No. 2 nationally at 197 pounds. He was named Outstanding Wrestler at the Southern Scuffle. It's always fun to see hard work and persistence pay off for wrestlers like Adams. Hawkeyes pulling away Iowa and Penn State entered this season expected to wage a close battle for the NCAA team title, but the Hawkeyes appear to have the clear edge right now. Iowa is loaded in all 10 weight classes with the capability of putting every guy in its lineup on the medal podium in March. All 10 Hawkeyes are ranked in the top nine nationally. Penn State is still very strong, but the loss of returning national champion heavyweight Anthony Cassar to an injury was a significant setback. The Nittany Lions have been bolstered by true freshman Aaron Brooks at 184 and Shakur Rasheed's move to 197. Iowa also has a star true freshman at 184 in Abe Assad. The Hawkeyes haven't won a team title in 10 years and they are hungry to knock off Big Ten rival Penn State, winners of eight of the last nine national titles. It will be exciting to see how it plays out. Sun Devils stun Penn State Top-ranked Penn State's remarkable run of 60 straight dual meet victories came to a surprising end with a 19-18 early season loss at No. 5 Arizona State. Coach Zeke Jones and a boisterous home crowd saw the Sun Devils earn a huge victory for their program. It's great to see ASU, the 1988 NCAA team champions under legendary coach Bobby Douglas, back in the national conversation. Jones wrestled on that title team. The Sun Devils feature arguably the nation's best wrestler in two-time NCAA champion Zahid Valencia, a top contender to make the Olympic team this year. Valencia is ranked No. 1 at 184 after bumping up a weight class this season. Kudos to Penn State for its impressive run of dual meet wins - that's an impressive streak. Ohio State's Luke Pletcher is undefeated this season at 141 pounds (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Up a weight, looking great Ohio State All-American Luke Pletcher has had a superb career, but his move up to 141 pounds this season has paid huge dividends. The top-ranked senior has been dominating most of his opponents and has emerged as the favorite to end his career with a national title. Pletcher is a powerful wrestler with a superb arsenal on his feet. He's fun to watch. Princeton power The Princeton wrestling team has put together a superb season and has cracked the top 10 in the national team rankings. The Ivy League school has three highly ranked wrestlers in Patrick Glory (No. 3 at 125), Quincy Monday (No. 5 at 157) and Patrick Brucki (No. 3 at 197). The Tigers could definitely score their share of points at the national tournament. Jaydin Eierman after winning bronze at the Pan American Games (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Eierman leaves Missouri for Iowa In a move many people may not have expected, All-American Jaydin Eierman left Missouri and transferred to the University of Iowa. Eierman is taking an Olympic redshirt this season and will join a loaded Hawkeye lineup for his senior season in the 2020-21 school year. He is expected to bump up from 141 to 149 next season. Eierman is an excellent freestyle wrestler who has already made a Senior National Team. He's also made age-group world teams and is a dynamic, exciting wrestler. Kerkvliet changes course One of the biggest stories of the season was when big man Greg Kerkvliet transferred from Ohio State to Penn State. The Cadet world champion changed schools shortly after Olympic gold medalist Kyle Snyder announced he was leaving Ohio State to train at Penn State. Kerkvliet is an elite wrestler with a huge upside. He will make a big splash in State College. Ryan Deakin defeated Hayden Hidlay to win the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) From contender to favorite Northwestern's Ryan Deakin is another wrestler who continues to progress. Deakin, who also excels in freestyle, has had a strong season in folkstyle for the Wildcats. He's unbeaten this season. Deakin looks like the favorite now at 157 after ascending to the No. 1 national ranking. Deakin likely will have to go through NCAA runner-up Hayden Hidlay of North Carolina State again to prevail in March. Kudos to Big Ten Network Big Ten Network has really stepped up this season and is showing much more wrestling than it has in the past. The sport deserves the recognition with the Big Ten once again being the nation's premier wrestling conference. It's great to have more wrestling to watch, but having it on television can grow the sport and attract new viewers. Kudos to BTN for showcasing a sport the league excels in. It's always good to see Shane Sparks, Jim Gibbons and Tim Johnson on my TV screen. Craig Sesker has written about wrestling for more than three decades. He's covered three Olympic Games and is a two-time national wrestling writer of the year.

The Montana High School Association voted to approve girls wrestling -- along with boys powerlifting -- as the state's two newest sports at its annual meeting on Monday, according to multiple media reports. These new sports will be available at MHSA member schools beginning in the 2020-21 school year. The MHSA committee established a structure to create a smooth transition to separate girls' competition. During an initial two-year pilot period, girl wrestlers will be allowed to compete in the regular season against either male or female competitors. In the postseason, however, girls will have their own state wrestling tournament with all schools competing in the same classification. That means, beginning in 2020-21, girls will no longer be allowed to wrestle in the boys' state tournament. There will be no divisional for girls wrestling, and all girl wrestlers will qualify for the state championships. The committee also recommended weight classes of 103, 113, 126, 138, 152, 170 and 205 pounds for girls wrestling in Montana high schools. Girls wrestling and boys powerlifting are the first new sports to be officially sanctioned by the MHSA since 1991. Montana is the first state to officially sanction girls high school wrestling in 2020. By InterMat's count, up through the end of 2019, 20 states had approved girls wrestling.