InterMat Staff

The No. 5 ranked St. Cloud State University wrestling team moved to 2-0 on the early season with a 23-9 victory at No. 10 Concordia-Moorhead (2-1) on Thursday, Dec. 12 in Moorhead, Minn. The bout opened with an 11-3 win for the Huskies by freshman Tanner Johnshoy at 125-pounds against Concordia's Gabe Foltz. Johnshoy was selected on Monday as the NSIC Wrestler of the Week after winning the 125-pound title at the recent Dragon Open Red Division on Dec. 7. The Cobbers replied with a 7-5 win by Jacoby Bergeon at 133-pounds against SCSU's Zach Stewart. At 141-pounds, team captain No. 2 Andy Pokorny, a two-time All-American at SCSU, added another victory to his career with a 9-4 win over Yonas Gebreab to make it 7-3. At 149-pounds, SCSU's Jay Hildreth pushed his team's lead to 10-3 with a thrilling 6-5 win in double OT against Jake Long, the No. 3 ranked wrestler in Division III at 149-pounds. No. 4 Clint Poster continued SCSU's success with a 3-0 decision over Kyle LeDuc of CC at 157, which made the score 13-3. The Huskies' streak continued at 165-pounds with a 9-5 win by Ryan Zumwalt over CC's Jake Krogstad. The Cobbers got back into the mix at 174-pounds as Sebastian Gardner scored an 8-4 win over SCSU's Tyler Lewandowski. SCSU then moved the match score to 19-6 with a key 8-4 decision by Clayton Jennissen at 184-pounds over CC's Dylan Hanson. Concordia added its last win at 197-pounds as Delson Saintai posted a 5-2 win over SCSU captain Chris Brassell to make it 19-9. To add the finishing touch, SCSU won the final bout of the evening with a 13-4 major decision by Austin Goergen over CC's No. 6 Cody Kasprick. The victory pushed the final score of the bout to 23-9 and helped SCSU clinch its NCAA Division II record 49 consecutive victory. HOLIDAY INN/HUSKY OPEN - DEC. 14 Yes, it is time for the 43rd annual Holiday Inn/Husky Open collegiate wrestling tournament, which will be held on Saturday, Dec. 14 in the Halenbeck Hall Fieldhouse. This match will feature many of the region's top wrestlers and college programs and the action will get underway at 9 a.m. Tickets for the tournament may be purchased at the gate on the day of the tournament. Results: 125 – Tanner Johnshoy (SCSU) maj. dec. Gabe Foltz (CC); 11-3 133 – Jacoby Bergeron (CC) dec. Zach Stewart (SCSU); 7-5 141 – Andy Pokorny (SCSU) dec. Yonas Gebreab (CC); 9-4 149 – Jay Hildreth (SCSU) dec. No. 3 Jake Long (CC); 6-5 2OT 157 – No. 4 Clint Poster (SCSU) dec. Kyle LeDuc (CC); 3-0 165 – Ryan Zumwalt (SCSU) dec. Jake Krogstad (CC); 9-5 174 – Sebastian Gardner (CC) dec. Taylor Lewandowski (SCSU); 8-4 184 – Clayton Jennissen (SCSU) dec. Dylan Hanson (CC); 8-2 197 – Delson Saintal (CC) dec. Chris Brassell (SCSU); 5-2 285 – Austin Goergen (SCSU) maj. dec. No. 6 Cody Kasprick (CC); 13-4 Match Notes: - St. Cloud State is ranked 5th in the latest NCAA Division II poll. - Concordia is ranked 10th in the latest NWCA Division III poll. - St. Cloud State won 7 of the 10 bouts in the match. - St. Cloud State won 5 matches by decision and

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- The University of Iowa wrestling team scored bonus points from top to bottom to defeat Buffalo, 46-0, Thursday night inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Derek St. John and Michael Kelly each recorded pins, Tony Ramos and Mike Evans won by technical fall, and six other Hawkeyes (6-0) scored major decisions. The Hawkeyes totaled 57 takedowns and surrendered just one. "That's how it should be," said UI head coach Tom Brands. "It doesn't matter who the opponent is. You may not get a shutout every time, but you strive for it. (We have a couple weights) were we have to do a better job of being ready to go the entire match." Cory Clark set the tone at 125, scoring four takedowns and two nearfall points to win 13-3. Ramos followed with eight takedowns and scored a pair of nearfall points early in the third to terminate his match with 1:06 left. "It's exciting after a loss to get back on the winning ways and doing things right," said Ramos. "One of the things we've been talking about was when I was pinning guys I was scoring a lot of points and wearing them out. We're trying to get back to scoring a lot of points and when things open up, take them as they happen." Josh Dziewa used a reversal and two nearfall points to earn a 16-7 win at 141, and Kelly and St. John put together back-to-back pins to stretch the Hawkeye lead to 25-0 at the intermission. Nick Moore piled up 3:34 of riding time en route to a 13-4 win at 165, and Evans scored five takedowns and three nearfall points in the opening period before finishing the tech. fall in 5:58. Ethen Lofthouse stretched Iowa's lead to 38-0 with eight takedowns at 184, setting up a couple of Hawkeye debuts at 197 and 285. Sammy Brooks scored a takedown with 10 seconds left to earn a 13-5 major decision in his Carver-Hawkeye Arena debut, and Bobby Telford returned to the mat for the first time since the season opener on Nov. 16. Telford scored five takedowns and five nearfall points to win 16-3. It was his first appearance this season in front of the home crowd and the first time this year his match has gone the distance. He had pinned his previous five opponents. "It's good to have Telford on the mat," said Brands. "I like to see falls, quick falls, but I also like to see it go longer just to see him wrestle." "It was good to get it going," said Telford. "I wanted to be on the mat at Iowa State. I wanted to be on the mat at Edinboro. I don't want to be off the mat. It's time to keep it going. We have a big one on Saturday." Iowa returns to the mat Saturday, Dec. 21 when it hosts No. 1 Penn State on Mediacom Mat inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. "You don't look ahead, but maybe you could say this is part of the prep," said Brands. "Penn State comes to town a week from Saturday and we have to be ready to go. (We need to keep a heavy pace) every time and then we'll find out how tough we are." Tickets are $15 for adults and $8 for youth 18-years old and younger. Children five-years old and younger are admitted free, but everyone attending the dual must have a ticket. The Penn State-Iowa dual is Iowa's spirit night. Fans will be asked to wear a black or gold color based on "Row Assignment" rather than section. Check hawkeyesports.com for "Spirit Dual" row assignments. Notes: Attendance was 5,901... Buffalo fell to 1-5... Iowa won all 10 weights for the third time this year... St. John (27-0), Ramos (28-0), Evans (20-0) and Clark (4-0) all remained undefeated at Carver-Hawkeye Arena... Ramos' win was the 95th of his career... freshman Sammy Brooks was making his Carver-Hawkeye Arena debut... Bobby Telford returned to the lineup for the first time since the Luther Open... Evans has scored bonus points in each of his 11 matches this year. Results: 125 - #4 Cory Clark (IA) major dec. Max Soria (UB), 13-3; 4-0 133 - #3 Tony Ramos (IA) tech. fall Justin Farmer (UB), 22-7; 9-0 141 - #10 Josh Dziewa (IA) major dec. Nick Flannery (UB), 16-7; 13-0 149 - Michael Kelly (IA) pinned Ryan Todora (UB), 4:03; 19-0 157 - #1 Derek St. John (IA) pinned Jake Capana (UB), 2:02; 25-0 165 - #4 Nick Moore (IA) major dec. Wally Maziarz (UB), 13-4; 29-0 174 - #6 Mike Evans (IA) tech. fall Rrok kNdokaj (UB), 23-6; 34-0 184 - #1 Ethen Lofthouse (IA) major dec. Tony Lock (UB), 18-6; 38-0 197 - Sammy Brooks (IA) major decision Angelo Malvestuto (UB), 13-5; 42-0 285 - #3 Bobby Telford (IA) major decision James Benjamin (UB), 16-3; 46-0

BLACKSBURG -- Virginia Tech junior 141-pound wrestler Devin Carter will miss the remainder of the 2013-14 wrestling season with a torn hamstring, according to Virginia Tech team surgeon Tony McPherron. Carter suffered the injury in a match in Las Vegas and forfeited out after his match. Devin Carter (Photo/HokieSports.com)A native of Christiansburg, Va., Carter was 12-0 on the season and ranked third in the country by most major polls. He earned All-America honors two seasons ago at 133 pounds before redshirting last season. "Devin will have surgery next week to repair a torn hamstring,” said Tech head coach Kevin Dresser. “Devin is a leader and a role model for Virginia Tech wrestling. His presence will be greatly missed. I do feel confident in saying that he will work through this setback and be better than ever next season. We will monitor his recovery as we get this team ready for 2014 and eventually the postseason." Carter will be a redshirt senior next year.

It's time for the small guys to shine this weekend, with a UFC on FOX main card featuring nothing but the 155 and lower weight classes. Demetrius Johnson will defend his flyweight title for the second time against Joe Benavidez. John thinks the fight will be similar to the first, but Richard thinks Benavidez will pull it off this time. In the co-main event, longtime contender Urijah Faber goes up against relative newbie Michael McDonald. Both the fellas favor the California Kid, but it won't be easy. Press the play button for details. Do you want to listen to a past episode? Access archives.

Even with some of the top talent from the Keystone State traveling west to the Walsh Ironman this weekend, the King of the Mountain tournament is loaded with very strong individuals. Each weight class contains multiple returning state placers and/or qualifiers, and the field has five wrestlers that won Super 32 Challenge titles this past October and eleven wrestlers that are nationally ranked. Luke PletcherFrom a team standpoint, defending champions Bethlehem Catholic, Pa., are ranked No. 30 nationally and enter the event as the favorites to repeat. Two other nationally ranked teams are present in the field: No. 36 Greater Latrobe, Pa., and No. 43 Parkland, Pa. An additional notable team is Cumberland Valley, Pa., which was top ten last year in the Class AAA state tournament. The tournament will take place at Central Mountain High School in Lock Haven, Pa. Wrestling will start on Friday morning at 11 a.m. ET and set up the quarterfinals, which will take place on Saturday morning at 10 a.m. Matches for the top eight placers will take place at 4:45 p.m. on Saturday. The most anticipated potential match in this tournament could be the final at 120 pounds between state champions Ethan Lizak (Parkland) and Luke Pletcher (Greater Latrobe), the No. 2 and No. 3 ranked wrestlers in the country. When Pletcher was up at 113 pounds early last year, the two wrestlers did meet in the semifinals at this tournament with Lizak coming out on top. Other notable wrestlers projected to be in this weight class include returning state placer Willis Gruver (Redbank Valley, Pa.), state qualifiers Lee Todora (Bethlehem Catholic, Pa.) and Hunter Hendricks (General McLane, Pa.), along with Zach Trampe (Council Rock South, Pa.) and Ricky Cavallo (Hempfield Area, Pa.) Two other weight classes in this tournament are likely to feature a pair of nationally ranked wrestlers, 138 and 160 pounds. Leading the way at 138 is the nation's top ranked wrestler Jason Nolf (Kittaning, Pa.), a two-time state champion who won the Super 32 Challenge this fall. Also in this weight class is No. 9 Patrick Duggan (Cumberland Valley, Pa.), a two-time state placer who finished third at the Super 32 Challenge this fall. Other wrestlers to watch in this weight class include returning state placer Kyle Shoop (Boiling Springs, Pa.) and state qualifier J.R. Andrejcik (Burrell, Pa.) The pair of nationally ranked wrestlers at 160 pounds is No. 4 T.C. Warner (Cumberland Valley, Pa.), a two-time state runner-up; and No. 12 Dom Scalise (Greater Latrobe, Pa.), who placed third last year at the National Prep Championships. Other notables in this weight class include a trio of returning state qualifiers; Chad Reese (Central Mountain, Pa.), Mike Sutton (General McLane, Pa.), and Jeffrey Reimel (North Penn, Pa.) Additional Super 32 Challenge champions in this field to join Pletcher and Nolf are Sam Krivus (Hempfield Area, Pa.), Zack Zavatsky (Greater Latrobe, Pa.), and Jordan Wood (Boyertown, Pa.). Krivus, ranked No. 2 at 132 pounds, is likely to be tested by three very solid challengers: two-time state champion William Koll (Lansing, N.Y.), Cadet National double runner-up Hayden Hidlay (Mifflin County, Pa.), and freshman sensation Cameron Coy (Penn Trafford, Pa.) who was one match away from placing at the Super 32 Challenge. Another pair of wrestlers is returning state qualifiers: Eddie Kriczky (Boyertown, Pa.) and Grant Bond (Boiling Springs, Pa.) Zavatsky, ranked No. 8 at 182 pounds, is a two-time state placer (3rd and 8th) and placed third at the FloNationals. Joining Zavatsky in this weight class is Tom Sleigh (Dubois, Pa.), third at the state last year and also a place-winner at the Super 32 Challenge and FloNationals, though Zavatsky out-placed him in both events. Another pair of wrestlers is returning state qualifiers: Logan Womelsdorf (Benton, Pa.) and Nick Cortopassi (Bethlehem Catholic, Pa.) Wood, ranked No. 8 at 220 pounds, finished as state runner-up last year in his freshman campaign and was also runner-up at the FloNationals last spring. Another pair of wrestlers meriting note in this weight class are state placer Andrew Dunn (Bethlehem Catholic, Pa.), who placed fourth at 285 pounds in the Super 32 Challenge, and returning state qualifier Omar Haddad (Parkland, Pa.) The two additional nationally ranked wrestlers in this tournament are from Bethlehem Catholic, Pa.: Luke Karam, No. 6 at 106 pounds, and Moisey, No. 5 at 126 pounds. Karam was a state runner-up last year and was third in Junior freestyle this past summer. Other notables in this weight class include past Cadet National All-Americans in Jon Gabriel (Bedford, Pa.), Jakob Campbell (Boyertown, Pa.), and Will Kaldes (Cumberland Valley, Pa.) Moisey is a three-time state placer, finishing runner-up at state the last two years, and has placed three times at the Super 32 Challenge. A pair of two-time state placers will be seeking to upend Moisey this weekend: Ryan Easter (Bedford, Pa.) and Korbin Myers (Boiling Springs, Pa.). Four other wrestlers in this weight class were state qualifiers last year: Shae Bloom (Dubois, Pa.), Trevor Corl (Bellefonte, Pa.), Zack Clingan (Spring Grove, Pa.), and Josh Giorgio (Schuylkill Valley, Pa.) The following is a list of wrestlers to watch in the remaining weight classes: 113: National Prep runner-up Ethan McCoy (Greater Latrobe, Pa.); state placer Carson Newman (Line Mountain, Pa.); 2012 state placer Danny Martoccio (Council Rock South, Pa.); along with state qualifiers Joe Wheeling (General McLane, Pa.), Jacob Lizak (Parkland, Pa.), and Charlie Lenox (Erie McDowell, Pa.) 145: State placer Josh Ortman (Parkland, Pa.) along with state qualifiers Jasper Hankey (Biglerville, Pa.), Shawn Spearman (Erie McDowell, Pa.), and Jake Shaffer (Greater Latrobe, Pa.) 152: Two-time state placer Cole Walter (Mifflinburg, Pa.) and Jeric Kasunic (Benton, Pa.), along with state placers Steve Edwards (Burrell, Pa.) and Mason Bentzel (Spring Grove, Pa.) 170: State qualifiers Corey Hazel (Penns Valley, Pa.) and Tyree Spearman (Erie McDowell, Pa.) 195: Two-time state qualifiers Jose Ortiz (Bethlehem Catholic, Pa.) and Nezar Haddad (Parkland, Pa.), along with returning state qualifiers Kyle Taylor (Boiling Springs, Pa.), Chris Laird (General McLane, Pa.), and Alex Price (North Penn, Pa.) 285: 2012 state champion Nazar Mironeko (Mifflinburg, Pa.), along with state qualifiers Kyle Kahley (Mifflin County, Pa.) and Allan Beattie (Burrell, Pa.)

Professional golf has The Masters, NASCAR has the Daytona 500, and high school wrestling has the Walsh Ironman. Though extremely uncommon, these three sporting activities have what is clearly the biggest event of their seasons very early in the schedule. The 20th annual edition of the Walsh Jesuit Ironman Tournament features sixteen nationally ranked teams, including the top four overall and seven of the top ten; as well as 68 nationally ranked wrestlers, including three ranked number one in the country at their weight class and another three ranked second in their weight class. Wrestlers ranked first in the country include Spencer Lee (Franklin Regional, Pa.) at 113 pounds, Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas) at 182, and Andrew Dixon (Edmond North, Okla.) at 220; while number two ranked wrestlers include Joey McKenna (Blair Academy, N.J.) at 138, Micah Jordan (St. Paris Graham, Ohio) at 145, and Jacob Danishek (Dayton Christian, Ohio) at 152. Nationally ranked teams in the Walsh Ironman this weekend include No. 1 Blair Academy (N.J.), No. 2 Oak Park River Forest (Ill.), No. 3 Wyoming Seminary (Pa.), No. 4 Montini Catholic (Ill.), No. 6 St. Paris Graham (Ohio), No. 8 Massillon Perry (Ohio), No. 10 Franklin Regional (Pa.), No. 12 Brecksville (Ohio), No. 13 Cincinnati Moeller (Ohio), No. 15 Broken Arrow (Okla.), No. 16 Edmond North (Okla.), No. 19 Marmion Academy (Ill.), No. 21 St. Edward (Ohio), No. 37 Robinson (Va.), and No. 47 Claymont (Ohio). Wrestling will start at 1 p.m. ET on Friday and occur through the round of 16 on the championship side, which will set up the quarterfinals on Saturday morning at 10 a.m. ET. Consolation wrestling on Friday will eliminate about half the field so that 16 overall wrestlers remain in each weight class. Semifinals will follow the Saturday morning quarterfinals, with all matches but those for first, third, and fifth occurring in said session. Top six medal matches to occur Saturday night at 6 p.m. ET. Josh Lowe, InterMat high school analyst, will be covering the tournament with updates on his personal twitter account. Updated quarterfinal pairings and team scores will be provided after Friday's competition with a recap game story being published after the completion of the event. Brackets and tournament updates will be available through Track Wrestling. The following is a look at each of the weight classes, their key components, and the key dynamics for how the tournament might play out. Information is based on participants listed on http://www.walshironman.com as of Wednesday evening, and unfortunately cannot account for any scratches and/or weight changes between now and the tournament's start. 106: Nationally ranked wrestlers: No. 4 Tyler Warner (Claymont, Ohio) and No. 12 Jason Renteria (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.) Notable non-seeded wrestlers: Allan Hart (St. Edward, Ohio) and Will Moss (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.) Key potential round of 16 matchups: Thomas Genetin (Massillon Perry, Ohio) vs. Chris Lacayo (Santiago Corona, Calif.), and Hunter Bray (Dayton Christian, Ohio) vs. Tanner Smith (St. Paris Graham, Ohio) Commentary: Many (historically) great wrestlers have won opening weights at the Ironman -- Harry Lester, Cory Cooperman, Ryan Lang, Robbie Preston, David Taylor, and Hunter Steiber for instance. However, this field does not feature that type of wrestler, or anywhere remotely close to the depth of a normal Ironman 106 pound weight class. The top seed is two-time state finalist Logan Grass (Huntington, W. Va.), who this past weekend lost 5-0 to the St. Paris Graham backup. However, for the sake of balance in the bracket, one of the two best wrestlers in this weight class is in the 1-8-9-16 cluster in Renteria, who draws a round of 16 match against National Prep placer Nick Lattanze (Malvern Prep, Pa.). After clearing that, he is likely to face the winner of the Bray vs. Smith round of 16 match in the semifinal, presuming they are able to beat state placer and Cadet Greco All-American Jimmy Pawleski (Montini Catholic, Ill.) in a likely quarterfinal bout. The bottom half of the draw is anchored by defending state champion Warner, who placed fifth at the Super 32 Challenge. His likely path to the final involves a quarterfinal match with Paxton Rosen (Edmond North, Okla.), a very talented freshman; with a semifinal bout against either Cadet Greco-Roman national champion Joey Prata (St. Christopher's Va.), or the winner of the Gentin vs. Lacayo round of 16 bout. Predicting a finals match: Warner over Renteria The rest of the top eight: Rosen, T. Smith, Genetin, Lacayo, Bray, and Prata 113: Nationally ranked wrestlers: No. 1 Spencer Lee (Franklin Regional, Pa.), No. 3 Jose Rodriguez (Massillon Perry, Ohio), No. 7 Jack Mueller (Trinity Christian Academy, Texas), No. 8 Dustin Warner (Claymont, Ohio), No. 9 Adrian Camposano (Central, Calif.), No. 10 Eli Stickley (St. Paris Graham, Ohio), and No. 14 Trent Olson (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.) Notable non-seeded wrestlers: state qualifiers Requir van der Merwe (Blair Academy, N.J.) and Brendan Price (Canon-McMillan, Pa.) Key potential round of 16 matchups: Christian Clary (Dayton Christian, Ohio) vs. Dustin Warner; Anthony Bosco (Marmion Academy, Ill.) vs. Trent Olson; Mario Guillen (Perrysburg, Ohio) vs. L.J. Bentley (St. Edward, Ohio), which is a rematch of a go-to-state upset win for Guillen earned on a five-point countermove that shocked all of the Buckeye State; and Adrian Camposano vs. Hayden Lee (Marysville, Ohio) Commentary: Let's be perfectly honest about things, the Ironman truly starts with this weight class. Seven nationally ranked wrestlers, and a few others that are right on the precipice of a national ranking. All that being said, there is a clear favorite, and that is the freshman sensation Spencer Lee. He is ranked No. 1 in the nation for a reason, having already appeared in two Super 32 Challenge high school finals -- winning the title this fall -- and was a FloNationals runner-up this past spring. His path to the finals will most certainly be thorough, as it likely involves a round of 16 bout against Cadet Greco-Roman runner-up Dylan Duncan (Montini Catholic, Ill.), followed by a quarterfinal against the Camposano/Hayden Lee winner, and then a semifinal against a nationally ranked wrestler in either Jack Mueller or Dustin Warner. The other half of the draw is likely going to yield a semifinal bout, which is a rematch of last year's Ironman final at 106 pounds in which Eli Stickley used a reversal with less than five seconds left to defeat Jose Rodriguez. The path for Stickley involves National prep third place finisher T.K. Megonigal (McDonogh, Md.) in the round of 16 and then Bentley in the quarterfinal; while Rodriguez likely has a path involving Junior Greco-Roman All-American Adam Whitesell (Good Counsel, Md.) in the round of 16 and then the Bosco/Olson winner in the quarterfinal round. Predicting a finals match: S. Lee over Rodriguez (rematch of a Super 32 Challenge semifinal) The rest of the top eight: Mueller, Warner, Camposano, Stickley, Olson, and Bentley 120: Nationally ranked wrestlers: No. 6 at 126 Ke-Shawn Hayes (Park Hill, Mo.), No. 9 Chaz Tucker (Blair Academy, N.J.), No. 11 Brent Fleetwood (Smyrna, Del.), No. 14 Austin Assad (Brecksville, Ohio), No. 17 Markus Simmons (Broken Arrow, Okla.), and No. 12 at 113 Eric Hong (Georgetown Prep, Md.) Notable non-seeded wrestlers: Cadet National double finalist Gabe Townsell (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.), Preseason Nationals champion A.J. Jaffe (Marmion Academy, Ill.), along with state placers Cy Trindle (Edmond North, Okla.) and Conner Ziegler (Cincinnati Moeller, Ohio) Key potential round of 16 matchups: Brent Fleetwood vs. Eric Hong, a rematch of a tournament semifinal from last week that Fleetwood won 5-1; Ke-Shawn Hayes vs. Justin Patrick (Kiski Prep, Pa.), Armando Torres (Elyria, Ohio) vs. Markus Simmons, and Alex Mackall (Walsh Jesuit, Ohio) vs. Jordan Allen (Huntington, W. Va.) Commentary: The top seed in this weight is Brent Fleetwood, a highly talented wrestler who has had -- to put it mildly -- a rather poor last two months. The three-time state champion, two-time Super 32 Challenge placer, two-time Junior freestyle All-American, and defending Beast of the East champion failed to make the second day at the Super 32 Challenge and then lost a match this past weekend to fellow three-time state champion Micah Hight (Caesar Rodney, Del.) in the Ray Oliver final. Given that susceptibility, life is not easy for him. It starts with the already cited round of 16 match, and then continues with a likely quarterfinal match against either Mackall or Allen. Mackall is a returning Ironman placer and a Cadet freestyle All-American, while Allen is a two-time state champion and a NHSCA Sophomore Nationals champion. The winner in that quarter of the draw is likely to face Junior freestyle All-American Chaz Tucker in the semifinal round. Tucker's advancement is no guarantee, as if involves a round of 16 match against state champion and Cadet freestyle All-American J.D. Gregory (Hanover, Va.) and then a quarterfinal date against most likely Micah Hight. The other half of the draw is one in which returning Ironman runner-up Hayes is the clear favorite. His toughest match prior to the semifinal is the likely round of 16 bout against two-time fourth in the state Patrick, who also placed at the FloNationals. In terms of a semifinal opponent, that should on paper either be two-time state runner-up Austin Assad, also twice a FILA Cadet freestyle All-American; or two-time state finalist Markus Simmons, who placed at the FloNationals this spring. However, Simmons faces state runner-up at Junior freestyle All-American Armando Torres in the round of 16. Predicting a finals match: Hayes over Tucker The rest of the top eight: Simmons, Assad, Allen, Torres, Hight, and Mackall 126: Nationally ranked wrestlers: No. 3 Matthew Kolodzik (Blair Academy, N.J.), No. 10 Johnny Jimenez (Marmion Academy, Ill.), No. 12 Dalton Macri (Canon-McMillan, Pa.), No. 13 Domenic Forys (North Allegheny, Pa.), No. 14 Anthony Tutolo (Lake Catholic, Ohio), and No. 15 Davion Jeffries (Broken Arrow, Okla.) Notable non-seeded wrestlers: notable freshmen Drew Pappadopolous (Edmond North, Okla.) and Jamie Hernandez (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.), along with Cadet folkstyle champion Zander Wick (San Marino, Calif.) Key potential round of 16 matchups: Matthew Kolodzik vs. Josh Wimer (Grove City Central Crossing, Ohio) and Trae Blackwell (Union County, Ky.) vs. Domenic Forys Commentary: The top seed in this weight is Kolodzik, who has twice finished as runner-up in the Walsh Ironman, and enters this edition as a solid favorite to earn that elusive championship. However, life will not be easy with the five other nationally ranked wrestlers standing in his way. Based on the bracket, he will have to beat four substantive opponents to earn that title, starting with a round of 16 match against Josh Wimer, who was a NHSCA Junior Nationals All-American. The path continues with a possible quarterfinal date with two-time state placer Domenic Forys, who just under two months ago was very impressive in a runner-up finish at the Super 32 Challenge; while the other possible opponent is multi-time state champion Trae Blackwell, who Kolodzik was quite frankly lucky to eke out an overtime victory against last year in the Walsh Ironman round of 16. His likely semifinal would then be against the nationally ranked Macri, who was a state runner-up and Ironman placer last year; Kolodzik beat him 6-4 in the quarterfinal here last year. The other half of the draw is led by second seed Johnny Jimenez, a three-time state champion who has twice placed at the Walsh Ironman (3rd last year, 4th in 2010). His path won't be easy with state champion and returning Ironman placer Eli Seipel (St. Paris Graham, Ohio) looming in the quarterfinal round, and then a semifinal bout against one of two nationally ranked wrestlers: Anthony Tutolo or Davion Jeffries, these wrestlers met for seventh at the Super 32 Challenge with Tutolo earning a 5-3 victory. Predicting a finals match: Kolodzik over Jimenez (rematch of 3-2 semifinal victory for Kolodzik in last year's Ironman) The rest of the top eight: Macri, Forys, Tutolo, Jeffries, Bavery, and Seipel 132: Nationally ranked wrestlers: No. 5 Zahid Valencia (St. John Bosco, Calif.), No. 6 Brock Ervin (Union County, Ky.), and No. 8 P.J. Klee (Cardinal Newman, Calif.) Notable non-seeded wrestlers: National Prep placer Matt Lattanze (Malvern Prep, Pa.); state placers Julian Flores (San Marino, Calif.), Taylor Vath (Saegertown, Pa.), and Nolan Whitely (Walsh Jesuit, Ohio); Cadet freestyle All-Americans Justin Demicco (Brecksville, Ohio) and Nate Hagan (Toledo Central Catholic, Ohio); along with Hunter Ladnier (St. Edward, Ohio) Key potential round of 16 matchups: Zahid Valencia vs. Brent Moore (St. Paris Graham, Ohio), Bryce Meredith (Cheyenne Central, Wyo.) vs. Kevin Budock (Good Counsel, Md.); Brock Ervin vs. Jordan Kutler (Blair Academy, N.J.); and Sammy Gross (Beachwood, Ohio) vs. Aaran Gessic (Perry, Ohio), the three-time state placer and two-time state placer tied a preview match three weekends ago 1-1. Commentary: This is the rare middle-weight of the Walsh Ironman which is shallow when it comes to nationally ranked wrestlers, with only three. However, all three are top ten wrestlers, which should make for intrigue. An additional goofy thing with this bracket is that the next few best wrestlers are all extremely low seeds, which leaves some relatively barren pods of competition on Friday. The junior Valencia has won the Ironman each of his first two years of high school, and is the slight favorite to earn his third title this year (David Taylor is the only wrestler to ever win four titles at the Ironman). His round of 16 match is one that will be tougher than the quarterfinal, with state placer Brent Moore (St. Paris Graham) -- who made the second day at the Super 32 in a loaded bracket -- looming in that round. The likely quarterfinal opponent is either FILA Cadet freestyle runner-up Will Crisco (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.) or two-time state placer Richie Screptock (Oregon Clay, Ohio). Looming big in the semifinal for Valencia is P.J. Klee, in what could be a preview of the California state final at the end of the season. Klee placed fourth last year at the Ironman and is a two-time Beast of the East runner-up. He was also the Outstanding Wrestler at this year's InterMat JJ Classic. Klee is almost a prohibitive favorite to hit the semifinal round. From the bottom half of the draw, third seed Brock Ervin is the favorite to hit the final. He is a multi-time state champion, was champion at the NHSCA Junior Nationals this spring, and third in the Super 32 Challenge. He has a dangerous round of 16 match against the much-improved Jordan Kutler. The second seed in this weight is Bryce Meredith (Cheyenne Central, Wyo.), a two-time Junior freestyle All-American who placed seventh in the Ironman last year. However, he only placed sixth at the NHSCA Junior Nationals and did not make the second day at the Super 32 Challenge. Meredith will face a thorough examination from National Prep runner-up Kevin Budock (Good Counsel, Md.) in the round of 16. Predicting a finals match: Valencia over Ervin The rest of the top eight: Klee, Meredith, B. Moore, Kutler, Budock, and Crisco 138: Nationally ranked wrestlers: No. 2 Joey McKenna (Blair Academy, N.J.), No. 4 at 132 Michael Kemerer (Franklin Regional, Pa.), No. 5 Isaiah White (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.), No. 12 at 132 Colton Adams (Scottsbluff, Neb.), and No. 18 at 145 Michael Longo (Santiago Corona, Calif.) Notable non-seeded wrestlers: Super 32 placer Kyle Lawson (St. Paris Graham, Ohio), 2012 National Prep placer Michael Sprague (Georgetown Prep, Md.), state placer Dane Robbins (Robinson, Va.), and Joseph Dominguez (St. John Bosco, Calif.) Key potential round of 16 matchups: Blake Clevenger (Kearney, Mo.) vs. Michael Longo, a battle of Super 32 Challenge placers; Cody Burcher (Claymont, Ohio) vs. Jesse Rodgers (North Allegheny, Pa.), a battle of FloNationals placers; and Isaiah White vs. Michael Kostandaras (Walsh Jesuit, Ohio) Commentary: Junior National double finalist Joey McKenna, a three-time National Prep champion, enters this weight class as a relatively strong favorite even though four other nationally ranked wrestlers stand in his way. The path for McKenna is not the easiest, as a quarterfinal date with Cadet freestyle champion Isaiah White looms, along with a likely semifinal bout against a very tough Longo. That assumes Longo is able to clear Junior Greco-Roman runner-up Clevenger in the round of 16 and then a likely quarterfinal bout against returning Ironman placer Ryan Skonieczny (Akron SVSM, Ohio), who was a state runner-up last year. The other half of this weight class sets up as a two-man show between two-time state runner-up Michael Kemerer, a Junior freestyle All-American and three-time Super 32 finalist; and Colton Adams, who placed third at the Ironman last year with a win over Kemerer in consolation and is a three-time state champion in his own right. Adams is looking at a quarterfinal against the winner of a Burcher vs. Rodgers round of 16 bout; while Kemerer is looking at one against either state champion Shea Conley (Broken Arrow, Okla.) or state runner-up Vincent Turk (Montini Catholic, Ill.) Please keep in mind that there is an ultimate bracket-buster here in freshman sensation Kyle Lawson, who placed sixth at the Super 32 Challenge and was a state runner-up in Kentucky last year. His placement in this weight class will be a pain in the rear to somebody. Predicting a finals match: McKenna over Kemerer (to avenge Kemerer's 2-1 POWERade semifinal victory from last year) The rest of the top eight: White, Longo, Adams, Lawson, Clevenger, and Skonieczny 145: Nationally ranked wrestlers: No. 2 Micah Jordan (St. Paris Graham, Ohio), No. 3 Solomon Chishko (Canon-McMillan, Pa.), No. 6 Alfred Bannister (Bishop McNamara, Md.), No. 9 Grant Leeth (Kearney, Mo.), No. 11 Larry Early (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.), No. 11 at 138 Vincenzo Joseph (Pittsburgh Central Catholic, Pa.), No. 17 Tanner Bailey (Broken Arrow, Okla.), and No. 19 at 138 Chris Garcia (Montini Catholic, Ill.) Notable non-seeded wrestlers: state runner-up Nick Vestal (Dayton Christian, Ohio), state placers Kyle Kaminski (Padua, Ohio) and Justin Thomas (Santiago Corona, Calif.), NHSCA Junior Nationals runner-up Tyler Ponte (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.), and Ray Barr (St. Edward, Ohio) Key potential round of 16 matchups: Vincenzo Joseph vs. Logan Day (Archbold, Ohio), Chris Garcia vs. Walker Dempsey (Blair Academy, N.J.), Alfred Bannister vs. Alex Mossing (Toledo Central Catholic, Ohio), Josh Maruca (Franklin Regional, Pa.) vs. Cameron Harrell (McDonogh, Md.), and Tanner Bailey vs. Larry Early Commentary: Like last year's bracket at 145 pounds, this one is absolutely loaded with eight nationally ranked wrestlers, and another few wrestlers that are on the precipice of a national ranking. However, the seeding is slightly distortive with the two best wrestlers set to meet in the semifinal round. Micah Jordan is seeded first and Solomon Chishko is seeded fifth. Jordan is a three-time state champion and was runner-up the Ironman last year losing a razor tight final to Aaron Pico (who is currently out of the country working on his freestyle exploits); while Chishko won state last year after placing third the previous two years, and is a four-time Super 32 Challenge placer. In terms of draw, Jordan is looking at a quarterfinal meeting with one of two nationally ranked wrestlers, either three-time state placer and defending state champion Tanner Bailey or two-time state placer and FILA Cadet freestyle All-American Larry Early. Chishko is looking at a quarterfinal date with either two-time Ironman Chris Garcia, who won state this past year, or National Prep runner-up Walker Dempsey. The bottom half of the draw does feature three nationally ranked wrestlers, with sixth seed Alfred Bannister the highest of that group; he was a National Prep and Beast of the East champion in 2012-13 after finishing runner-up in both tournaments the previous year. He has an extremely challenging path though, with state champion Mossing in the round of 16 before a quarterfinal date against Junior freestyle All-American Vincenzo Joseph (or state runner-up Logan Day, who beat Chris Garcia for third at the Preseason Nationals). Two-time Super 32 Challenge finalist Grant Leeth, a Junior freestyle All-American, is the second seed in this weight, and is looking at either two-time state placer and 2012 Walsh Ironman placer Josh Maruca or two-time state champion Cameron Harrell in the quarterfinal round. Predicting a finals match: Jordan over Bannister The rest of the top eight: Chishko, Leeth, Early, Joseph, Bailey, and Dempsey 152: Nationally ranked wrestlers: No. 2 Jacob Danishek (Dayton Christian, Ohio), No. 8 at 145 Mason Manville (Blair Academy, N.J.), No. 12 Josh Shields (Franklin Regional, Pa.), No. 13 Nick Reenan (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.), No. 14 Jack Bass (Robinson, Va.), and No. 19 Phil Downing (Broomfield, Colo.) Notable non-seeded wrestlers: two-time state placer Alec Wyatt (Arvada West, Colo.) and Cadet freestyle runner-up Trace Carello (Marmion Academy, Ill.) Key potential round of 16 matchups: Jack Bass vs. Isaac Sparkman (Massillon Perry, Ohio), Mason Manville vs. Lorenzo De La Riva (Folsom, Calif.), Nick Reenan vs. J.P. Newton (Perrysburg, Ohio), Josh Shields vs. Corbin Allen (Hanover, Va.), and Paden Bailey (Broken Arrow, Okla.) vs. Colstin DiBlasi (Park Hill, Mo.) Commentary: The performance chronology of Danishek, the top seed in this weight class, shows how this tournament can change the career track of a wrestler. Even though he had already won a pair of state titles before last year's Ironman, there was little to suggest superstardom. In October 2012, he had finished two matches away from placing in the Super 32 Challenge at 138 pounds (one weight class below his Ironman run at 145 pounds). Danishek's journey to a runner-up finish at the Ironman had its defining moment in a 10-5 win over defending champion Dylan Milonas in the quarterfinal round. Since then he won a third state title, going unblemished after the Ironman finals defeat; was champion at the Super 32 Challenge this fall; and is currently ranked No. 22 overall in the Class of 2014. A one word description of Danishek's path to a second straight Ironman final would be "manageable." His quarterfinal match is likely to be against one of two solid juniors, either two-time state placer Paden Bailey or returning state champion Colstin DiBlasi; with a semifinal date against most likely Phil Downing, a two-time Junior Greco-Roman All-American, or three-time National Prep placer Toby Hague. The other half of the draw features a quartet of nationally ranked wrestlers, led in the seeding by three-time state runner-up Jack Bass, who was fourth at the Super 32 Challenge in October. Bass has a challenging round of 16 match against returning state placer Casey Sparkman, who was champion at the NHSCA Junior Nationals this past April. The winner of that match has the winner of a round of 16 match between a pair of excellent juniors in returning Ironman placer Josh Shields and NHSCA Sophomore Nationals champion Corbin Allen. In the other quarter of the bottom half, returning Ironman runner-up Mason Manville has not so easy a path himself, starting with a round of 16 match against returning state placer Lorenzo De La Riva, and then a likely quarterfinal bout against Cadet Triple Crown winner Nick Reenan; in fact, Reenan beat Manville at the FILA Cadet Nationals this past spring in freestyle. Predicting a finals match: Danishek over Manville The rest of the top eight: Reenan, Shields, Bass, Downing, P. Bailey, and Sparkman 160: Nationally ranked wrestlers: No. 3 at 152 Dylan Milonas (Blair Academy, N.J.), No. 5 Alex Marinelli (St. Paris Graham, Ohio), No. 10 at 170 Xavier Montalvo (Montini Catholic, Ill.), No. 17 at 170 Chris Weiler (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.), No. 15 Austin Reese (Mechanicsburg, Ohio), No. 18 Ben Schram (Bellbrook, Ohio), and No. 20 Taylor Misuna (Grassfield, Va.) Key potential round of 16 matchups: Austin Reese vs. David-Brian Whisler (Warren Howland, Ohio), battle of nationally ranked wrestlers with Taylor Misuna vs. Ben Schram, and Tony Dailey (Massillon Perry, Ohio) vs. Kamal Bey (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.) Commentary: An interesting weight class overall with a trio of clear standouts, with a group of six-to-ten wrestlers sitting behind and seeking to identify which ones stand ahead relative to each other. The top seed in this weight class is 2011 Ironman champion Dylan Milonas, who is a two-time National Prep runner-up but missed the second half of his junior season due to injury. Last year, Milonas placed third at the Ironman and Beast of the East, with a runner-up at the POWERade before his season came to an end. In terms of earning a second Ironman title, the tests will start in the quarterfinal round where he will face either NHSCA Junior Nationals champion Tony Dailey or Cadet freestyle runner-up Kamal Bey. Presuming Milonas clears to the semifinal round, he'll face the wrestler who exits from a very balanced 4-5-12-13 pod. The favorite to do so would be Chris Weiler, who placed at the Ironman last year as a freshman and was a Junior freestyle All-American this past summer. However, he'll have to navigate returning state placer Nick Stencel (Oregon Clay) in the round of 16 and then a quarterfinal match against either Super 32 Challenge third place finisher Austin Reese or returning state placer David-Brian Whisler. The second seed in this weight is sophomore sensation Alex Marinelli who was less than half a minute away from winning the Ironman as a freshman last year, and went on to win a state title. Marinelli has an extremely manageable path to the semifinal round, where he'll likely face returning Ironman placer Xavier Montalvo, who was a Junior Greco-Roman runner-up at Preseason Nationals champion. That presumes Montalvo is able to navigate past either two-time state finalist Taylor Misuna or NHSCA Sophomore Nationals champion Ben Schram in the quarterfinal round. Predicting a finals match: Marinelli over Milonas The rest of the top eight: Montalvo, Weiler, Dailey, Bey, Reese, and Misuna 170: Nationally ranked wrestlers: No. 5 Myles Martin (McDonogh, Md.), No. 6 Anthony Valencia (St. John Bosco, Calif.), No. 8 Davonte Mahomes (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.), No. 9 Lance Dixon (Edmond North, Okla.), No. 11 Josh Llopez (St. Mary's Ryken, Md.), No. 15 Ryan Harris (Beachwood, Ohio), and No. 18 at 182 Travis Linton (Rootstown, Ohio) Notable non-seeded wrestlers: Cadet freestyle All-American Brandon Dallavia (Blair Academy, N.J.) and state placer Freddie Garcia (Santiago Corona, Calif.) Key potential round of 16 matchups: Lance Dixon vs. Detuan Smith (Colerain, Ohio) and Travis Linton vs. Aaron Schuette (Wauseon, Ohio) Commentary: This weight class features seven nationally ranked wrestlers. However, in reality, there is a steep gradient between the top five and the rest of the field. Those top five wrestlers will be the ones battling it out for a weight class title, and depending on how they perform, any could win it. The top seed in this weight class is two-time Ironman placer and two-time California state finalist Anthony Valencia, who was a Junior freestyle All-American this summer and had a big-time upset win over Mark Hall in the NUWAY Vegas final this October. He is very likely to advance to the semifinal through a quarterfinal win against either three-time state placer Seth Williams (Tiffin Columbian, Ohio) or two-time state third placer Jacobi Jones (Omaha North, Neb.). The other top half quarterfinal is likely to be a battle of Junior freestyle All-Americans in Davonte Mahomes and Lance Dixon. That presumes each is able to clear a round of 16 match against an Ohio state placer whom they are strong favorites to beat: Mahomes against NHSCA Junior Nationals placer Isaac Bast (Massillon Perry, Ohio), and Dixon against Detuan Smith, who was an all-state running back this fall. The bottom half semifinal is likely to be a rematch of one that occurred at least four times last year. One in which Myles Martin earned victories against Josh Llopez in all meetings after their season opening clash at the Ray Oliver Invite, including a win in the National Prep final. Martin is ranked No. 2 overall in the Class of 2015, and is a two-time FloNationals runner-up as well as a two-time FILA Cadet freestyle All-American; while Llopez won two state titles in Maryland's public school division, is a two-time Super 32 Challenge finalist, and ranked No. 53 in the Class of 2014. Martin has a likely quarterfinal against two-time Super 32 Challenge placer Ryan Harris, who was an undefeated state champion last year; while Llopez is likely to face returning Ironman placer Travis Linton, who won state last year and was a FloNationals placer this past spring. Predicting a finals match: Martin over A. Valencia The rest of the top eight: Mahomes, L. Dixon, Llopez, Harris, Linton, and Williams 182: Nationally ranked wrestlers: No. 1 Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), No. 5 Javaughn Perkins (Omaha North, Neb.), No. 6 Corey Griego (Sultana, Calif.), and No. 9 Joel Dixon (Edmond North, Okla.) Notable non-seeded wrestlers: Preseason Nationals champion Nathan Traxler (Marmion Academy, Ill.) Key potential round of 16 matchups: Bo Nickal vs. Rocco Caywood (Perrysburg, Ohio), Javaughn Perkins vs. Dylan Reynolds (Saegertown, Pa.), Gabe Dzuro (St. Edward) vs. Cole DePasquale (Robinson, Va.), and a state medal round rematch with Michael Weber (Loveland, Ohio) vs. Anthony McLaughlin (St. Ignatius, Ohio) Commentary: Four wrestlers are nationally ranked in this weight class, and those four are the clear standout figures. That group is led by the nation's top ranked wrestler Bo Nickal, who was a FILA Cadet Nationals and Junior Nationals freestyle champion this past summer. The supremely talented wrestler is ranked No. 5 in the Class of 2014, and arguably will be the best wrestler in the whole Ironman field. While he is a strong favorite, credentialed opponents loom in his path, starting with Super 32 Challenge placer Rocco Caywood in the round of 16. He then would likely face another Super 32 Challenge placer in Anthony McLaughlin in the quarterfinals, as I pick McLaughlin to avenge a state medal round loss to Weber in the round of 16 (Weber was playing defense last week for a state title winning football team). The semifinal opponent for Nickal is likely to be returning Ironman placer Corey Griego, who has also placed twice at state including a runner-up finish last year. This presumes Griego clears through a round of 16 match against returning state placer Alec Schenk (Perry, Ohio) and a quarterfinal match against either returning Ironman runner-up Gabe Dzuro or returning state runner-up Cole DePasquale, who beat a nationally ranked wrestler just last week. The bottom half is very likely to be a battle between nationally ranked wrestlers in Joel Dixon and Javaughn Perkins. Dixon is looking at a quarterfinal against either state champion Zach Stodden (Broomfield, Colo.) or Cadet freestyle runner-up Jack Harris (Urbana, Ohio); while Perkins has a legitimate round of 16 match against returning state placer Dylan Reynolds, followed by a quarterfinal match against most likely state runner-up Nick Fiegener (Folsom, Calif.) Predicting a finals match: Nickal over Perkins The rest of the top eight: Griego, J. Dixon, Fiegener, McLaughlin, C. DePasquale, and Caywood 195: Nationally ranked wrestlers: No. 1 Derek White (Edmond North, Okla.), No. 17 Josh Murphy (Brecksville, Ohio), and No. 20 L.J. Barlow (Haverford, Pa.) Notable non-seeded wrestlers: NHSCA Sophomore Nationals All-American Mike Rogers (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.) Key potential round of 16 matchups: Aaron Adkins (Akron SVSM, Ohio) vs. Andre Lee (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.) and Tegray Scales (Colerain, Ohio) vs. Kevin Snyder (Good Counsel, Md.) Commentary: Upper weights have never been a bastion of extreme quality in Ironman fields past, and this year is no exception, as the overall field really drops off starting with this weight class. Though there are three nationally ranked wrestlers here, two of them are in the back end of the rankings and closer in quality to the rest of the field than the top seed. Speaking of the top seed, that would be state champion Derek White, who was third in Junior freestyle this summer and a Super 32 Challenge runner-up. Looking through White's path, there is a likely quarterfinal against either two-time state placer Tegray Scales, who was state Defensive Player of the Year in football this fall; or sophomore Kevin Snyder, a state placer last year and the younger brother of the nation's top senior Kyle Snyder. Then, there is a semifinal against either returning Ironman placer David Showunmi (Blair Academy, N.J.), who was fifth at National Preps last year, or returning state qualifier Andre Lee. The second and third seed, both of whom are nationally ranked, met in the seventh place match last year at the Ironman in this weight; Josh Murphy defeated L.J. Barlow by a 5-1 score. Murphy was a Junior freestyle All-American after placing at state and the NHSCA Junior Nationals; while Barlow is a two-time National Prep placer, who has twice placed fifth at the FloNationals. Murphy likely is looking at a quarterfinal against one of two state placers, Gunner Gambill (Loveland, Ohio) or Tyler McClellan (CVCA, Ohio); while Barlow has a likely quarterfinal against state champion Anthony Ferraro (Montini Catholic, Ill.) Predicting a finals match: D. White over Murphy The rest of the top eight: Barlow, A. Lee, Showunmi, Snyder, Scales, and Adkins 220: Nationally ranked wrestlers: No. 1 Andrew Dixon (Edmond North, Okla.) and No. 17 Edgar Ruano (Montini Catholic, Ill.) Notable non-seeded wrestlers: 2012 state qualifier Garrett Harding (Claymont, Ohio) Key potential round of 16 matchups: Edgar Ruano vs. Emonte Logan (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.), a battle of National Prep placers with Matt Doggett (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.) vs. Jake Anderson (Malvern Prep, Pa.), and a battle of state placers with Austin Pfarr (Marysville, Ohio) vs. Kordell Chaney (Sandusky Perkins, Ohio) Commentary: Three-time state placer Andrew Dixon, a state champion this past year and a Junior freestyle All-American in 2012, is the nation's number one wrestler in this weight class. He is also a strong favorite in this weight class with only one other nationally ranked wrestler present. Dixon is looking at a path involving a quarterfinal against either Austin Pfarr or Kordell Chaney, and then a semifinal against one of two state qualifiers: Junior freestyle All-American Parker Knapp (St. Edward, Ohio) or Stefano Millin (Massillon Perry, Ohio), who competed at 285 pounds last year. Of note, is that Knapp will be only two weeks off of playing on the defensive line in a state football semifinal. Similarly, the second seed Ruano is two weeks off of football, where he was part of a state runner-up squad. He is a two-time state placer, and was a Junior freestyle All-American this past summer. He is looking at a dangerous round of 16 bout against Emonte Logan followed by a quarterfinal most likely against Cadet freestyle runner-up Mike Smith (McDonogh, Md.). In the other quarter of the bottom half, look for either two-time state placer Jerry Thornberry (Cincinnati Moeller, Ohio) or two-time National Prep placer Matt Doggett to advance through to face Ruano in the semifinal round. Predicting a finals match: A. Dixon over Ruano The rest of the top eight: Thornberry, Millin, Doggett, Knapp, Smith, and Logan 285: Nationally ranked wrestlers: No. 6 Michael Johnson, Jr. (Montini Catholic, Ill.) and No. 17 Billy Miller (Perry, Ohio) Notable non-seeded wrestlers: Kevin Vough (Elyria, Ohio), a Cadet Greco-Roman All-American; NHSCA Freshman Nationals runner-up Joe Hensley (Cincinnati Moeller, Ohio); along with state qualifiers Andrew Alten (Loveland, Ohio) and Antonio Zapata (Oregon Clay, Ohio) Key potential round of 16 matchups: Gene Ringer (Reynolds, Pa.) vs. Cale Bonner (Perrysburg, Ohio) and Wyatt Cook (McDonogh, Md.) vs. Zack Parker (Caesar Rodney, Del.) Commentary: Two-time National Prep runner-up Michael Johnson, Jr. has moved back to Illinois after competing his first two years of high school at Wyoming Seminary, and will seek to improve up his runner-up finish from the Walsh Ironman last year. He will be a strong favorite to do so. A likely quarterfinal match looks against 2012 National Prep placer Wyatt Cook, who should be able to replicate last week's victory over state champion Zack Parker in the round of 16 this week. A semifinal bout is likely against nationally ranked Billy Miller, a state champion and FloNationals placer last year; presuming Miller gets past the winner of a round of 16 match between Ironman placer Greg Ringer and state placer Cale Bonner. The second seed in this weight class is returning Ironman placer and two-time state finalist Jake Pinkston (Robinson, Va.). He has a likely quarterfinal bout against Cadet National double All-American Adam Lemke-Bell (Oak Park River Forest, Ill.) The other quarterfinal of the bottom half should place two-time Junior freestyle All-American Jake Scanlan (Wyoming Seminary, Pa.) against returning state third placer Chase Henderson (Franklin, Ohio). Predicting a finals match: Johnson, Jr. over Scanlan The rest of the top eight: Miller, Pinkston, Henderson, Bonner, Cook, and Lemke-Bell Team Standings: 1. Blair Academy, N.J. Eight projected placers, including two champions and three others in second 2. Oak Park River Forest, Ill. Eight projected placers, but only one in the finals 3. St. Paris Graham, Ohio Seven projected placers, including a pair of champions 4. Massillon Perry, Ohio Six projected placers, but only one in the finals 5. Edmond North, Okla. Five projected placers, including two champs and three others inside the top four

The wrestling team, currently ranked No. 12 by the National Wrestling Coaches Association, posted a 39-11 victory over Bridgewater State in a Pilgrim League dual match on Wednesday evening at Kelly Gymnasium. Johnson & Wales won seven of the ten bouts, including five via pin fall. Bridgewater (0-2) jumped out to a quick 8-0 lead on the strength of a pair of major decision victories by junior Andrew Gauthier (Lowell, Mass.) and freshman Paul Sughrue (Methuen, Mass.) at 125 and 133, respectively. Johnson & Wales responded with back-to-back pins by junior Michael Ferinde (Nutley, N.J.) at 141 and sophomore Joseph Gaccione (High Point, N.J.) at 149 as the Wildcats took a 12-8 lead. BSU junior Matt Armano (Methuen, Mass.) pulled the Bears to within one (12-11) with a 9-4 decision at 157. That would be as close as the Bears would get as the Wildcats would win each of the final five bouts. Back-to-back pins by sophomore Stephen Jarrell (East Greenwich, R.I.) at 165 and fellow sophomore Mike LaBell (Stanhope, N.J.) at 174increased the JWU advantage to 24-11. Freshman 184-pounder Jared Mesiti (Brockport, N.Y.) followed with a win by injury default and sophomore Dylen Seybolt (Ridge, N.Y.) posted a win by fall in a time of just 1:22 at 197 pounds to give the Wildcats a 36-11 lead. Freshman Jonah Aurelio (Riverside, R.I.) closed out the match with a dramatic victory for the Wildcats in the heavyweight class as he defeated BSU senior Ricky Caruso (Waltham, Mass.), the fourth ranked wrestler in the latest NEWA rankings, 4-2 in overtime. With the win JWU is now 1-0 in dual matches for the season while Bridgewater State falls to 0-2 on the year. The Wildcats will return to action on Saturday, December 14th when they travel to WPI for a quad match with Oneonta and Williams. Results: 125 Andrew Gauthier (BSU) Major Decision over Joseph Smith (JWU) 12-4 0-4 133 Paul Sughrue (BSU) Major Decision over Nate Colicci (JWU) 10-2 0-8 141 Michael Ferinde (JWU) Pinned Kevin Pappadopolous (BSU) 4:54 6-8 149 Joseph Gaccione (JWU) Pinned Eric Bergeron (BSU) 2:15 12-8 157 Matt Armano (BSU) Def. Colby Clarke (JWU) 9-4 12-11 165 Stephen Jarrell (JWU) Pinned James Mulvey (BSU) 2:34 18-11 174 Mike LaBell (JWU) Pinned Casey Enderlin (BSU) 2:02 24-11 184 Jared Mesiti (JWU) Won by Injury Default over Harry Denoncourt (BSU) 30-11 197 Dylen Seybolt (JWU) Pinned Shawn Kavanagh (BSU) 1:22 36-11 HWT Jonah Aurelio (JWU) Def. Ricky Caruso (BSU) 4-2 (OT1) 39-11

CHADRON -- The Chadron State College wrestling team won its first dual of the season with an impressive 33-4 victory over Dickinson State University Wednesday at the Nelson Physical Activity Center. "I'm very proud of the way we wrestled and competed," second-year head coach Brett Hunter said. "We had a great atmosphere and the guys really fed off it." The Eagles, now 1-3, dominated the Blue Hawks while winning nine straight matches. Chadron State also pushed the pace offensively, finishing with 22 takedowns and had seven nearfalls. Chadron State never trailed in the match and got things going when redshirt freshman Alex Klopp claimed a 6-5 decision over Deshun Haynes at 125 pounds. Dustin Stodola, the fourth-ranked wrestler at 133 in Division II, cruised to a first period win over Cade Coles before Jay Stine earned a 2-1 decision over Seth Ehlang thanks to riding time. In addition to Stodola, two other Eagles earned bonus points in their wins. Jacob Anderson won by major decision over Jordan Delp, 15-6, and Devan Fors won by technical fall over Skyler Carroll, 15-0. CJ Clark, Tyler Smart, Dylan Fors and Jordan DeBus, the sixth-ranked wrestler at 184 pounds, rounded out the winners for Chadron State by all earning decisions. Results: 125 – Alex Klopp, CSC, dec. Deshun Haynes, 6-5 133 – Dustin Stodola, CSC, pinned Cade Coles, 2:35 141 – Jay Stine, CSC, dec. Seth Ehlang, 2-1 149 – Jacob Anderson, CSC, major dec. Jordan Delp, 15-6 157 – CJ Clark, CSC, dec. Sean Elkins, 12-5 165 – Tyler Smart, CSC, dec. Jonathan Morales, 8-5 174 – Dylan Fors, CSC, dec. Tyler Brown, 3-0 184 – Jordan DeBus, CSC, dec. Lane Overseen, 13-11 197 – Devan Fors, CSC, technical fall Skyler Carroll, 15-0 285 – Brian Klevis, DSU, major dec. Rulon Taylor, 12-4

SOMERS, Wis. -- The University of Wisconsin-Parkside wrestling squad flexed its muscles against in-state rival Concordia University on Wednesday night, winning eight of the ten weight classes and rolling to the 27-8 victory inside DeSimone Gymnasium. The visiting Falcons (1-1) opened the dual with a major decision victory at 157-pounds but it was all Rangers (2-1) the rest of the way. Nick Fishback won by decision 6-0 over Casey Kenealy at the 165-pound weight class while Montrail Johnson notched a 22-6 tech fall victory at 174-pounds, improving his season record to 16-3. Josh Anthony etched a 17-1 tech fall win at 184-pounds while Brady Stumpf pinned Ryan Cook at 285-pounds. Ronzel Darling notched the Rangers' third tech fall of the night, downing Brandon Mayhew 23-8 at 125-pounds to improve to 17-4 on the season while Joseph Her edged Marcus Lubner 8-5 at 133. Adam Yde won by forfeit at 141 while Brandt Welcher closed the competition with a 12-3 major decision victory over Eric Lease at 149-pounds. The Rangers return to the mat on Saturday, heading to Minnesota for the Saint Cloud State Open. Results: 157 Pierce Holtfreter (Concordia (WI)) won by major decision over Daniel Argueta (Wisconsin-Parkside) 8-0. 165 Nick Fishback (Wisconsin-Parkside) won by decision over Casey Kenealy (Concordia (WI)) 6-0. 174 Montrail Johnson (Wisconsin-Parkside) won by tech fall over Mac Braylock (Concordia (WI)) 4:09 22-6. 184 Josh Anthony (Wisconsin-Parkside) won by tech fall over Thomas Schmidt (Concordia (WI)) 6:40 17-1. 197 Jake Reuteler (Concordia (WI)) won by major decision over Blaine Conner (Wisconsin-Parkside) 11-3. 285 Brady Stumpf (Wisconsin-Parkside) won by pin over Ryan Cook (Concordia (WI)) 0:41. 125 Ronzel Darling (Wisconsin-Parkside) won by tech fall over Brandon Mayhew (Concordia (WI)) 2:04 23-8. 133 Joseph Her (Wisconsin-Parkside) won by decision over Marcus Lubner (Concordia (WI)) 8-5. 141 Adam Yde (Wisconsin-Parkside) won by forfeit. 149 Brandt Welcher (Wisconsin-Parkside) won by major decision over Eric Lease (Concordia (WI)) 12-3.

Related: Results EAU CLAIRE, Wis. -- Corey Meyer (Cary, IL/Cary-Grove) defeated Nathaniel Behnke, ranked sixth in the 141 pound weight class in the most recent National Wrestling Coaches Association poll, 6-4 to lead the Warhawks in a 39-6 rout of Eau Claire on the road Wednesday night. Zac Denny (Machesney Park, IL/Harlem) and Anthony Reyes (Fontana, CA/Etiwanda) each won by forfeit to give UW-W a 12-0 cushion after two weight classes. Meyer's win at 141 pounds made in 15-0 Whitewater. UW-EC got on the board with a 5-3 decision at 149 pounds but Tom Gerszewski (Crystal Lake, IL/Crystal Lake South) responded in the 157 bout with a 15-0 technical fall to extend the margin to 20-3 in favor of the Warhawks. The Blugolds notched the decision at 165 pounds. TJ Decker (Pewaukee/Pewaukee) made it 23-6 Whitewater with a 9-5 decision at 174. At 184 pounds, Ryan Aprahamian (Mukwonago/Mukwonago) registered the technical fall, 15-0. Shane Siefert (Mundelein, IL/Carmel), ranked #1 at 197 pounds, followed with a pin in 6:10 and Anthony Edgren (New Lisbon/New Lisbon), ranked second at 285 pounds, capped the dual meet with a 15-0 technical fall for the final score 39-6. UW-W is 5-2 in dual meets this season and 3-0 against WIAC opponents. The Warhawks will host UW-Oshkosh Friday at 7:00 in Kachel Gym. UW-Whitewater will recognize State Representative Michael Kuglitsch and his efforts to keep wrestling in the Olympic Games prior to and during the meet.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- The Ithaca College wrestling team, ranked seventh in the National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III Poll, maintained its perfect dual-match record with a 26-9 victory at the Rochester Institute of Technology on Wednesday. Ithaca improved to 3-0 in duals this season, while RIT is 1-1. Eight of the ten bouts were won by decision, with Ithaca gaining bonus points by a technical fall from Kristopher Schimek (Cherry Creek, N.Y./Pine Valley Central) at 165 and a forfeit victory by Matt Booth (Cattaraugus, N.Y./Cattaraugus Little Valley) at 197. Ithaca claimed victories in five of the other eight weight classes. Henry Beaman (Niagara Falls, N.Y./Niagara Falls) started the dual with a 5-4 decision victory at 125 pounds, and Nick Wahba (Somerville, N.J./Somerville) followed with a 9-6 decision for the Bombers at 133. Dominick Giacolone (Cato, N.Y./Cato-Meridian) continued Ithaca's strong start with a 6-2 win at 141 pounds to give the Bombers a 9-0 lead in the dual match. RIT's Brad Mayville scored a 2-1 decision at 149 to get the Tigers on the board, but Kevin Collins (Randolph, N.J./Randolph) answered for Ithaca with a 9-4 win at 157. Schimek then won his bout by tech fall, a 21-4 victory at 6:41 to extend the Ithaca dual-match lead to 17-3. After two wins by RIT wrestlers, Booth's forfeit victory, and a 7-3 decision win for Shane Bartrum (Oswego, N.Y./Oswego) in the heavyweight bout wrapped up the action. Ithaca will contest its first home dual of the season Saturday at 4 p.m. at Ben Light Gymnasium against Oswego. Results: 125 – Henry Beaman (Niagara Falls, N.Y./Niagara Falls) (IC) dec. Andrew Flanagan (RIT) 5-4 133 – Nick Wahba (Somerville, N.J./Somerville) (IC) dec. Rory Bruce (RIT) 9-6 141 – Dominick Giacolone (Cato, N.Y./Cato-Meridian) (IC) dec. Jake Sepor (RIT) 6-2 149 – Brad Mayville (RIT) dec. Eamonn Gaffney (Florham Park, N.J./Seton Hall Prep) (IC) 2-1 157 – Kevin Collins (Randolph, N.J./Randolph) (IC) dec. Ethan Testa (RIT) 9-4 165 – Kristopher Schimek (Cherry Creek, N.Y./Pine Valley Central) (IC) tech. fall Connor Brown (RIT) 21-4; 6:41 174 – Nick Fisk (RIT) dec. Steven Sabella (Yorktown Heights, N.Y./Yorktown) (IC) 7-3 184 – Tyler Brent (RIT) dec. Liam Korbul (Asbury, N.J./North Hunterdon) (IC) 3-2 (OT) 197 – Matt Booth (Cattaraugus, N.Y./Cattaraugus Little Valley) (IC) wins by forfeit 285 – Shane Bartrum (Oswego, N.Y./Oswego) (IC) dec. Eddie McBride (RIT) 7-3

Related: Results La Crosse, Wis. -- The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse wrestling team earned a 47-3 victory over UW-Platteville Wednesday night in Mitchell Hall. The Eagles, ranked 19th on National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Division III Poll, improve to 6-1 overall and 2-0 in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC). The Pioneers fall to 1-3 overall and 1-2 in the conference. UW-L's earns its seventh straight victory over UW-Platteville. The Pioneers took a 3-0 lead after winning the first match at 125-pounds as Cole Ferguson won by decision (6-2) over the Eagles' Ryan Weinmann at 125-pounds. UW-L then won the final nine matches. The Eagles took 6-3 lead at 133-pounds as Dustin Weinmann won by forfeit. At 141-pounds Cody See won by technical fall (16-0, 4:42) over Jose Collado to give UW-L a 11-3 advantage. Dylan Shaffer won by fall (:48) over Greg Osborn at 149-pounds and Derek Weinmann won by forfeit at 157-pounds to make it 23-3. Tyler Schneider and Richard Carlson earned back-to-back wins by fall to give UW-L a 35-3 lead. Schneider won by fall (4:25) at 165-pounds over UW-Platteville's Robbie Kerr while Carlson won by fall (1:44) over Randy Wade at 174-pounds. At 184-pounds, UW-L's Eric Twohey won by major decision (10-2) over Nathan Schmitz. Mike Minske followed with a win by major decision (12-0) over Nick Martin at 197-pounds (12-0). In the final match of the night, the Eagles' Cody Endres won by major decision (14-5) over Kyle Andreae. UW-L returns to action January 11 at the National Wrestling Coaches Association/Cliff Keen Duals in Des Moines, Iowa and at the University of Dubuque (Iowa) Flash Flannigan Open.

MINNEAPOLIS -- Claiming wins in eight of 10 matches, the Augsburg College wrestling team scored a 34-9 victory over Minnesota State University Moorhead in a nonconference dual meet on Wednesday evening at Si Melby Hall. Augsburg (2-0 overall), the No. 2-ranked team in the latest National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III national rankings, claimed two pins, a technical fall and two major-decision wins to score the win over the Division II Dragons (2-1 overall). Augsburg claimed back-to-back pins midway through the match, both in dramatic fashion. Kirk Anderson (SO, Comstock, Minn./Barnesville HS), the No. 6-ranked wrestler nationally at 133 pounds, pulled off a strong throw from the neutral position at the edge of the mat 16 seconds into the third period, scoring a 5:16 pin over Shane Novak (FY, New York Mills, Minn. Anderson is now 5-1 on the season with two pins. In the next match at 141, Marcus Hamer (FY, Kimball, Minn.) rallied from a 7-4, second-period deficit with another dramatic throw, fighting off a single-leg attack with a spin move to score the pin at the 4:56 mark of the bout over Isaac Novaeck (FY, Greenbush, Minn./Greenbush-Middle River HS). Hamer is now 9-1 on the season with five pins. Two-time defending national champion heavyweight Chad Johnson (SR, Ferryville, Wis./DeSoto HS) improved to 8-0 on the season and 113-13 on his career with a 15-0, second-period technical-fall victory over Gerad Fugleberg (JR, Fargo, N.D./Fargo South HS). The top-ranked heavyweight in Division III, Johnson scored two takedowns, an escape, two 2-point near-falls and two 3-point near-falls to score the third technical-fall victory of his career. Of his 113 career wins, 67 (59.3 percent) are bonus-point victories (39 pins, three technical falls, 26 major decisions). Matt Hechsel (JR, Apple Valley, Minn.), the No. 3-ranked wrestler at 197 pounds, scored a 10-0, major-decision win over Tyler Schlosser (FY, Parkers Prairie, Minn.), building 4:55 of riding time to dominate the bout, improving to 9-0 on the season with his fifth bonus-point victory (four pins, one major decision). Justin Bowland (SR, Foley, Minn.) improved to 7-3 with his fourth major-decision victory of the season, a 12-3 triumph over Shawn Porter (JR, Elk Grove, Calif.) at 165. Bowland scored five takedowns and had 2:45 riding time to claim the victory. Mike Fuenffinger (JR, Hibbing, Minn.), the No. 2-ranked wrestler nationally at 125, improved to 6-0 on the season with an 8-5 win over Blake Bosch (FY, Wishek, N.D./South Border HS). He's now 49-17 in his Auggie career. Will Keeter (JR, Twin Falls, Idaho), ranked No. 5 nationally at 157, fought off a strong challenge from Daniel Murakami (FY, Anchorage, Alaska/Service HS) in a match that went to sudden-victory overtime tied 1-1. Eighteen seconds into the extra session, Keeter scored a takedown to win the bout 3-1, improving to 8-2 on the season. Rashad Kennedy (JR, Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Henry Sibley HS) improved to 7-3 on the season with a 12-5 win over Garrett Hoffner (FY, Mahnomen, Minn.) at 149. Kennedy built a 5-1 lead after two periods and claimed 2:25 of riding time in the bout. MSU Moorhead scored wins in the opening and closing bouts of the match. Matthew Lewellen (SR, Poway, Calif.) improved to 18-7 on the season at 184 with a 10-5 win over Augsburg's Miles Hammerlund (FY, Delano, Minn.). In the final bout of the evening, Michael Joseph (JR, San Diego, Calif./Patrick Henry HS), the No. 6-ranked wrestler in Division II at 174, claimed a second-period, injury-default victory over Tommy Teigen (JR, Ham Lake, Minn./Meadow Creek Christian HS). Augsburg returns to action on Saturday (12/14) at 9 a.m., as the varsity travels to the St. Cloud State Husky Open, and the White Team (junior varsity) travels to the Wartburg (Iowa) Dick Walker Invitational. No. 2 (NCAA Div. III) Augsburg (2-0) 34, (NCAA Div. II) Minnesota State Moorhead (2-1) 9 Results: 184 – Matthew Lewellen (MSUM, 18-7) dec. Miles Hammerlund (AUG, 3-5) 10-5 (MSU Moorhead 3-0) 197 – Mo. 3 Matt Hechsel (AUG, 9-0) maj. dec. Tyler Schlosser (MSUM, 9-7) 10-0 (Augsburg 4-3) HWT – No. 1 Chad Johnson (AUG, 8-0) tech. fall Gerad Fugleberg (MSUM, 2-1) 15-0 at 4:46 (Augsburg 9-3) 125 – No. 2 Mike Fuenffinger (AUG, 6-0) dec. Blake Bosch (MSUM, 9-5) 8-5 (Augsburg 12-3) 133 – No. 6 Kirk Anderson (AUG, 5-1) pinned Shane Novak (MSUM, 9-8) 5:16 (Augsburg 18-3) 141 – Marcus Hamer (AUG, 9-1) pinned Isaac Novacek (MSUM, 3-4) 4:56 (Augsburg 24-3) 149 – Rashad Kennedy (AUG, 7-3) dec. Garrett Hoffner (MSUM, 8-3) 12-5 (Augsburg 27-3) 157 – No. 5 Will Keeter (AUG, 8-2) dec. Daniel Murakami (MSUM, 4-10) 3-1 (OT-SV1) (Augsburg 30-3) 165 – Justin Bowland (AUG, 7-3) maj. dec. Shawn Porter (MSUM, 1-8) 12-3 (Augsburg 34-3) 174 – No. 6 Michael Joseph (MSUM, 19-8) inj. default over Tommy Teigen (AUG, 7-3) (Augsburg 34-9)

Related: NAIA Team Rankings | NAIA Individual Rankings KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The top four teams remain unchanged for the third straight poll with defending national champion Grand View (Iowa) headlining the group with the top-spot in the second regular-season edition of the NAIA Wrestling Coaches' Top 20 Poll, the national office announced Wednesday. The Vikings, who tallied 129.5 points, are making their 11th-straight appearance at No. 1. Individually, Grand View boasts 11 ranked wrestlers, including five individuals that are listed among the top three in their respective weight class. Gustavo Martinez (141) and Eric Thompson (285) are the Vikings' two No. 1-ranked individuals and have both held that post in every poll this season. Martinez owns a 9-2 overall record this year, including three victories against NCAA Division I opponents, while Thompson is 11-1, including five pins. Checking in a No. 2 is Montana State-Northern with 129 points. The Lights, led by top-ranked Aaron LaFarge (125), are an impressive 8-1 in duals this season, including wins over four ranked NAIA opponents – No. 5 Great Falls (Mont.), 26-15; No. 7 Southern Oregon, 36-12; No. 9 Simpson (Calif.), 41-6; and No. 11 Indiana Tech, 31-12. Missouri Valley with 96.5 points and Campbellsville (Ky.) with 94 points hold down the No. 3 and No. 4 spots, respectively. Jake Ekster (149) – one of two new top-ranked wrestlers this edition – is Missouri Valley's lone No. 1 individual. The sophomore is 5-0 on the season, with his most recent victory coming against Cullen Halpin of NCAA Division II Lindenwood (Mo.), 4-2, on Nov. 23. Campbellsville owns a poll-high 12 ranked grapplers. The Tigers are 8-3 in duals this season. Brandon Westerman, who is ranked No. 2 at 141 pounds is the program's highest ranking individual. No. 5 Great Falls (Mont.) rounds out the top five with 78 points. The Argonauts had been ranked No. 6 in the previous two editions. For the second-straight week, Cumberland (Tenn.) made the largest improvement within the Top 20, jumping four spots to No. 8. This is the first time the Bulldogs have been ranked in the top 10 since Jan. 25, 2011. No. 18 Cumberlands (Ky.) and No. 20 Morningside (Iowa) are this week's newcomers. Simpson's (Calif.) A.J. Valles at 133 pounds joins Ekster as this edition's only other new top-ranked individual. Valles has won four-straight en route to a 10-3 record on the year. The poll was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the Qualifying Groups. For a complete look at the 2013-14 NAIA Wrestling Coaches' Top 20 Poll calendar, click here. The third regular-season poll will be announced Jan. 1. Notes (all information dates back to 2000-01 season): Grand View's (Iowa) No. 1 ranking is its 16th all-time, which ranks second of all programs since 2000-01 … The Vikings have held the top spot in 11-straight polls, which is the most since former member Notre Dame (Ohio) was No. 1 14-consecutive times from Nov. 24, 2009 to Feb. 22, 2011 … Former member Lindenwood (Mo.) boasts the most all-time No. 1 rankings with 39, while Notre Dame is third with 14 … Nine programs have appeared in the Top 20 for at least 20-consecutive polls, led by No. 4 Campbellsville's (Ky.) and No. 5 Great Falls' (Mont.) current run of 66-straight polls, dating back to 2005-06 … No. 2 Montana State-Northern is the only other school with at least 50-straight appearances (57) … Notre Dame and Lindenwood are the only programs to have spent an entire season ranked No. 1 (Notre Dame: 2010-11; Lindenwood: 2006-07).

In wrestling no match can be an upset until the end of the season. Right now, in the first half of our marathon five-month trudge, there are wrestlers who have made massive gains over the summer, and others who have lost a step. As such, the rankings, marred by the uncertainty of the sport, often take a bashing. This season has been no different with dozens of lower-ranked wrestlers besting their higher-ranked counterparts. Some will prove to be flukes, others are the pace-setting for a season in which the upset special becomes the star of the weight class. Because of the fluidity early in the season I don't think a concrete rationale for why one upset is bigger than the other, but combining numeric rank, prior performances, and year in school can help create some metric for the upsets we've seen so far this season. 149: Bryce Busler (Bloomsburg) dec. No. 1 Kendric Maple (Oklahoma), 5-3 SV The season's first and most notable upset might also have been the most telling. Busler, a senior for Bloomsburg, used a takedown in overtime to beat the heavily favored Maple, 5-3. While Busler has gone on to a modest post-upset streak, his defeat of Maple signaled a fracture in the facade of the 2013 141-pound NCAA champion. The Oklahoma wrestler's move up to 149 pounds has since become a minefield of setbacks, including a loss to Josh Kindig (Oklahoma State). Credit to Busler whose win has kept him in contention to receive a seed at the NCAA tournament. 133: No. 8 A.J. Schopp (Edinboro) dec. No. 1 Tony Ramos (Iowa), 3-2 Schopp's thrilling win over the top-ranked Hawkeye toppled the growing belief that Ramos was going to crush opponents en route to his first NCAA title. The energy behind the Ramos mythology gained steam after the Hawkeye's come-from-behind win over 141-pound wrestler Devin Carter at the NWCA All-Star Classic in November. Schopp, who is technically undefeated despite a 5-1 loss to No. 5 Mason Beckman of Lehigh at the NWCA All-Star Classic, is currently ranked No. 2 in the country behind undefeated Ryan Mango of Stanford. Last season Ramos defeated Schopp by major decision, 8-0. 285: No. 19 Adam Coon (Michigan) over No. 3 Nick Gwiazdowski (N.C. State), 3-1 SV Though it registers as a massive numerical upset, anyone who watched Adam Coon finish out the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational knows that the true freshman is a legitimate contender in 2014. Coon followed his victory over Gwiazdowski with another sudden victory win, this time against No. 5 JT Felix of Boise State. Coon, the No. 2 overall recruit in the nation last year, will now face a tough Big Ten schedule featuring the No. 1 and 2 wrestlers in the country, while Gwiz will face All-American Spencer Myers of Maryland in the ACC. 149: Tywan Claxton (Ohio) dec. No. 1 Drake Houdashelt (Missouri), 5-3 With the rankings at 149 pounds in total disarray over the last few weeks, Missouri's Drake Houdashelt had one week as the top wrestler. Nobody told Tywan Claxton, who beat the Missouri wrestler 5-3 and secured himself as a contender in the weight. Claxton, an All-American at King University two seasons ago, is coming off a redshirt. 197: No. 12 Daniel Mitchell (American) dec. No. 2 Taylor Meeks (Oregon State), 4-2 The former top-ranked wrestler in the country suffered one of his biggest setbacks of the season, losing to American's Mitchell at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational last weekend. Mitchell, a Colorado native, finished second at the tournament, losing 5-3 to Oklahoma's Travis Rutt in the finals. 157: Blaise Butler (Virginia) dec. No. 6 R.J. Pena (Oregon State), 10-4 The replacement for 2013 All-American Jedd Moore, Butler posted the biggest win of his career last weekend at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational when he cruised past quarterfinals opponent and two-time All-American R.J. Pena of Oregon State. Butler, who is part of head coach Steve Garland's arsenal of top-12 ranked wrestlers, suffered a minor injury in his semifinal loss to Brian Realbuto of Cornell and placed sixth. 141: Victor Lopez (Bucknell) pinned No. 12 Nick Lester (Oklahoma), 5:56 Lopez is a freshman and Lester is a past All-American, making the Bucknell wrestler's pin of the Sooner one of the highlights of the Bison season. Lopez also pinned NCAA qualifier Julian Feikert of Oklahoma State in the same weekend, and though the wins showed promise for the uber-talented Lopez, he has struggled since the win, posting an overall record of 10-8. Despite the head-scratching losses since, his performance was not only an upset, but a peek into the young wrestler's potential. 197: No. 20 J'den Cox (Missouri) over No. 7 Blake Rosholt (OSU), 7-3 A true freshman with enormous potential, J'den Cox burst onto the college wrestling scene with a victory over returning All-American Blake Rosholt. The two will meet at least once more this season, and in a wide open weight class their battles will have an impact on the seeding and outcomes of the NCAA tournament in March. 149: Gabe Morse (Northern Illinois) over No. 7 Eric Grajales (Michigan), 5-4 Though nothing is surprising when it comes to Eric Grajales, Gabe Morse's win showed though he's young (and currently sitting at 5-4 this season), he has potential to be an All-American down the road. For his part Grajales still needs to wrestle to his level and not the level of his opponents, something that has plagued him throughout his college wrestling career at Michigan. If he wrestles like he's capable then he has every chance to place in the top five in Oklahoma City. 149: Chris Castillo (Boise State) dec. No. 3 Scott Sakaguchi (Oregon State), 3-2 The Pac-12 matchup will happen again, but for Castillo, who started the season 6-0, it was the type of the win the sophomore needed to earn in order to secure an RPI worthy of a possible at-large bid. For Sakaguchi, it was a setback, but something he's sure to improve upon come NCAAs.

The locations for the 2015-2018 NCAA Division I, II and III wrestling championships were announced Wednesday on a site selection show. Division I: 2015, 2017: St. Louis, Mo. 2016: New York, N.Y. 2018: Cleveland, Ohio Division II: 2015: St. Louis, Mo. 2016: Sioux Falls, S.D. 2017: Birmingham, Ala. 2018: Cedar Rapids, Iowa Division III: 2015: Hershey, Pa. 2016: Cedar Rapids, Iowa 2017: La Crosse, Wis. 2018: Cleveland, Ohio

The first full weekend of high school wrestling came and went across the country. There was some drama, there were some upsets, and there was some craptastic weather that derailed certain plans. This coming week is another big week of scholastic wrestling, most notably with the nation's best in-season tournament on Friday and Saturday at Walsh Jesuit High School in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. And now, the Lowe Down. No. 1 Millhof upset at The Graves Invitational In the final of the Graves Invitational held at Brandon High School this past weekend outside of Tampa, Fla., the nation's top 126-pound wrestler in the country, Ryan Millhof (Collins Hill, Ga.) was upset by Dylan Lucas of Brandon, Fla. Lucas, who is ranked No. 20 nationally at 132 pounds, upended Millhof by a 3-1 score in the 126-pound final. He was one of five champions for No. 22 Brandon, which won the tournament by just under 100 points with Camden County, Ga. in second place (343 to 246). Additional weight class winners for the championship team were Frankie Bruno at 106 pounds, No. 5 Kyle Norstrem at 113, Dontae McGee at 170, and Robert Enmon at 220. Cedar Rapids Prairie enters the Fab 50 team rankings With a tournament championship at the Independence Invitational, previously unranked Cedar Rapids Prairie, Iowa jumps into the Fab 50 team rankings at No. 46. The Hawks beat out nationally ranked Linn-Mar, which drops a few slots down to No. 49, for the tournament title by a score of 190 to 164.5. Finishing third in the standings was the top small-school squad in Iowa, Alburnett with 157.5 points. Cedar Rapids Prairie was led by the weight class titles won by Marcus England (106) and Skyler St. John (160), with four other wrestlers placing second -- Dylan Kleinschmidt (113), Sam Uthoff (120), Zack Fiser (126), and Jesse Hynek (195). Finishing in third place were Trey Blaha (152) and Jarod Cadena (182). The Hawks were also missing returning state placer Josh Wenger from the lineup at 132 pounds. For the runners-up from Linn-Mar, they were led by weight class titles from No. 16 Alijah Jeffrey (120), Ross Lembeck (152), and Andrew Holladay (195). Another pair of wrestlers, Toby Northrup (145) and Shea Hartzler (160), finished in second place, while Alex Streicher (126) earned a third place finish. They were without the presence of 2012 Junior National freestyle All-American Nolan Ajram (113) and two-time state placer Matt Wempen (126) from the lineup. Interestingly, there is a dual meet slated for Thursday night between No. 46 Cedar Rapids Prairie and No. 49 Linn Mar to be held at Prairie H.S. The two squads are also part of the Five Seasons Duals on Saturday and the Battle of Waterloo to be held next weekend. Five Seasons Duals Three nationally ranked teams -- No. 28 Bettendorf, No. 46 Cedar Rapids Prairie, and No. 49 Linn Mar -- are featured in the Five Seasons Duals to be held this Saturday at two of the high schools in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Other preseason ranked teams in Iowa per The Predicament in the field include Mason City (6th in Class 3A), Iowa City West (8th in Class 3A), and Alburnett (1st in Class 1A). It is likely that Bettendorf will be the top seed with Cedar Rapids Prairie and Linn Mar the second and third seed, which would mean they would be slated to meet in the semis on Saturday after wrestling a dual meet on Thursday night. With those six teams all in the field, it should produce a pair of interesting quarterfinals, along with solid matches in the semifinals and medal rounds. No. 25 Southeast Polk wins Gardner Edgerton Invitational in Kansas In a tournament field that featured 15 teams from four states, it was supposed to be 16 from five states but No. 15 Broken Arrow, Okla. had to pull out due to treacherous weather conditions in Oklahoma this past weekend, it was No. 25 Southeast Polk, Iowa that came out on top. On the strength of going five-for-five in first place matches, the Rams were able to outlast Skutt Catholic, Neb. by 34 points (213.5 to 179.5). Weight class champions for Southeast Polk were Nolan Hellickson (120), Aaron Meyer (138), Briar Dittmer (145), Ethan Andersen (220), and No. 19 Jacob Marnin (285). They also had third place finishes coming from Keegan Shaw (132) and Deion Mikesell (195). Tournament runners-up Skutt Catholic also had seven wrestlers inside the top three, but only Jake Walker (152) was able to come up on top of his weight class. Finishing in second place were Brian Peska (120), Bailey Vanderpool (138), and Nick Hollins (170). Third place finishes came from Korbin Meink (106), Jeff Heinz (113), and Landon Gotschall (160). Rounding out the weight class champions were No. 10 Matt Schmitt (106) and Matthew Barmann (113) from Platte County, Mo.; Reese Cokeley (126), Ben Vanlerberg (160), and Trent Salsbury (182) from St. James Academy, Kans.; Chris Walters (132) from Iowa City West, Iowa; along with Dustin Williams (170) and Seth Pesek (195) from Gardner Edgerton, Kans. Wyoming Seminary with a bold statement at home Wyoming Seminary, Pa. dominated its way to the championship at The Friends of Sem duals held this past Saturday, and moves up one spot to the No. 3 position in the Fab 50 as a result. The expected to be competitive finals dual meet against No. 10 Franklin Regional, Pa. proved to be anything but that, as the Blue Knights dominated their way to wins in eleven of the 14 weight classes for a 60-13 match victory. Heading into the week, it was going to be a steep task for the tenth-ranked Panthers to match the overall depth of Wyoming Seminary. However, that turned into impossible with the ever lingering delay of the eligibility appeal hearing for Devin Brown -- ranked No. 5 nationally at 106 pounds -- and the inability of either Michael Kemerer or Tyler Smith, both nationally ranked, to get down to 132 pounds yet due to certification results. Those situations will also keep Brown and one of Kemerer or Smith out of the Walsh Ironman this weekend. Further exacerbating things for Franklin Regional was the exclusion of Gus Solomon, a very good ninth grader, from their dual meet lineup. However, the Panthers did get wins out of three of their four remaining “stars” in the lineup as No. 1 Spencer Lee dominated his way to a 15-0 technical fall victory over No. 14 Trent Olson at 113 pounds, No. 13 Tyler Smith earned a 25-10 technical fall victory over National Prep placer Will Verallis at 138 pounds, and two-time state placer Josh Maruca earned a 3-1 victory over NHSCA Junior Nationals runner-up Tyler Ponte at 145 pounds. Wyoming Seminary got the dual meet's most impressive victory though, as No. 13 Nick Reenan upended No. 12 Josh Shields by a 13-7 score at 152 pounds. The Blue Knights overall depth was just overwhelming in the match, as 12 of their wrestlers placed at either their state tournament or National Preps last year, while a 13th did not place at National Preps but was a NHSCA Junior Nationals runner-up. Highlight upcoming events A pair of notable dual meets happens today. This afternoon, No. 20 Davison, Mich. travels to No. 11 Detroit Catholic Central, Mich. A preview article for the in-school assembly dual was posted on InterMat yesterday. This evening, No. 43 Parkland, Pa. hosts District XI rival Easton, Pa. in a season opening contest for both teams. Easton swept the pair of dual meets between the squads last year, winning 30-27 in January during the regular season and then earning a 28-26 victory in the District XI Class AAA championship in early February. After competing at home against Davison on Wednesday, the Shamrocks travel to Holland, Mich. for the Tim Horn Memorial Duals where they will likely face No. 44 St. Johns, Mich. in the finals. There are two other notable dual meet tournaments to be held on Saturday. No. 50 Prior Lake, Minn. will host its dual meet event, one that includes a probable matchup with No. 33 St. Michael-Albertville, Minn.; and No. 34 Archer, Ga., travels to the 16-team Cleveland Duals in Tennessee, where additional notable teams include Father Ryan, Tenn., The Baylor School, Tenn., and Pope, Ga. Two notable tournaments happen in the Sooner State on Friday and Saturday. No. 27 Collinsville, Okla., travels to Enid for the Mid-America Nationals where they will also be joined by Lawton McArthur, Okla., and Tuttle, Okla. No. 23 Stillwater, Okla., travels to Perry for the Perry Tournament of Champions where they will also be joined by Tulsa Union. No. 32 Clovis West, Calif., will host the Clovis West Shootout this Friday and Saturday. Friday's portion of the event is assigned dual meets involving the 16-team field, while Saturday's portion is a bracketed event with upper and lower brackets of eight wrestlers each. Other notable teams in the field include No. 7 Clovis, Calif. and Buchanan, Calif. A very early state tournament: The Last Frontier The small-school division in Alaska (Class 123A) conducts a fall/early winter season for its scholastic wrestling as opposed to the traditional winter season. Its state tournament will be held this coming Friday and Saturday at Anchorage Christian School. Bethel is seeking a fourth consecutive state title, after finishing runners-up in Class 123A the previous two years, and have qualified wrestlers in 13 of the 15 weight classes (98 pounds is also contested in addition to the 14 NFHS weight classes, 106-285). Eight of those wrestlers won their state qualification tournament this past weekend. Quick notes from the past weekend No. 12 Brecksville, Ohio travelled to No. 47 Claymont, Ohio and used wins in ten of 14 weight classes to earn a 41-18 victory. Most notable was the 6-3 upset earned by Austin Hiles, who bumped up to 138 pounds for Brecksville, in defeating three-time state placer Cody Burcher from Claymont. No. 5 Apple Valley, Minn., absolutely trounced No. 50 Prior Lake, Minn., in a dual meet on Friday night, as the Eagles won 12 of 14 weight classes in a 57-9 victory. McDonogh, Md., outlasted Good Counsel, Md., to win the Ray Oliver Tournament by eleven points (208.5 to 197.5). The battle for third place between Delaware rivals Smyrna and Caesar Rodney was decided by one point, with Smyrna nabbing it 168 to 167. The top two teams monopolized the weight class finals, as McDonogh went 4-3 in championship matches while Good Counsel went 5-1. Most notable among the performances was Micah Hight (Caesar Rodney, Del.) winning the battle of three-time state champions with a 5-1 upset victory over No. 11 Brent Fleetwood (Smyrna, Del.) 5-1 at 120 pounds. In a dual meet matching up the top two teams in Iowa Class 2A this past Thursday, it was second-ranked Davenport Assumption pulling out a 31-29 victory over Mediapolis. However, both teams were missing multiple wrestlers that could make the outcome different moving forward. Davenport Assumption wrestled without state qualifier Darrien Collins (106) and three-time state placer Eric Clarke (132). Mediapolis was absent two-time state placer Cole Erickson (145); No. 20 Adam Drain (182), a three-time state placer and state champion last year; as well as state runner-up Steven Holloway (195). Also to note is that Mediapolis won eight of the weight classes, including a 6-5 upset victory from Bradley Conley over state runner-up Tristen Finch at 138 pounds; but the Knights came up with four wins by fall, including one by state qualifier Danny Bush over two-time state placer Drew Buster at 152 pounds. Results from the El Dorado Invitational in California lead to a straight swap in the rankings. Poway, which won the tournament with 306.5 points, will come into the rankings at No. 45; while Buchanan, which finished in second place with 204, will drop from the rankings. Three Poway wrestlers won weight class titles: Ray Cordova at 113 pounds, No. 18 (at 138) Ralphy Tovar at 145, and Sergio Enloe at 152. An additional nine wrestlers placed in the tournament, including another three in second and four in third. Also falling out of the team rankings this week was Park Hill, Mo. Ranked No. 39 nationally headed into the weekend, they were upended by Kearney, Mo., 38-33, in dual meet action this past Saturday. Highlights in separate InterMat content Separate articles were posted to InterMat about three major events held this past weekend: No. 11 Detroit Catholic Central, Mich., tied St. Edward, Ohio 37-37 in a Saturday dual meet, but the Shamrocks earned the victory on the ninth tiebreaking criterion, and St. Edward moves up three spots in the Fab 50 to No. 21; No. 2 Oak Park River Forest upended No. 17 Marist, winning nine of 14 weight classes in a 43-23 victory; and No. 28 Bettendorf, Iowa won the Keith Young Invitational by nine points over No. 31 Waverly-Shell Rock, Iowa (213 to 204 was the team score). The nation's best in-season tournament, the Walsh Jesuit Ironman, will be dissected in a preview article to be posted on InterMat tomorrow (Thursday) morning. In addition, a breakdown of the King of the Mountain -- which includes three nationally ranked teams in No. 30 Bethlehem Catholic, Pa., No. 36 Greater Latrobe, Pa., and No. 43 Parkland, Pa. -- will be posted on InterMat tomorrow as well.

The top two teams in the state of Michigan will meet in a dual meet on Wednesday afternoon at 1:45 p.m. in Novi, Mich., when No. 20 Davison travels to No. 11 Detroit Catholic Central. The event will be held during an in-school assembly. The host Shamrocks has won state each of the last two years, and three of the last four. Davison's Lincoln Olson is a two-time state championLast year's state title came in the most dramatic of ways: a pin by Evan Toth in the last match of the dual meet, one in which he was trailing throughout, to upend Davison 29-26 (in all fairness, Davison had an upset pin of their own in the second match of the meet). Each team comes off of activity this past weekend in Ohio: The Shamrocks defeated CVCA 60-18 and then upended No. 24 St. Edward on the ninth criteria from a 37-37 dual meet; while Davison went 10-0 over two days of dual meet action at Defiance College. The following represents a weight-by-weight analysis based on expected lineups for the dual meet on Wednesday (note that Michigan does not use the current NFHS weights, never changing when the change started in 2011-12). 103: Alex Geelhood (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. Deven Perez (Davison) Perez is ranked fourth in the preseason Division 1 rankings from Michigan Grappler, while the junior Geelhood is in the lineup until the Shamrocks gain their starter in mid-January. 112: Tommy Hermann (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. Max Johnson (Davison) Johnson is ranked fourth in the preseason Division 1 rankings from Michigan Grappler, while the junior Hermann is unranked. In last year's state finals match, Johnson scored a 15-0 technical fall victory. 119: Parker O'Brien (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. Jacob Madrigal (Davison) Both wrestlers, whom are seniors, are ranked in the state after qualifying for the state tournament last year. In last year's state finals match, O'Brien came up with a very important 4-2 victory that tied the match at 23-all with two matches to go. 125: Chyle Johnson (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. Lincoln Olson (Davison) The junior Olson is a two-time state champion, and preseason favorite to win a third title; while Johnson is a reserve wrestler for the Shamrocks, as two-time state third placer Trevor Zdebski is out of the lineup with a short term injury. Olson beat Zdebski 3-1 in last year's state finals dual match. 130: Evan Toth (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. Brennan McRill (Davison) Both wrestlers are ranked in the preseason rankings from Michigan Grappler, the senior two-time state qualifier Toth is sixth, while the freshman McRill is eighth. This could be a crucial swing match in the outcome of the dual meet. 135: Eli Joseph/Greg Johnson (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. Derek Humphrey (Davison) This is another potential swing middle-weight match, and it will involve a pair of seniors. The Cardinals have two-time state qualifier Humphrey, who will certainly be seeking to exorcise demons from that last match getting pinned from ahead in last year's state final. Humphrey is ranked sixth in the preseason, while Detroit Catholic Central will have one of two seniors outside the top ten in the preseason rankings. 140: Myles Amine (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. No. 16 (at 138) Justin Oliver (Davison) Both wrestlers in this match placed third in the state last year, and are highly ranked in the state in this weight class. Oliver had won state the previous two years, but failed to win this in 2013 after missing the bulk of the season due to injury. Earlier this fall Oliver placed fourth in the Super 32 Challenge. This match was the opening match of last year's state final dual meet, one that Oliver won 5-3 in overtime. 145: Malik Amine (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. Matt Miller (Davison) The senior Amine placed sixth in the Super 32 Challenge, and is a three-time state placer, including his state title won last season. Davison will likely double-enter this weight during the state series, with my estimation being they'll send out three-time state placer Miller in this weight class; he was a state runner-up last year. This was a match in the dual meet state final last year, one that Amine won 10-3. 152: No. 15 Nick Bennett (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. Dominic Russ (Davison) The senior Bennett was seventh at National Preps as a sophomore, and finished third in the Super 32 Challenge this fall down at 145 pounds. The Nebraska-bound Bennett is also ranked No. 97 overall in the senior class. Russ is a two-time state placer, and finished fourth at state last year; preseason ranking is second at 145 to Malik Amine per Michigan Grappler. 160: Tyler Morland (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. Thomas Garty (Davison) The freshman Morland enters his initial season of high school competition ranked eighth in Division 1 in this weight class by Michigan Grappler, while two-time state placer Garty is ranked fifth down at 152 pounds. This is yet another crucial swing match within the course of the dual meet. 171: No. 10 (at 182) Andrew Garcia (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. No. 14 Jordan Cooks (Davison) Both wrestlers in this match are two-time state champions, nationally ranked, and top 100 seniors. Obviously, this matchup could happen again multiple times going forward. Garcia is ranked No. 81 overall in the senior class, while Cooks is ranked No. 95 overall. This is yet another crucial swing match within the dual meet, but one in which Garcia enters as the favorite. 189: No. 16 (at 170) Logan Marcicki (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. Tyler Thomas (Davison) Marcicki won state as a freshman and was a state runner-up last year. This summer, he was Junior National freestyle All-American, and he enters the season as the top ranked wrestler in the weight class. The sophomore Thomas enters the season ranked tenth in Division 1 in this weight class. 215: Nick Giese (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. Jake Ellis (Davison) A pair of juniors will take to the mats in this weight class, with Giese having placed third at state last year. In last year's team state final, Giese won a 12-4 major decision over Ellis. 285: Jimmy Russell (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. Dakota Powers (Davison) The senior Russell is a returning state qualifier, and will be favored in this match against the junior Powers. In terms of the overall dual meet, Detroit Catholic Central is clearly favored in four weight classes: the last three and Bennett at 152. Davison responds with being clear favorites in three weights, at 103, 112, and 125. The dual meet will ultimately come down to the other seven matches first and foremost, with secondary emphasis on capitalization/damage control from the matches where a favorite is clear.

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- The Wisconsin wrestling team continued to impress on Sunday, rolling over Michigan State, 30-7, to claim its second-consecutive Big Ten Conference win. The Badgers claimed victory in eight matches, including seven straight to open action. No. 19 Ryan Taylor got Wisconsin (8-3) off to a hot start with a major decision over Hermilo Esquivel at 125 lbs. No. 5 Tyler Graff followed with a 23-9 major decision over Garth Yenter at 133 lbs. and the Badgers found themselves with an early 8-0 lead. Jesse Thielke posted a technical fall over Brian Gibbs at 141 lbs., TJ Ruschell won by decision over Matt Pasqualini at 149 lbs. and No. 10 Isaac Jordan won by major decision over Roger Wildmo at 157 lbs. to give Wisconsin a 20-0 lead heading into intermission. At 165 lbs., Frank Cousins defeated Bobby Nash in sudden victory and at 174 lbs. Scott Liegel claimed a 10-0 major decision over Kevin Nash. With the Badgers leading 27-0, Michigan State (6-3) scored its first win of the afternoon at 184 lbs. when John Rizqallah won by decision over No. 15 Jackson Hein. Timmy McCall got the Badgers back on the winning side of things with a 3-2 decision over Nick McDiarmid at 197 lbs. The biggest upset of the day came in the biggest match of the day. In the only bout featuring two nationally ranked wrestlers, No. 6 Connor Medbery was upset by No. 11 Mike McClure at heavyweight to give the Spartans their second win. Medbery entered Sunday’s match with an unblemished 15-0 record. Sunday’s match concludes Big Ten action for the Badgers until the new year. Wisconsin will take nearly three weeks off before resuming competition at The Midlands Championships on Dec. 28-29. Results: 125 #19 Ryan Taylor (WIS) maj dec Hermilo Esquivel (MSU), 18-6 133 #5 Tyler Graff (WIS) maj dec Garth Yenter (MSU) 23-9 141 Jesse Thielke (WIS) tech fall Brian Gibbs (MSU), 17-2 149 TJ Ruschell (WIS) dec Matt Pasqualini (MSU) 9-3 157 #10 Isaac Jordan (WIS) maj dec Roger Wildmo (MSU) 8-0 165 Frank Cousins (WIS) SV1 Bobby Nash (MSU) 5-3 174 Scott Liegel (WIS) maj dec Kevin Nash (MSU) 10-0 184 John Rizqallah (MSU) dec Jackson Hein (WIS) 6-4 197 Timmy McCall (WIS) dec Nick McDiarmid (MSU) 3-2 Hwt #11 Mike McClure (MSU) maj dec #6 Connor Medbery (WIS) 12-4

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. -- The defending Mid-American Conference regular season champion Central Michigan wrestling program opened league competition with a dominant victory over Buffalo Sunday afternoon, 29-6. The Chippewas (5-3, 1-0 MAC) held a 26-3 advantage in takedowns in the match and scored bonus points in five of their eight victories. The Bulls (1-4, 0-1 MAC) were able to take a short-lived lead with a victory by Angelo Malvestuto in the first tie breaker over Jackson Lewis to start the match, but CMU rattled off eight-straight victories soon after. Sophomore Adam Robinson put the Chippewas in front with a 12-3 major decision at heavyweight. Robinson led 4-1 after the first two periods and was able to earn bonus points with three third-period takedowns. Redshirt freshman No. 13 Corey Keener continued his hot start to the 2013-14 campaign with a 9-4 decision over Buffalo senior Max Soria, before No. 12 Joe Roth posted a 12-4 major decision at 133 pounds. Redshirt sophomore Zach Horan nearly pinned his opponent in the first period and took a 5-0 lead through one behind a takedown and three-point nearfall. The second-period escape and third-period takedown allowed Horan to earn a 8-4 decision. The victory of the afternoon came at 165 pounds as senior Zack Cline took advantage and earned a reversal in the second period to swing the momentum in his favor. Cline opened the third period with a takedown and accumulated riding time to post a 5-1 decision. Junior Mike Ottinger, ranked No. 12 in the country at 174 pounds, dominated his opponent for the final CMU victory of the night. Ottinger earned five takedowns to earn a 13-5 major decision. CMU is back in action next Sunday when they travel to Ann Arbor to take on in-state foe Michigan. Results: 197: Angelo Malvestuto (UB) dec. Jackson Lewis, 2-1 TB1; Buffalo, 3-0 285: Adam Robinson (CMU) major dec. James Benjamin, 12-3; CMU, 4-3 125: No. 13 Corey Keener (CMU) dec. Max Soria, 9-4; CMU, 7-3 133: No. 12 Joe Roth (CMU) major dec. Justin Farmer, 12-4; CMU, 11-3 141: No. 14 Zach Horan (CMU) dec. Nick Flannery, 8-4; CMU, 14-3 149: Scott Mattingly (CMU) major dec. Ryan Todora, 11-2; CMU, 18-3 157: Lucas Smith (CMU) major dec. John Northrup, 9-0; CMU, 22-3 165: Zack Cline (CMU) dec. Wally Maziarz, 5-1; CMU, 25-3 174: No. 12 Mike Ottinger (CMU) major dec. Jarred Lux, 13-5; CMU 29-3 184: Anthony Lock (UB) dec. Craig Kelliher, 5-2; CMU, 29-6

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The West Virginia University wrestling team concluded the Hoosier Duals with a 5-0 mark. The Mountaineers defeated No. 25 Indiana, 22-21, and Northern Colorado, 35-4. “We wrestled consistently well and with good intensity over these five dual meets,” says coach Craig Turnbull. “We had some good opponents, both in the teams and individuals we matched up against. We were able to rise up to the challenge when needed and came out with five wins. Beating Indiana in their gym was a significant win for us. It was great to see our team rewarded for a great weekend and it is a weekend that we can build on.” Sophomore Bubba Scheffel (174) led WVU this weekend with five victories, improving his season tally to 19-4. With a pin against the Hoosiers' Nate Jackson and another over Northern Colorado's Josh VanTine, Scheffel eclipsed Scott Collins for the program's single-season pin record (14). “Anytime you can break a long standing record, it is a nice recognition,” Turnbull says. “He really goes out to find a way to win, and often it happens by putting his opponent in danger. It shows what a tough competitor he his. His intensity has allowed him to be able to break that record.” Joining Scheffel with five victories this weekend was junior Mike Morales (149), senior Colin Johnston (141) and freshman Cory Stainbrook (125). Against Indiana (6-1), Stainbrook opened the match with a 14-8 decision over Joe Duca. Stainbrook tallied two takedowns and a three-point nearfall in the win. After a 3-0 win by decision from senior Nathan Pennesi (133), Johnston tallied his second pin of the weekend, sticking Ethan Raley in 2:01. Morales extended the Mountaineers' lead to 15-0 with a 4-1 decision against Joe Randazzo. The Hoosiers fought back at 157 pounds, scoring a win by fall with No. 6 Taylor Walsh. Indiana would take the 165-pound bout. Scheffel came back and tied the single-season pin record against Nate Jackson. Indiana went on to win the three remaining bouts to even the score at 21. WVU earned the win due to the third tiebreaker criteria (points from non-fall bouts). The Mountaineers held a 33-29 advantage in the category. WVU closed out the weekend with 35-4 final against the Bears (3-5). The Mountaineers jumped out to a 14-0 lead after the first four bouts. Pennesi recorded a technical fall with an 18-0 win over Northern Colorado's Sonny Espinoza. Scheffel tallied his 14th pin against Josh VanTine in 2:05. The win by fall gave WVU a 23-4 lead that would grow to a 35-4 advantage after a 5-3 decision from freshman Wayne Purnell in the heavyweight bout. WVU improved its record to 8-2 after this weekend. The Mountaineers travel to Reno, Nev., for the Tournament of Champions on Dec. 22. WVU at Indiana 125: Cory Stainbrook wins by decision over Joe Duca (14-8) 133: No. 20 Nathan Pennesi wins by decision over Chris Caton (3-0) 141: Colin Johnston wins by fall over Ethan Raley 149: Mike Morales wins by decision over Joe Randazzo (4-1) 157: No. 6 Taylor Walsh wins by fall over Brutus Scheffel 165: Ryan LeBlanc wins by decision over Ross Renzi (8-4) 174: Bubba Scheffel wins by fall over Nate Jackson 184: Luke Sheridan wins by fall over Mac Mancuso 197: Garrett Goldman wins by decision over Mark Colabucci (6-5) HWT: No. 8 Adam Chalfant wins by decision over A.J. Vizcarrondo (6-3) WVU 22 Indiana 21 (match decided on third-tiebreaker criteria) Northern Colorado vs. WVU 125: Cory Stainbrook wins by decision over Trey Andrews (7-4) 133: No. 20 Nathan Pennesi wins by technical fall over Sonny Espinoza (18-0) 141: Colin Johnston wins by decision over Nick Adams (11-6) 149: Mike Morales wins by decision over Beau Roberts (6-4) 157: Mitchell Polkowske wins by major decision over Roman Perryman (12-2) 165: Ross Renzi wins by decision over Charlie McMartin (8-4) 174: Bubba Scheffel wins by fall over Josh VanTine 184: Mac Mancuso wins by decision over Nick Bayer (4-1) 197: Leo Trindade wins by fall over Cole Briegle HWT: Wayne Purnell wins decision over Henry Chirino (5-3, extra time)

The No. 2 University of Minnesota Golden Gopher wrestling team edged the No. 4 Oklahoma State Cowboys, 16-15, in a close dual on the road. The victory over the Cowboys allows the Gophers to improve to 4-0 on the season and 1-0 in Big Ten Competition. Despite only winning half of the bouts on afternoon, the Gophers were able to claim four decisions and one major decision to barely claim the victory for the Gophers. The Gophers started the day off with two consecutive losses at 125 and 133 as Sam Brancale and No. 8 David Thorn both fell to ranked opponents. Quickly, the Gophers were down 6-0 after two bouts. The first win of the day came from No. 4 Chris Dardanes at 141 who were able to No. 15 Anthony Collica by decision, 5-3. No. 2 Nick Dardanes followed suit and picked up a victory against No. 4 Josh Kindig. With the two Dardanes victories the Gophers tied up the dual six all. The Gophers then suffered three-consecutive bout losses from No. 3 Dylan Ness, No. 20 Danny Zilverberg and No. 5 Logan Storley to put the Gophers behind 15-6. The Cowboys would not win another bout on the afternoon as the Gophers won three in a row to edge the Cowboys, 16-15. No. 1 Scott Schiller and No. 1 Tony Nelson both defeated their opponents in their respective weight classes. The most noteworthy dual of the day was the season debut of Kevin Steinhaus at 184 pounds. Steinhaus, who had not competed in the Gophers three previous duals this season, returned to the mat with a major decision win over Jordan Rodgers of Oklahoma State, 14-5. The Cowboys would not win another bout on the afternoon as the Gophers won three in a row to edge the Cowboys, 16-15. No. 1 Scott Schiller and No. 1 Tony Nelson, who are currently undefeated, both defeated their opponents in their respective weight classes. The score before the heavyweight bout was in favor of Oklahoma State, 15-13, and Nelson's decision over Marsden of Oklahoma State sealed the deal for the Gophers victory. The Golden Gophers will now have a break until Jan. 1 when they travel to Chattanooga for the Southern Scuffle. Results: 125: No. 16 Eddie Klimara (Oklahoma State) dec. Sam Brancale (Minnesota), 14-10 133: No. 3 Jon Morrison (Oklahoma State) dec. No. 9 David Thorn (Minnesota), 3-2 141: No. 4 Chris Dardanes (Minnesota) dec. No. 15 Anthony Collica (Oklahoma State), 5-3 149: No. 2 Nick Dardanes (Minnesota) dec. No. 4 Josh Kindig (Oklahoma State), 6-2 157: No. 2 Alex Dieringer (Oklahoma State) dec. No. 3 Dylan Ness (Minnesota), 4-2 SV 165: No. 2 Tyler Caldwell (Oklahoma State) dec. No. 20 Danny Zilverberg (Minnesota), 2-0 174: No. 2 Chris Perry (Oklahoma State) dec. No. 5 Logan Storely (Minnesota), 6-3 184: Kevin Steinhaus (Minnesota) maj. dec. Jordan Rogers (Oklahoma State), 14-5 197: No. 1 Scott Schiller (Minnesota) dec. No. 10 Blake Rosholt (Oklahoma State), 8-2 285: No. 1 Tony Nelson (Minnesota) dec. No. 15 Austin Marsden (Oklahoma State), 2-0

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- In the first wrestling dual ever held in the Sanford Pentagon, South Dakota State (1-3, 0-0) defeated old North Central Conference foe Augustana, 17-15 in front of 1,182 fans. A pair of major decisions by Cody Pack and Joe Brewster proved to be the difference in the tightly-contested matchup. Ben Gillette, Eric Orozco and Brady Ayers also won their respective matches for the Jacks. "I'm not real concerned with dual wins, just progression," head coach Chris Bono said. "But it does feel good to get that first win. Everything we do builds towards March and today was a big step." After being tied 6-6 heading into the 157-pound bout, Pack recorded a 14-3 major decision win to give SDSU at 10-6 lead heading into intermission. Brewster continued the momentum and recorded a major decision of his own, 17-6. These two bonus-point victories proved to be the difference for the Jacks. After dropping the 125-pound bout, SDSU won back-to-back matches to take a 6-3 lead. Sophomore Ben Gillette and senior Eric Orozco won their matches 8-2 and 4-1, respectively. Freshman Brady Ayers (174 pounds) downed Augie's Jeff Neilsen, 11-4 for the final Jacks' win on the day. SDSU will return to action Dec. 14 at the UNI Open in Cedar Falls, Iowa. A full play-by-play of today's dual can be found at the top of this release. Results: 125: TJ North over Isaac Andrade 10-4 133: Ben Gillette over Blake Jans 8-2 141: Eric Orozco over JacobAnderson 4-1 149: Shawn Hatlestad over Alex Kocer 5-3 157: Cody Pack major decision over Bradyn Neises 14-3 165: Joe Brewster major decision over Garret Heiberger 17-6 174: Brady Ayers over Jeff Neilsen 11-4 184: No. 7 Sean Derry over Ben Schwery 3-1 197: No. 5 Jayd Docken over Trey Hable 3-1 285: Michael Lowman over J.J. Everard 6-5

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team, three-time defending NCAA champions, welcomed intrastate rival Pittsburgh to a sold-out Bryce Jordan Center on Sunday and came away with a rousing 28-9 victory. Despite a developing snow storm, the dual meet was wrestled in front of 15,996 fans, setting a new NCAA all-time dual meet record and a new record for a Penn State Athletics event in the BJC. Junior Nico Megaludis (Murraysville, Pa.), ranked No. 3 nationally at 125, opened up the dual meet with an outstanding 4-1 win over No. 9 Anthony Zanetta of Pittsburgh in the dual's first bout. Pitt tied the dual meet at 133 when No. 17 Shelton Mack notched two late takedowns to beat Penn State's Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.) 5-2. True freshman Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 11 at 141, put Penn State back on top with a hard-fought 3-2 win over Pitt's Edgar Bright. Panther Mike Racciato put the Panthers on top with a late pin (6:52) of Lion senior James English (York, Pa.) at 149 but James Vollrath (Richboro, Pa.) got Penn State back to even with a strong 7-2 win over Panther Cole Sheptock at 157. Penn State's David Taylor earned his 44th career pin on Sunday against Pitt (Photo/Bill Ennis)Senior All-American David Taylor (St. Paris, Ohio), ranked No. 1 at 165, put Penn State up for good however, decking Pitt's Geno Morelli just nine seconds into the second period. The fall at the 3:09 mark put Penn State up 15-9 and was the 44th of Taylor's career. He is now just nine shy of the all-time Penn State record of 53. Taylor is 10-0 on the year with seven pins, two tech falls and one major. All-American Matt Brown (West Valley City, Utah), ranked No. 3 at 174, kept Penn State rolling after intermission with a dominating 9-3 win over No. 9 Tyler Wilps. Brown forced Wilps into three stall warnings in the bout. Red-shirt Wes Phipps (Grove City, Pa.) clinched the dual meet for the Nittany Lions, dominating Panther Aaron Rothwell on his way to a 13-3 major with 4:29 in riding time. Sophomore Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 4 at 197, then posted a hard-fought and thrilling win over Panther Nick Bonaccorsi. With the bout tied 3-3 after regulation and a first sudden victory period, McIntosh rode Bonaccorsi out during the first tie-breaker then escaped quickly in his period to post the 4-3 (tb) decision. Junior Jimmy Lawson (Tom's River, N.J.), ranked No. 10 at 285, closed out the dual meet with hard fought 3-1 win over Pitt's P.J. Tasser. A late takedown gave the Lion the decision and put Penn State on top 28-9 for the final score. Penn State was without the services of junior Andrew Alton (Mill Hall, Pa.), ranked No. 9 at 149 and junior All-American Dylan Alton (Mill Hall, Pa.), ranked No. 5 at 157, who are expected back mid-December following off-season surgery; and senior All-American Ed Ruth (Harrisburg, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 184, who is serving a one-month suspension for violation of team rules and policies. The Nittany Lions won the takedown battle as well, holding a 16-5 edge. Penn State won eight of ten bouts in a dual for the fourth time in five duals as well. The Nittany Lions move to 5-0 with the win while Pittsburgh falls to 3-1. The sold-out attendance figure of 15,996 sets two new Penn State records. First, it sets the new NCAA all-time record for dual meet attendance, out-doing the mark set by Iowa on Dec. 6, 2008, against Ohio State. It is an all-time best for a wrestling dual meet in Nittany Lion grappling history, besting the old mark of 11,245 set on Dec. 6, 1996, when Penn State hosted Iowa in the BJC (a 22-15 Iowa win early in the '96-97 season). It is also the largest ever crowd in the Bryce Jordan Center for a Penn State Athletics event. The old mark was 15,472, set on Feb. 1, 1997, when the Nittany Lion basketball team entertained Purdue. The sell-out is also the 13th straight home sell-out for Penn State, dating back to the 2011-12 season (with the prior 12 occurring in Rec Hall). The Lions will open up Big Ten action next weekend when it entertains No. 12 Ohio State in an already sold-out Rec Hall on Sunday, Dec. 15. The dual, which begins at 12 p.m., is a Big Ten Network live telecast. With the full season of Rec Hall duals sold out prior to the start of the campaign, a very limited number of standing room only tickets are available to a few of the remaining Rec Hall duals. People may purchase tickets by calling 1-800-NITTANY or by visiting the Penn State Athletics ticket office located in the BJC. 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 2013-14 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline. #2 Penn State 28, #23 Pittsburgh 9 December 8, 2013 - Bryce Jordan Center -- University Park, Pa. 125: #3 Nico Megaludis PSU dec. #9 Anthony Zanetta PITT, 4-1 / 3-0 133: #17 Shelton Mack PITT dec. Jordan Conaway PSU, 5-2 / 3-3 141: #11 Zain Retherford PSU dec. Edgar Bright PITT, 3-2 / 6-3 149: Mike Racciato PITT pinned James English PSU, WBF (6:52) / 6-9 157: James Vollrath PSU dec. Cole Sheptock PITT, 7-2 / 9-9 165: #1 David Taylor PSU pinned Geno Morelli PITT, WBF (3:09) / 15-9 174: #3 Matt Brown PSU dec. #9 Tyler Wilps PITT, 9-3 / 18-9 184: Wes Phipps PSU maj. dec. Aaron Rothwell PITT, 13-3 / 22-9 197: #4 Morgan McIntosh PSU dec. Nick Bonaccorsi PITT, 4-3 (tb) / 25-9 285: #10 Jimmy Lawson PSU dec. P.J. Tasser PITT, 3-1 / 28-9 Attendance: l5,996 (13th straight home sell-out; new NCAA dual meet record and new PSU/BJC Athletics record) Records: Penn State 5-0, 0-0 B1G; Pittsburgh 3-1 Up Next for Penn State: Sunday, Dec. 15 home vs. #12 Ohio State, 12 p.m. (Rec Hall) BOUT-BY-BOUT: 125: Junior Nico Megaludis (Murraysville, Pa.), ranked No. 3 at 125, took on No. 9 Anthony Zanetta of Pittsburgh in one of the dual meet's marquee battles. The nationally ranked duo battled evenly throughout the opening period with neither man finding an opening to score through the first two-plus minutes. With neither man breaking through after the opening stanza, the bout moved to the second scoreless. Megaludis chose down to start the second period and steadily worked his way to an escape and a 1-0 lead. Megaludis connected on a high single, turning it into a takedown and a 3-0 lead with 1:10 on the clock. Megaludis maintained control for the rest of the period and carried that lead into the third. Zanetta chose down to start the third period and Megaludis maintained control long enough to push his riding time over 1:00. Still in control, Megaludis held Zanetta down long enough to clinch the riding time point before the Panther escaped to a 3-1 score. Megaludis fought off tow late Zanetta shots and posted the 4-1 win, putting Penn State up 3-0 early. 133: Sophomore Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.) took to the mat at 133 and faced off against No. 19 Shelton Mack of Pittsburgh in another bout between ranked opponents. Conaway fresh off winning the Thunder Wolve Open title and Outstanding Wrestler Award the night before in Upstate New York, battled Mack evenly for the full opening period, with neither man mounting an offensive charge in 3:00. Tied 0-0, Mack chose down to start the second stanza and escaped to a 1-0 lead 0:11 in. Conaway nearly connected on a low single at the 1:00 mark, but Mack fought the move off to hold his 1-0 lead. Conaway forced another scramble late but each man was able to defend the other's threat and Mack led 1-0 after two. Conaway chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 1-1 tie. Conaway shot at Mack's left leg and the Panther fought off the move, countered and took Conaway down for a 3-1 lead with :25 left. Conaway escaped with :15 on the clock and spent. Mack countered a late Conaway shot and got a final takedown to get the 5-2 win and tie the dual at 3-3. 141: True freshman Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 11 at 141, faced off against Pitt's Edgar Bright. Bright scored first, using a quick single leg to take Retherford down and open up a 2-1 lead midway through the period. Retherford spent the rest of the period looking for an opening but Bright was able to play defense and carry the 2-1 lead into the second stanza. Retherford chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 2-2 tie. The Lion rookie set the tempo for the period, taking numerous shots and forcing Bright to the outside circle throughout the middle 2:00. Retherford nearly scored at the buzzer with a low single. But time ran out and the bout moved to the third period tied 2-2. Bright chose down to start the third period but Retherford was strong on top, maintaining control long enough to build up a 1:00-plus riding time edge. After a reset at the :59 mark, Retherford broke Bright down again, keeping his top position and control. With the time point clinched, Retherford needed only a ride out to win the bout. The Lion freshman did just that and with 1:49 in riding time, posted the 3-2 win. 149: Senior James English (York, Pa.) took on Panther freshman Mike Racciato at 149. The duo battled evenly throughout the opening period with neither man finding an opening to score. Racciato forced a scramble at the :40 mark but English was able to fight off the move and force a stalemate with :11 on the clock. Racciato chose down to start the second period but English was able to maintain control of his top position. English nearly turned Racciato for back points but the Panther shifted action out of bounds and a reset was called with 1:10 on the clock. English then maintained control for the rest of the period and action moved to the third tied 0-0 with English having 2:00 in riding time. English chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead with 1:53 in time to his advantage. Racciato countered an English shot and the bout was tied 2-2 after a quick English escape. English still had riding time as well with :45 on the clock. English notched a late takedown, Racciato reversed him with just :10 left and then turned him to his back for a quick pin at the 6:52 mark. The fall put the Panthers up 9-6. 157: Nittany Lion senior James Vollrath (Richboro, Pa.) took to the mat at 157 to meet Pitt's Cole Sheptock. The due battled evenly for nearly two minutes before Vollrath locked in on a single leg. The Lion senior finished off the move and led 2-1 with :50 left after a quick Sheptock escape. Vollrath added a second takedown as the period ended and led 4-1 heading into the second period. Vollrath chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 5-1 lead. The duo battled evenly for the rest of the period, allowing Vollrath to head into the third stanza with a 5-1 lead. Sheptock chose down to start the third period and steadily worked his way to an escape and a 5-2 deficit. Vollrath was relentless on offense and connected on another solid shot. The late takedown allowed the Nittany Lion senior to roll to a 7-2 victory and tie the dual meet at 9-9 heading into halftime. 165: Senior David Taylor (St. Paris, Ohio), ranked No. 1 at 165, faced off with Pittsburgh's Geno Morelli. Taylor wasted no time taking a lead, gaining control of Morelli and taking a 2-0 lead at the 2:23 mark. Taylor then maintained control of Morelli, building up a solid riding time edge before Morelli escaped to a 2-1 score. Taylor quickly stepped behind the Panther and upped his lead to 4-1 with 1:00 left on the clock. Taylor forced Morelli into a first stall warning and then rode the Panther out to lead 4-1 after one. Morelli chose down to start the second period and Taylor cut him loose. The three-time All-American then sent the NCAA dual meet record crowd to its feet, catching the Panther and putting him to his back for a pin in under then seconds. The fall, at the 3:09 mark, put Penn State up 15-9 and was the 44th of Taylor's career (nine shy of Penn State's all-time record of 53). 174: Junior Matt Brown (West Valley City, Utah), ranked No. 3 at 174, took on No. 9 Tyler Wilps in another highly anticipated top-ten battle. Brown set the early tempo, forcing Wilps to the edge of the mat for over a minute while looking to connect on a low single. Brown's steady offense forced Wilps into defense and a first stall warning as the period ended. Tied 0-0, Brown chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped to a 1-0 lead. Continuing to work through the Panther's defense, Brown gained control of Wilps' left ankle and notched the bout's first takedown to lead 3-1 after a quick Wilps escape at the :57 mark. Brown nearly notched another takedown but Wilps was able to work his way out of bounds again. Brown led 3-1 after two periods. Wilps chose down to start the third period and escaped to a 3-2 deficit. But Brown's relentless offense forced the ranked Panther into another stall, giving the Lion another point. Brown picked up another takedown, a stall point and a final takedown to roll to the 9-3 win and put Penn State up 18-9. 184: Red-shirt freshman Wes Phipps (Grove City, Pa.) took to the big stage against Pitt's Aaron Rothwell. Phipps exploded out of the gates, blowing through a high double, lifting Rothwell off the mat and taking him down for a quick 2-0 lead. The Grove City native was dominant on top, putting together a strong ride while he build up well over 1:00 before cutting Rothwell loose to a 2-1 score. Phipps shot again, working for control with 1:10 on the clock before Rothwell forced a stalemate. Phipps forced Rothwell into a stall warning and then used a strong high single to take a 4-1 lead with another takedown. Phipps rode Rothwell out and led 4-1 with 1:55 in time after the opening period. Phipps chose down to start the second stanza and quickly escaped to a 5-1 lead. He then used a high single again, lifted Rothwell off the mat, and took a 7-1 lead with another takedown. Phipps picked up another point on Rothwell's second stall then cut him loose with :25 on the clock. Wasting no time, Phipps picked up a takedown with just :05 left and led 10-2 with 3:12 in time after two. Rothwell chose down to start the final period, Phipps worked for a bit on top and then cut the Panther loose with :55 on the clock. With the clinched riding time point in hand, Phipps used a low ankle pick and a final burst to finish on top with a final takedown. The Lion's 13-3 major with 4:29 in riding time clinched the dual meet, putting Penn State up 22-9. 197: Sophomore Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 4 at 197, met Panther sophomore Nick Bonaccorsi. Bonaccorsi scored first, taking McIntosh down and edging out to a 2-1 lead with 1:30 on the clock. The duo battled evenly for the period's final minute-plus and McIntosh trailed by one, 2-1, after one. McIntosh chose down to start the second period and quickly escaped. Bonaccorsi locked his hands in the process, giving the Lion sophomore a 3-2 lead. McIntosh grabbed the Panther's left ankle and worked to pull him onto the mat. Bonaccorsi worked hard to get out of bounds and eventually was able to force a reset with :04 left on the clock. Trailing by one, Bonaccorsi chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 3-3 tie. The duo fought each other evenly for the next minute-plus, with neither wrestler able to break through on offense. McIntosh continued to pressure the Panther and nearly scored as the period ended, but time ran out and the bout moved into sudden victory. McIntosh shot three times out of the blocks in extra time but Bonaccorsi was able to fight off each move send the bout into overtime. Bonaccorsi chose down to start the first tie-breaker but was not able to work free of McIntosh's strong ride. The Lion sophomore then chose down and quickly escaped to a 4-3 lead. The final point was the difference and McIntosh notched the 4-3 (tb) win. 285: Junior Jimmy Lawson (Tom's River, N.J.), ranked No. 10 at 285, met Pitt's P.J. Tasser in the dual's final bout. The tandem fought through an even two minutes-plus with defense being the theme of the bout. Each man opened up a bit as the first period but no one scored and the bout moved to the second period tied 0-0. Tasser chose down to start the second stanza and escaped to a 1-0 lead quickly. Action resumed in the center circle with each wrestler working for a chance to get the bout's first takedown. Trailing by one, Lawson chose down to start the third period and quickly escaped to a 1-1 tie. Lawson stepped back from a quick Tasser shot and maintained the tie and then the duo battled evenly until under the :30 mark. Tasser shot on Lawson and the Lion junior countered for a clinching takedown as the bout ended, picking up the tough 3-1 win.

PHILADELPHIA -- The 23rd-ranked Lehigh wrestling team won the first five bouts and held off a late Penn charge to hold off the Quakers 21-12 Sunday at the Palestra. Freshman Elliot Riddick survived a late third period flurry to hold off Casey Kent 4-3 at 174 to clinch the match for the Mountain Hawks. Lehigh won its fourth straight dual as the Mountain Hawks improve to 5-3 on the dual season. Penn falls to 2-2. Snowy conditions in Philadelphia delayed the arrival of the officials, which in turn delayed the start of the match. Once things got going, Lehigh captured the first five bouts to lead 15-0 at the halfway point. “We knew the first five weights were important,” said Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro. “We knew they had some guys who could do some damage up top.” The dual started at 285 where freshman Doug Vollaro and Penn’s Steven Graziano were tied 1-1 late in the third period when Graziano took a shot and Vollaro countered putting Graziano on his back for a takedown and two point near fall to win the match 5-1. Lehigh made it two straight wins as Darian Cruz defeated Caleb Richardson in a battle of true freshmen at 125. Cruz scored a takedown in each period and added a second period escape to win 7-3. Sophomore Mason Beckman continued Lehigh’s run with a 6-2 decision over Ken Bade at 133. Beckman scored takedowns in each of the first two periods and added an escape and a 1:06 riding time advantage. In what has become a customary occurrence, sophomore Laike Gardner overcame a big early deficit to win, this time rallying past Jeff Canfora 8-7 at 141. Canfora took Gardner down to his back for an early 2-and-2 off a double leg, and added another double leg score to lead 6-2 after one period. Gardner rode out the second period, turning Canfora for two points in the process. In the third, Gardner escaped and then scored his first takedown to take the lead. Canfora escaped to pull even at 7-7, but 1:20 of riding time gave Gardner the win. Freshman Mitch Minotti capped the five-match run with a 2-0 decision over Andrew Lenzi at 149. Minotti scored an escape in the second period and rode out the third to add riding time advantage. With starters Joey Napoli and Brian Brill sidelined, the Mountain Hawks bumped two wrestlers up two weight classes and both men managed to keep the Quakers to regular decisions. Freshman Will Switzer moved from 141 to 157 to face Ray Bethea and actually took a 6-4 lead with a late third period takedown, but Bethea reversed to tie the match and prevailed 7-6 thanks to a 1:10 riding time advantage. Sophomore Mike Stepien moved up from 149 to 165 to face Penn’s Steve Robertson and avoided giving up bonus points in a 9-3 loss. “I thought everyone wrestled well,” Santoro said. “Mike Stepien and Will Switzer did a tremendous job. It’s a tribute to them, they’ve putting in the time in the last few years and they wrestled really well.” Penn bumped 13th-ranked Kent up to 174 to face Riddick, who debuted in the rankings at No. 18 this week. Riddick opened the scoring with a first period takedown and Kent escaped. A second period escape for Kent tied the match at two. In the third, Riddick chose bottom and reversed Kent to take a 4-3 lead after Kent escaped. Riddick was warned for stalling in the first period and continued to push forward to avoid a second stall call but Kent countered a Riddick shot, setting off a wild flurry where most fans in attendance thought Kent had secured the go-ahead takedown, but referee Gary Kessel indicated that control was never gained allowing Riddick to hold on for the win, which clinched the dual for the Mountain Hawks. “It was a really close call,” Santoro said. “Elliot came out on top at the end but we didn’t know if it would be a reversal or an escape. It could have gone to overtime. That was a crazy match. It could have gone either way but that’s part of the game I guess.” The Quakers took six points back at 184 as Lorenzo Thomas pinned freshman Zach Diekel at the 6:34 mark but Lehigh captured the final bout as John Bolich rode out the second period against No. 19 Frank Mattiace to win 1-0. The Mountain Hawks will now have a break for final exams and the holidays before returning to action at the Midlands Championships December 29-30 in Evanston, Ill. “We’ve been going six weekends in a row, so we haven’t had the time to work on what we really need to work on,” Santoro said. “We’re going to spend a lot of individual time during finals. The next two weeks we’re going to spend a lot individual time. It’s a good time where we can put in a lot of individual time.” Results: 285 – Doug Vollaro (Lehigh) dec. Steven Graziano (Penn) 5-1 125 – Darian Cruz (Lehigh) dec. Caleb Richardson (Penn) 7-3 133 – Mason Beckman (Lehigh) dec. Ken Bade (Penn) 6-2 141 – Laike Gardner (Lehigh) dec. Jeff Canfora (Penn) 8-7 149 – Mitch Minotti (Lehigh) dec. Andrew Lenzi (Penn) 2-0 157 – Ray Bethea (Penn) dec. Will Switzer (Lehigh) 7-6 165 – Steve Robertson (Penn) dec. Mike Stepien (Lehigh) 9-3 174 – Elliot Riddick (Lehigh) dec. Casey Kent (Penn) 4-3 184 – Lorenzo Thomas (Penn) Fall Zach Diekel (Lehigh) 6:34 197 – John Bolich (Lehigh) dec. Frank Mattiace (Penn) 1-0 Referee – Gary Kessel