Huskers Face Tough Field at 2005 Nebraska Duals

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The 11th-ranked Nebraska wrestling team looks to continue its strong start to the 2005-06 season with a pair of wins at the 2005 Nebraska Duals.  The field Nebraska faces, however, is the toughest in the three-year history of the event.  The Huskers will face OregonState, who received votes in the latest USA Today/Intermat/NWCA Coaches Poll, and 23rd-ranked Cal Poly.  NU head coach Mark Manning is one dual win from 100 in his career.  Manning is 99-52-3 in eight years as a college head coach.

 

The Last Time Out: # 14 NU 18, #2 Michigan 16/#5 Minnesota 27, #14 NU 11

On Dec. 9, the 14th-ranked Nebraska wrestling team rode a technical fall from 125-pound wrestler Paul Donahoe and a major decision win from 133-pounder Patrick Aleksanyan to take a commanding 12-3 lead and never looked back on the way to an 18-16 win over No. 2 Michigan.The 14th-ranked Donahoe defeated Michigan’s Paul Shutich, 15-0, to give NU a lead it would not relinquish in the third match of the dual.  Aleksanyan followed with his first career dual win, a 14-4 major decision triumph over UM’s Brandon Elliott to give Nebraska a nine-point lead in the dual. 

 

After setbacks at 141 and 149 pounds, Chris Oliver defeated Rob Sulaver, 9-2, to give the Huskers a 15-10 lead with three matches to go.  After a loss at 165 pounds, third-ranked Jacob Klein all but sealed the dual for the Huskers with a 2-1 victory over 17th-ranked Nick Roy.  In the final match, Michigan’s Tyrel Todd won at 184 pounds over NU’s Brandon Browne to cut the final margin to two.

 

On Sunday, Dominck Moyer and B.J. Padden picked up major decision victories for the 14th-ranked Nebraska wrestling team, but it wasn’t enough as the Huskers were defeated by fifth-ranked Minnesota, 27-11.  After losses at 125 and 133 pounds, Moyer defeated Minnesota’s Charles Lloyd, 10-2, to cut Nebraska’s deficit to 10-4, but the Golden Gophers would pick up wins at 149 and 157 pounds before Marc Harwood earned the second of three Nebraska victories with his 3-2 upset of fourth-ranked Matt Nagel at 165 pounds.  Minnesota won the next two matches to take a 23-8 lead with two matches remaining.  Padden earned a major decision victory over the Gophers’ Justin Bronson, 16-6.

 

The Last Time We Met (Part I): Dec. 11, 2004, Nebraska 36, OregonState 3

No. 3 Nebraska won the first six matches of its dual against OregonState. The first four of those victories earned NU bonus points. It started with a 13-3 major decision win by David Ingalls over Orlando Perez at 149 pounds. B.J. Wright won by technical fall over the Beavers’ Joel Gibson, 20-5, 22 seconds into the third period. After Jacob Klein defeated Anthony Weber in a 13-5 major decision, Kyle Gubbels won by major decision over Steve Grayson of OregonState, 10-2. Travis Pascoe followed with a win over Dan Pitsch, 14-9, at 184 pounds. At 197 pounds, B.J. Padden won by major decision over Travis Gardner 22-11. Nebraska’s win streak stopped at heavyweight, as Jon May, wrestling in first varsity dual match, was defeated by Ty Watterson, 8-3.  The Huskers won the last three matches of the dual.

 

The Last Time We Met (Part II): Jan. 25, 2003, Nebraska 22, Cal Poly 21

Nebraska defeated Cal Poly, 22-21 in San Luis Obispo on January 25, 2003.  The Huskers needed a technical fall to win the dual and sophomore Travis Pascoe delivered for the NU defeating Martin Floreani, 24-9. The start of the dual didn’t look as promising as Cal Poly jumped out to an early 12-0 lead against NU with pins at 184 and 197 pounds.  NU cut Cal Poly’s lead in half with wins at heavyweight and 125 pounds. Mitch Manstedt got NU on the board with a 6-1 decision over Dan Howe. At 125 pounds, Jason Powell scored a takedown on 13th-ranked Vic Moreno with 17 seconds left to take the match, 5-3.  Cal Poly extended their lead to 18-6 with their third fall of the day at 133. Trailing 18-6, NU battled back with back-to-back wins at 141 and 149 pounds. Sophomore Matt Murray defeated Jeff Owens by major decision, 11-1, while eighth-ranked Travis Shufelt defeated Matt Cox, 9-6 to close Cal Poly’s lead to 18-13 heading into the 157-pound weight class.  At 157, David Ingalls dropped his match to Keith Kroeger, 6-2, raising the Mustang lead to 21-13. Jacob Klein put NU in a position to win the dual with his win over Nick Hopping, 12-4 at 165 pounds before the 174-pound weight class.

 

Scouting OregonState

Oregon State enters the 2005 Nebraska Duals after a pair of narrow dual wins this season.  After a season-opening 18-17 win at Hofstra, the Beavers defeated Oregon at home, 20-18, with heavyweight Ty Watterson winning the final match of the night to give OSU the dual win.  Watterson is one of eight starters returning from last year’s squad, and is the only OregonState wrestler to be ranked in all three national polls.  He and 125-pound wrestler Eric Stevenson are the only two OregonState wrestlers with 10 wins.  In tournament competition, OregonState finished second at the Cornell Tournament Nov. 19 and 21st at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational on Dec. 3-4.

 

Scouting Cal Poly

The 23rd-ranked Cal Poly wrestling team has started the 2005-06 season with a pair of dual wins after defeating PortlandState, 39-6, Wednesday night in San Luis Obispo, Calif.  The Mustangs are led by 197-pound wrestler Matt Monteiro.  Ranked 14th in the nation, Montiero is 11-2 on the season after a win by technical fall over PortlandState’s Patrick Unger, 22-6, just 1:56 into the second period of their match Wednesday night.  Also leading the way for the Mustangs is third-ranked Darrel Vasquez, who finished third at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational.  He and 125-pound wrestler Chad Mendes, who also finished third, led Cal Poly to its seventh-place finish at the Las Vegas Invitational.

 

Scouting DanaCollege

An NAIA Division II school, Dana College comes to the Nebraska Duals after defeating to Briar Cliff on Thursday night, 51-0.  At the UNK Loper Open on Dec. 10, 2005, six Viking wrestlers placed among the top six in their weight class, led by Nick Wilkes.  The 184-pound wrestler finished second after a 3-1 performance in Kearney, Neb.  Kyle Frawley was 3-1 at 174 pounds, while Craig Trampe (125), Jimmy Rollins (141) and Webster Farris (197) all finished fourth in their respective weight class.Last year, Dana won the Great Plains Athletic Conference championship after winning all four duals in the conference.  The Vikings return five All-Americans from last year’s squad, which finished fifth at the NAIA national tournament.

 

Knocking on the Clubhouse Door

A pair of Husker wrestlers are within reach of Nebraska’s 100-Win club.  NU All-American wrestlers B.J. Padden and Jacob Klein both entered the 2005-06 with 70 career wins, just 30 away from joining the 100-Win Club at Nebraska.  Travis Pascoe was the last Husker to join the club, finishing his career with 101 wins after last year’s sixth-place finish at the 2005 NCAA Championship.

 

Padden closed the 2004-05 season with a fifth-place finish at 197 pounds and entered the 2005-06 season as one of the nation’s best at 197 pounds.  Padden became Nebraska’s first individual conference champion since Jason Powell in 2002 with his 6-2 victory over eventual national champion Jake Rosholt of OklahomaState at the Big 12 Championships.  Padden has started the 2005-06 season with a 12-1 record, putting him just 18 wins away from 100 in his career.

 

Klein enters his senior season as NU’s starter at 174 pounds after qualifying for nationals three times at 165 pounds.  Klein was an All-American as a sophomore at 165 pounds, and reached greater heights as a junior with a 28-7 record with a 19-2 dual record.  Klein was tied with Pascoe for the team lead in dual wins and finished second on the team with 74 dual points, just one behind B.J. Wright. Klein has opened the season with an 8-1 record, putting him 22 wins away from 100 for his career.   

 

Starting Strong

Nebraska has been almost unbeatable in the months of November and December under head coach Mark Manning.  The Huskers have won 35 of 36 non-conference matches in the first two months of the season under Manning and are 35-2 overall.  During that time, Nebraska has beaten 11 ranked opponents, including an upset of second-ranked Michigan on Dec. 9.  Included in the 34 wins are four shutouts, including two at the 2004 Nebraska Duals.  After facing a pair of top-five opponents last weekend, Nebraska’s pattern of success in the early portion of the season will be further tested against 23rd-ranked Cal Poly and Oregon State, which received votes in last week coaches’ poll.

 

Youth Served for NU This Season

After losing five starters from last year’s lineup, Nebraska has had to rely on a talented redshirt freshman class to fill those holes this season, and the class has been more than equal to the task.  Led by co-Redshirts of the Year Paul Donahoe at 125 pounds and Chris Oliver at 157 pounds, Nebraska’s redshirt freshmen have supported the more-experienced Huskers en route to a 3-1 record in the first five weeks of the season.

 

Against second-ranked Michigan on Dec. 9, a pair of redshirt freshmen combined to give Nebraska a lead they would not relinquish on the road against the Wolverines.  Donahoe picked up a win by technical fall over Jim Shutich, 15-0, to give the Huskers an 8-3 lead before Aleksanyan broke through for his first dual win of his career with a 14-4 major decision triumph over Brandon Elliott at 133 pounds.  Aleksanyan’s victory gave NU a 12-3 lead with six matches to go.  The lead built by the redshirt freshmen held up, as Nebraska beat Michigan, 18-16.

 

Five NU wrestlers made their varsity debuts against BoiseState on Nov. 19.  Of those, Donahoe and Oliver notched bonus-point wins for the Huskers.  Donahoe dominated in his 18-8 major decision win over Cory Fish.  Donahoe never trailed in his match with Fish, and finished by outscoring Fish 9-4 in the final two minutes of the match.  Oliver came back from a 2-1 deficit to pin Johnny Nunez in the second period at 157 pounds.  Oliver took the lead for good after starting the second period down, then escaping 16 seconds into the period.  Oliver then took Nunez down with 30 seconds to go in the match and pinned him nine seconds later. 

 

Along with Oliver and Donahoe, Patrick Aleksanyan, Robert Sanders and Matt Farrell made their dual debuts at 133, 149 and 184 pounds respectively.  Against Michigan, 2005 Co-Redshirt of the Year Brandon Browne also made his varsity debut at 184 pounds.  The youth in Nebraska’s starting lineup reflects a talented, but young roster.  Of the 34 NU wrestlers on the roster, 24 are either redshirt freshmen or true freshmen.

 

Klein Competes in All-Star Classic

NU senior 174-pound wrestler Jacob Klein wrestled in the 2005 NWCA All-Star Classic in Stillwater, Okla., Monday, Nov. 28.  Klein was defeated 8-5 by third-ranked Jacob Herbert of Northwestern.  Klein nearly fought back from a 6-0 deficit.  After earning his first point with an escape with 41 seconds to go in the match, Klein registered two takedowns in the final 15 seconds of the match.  Klein’s rally fell just short, and with one point riding time, Herbert defeated Klein, 8-5.  Klein was one of nine Big 12 wrestlers to compete in the All-Star Classic.

 

NU Looks to Continue Success

Despite a young roster, expectations are still high for the Nebraska wrestling team as they look to continue a 20-year tradition of success.  Over the last 20 seasons, NU has won at least 10 duals in a season 18 times and at least 15 duals eight times, including the last three seasons. 

 

The 2004-05 season capped the best three-year stretch in school history.  The Huskers were 53-12-1 from the fall of 2002 to the end of the 2004-05 campaign, marking the first time Nebraska had won 50 duals in a three-year stretch since the wrestling program was started at Nebraska in 1910.  In fact, the last three years of Husker wrestling nearly equals Nebraska’s best four-year wrestling stretch.  The Huskers start this season within reach of the 63-21-2 record of the four seasons between 1979 and 1982 for the best four seasons in school history, and only 11 four-year runs have bettered Nebraska’s last three years in dual competition.

 

Nebraska has built its success over the last three years on success at home.  The Huskers have won 22 of their last 23 duals in Lincoln and are 26-2 at home since the fall of 2002.  Since Mark Manning’s arrival at Nebraska for the 2001-02 campaign, the Huskers are 32-9 at home. 

 

Huskers Sign Three in Early Period

The Nebraska wrestling team opened the early signing period with a flourish by receiving National Letters-of-Intent from three accomplished prep recruits, Husker Head Coach Mark Manning announced earlier this season.

 

“We got three really outstanding kids,” Manning said. “These guys all are good students, good wrestlers and have good character.”

 

NU’s class is led by in-state recruit Matt Vacanti.  The Papillion-LaVista product is 103-0 in his high school career and is slated to wrestle at either 133 or 141 pounds for the Huskers.  Vacanti was 35-0 with all wins by fall last season en route to his third career state championship.  Vacanti is also accomplished on the national stage, as a two-time cadet national champion.

 

“Matt has a great work ethic and is a tough, hard-nosed kid,” Manning said.  “His style of wrestling fits in well with the rest of our team.  He’s an exciting wrestler to watch and he gets after it.”

 

Joining Vacanti is Curtis Salazar of Greeley, Colo.  Salazar is a two-time Colorado state champion and a three-time state finalist.  Salazar, who is projected to wrestle at 149 pounds in college, is another valuable addition to the NU wrestling team, according to Manning.

 

“He’s a good wrestler who wants to get better, and he is a great student,” Manning said.  “He’s been dominating in-state and national competition and beat a lot of good, ranked opponents.  He’s come to our camp the last couple years and gets along well with our guys.  We’re happy to have him be part of our family now.”

 

Rounding out the signings is Alex Ward, from MountSaint JosephHigh School in Baltimore, Md.  Ward, projected to wrestle in the middle weights in college, is a two-time state champion at 145 pounds.  A fourth-place finisher the last two years in the national prep tournament, Ward is the son of three-time NCAA finalist and former NU assistant wrestling coach Kelly Ward.

 

“He’s an outstanding kid from a heralded program in MountSaint JosephHigh School,” Manning said.  “We expect him to improve and develop a lot in our program.  He’s an intelligent young man with great potential and upside.  He will help us out in the future.”

 

Non-Varsity Notes

The Nebraska non-varsity wrestlers closed first semester competition at the UNK Loper Open on Saturday, Dec. 10 in Kearney, Neb.  Three Huskers earned individual championships including a pair of Huskers, 149-pound wrestler Ryan Davis and 165-pounder David Ingalls, who were making their 2005-06 season debuts.  Craig Brester also was a champion at 174 pounds, while Stefan Tighe was third in the heavyweight division.

 

On Sunday, a pair of non-varsity wrestlers earned individual championships at the UNI Open.  At 133 pounds, Kenny Jordan won five matches, including a 1-0 decision over teammate Patrick Aleksanyan in the finals, to earn the championship.  At 184 pounds, Vince Jones won four of his five matches by fall en route to the championship.  Jones has been dominant of late for NU, winning 11 of his last 12 matches including 10 victories by fall.  In addition to Jordan and Jones, 174-pound wrestler Brandon Browne finished runner-up to Jacob Klein.

 

Nebraska opened its non-varsity season Saturday, Nov. 12 at the Harold Nichols Open.  The Huskers were led by Brandon Browne, who opened his second year in the program with a 5-0 weekend and 174-pound championship.  Browne headlined a list of five Husker medalists, including four NU true freshmen who made their debut in college wrestling with a top-four performance in the Harold Nichols Open.  Mike Rowe finished second at 133 pounds, while Jones and Wofford finished third at 184 pounds and 197 pounds, respectively.  Freshman heavyweight Tighe finished fourth.At the Kaufman-Brand Open on Nov. 19, seven of the 13 non-varsity wrestlers entered placed for the Huskers in the 20-and-under division,  led by Kenny Jordan, who won the 133-pound weight class in his first collegiate competition.  Vince Jones and Levi Wofford finished second at 184 and 197 pounds, respectively, while heavyweight Stefan Tighe finished third.  Craig Brester earned fourth place at 174 pounds, while 197-pound wrestler Cody Millard and 184-pound wrestler Casey Roberts each finished fifth.  On Nov. 26, Cash Coolidge finished third at 141 pounds and Craig Brester placed second at 174 pounds for the Huskers at the Oklahoma Open in Norman, Okla.

 

After the holiday break, NU will compete in the Dana College Open on Jan. 7 in Blair, Neb., before wrapping the open tournament schedule with the Glen Brand Open on Jan. 21 in Omaha, Neb.

 

Jan. 7 Dual Moved to Devaney Track

Nebraska’s Jan. 7 dual against Virginia Tech has been moved to the Bob Devaney Sports Center Track.  It will be the second of two duals held at the DevaneyCenter during the month of January, as the Jan. 2 dual against Bloomsburg is also slated to be held at the Devaney Center Track.  Both duals will be held at 7 p.m.

 

Nebraska Fans Fill the Coliseum and Devaney for NU Wrestling

For the second straight year, the attendance for Nebraska wrestling went up in 2004-05.  For the first time in three years, the Huskers drew over 1,000 fans per dual.  NU averaged 1,209 fans per home wrestling dual in 2004-05, highlighted by the 3,442 fans that attended the Huskers’ dual against OklahomaState.  In 2003-04, Nebraska fell just shy of 1,000 fans per dual, averaging 927 fans per night.  That number was up from Nebraska’s average attendance of 2002-03 of 561.

 

Nebraska’s season-opening dual against BoiseState Nov. 18 drew 584 fans to the NU Coliseum.

 

Next up: Nebraska vs. Bloomsburg, Jan. 2, 2006

Nebraska opens competition in the second semester with a dual against Bloomsburg at the Devaney Center Track on Monday, Jan. 2, at 7 p.m.  The Huskies return six starters from last year’s squad, which finished 31st in the 2005 NCAA Championships.