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Fight Now TV Presents Takedown Wrestling from the Brute studios in Des Moines, Iowa at 1460 KXNO. Takedown Wrestling is proudly presented by Kemin, Inspired Molecular Solutions! This Saturday it's Takedown Wrestling Radio from 9 to 11 a.m. CT/10 a.m. to noon ET. Join Scott Casber, Steve Foster, our own Jeff Murphy and Brad Johnson. This week's guests: 9:03 Jeremy Hunter, Illinois assistant wrestling coach 9:15 Walter Peppelman, Harvard wrestler 9:35 Eric Kowal, WoundedMarinesFishing.com 9:50 Tyler Barkley, Max Muscle Sports Nutrition Update 10:03 Joe Bastardi, Penn State Wrestling Insider 10:15 Tom Ryan, Ohio State head wrestling coach 10:35 Jeff Murphy, Kemin Report 10:50 Amy Ruble-Wildrose Casino and Resort, Emmettsburg, Iowa Fans, athletes, coaches: This is your sport. Join in the conversation live. Ask questions. Call 866-333-5966 or 515-204-5966. Takedown Wrestling is available on radio on AM 1460 KXNO in Iowa, online at Livesportsvideo.com, or on your Blackberry or iPhone with the iHeart Radio app. (Click on KXNO under Sportsradio.)
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Air Force senior Cole VonOhlen is currently 21-2 and ranked fourth nationally at 149 pounds. He has been one of the most successful wrestlers in program history. Earlier this season VonOhlen became the all-time pins leader at Air Force. He is a three-time NCAA qualifier with a career record of 133-24. InterMat recently caught up with VonOhlen and talked to him about a variety of topics. Cole VonOhlen is 21-2 this season and ranked fourth at 149 (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)You haven't competed due to injury since the Southern Scuffle in early January. What's the severity of your injury? When do you expect to be back on the mat competing? VonOhlen: I just kind of tweaked my shoulder a little bit. In a week or a couple weeks I should be good to go for sure. I'm not too concerned about it. In previous years I've gotten a lot of matches in, so having less matches isn't a bad thing for me this year. I've wrestled enough to know where I'm at and what I'm capable of. Just making sure I'm ready for March is the big thing. Is it tough having to sit and watch your teammates wrestle? VonOhlen: It is and it isn't. Right now it's pretty awesome because even though I'm not out there they're still kicking butt. So it's pretty cool. It would have been nice to be back for the Oregon State match because we had a few guys out for that one. I think we could have had a lot better match against them if a few of us would have been back. Being out and still beating UNI was pretty cool. You recently finished runner-up at the Southern Scuffle. You defeated a fellow Minnesota native Dylan Ness in the semifinals. What was the key to defeating Ness? VonOhlen: I think it was just wrestling my match. Our styles kind of match up well for me to do well. He likes to roll around a little bit and I'm not afraid to scramble in there. Getting on top and bottom were good positions for me. Getting a takedown in the first period was big. I think being able to get on top is a bag factor me, so I just have to keep working on that in big matches. You fell in the Southern Scuffle finals to Oklahoma State's Jordan Oliver, the nation's top-ranked 149-pounder. What did you take away from that loss? VonOhlen: Sometimes I have trouble with quick guys, so I just need to keep working on my defense and make sure I'm getting in on my own shots. I got in on a couple shots, but I just kind of stopped. I need to try to finish a little more. A takedown in that match would have changed things. So I'll just keep working and hopefully I'll get my rematch in March. Last season you came into the NCAAs as the No. 3 seed and fell short of All-American honors. Is that something that still drives you? Or was it something you immediately put in the past? VonOhlen: No, I definitely didn't immediately put that one in the past. It's still a driving factor. Every year I get closer and closer. So just finally making that last little push to get on the podium will be exciting in March. How different is wrestling in the NCAA tournament compared to wrestling in a regular season event? VonOhlen: It's a little different. It's different if you take it as different. If you try to have the mindset where it's just another tournament I think you'll be all right. Some guys can psyche themselves out if they haven't been in big tournaments before. Most guys that go to it have been in big tournaments. They've been in state tournaments, or national tournaments, or wrestled in Fargo. Hopefully most of the time it's not too big of a change, but some people can get themselves psyched out. Cole VonOhlen defeated Derek Valenti of Virginia en route to finishing runner-up at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Now that you're a senior has anything changed with your approach to the sport? Are you putting more pressure on yourself to accomplish your goals? Or less because it's your last season of college wrestling? VonOhlen: The only thing that I can do is train as hard as I can and then wrestle as hard as I can. Whatever outcome happens I've got to try to be happy with. I'm just trying to give it everything I've got and hopefully walk away satisfied in the end. Air Force is currently ranked 24th in the country. Where do you see this program going? VonOhlen: We're definitely on the up. We've got a lot of tough guys coming in all the time, a lot of tough freshmen. Hopefully our practice room environment just keeping getting tougher and tougher and we keep working up the ladder. It's pretty exciting. Has Air Force been everything you thought it would be coming out of high school? VonOhlen: Coming out of high school I didn't really know what it would be. I hadn't been that involved in the military stuff before or anything, so it was just kind of a leap. It has far exceeded my expectations … just with all the opportunities, all the friends you meet, and all the chances you get while you're there. It's been a pretty awesome experience. Your coaches Joel Sharratt and Sam Barber both have ties to your home state of Minnesota. Sharratt wrestled at Bloomington Kennedy and Barber coached at Augsburg. What's it like wrestling for them? VonOhlen: It's just kind of a good continuation. I had a really good coach in high school, Randy Baker. He knows both of them well. They have kind of the same mentality, so it was an easy crossover for me and a continuation of the building I was doing in high school. It was good transition and kept me on the good path that I was on. You're close to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. How has that benefitted you throughout your college wrestling career? VonOhlen: A lot. Whenever there is a training camp or something I can just hop down there and I'm in the mix with the best guys in the country or the world. You're facing really tough guys all the time. It's helped me a lot. It's always good to get different competition, or tough competition, that will push you or make you realize a weakness that you didn't have before. Have you decided if you want to continue wrestling competitively after you graduate from the Air Force? VonOhlen: Yeah, I would like to. I'm looking at the options for the World Class Athlete Program. So I'll see what opportunities I can get with that. Hopefully that's a possibility. It would be pretty fun. This story also appears in the Jan. 25 issue of The Guillotine. The Guillotine has been covering wrestling in Minnesota since 1971. Its mission is to report and promote wrestling at all levels -- from youth and high school wrestling to college and international level wrestling. Subscribe to The Guillotine.
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InterMat senior writer T.R. Foley answers reader questions about NCAA wrestling, international wrestling, recruiting, or anything loosely related to wrestling. You have until Thursday night every week to send questions to Foley's Twitter or email account. Do you want to read a past mailbag? Access archives. Thanks to the all readers who submitted questions this past week. Sometimes we have so many that I have to hold a question or two for the following week, but we've never had as much response as we did last week. Readers sent in enough questions to cover three weeks of mailbags, so if you don't see your response, please wait until next week and you'll be sure to see your name in BOLD. As always, I'm looking forward to reading your emails. I'll be in Asia for the next two weeks reporting, and though I'll be tuning into the matches that I can find online, I'll need your questions to help me keep focused. While away I'll be filing stories for InterMat and FIGHT! Magazine, in addition to a large piece I'm hoping will appear in a national sports magazine. I'll also be wrestling in India, so fans of WrestlingRoots.org be sure to keep checking the Facebook page and the Twitter (@wrestlingroots) for new photos and videos of traditional kushti wrestling. India will be the last for the book research and will allow me to start the publishing process and get something in print by the end of the summer. Any restaurant recommendations in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, and New Dehli are much appreciated. To your questions ... Q: When a high school wrestler transfers like in college do they lose any eligibility or can they wrestle right away? -- @gapyonks Foley: The answer is based on a number of factors. Individual school districts take direction from the state, but are largely autonomous in how they award eligibility to current students. Certainly if you're from a military family and you move mid-semester there is little reason to think that the school district would complain about participation in sports. However, if you move for less noticeable reasons, or the connection to the school seems tenuous, then it might spark an investigation. Gaming the system are those whose parents buy property in a district. It's a hell of an investment, but one that many parents have made. School districts might seek to restrict their participation, but I imagine most would green light in lieu of determining the motivation of the parents. Again, this is the discretion of the school, then the school district and finally the state educational system. For a super interesting case, take a read at the situation surrounding the Sudanese basketball players in the suburbs of Chicago. Q: Any idea when the Alton's will be back in PSU's lineup? #inquiringmindswanttoknow -- @MichaelPriore Foley: Twitter Lesson #1: That is called a HASHTAG. Use 'em when you want to say something that might take too many characters, or when you want your Tweet to be searchable and trendable. As for the answer to your question, both Alton boys will be in the lineup this weekend, after completing their 30-day no-competition punishment. Don't expect much of a fall off from their pre-suspension performances. The twins have been competing at open tournaments and working out with the team. Q: What ever happened to Lance Palmer's younger brother who wrestled at Ohio State? Freddie Rodriguez? He was a Spartan last I checked. -- @Chosen_OneLCA Foley: Collin Palmer didn't stick to wrestling and instead started a family. He was a talented guy from a talented family. Freddie Rodriguez was looking to give it a shot at a high school in Iowa, but he was a little on the older side of the eligibility requirements, and he wasn't allowed to compete. He has already fought in one MMA match so it's entirely possible that after high school he will enter into the sport. Otherwise he'll need to get his grades up at a JUCO before having a chance to show his worth at the Division I level. Multimedia Halftime Lights. Camera. ACTION. Ouch. Watch as a spotlight falls on a wrestler. They call him the "White Lion" My site WrestlingRoots.org seeks out stories like the one you see below and posts them to our website and Facebook page. If you're interested please check out the site or follow along on Twitter @wrestlingroots to discover daily content! Q: Is it better to have a team that has studs to start on the varsity lineup with backups that maybe aren't as talented, or a team with depth? As in, should anyone be able to take the starting spot at any given time, or is it better for the starters to be leaps and bounds ahead of any backups? -- D. Clark Foley: Who wouldn't want stud backups? Remember Jesse Whitmer, the 118-pound NCAA champion for Iowa in 1997? This guy is a backup for four years behind Mike Mena. Finally in his fifth year he gets the nod and we all find out that he's a hammer on his feet. Backup is almost a derogatory word, like they don't have a huge impact on the direction of the program. I could name another dozen who've shown the ability to compete at the top level even as they sat the bench, but the truth is that talented backups are always the supporting structure of any wrestling team. Individuals may shine, lead and be the technical example for a squad, but without a supporting staff that is both talented and committed the efforts of the starters won't matter. That written, I can see what you mean: Does wrestling with 3-4 studs work as extra motivation for the team? It could, but you'll always need dedicated workout partners to make sure that your team is successful and healthy for the entire season. Q: I was wondering if you know how long Logan Stieber is out? I feel like his absence has made a drastic impact for the Buckeyes, especially against Iowa and Minnesota where that's a seven-point swing which would have made those duals much closer than they were. -- Mike in Cleveland Ohio State's Logan Stieber won the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational with a victory over Nathan McCormick (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Foley: Logan will have an enormous impact on the team when he returns to action. When that will be is a good guess. I talked with Reece Humphrey this week for the upcoming Back Points podcast and he said that Logan is battling a hamstring injury. Right now it's not serious, and certainly not season ending, but Tom Ryan and his staff are protecting him from any further damage. Like Humphrey said, the hamstring is a tricky injury that you need to protect because the recovery time can be brutal, especially when the NCAA tournament is only a few weeks away. The major concern for Buckeye fans shouldn't be how quickly he's back for the dual meet, but how healthy he'll be at Big Tens and NCAAs. It's more important to win the NCAA title than keep it close against Minnesota. But maybe I'm just being selfish. I took a bet with @muirorless on the number of NCAA titles the Stieber brothers would accumulate for their career. It was a large number. Update from reader, Jerry: Hoping for February 1st return. Q: So I just watched the Lance Armstrong interview and I started thinking about the "doping" issue as it pertains to wrestling. Should we as a wrestling community start getting in front of this issue now? Further, do you think that the prevalence of performance-enhancing drug (PED) usage in MMA (which has so many ties to wrestling) will begin to filter into the wrestling world? -- Unknown # Foley: I love that you brought up the issue of PEDs in collegiate and professional sports. It would be easy for wrestling to bury its head in the Resilite and avoid the larger issues. As we all know, the wrestling community rarely gets in front of an issue (age restrictions on weight cutting), but being proactive in thinking about change is an important first step to help grow and protect the sport. Despite your vigilance, there is no PEDs issue in collegiate wrestling. Though there is plenty of talent that graduates from NCAA wrestling to MMA, the negative habits like PED use are picked up in the major leagues, not the minors. MMA is more susceptible to PEDs for several reasons, but few are as consequential as the extended layoff between camps and the multifaceted training regiments that many fighters claim cause injury. It's easy for a fighter 10 weeks from a fight to be in a cycle, because they can wean themselves off as the fight approaches. For wrestlers the timetable is too crunched to handle the weight flux associated with the use of TRT and high-test PEDS. Wrestlers run a middle distance race and therefore become consumed with the idea of balancing weight with fitness. To be clear, I agree that MMA is turned upside down with drug use. Over the years I've had several candid discussions with fighters about PED use and most claim that the numbers inside the UFC is well north of fifty percent. This week, our very own Ben Askren is so irritated by the culture of drug use that he became the first MMA fighter to volunteer and pass VADA testing before a main event. He won by third-round corner stoppage. PED abuse in MMA is more serious than in ball sports because with strength, stamina and rage come real consequences. After years of speculation Rousamir Palhares got dinged for steroids after his TKO loss to Hector Lombard. The Brazilian jiu-jitsu expert is known around the world to be on drugs for many of the world's top grappling contests, and in 2011 his over-developed body and fried mind dislocated an opponent's knee well after the final whistle. You put trust in your opponents in BJJ and MMA, and Palhares, likely because of the roids, was unable to contain his rage. (If you're queasy, don't watch the end of the video. If you live for that shit, it's bookmarkable. If you love seeing dudes survive in impossible situations, watch this.) On the note of unhinged rage, Vitor Belfort hardly hid his use of PEDs and TRT at his fight last weekend in Brazil. It's unlikely that the two-time former champion even cycled off -- confident enough that his hometown doctors would assist him. The entire event looked a little larger than normal and seeing that much drug use actually makes me hesitant to bet fighters in the future. Until wrestling starts seeing freaks of this kind take the mat, I think we are still 99.5% clean with little room to worry. Q: It seems like every week you get a question like "Where is John Doe? He was a four-time state champ and now I can't find him on his team's roster." Why don't you guys do a recruiting rewind feature similar to Rivals where you look at the top recruits from four or five years ago and see where they ended up, how their college careers went, and maybe take a look at some hidden gems that weren't ranked very high coming out of high school. -- Bobby Foley: That's not a bad idea. We've done it once before, in 2008, and I think it's a pretty interesting article. Would you want to see it for this year? I can definitely tell you that with the exception of Eric Grajales, the Class of 2009 has been spectacular on the top. I mean, really impressive.
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No. 15 DCC battles No. 20 Cincinnati Moeller on Saturday
InterMat Staff posted an article in College
In the prior two seasons, interstate rivals No. 15 Detroit Catholic Central, Mich., and No. 20 Cincinnati Moeller, Ohio have battled it out in dual meet competition. Two years ago, the Shamrocks traveled south as favorites, but were upset by the host Crusaders. However, last year, Moeller travelled north to Michigan and left with a loss for their trip. This Saturday, Moeller will play host, and the 2 p.m. dual meet should be one full of intrigue. These two teams are extremely balanced. The matchups across this dual meet should be interesting to follow, with the overall outcome of the dual meet open for either team to win. Below is a breakdown of the projected lineups. 106: Zack Prater (Detroit Catholic Central) vs. Will Kruspe (Cincinnati Moeller). This weight class is a relative weakness for both squads. The freshman Prater was one match away from placing at the Medina Invitational, while Kruspe is a senior whose lone tournament placement is eighth at SWOWCA. 113: Trevor Zdebski vs. Conner Ziegler. Zdebski was champion of the Medina Invitational in this weight class and placed third at state in the 103 weight class as a freshman last year. Fellow sophomore Ziegler has three notable tournament placements this year -- second at SWOWCA, fifth at POWERade, and champion at the Catholic Invitational Tournament -- after qualifying for state last year at 106. 120: Evan Toth vs. Jacoby Ward. The junior Toth qualified for state as a freshman and failed to place at Medina last month, while Ward is a freshman and yet to place in any tournament this year. However, he was one match away from placing at POWERade, and has a great family lineage with older brother Joey Ward and half-brother Chaz Gresham being state champions last year. 126: No. 12 Kenny Bade/Myles Amine vs. Connor Borton. The strategy for the Shamrocks may be to place the lesser of their two options, state qualifier Myles Amine, in this match against the sophomore Borton who was a state alternate last year. Myles Amine is ranked sixth in Division 1 at 130 pounds, while Borton placed fourth at both SWOWCA and the CIT. 132: Bade/Amine vs. Andrew Mendel. It would be ideal for the Shamrocks to have two-time state champion, and two-time Medina champion, Bade here. The Penn-bound wrestler would be a strong favorite against two-time state alternate Mendel, who was champion at CIT after a runner-up finish at SWOWCA and being one match away from placing at POWERade. 138: Malik Amine vs. Jonathan Tallarigo. The Shamrocks are strong favorites in this match with two-time state placer, and state runner-up last year, Amine the projected wrestler here against the junior Tallarigo, whose first varsity tournament placement came this past weekend at the CIT (where he finished sixth). 145: Chris Naubert vs. Austin Bohenek. This is another battle of relatively unproven wrestlers, as neither has been near the state tournament. The senior Naubert is unranked in Michigan Division 1, and went 2-2 at the Medina Invitational. The junior Bohenek was one match away from placing at the POWERade and CIT. 152: Mike Babicz vs. Wyatt Wilson. Babicz was a state qualifier in 2011, but falls outside the top ten and was one match away from placing at Medina in December. Fellow senior Wilson has yet to make the state tournament, and has finished fourth at SWOWCA and second at the CIT this year. 160: Logan Marcicki vs. Dean Meyer. This is a battle of excellent junior wrestlers, with Marcicki having won a state title in 2011 and finishing runner-up at the Medina Invitational. Meyer is a two-time state qualifier, who placed eighth as a freshman. This season, he placed fourth at SWOWCA, third at POWERade, and champion at the CIT. 170: No. 17 DrewD Garcia vs. No. 20 Dakota Sizemore. Yet another match placing excellent juniors against one another, this time both are in the national rankings. For the Shamrocks, Garcia is a two-time state finalist, winning state last year, and has won the Medina Invitational each of the last two years. Countering for the Crusaders is two-time state qualifier Sizemore, who was third at state last year; this season, he finished runner-up at SWOWCA, placed third at POWERade, and was champion at the CIT. 182: Nick Giese vs. Quention Rosser. The sophomore Giese placed sixth at the Medina Invitational in this weight class, and is ranked fifth in Michigan Division 1 at 189 pounds. For Moeller, Rosser is a junior who made the state tournament last year, and this season finished second at SWOWCA, was a match away from placing at the POWERade, before winning the CIT. 195: Jimmy Russell vs. Jerry Thornberry. The junior Russell was one match away from placement at Medina in December, but only cracks the lineup due to the extra upper-weight in NFHS wrestling. Fellow junior Thornberry placed eighth at state as a freshman but failed to make state last last year. This season, he finished fourth at SWOWCA, sixth at POWERade, and third at the CIT. 220: Jay Peterson vs. No. 10 Chalmer Frueauf. The senior Peterson is ranked ninth in Michigan Division 1 and placed seventh at the Medina Invitational. Only a junior, Frueauf has finished fourth in the state in each of his first two high school seasons. During this season, he placed third at the POWERade, and was a dominant champion at SWOWCA and the CIT. 285: Robert Coe vs. Max Swoboda. The senior Coe, bound for Boston University, placed seventh at state last year and fourth at the Medina Invitational. He is also the top ranked wrestler in Michigan Division 1 at this weight class. The Crusaders respond with fellow senior Swoboda, who failed to place at both SWOWCA and POWERade but finished third at the CIT. -
Mules wrestling earned a hard-fought 20-15 dual victory against the Lindenwood Lions (2-4, 1-1 MIAA) in St. Charles Thursday evening. The Mules improve to 5-6 overall and 2-2 in the MIAA with their second straight dual win. The Mules fell behind early, 3-0, after Mitchell Bradley fell on a 9-2 decision to the Lions' Blayne Shockley. Hunter Neighbors tied the dual up at three though after he took a 7-4 decision over Lindenwood's Michael Caldwell. The Lions regained a 6-3 lead after Eric Mateo fell at 141 pounds via a 6-5 decision to Craig Chiles. Nick Viterisi tied the dual up at 6-6 in the 149 pound bout by taking a 10-4 decision win over Lindenwood's Derrick Weller. The Lions retook the lead when the Mules had to forfeit at 157 pounds due to injury. Trailing 12-6, Ty Loethen delivered for the Mules at 165 pounds, claiming a 7-2 decision over the Lions' Luke Roth to slice the Lindenwood advantage in half, 12-9. Lindenwood was able to extend its lead to 15-9 after Jake Hawks fell via a 4-0 decision to Matt Greene at 174 pounds but Clarence Neely answered for the Mules in the 184 pound bout, taking a commanding 11-3 major decision victory over Jake Landals to pull the Mules within two, 15-13, with just two bouts remaining. Todd Brier gave the Mules a slim 16-15 lead after he bested the Lions' Padric Lynch in the 197 pound bout, 5-4. With the dual on the line, Tim Tuaquoi stepped up and gave the Mules the victory, delivering an impressive 9-0 major decision win against Lindenwood's Matt Atley. The Mules return to action Friday when they travel to Lebanon, Ill. to face McKendree in a non-conference dual beginning at 7 p.m. Results: 125: Blayne Shockley (LWU) dec. Mitchell Bradley (UCM), 9-2, LWU 3-0 133: Hunter Neighbors (UCM) dec. Michael Caldwell (LWU), 7-4, Tied 3-3 141: Craig Chiles (LWU) dec. Eric Mateo (UCM), 6-5, LWU 6-3 149: Nick Viterisi (UCM) dec. Derrick Weller (LWU), 10-4, Tied 6-6 157: Masen Ridenhour (LWU) wins by injury defaut, LWU 12-6 165: Ty Loethen (UCM) dec. Luke Roth (LWU), 7-2, LWU 12-9 174: Matt Greene (LWU) dec. Jake Hawks (UCM), 4-0, LWU 15-9 184: Clarence Neely (UCM) maj. dec. Jake Landals (LWU), 11-3, LWU 15-13 197: Todd Brier (UCM) dec. Padric Lynch (LWU), 5-4, UCM 16-15 285: Tim Tuaquoi (UCM) maj. dec. Matt Atley (LWU), 9-0, UCM 20-15
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Mankato, Minn. -- Junior Corby Running's takedown at 7:21 gave the junior a 3-1 sudden-victory win over Jeremy Brazil and gave No. 13 Minnesota State a 21-15 win over No. 6 Upper Iowa. MSU moves to 6-2 overall and 3-0 in NSIC action. After alternating wins to open the dual, sophomore Drew Lexvold (141 lbs) landed a reversal at 4:19, which eventually led to a pin at 4:40. Lexvold's pin gave MSU a 9-3 lead that it would never surrender. After dropping back-to-back decisions at 149-lbs and 157-lbs, MSU would win four of the final five matches - two of which came against ranked Peacock opponents. No. 3 Cody Quinn started a three-bout winning streak by defeating No. 4 Wade Gobin 2-1. No. 6 Brendan Eichmann recorded takedowns in each of the first two periods, along with an escpe in the third to defeat No. 8 Blake Sorenson in the 174-lbs bout. Senior Aaron Norgren (184 lbs) completed the streak with a 10-4 win over Brock Gobin. Junior Nathan Haynes fell to No. 1 Carl Broghammer at 2:07 to pull UIU within 3, as it trailed 18-15 entering the heavyweight showdown. MSU will travel to No. 19 Augustana Saturday, Jan. 26. Results: 125 lbs: David Demo over Chris Paulus 2-0 (3-0) 133 lbs: Trevor Franklin over Alphonso Vruno 4-3 (3-3) 141 lbs: Drew Lexvold pins Matt Paulus 4:40 (9-3) 149 lbs: Jordan Rinken over Thomas Allen 5-3 (9-6) 157 lbs: Bryce Lumzy over Sawyer Hoffman 8-1 (9-9) 165 lbs: Cody Quinn over Wade Gobin 2-1 (12-9) 174 lbs: Brendan Eichmann over Blake Sorenson 5-3 (15-9) 184 lbs: Aaron Norgren over Brock Gobin 10-4 (18-9) 197 lbs: Carl Broghammer pins Nathan Haynes 2:07 (18-15) 285 lbs: Corby Running sudden victory over Jeremy Brazil 3-1 (21-15)
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JAMESTOWN, N.D. -- As the temperatures get colder outside, the heat inside the Cobber wrestling room starts to rise. Concordia won six straight individual matches en route to a 34-6 win at Jamestown and has now won four of its last five dual matches. Concordia (5-4) is starting to round into championship form after plowing through a very tough first half schedule. The Cobbers showed their mettle on Wednesday by winning eight of the first nine matches in the dual and coming away with the 28-point win. The best stretch for Concordia came during the three bouts from 174 through 197 where all three CC athletes posted wins by a pin fall. Sebastian Gardner started that streak by claiming a pin at 1:35 of his match at 174. Chris Harrison then followed that up with a pin at 5:00 at 184 and then Nathan Schmitz finished off the trio of pins with a win at 197 at the 1:55 mark. Concordia's hottest wrestler started the meet on the right track. Will McCarthy came away with a 4-3 decision at 125. McCarthy has now won five straight matches and is coming off a weight-class win at the Matman Invitational last weekend. Jacoby Bergeron then staked Concordia to a 6-0 lead when he won 10-3 at 133. Jake Long and Jake Krogstad earned decisions sandwiched around a major decision from Kyle LeDuc at 157. Long's win pushes him into the double-digit win total for the season. Long is now 10-7 on the year and becomes the 10th Cobber wrestler to win at least 10 matches on the year. For Krogstad it was his 15th victory of the season and he is now one of four Concordia athletes to have at least 15 wins. The Cobbers will now head to Minneapolis to participate in one of the most anticipated dual meets of the season. Concordia will compete in the Minnesota Duals on Saturday, Jan. 26 where they will take on former MIAC opponents No.7-ranked Augsburg, St. John's and St. Olaf. Results: 125 - Will McCarthy (CC) dec. Sean Blumhardt (JC); 4-3 133 - Jacoby Bergeron (CC) dec. Coby Horner (JC); 10-3 141 - Dillon Kifer (JC) dec. Jake Kostik (CC); 9-5 149 - Jacob Long (CC) dec. Samuel Brown (JC); 8-1 157 - Kyle LeDuc (CC) maj. dec. Jaykob Miller (JC); 11-3 165 - Jake Krogstad (CC) dec. Michael Nord (JC); 8-5 174 - Sebastian Gardner (CC) pin fall Johnathon Gonzalez (JC); 1:35 184 - Christian Harrison (CC) pin fall Samuel Tilley (JC); 5:00 197 - Nathan Schmitz (CC) pin fall Austin Werre (JC); 1:55 285 - Antonio Lopez (JC) OT dec. Cody Kasprick (CC); 5-3 Match Notes: - Concordia is ranked 17th in the latest NWCA Division III poll. - #17 Concordia is now 5-4 in dual meets this season. - Jamestown is now 2-9 in dual meets this season. - Concordia won eight individual matches - 6 matches were won by a decision, 3 by pin fall and 1 by major decision - Concordia won 4 matches by decision, 3 by pin fall and 1 by major decision - Jamestown won both matches by decision - Cobber junior Jake Long is now 10-7 on the year and the 10th Concordia wrestler to have at least 10 wins on the season.
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The Colorado Mesa University wrestling team competed on the road on Wednesday night against the CSU-Pueblo ThunderWolves. The Mavericks came away with a 24-14 and ran their dual match win streak to 11. CMU is now 16-1 on the season in duals and are now 3-0 in RMAC matches. Jonathon Stelling lost to top ranked 125 pound T-Wolf Jesse Hillhouse in the openeing match 12-3 which might have woken up the Colorado Mesa. The Mavericks followed with two straight pins. Tyler Nelson picked up a pin at 133 pounds over Jacob Haney in 2:21 and Drew Schumann picked up a pin over Adam Ortivez in 5:38 to give CMU a 12-4 lead. James Martinez and Jon Gappmaier followed them with decision victories at 149 and 157 pounds respectively and gave the Mavericks an 18-4 lead. The Thunderwolves picked up a major decision win at 165 pounds to cut the Maverick lead to 18-8. At 174 pounds, Maverick Zak Slotten dropped a 4-3 decision in two overtimes to T-Wolf Ray Hall. The loss was Slotten's second of the season and only his first against a non-Maverick (His only other loss was to Nick Petersen). The Mavericks led 18-11 after the match. Back-to-Back wins by Nick Petersen and Jordan Passehl put the dual out of reach heading to the night's final match. Paco Retana and Niko Bogojevic squared off in the final bout of the night and didnt disappoint. Retana and Bogojevic were knotted at 1-1 and headed to overtime. Bogojevic scored a takedown in the extra period to pick up the 3-1 win. Colorado Mesa will be back in action Thursday night when they take on Division I Northern Colorado in Brownson Arena at 7:00pm. Thursday night's match will be 'Throwback Night' and everyone is invited out to cheer on the Mavericks as they look to extend their school record win streak. Results: 125 Jesse Hillhouse (CSU-Pueblo) dec. Jonathon Stelling (Colorado Mesa) 12-3 133 Tyler Nelson (Colorado Mesa) pinned Jacob Haney (CSU-Pueblo) 2:21 141 Drew Schumann (Colorado Mesa) pinned Adam Ortivez (CSU-Pueblo) 5:38 149 James Martinez (Colorado Mesa) dec. Jimmy Chase (CSU-Pueblo) 8-2 157 Jon Gappmaier (Colorado Mesa) dec. Nick Stahler (CSU-Pueblo) 2-0 165 Trevor Grant (CSU-Pueblo) dec. Tyler Miles (Colorado Mesa) 12-0 174 Ray Hall (CSU-Pueblo) dec. Zak Slotten (Colorado Mesa) 4-3 184 Nick Peterson (Colorado Mesa) dec. Adam Carey (CSU-Pueblo) 6-1 197 Jordan Passehl (Colorado Mesa) dec. Chris Frisbie (CSU-Pueblo) 4-0 285 Niko Bogojevic (CSU-Pueblo) dec. Francisco Retana (Colorado Mesa) 3-1
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ONEONTA, N.Y. -- Nationally fourth-ranked Cortland overcame an early 7-0 deficit and the Red Dragons defeated host Oneonta, 27-13, in a dual match. Cortland improved to 12-2 with the win and Oneonta is now 4-8. Oneonta won the first two matches – an 8-6 win by Zachary Aal at 125 pounds and a 12-4 major decision by Ben Mikac at 133 pounds. Cortland answered with three straight victories to take a 14-7 lead. Junior Brian Bistis (Whitehouse Station, NJ/Hunterdon Central), ranked eighth nationally at 141 pounds, pinned his opponent with 31 seconds left in the match. Freshman Bobby Dierna (Webster/Wayne), ranked third nationally at 149 pounds, posted a 12-2 major decision and senior Troy Sterling (Uniondale), ranked eighth in the nation at 157 pounds, outlasted his opponent, 7-5. Shaun Gillen's 8-4 decision at 165 pounds kept Oneonta within four at 14-10, but sophomore Lou Puca (Huntington) pinned his opponent at 174 pounds in 3:43 to increase the Cortland lead to 20-10. Puca is ranked seventh nationally. Oneonta stayed alive with a 4-3 win by Greg Du Vall at 184 pounds, but Cortland clinched the victory when senior and nationally top-ranked Jared Myhrberg (Queensbury) recorded a 10-2 major decision at 197 pounds. Senior Corey James (Kingston) concluded the evening with a 2-1 decision at 285 pounds. With their victories, Bistis improved to 16-5 on the season, Dierna is now 23-1 and Sterling is 12-6. Puca upped his season mark to 20-3, Myhrberg improved to 24-1 and James is 16-3. Cortland will compete at the Messiah College Wrestling Open on Saturday, Jan. 26, at 10 a.m. More than 200 wrestlers have registered for the tournament. Results: 125: Zachary Aal (ONE) dec. Tanavung Tim, 8-6 133: Ben Mikac (ONE) major dec. David Occhipinti, 12-4 141: Brian Bistis (CORT) pinned Sean Hanson, 6:29 149: Bobby Dierna (CORT) major dec. Noah Valastro, 12-2 157: Troy Sterling (CORT) dec. Dan Graff, 7-5 165: Shaun Gillen (ONE) dec. James Ondris, 8-4 174: Lou Puca (CORT) pinned Donnie VanBuren, 3:43 184: Greg Du Vall (ONE) dec. Will Parks, 4-3 197: Jared Myhrberg (CORT) major dec. Chad Obzud, 10-2 285: Corey James (CORT) dec. Jake Smith, 2-1 Exhibition: 285: Andy Scopino (CORT) major dec. Jacob Freudenberg, 13-4
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BISMARCK, N.D. -- Wins in six weight classes helped the Minnesota State University Moorhead wrestling team team earn a 23-13 win over Mary in a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference dual Wednesday night in Bismarck, N.D. Casey Williams MSUM improved to 7-3 overall and 2-1 in the NSIC, while Mary fell to 1-5 overall and 1-4 in league duals. Sophomore Gerad Fugleberg got a pin for MSUM, while sophomore Philippe Walker and junior Casey Williams both won by major decision. The Dragons won by decision at three other classes to earn the dual win. "I thought we were a little flat," MSUM head coach Kris Nelson said. "We're going to get back and pick up the intensity a little bit. We weren't getting after it the way I wanted. Some people looked good, but overall it wasn't our best night." MSUM got off to a good start at 125 pounds thanks to freshman Mitch Dunlap, who earned a 7-3 win over Mary's Jordan Eckholm. "Mitch Dunlap did a good job getting us a win there," Nelson said. Sophomore Philippe Walker improved his record to 15-7 with a 12-0 major decision win over Mary's Hunter Menendez to push the Dragon lead to 7-0. "Walker went out and wrestled well," Nelson said. "He got us bonus points in a match we were hoping to get bonus points." Mary's Trevor Johnson, ranked No. 2 in the nation at 141 pounds, beat MSUM's Angel Vega by major decision (13-3) to bring the Marauders within 7-4 in the dual. The Dragons pushed the lead back to seven points, however, as junior Casey Williams beat Mary's Landon Della Silva 13-3 to earn the major decision victory. "He did a great job," Nelson said. "He gave up the first takedown; after that he got an escape and continued to wrestle hard." Mary won the next two matches at 157 and 165 by 3-2 scores to cut the Dragon lead to 11-10. However, redshirt freshman Jesse Puncochar got the Dragons back on track at 174 pounds with a hard-fought 7-6 win over Mary's Riley Nagel. "It was a scrambling match with a lot of reversals," Nelson said. "Jesse ended up getting the win for us." Mary won again at 184 to close the gap to 14-13 in the dual. However, the Dragons regained the momentum for good at 197, thanks to junior Matt Lewellen, who claimed a 7-3 win over Mary's Kriss McCleary. "Matt Lewellen wrestled tough," Nelson said. "He was physical and wrestled the full seven minutes. He's getting back to wrestling the way he was at the beginning of the year." Fugleberg then clinched the match in style for MSUM with a pin over Mary's Levi Roemmich. "Gerad Fugleberg got the first takedown and put the guy in a near-side cradle and got the pin," Nelson said. "That was a good win for Gerad." MSUM is back in action Thursday at Minot State. "It'll be a good opportunity to go out and do the things they know how to do and get after it," Nelson said. Results: 125-Mitch Dunlap (MSUM) dec. Jordan Eckholm (Mary), 7-3 133-Philippe Walker (MSUM) maj. dec. Hunter Menendez (Mary), 12-0 141-Trevor Johnson (Mary) maj. dec. Angel Vega (MSUM), 15-2 149-Casey Williams (MSUM) maj. dec. Landon Della Silva (Mary), 13-3 157-Jordan Engelhardt (Mary) dec. Marianno Portillo (MSUM), 3-2 165-Brock Krumm (Mary) dec. Kerron Williams (MSUM), 3-2 174-Jesse Puncochar (MSUM) dec. Riley Nagel (Mary), 7-6 184-Brady Anderson (Mary) dec. Lucas Moderow (MSUM), 9-3 197-Matt Lewellen (MSUM) dec. Kriss McCleary (Mary), 7-3 285-Gerad Fugleberg (MSUM) pinned Levi Roemmich (Mary), 1:21
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PAINESVILLE, Ohio -- Behind an upset win at 133 pounds by sophomore Austin Gillihan (Corry, Pa./Corry Area) and another flurry at the end, the Lake Erie College wrestling team won its third straight dual match, defeating traditional nonconference rival Gannon University, 25-16, Wednesday night (Jan. 23) at the Jerome T. Osborne Family Athletic and Wellness Center. Gillihan decisioned Jose Matos, the country's seventh-ranked wrestler at 133 pounds, and did so rather convincingly. Gillihan never trailed in the match and finished strong with a four-point third period plus he earned a point for over three minutes of riding time. Then, just like they did a week ago in their upset of then 18th-ranked Ashland University, the Storm (9-3) put together a three-match winning streak over the final three matches of the evening. A victory that was both the first for the Storm in three tries over Gannon (1-3) and the team's school-record ninth dual match win of the year. The night got off to a fast and exciting start. Junior Tyler Tesny (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio/Cuyahoga Falls) scored an escape and picked up a point for stalling in the final 15 seconds to come back and defeat Jermaine Easter, 6-5, at 174 pounds. Classmate Zev Green (Marysville, Ohio/Marysville) followed with a thrilling sudden victory overtime win at 184 pounds, knocking off Zack Zelcs 4-2. Following a pin at 197 pounds by Gannon's Chris Boyd, freshman heavyweight Almonte Patrick (Maple Heights, Ohio/Maple Heights) jumped out to an early 7-0 first-period lead and went on to an 11-1 major decision over Chaz Lear. The 10-6 Lake Erie lead was quickly erased by a major decision win at 125 pounds by the Golden Knights' Matt Turek. After Gillihan's win at 133, Adam Weinell pulled off a surprise pin of junior Tom McVicker (South Fork, Pa./Forest Hills/Penn Highlands) at 141 pounds. Weinell was trailing 7-5 with five seconds to go in the second period when he got the fall. Now trailing 16-13, the Lake Erie went on what has been a recently customary late run. Sophomore Nate Ball (Wadsworth, Ohio/Wadsworth) earned a convincing 12-7 decision over Mike Krysiak at 149 pounds and junior Zak Vargo (Stow, Ohio/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy) made quick work of Sean Floor with a pin in 2:01 at 157 pounds. Sophomore All-American Matt Vandermeer (Clarkston, Mich./Clarkston) closed out the night with a 6-3 decision over Adam Greenman, his 13th consecutive victory. The Storm now turns its attention to its showdown Sunday afternoon, Jan. 27, at second-ranked Notre Dame College. Results: 125: Matt Vandermeer Turek (GU) maj. dec. Ian Ross (LEC), 11-3 133: Austin Gillihan (LEC) dec. Jose Matos (GU), 10-5 141: Adam Weinell (GU) pinned Tom McVicker (LEC), 4:55 149: Nate Ball (LEC) dec. Mike Krysiak (GU), 12-7 157: Zak Vargo (LEC) pinned Sean Floor (GU), 2:01 165: Matt (LEC) dec. Adam Greenman (GU), 6-3 174: Tyler Tensy (LEC) dec. Jermaine Easter (GU), 6-5 184: Zev Green (LEC) dec. Zack Zelcs (GU), 4-2 (SV1) 197: Chris Boyd (GU) pinned Mikey Samijlenko (LEC), 3:39 Hwt: Almonte Patrick (LEC) maj. dec . Chaz Lear (GU), 11-1
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LAWRENCEVILLE -- There is Army Strong. Then there is 'Rider Strong-Bronc Tough.' 'Rider Strong-Bronc Tough' is the battle cry for the Rider wrestling team. "That's our team slogan, our motto,' said junior Ramon Santiago (Sayreville, N.J./Sayreville). "That's what we preach in the wrestling room." On Wednesday night the Broncs battled the United States Military Academy to another close match, winning six of the 10 bouts for the victory. "This is three years in a row that it has gone down to the final bout with Army," said Rider head coach Gary Taylor. "From a fan's perspective you get to see it all. Two tough teams fighting." "We knew Army was going to be tough," Santiago said, "so we had to be tougher. Wrestle the whole seven minutes. We want these close matches, tough opponents, although when you are in them you don't like it when it is so close." "'Rider Strong-Bronc Tough' is something where we are trying to get the kids to compete hard for seven minutes," Taylor said. "That is something we've been known for for years and I think we might have gotten away from it for a while. We're getting the kids to buy into it again, to fight harder." Rider senior Zac Cibula (Luxemburg, Wis./Luxemburg Casco) won for the final score. With the win Cibula improved to 7-1 in duals, 19-6 overall, with nine wins in his last 11 matches. For Rider (8-5) Ramon Santiago, junior James Brundage (Ossining, N.Y./Ossining), freshman Ryan Wolfe (New Castle, Del./Caravel), freshman Greg Velasco (Union Beach, NJ/Keyport) and sophomore Vinny Fava (Elmwood Park, N.J./Elmwood Park) also won. Santiago, ranked 16th in the nation, used a reversal, takedown and back points with two seconds left for a come-from-behind win over Paul Hancock (21-7 record) in the first bout of the evening. "I looked at the score and I was still losing with just a few seconds left," Santiago remembered. "I knew this is a big match and it was probably going to be close. I'm one of the leaders on the team so I'm thinking if I put him through a scramble I can win. I just started rolling and came out on top." "If Ramon doesn't come back for that win we don't win tonight," Taylor said. "That was huge. You don't want to fall behind early." The win was the 23rd of the season for Santiago, who has won 11 of his last 12 bouts. "I'm doing pretty well right now," Santiago said. "I don't think I've reached my full potential yet." Santiago placed at the prestigious Midlands Tournament this year, the first Bronc to do so since 2008. "That gave me a lot of confidence and I've been doing well since then," Santiago said. Fava was trailing 1-0 in the third period before a come-from-behind win at 141, giving Rider a 15-9 lead. Wolfe improved to 18-9 as a collegiate wrestler. "He beat the top seed in the CAA last week so yes, I'd say he's doing pretty well," Taylor said of his star rookie. "He beat another good wrestler tonight. It's nice to have someone step in like that. He's very talented." Wolfe was the 2012 Delaware State Champion and was a two-time State Finalist at Caravel Academy, where he was the Beast of the East Champion and ranked 12th in the nation last year. The Delaware Wrestler of the Year last year, Wolfe compiled 173 wins, the second most all-time in Delaware Scholastic wrestling. "Last year was my best year," said Wolfe, talking about his 48-1 senior year, "winning the Beast and the States. I tried to bring those winning ways with me this year." Wolfe was wrestling unattached at tournaments, planning on red-shirting this season, until the starting 184, sophomore Clint Morrison (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cedar Cliff), was lost for the season. "The original plan was to red-shirt," Wolfe said, "and go to as many tournaments on my own that I could and get ready for next year. When Clint got hurt the coaches told me to step in and that's what I've tried to do." For Army (4-5), Jordan Thome won for the 83rd time in his career to cut the Rider lead to 12-9. The Broncs won 16-15 at West Point last year. The last time Army came to Lawrenceville the Black Knights won 19-16. Rider and Army have now met 26 times since the series began in 1976-77, with Rider winning 13 and there was one tie. Rider travels to Old Dominion for a CAA dual meet, where the Broncs will try to be all that they can be Sunday afternoon. "They are a tough team," Taylor said of the Monarchs. "There is no margin for error in that one." Results: 165: Ramon Santiago-R dec. Paul Hancock-A 7-4 3-0 174: James Brundage-R dec. Coleman Gracey-A 9-7 6-0 184: Ryan Wolfe-R dec. Travis Mallo-A 11-5 9-0 197: Bryce Barnes-A dec. Don McNeil-R 12-8 9-3 285: Greg Velasco-R dec. Stephen Snyder-A 4-1 12-3 125: Hunter Wood-A dec. Patrick Skinner-R 12-6 12-6 133: Jordan Thome-A dec. Jimmy Morris-R 5-1 12-9 141: Vinny Fava-R dec. Tyler Rauenzahn-A 6-1 15-9 149: John Belanger-A dec. Curt Delia-R 6-5 15-12 157: Zac Cibula-R dec. Patrick Marchetti-A 4-1 18-12
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DURHAM, N.C. -- After spending the past three months on the road the Duke University wrestling team debuted in its new home in Card Gymnasium with a thrilling 24-15 victory over Appalachian State. The Blue Devils avenged the loss to the Mountaineers last season in capturing the first of their four home duals this season. Duke (3-5) captured victories at 133, 141, 149, 157, 174, 184 and 285 pounds and garnered bonus points from Marcus Cain at 149, Immanuel Kerr-Brown at 157 and Trey Adamson at 174 to help secure the triumph over the Appalachian State (6-4). The Blue Devils, trailing 9-3 after three bouts, rebounded and never looked back en route to the nine-point win. "It's definitely a good win for us," said head coach Glen Lanham. "Last year those guys really took it to us. I felt like we pressure them and took the winds out of their sail. We have some improvement, but that's with anything. I thought our guys wrestled hard and that's all that we can ask. I'm fired up and excited about that we wrestled hard." The match started at 197 pounds with Appalachian State's Paul Weiss getting a final second takedown to edge Duke redshirt freshman Michael Chapman 3-1 for the 3-0 lead. In a reversal of fortunes for the Blue Devils, junior Brian Self turned the tables on the Mountaineers as he scored a takedown with two ticks left in regulation for the 3-1 decision. After a scoreless first period, Self and Joe Cummings traded escapes in the next two periods leaving them at neutral for the final 1:48. Self, wrestling up from his usual 197-pound slot, stayed strong and with one final shot captured his third dual win at 285 and evened the match score 3-3. "[Brian] Self is a warrior," Lanham said. "He's a utility wrestler. He'll wrestle anywhere from 184 to 197 to heavyweight. He's just got fight and he's going to fight to the very end. He goes out there and wrestles hard and doesn't give them anything. He's like a bulldog out there and that's what we need." The Mountaineers garnered six points with a pin from Dominic Parisi at 125, but it was all Duke in the next four matches. Redshirt sophomore Brandon Gambucci got things going for the Blue Devils with a convincing 8-2 decision at 133 pounds. Gambucci registered the early takedown and eventually built his lead to 7-2 after five minutes of action. The Mansfield, Ohio native continued to build his riding time in the third period, earning the bonus point to capture his 10th win of the year. At 141 pounds, it was Duke sophomore Tanner Hough posting a thrilling 8-7 decision over William Johnson. Hough jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the first period and built a 6-2 advantage midway through the second before Johnson mounted a comeback. Trailing by four, Johnson completed the comeback late in the third period with a takedown to tie the match 7-7 with 45 seconds left. Carrying the momentum, the Appalachian State junior let Hough escape in hopes of securing a takedown, but Hough was able to defend Johnson's closing shots for the 8-7 crucial win. Duke added big major decisions from Cain and Kerr-Brown to stretch its lead to 17-9. Cain, making his dual match debut, cruised from the opening whistle to secure the 16-6 victory over Zachary Kechter. The win was his 13th of the campaign and the first dual win of his career, while the major decision was his second of the season. Kerr-Brown's ensuing performance left the Duke bench on its feet as he used a takedown in the final second of the match to make it 11-2 and give the Blue Devils a big four points on the scoreboard. Leading 3-1 after two periods of wrestling, Kerr-Brown dominated Aaron Scott in the final session as he scored two takedowns and a pair of penalty points before tacking on the riding time bonus for the 11-2 major decision. "Coach [Will] Rowe has been working with [Immanuel Kerr-Brown] a lot just in getting his mindset right. He's got everything. He just needs to believe in himself and I think he's really starting to believe he can do some special things in this sport. He does everything we ask him to do. You couldn't have a better kid." The Mountaineers rallied to within two, 17-15 with a fall at 165 before Adamson and Diego Bencomo clinched the win for the Blue Devils in the final two bouts. Adamson controlled the bout right away with a takedown and two-point nearfall right off the bat. He continued to build a lead and then as time expired scored a takedown and two more nearfall points to clinch the four-point major decision for the Blue Devils, 14-6. At 184 pounds, Bencomo avenged a loss earlier in the season to Jake Johnson. Bencomo used a pair of takedowns in both the first and second periods to build a solid 8-4 lead before tacking on one more takedown in the final session. Duke returns home Saturday, Jan. 26 against Boston University at 4:30 p.m., in Card Gymnasium. Results: 197: Paul Weiss (ASU) dec. Michael Chapman (DU), 3-1, (ASU 3-0) 285: Brian Self (DU) dec. Joe Cummings (ASU), 3-1 (3-3) 125: Dominic Parisi (ASU) fall Peter Terrezza (DU), 6:14 (ASU9-3) 133: Brandon Gambucci (DU) dec. Brett Boston (ASU), 8-2 (ASU 9-6) 141: Tanner Hough (DU) dec. William Johnson (ASU), 8-7 (9-9) 149: Marcus Cain (DU) major dec. Zachary Kechter (ASU), 16-6 (DU 13-9) 157: Immanuel Kerr-Brown (DU) major dec. Aaron Scott (ASU), 11-2, (DU 17-9) 165: Zachary Strickland (ASU) fall Randy Roden (DU), 6:10, (DU17-15) 174: Trey Adamson (DU) major dec. Collin Hedash (ASU), 14-6, (DU21-15) 184: Diego Bencomo (DU) dec. Jake Johnson (ASU), 10-4, (DU24-15)
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CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Campbell moved to 2-1 in Southern Conference action Wednesday, as it defeated The Citadel 25-13 in Charleston, S.C. The Camels are now 3-6 overall, as they snap a nine-match skid against the Bulldogs dating back to the 2002-03 season. Wrestling in his first dual meet of the season, redshirt sophomore James Cook recorded Campbell's first win of the night at 184 pounds. He pinned Josh Tuck in 3:31, his second on the season. He moves to 4-6 on the year overall. At 197 pounds, senior John Merickel notched CU's second-straight win by fall over Marshall Haas in 3:45. The pin was his third of the season as he improved his SoCon record to 2-1 and is 10-14 overall. The Citadel's first win came at the heavyweight slot, as Andrew Delaney posted an 11-8 decision over Joe Nolan. Freshman Eric Montoya earned his 26th win of the year, as he defeated Joaquin Marquez 3-0. Ranked No. 27 at 125 pounds by WrestlingReport.com, Montoya remains unbeaten in SoCon action, standing at 3-0. The Citadel earned two wins in a row at the 133 and 141 spots, bringing the score to 15-9 in favor of CU. Tanner Bidelspach, a redshirt junior, fell in his third-straight match to Aaron Hansen 5-0 before freshman Michael Dahlstrom lost in an 11-6 decision from Undrakhbayar Khishignyam. CU widened its lead to 18-9 after redshirt junior 149-pounder Brent Jorge extended his SoCon winning record to 3-0. He notched a 4-1 decision over the Bulldogs' Jordan Dix. The Citadel won its final match of the night at 157 pounds, as Matthew Frisch blanked freshman Grant Blumenthal in a 13-0 major decision. CU finished the match with two wins in a row. Redshirt junior Nick Rex earned a 4-2 decision over Vincent Bellaran, as he wrestled at 165 for the first time this season. In the final match of the night, sophomore Paul Duggan also moved to a new weight class at 174, tabbing a 19-9 major decision over John Duane. After being on the road for the past two matches, the Camels return home Mon., Jan. 28. They will take on SoCon foe Gardner-Webb at 7:00 p.m. in Gore Arena. Results: 184: James Cook pin Josh Tuck, 3:31 197: John Merickel pin Marshall Haas, 3:45 285: Andrew Delaney dec. Joe Nolan, 11-8 125: Eric Montoya dec. Joaquin Marquez, 4-0 133: Aaron Hanson dec. Tanner Bidelspach, 5-0 141: Undrakhbayar Khishignyam dec. Michael Dahlstrom, 11-6 149: Brent Jorge dec. Jordan Dix, 4-1 157: Matthew Frisch MD Grant Blumenthal, 13-0 165: Nick Rex dec. Vincent Bellaran, 4-2 174: Paul Duggan MD John Duane, 19-9
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The annual Border Brawl between Iowa and Minnesota takes place on Saturday at 3 p.m. CT at Williams Arena in Minneapolis. The dual meet will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network. Iowa leads the all-time series 69-25-1. Below are three keys to victory for each team. Iowa 1. Win the first three matches Minnesota and Iowa dual meets have always started at 125 pounds, so there's no reason to believe this dual meet will be an exception. The Hawkeyes are favored in the first two matches, and the third match is a tossup on paper. If the Hawkeyes want to be in a position to win this dual meet, winning the first three matches and jumping out to a 9-0 or 10-0 lead is extremely important. Matt McDonough has never dropped a match to Gopher wrestler, and it's hard to envision him losing on Saturday to No. 13 David Thorn (8-5), who still seems to be trying to find his way as a 125-pounder. The last time McDonough came to Minneapolis two seasons ago he hammered Zach Sanders 10-3, and jump-started the Hawkeyes in a 19-12 victory over the Gophers. Tony Ramos defeated Chris Dardanes three times last season, including once by pin in the third-place match at the NCAAs (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)At 133, Iowa is a solid favorite with No. 2 Tony Ramos (15-0) taking on No. 9 Chris Dardanes (12-2) in a battle of returning All-Americans and Illinois natives. Ramos won all three meetings last season by scores of 5-2, 6-1, and pin. Ramos has a career dual meet record of 44-1, with that lone loss coming to NCAA champion Logan Stieber of Ohio State. At 141, No. 9 Mark Ballweg of Iowa (16-1) and No. 10 Nick Dardanes of Minnesota (14-5) is the most up-for-grabs match in the dual meet, and it's a match Iowa needs more than Minnesota. The two are ranked side-by-side, but Ballweg has wins over two wrestlers who have defeated Dardanes this season, Luke Vaith of Hofstra and Julian Feikert of Oklahoma State. 2. Pull an upset Upsets are not uncommon in big dual meets, so don't be surprised to see one on Saturday in Minneapolis. Based on rankings, Iowa will be an underdog in six matches: 149, 165, 174, 184, 197, and heavyweight. The Hawkeyes will need at least one -- and possibly two -- of those matches to go their way. Of those six matches, Iowa appears to have the best chance for an upset at 165, 174, or 197. At 165, No. 18 Nick Moore of Iowa (10-3) will take on No. 10 Cody Yohn of Minnesota (16-6). Yohn, a three-time NCAA qualifier, has a stronger college wrestling pedigree than Moore, but has been prone to occasional letdowns throughout his career. He has taken unexpected losses this season to true freshman teammate Dylan Reel and Appalachian State's Zach Strickland. His other four losses have come to wrestlers ranked inside the top eight. Moore is a capable wrestler who has the tools to defeat Yohn. He was a four-time state champion in Iowa who now seems to be figuring things out at the Division I level as a redshirt sophomore. Mike Evans came up big against Minnesota last season in the dual meet in Iowa City (Photo/Johnnie Johnson)The matchup at 174 pounds is arguably the premier bout of the dual meet, pitting No. 2 Logan Storley of Minnesota (16-1) against No. 6 Mike Evans of Iowa (11-1). Both wrestlers have a single blemish on their records -- and for both that single blemish is a one-point loss to top-ranked Chris Perry of Oklahoma State. Both Storley and Evans are wrestling with a lot of confidence right not now. While the higher-ranked Storley has to be considered the favorite wrestling at home, a victory by Evans would surprise few. The matchup at 197 features No. 12 Scott Schiller of Minnesota (16-3) taking on Nathan Burak of Iowa (12-7). Burak, though unranked, has shown steady improvement with each match after spending last season focusing on freestyle at the Olympic Training in Colorado Springs. He has recent wins over NCAA qualifiers Andrew Campolottano of Ohio State and Max Huntley of Michigan. All three of Schiller's losses this season have come to higher ranked opponents: No. 3 Quentin Wright of Penn State, No. 8 Taylor Meeks of Oregon State, and No. 11 Brent Haynes of Missouri. 3. Find bonus points somewhere With eighteen of 20 wrestlers ranked in the dual meet, virtually all the matches are expected to be competitive, so bonus points will be at a premium, but will be the difference if both teams win five matches. DSJ has picked up bonus points in nine of his 15 wins (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)Iowa's best opportunity to pick up bonus points might be at 157 where top-ranked Derek St. John (15-0) will wrestle unranked Danny Zilverberg (11-5). Last season Zilverbeg kept it to a decision against St. John, losing 6-3. But that was at a time when St. John was struggling with an injury. DSJ has picked up bonus points in nine of his 15 wins this season, but has only one bonus-point victory in his last five matches. Iowa's team leader and most credentialed wrestler McDonough (125) is a threat to get bonus points every time he steps on the mat, but that will be a tall order against a solid wrestler in Thorn. While it does not appear on paper that there will be many opportunities for bonus points for either team, unexpected things can and do happen in Iowa-Minnesota dual meets. Last season, for example, Evans pinned Yohn at 165 in a match many viewed as a tossup. (Three weeks later Yohn avenged the loss by defeating Evans 5-3 at the National Duals.) Minnesota 1. Win two of the first five matches Dylan Ness will be looking to bounce back from a bad loss to Caleb Ervin of Illinois (Photo/Mark Beshey, The Guillotine)With Minnesota being favored in four of the final five matches, the Gophers need to find a way to win two matches before intermission so they are in a position to win six matches in the dual meet. The Gophers are favored at 149 with NCAA runner-up Dylan Ness (5-3) taking on Mike Kelly (10-5). Ness earned bonus points both times he wrestled Kelly last season. However, Ness missed all of November and December, and is still trying to regain his form. He is coming off a bad loss to Caleb Ervin of Illinois on Monday night. Still, one would have to favor Ness based on previous meetings. As previously mentioned, the match at 141 between Nick Dardanes and Mark Ballweg is a tossup on paper. If Minnesota can win that critical match -- and Ness can get a win at 149 -- the Gophers will be in the driver's seat. 2. Wrestle inspired Minnesota is coming off an uninspired performance against Illinois on Monday night despite winning the dual meet 18-14. Returning All-Americans Chris Dardanes (133) and Dylan Ness (149) both lost by major decision in matches in which they were favored to win. Three other Gophers, Nick Dardanes (141), Kevin Steinhaus (184), and Tony Nelson (285), came up a point short of earning a major decision and giving the team an extra bonus point. If the Gophers wrestle like they did on Monday night, the Hawkeyes will win Saturday's dual meet going away. Minnesota can't leave points on the board and expect to come out on top against a team like Iowa. Last season Minnesota wrestled uninspired in an early season road loss to Cornell, but bounced back less than 48 hours later to defeat Penn State in State College. It's hard to imagine the Gophers not wrestling inspired in a big home dual meet against rival Iowa, but it's a necessity if they want to beat the Hawkeyes on Saturday. 3. Capitalize on the home-mat advantage Minnesota needs to keep the crowd in Saturday's dual meetIn a dual meet like Iowa-Minnesota with so many tightly contested matches, both teams will want to use every advantage they have. Minnesota needs to capitalize on its home-mat advantage. But Iowa fans travel well and will be out in full force on Saturday in Minneapolis. With the Hawkeyes favored in the first two matches -- and the third match being a tossup -- the Gophers could find themselves in a hole early, which in turn could take the Gopher crowd out of it. The last two times the Hawkeyes and Gophers wrestled in Minneapolis, Iowa swept the first three matches and took the crowd out of it early. Minnesota needs to have the crowd alive when the dual meet gets to 165 where the Gophers are favored the rest of the way. Giving up a pin early or suffering an upset at 149 could take the wind out of the Minnesota crowd. The Gophers need to give their fans a reason to get excited in the first half of the dual meet, whether it's Thorn or Zilverberg going toe-to-toe with their heavily favored Hawkeye opponents, Chris Dardanes upsetting Ramos, Nick Dardanes lighting up the scoreboard, or Ness getting a pin.
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The UFC returns to network television this Saturday, with a stacked main card headlined by a flyweight title clash between Demetrius Johnson and John Dodson. After previewing the card, John and Richard are joined by undefeated pro prospect Bryan Lane. Do you want to listen to a past episode? Access archives.
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Steve Marianetti and Doug Schwab will go "On the Mat" this Wednesday, Jan. 23. "On the Mat" is a presentation of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Dan Gable Museum. The show can be heard live on the Internet at www.kcnzam.com or locally in Northeast Iowa each Wednesday from 5:00 to 6:00 PM Central on AM 1650, The Fan. E-mail dgmstaff@nwhof.org with any questions or comments about the show. A podcast of the show is available on theopenmat.com. Marianetti is the head wrestling coach at Elmhurst College. He was an NCAA champion for the University of Illinois in 1995. Schwab is the head wrestling coach at the University of Northern Iowa. He was an Olympian in 2008 and an NCAA champion for the University of Iowa in 1999.
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The Vikings won 8 of 10 bouts to defeat William Penn 40-10 tonight in Oskaloosa. William Penn received votes in last week's NAIA Top 20 Poll. The Vikings received a forfeit at 125 pounds to open the night. William Penn took the 133 match, but Grand View won the next six matches with three major decisions, two falls, and one technical fall. The Statesmen won its final bout of the night at 197. GV scored a technical fall at 285 pounds to end the night. Next up, the Vikings host the Grand View Open this Saturday, Jan. 26. Action starts at 9 a.m.at the Charles S. Johnson Wellness Center. Results: 125--Andrew Clark (G) won by forfeit (6-0) 133--Joao Vicente (W) won by major decision over Tyler Emert, 11-0 141--Tre' Rutz (G) won by technical fall over Brad Watson, 17-1 149--David Kellogg (G) won by fall over Charlton Benjamin, 4:21 157--Quinten Haynes (G) won by major decision over Ishmael Rempson, 14-5 165--Dallas Houchins (G) won by major decision over Christian Padilla, 13-4 174--Thomas Moman (G) won by major decision over Joe Sumner, 12-3 184--Christian Mays (G) won by fall over Elson Civilma, 6:23 197--Kyle Soderblom (W) won by fall over Dalton Schutjer, 6:20 285--Eric Thompson (G) won by technical fall over Nathan Veverka, 17-1
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EDMOND -- A dominating six-match stretch after an opening-weight loss carried Central Oklahoma to a 36-6 battering of Oklahoma City Tuesday night at Hamilton Field House. The Bronchos won eight of the 10 matches and earned bonus points at six weights in rolling to their 12th straight home win. UCO, ranked third in NCAA Division II, improved to 7-1 while dropping the NAIA No. 7-rated Stars to 6-7. The Bronchos overwhelmed OCU after losing the first match of the night at 125 pounds, giving up just two points in the next six bouts while racking up a fall, two technical falls, two major decisions and a 6-0 shutout. UCO ended up getting falls from 165 Chris Watson and heavyweight Cody Dauphin, with 133 Casy Rowell and 149 Jordan Basks adding technical falls and 141 Trison Graham and 174 Kelly Henderson major decisions. “I thought for the most part we did a good job staying aggressive and taking the attack to them,” UCO coach David James said. “We were really good on the mat and you've got to be happy anytime you get six bonus wins in one dual.” Kidd Gomez's 6-2 win at 125 gave the Stars a 3-0 lead, but it was all UCO after that. Casy Rowell started the run of dominance with a 16-1 technical fall at 133, collecting four takedowns and three near-falls in his 16th straight win. Trison Graham had three takedowns, a near-fall and nearly five minutes riding time in a 10-0 major decision at 141 and Jordan Basks scored four near-falls in cruising to a 17-0 technical fall at 149 for his 12th win in a row. Cory Dauphin had a pair of slick takedowns in a 6-0 shutout of third-ranked Mark Meyer at 157 and Chris Watson turned a tight match into a fall at 165 when he drove fourth-rated Zach Skates to his back for the pin at the 5:34 mark. Kelly Henderson capped UCO's run with a four-takedown, 10-1 major decision at 174, giving the Bronchos a 59-2 advantage in points scored during the six-match streak. Tanner Keck picked up UCO's seventh consecutive win with a tough 5-3 triumph at 184, picking up takedowns in the first and second periods. OCU's Michael Brown used three penalty points to edge Znick Ferrell at 197 before Cody Dauphin ended the night with his third straight first-period fall. The Bronchos return to Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association action Friday at Lindenwood. Results: 125 – Kidd Gomez, OCU, dec. Ryan Brooks, 6-2. 133 – Casy Rowell, UCO, tech. fall Tyler Espitia, 16-1 (5:24). 141 – Trison Graham, UCO, major dec. Trevor Sterling, 10-0. 149 – Jordan Basks, UCO, tech. fall Josh Stewart, 17-0 (7:00). 157– Cory Dauphin, UCO, dec. Mark Meyer, 6-0. 165 – Chris Watson, UCO, pinned Zach Skates, 5:34. 174 – Kelly Henderson, UCO, major dec. Teagan Franco, 10-1. 184 – Tanner Keck, UCO, dec. Mitchell Eichenauer, 5-3. 197 – Michael Brown, OCU, dec. Znick Ferrell, 7-4. 285 – Cody Dauphin, UCO, pinned Stanley Lattimore, 1:37.
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GAFFNEY, S.C. -- In a dramatic back-and-forth regional dual meet against the Limestone Saints, heavyweight Garrett Fosdyck broke an 18-all tie with a decision win in the final bout to clinch a 21-18 victory. The Tornado are now 3-1 in dual competition this season. Fosdyck, a redshirt-sophomore from Mathews, Va., served as the winner of the deciding bout with a six-point victory over Limestone's Aaron Rowe in the heavyweight division. His 8-2 win by decision gave the Tornado the final three points of the meet, good for a 21-18 win. Limestone had jumped out to a 14-6 lead in the meet before King turned the tide with three straight wins at 165, 174, and 184. Freshman John Jones (Alabaster, Ala.) began the run of wins with a narrow 7-6 decision over Max Redfoot. Senior Devon Passmore (Miami, Fla.) earned a momentum-shifting pin at the end of the second period over Demetre Liguori to take the lead, 15-14. Brandon Tressler (Orlando, Fla.) took a second one-point affair in a 3-2 win over Blake Steiert to create a four-point lead with two matches to go. The Saints' Justin Tribble leveled the scoreboard with a major decision over Cody Davis to tie the meet before Fosdyck's win broke the tie for good. King (3-1) will return to the Student Center Complex on Wednesday, Jan. 30, for their next dual meet against Newberry College. The Tornado and Wolves will take to the mat at 7 p.m. They will host Belmont Abbey the next day at 6 p.m. King's previously scheduled dual versus Findlay (Jan. 27) has been canceled but will be made up next year on a return trip. Results: 125: Jerrelle McCabe (KC) dec. Eric Rholetter (LC), 7-6. 133: Ross Benzel (LC) tech. fall Tanner Bates (KC), 22-7 (7:00). 141: Devon Jackson (LC) dec. Marcelle McCabe (KC), 6-2. 149: Nic Stella (KC) dec. Theran Goodale (LC), 4-2 OT. 157: Jeremy Bommarito (LC) pinned Jeremy Miller (KC), 6:40. 165: John Jones (KC) dec. Max Redfoot (LC), 7-6. 174: Dyvon Passmore (KC) pinned Demetre Liguori (LC), 6:00. 184: Brandon Tressler (KC) dec. Blake Steiert (LC), 3-2. 197: Justin Tribble (LC) major dec. Cody Davis (KC), 14-4. HWT: Garrett Fosdyck (KC) dec. Aaron Rowe (LC), 8-2.
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N. MANCHESTER, Ind. -- The Olivet College wrestling team won eight bouts, including scoring bonus points in three, en route to a 32-9 win over Manchester (Ind.) University tonight at the Stauffer-Wolfe Arena in North Manchester, Ind. At 125 pounds, junior Henry McKeown (Bellevue/Olivet) fell behind 4-3 early in the third period before getting a reversal and two-point near fall to post a 9-4 come-from-behind win. At 133 pounds, senior Kam Olsen (Kentwood/East Kentwood) scored a takedown 20 seconds into the bout and never looked back, winning a 19-6 major decision. At 141 pounds, junior Jeremy Ward (Washington Twp./Romeo) won 4-1. At 149 pounds, junior Justin Holm (Battle Creek/Harper Creek) had a reversal late in the second period and another one early in the final period to win his match, 7-5. At 157 pounds, sophomore Kyle Witgen (Romeo) needed the riding time at the end of the bout to win it, 4-3. At 165 pounds, sophomore Dan Fleet (Ada/Lowell) recorded a first period pin in one minute, 32 seconds. At 174 pounds, junior Connor Sharp (Schoolcraft) suffered a 5-3 loss. At 184 pounds, sophomore Jeff Holm (Battle Creek/Harper Creek) shutout his opponent, 8-0. At 197 pounds, junior Andrew Simpson (Tecumseh) won by forfeit. The Spartans closed the match by pinning the Olivet wrestler at 285 pounds. The Comets, ranked No. 16 in the most recent National Wrestling Coaches Association poll, are back in action Saturday at the University of Wis.-Whitewater Border Brawl Duals. Results: 125 Henry McKeown (O) def. Taylor Hart, 9-4 133 Kam Olsen (O) def. Kalib Jackson, 19-6 141 Jeremy Ward (O) def. Josh Juarez, 4-1 149 Justin Holm (O) def. Johnny Tullos, 7-5 157 Kyle Witgen (O) def. Chuck Holmquest, 4-3 165 Dan Fleet (O) pinned Ryan Gossett, 1:32 174 Kurt Monix (M) def. Connor Sharp, 5-3 184 Jeff Holm (O) def. Jacob Hargraves, 8-0 197 Andrew Simpson (O) won by forfeit 285 Jason Pedigo (M) pinned Anthony Giordano, 6:12
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BEREA, Ohio -- No. 30 ranked Mount Union's wrestling team scored a 38-4 win at Baldwin Wallace, in an Ohio Athletic Conference dual, Tuesday January 22nd. With its win, the Purple Raiders improves to 6-2 overall and 2-0 in the OAC. The Raiders won eight out of nine contested matches highlighted by two pins that came from sophomore Jon Garrison (Fairlawn/Copley) who pinned Garrett Chase 4:54 and junior Nick Rajcsak (Stow/Stow) who pinned Wesley King 6:35. Mount Union gathered two major decision victories from junior Tyler Johnston (Lyndhurst/brush) who won over Joey Schmidt, 8-0 and senior Jeremy Hathaway (Cuyahoga Falls/Woodridge) who won over Brian Fox, 12-3. The Raiders got four decisions from sophomore Bryant Roby (Westchester, Ill./St. Joseph) at 141, senior Jeremy Regula (Dundee/Claymont) at 165, sophomore Brent Kirk (Adena/Buckeye Local) at 174 and senior Nick Terifaj (Brook Park/Strongsville) at 285. Baldwin Wallace (2-2, 0-2 OAC) got the first four points in the match before dropping the last eight contested matches when freshman Jesse Gunter won by a major decision over junior Brad Kress (Louisville/Louisville) at 125. Mount Union travels to take on Ohio Northern in an OAC dual Tuesday January 29th at 7:30 pm in Ada, Ohio. Results: 125 – Jesse Gunter (BW) won by major decision over Brad Kress (Mount Union) 10-1 133 – Jeremy Border (Mount Union) won by forfeit 141 – #9 Bryant Roby (Mount Union) won by decision over Andrew Taylor (BW) 4-1 149 – Tyler Johnston (Mount Union) won by major decision over Joey Schmidt (BW) 8-0 157 – Jon Garrison (Mount Union) won by pin over Garrett Chase (BW) 4:54 165 – Jeremy Regula (Mount Union) won by decision over David Shapiro (BW) 8-4 174 – Brent Kirk (Mount Union) won by decision over Ben Lebrun (BW) 7-3 184 – Jeremy Hathaway (Mount Union) won by major decision over Brian Fox (BW) 12-3 197 – Nick Rajcsak (Mount Union) won by pin over Wesley King (BW) 6:35 285 – Nick Terifaj (Mount Union) won by decision over Joe Belford (BW) 6-0
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The Buena Vista wrestling team jumped out to a 16-0 over Simpson College on Tuesday night, and after the Storm battled back to even things up at 22-22, freshman Gable Bonner (Estherville, Iowa/ELC) stepped up and notched a pin at 285 pounds to help give the Beavers a thrilling, 28-22 Iowa Conference dual victory. Bonner wasted little time securing the win for BVU, picking up his fourth pin of the year and needing just 1:36. He now evens his overall record at 9-9. A forfeit by Branden Schultz (Lake Crysal, Minn./Lake Crystal) (125 pounds) put the Beavers on the board first before freshman Cameron Mennanoh (Audubon, Iowa/Audubon) pinned Sam Reichenbacker with just 53 seconds left in the opening period for a 12-0 lead. He also evened his record this year at 8-8. Sophomore Steve Gutschenritter (Pacific Junction,Iowa/Glenwood) followed with a convincing 13-4 major decision for his 13th win of the year. Following a pin by Simpson at 149 pounds, the match of the night might have been sophomore Dustin Shinkle’s (Van Horne, Iowa/Benton Community) thrilling 12-10 decision at 157 pounds that pushed the margin to 19-6. Fellow sophomore Seth Shatto (Estherville, Iowa/ELC) moved up to 165 pounds for the first time this season and gave the Beavers a 6-2 win and a 22-6 lead. The win also extends his team-best record to 16-6. Simpson then got forfeits at both 174 and 184 pounds to make it a 22-18 match before a major decision victory at 197 pounds evened things up heading into the final match of the night. The win for BVU marks its first IIAC dual victory since it topped the Storm, 28-23, in Storm Lake two years ago. The team improves to 1-3 overall this season (1-2 IIAC). It returns to action again on Saturday when it takes part in the IIAC Duals, hosted by the University of Dubuque. The Beavers will open with the host Spartans, who are currently ranked 26th at 10:00am, followed by a dual with #1 Wartburg College at 12:00pm. It will then end with a match against #29 Central College at 2:00pm. Results: 125 – Branden Schultz (BVU) won by forfeit 133 – Cameron Mennenoh (BVU) pins Sam Reichenbacker, 2:07 141 – Steven Gutchenritter (BVU) maj. dec. Spencer Courier, 13-4 149 – Jason Clark (SIM) pins Tim Vore, 1:57 157 – Dustin Shinkle (BVU) dec. Derek Entz, 12-10 165 – Seth Shatto (BVU) dec. Cory Stratton, 6-2 174 – Greg Harlow (SIM) wins by forfeit 184 – Taylor Witzel (SIM) wins by forfeit 197 – Jared Bevins (SIM) maj. dec. Jared Bronaugh, 14-4 285 – Gable Bonner (BVU) pins Tony Saucedo, 1:36
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Here we stand on Wednesday, Jan. 23 with the bulk of the regular season done. A few dual meets and league tournaments remain for most squads, with the state series -- individual and/or team -- to come. Normally by this point, one has a true sense of where the best teams in the nation stand. However, beyond the fact of Blair Academy, N.J., being the No. 1 squad, virtually everything else is up for interpretation. Both in terms of lineup analysis and the results of their performance on the mat, Blair has lapped the field. The Buccaneers have eight wrestlers appearing in the weight class rankings, with a couple others being in the proverbial "outside looking in" group. They also were dominant in winning titles at the Ironman, Beast of the East, and POWERade -- tournaments that are ranked among the top four in the nation with respect to their field composition. When it comes to everyone else, Wyoming Seminary, Pa., started the season ranked second and spent all of the first month in that position. The Blue Knights have three nationally ranked wrestlers, with a couple others being in that proverbial "outside looking in" group. In addition, their squad covers most of the lineup with a credible, accomplished wrestler. During the month of December they were second at the Ironman; slightly underachieved in their second place finish at the Beast, both in terms of being extremely far back from first and being relatively close to third/fourth; and earned a title at the Bethlehem Liberty Holiday Tournament. However, a second place finish at the Doc Buchanan Invitational placed doubt on that second in the nation position. In that tournament, they finished two points behind Clovis, Calif. Though that margin can be mitigated by an injury default in the final at 182 pounds, a match that No. 1 Eric Morris otherwise wins by decision against No. 20 Adrian Salas. It still would have been just an eight-point victory, with the squads having eight placers each. Furthering doubt was the upset loss, 33-32 against Robinson, Va., the next week at the NHSCA Final Four Festival, even though Wyoming Seminary had two nationally ranked wrestlers out of the lineup and lost two upset results by fall. That same Robinson team won just two matches in the final against Blair. After the Doc Buchanan, it was St. Edward, Ohio that ascended to the second position, from their season starting position of third. The Eagles presently have five nationally ranked individuals, with only one other really close to a ranking. It is a somewhat top-heavy squad with a couple extreme holes. For the season to date, they placed fourth at the Ironman, though having No. 2 Domenic Abounader in the lineup at 182-pound puts them right even with Wyoming Seminary for second; won a championship at the Dvorak by 35 points over Montini Catholic, a performance that included seven finalists in this top ten in the nation event; and then won the Medina Invitational by 50 points over a pair of top 20 in the nation teams with five champions, and that was without No. 3 Dean Heil in the lineup at 132 pounds (the backup placed sixth). Skepticism about St. Edward holding the second position comes in the form of a pair of dual meet results from January. First, at the DCC Super Duals, the Eagles won a 23-22 dual meet on criteria against Montini Catholic, Ill., as the squads split the match count 7-7. However, it should be noted that if not for a team point deduction, it is Montini Catholic which comes out with a 23-22 victory. Then, just this past Saturday, the Eagles were upset by St. Paris Graham, Ohio in a 30-29 result on criteria as the teams against split matches. However, it should be noted that a critical swing in the dual meet came during the 220-pound match when Graham got an injury default out a match which was tied in the third period, one in which the St. Edward wrestler was favored to win. Additionally, the Falcons were able to shift their lineup at 120/126 to manufacture an extra win. Having discussed the merits and history of Wyoming Seminary, Pa. and St. Edward, Ohio, six other teams come to mind as having a case for a very high nationally ranking -- and some even the No. 2 position. First, let's discuss two extreme tournament teams in St. Paris Graham, Ohio and St. Johns, Mich. Despite an "on-paper" profile that suggests they fit more as a top ten team, it can be argued that the on mat performance of St. Paris Graham suggest a top five ranking. The Falcons swing extremely to the "tournament team" profile with four nationally ranked wrestlers, plus another that is near the national rankings. Those five wrestlers were the team's placers at the Ironman; the nationally ranked ones were finalists, while Eli Seipel (113) placed sixth. That drove home a third place finish for St. Paris Graham, which would have been fourth if Abounader is in the lineup, but approximately 50 points better than the rest of the field. When one analyzes the rest of the lineup, it is a mix of young wrestlers with potential, some "non-national" kids that are growing, and a couple straight out holes. However, the group levied a rather positive performance in the St. Edward dual meet. It would have been interesting to see how this squad matched up against some of the other top ten-to-twenty teams in the nation in dual meets and/or a high-level tournament not as "top heavy" as the Ironman, but the schedule did not provide such opportunity. Similar to St. Paris Graham, St. Johns, Mich., profiles as a team with multiple elite individuals, but with certain spots of the lineup having significant holes. The Redwings have five nationally ranked wrestlers, with another wrestler that is near the national ranking conversation. They also reside in the state of Michigan, which has not conformed to the NFHS weight classes, adding a wrench to the lineup analysis. In the NFHS lineup configuration, they would have to "close out" a possible state placer; have one of their projected state champions bump up one or two weights in the middle-weight area; and possess three extreme holes, compared to only two when using the weights of their home state. Handcuffed by the schedule/travel rules of the Michigan High School Athletic Association, they have arguably faced the least robust schedule of a top ten in the nation team. In mid-December, they split matches in a 33-31 dual meet loss against Detroit Catholic Central, Mich. However, the Redwings had yet to drop their lineup to its present configuration, which created a third major hole in the lower-weights (compared to their present two). When the teams competed in dual meet competition this past weekend, St. Johns won eight matches in a 31-22 victory. In addition, the lower-profile wrestlers on the squad have shown improvement throughout the year; two specific examples would be the 215 and 285-pound wrestlers, who were pinned by their DCC opposition in December but only lost by decision this past weekend. The weekend before this one, St. Johns was at the DCC Super Duals, where they took on Montini Catholic, St. Edward, and Davison (Mich.) without the presence of Ben Whitford; who is ranked No. 1 in the nation at 145, but competes at 145-160 for dual meets. Against Montini, the Redwings won nine weight classes in a 32-24 victory, yet against St. Edward, the Eagles took nine of the matches in a 38-26 (maybe Whitford's presence gives St. Johns a sixth victory, though it's hard to say). Finally, buoyed by a pair of tossup match victories, Davison was able to split matches in a 35-28 defeat against the Redwings (for reference purposes, St. Edward beat this Davison squad 43-15, winning nine of fourteen matches). On the other side of the tournament team vs. dual meet squad spectrum is Montini Catholic. The Broncos have zero nationally ranked wrestlers, though one could see about five wrestlers in that next tier. In addition, this is a team that has been battle-hardened through the nation's toughest schedule year-to-date, and they have a lineup in which no weight class is a dead-set guaranteed loss in dual meet competition against national caliber squads. In the December dual meet portion of the schedule, the Broncos earned victories over top 25 squads Marist, Ill. and Marmion Academy, Ill.; notable is that they were short multiple starters due to football in the victory against Marist. Two weeks after winning a state football title, they came to the Ironman without two wrestlers (though neither was projected to place) and had two others compete still feeling the effects of football. Montini was still able to muster three placements (fifth, sixth, and sixth), with four other wrestlers finishing a match short of placement. That put them 15-30 points outside where other top 15-25 teams finished. At the already mentioned Dvorak, the Broncos finished second, thirty points behind St. Edward; but 40-plus points ahead of fellow top 25 squads Marist and Marmion Academy. Despite zero champions, they placed 12 wrestlers in all -- one runner-up, five in third, three in fourth, and a single wrestler taking fifth through seventh each. At the Clash, the Broncos cleared their first-day bracket with dual meet victories over top 40 squad Kearney, Mo. (9-5 in matches) and top 30 squad Apple Valley, Minn. (10-4 in matches). On the second day, they won nine matches in a 30-22 victory over top 15 squad Carl Sandburg, Ill.; nine matches in a 33-18 victory over fellow top ten squad Brandon, Fla.; but lost eight matches in a 34-21 loss to top ten squad St. Michael-Albertville, Minn. At the Cheesehead, Montini Catholic finished second (593.5-575) to Southeast Polk, Iowa, a top 20 in the nation team. However, the Broncos were without state placer Michael Maduko (170), which would have given them approximately a 20-point victory in the end game based on the scoring system of that tournament. Then, at the DCC Super Duals, the matches against St. Edward and St. Johns were already mentioned. However, the Broncos also took nine weight classes each in a victory over Detroit Catholic Central, Mich. -- which is a top 15 caliber squad -- and Davison, Mich. -- a team with a case for being ranked in the Fab 50. Now to discuss the two squads that along with Montini Catholic finished with 2-1 records in the championship pool at The Clash: St. Michael-Albertville, Minn. and Brandon, Fla. St. Michael-Albertville has a single nationally ranked wrestler with a few others in that next tier. Most weight classes are manned by a credible, credentialed wrestler. In addition to The Clash, the Knights were champions at the Minnesota Christmas Tournament when they were without a projected state finalist in Mitichell Eull (220/285), and still had a tournament-high ten placers. They won that tournament over Apple Valley, who was without state champion Seth Gross (132), by nine points; also keep in mind this was before the Apple Valley "roof caved in" at The Clash and Cheesehead. It was also an 11-1/2 point distance between St. Michael-Albertville and top 20 squad Kasson-Mantorville. Even though the Knights did win The Clash, it did not come without tight matches. After starting out with a pair of 12-2 match count victories against Kimball Area, Minn. and Collins Hill, Ga. in Bracket "A", St. Michael-Albertville split the weight classes 7-7 in a 28-26 victory over top 15 squad Oak Park River Forest, Ill. to win that bracket. On day two, there are the already mentioned 33-21 (9 matches to 5) loss to Brandon and 34-21 (8 matches to 6) victory over Montini Catholic, and needed a last match pin to come back from a 23-0 deficit to tie Carl Sandburg in a dual meet won 27-26 on criteria. Due to geography (i.e. not having many high profile squads and/or events in their proximity), and somewhat due to state association rules, Brandon, Fla. -- along with St. Johns -- has the least robust schedule of a top ten team. From a profile standpoint, the Eagles feature one nationally ranked wrestler with four or five others in that next tier. However, once past the 170-pound weight class, that is where they are somewhat susceptible. Their big litmus test this season came at The Clash. In their first two Bracket "B" duals, the Eagles went 27-1 in the individual matches against overmatched squads from Burnsville, Minn. and Jefferson, Ga. Then, the championship match was a 44-12 (11 matches to 3) blowout of top 25 squad Marist, Ill. When it came to the championship pool, they lost nine matches in a 33-18 loss to Montini Catholic, won eight matches in a 25-23 victory over Carl Sandburg, and won nine matches in a 33-21 victory over St. Michael-Albertville. In addition to The Clash, Brandon did travel to the Kyle Maynard Duals hosted by Collins Hill, Ga., where they accrued a 46-22 victory over a top 35 opponent in Pope, Ga. Last to be mentioned among the teams in the top nine during this column is Clovis, Calif. In December, they were champions of the Zinkin Classic by 75 points over a top 15 squad in Allen, Tex. However, that margin would be reduced to about 20-25 if one considers the net difference between what No. 4 Oliver Pierce (152), No. 20 Nick Cobb (195), and Stone Drulman (220) would have scored, what any replacements did score, and accounting for a void in the Clovis lineup that would normally be filled. Already mentioned was their championship at the Doc Buchanan, a tournament structured like the Ironman in terms of being an elite individual-driven event, beating Wyoming Seminary for the title due primarily to Eric Morris's injury default in the championship match. Then, this past weekend, they won the Battle for the Belt at Temecula Valley, Calif. in a tight race. The Cougars beat top 25 squad Bethlehem Catholic, Pa. by 2-1/2 points, while out-pointing top 20 squad Poway, Calif. by eight, despite missing a wrestler at 120 pound that probably wins matches or even possibly ekes out a low place. In the weekend sandwiching those two tournaments, Clovis beat a nationally ranked Vacaville, Calif. squad 43-24, but only won eight of the weight classes. Ranked No. 5 this month, and No. 6 last month, Canon-McMillan, Pa., has been moved just to the outside of this conversation to the tenth position. This is somewhat temporary in nature, as their position in the rankings had been based on lineup projections involving the presence of Solomon Chishko; Chishko being a top five in the nation junior, having already placed third twice at the state tournament and four times at the Super 32 Challenge. However, he has yet to compete this season, as he recovers from an injury that occurred during the Super 32 finals match. All this said, the Big Macs are still a squad with four nationally ranked wrestlers, but while solid behind that, they have no one else even in the next tier nationally. Therefore, my decision is to remove them from the top tier conversation until Chishko returns. In sum, here is the Fab 50 top ten this week: 1. Blair Academy, N.J. 2. St. Edward, Ohio 3. Wyoming Seminary, Pa. 4. St. Johns, Mich. 5. St. Paris Graham, Ohio 6. St. Michael-Albertville, Minn. 7. Montini Catholic, Ill. 8. Brandon, Fla. 9. Clovis, Calif. 10. Canon-McMillan, Pa.
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Collinsville makes statement at Jay Hancock Memorial Three nationally ranked teams were present among the 23 that competed in Yukon, Okla. this past weekend. When the two days were done, Collinsville, Okla. -- now ranked No. 12 nationally -- won the title with 292 points. That was enough to outlast now No. 13 Allen, Texas (270-1/2) and No. 30 Edmond North, Okla. (225-1/2). Four individual titles for the Cardinals led them to the team title. Those gold medals came from No. 4 Christian Moody (106), No. 6 Davion Jeffries (113), Gary Wayne Harding (138), and Zach Abkemeier (170). Seven additional Collinsville wrestlers finished in the top five -- runner-up finishes from Ryan Heiden (126) and Will Steltzen (132), third place finishes from Dylan Helm (145) and Keenan Priddy (195), fourth place finishes from Jacob Findley (120) and Jake Barton (160), along with a fifth place finish from Ryan Haymaker (152). The second place Eagles were led by a trio of champions in A.J. Hinkle (145), No. 4 Oliver Pierce (152), and No. 3 Bo Nickal (160). They did have the same eleven placers as Collinsville, but their distribution of other placers was two runners-up, one in third, three in fourth, and two in fifth. Runner-up finishes came from Mark Meyer, who lost 3-2 to No. 15 Lance Dixon (Edmond North, Okla.) at 182, and No. 20 Nick Cobb, who lost 5-3 to now No. 17 Joel Dixon (Edmond North, Okla.) at 195. Championships from the Dixon triplets – No. 15 Lance (182), No. 17 Joel (195), and No. 6 Andrew (220) -- propelled the Edmond North squad to a third place finish. They had seven placers inside the top three, one more than second place Allen; however, those seven were the only team members to place. Runner-up finishers for the Huskies were Jordan Price (106) and Cy Trindle (113), while Jordan Armstrong (120) and Derek White (170) finished third. Rounding out the weight class champions were No. 18 Boo Lewallen (Yukon, Okla.) at 120 pounds, Cub Yeager (Locust Grove, Okla.) at 126, Keegan Moore (Putnam City, Okla.) at 132, and Tyler Follis (Deer Creek, Okla.) at 285. Bound Brook to host Bergen Catholic in showdown of elite Garden State squads This coming Saturday, two of the best squads in New Jersey will compete against one another in a dual meet when No. 42 Bergen Catholic travels to No. 31 Bound Brook. Both teams have only a single loss in dual meet competition, for Bergen Catholic it came against No. 27 South Plainfield, N.J., while Bound Brook fell to defeat against No. 29 Apple Valley, Minn. The following are projected matchups: 106: No. 1 Nick Suriano (Bergen Catholic) vs. Gonzalo Limenza (Bound Brook): Suriano, a freshman sensation, is the nation's top-ranked wrestler in this weight class; though the junior Limenza is a credible opponent with a good record, who was closed out of the lineup last year by state placer De La Cruz. 113: Tyler Casamenti vs. Ronald Murray: The junior Casamenti is a two-time state qualifier and projected for a state placement finish based on rankings from The Star-Ledger, while the senior Murray made the regional tournament last year. 120: Matt Rose vs. Craig De La Cruz: De La Cruz placed fourth at 106 as a freshman, and is the lone returning state placer on a very balanced Bound Brook squad. He also was a Cadet Greco-Roman All-American this past summer. 126: Troy Schaafsma vs. Zachary Vatalare: Both wrestlers in this matchup were state alternates last year; Schaafsma is a junior, while Vatalare a senior. 132: J.P. Ascolese vs. Nick Accetta: The junior Ascolese was a regional qualifier last year. 138: Laurien Anghelina vs. Jeison Arias: Anghelina is the much talked about new wrestler to the United States, who moved in from Romania, while the junior Arias was a regional qualifier last season. 145: Joe Grello/David Brennan vs. Emmanuel Soto: The senior Soto was a match away from placing at the state tournament last year, and is ranked fourth at present by The Star-Ledger. Bergen Catholic will counter with either a freshman Grello, who has excellent pre-high-school credentials, or a sophomore Brennan. 152: Grello/Brennan vs. Josh Ugalde: Similarly here Bergen Catholic is out-matched with either Grello or Brennan, as Bound Brook sends out Ugalde, who was one match away from placing at state last year. Over the summer, he was a Cadet freestyle All-American, and is presently ranked fourth in the state. 160: Kevin Mulligan/Gianni Hallak vs. Andrew Gombas: It would probably behoove Bergen Catholic to place the better of their two options, probably the freshman Mulligan -- who comes into high school winning a junior high state title last year, in this matchup. 170: Mulligan/Hallak vs. Isaiah Soto: Soto qualified for state last year, while Hallak is a senior. 182: No. 7 Johnny Sebastian vs. Abraham Saavedra: The junior Sebastian is already a two-time state placer, winning a state title last season, and is a two-time placer at the Beast of the East. Saavedra is an excellent freshman with a bright future. 195: Christian Jenco vs. Ronaldo Picado/Aaron Saavedra: Jenco is ranked for a state placement finish this season, and was third place in both styles at the Cadet Nationals last summer, while Bound Brook will likely send out one of two regional qualifiers. 220: Tyler McGilligan vs. Picaso/Aa. Saavedra: Between Picado and Saavedra, both regional qualifiers, the one that doesn't go 195 will be at this weight class, and probably a favorite against the junior McGilligan from Bergen Catholic. 285: Carmine Goldsack vs. Michael Johnson: This would be a battle between state qualifiers, who are ranked for state placement at the moment per The Star-Ledger. Goldsack is a senior, while Johnson a junior. Johnson will face a size disadvantage, as he is ranked at 220, but in terms of maximizing a lineup it's best for him to be here. Based on matchup projections, each team is favored -- to varying degrees -- in six weight classes, with tossups present at 126 and 285. Trojans earn "A-plus" in midterm examination This past Thursday, Friday, and Saturday was to serve as a stern test for the No. 35 Park Hill, Mo., squad. However, it was one that they passed with flying colors. On Thursday night, the Trojans avenged an early season 31-27 defeat by No. 39 Kearney, Mo., with a 32-20 victory. It did not start out so well, as No. 7 Jaret Singh (Kearney) upset No. 4 Ke-Shawn Hayes 5-4, which reversed Hayes' 4-3 win from December. However, the next weight class was also a reversed outcome, this time it was John Erneste (Park Hill) with a 1-0 win over Seth Brayfield, turning around Brayfield's 5-3 overtime victory from December. A key match came at 132 pounds, where freshman Canten Marriott (Park Hill) upset state runner-up Blake Clevenger 3-2 in the tiebreaker; Clevenger did not wrestle in December, and Marriott earned a technical fall against one of his reserves. Finally, to seal the dual meet, Park Hill won matches at 170 and 195 that they did not in December: this time around Malik Colding beat state runner-up Blain Drescher 8-5, whereas Drescher earned a 7-5 overtime victory in December; and Emerson Garner won 9-7 at 195, but he lost 8-5 in December. Come Friday and Saturday, Park Hill earned the title at the Winnetonka Wrestling Invitational with 431 points on the strength of three champions, four runner-up finishes, and having 13 of 14 wrestlers competing in the upper-bracket on Saturday after finishing top two in the pools on Friday. Trojans to win weight class titles were Sean Hosford (106), No. 4 Hayes (113), and Erneste (120); while Hunter Roberts (126), Marriott (132), Russell Coleman (145), and Colding (170) finished in second place. No. 39 Blue Springs, Mo., finished third with 364 points despite having their four nationally ranked wrestlers -- No. 9 Daniel Lewis (138), No. 16 Darick Lapaglia (145), No. 10 Cain Salas (152), and No. 12 Michael Pixley (182) -- winning weight class titles. Looming as a problem for the Wildcats was their lack of depth, as only five other wrestlers (9 in total) made the upper-bracket on Saturday, of which Austin Reyes (220) was their lone finalist. Second place for the tournament was Seckman, Mo. with 392 points, led by six finalists and 12 upper-bracket competitors. Winning titles were Brock Wingbermuehle (132) and Zach Oberkom (220), while runner-up finishes came from Zach Durbin (106), Weston Basler (113), Luke Weiland (120), and Otto Pfneisel (285). The week ahead -- quick hitter style No. 3 Wyoming Seminary, Pa., and No. 33 McDonogh, Md., will be among those teams competing at the Gilman Duals on Saturday in Baltimore, Md. No. 11 Oak Park River Forest, Ill., has stern tests in dual meet competition today and tomorrow. Tonight the Huskies host No. 6 Montini Catholic, Ill., and while tomorrow evening they travel to No. 23 Marmion Academy, Ill., A preview for those two dual meets has already been posted on InterMat. No. 15 Detroit Catholic Central, Mich., travels to No. 20 Cincinnati Moeller, Ohio for a dual meet on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. The squads have traded dual meet victories each of the last two years, both teams winning at home. A preview for this match will appear on InterMat towards the end of the week. No. 19 Kasson-Mantorville, Minn., and No. 38 Simley, Minn., are among the squads competing at the Swalla Duals hosted by Kasson-Mantorville on Saturday. No. 34 Pope, Ga., hosts a quad meet on Saturday, which also includes No. 49 Archer, Ga. When those two teams dual, it will mark a match between the Class 5A and Class 6A dual meet champions in the Peach State, and a showdown between two of the best squads in the Southeastern United States. Quick hitters from the past weekend No. 17 Southeast Polk, Iowa won the Ed Winger Classic hosted by Urbandale, Iowa with 252 points. That was 69-1/2 points more than No. 44 Bettendorf, Iowa, who finished second place despite a tournament-high five champions. Four Rams grapplers -- No. 17 Nolan Hellickson (106), Tim Miklus (160), Dylan Blackford (170), and Bryce Fisher (220) -- did win championships; but it was the fact that another five finished third, with three others earning placement, that made the difference. For the runner-up Bulldogs, their championships came from No. 14 Fredy Stroker (126), Logan Ryan (132), Jacob Woodard (138), Alex Hernandez (145), and Malique Hudson (1522); while they only had three other wrestlers place, two in fifth and one in sixth. The three showdowns in the finals involving battles of ranked opposition certainly lived up to their hype during the Escape the Rock finals on Sunday at Council Rock South just outside of Philadelphia. At 113 pounds, No. 3 Brent Fleetwood (Smyrna, Del.) used a late takedown to score a 3-1 victory over No. 8 Ethan Lizak (Parkland, Pa.), and that followed up a semifinal round where Fleetwood outlasted No. 14 Zach Fuentes (Norristown, Pa.) 2-1 in the tiebreaker. At 182 pounds, in what could be a state finals preview, No. 4 Jacob Taylor (Bald Eagle Area, Pa.) upended No. 5 Brett Harner (Norristown, Pa.) 3-2 in the ultimate tiebreaker. Finally, at 220 pounds, No. 3 Thomas Haines (Solanco, Pa.) earned a statement victory over No. 5 Raymond O'Donnell (Saucon Valley, Pa.) by 10-2 major decision. Despite not having a single champion, Parkland, Pa. won the tournament with 189-1/2 points on the strength of seven placers. No. 22 Maple Mountain, Utah won The Rumble at Utah Valley University with 244-1/2 points on the strength of three champions and nine overall placers, and that was with Cadet National double finalist Kimball Bastian (160) not in the lineup. Champions included Johnny O'Hearon (132), Grant Lamont (152), and Jon Wixom (195). Second place went to Pleasant Grove, Utah with 215 points led by champion Zach Dawe (285), three others in third, and three other placers. Third in the standings, and dropped out of the Fab 50, was Centennial, Idaho with 199-1/2 points. On a positive note, they did have five finalists; however, only one No. 3 Hayden Tuma (138) was a champion, and only one other wrestler finished inside the top eight. The most notable match of the finals was Tuma's 3-2 tiebreaker victory over Jed Mellen (Payson, Utah), who is ranked No. 12 down a weight class at 138 pounds. Over the weekend, InterMat provided recaps of No. 4 St. Johns, Mich., beating No. 15 Detroit Catholic Central, Mich.; the upset victory for No. 5 St. Paris Graham, Ohio over No. 2 St. Edward, Ohio; and the Battle for the Belt tournament in Temecula Valley, Calif., that No. 9 Clovis, Calif., won by 2-1/2 points over No. 24 Bethlehem Catholic, Pa., and by eight over No. 18 Poway, Calif. Rankings reminders Updated weight class rankings as well as Fab 50 team rankings were posted to the site today as well. Also, check out my commentary on the top ten teams nationally, which is a web of confusion based on the results of the season to date.