Clarion returns to Tippin Gymnasium for the penultimate dual of the season, taking on Ohio Sunday (Feb. 15). The Golden Eagle's Scholar-Wrestlers will be recognized prior to the 2:00 p.m. match.

Clarion at a Glance
Clarion (6-5 overall, 3-4 in the MAC) has dropped two straight after opening 2026 with a six-match win streak.

Travis Clawson's third-period victory in Clarion's last match against George Mason (Feb. 13) ran the 125-pounder's winning streak to eight. He has a dual meet record of 9-1, 6-1 in MAC contests. Clawson (20-5) is ranked #33 by Intermat and was #4 in the MAC's January rankings. Joey Fischer (133 pounds) will be looking for his fourth straight win. He is 9-2 in duals, a perfect 7-0 in MAC competition. Fischer (17-8) was ranked #4 by the MAC in January. Clawson and Fisher both appear in the newly released RPI rankings (Feb. 12), the former 24th at 125 pounds and the latter 30th at 133 pounds.

RPI is based on a wrestler's winning percentage, opponents' winning percentage (strength of schedule), and opponents' opponent winning percentage (opponent's strength of schedule). Only matches against Division I opposition are considered and a wrestler needs to have at least 15 matches to be ranked.

Adrian Gacek (184 pounds) seven-match win streak came to an end against George Mason. He has a dual meet record of 7-4 (12-11 overall) and is 4-3 against MAC opponents.

Alejandro Herrera-Rondon is 5-3 in duals and 15-7 overall. The MAC's January rankings had him #4 at 165 pounds.

Other possible starters with winning records are 157-pounder Wesley Barnes (14-9) and 141-pounder Scott Johnson (11-7).

Clarion is 2-0 in Tippin this season with wins over Buffalo and Bloomsburg.

Ohio at a Glance

Losers of their last five, Ohio (5-8 overall, 1-4 in the MAC) enters the dual having most recently dropped a match to Kent State, 20-19 on criteria (Feb. 6). Clarion beat Kent State 19-18 on criteria at the end of last month (Jan. 31). Ohio hasn't won since January 10, a 31-13 victory over Bloomsburg at the NWCA National Duals in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It was the second time the Bobcats downed the Huskies this season, winning a home dual at the beginning of the new year, 37-3 (Jan. 2). Clarion likewise beat Bloomsburg last month at home, 29-11 (Jan. 29). Both Ohio and Clarion have wins against Gardner-Webb this campaign, the former in December and the latter during January.

Garrett Thompson (10-1) won the MAC championship in 2025 at 174 pounds and was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler. Thompson also qualified for NCAAs in 2023 and 2024, both times as a 165-pounder. He is Intermat's #22 ranked and Flo's #23 at 174 pounds. The MAC had him at #1 in its January rankings.

The Bobcats have two other NCAA qualifiers in their line-up, Sal Perrine (184 pounds) and Zayne Lehman (197 pounds). Perrine (#15 Intermat/#19 Flo) qualified for the national tournament in 2022 and 2023, both times at 174 pounds. He has a 14-4 record. The MAC ranked him #1 at 184 pounds in January. Lehman (#20 Intermat/#25 Flo) advanced to the NCAA tournament in 2023 as a 184-pounder. He enters Sunday's dual with a 14-2 mark. In January, Lehman was the MACs #2 197-pounder.

Derek Raike (157 pounds) is ranked #29 by Intermat and #33 by Flo. He sports a 14-5 record. A Co-MAC Wrestler of the Week during the first month of the season (Nov. 25), the conference ranked him #4 in January.
In the recently released coach's poll (Feb. 12), Raike is #21 at his weight, Thompson #20, Perrine #21, and Lehman #24. Raike is 28th, Perrine 26th, and Lehman 25th in the first RPI rankings. 

Brayden Tennissen (125 pounds) has a winning record, 14-11.

Ohio is a charter member of the MAC, joining the conference in 1946. The Bobcats are 3-3 when they travel outside their home in Athens.

Clarion vs. Ohio
Clarion lost its first meeting with Ohio in 1971 and has had spotty success since, posting a 2-9-1 mark. The Golden Eagles are 1-0 against the Bobcats in conference duals. The last time these teams met, Clarion took a 25-12 victory in Tippin Gymnasium, improving its home record versus Ohio to 2-6.

Fischer is 1-0 against potential Ohio starter Ryan Meek, shutting him out, 5-0, at the 2024 MAC tournament. John Meyers is 1-0 wrestling possible opponent Wyatt Schmidt, blanking him 12-0 in January 2025.

Scholar-Wrestlers
Prior to the match, twenty-seven Golden Eagles will be honored as Scholar-Wrestlers in recognition of academic achievement and commitment to performing in the classroom. To be considered a Scholar-Wrestler, the student-athlete must have earned a grade point average of 3.0 or higher the previous semester and/or attained a cumulative grade point average of at least a 3.0.