York tops McDaniel
York defeated McDaniel last night 30-21. InterMat was there with the coverage.
Messiah Wins Opening Invitational
Messiah College paced a seven team field with six finalists and four champions to win the Messiah Invitational and kick off their 2007-2008 season. Falcon champions were Bryce Stever (125), Domineak Commodore (133), Mike Bressler (157), and Trent Zempel (165). Dave Jones (174) and Matt McHugh (184) placed second for Messiah.
Head Coach Bryan Brunk observed, “It was a team championship earned by a total team effort and with room for improvement,” recognizing that this weekend was the first step in a long season. For Messiah, Stever, Commodore, and Bressler each opened their careers with a tournament championship, while Jones began college wrestling with three wins and a close loss to returning All-American Drew Winfield of McDaniel. The young Messiah team saw five wrestlers place in the top four in their first taste of college wrestling.
Several of the teams in attendance were without some top wrestlers, as King’s was missing 133 lb. national champion Dave Morgan and Case Western was without 141 lb. national qualifier David Manoogian. Ursinus also did not send many starters, including national qualifier Steve Kingsland.
In other weights, Waynesburg freshman Nick Garber dominated with 2 falls and an 11-6 decision to win at 141. At 149, Case’s Drew Gardella won as the top seed, defeating freshman Matt Cole from Johns Hopkins. 184 saw national qualifier Eric Fishel from Johns Hopkins roll to the championship, demonstrating impressive scrambling ability. Tyler Schmidt gave Hopkins another champ at 197, winning a five man bracket. At 285, Matt Williams of Ursinus lived up to the #1 seed, defeating freshman Brock Glotfelty of McDaniel in the final.
Brew 4th at Eastern Michigan Open
Jason Brew of Olivet was the top finisher for a limited squad from Olivet at the Eastern Michigan Open this past weekend. He won four matches to match the top all-time finish for an Olivet wrestler in the event. Other Olivet wrestlers including Kyle LaBrecque competed and picked up some wins. Coach Todd Hibbs comments on Brew’s performance, “It was a brutal weight class, with DII returning champion Guerra of Findlay finishing fifth.” Also, “several frosh and Labrecque were able to pick up a couple of wins, which was good experience against a talented field.”
Olivet is back in action at the Muskegon Open this weekend.
NEWA Rankings #1
The first New England Wrestling Association Rankings are out and can be found by clicking below or in the Rankings section of d3wrestle.com
TCNJ Champs at Ithaca
For the third consecutive year, The College of New Jersey brought home the title at the Ithaca Invitational. Paced by three champs and six total finalists, the Lions outpaced second place Ithaca by 30 points to win first place. Ray Sarinelli (133), Tyler Branham (149), and Shawn VanWingerden (197) each placed first, with Sarinelli winning a loaded weight class to also achieve Outstanding Wrestler honors. 2007 NCAA qualifiers Anthony Gummerson (Centenary), Justin Seifreid (Ithaca), Stephen Valastro (USM), and Sarinelli were all in the 133 pound bracket, and Sarinelli came out on top.
Tyler Branham also won a tough weight class featuring the 7th, 8th, and 9th ranked wrestlers at 149. #9 Matt Shank (Gettysburg) stopped #8 Steve Hult (NYU) in the semifinals before falling in sudden victory to 2007 All-American Branham. “Sarinelli did an excellent job, and Branham handled the jump in weight pretty well,” commented Head Coach Dave Icenhower, adding, “We hope to use this as a starting block.”
Also winning for TCNJ was Shawn VanWingerden. “I was pleased that VanWingerden, who was 1-2 at Ithaca in ’06, had such improvement,” said Icenhower. “I was pleased with the overall performance of the team. We seem to have a pretty good balance, and freshmen (John) Barnett and (Kyle) Kinchen did a good job in their first college competition.”
In the other weights, at 125 RIT’s #8 Mike McInally dominated the field at 125, winning handily over #9 Anthony Nicolicchia (RWU) 5-0. Top seed Willie Horwath (Ithaca) cruised to the finals at 141 where he stopped Joey Widrick (Cortland) 6-3. 2007 NCAA Qualfier Andrew Goldstein (Gettysburg) outclassed the competition on his feet and was not seriously challenged at 157 until defeating Dan DeNicolo (TCNJ) 7-5. Cortland’s Zach Bogardus, who lost in the All-America round last year, defeated unseeded Al Wonesh (TCNJ) 6-1 at 165. At 174, Hunter’s Andre DeCristo stopped freshman David Priest of Ithaca who had earlier defeated 9th ranked Corey Barber (Cortland) and 8th ranked Greg Osgoody (TCNJ). 184 saw Hunter teammates Peter Madden and Joey Scott compete in the finals, with Scott taking the victory. All-American Anthony Coleman (NYU) placed 3rd. At 285, 4th ranked Jake Taylor pinned all five of his opponents with only Gettysburg freshman Bobby Christopher surviving the first period. Taylor won the Most Falls Award for the third consecutive year.
Former Luther Wrestlers Honored
Dan Klavitter and State Representative Chuck Gipp were each honored by the Iowa Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association. Klavitter received the “Medal of Courage Award,” while Gipp received the “Outstanding American Award.” Both wrestled for Luther College. See the article below.
Tournament Results 11/3 and 11/4
Washington & Jefferson (poor quality)
Mike Clock Open (Pacific)
MoTW: Ithaca Invitational
The Match of the Week (MoTw) for the first week of the season is the Ithaca Invitational. This season opening event brings together some of the tougher teams in the East for the first week of the season. 15 teams travel to upstate New York to kick off the 2007-2008 season. TCNJ (8), Cortland (9), Ithaca (14), RWU (20), RIT (27), and NYU (30) are ranked teams in attendance, and there could be as many as 21 wrestlers ranked in the initial NWCA rankings, including four at 149. Returning All-Americans could include Justin Seifreid (Ithaca), Tyler Branham (TCNJ), Paul LeBlanc (Cortland), and Treavor LeBlanc (Cortland). With not every team getting started this weekend, opportunities for competition are limited, so the tough teams getting going this early in the East are mostly at this event.
149 looks to be especially tough with wrestlers ranked 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th all scheduled to compete. It’s a great chance for one of these wrestlers to really prove himself right off the bat.
Ithaca Invitational
Event Website
November 3rd & 4th, 2007
Ben Light Gymnasium at Ithaca College
Teams: Centenary, Coast Guard, Cortland, Gettysburg, Hunter, Ithaca, JWU, Morrisville, Norwich, NYU, Oswego, RIT, Roger Williams, TCNJ, USM
Last Year: 2006 Event Website
Messiah Invitational Preview
The Messiah Invitational rolls into another year as an early season tuneup for the teams in attendance. While not nearly the same caliber of event as the Ithaca Invitational going on the same weekend, the Messiah Invitational will give the seven teams attending a chance to get their feet wet in 2007-2008 as they prepare for tougher matches ahead. No ranked teams will attend the Messiah Invitational, though there could be four ranked individuals in the tournament. All-Americans David Morgan (King’s) and Drew Winfield (McDaniel) headline the field for the season opener. Messiah College will host a tougher tournament in a few weeks when the Petrofes Invitational begins on November 30th.
Messiah Invitational
November 3rd, 2007
Hitchcock Arena at Messiah College
Teams: Case Western Reserve, Johns Hopkins, King’s, McDaniel, Messiah, Ursinus (partial squad), Waynesburg
Last Year: 2006 Event Website
Events this weekend
Here are some events with Division III teams in attendance as 2007-2008 kicks off
Ithaca Invitational – 15 D3 teams
Messiah Invitational – 7 D3 teams
Eastern Michigan Open – Brockport, Mount St. Joseph
NIACC Open – St. Olaf, Dubuque, Buena Vista
Washington & Jefferson Open – W&J, Mount Union, Thiel, Scranton
Mike Clock Open at Pacific – Pacific
Ithaca Preview
All previews can be seen by clicking the link in the left hand column.
Ithaca will be a very young team again this year, looking to start 8 sophomores and 1 freshman. Â There are several weights that could be won by freshman if they can improve. Â Ithaca looks to improve on last years record of 9-3, conference finish of 3rd and NCAA finish of 17th. Â Ithaca is looking for strong leadership from Jr. Scott Edwards and So. AA Justin Seifried leading into the 2007-08 season.
School: Ithaca
Head Coach: Marty Nichols
Years at School: 12 season
Assistant Coaches:  Dave Auble,  Ryan Ciotoli,  Mike  Fusilli
2006-2007 Dual Meet Record: 9-3
2007 NCAA Place: 17th
2007 National Qualifying Tournament Place: 3rd in ECWC
Returning NCAA Qualifiers and All-Americans: All-American Justin Seifried (133)
Total Number of Returning Starters: 9
Notable Incoming Freshmen:
David Priest – 2X PA qualifier
Nick Sanko – 2X PA qualifier
Blaine Woszczak – NJ State Place winner
Projected Lineup:
125: Jon Gregory/Chad Winowich
133: Justin Seifried
141: Willie Horwath
149: John Paxos
157: Scott Edwards
165: John Dale
174: David Priest
184: AJ Rosenberg
197: Dave Sbrisca
285: Joe Goetz
NWCA Preseason Rankings
October 23rd Rankings – all rankings will also be found on the Rankings page
Next Rankings November 13th
Ranking Committee: Mike Howard, Rich Husenfus, Jim Miller, Kerry Volkmann, Chris Walter, Dave Icenhower
UW-Platteville Preview
All completed previews available by clicking the link in the left hand column.
Following a season with multiple All-Americans for the first time since 1998 and a dual meet upset win over powerhouse UW-La Crosse, expectations are high for Platteville in 2007-2008. All-American and 3x national qualifier Zach Chambers has graduated, but 8th place finisher Ryan Higgins and national qualifier Jesse Milks return to lead the Pioneers. Joining them will be a group of incoming freshmen including 6 state qualifiers and 2 state champions. Seven wrestlers with winning records in 2006-2007 return, among them Higgins and Milks.
School: UW-Platteville
Head Coach: Chris Walter
Years at School: 11
Assistant Coaches: Keith Albert, Les Hollingsworth
2006-2007 Dual Meet Record: 7-5
2007 NCAA Place: 13th
2007 National Qualifying Tournament Place: 5th WIAC
Returning NCAA Qualifiers and All-Americans: Ryan Higgins-8th at 149lbs, Jesse Milks-National Qualifier
Total Number of Returning Starters: 6
Notable Incoming Freshmen: Vinny Alber, Greg Burke, Ross George, Cody Weber, Dillion Pontack, Matt Scott
Projected Lineup
125: Andrew Skog, Brett Olson
133: Jeff Gale, Spencer Peterson
141: Matt McGill, Vinny Alber
149: Ryan Higgins, Dan Azarian
157: Jesse Milks, Mike Nell
165: Cory Zuberbier, Carsten Carlson
174: Open
184: Brad Zellner
197: Matt Beschta
285: Paul Wochinski
Pacific Preview
All completed previews available by clicking the link in the left hand column.
Pacific is a unique school in Division III wrestling in that they rarely wrestle against Division III competition until the Great Lakes Regional. This is not a complete surprise, as the nearest Division III team to Pacific is over 1,500 miles away. Thus, they end up competing against NAIA, NJCAA, Division II, and Division I schools. In dealing with some key losses to graduation, Pacific hopes that the incoming freshmen will help fill the gap left by wrestlers like Kevin Spangler, a 30 match winner of a year ago. With several state champions joining the team, Coach Scott Miller plans to improve upon the team’s 12th place regional finish of 2007 and qualify a wrestler for the NCAA tournament for the first time in several years.
School: Pacific University
Head Coach: Scott Miller
Years at School: 6
Assistant Coaches: Jacob Pence, Lewis Coy, Kris Sherrill, Kevin Spangler
2006-2007 Dual Meet Record: 5-11
2007 NCAA Place: —
2007 National Qualifying Tournament Place: 12th Great Lakes Regional
Returning NCAA Qualifiers and All-Americans: —
Total Number of Returning Starters: 7
Notable Incoming Freshmen:
Blaine Shippy (Spokane, WA) State Placewinner
Matt Kostelnik (Oroville, WA) State Champ
Kody Kramer (Oroville, WA) State Champ
Jordan Branson (Sheridan, OR) State Qualifier
Projected Lineup (feel free to list multiple names at each weight if unsure about the starter)
125: Andrew Wolfe
133: Fausto Baltazar
141: Trevor Arsenault
149: Nathan Shay
157: Justin Barden
165: Bryson Vivas
174: Matt Bowe
184: Nick Locke
197: Jordan Branson
285: C.J. Aalona
Wilkes Preview
All completed previews available by clicking the link in the left hand column.
Wilkes had a frustrating 2007 with the team missing four starters in the second half due to injury. Among these was 2006 3rd place finisher Brandon Kelly, whose talent was missed in duals and the Metro tournament. The team returns a nucleus of talented wrestlers that was ranked as high as #11 last year along with a nice freshman class that will look to crack the line-up. With good depth, Wilkes hopes to bounce back in 2007-2008 and improve both their record and conference finish. Coach Laudenslager has upgraded the schedule to include the East Stroudsburg Open, Bud Whitehill Duals and a date in February where they will test themselves against three Division I schools. The experience of the squad combined with talented newcomers should provide for an exciting year.
School: Wilkes University
Head Coach: Jon Laudenslager
Years at School: 5th
Assistant Coaches: Mitch Marcks, Rory Tobias, Alex Wilson
2006-2007 Dual Meet Record: 10-9
2007 NCAA Place: 47th
2007 National Qualifying Tournament Place: 5th Metropolitan
Returning NCAA Qualifiers and All-Americans: 125 Felipe Queiroz (’06 AA, ’07 Qual.)
Total Number of Returning Starters: 8
Notable Incoming Freshmen:
133 Ryan Wilson (Wall, NJ) NJ SQ 2006
133 Brandon Prentice (Wallkill Valley, NJ) NJ 7th
141 Tyler Perry (Berwick, PA) PA 4th
184 Chris Smith (High Point, NJ) NJ SQ
197 James Gonzalez (Pocono Mountain West, PA) District XI Champ
285 Levi Stern (Lehighton, PA) PA SQ
197 Zach Pizarro (Easton, PA) PA SQ 2005
Projected Lineup
125: Felipe Queiroz/Shaun Farnham
133: Josh Pauling/Brandon Prentice/Ryan Wilson
141: Donny Clark/Pete George/Tyler Perry
149: Adam Penberthy(141)/Erik Smith/Derek Brownmiller
157: Justin Barowski(165)/Andrew Franko/Joe Henshaw
165: Frank Heffernan(157)/Rich Clocker/Travis Davis
174: Josh Ballan/Josh Lamb/Tom Leggio
184: Colin Nagy/Devin Sassone-McHugh(197)/Chris Smith
197: Stan Brudnicki/Angelo DiLeo/James Gonzalez/Zach Pizarro
285: Andrew Feldman/Levi Stern/Jake Weinrich
Knox Preview
All completed previews available by clicking the link in the left hand column.
Knox returns one of its most experienced teams in years. All-American Jaran Rutledge returns after a 3rd place finish at 285 last year as a legitimate title contender. He was the first All-American from Knox, and their first national qualifier since 1980. The rest of the team has several years of experience under their belts and has the potential to improve the placement of Knox and tournaments and the Great Lakes Region. With one dual meet win in the past two seasons, there is room for improvement, and this year’s team seems best constructed to do so.
School: Knox College
Head Coach: Tony Islas
Years at School: 7
Assistant Coaches: Frank McAndrew
2006-2007 Dual Meet Record: 0-11
2007 NCAA Place: 25th
2007 National Qualifying Tournament Place: 14th Great Lakes Region
Returning NCAA Qualifiers and All-Americans: AA Jaran Rutledge (285)
Total Number of Returning Starters: 8
Notable Incoming Freshmen: Edel Vaca 3x Sect. Qual. IL, Dugan O’Connor 2X Sect. Qual. IL, Dan Stafford 3x Sect. Qual. IL, Issac Juarez, Ben Boor-MD State Qual. 215, Andrew Federman-MA 4th State 275
Projected Lineup
125: Ryan Olson
133: Edel Vaca/Tim Yee
141: Tim Yee/ Drew Flock
149: Drew Flock/Dugan O’Connor
157: Dan Stafford
165: Luke Karner
174: Aaron Barnet
184: Marty Dertz
197: Greg Leibach/Ben Boor/Issac Juarez
285: Jaran Rutledge/Josh Jackson/Andrew Federman
Baldwin-Wallace Preview
All completed previews available by clicking the link in the left hand column.
Baldwin-Wallace had one of the best seasons in school history last year, finishing 14th in the NCAA tournament with three qualifiers and two All-Americans. Gino Russo placed 6th at 165, while Bryan Kmetz had his only loss of 2006-2007 in the national finals to Wartburg’s Blake Gillis. Russo and qualifier Burger return along with seven other starters, giving B-W a strong team that hopes to again challenge Heidelberg for the OAC title.
School: Baldwin–Wallace College
Head Coach: Rich Fleming
Years at School: 20
Assistant Coaches: Sean Folk, Aldo Campea
2006-2007 Dual Meet Record: 12-10
2007 NCAA Place: 14th
2007 National Qualifying Tournament Place: 2nd OAC
Returning NCAA Qualifiers and All-Americans: 165 Gino Russo 6th 197 Paul Burger NQ
Total Number of Returning Starters: 9
Notable Incoming Freshmen:
Andrew Scavuzzo 6th State
Tyler Erwin SQ
Kory Leonhard SQ
Projected Lineup
125: Tyler Erwin
133: Brian Bucher
141: Chris Hamed
149: Mohamed Salem
157: Joe Incorvaia
165: Gino Russo
174: Jeremy Feador
184: Antonio Campea
197: Kenny Jones
285: Paul Burger
Concordia (MN) Preview
All completed previews available by clicking the link in the left hand column.
The Cobbers moved into the national rankings last season and return 7 starters in 2007. The Cobbers also return 2006 regional runnerup Luke Vetsch. Vetsch returns after sitting out last season with an injury. Eight returning wrestlers posted winning records last year including Joe Leacox and Lane Lunde with 27 victories. Logan Lunde and Tony Neumann also topped 20 wins. With 19 freshman and transfers joining the team, the Cobbers are excited about this season. Concordia will take part in the National Duals for the first time in school history as they try to take the next step.
School: Concordia College (Mn)
Head Coach: Clay Nagel
Years at School: 4th year
Assistant Coaches: Dennis Kaatz(3rd), Greg Schmitz (1yr), Andy Quittschreiber (1st)
2006-2007 Dual Meet Record: 9-5
2007 NCAA Place: —
2007 NCAA Qualifying Tournament Place: 13th Great Lakes Region
Total number of Returning Starters: 7
Notable Incoming Freshman:
Jason Brill 125 (Little Falls Mn.) 05 Junior Greco All-America
Ben Anderson 141 (Frazee, Mn) Mn. State Champ
Alex Burkel 141 (Roseau, Mn) 4th in state
Justin Berns 149 (Perham, Mn) Mn. State Runnerup
James Armstrong 157 (Belgrade Mt) Montana State Runnerup
Phil Moenkedick 174 (Perham,Mn) Mn State Runnerup
Garrett Muro 197 (Henderson, Nev) 3rd in State
Projected Lineup:
125: Jason Brill(Fr)/ Alex Vosberg (Fr)
133: Joe Leacox (So)
141: PJ Mack (Jr)/Josiah Simburger (So)/Ben Anderson (Fr0
149: Justin Berns (Fr) / Joe Meinert (Fr0
157: Lane Lunde (So)
165: Logan Lunde (Se)/ Spencer Lund (Jr)
174: Cody Salo (Jr)/Luke Vetsch (So)/ Phil Moenkedick (Fr)
184: Vetsch/Moenkedick/ DJ Ringquist (So)
197: Tony Neumann (JR)/ Garrett Muro (Fr)
285: Adam Westby (Se)/ Travis Aufderheide (Jr)
Coaching Changes
NCAA Division III Coaching Changes Since the NCAA Tournament:
Schools with New Coaches
Augsburg – Sam Barber replaces Jeff Swenson
Augustana – Eric Juergens replaces Pat Marsh
Bridgewater State – Derek Coombs replaces Mike Kenney
Central – Eric Van Kley replaces Eric Reed
College of Mount St. Joseph – Casey Stouffer replaces Tom Wynn
Gettysburg – Andy Vogel replaces Troy Dell
Manchester – Matt Burlingame replaces Tom Jarman
McDaniel – Davey Blake replaces Sam Gardner
Mount Union – Mark Hawald replaces Marcus Lambdin
Muskingum – Joe Montgomery replaces Phil Witker
Plymouth State – Tommy Prairie replaces Jason Holder
Stevens Institute of Technology – Mike Clayton replaces Andy Lausier
Trinity College – Stephen Makein replaces Keith Poloskey
Western New England – Anibal Nieves replaces Jeff Peterson
Worcester Polytechnic Institute – Lance Baden replaces Sean Nelligan
