InterMat Staff

LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ -- The Rider Wrestling Team won dual meets against Princeton University and George Mason University to punctuate the dedication of the team's brand new mat to former Head Coach Gary Taylor. The Broncs' day started with a 21-12 victory over Princeton University. After falling behind 3-0 early, Anthony Cefolo (Florham Park, NJ/Hanover Park Regional) and Tyson Dippery (Harrisburg, PA/Central Dauphin) won back-to-back major decisions to take an 8-3 team lead. The Broncs would head into the match intermission behind, 9-8, but would never look back after the break. Four of the final five matches were victories for the Rider wrestlers for the final score of 21-12. In the nightcap of the doubleheader, the Broncs dominated against George Mason, winning eight of the 10 matches for a 36-6 final score to leave the Broncs at 7-2 in dual meets on the season. Quotes and Notes "It was nice to finally be home. It was good for the guys to get training in their facility, get their weights down in their facility and get their home crowd behind them in some pretty difficult matches today. It was nice to start the year at home for sure." "It's easy to keep the focus when it comes to EWL schools because it's individual conference seeding in each weight class and it's also just bragging rights. Edinboro's got a 24-match win streak coming up and we're ready for it and they're ready for us. It's easy to keep the kids motivated because the eye is on the prize, so to speak. And, even though it's January, we're in the home stretch at this point. But we're about grinding and getting ready." "It's just another special moment between Coach Taylor and myself. Our life goes way back to 1988 and there's many different highs that I can speak of. But this was a nice culmination to our current relationship and we'll obviously build more on it. But it was nice to have all those alumni do their part, donate back, honor him with the mat. And to see him choked up makes it all well worth it. He deserves it and it was nice to be the guy partly responsible for it." – Rider Head Coach John Hangey "I'm really excited. Obviously, the goal is to win nationals, get on the podium. But I was also really excited for my first home match here at Rider and wrestling in front of the home crowd. I wanted to get bonus points and I got a major and tech today." – Redshirt senior Tyson Dippery "It feels good. I've been working hard to get better all week and all year pretty much. It feels good to finally see that hard work pay off and get two big wins." – Freshman Ethan Laird - Going undefeated for the Broncs on the day were Cefolo, Dippery, Chad Walsh (Cherry Hill, NJ/Camden Catholic), Dean Sherry (Brick, NJ/Brick Township), Michale Fagg-Daves (Somerset, NJ/Franklin) and Ethan Laird (Waterford, PA/General McLane). - With today's victory over Princeton, the Rider Broncs are on a 17-match winning streak against the Tigers dating back to the 1986-87 season. The Broncs' series lead stands at 17-4. - Walsh's victory today marked his second this season against Jonathan Schleifer of Princeton, whom he faced in a feature match at the 2017 NWCA All-Star Classic. Rider 21, Princeton 12 125- Matteo Devincenzo (PRIN) dec. J.R. Wert (RID), 5-3 133- Anthony Cefolo (RID) M. Dec. Jake Adkins (PRIN), 19-6 141- Tyson Dippery (RID) M. Dec. Pat D'Arcy (PRIN), 8-0 149- Matthew Kolodzik (PRIN) Dec. Gary Dinmore (RID), 3-1, 7:39 OT 157- Mike D'Angelo (PRIN) Dec. B.J. Clagon (RID), 9-3 165- Chad Walsh (RID) Dec. Jonathan Schleifer (PRIN), 9-3 174- Dean Sherry (RID) Dec. Matthew Gancayco (PRIN), 8-7 184- Michale Fagg-Daves (RID) Dec. Kevin Parker (PRIN), 9-8 197- Ethan Laird (RID) M. Dec. Ian Baker (PRIN), 12-2 285- Patrick Brucki (PRIN) Dec. Mauro Correnti (RID), 8-6 Rider 36, George Mason 6 125- Ibrahim Bunduka (GMU) Dec. J.R. Wert (RID), 4-3 133- Anthony Cefolo (RID) Dec. Victor Echeverria (GMU), 9-6 141- Tyson Dippery (RID) Tech Fall Trevor Mello (GMU), 17-0, 1:36 149- Gary Dinmore (RID) Dec. Tejon Anthony (GMU), 3-1, 7:54 OT 157- B.J. Clagon (RID) WBF. Bryce Reddington (GMU), 0:40 165- Chad Walsh (RID) WBF. Austin Wilkerson (GMU), 4:14 174- Dean Sherry (RID) Med. FF. Phil Stolfi (GMU), 4:56 184- Mike Fagg-Daves (RID) Dec. Austin Harrison (GMU), 6-3, TB2 197- Ethan Laird (RID) M. Dec. Eli Spencer (GMU), 12-4 285- Matt Voss (GMU) Dec. Mauro Correnti (RID), 4-1

In a field of almost 80 schools, including four ranked among the InterMat Fab50 top high school teams, it was No. 10 Poway that dominated the proceedings at Temecula Valley (Calif.) High School this weekend. The Titans put a tournament high ten weight classes on the podium, including three champions, to amass 291.5 points. Those winning gold for Poway were Jacob Allen (120), Dominic Mata (152), and Nathan Tausch (182). Allen upset No. 6 Nico Aguilar (Gilroy) 5-3 in overtime the semifinal round before beating fellow returning state medalist Cole Reyes (Bakersfield Frontier) 5-3 in the final. Mata upended fellow top 30 overall sophomore Aaron Gandara (Cibola, Ariz.) 4-2 in his finals bout. Tausch earned a 22-10 major decision in his final over 2016 state champion Garrett Niel (Pine Creek, Colo.) Two other wrestlers reached the final, No. 12 Chase Zollman (132) and Jason Miranda (113); it should be noted that Miranda is the Poway backup to returning state placer Carson Saurol, who placed fifth in this bracket. Finishing second in the standings was No. 17 Gilroy with 245.5 points on the back of seven placers, all of whom were within the top three, including weight class champions Jayden Gomez (106) and No. 16 Alex Felix (138). A pair finished as runners-up, Chase Saldate (126) and No. 12 Tony Andrade. In addition to the three that took bronze, there was an eighth medalist, backup 126 pound wrestler Victor Jacinto finishing in fifth. Third place in the tournament standings went to No. 20 Oakdale, who had seven placers of their own but just 209.5 points. Their lone champion was No. 6 Colbey Harlan (195), who beat Andrdade 5-1 in the final. Ricky Torres (138) was the lone runner-up. The fourth ranked team in the field, No. 44 St. John Bosco, finished fourth with 147 points and also seven placers. A pair of Braves won titles, No. 8 Antonio Lorenzo (113) and No. 18 Cleveland Belton (126). Absent from their lineup was No. 7 Isaac Salas (106), though his backup placed sixth, along with Super 32 placer Christian Nunez (120) and state qualifier David Aranda (220). Santiago Corona had a pair of champions in No. 4 Jesse Vasquez (132) and No. 18 (at 152) Joshua Kim (160). Vasquez beat No. 12 Chase Zollman 9-3 in the final, while Kim had five pins and a technical fall in his six matches this tournament. Two additional nationally ranked wrestlers won titles, No. 18 Joey Mazzara (Bishop Gorman, Nev.) at 170 pounds and No. 15 Victor Jacquez (Bellarmine Prep) at 220, while the tournament's other two champions each beat a nationally ranked wrestler in their championship match; Peyton Omania (de la Salle) knocked off No. 16 Lawrence Saenz (Vacaville) 6-4 at 145, while Tommy Mommer (Cibola, Ariz.) beat No. 9 Jake Levengood (Vacaville) 4-0 at 285.

Four of the nation's top seven teams convened at Bergen Catholic High School in New Jersey on Saturday afternoon. However, when all was said and done, it was the host Crusaders that ruled the day. Ranked No. 2 in the country entering the day, the certainly validated the status in their first two matches: a 34-24 (8-6 matches) victory over No. 6 Buchanan (Calif.) and a 41-22 (9-5) victory over No. 7 Lake Highland Prep (Fla.) In the day's opening dual, Bergen Catholic and Buchanan split four key bouts. To the good of Bergen Catholic, it was a 5-3 overtime win for three-time state placer Carmen Ferrante over No. 20 (at 126) Ethan Leake in the 132 pound bout; Leake was up at 132 to cover for the absence of state placer Tyler Deen. Additionally, No. 2 Shane Griffith earned a 9-1 major decision over two-time state placer Joel Romero at 160. On the favorable side for Buchanan was a 4-3 victory for multi-time state qualifier Chris Gaxiola over three-time state placer Gerard Angelo at 152, and a 5-2 tiebreaker victory at 182 for No. 11 Anthony Montalvo over No. 16 Jacob Cardenas. The second dual had one ranked vs. ranked showdown, and it was Griffith who came thorugh with a 9-3 decision victory over No. 15 Erich Byelick of Lake Highland Prep at 160. No. 1 Blair Academy showed why they were number one in their first two matches. The Buccaneers opened the day with a 45-13 (10-4 matches) victory over Lake Highland Prep before beating Buchanan 49-9 (11-3). There were four showdowns involving a pair of ranked wrestlers in the Blair/Lake Highland Prep dual, and the teams split those bouts. No. 2 Trevor Mastrogiovanni opened the dual for Blair at 113 with a pin in 4:42 over No. 17 Nick Bouzakis, No. 2 Joey Silva would give Lake Highland Prep their first win of the day with a 12-7 decision over No. 19 Travis Mastrogiovanni at 132, No. 5 Andrew Merola beat Byelick 6-2 at 160, while No. 10 Ben Goldin for Lake Highland Prep beat No. 14 Owen Trephan 3-2 in the tiebreaker at 220. There was one true ranked vs. ranked showcase in the Blair/Buchanan dual, No. 11 Anthony Montalvo beat No. 8 Leo Tarantino 9-3 at 182. Other notable results saw Travis Mastrogiovanni beat Leake 9-8 at 132, No. 20 Matthew Olguin beat Malcolm Robinson 4-2 at 138, and Merola beat Romero 9-3 at 160. In the clash of No. 1 vs. No. 2, Bergen Catholic showed that they weren't here just for a participation trophy from the start. It was a seismic shock to the system in the opening bout at 126 pounds when freshman Dylan Weaver pinned No. 4 Chris Cannon of Blair at the 1:32 mark. The top-ranked Buccaneers bounced back to tie the dual meet at 6-all with decisions from Travis Mastrogiovanni (6-4 over Ferrante) and Mike Madara (6-3 over state qualifier Joseph Zargo). The next two matches represented a pair of upsets, though they were a wash, as each team picked one up. 9-9 was the dual meet score after Bergen Catholic's Wade Unger beat three-time National Prep placer Malcolm Robinson 3-0 at 145, and National Prep placer Willie Kaiser of Blair Academy upended three-time state placer Gerard Angelo 4-3 at 152. Mild upsets in the next three matches confirmed the tenor of this one vs. two showdown dual meet. At 160 pounds, No. 2 Griffith beat No. 5 Merola 5-2, though Merola had beaten Griffith three weeks before in the semifinals at the Beast of the East by rideout in the ultimate tiebreaker. The 170 pound match saw No. 6 Chris Foca pin No. 3 Julian Ramirez in 5:35, though Ramirez won the Beast of the East (beating No. 4 Soehnlen in the final) and Foca placed third (losing to Soehnlen in the semi). The 182 pound match saw Cardenas avenged a 3-2 Beast of the East finals loss to Tarantino in the form of a 6-0 win on Saturday afternoon. Josh McKenzie, who placed at state two years ago as a freshman, extended the Bergen Catholic lead to 24-9 after his 5-2 decision over freshman Peyton Craft at 195. Trephan would give Blair hope with a 10-2 major decision at 220. However, that hope was vanished with decisions in the next two matches for Bergen Catholic that pushed the dual meet out of reach, 30-13 with two matches left. At 285, John High beat Kraig Correll 7-2, while it was No. 8 Nick Kayal with an ultimate tiebreaker rideout over No. 10 Ryan Miller at 106. Trevor Mastrogiovanni provided some consolation with a pin for Blair Academy at 113 over state medalist Enrique Sanchez. However, the day's last match provided a coup de gras for the team that will be ranked No. 1 come Wednesday: No. 5 Robert Howard of Bergen Catholic beat No. 1 Michael Colaiocco 4-3 at 120; Colaiocco was undefeated on the season, including a title at the Beast where Howard placed third. In the other third round dual meet, No. 6 Buchanan beat No. 7 Lake Highland Prep 30-27 as the teams split the fourteen bouts at seven apiece.

LARAMIE, Wyo. -- The University of Wyoming wrestling team took seven of the ten bouts in a 28-9 dual win over CSU Bakersfield on Friday night. The Pokes were led by Branson Ashworth, Kyle Pope, Drake Foster and Sam Turner with bonus-point victories. Additionally, Sam Eagan, Montorie Bridges and Bryce Meredith each added decisions for the Brown and Gold (6-2, 1-1 Big 12). "I was expecting it to be a little bit of a dogfight," UW head coach Mark Branch said. "Overall, I was pleased with the bonus-points, especially early. I thought a few of our guys wrestled really well, even though the score may not say so. For a couple of our matches, we took care of business. We went out and controlled the heavyweight match, which was great to see from Sam (Eagan). Drake (Foster) may have been an underdog, but looked dominant and has continued to impress. It'll be a quick turnaround at Oregon State on Sunday, but we're looking forward to getting back out there." Ashworth, No. 14 at 165 pounds, treated himself to a 19-2 tech fall. over Jacob Thalin to begin the dual. The Spanish Fork, Utah, native scored three takedowns to solidify his win and give UW an early 5-0 lead. Pope followed with a tech. fall of his own. The senior was aggressive early with four takedowns in the opening period. Two separate four-point nearfalls in the second helped Pope distance himself, and then an escape and takedown, plus almost 3:00 minutes of riding time gave Pope the 21-5 victory over Bryan Battisto. At heavyweight, Eagan earned a 6-0 decision over Dominic Ducharme. Eagan scored a first-period takedown for an early lead, only to follow with an escape and one more takedown in the middle period. He closed out the match with an escape for the 6-0 triumph. Foster went on the offensive at 125 pounds for Wyoming. Thanks to two takedowns and two four-point nearfalls, the sophomore led 12-1 after the first period. He cruised to a 16-7 major over Sergio Mendez to bring Wyoming's lead to 17-6 with four bouts remaining. No. 7 Bridges earned a 7-4 decision over Sean Nickell at 133 pounds. He picked up two takedowns in the first period and added one more in the second. He also tallied an escape during the second period to solidify his win. At 141 pounds, Meredith closed out his match with a 7-3 victory over Russell Rohlfing. Two takedowns, two escapes and a riding time point was plenty for the No. 1 wrestler. The 149 pound bout was somewhat slow to begin with but gave the fans what they wanted in the second period. No. 19 Turner tacked on a takedown and two-point nearfall in the first period, but three four-point nearfalls in the second period and a riding time point became one of the highlights. Turner earned his 17-0 tech. fall over KalanI Tonge to give UW the 28-6 advantage. The Cowboys will hit the road on Sunday for a dual at Oregon State. The dual is set to begin at 8 p.m. MT, and can be watched on the Pac-12 Network. The Pokes used five bonus-point victories in a 32-14 win last year against Oregon State. Results: 165: Ashworth Tech Fall over Thalin, 19-2 - 5-0 UW 174: Pope Tech Fall over Battisto, 21-5 - 10-0 UW 184: Ducharme dec. over Polson, 13-6 - 10-3 UW 197: Williams Dec. over Vigoren, 8-3 - 10-6 UW 285: Eagan Dec. over Penyacsek, 6-0 - 13-6 UW 125: Foster Major Dec. over Mendez, 16-7 - 17-6 UW 133: Bridges dec. over Nickell, 7-4 -20-6 UW 141: Meredith dec. over Rohlfing, 7-3 - 23-6 UW 149: Turner Tech Fall over Tonge, 17-1 -28-6 UW 157: Hammond Dec. over Krueger, 1-0 - 28-9 UW

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestlers (6-0, 2-0 B1G) took care of home-standing No. 4 Michigan (5-2, 2-1 B1G) in a clash of Big Ten titans Friday night in Ann Arbor, Mich. Penn State won seven of ten bouts to roll to a 25-12 win and remain unbeaten on the year. Over 4,000 fans poured in to Michigan's Crisler Arena for the Big Ten Network live national telecast and were treated to a dual featuring six match-ups between top-ten ranked wrestlers. Penn State won five of those six bouts to run its dual meet win streak to 37. The dual began at 125 where Lion freshman Devin Schnupp (Lititz, Pa.) dropped an 8-0 major to No. 15 Drew Mattin of Michigan. Lion senior Corey Keener (Schuylkill Haven, Pa.) lost a 10-1 major to No. 6 Steven Micic of Michigan at 133 and Penn State found itself down 8-0 after two bouts. True freshman Nick Lee (Evansville, Ind.) made his Nittany Lion dual debut at 141 and took care of Michigan's Sal Profaci, riding three first period takedowns to a big lead and posting a strong 9-5 win. Senior Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 149, dominated Michigan's Malik Amine, rolling up a 16-2 lead before getting his 12th fall of the year (and the 48th of his career) at the 6:29 mark to give Penn State a 9-8 lead. Junior Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 157, took care of No. 5 Alec Pantaleo, posting a 6-4 decision to give the Nittany Lions a 12-8 lead at intermission. Sophomore Vincenzo Joseph (Pittsburgh, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 165, took No. 5 Logan Massa in a rematch of last year's NCAA semifinal bout (won 5-4 by Joseph). Joseph opened up an early lead with two first period takedowns and then roared through the third period, using a throw and four back points to post a dominating 12-3 major decision. Sophomore Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.), ranked No. 2 at 174, continued Penn State's win streak with a 6-5 decision over No. 6 Myles Amine. Hall's victory gave the Nittany Lions a 19-8 lead with three bouts to wrestle. Junior Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), ranked No. 1 at 184, fought off a late rally from No. 5 Domenic Abounader to notch a hard-fought 5-2 win. The victory put Penn State up 22-8, clinching the dual for the Nittany Lions. Junior Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.), ranked No. 10 at 197, dominated No. 11 Kevin Beazley 7-1, amassing 2:20 in riding time in the process to give the Lions a 25-8 lead. Junior Nick Nevills (Clovis, Calif.), ranked No. 8 at 285, dropped a tough 8-0 major decision to No. 2 Adam Coon to close out the dual and the Nittany Lions walked away with a dominating 25-12 road win. The Nittany Lions owned a slim 14-10 takedown edge and picked up four bonus points off a pin (Retherford) and a major (Joseph). Penn State improves to 6-0 on the year, 2-0 in Big Ten duals. Penn State ran its dual meet win streak to 37 straight dating back to the end of the 2014-15 season. Retherford and Nolf's win keep the Nittany Lion duo unbeaten all-time in Big Ten dual meets. Retherford is now 28-0 all-time in B1G duals and Nolf is 20-0. Penn State will roll on to East Lansing on Sunday, Jan. 14, for a Big Ten battle at Michigan State. The action is set for 1 p.m. The Nittany Lions' next home dual is a Big Ten battle against Purdue in Rec Hall on Friday, Jan. 19, at 7 p.m. With all home dual meets sold out, a limited number of Standing Room Only (SRO) tickets are available to select Rec Hall duals based on availability. Call 1-800-NITTANY for information or to purchase tickets. The 2017-18 Penn State wrestling season is sponsored by The Family Clothesline. 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: #15 Drew Mattin UM maj. dec. Devin Schnupp PSU, 8-0 / 0-4 133: #6 Steve Micic UM maj. dec. Corey Keener PSU, 10-1 / 0-8 141: Nick Lee PSU dec. Sal Profaci UM, 9-5 / 3-8 149: #1 Zain Retherford PSU pinned Malik Amine UM, WBF (6:29) / 9-8 157: #1 Jason Nolf PSU dec. #5 Alec Pantaleo UM, 6-4 / 12-8 165: #1 Vincenzo Joseph PSU maj. dec. #5 Logan Massa UM, 12-3 / 16-8 174: #2 Mark Hall PSU dec. #6 Myles Amine UM, 6-5 / 19-8 184: #1 Bo Nickal PSU dec. #5 Domenic Abounader UM, 5-2 / 22-8 197: #10 Shakur Rasheed PSU dec. #11 Kevin Beazley UM, 7-1 / 25-8 285: #2 Adam Coon UM maj. dec. #8 Nick Nevills PSU, 8-0 / 25-12 Attendance: 4,009 Records: Penn State 6-0, 2-0 B1G; Michigan 5-2, 2-1 B1G Up Next for Penn State: at Michigan State, Sunday, Jan. 14, 1 p.m. BOUT-BY-BOUT: 125: Redshirt freshman Devin Schnupp (Lititz, Pa.) took to the mat against No. 15 Drew Mattin of Michigan at 125. Schnupp opened up with two solid shots that Mattin was able to fight off and then the Wolverine took a 2-0 lead with a takedown ad the 2:00 mark. Mattin controlled Schnupp from the top position for the rest of the period and carried that 2-0 lead into the second stanza. Mattin chose down to start the second period. Schnupp controlled the action for over :30 before Mattin escaped to a 3-0 lead. Schnupp locked Mattin's leg up and tried to score over the last :30 but Mattin was able to defend the move and the Wolverine led 3-0 after two periods. Schnupp chose down to start the third period and Mattin quickly turned him for four back points and a 7-0 lead. The Lion freshman worked to break free, trying to avoid bonus points but Mattin was able to maintain control for the entire period and, with over 3:00 in riding time, post the 8-0 major decision. 133: Senior Corey Keener (Schuylkill Haven, Pa.) met No. 6 Steven Micic of Michigan at 133. Keener Micic caught Keener's left ankle for a takedown at the 2:02 mark to open up an early 2-0 lead. Keener escaped to a 2-1 score with 1:04 on the clock and action resumed in the center of the mat. Micic used a high single for a second takedown and a 4-1 lead as the period wound down and finished the opening stanza on top to lead 4-1 with 1:34 in riding time heading into the second period. Micic chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 5-1 lead. Keener worked his way in on a single leg at the 1:00 mark but a stalemate ended the action. Micic picked up his third takedown of the match with :30 left and finished on top for a 7-1 lead with 1:57 in time after two. Keener chose neutral to start the third period. The Lion senior nearly scored on a fast shot but Micic countered for a takedown and a 9-1 lead at the 1:25 mark. Keener was unable to break free of Micic's ride and the Wolverine ended the bout with 3:31 in riding time and a 10-1 major. 141: True freshman Nick Lee (Evansville, Ind.) made his official Penn State dual meet debut at 141, taking on Wolverine Sal Profaci. Lee, coming off a trip to the Southern Scuffle finals as an unattached wrestler, wasted no time getting on the scoreboard in a blue and white singlet. Lee took Profaci down at the 2:20 mark and cut him loose to lead 2-1 early. Lee quickly added a second takedown to up his lead to 4-1 and then went to work on top, looking to turn the Wolverine for back points. He appeared to have Profaci turned once but did not get the call so he cut him loose to a 4-2 lead. Lee countered a slight Profaci shot for a third takedown at the :30 mark and finished the period on top to lead 6-2 with 1:14 in riding time after one. Profaci chose down to start the second period and escaped to a 6-3 Lee lead. Profaci worked his way into a high single but Lee was solid on defense, forcing a stalemate to keep the score at 6-3 with :47 on the clock. Lee worked his way in on a single leg but Profaci fought off the move long enough to kill the clock. Leading 6-3, Lee chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 7-3 lead. Profaci shot low at the 1:30 mark and forced a scramble in the middle of the mat. The Wolverine finished doff the takedown to cut the lead to 7-5 at the 1:00 mark. Lee steadily worked his way to a reversal to end the match on a high note and claim the 9-5 victory. 149: Senior Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 149, met Malik Amine. Amine began the dual with a solid shot that Retherford fought off, forcing a reset. Retherford scrambled his way to a takedown on a low double at the 1:58 mark to lead 2-0. Retherford cut Amine loose and then quickly took the Wolverine down on the edge of the mat to lead 4-2 at the 1:25 mark. Amine got hit for a penalty point, then another, and Retherford led 6-2. The Lion senior then bulled through a low single but the Wolverine forced a stalemate with :17 left in the period. Amine then called for an injury timeout. Retherford chose down on the reset with :17 left and quickly escaped to lead 7-2 after one. Amine chose neutral to start the second stanza and Retherford's relentless offense led to a third takedown and a 9-2 lead. Retherford then steadily worked Amine's shoulders to the mat for a four-count and upped his lead to 13-2 with 1:00 left in the period. He resettled on top and finished with a rideout to lead 13-2 with 2:00 in time. Retherford chose top to start the third period, and Amine was hit for a two-point unsportsmanlike and gave up another point for calling for a second injury timeout. Leading 16-2, Retherford continued to control the action on top, looking for a pin. Retherford steadily worked Amine to his back and picked up the fall, his 12th of the year, at the 6:29 mark. 157: Junior Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 157, took on No. 5 Alec Pantaleo. The duo battled evenly for the first minute-plus with neither wrestler breaking into the scoring column. Nolf used his quickness to counter a good Pantaleo shot and opened up a 2-0 lead at the :37 mark. Nolf then finished on top to lead 2-0 after one. Nolf chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 3-0 lead. Pantaleo got on the board with a takedown shortly thereafter and Nolf led 4-2 after an escape. The Lion junior forced Pantaleo into a first stall and then the Wolverine tied the bout with a takedown on the edge of the mat with :38 left in the period. Nolf escaped to a 5-4 lead off the reset. Trailing 5-4 heading into the third period, Pantaleo chose down to start the final stanza. Nolf controlled the Wolverine long enough to work his riding time over 1:00 and then broke Pantaleo down flat at the 1:00 mark. Nolf finished the bout with a full period rideout and, with 2:09 in riding time, posted a hard-fought 6-4 win. 165: Sophomore Vincenzo Joseph (Pittsburgh, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 165, battled No. 5 Logan Massa in a rematch of last year's NCAA semifinal match (won by Joseph 5-4). The duo battled evenly for the first minute plus before Joseph connected on a fast single leg to take a 2-0 lead midway through the opening period. Joseph controlled at the action from the top position for :40 before Massa escaped to a 2-1 score. Joseph notched a second takedown with a slick low single at the :20 mark and led 4-2 after one period. Joseph chose down to start the second stanza and escaped to a 5-2 lead. Joseph fought off a flurry of Massa shots late in the period and carried a 5-2 lead with :38 in riding time into the third period. Massa chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 5-3 Joseph lead. The Lion sophomore nearly connected on a single at the 1;00 mark but Massa was able to fight it off. Joseph then locked the Wolverine at the waist and threw him to the mat for a takedown and four near fall points. He then finished on top and, with 1:11 in riding time, posted a dominating 12-3 major. 174: Sophomore Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.), ranked No. 2 at 174, met No. 6 Myles Amine. Hall nearly ended the bout early with a headlock and throw for a takedown, but Amine quickly rolled through the move and only gave up a takedown. Leading 2-0, Hall controlled the action on top and worked his riding time up over 2:00 with a strong ride. With the rideout complete, Hall led 2-0 after one period with 2:36 in time and Amine chose down to start the second period. Hall continued to work on offense but Amine countered with a slick reversal to tie the bout at 2-2 with 1:10 on the clock. Hall escaped to a 3-2 lead and over 3:00 in riding time with :48 left to wrestle in the second period. With a 3-2 lead and the riding time point clinched, Hall chose down to start the third period. Hall scrambled his way to a reversal and a 5-2 lead with 1:14 on the clock. Amine escaped to a 5-3 score with 1:05 on the clock and action resumed in the middle of the mat. Hall fought off a high Amine single leg late, but Amine connected on the shot to briefly tie the score. But Hall's 2:33 in riding time gave the Lion sophomore a 6-5 win. 184: Junior Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), ranked No. 1 at 184, faced off against No. 5 Domenic Abounader. Nickal worked his way out of early trouble as Abounader nearly connected on a quick shot in the opening minute. The Lion junior then took a 2-1 lead with a takedown at the 1:40 mark. Action resumed in the middle of the mat after an Abounader escape. Nickal nearly scored at the :48 mark but official review took the takedown away. The Lion led 2-1 after one period and chose down to start the second stanza. Nickal quickly escaped to a 3-1 lead. Abounader nearly scored on a solid shot but Nickal countered, coming over top, and almost notched a counter takedown. Abounader was able to slip away and action resumed neutral with Nickal lead 3-1 at the :40 mark. Trailing 3-1, Abounader chose down to start the third period. A quick Michigan escape cut Nickal's lead to 3-2. Nickal worked his way out of trouble again as Abounader forced a scramble a t the :40 mark. The Wolverine got in on another solid shot and Nickal continued to scramble out of trouble, finally finishing off the counter for a takedown with :15 left. Nickal finished on top and posted a hard-fought 5-2 win. 197: Junior Shakur Rasheed (Coram, N.Y.), ranked No. 10 nationally, took on Michigan senior Kevin Beazley, ranked No. 11 at 197. Rasheed scored quickly, turning a low single into a takedown and a 2-0 lead less than :30 into the bout. Beazley escaped to a 2-1 score and Rasheed continued to press offense in the middle of the mat. The first period ended in neutral with the Lion junior lead 2-1. Beazley chose down to start the second period and Rasheed made the Wolverine pay. The Lion steadily tied up a cradle and turned Beazley for four back points and a 6-1 lead. Rasheed completed the full period rideout and led 6-1 with 2:20 in riding time after two periods. Leading by five, Rasheed chose neutral to start the third period. Rasheed worked his way into control of Beazley's left leg, forcing a scramble that ended in a stalemate at the :45 mark. Beazley took a high shot that Rasheed fought off at the :20 mark and, with 2:20 in riding time, Rasheed rolled to a 7-1 win. 285: Junior Nick Nevills (Clovis, Calif.), ranked No. 8 at 285, met No. 2 Adam Coon. The All-American pair battled evenly for the first half of the opening period with neither finding an opening to score. Coon drew first blood, taking Nevills down and turning him for two back points in the process to lead 4-0 at the :25 mark. The Wolverine finished out the period on top and carried that lead into the second stanza. Nevills chose down to start the second period and Coon worked his riding time up over 1:00. Coon chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped, while also picking up a point on a second Nevills stall. Coon's lead stood at 6-0 at the 1:35 mark. Nevills gave up another stall point to trail 7-0. Coon picked up a point on 2:22 in riding time and posted the 8-0 major decision.

ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- The Navy wrestling team won seven of 10 bouts Friday evening at Alumni Hall to claim a 29-10 victory over in-state rival Maryland (3-7) and keep its unbeaten record intact at 5-0. It marked the Mids' sixth consecutive win over the Terps as they now lead the all-time series, 55-11-3. The Terps' lone lead of the match came in the opening bout of the night when rookie 125-pound Brandon Cray scored the match-winning escape in the final 25 seconds of the match to earn a 10-9 decision over Navy freshman Aslan Kilic (Marietta, Ga.). The Mids stormed back to win two in a row, including a 16-8 major decision by freshman Cody Trybus (Elkton, Md.) at 133 pounds. Trybus took the lead for good in the second period on a takedown with eight seconds remaning, however, it was his performance in the third period that sealed the first of four bonus-point victories on the night for the Mids. Trybus recorded four takedowns, an escape and a bonus point for riding time to pick up a 16-8 victory over Danny Bestoni. Junior Nicholas Gil (Crystal Lake, Ill.), one of three nationally-ranked wrestlers in action for the Mids, became the first Navy wrestler to reach 20 wins (20-5) this season behind a 7-3 win over 141-pound Ryan Diehl. Ranked 18th, Gil scored the opening points with a takedown 15 seconds into the second period and never trailed in the match. Team captain Corey Wilding (Sr / Pittsburgh, Pa.), meanwhile, dropped a heartbreaker to Maryland redshirt junior Alfred Bannister at 149 pounds when Bannister got to Wilding's legs and scored the match-winning takedown 37 seconds into sudden victory (6-4). With the Mids' lead trimmed to just one at 7-6, a 10-4 victory by senior 157-pound Zack Davis (Granger, Ind.) helped spark a 5-0 run by the Mids. Follwoing a scrappy opening series between Davis and his counterpart, Kyle Cochran, Davis jumped out to a 3-2 lead in the first period before riding out Cochran the entire two-minute second stanza. Davis opened the third period with a reversal, tacked on a pair of takedowns and built more than three minutes of riding time to secure a 10-4 victory. Twentieth-ranked Drew Daniels (Sr. / Overland Park, Kan.) pushed his season dual mark to 4-0 with a 3-2 victory over Maryland redshirt sophomore Brendan Burnham at 165 pounds. After Burnham knotted the match with an escape in the final 30 seconds of the second period, Daniels would go on to score the victory with an escape just three seconds into the final period. Starters Jadaen Bernstein (Sr. / Glen Gardner, N.J.) and Steban Cervantes (Sr / Poway, Calif.) were not in the lineup Friday evening, however, sophomores AJ Alford (Beech Island, S.C.) and Joshua Roetman (So / Kotzebue, Alaska) left little doubt in their own abilities. Alford stepped to the mat in place of Bernstein where he got off to a slow start in his bout against redshirt junior Pat Gerish. The Terp took Alford down just 11 seconds into the match and had built a 4-0 advantage with a two-point nearfall near the end of the period. Gerish built his lead to five with an early escape in the second stanza, but Alford gained momentum after he was able to get Gerish airborne and went on to score 12 points in the final 45 seconds of the period. Alford once again put Gerish on his back and would get the win by fall at the 5:56 mark. It was just the third career pin by Alford. Before Roetman would get his chance to match Alford's performance, 18th-ranked Michael Coleman (Sr / Hudson, Ohio) got the call at 184 pounds for the Mids. Coleman built a 6-0 lead with a takedown and four-point nearfall in the opening period and never looked back in the 10-0 victory over redshirt freshman Nick Cappello. The win also clinched the team victory with the Mids leading 23-6 with just two matches remaining. Roetman, meanwhile, picked up his fifth career victory by fall via a pin against Mansur Abdul-Malik at the 3:32 mark. Maryland claimed the final bout of the night as sixth-ranked heavyweight Youssif Hemida scored a 12-4 major decision over Austin Faunce (Lake Oswego, Ore.), handing the Navy senior his first dual loss of his career (5-1) / season (3-1). The Mids return to action on Sunday when they make the trip to Bethlehem, Pa. to face sixth-ranked Lehigh. Action is set for 2:00 pm at Grace Hall and will be streamed live. Results: 125 | Brandon Cray dec over Aslan Kilic (NAVY), 10-9 133 | Cody Trybus (NAVY) major dec over Danny Bertoni, 16-8 141 | #18 Nicholas Gil (NAVY) dec over Ryan Diehl, 7-3 149 | Alfred Bannister dec over Corey Wilding (NAVY), 6-4 SV 157 | Zack Davis (NAVY) dec over Kyle Cochran, 10-4 165 | #20 Drew Daniels (NAVY) dec over Brendan Burnham, 3-2 174 | AJ Alford (NAVY) fall over Pat Gerish, 5:56 184 | #18 Michael Coleman (NAVY) major dec over Nick Cappello 10-0 197 | Joshua Roetman (NAVY) fall over Mansur Abdul-Malik, 3:32 285 | #6 Youssif Hemida major dec over Austin Faunce (NAVY), 12-4

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The No. 2 Ohio State University wrestling team (9-0, 4-0 Big Ten) raced out to a 20-0 edge by intermission before tacking on 11 more team points in the evening's second half of matches to ultimately defeat No. 14 Minnesota (4-2, 1-1 Big Ten) by a final tally of 31-7. A complete match recap to come. Results: 184 lbs | No. 2 Myles Martin (OSU) def. Dylan Anderson (MINN) | MD, 18-7; Team Score: 4-0 197 lbs | No. 1 Kollin Moore (OSU) def. Bobby Steveson (MINN) | D, 7-4; TS: 7-0 HWT | No. 1 Kyle Snyder (OSU) def. Rylee Streifel (MINN) | TF, 24-9; TS: 12-0 125 lbs | No. 1 Nathan Tomasello (OSU) def. No. 4 Ethan Lizak (MINN) | TF, 18-3; TS: 17-0 133 lbs | No. 2 Luke Pletcher (OSU) def. Steve Polakowski (MINN) | D, 9-6; TS: 20-0 141 lbs | No. 11 Tommy Thorn (MINN) def. No. 6 Joey McKenna (OSU) | MD, 13-3; TS: 20-4 149 lbs | No. 6 Ke-Shawn Hayes (OSU) def. Ben Brancale (MINN) | MD, 14-2; TS: 24-4 157 lbs | No. 6 Micah Jordan (OSU) def. No. 18 Jake Short (MINN) | D, 11-4; TS: 27-4 165 lbs | No. 9 Nick Wanzek (MINN) def. No. 13 Te'Shan Campbell (OSU) | 8-5; TS: 27-7 174 lbs | No. 3 Bo Jordan (OSU) def. Chris Pfarr (MINN) | MD, 12-4; TS: 31-7

BUFFALO, NY -- The University at Buffalo wrestling team took down SIU-Edwardsville, 24-14, at the Valdalabene Center on Friday night. The Bulls won four of the first five matches in the dual to set the tone. Like last night's dual at Missouri, the Bulls had several starters out of the lineup. Blake Retell earned his first dual win of the season with an 8-2 decision over Joe Antonelli at 133. It was the first of four straight wins for the Bulls. Jason Estevez won an 8-6 decision over Dakota Leach at 141 and Nick Palumbo took a 9-4 decision from Tyshawn Williams at 149 to extend the UB lead to 9-3. Kobe Garrehy had his best outing of the season with a second-period pin of Karsten Van Velsor. Garrehy's pin came 1:18 into the second period. Ryan Kromer won by forfeit at 174 before the Cougars rattled off two straight wins. Jake Gunning closed out the win with a 3-0 decision over Tommy Helton. "We are what our records say and that's 5-5," head coach John Stutzman said. "We need more consistency in everything. With Old Dominion coming next Friday, we need to get going." The Bulls will host Old Dominion next Friday at Alumni Arena. Results: 125 Zac Gentzler (SIUE) def. Justin Patrick (Buffalo), 11-6 133 Blake Retell (Buffalo) def. Joe Antonelli (SIUE), 8-2 141 Jason Estevez (Buffalo) def. Dakota Leach (SIUE), 8-6 149 Nicholas Palumbo (Buffalo) def. Tyshawn Williams (SIUE), 9-4 157 Kobe Garrehy (Buffalo) pinned Karsten Van Velsor (SIUE), 4:18 165 Nate Higgins (SIUE) def. Noah Grover (Buffalo), 12-2 174 Ryan Kromer (Buffalo) won by forfeit 184 Bryce Shewan (SIUE) def. Brett Perry (Buffalo), 17-6 197 Christian Dulaney (SIUE) def. Joe Ariola (Buffalo), SV-2 4-2 285 Jake Gunning (Buffalo) def. Tommy Helton (SIUE), 3-0

OREM, Utah -- South Dakota State raced out to a 15-0 lead through three matches and carried the momentum through the remainder of its Big 12 Conference wrestling dual opener, defeating Utah Valley, 31-10, Friday night at Lockhart Arena. The 15th-ranked Jackrabbits notched their sixth dual victory in a row to improve to 6-2 overall. Utah Valley dropped to 5-3 overall and 2-1 in Big 12 action. Sophomore 141-pounder Henry Pohlmeyer trailed 6-0 early in his match against the Wolverines' Matt Findlay, but came back to post a first-period pin to put SDSU out front 6-0. At 149 pounds, Colten Carlson also dug himself an early hole as he trailed Grant LaMont, 8-1, in the first period. Carlson scored on a reversal to end the first period, then continued his rally in the second stanza with an escape and four takedowns against a hobbled LaMont to grab a 12-11 lead before his opponent retired due to injury late in the period. That gave the Jackrabbits an additional six points and a 12-0 lead. Luke Zilverberg, ranked 10th at 157 pounds, continued the early blitz with a 6-0 shutout of Raider Lofthouse to push the SDSU advantage to 15-0. Sixteenth-ranked Demetrius Romero, a transfer from Boise State, put the Wolverines on the board with an 11-3 major decision over Logan Peterson in the 165-pound match, but the Jackrabbits reeled off three more wins in a row to put the dual out of reach. David Kocer, ranked ninth at 174 pounds, started the string with a 6-2 decision over Kimball Bastian. Adding wins for the Jackrabbits were Martin Mueller, by a 14-6 major decision over Gary Jantzer at 184 pounds, and 11th-ranked Nate Rotert, who posted a 4-2 decision over Tanner Orndorff in the 197-pound matchup. Utah Valley got wins by decision from Dustin Dennison and seventh-ranked Taylor LaMont late in the dual. Dennison downed Alex Macki, 6-2, while LaMont held off a late charge from SDSU freshman Connor Brown for an 8-7 victory. Seth Gross, the top-ranked wrestler at 133 pounds, closed the dual with his seventh pin of the season, a first-period fall over UVU's Durbin Lloren. UP NEXT The Jackrabbits close their road trip by facing Air Force (6-1 overall, 1-0 Big 12) in a Sunday matinee. Start time is set for 11 a.m. Mountain Time (noon Central) at Clune Arena on the Air Force Academy campus near Colorado Springs, Colorado. The dual can be viewed through FloWrestling.org. NOTES * Utah Valley leads the all-time series, 8-5, although the Jackrabbits have won the last four matchups * SDSU improved to 15-3 in duals against record versus Big 12 opponents since joining the league as an affiliate member at the start of the 2015-16 season * Gross has now won 27 dual matches in a row dating back to late in the 2015-16 season * Rotert also remained unbeaten in duals this season, improving to 7-0 * Kocer moved into sole possession of 16th place in career wins at SDSU with 95, breaking a tie with Stan Opp (94-19-1 record from 1970-73) * Zilverberg took over sole possession of 20th place in school history with his 87th career win, breaking a tie with Bryan Guzzo (86-47 record from 1986-89) * Rotert notched career win No. 86 to tie Guzzo for 21st place on the SDSU career victories list Results: 141: Henry Pohlmeyer (SDSU) def. Matt Findlay (UVU), by fall 2:03 149: Colten Carlson (SDSU) def. Grant LaMont (UVU), by injury default 4:26 157: #10 Luke Zilverberg (SDSU) dec. Raider Lofthouse (UVU), 6-0 165: #16 Demetrius Romero (UVU) major dec. Logan Peterson (SDSU), 11-3 174: #9 David Kocer (SDSU) dec. Kimball Bastian (UVU), 6-2 184: Martin Mueller (SDSU) major dec. Gary Jantzer (UVU), 14-6 197: #11 Nate Rotert (SDSU) dec. Tanner Orndorff (UVU), 4-2 285: Dustin Dennison (UVU) dec. Alex Macki (SDSU), 6-2 125: #7 Taylor LaMont (UVU) dec. Connor Brown (SDSU), 8-7 133: #1 Seth Gross SDSU) def. Durbin Lloren (UVU), by fall 2:55

PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- Behind five individual wins, including major decisions from No. 2 Nick Suriano (125) and No. 12 Richie Lewis (165), No. 17 Rutgers wrestling (4-3, 1-2) defeated No. 24 North Carolina (6-8, 0-0), 18-17, Friday night in front of 3,511 fans at the RAC. No. 16 Scott DelVecchio (133) and Michael Van Brill (141) both picked up wins over ranked foes, while Joseph Grello (174) earned a 10-3 decision to help the Scarlet Knights claim their first dual victory at the RAC this season. With the match tied 17-17 at the end of the night, RU prevailed, 70-64, courtesy of criterion 3.15.3 - total match points scored only from decisions, major decisions and technical falls. It was the first win by criteria for Rutgers since it defeated No. 4 Nebraska, 17-16, on Dec. 12, 2015 in Piscataway. "We thought it would be a five-five split, and sure enough it was," said head coach Scott Goodale. "They were probably favored at 41, and we were probably favored at 84, so that's why you wrestle the matches. Anything can happen. We pulled out a good team win and one we needed. "Somebody always has a tough bout, so yeah, it's building for March, but it's also good to get out of here with wins. It is important, because you get back in the practice room on Monday and you are coming off a win and not a loss. I just think that's what we're doing and what we're preaching to these guys." The dual started at 125, where Suriano picked up a 12-3 major decision over James Szymanski courtesy of three takedowns, a reversal and two near-fall points. The major decision was the second of his dual season, as Suriano has now outscored his opponents, 105-31, in his seven dual matches in 2017-18. Back-to-back wins over ranked opponents followed for the Scarlet Knights, beginning with DelVecchio's 5-2 come-from behind decision over No. 20 Zach Sherman. With Sherman leading 2-1, DelVecchio collected four points on the near fall for a 5-1 lead. DelVecchio continued to return Sherman to the mat for the duration of the period to secure the win and give RU a 7-0 lead in the dual. With Van Brill's match tied 5-5 with No. 17 A.C. Headlee, Van Brill notched a reversal at the 1:02 mark in the final period. The Mullica, New Jersey, native would hold on for his second win over a ranked foe this season, which gave Rutgers a 10-0 lead after its first three matches of the night. A tight 4-1 loss from No. 12 Eleazar DeLuca to No. 5 Troy Heilmann, followed by a 16-4 major decision from North Carolina's Kennedy Monday over No. 12 John Van Brill made it a 10-7 match in favor of RU at intermission. With Rutgers in need of a spark, Lewis provided one. In his match with Josh McClure, the Toms River, New Jersey, native earned seven takedowns, including two in the final period. The riding time point gave Lewis a 15-5 major decision, his third of the season and first in dual action since moving up to 165 pounds. "My mindset has just been to challenge myself," Lewis said. "I wanted to go out there with a tremendous effort. I trained well, and I think I have pretty good technique, so it's about putting it together out there." Grello followed Lewis with an impressive performance against Adis Radoncic. Grello took an early 2-0 lead with a takedown in the first period. The Bergen Catholic product was close to securing a major decision over Radoncic after his fourth takedown of the night gave him a 9-2 lead with riding time locked up. But Radoncic's escape in the closing seconds made it a 10-3 final and a 17-7 lead on the Tar Heels. No. 10 Nicholas Gravina (184), Kevin Mulligan (197) and Razohnn Gross (HWT) all suffered close losses to wrestlers with NCAA championships experience, as the three losses made it a 17-17 tie. Thanks to the bonus points secured by RU, however, the Scarlet Knights left the RAC with their fourth dual win of the season and first over a ranked opponent in 2017-18. Rutgers returns to action on Friday, Dec. 19 when it hosts Hofstra at the RAC on BTN Plus. The Scarlet Knights then travel to No. 19 Nebraska for a Big Ten Conference Dual on Sunday, Dec. 21, in Lincoln. That match will start at 2 p.m. ET. "Here's the reality; we're wrestling a really difficult schedule, not only in our conference, but out of conference," Goodale said. "We picked up Lock Haven and North Carolina who is nationally ranked and can beat anyone on any given night. We're wrestling a really difficult schedule and you just have to stay the course." Knight Notes • Rutgers improved its all-time record over North Carolina to 4-1, with all four wins coming under Scott Goodale. Rutgers has won four consecutive duals in the series. • The 18-17 win over the No. 24 Tar Heels was the second victory over a ranked opponent this season. RU defeated then-No. 19 Oklahoma, 22-9, on Nov. 11, 2017 at the Northeast Journeymen Duals. • Rutgers has now wrestled four ranked opponents this season. Lock Haven, who was receiving votes when the Scarlet Knights competed against them, is now No. 20 in the USA Today/NWCA Coaches Poll. • Michael Van Brill is now 2-2 versus ranked Intermat foes this season, which also includes a 3-2 decision over then-No. 16 Mike Longo (Oklahoma) • Scott DelVecchio picked up his first win over a Intermat ranked opponent this season with his 7-5 win over No. 20 Zach Sherman. • Nick Suriano is now 16-0 this season with three tech falls, two major decisions and two decisions in his first seven dual matches as a Scarlet Knight. Suriano has outscored his opponents, 105-31, in dual action this season and 216-54 overall in 2017-18. • Richie Lewis earned his third consecutive win with his 15-5 major decision Friday night. His two previous victories came against then-No. 11 Te'Shan Campbell (Ohio State) and then-No. 13 Anthony Valencia (Arizona State). Lewis is 8-2 since his move to 165 pounds. • Joseph Grello picked up his first career dual victory in Big Ten action. • The dual victory was the first by criteria since it defeated then-No. 4 Nebraska, 17-16, on Dec. 12, 2015. The Scarlet Knights outscored the Cornhuskers, 51-48, in its decisions, major decisions and tech falls that night. Results: 125: No. 2/2/2 Nick Suriano (RU) major decision over James Szymanski (UNC), 12-3; RU leads, 4-0 133: No. 16/14/13 Scott DelVecchio (RU) decision over No. 20/19/16 Zach Sherman (UNC), 6-2; RU leads, 7-0 141: Michael Van Brill (RU) decision over No. 17/17/15 A.C. Headlee (UNC), 7-5; RU leads, 10-0 149: No. 5/5/5 Troy Heilmann (UNC) decision over No. 12/12/11 Eleazar DeLuca (RU), 4-1; RU leads, 10-3 157: Kennedy Monday (UNC) major decision over No. 12/18/10 John Van Brill (RU), 16-4; RU leads, 10-7 165: No. 12/12/11 Richie Lewis (RU) major decision over Josh McClure (UNC), 15-5; RU leads, 14-7 174: Joseph Grello (RU) decision over Adis Radoncic (UNC), 10-3; RU leads, 17-7 184: Chip Ness (UNC) decision over No. 10/11/12 Nicholas Gravina (RU), 4-3; RU leads, 17-10 197: No. 17/14/19 Danny Chaid (UNC) major decision over Kevin Mulligan (RU), 18-8; RU leads, 17-14 HWT: Cory Daniel (UNC) decision over Razohnn Gross (RU), 5-3; Dual tied, 17-17 Rutgers wins dual, 18-17, by criterion 3.15.3, 70-64

Lincoln -- No. 19 Nebraska used a 9-0 run to start the match and a 12-0 run in the late bouts to defeat 22nd-ranked Purdue by a score of 20-15 on Friday night at the Devaney Center. Ninth-ranked Colton McCrystal's technical fall at 149 pounds helped turn the tide in favor of NU, as his 21-6 win over Koby Reyes gave NU a lead it would not relinquish late in the match. Eric Schultz earned his first pin of the season at 197 pounds, while Isaiah White also won by bonus points with a major decision at 165 pounds. With the win, Nebraska improves to 4-3 on the season and 2-1 in Big Ten competition, while Purdue falls to 5-3 and 0-2 in the Big Ten. The Huskers, who posted their highest scoring output in nine seasons their last time out in a 48-3 win over Maryland last Sunday, came out of the gates strong on Friday, earning victories in the first two matches. Taylor Venz, ranked seventh at 184 pounds, opened the match with a 5-3 decision over Max Lyon, before Schultz won a second-period pin over Kobe Woods in 4:50 to give NU a 9-0 lead. Purdue won each of the next four matches, and an unsportsmanlike penalty put the Huskers in a 12-8 hole with just four matches remaining. McCrystal quickly stopped the Boilermaker momentum, as he used a dominant third period to earn his tech fall, his second of the season. He improves to 12-2 on the season and 5-1 in duals. Eighth-ranked Tyler Berger defeated Griffin Parriott by a 7-2 decision to run his record to 13-4 on the year, before White, ranked 10th at 165 pounds by InterMat, sealed the NU victory with a 13-2 major decision over Jacob Morrissey. Purdue's 15th-ranked heavyweight Shawn Streck defeated David Jensen, 12-5, while No. 12 Dylan Lydy defeated Beau Breske by a 3-2 decision in the first sudden-victory at 174 pounds period to close the match. The Boilermakers also won decisions at 125, 133 and 141. Nebraska will travel to No. 25 Northwestern next Friday, Jan. 19, at 7 p.m., before returning home to host No. 17 Rutgers on Sunday, Jan. 21 at 2 p.m. Results: 184: #7 Taylor Venz (NEB) dec. Max Lyon (PUR), 5-3 (NEB 3, PUR 0) 197: Eric Schultz (NEB) pin Kobe Woods (PUR), 4:50 (NEB 9, PUR 0) HWT: #15 Shawn Streck (PUR) dec. David Jensen (NEB), 12-5 (NEB 9, PUR 3) 125: Devin Schroder (PUR) dec. Mitchell Maginnis (NEB), 7-5 (NEB 8, PUR 6)* 133: Ben Thornton (PUR) dec. Brian Peska (NEB), 6-0 (PUR 9, NEB 8) 141: Nate Limmex (PUR) dec. #9 Chad Red Jr. (NEB), 5-3 (PUR 12, NEB 8) 149: #9 Colton McCrystal (NEB) tech. fall Koby Reyes (PUR), 21-6 (NEB 13, PUR 12) 157: #8 Tyler Berger (NEB) dec. Griffin Parriott (PUR), 7-2 (NEB 16, PUR 12) 165: #10 Isaiah White (NEB) major dec. Jacob Morrissey (PUR), 13-2 (NEB 20, PUR 12) 174: #12 Dylan Lydy (PUR) sv-1 Beau Breske (NEB), 3-1 (NEB 20, PUR 15) *Nebraska penalized one team point for unsportsmanlike conduct following the 125-pound match

BETHLEHEM, Pa. -- No. 6 Lehigh returned to Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall for the first time in nearly two months, and after dropping the opening bout against American, stormed through the final nine to claim a 36-2 win over the Eagles Friday night. Five of Lehigh's nine victories produced bonus points, including back-to-back pins by senior Darian Cruz and freshman Nick Farro at 125 and 133, respectively. The Mountain Hawks closed out the dual with three straight major decisions to improve to 7-1 on the dual season, 5-0 against EIWA opponents and now 8-0 all-time against the Eagles. "It was really nice to get back in this gym and wrestle in front of the home crowd," Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro said. "It has been a long time, but I'm proud of the way the guys fought tonight. Everybody kept wrestling and trying to score points the whole match. Looked like they were having fun too." The dual began at 197 with American's 12th-ranked Jeric Kasunic breaking a 1-1 deadlock with a third period takedown to edge freshman Jake Jakobsen 3-1. Lehigh took over from there. Freshman heavyweight Jordan Wood pulled the Mountain Hawks even, scoring a takedown in each period to beat Brett Dempsey 8-1. 1/12/2018 Wrestling vs. American, 1/12/2018 Wrestling vs. American, 1/12/2018 "Jordan was a little cleaner with his finishes," Santoro said. "Last time (at the Journeymen Classic), I don't think there were any takedowns. It went to overtime. He just kept battling. He has been working hard trying to finish on some of those bigger guys and he's been getting better every week." The falls for Cruz and Farro then staked Lehigh to a 15-3 advantage. Cruz built a 15-6 lead on Gage Curry at 125 then faked cutting Curry loose before hitting a cement mixer to secure the fall at 4:56. With the win, Cruz moves into a tie for 10th place on Lehigh's career wins list with Dave Esposito '01 with 105. With top-10 wrestlers Scott Parker of Lehigh and Josh Terao of American both out of the lineup, Farro built a 6-2 lead on Garrett Clifford in the 133-pound bout. Like Cruz, Farro faked cutting Clifford loose, but instead of a cement mixer, Farro locked up a cradle to pick up a pin at 3:41 in his Grace Hall debut. "Nick did a really nice job," Santoro said. "He's probably one of the best technical wrestlers on our team. He has an array of attacks and it was good to see him go out there and wrestle to score points. He got better as the match went on." At 141, freshman Luke Karam received a stiff challenge from Kizhan Clarke. Karam fought out of quality shots in the first and third periods. The match went to tiebreakers, where Karam rode out the first half, then benefitted from a second stall call against Clarke in the second half to claim a 2-1 win and give Lehigh an 18-3 lead at intermission. American was docked a team point following this bout for control of the mat area. Lehigh kept things rolling into the second half of the dual. Junior Cortlandt Schuyler improved to 3-0 in his career versus American's 18th-ranked Michael Sprague, claiming a 16-12 decision at 149. Sprague scored the first takedown before Schuyler answered with the next four and added a reversal and another takedown in the third period. Junior Ian Brown made it six straight wins for Lehigh, using a second period escape and a takedown in the same frame to defeat Eric Hong 3-1 at 157. The final three bouts all produced major decisions, with Mountain Hawk wrestlers scoring double-digit points. Junior Gordon Wolf totaled five takedowns and added a first period four point near fall to defat Anthony Wokasch 17-6 at 165. Sophomore Jordan Kutler put on a clinic, with nine takedowns and nearly four minutes of riding time in a 20-7 major over Michael Eckhart at 174. With fourth-ranked Ryan Preisch still sidelined at 184, sophomore Andrew Price got the nod and closed out the dual with a 13-3 major decision over Prince Hyeamang. Price led 5-0 after two before piling on three more takedowns in the final period. The Mountain Hawks will be back in Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall on Sunday to face longtime EIWA rival Navy in the annual Billy Sheridan Memorial Dual. Match time is set for 2 p.m. Tickets are still available and can be purchased online at LehighTickets.com or at Grace Hall on Sunday prior to the match. Results: 197 – Jeric Kasunic (AU) dec. Jake Jakobsen (Lehigh) 3-1 285 – Jordan Wood (Lehigh) dec. Brett Dempsey (AU) 8-1 125 – Darian Cruz (Lehigh) Fall Gage Curry (AU) 4:56 133 – Nick Farro (Lehigh) Fall Garrett Clifford (AU) 3:41 141 – Luke Karam (Lehigh) dec. Kizhan Clarke (AU) 2-1, tb* 149 – Cortlandt Schuyler (Lehigh) dec. Michael Sprague (AU) 16-12 157 – Ian Brown (Lehigh) dec. Eric Hong (AU) 3-1 165 – Gordon Wolf (Lehigh) major dec. Anthony Wokasch (AU) 17-6 174 – Jordan Kutler (Lehigh) major dec. Michael Eckhart (AU) 20-7 184 – Andrew Price (Lehigh) major dec. Prince Hyeamang (AU) 13-3 * - American docked a team point for unsportsmanlike conduct following 141 bout

FAIRFAX, Va. -- The George Mason wrestling team defeated Davidson 29-9 on Friday at the Recreation Athletic Complex in Fairfax, Va. Mason (3-5, 0-1 EWL) won seven of the 10 bouts and earned bonus points in five matches against Davidson (1-5, 0-2 SoCon). The Patriots defeated the Wildcats for the fourth straight time. In the first bout of the evening, redshirt junior Tejon Anthony (15-6) jumped out to a 2-0 lead over Davidson junior Aidan Conroy with a takedown in the final minute of the first period. Anthony scored a takedown in the second and two more in the third to earn a 10-3 decision. Freshman Bryce Reddington (9-11) took a 2-0 lead over Wildcats freshman Will Baldwin at 157 pounds with a takedown early in the first period and increased the advantage to 6-1 with a pair of takedowns in the second. Reddington cruised to a 10-3 decision to give Mason a 6-0 match score lead. At 165 pounds, freshman Austin Wilkerson (0-1), in his first match of the season, led Davidson sophomore Hunter Costa 2-1 after the first period. Wilkerson led 4-3 late in the third period before dropping a hard-fought 5-4 decision when Costa scored a takedown with only seconds remaining in the match. In a bout where points were at a premium, Mason redshirt freshman Philip Stolfi (4-12) and Davidson freshman Noah Satterfield were scoreless after the first period at 174 pounds. Stolfi built a 5-0 advantage and used that momentum to earn his first pin of the season at 6:29. Redshirt junior Austin Harrison (3-6) led Wildcats sophomore Conor Fenn 2-1 at 184 pounds entering the third period. Harrison scored a takedown early in the third and added four near-fall points in the final seconds for a 9-1 decision to give Mason a 15-3 match score lead. "It's always good to start strong," Harrison said. "I got on top and that's when I put together a lot of points." The Wildcats then picked up a decision at 197 pounds to make the match score 15-6. Redshirt junior Matthew Voss (15-8) registered five takedowns in his match against Davidson senior Will Cooley at 285 pounds. Voss posted two takedowns in the first and second period, including one in the final 10 seconds of the second to increase his lead to 9-3. Voss rumbled to a 12-3 major decision to increase the Patriots match score advantage to 20-6. "Coach Beasley told us from the beginning of the match that we needed to score a lot of points and have a high attack rate," Voss said. "That was my mindset going into the match, knowing that I needed to attack whenever I had the opportunity and it paid off." Redshirt senior Ibrahim Bunduka (16-7) was in control from the start at 125 pounds against Davidson freshman Michael McClelland, notching a 16-0 technical fall for his team-leading 16th victory of the season. At 133 pounds, Mason redshirt freshman Victor Echeverria (8-12) jumped out to a 10-2 lead in the first period against Wildcats junior Zamir Ode and recorded his first major decision of the season, 14-4. The Patriots are back on the mat when they travel to face No. 21 Rider in an Eastern Wrestling League matchup on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Alumni Gym in Lawrenceville, N.J. Results: 149 | Tejon Anthony (Mason) decision over Aidan Conroy, 10-3 (Davidson) | 3-0 Mason 157 | Bryce Reddington (Mason) decision over Will Baldwin (Davidson), 10-3 | 6-0 Mason 165 | Hunter Costa (Davidson) decision over Austin Wilkerson (Mason), 5-4 | 6-3 Mason 174 | Philip Stolfi (Mason) fall over Noah Satterfield (Davidson), 6:29| 12-3 Mason 184 | Austin Harrison (Mason) decision over Conor Fenn, 9-1 (Davidson) |15-3 Mason 197 | Konnor Pritchard (Davidson) decision over Eli Spencer (Mason), 3-1 |15-6 Mason 285 | Matthew Voss (Mason) major decision over Will Cooley (Davidson), 12-3 |20-6 Mason 125 | Ibrahim Bunduka (Mason) technical fall over Michael McClelland (Davidson), 2:42 | 25-6 Mason 133 | Victor Echeverria (Mason) major decision over Zamir Ode (Davidson), 14-4 |29-6 Mason 141 | Dustin Runzo (Davidson) decision over Trevor Mello (Mason), 8-3 | 29-9 Mason

Hempstead, N.Y. -- Falcon wrestling battled back from a nine-point deficit to defeat Hofstra, 21-12, Friday afternoon in Hempstead, N.Y. The victory marked the Falcons second of the day, defeating Long Island University-Post, 25-12, a mere half hour prior to the dual against Hofstra. The Falcons, now 6-1 overall, return home on a six-win streak. In the first action of the day, Long Island-Post came out strong against the Falcons, winning the opening match in the 197 class with a 3-2 decision. The Falcons bounced back with a 7-3 decision win by freshman Joe Hensley in the heavyweight class. Senior Drew Romero took the mat in his 2018 debut with style, posting a fall over Nicholas Conetta in 4:08, propelling Air Force to a 9-3 lead. After an Air Force forfeit the 133 bout, LIU-P tied the team score at nine, and subsequently took the lead, 12-9, with a 5-3 decision win in the 141 class. A down, but not deterred, Air Force team then turned on the afterburners, rattling off five-straight wins in the remaining matches. Senior 149-pounder Dane Robbins added a second bonus point win with a 9-1 major decision. Freshman Parker Simington followed up with a 7-2 decision in the 157 class. In the 165 bout, Alex Lopouchanski blanked his opponent, 6-0. Senior 174-pounder Michael Billingsley posted an 8-1 victory followed by freshman Jimmy Weaver's 9-5 decision win to put the dual away, 25-12. Thirty minutes later, in the second dual of the day, Air Force took the mats against host university, Hofstra. Air Force was the first to put a tally on the scorecard with a 3-2 decision win by junior 197-pounder Anthony McLaughlin. The Cleveland, Ohio native is 10-0 in dual matches dating back to the beginning of last season. Hofstra countered hard, rattling off three consecutive victories in 285, 125 and 133 classes, led by ninth-ranked heavyweight, Mike Hughes, who posted a fall over Hensley in 1:25. Testament to the Falcons' grit in tough situations, Air Force's upper class veterans led the rallying charge. Sophomore Garrett O'Shea quelled the Hofstra rally, posting a commanding 7-2 victory in the 141 class. At 149, Robbins took to the mat for his second match of the day, where he won a convincing 7-2 decision to put Air Force within three points on the team scorecard. Junior 157-puonder Alex Mossing tallied the tying score with a 6-2 decision followed by Lopouchanski's 6-5 decision to take the team lead, 15-12. With two matches remaining and Hofstra gunning for the lead, Air Force seniors stepped up to the challenge. Billingsley took the mat for the second time of the day in the 174 class, posting a 4-3 decision win to extend the Falcons' lead, 18-12. Needing a fall to secure a tie, Hofstra's 184-pounder, Cory Damiana, took the mats gunning for senior team captain Zen Ikehara. Ikehara displayed his toughness and defensive ability as he fended Damiana off for three periods. The pair entered sudden victory overtime tied at one. Determined to shut down Hofstra's chance to tie, Ikehara found an opening for a takedown and claimed the final bout, 3-1. The victory marked the Falcons largest comeback deficit of the season. Air Force continues action on Sunday as the squad opens the home dual slate against No. 15 South Dakota State, at 11 a.m. MT. South Dakota State is led by 2017 All-American and NCAA runner-up, No. 1 Seth Gross in the 133 class. The Jackrabbits also boasts the sixth-ranked 197, Nate Rotert, 11th-ranked 157, Luke Zilverberg, the 11th-ranked 174, David Kocer, The Falcons are 4-10 against the Jackrabbits in the all-time series. AIR FORCE vs. LONG ISLAND UNIVERSITY-POST, Jan. 12 197: Robert Pease (LIU-P) Dec. Casey Jumps (AF) –3-2 | LIU-P 3, AF 0 285: Joe Hensley (AF) Dec. Damien Caffrey (LIU-P) –7-3 | LIU-P 3, AF 3 125: Drew Romero (AF) Fall Nicholas Conetta (LIU-P) –4:08 | AF 9, LIU-P 3 133: Bryan Romero (LIU-P) FF Unknown (AF) |AF 9, LIU-P 9 141: Joseph Calderone (LIU-P) Dec. John Twomey (AF) –5-3 | LIU-P 12, AF 9 149: Dane Robbins (AF) MD Peter DeTore (LIU-P) –9-1 | AF 13, LIU-P 12 157: Parker Simington (AF) Dec. TJ Fabian (LIU-P) –7-2| AF 16, LIU-P 12 165: Alex Lopouchanski (AF) Dec. Jackson Mordente (LIU-P) –6-0 | AF 19, LIU-P 12 174: Michael Billingsley (AF) Dec. Dan Arkow (LIU-P) –8-1 |AF 22, LIU-P 12 184: Jimmy Weaver (AF) Dec. Dan McClure (LIU-P) –9-5 | AF 25, LIU-P 12 FINAL: AIR FORCE 25, LONG ISLAND-POST 12 AIR FORCE at HOFSTRA, Jan. 12 197: Anthony McLaughlin (AF) Dec. Nezar Haddad (HOF) –3-2 | AF 3, HOF 0 285: #9 Mike Hughes (HOF) Fall Joe Hensley (AF) –1:25 | HOF 6, AF 3 125: Jacob Martin (HOF) Dec. Tony DeCesare (AF) –6-4 | HOF 9, AF 3 133: Vinny Vespa (HOF) Dec. Isaac Jimenez (AF) –3-2 | HOF 12, AF 3 141: Garrett O'Shea (AF) Dec. Charlie Kane (HOF) –7-2 | HOF 12, AF 6 149: Dane Robbins (AF) Dec. Ryan Burkert (HOF) –7-2 | HOF 12, AF 9 157: Alex Mossing (AF) Dec. Connor Muli (HOF) –6-2 | HOF 12, AF 12 165: Alex Lopouchanski (AF) Dec. Chris Mauriello (HOF) –6-5 | AF 15, HOF 12 174: Michael Billingsley (AF) Dec. Anthony Oliveri (HOF) –4-3 | AF 18, HOF 12 184: Zen Ikehara (AF) Dec. Cory Damiana (HOF) –3-1 SV1 | AF 21, HOF 12 FINAL: AIR FORCE 21, HOFSTRA 12

EVANSTON, Ill. -- No. 25 Northwestern (7-1, 2-1 Big Ten) knocked off #16 Wisconsin, 18-14, in commanding fashion on Friday night at historic Patten Gym. For the 'Cats, it was their first ranked win since topping No. 23 Indiana on Jan. 4, 2014. Chicago's Big Ten Team started the dual with three-straight wins to open up a 12-point lead. Redshirt junior Conan Jennings (285) started the Wildcats' evening on a high note, taking a start-to-finish, 3-1 decision over Wisconsin's heavyweight Ben Stone. Redshirt first-year Sebastian Rivera (125) followed up that performance with a quick, 3:57 tech fall of Johnny Jimenez. Rivera topped the Badger 16-0, which marked the second time that he has beaten Jimenez since Dec. 29. After Rivera's bout, Wisconsin was docked two team points for unsportsmanlike penalties. Northwestern also lost a team point. Fresh off entering the Intermat poll for the first time, first-year Colin Valdiviez showed that he belongs. He commanded his bout against UW's Jens Lantz, finishing with a 13-4 major decision over the redshirt junior. Before the intermission, redshirt first-year Ryan Deakin (149) went on a point-scoring frenzy against Wisconsin's Cole Martin, topping him with a 19-7 major decision. That pushed NU's team score lead to 13 before the break. Tasked with putting the team back on track following two straight set-backs, redshirt junior Johnny Sebastian was faced with a grind-it-out bout against Ryan Christensen -- a Badger that he had twice beaten this season. Tied 1-1 with less than 30 seconds left in the third period, Christensen was issued his second stalling warning, giving Sebastian the decisive, 2-1 lead. It was NU's first win over Wisconsin since topping the Badgers, 33-9, on Jan. 8, 2012. Northwestern wrestles at home again on Jan. 19 against Nebraska. The match is set for 7 p.m. CT at Patten Gym. Results: 285: Conan Jennings (NU) dec. Ben Stone (WIS), 3-1 | NU 3, WIS 0 125: #10 Sebastian Rivera (NU) Tech. Fall Johnny Jimenez (WIS), 16-0 (3:57) | NU 8, WIS 0 One point unsportsmanlike penalties assessed to both teams after the 125 bout One point Wisconsin deduction on head Coach Barry Davis 133: #18 Colin Valdiviez (NU) maj. dec. Jens Lantz (WIS), 13-4 | NU 11, WIS -2 141: Eli Stickley (WIS) dec. Alec McKenna (NU), 6-0 | NU 11, WIS 1 149: #4 Ryan Deakin (NU) maj. dec. Cole Martin (WIS), 19-7 | NU 15, WIS 1 157: Andrew Crone (WIS) dec. Shayne Oster (NU), 7-5 | NU 15, WIS 4 165: #6 Evan Wick (WIS) maj. dec. Michael Sepke (NU), 12-3 | NU 15, WIS 8 174: #18 Johnny Sebastian (NU) dec. Ryan Christensen (WIS), 2-1 | NU 18, WIS 8 184: #9 Ricky Robertson (WIS) dec. Mitch Sliga (NU), 3-1 | NU 18, WIS 11 197: Hunter Ritter (WIS) dec. Regis Durbin (NU), 3-1 | NU 18, WIS 14

HAMPTON, Va. -- No. 9 Virginia Tech made quick work of their pool opponents at the Virginia Duals on Friday as the Hokies (7-1) defeated Campbell, 40-0, and Old Dominion, 28-9. The Hokies advance to tomorrow's semifinals at 2 p.m. where they will face Oklahoma. The other semifinal dual is No.11 Northern Iowa vs. No. 10 Arizona State. TrackWrestling.com will have all of the coverage. Virginia Tech 40, Campbell 0 The Hokies won all 10 matches in their 40-0 win over Campbell, their first shutout since 2013. That season, the Hokies shutout both VMI (11/10/13) and Manchester University (11/17/13). Back-to-back bonus point wins from redshirt freshman Brent Moore and redshirt junior Ryan Blees sparked the Virginia Tech rout at 141 and 149 pounds, respectively. Moore got Campbell's Zachary Barnes on a dump at the 3:37 in the match for his second pin of the season. Blees followed with a convincing 12-3 major decision. Redshirt junior Zack Zavatsky, redshirt senior Jared Haught and redshirt freshman Andrew Dunn closed out the match with bonus point victories. Dunn registered his second pin of the season in 4:19. Virginia Tech 28, ODU 9 A medical forfeit at 165 pounds and consecutive tech falls from Haught and Zavatsky made the difference in Virginia Tech's 28-9 win over Old Dominion. After the Monarchs cut its deficit to three entering 149, 6-3, Blees got the Hokies back on track with a 6-2 decision. It marked his eighth-straight win since cutting down to 149 pounds. No. 9 Virginia Tech 40, Campbell 0 125: Kyle Norstrem (VT) dec Korbin Meink (Campbell), 8-2 133: Dennis Gustafson (Virginia Tech) dec. Nathan Boston (Campbell), 7-2 141: Brent Moore (Virginia Tech) WBF Jonathan Ryan (Campbell), 3:37 149: Ryan Blees (Virginia Tech) MD Zachary Barnes (Campbell), 12-3 157: BC LaPrade (Virginia Tech) dec Austin Kraisser (Campbell), 11-5 165: David McFadden (Virginia Tech) dec Quentin Perez (Campbell), 11-5 174: Hunter Bolen (Virginia Tech) dec Andrew Morgan (Campbell), 7-5 184: Zack Zavatsky (Virginia Tech) TF Luke Funck (Campbell), 20-3 197: Jared Haught (Virginia Tech) MD Austin McNeil (Campbell), 10-1 285: Andrew Dunn (Virginia Tech) WBF Jere Heino (Campbell), 4:19 No. 9 Virginia Tech 28, ODU 9 125: Kyle Norstrem (VT) dec. Michael McGee (ODU), 9-3 133: No. 13 Dennis Gustafson dec. Caleb Richardson (ODU), 9-4 141: Alex Madrigal (ODU) dec. Brent Moore (VT), 13-6 149: Ryan Blees (VT) dec. Kenan Carter (ODU), 6-2 157: Larry Early (ODU) dec. B.C. LaPrade (VT), 10-3 165: No. 4 David McFadden (VT) MFF over Ben Schram (ODU) 174: Seldon Wright (ODU) dec. Hunter Bolen (VT), 10-6 184: No. 8 Zack Zavatsky (VT) TF Connor Frey (ODU) 16-0 197: No. 2 Jared Haught (VT) TF John D'Agostino (VT), 18-2 285: No. 18 Andrew Dunn (VT) dec. Ali Wahab (ODU), 8-4

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa -- No. 11 UNI wrestling dominated pool competition, winning 15 of the 19 contested matches, to advance to the gold bracket of the Virginia Duals set to be contested Saturday. The Panthers (4-1 / 1-0 Big 12) opened the duals with a 32-6 win over Kent State, which fell to 8-6 overall. UNI followed it up with a 33-7 win over Chattanooga (4-4) today. UNI will face No. 10 Arizona State in the semifinals of the gold bracket 1 p.m. Saturday. The Panthers will then compete against No. 9 Virginia Tech or Oklahoma 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Oklahoma knocked off No. 20 Lock Haven for the final spot in the championship bracket. Jay Schwarm led off both matches with first-period falls. He leads the team with 12 this season. Nine of his pins have come in the first period. Drew Foster earned his fastest fall of the season, pinning Shane Mast of Kent State in 1 minute, 7 seconds. He stayed perfect against No. 15 Bryce Carr of Chattanooga. Foster beat Carr earlier this season at the Southern Scuffle en route to a second-place finish. Foster grabbed an escape for a 2-1 win in the first set of tiebreakers today. Taylor Lujan remains the only Panther still undefeated in duals. He earned a major decision win over UTC's Justin Lampe and a 3-0 win over Dylan Barreiro of Kent State. Max Thomsen opened with a tech fall and finished the day with a major decision win. Carter Isley, Jack Wagner and Logan Ryan won their first duals as Panthers. Ryan had a major decision win against UTC's Dylan Forzani. This is the first time UNI has competed in the Virginia Duals since the 2000 season. RESULTS (NWCA team rankings / Intermat individuals) #11 UNI 32, Kent State 6 125: #12 Jay Schwarm (UNI) pinned Jake Ferri (Kent State), 1:02 133: Anthony Tutolo (Kent State) dec. Jack Wagner (UNI), 13-9 141: #8 Josh Alber (UNI) dec. Tim Rooney (Kent State), 11-6 149: #7 Max Thomsen (UNI) tech fall Nick Monico (Kent State), 17-0 157: Logan Ryan (UNI) dec. Casey Sparkman (Kent State), 2-1 (TB1) 165: Isaac Bast (Kent State) dec. Dan Kelly (UNI), 9-5 174: #7 Taylor Lujan (UNI) dec. Dylan Barreiro (Kent State), 3-0 184: #11 Drew Foster (UNI) pinned Shane Mast (Kent State), 1:07 197: #19 Jacob Holschlag (UNI) dec. Kyle Conel (Kent State), 1-0 285: Carter Isley (UNI) dec. Devin Nye (Kent State), 8-4 #11 UNI 33, UT-Chattanooga 7 125: #12 Jay Schwarm (UNI) pinned Alonzo Allen (UTC), 1:24 133: Jack Wagner (UNI) dec. Chris Debien (UTC), 8-6 SV1 141: #8 Josh Alber (UNI) dec. Michael Pongracz (UTC), 5-2 149: #7 Max Thomsen (UNI) maj. dec. Roman Boylen (UTC), 10-1 157: Logan Ryan (UNI) maj. dec. Dylan Forzani (UTC), 13-5 165: Chad Pyke (UTC) maj. dec. Isaiah Patton (UNI), 15-3 174: #7 Taylor Lujan (UNI) maj. dec. Justin Lampe (UTC), 16-4 184: #11 Drew Foster (UNI) dec. #15 Bryce Carr (UTC), 2-1 TB1 197: #15 Scottie Boykin (UTC) dec. #19 Jacob Holschlag (UNI), 8-7 285: Carter Isley (UNI) forfeit over unknown (UTC)

HAMPTON, Va. -- The Oklahoma wrestling team posted a perfect 3-0 record during the first day at the Viriginia Duals to advance into Saturday's gold bracket. The Sooners defeated Bucknell (21-13), No. 20 Lock Haven (21-15) and Fresno State (27-8) on Friday to qualify for the event's semifinal round for the second consecutive season. Four Sooners recorded perfect records on the day, with Christian Moody (125 pounds), Jake Rubio (133 pounds), Justin Thomas (157 pounds) and Yoanse Mejias (174 pounds) winning all three of their matches. OU earned five bonus-point victories over the three duals, including three pins (Davion Jeffries, Moody and Connor Webb), one techincal fall (Mike Longo) and a major decision (Rubio). “I definitely think they wrestled harder and better than they did last weekend,” OU head coach Lou Rosselli said of his team's performance. “I still think we left a lot of points out there, but I think that's going to be a work in progress. I think if we continue to get better, grow and use energy when you're supposed to in scoring positions, our team will get some of the wins they want to get. “We were in some positions that we could have certainly built on our lead, and we didn't,” he continued. “We've just got to get used to scoring bonus points. Every point matters. I think we did a better job than we did last weekend, but I think we need some growth still.” Oklahoma will face No. 9 Virginia Tech in Satuday's championship semifinal. The Sooners and the Hokies are scheduled to compete at 1 p.m. CT. Action will be livestreamed on TrackWrestling.com for a fee, and TrackWrestling will also provide live results. Fans can also follow along on Twitter (@OU_Wrestling) for live updates. Oklahoma 21, Bucknell 13 No. 19 Moody gave OU a 3-0 advantage to start with a 6-2 decision over Geo Barzona at 125 pounds. After Moody took a 2-1 lead in the first period, Barzona escaped to start the second and tie the bout at 2-2. However, in the third frame, Moody recorded an escape, a takedown and the riding-time point to clinch the win. At 133 pounds, Rubio extended OU's lead with a 6-2 decision of his own over David Campbell. He built a 2-1 advantage in the first period and extended it to 5-1 in the second with an escape and a takedown. Rubio secured the decision with the riding-time point. Jeffries won by fall in 2:16 at 149 pounds over Seth Hogue. The pin marked Jeffries' fourth of the season, a team high. Thomas added three more points for Oklahoma with a decision over Christian Bassolino at 157 pounds. The Sooner recorded four takedowns in the matchup and added an escape and the riding-time point to post a 10-5 victory. No. 11 Mejias also claimed a 10-5 decision, defeating Nick Stephani in the 174-pound bout. Mejias set the pace with two takedowns in the first period, and the senior tacked on two more takedowns, an escape and the riding-time point in his first win of the day. At 184 pounds, Matthew Waddell secured a 5-3 decison over Drew Phipps, recording an escape, a takedown, and a reversal. Longo dropped a 10-2 major decision to No. 14 Tyler Smith at 141 pounds. In the 165-pound match, Dawaylon Barnes was defeated by D.J. Hollingshead in a 5-3 decision. Andrew Dixon fell in a close match with Garret Hoffman, 6-3. In his OU wrestling debut, Marquise Overton was downed by Brandon Stokes in a 9-4 decision. Oklahoma 21, No. 20 Lock Haven 15 Moody started the second match with a bang, winning by fall over Luke Werner in 1:57. The redshirt sophomore's first pin of the season gave the Sooners a 6-0 lead early. In the next bout, Rubio extended OU's advantage by claiming a 5-3 decision over DJ Fehlman. He used two takedowns and an escape to secure three team points. At 157 pounds, Thomas used an impressive first round to earn an 8-7 win over Alex Klucker. In the first three minutes, Thomas recorded two takedowns and a four-point nearfall to claim an 8-1 advantage. Despite a comeback effort from Klucker, Thomas outlasted his opponent to earn his second win of the day. Mejias defeated Jared Siegrist by a 6-5 decision in the 174-pound match, recording two takedowns and two escapes in the bout. Following OU losses at the next two weight classes, the match was tied at 15-15 as it entered the heavyweight bout. Freshman Connor Webb triumphed over Derek Dragon, winning by fall in 4:36. Webb's second career pin clinched the upset for Oklahoma, 21-15. At 141 pounds, Longo put together a late comeback effort that narrowly fell short as he was defeated by Kyle Shoop in a 10-8 decision. Jeffries dropped a 6-1 decision to No. 20 Ronnie Perry at 149 pounds. In the 165-pound match, Barnes was downed in a close contest with No. 7 Chance Marsteller, 5-4. Matthew Waddell was also edged by just one point, falling 8-7 to Corey Hazel at 184 pounds. At 197 pounds, Dixon was defeated in a close 5-3 decision to Tristan Sponseller. Oklahoma 27, Fresno State 8 For the third consecutive match, Moody gave OU an early lead, taking down Sean Williams at 125 pounds. He earned a takedown and two escapes in the matchup to claim a 4-3 decision. Rubio claimed a 10-2 victory over Trevor Williams at 133 pounds. The redshirt junior jumped out to a 4-1 advantage in the first period with two takedowns and added another in the second to hold a 6-2 lead. He tacked on an escape, another takedown and the riding-time point to earn his team-high fourth major decision of the season. In the following match, Mike Longo recorded his second technical fall of the season with a 22-6 win over Chris DeLoza in 6:02. Leading 5-4 at the start of the second period, Longo tallied an escape, a takedown, a four-point nearfall and a two-point nearfall to grow his lead to 14-4. In the final frame, Longo added an escape, another takedown, another 4-point nearfall and the riding-time point. At 157 pounds, Justin Thomas edged Greg Gaxiola in their second meeting of the season. After regulation ended in a 3-3 tie, Thomas recorded a takedown in the first overtime period to earn the 5-3 win. In the 165-pound bout, Barnes and Isaiah Hokit were knotted at 2-2 with one period remaining. Barnes stormed ahead in the third frame, recording two escapes, two takedowns and the riding-time point to record a 9-4 decision. Mejias claimed his third win of the day by 3-2 decision over Dominic Kincaid in the 174-pound matchup. After a scoreless first period, the senior earned his three points in the second frame with an escape and a takedown. Trailing 5-4 at the end of two periods, Waddell came back to down Angel Solis at 184 pounds. The freshman earned an escape, a takedown and a four-point nearfall to clinch an 11-6 decision. Dixon posted a 5-2 victory in the 197 pound match against Josh Hokit, recording two takedowns and an escape in the bout. Jeffries was narrowly edged at 149 pounds by Khristian Olivas, 5-4. Webb was defeated by AJ Nevills in an 18-3 technical fall. OU VS. BUCKNELL FINAL RESULTS 125 No. 19 Christian Moody (OU) dec. Geo Barzona (BU), 6-2 133 Jake Rubio (OU) dec. David Campbell (BU), 6-2 141 No. 14 Tyler Smith (BU) maj. dec. Mike Longo (OU), 10-2 149 Davion Jeffries (OU) fall Seth Hogue (BU), 2:16 157 Justin Thomas (OU) dec. Christian Bassolino (BU), 10-5 165 D.J. Hollingshead (BU) dec. Dawaylon Barnes (OU), 5-3 174 No. 11 Yoanse Mejias (OU) dec. Nick Stephani (BU), 10-5 184 Matthew Waddell (OU) dec. Drew Phipps (BU), 5-3 197 Garret Hoffman (BU) dec. Andrew Dixon (OU), 6-3 HWT Brandon Stokes (BU) dec. Marquise Overton (OU), 9-4 OU VS. NO. 20 LOCK HAVEN FINAL RESULTS 125 No. 19 Christian Moody (OU) fall Luke Werner (LHU), 1:57 133 Jake Rubio (OU) dec. DJ Fehlman (LHU), 5-3 141 Kyle Shoop (LHU) dec. Mike Longo (OU), 10-8 149 No. 20 Ronnie Perry (LHU) dec. Davion Jeffries (OU), 6-1 157 Justin Thomas (OU) dec. Alex Klucker (LHU), 8-7 165 No. 7 Chance Marsteller (LHU) dec. Dawaylon Barnes (OU), 5-4 174 No. 11 Yoanse Mejias (OU) dec. Jared Siegrist (LHU), 6-5 184 Corey Hazel (LHU) dec. Matthew Waddell (OU), 9-8 197 Tristan Sponseller (LHU) dec. Andrew Dixon (OU), 5-3 HWT Connor Webb (OU) fall Derek Dragon (LHU), 4:36 OU VS. FRESNO STATE FINAL RESULTS 125 No. 19 Christian Moody (OU) dec. Sean Williams (FSU), 4-3 133 Jake Rubio (OU) maj. dec. Trevor Williams (FSU), 10-2 141 Mike Longo (OU) tech. fall Chris DeLoza (FSU), 22-6 (6:02) 149 Khristian Olivas (FSU) dec. Davion Jeffries (OU), 5-4 157 Justin Thomas (OU) dec. Greg Gaxiola (FSU), 5-3 (SV1) 165 Dawaylon Barnes (OU) dec. Isaiah Hokit (FSU), 9-4 174 No. 11 Yoanse Mejias (OU) dec. Dominic Kincaid (FSU), 3-2 184 Matthew Waddell (OU) dec. Angel Solis (FSU), 11-6 197 Andrew Dixon (OU) dec. Josh Hokit (FSU), 5-2 HWT AJ Nevills (FSU) tech. fall Connor Webb (OU), 18-3 (7:00)

HAMPTON, Va. -- The No. 10 Sun Devils nearly pulled off a shutout and put together back-to-back wins en route to a place in Saturday's gold bracket at the 38th annual Virginia Duals. Arizona State (5-2) earned a commanding 35-3 victory over Virginia (2-5) in their first match of the day, taking a shutout into the final bout, before handing Iowa State (2-5) a 25-13 loss, earning the Sun Devils a place in the championship bracket. Notably, in the win over Virginia, No. 23 Ali Naser earned an upset victory, 10-7, over No. 3 Jack Mueller at 133 lbs. The Sun Devils also won both 125 lbs. matches behind Josh Kramer and No. 17 Ryan Millhof while Nikko Villarreal (141) and Jason Tsirtsis (149) also won vs. UVA. The Sun Devils earned four straight wins in both duals starting with No. 4 Josh Shields (157) and followed by No. 15 Anthony Valencia (165), No. 1 Zahid Valencia (174), and Kordell Norfleet (184). No. 4 Tanner Hall (HWT) also capped the Iowa State win with a victory. Iowa State finished second in the James River Pool behind ASU, earning a 21-18 victory over Virginia in the earlier match, with Virginia finishing third. ASU faces No. 11 Northern Iowa in the gold bracket on Saturday at 2 pm ET/12 noon MT with the winner advancing to the championship (8:30 pm ET/6:30 pm MT) to face the winner of No. 9 Virginia Tech/Oklahoma. The Sooners knocked the Devils out in this round last season before ASU finished third with a win over North Dakota State. #10 Arizona State (35), Virginia (3) 125: Josh Kramer DEC #13 Louie Hayes, 8-5 133: #23 Ali Naser DEC #3 Jack Mueller, 10-7 141: Nikko Villarreal DEC Sam Martino, 6-2 149: Jason Tsirtsis FALL Jake Keating, 4:11 157: #4 Josh Shields MD Michael Murphy, 11-3 165: #15 Anthony Valencia DEC Andrew Atkinson, 6-2 174: #1 Zahid Valencia FALL Will Schany, 5:10 184: Kordell Norfleet MD Jack Walsh, 16-3 197: Cade Belshay DEC Jay Aiello, 9-5 HWT: Tyler Love DEC Austyn Harris, 6-3 #10 Arizona State (25), Iowa State (13) 125: #17 Ryan Millhof TF Sinjia Briggs, 16-1 (5:10) 133: #22 Ian Parker DEC #23 Ali Naser, 4-0 141: #11 Kanen Storr DEC Nikko Villarreal, 9-4 149: #22 Jarrett Degen MD #12 Josh Maruca, 16-8 157: #4 Josh Shields MD Chase Straw, 10-2 165: #15 Anthony Valencia MD Logan Breitenbach, 15-7 174: #1 Zahid Valencia FALL Daniel Bush, 2:26 184: Kordell Norfleet DEC Dane Pestano, 3-2 197: Joe Teager DEC Conner Small, 5-1 HWT: #4 Tanner Hall DEC Marcus Harrington, 3-1

A GoFundMe.com page has been established for a founder and co-owner of WrestlingGear.com, who is in a long battle against cancer. Jeff and Nancy PapeNancy Pape, who is diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer, has been battling the disease for almost four years. Her husband Jeff Pape of WrestlingGear.com, said that the GoFundPage was established by his sister-in-law "for my wife to help with 2018 medical expenses." "She is long-time owner of WrestlingGear.com along with myself," according to an email Jeff Pape sent to members of the wrestling community Thursday. "She has been there almost from the start of WrestlingGear.com and really was a huge part of growing the business when we just started out." Nancy Pape is the mother of three sons, two who are wrestlers. The homepage for the GoFundMe.com page for Nancy Pape states, "Even with insurance, her medical bills are such a burden. Nancy's greatest joy is watching her boys' games and seeing how much happiness it brings them to belong to a team. Her family takes part in the hockey and the wrestling communities. She does not want these privileges to change for them. Nancy is also trying to include some homeopathic treatments for herself, to help relieve symptoms and improve her daily living. These are also costly." The GoFundMe page for Nancy Pape has a stated fundraising goal of $20,000. In its first week, the page has generated just over $14,300 in donations.

The council of college football coaches announced this week that they are investigating rules which will allow redshirt freshman players to compete in a total of four regular season games without jeopardizing their redshirt. There are plenty of reasons why football coaches and administrators would want redshirt athletes on the field: increased learning experience, preservation of eligibility and increased competitiveness. For many of these reasons (and a few more) wrestling would also significantly benefit from redshirt rules which allow some varsity competition. Over the past few years there has been an increase in the number of forfeits at the collegiate level. Backups are willing to wrestle, but coaches don't want to risk a year of eligibility plugging a freshman redshirt in for a single match. In fact, that all-or-nothing attitude is the crux of the redshirt issue for football, wrestling and many other sports. The NCAA needs to allow for more leniency around redshirting, since giving kids a wider berth on using eligibility allows for a better environment for college athletes to mature, while also giving college sports fan the very best product available. The college football coaches were unanimous in their support of the rule change, and it's likely that if adopted by the Gods of the Gridiron, wrestling could soon adopt a similar rule change. Here's to hoping. To your questions … Jason Tsirtsis wrestling Iowa's Brandon Sorensen in the Midlands semifinals (Photo/Mark Lundy, Lutte-Lens.com) Q: Is there any chance Jason Tsirtsis will win the NCAA title? At the Midlands, Tsirtsis was still wrestling in reactive mode. Too willing to win by a point or two. Don't you think he needs to be more aggressive? -- @German663 Foley: It's arguably every American wrestler's dream to win an NCAA title, and Tsirtsis has accomplished that goal. Although Tsirtsis' early performance would indicate that he's a perennial threat, his career trajectory was adversely affected by well-documented adversity off the mat. In my opinion, Tsirtsis' perseverance in continuing his wrestling career and the competitiveness he's shown after having major time off is impressive. I'm hopeful that we will see Tsirtsis in Cleveland and with any luck holding some hardware. Q: In 2017 the last chance qualifier for World Team Trials was May 18. This year Jordan Oliver is suspended until April 29, and notably there is no last chance qualifier scheduled. A few thoughts on this: Was this just a clickbait article from Flo? They word it "As of now, there is no last chance qualifier in place for the 2018 WTT." Does this just mean that they did not schedule the last chance qualifier yet? Or does this mean they do not plan on holding one? If they do not plan on holding one I have no choice but to cry CORRUPTION! COLLUSION! CAEL IS BEHIND THIS! BIG CAEL IS BAD FOR WRESTLING!!! OK, my Big Cael conspiracy theory could be a bit of a reach. However, not allowing JO to compete for a spot on the World Team after serving his one-year suspension would be a gross injustice. #FreeJO -- Jake O. Foley: Sorry, but none of the changes to the qualification procedures were led by Cael. (Could you imagine if something similar happened between international federations? Wrestling Twitter would FREAK.) USA Wrestling is looking to overhaul their qualification procedures to help increase the visibility of the nation's top freestyle wrestlers during team selection for 2018. Though one of the top wrestlers in the nation at any weight between 61 kilograms and 70 kilograms, USA Wrestling did not intentionally accommodate Oliver. This is a good thing. USA Wrestling is making a decision based on many factors, but the date by which an athlete has cleared suspension was not one of them. That might leave Oliver out in 2018, but it is some proof that there is little or no internal manipulations being made in order to accommodate the personal schedules of the athletes looking to make a world team (outside the accepted norms). USA Wrestling didn't take Cael or JO into account when deciding to create this series. The larger aim seems to increase the visibility of the events and give more individual attention to the wrestlers in the finals. Oh, and I like the new system. I think it's much fairer to athletes who have to wrestle in a qualification tournament. Q: Any predictions on Oklahoma State-Iowa on Sunday? I'm especially looking forward to the Nick Piccininni-Spencer Lee match. -- Mike C. Foley: Nick Piccininni is coming off a tough loss to Sean Fausz of NC State at last week's dual in Italy. I'm not sure where Spencer Lee's fitness is at right now, but it bodes well for the freshman that his first major test is in Carver-Hawkeye against a top-five opponent with a recent loss. Lots of fur flying that night, too, as the Hawkeyes look to rebound from their bad 24-11 loss in January of 2017. MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME Mom Week in Amateur Wrestling Q: After watching some of the Midlands and Scuffle, I agree with those who think that we need to do more to encourage action and discourage stalling. However, as a former referee, I can tell you that this is easier said than done (but it still needs to be done). It probably requires that the secondary referee have responsibility for calling stalling, to let the primary referee focus on his job of calling the match. But here's a simple change that is easily enforced that would make NCAA matches more interesting: every time action goes out of bounds, you restart in the neutral position (with no escape awarded if one wrestler was on bottom when they went out of bounds). This prevents a wrestler from earning riding time by taking his opponent out of bounds five times. You'd still need to call fleeing the mat (so the top wrestler doesn't just take his opponent out of bounds to avoid giving up one point on the escape), but I think it's worth the risk to try this out and see how much "gaming" of the system ensues. -- Irv O. Foley: I like where you are heading with this logic, but I wonder if just getting rid of the riding time point would solve most of these problems. Why is it considered so dominant to lay atop your opponent? If being there provides you no more incentive I think you'd see a dramatic shift in the sport to something with more action on the feet, where coincidentally referees have shown increased consistency in controlling penalties for traipsing out of bounds. The problem in college wrestling is there is way too much time spent with general inaction. While I understand the sport's roots as a control-focused form of wrestling, the data overwhelming shows that fans lose significant interest in grappling sports once the action hits the ground. Sports that are forced to be on the ground often (jiu-jitsu, judo, sambo) all have submissions which help encourage defensive actions. College wrestling needs to realize that while control on the ground is important, that fans will continue turning off their TVs and logging off their computers if the sport looks like a modified version of human rodeo. Q: With the best high school kids seemingly becoming even more elite every year, and more than holding their own on the freestyle/Greco scene, do you think we will ever see a return to letting high schoolers compete against college kids at open style tournaments? -- Jared W. Foley: The most successful high school wrestler on the college scene was Cary Kolat, who famously finished third at the Midlands while still in high school. However, we do still see some high school wrestlers competing at the college level with some consistency. You might remember that Gable Steveson competed and won an open tournament earlier in the season. Patrick McKee (Minnesota signee) and Alex Lloyd (SDSU signee) have also competed this year while still only in high school. As for being invited to Midlands … that has yet to be determined. There might be some insurance circumstances precluding their invitation. The last wrestler I know to have entered was Jason Welch. Adam Coon at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com) Q: Kyle Snyder is arguably the best wrestler in the world. Many think he's surpassed Jordan Burroughs and is the face of American wrestling. However, he's giving up size to a very talented Adam Coon. Sure, Snyder is the favorite, but don't you think Coon has a good chance to upset the Olympic and world champ? -- Tim R. Foley: Lord, no. While Coon is arguably the second-best heavyweight in the nation, I don't think there is much opportunity for him to upset Snyder. The difference in skill level is significant, but where many legends fail is in mental preparation, or taking their task seriously enough and eventually falling behind in the match. I don't see that as an issue for Snyder. Also, I assume that with Ohio State locked in a point battle with Penn State, Snyder's Cleveland performance will be his best ever behind Paris in 2017. Q: I know Cleveland hosted the NCAAs in 1998, but how do you think Cleveland will do as a host city for the NCAAs this year? What are you hearing? -- Mike C. Foley: Host cities do take on a pretty major responsibility when hosting events, but their efforts typically only impact the coaches and wrestlers. The fan experience tends to be controlled by the NCAA, who ensures flow of the program and that all their major bullet points are being realized. That's to say that the organizers have a large, detailed book from which to pull guidance on all aspects of the championship. One place where Cleveland will be challenged is in local hospitality. I've been to the area a few times and each experience has been acceptable. The (sober) people are as friendly as you'd want, while the (not sober) bar patrons tend to be a little, let's say, standoffish. Overall, I think that it'll be an enjoyable weekend for the sport to celebrate its championship and provide a backdrop for catching up with old friends.

ELMHURST, Ill. -- Returning to College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) action as the No.14-ranked team in the nation, the North Central College wrestling team made a statement in more ways than one on Thursday evening, defeating the Elmhurst College Bluejays 35-10 and taking home the trophy for the first annual Battle for the Birdnest. Receiving a win by forfeit at the 125 weight class, North Central took an early 6-0 lead, but the Bluejays earned two significant wins after No. 6-ranked Anthony Munoz defeated Marc Fleenor by a 20-9 major decision at 133 pounds and Jimmy McAulife pinned Anthony Rink at the 3:47 at 141 pounds. North Central did not let Elmhurst get too comfortable with a 10-6 lead as Rafael Roman pinned John Prieto in 6:08 at 149 pounds to put his team ahead 12-10. It was the last time the Bluejays would take the lead in the match. At 157 pounds, Egan Berta added four points to the team score with a 15-3 win by major decision over Austin Maher. Cam Hayes added a second pin for the Cardinals at 165, taking down Gunnar Hjorth in 3:27. Leading 22-10 going into the 174 match, North Central was looking to keep the momentum rolling, but would have to fight to do so. Matt Marcotte defeated Nevin Brittain in a close 5-4 decision at 174 and Josh Bouie edged out a 6-5 decision over Mark Miller at 184 pounds. No. 9-ranked Tyler Vittal added three more points to the team score in another close decision at 197 pounds, defeating Leo Ortiz 3-2 and giving the Cardinals a sizable 31-10 lead. Knowing the team had won the match and remained a perfect 3-0 in CCIW duals, Emonte Logan put the exclamation point on the dual with a 16-4 win by major decision at 285 in his first match of the season, making the final score 35-10 in favor of the Cardinals. The Cardinals (9-2, 3-0 CCIW) return to Elmhurst College on Saturday, Jan. 13 for the Elmhurst College Invitational. Matches are set to begin at 9 a.m. Results: 125 – Moe Mitchell (NCC) received forfeit 133 – Anthony Munoz (Elmhurst) def. Marc Fleenor by major decision 20-9 141 – Jimmy McAuliffe (Elmhurst) pinned Anthony Rink in 3:47 149 – Rafael Roman (NCC) pinned John Prieto in 6:08 157 – Egan Berta (NCC) def. Austin Maher by major decision 15-3 165 – Cam Hayes (NCC) pinned Gunnar Hjorth in 3:27 174 – Matt Marcotte (NCC) def. Nevin Brittain by decision 5-4 184 – Josh Bouie (NCC) def. Mark Miller by decision 6-5 197 – Tyler Vittal (NCC) def. Leo Ortiz by decision 3-2 285 – Emonte Logan (NCC) def. Karim Fuentes by major decision 16-4.

PEMBROKE – The UNC Pembroke wrestling team tacked up 16 individual victories on the night, including a dozen of the bonus point variety, as the Braves made a success out of their return home for the first time since early November with wins over Spartanburg Methodist (42-9) and Queens (34-9) on Thursday evening at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court. The triumphs marked the first time this season that the Black & Gold has registered consecutive victories, while also giving the Braves their most lopsided wins of the 2017-18 campaign as well. Spartanburg Methodist (2-8) remained winless in eight series matchups with UNCP, while Queens (4-5) had its three-match win streak snapped with the result. Spartanburg Methodist gave the Braves all that they could handle, at least early on, as the Pioneers grabbed a 10-9 lead on the scoreboard thanks to Jamal Brannon's second-period pin at 149 pounds. That would be the last gasp for the Pioneers, however, as UNCP took the last six matches of the dual, including pins by Eric Milks (157 pounds), Joey DiMartino (174), Faris Teia (184) and Bryce Walker (197), as well as a forfeit by SMC at in the 165-pound bout. The Braves forged a 10-0 lead after three matches in their dual with the Royals before Karson Ayres spoiled the shutout with a first-period pin at 149 pounds. UNCP was dominant, again, down the stretch, however, and tacked up wins in five of the final six individual matches, including forfeits by Queens at both 184 and 197 pounds. UNCP will close out a three-match home stand on Monday when it steps back into its Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) schedule to battle Limestone (4-1) in a 7 p.m. tilt at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court. Admission to all 2017-18 UNCP wrestling home matches is free.

CHADRON, Neb. -- Colorado School of Mines outlasted Chadron State 20-16 in a back-and-forth dual meet to open the RMAC schedule Thursday night. The Orediggers improved to 4-0 in duals as they came back from a 13-6 deficit with a momentum swing keyed by #10 Keenan Willits' tech fall at 165 pounds and TJ Shelton's double-overtime win at 174. It was a forfeit win by Mines at 197 pounds, however, that proved to be the difference maker as Chadron State led 16-14 after nine bouts; Brandon Saunders walked out to earn the six points in the final match to seal the victory. The dual started at 285 pounds, and Chadron's Rulon Taylor turned an early advantage into an 8-3 win over Weston Hunt to lead 3-0. The match of the night came next in an action-packed bout at 125 pounds as Zach Gracia used a takedown with 12 seconds left to beat Marcus Hutcherson 8-6. Gracia led the whole way until Hutcherson took the lead on a third-period takedown, but Gracia's escape and late two won it. Another late takedown gave Noah Au-Yeung the win at 133 as he scored two with 39 seconds left to beat Chance Karst 5-4. Down 4-1 after the first, Au-Yeung rode out the second period to build a nearly two-minute riding time advantage, then escaped to start the third and earned the late takedown to win on the bonus point. Brock Thumm tied the match 6-6 with a 3-1 decision over Taylor Gambill at 141 pounds, and Chase Clasen held off Noah Ottum's comeback attempt at 149 to win 8-5 and take a 9-6 lead for the Eagles at the intermission. A late takedown and nearfall gave Jacob Otuafi a 13-2 major decision over Ethan Ruby at 157, putting Chadron up 13-6, but Willits got it back and then some with a dominating 15-0 tech fall at 165 pounds against John Porter, cutting the Eagle lead to 13-11. The momentum carried over to Shelton's match at 174, as the redshirt freshman improved to 7-0 with a dramatic 9-7 SV-2 decision against Heber Shepherd. Shelton escaped with eight seconds left in the third to force overtime tied 6-6, and after the two went scoreless in the first sudden victory period, both men escaped in the rideout periods to force another frame. Shelton put Shepherd down on his back 30 seconds in to win, putting Mines back ahead 14-13. That effectively sealed the win for Mines with the forfeit looming at 197, as Devin Stork used a last-second takedown to win 9-8 over Connor Ventura at 184 to put CSC ahead 16-14, but Saunders took the forfeit in the final match to make it 20-16. NOTABLES - It was Mines' first win against Chadron State since 2010-11, and first win at Chadron since 2009-10. - Willits improved to 11-1 and 4-0 in duals with his team-leading third tech fall of the season. Willits was ranked #10 in NCAA Division II this week by the NWCA. - Both Willits and Shelton now lead Mines with 18 dual points. - Shelton's win was his first career overtime decision. - Mines improved to 4-0 in duals at 133 pounds this season thanks to Au-Yeung's win; he's 2-0, with Jake Woods also 2-0. NEXT UP Mines stays in Nebraska to wrestle at the Midwest Duals on Saturday at UNK. Results: 285: Rulon Taylor (CSC) over Weston Hunt (MINES) (Dec 8-3) 125: Zachary Gracia (MINES) over Marcus Hutcherson (CSC) (Dec 8-6) 133: Noah Au-Yeung (MINES) over Chance Karst (CSC) (Dec 5-4) 141: Brock Thumm (CSC) over Taylor Gambill (MINES) (Dec 3-1) 149: Chase Clasen (CSC) over Noah Ottum (MINES) (Dec 8-5) 157: Jacob Otuafi (CSC) over Ethan Ruby (MINES) (MD 13-2) 165: #10 Keenan Willits (MINES) over John Porter (CSC) (TF 15-0 7:00) 174: TJ Shelton (MINES) over Heber Shepherd (CSC) (SV-2 9-7) 184: Devin Stork (CSC) over Connor Ventura (MINES) (Dec 9-8) 197: Brandon Saunders (MINES) by forfeit

HARTSVILLE, S.C. -- Competing in the New Year for the first time, the Limestone College wrestling program earned a dominate 27-9 victory over ECAC Division II Wrestling League member Coker College on Thursday, January 11. MATCH INFORMATION Score: Limestone 27, Coker 9 Record: Limestone (5-1, 1-0 ECAC), Coker (5-4, 1-2 ECAC) Location: DeLoach Center, Coker College, Hartsville, S.C. ON THE MAT 125: Junior James Sass (Summerville, S.C.) kicked off the night for the Saints just :50 seconds into the match as he was able to pin his opponent and earn six point for the Blue and Gold. Sass was able to get a quick takedown after a restart that caught Chris Navarro on his back ending the match. 141: Sophomore Matt Rose (Hasbrouck Heights, N.J.) used tactical and technical wrestling over the course of the match to secure a 15-0 tech fall with just 1:05 left on the clock in the third period. He notched six points in each the first and third periods sandwiched by a three-point second period to earn his margin. 149: Nicholas Leitten (Fort Mill, S.C.) was able to capitalize on an third period escape to edge a 3-2 decision over Matthew Kieta. An early takedown in the first period gave Leitten the early lead but an escape and a caution point to Kieta pull the match even. Leitten was able to score a late escape point in the final period to earn his win. 157: Freshman Avery Dinardi (Delran, N.J.) was able to pull out to an early 5-3 lead after the first three minutes of his bout before outscoring his opponent by a 4-3 margin over the final six minutes of action to take home the 9-6 decision over Bret Shurina. 174: Sophomore Jimmy Sandlin (Franklin, Ohio) continued his impressive season so far as he was able to pick up the lone major decision of the night by either side as he took home the 12-3 victory over Ian Maund. 184: Needing just a decision to lock up the team win for the Saints, junior Raekwon Reggler (Hialeah, Fla.) went a step further by earning six team points with a pin of Coker's Jordan Garlow one minute and 44 seconds into the first period of their bout. UP NEXT The Saints remain on the road for one more match before returning home as they travel to Pembroke, N.C. to take on the Braves of UNC Pembroke on Monday, January 15. First bout is set for 7:00 p.m. Results: 125: James Sass (LIME) over Chris Navarro (COCO) (Fall 0:50) 133: Double Forfeit 141: Matthew Rose (LIME) over Noah Kile (COCO) (TF 15-0 5:55) 149: Nicholas Leitten (LIME) over Matthew Kieta (COCO) (Dec 3-2) 157: Avery Dinardi (LIME) over Bret Shurina (COCO) (Dec 9-6) 165: Michael Milam (COCO) over Parker Grizzle (LIME) (Dec 10-3) 174: Jimmy Sandlin (LIME) over Ian Maund (COCO) (MD 12-3) 184: Raekwon Reggler (LIME) over Jordon Garlow (COCO) (Fall 1:44) 197: Luis Peguero (COCO) over Matthew Rudy (LIME) (SV-3 5-4) 285: Robert Parland (COCO) over Desmond Julian Gibbs (LIME) (Dec 3-2)