InterMat Staff

Several University of Oklahoma wrestlers used last weekend as a warm-up to competition, competing unattached at the Sunkist Kids and Lindenwood Opens. The Sooners are preparing to kick off the season with the annual Red/White ranking match this Thursday, Nov. 1 at 7 p.m. at the Howard McCasland Fieldhouse. Senior Joel Flaggert took third place at 211.5 pounds at the Sunkist Kids Open. Freshman Ryan Smith also looked impressive, winning three hard-fought battles. Also competing unattached were freshmen Kyle Bergstedt, Seth Vernon and Pat Flynn. Alumnus and four-time All-American Sam Hazewinkel was a double-medalist, winning the Greco-Roman championship and taking second in the Freestyle competition. Former Sooner Michael Lightner took home a silver medal and former standout Teyon Ware also won three battles at the Open. At the Lindenwood Open in St. Charles, Mo., two Sooner wrestlers were crowned champions and one a third-place finisher. Sophomore Eric Lapotsky in the 197-pound division dominated competition with three pins and one technical fall. Lapotsky won the title by a medical default in the finals. Redshirt freshman Zach Bailey in the 141-pound division had two pins and three major decisions in competition. He won in a 4-3 decision in the finals to accept the gold medal. Freshman John Starzyk also competed in the 125-pound weight class and was awarded third place after a sudden over time loss in the semi-finals. Starzyk recorded two pins and two decisions in his efforts. After the Red/White match on Thursday OU will officially start the season Sunday, Nov. 4, in a triple-dual in Oklahoma City against Missouri Valley, Oklahoma City and Neosho Community College.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The 2007-08 Hoosier wrestling season begins tonight with the Cream and Crimson Intrasquad Scrimmage, held at the Brown County High School in Nashville, Indiana. The event is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. and will include at least 10 match-ups. Admission is free to the public. 2007-08 SEASON PREVIEW The Indiana University wrestling team will be under the guidance of Head Coach Duane Goldman once again in 2007-08, his 16th year at the helm. The Hoosiers, who placed for the 14th year in a row at the NCAA Tournament in 2006-07, are looking to finish high at the NCAAs and in the Big Ten during the `07-`08 campaign. PROVEN WINNERS RETURN Four All-Americans return for IU this season, including two-time All-American Brandon Becker. Matt Coughlin, Angel Escobedo and Andrae Hernandez all reached the stand last season, while Becker accomplished the feat in 2005 and 2006. Escobedo has the highest finish of the quartet, finishing in fourth place. Becker placed fifth and seventh in his freshman and sophomore years, respectively. Coughlin took seventh while Hernandez finished in eighth place. Indiana returns two other NCAA qualifiers this season. Trevor Perry and Marc Bennett each qualified for the NCAA Tournament a year ago, and Bennett fell just one victory shy of earning All-American status. 125 POUNDS Escobedo will start at 125 lbs. after leading the team with 39 total wins and 14 pins in 2006-07. Both of those totals rank as the seventh-most in school history for a single season, and the 39 wins are the most at IU since Coyte Cooper's 38 victories in 2002-03. Escobedo's fourth-place finish at the NCAAs is the highest for an Indiana freshman since the 1930s. Redshirt sophomore Wesley Fike is the other returner at 125 lbs. for the Hoosiers after redshirting last season. He earned two wins his freshman year. Incoming freshman Matt Ortega and Steve Salinas will also add to the depth at the 125 lbs. position. Ortega is a four-time New Mexico state champion and posted a 178-7 overall high school record. Salinas is a three-time state qualifier from South Bend Clay High School where he holds the school record for most career wins. 133 POUNDS Hernandez returns for his third season starting in 133 lbs. position. He took his second trip to the NCAA Tournament in as many seasons last year, earning All-American honors with an eighth-place finish. He was one of four Hoosiers to compile 30 or more wins in 2006-07. True freshman Reece Freeman solidifies the 133 lbs. position for IU. He went undefeated last season at Bloomington South High School, posting a 48-0 mark en route to a state championship. 141 POUNDS It's a three-horse race for time in the lineup at the 141 lbs. weight class. Junior Scott Kelly will compete with freshmen Jeff Pelton and Alex Warren for the starting position. Kelly has wrestled in various weight classes the past two seasons, compiling eight wins thus far in his career. Pelton is a highly-touted recruit with an Ohio state championship and two runner-up finishes on his resume. Warrren, meanwhile, won 11 matches during his redshirt year and also won a state championship in high school, the 2006 Indiana 130 lbs. title. 149 POUNDS Redshirt freshman Kurt Kinser and Sophomore Nick Walpole are expected to reside at 149 lbs. Kinser is coming off a 15-4 redshirt season. He won the Missouri Open Championship last season while wrestling unattached, topping the No. 1 seed in the finals. Walpole, meanwhile, provides varsity experience after competing in 25 matches last season as a true freshman. 157 POUNDS Two-time All-American Brandon Becker will man the 157 lbs. spot for the Cream and Crimson. He has qualified for the NCAA Tournament in each of his first three seasons and posted a 14-2 dual-meet record in 2006-07. Freshmen Greer Bivenour and Paul Young may also see time at 157 lbs. Bivenour is a two-time state qualifier from Lewis Center, Ohio. Young finished his redshirt season with a 12-5 record. Wrestling unattached, he won six consecutive matches in the consolation bracket at the Michigan State Open last season to finish in fourth place. 165 POUNDS Coughlin showed he is one of the country's elite with his run in the NCAA Tournament a year ago. En route to finishing seventh place in the 149 lbs. weight class, he defeated three nationally-ranked opponents. Coughlin should be even stronger this year moving up to his natural weight class. Young and Junior Kyle Samuels are two additional options for IU in the 165-pound weight class. 174 POUNDS Perry racked up 23 wins, a 13-3 dual match record and seven Big Ten victories during his NCAA-qualifying season a year ago and is expected to start at 174 lbs. once again in 2007-08. Samuels and Sophomores Nick Avery and Seth Parker will also contribute in this weight class. Avery went 8-7 as a true freshman, including a 2-2 showing in dual matches. 184 POUNDS There are plenty of options in the 184-pound weight class, but Senior Marc Bennett is the clear-cut starter after piling up 33 wins and eight pin falls last season. He made his first trip to the NCAA Tournament and looks to build on that success this year. Redshirt Freshmen Eric Cameron, Jantzen Minton and Matt Powless will all battle for time in this spot. Cameron and Minton each recorded four wins in their redshirt seasons while Powless won the Indiana state championship his senior season. 197 POUNDS Minton could also see some time at the 197-pound position, with Freshman Joe Fagiano as his main competition for that spot. Fagiano won the Illinois state title as a junior and finished as the runner-up his senior campaign. Last season's starter, Nate Everhart, is likely to take a redshirt in 2007-08 due to injury. HEAVYWEIGHT The heavyweight position will be filled by either Sophomore Justun Kuhn or Freshman Luke Watkins. Kuhn wrestled last season as a true freshman and came out victorious in four of his nine matches. Watkins improved drastically as upperclassman in high school, putting a together a 58-4 mark during his last two seasons. Indiana University Wrestling

NORFOLK, Va. -- The Annual Blue-Silver Intersquad was held on Sunday, October 29 for the ODU Monarch Wrestling team. Four Monarch wrestlers won by major decision, including Chris Brown's 20-7 victory over teammate T.C. Pendleton. Ryan Williams (141) and Joey Metzler (149) both shutout their opponents in the wrestle-offs. The first five bouts of the afternoon were tight. In the 125-lb. match James Nicholson dropped teammate Billy Chamberlain by decision 8-2 in a match that was closer than the score indicates. Redshirt freshman Dan Rivera followed with a 3-1 victory over Tel Todd in the 157-lb. weight class. The difference in the bout was a takedown with just one second remaining in the first period. Nick Pullano won 5-2 over Derek Coffey in the 174-lb. weight class. Pullano executed a takedown with two seconds remaining in the first went up by three with a takedown late in the second period. The heavyweights would grapple to a stalemate for much of the match, but Roy Dragon III would win on a three-second nearfall in the second period. He toppled Andy Totusek 4-1 for the decision. In the closest match of the day, the 184 pounders Jesse Strawn and Scott Cust battled all three periods. The first points would come in the second period when Strawn would execute a reversal on Cust going up 2-0. Cust would escape, cutting the lead to one. In the third period, Cust would choose the bottom, and escaped Strawn's advantage to tie the score at 2-2. However, Cust could not drop Strawn and the sophomore from Kansas held the riding time advantage to win 3-1. After five tight bouts, the last four were nothing of the sort. At 165-lbs., Chris Brown would put 20 points on the board against T.C. Pendleton, with nine takedowns. The 20-7 major decision comes in his new weight class. Sophomore Kyle Hutter then stepped on the mat for the 133-lb. match, across from freshman Justin Belanger. Hutter, a full-time starter as a true freshman put Belanger away 18-6 for the major decision. Hutter had eight takedowns in the bout. At 149, redshirt freshman Joey Metzler would shut out Buffy Okigbo, adding over five minutes of riding time for the eighth point of the major decision. In the final bout of the day, Ryan Williams would duplicate Metzler's success, with a nine point major decision over Lester France at 141 lbs. The Monarchs wrestle-offs are the annual indicator that the ODU wrestling season has begun. The Old Dominion grapplers will start the regular season November 9 at Michigan State, for the first dual of the season. ODU will also face Iowa on the road before hosting Delaware State University at The Ted on January 8.

Columbia, Mo. -- Senior two-time All-American wrestler Tyler McCormick (Leawood, Kan.) has been selected to compete at the 42nd annual National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) All-Star meet, Monday, Nov. 19, at 9 p.m. (CT) on McArthur Court on the campus of the University of Oregon. Ranked second in the nation at 133 pounds, McCormick is slated to compete against Big 12 opponent Coleman Scott of Oklahoma State, currently ranked No. 1 in the weight class. McCormick becomes the first Tiger grappler since current volunteer assistant coach Ben Askren to compete at the annual event. Askren last wrestled at 174 pounds in the 2004 All-Star meet, while Head Coach Brian Smith served as one of two team coaches. Last season, McCormick and Scott met on two occasions, splitting the contests 1-1. McCormick took the first win with a 3-2 decision at the NWCA National Duals in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Scott, was credited with win No. 2 after besting McCormick, 6-5, at the Big 12 Championships, March 3, in Columbia, Mo. Both league wrestlers went on to earn All-America honors at the 2007 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in Auburn Hills, Mich, with McCormick finishing sixth and Scott, second. McCormick enters his senior campaign as the highest ranked Tiger grappler on this year's 45-man squad. One of four team captains, McCormick currently owns a 70-33 career record and has earned All-America honors in both of his NCAA tournament appearances (2006 and 2007). Tickets to the evening event are $15 for reserved seats and $10 for general admission. To purchase tickets, please visit NWCA online . As in year's past, the NWCA All-Star bout will not count toward McCormick's season or career record.

Columbia, Mo. -- Twenty-one Tiger wrestlers competed unattached at the Lindenwood Open Saturday in St. Charles, Mo., with 12 grapplers finishing among the top-six of their respective weight class and true freshman Dominique Bradley (Blue Springs, Mo.) capturing top honors in the heavyweight division. Dominating the competition, Bradley entered the all-day tournament as the No. 1 seed in the heavyweight division. Opening with a fall in 2:58 over Matthew McClaughlin, Bradley went on to score back-to-back 8-3 decisions before finishing the tournament with a 6-2 decision of seventh-seeded Gordon Johnson. Four Missouri competitors finished second in their weight class, including freshman Troy Dolan (Blairsville, Pa.) at 125 pounds, freshman K.C. Pescaglia (Columbia, Mo.) at 133 pounds, redshirt freshman Vince Hannon (Plainfield, Ill.) at 141 pounds and sophomore Ashtin Primus (South Connelsville, Pa.) at 149 pounds. Missouri's competitors combined for 14 falls on the day, the fastest clocked by freshman Patrick Wright (Grand Ledge, Mich.) at 31 seconds. Wright went on to finish the tournament in third place at 165 pounds. Primus collected the most Tiger falls on the day, with three of his four wins won by way of pin. Opening with a win by major decision (13-1), Primus pinned his next three opponents in 3:07, 1:32 and 2:01. Primus' only loss came to second-seeded Ryan Moyer in the championship match, 6-5. Eight of Missouri's 12 top-six finishes were recorded by newcomers. Members of this year's second-ranked recruiting class Vito Krischke (House Springs, Mo.), Brandon Wiest (O'Fallon, Mo.) Dorian Henderson (Columbus, Ga.) and Trever Collins (Nixa, Mo.) in addition to Dolan, Pescaglia, Wright and Bradley finished among the top six of their respective weight class.

Columbia, Mo. -- The sixth-ranked Missouri wrestling team held its annual Black and Gold wrestle-off's in the Hearnes Center, with Gold topping Black, 30-14. Led by Head Coach Brian Smith, the Gold team earned 18 of its points through falls with junior Marcus Hoehn (Farmington, Mo.) sophomore Nicholas Marable (Collierville, Tenn.) and junior Raymond Jordan (New Bern, N.C.) all pinning their opponents. After completing six wrestle-in bouts, the 10-man lineup for both teams was set. Assistant coach Lee Pritts led the Black team effort with three of his grapplers combining for 13 points. Opening at 125 pounds, redshirt freshman Tony Pescaglia (Columbia, Mo.) earned the Gold team's first win of the afternoon, besting sophomore John Olanowski (Virginia Beach, Va.), 3-2. Olanowski took the early lead, but Pescaglia managed two escapes to tie the match and was credited with 1:38 of riding time for the one-point advantage. Senior 133 pound All-American Tyler McCormick (Leawood, Kan.) proved dominant in his bout with redshirt freshman Nick Velliquette (Nixa, Mo.), winning the seven-minute match by a score of 10-7. McCormick recorded three takedowns in the first period, a reversal in the second, and was awarded one point after Velliquette was hit with stalling and one point for 2:09 of riding time. Hoehn continued the Gold team's win streak by pinning redshirt freshman opponent Willie Saxton (Rayland, Ohio) in 6:15. Prior to the fall, Saxton led the match, 6-2, nearly pinning Hoehn in the first period. The 149 pound win was awarded to sophomore Ashtin Primus (South Connelsville, Pa.) after senior Josh Wagner (Milton, Wis.) was forced out by injury. A native of Cahokia, Ill., junior Emanuel Brooks earned a one-point win over junior Michael Chandler (High Ridge, Mo.), 2-1. Wrestling for the Gold team, Brooks earned his first point off of a technical violation by Chandler, scoring his second point off of a third period escape 17 seconds into the period. Pinning freshman Patrick Wright in 4:27, Marable added six points to the Gold team's score, with senior James Williamson (Blue Springs, Mo.) and Jordan winning the squads final points of the day. Williamson, won a hard fought 5-2 decision against sophomore Ryan Sonderegger (Overland Park, Kan.) at 174 pounds, with Jordan pinning redshirt freshman Josh Skurnik (Kirkland, Wash.) at 184 pounds in 1:36. The Black team won at 197 pounds and heavyweight. Sophomore Big 12 Champion Maxwell Askren (Hartland, Wis.) won the only major decision victory of the dual, 15-6, over freshman Trever Collins (Nixa, Mo.) at 197 pounds. Askren recorded three takedowns in the first period alone, choosing down to start the second period, escaping in seven seconds and taking down Collins for a fourth time at with 1:39 left on the clock. Following the takedown with a three-point nearfall, Collins escape but was quickly taken down again before the end of the second period. Collins managed an escape in the third, but with Askren's 3:27 of riding time, the sophomore came out ahead. One of two overtime bouts on the day, freshman Dominique Bradley (Blue Springs, Mo.) outscored sophomore Tyler Perry (Hannibal, Mo.), 3-2, with a takedown 12 seconds into the one minute overtime period. Bradley and Perry were scoreless through the first period, but Bradley escaped in the second after choosing down. Perry also escaped in the third to tie the bout and send it into overtime. Missouri's first dual of the season is set for Friday, Nov. 9, at 7 p.m. (CT) against No. 27 Rider in Lawrenceville, N.J. The Tigers will continue their swing through the Northeast with a 6 p.m. (CT) dual with Hofstra on Saturday, Nov. 10. Fans will have their first chance to see Missouri's squad in action Sunday, Nov. 18 at the annual Missouri Open held in the Hearnes Center Fieldhouse.

PITTSBURGH -- The University of Pittsburgh wrestling team got it's first taste of competition tonight as they rolled out the mats at Fitzgerald Field House for their annual intrasquad wrestle-offs. Coach Rande Stottlemyer and his staff looked on as their squad battled each other for eight of the team's starting positions. The event took place in a tournament-style format, with each needing to win two out of three bouts in the finals to earn the starting nod. The evening began with a burst of excitement in the 149 pound bracket as both of the opening matches ended with falls in the first period. Mark Generalovich (Pittsburgh, Pa./Thomas Jefferson) made quick work of teammate Christian Fagan (North Easton, Mass./Oliver Ames) by pinning him 35 seconds into the bout on the blue mat. Jeff Warusz (Langhorne, Pa./Neshaminy), a transfer from Elizabethtown, won his match over freshman Kyle Patton (Johnstown, Pa./Westmont Hilltop) soon after on the gold mat. Both of those first round victors could not advance any farther, however, as Generalovich was defeated by Joe Cimapoli (Altoona, Pa./Altoona) and Warusz fell at the hands of the bracket's eventual champion Joey Ecklof (Northampton, Pa./Northampton). Pitt's two returning All-Americans from last season Keith Gavin (Factoryville, Pa./Lackawanna Trail) and Matt Kocher (State College, Pa./State College) appeared to have picked up where they left off last season by locking up their starting spots in only two matches. Kocher squared off against Adam Counterman (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth) in the two-man 157 pound bracket and pinned the freshman with just over a minute gone in the first period. Gavin followed suit by earning a fall against freshman Ethan Headlee (Waynesburg, Pa./Waynesburg) with less than five minutes gone in the first finals match of the 174 pound division. The Panthers' other returning All-America honoree, Drew Headlee (Waynesburg, Pa./Waynesburg), had a more difficult time in his 141 pound finals match up with highly touted freshman Tyler Nauman (Middletown, Pa./Middletown). Headlee looked to be in a bit of bind as Nauman pulled out to 1-0 lead in the best-of-three series, but the 2005 NCAA All-American found his form and took the next two bouts from the impressive newcomer by scores of 6-4 and 8-5, respectively. Another absolute battle occurred in the 125 pound class, where redshirt sophomore Ryan Bosso (Pequea, Pa./Penn Manor) and former NCAA qualifier Brad Gentzle (Easton, Pa./Easton) took part in two of the harder fought matches of the evening. Gentzle began his night with a major decision over freshman Eric Rosencranz (Quakertown, Pa./Quakertown) and prevailed in both squabbles with Bosso by scores of 3-1 and 5-2 en route to claiming the team's starting spot. Redshirt junior Sean Richmond (Emmaus, Pa./Easton) entered the night as one of five wrestlers eyeing the starting slot in the 165 pound division. After getting past A.J. Brentzel (Irwin, Pa./Penn-Trafford) in his first match 3-2, Richmond matched up against Dave Kapetanovich (Pittsburgh, Pa./CCAC-North) and grabbed the starting job with scores of 7-5 and 3-1. Dave Sullivan (Dingmans Ferry, Pa./East Stroudsburg), a transfer from East Stroudsburg swept his two skirmishes with Matt Darnell (Lyndhurst, Ohio/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy) by scores of 4-0 and 8-0, respectively. In the heavyweight division, Zach Sheaffer (Carlisle, Pa./Cumberland Valley) and Ryan Tomei (Irwin, Pa./Penn-Trafford) split a pair of matches before an injury prevented the third bout from coming to fruition. Sheaffer took the first duel by the score of 3-2 and Tomei returned the favor in the second match by the same score. The Panthers will take to the mats again for their first regular season contest at Lehigh on Sunday, Nov. 11. The match is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. They open up their home slate at Fitzgerald Field House on Wednesday, Dec. 19 at 7:00 p.m. against the Missouri Tigers, who are ranked in the top 10 nationally.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -– Led by two pins from freshman Nikko Triggas and sophomore Lance Palmer, team Scarlet prevailed 18-11 over the Gray squad at the 2007 Ohio State Scarlet and Gray wrestle offs Thursday evening in St. John Arena. Triggas put six points on the board for the Scarlet team after pinning fellow freshman Pat Harrington in 2:15 at 125 pounds. The Gray squad cut its deficit in half at 133 pounds when sophomore Reece Humphrey scored an 8-2 decision over classmate Will Livingston. It was at 149 pounds, Palmer increased Scarlet's lead to 12-3 on a pin in 2:05 over freshman Tyler Meek. However, the Gray team held strong courtesy of a technical fall (17-0) by freshman Sean Nemec over fellow first-year Brendan Beucler. The second half of the wrestle offs at 165 pounds highlighted two freshmen in Robel Campbell and Ross Ambrose. Campbell recorded an 8-2 win to increase the Scarlet lead to 15-8. At 174 pounds, senior Alex Picazo notched a 4-2 decision over another Buckeye senior in Tommy Priestley and with that win team Scarlet increased its margin to 18-8. A pair of underclassmen took the mat at 197 pounds with freshman John Weakley edging sophomore Zack Weinrich, 10-8, to give the Gray squad three points. Finally, at heavyweight, junior Corey Morrison was a medical default winner over senior J.D. Bergman. The 141 and 184 weight classes were not contested. Ohio State begins its season at 2 p.m. Nov. 4 when it meets Notre Dame College in Cleveland, Ohio, at Maple Heights High School. The Buckeyes open their home schedule in St. John Arena at 7 p.m. Nov. 26.

COLUMBUS, Ohio –- Joe Ryan has been added to the Ohio State wrestling support staff as the director of operations, head coach Tom Ryan announced Thursday. Joe Ryan primarily will serve as the team's video coordinator, managing all aspects of the day-to-day video operation. In addition, he will be in charge of managing the recruiting, alumni and development databases. Ryan comes to Ohio State after serving as the head assistant wrestling coach at Rutgers in Piscataway, N.J. During his two-year stint with the Scarlet Knights (2005-2007), one of Ryan's duties was serving as the video coordinator and overseeing the wrestling video department. Prior to his time at Rutgers, Ryan coached at Wagner College in Staten Island, N.Y., from 2001-2005 and was the head coach at Seton Hall in South Orange, N.J., from 1998-2001 after serving as an assistant for the Pirates for two seasons (1997-1998). Ryan is the founder of Outstanding Sports Videos, a web site dedicated to featuring on-demand video of national high school and collegiate competitions, as well as interviews exclusive to regional markets. Ryan received his bachelor's degree in health and physical education from Lock Haven University in 1984. He also is a member of the New Jersey Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

The Augustana wrestling team opens the 2007-08 season with an intrasqaud dual on Saturday at 3 p.m. in the Elmen Center. Admission for the dual is free. The Vikings return 5 starters from last year's team that finished 9th at the NCAA Division II National Championships. It was the Vikings' fourth-straight top 10 national finish. Augustana's roster will feature a lot of young wrestlers. A total of 19 of the 29 team members are true freshmen or redshirt freshmen. Head Coach Jason Reitmeier's squad officially opens the season at the Daktronics Open in Brookings, S.D., on Saturday, November 3.

Madison, Wis. -- The Wisconsin wrestling team kicked off the 2007-08 season Thursday night in front of 647 fans at the UW Field House for the team's annual Wrestle-Offs. The Badgers used ten matches to determine their starting lineup for the season. "I liked how we wrestled overall as a team, I thought they looked good," Wisconsin head coach Barry Davis said. "As a coach, what we look for is how the guys compete with each other and the tendencies of certain guys. I look for how we wrestle overall as a team, how we get to the mat, how they work in riding situations, that's mainly what we're looking for right now and we can find areas where each guy can improve." Things got started with a match at 125 lbs. featuring last season's starter Collin Cudd (River Falls, Wis.) and sophomore Drew Hammen (Random Lake, Wis.). Cudd got out to a 2-0 start in the first period and Hammen tallied just two escapes in the whole match. Cudd, a three-time NCAA qualifier captured the match, 7-2. At 133 lbs., junior Zach Tanelli (Short Hills, N.J.) tallied two takedowns and two near falls in the first period to go up on sophomore Eric Senescu, 9-1 in the first. Tanelli controlled the rest of the match, and returns as Wisconsin's starter at 133 lbs. with a 16-2 win over Senescu. Badger co-captain, sophomore Kyle Ruschell (Crittendon, Ky.) faced junior Dan Sneider (Northbrook, Ill.) at 141 lbs. Ruschell stormed out to a 12-0 lead in the first period and finished with a tech fall, just 3:09 into the match to regain his starting spot. With the departure of former All-American Tyler Turner, Wisconsin has a large gap to fill at 149 lbs. Two freshmen earned their way into the final match tonight as both won preliminary matches earlier in the week. Kendall Vogel (Westfield, Wis.) scored first with a takedown in the first frame but Weldon Rogers (Oak Park, Ill.) was the next to score with a one-point escape in the second period. With the score close at 2-1 heading into the third, Vogel tallied four points in the final frame to earn the match and the starting spot with a 6-1 score. "Being a freshman, I thought Kendall Vogel used the mat really well, he knew where he was the whole time," Davis said. "For a young kid doing that right away, I thought that was impressive." NCAA runner-up and another Badger co-captain, Craig Henning (Chippewa Falls, Wis.), faced off against redshirt freshman Gabe Stoppelmoor at 157 lbs. Henning held Stoppelmoor scoreless in the match and captured a 12-0 decision. Stoppelmoor will compete at 149 lbs. this season but moved up for tonight's match against Henning. The bout at 165 lbs. was one of the closest of the night and featured senior Jake Donar (Cuba City, Wis.) and junior Mike Felling (Hutchinson, Minn.). Donar wrestled the most for Wisconsin at 165 lbs. last season and Felling moves down a weight class this year after wrestling at 174 lbs. in 2006-07. In Thursday's match, Donar had a 3-0 advantage over Felling after a scoreless first period. Felling would score two points in the final frame, but Donar held on for the 3-2 win. At 174 lbs., senior Matt Maciag (Sussex, N.J.) matched up against junior Justin Peterson (Comstock, Wis.). Peterson is another Badger moving down weight classes this season after he wrestled at 184 lbs. last year. In the match, Maciag defeated Peterson 9-1 to regain his starting position. Badger fans got a first look at another freshman, Gage Szablewski. The Lake Park, Ill., native took on redshirt freshman Eric Bugenhagen at 184 lbs. Bugenhagen scored first with a takedown in the first period but Szablewski got on the board with an escape in the second. In the third, Bugenhagen tallied two more points to finish the match, 4-1. Wisconsin's final co-captain, Dallas Herbst (Winneconne, Wis.) faced redshirt freshman Calyn Hull (Colorado Springs, Colo.) at 197 lbs. The score remained close at 2-1 in the first but Herbst would score the final five points to earn his starting spot back with a 7-1 win. Finally, the heavyweight match had the least scoring of the night. Junior Kyle Massey (Champlin, Minn.) took on sophomore Jordan Hein and after a scoreless first, Massey was the only one to get on the board with a one-point escape. Massey also regained his spot in the starting lineup with a 1-0 decision. Wisconsin continues the 2007-08 campaign Friday, Nov. 2, in Green Bay when they take on UW-Oshkosh and Dubuque at the KI Convention Center. Stay tuned to uwbadgers.com throughout the season wrestling updates and scores.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- The Purdue University wrestling team will open the doors to the Blake Wrestling Center for the second time in a week this Saturday at 9 a.m. for their annual wrestle-off competition. The starting job at eight of the Boilermakers' 10 weight classes will be on the line in a variety of formats. "This is a great way to prepare the guys for the season," said Purdue Head Coach Scott Hinkel. "It gives us all a starting point and gets the competitive juices flowing." The Boilermakers are permitted a four-pound weight allowance on Saturday from their established classes and will weigh-in an hour before the matches begin (8 a.m.). The first of the 15 rounds of competition will begin at 9 a.m. with a combination of exhibition and varsity wrestle-off matches. The Boilers will wrestle a standard match, including a three-minute first period, and two-minute second and third, with NCAA sudden victory and tie breaking procedures in effect if applicable. The job at 125 pounds will be up for grabs between redshirt freshman Akif Eren and first-year Boilermaker George Petrov. Eren has a year in the Purdue wrestling room under his belt, but Petrov comes from a very successful high school program and was his team's most valuable wrestler last season. Senior tri-captain Sean Schmaltz defends his starting position at 133 pounds against redshirt freshman Matt Hemry. Schmaltz started all of last year's Big Ten season for the Boilermakers, earning his first career conference victory over Minnesota's Mike Thorn. Hemry finished fourth at the Indiana high school state championships in 2006, winning his sectional, regional and semi-state titles on the way. Highly competitive duels are set at 141 and 149 pounds, with redshirt sophomore Matt Redmond and redshirt freshman Kevin Lipp ready to go head-to-head at 141, and junior tri-captains Jake Patacsil and Mark Powell facing off at 149. Redmond drops down a weight class after a very successful campaign at 149 pounds last season. He posted an 11-7 mark, including a sixth-place showing at the Midlands Championships, where he toppled a pair of nationally ranked opponents. Lipp enters his first season of varsity competition after piling up a 152-16 record over four years of high school. He won two Ohio high school state championships, and claimed a pair of state bronze medals as well. Patacsil enters the season ranked as high as eighth in the nation in the preseason polls at 149 pounds after a record-setting 2006-07. He rewrote the Purdue back-points record books on his way to team most valuable wrestler honors and a 34-12 overall mark, including a 5-3 conference record and a trip to the 2007 NCAA Tournament. His 190 back points shattered the previous single-season mark by 40 points, and he stands fourth all-time at Purdue with 284 back points in his first two seasons. Powell has an impressive resume of his own, notching a 17-5 record in 2006-07 before bowing out of contention for the starting job due to injury. He finished fifth at the Eastern Michigan Open and had winning records at both the Reno Tournament of Champions and the Midlands Championships. The 157-pound position should prove the most highly coveted as the Boilermakers flaunt five grapplers that will vie for the starting job in a tournament format. Headlining the group is returning starter and NCAA qualifier Jake Murphy. A redshirt junior, Murphy posted a 16-14 record last year, including a 3-4 mark in conference. Throwing their names in the hat are redshirt junior Nick Spohn, redshirt sophomores Nick Bertucci and Sam Patacsil and redshirt freshman Kevin Clem. Spohn captured the Midwest Open crown last year, topping Sam Patacsil in the finals of the tournament, while Bertucci was the Boilermakers' starter at 141 pounds. Clem enters his first season of varsity competition after a successful high school campaign. The battle at 165 pounds features multiple contenders as well, including 2006-07 starters Justin Fraga and Jason Martin. Both redshirt sophomores, Fraga turned in 27 wins, a fourth-place Big Ten Tournament showing and a NCAA Championship appearance at 165 pounds last year, while Martin bumped up a class to take on the starting 174-pound job for the Old Gold and Black. Completing the trio of contenders is redshirt freshman Luke Manuel, who was the 2006 California high school state runner-up and a high school All-American. The three will compete in set of round-robin matches with the best record taking the starting job. Junior Nick Corpe and redshirt junior Aaron Goebel will via for the 174-pound starting spot as the pair both look to rebound from injury-shortened seasons last winter. Corpe was the Boilermakers' starter at 174 as a freshman and sophomore, before cutting his second season short with an injury at the Midlands Championships. Goebel suffered a similar fate in each of his collegiate seasons so far, but looks to straighten that out this year. The spot at heavyweight stands between redshirt sophomore Chris Kasten and redshirt freshman Roger Vukobratovich. Kasten posted a record of 16-6 over the first half of his rookie campaign, while Vukobratovich was his high school MVP his senior year and put in valuable work on the mat last season. The rest of the Boilermakers' starting spots are pretty much set on the shoulders of 184-pound sophomore David Pisarcik and 197-pound redshirt freshman Logan Brown. The pair will compete in a series of exhibition matches to ready themselves for the season-opening tournament. Several of Purdue's true freshman and redshirt wrestlers will be in exhibition action as well, including 2005 NCAA qualifier Colton Salazar, three-time Wisconsin high school state champion A.J. Kissel and 2007 Indiana high school state champion Matt Fields. The Blake Wrestling Center is located within Lambert Fieldhouse, on the south side of the indoor track. Alumni, media and fans are encouraged to attend and get a glimpse of the Boilermakers' first action of the season. Match Schedule Round 1: 157(A) - Kevin Clem vs. Sam Patacsil 165 - Justin Fraga vs. Luke Manuel Round 2: 125 - Matt Fields vs. Bill Putman 125 - Akif Eren vs. George Petrov Round 3: 141 - Kevin Lipp vs. Matt Redmond 133/141 - Jake Fleckenstein vs. David Zimmer Round 4: 133 - Matt Hemry vs. Sean Schmaltz 149 - Jake Patacsil vs. Mark Powell Round 5: 285 - Chris Kasten vs. Roger Vukobratovich 157(B) - Nick Spohn vs. Nick Bertucci Round 6: 157(C) - Jake Murphy vs. 157(A) winner 165 - Luke Manuel vs. Jason Martin Round 7: 165/157 - John Doyle vs. Colton Salazar 184 - A.J. Kissel vs. David Pisarcik Round 8: 174 - Nick Corpe vs. Aaron Goebel 125 - Bill Putman vs. George Petrov Round 9: 125 - Akif Eren vs. Matt Fields 133 - Sean Schmaltz vs. Jake Fleckenstein Round 10: 157(D) - 157(C) winner vs. 157 (B) winner 165 - Jason Martin vs. Justin Fraga Round 11: 149/157 - Jordan Nettuno vs. Colton Salazar 157(E) - 157(A) loser vs. 157(B) loser Round 12: 141/149 - Kevin Lipp vs. Mark Powell 197/184 - Logan Brown vs. David Pisarcik Round 13: 133 - Jake Fleckenstein vs. Matt Hemry 141 - David Zimmer vs. Matt Redmond Round 14: 149 - Jake Patacsil vs. Jordan Nettuno 184/174 - A.J. Kissel vs. Nick Corpe Round 15: 197/285 - Logan Brown vs. Chris Kasten 157(F) - 157(E) winner vs. 157(D) loser

Luke Becker, a four-time All-American and an NCAA Division I national champion at 157-pounds in 2002, will be the guest clinician at the 2007 St. Cloud State University Husky Fall Wrestling Clinic, which will take place on Saturday, Oct. 27, in the Halenbeck Hall Fieldhouse. There are still openings available for this clinic, and participants may register on the day of the event. This informative all-day clinic will start with check-in between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m., and it is open to all individuals from first grade to 12th grade. The final session of the day will conclude at 3:15 p.m. The cost of the clinic is $45, and the fee includes three sessions of expert instruction, a clinic t-shirt and lunch. The clinic will feature Becker as its guest clinician. As a member of the University of Minnesota wrestling team, Becker helped the Gophers win national team titles in 2001 and 2002. He gained NCAA All-America honors four times during his collegiate career with fourth place finishes at 157-pounds in 2001 and 2003, and a sixth place finish at 157-pounds in 2000. Becker won two individual Big Ten Conference titles, and he was a three-time Minnesota State High School state champion at Cambridge-Isanti High School. Becker currently serves as an assistant coach at the Unversity of Minnesota under head coach J Robinson. For more information about registering for the 2007 SCSU Husky Fall Wrestling Clinic, please call SCSU wrestling coach Steve Costanzo at 320-308-2996 or e-mail him at sscostanzo@stcloudstate.edu

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Three Northwestern wrestlers have received bids for the 2007 NWCA All-Star Classic on Nov. 19 in Eugene, Ore. Heavyweight Dustin Fox (Galion, Ohio/Galion), Ryan Lang (North Royalton, Ohio/Lakewood St. Edward) at 141 lbs. and Mike Tamillow (Oak Park, Ill./Fenwick) at 197 lbs. make up the trio for Northwestern, which was one of just two schools to receive as many bids to the Classic. "Having three invitees is a noteworthy accomplishment and NU is honored to have our top individuals recognized," coach Tim Cysewski said. "This is a testament to the hard work that these wrestlers have put in and it is no secret that we expect to have multiple wrestlers at the All-Star Classic every year." Fox is set to take on Tervel Dlagnev of Nebraska-Kearney, who is the NCAA D-II National Champion. The two have only faced each other once before when Dlagnev defeated Fox at Midlands last year. "Dustin has a chance to challenge a competitor that defeated him last year, not an easy task but one that Dustin is ready to take on," Cysewski said. Tamillow's match comes against Phil Davis of Penn State, who he has faced twice in his career. During last year's regular season, Davis defeated Tamillow, but Tamillow has a victory over Davis at the University Nationals (Freestyle) en route to the 211 lb. Championship, where he was named the Most Valuable Wrestler. At the Big Ten Championships last year, Tamillow also placed above Davis in the 197 weight class. "Tamillow and Phil know each others styles very well, it is always an interesting match-up," Cysewski said. Lang will not be competing at the All-Star Classic, though. It is early in the year and he is focusing hard on his match preparation." Last year, Northwestern was the only school to win two matches at the All-Star Classic with Lang defeating Nathan Morgan of Oklahoma State, 4-3, and Jake Herbert's 10-2 victory over Roger Kish of Minnesota. NU has been victorious in each of the last two NWCA All-Star Classics.

EDMOND -- All-American Heath Jolley's first-period fall capped a five-match winning streak that carried the Blue team to 29-19 victory over the Bronze in Central Oklahoma's annual intrasquad wrestling dual Wednesday night at Hamilton Field House. Jolley, a fifth-place national finisher at 197 pounds last year who is dropping to 184 this season, piled up a 7-1 lead before pinning Scott Cayton in 2:29 as the Blue used the late rally to overcome a 16-8 deficit. The defending national champion Bronchos, ranked No. 1 in the preseason NCAA Division II poll that came out Tuesday, showcased the 2007-08 team with 12 matches. UCO will have another intrasquad dual Nov. 1 in Norman and officially opens the season Nov. 11 at the Central Missouri Open. "I saw a lot of good things, but it's obviously early and we've got a long road ahead of us," said 26th-year head coach David James. "Our conditioning wasn't as good as I'd like it to be and there were some places where we weren't aggressive enough, but overall it was a pretty good outing and I liked what I saw." Three of UCO's four returning All-Americans were in action and neither was tested. In addition to Jolley's fall, returning national champion Kyle Evans at 141 and Tyler Zukerman at 125 – both ranked No. 1 in the preseason – rolled to easy wins. Evans had four near-falls and two takedowns in a 15-0 shutout that ended early in the second period and Zukerman racked up four takedowns and two near-falls in a 16-3 rout. The Blue team also got major decisions from brothers Jarrett and Jordan Edison, with freshman Jordan a 10-1 winner at 141 and redshirt freshman Jarrett a 10-2 victor at 197. The Bronze led 16-8 after Brent Sarette's 10-7 win over Luke Elmore at 149, but the Blue won the next five matches to pull out the win. Kelly Henderson started the rally with an 8-6 victory at 157, Alvin Metcalf and Zach Sikes won back-to-back matches at 165 and Tommy McCarty prevailed at 174 before Jolley ended the streak with his fall. 125: Tyler Zukerman, Bronze, major dec. Nick Rice, 16-3. 141: Jordan Edison, Blue, major dec. Zack McClure, 10-1. 141: Kyle Evans, Bronze, tech. fall Dale McClure, 15-0 (3:19). 149: Colby Robinson, Bronze, major dec. Corby Ray, 11-3. 149: Brent Sarette, Bronze, dec. Luke Elmore, 10-7. 157: Kelly Henderson, Blue, dec. Conner Robinson, 8-6. 165: Alvin Metcalf, Blue, dec. Cody Rowell, 10-5. 165: Zach Sikes, Blue, pinned Kelson Phillips, 6:31. 174: Tommy McCarty, Blue, dec. Kenny Meredith, 3-0. 184: Heath Jolley, Blue, pinned Scotty Cayton, 2:29. 197: Jarrett Edison, Blue, major dec. Jon Wechter, 10-2. 285: Reggie Douglas, Bronze, dec. Braden Land, 4-1.

PITTSBURGH -- University of Pittsburgh 2007 NCAA All-American and national runner-up Keith Gavin will join 19 of the nation's elite wrestlers and showcase his talents at the 42nd annual NWCA All-Star Classic on Monday, Nov. 19 at McArthur Court in Eugene, Ore. Two competitors from each of the 10 weight classes were invited to take part in this national event that in years past has featured wrestling greats such as Cael Sanderson and Dan Gable. Gavin (Factoryville, Pa./Lackawanna Trail) will represent the 174-pound class and square off against Matt Stolpinski of Navy. Gavin's invitation makes him the third Panther wrestler in the program's storied history to garner such an honor and the first since 1996 when J.J. Fasnacht traveled to Iowa City, Iowa. Two-time national champion Pat Santoro was the other Pitt wrestler to take part in the Classic, as he competed three times in his career from 1987-89.

The Stanford wrestling team will hold its season-opening intrasquad meet on Saturday at 2 p.m. in Burnham Pavilion. The matches will determine the team's starting line-up for its first competition of 2007-08, a dual with Fort Hays State in Tecumseh, Kans. on Nov. 9. "I'm excited to officially get the season started," said Head Coach Kerry McCoy. "Although we'll be competing against ourselves, it gives us a chance to see how our guys compete outside the wrestling room and who our starting line-up will be." Wrestle-offs will be followed by the season kickoff dinner and auction, which is set for 6 p.m at the Schwab Center on campus. Tickets to the dinner are $60 per person. Those interested in attending can contact McCoy at kmccoy@stanford.edu. The top two wrestlers in each weight class will be determined this week at practice, and will square off in the final bout on Saturday. In addition, Saturday's events will feature a number of exhibition matches. Those competing this week for the starting spot in each weight class are as follows: 125 - Tanner Gardner, Blair Matsuura, Austin Quarles 133 - Justin Paulsen, Porfirio Madrigal, Steve Scheele 141 - Matt Kim, Cameron Teitelman, Max Rosefigura 149 - Lucas Espericueta, Eric Minnick, Kenny White, Marcus Henderson, Trevor Stevens 157 - Josh Zupancic, Nick Amuchastegui, Murdoch Miller 165 - Bobby Pease, Peter Miller, Kyle Barrett, Max Hawes 174 - Luke Fiest, Kyle Anderson, Alex Muller 184 - No match 197 - Jake Johnson, Matt Winterbourne HWT - Phillip Doerner, Mark Shughart If you are interested in a 2007-08 Stanford wrestling media guide, please respond with your mailing address. Thanks!

EDMOND, Okla. -- Defending national champion Central Oklahoma and Nebraska-Kearney will enter the 2007-08 NCAA Division II wrestling season as co-No. 1s, according to the NCAA Division II Wrestling Coaches' Association preseason poll released Tuesday. The Bronchos captured their seventh Division II title last season by 16 points over the runner-up Antelopes and each team finished with four first-place votes and 155 points in balloting of coaches from around the country to share the No. 1 ranking. Minnesota State-Mankato was a solid third-place choice with 143 points while Adams State (Colo.) was fourth with 134 and Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) fifth with 122. Rounding out the top 10 is Upper Iowa, Nebraska-Omaha, Western State (Colo.), Wisconsin-Parkside and Chadron State (Neb.). UCO has four All-Americans back from last year's team, paced by undefeated national champion Kyle Evans. He enters the season ranked No. 1 at 141 pounds along with teammate Tyler Zukerman at 125. UNK has seven national placers returning, with defending champion and top-rated Tervel Dlagnev (285) leading the way along with 2006 champion and No. 1-ranked Brett Allgood (133). Chadron State also has two top-ranked individuals in Brett Hunter (165) and Josh Majerus (197). The 2008 NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships will be hosted by Upper Iowa on March 14-15 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The NCAA Division II Wrestling Coaches' Association Top 20 poll, with points and last year's national tournament finish: Rank School (State) Points Last Year's Finish T1. Central Oklahoma 155 1st T1. Nebraska-Kearney 155 2nd 3. Minnesota State-Mankato 143 4th 4. Adams State (Colo.) 134 5th 5. Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 122 7th 6. Upper Iowa 119 8th 7. Nebraska-Omaha 112 3rd 8. Western State (Colo.) 109 10th 9. Wisconsin-Parkside 88 20th 10. Chadron State (Neb.) 80 6th 11. Indianapolis (Ind.) 77 11th 12. Ashland (Ohio) 74 19th 13. Newberry (S.C.) 62 25th 14. Mercyhurst (Pa.) 43 15th 15. Minnesota State-Moorhead 38 18th 16. Findlay (Ohio) 37 12th 17. Limestone (S.C.) 33 T28th 18. Fort Hays State (Kan.) 24 14th 19. Northern State (S.D.) 23 T28th 20. Truman State (Mo.) 17 22nd Others receiving votes: Augustana (S.D.), Carson-Newman (Tenn.), Central Missouri, Gannon (Pa.), Shippensburg (Pa.), West Liberty State (W. Va.). Individual Rankings 125 Pounds 1. Tyler Zukerman, Central Oklahoma 2. Arsenia Barksdale, Adams State (Colo.) 3. Eddie Lopez, Western State (Colo.) 4. Chris Neidermeier, Belmont-Abbey (N.C.) 5. Derrek Bosso, Pittburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 6. Tyler Mumbulo, Upper Iowa 7. Nick Smith, Minnesota State-Mankato 8. Devlon Webb, Chadron State (Neb.) 133 Pounds 1. Brett Allgood, Nebraska-Kearney 2. Shane Perkey, Indianapolis (Ind.) 3. Brandon Reasy, Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 4. Marques Bravo, Western State (Colo.) 5. Craig DeGreef, Wisconsin-Parkside 6. Matt Mossor, West Liberty State (W. Va.) 7. Raymond Dunning, Adams State (Colo.) 8. Andrew Young, Newberry (S.C.) 141 Pounds 1. Kyle Evans, Central Oklahoma 2. Steven Fittery, Shippensburg (Pa.) 3. Doug Surra, West Liberty State (W. Va.) 4. Jeff Rutledge, Nebraska-Kearney 5. Joey Deaguero, Adams State (Colo.) 6. Yasiim Bribieseca, Nebraska-Omaha 7. Shane Valko, Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 8. Ross Mountour, New Mexico Highlands 149 Pounds 1. Mike Rogers, Carson-Newman (Tenn.) 2. Jason Rhoten, Minnesota State-Mankato 3. Don Cummings, Mercyhurst (Pa.) 4. Camille DuPont, Western State (Colo.) 5. Chris Chambers, Kutztown (Pa.) 6. Tee Adams, Upper Iowa 7. Latra Collick, Newberry (S.C.) 8. Marcus Gordon, Ashland (Ohio) 157 Pounds 1. Tony Guerra, Findlay (Ohio) 2. Jason Leavitt, Central Oklahoma 3. Joe Ellenberger, Nebraska-Kearney 4. Andy Lamancusa, Mercyhurst (Pa.) 5. Travis Eggers, Upper Iowa 6. Danny Grater, Fort Hays State (Kan.) 7. Michael Horton, Indianapolis (Ind.) 8. Michael Gallegos, Adams State (Colo.) 165 Pounds 1. Brett Hunter, Chadron State (Neb.) 2. Andy Pickar, Minnesota State-Mankato 3. Blake Peterson, Truman State (Mo.) 4. Zach Lee, Western State (Colo.) 5. Evan Copeland, Adams State (Colo.) 6. Taylor May, Nebraska-Kearney 7. Ross Taplin, Nebraska-Omaha 8. Mitch Norton, Upper Iowa 174 Pounds 1. Larry Wilbanks, Western State (Colo.) 2. Chris Gibbs, West Liberty State (W. Va.) 3. Andy Sinclair, Northern State (S.D.) 4. Tim Matheson, Minnesota State-Mankato 5. Tommy McCarty, Central Oklahoma 6. Jarrett Hall, Minnesota State-Moorhead 7. Albert Miles, Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 8. Brady Hakeman, Upper Iowa 184 Pounds 1. Jared Deaguero, Adams State (Colo.) 2. Austin Boehm, Nebraska-Omaha 3. Mike Corcetti, Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 4. Matt Farrell, Nebraska-Kearney 5. Heath Jolley, Central Oklahoma 6. Charlie Pipher, Western State (Colo.) 7. Pino Scavella, Gannon (Pa.) 8. Jeremy Hudson, Central Missouri 197 Pounds 1. Josh Majerus, Chadron State (Neb.) 2. Kelsey Empting, Nebraska-Kearney 3. Jon Treml, Wisconsin-Parkside 4. Tyler Gonzales, Fort Hays State (Kan.) 5. Kelly Anundson, Newberry (S.C) 6. Jacob Marrs, Nebraska-Omaha 7. Josh Ohl, Ashland (Ohio) 8. Todd Naasz, Northern State (S.D.) 285 Pounds 1. Tervel Dlagnev, Nebraska-Kearney 2. Travis Clark, Findlay (Ohio) 3. Brady Wilson, Minnesota State-Mankato 4. Dan Goodson, Upper Iowa 5. Chris Dempsey, Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 6. Trey Moss, Limestone (S.C.) 7. Cy Wainwright, Newberry (S.C.) 8. Jesse Laber, Mary (N.D.)

The traveling mic's of TDR will hit the road as we've been invited in for a special 2 hour in-depth look at the Iowa Hawkeye wrestling program. The Hawkeye's will hold their annual coaches clinic October 26-27 at the Dan Gable Wrestling Complex in Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City. Some 18 months ago Coach Tom Brands said that the Hawkeye's would replenish the depth in their room and make an effort to do so with the state's best talents. They are doing just that. This season Coach Brands will turn loose the VT 5 and those that are challenging for the various weight classes. What a difference a year can make. Hawkeyesports.com Recently Mark Ballweg, a state champion from Waverly-Shell Rock and one of the state's top college prospects, verbally committed to the Hawkeye's. He'll join a roster that includes his older brother, Matt, a redshirt freshman at Iowa. Osage, IA, native, Three-time all-American and former Hawkeye wrestler Doug Schwab has been named interim assistant wrestling coach at the University of Iowa. Schwab replaces Assistant Coach Dan Gable, who returned to his role as special assistant to the director of athletics earlier this month. Recently Schwab went 3-2 in his first World Championships effort. He dropped a 4-1, 1-0 decision to Georgia's Otar Tushishvili in the bronze-medal match. Tushivili lost to American and former Hawkeye Bill Zadick in the finals of the 2006 World Championships. We'll start this broadcast at 3:30 PM Friday. Our Guests will Include: Hawkeye Head Coach Tom Brands, Assistants Doug Schwab, Wes Hand, Dan Gable. Possible guests include Hawkeye Wrestlers and Clinic speakers: Bucknell University Assistant Coach Dave Hoffman and former Hawkeye wrestler John Oostendorp, who is the head wrestling coach at Coe College in Cedar Rapids. Join us for this special broadcast from 3:30 to 5:30 PM at Takedownradio.com, KXNO.com, Matchannel.com, Mat-magazine.com. Wrestlers and MMA competitors join us each and every week. You should too! TDR is available LIVE, Archived and Pod Cast as well. Visit Takedownradio.com for more details. Thanks for listening!

FAIRFIELD, CT -- Sacred Heart University athletic director Don Cook announced today that Casey Brewster has been appointed as head wrestling coach for the Pioneers, at the conclusion of a national search. "We think Casey will be a dedicated, high-energy coach who will help our student-athletes forge a solid work ethic that leads to excellence both in the classroom and on the mat," says Cook. "We are very excited to have him join our athletic family and we look forward to watching how he helps our program progress." A graduate of the University of West Virginia holds a degree in athletic coaching education. As a competitor while at WV, Brewster was a runner-up at the 2004 Eastern Wrestling League at 125 pounds, qualifying for the NCAA Championships. He was named an All-American after the 2004-05 season. He finished his collegiate career at Cumberland in Tennessee, where he was an NAIA All-American at 133 pounds in 2005. While training with the Mountaineers, Brewster had the opportunity to train with high-caliber mentors including Zeke Jones (Penn), Lou Rosselli (Ohio State) and Craig Turnbull (WVU). While living in Morgantown, Brewster was a member of the Sunkist Kids Wrestling Club and finished his collegiate career with a record of 66-28. A Nashville, TN native, Brewster served as a graduate assistant coach at his alma mater for the 2005 winter season. He moved on to Belmont Abbey College in North Carolina in December, and worked there until November when he was hired at Rutgers. Brewster has worked at several wrestling camps throughout Pennsylvania and West Virginia, starting as an undergraduate student. He also coached in California at the camp of his college wrestling coach at WV, Zeke Jones. Brewster takes over the Pioneer program from Andy Seras, who guided the team for five years and resigned to pursue other opportunities.

This week's edition of "On the Mat" will feature Arno Niemand and Dan Gable. Niemand is the owner and chairman of Body Bar Systems. This organization has been a major supporter of wrestling and a leader in promoting women's wrestling. Niemand is also a wrestling historian who has done considerable research on the 1947 NCAA championship won by tiny Cornell College. He recently gave presentations at the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater as well as a homecoming presentation in Mount Vernon. Gable was the head wrestling coach at the University of Iowa from 1977-1997. During his tenure he established a record of domination that has become legendary in sport. In 21 years as head coach, Gable led his teams to 15 NCAA titles, 21 Big Ten titles, and a 355-21-5 record. As a wrestler, Gable won two NCAA titles for Iowa State and compiled a 183-1 record throughout high school and college. At the 1972 Olympics he won a gold medal at 149.5 pounds without surrendering a single point. "On the Mat" is a weekly wrestling radio program that airs every Wednesday night. This week's broadcast can be heard live from 6-7 p.m. Central Standard Time. The Dan Gable International Wrestling Institute and Museum in Waterloo, Iowa, hosts the show. "On the Mat" can be heard live on the Internet at www.kcnzam.com or locally in Northeast Iowa on 1650, The Fan. Feel free to e-mail radio@wrestlingmuseum.org with questions or comments about the show.

In our continuing efforts to join the boundaries of the wrestling and mixed martial arts worlds we take our mobile Brute Adidas Studios on the road for 2 new episodes of Takedown Radio as we come to LIVE from Schaumburg, Illinois Saturday October 27th. Takedown Radio is now broadcast on the following internet outlets: Takedownradio.com, KXNO.com, Matchannel.com, Mat-magazine.com. Please be sure to join our live broadcast each and every Saturday as we talk to the worlds greatest athletes. TDR is available LIVE, Archived and Pod Cast. Visit Takedownradio.com for more details. This week our first show will be complete with news and interviews about wrestling and the collegiate scene along with the management and stars of the IFL and the wrestling worlds. October 27th, 2007 TDR Show # 1 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM CST October 27th, 2007 TDR Show # 2 11:30 AM to 5:00 PM CST Special IFL Program 100's of mixed martial athletes residing in many U.S. states – hailing from at least 10 other countries – will join us in Schaumburg, Illinois looking for spots on International Fight League teams at the IFL 2008 Draft. These top level athletes will exhibit all phases of their arsenals looking for a coveted spot among the pool of talented competitors selected by the coaches. The IFL is a team based competition much like wrestling. Scheduled guests to include: Founder of KUBED Fight Gear Kelvin Thompson, IFL Co-founder and Commissioner Kurt Otto, "IFL Battleground" host Bas Rutten, IFL man in the know Jerry Milani Join us for this special broadcast from 9 to 11 AM at Takedownradio.com, KXNO.com, Matchannel.com, Mat-magazine.com. Wrestlers and MMA competitors join us each and every week. You should too! TDR is available LIVE, Archived and Pod Cast as well. Visit Takedownradio.com for more details. Thanks for listening!

COLUMBUS, Ohio –- With the Ohio State wrestling team's season beginning in less than a month, the squad held preliminary wrestle offs Thursday in the Steelwood Athletic Training Facility to narrow down potential starters for the 2007-08 season. The winners from the wrestle offs Thursday will compete in the finals at 8 p.m. Oct. 25 in St. John Arena. Nine of the 10 weight classes will be featured next Thursday, as 141 will not be contested. At 125 pounds, freshman Nikko Triggas will match up against classmate Pat Harrington. Will Livingston, who moved up a weight class after starting at 125 pounds his freshman year, will face junior Reece Humphrey. All-American sophomore Lance Palmer and freshman Tyler Meek will headline the 149-pound weight class, while St. Edward product and freshman Sean Nemec will meet fellow freshman Brendan Beucler at 157 pounds. The second half of weight classes will highlight Colt Sponseller, the 2007 NHSCA High School Wrestler of the Year, and Ross Ambrose at 165 pounds. After redshirting in 2006-07, Alex Picazo returns to meet Tommy Priestley at 174 pounds. Up next will be All-American Mike Pucillo wrestling Wes Bergman at 184 pounds, while John Weakley and Zack Weinrich will contest for the 197-pound class. Finally, at heavyweight, two-time All-American J.D. Bergman will face either Corey Morrison or Eric DiAgosta, who will wrestle for a spot in the finals this Saturday. The finals will follow the first day of the 2007 Ohio State Coaches Clinic. Those attending the coaches clinic will be admitted into the event for free. Tickets for the general public are $5. Ohio State Wrestle Offs Thursday, Oct. 25, 8 p.m. St. John Arena 125 – Nikko Triggas vs. Pat Harrington 133 – Will Livingston vs. Reece Humphrey 141 – No wrestle off 149 – Lance Palmer vs. Tyler Meek 157 – Sean Nemec vs. Brendan Beucler 165 – Colt Sponseller vs. Ross Ambrose 174 – Alex Picazo vs. Tommy Priestley 184 – Mike Pucillo vs. Wes Bergman 197 – John Weakley vs. Zack Weinrich HWT – J.D. Bergman vs. Corey Morrison/Eric DiAgosta

Stanford, Calif. -- The Stanford wrestling program has named its 2007-08 captains announced Head Coach Kerry McCoy today. Senior Tanner Gardner, senior Josh Zupancic, senior Phillip Doerner and junior Luke Feist have been voted by their teammates to lead the Cardinal for the upcoming season. Gardner, one of three fifth year seniors on the 2007-08 squad, begins his third season as a Cardinal captain. The 125-pounder from Berryton, Kans. earned his second All-America honor with a seventh place finish at the NCAA Championships last season, and will look to become Stanford's first three-time All-American this year. Gardner, the defending Pac-10 Champion, also set a school record with 42 wins last year and became just the fourth wrestler in program history to join the 100-career-win club. Zupancic, who also returns for his fifth year, will captain the squad for the first time this season. Last year, he claimed second place in the Pac-10 at 157 pounds, qualified for his first NCAA Championship and upended three seeded opponents on his way to a seventh place national finish and his first All-America honor. Doerner, Stanford's third fifth year senior, will return to his role as the team's starting heavyweight this season and begin his first year as a captain. The Oklahoma City native gained valuable experience last season with a tough schedule that included six ranked opponents, and finished the season on a high note, winning his last two conference dual matches and three of his last five bouts. Feist, a redshirt junior, will captain the squad for the first time this year. As a sophomore last season, Feist won a personal-best 25 matches, placed fourth in the Pac-10 and qualified for his first NCAA Championship. "This group of guys has done a great job of leading by example the last few years," said McCoy on the team's selections. "I think they'll really be able to lead in a more active way this year and help us to achieve our goals as a team." Stanford kicks off the 2007-08 season next Saturday, Oct. 27 with the squad's annual Wrestle-offs set for 2 p.m.

TEMPE, Ariz. -- The Arizona State University wrestling team will hold its annual Maroon and Gold Wrestle-Off on Saturday, November 3, starting at 11 a.m. inside the Riches Wrestling Complex in Tempe. The event, which will be used to help determine the team's starting line up for its season-opening duals at UC Davis and Portland State the following weekend, will feature a dual meet format with 15 bouts scheduled. Admission is free for the event and will follow a coaches and wrestlers clinic which starts at 9 a.m. The maroon team will be led by senior captains Rick Renzi (174) and Jason Trulson (197) with former Sun Devil All-American CB Dollaway serving as the alumni coach. The gold squad will be led by senior captain and two-time Pac-10 champion Patrick Pitsch (165) with two-time All-American Ryan Bader serving as the alumni coach. Here are the bouts that are scheduled for the event: 125 - Anthony Robles (M) vs. Angel Alegre (G) 125 - David Prado (M) vs. Ryan Taylor (G) 133 - Orlando Jimenez (M) vs. Todd Schavrien (G) 133 - Tyler Bowles (M) vs. Danny Galvan (G) 141 - Chris Drouin (M) vs. Robert Galvan (G) 149 - Preston Pruett (M) vs. Lucas Mariacher (G) 149 - Vicente Varela (M) vs. Jerrad Trulson (G) 157 - Jalonn Wilkins (M) vs. Cameron Smith (G) 165 - Cory Nelson (M) vs. Patrick Pitsch (G) 165 - Kyle DeBerry (M) vs. Michael Swigart (G) 174 - Rick Renzi (M) vs. Jeff Cappellini (G) 184 - Jake Cranford (M) vs. Brent Chriswell (G) 197 - Jason Trulson (M) vs. Thor Moen (G) 285 - Quinton Pruett (M) vs. Kenny Lester (G) 285 - Nick Williams (M) vs. Imanibom Etukeren (G)