(Clarion, Pa.): NCAA Division I wrestling returns to Waldo S. Tippin Gym on Saturday, January 12 when the Golden Eagles host a double dual meet with North Carolina and Michigan State.
The schedule on Saturday shows North Carolina meeting Michigan State at Noon, with Clarion wrestling North Carolina at 2pm and then Michigan State at 4pm. The Clarion – North Carolina match can be heard live on the radio on WCCR-FM 92.7 in Clarion, as well as on the internet at redzonemedia.com, with
Rich Herman calling the action.
“We are looking forward to the challenge of wrestling against two quality programs,” said Clarion first year head coach
Troy Letters. “We are also excited for our fans since they get to see some outstanding wrestling all day long. This will be a great atmosphere for wrestling.”
The Golden Eagles are 1-4 in dual meet action, having lost to then #18 Rutgers (26-6), defeated Eastern Michigan 21-10, lost to #10 Northwestern 26-9 and #20 Edinboro 28-12 and then lost to #13 rated Pitt 26-15. The Golden Eagles also placed second at the 70
th Annual PSAC Championships in December.
The Golden Eagles, under the direction of first year head coach
Troy Letters, will likely feature the following lineup -
Tyler Fraley (Fr. 8-6; Freehold, n.J) at 125; Joe Waltko (Sr. 10-11; Allison Park) at 133; John Matacic (Fr. 9-7; N. Jackson, Ohio) at 141; Tyler Bedelyon (Jr. 11-9; Lewistown) at 149; #4 ranked James Fleming (Sr. 18-2; West Mifflin) at 157; Nick Milano (Jr. 3-9; Erie, Pa.) at 165; Ryan Darch (So. 5-9; Batavia, N.Y.) at 174; Steven Cressley (Sr. 6-10; Punxsutawney) at 184; Justin Ortega (Gr. 11-9; Oxford) at 197 and Phil Catrucco (Sr. 15-12; Sharpsville) at 285.
North Carolina, led by 10
th year head coach C.D. Mock, enters Saturday with a 1-2 dual meet record. The Tar Heels have at 36-6 win over South Dakota state, with a 21-16 loss to Arizona State and a 25-12 loss to Nebraska. UNC finished tied for 18
th at the Midlands Championships with 32.5 points.
The North Carolina lineup features four ranked wrestlers including #12 Nathan Kaiser (19-4) at 125, #17 Joey Ward (14-5) at 133, #6 Evan Henderson (22-5) at 141 and #19 Alex Utley (16-7) at 184 pounds. The other members of the UNC lineup will likely be Nick Heilman (15-9) or Christian Barber (16-9) at 149, Jake Crawford (9-3) at 157, John staudenmayer (14-7) at 165, Tanner Eitel (0-0) or Frank Abbondanza (7-8) at 174, Anontio Giorgio (8-5) at 197 and Cody Klempay (1-4) at 285.
Michigan State is led by veteran head coach Tom Minkel (21
st season), who has the Spartans checking in on Saturday with a record of 4-3. The Spartans have wins over Eastern Michigan (25-11), Northern Illinois (25-9), Bucknell (28-11) and Lindsey Wilson (28-12). Losses have been against Edinboro (22-12), Wisconsin (19-12) and Purdue (26-10).
MSU has three ranked wrestlers including #20 Dan Osterman (14-5) at 149-pounds and #20 David Cheza (6-0) at 157 and #4 rated Mike McClure (20-1) at 285. Other likely starters include Brenan Lynch (7-5) at 125, Brandon Fifield (9-7) at 133; Nick Trimble (6-10) at 141; Nick Proctor (13-6) at 165, Jordan Wohlfert (14-7) at 174, John Rizqallah (17-4) at 184, and Luke Jones (15-6) at 197.
CLARION NOTES: Clarion has series record of 5-3 against North Carolina and an 0-3 mark against Michigan State… Clarion last wrestled the Tar Heels at North Carolina in 2011 and lost 32-10 … the result is listed below… Clarion defeated UNC 25-19 in 2010 at Tippin Gym… Clarion last wrestled Michigan State in 2002 and lost 34-7… Clarion will next wrestle at Kent State on January 20 at 2pm…
James Fleming enters Saturday with a season record of 18-2 and a career record of 110-18 at Clarion with 35 falls and 17 technical falls. He is tied for 17
th in career wins with former 4-time All-American Bryan Stout (1994-97). Ahead are All-Americans Ken Haselrig (84-87) and Dan Payne (92-95) who had 111 career wins, and Paul Clark (113-26-1) and Ken Nellis (113-28-5) who are in with 113 wins.
