InterMat Staff

MINNEAPOLIS -- No. 2 Iowa cruised to a 23-12 victory over No. 1 Minnesota on Friday night in front of 13,630 fans at Williams Arena in Minneapolis. Nick Moore ignited the Hawkeyes with a pin in the first match at 165 pounds ... and Iowa never looked back. Full recap to come ... Results: 165: No. 7 Nick Moore (Iowa) pinned Brandon Kingsley (Minnesota), 4:33 174: No. 2 Mike Evans (Iowa) dec. No. 4 Logan Storley (Minnesota), 3-1 SV 184: No. 8 Sammy Brooks (Iowa) dec. No. 11 Brett Pfarr (Minnesota), 13-7 197: No. 6 Scott Schiller (Minnesota) dec. No. 3 Nathan Burak (Iowa), 3-1 285: No. 2 Bobby Telford (Iowa) dec. No. 13 Michael Kroells (Minnesota), 6-4 125: No. 5 Thomas Gilman (Iowa) tech. fall Ethan Lizak (Minnesota), 23-7 133: No. 1 Chris Dardanes (Minnesota) dec. No. 5 Cory Clark (Iowa), 5-3 141: No. 4 Nick Dardanes (Minnesota) dec. No. 5 Josh Dziewa (Iowa), 7-3 149: No. 2 Brandon Sorensen (Iowa) dec. Jake Short (Minnesota), 4-0 157: No. 1 Dylan Ness (Minnesota) dec. No. 15 Mike Kelly (Iowa), 11-9

Neither Anderson Silva or Nick Diaz have fought since 2013 and both are riding two fight losing streaks. Yet their UFC 183 main event has created plenty of intrigue. Silva, the longtime champion and irresistible force, against Diaz, a perennial contender and old school badass with a granite chin. Although Richard and John both think Silva will pull it off -- unless he's aged a lot more than we think -- it's worth tuning in for. Plus the rest of the main card features a number of even, tough to pick match ups, meaning our predictions will probably suck. Do you want to listen to a past episode? Access archives.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Jordan Holm won his third straight title to top the list of American Greco-Roman champions at the Dave Schultz Memorial International. Jordan Holm (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Holm, a two-time World Team member, took control early in earning a 6-0 finals win over Jon Anderson at 85 kilos/187 pounds on Thursday afternoon at the U.S. Olympic Training Center. "Dave Schultz is a tough tournament," Holm said. "I am really proud of the fact that I have done real well here. I got dinged up in practice and couldn't go in the Pinto Cup. My coach told me it was my call today if I wanted to go. That made it my decision which meant I couldn't say no. It turned out well. "There are some things I will take from today that are positives and that I will build on. I am excited I am going to continue to train here for another week with Kazakhstan. They have some guys who are pretty good in my weight class within the World." Americans Ben Provisor and Michael Hooker also captured championships as the three-day Schultz event kicked off on Thursday. Read more Finals Results (Day 1) 59 kilos: Ivo Angelov (Bulgaria) won by injury default Aleksandar Kostadinov (Bulgaria) 66 kilos: Demeu Zhadrayev (Kazakhstan) wins by injury default over Almat Kebispayev (Kazakhstan) 71 kilos: Michael Hooker (U.S. Army) won by injury default over Kendrick Sanders (New York AC) 75 kilos: Doszhan Kartikov (Kazakhstan) won by injury default over Maxat Yerezhepov (Kazakhstan) 80 kilos: Ben Provisor (New York AC) dec. Joe Rau (Minnesota Storm), 2-1 85 kilos: Jordan Holm (Minnesota Storm) dec. Jon Anderson (U.S. Army), 6-0 98 kilos: Yerulan Iskakov (Kazakhstan) tech. fall Caylor Williams (U.S. Army), 8-0 130 kilos: Nurmakhan Tinaliyev (Kazakhstan) tech. fall David Arendt (U.S. Marines), 8-0

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. -- First-period pins from senior Johnathan Secor (Pompton Lakes, N.J./Pompton Lakes) and sophomore Skylar Ebner (Muncy, Pa./Muncy Area) helped separate the 20th-ranked Lycoming College wrestling team from Alfred State and secure a 33-9 dual meet win at Lamade Gym on Thursday night, Jan. 29. Secor improved to 13-0 in dual meets as he quickly scored a takedown against Juan Nunez and secured the pin with 1:53 left in the first period, clinching the meet in the 197-pound bout. Ebner quickly followed, scoring a headlock on Anthony Osman in the first 15 seconds and nearly earning a pin before rolling out of bounds. After Osman escaped on the restart, Ebner got another headlock and quickly wrapped up his seventh pin of the season, tallying it 46 seconds into the match. The win improved the Warriors to 12-3 overall, as they clinched a dual meet record of better than .700 on the season for the first time since the 2004-05 team went 20-5 overall. The Warriors started the bout with a win, as freshman Kyle Drick (Allenwood, Pa./Montgomery Area) posted a 5-1 win over Austin Keough for his 24th win of the year. After a sudden-victory win by the Pioneers (1-8 overall) tied the meet at 133 pounds, senior Caleb Willey (Towanda, Pa./Towanda Area) took a forfeit win at 141 pounds for his 90th career win, becoming the 10th Warrior to reach that plateau in the process. Sophomore Seth Lansberry (Klingerstown, Pa./Line Mountain) followed with a pin with 30 seconds remaining in his bout against Kevin Thayer at 149 pounds. Sophomore Nolan Barger added an 8-2 win in a bout in which he notched more than five minutes of riding time against George VanValen at 165 pounds and freshman Brandon Conrad (Bloomsburg, Pa./Bloomsburg Area) followed with a 7-0 win over Josh Lord, giving Lycoming a 21-6 lead. After a decision by the Pioneers at 184, the duo of Secor and Ebner secured the win. The Warriors get back on the mat on Sunday, Feb. 1, when they host King's (Pa.) in a 1 p.m. dual meet against Middle Atlantic Conference foes. Results: 125: Kyle Drick (LYCO) over Austin Keough (ASC) (Dec 5-1) 133: Ryan Thierman (ASC) over Jake Witmer (LYCO) (SV-1 4-2) 141: Caleb Willey (LYCO) over (ASC) (For.) 149: Seth Lansberry (LYCO) over Kevin Thayer (ASC) (Fall 6:30) 157: Codie Nichols (ASC) over Holden Taylor (LYCO) (Dec 7-1) 165: Nolan Barger (LYCO) over George VanValen (ASC) (Dec 8-2) 174: Brandon Conrad (LYCO) over Joshua Lord (ASC) (Dec 7-0) 184: Bradley Haggerty (ASC) over Anthony Mancuso (LYCO) (Dec 7-2) 197: Johnathan Secor (LYCO) over Juan Nunez (ASC) (Fall 1:06) 285: Skylar Ebner (LYCO) over Anthony Osman (ASC) (Fall 0:46)

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- No. 17 Augustana College wrestling team recorded a pin at 184-pounds and improved to 4-0 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference action in a 19-18 win over Minnesota State (4-2, 4-2 NSIC) on Thursday night at the Elmen Center. The Vikings are now 15-4 on the season and have won eight straight duals. No. 1 TJ North got Augustana on the board with a 5-3 decision over No. 7 Da'Wayne Robertson at the 125-pound bout. Morgan Engbrecht came out in dominating fashion and worked his way to a major decision, 10-2. With North's and Engbrecht's efforts, the Vikings jumped ahead 7-0 early in the dual against the Mavericks. MSU's Alphonso Vruno responded for Minnesota State with the lone pin at 141-pounds to only trail Augustana, 7-6. At 149, Jacob Anderson used two nearfalls in the second period to secure the match with a 5-0 decision against Dyan Herman. The 157-pound match featured No. 5 Adam Cooling of Minnesota State and Bradyn Neises. Both wrestlers battled coming to a halt in the third period tied 2-2. Headed into overtime, Cooling used a final takedown to take the bout with a 4-2 decision. Teammates Cody Quinn (165 lbs) and Darick Vancura (174 lbs) won the next two bouts by decisions. The Mavericks gained the lead for the first time in the dual, with a score of 15-10 over the Vikings. Returning to his third dual after an injury, Aero Amo recorded his third straight pin in the first period at the 184-pound match. Amo pinned Corey Abernathy in 1:21 where the Vikings used Amo's six points to push back ahead, 16-15. Jayd Docken, ranked fifth in NCAA Division II, took control of the 197-pound bout with a late takedown in the third period to win 4-1 over MSU's Scott VanDeLoo. Augustana pushed ahead 19-15 with one final bout of the night left. After a scoreless first period, Michael Lowman and MSU's Malcolm Allen battled at the heavyweight bout leading to overtime. Allen took advantage with a late takedown with seconds left to take a 3-1 victory. The Mavericks came up just short in the dual with a score of 19-18, in favor of the Vikings. Augustana returns to NSIC action next Saturday, Feb. 7 traveling to Minot, N.D., to take on Minot State at 7 p.m. Results: 125: #1 TJ North won by sudden victory (5-3) over #7 Da'Wayne Robertson; AC 3, MSU 0 133: Morgan Engbrecht won by major decision (10-2) over Trevor Schultz; AC 7, MSU 0 141: Alphonso Vruno pinned #4 Jeremiah Peterson in 0:33; AC 7, MSU 6 149: Jacob Anderson won by decision (5-0) over Dyan Herman; AC 10, MSU 6 157: #5 Adam Cooling won by sudden victory (4-2) over Bradyn Neises; AC 10, MSU 9 165: Cody Quinn won by decision (6-2) over Parker Swanson; AC 10, MSU 12 174: Darick Vancura won by decision (5-1) over Logan Henning: AC 10, MSU 15 184: Aero Amo pinned Corey Abernathy in 1:21; AC 16, MSU 15 197: #5 Jayd Docken won by decision (4-1) over Scott VanDeLoo; AC 19, MSU 15 285: Malcolm Allen won by sudden victory (3-1) over Michael Lowman; AC 19, MSU 18

MOUNT VERNON -- Cornell's 18th-ranked wrestling team scored a flurry of wins at the upper weights Thursday and handed Mike Duroe his 200th collegiate coaching victory, 32-13, over Loras on Senior Night in the Small Multi-Sport Center. The Rams (12-7) ran off five consecutive victories to end the meet, highlighted by pins from sophomore 165-pounder Michael Maksimovic (SO/Northbrook, Ill.) and junior heavyweight Eric Tucker (JR/Monroe, Conn.). Cornell claimed its ninth straight series win over the Duhawks (8-10), and second of the month. Duroe improved his career record to 200-105-2 in 15 seasons at the collegiate level, which includes 118 victories on the Hilltop. Duroe, who won 82 duals while at Northern Michigan, has reached double-digit dual wins in eight of his 10 seasons in Mount Vernon. Cornell trailed 13-6 at the halfway point of this dual, but Maksimovic provided a jolt that got the Rams going the rest of the night. Maksimovic (17-14) scored an early takedown and then executed a five-point move later in the first period before finishing off Greg Vance with a fall in 2:36. Brent Hamm (SR/Iowa City, Iowa) (21-10), the lone senior starter on the team, went out a convincing winner in his final home match. The Ram 174-pounder tallied eight takedowns for a 21-6 technical fall in 5:28 over Ben Kindle. It was the 84th career victory for the four-year starter. Sophomore Brian Cristion (SO/Port Angeles, Wash.) (7-14) continued momentum at 184 with a late rally to beat Awais Arain, 5-2. Cristion posted a reversal and 3-point near fall in the final 15 seconds of his comeback win that pushed the Rams ahead 20-13. Aburough Abegesah (JR/Beltsville, Md.) (13-16) won by forfeit at 197, and then Tucker (20-11) decked Connor Swier in 3:19 in the heavyweight bout. The Rams received a 3-2 victory from Scott Smith (JR/Chicago, Ill.) (20-15) over Dayton Olson in the opening match at 125. Smith scored all three points in the final period, including a takedown with 1:40 to go. Loras won the next two matches to take a 9-3 lead. Michael Tripplett defeated Bryan Walsh (JR/Urbandale, Iowa), 12-5, at 133. The Duhawks' fifth-ranked Nick Steger posted a second-period pin over Jared Brathor (FR/Henderson, Nev.) at 141. Cornell's Trevor Engle (JR/Kansas City, Mo.), ranked 10th by D3wrestle.com at 149, earned a hard-fought 6-5 decision over Evan Weaver. It was the eighth straight win for Engle, who bumped his record to 24-7. The Duhawks got a 15-4 major decision from No. 6 Steven DeWitt over Aaron Engle (SO/Kansas City, Mo.) at 157. The Rams held a 15-12 advantage in total takedowns and outscored the Duhawks in near-fall points, 11-0. Coming up – The Rams return to competition Friday, Feb. 6, for a Bremner Cup meet against the 17th-ranked Coe Kohawks (7-7 overall) at 7 p.m. in Cedar Rapids. Coe won last year's dual, 27-12, in Mount Vernon. The Kohawks hold a 6-5 lead in the 2014-15 Bremner Cup All-Sport Standings with six head-to-head events remaining. Results: 125 – Scott Smith (Cor) dec. Dayton Olson, 3-2 133 – Michael Tripplett (Lor) dec. Bryan Walsh, 12-5 141 – #5 Nick Steger (Lor) pinned Jared Brathor, 3:51 149 – Trevor Engle (Cor) dec. Evan Weaver, 6-5 157 – #6 Steven DeWitt (Lor) maj. dec. Aaron Engle, 15-4 165 – Michael Maksimovic (Cor) pinned Greg Vance, 2:36 174 – Brent Hamm (Cor) tech fall Ben Kindle, 21-6 (5:28) 184 – Brian Cristion (Cor) dec. Awais Arain, 5-2 197 – Aburough Abegesah (Cor) won by forfeit 285 – Eric Tucker (Cor) pinned Connor Swier, 3:19.

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. -- Wrestling outdoors in front of the University Union plaza on the Cal Poly campus, CSU Bakersfield defeated the Mustangs 29-13 in Pac-12 action Thursday afternoon. The dual began at 165 where Adam Fierro (R-Sr., Bakersfield, Calif., Bakersfield HS) defeated Travis Berridge 4-1. In the only match of the day which pitted two ranked opponents against one another, No. 12 Bryce Hammond (R-Sr., Bakersfield, Calif., Bakersfield HS) defeated No. 28 Dominic Kastl 9-4. With CSUB (6-4, 1-3 Pac-12) leading 6-0, the Mustangs (1-13, 0-2 Pac-12) got on the board at 184 when Nick Fiegener earned a major decision, 19-10, over Sean Pollock (R-Sr., Oceanside, Calif., Rancho Buena Vista HS). Matt Williams (R-Fr., Apple Valley, Calif., Sultana HS) extended the Roadrunner lead to eight when he pinned JT Goodwin with 1:02 remaining in the first period of their match at 197 pounds. At heavyweight, Alex Encarnarcion-Strand (R-So., Concord, Calif., College Park HS) defeated Nicolas Johnson via a major decision, 12-4. Sergio Mendez (So., Arleta, Calif., San Fernando HS) rallied from an early deficit against Yoshi Funakoshi to pin the Mustang wrestler at 125 pounds with one second to go in the second period. Ian Nickell (R-Jr., Bakersfield, Calif., Bakersfield HS) defeated Jason Delacruz 9-3 in the 133-pound match to push the ‘Runner advantage to 25-4. Colton Schilling pinned Timmy Box (R-Jr., Bakersfield, Calif., Bakersfield HS) 2:26 into the 141-pound bout to make it 25-10. CSUB 149-pounder Coleman Hammond (R-Fr., Bakersfield, Calif., Bakersfield HS) posted his second consecutive major decision in a dual when he defeated Jacob Leon 9-1. The dual concluded at 157 where Colt Shorts used 1:06 in riding time to defeat Spencer Hill (R-Sr., Clovis, Calif., Fresno City College) 9-8. "Our guys wrestled well today," said CSUB head coach Mike Mendoza. "We had guys step up and get bonus points which was good to see. It was a good win and we need to build off this and continue to improve." The Roadrunners travel to the California Collegiate Open, hosted by San Francisco State on Saturday. The meet is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. and will run all day. CSUB returns home for the final time this season Feb. 11 when the ‘Runners host Cal Baptist at 7 p.m. Tickets are available at Valitix.com. Results: 165 Adam Fierro (CSUB) def. Travis Berridge, 4-1 174 No. 12 Bryce Hammond (CSUB) def. No. 28 Dominic Kastl, 9-4 184 Nick Fiegener (CP) def. Sean Pollock, 19-10 197 Matt Williams (CSUB) pinned JT Goodwin, @1:58 285 Alex Encarnarcion-Strand (CSUB) def. Nicolas Johnson, 12-4 125 Sergio Mendez (CSUB) pinned Yoshi Funakoshi, @4:59 133 Ian Nickell (CSUB) def. Jason Delacruz, 9-3 141 Colton Schilling (CP) pinned Timmy Box, @2:26 149 Coleman Hammond (CSUB) def. Jacob Leon, 9-1 157 Colt Shorts (CP) def. Spencer Hill, 9-8

If you didn't know already, the Iowa Hawkeyes are 2015's best collegiate wrestling team. And for a sport teetering on a massive exodus of fans due to an ever more boring product, the success of a stalwart is a very good thing. Tom Brands speaks at a press conference following Iowa's defeat to Minnesota last seasonDynasties sell. They make numbers for broadcasters and they reintroduce wayward fans to the power of hero and heel storylines. The Hawkeyes, with their cult-driven personalities and grunt-first mat attitudes, are carrying a season in desperate need of dynamism. The Hawkeyes will win the NCAA tournament and they'll do so in dominating fashion. While it's always been easy to write critical words about what happens when their passion becomes unbound, it's clear that in 2015 their ambition, talent and work ethic are in sync. (If Iowa does face a tough test, it'll happen tonight against the Minnesota Gophers.) Like the Yankees, Cowboys, Penguins and Tiger Woods the success of wrestling's dynasty will help the sport grow in America, but we all know the real gift is that Hawkeye success means more press conferences with Tom Brands. That's always good for business. To your questions ... Q: Could the Grand Prix you propose be pulled off? I'm an entrepreneur and always cooking up ideas and have often wondered about this being I'm a lifelong wrestling fan. In this case figured too risky and not worth the effort -- on my part. But as a fan, if it was available, would be awesome! Would the top names be allowed to participate? You'd have to have more than one weight class per event to make it a go and long enough for the paying fan. -- Paul E. Foley: I don't think you need more than one weight class and I think you can prune it down to only eight wrestlers. Not only would the paying public show up to a shorter event, they would likely do so in HIGHER numbers than you would see at a tournament. Good grief wrestling tournaments are difficult to follow and make for exceptionally long days. Imagine only eight wrestlers divided into groups of four with each wrestler facing three opponents. Instead of hoping that your two favorite wrestlers meet up in the finals of the Ivan Yarygin tournament, you are guaranteed to see them compete. And still there is an advancement aspect to the competition that is different from that of a promotional show. I'm pretty webbed-in to what goes on and I know there is nothing that stands in the way of this being an independently-run event. The only issue might become if you could get it on the calendar. However, I think any successful run Grand Prix could potentially end up in the re-imagined schedule for post-2016. Starting with what you know would work, it's easy to see how this could potentially make a lot of money. But more important is that the athletes receive financial compensation and the fans see that matchups they want. The media also gets the type of story and event that is easy to cover. I say rock and roll. MUTLIMEDIA HALFTIME My boy Jim Harshaw tells the truth about failure and wrestling. WooHoo for jiu-jitsu Post by Caio Terra BJJ. Q: What do you think of Deflategate? Who you got in the Super Bowl? Will wrestling ever have this type of event? -- Bryan L. Foley: There are wars all over the globe, hunger, starvation and deprivation affecting billions of lives. The consumption of sports was never meant to replace the distressing headlines from around the world, but in being presented to the public as part of the news was meant to provide readers a respite from carnage, a place where heroes could emerge and heels be squandered. In 2D and in print the sportswriter was able to build for audiences and readers a sense of the struggle and the scene as much as they provided the content of the action. Today sport journalism is a world consumed with low-calorie, highly caffeinated opinions about stories that lack real journalistic questions to answer. The journalism of the sporting world is being replaced by realty television raunchiness. Is this the way of things? Is the discussion of a hyper-minor cheating scandal outweighing the obvious and larger issues? In the mind of the paid-for partner media entities of the NFL the answer is, "Yes." There is no incentive to report further on head trauma or discuss the relative merits of putting financially at risk cities in limbo so that rich individual owners don't have to pay for new stadiums. Instead of covering the rabid consumerism infused into the day and how it might affect our cultural values, or at least reflect them, we instead have thought pieces on HOW TO TALK TO YOUR KIDS ABOUT THE PATRIOTS CHEATING SCANDAL. We in the wrestling community always talk of validation by television and the need for the increased sales surrounding the sport. What we discuss with less frequency and ferocity are the consequences of selling up. What would it mean for wrestling to reach a platform 1/100 the size of the Super Bowl? Would we all be happier? Having watched the MMA media not give a Buffalo nickel about Jon Jones' cocaine use and the football media attack the idea of under-inflated footballs, I can now predict the end of modern civilization. We have peaked. We are on the downslope of achievement and falling fast. Wrestling doesn't need nor want the Super Bowl's disingenuous culture-culling swill. We are pure through sport and our intention should be to stay that way as much as possible. More money and notoriety seem like outcomes worth acquiring, but aren't when the consequences are the total loss of identity and the loss of reputation, the money loses appeal. We've reached the saturation point of bullshit in the media's depiction of sports. Entertainment is not meant for the fans alone, it's a hybrid, a careful shell game where the puppeteers hide from the paying viewers the sausage-making to ensure profitable outcomes. The media is supposed to sit back with cynicism and pick apart the bloviating and entitled shrimps that preen on-stage for the sake of dollar bills. Today, they are more like the magician's assistant than a cynic in the crowd. The real journos are gone and we only have left as few limp attempts at figuring out who mildly deflated balls used in a few football plays. Wrestling should remain outside of the fray and be content with growing our sport for our fans, and not for a general public that desires the lowest common denominator -- a public that wants high ropes and cage matches instead of passion and athleticism. Oh, and it's not a "World Championship" if nobody else plays your game.

Projected Matchups Iowa vs. Minnesota 125: No. 5 Gilman vs. Lizak 133: No. 5 Clark vs. No. 1 C.Dardanes 141: No. 5 Dziewa vs. No. 4 N.Dardanes 149: No. 2 Sorensen vs. Short 157: No. 15 Kelly vs. No. 1 Ness 165: No. 7 Moore vs. No. 17 Wanzek 174: No. 2 Evans vs. No. 4 Storley 184: No. 8 Brooks vs. No. 11 Pfarr 197: No. 3 Burak vs. No. 6 Schiller 285: No. 2 Telford vs. No. 13 KroellsTonight No. 1 Minnesota (10-0) battles No. 2 Iowa (10-0) for the 100th time. The dual meet is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT at Williams Arena in Minneapolis. Minnesota has come out victorious in three of the last four meetings between the programs, including the two most recent meetings. However, the Hawkeyes lead the all-time series 70-28-1. Tonight's dual meet will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network. Below are three keys to victory for each team. Iowa Thomas Gilman has a record of 19-1 and is currently ranked fifth at 125 pounds (Photo/Mark Lundy)Take the Minnesota crowd out of it Both programs have loyal fan bases that travel well. So even with the dual meet taking place in Minneapolis, there will be a large Hawkeye contingent. It's important for Iowa to start strong and take the Minnesota crowd out of it early. Last year in Iowa City, Minnesota pulled a major upset at 125 pounds to begin the dual meet when Sam Brancale pinned Thomas Gilman, which helped silence the Iowa crowd and jumpstart the Gophers in a 19-15 victory. Assuming the dual meet starts at 125 pounds again (like most Iowa-Minnesota dual meets), Gilman will be the first Iowa wrestler on the mat and be heavily favored against Minnesota true freshman Ethan Lizak. Gilman defeated Lizak 11-4 at the Midlands Championships a month ago. If Gilman can dominate his Gopher opponent and earn bonus points this time around, it could help silence the Minnesota crowd and give the Hawkeyes momentum heading into matches that slightly favor Minnesota. Win one of the following three weight classes: 133, 141, 174 All three of the matches are expected to be competitive and will be especially important matches in deciding the dual meet winner. Based strictly on rankings, Iowa is a slight underdog at 133 pounds and 141 pounds, and a slight favorite at 174 pounds. At 133 pounds, Iowa's Cory Clark comes into tonight's match with a 16-2 record and ranked No. 5, while Minnesota's Chris Dardanes enters with a perfect 17-0 record and ranked No. 1. Clark won a Midlands title this season, beating Zane Richards of Illinois in the finals, a wrestler who was on the brink of beating Dardanes until the Gopher senior mounted a late rally, scoring four takedowns in the span of a minute in the final period to steal the victory. Chris Dardanes wrestles at a high pace and uses his conditioning to his advantage. If Clark can slow the pace, pick his spots and ride Dardanes, it's a match he can win. At 141 pounds, Iowa's fifth-ranked Josh Dziewa will meet fourth-ranked Nick Dardanes. Last season Dziewa upset Nick's twin brother Chris Dardanes, 1-0, in the dual meet. Dziewa will most certainly be in the match tonight, but whether he can get his hand raised remains to be seen. Undefeated Mike Evans of Iowa, a two-time All-American, is ranked two spots higher than Minnesota three-time All-American Logan Storley at 174 pounds, but it's Storley who leads the all-time series 3-1. All four of the matches between Evans and Storley have been decided by two points or less. Evans' lone win over Storley came in their most recent meeting last season in Iowa City, 2-1. Win the bonus-point battle With these two teams being so evenly matched, there is a very real possibility that the teams will both win five matches like the last time they met a year ago. If a 5-5 split occurs it will come down to bonus points. Iowa is expected to get bonus points from Thomas Gilman at 125 pounds, while Minnesota is counting on bonus point from top-ranked Dylan Ness at 157 pounds. In addition to being heavily favored at 125 pounds, the Hawkeyes are solid favorites at 149 pounds, 165 pounds and heavyweight. Of those three weight classes, 149 pounds appears to be Iowa's best opportunity for bonus points based on this season's results. It's a match pitting No. 2 Brandon Sorensen of Iowa vs. unranked Jake Short of Minnesota, who comes in with a record of 11-7. The freshman Sorensen has earned bonus points in over half of his wins this season has been on fire lately. He has recent wins over both returning NCAA finalists at 149 pounds, Jason Tsirtsis of Northwestern and Josh Kindig of Oklahoma State, as well as two-time All-American Hunter Stieber of Ohio State. Sorensen crushed nationally ranked Ken Theobold of Rutgers, a wrestler who defeated Short. However, what makes the Sorensen-Short match intriguing and gives Gopher fans a glimmer of hope is the fact that Short has owned the series in freestyle. Short notched a 7-2 victory over Sorensen this past summer in freestyle at the FILA Junior World Team Trials in Madison, and also defeated him in in the Cadet National freestyle finals in Fargo while in high school. Minnesota Chris Dardanes stormed back to defeat Zane Richards of Illinois (Photo/Mark Beshey, The Guillotine)Get wins from both Dardanes bros. If the dual meet starts at 125 pounds, the Dardanes brothers will be on the mat early at 133 pounds and 141 pounds and help set the tone for the dual meet. The twins have a combined record this season of 33-1 and will be facing highly ranked Hawkeyes Cory Clark (133) and Josh Dziewa (141), who have a combined record this season of 34-6. If both Dardanes brothers pick up victories early in the dual meet, along with Dylan Ness at 157 pounds, the Gophers will take a lead into intermission and just need to win two of the final five matches to guarantee a 5-5 split. Win two of the following three weight classes: 174, 184, 197 At least two of three Gopher upperweights from 174 pounds to 197 pounds must earn victories for the Gophers to have a chance to win the dual meet. Logan Storley (174) and Scott Schiller (197) both lead the all-time series against their Hawkeye opponents despite both being ranked lower than those wrestlers. The matchup at 184 pounds between Sammy Brooks of Iowa and Brett Pfarr of Minnesota is virtually a tossup on paper. Brooks has a slightly better record and is ranked three spots higher, but Pfarr has a win over a wrestler (Nolan Boyd of Oklahoma State) who defeated Brooks this season. (Brooks also has a win over NDSU's Hayden Zillmer, a wrestler who has beaten Pfarr twice this season.) Pfarr defeated Brooks 11-6 this past summer at the FILA Junior World Team Trials in Madison. However, it was Brooks who won their only collegiate meeting, 5-4, at the UNI Open two seasons ago. Use the home crowd to its advantage Minnesota has won 26 of its 27 home dual meets since 2011, so there is no denying that the Gophers feel comfortable wrestling in front of their home crowd. Last season Minnesota finished third among all Division I wrestling programs in attendance, behind only Iowa and Penn State. The Minnesota faithful will pack Williams Arena tonight, but the Gophers need to give their fans something to cheer about and keep them loud and engaged throughout the dual meet.

The National Wrestling Coaches Association will be bringing the National Duals back to campuses around the country in February to set up a finale weekend at the University of Iowa’s Carver-Hawkeye Arena The EAS Sports Nutrition/NWCA National Duals presented by Hibiclens and the United States Marines Corps in honor of Cliff Keen will start the weekend of February 14 at eight separate regional sites with the winners of the dual matchups coming together the following weekend. The Division I portion National Duals, coupled with the recently conducted Multi-Division National Duals, is dubbed Mat Mayhem. "We have the opportunity to engage a very wide fanbase by starting our regional event with effectively a play-in type of match," said NWCA Executive Director Mike Moyer. "We saw success a few years ago with a regional model, but we took what we liked about the regional format with what we liked about a Final Four-type of format and put together a great way to finalize the dual meet portion of the season, culminating in a national dual meet championship." Cornell, Edinboro, Lehigh, Chattanooga, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri and North Dakota State will all host the regional play-in round. Winners of each of those eight matches will come to Iowa City the following weekend where teams will be reseeded and then wrestle in an advancement-style bracket. Fans looking for dates, times and ticket information can go to www.nationalduals.com to find out how to purchase tickets online for each of the eight regional matchups and the finals weekend in Iowa City. "Some matchups have regional intrigue and some of our higher-ranked teams will be going on the road to kickstart fanbases in those particular regions," said Moyer. "For example, there is a large contingent of dedicated wrestling fans in the Upper Midwest and with Minnesota being the only Division I school in Minnesota and there are ties with the coaching staff at North Dakota State, that’s a natural regional matchup that will have great individual matches and also have storylines for the local media and local wrestling community." Action begins on February 14 as George Mason will take on Lehigh at Grace Hall and the seven other duals will take place on February 15. Other first-round matchups are Drexel at Cornell, Ohio State at Edinboro, Oklahoma at Chattanooga, Kent State at Illinois, Virginia at Iowa, American at Missouri and Minnesota at North Dakota State. The championship round will take place on February 21-22 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena with the quarterfinals and semifinals getting underway on Saturday and the finals and third-place dual continuing on Sunday. The semifinals and finals will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network. "Since the founding days of the National Duals back in Hampton, Virginia in 1989, the dual meet advancement concept has provided some of the most exciting collegiate wrestling each season," said Moyer. "We’re extremely pleased that EAS Sports Nutrition has maintained its title sponsorship of the event and with the continued support from Hibiclens and the Marines. Without them, we wouldn’t be able to bring the National Duals to eight different venues across the country over a two-week span in February." About the NWCA Founded in 1928, the NWCA strives to promote and provide leadership for the advancement of amateur wrestling, primarily at the scholastic and collegiate levels. The association is headquartered in Manheim, Pa. The three core competencies are coaching development, student-wrestler welfare, and promotion/advocacy. The NWCA has 10,000 members and educational programs that serve 230,000 students each year. About EAS Sports Nutrition Abbott, a global health care company and maker of EAS products, has more than 85 years of innovation in leading-edge nutritional science. Whether you are an elite athlete, fitness enthusiast or weekend warrior, EAS develops performance nutrition products that can help you play hard and recover strong. A brand you can trust, EAS and its team of scientists, researchers and all-around fitness enthusiasts take pride in making products that are impactful, clean and safe -- so you can keep pushing yourself to the next level. Visit EAS.com or facebook.com/EASbrand. About the United States Marine Corps On November 10, 1775, the Marine Corps was established by the Second Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Since then, the Marine Corps, through service on land, in air, and at sea, have acquitted themselves with the greatest distinction, winning new honors on each occasion until the term "Marine" has come to signify all that is highest in military efficiency and soldierly virtue. Whether facing our nation’s foes or conducting humanitarian relief and disaster recovery operations at home or abroad, today’s Marine Corps stands ready to continue in the same proud tradition of faithful service to the United States. For more information, visit http://www.Marines.com. About Hibiclens Hibiclens is an antiseptic antimicrobial skin cleanser possessing bactericidal properties that can be part of an effective defense for preventing the spread of skin infections. Its active ingredient works in a unique way -- it kills germs on contact and bonds to the skin to keep killing microorganisms up to 6 hours after washing. Hibiclens has been proven to kill MRSA (in vitro) and other staph infections.

WICHITA -- The Newman wrestling team started its home schedule with a 31-13 victory over Pratt Community College on Wednesday (Jan. 28) at Fugate Gymnasium. Senior Kris Workman was honored before the dual for Senior Night. The Jets moved to 2-7 in duals. NU won six of the 10 weight classes, including two by pins. The Jets also got six points in two forfeit victories. Sophomore Dustin Reed started the dual with a 6-0 forfeit win in the 125 lb. class. The 133 lb. class was open for both teams. Senior Kris Workman moved up to the 141 lb. class to wrestle on senior day in front of a large crowd of friends and family. Battling an elbow injury, Workman lost by an 11-0 major decision for a 6-4 team score. Freshman Tyler Mies got the Jets back on track with a 13-4 major decision win in the 149 lb. class. Mies totaled four takedowns in the victory over Pratt's Daniel Melcher. In the 157 lb. class, freshman Forlanda Parker lost by a 8-3 decision to Austin Hughey. After the first five matches, NU held a close 10-7 edge. Noel Torres won by injury default in the 165 lb. class. After Torres takedown, Pratt's Syed Rafay Ali was unable to continue, upping the Newman lead to 16-7. Michael Kubik got the Jets first pin of the dual, getting the fall at 1:04 over PCC's Travis Quarterman. With the win, NU went up by a 22-7 score. Pratt got a late pin in the 184 lb. class. Dalton Weidl went down in the last minute to Micah Felton in what was a tight match before the pin. Pratt pulled to within nine at 22-13 after the fall. The Jets picked up two victories in the final two weight classes. Bobby Bowman dominated his match and got a pin with 5 seconds left in the third period. Bowman was already up by a 13-0 score before the pin. The victory put NU in front by a score of 28-13 and clinched the dual win. Freshman Lex Plummer finished the match with a 5-2 decision win in the 285 lb. class over Jacob Crane. Plummer had two takedowns in the third period to pull away for the win. NU returns to MIAA dual action on Sunday (Feb. 1) against Nebraska-Kearney. The dual starts at 2 p.m. inside Fugate Gymnasium. Results: 125: Dustin Reed (NU) won by forfeit 133: OPEN 141: Andrew Beck (PCC) won by major decision (11-0) over Kris Workman (NU) 149: Tyler Mies (NU) won by major decision (13-4) over Daniel Melcher (PCC) 157: Austin Hughey (PCC) won by decision (8-3) over Forlanda Parker (NU) 165: Noel Torres (NU) won by injury default over Syed Rafay Ali (PCC) 174: Michael Kubik (NU) won by fall (1:04) over Travis Quarterman (PCC) 184: Micah Felton (PCC) won by fall (5:00) over Dalton Weidl (NU) 197: Bobby Bowman (NU) won by fall (6:55) over Matt Kissinger (PCC) 285: Lex Plummer (NU) won by decision (5-2) over Jacob Crane (PCC)

The SUNY Oneonta wrestling team picked up its second consecutive victory in dominating fashion Saturday night as they defeat the King's College Monarchs by a score of 39-9. With the score tied at three after the first two bouts, junior Adam Greene (Port Crane/Chenango Valley) stepped on the mat, pinning Kevin Kelly in just 56 seconds. Rookie Mitchell Fisher (Canandaigua/Canandaigua Academy) and junior captain Shaun Gillen (Bohemia/Connetquot) picked up pins at 165 and 174, respectively. With the score 28-9 in favor of the Red and White, the Red Dragons would not ease up. Vincent Provenzano (Islip/Islip) picked up a major decision by a 14-4 count over Zachary Smith before senior captain Chad Obzud (Cohoes/Lansingburgh) earned a tech fall victory over Fjoralb Cekici at 197 pound. Freshman James Bethel (Saugerties/Saugerties) finished off the night by pinning Ralph Bernardo in just 39 seconds. The fall marks Bethel's seventh consecutive pin fall. The Red Dragons are back in action on Saturday when they travel to Worcester, Mass. for a quad meet with Coast Guard, Worcester Polytechnic Institute and Plymouth State. Results: 125: Dominic DeGraba (Dallas, PA/Dallas) (ONE) def. Jake Daniel (King's) decision 3-2 (3-0 ONE) 133: Matthew Sparks (KING'S) def. Sean Hanson (Lorraine/South Jefferson) (ONE) decision 6-3 (3-3) 141: Adam Greene (Port Crane/Chenango Valley) (ONE) def. Kevin Kelly (KING'S) pin at 0:56 (9-3 ONE) 149: John Hodes (Stone Ridge) (ONE) def. Giacamo Dinicola (KING'S) decision 5-1 (12-3 ONE) 157: Howard Kilpatrick (KING'S) def. Dakota Inman (Liverpool/Liverpool) (ONE) pin at 4:56 (12-9 ONE) 165: Mitchell Fisher (Canandaigua/Canandaigua Academy ) (ONE) def. Hilton Martin (KING'S) pin at 6:42 (18-9 ONE) 174: Shaun Gillen (Bohemia/Connetquot) (ONE) def. Nathaniel Seals (KING'S) pin at 4:02 (24-9 ONE) 184: Vincent Provenzano (Islip/Islip) (ONE) def. Zachary Smith (KING'S) major decision 14-4 (28-9 ONE) 197: Chad Obzud (Cohoes/Lansingburgh) (ONE) def. Fjoralb Cekici (KING'S) tech fall 15-0 5:30 (33-9 ONE) HWT: James Bethel (Saugerties/Saugerties) (ONE) def. Ralph Bernardo (KING'S) pin 0:39 (39-9 ONE)

GOLDEN, Colo. -- The Colorado State University-Pueblo wrestling team earned a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference dual victory Wednesday at Colorado School of Mines. The ThunderWolves jumped out to a 12-0 lead, en route to a 28-19 win. The Pack used three pins to improve to 7-6 overall and 2-2 in league play, while the Orediggers dropped to 4-4 overall and 0-3 in RMAC duals. Junior Alex Baca (Pueblo, Colo.) recorded his second consecutive win at 125 with a 7-3 decision to set the tone for the first three matches. Senior Eric Hughes (Bolivar, Mo.) recorded his third fall of the season at 3:40, while junior Tim Urenda (Pueblo, Colo.) returned after missing last week's matches and won by a 6-5 decision. The Pack lost the next two matches and led 12-7, but a pin by freshman JaCobi Jones (Omaha, Neb.) at 165 in the third period (5:48) and a major decision victory for sophomore Steven Ullman (Arvada, Colo.) at 175 lifted the ThunderWolves' lead to 22-7. Back-to-back pins by the Orediggers made it a 22-19 dual with only the heavyweights left to battle. Senior Niko Bogojevic (Superior, Wis.) quickly pinned any momentum Colorado Mines had with a first-period fall at 1:50. Both Jones, who also returned from injury, and Bogojevic posted their second dual pins of the season. The ThunderWolves will host No. 5 Western State Colorado University (7-0, 3-0 RMAC) Thursday in a 7 p.m. dual at Massari Arena. Kids in grades K-12 that participate in a local wrestling organization will get in free by wearing clothing from their club or team. There will also be a 50/50 raffle.

DICKINSON, N.D. -- It didn't take long for No. 6-ranked Concordia to get back on the dual-meet winning track. The Cobbers posted a pair of three-match win streaks at Dickinson State and rolled to a 21-14 win over the Blue Hawks. The win was just what the doctor ordered less than five days after falling at Augsburg. Concordia traveled west to Dickinson, won six of the 10 individual bouts and improved their dual-meet record to 11-5 on the season. The trio of lightweights gave Concordia the momentum in the match by recording the first three-match win streak. Jakob Stageberg, Gabe Foltz and No.4-ranked Jacoby Bergeron all posted wins to stake the Cobbers to a 10-0 lead. Stageberg won 10-4 at 125 then Foltz followed with a 9-4 decision at 133. It was Stageberg's 22nd win of the season and he is now 22-10 in his first season of collegiate wrestling. Bergeron dominated his match at 141 and earned an 11-3 major decision. It was Bergeron's 18th consecutive win and improves his team-best record to 29-6 on the year. He is one win shy of breaking into the rare 30-win club and needs only 10 more victories to break the school record for wins in a single season. Concordia dropped the next two bouts in the match and saw their lead shrink to 10-7. Senior Jake Krogstad then started the second three-match win streak by gaining a 6-4 decision at 165. Krogstad, who is currently ranked fourth in the latest national rankings, recorded his 16th win for the year and moves his record to 16-8. No.8-ranked Sebastian Gardner and Brandon Larson followed Krogstad's win with victories of their own to give Concordia an insurmountable 21-7 lead with two matches left. Gardner won by a technical fall at 174. He finished off his opponent at the 4:52 mark after he pushed his lead to 18-0. Gardner is now 19-6 on the year and needs one more victory to become the fourth CC wrestler to reach the 20-win mark for the year. Larson closed out the match with an 8-4 decision at 184. Larson is slowly rounding into form after not wrestling for almost a full month. Larson is 2-1 in his three matches in January and is now 10-4 overall. Concordia will now have a 10-day break to train and prepare for their final multi-team invitational of the regular season. The Cobbers will next hit the mat on Jan. 7 when they participate in the North Country Open held at St. John's. Results: 125 - Jakob Stageberg (CC) dec. Brice Gorsline (DSU); 10-4 (Concordia 3-0) 133 - Gabe Foltz (CC) dec. Cade Coles (DSU); 9-4 (Concordia 6-0) 141 - No.4 Jacoby Bergeron (CC) maj. dec. Jordan Delp (DSU); 11-3 (Concordia 10-0) 149 - Seth Ehlang (DSU) maj. dec. Yonas Gebreab (CC); 9-0 (Concordia 10-4) 157 - Sean Elkins (DSU) dec. Ben Cousins (CC); 10-4 (Concordia 10-7) 165 - No.4 Jake Krogstad (CC) dec. Taylor Hodel (DSU); 6-4 (Concordia 13-7) 174 - No.8 Sebastian Gardner (CC) tech. fall Tyler Brown (DSU); 18-0 4:52 (Concordia 18-7) 184 - Brandon Larson (CC) dec. Jon Solano (DSU); 8-4 (Concordia 21-7) 197 - Hudson Buck (DSU) maj. dec. Danny Pike (CC); 10-2 (Concordia 21-11) 285 - Meyer Bohn (DSU) dec. Tyler Hoffman (CC); 11-5 (Concordia 21-14)

ABERDEEN, S.D. -- Southwest Minnesota State was in full control as it dominated Northern State, 31-10 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference wrestling Wednesday night. The dual started out at 157 pounds as Northern State's Sean Havlocic scored first in a close, 4-3 decision over Patrick Kelley. The next trio of Mustangs would defeat their opponent as Jacob Begin started the scoring at 165 pounds as the senior pinned Blake Perryman at 3:56 to give the Mustangs the lead. Colton Vekved and Brody Goens would also score points for SMSU with a pair of decisions to put the Mustangs up 12-3. NSU would score at 197 as Joe Gomez defeated Tristan Ezell with a major decision to pull with in six points, but Cole Wilson took on Dustin Caspers and recorded a major decision and pushed the Mustangs lead to 16-7. In the 125 and 133 pounds SMSU would win by forfeit. Cody Reed would add to the lead at 141 pounds with a 4-0 decision to cement the victory. In the final dual of the night, Grant Steen held on to get the final points of the dual for NSU by a 4-3 decision over Jake Slocum. Results: 125 pounds | Taylor Curtis (SMSU) over (Unknown) (SMSU 22-7) 133 pounds | Landyn VanOverbeke (SMSU) over (Unknown) (SMSU 28-7) 141 pounds | Cody Reed (SMSU) over Tyler Frost (NSU) Decision 4-0 (SMSU 31-7) 149 pounds | Grant Steen (NSU) over Jake Slocum (SMSU) Decision 4-3 (SMSU 31-10) 157 pounds | Sean Havlovic (NSU) over Patrick Kelley (SMSU) Decision 4-3 (NSU 3-0) 165 pounds | Jacob Begin (SMSU) over Blake Perryman (NSU) Fall 3:56 (SMSU 6-3) 174 pounds | Colton Vekved (SMSU) over Anthony Navarro (NSU) Decision 11-6 (SMSU 9-3) 184 pounds | Brody Goens (SMSU) over David Murphy (NSU) Decision 9-3 (SMSU 12-3) 197 pounds | Joe Gomez (NSU) over Tristan Ezell (SMSU) Major Decision 14-0 (SMSU 12-7) 285 pounds | Cole Wilson (SMSU) over Dustin Caspers (NSU) Major Decision 10-2 (SMSU 16-7) Southwest Minnesota State will return to the PE Gym and take on No. 6 Upper Iowa on Friday night at 7 p.m.

GETTYSBURG, Pa. -- The Johns Hopkins wrestling team won four of the first six matches to jump to a 14-3 lead and held off a late rally by host Gettysburg as the Blue Jays earned a 20-15 victory in Centennial Conference wrestling action in Bream Gymnasium Wednesday evening. Johns Hopkins evens its Centennial record at 2-2, while Gettysburg slips to 1-2 in the league. Hopkins got off to a quick start on the strength of a pair of major decisions by fifth-ranked Paul Bewak at 125 and junior Evan Krumheuer at 133. Bewak led just 4-2 over Noah Malamut late in the second period before a reversal and three-point near fall extended his advantage to 9-2. He added a takedown and three more backs in the final period to take a 14-2 victory. Krumheuer added a 13-5 major decision of Barrett Connor at 133 as he led 5-0 after one period and 9-2 after two en route to the victory. The win for Bewak as the 118th of his career, which ties him with Bill Holsinger of Muhlenberg (1999-2002) for sixth place on the Centennial’s career victory chart. The teams split the next four matches with Johns Hopkins’ Tommy Grifa and Christian Salera taking decisions at 149 and 157 to help the Blue Jays to the 14-3 lead. A narrow 4-3 win by Pat Thomas over Welles Sakmar at 165 trimmed the deficit to 14-6, but back-to-back wins at 174 and 184 secured the win for the Blue Jays. While all six individual wins the Blue Jays earned were key to the victory, it was a five-point move by sophomore Jared Forman in the third period that proved decisive. Locked in a 3-3 tie with Gettysburg’s Tyler Cunningham, Forman scored a takedown near the edge of the circle and put Cunningham to his back for three near fall points to grab an 8-3 victory. When senior Evan Johnson followed with a 9-4 victory over Camden Stoops, the Blue Jays had a 20-6 lead and had secured an eighth straight win against the Bullets. Anthony Puca decisioned Kory Johnson (5-3) at 197 and Joey Bragg added a second-period pin at 285 to account for the 20-15 final score. Results: 125: Paul Bewak (J) def. Noah Malamut (G) (MD 14-2) 133: Evan Krumheuer (J) over Barrett Connor (G) (MD 13-5) 141: Jake Bracken (G) over Connor Joyce (J) (Dec 3-2) 149: Tommy Grifa (J) over Quinn Merrigan (G) (Dec 8-5) 157: Christian Salera (J) over Brandon Carcuffe (G) (Dec 9-2) 165: Pat Thomas (G) over Welles Sakmar (J) (Dec 4-3) 174: Jared Forman (J) over Tyler Cunningham (G) (Dec 8-3) 184: Evan Johnson (J) over Camden Stoops (G) (Dec 9-4) 197: Anthony Puca (G) over Kory Johnson (J) (Dec 5-3) 285: Joey Bragg (G) over Ellis Flannery (J) (Fall 4:29)

Jordan Kutler won a Beast of the East title (Photo/Rob Preston) The final step in the eight weekend gauntlet that is the regular season schedule for No. 3 Blair Academy, N.J., comes on Saturday night when they travel to No. 5 Wyoming Seminary, Pa., for a dual meet. The teams have been in one common tournament this season, the Walsh Ironman. The Buccaneers placed second scoring 189.5 points, which was obviously aided by Mason Manville's runner-up finish at 160; Manville is no longer on the roster. Conversely Wyoming Seminary was fourth in the standings with 134 points, though they were missing Nick Reenan at 170 (though he's been out all season), a top three finisher in all likelihood. What appears to be a big gap based on the Ironman standings is actually one that is smaller in reality, and much smaller if accounting for Reenan. All that sets up what is a big dual meet to be held in Kingston. The teams met last year at the NHSCA Festival, splitting the weight classes seven apiece, but Blair Academy won the dual 27-24. Below are the projected weight-by-weight matchups for Saturday night. 106: Matthew Vinci (Blair) vs. Will Moss (Wyoming Seminary) Neither wrestler placed at the Walsh Ironman in mid-December. However, Moss went 2-2, while Vinci was 1-2. In one of the weaker matchups across this dual meet, Moss is the favorite. 113: No. 15 Zach Sherman vs. Jack Davis Sherman placed eighth at the Walsh Ironman, while Davis went two-and-out. Sherman was also a runner-up at National Preps, and is the clear favorite in this bout. 120: Requir van der Merwe vs. No. 6 Jack Mueller Mueller placed third at the Walsh Ironman, while van der Merwe was one match short of placement. Last year at National Preps, Mueller was champion and van der Merwe third at 113 pounds. 126: Andrew Monohan vs. Trent Olson Olson was a runner-up last year at National Preps to Mueller, when Mueller was at Trinity Christian Academy in Texas. Monohan did not start last year for Blair Academy. At the Walsh Ironman, Olson went 1-2, though the losses were to L.J. Bentley and Jose Rodriguez; while Blair teammate Andrew Merola went 2-2. This match is one that Olson would be favored to win. 132: No. 16 Charles Tucker vs. John Busiello Tucker placed third at the Walsh Ironman, while Busiello was one match short of placement. Last year at National Preps, Tucker placed second at 120, while Busiello was fifth at 106. This is a match that Tucker is a clear favorite in. 138: No. 2 Matthew Kolodzik vs. Will Verallis This match would be a rematch of the National Prep final that Kolodzik won last year. However, Wyoming Seminary could choose to bump Verallis up to 145, and place Patrick Munn into the lineup. At the Ironman, Kolodzik placed second, while Verallis was 2-2. Kolodzik wins regardless of opponent; however, if it's not Verallis, bonus is almost assured. 145: Michael Monica vs. Danny Boychuck At the Walsh Ironman, Boychuck placed seventh, while Monica was one match away from placement. This matchup in and of itself would be a tossup; however, Boychuck did not compete for Wyoming Seminary at Eastern States. If Boychuck is not available, I would think they bump Verallis up to this weight (as he won't beat Kolodzik, while the Blue Knights' backup here won't beat Monica). 152: No. 3 Jordan Kutler vs. Jake Hendricks/Andrew Munn/Colin Toggas Kutler placed third at the Walsh Ironman, while Toggas went 2-2 for the Blue Knights. Kutler has been on fire all season, and is looking at bonus points in this match. 160: Peter Bearse vs. No. 10 Chris Weiler Bearse did not wrestle for Blair at the Ironman, but placed eighth at the Beast; while Weiler finished third at the Ironman, after finishing runner-up last year at National Preps. 170: No. 8 Brandon Dallavia vs. No. 6 Nick Reenan/Greg Kleinsmith Reenan, runner-up last year to Mason Manville at National Preps, has been out of the lineup all season. However, it is possible he could be back for this dual meet. A very solid Greg Kleinsmith has been in the lineup all year, and went 2-2 at the Walsh Ironman. Dallavia placed third at the Ironman, and was fourth in this weight class – a loaded one – at National Preps last year. 182: No. 14 Chase Singletary vs. No. 11 Christian Dietrich These two wrestlers met in the seventh place match at the Walsh Ironman, where Dietrich came through with a 5-2 victory. A similarly competitive match, where Dietrich is the likely winner, is the most feasible outcome. Dietrich was a New York state champion last year as a sophomore, while Singletary was third in Florida as a freshman after winning high school state titles in seventh and eighth grade. 195: Neil Putnam vs. Zane Black The sophomore Black out-placed Putnam at the Walsh Ironman, placing sixth compared to seventh. As a freshman, Black made the Pennsylvania Class AA state tournament, while competing at Bishop McDevitt; Putnam placed fifth in National Preps as a sophomore. On paper, Black would be the slightest of favorites. 220: No. 8 David Showunmi vs. Cole Nye These two wrestlers met in the quarterfinals at the Walsh Ironman, Showunmi winning a 7-1 decision the way to a championship, while Nye placed seventh. Last year, Showunmi missed National Preps due to injury, but was a Junior freestyle All-American; while Nye fell short of state qualification as a freshman at Bishop McDevitt, though he became a Cadet freestyle All-American in the summer. 285: Ian Day vs. Michael Rogers This is the weakest weight class for Blair Academy, while Rogers placed fourth at the Walsh Ironman, and was a Junior National double All-American this summer. The end game in this dual meet creates matchups were Wyoming Seminary is the favorite to win at least seven weight classes. As a result, it is Blair Academy that is going to have to create some matchups, some upsets, and have things go right for them. It is strange that Blair Academy matches up worse against Wyoming Seminary than they did against St. Paris Graham, though the Falcons are a clearly more talented team than the Blue Knights.

Seth Nevills (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)The top two teams in the state of California this year are neighboring schools in the same Fresno-area school district. They are ranked fourth and sixth nationally, and arch-rivals. Buchanan head coach Troy Tirapelle is the younger brother of Clovis assistant head coach Adam Tirapelle, and their father Steve is the co-head coach at Clovis. The last four California state wrestling tournaments, and 12 in all, have been won by No. 4 Clovis; while No. 6 Buchanan counters with just one state title, that coming in 2006. Clovis has also not lost a dual met against in-state opposition in just over eight years, last losing to Buchanan in late January of 2007. The consecutive win streak has reached 86. Thursday night, No. 4 Clovis travels to No. 6 Buchanan in a massive dual meet, and a sellout crowd is expected for this backyard brawl. Below are the projected lineups, state rankings listed are courtesy of The California Wrestler from January 22. 106: 14-Wyatt Cornelison (Clovis) vs. 11-Chris Gaxiola/Ethan Leake (Buchanan) Cornelison has lost matches against both potential starters for Buchanan this season, 4-2 to Gaxiola last month, and 9-4 to Leake earlier this month. 113: No. 2 1-Justin Mejia vs. 17 Alejandro Jimenez Mejia was a state champion last year at 106 pounds, while Jimenez went 0-2 in the 120 pound weight class at state 120: 10-Tristan Gilliland vs. 9-Ross Arve While Arve is the higher ranked wrestler, based on winning the Zinkin Classic, where Gilliland placed third; overall productivity may give an edge to Gilliland, placing seventh last year at 113 in the state tournament while Arve failed to place down at 106. 126: 8-Dylan Martinez vs. No. 18 2-Durbin Lloren Lloren has twice placed fifth in the California state tournament, and won a title at the Powerade tournament earlier this season; while fellow junior Martinez is in his first year as a state, after being closed out by any number of solid Cougars lightweights the previous two years. 132: 7-Brandon Martino vs. 22-Dean Esquibel The sophomore Martino is in his initial year as a starter for Clovis, and has a head-on winner over two-time state qualifier Esquibel. It came earlier this month, 8-4 in overtime at the Doc Buchanan; Martino finished fourth in the tournament, while Esquibel failed to place. 138: 2-Khristian Olivas vs. 5-Greg Gaxiola This is a battle of two-time state qualifiers, Olivas with the only placement, coming in fourth two years ago down at 113. The two wrestlers met in the Doc Buchanan final earlier this month, Olivas coming away with an 8-4 victory. 145: 4-Isaiah Hokit vs. 9-Kyler Hansen Hokit is a three-time state placer, while Hansen is a three-time state qualifier. Hokit beat Hansen head-on by 6-4 overtime decision in the finals of last month’s Zinkin Classic. 152: 14-Jared Hill/Lane Barnes vs. 6-Connor Francis Either of the options for Clovis was a state qualifier last year, while Francis placed sixth at the state tournament. Francis has a 3-0 head-on win over Barnes from the Zinkin Classic final last month. 160: 3-Dominic Kincaid vs. 5-Abner Romero Both wrestlers have made the state tournament twice; Romero having the only state placement, eighth last year at 152, a weight bracket in which Kincaid failed to place. However, Kincaid did win the central section qualifying tournament, in which Romero placed third. 170: 2-Josh Hokit vs. 4-Anthony Montalvo Hokit placed fifth last year at state as a sophomore, while the freshman Montalvo has placed sixth in a pair of elite national level in-season tournaments (Powerade and Doc Buchanan). Hokit outplaced Montalvo at the Doc Buchanan, while Montalvo also lost 6-0 to fellow Clovis wrestler Kincaid in December. 182: 3-A.J. Nevills vs. 15-Cade Belshay Nevills placed seventh last year at state as a sophomore in this weight class, while the sophomore Belshay was a surprise finalist at the Powerade late last month. In December, Nevills beat probably a superior Buchanan wrestler (An) by 8-7 decision in the tournament final; while Belshay split matches against a reserve for Clovis. 195: 3-Adam Prentice vs. 4-Young Woo An Both wrestlers in this match are seniors, and neither has placed at the state tournament, though both do have state experience. Prentice out-placed An at the Doc Buchanan earlier this month, where he earned a head-on win. 220: 3-Seth Nevills vs. 4-Kai Dill The freshman Nevills is fourth in a line of excellent brothers to wrestle for Clovis (older brother A.J. is at 182, while even older siblings Nick and Zach are competing at Penn State and Stanford respectively). Earlier this month, he beat two-time state qualifier Dill by 8-5 decision to win the Doc Buchanan title. 285: 4-Hexton Coronado vs. 9-Zach Levatino Coronado qualified for state two years ago as a sophomore, but was closed out last year by an excellent upper-weight group for Clovis; while Levatino went 0-2 at the state tournament last year as a sophomore. Coronado was second at the Zinkin and first at the Doc Buchanan, while Levatino was third and failing to place; however, the only head-on meeting this year came last month, Coronado winning 6-4 in overtime. This dual meet features 17 projected state placers (ranked top 8 at present in the state of California). Furthermore, over three quarters of the projected wrestlers in this dual meet are projected to finish within one match of state placement. The level and intensity of competition in this dual meet will be staggering, with five matches in specific featuring top eight wrestlers going against one another. Based on the present rankings, Clovis should win this dual meet by a ten match to four outcome. Even if it’s that type of match count, or slightly higher, virtually every match will be a competitive entity. Conversely, if things go right for the hosts, it is a dual meet Buchanan can win.

The last weekend of January is here. The regular season is starting to fade down. Already at the conference tournaments in some states, and the postseason (individual bracket or dual meet) in some others. The following are schedules of competition for Fab 50 teams from 1/28 through 2/3. No. 2 St. Paris Graham, Ohio -- host state dual meet regional quarterfinal round(s) tonight (1/28); travel to New Lexington, Ohio for the Jimmy Wood Invitational on Saturday No. 3 Blair Academy, N.J. -- dual meet at No. 5 Wyoming Seminary, Pa. on Saturday No. 4 Clovis, Calif. -- dual meet at No. 6 Buchanan, Calif. tomorrow (1/29) No. 5 Wyoming Seminary, Pa. -- dual meet vs. No. 3 Blair Academy, N.J. on Saturday; tri-meet at No. 11 Bergen Catholic, N.J. with No. 36 Bound Brook, N.J. No. 6 Buchanan, Calif. -- dual meet vs. No. 4 Clovis, Calif. tomorrow (1/29) No. 7 Franklin Regional, Pa. -- host pre-quarterfinal and quarterfinal round of WPIAL Class AAA duals tonight (1/28), then at Penn Hills, Pa. for final four on Saturday No. 8 Southeast Polk, Iowa -- host CIML tournament on Friday No. 9 Archer, Ga. -- first layer of individual state series (area tournament) at Parkview, Ga. on Saturday No. 10 Bethlehem Catholic, Pa. -- dual meet vs. Bethlehem Liberty, Pa. tonight (1/28); District XI dual meet tournament at Freedom, Pa. on Friday and Saturday No. 11 Bergen Catholic, N.J. -- dual meet vs. No. 32 Don Bosco Prep, N.J. tomorrow (1/29); dual meet vs. Ridgewood on Friday; tri-meet vs. No. 5 Wyoming Seminary, Pa. and No. 36 Bound Brook, N.J. on Sunday No. 12 Poway, Calif. -- dual meet at Torrey Pines, Calif. tomorrow (1/29) No. 13 Broken Arrow, Okla. -- dual meet vs. Bixby, Okla. tomorrow (1/29); dual meet vs. Sapulpa, Okla. on Friday No. 14 Stillwater, Okla. -- dual meet vs. Altus, Okla. on Friday; travel to Perry, Okla. for Big 4+4 Tournament on Saturday; dual meet at Southmoore, Okla. on Tuesday (2/3) No. 15 St. Edward, Ohio -- host state dual meet regional quarterfinal round(s) tonight (1/28); tri-meet at Claymont, Ohio with Uniontown Lake, Ohio on Saturday No. 17 Apple Valley, Minn. -- dual meet vs. Shakopee, Minn. tomorrow (1/29) No. 18 Neosho, Mo. -- travel to Branson, Mo. for Central Ozark Conference Tournament on Saturday No. 19 Massillon Perry, Ohio -- host state dual meet regional quarterfinal round(s) tonight (1/28); dual meet at Massillon Jackson, Ohio tomorrow (1/29); travel to Delaware Hayes, Ohio for the Rieman Invitational on Saturday No. 20 Carl Sandburg, Ill. -- dual meet vs. Andrew, Ill. on Saturday No. 21 Bettendorf, Iowa -- dual meet at Clinton, Iowa tomorrow (1/29); MAC Tournament on Saturday No. 22 Glenbard North, Ill. -- DVC Tournament at Naperville North, Ill. on Saturday No. 23 St. Michael-Albertville, Minn. -- tri-meet at Totino-Grace, Minn. with Elk River, Minn. tomorrow (1/29); conference tournament at St. Francis, Minn. on Friday No. 24 Tuttle, Okla. -- dual meet at Yukon, Okla. tomorrow (1/29); travel to Clinton, Okla. for the Hub City Classic; dual meet vs. Plainview, Okla. on Tuesday (2/3) No. 25 Lowell, Mich. -- dual meet vs. Richmond, Mich. on Friday No. 26 Evansville Mater Dei, Ind. -- first layer of individual state series (sectional tournament) at (Evansville) Central, Ind. on Saturday No. 27 Crook County, Ore. -- dual meet at Culver, Ore. tonight (1/28); dual meet at Roseburg, Ore. on Saturday No. 28 Mesa Mountain View, Ariz. -- tri-meet at Skyline, Ariz. with Dobson, Ariz. tomorrow (1/29) No. 29 Delta, Ohio -- host state dual meet regional quarterfinal round(s) tonight (1/28) No. 30 Belle Vernon, Pa. -- host pre-quarterfinal and quarterfinal round of WPIAL Class AAA duals tonight (1/28), then at Penn Hills, Pa. for final four on Saturday No. 31 Greater Latrobe, Pa. -- host pre-quarterfinal and quarterfinal round of WPIAL Class AAA duals tonight (1/28), then at Penn Hills, Pa. for final four on Saturday No. 32 Don Bosco Prep, N.J. -- dual meet at No. 11 Bergen Catholic, N.J. tomorrow (1/29) No. 33 St. Peter’s Prep, N.J. -- travel to Moorestown (N.J.) Duals on Friday and Saturday No. 34 South Dade, Fla. -- GMAC Tournament on Friday and Saturday No. 35 Phillipsburg, N.J. -- dual meet vs. Hunterdon Central, N.J. tonight (1/28); dual meet vs. Warren Hills, N.J. tomorrow (1/29); dual meet at Southern Regional, N.J. on Saturday No. 36 Bound Brook, N.J. -- dual meet vs. Voorhees, N.J. tonight; tri-meet at No. 11 Bergen Catholic, N.J. with No. 5 Wyoming Seminary, Pa. on Sunday No. 37 Minisink Valley, N.Y. -- host multi-team dual meet event on Saturday; dual meet at Newburgh Free Academy, N.Y. on Tuesday (2/3) No. 38 Brecksville, Ohio -- host state dual meet regional quarterfinal round(s) tonight (1/28) No. 39 Kaukauna, Wis. -- dual meet vs. Neenah, Wis. tomorrow (1/29); travel to Pulaski (Wis.) Invitational on Saturday No. 40 Elyria, Ohio -- host state dual meet regional quarterfinal round(s) tonight (1/28); dual meet vs. Revere, Ohio on Saturday No. 41 DePaul Catholic, N.J. -- dual meet vs. Paramus Catholic, N.J. tonight (1/28); dual meet at Wayne Valley, N.J. on Friday No. 43 Brighton, Mich. -- dual meet vs. Howell, Mich. tonight (1/28) No. 44 Dayton Christian, Ohio -- state dual meet regional quarterfinal round(s) tonight (1/28) at West Carrollton, Ohio; travel to Sandusky, Ohio for SMCC D3 Duals on Friday and Saturday No. 45 Delbarton, N.J. -- dual meet vs. Montville, N.J. tonight (1/28); travel to Mt. Olive, N.J. for Morris County Tournament on Friday and Saturday No. 46 St. Johns, Mich. -- dual meet at Haslett, Mich. tonight (1/28); dual meet vs. Davison, Mich. at University of Michigan on Friday No. 47 Cumberland Valley, Pa. -- District 3 Dual meet playoffs tomorrow (1/29) and Saturday, location(s) are TBD No. 49 Colonial Forge, Va. -- dual meet vs. Robinson, Va. at George Mason University on Saturday No. 50 Marist, Ill. -- ESCC Conference Championships at Notre Dame, Ill. on Friday No contests during the week: No. 1 Oak Park River Forest (Ill.), No. 16 Montini Catholic (Ill.), No. 42 Marmion Academy (Ill.), No. 48 Brandon (Fla.)

The end of January, right before the individual state wrestling tournament series starts across the nation, is a time when dual meet wrestling takes its place at the forefront. While there are many dual meets that will happen this coming week, and have happened over the last few weeks; however, one can argue that this neighborhood battle out near Fresno, Calif. is the most electric and dynamic in the country. No. 4 Clovis at No. 6 Buchanan -- Thursday! Clovis has won the last four California state wrestling tournaments, and has not lost a dual meet against in-state opposition in just over eight years, when Buchanan upended them in late January of 2007. The dual meet win streak is now up to 86, as the fourth-ranked Cougars travel to sixth-ranked Buchanan for a massive dual meet tomorrow night. A sellout crowd is expected for this backyard brawl. A match-by-match breakdown will be provided as a separate article. No. 3 Blair Academy, N.J. survived stern test at No. 15 St. Edward, Ohio In the penultimate weekend of an eight weekend stretch where they are to face nationally ranked teams in each event, No. 3 Blair Academy, N.J. traveled to Lakewood, Ohio to take on No. 15 St. Edward and No. 50 Marist, Ill. In the opening match of the triangular, Blair Academy dominated on the way to a 48-18 victory over Marist in which they won ten weight classes (would have been 11 but for an injury default by No. 8 David Showunmi at 220 pounds). The middle match of the triangular had St. Edward beat Marist 45-24, as the host Eagles took home victories in nine weight classes. The main event of the Saturday afternoon was the annual dual meet between perennial powers Blair Academy and St. Edward. It went down with the following box score. 106: Matt Kazimir (SE) maj. dec. Matthew Vinci, 11-2; SE 4-0 113: No. 15 Zach Sherman (B) dec. Allan Hart, 4-3, tiebreaker; 4-3 120: Requir van der Merwe (B) pinned Cade Hepner, 4:23; B 9-4 126: L.J. Bentley (SE) dec. Andrew Monohan, 5-1; 9-7 132: No. 15 Hunter Ladnier (SE) dec. No. 16 Chaz Tucker, 4-3; SE 10-9 138: No. 2 Matthew Kolodzik (B) maj. dec. Isaac Collier, 9-1; B 13-10 145: Michael Monica (B) dec. Jack Conway, 4-3; 16-10 152: No. 3 Jordan Kutler (B) tech. fall Vitorio Santillo, 17-0, 3:00; 21-10 160: D.J. Williamson (SE) dec. Peter Bearse, 8-5; 21-13 170: Jimmy Stillerman (B) dec. Jared Leidich, 4-3, tiebreaker; 24-13 182: No. 14 Chase Singletary (B) tech. fall Tyler Stepic, 16-0, 5:08; 29-13 195: Jared Campbell (SE) dec. Neil Putnam, 6-5; 29-16 220: Parker Knapp (SE) by forfeit; 29-22 285: Michael O'Malley (SE) by forfeit; 29-28 Blair Academy concludes gauntlet with Saturday dual meet at No. 5 Wyoming Seminary, Pa. The final leg for the Buccaneers through their eight weekend grind of madness comes this Saturday night at 7 p.m. when they travel to fifth-ranked Wyoming Seminary, Pa. for a dual meet against the Blue Knights. Wyoming Seminary ended Blair Academy's iron-clad grip of the National Prep tournament last year; though it was aided by the use of fifth-year wrestlers (allowed in the National Prep Tournament), and the fact Blair was without a couple key contributors. However, the last season's mid-January dual meet was won very narrowly by Blair; the teams split the fourteen weight classes equally, but Blair won 27-24. A preview of that dual meet will be provided in a separate article to be posted either tomorrow or Friday. WPIAL 3A playoffs feature three nationally ranked teams Next weekend is the Pennsylvania state dual meet championships. In preparation, each of the 12 districts statewide conducts its tournament to determine qualifiers. The WPIAL (aka district 7) is reflective of the greater Pittsburgh area, which arguably has the best wrestling in the whole country, and qualifies three to the state tournament; two directly, and one through a Monday night play-in match that is likely to be a blowout of the district 8 (Pittsburgh city) champion. There are three nationally ranked teams in the WPIAL Class 3A (big-school) tournament. No. 7 Franklin Regional is the second seed, No. 30 Belle Vernon is the top seed, while No. 31 Greater Latrobe is the fourth seed. Belle Vernon beat Franklin Regional 35-28 in a mid-December dual meet, which was an upset primarily aided by the absence of No. 1 Michael Kemerer (145) for Franklin Regional. The third seed is a formidable North Allegheny team, which last year were semifinal and consolation semifinal losers at dual state. Tonight is the round of 16 and quarterfinals, and these are the matchups: Belle Vernon vs. Greensburg-Salem, Pine-Richland vs. Waynesburg (Belle Vernon strongly favored to advance) Franklin Regional vs. Trinity/Butler winner, Connellsville vs. West Allegheny (defending state champions Franklin Regional should advance) North Allegheny vs. Peters Township, Canon-McMillan vs. Hempfield Area (though North Allegheny is favored, they and Canon-McMillan met for third in the WPIAL last year, and it was a very narrow victory for the Tigers). Greater Latrobe vs. Bethel Park, Kiski Area vs. Fox Chapel (Kiski Area is always a tough out, but returning state runners-up Greater Latrobe should advance) The four quarterfinal winners advance to the semifinals on Saturday at Penn Hills, semifinal matches start at 1 p.m. The championship and consolation final take place at 3:30 p.m. Based on the pre-determined draw, the consolation final winner (assuming they win the likely play-in match) is most likely to face nationally ranked Cumberland Valley (district 3 champion) in the opening round next Thursday. The runner-up is looking at a path most likely involving a quarterfinal with the District 1 champion (Council Rock South, Boyertown, or Pennridge), and then a semifinal with the Cumberland Valley vs. WPIAL third winner. The champion has a path most likely with a semifinal against nationally ranked Bethlehem Catholic (district 11 champion). Southeast Polk with a statement at the Ed Winger Classic In what is the best regular season tournament in the state of Iowa, No. 8 Southeast Polk earned a decisive tournament victory over No. 21 Bettendorf. The Rams out-pointed the Bulldogs by 40 (210.5 to 170.5) during their only in-season common event. Furthermore, Southeast Polk did so without the presence of Nolan Hellickson (126) or No. 3 Jacob Marnin (285) in the lineup; that said, Bettendorf got zero points from No. 7 Dayton Racer (160), who was disqualified early in the tournament. Superior depth was key for the Rams, as they had ten wrestlers place in the top five, led by a pair of weight class champions in Zach Barnes (126) and Keegan Shaw (138); Barnes normally wrestles at 120 for Southeast Polk. Four other wrestlers finished second: Nate Lendt (113), Aaron Meyer (145), Briar Dittmer (152), and No. 10 Ethan Andersen (220). Mason Kerr (170) placed third, Gauge Perrien (106) and Brady Buchheit (160) finished fourth, Eric Pingel (195) was fifth, while Gunner Jorgensen (182) placed eighth. Like Southeast Polk, the Bulldogs had six finalists. Four were champions -- No. 18 Jack Wagner (113), Jacob Schwarm (120), No. 2 Fredy Stroker (145), and Jacob Woodard (152) -- while Jackson Gallagher (126) and Paul Glynn (132) finished second. The lone other Bettendorf placer was Josh Malik (195) finishing eighth. Even with such a top-heavy roster, Bettendorf was a dominant second place team, third place West Des Moines Valley was more than another 30 points back. Out of the other eight champions, North Scott had three: Jakubb Fahrenkrug (160), No. 17 Colin Kreiter (195), and No. 9 Cordell Eaton (220); Eaton had the win of the tournament, a 4-1 victory over now No. 10 Ethan Andersen, which avenged a state finals loss from last year. Eaton comes into the No. 9 position nationally all the way from outside the rankings. Rounding out the weight class champions were McGwire Midkiff (Council Bluffs Thomas Jefferson) at 106 pounds, Henry Pohlmeyer (Johnston) at 132, No. 14 Isaiah Patton (Dowling Catholic) at 170, Hank Swalla (Ames) at 182, and Alex Silberstein (Ballard Huxley) at 285. Stillwater wins razor-tight dual meet at home over Broken Arrow The two best teams in the state Sooner State met in a dual meet last evening, with the host Stillwater Pioneers upending Broken Arrow 27-26. The squads split the fourteen weight classes evenly, each winning seven matches. No team won more than two matches in a row at any point of the dual meet, and on only three occasions did teams win consecutive dual meets. Tyler Lawley (Broken Arrow) opened the dual meet with a second period pin, the only pin of the dual meet. Stillwater then had consecutive victories, Andrew Nieman an 11-3 major decision at 113 and Tyler Dieringer a 9-2 decision at 120, to take the lead. The teams alternated match victories between 120 and 152, and the lead would change at the end of each of those six bouts. That 152 bout had three-time state placer Paden Bailey (Broken Arrow) beat Tristian Moran, who is ranked No. 7 nationally at 145 pounds, by 8-5 decision. The Tigers led 17-15 at that point. Christian Kiser won a 5-4 decision at 160 for Broken Arrow, before a 26-11 technical fall for Stillwater's Joe Smith -- ranked fourth nationally at 160 -- in the 170 match equalized the score at 20-20. A 13-2 major decision for Jordan Dieringer at 182 pounds gave Stillwater a 24-20 lead, one that would stand through the rest of the dual meet. Steven Allen won a 10-3 decision at 195 for Broken Arrow, then Cyntrell Carden responded with a 5-3 decision at 220 for Stillwater. This set up the final match at 285 pounds, one in which Broken Arrow needed a major decision to tie the dual meet score, and win on criteria. However, the Tigers could only muster a 5-0 decision from Trenton Lieurance. As a result of last night's dual meet, Broken Arrow drops two spots in the rankings down to No.13 nationally, while Stillwater holds its position at No. 14. At the Geary Invitational just over two weeks ago, Broken Arrow beat Stillwater by forty points, and the Tigers had an edge in placers by 10-6. The teams will do battle in another dual meet during the state duals final, and then contest the Class 6A state title in Oklahoma. Quick last week nuggets No. 7 Franklin Regional and No. 31 Greater Latrobe split the fourteen weight classes at seven-apiece in the WPIAL Section 1 dual meet final this past Wednesday evening. However, Franklin Regional won the dual meet. Of note was Greater Latrobe going 3-0 in matches decided by two points or less; while Franklin Regional won six of their seven matches by pin or technical fall (only three from Greater Latrobe did). Greater Latrobe was without 2013 National Prep runner-up Ethan McCoy (126). No. 25 Lowell, Mich. won a pair of matches against big-school state title contenders. On Friday night it was a 39-22 victory over Detroit Catholic Central, Mich. at the University of Michigan. Then on Sunday afternoon, the Red Arrows defeated No. 43 Brighton, Mich. 30-25 at Michigan State. Lowell was without No. 12 Max Dean (170) in both dual meets, though it did not carry significant net impact on the 9-5 match count Friday night. However, the 8-6 match count and 30-25 victory over Brighton is more than likely a larger margin and a 9-5 match count with Dean present. In terms of the actually Lowell vs. Brighton dual meet, it came down to Lowell winning a pair of one-point decisions to close out the dual meet at 285 and 103. Three dual meet encounters from the past week in New Jersey placed nationally ranked teams against another. One week ago, it was No. 32 Don Bosco Prep outlasting No. 41 DePaul Catholic 34-32 as the teams split bouts at seven-apiece. The Ironman needed a pin, major decision, pin close to the dual meet to take home the victory, with the last match pin coming from No. 2 Zack Chakonis at 285. Bound Brook was involved in the other two matches, both were defeats, which led to their drop of fourteen spots to No. 36 nationally. One week ago, the Crusaders lost 30-18 (8-6 in matches) at now No. 35 Phillipsbrg, while on Friday night they split matches with No. 45 Delbarton in a 33-28 loss. Missing personnel was a key issue for Bound Brook during the Delbarton dual meet in particular. Additional ranked outcomes Grizzly Invitational Tournament, 113 pound final: Noah Baughman (Wadsworth, Ohio) dec. Mitch Moore (St. Paris Graham) 2-1 on a last second takedown. This was a second win for Baughman over Moore in three months, as he also earned a 2-0 win in the quarterfinals of the Super 32 Challenge. As a result of this outcome, Baughman moves up two spots to No. 9, while Moore drops two to No. 10 nationally. Grizzly Invitational Tournament, 132 pound semifinal: Jonathan Furnas (Olentangy Liberty, Ohio) decision Rocky Jordan (St. Paris Graham, Ohio) 15-8. This was the second straight week that Jordan sustained a decisive loss to a primary Division I state title contender (Jordan is in Division II along with No. 8 Cameron Kelly of Bellbrook). Furnas enters the rankings at No. 20 as a result, while Jordan drops out from the No. 18 position. Reser's TOC, 195 pound final: Gunnar Robirts (Crook County, Ore.) decision Samuel Colbray (Hermiston, Ore.) 10-5. It was a result that came out of nowhere, with Robirts whom is nowhere close to a national ranking upending the previous No. 3 in the country; Colbray drops five spots this week to eighth.

Mark Ironside and J Robinson will go "On the Mat" this Wed., Jan. 28. "On the Mat" is a presentation of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum. The show can be heard live on the Internet at 1650thefan.com or locally in Northeast Iowa each Wednesday from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. Central on AM 1650, The Fan. A podcast of the show is available on mattalkonline.com. E-mail dgmstaff@nwhof.org with any questions or comments. Ironside was an NCAA champion for the University of Iowa in 1997 and 1998. He currently provides match commentary for Iowa wrestling meets on KXIC radio and on television for the Iowa high school state wrestling tournament. Robinson is the head wrestling coach at the University of Minnesota. He had led the Golden Gophers to NCAA team championships in 2001, 2002, and 2007. Iowa wrestles at Minnesota Friday, January 30.

ERIE, Pa. -- The fifth-ranked Mercyhurst University wrestling team picked up its second shutout victory of the season on Tuesday night with a 43-0 blanking of visiting West Liberty in front of a raucous crowd at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center. The Lakers have now won seven straight to improve to 12-1 overall on the season while the Hilltoppers fell to 1-5. Mercyhurst, which improved to 11-3 lifetime against West Liberty, earned its first shutout win at Alderson-Broaddus by a final of 52-0 ten days ago. The Lakers had one victory via fall, two by technical fall, three by major decision, three by decision, and one by forfeit for their 43 team points on the night. The Bohince brothers took center stage to start the evening with redshirt sophomore, Willie, earning a 7-0 victory over West Liberty's Zach Brown to give the Lakers a 3-0 lead. He improved to 23-3 overall and remains perfect in duals this season at 13-0. Meanwhile, redshirt senior, Ryan, earned an 11-1 major decision victory over Joe Wagstaff for his eighth win of the year. Redshirt junior Kody Young went on the offensive from the outset against Anthony Craig, jumping in front by a 10-1 score after the first period. Young extended his lead to 16-3 after two periods and earned an early takedown in the third period to win via technical fall. The Brookville, Pennsylvania, native improved to 11-7 on the season and gave the Lakers a 12-0 cushion. Redshirt junior Jeremy Landowski followed with his 20th victory of the season after a 4-1 win over regionally-ranked Joel Paolo. Landowski is 20-3 and improved to 11-1 in dual competition. The NCAA Division II leader in technical falls, redshirt sophomore Francis Mizia, added to his lead on Tuesday night with an impressive 15-0 victory over David Schlieper. After an early takedown, Mizia earned a total of eleven back points in the first period to take a 13-0 lead after one. Schlieper chose defense to start the second and Mizia earned two more back points just 12 seconds in to end the match. He improved to 19-3 overall and 10-1 in duals. Redshirt juniors Angelo Bortoluzzi and August Mizia earned back-to-back major decision victories at 165 and 174 respectively to give the Lakers a 28-0 advantage at that point. Bortoluzzi defeated DeMadre Turner, 9-0, for his 19th win of the season while the elder Mizia followed with an identical 9-0 win for victory #20 on the year. After sophomore Dakota DesLauriers earned a forfeit win at 184 pounds, redshirt junior Brian Beattie gutted out a 3-0 victory over Nathan Dawson at 197 to keep the shutout intact. Beattie earned all three of his points in the third period on an escape, an unnecessary roughness penalty, and riding time. It was his fifth win of the season. Sophomore Andrew Welton closed out the evening with a pin of Aaron Silverio exactly one minute into the second period. It was Welton's team-leading 11th victory by fall this season as he improved to 15-8 overall and 10-3 in duals. The Lakers will host Kutztown University in a pivotal PSAC contest on Saturday afternoon. Wrestling gets underway at 1:00 p.m. from the Mercyhurst Athletic Center. Results: 125 – Willie Bohince (MER) decision over Zach Brown (WLU) – 7-0 (MER 3-0) 133 – Ryan Bohince (MER) major decision over Joe Wagstaff (WLU) – 11-1 (MER 7-0) 141 – Kody Young (MER) technical fall over Anthony Craig (WLU) – 18-3, 5:17 (MER 12-0) 149 – Jeremy Landowski (MER) decision over Joel Paolo (WLU) – 4-1 (MER 15-0) 157 – Francis Mizia (MER) technical fall over David Schlieper (WLU) – 15-0, 3:12 (MER 20-0) 165 – Angelo Bortoluzzi (MER) major decision over DeMadre Turner (WLU) – 9-0 (MER 24-0) 174 – August Mizia (MER) major decision over Eric Antesberger (WLU) – 9-0 (MER 28-0) 184 – Dakota DesLauriers (MER) won by forfeit (MER 34-0) 197 – Brian Beattie (MER) decision over Nathan Dawson (WLU) – 3-0 (MER 37-0) 285 – Andrew Welton (MER) pinned Aaron Silverio (WLU) – 4:00 (MER 43-0)

ADA, Ohio -- No. 7 ranked Mount Union ran out to a 23-0 lead on its way to a 29-7 win at Ohio Northern Tuesday in an Ohio Athletic Conference dual in Ada. The Purple Raiders move to 2-0 in the OAC and are 11-3 overall while Northern falls to 13-4 overall and 1-1 in the OAC. Mount Union got off to a fast 8-0 start when nationally ranked wrestlers seventh-ranked Nick Mancini (Boardman/Boardman) at 125 and top ranked Jeremy Border (Caldwell/Caldwell) at 133 each scored major decision wins. Bryant Roby (Westchester, Ill./St. Joseph) and Ben Kazimir (Chagrin Falls/Kenston) each scored close wins at 141 and 149 to increase the Raider lead to 14-0. Nationally ranked No. 5 Jon Garrison (Copley/Copley) won on a match misconduct at 157 then Nick Hendershot (Willoughby/Willoughby South) got a close win at 165 and Mount Union had a commanding 23-0 lead. After an Ohio Northern win at 174, Brent Kirk (Adena/Buckeye Local) and Brian Olson (Covington/Covington) each got wins at 184 and 197 respectively to put the match the away. Mount Union travels this weekend to the Pete Willson Invitational at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Ill. Results: 125 — #7 Nick Mancini (MTU) maj. dec. Brad Taton, 13-4 133 — #1 Jeremy Border (MTU) maj. dec. Cole Cochran, 14-3 141 — Bryant Roby (MTU) dec. Dylan Dolph, 4-1 149 — Ben Kazimir (MTU) dec. Evan Morgan, 4-3 157 — #5 Jon Garrison (MTU) def. by match misconduct Gennar Feucht 165 — Nick Hendershot (MTU) dec. Colt Lovejoy, 3-1 174 — Tyler Gargano (ONU) dec. Nick Miller, 3-2 184 — Brent Kirk (MTU) dec. Aaron Adkins, 6-1 197 — Brian Olson (MTU) dec. Dillon Brancheau, 8-3 285 — #1 Cody Lovejoy (ONU) maj. dec. Jacob Alaine, 14-0 Records: Mount Union (11-3, 2-0 OAC), Ohio Northern (13-4, 1-1 OAC)

TIFFIN -- Under the spotlight in Seiberling Gymnasium, the Heidelberg University wrestling team picked up a crucial conference victory, defeating John Carroll University 25-12. The Student Princes won five contested matches and picked up a forfeit win over the Blue Streaks. The win moves Heidelberg to 9-10 in dual meets, 1-1 in Ohio Athletic Conference competition. John Carroll slips to 5-7 overall, 0-2 in the OAC. HOW IT HAPPENED At 125, a John Carroll forfeit gave Tyler Price and the Student Princes a 6-0 lead. After the first period of the 133 match, JCU's Sal Corrao held a 5-3 lead over Joe Brodman. Each scored a pair in the second period, with Corrao escaping twice and Brodman earning a takedown. Corrao tallied two takedowns in the final period and emerged with an 14-7 victory. HU's Justin Kihn notched two first period takedowns at 141, taking a 4-1 lead over John Connick. Kihn kept the pressure on in the second with another pair of takedowns. In the third, Kihn withstood Connick and won 9-3. After three weight classes, Heidelberg held a 9-3 advantage. At 149, JCU's Dan Mirman – 12-1 on the season – and The Berg's Damon Cheek – 16-5 this year – battled in one of the night's most anticipated matches. Mirman jumped out to a sizeable lead in the third before Cheek was able to register a takedown. Mirman held on for an 11-6 win. The 157 match between HU's Tyler Fahrer and JCU's Jordan Victory was scoreless after the first period, but Victor used an escape and a takedown to grab a 3-0 lead heading into the third. Victor controlled the third period en route to a 5-1 win. At intermission, the match was knotted up, 9-9. After the break, 165-pounders Jake Vincent and Myles Wright were scoreless after one. HU's Wright took a lead with an escape to start the second period and followed it up with a pair of takedowns. Up 5-1 heading into the third, Wright held on for a 6-2 triumph. Like the two bouts before it, the 174-pound match between JCU's Matthew Tusick and HU's Brennan Kelly was scoreless. It took Kelly 1:27 to escape Tusick's grasp to start the second period. In the third, Kelly rode Tusick the full two minutes and won, 1-0. Heidelberg's Patrick Brown scored a takedown and a nearfall in the first period to gain a 5-1 lead. Brown dominated Danny McNamara through the remainder and earned a major decision, 17-3. The match's first bonus points gave Heidelberg a 19-9 lead. JCU's Todd Gaydosh used a reversal in the second period to take a 2-0 lead over Matt Shurina at 197. Gaydosh's lead held up, as the senior won 2-0. Heading into the final match, HU lead 19-12. With the match out of reach, HU's Nino Majoy put an exclamation mark on the evening. Majoy pinned JCU's Mike Andelbrandt in 2:26. QUOTES FROM COACH PATRIZI About Kelly's victory at 174: "That's probably the best riding that he's done, as far as trying to score points ... He was trying to add on the entire time, which is tough to do in that type of match. " On the success of Brown at 184: "Pat Brown has been an animal for us. He stepped into a tough situation and has not been afraid. He's here to score points and do anything he can to help this team score points." About Majoy's pin at 285: "I'm all for scoring points and not stopping. It's important for us to keep our foot on the gas pedal. It was great to see Nino attack." UP NEXT The Heidelberg wrestlers will travel to Wheaton, Illinois, for the Pete Willson Invitational on Friday and Saturday. OAC action resumes next Tuesday as the Student Princes visit Muskingum University.