InterMat Staff

MADISON, Wis.-- The 19th-ranked Wisconsin wrestling program took on Big Ten newcomer Maryland with a crowd of 1,078 at the UW Field House. Connor Medbery, Andrew Crone and Seth Liegel played major roles in the 28-12 victory over the Terrapins. Heavyweight junior Medbery went up against Maryland’s Sean Twigg. Medbery kept Twigg defeated until 1:45 into the third period before Twigg earned his first point with an escape. Medbery won 19-4 by technical fall over Twigg, earning Wisconsin five team points. Ryan Taylor, wrestling at 125 lbs., also won by technical fall, which catapulted his final score to 21-4 and added five points to Wisconsin’s total. Wisconsin head coach Barry Davis was impressed with tonight’s outcome. “I think all the guys put out a great effort but some guys found a way to win,” Davis said. “Andrew Crone, Seth Liegel, Timmy McCall, their wins were a good thing. We took a little bit more offense but then it slows down a little bit. Overall, it was a good effort tonight. The guys found ways to win and that’s a good thing.” Crone, who had his first career start tonight, lagged behind Maryland’s Shane Arechiga for most of the match until his two takedowns toward the end propelled him to a 7-5 decision. “It was a great experience and it was just really cool to wrestle in my first home meet here at Wisconsin,” Crone said. “I was actually surprised at how big of an influence the crowd had. Every time you score, you get a little jacked up and the crowd gets really into it. It’s cool.” Liegel, who was also a first-time starter for the Badgers, won in a 10-8 decision over the Terrapins’ Louis Mascola. “I really didn’t know what to expect coming in but I got a good warm up in.,” Liegel said. “I was a little stocky but my effort was there through the technical stuff. I was hoping to get there and I gave it all I got. It was a pretty amazing feeling.” Crone and Liegel both went into overtime before winning it all with takedowns within the last fifteen seconds of each match. “I think they did great,” Davis said. “That’s the first time Liegel wrestled since last February. In a Big Ten match, doing what he did and finding a win like that, he had to dig deep and he did. It was a good thing to see.” Sophomore Ricky Robertson and senior Timmy McCall both tallied victories by decisions. Frank Cousins and Rylan Lubeck each fell by one-point decisions. In the final match, 165 lbs. All-American Isaac Jordan won with the only pin of the night at 5:57. “It was good,” Davis added. “The scoreboard at 28-12 is a good win and a good start to the season. I’m pretty happy right now.” Wisconsin is set to take on Rider University next Thursday in Lawrence Township, New Jersey at 7 p.m. Results: 125: Taylor (WIS) wins by TF over Simmons (UMD), 21-4 133: Cavallaris (WIS) forfeits to Alexander (UMD) 141: Brown (UMD) wins by a 2-1 dec. over Lubeck (WIS) 149: Crone (WIS) wins in a 7-5 dec. over Arechiga (UMD) 157: Liegel (WIS) wins by 10-8 dec. over Mascola (UMD) 165: Jordan (WIS) wins by pin over Manion (UMD), 5:52 174: Snook (UMD) wins in a 4-3 decision over Cousins (WIS) 184: Robertson (WIS) wins over Gardner (UMD) in an 8-4 decision 197: McCall (WIS) wins over Fitzgerald (UMD) in a 5-1 decision 285: Medbery (WIS) wins by TF Twigg (UMD), 19-3

FAIRFAX, Va. -- Head coach Joe Russell and the George Mason wrestling program have announced the addition of interim assistant coach Israel Silva and volunteer assistant coach Dave Marble. Silva comes to Mason from South Dakota State, where he joined the coaching staff in 2012 and helped three wrestlers qualify for the NCAA Wrestling Championships. Prior to SDSU Silva served as an assistant coach at the Northwest Wrestling Regional Training Center, an Olympic-level training center for senior-level athletes. He placed twice at the national tournament and was named a two-time junior All-American while wrestling at North Idaho College and also earned the Southern Conference heavyweight title as a wrestler at UT-Chattanooga. Post-college he was a four-time World Team member for Mexico, three-time Freestyle Pan American medalist and 2012 Olympic alternate over seven years of international experience. "I am very excited to work under coach Russell for the year,” commented Silva. “His reputation in the wrestling community is second to none. I'm looking forward to getting to know the guys on the team and help them achieve their goals in any way I can." Marble joins the Patriots from Bucknell University, where he was a four-time NCAA qualifier and a three-year assistant head coach. Marble finished his career with a 111-44 record, placing him third on the program's all-time wins list and was an EIWA placewinner at 133lbs. as one of the best wrestlers in program history. “The George Mason wrestling staff has been slowly developing into a cast that can bring the Patriots to new heights,” said Marble. “Under Joe Russell’s leadership, Coach Carr, Coach Silva, and myself bring a well-rounded resume to help the upper and lower weights together. I’m excited to see what lies ahead for the year after we’ve come out firing this year. “The amount of talent on our team is impressive, and we still have a few guys out of the line-up. With our new coaching staff, I believe we can get a handful of guys to the national tournament and put guys on the podium this year. I’m eager for the challenge and anxious for our next practice.” Mason next takes the mat at the Navy Classic on Saturday, November 22.

Dave SchultzWith Foxcatcher opening in theaters in New York and Los Angeles, InterMat looks back at Mark Palmer's five-part series on the life and legacy of Dave Schultz. The life and legacy of Dave Schultz: Chapter 1: The day wrestling died | Chapter 2: The Murderer, John du Pont | Chapter 3: Immediate memories of Dave | Chapter 4: Smiling back at a life remembered | Chapter 5: A spirit that lives on Related links: InterMat Rewind: Alexander Schultz | Documentary film on Dave Schultz in the works | Foxcatcher opening in November ... with high hopes

Foxcatcher premiers this week and with plenty being said about Bennett Miller's dramatic direction, Steve Carell's Pinocchio-inspired facial appendage and Channing Tatum's quality portrayal of Mark Schultz it's easy to forget what drove this film to be made: The humanity of Dave Schultz. I didn't know Dave Schultz and I've only seen him wrestle in films, but I do know that he's assumed a spot of reverence in our sport -- somewhat for his athletic talent, but mostly for his kindness, generosity and force of spirit. That's a meaningful legacy and that his legacy -- a wrestler who was as much about humanity as he was sport -- is retained long after Foxcatcher slips out of focus. To your questions ... Q: The new Global Wrestling Championships has an event coming up and had a lot of rounds and adapted freestyle scoring. Big hit? Or dud? -- J.D. Foley: What I know of the Global Wrestling Championships I read in Mark Palmer's article. When done I felt disappointment in learning the organizers chose to borrow heavily from boxing and manipulate existing freestyle rules. One change GWC hopes to offer is five "rounds" for their "bout," instead of two "periods" in their "match." The idea is to stick to freestyle rules, which is smart, but in offering five rounds it could be a massive disappointment if there is a technical fall. If there's not, it's equally disinteresting when a guy opens up a 14-point lead in the first period ... nay "round." Maybe the GWC takes off and maybe it doesn't, but there is nothing in history to say it will last longer than a Joey Lawrence-led comedy on ABC. I've discussed the reasons why failure follows these ventures so I'll save the rant, but the point remains that an adapted style simply won't sell. Won't happen. One glimmer of hope is that the organization is hoping to start a dual team format. Do that, and reorganize the matches to follow existing rules and this one might have a chance. Dual meets can be a winner as evidenced in Iran Pro League or Bundesliga. If promoters stick to the rules and use their creative energies in other more meaningful ways we might see something as successful as the pop up in America. Until then we'll have continue to have a series of one-year-only organizations losing hundreds of thousands of dollars and disincentive future investment in our sport. Investments that could include tangible results in terms of athlete pay and widespread popularity. Zeke Jones gives instruction to Brent Metcalf at the World Cup in LA (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Q: What do you think of Zeke Jones' first couple of months on the job? -- Justin S. Foley: Coach Jones has amassed an experienced staff with big name appeal, lined up donors, and in only four months has recruited arguably the top recruiting class in the country in one of the most competitive environments in the sport's history. I'd say he's doing pretty OK. Q: Joe Colon won the Bill Farrell International this weekend at 57 kilos where there was two-kilo weight allowance. What sort of impact do you think Joe could make on the freestyle scene this season at 57 kilos with no weight allowance? -- Scott M. Foley: Five pounds won't be any bigger issue for Joe than it is for any competitor. I can't say that with one-hundred percent certainty since I don't know how difficult of a weight cut Joe endured, but if it's within the margins, I don't see the impact. I'm Team Joe Colon. He's got grit, but also has a style I think can be adapted well to the international scene. If I could offer Joe one piece of advice it would be to leave the country early and often this season. Get in a ton of matches, work out in as many gyms as possible and not worry about the wins and losses. He's held back by nothing and though the World Team Trials in seven months seems important, it's a distant second to the Olympic Team Trials in 19 months. Joe can surprise people, but he'll need more matches with more European and Asian wrestlers. MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME You can learn a lot from watching the best. Here's a 30-minute documentary on Marcelo Garcia, who is arguably the greatest grappler of all time and fast becoming the sport's most important coach. Turn down the volume on your phone or computer and then ENJOY! Nothing to see here, just a famous Mongolian wrestling riding a jet ski. Humans have landed a spacecraft on a comet. HUMANS LANDED A SPACECRAFT ON A COMET! I might not have been as watched as the moon landing, but I'm getting the sniffles thinking about how much work went into this madness. The craft took ten years to arrive on the comet. TEN YEARS! This means that something like the following occurred. Some awesome scientists dressed in Aloha T-shirts bedazzled with the solar system were sitting around their local European pub downing Carlsbergs and watching the Premier League, when one of the guys flipped on Star Trek. They watch in passing as they talk about engine thrust and if Pluto is a planet (astronomers AND science geeks) when suddenly the USS Enterprise lands on some comet. Neither of the geeky-but-awesome scientist dudes with wild hair and Aloha shirts has a cell phone because this was 20 years ago and thus they were forced to talk instead of Tweeting or Tindering (obviously they're single). So in letting his mind roam through the seas of Carlsberg, the first guy, we'll call him "Friedrich", says "Dude ... Sebastien ... I'm thinking we could totally land on a comet, man! Seriously, we could totally land on a comet!" At this point I imagine Friedrich pulled out a coaster (spacecraft) and the ketchup bottle (comet) and flew them together at the bar in a simply stunning visual meant to ensure that Sebastien got the point. Sebastien screams, "You're right, Friedrich, this is totally possible! Let's dedicate our lives to landing a spacecraft on a comet!" Boom. Comet, meet Man. Fast-forward a few decades and Friedrich and Sebastien have landed a spacecraft on a comet. God bless this beautiful world. Link: Rosetta Mission's Historic Comet Landing: Full Coverage Q: I saw Chance Marsteller won the OCU Open. He had some tight matches, though. Will he start for OSU at 157 pounds? If so, what are reasonable expectations for this season? NCAA qualifier, round of 12, All-American, NCAA finalist, NCAA champion? -- Mike C. Foley: A week after the OCU Open, Chance dropped a couple ranking matches. He fell 13-7 to Chris Koo and 5-1 to fellow true freshman Ryan Blees, so it remains to be seen if he starts for the Cowboys at 157 pounds. If he does start it's well within reason to expect Chance to make the NCAA tournament, but less probable that he's a freshman All-American. Though 157 doesn't have any David Taylor-like hammers there are a lot of dangerous talent lurking in the top 12. He may knock some of them off during the season, but I'm doubtful that he's going to cruise past that field all in one weekend. I'm giving him a 35 percent chance to be an All-American in 2015. Q: I have a question about Liberty University. How have they managed to land top-level guys like Ryan Diehl and Joshua Llopez? I realize that not long ago they were a Division I program. But I believe that both of those wrestlers were committed to the University of Maryland. Is this a sign that Liberty shall return to the ranks of Division 1 soon, or is there something going on at the University of Maryland that is keeping these recruits from wanting to attend there? -- Nate M. Foley: There is no indication that Liberty is returning to the Division I level, so I imagine this is either a way for Diehl and Lopez to train while working on their academic eligibility. COMMENT OF THE WEEK By Wade M. Good morning or afternoon (dependent upon what time zone you might be in). I am writing to inquire further about the culture of youth athletics (mostly wrestling, but other sports you may have noticed or researched as well) in other countries. As a parent of three children under the age of 8, I am seeking information about how other countries may be running their youth programs. My oldest child is 8 and is now entering his third year of wrestling. In his first season I limited his participation in tournaments and yet we practiced three nights a week. Unfortunately the wheels came off the tracks when in his third tournament he did not finish in first place after winning the first two. Last year we practiced and made an attempt to wrestle a couple of tournaments, one ending with a bloody nose and the other just not wanting to go out onto the mat. He enjoys the practices and we finished the year just focusing on that and have no intent of wrestling a tournament this year as well. I enjoy our current wrestling club as there is a focus on fun and enjoying the environment while learning the basics. However, it seems that even with the intent to focus on fun, the "live" wrestling can dominate some practices and it is obvious that many kids do not have the technique they should. How do other countries potentially balance the learning of skills with having fun and maybe not doing so in a live environment or the need to wrestle tournaments? I would also add that my daughter, who is 6, has been actively involved in gymnastics for a couple of years and it appears thus far that the focus is on improving skill and strength. I believe this will change when she reaches a certain level and her training is year-round already at this point. I want my kids to have athletics in their life as I have personally found it to be a reason for my drive and desire to be successful in anything that I do in my life, but also want them to have some balance.

Corvallis, Ore. -- The Oregon State wrestling team made history on two levels on Thursday night with a 43-6 victory over Southern Oregon before a crowd of 1,413 at Gill Coliseum. The 24th-ranked Beavers (1-0) became just the third NCAA Division I program with 1,000 dual wins by defeating the No. 2-ranked team in NAIA. They joined Iowa State (1,043) and Oklahoma State (1,026) in that very exclusive fraternity. And coach Jim Zalesky earned his 100th career victory at OSU, improving his mark to 100-40-2 in eight-plus seasons in Corvallis. “It means a lot,” Zalesky said of reaching the 1,000-win milestone. “There are only two others programs that have done it so far, so to be a part of it is special. A lot of our alumni came back to watch. It just means there’s a lot of history.” The Beavers wasted little time in subduing the Raiders. Freshman Ronnie Bresser (125) got the ball rolling with a technical fall and redshirt freshmen Jack Hathaway (133) and Devin Reynolds (141) followed with pins to stake OSU to a quick 17-0 advantage. “The lighter weights kind of set the pace and it just kind of snowballed,” Zalesky said. “Bresser coming out like that really set the tone for us. When you get momentum going it helps.” Redshirt freshman Abraham Rodriguez (149) added a technical fall and sophomore Joey Delgado (157) and junior Seth Thomas (165) earned decisions for a 28-0 edge that clinched No. 1,000. Senior Taylor Meeks (184) had a technical fall; redshirt freshman Cody Crawford (197) led 6-0 in the third period and then earned six points through injury default and redshirt freshman heavyweight Nate Keeve won by major decision to complete the night. “Crawford did a great job” in defeating Taylor Johnson, a redshirt senior who started his career at OSU, Zalesky said. “Johnson is ranked pretty high (2nd) and is older. Last year Crawford probably would have been beat by a guy like that, but he wrestled a smart match and won.” OSU returns to action this Sunday at the Roadrunner Open in Fresno, hosted by CSU-Bakersfield. Its next dual meet is the Pacific-12 Conference opener against Arizona State on Nov. 24. For more information on the Oregon State wrestling team, follow the club’s official Twitter account at Twitter.com/OSU_Wrestling or by Facebook at Facebook.com/OregonStateWrestling. Results: 125: Ronnie Bresser (OSU) tech. fall over Coleman Jones (SOU), 19-3, 3:25 133: Jack Hathaway (OSU) pinned Devin Poppen (SOU), 1:06 141: Devin Reynolds (OSU) pinned Francis Llorente (SOU), :47 149: Abraham Rodriguez (OSU) tech. fall over Tyler Cowger (SOU), 20-5 157: Joey Delgado (OSU) dec. Dalton Urrutia (SOU), 7-5 165: Seth Thomas (OSU) dec. Garrett Urrutia (SOU), 9-5 174: Brock Gutches (SOU), pinned Joe Latham (OSU), 5:46 184: Taylor Meeks (OSU) tech. fall over Ryan McWatters (SOU), 16-1 197: Cody Crawford (OSU) won by injury default over Taylor Johnson (SOU) Hwt: Nate Keeve (OSU) major dec. Clayton Burtis (SOU), 10-1

Live Blog EMU Duals

Injuries nearly ruined UFC 180, but Hunt vs. Werdum and Lamas vs. Bermudez should keep things entertaining. And if not, Bellator and World Series of Fighting also have offerings this weekend. Okami should win the WSOF middleweight belt and Bellator's main event between Tito Ortiz and Stephan Bonnar is inconsequential, but both events have intriguing lightweight title bouts worth checking out. Do you want to listen to a past episode? Access archives.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- The Arizona State wrestling team won its dual match opener, defeating West Virginia, 19-13, on Thursday night at the WVU Coliseum. The win marks head coach Zeke Jones’ first in his coaching career with the Sun Devils. ASU started off strong, picking up five consecutive decisions to take a 15-0 advantage over the Mountaineers. At 141-pounds, junior Matt Kraus (1-0, 1-0 duals) started things off with a 5-4 decision over James Dekrone, while sophomore Oliver Pierce (4-1, 1-0 duals) topped Roman Perryman in a 4-3 decision at 157-pounds. Redshirt senior Joel Smith (5-1, 1-0 duals) took the match at 165-pounds with a 9-5 decision over Timothy Wheeling, while junior Ray Waters (4-1, 1-0 duals) added an 8-4 decision over Ross Renzi at 174. Redshirt junior No. 9 Blake Stauffer is now 6-0 on the year at 184 pounds, defeating Jakob Scheffel in a 4-0 decision. Also undefeated at 5-0 is sophomore Dalton Brady, who picked up ASU’s first bonus-point win in the dual slate with a 13-5 major decision over Cory Stainbrook. Two Sun Devils were edged in matches that went down to the wire, first with redshirt senior Chace Eskam (5-1, 0-1 duals), who fell, 5-4, in the second tiebreaker to Anthony Vizcarrondo. Sophomore Mech Spraggins (4-3, 0-1 duals) fell in the first period of sudden victory, 3-1, to Mike Morales. ASU is back in action on Saturday, facing No.3/4 Ohio State and Binghamton as part of the Journeymen Tussle in Albany, N.Y. The dual with Binghamton is set for Noon MT/2 p.m. ET, while the match against Ohio State will begin at 1:45 p.m. MT/3:45 p.m. ET. Fans with a subscription to Flowrestling will be able to follow the livestream of the duals. Results: 149: Matt Kraus (ASU) def. James Dekrone (WVU): Dec, 5-4 (ASU 3, WVU 0) 157: Oliver Pierce (ASU) def. Roman Perryman (WVU): Dec 4-3 (ASU 6, WVU 0) 165: Joel Smith (ASU) def. Timothy Wheeling (WVU): Dec 9-5 (ASU 9, WVU 0) 174: Ray Waters (ASU) def. Ross Renzi (WVU): Dec 8-4 (ASU 12, WVU 0) 184: No. 9 Blake Stauffer (ASU) def. Jakob Scheffel (WVU): Dec 4-0 (ASU 15, WVU 0) 197: Jake Smith (WVU) def. Wes Moore (ASU): Dec 6-1 (ASU 15, WVU 3) HWT: Anthony Vizcarrondo (WVU) def. Chace Eskam (ASU): TB-2, 5-4 (ASU 15, WVU 6) 125: Zeke Moisey (WVU) def. Judson Preskitt (ASU): MD 12-2 (ASU 15, WVU 10) 133: Dalton Brady (ASU) def. Cory Stainbrook (WVU): MD 13-5 (ASU 19, WVU 10) 141: Mike Morales (WVU) def. Mech Spraggins (ASU): SV-1, 3-1 (ASU 19, WVU 13)

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The fourth-ranked Ohio State wrestling team opened its dual meet season in dominating fashion, defeating Kent State, 38-3, on Thursday night in front of 2,681 fans at St. John Arena. The Buckeyes won nine of 10 matches and recorded bonus points in five matches. In the opening match of the night (125 lbs.), redshirt freshman Nathan Tomasello got Ohio State off to a fast start, recording a 20-5 technical fall of Kent State’s Mack McGuire. Tomasello scored points early and often in the match, including two take downs and a near fall in the first period alone. Johnni DiJulius, coming off a title at last weekend’s Mercyhurst Open, eked out a tight 2-1 decision over Del Vinas in the night’s next match (133 lbs.). Redshirt senior Logan Stieber, a three-time national champion making his 2014-15 season debut, gave the crowd plenty to cheer about at 141 lbs., easily dispatching of Kyle Bauer, 15-0. Kent State picked up four points in the next match of the night, 149 lbs., when Nate Valentine defeated Blake Riley-Hawkins, 12-0. At 157 lbs., a pair of top-10 ranked wrestlers – Josh Demas of Ohio State (seventh) and Ian Miller of Kent State (second) matched up. Miller took an early 2-0 lead in the first period, but Demas came back with a takedown that resulted in a Miller injury, forcing him to medically forfeit. Kent State was also penalized a point for a personal misconduct, giving the Buckeyes a 19-3 advantage. In easily the most exciting match of the night, Ohio State’s Justin Kresevic, a redshirt sophomore, pinned Tyler Buckwalter with just 14 seconds remaining in the third period to break a 2-2 tie. Mark Martin, ranked eighth nationally, followed that with a 3-1 win at 174 pounds against 16th-ranked Caleb Marsh. At 184 pounds, Kenny Courts had no problem disposing of Cory Campbell, 17-5. True freshman Kyle Snyder, making his St. John Arena debut, picked up an 11-6 win over Cole Baxter at 197 lbs. and the match was rounded out with Nick Tavanello’s overtime decision on criteria over Mimmo Lytle at 285 lbs. Ohio State is back in action on Saturday when it travels to Clifton Park, N.Y. to take part in the Journeymen Tussle on Saturday. Ohio State faces Army at 2 p.m. and Arizona State at 3:45. The Buckeyes do not return to St. John Arena until a showdown with sixth-ranked Missouri on December 14. Results: 125 lbs.: Tomasello (OSU) tech. fall over Vinas (KSU) 20-5 133 lbs.: DiJulius (OSU) dec. over McGuire (KSU) 2-1 141 lbs.: Stieber (OSU) tech fall over Bauer (KSU) 15-0 149 lbs.: Valentine (KSU) maj. dec. over Riley Hawkins (KSU) 12-0 157 lbs.: Demas (OSU) medical default over Miller (KSU) 165 lbs.: Kresevic (OSU) won by fall over Buckwalter (KSU) 6:44 174 lbs.: Martin (OSU) def. Marsh (KSU) 3-1 184 lbs.: Courts (OSU) maj. dec. over Campbell (KSU) 17-5 197 lbs.: Snyder (OSU) dec. over Baxter (KSU) 11-6 285 lbs.: Tavanello (OSU) dec. over Lytle (KSU) tie breaker on criteria

Fredy Stroker won his second InterMat JJ Classic title (Photo/Jeff Beshey, The Guillotine) With the high school wrestling season's start nearing, InterMat is taking readers across the United States of America on a tour of scholastic wrestling. From mid-August until mid-November, InterMat is introducing readers to the top high school senior wrestlers in the 49 states with scholastic wrestling. Tony Hager looks at the top senior wrestlers in Iowa. The senior class from Iowa has a lot of worthy candidates for InterMat's top ten list. Iowa could put a team together that would be worthy of a matchup against the USA Dream Team. Going through this list you will find a lot of these wrestlers are multi-sport standouts. Iowa is a wrestling state but a lot of these kids are able to be successful at other sports while still being standout wrestlers. I think they deserve a ton of credit for being multi-sport athletes. Let's take a look at Iowa's top ten pound-for-pound rankings. 1. Fredy Stroker (Bettendorf) Projected High School Weight Class: 145 Projected College Weight Class: 149/157 Analysis: Stroker is the clear P4P No. 1 in Iowa. 144-3, three-time state finalist, two-time champ and four-time Fargo All-American, twice at the Junior level. He is one of the most consistent wrestlers in Iowa and isn't afraid to wrestle out of state. He recently wrestled up a weight at 155 pounds at the Freakshow and came away with a title. The next weekend he won his second InterMat JJ Classic title. Stroker has the some of the best wrestling partners in the state. Bettendorf has consistently been in the top 20 in national team rankings. Look for Stroker to become a three-time Iowa state champion. Stroker has verbally committed to the Minnesota Gophers. Max Thomsen (Photo/Rob Preston)2. Max Thomsen (Union) Projected High School Weight Class: 145 Projected College Weight Class: 141/149 Analysis: Thomsen has an opportunity to become Iowa's 24th four-time state champion. He has compiled a high school record of 145-1. Thomsen finished second at 145 pounds at the Super 32 Challenge and was fifth in 2013. His only career loss was to Phil Laux, 3-1, at the Battle in Waterloo. Laux was the returning state champion at that time. Thomsen clearly has an argument to be the top pound-for-pound wrestler in the state. He will further his wrestling career at Northern Iowa. 3. Bryce Steiert (Wavery-Shell Rock) Projected High School Weight Class: 160 Projected College Weight Class: 157 Analysis: Steiert finally got over the hump last season and claimed his first state title as a junior at 145 pounds. He made his mark on the national scene this summer, going 6-1 for Team Iowa (at Junior Duals) in freestyle. Steiert followed that with a Fargo All-American performance which saw him pick up three top-20 wins at his weight class en route to a fourth-place finish. He is one of the best athletes on the mat in the state of Iowa. He has unbelievable hips with explosiveness from all positions. When you are talking pound-for-pound he has to be one of the strongest guys. Steiert has gone toe-to-toe with the top wrestlers in the nation at his weight class. Northern Iowa Panther fans have something to look forward to with Bryce Steiert. 4. Jacob Marnin (Southeast Polk) Projected High School Weight Class: 285 Projected College Weight Class: 285 Analysis: Jacob Marnin has had an interesting high school career. Southeast Polk is an Iowa powerhouse with multiple potential state placewinners at each weight class. Marnin made his first appearance in the varsity lineup last year as a junior so his high school regular season resume lacks stats and a state title. What Marnin does have is an impressive freestyle and Greco-Roman resume. He is a 2012 Cadet National All-American in all three styles, 2013 USA Wrestling Cadet Triple Crown winner, 2014 FILA Cadet Nationals champion in freestyle, Fila Cadet Nationals runner-up in Greco-Roman and Junior Nationals fourth-place finisher in freestyle and Greco-Roman. 5. Ryan Parmely (Maquoketa Valley) Projected High School Weight Class: 220 Projected College Weight Class: 285 Analysis: Parmely is a three-time Iowa state placewinner, placing fourth, third and first. He lands fifth in the pound-for-pound rankings because of a 149-4 high school career record. Parmely is also a standout football player. This year he ran for 3,180 years with 45 touchdowns. He currently is being recruited harder for football from the likes of Iowa, Northern Iowa and North Dakota State. Parmely will be the favorite to repeat for a state title and that should open the eyes of a few more college wrestling coaches. 6. Dayton Racer (Bettendorf) Projected High School Weight Class: 160 Projected College Weight Class: 157/165 Analysis: Dayton Racer has never wrestled for an Iowa team, but his preseason results are speaking volumes of his talent. Racer is coming from national powerhouse Apple Valley, Minnesota. He's a Minnesota state runner-up and state champion. Last year he was not able to wrestle in the state tournament due to switching schools, causing him to be ineligible. This preseason alone he has won the Grappler Fall Classic, finished third at Preseason Nations and was runner-up at the Super 32 Challenge. He is also a multiple-time InterMat JJ Classic champion. Racer's body of work is what lands him in the pound-for-pound rankings. His freestyle results aren't exceptional, but clearly he is on his folkstyle game. Look for Racer to make a big impact on the 3A Iowa team race in February. 7. Cash Wilcke ( OA-BCIG) Projected High School Weight Class: 182 Projected College Weight Class: 184 Analysis: Cash Wilcke is a four-sport athlete: football, wrestling, track and baseball. This happens a lot in Iowa but rarely do you find a nationally recognized wrestler that commits to four sports. Wilcke broke on to the scene last year when he went 48-1, claiming the 182-pound state championship. Some Iowa fans may be interested in why he is above Evan Hansen because Hansen is the only one to beat him last year in a regular season match. Hansen also is the only wrestler to take Wilcke down last year. Wilcke wrestled him at the freestyle state tournament and teched him 10-0 in the first period. The debate will come on whether you weigh folkstyle or freestyle more. But given Wilcke's body of work, he deserves to be above Hansen. Wilcke's strengths are his defense and heavy hands from his feet. Add these to his aggressive style and he will fit nicely into the Iowa wrestling room. 8. Isaiah Patton (Dowling Catholic) Projected High School Weight Class: 160 Projected College Weight Class: 165 Analysis: Isaiah Patton is not only a stud on the mat but also on the football field. He has been the starting linebacker on a state championship team and this year had the role of running. Patton isn't your normal high-level wrestler. He doesn't travel around the nation wrestling in prestigious tournaments. When it's time for football it's football and when it's wrestling time it's wrestling time. Patton's athleticism is what has carried him to a 108-33 high school wrestling career record. He placed seventh at the state meet as a freshman and third as a sophomore. Last year all cylinders clicked for him and he claimed the Class 3A title at 160 pounds. Once Patton steps onto the mat for Northern Iowa look for his national presence to be well known quickly! 9. Evan Hansen (Exira) Projected High School Weight Class: 182 Projected College Weight Class: 184 Analysis: Hansen carries a 143-8 career record into his senior season at Exira. He did not place his freshman year but went on to win the 145-pound state title his sophomore year and last year ended up in third place. Hansen put together a 91-match win streak and I am predicting he has a similar streak to end his high school wrestling career. He has a great opportunity to be in the 200-win club. Hansen will take his skills to a NAIA powerhouse Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa. 10. Steven Holloway (Mediapolis) Projected High School Weight Class: 195 Projected College Weight Class: 197 Analysis: Holloway walked his way to the Class 2A 195-pound finals last year. Going pin, pin, major at 195 pounds is no easy task in Iowa. This march to the finals is what lands Holloway in the top ten. Albia junior Carter Isley was the only one to test Holloway last season, but Holloway beat him when it counted, 3-2, in the championship match, clinching his first state title. Holloway takes a 123-12 career record into his season season. Honorable Mention: Nolan Hellickson (Southeast Polk) Jacob Schwarm (Bettendorf) Jeren Glosser (Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont) Paul Glynn (Bettendorf) Henry Pohlmeyer (Johnston) Jacob Woodard (Bettendorf)

Rankings: Fab 50 Team | Individual When the InterMat JJ Classic concluded Sunday afternoon in Rochester, Minnesota, the preseason tournaments virtually came to an end. On that note, it’s now time to unveil the initial InterMat high school wrestling rankings powered by Flips Wrestling. In many states, the official start date of practice is this week; while in a few southern states (most notably Georgia), regular season wrestling commences this weekend. Compiling the national team rankings is always an interesting beast. Between the vastness of the United States, the many different schedule structures that teams have, and comparing teams across different contexts (i.e. dual meet, smaller tournament, elite national tournament) -- there is a lot to be considered. As a simple example, the No. 12 ranked team in the country (Buchanan, Calif.) does not have a single weight class ranked wrestler; however their projected lineup features 12 starters with state tournament experience in single-class California, which means they are extraordinarily deep and balanced. Conversely, there are schools with multiple ranked wrestlers that are not Fab 50 squads due to a lack of depth in the lineup behind those ranked wrestlers. Mason Manville, a multiple-time Fargo champion and 2014 Cadet World champion in freestyle, is one of seven Blair Academy wrestlers who appears in the preseason InterMat high school wrestling rankings powered by Flips Wrestling (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Sitting atop the national rankings is a very familiar team, three-time defending national champions Blair Academy, N.J. The Buccaneers feature seven wrestlers in the preseason weight class rankings: No. 11 Zach Sherman at 106 pounds, No. 3 Chaz Tucker at 132, No. 1 Matthew Kolodzik at 138, No. 9 Jordan Kutler at 152, No. 2 Mason Manville at 160, No. 6 Brandon Dallavia at 170, and No. 14 David Showunmi at 220. Nipping right at the heels of Blair Academy, and it was a very close call for the top spot, is preseason No. 2 Oak Park River Forest, Ill. The Huskies also ended the 2014-15 season in the second position, and like the Buccaneers, they also start the season with seven ranked wrestlers: No. 12 Anthony Madrigal at 106, No. 4 Jason Renteria at 113, No. 17 Gabe Townsell at 126, No. 4 Larry Early at 145, No. 2 Isaiah White at 152, No. 14 Matthew Rundell at 160, and No. 5 Kamal Bey at 170. The lone common event for the two teams is at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman on December 12th and 13th in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. That prestigious field also features the next two teams in the rankings, No. 3 Wyoming Seminary (Pa.) and No. 4 St. Paris Graham (Ohio). The Blue Knights, which upended Blair Academy at National Preps last year, feature five weight class ranked wrestlers; while the fourteen-time defending Ohio Division II state champion Falcons have six of their own. The stars of national high school wrestling feature in the No. 1 positions across the weight classes. Three of the four wrestlers presently at the top of the rankings for their respective grade levels also hold the catbird seat in their respective weight classes. Freshman Cade Olivas (St. John Bosco, Calif.) is tops at 106 pounds, sophomore Spencer Lee (Franklin Regional, Pa.) leads the way at 120, while junior Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.) anchors the group at 170; Anthony Valencia (St. John Bosco, Calif.), the nation’s top senior, is ranked second to Hall at 170. Below is a profile of the wrestlers currently holding top positions in each of the weight classes: 106: Cade Olivas (St. John Bosco, Calif.) Olivas has been a known commodity for a long time prior to high school, winning multiple Roller World of Wrestling titles, Super 32 Middle School crowns, and the such. This past summer, Olivas represented the United States in the 46-kilogram classification at the FILA Cadet World Championships in freestyle. Just two weeks ago, he confirmed the number one position with a dominant Super 32 Challenge crown -- four wins by major decision, two by 9-2 decision, and one by fall. 113: Jabari Moody (Rich Central, Ill.) Moody won a his first state championship this past February, before also winning a NHSCA Junior National title, both coming at 106 pounds. He represented the United States this summer at the FILA Junior World Championships in the 50-kilogram classification. 120: Spencer Lee (Franklin Regional, Pa.) Lee was a gold medalist this summer in the 50 kilgoram classification at the FILA Cadet World Championships. During the 2013-14 scholastic year, he was Oustanding Wrestler at both the Super 32 Challenge and Walsh Jesuit Ironman; while since the end of that season, he has won repeat titles at the FILA Cadet Nationals in freestyle and the Super 32 Challenge. 126: Kaid Brock (Stillwater, Okla.) Brock is a two-time state champion and two-time Junior National freestyle All-American (finishing as runner-up in 2013). He was also a Cadet freestyle runner-up in 2012, and a FILA Cadet freestyle runner-up in 2013. Brock has verbally committed to Oklahoma State. 132: A.C. Headlee (Waynesburg, Pa.) Though not yet a state champion (sixth and third at state), Headlee has had an extraordinarily productive career. The resume includes a Super 32 Challenge placement, a FloNationals placement, a gold medal at the Disney Duals this summer, along with a third place finish in Junior freestyle at 132 pounds this summer. Headlee has verbally committed to the University of North Carolina. 138: Matthew Kolodzik (Blair Academy, N.J.) Kolodzik has ended each of his two high school seasons at Blair with National Prep titles, after winning a state title while competing in Ohio as a freshman. He was champion at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman this past season, after finishing as runner-up the previous two years, and has finished as a runner-up at the Beast of the East in each of the last two seasons. In addition, the Princeton-bound Kolodzik earned runner-up honors at 60 kilgorams in FILA Junior freestyle this spring. 145: Vincnezo Joseph (Pittsburgh Central Catholic, Pa.) Joseph won a state title this past year after placing at state the previous two campaigns (seventh and third). He is also a two-time Junior National freestyle All-American, which includes a runner-up finish this summer, and was a Cadet National double All-American in the summer of 2012. Joseph has verbally committed to Penn State. 152: David McFadden (DePaul Catholic, N.J.) The three-time state placer won a state title this past year after placing second and sixth the previous two campaigns. He was a Junior freestyle runner-up this past summer, after finishing third in Cadet freestyle in 2013. McFadden has verbally committed to Virginia Tech. 160: Logan Massa (St. Johns, Mich.) The two-time state champion Massa has one of the most robust resumes of any wrestler in the country. He is a two-time Super 32 Challenge placer, winning the championship belt in October 2013; he was a Junior freestyle runner-up this summer, after placing third in Cadet freestyle in 2012; and this spring he was champion at 69 kilograms in the FILA Junior freestyle nationals. Massa has verbally committed to the University of Michigan. 170: Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.) Like top-ranked sophomore Lee, top-ranked junior Hall was also a FILA Cadet World champion this summer, his title coming at 76 kilos. His resume is augmented by four state titles, a Cadet Triple Crown in 2013, and a whole litany of other stuff, including four InterMat JJ Classic titles. 182: Zahid Valencia (St. John Bosco, Calif.) Should Valencia win the Walsh Jesuit Ironman next month, he would join David Taylor as the lone members of the four-time Ironman champion club. He has also won a pair of California state titles, a pair of Cadet National freestyle titles (doubling it with Greco-Roman in 2013), and a Super 32 Challenge title earlier this month. Valencia has verbally committed to Arizona State. 195: Bobby Steveson (Apple Valley, Minn.) The University of Minnesota verbal commit is a two-time state champion, and was a Junior National freestyle champion this summer. The resume is augmented by two other All-American finishes in Fargo, and a FILA Cadet freestyle runner-up finish at 86 kilograms in 2013. 220: Jordan Wood (Boyertown, Pa.) Wood has finished as a state runner-up in his first two seasons of high school, and was also a FILA Cadet world runner-up in freestyle this past summer at the 100 kilogram classification. He also was a Super 32 Challenge champion in October 2013, a FloNationals runner-up in the spring of 2013, and a Cadet National double All-American in 2013. Wood has verbally committed to Lehigh as part of their 2016 class. 285: Michael Johnson Jr. (Montini Catholic, Ill.) Johnson was a runner-up at National Preps during both his freshman and sophomore seasons while competing at Wyoming Seminary. During his junior season at Montini, he was champion at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman, and a runner-up at the Illinois state tournament. Both the individual weight class and national team rankings reflect a broad diversity of wrestling within the United States. Teams from 20 different states are nationally ranked. Six teams each come from New Jersey and Pennsylvania, while five each are from Illinois and Ohio, with four coming from California. A trio of teams reside in Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, and Oklahoma. There are a pair of teams from Indiana; while single teams represent Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Missouri, North Dakota, Oregon, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin. Wrestlers competing for schools in 34 different states are nationally ranked, which includes top-ranked wrestlers coming from seven different states. Having the most number one wrestlers is Pennsylvania, with four; while a pair of top ranked wrestlers come from California, Illinois, Minnesota, and New Jersey. Single number one wrestlers are from schools in Michigan and Oklahoma. In what is a non-surprise, it is Pennsylvania with the most nationally ranked wrestlers, as 37 that compete for Keystone State schools appear in the rankings. Next in line are the 28 from New Jersey, 27 from Ohio, and 26 from Illinois. The rest in visual form: 18 -- OK 16 -- IA 14 -- CA, MI 12 -- NY 11 -- MN 10 -- IN 8 -- MD 7 -- MO 6 -- GA, VA 5 -- FL 3 -- AZ, CO, KS, OR, WI 2 -- ID, MA, ND, NE, NV, SD, UT 1 -- CT, KY, NM, SC, WA, WY

Jason Bryant of Mat Talk Online catches up with Fredy Stroker and Mark Hall at the 2014 InterMat JJ Classic in Rochester, Minnesota. Fredy Stroker Mark Hall To listen to full the episode of Short Time that includes these interviews and weekend updates from Jason Bryant, listen below. Visit Mat Talk Online for more wrestling podcasts.

BLACKSBURG -- Four Virginia Tech wrestlers took home titles of the Open Division of the Hokie Open Sunday inside Rector Field House. Joey Dance (125), Sal Mastriani (149), Zach Epperly (174) and Ty Walz (heavyweight) were all victorious at the end of the day as they each won titles in their respective weight classes. Mastriani pulled the upset of the tournament, upsetting his teammate and fourth-ranked Devin Carter in overtime as he got a takedown at the end of regulation and another in sudden victory for the win. Dance locked up a cradle late in the first period to pin 18th-ranked Sean Boyle of Chattanooga and Epperly took down UNC’s John-Michael Staudenmeyer for his seventh tournament win in just two years. Walz used a takedown early on to beat Tiffin’s Garrett Grey 3-2 for his title. In the Freshman/Sophomore Division, Jake Spengler went 4-0 at 157 pounds to claim the lone title by a Tech wrestler in that division. The Hokies will be back in action next weekend, taking on Gardner-Webb and North Dakota State at home on Sunday in a tri-match. The non-starters will head to Raleigh, North Carolina, for the Wolfpack Open.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- The 2014-15 Fighting Illini wrestling team opened its season in convincing fashion on Sunday afternoon, easily winning all three matches at the Illini Quad. The Orange and Blue took down SIU-Edwardsville (44-0), Rider (29-6) and Northern Illinois (37-10). "For the most part we were pretty aggressive," said head coach Jim Heffernan. "I think there are still a lot of small things we need to clean up, but it's early enough and that's what this event is for. I thought for the most part we were solid." In the opening match of the season, Illinois easily dismantled SIU-Edwardsville, 44-0. Jesse Delgado, Isaiah Martinez and Jackson Morse recorded falls at their respective weight classes to lead the Illini against the Cougars. Kyle Langenderfer earned a technical fall victory at 149 pounds, while Steven Rodrigues, Zac Brunson and Jeff Koepke earned major decisions over their opponents. Dominic Olivieri, Nikko Reyes, and Christopher Lopez won by decision in their respective battles, giving the Orange and Blue victories in all 10 weight classes. Against Rider, the Illini won eight of the 10 matchups to earn a 29-6 win. Delgado's technical fall over J.R. Wert at 125 pounds and Reyes' victory by forfeit at 184 pounds were the only extra-point wins of the match for Illinois. Rodrigues earned a 4-1 decision over Chuck Zeisloft at 141 pounds, while Martinez grabbed an 8-4 win over Chad Walsh at 157 pounds. At 165 pounds, Morse defeated Conor Brennan, 8-6, and Brunson followed that up with a 9-4 victory over Ryan Wolfe at 174 pounds. Koepke's takedown in sudden victory against Donald McNeil sealed a 3-1 win at 197 pounds, while Lopez closed out the match with a 5-2 decision over Greg Velasco in the heavyweight bout. After forfeiting at 125 pounds and dropping a major decision at 133, the Illini earned extra-point wins in six of the final eight matches to earn a 37-10 victory over Northern Illinois. Rodrigues won by technical fall over Tyler Argue at 141 pounds. Langenderfer pinned Sal Annoreno in the 149-pound matchup, with Martinez following suit against Andrew Morse at 157 pounds. At 165 pounds, Illinois' Morse defeated Shawn'Qae McMurtry 12-3, earning a major decision victory. Brunson won by forfeit at 174 pounds, while Reyes took down Quinton Rosser at 184 pounds with a 15-5 major decision. Koepke and Brooks Black closed out the afternoon with decisions at 197 pounds and heavyweight. Koepke garnered a 5-3 win over Shawn Scott, while Black defeated Arthur Bunce by a score of 5-1. The Fighting Illini will be making a California road trip next weekend where they will wrestle in three duals and one open tournament. #11 Illinois 44, SIU-Edwardsville 0 125 - #1 Jesse Delgado pinned Kenny Baldridge, 6:35 133 - Dominic Olivieri dec. Patrick Myers, 5-1 141 - Steven Rodrigues maj. dec.Patrick Myers, 12-3 149 - Kyle Langenderfer tech. fall Angelo Silvestro, 18-3 157 - #9 Isaiah Martinez pinned Sam Zimmerman, 4:12 165 - #13 Jackson Morse pinned Connor McMahon, 4:30 174 - Zac Brunson maj. dec. Jake Residori, 9-0 184 - #11 Nikko Reyes dec. Jake Tindle, 8-2 197 - Jeff Koepke maj. dec. Cole Rogers, 10-2 HWT - Christopher Lopez dec. Chris Johnson, 2-1 (OT2) #11 Illinois 29, Rider 6 125 - #1 Jesse Delgado tech. fall J.R. Wert, 22-5 133 - #17 Robert Deutsch dec. Dominic Olivieri, 6-0 141 - #19 Steven Rodrigues dec. #19 Chuck Zeisloft, 4-1 149 - B.J. Clagon dec. Kyle Langenderfer, 5-4 157 - #9 Isaiah Martinez dec. Chad Walsh, 8-4 165 - #13 Jackson Morse dec. Conor Brennan, 8-6 174 - Zac Brunson dec. Ryan Wolfe, 9-4 184 - Nikko Reyes won by forfeit 197 - Jeff Koepke dec. Donald McNeil, 3-1 (OT) HWT - Christopher Lopez dec. Greg Velasco, 5-2 #11 Illinois 37, Northern Illinois 10 125 - Derek Elmore won by forfeit 133 - Tyler Argue maj. dec. Dominic Olivieri, 8-0 141 - #19 Steven Rodrigues tech. fall Tyler Argue, 23-7 149 - Kyle Langenderfer pinned Sal Annoreno, 6:01 157 - #9 Isaiah Martinez pinned Andrew Morse, 2:18 165 - #13 Jackson Morse maj. dec. Shaun'Qae McMurtry, 12-3 174 - Zac Brunson won by forfeit 184 - Nikko Reyes maj. dec. Quinton Rosser, 15-5 197 - Jeff Koepke dec. Shawn Scott, 5-3 HWT - Brooks Black dec. Arthur Bunce 5-1

COLLEGE PARK, MD. -- Jake Kettler won the final match of the afternoon against Maryland’s Sean Twigg 12-6 for a final team score of 16-16, however Mason outscored Maryland 59-55 in the dual to come away with the 17-16 victory on Sunday. Mason is now 3-2 in duals with the win over previously unbeaten Maryland. The Terrapins fall to 4-1 with the loss. Maryland won the first two matches of the back-and-forth dual for an early 6-0 lead but the Patriots responded by winning the next two at 141 and 149lbs. Sahid Kargbo won a 7-4 decision over Daniel Sanchez and Ryan Hunsberger won his match 3-1 to even the match at six. After Maryland won the 157lb. contest Mason’s Patrick Davis earned a key major decision with a 15-5 victory over Tyler Manion at 165lbs. and Ryan Forrest earned the victory over Josh Snook at 174lbs. to give Mason the 13-9 advantage. The Terrapins answered by winning the 184 and 197llb bouts to take the 16-13 lead but that was before Kettler was able to outscore his man 12-6 in the heavyweight matchup, points that would prove to be critical as Mason outscored Maryland in the dual to earn the team victory. Next up for the Green and Gold is action at the Navy Classic on Saturday, November 22. Results: 125: Jhared Simmons (MD) decision over Ibrahim Bunduka (GMU), 8-5 (3-0) MD 133: Billy Rappo (MD) decision over Vince Rodriguez (GMU), 4-3 (6-0) MD 141: Sahid Kargbo (GMU) decision over Daniel Sanchez (MD), 7-4 (6-3) MD 149: Ryan Hunsberger (GMU) decision over Shane Arechiga (MD), 3-1 (6-6) 157: Lou Mascola (MD) decision over Greg Flournoy (GMU), 4-1 (9-6) MD 165: Patrick Davis (GMU) major decision over Tyler Manion (MD), 15-5 (10-9) GMU 174: Ryan Forrest (GMU) decision over Josh Snook (MD), 6-5 (13-9) GMU 184: Tony Gardner (MD) major decision over Derek Dwyer (GMU), 12-4 (13-13) 197: Rob Fitzgerald (MD) decision over Matt Meadows (GMU), 6-3 (16-13) MD 285: Jake Kettler (GMU) decision over Sean Twigg (MD), 12-6 (16-16) George Mason wins on criteria (total match points) 59-55, to take the dual 17-16.

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestlers, ranked No. 5 in Intermat's Tournament Power Index (TPI), opened up the 2014-15 season with a convincing 24-10 win over No. 17 Lehigh. Wrestled in front of a sold out Rec Hall crowd of 6,237, sophomore Jimmy Gulibon and senior Matt Brown led the way as Penn State won seven of ten bouts. The dual began at 125, where No. 12 Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.) downed Scott Parker 4-3 to put Penn State up 3-0 early on.. No. 8 Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.) then thrilled the SRO crowd with a dominating 8-3 win over No. 2 Mason Beckman at 133. Gulibon used a swift four-point move at the end of the first period and a late second period takedown to roll to victory. Red-shirt freshman Kade Moss (South Jordan, Utah) made his Penn State dual debut at 141 but dropped a tough 8-2 decision to Lehigh's Randy Cruz. Sophomore Zack Beitz (Mifflintown, Pa.), ranked No. 16 at 149, put Penn State up 9-3 with a dominating 8-2 win over Lehigh's Drew Longo. Red-shirt freshman Cody Law (Windber, Pa.) made his Lion dual debut at 157 against LU's Dylan Milonas. Milonas used a 1:33 riding time edge to post a 2-1 win and cut Penn State's lead to 9-6 at intermission. Red-shirt freshman Garett Hammond (Chambersburg, Pa.) also made his dual debut at 165 and posted a strong 8-3 win over Lehigh's Santiago Martinez to put Penn State up 12-6. Two-time All-American Matt Brown (West Valley City, Utah), ranked No. 3 at 174, doubled Penn State's lead with a strong second period pin (4:01) of LU's Marshall Peppleman. The fall put Penn State up 18-6. Red-shirt freshman Matt McCutcheon (Apollo, Pa.) made his Penn State debut at 184, taking on No. 3 Nate Brown. Brown was strong, posting a 10-2 major over the Lion freshman and cutting Penn State's lead to 18-10. All-American Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 4 at 197, posted a thrilling 4-3 win over No. 18 Elliott Riddick at 197 to put Penn State up 21-10. Senior Jon Gingrich (Wingate, Pa.), ranked No. 7 at 285, closed out the strong team performance with a 3-1 win over Doug Vollaro, to finalize the dual meet at 24-10 Penn State. Penn State had four wrestlers making their dual meet debuts, all red-shirt freshmen. The Nittany Lions won the takedown battle by a close 12-8 margin. Each team had one bonus point decision, Brown's pin at 174 for Penn State and Brown's major at 184 for Lehigh. Penn State is now 1-0, 0-0 B1G, while Lehigh falls to 1-1. Penn State continues dual meet action in two weeks, visiting Pittsburgh on Friday, Nov. 21, for a 7 p.m. dual wrestled at Pitt's Peterson Events Center. Penn State then treks to Clarion on Saturday, Nov. 22, for a 7 p.m. dual as well. A limited number of SRO tickets are available for select Penn State Rec Hall dual meets, although the SROs for the Lehigh dual are sold out. For ticket inquiries, call 1-800-NITTANY. Penn State Fans are encouraged to follow Penn State wrestling via twitter at www.twitter.com/pennstateWREST and on Penn State Wrestling's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewrestling. The 2014-15 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline. Results: 125: #12 Jordan Conaway PSU dec. Scott Parker LEH, 4-3 3-0 133: #8 Jimmy Gulibon PSU dec. #2 Mason Beckman LEH, 8-3 6-0 141: Randy Cruz LEH dec. Kade Moss PSU, 8-2 6-3 149: #16 Zack Beitz PSU dec. Drew Longo LEH, 8-2 9-3 157: Dylan Milonas LEH dec. Cody Law PSU, 2-1 9-6 165: Garett Hammond PSU dec. Santiago Martinez LEH, 8-3 12-6 174: #3 Matt Brown PSU pinned Marshall Peppleman LEH, WBF (4:01) 18-6 184: #3 Nate Brown LEH maj. dec. Matt McCutcheon PSU, 10-2 18-10 197: #4 Morgan McIntosh PSU dec. #18 Elliott Riddick LEH, 4-3 21-10 285: #7 Jon Gingrich PSU dec. Doug Vollaro LEH, 3-1 24-10 Attendance: 6,237 (20th straight home sell out) Records: Penn State 1-0, 0-0 B1G; Lehigh 1-1 Up Next for Penn State: at #18 Pittsburgh, Friday, Nov. 21, Peterson Events Center, 7 p.m. BOUT-BY-BOUT: 125: Junior Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 125, took on Scott Parker. The duo battled evenly for half the opening period before blood time stopped action at the 1:38 mark. Conaway forced Parker back towards the outside circle for the last minute-plus, looking to score on a low single. But Parker's defense kept the bout scoreless through one period. Parker chose down to start the second period and quickly reversed Conaway for a 2-0 lead. The Lion junior escaped to cut the lead to 2-1 and action resumed in the center circle. Conaway forced Parker into a first stall and trailed 2-1 after two periods. Conaway chose down to start the third period but Parker maintained control for the first :30-plus seconds. Conaway escaped at the 1:15 mark with Parker having only :50 in riding time to tie the bout at 2-2. With :41 on the clock, Conaway used a slick duck under single to take Parker down and open up a 4-2 lead. The Lion then rode Parker until the :07 mark and, after the escape, posted the 4-3 win. 133: Sophomore Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.), ranked No. 8 at 133, met No. 2 Mason Beckman in one of the dual's most anticipated match-ups. Beckman took Gulibon down quickly to open up a 2-0 lead just :21 into the bout. Gulibon escaped but not until Beckman had built up a 1:22 riding time edge. The Nittany Lion sophomore nearly scored on a late takedown but Beckman was able to back out of trouble and keep his one point lead with :30 on the clock. The Lion continued to pressure the second-ranked Mountain Hawk and his efforts paid off with a Late flurry. With just seconds left in the opening stanza, Gulibon took Beckman to his back and picked up two near fall points to lead 5-2 after a furious first period. The Nittany Lion chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to open up a 6-2 lead. The Lion continued to pressure Beckman for the rest of the period and tacked on one more takedown to lead 8-2 after two. Beckman chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to an 8-3 Gulibon lead. The duo battled evenly for the final minute-plus and Gulibon thrilled the sold out Rec Hall crowd with a convincing and dominating 8-3 win over the second-ranked Beckman. 141: Red-shirt freshman Kade Moss (South Jordan, Utah) made his Penn State dual meet debut at 141 against Lehigh's Randy Cruz. Cruz got the first takedown of the bout at the 2:22 mark to take an early lead. Cruz then turned Moss for three back points and a 5-0 lead at the :40 mark. A strong Cruz ride out gave the Mountain Hawk a 5-0 lead with 2:12 in riding time after the opening period. Moss chose neutral to start the second period and stepped up the offensive tempo, forcing his LU foe to the outside circle for two minutes but not breaking through Cruz's strong defense. Leading 5-0 with 2:22 in riding time, Cruz chose down to start the final period. He quickly escaped to a 6-0 lead and action resumed in the center circle. Moss gained control of Cruz's shoulders and worked him to the mat for his first takedown, cutting the lead to 6-2 with 1:05 on the clock. Moss let Cruz escaped to a 7-2 score and began looking for another takedown. Cruz got in on a high single with :30 left, looking for a takedown and a major. But Moss was able to fight off the effort and secure the regular decision. Cruz posted the 8-2 win and cut Penn State's dual lead to 6-3. 149: Sophomore Zack Beitz (Mifflintown, Pa.), ranked No. 16 at 149, met LU's Drew Longo. Beitz wasted no time in taking a lead, using a fast low double to score on the edge of the mat less than :20 into the bout. Beitz then controlled Longo from the top, forcing the Hawk into a stall warning while looking for a chance to turn him for back points. Longo got called for a second stall, giving Beitz a 3-0 lead with :20 left in the first. Beitz chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 4-0 lead, with over 2:30 in riding time. Longo tried to score on a low single but Beitz deftly fought off the move to force a reset. The Lion sophomore then blew through a high double, finishing off the move at the :55 mark to take a 6-0 lead. Another strong Beitz ride out gave the Lion a 6-0 lead with 3:36 in riding time, a clinched bonus point. Beitz shot low of a reset with 1:30 on the clock, working for a major. But Longo fought off the move to keep the score static. Longo posted his first takedown with :50 left and Beitz quickly escaped, making the score 7-2. Beitz worked for one final takedown, trying to post the major. But Longo kept the Lion sophomore from scoring. Still, 3:37 in riding time gave Beitz a convincing 8-2 win. 157: Red-shirt freshman Cody Law (Windber, Pa.) made his Penn State dual meet debut at 157, battling Lehigh's Dylan Milonas. The duo came out fast, with each man looking to score early. The fast tempo carried on for the full first period but neither man could find an opening to score and the bout moved to the second knotted in a scoreless tie. Milonas chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. Another two minutes with a takedown and Law trailed 1-0 heading into the final period. Law chose down to start the third period but could not break free of a strong Milonas ride. The Mountain Hawk controlled the action long enough to build up over a 1:00 riding time edge. Law escaped to a 1-1 tie with :20 left but the riding time point would be the different. The 1:33 time edge gave Milonas a 2-1 win. 165: Red-shirt freshman Garett Hammond (Chambersburg, Pa.) made his Penn State dual meet debut at 165, facing off against Mountain Hawk Santiago Martinez. Hammond scored quickly, aggressively shooting low and connecting on a single leg to takedown right away. Martinez quickly escaped and action resumed in the center circle with Hammond leading 2-1. Hammond nearly connected on another shot but Martinez was able to fight off the move and keep the score at 2-1 after the opening stanza. Martinez chose down to start the second period but Hammond was strong on top, building up well over 1:00 in riding time. Martinez escaped to tie the bout at 2-2 but Hammond had 1:22 in riding time after two periods. Hammond chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 3-2 lead. The Lion freshman then added a takedown to lead 5-3 after a quick Martinez escape with :40 on the clock. Hammond added one more takedown at the buzzer and, with 1:45 in riding time, posted the strong 8-3 win. 174: Senior All-American Matt Brown (West Valley City, Utah), ranked No. 3 at 174, met Lehigh's Marshall Peppleman. The Lion senior set the tempo early, forcing Peppleman to the mat for a takedown with just over 1:00 to wrestle. Brown then dominated the action from the top, riding Peppleman out to lead 2-0 with 1:18 in time after one. Brown chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 3-0 lead. He rolled through another takedown and led 5-0 before sending Peppleman to his back for a second period pin. The fall, at the 4:01 mark, put the Nittany Lions up 18-6 with three bouts left to wrestle. 184: Red-shirt freshman Matt McCutcheon (Apollo, Pa.) made his Penn State dual meet debut at 184 and took on No. 3 Nate Brown of Lehigh. The young Lion battled Brown through an even first two minutes before Brown turned a low single into a takedown and a 2-0 lead with 1:07 left. Brown rode McCutcheon out to lead 2-0 with over 1:00 riding time after one. Brown chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 3-0 lead. McCutcheon nearly connected on a takedown with 1:00 on the clock but Brown was able to fight off the move. The Mountain Hawk then connected on his second takedown to take a 5-0 lead with :30 left in the period. McCutcheon, trailing 5-0 after two, chose down to start the third and quickly escaped to a 5-1 score. McCutcheon continued to look for openings but Brown countered a high single for another takedown and upped his lead to 7-1 with 1:04 on the clock. McCutcheon escaped to an 8-2 score but Brown was able to secure bonus points with a late takedown and, with 2:07 in riding time, post a 10-2 major. 197: Junior All-American Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 4 at 197, battled LU's Elliott Riddick, ranked No. 18. The talented junior tandem battled evenly for the first three minutes, with neither wrestler finding an opening to score. After three even minutes, the match moved to the second period tied 0-0. Riddick chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. McIntosh looked to control the action from the middle of the mat. He forced Riddick to the outside circle and nearly got a takedown but the Mountain Hawk was able to slip out of bounds to maintain his 1-0 lead. Riddick dove low off a reset and connected on a low double to take a 3-1 lead after a quick McIntosh escape. Trailing by one, McIntosh chose down to start the third and quickly escaped to a 3-2 deficit. He continued to pressure the Mountain Hawk grappler, forcing him backwards and into a second stall warning and tying the bout at 3-3 with 1:20. McIntosh continued to force Riddick backwards and the Hawk picked up another stall, giving McIntosh a 4-3 lead with :35 on the clock. McIntosh fought off a Riddick single leg to keep his one point lead with :15 left and, courtesy three stalls, posted the 4-3 victory. 285: Senior Jon Gingrich (Wingate, Pa.), ranked No. 7 at 285, tangled with Lehigh's Doug Vollaro. The duo battled evenly out of the games with Gingrich shooting from the center circle and Vollaro looking to counter. Neither wrestler was able to connect for the full three minutes and action moved to the second period tied 0-0. Gingrich chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. Gingrich shot low on Vollaro, the Hawk big man countered nicely, but Gingrich worked through the counter to notch the bout's first takedown and up his lead to 3-0 at the :27 mark. A short ride out gave the Lion senior a 3-0 lead after two periods. Vollaro chose down to start the third period and escaped to a 3-1 score with 1:41 on the clock (Gingrich had :47 in riding time). Action resumed in the center circle. Gingrich continued to press the action but Vollaro was able to step out of the Lion's reach after each shot. Gingrich's solid 3-1 win gave Penn State the 24-10 final victory.

100: 1st: Curtis LeMair (Prior Lake) dec. Israel Navarro (Willmar), 3-1 3rd: Garrett Vos (Waconia) dec. Kyle Biscoglia (Waukee), 4-1 5th: Dylan Droegemueller (Champlin Park) maj. dec. Hunter Burnett (Milbank), 10-2 106: 1st: Justin Portillo (Clarion-Goldfield) dec. Brock Bergelin (Denmark), 5-2 3rd: Hser Eh Pwae (Worthington) dec. Ethan Cota (Kenyon Wanamingo), 3-0 5th: Nate Larson (Apple Valley) dec. Zachary Ferguson (Saint Paul Central), 8-2 113: 1st: Dominic LaJoie (Gaylord) pinned Tyler Eischens (Anoka), 1:33 3rd: Joshua Portillo (Clarion-Goldfield) dec. Jaden Van Maanen (La Crosse Central), 7-0 5th: Alexander Crowe (Shakopee) tech. fall Brennen Doebel (Clear Lake), 23-8 120: 1st: Nathan Smith (Mukwonago) dec. Tucker Sjomeling (Delano), 3-0 3rd: Brian Maas (Bemidji) dec. Noah Buck (Apple Valley), 5-1 5th: Michael Suda (Suda Christian) pinned Andrew Smith (Amery), 3:09 126: 1st: Alex Lloyd (Shakopee) maj. dec. Will Lucie (Warsaw), 15-4 3rd: Jose Acosta (Manitowoc Lincoln) dec. Tanner Day (Pinnacle), 4-2 5th: Tyler Shilson (Centennial) dec. Lee Schmalz (Mound-Westonka), 8-2 132: 1st: Sam Bennyhoff (Mound-Westonka) by injury default over Michael Peters (Quincy) 3rd: Adam Hedin (Rosemount) dec. Louie Sanders (LCWM), 7-3 5th: Austin Anderly (Le Seuer Henderson) pinned Joe Fischenich (Windom Area), 1:48 138: 1st: Colton Clingenpeel (Thomas Jefferson) pinned Cruze Hurlburt (Spring Valley), 3:05 3rd: Joe Carlson (Blaine) dec. Dylan Connell (Chisago Lakes), 8-6 5th: AJ Geers (Linn-Mar) pinned Ryan Reid (Mound-Westonka), 3:19 145: 1st: Fredy Stroker (Bettendorf) dec. Griffin Parriott (New Prague), 6-5 3rd: Ben Brancale (Eden Prairie) dec. Miles Patton (Rochester Mayo), 2-1 OT 5th: Bret Romanzak (Jefferson Forest) dec. Matthew Rustad (Farmington), 8-1 152: 1st: Carson Brolsma (Osseo) dec. Devin Fitzpatrick (Mahtomedi), 7-2 3rd: Estevan Navarro (Willmar) dec. Kyle Schoenecker (Chisago Lakes), 3-1 5th: Emmett Wagner (Shakopee) dec. Luke Schmalz (Mound-Westonka), 7-4 160: 1st: Colten Carlson (Willmar) dec. Brandon Moen (Owatonna), 9-6 3rd: Nicholas Green (Waconia) pinned Forrest Yineman (Neenah), 0:59 5th: Brandon Lucking (Mora) dec. Cory Schmidt (Annandale), 7-4 170: 1st: Mark Hall (Apple Valley) dec. Jacob Holschlag (Union), 5-1 3rd: Matt Njos (Anoka) dec. Nathanael Holecek (Thief River Falls), 4-3 5th: Jacob Raschka (Pewaukee) by injury default over Dillion Chase (Clinton) 182: 1st: Tim Christenson (Albert Lea) maj. dec. Samuel Grove (Moorhead), 11-3 3rd: Jonathan Zarnke (Chaska) dec. Logan Judge (Bloomington Kennedy), 4-1 5th: Alexander King (Shakopee) by injury default over Mason Hawkins (Farmington) 195: 1st: Bobby Steveson (Apple Valley) by injury default over Tristan Gregory (Gaylord) 3rd: Michael Bothwell (Coon Rapids) dec. Cody Anderson (Redwood Area), 7-2 5th: Anthony Putz (Saint Peter) by injury default over Trenten Rogich (Le Seuer Henderson) 220: 1st: Gable Steveson (Apple Valley) pinned Triston Westerlund (Albert Lea), 3:30 3rd: Carson Hagen (Worthington) pinned Jalen Cabrera (Willmar), 2:15 5th: Jameer Anderson (Benilde St Margarets) 285: 1st: Aaron Moore (Minnetonka) pinned Jesse Heifort (Anoka), 1:24 3rd: Timothy Mandyck (Coon Rapids)

Related: Results | Placers | Interviews | Photos ROCHESTER, Minn. -- With a 6-5 win in what was the best match of the InterMat JJ Classic on Sunday afternoon in Rochester, Minnesota, Fredy Stroker (Bettendorf, Iowa) was one of four past JJ Classic champions to add another such title to their resume. Fredy Stroker defeated Griffin Parriott to win the InterMat JJ Classic title (Photo/Jeff Beshey, The Guillotine)Despite giving up the opening takedown of the match against Griffin Parriott (New Prague, Minn.), who placed in last weekend's Super 32 Challenge and is a defending state champion, Stroker came back to earn the weight class title at 145 pounds. It was a second JJ Classic title for Stroker, who added to the one he won as a freshman. In addition, Stroker was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler. Three wrestlers earned repeat titles at the InterMat JJ Classic on Sunday afternoon: Justin Portillo (Claridon-Goldfield, Iowa) at 106 pounds, Mark Hall (Apple Valey, Minn.) at 170, and Bobby Steveson (Apple Valley, Minn.) at 195. Portillo was a state runner-up last year as a sophomore, and earned runner-up honors at the Preseason Nationals two weekends ago. His finals victory came against sophomore Brock Bergelin (Denmark, Wis.), who was a state alternate last year competing at 113 pounds. The pair of Apple Valley wrestlers -- Hall and Steveson -- won their fourth and third titles respectively at the JJ Classic, and will most likely be number one nationally at their respective weight classes come Wednesday. Hall, the nation's top junior, did not give up an offensive point in four matches on Sunday; which included a 5-1 victory in the finals over Jacob Holschlag (Union, Iowa), a state champion last year as a junior and Preseason Nationals champion two weekends ago. Steveson, a Junior National freestyle champion this summer and No. 10 overall in the senior class, had technical falls in his first three matches before the finals match went uncontested. The other wrestler seeking a repeat JJ Classic title on Sunday was sophomore Nathan Sjomeling (Delano, Minn.) at 120 pounds; however, his quest was derailed in the championship match by Nathan Smith (Mukwanego, Wis.). The junior placed third at state last year, and upended the 2013 Minnesota state champion Sjomeling by a 3-0 score. Joining Stroker, Portillo, and Smith as wrestlers from outside Minnesota to win titles in the JJ Classic were Dominic LaJoie (Gaylord, Mich.) at 113 pounds and Colton Clingenpeel (Council Bluffs Jefferson, Iowa). Lajoie, a Cadet Greco-Roman runner-up this summer and state champion last season as a freshman, earned his title with a first period pin over freshman Tyler Eischens (Anoka, Minn.). The junior Clingenpeel, a Cadet freestyle All-American this summer, also won by fall in the finals; his coming in the second period against sophomore Cruz Hurlburt (Spring Valley, Wis.), who placed third at state last season. A full two-thirds of the fifteen weight class titles were won by wrestlers from the Gopher State. Gable Steveson, the nation's fourth-ranked freshman, joined Apple Valley teammates Hall and older brother Bobby as JJ Classic champions. Gable's title came in the 220-pound weight class with a pin in 3:30 against two-time state placer Triston Westerlund (Albert Lea, Minn.). In addition to the title won by Gable Steveson, two others were won by home-state freshmen. Curtis LeMair (Prior Lake), a Minnesota Ninth Grade League state champion, won the title at 100 pounds, with a 3-1 finals victory over Israel Navarro (Willmar). Alex Lloyd (Shakopee), ranked No. 12 nationally in the Class of 2018, complimented his Preseason Nationals title from two weekends ago with a championship here at 126 pounds. Lloyd was totally dominant in five matches -- a pin, two technical falls, a 12-5 victory in the semifinal, and then a 14-5 championship match victory over two-time state placer Will Lucie (West Hancock, Ill.). Three other weight class titles were won by wrestlers that have finished second at the Minnesota State Wrestling Tournament in their past. Earning the title at 132-pound was two-time state placer Sam Bennyhoff (Mound-Westonka), a 2013 state runner-up, who earned a forfeit victory in the final over NHSCA Sophomore Nationals placer Michael Peters (Quincy, Ill.). It came after a 7-1 semifinal victory over two-time state champion Austin Anderly (LeSeur-Henderson, Minn.). The 152-pound title was won by two-time state placer Carlson Brolsma (Osseo), whose runner-up finish came last year. He was dominant prior to the final with two shutout technical falls, a pin, and 13-2 major decision. The finals match for Broslma was a decisive 7-2 victory junior Devin Fitzpatrick (Mahtomedi, Minn.), who placed fourth at state last season. Brolsma was one of three University of Minnesota commits to win titles, joining Fredy Stroker and Bobby Steveson. Winning the title at 160 pounds was 2013 state runner-up Colten Carlson (Willmar), who earned a 9-6 victory over sophomore Brandon Moen (Owatonna, Minn.), a third place finisher at state last year. Rounding out the weight class champions at the JJ Classic were senior Tim Christenson (Albert Lea) at 182 pounds and sophomore Aaron Moore (Minnetonka) at 285. Finals Results: 100: Curtis LeMair (Prior Lake) dec. Israel Navarro (Willmar), 3-1 106: Justin Portillo (Clarion-Goldfield) dec. Brock Bergelin (Denmark), 5-2 113: Dominic LaJoie (Gaylord) pinned Tyler Eischens (Anoka), 1:33 120: Nathan Smith (Mukwonago) dec. Tucker Sjomeling (Delano), 3-0 126: Alex Lloyd (Shakopee) maj. dec. Will Lucie (Warsaw), 15-4 132: Sam Bennyhoff (Mound-Westonka) by injury default over Michael Peters (Quincy) 138: Colton Clingenpeel (Thomas Jefferson) pinned Cruze Hurlburt (Spring Valley), 3:05 145: Fredy Stroker (Bettendorf) dec. Griffin Parriott (New Prague), 6-5 152: Carson Brolsma (Osseo) dec. Devin Fitzpatrick (Mahtomedi), 7-2 160: Colten Carlson (Willmar) dec. Brandon Moen (Owatonna), 9-6 170: Mark Hall (Apple Valley) dec. Jacob Holschlag (Union), 5-1 182: Tim Christenson (Albert Lea) maj. dec. Samuel Grove (Moorhead), 11-3 195: Bobby Steveson (Apple Valley) by injury default over Tristan Gregory (Gaylord) 220: Gable Steveson (Apple Valley) pinned Triston Westerlund (Albert Lea), 3:30 285: Aaron Moore (Minnetonka) pinned Jesse Heifort (Anoka), 1:24

Laramie, Wyo. – No. 7 Nebraska (1-0) opened its dual season with a 22-13 victory over No. 25 Wyoming at the Wyoming Indoor Practice Facility on Friday afternoon. No. 15 Collin Jensen opened the dual with a victory at heavyweight, taking down Wyoming’s Leland Pfeifer by a 6-1 decision. Jensen earned a takedown in the first period and added one in the second period after an escape from the bottom position. In the third stanza, Jensen racked up more than two minutes of riding time before letting Pfeifer escape. At 125 pounds, No. 14 Tim Lambert fell by a 7-4 margin to No. 8 Tyler Cox. After a scoreless first period, Lambert escaped from the down position to build a 1-0 lead before a Cox takedown. Lambert responded with a reversal before a Cox escape made it 3-3. In the third period, Cox escaped from bottom and added a takedown before giving up a Lambert escape. Cox added a point for riding time. Sophomore Eric Montoya picked up a 9-3 victory at 133 pounds over the Cowboys’ Drew Templeman. Montoya earned a takedown and added near fall points in the first period to build a 4-0 lead. Templeman earned a reversal before Montoya’s escape to make the score 5-2 after the first period. After an escape from the down position in the second period by Montoya, Templeman picked up one of his own in the third to make it 6-3. Montoya added a takedown before a riding time point to finish off the win. Anthony Abidin continued NU’s momentum at 141 pounds in his dominating 14-2 major decision over Cole Mendenhall. After an early Mendenhall takedown, Abidin earned three of his own and added near fall points en route to his first win of the season. At 149 pounds, sophomore Justin Arthur lost a 5-3 decision to Jake Elliott to cut NU’s lead to 10-6 at the halfway point. After a scoreless first period, Arthur escaped from the down position before an Elliott takedown in the second period. Elliott escaped from the down position to start the third period and added a takedown to ensure the victory. No. 2 James Green pinned Wyoming’s Archie Colgan in 5:17 to give the Huskers a 16-6 lead. Green earned two takedowns and five near fall points before the fall. At 165 pounds, No. 14 Austin Wilson came from behind to defeat No. 15 Dakota Friesth by a 5-2 decision. Friesth earned a first-period takedown before Wilson escaped to make it 2-1. Wilson rode out Friesth in the second period before earning an escape in the third period to tie the score 2-2. Wilson added a takedown and a point for riding time. No. 2 Robert Kokesh trailed early against Andy McCulley at 174 pounds, but emerged victorious with a 5-2 decision. McCulley took down Kokesh in the opening stanza before a Kokesh escape to make it 2-1. Kokesh rode out McCulley from the top position in the second period to secure riding time. In the third period, Kokesh escaped from bottom and earned a takedown. At 184 pounds, No. 13 TJ Dudley fell by a 15-6 major decision to No. 17 Ben Stroh. At 197 pounds, Micah Barnes lost a 3-2 decision to No. 16 Shane Woods to close out the dual. The Huskers finish their weekend trip by competing at the Cowboy Open on Saturday, starting at 10 a.m. (CT). Live video streaming is available on Flowrestling.org, with a subscription required to view the matches. Live scoring will be through TrackWrestling.com. No. 7 Nebraska 22, No. 25 Wyoming 13 Wyoming Indoor Practice Facility, Laramie, Wyo. Friday, Nov. 7, 2014 Results: HWT: #15 Collin Jensen (NEB) by dec. over Leland Pfeifer (WYO), 6-1 (NEB 3, WYO 0) 125: #8 Tyler Cox (WYO) by dec. over #14 Tim Lambert (NEB), 7-4 (NEB 3, WYO 3) 133: Eric Montoya (NEB) by dec. over Drew Templeman (WYO), 9-3 (NEB 6, WYO 3) 141: #17 Anthony Abidin (NEB) by major dec. over Cole Mendenhall (WYO), 14-2 (NEB 10, WYO 3) 149: Jake Elliott (WYO) by dec. over Justin Arthur (NEB), 5-3 (NEB 10, WYO 6) 157: #2 James Green (NEB) by pin over Archie Colgan (WYO), 5:17 (NEB 16, WYO 6) 165: #14 Austin Wilson (NEB) by dec. over #15 Dakota Friesth (WYO), 5-2 (NEB 19, WYO 6) 174: #2 Robert Kokesh (NEB) by dec. over Andy McCulley (WYO), 5-2 (NEB 22, WYO 6) 184: #17 Ben Stroh (WYO) by major dec. over #13 TJ Dudley (NEB), 15-6 (NEB 22, WYO 10) 197: #16 Shane Woods (WYO) by dec. over Micah Barnes (NEB), 3-2 (NEB 22, WYO 13)

The fifth edition of the InterMat JJ Classic takes place on Sunday at the UCR Regional Sports Center in Rochester, Minn. This year's field includes several nationally ranked wrestlers, highlighted by top-ranked junior Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn), a FILA Cadet World champion and four-time state champion. University of Minnesota commits Fredy Stroker (Bettendorf, Iowa), Bobby Steveson (Apple Valley, Minn.) and Carson Brolsma (Osseo, Minn.) are entered in the tournament. There will be a free live stream from the JJ Classic on Sunday. For more information on the JJ Classic or to register, visit the event website. Below is a look at the top competitors in each weight class based on the participant list through Friday. Registration will remain open until weigh-ins close today. 100: This weight class is not contested at the high school level and throughout the history of the JJ Classic has been comprised mostly of wrestlers with little or no high school wrestling experience. However, despite lacking experience at the high school, many wrestlers who register to compete in this weight class have been successful on the national, regional and state levels. This year is no exception. As has been in the case in previous years, there is no clear-cut favorite in this weight class, which should make for some very competitive matches. Trevor Giallombardo won 33 matches at the high school level last season, and has placed at many national and regional events. Kyle Biscoglia was a Cadet National folkstyle runner-up last spring, and this fall won a title at the Conflict at Carver. Curtis LeMair was a Minnesota Ninth Grade League state champion and also went undefeated (15-0) at the AAU Junior Olympic Games. Israel Navarro placed third in his section, and was a Minnesota Ninth Grade League state runner-up and NYWA state champion. Jacob Prunty (Worthington, Minn.) and Drew Woodley (Northfield, Minn.) won NYWA state titles. Derek Giallombardo (Gaylord, Mich.) went undefeated at the Cadet Duals in freestyle. There are several more talented lightweights that could figure into the mix in this weight class. 106: The two 100-pound finalists from last year's JJ Classic are entered in this weight class: Justin Portillo (Clarion-Goldfield, Iowa) and Ethan Cota (Kenyon Wanamingo, Minn.). At last year's JJ Classic, Justin Portillo won all of his matches by pin or technical fall. Last season he compiled a record of 26-3 and finished as a state runner-up. He was undefeated at the Disney Duals. This fall he has won titles at the Conflict at Carver, Blue Chip Fall Brawl and finished runner-up at Preseason Nationals. Cota was a state placewinner, Mental Aerobics champion and Minnesota/USA state freestyle champion. He was fifth at Preseason Nationals this fall, with one of his two losses coming to Portillo, 3-2, in the quarterfinals. Brandon Klein (Stoughton, Wis.), Hser Eh Pwae (Worthington, Wis.) and Zachary Ferguson (Saint Paul Central, Minn.) were all state qualifiers last season. Klein was 38-6 last season. Eh Pwae and Ferguson were both section champions last year. Brock Bergelin (Denmark, Wis.) went 35-5 and was a state champion in freestyle and Greco-Roman. Nate Larson (Apple Valley, Minn.) was a Minnesota Ninth Grade League state runner-up and has placed in the Freak Show and Liberty Nationals. Parker Huss (Scott West, Minn.) was a Cadet Greco-Roman All-American this past summer in Fargo. Anthony Meister (Elk River, Minn.) won 24 matches last season, and also claimed Minnesota/USA state titles in freestyle and Greco-Roman. 113: Joshua Portillo (Clarion-Goldfield, Iowa) is coming off an undefeated sophomore season in which he went 31-0 and claimed a state championship at 113 pounds. This fall he won a Preseason Nationals title. Portillo was an Ohio TOC champion this year as well. Rylee Molitor (Sartell, Minn.) was a state runner-up and finished the season with a 39-1 record. He was also a Cadet National folkstyle runner-up and Cadet Greco-Roman All-American. Dominic LaJoie (Gaylord, Mich.) is a Michigan state champion who finished his freshman season with a 50-1 record. He is coming off a strong summer in which he went undefeated at the Cadet Duals in both styles, and also finished runner-up in the Cadet National Greco-Roman competition. Kyle Rathman (Apple Valley, Minnesota) was a state third-place finisher and Minnesota Christmas Tournament runner-up. In 2013, Rathman was Cadet folkstyle All-American and Freak Show champion in the 15-and-under division. Tyler Eichens (Anoka, Minn.) was a Minnesota Christmas Tournament champion and Minnesota/USA Triple Crown winner. This fall he placed fifth at Preseason Nationals. Alexander Crowe (Shakopee, Minn.) was a state placewinner last season. He is also a Cadet folkstyle All-American and Minnesota/USA state freestyle champion. Jaden Van Maanen (La Crosse Central, Wis.) is coming off a season in which he placed third in the state tournament and compiled a 49-2 record. Derek Holschlag (Union, Iowa) is a state placewinner and Cadet folkstyle All-American. Another wrestler who could make noise in this weight class is Josh Tarum (St. Thomas Academy, Minn.), a three-time state qualifier. 120: Tucker Sjomeling (Delano, Minn.), a returning JJ Classic champion, enters as the favorite in this weight class. He was dominant in last year's JJ Classic at 106 pounds, earning bonus points in three of his five victories, including a 19-4 technical fall victory in the semifinals over Austin Gomez (Glenbard North, Ill.). Last season Sjomeling finished his season with a 41-1 record. He was a state champion in 2013. Brian Maas (Bemidji, Minn.), Nathan Smith (Mukwonago (Wis.), Michael Suda (Pipestone Area, Minn.) and Stas Sutera (Bon Homme, S.D.) are all state placewinners and contenders to reach the finals. Maas is a three-time state placewinner, finishing third last season with a 43-1 record. Nathan Smith, like Maas, was a state third-place finisher and finished his season with a 47-3 record. Suda was 40-4 last season as an eighth-grader and placed fifth in the state tournament. Sutera was 33-8 last season and placed sixth in the state tournament. Andrew Smith (Amery, Wis.) is a multiple-time state qualifier coming off a 40-5 season. Noah Buck (Apple Valley, Minn.) and Tanner Day (Mounds View, Minn.) are state qualifiers who will look for spots on the podium. One wrestler to keep an eye on in this weight class is Jefferson Paladines (Columbia, Heights, Minn.), a three-time freestyle national champion in Ecuador. A talented freestyle wrestler, Paladines recently moved to the U.S. and is now looking to make his mark in high school wrestling. 126: Alex Lloyd (Shakopee, Minn.), a Cadet All-American in all three styles, enters this weight class as the likely top seed. This year Lloyd finished third in the Cadet National folkstyle competition, sixth in the Greco-Roman competition and fifth in the freestyle competition. He is a two-time state placewinner. Lloyd is coming off a season in which he compiled a 41-1 record and placed third in the state tournament at 120 pounds. He is ranked as the No. 12 freshman wrestler in the U.S. by InterMat. Jamin LeDuc (Farmington, Minn.) and Will Lucie (Warsaw, Ill.) are multiple-time state placewinners expected to challenge for the title. LeDuc was a state runner-up this past season, and was a state fifth-place finisher the previous season. Lucie has state finishes of third (2013) and fifth (2014). Cadet Greco-Roman All-American Jose Acosta (Manitowoc Lincoln, Wis.) could do damage in this weight class. He won 38 matches as a freshman last season. Dylan Eldeen (Tri-Valley, S.D.) was a state placewinner last season. Other notables in this weight class include Lee Schmalz (Mound Westonka, Minn.), Tyler Shilson (Centennial, Minn.) and Mitchell Lewison (Osseo, Minn.). 132: There is plenty of intrigue in this weight class as it includes two multiple-time state champions and four state finalists. Seniors Louie Sanders (LCWM, Minn.) and Austin Anderly (Lesueur-Henderson, Minn.) are both two-time state champions. Last season Sanders compiled a 38-2 record en route to winning a state championship at 126 pounds. His first state title came as a sophomore at 120 pounds. He was an InterMat JJ Classic runner-up last year. Sanders has committed to wrestle for Chris Bono at South Dakota State University. Anderly's most recent state championship came at 113 pounds, while his previous state title came at 106 pounds. He has compiled a record of 72-7 over his last two seasons of high school competition. Anderly placed third at the 2012 JJ Classic. Seth Elwood and Sam Bennyhoff (Mound Westonka, Minn.) were state finalists in 2013. Elwood's state runner-up finish came at 106 pounds. Bennyhoff's state runner-up finish came at 113 pounds, and last season he finished fifth in the state tournament at 120 pounds with a 42-2 record. Other state placewinners in this weight class include Adam Hedin (Rosemount, Minn.), Joe Fischenich (Windom Area, Minn.) and Grant Bolduan (White Bear Lake, Minn.). Hedin was fourth in last year's JJ Classic and also fourth in the state tournament. He recently posted a 4-2 record at the Super 32 Challenge in Greensboro, North Carolina. Fischenich placed fifth in the state tournament in 2013 at 113 pounds, and last finished with a 36-4 record. Bolduan was a state sixth-place finisher at 132 pounds last season. Others to watch in this weight class include Cadet folkstyle All-American Michael Peters (Quincy, Ill.), two-time state qualifier Collin LaBrosse (Park Cottage Grove, Minn.) and state qualifier Levi Marsh (LCWM, Minn.). 138: The top-seeded wrestler in this weight class looks to be Quinten Berres (Kimball Area, Minn.), a two-time state champion and four-time state placewinner. Berres finished his junior season with a 34-1 record and claimed the state championship at 132 pounds. His previous state championship as a sophomore came at 126 pounds after a 39-1 season. Berres was a state third-place finisher as a freshman and sixth-place finisher as an eighth-grader. He earned All-American honors in the Cadet National folkstyle competition in 2012. Colton Clingenpeel (Thomas Jefferson, Iowa) and Dylan Connell (Chisago Lakes, Minn.) are both multiple-time state placwinners. Clingenpeel was sixth as a freshman and seventh as a sophomore. He has also been successful at the national level, winning Preseason Nationals title and placing fifth in Fargo this summer in the Cadet freestyle competition. Connell's state placements are fifth (2014) and sixth (2015). He was a Cadet folkstyle All-American in 2013. Cruze Hurlburt (Spring Valley, Wis.), Cole Gonzalez (Norway, Mich.), Logan Axford (Tracy Area, Minn.), Connor McDill (Utica Eisenhower, Mich.) and Tayt Boeckholt (West Central, S.D.) have all been state placewinners. Mike Hayes (Kettle Moraine, Wis.), a state qualifier and 36-match winner, should also figure into the mix. 145: This weight class is deep and filled with talent. The top two seeds are expected to be Fredy Stroker (Bettendorf, Iowa) and Griffin Parriott (New Prague), two of the nation's top 145-pounders. Stroker is a three-time state finalist, winning state championships the past two seasons. He is coming off a perfect 52-0 season. Stroker's career record is 144-3. He is a four-time Fargo All-American, with three of those All-American honors being in freestyle and one in Greco-Roman. He has also been a Cadet National folkstyle champion. Stroker has competed in Flo's Who's Number One event the past two years. He was a JJ Classic champion as a freshman in 2011. Parriott is coming off a strong performance at the Super 32 Challenge, where he reached the semifinals before losing in overtime to nationally ranked Michael Kemerer. He wound up finishing fifth. Parriott won a state championship last season as a sophomore and compiled a 42-1 record. He was a state third-place finisher as a freshman and state runner-up as an eighth-grader. This past spring he was a runner-up in both the Junior National folkstyle competition and FILA Cadet National Greco-Roman competition. Parriott was a Minnesota Christmas Tournament champion last season. At the Cadet level he earned All-American honors in folkstyle and Greco-Roman. Ben Brancale (Eden Prairie, Minn.) was a JJ Classic champion last season. He is a multiple-time Fargo All-American in freestyle, and was a state runner-up last season to Seth Gross (Apple Valley, Minn.). Micah Johnson (Boyceville, Wis.) was a state champion as a freshman, finishing the season with a 45-1 record. Bret Romanzak (Jefferson Forest, Va.) has earned three state medals, with his most recent finish being third at 126 pounds. He reached the final 16 in both NHSCA and FloNationals this year. Miles Patton (Rochester Mayo, Minn.) is a top contender in this weight class and a local favorite. He was a JJ Classic runner-up last year to Brancale, and finished fourth in the state tournament. Kyle Yasgar was a South Dakota state champion in 2013. The weight class includes several other state qualifiers capable of placing. 152: University of Minnesota commit Carson Brolsma (Osseo, Minn.), a state runner-up, enters as one of the favorites to reach the finals. Brolsma compiled a 43-2 record last season en route to his runner-up finish at 145 pounds. He was a state fifth-place finisher the previous season at 132 pounds. Michael Klee (Cardinal Newman, Calif.) has gone 76-17 over the past two seasons. Klee is a Greco-Roman state runner-up and freestyle state fourth-place finisher. He is the younger brother of P.J. Klee, last year's JJ Classic Outstanding Wrestler. Devin Fitzpatrick (Mahtomedi, Minn.) and Brian Zuniga (Melrose, Minn.) were state placewinners last season. Kyle Benjamin is a multiple-time state qualifier and placed in last year's JJ Classic. Kyle Schoenecker (Chisago Lakes, Minn.) is a four-time state qualifier with two seasons remaining. Emmett Wagner (Shakopee, Minn.) was a Minnesota/USA state freestyle champion. Other wrestlers to watch include state qualifiers Dereck Samudio (Albert Lea), Luke Schmalz (Mound-Westonka), Dietrich Balsbaugh (Trinity School at River Ridge), Jordan Bond (Rogers) and Damon Schmalzriedt (LCWM, Minn.). 160: This weight class was decimated by late scratches and weight class changes, but it still has some talented wrestlers. Colten Carlson (Willmar, Minn.) is a state runner-up (2013) and three-time state qualifier with two seasons remaining. He was a JJ Classic runner-up last year, and this past spring finished third in the NHSCA Sophomore Nationals. Brandon Moen (Owatonna, Minn.) is a two-time state placewinner, finishing third last season as a freshman and fourth in 2013 as an eighth-grader. He is a two-time Minnesota Christmas Tournament and Rumble on the Red placewinner. Moen enters his freshman season with 107 career wins. Drake Heath (Mound Westonka) is a two-time state qualifier and a Minnesota/USA state champion in folkstyle in 2013. Brandon Lucking (Mora, Minn.) and Nicholas Green (Waconia, Minn.) were both 30-match winners last season. Several others will be vying for spots in the placement matches. 170: This weight class has several talented wrestlers, but one stands alone: Mark Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.). He is not only the most accomplished wrestler in the JJ Classic, but also the most accomplished high school wrestler in the United States. Hall is the overwhelming favorite to win his fourth straight JJ Classic title. He is a four-time state champion with two seasons of high school competition remaining. Hall is the nation's No. 1 junior across all weight classes. This past summer, after winning a FILA Cadet National freestyle title, Hall won five matches at the FILA Cadet World Championships in Snina, Slovakia, to claim the gold medal at 76 kilos. He is coming off a high school season in which he went undefeated en route to capturing his fourth state championship. Hall's toughest competition may come from Jacob Holschlag (Union, Iowa), a state champion and Preseason Nationals champion. Holschlag compiled a 48-1 record last season and claimed a state championship at 160 pounds. He went 5-0 at Preseason Nationals en route to winning the title at 170 pounds. Holschlag earned All-American honors in the Junior National folkstyle competition this past spring. Lucas Westrich (Lakeville North, Minn.) was a state runner-up last season, and finished fourth in the state tournament the previous season. He was a Cadet folkstyle All-American in 2012. Matt Njos (Anoka, Minn.) is a two-time state placewinner, with state finishes of fourth last season and sixth in 2013. He placed fourth in the JJ Classic last year. Other state placewinners in this weight class include Nathanael Holecek (Thief River Falls, Minn.), Dillion Chase (Clinton, Iowa) and Jacob Raschka (Pewaukee, Wis.). Holecek is a two-time state placewinner, but missed last season due to injury. He finished third in the state tournament as a sophomore and sixth as a freshman. Holecek also earned All-American honors at NHSCA Sophomore Nationals in 2013. Chase compiled a 33-2 record last season and placed fifth in Iowa's state tournament. He was third at this year's Preseason Nationals, with his only loss coming to fellow Iowan Holschlag. Raschka won 48 matches as a freshman and placed fifth in the state tournament. This past summer he earned All-American honors in Fargo in the Cadet freestyle competition, and was a Preseason Nationals runner-up this fall. State qualifiers David Kent (Cambridge-Isanti, Minn.) and Kiyanu Baker (Coon Rapids, Minn.) could surprise. 182: Samuel Grove (Moorhead, Minn.) is only a sophomore, but has already built a strong wrestling resume. He won 37 matches as a freshman and qualified for the state tournament. He earned All-American honors in the Cadet National folkstyle competition with a fourth-place finish at 170 pounds. He has also placed at the Rumble on the Red. Tim Christenson (Albert Lea, Minn.) and Alexander King (Shakopee, Minn.) will be looking for spots in the finals. Christenson was a Minnesota Christmas Tournament placwinner, while King placed third in the section tournament. Other wrestlers entered in this weight class include Jonathan Zarnke (Chaska, Minn.), Griffin Thorn (Owatonna, Minn.), Mason Hawkins (Farmington, Minn.) and Tristan Mewes (Clarion-Goldfield, Iowa). 195: The clear favorite in this weight class is University of Minnesota commit Bobby Steveson (Apple Valley, Minn.), who will be after his third consecutive JJ Classic title. Steveson captured a Junior National freestyle title in Fargo this past summer at 195 pounds. He is a two-time state champion and three-time state placewinner. Steveson was a Junior National folkstyle champion in 2013. He is ranked as the nation's No. 10 senior by InterMat. Tristan Gregory (Gaylord, Mich.) was a state fourth-place finisher Michigan after a 40-4 season. Jacob Lynch (Rush City, Minn.) is a two-time state qualifier who posted a 30-5 mark last season. Michael Bothwell (Coon Rapids, Minn.), Adam Gusky (Appleton West, Wis.), Anthony Putz (St. Peter, Minn.), Wechtuor Thuok (Owatonna, Minn.) and Cody Anderson (Redwood Area, Minn.) all won 20 or more matches last season. 220: This weight class may not have large numbers, but has some accomplished wrestlers. Gable Steveson (Apple Valley, Minn.), is one of the nation's top freshman wrestlers. Steveson is a multiple-time national champion. As an eighth-grader he compiled a 39-3 record and finished runner-up in Minnesota's state tournament in Class AAA at 195 pounds. Steveson was a Rumble on the Red champion and undefeated at The Clash. Triston Westerlund (Albert Lea, Minn.) is a two-time state placewinner, finishing as a state runner-up in 2013 and third last season. Carson Hagan (Worthington, Minn.) was a state fourth-place finisher in 2013 and qualified for the state tournament last season. Jameer Anderson (Benilde-St. Margaret's, Minn.) is a two-time state qualifier. Manny Garcia (BOLD, Minn.) was a state qualifier in 2013, and won 30 matches last season. 285: Aaron Moore (Minnetonka, Minn.) appears to be a rising star at heavyweight in Minnesota. He won 20 matches as freshman and has been a Minnesota/USA state folkstyle champion the past three years. Last year he placed in the JJ Classic as a 14-year-old. Jesse Heifort (Anoka, Minn) and Justin Sabin (Park, Minn.) were both section placewinners last season. Timothy Mandyck (Coon Rapids, Minn.) was a member of Minnesota Cadet National Team in Fargo.

I have a friend. A close friend. A wrestling friend. After a strong stretch he might pull the nurse's tape measure to 5'4" and he's proud in teetering in that dangerous post-125-pound obesity zone of 150 pounds with gravity tugging on his nipples. This friend and I grew up wrestling. He was the partner that ran the extra sprints, logged an extra 45 minutes in the sauna and would scrap for points. He was also the teammate that would disappear for days on end, and when confronted by authority have an authentic tale of distraction, wrongdoing upon his vessel and only sprinkles of self-awareness of fault for his evaporation into the ether. As lifelong friends, I'm not ashamed to tell him on the phone and in-person that I love him. Since hitting the road full-time I spend more time in Asia. I see him and his wife, and on occasion we meet up with a third childhood friend for vacations on islands. It was such an occasion last week when my friends arrived to the vacation destination at 2 a.m. on a Saturday. The rest of the horde had arrived and descended on a local surf bar to imbibe tall bottle after tall bottle of light beach-styled beer. Properly loosened up for his arrival, which given his Batman-like acts of instant disappearance was not guaranteed (He once walked out of a bar in NYC at 11 p.m. and wasn't seen for three days. It was New Year's Eve and to this day his whereabouts -- his journey -- remain a matter of hot debate) we waited by the villa pool. He arrived frazzled from an outbound journey that included hitching rides on motorbikes through Manilla. Hugs exchanged, we let the weary traveler and his recent bride crash in the room as we stumbled back to our respective mattresses. It was 3 a.m. God's flashlight awoke me at 8am along with a confused humming of sounds. Like trying to read your iPhone during a 4 a.m. bathroom trip, I find my sense of hearing is often dampened first thing in the morning. After a night of drinking I can be excused if takes me a few extra moments to sort out light, sound and touch. As the fog lifts the words "I'm the man, I'm the man, I'm the man" come into my mind's focus. A hip hop beat continues in the background and for a moment I'm once again confused: Why is there a hip hop song being played right now? I pull the curtain to my room, which looks out over the small pool. Below I see my friend, teetering on the evil side of pudgy, skin paled from office lights and body littered with questionable tattoos from under-qualified artists with his arms raised high in the air, eyes closed and walking around the perimeter of the pool. The two speakers he'd commandeered for this personal performance sit blaring the words on repeat, "I'm the man, I'm the man, I'm the man!" Were it normal circumstances or a less-charismatic, Quixotic human I may have groaned or yelled or worse. But it was my friend. My wrestling friend. So I slid open the doors, slipped on a squinty-faced smirk and told him what I really thought. "I love you ... but you're fat." I'm offering a copy of "Full Circle" to the first wrestler with the cajones to WALK into a dual meet with this song playing. You absolutely must walk. To your questions ... Q: Any word on exactly what the problem was with Logan Stieber on Saturday night? A second thought, the Buckeye young en's looked good in their debut. -- Jerry M. Foley: The medical team asked that he not wrestle. Unfortunately there are no official reports and no way to confirm. However, we know that he weighed in but was pulled from competition by the doctor. Hope he is OK and feeling better. The Buckeyes look thirsty and they showed in the opening weekend that they plan to win the NCAA title with the pedal smashed firmly against the metal. Q: Do you like the Penn State coaching staff's decision to redshirt both Nico Megaludis and Zain Retherford? -- Mike C. Foley: Yes. Nico Megaludis gets ready to wrestle (Photo/Bill Ennis)The Penn State program and leadership of their coaching staff have never been in question. After four years of wining individual and team titles you have to assume that there would be some minor reshaping of their flock. What'll be interesting is how this rebuilding process will affect their performance at the NCAA Championships and comparing it to the Iowa teams of the 80s and 90s. In my observation, the Penn State wrestling program is willing to risk a step down on the podium in 2015 to ensure unrivaled dominance for the next four years. But the real beauty is that the Nittany Lions don't win through conditioning, but technical skill. Thinking of how that will affect their rebuilding process, as opposed to the ass-slap-the-backup mentality that helped Iowa maintain dominance is, for me, very compelling. Cael will also be presented with a new coaching challenge. He'll need to keep focused through whatever adversity careens towards the team, and keep his youngsters from falling back on the convenient excuse that they are losing as a team because many of their top grapplers are eating burritos at 4 a.m. and going to the movies with pretty gals. The progress of these young talents and that overarching discussion of coaching ability and legacy will be a great storyline for the season, and postseason. Q: Why you gotta hate on the Scuffle? bit.ly/scufflefield -- Rocco M. Foley: Ha. I think this screed needs the sarcasm font. Like Midlands, the Southern Scuffle will be loaded with talent, which makes it appealing to anyone who loved NCAA wrestling. That "anyone" includes my lovely parents, who have purchased tickets to watch the Scuffle despite having no DNA in the fight. I'd say the prompt was that my my father likes watching the 'Hoos wrestle, but I'm getting the impression my mother likes to sit back and judge the "effort" of some wrestlers. This is high-quality entertainment. Who knows, though. I've spent a year in-transit to cover wrestling tournaments in poorly lit gymnasiums with no bathrooms. I might be persuaded to spend my few days of family time inside a gymnasium in Chattanooga. Could be nice to put down the pen and just enjoy the competition. This is a New Year's tournament. Do the fans have any insights into where we might enjoy a celebratory drink to welcome 2015? Q: After watching the All-Star Classic what are your opinions on the experimental rules? -- @Rhino184 Foley: The new rules were a good first step to improvement, but were not implemented with the gusto I thought it could have enjoyed. The counts from a side headlock and drop to the ankle were well-executed and exposed those maneuvers for their obvious stall tactics. (Nobody scored back points from those positions.) I'd hope to see this called with more frequency and possibly adopted before the end of the season. Verdict: No-brainer. The no-point escape calls did seem to keep more matches on the feet, which I thought prompted more action. Still, there is a strategy to manipulating this rule that hasn't been fully explored. It stands to reason that every reversal or takedown made near the out-of-bounds will result in a free release on the restart, especially at the end of a match. There was some threat of this rule affecting matches at the All-Star Classic, and without more understanding of how it'll be exploited en masse (we need a larger sample size) I'm hesitant to give a full-throated endorsement. Verdict: Wait-and-see The out-of-bounds rules were a massive failure. Either the spirit of the rule wasn't carried into the referee instruction, or the writing of the rule was faulty. Look, I know that the NCAA hates black and white (ask them to define "amateur") but out-of-bounds should be, well, OUT-OF-BOUNDS! When you have a boundary it shouldn't imply that maybe, kinda, sorta things can be in AND out-of-bounds because of an imaginary cylindrical sphere stretching upward to the International Space Station. Out-of-bounds means OUT-OF-BOUNDS and should be treated with a penalty. Let me layman's this for the non-wrestling crowd. I'm terrible at golf (still better than Brian Muir) and every time I hit the ball OUT-OF-BOUNDS I take a stroke penalty. Perfect and clear guidance is provided by the rulebook, thus when I'm betting BIG money on the links I'm very conscience of going OB. Here is a list of sports with a fuzzy boundary: NCAA wrestling Here is a list of sports with clearly defined boundaries: All (minus NCAA Wrestling) In college wrestling no penalty exists for going out-of-bounds, even as the rule has proven an incredible competitive additive in all three styles of international competition. Until it changes it'll be a lot of dancing on the edge and 3-2 matches with guys getting creative about how to lay on top of one another to ensure ONE POINT of riding time via #snoreride. Who wouldn't want to see that point come from a spectacular action on the edge of the mat? Verdict: Failure Q: Does summer training make winter champions? -- @Rob_SwagginU Foley: Only if you are willing to "leave it all out on the mat in March." See you at state, bro. MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME Bourdain does Iran. Worth the watch, if only for the reference to traditional Iranian wrestling and challenging any misperception you may have about the beauty of the Iranian people. Bourdain Unknown Iran by limukohou Dude ... Wow Two looks at Hakuh? and sumo wrestling. Mr. Phillips is one of the best sports writers on the planet and weaves a monster story. His story will win awards and mine will go (largely) ignored. He is cool. I am not. He is handsome. I am ugly. He has GIFS. I have Black and White's. Foley: Japanese Sumo: In respect of domination and diversity Phillips: Sea of Crises Q: Do #FBF video clips of NCAA finals! A great way to get people amped for the season. What do you think are the greatest matchups? -- @MallnOates Foley: I like your thinking. Let me start digging these up and posting each Friday. Any that you'd want to see? My favorite NCAA finals match? Don't call it a comeback! Q: Should wrestlers get signature shoes if they never won Olympic gold? What about socks? What's the protocol for sock deals? -- @JaroslavWrestle? Foley: There is more to your question and it all stems from Tony Ramos and the Twitter machine. To bring readers up to speed: Ramos queried why Daniel Cormier should get a shoe deal with CF Athletic despite not having won a gold medal, and who by Ramos' account ended up "missing weight" at the 2008 Games in Beijing. Ben Askren responded and took a hard line that the medals shouldn't matter and that we need to reinvest in the sport, something he felt CF was doing in signing Cormier to a shoe contract. He went on to confront Ramos about not wanting to wrestle in the hybrid-rule FPL, which ironically smelled a lot like a Dana White tactic -- someone Askren has openly beefed with on the Twitter machine. But I digress ... Cormier also tweeted though only to clarify that the Beijing debacle haunts him to this day, and that he in fact made weight. It's short-sighted and self-defeating to claim Cormier doesn't deserve a shoe. As someone who writes at least one dumb thing once-a-week I don't fault Ramos. Twitter, like almost everything, has a learning curve and it was an ill-advised tweet. Maybe he regrets it, maybe he doesn't, but I'm sure it's not the image he wants out there and I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. On a side note, #BreakBones Q: What do you view as the best wrestling shoe ever made? My vote: Asics Gable Ultra XL. -- Mike C. Foley: Adidas Combat Speeds. Next question ... :) Q: The All-Star Classic used a random order. Why can't college duals use the same format? At weigh-ins, the home team gets first pick, visitors second, home third ... etc. I believe it would have two effects. 1. It would keep team scores closer, longer. Coaches would pick winnable matches first. 2. It would usually push best matches last or late into the dual giving fans a buildup. -- T. M. Foley: I love that coaches would have to strategize, and though it's way too cool a system to be implemented by the NCAA I think it's worthy of a proposal. Do consider that weight class alignment isn't just the simplest way to form a dual meet, but a fairly standardized progression of matches in many forms of wrestling. Think about it in a tribal sense. When asked to send out the best of a gladiator to settle a dispute, that would inevitably have been the largest man in the group. Extrapolate from there on your own and you will arrive at our current system. Size, and what it says about your tribe (team) is a classic talking point of traditional sports. These are the biggest and baddest among the team and therefore have traditionally been given the spotlight. With collegiate wrestling and a shift in understanding of what it means to be dominant, the system could change to promote those wrestlers who score the most points, are most equally matched or will provide the most strategic advantage to a team. COMMENT OF THE WEEK By Jerry M. I looked at the NWCA rankings this morning and thought so many rankings are subjective, rather than based on some type of objective criteria. InterMat along with Flowrestling are the two biggest of the ranking companies publishing their rankings weekly in season. I thought a subjective way to look at rankings was to think of golf, and the low score wins. So why not apply this to the rankings? In the charts below I took the top five teams as they are ranked by NWCA,(Actually also by InterMat and Flo) and took each of the ranked schools, by weight and input the ranking of the wrestler from that school (i.e. Logan Stieber No. 1 at 141). If the school did not have a ranked wrestler at a weight the school was assigned a score of 21. As both InterMat and Flo rank each weight 1 through 20. Hypothetically, this means that the team with the lowest score translates to the best ranked wrestlers. Iowa would be ranked No. 1 as they have a combined score (InterMat and Flo) of 148, Ohio State would be ranked No. 2 with a combined score of 162, and so on. I would have to grant that the individual InterMat and Flo rankings are subjective. However, looking the variables there is very little fluctuation in the rankings, usually only one or two points. The exception is 285 pounds where Ohio State's wrestler is ranked by InterMat and not by Flo, making a nine-point difference. It would make some sense that Minnesota is ranked No. 1 in other polls based on the fact they have three No. 1 wrestlers. However, that is quickly mitigated by the fact they have three weights without a ranked wrestler. Is this "golf" ranking perfect not only no, but hell no. The great thing about our sport is that there are very few automatics. You have to step on the mat.

BETHLEHEM, Pa. -- After spotting Hofstra a 9-0 lead after the first two bouts, No. 15 Lehigh roared back with eight straight victories as the Mountain Hawks downed the Pride 27-9 to win their season opener Thursday night inside Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall. Junior Nathaniel Brown broke a 9-9 tie with a technical fall victory over Jermain John at 184 in the first bout after intermission, while junior John Bolich added a bonus point with a major decision for the Mountain Hawks, who open with a victory for the fifth time in seven seasons under Pat Santoro. "It was important to get a win in Grace Hall," Santoro said. "It's the first match of the year and I thought we were a little tentative going out. Nerves got the better of a few guys. Nate (Brown) did a great job and Marshall (Peppelman) came out with a lot of energy. Overall our upperweights did an outstanding job, but we have to get better for Sunday. We have to get better next week. We learned a lot about our guys tonight, we just have to continue to move forward from here." Hofstra (1-1) benefitted from the luck of the draw sending out its two top wrestlers in the first two bouts. At 141, Jamel Hudson spoiled Randy Cruz's return from a deferred year, collecting seven takedowns in a 15-8 decision. A late escape from Cruz helped avoid the major decision. Freshman Drew Longo then made his varsity debut against Cody Ruggirello at 149. Longo actually scored the opening takedown on a counter move but Ruggirello answered with a takedown and a two point near fall before putting Longo on his back and securing the fall at the 2:42 mark. Down 9-0, freshman Dylan Milonas made his debut at 157 against Jahlani Callender. Milonas scored early in the first period but in the third period was penalized for locked hands and then gave up a reversal. He was able to escape to tie the bout at four and a 1:54 riding time advantage was enough to earn the 5-4 victory that put Lehigh on the board. Both of Lehigh's graduate students followed with wins by decision to tie the match at nine heading into intermission. At 165 Santiago Martinez scored takedowns in the first and third periods to defeat Nick Terdick 5-2. At 174 Marshall Peppelman scored an early takedown against Frank Affronti had to rely on a 2:46 riding time advantage to win 3-2. Brown came out strong in his first official bout since returning from his deferred year, collecting three takedowns and a pair of three point near falls to lead 12-2 after one. In the second period, Brown collected an early takedown and turned John for three near fall, ending the match in 4:30 with a 17-2 victory. "He's having fun," Santoro said of Brown. "He's not trying to win or lose, he's just trying to wrestle. That's what you have to do. You go out and train so hard all summer, you train all year round and to hold yourself back isn't fair to yourself. Nate has just learned to let it go and have fun. He's fun to watch." Bolich scored nine seconds into his match with Michael Oxley at 197 and would work from the top position for most of the remainder of the match. He turned Oxley for a quick two point near fall to lead 4-0 after one. Bolich added a second period reversal and an escape and two takedowns in the third. That scoring, plus 5:28 worth of riding time gave Bolich a 12-1 major decision. "We have two good 197 pounders and we're happy with both of them," Santoro said. "John went out there and was aggressive from start to finish. I thought he was going to get a pin there but he did a great job." Neither sophomore heavyweight Doug Vollaro nor Hofstra's Mike Hughes showed much offense through seven minutes of regulation, but Vollaro struck for a takedown 11 seconds into overtime to win 3-1. Freshman Scott Parker was the fifth and final Mountain Hawk to make his Grace Hall debut, taking on Travis Passaro at 125. Parker scored a takedown at the very end of the first period and added 1:04 of riding time to win 3-1. In the final bout of the night junior Mason Beckman defeated Maverick Passaro 6-3 at 133. Beckman scored takedowns in each of the first two periods but had to work hard on bottom in the third after conceding a takedown. The Mountain Hawks head to No. 5-ranked and four-time defending National Champion Penn State Sunday afternoon in the 103rd meeting between the longtime Eastern rivals. The match is set for a 2 p.m. start from Rec Hall with Audio coverage on ESPN Radio 1230 and 1320 as well as ESPNLV.com beginning at 1:45. Results: 141 – Jamel Hudson (Hofstra) dec. Randy Cruz (Lehigh) 15-8 149 – Cody Ruggirello (Hofstra) Fall Drew Longo (Lehigh) 2:42 157 – Dylan Milonas (Lehigh) dec. Jahlani Callender (Hofstra) 5-4 165 – Santiago Martinez (Lehigh) dec. Nick Terdick (Hofstra) 5-2 174 – Marshall Peppelman (Lehigh) dec. Frank Affronti (Hofstra) 3-2 184 – Nathaniel Brown (Lehigh) tech fall Jermaine John (Hofstra) 17-2, 4:30 197 – John Bolich (Lehigh) major dec. Michael Oxley (Hofstra) 12-1 285 – Doug Vollaro (Lehigh) dec. Mike Hughes (Hofstra) 3-1, s.v. 125 – Scott Parker (Lehigh) dec. Travis Passaro (Hofstra) 3-1 133 – Mason Beckman (Lehigh) dec. Maverick Passaro (Hofstra) 6-3 Attendance – 1,220 Referee – Gary Kessel

EDINBORO, Pa. -- Winning the last five bouts on the night, nationally-ranked No. 14 Pitt scored a come-from-behind 25-13 victory in an early-season matchup between a pair of top-15 teams on Thursday, Nov. 6 at McComb Fieldhouse. As it has for the past two years, the dual match between Pitt (2-0) and Edinboro (0-1) came down to the wire. The Fighting Scots raced out to a 10-3 lead, getting bonus point victories at 133 and 141 pounds. But in the end, it was the Panthers' strength in the middle and heavy weights that gave Pitt the win. With Pitt holding a 19-13 lead going into the final match at 285 pounds, sophomore John Rizzo had his back against the wall after a near fall was called against him. However, in a turn of events, Rizzo was the one who recorded the fall in 4:53 to clinch the match for the Panthers. In his two bouts this season, Rizzo has recorded a fall in each. Freshman Dom Forys opened the match with a 6-0 decision against Edinboro's No. 18 Kory Mines at 125 pounds, giving Forys his first career win over a ranked opponent and Pitt an early 3-0 lead. After the Panthers suffered bonus defeats to individually ranked No. 1 A.J. Schopp and No. 2 Mitchell Port at 133 and 141 pounds, respectively, sophomore No. 16 Mikey Racciato got Pitt back into the match with a 12-4 major decision against Jensen Lorea at 149 pounds. Edinboro would get only one more win on the night at 157 pounds after Racciato's victory for Pitt. Beginning with redshirt freshman Cody Wiercioch's 5-3 decision over Casey Fuller at 165 pounds, the Panthers claimed the final five bouts of the night. Redshirt senior Troy Reaghard followed Wiercioch with a come-from-behind, 6-5 decision versus Patrick Jennings at 174 pounds, in which Reaghard outscored Jennings 3-1 in the final 15 seconds. That bout evened the team score at 13-13. The next two bouts featured Pitt's top two active wrestlers, including the showcase of the night between redshirt senior No. 5 Max Thomusseit and No. 10 Vic Avery at 184 pounds. For the third time since February, Thomusseit got the best of Avery in a 5-3 decision, giving the Panthers the lead for good. The last time the pair met was at Nationals. At 197 pounds, sophomore No. 7 Nick Bonaccorsi earned a 4-1 decision against Vince Pickett. Pitt has a quick turnaround and will host Bucknell on Saturday, Nov. 8 for the home opener at Fitzgerald Field House at 7 p.m. Results: 125: Dom Forys (P) dec. #18 Kory Mines (E), 6-0; Pitt leads, 3-0 133: #1 A.J. Schopp (E) m. dec. Nick Zanetta (P), 10-0; Edinboro leads, 4-3 141: #2 Mitchell Port (E) fall Travis Shaffer (P), 5:10; Edinboro leads, 10-3 149: #16 Mikey Racciato (P) m. dec. Jensen Lorea (E), 12-4; Edinboro leads, 10-7 157: #15 Austin Matthews (E) dec. Ronnie Garbinsky (P), 7-4; Edinboro leads, 13-7 165: Cody Wiercioch (P) dec. Casey Fuller (E), 5-3; Edinboro leads, 13-10 174: Troy Reaghard (P) dec. Patrick Jennings (E), 6-5; Match tied, 13-13 184: #5 Max Thomusseit (P) dec. #10 Vic Avery (E), 5-3; Pitt leads, 16-13 197: #7 Nick Bonaccorsi (P) dec. Vince Pickett (E), 4-1; Pitt leads, 19-13 285: John Rizzo (P) fall Warren Bosch (E), 4:53; Pitt wins 25-13

It's starting to feel like the movie Groundhog Day. Another weekend with two UFC shows and only a few meaningful fights between them. Luke Rockhold vs Michael Bisping will get most of the headlines, and Ian McCall will look to continue his move back up the flyweight ranks against John Lineker. Besides that, um ... Shogun is fighting Ovince St. Preux in a main event between two guys coming off of losses. So there is that. Do you want to listen to a past episode? Access archives.