Huskers Take On No. 2 Mizzou

Dual No. 12:<?xml:namespace prefix="o" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"?>

No. 22/20 <?xml:namespace prefix="st1" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"?>Nebraska (7-4) vs. No. 2/2 Missouri (7-1)

Hearnes Center?Columbia, Mo.?Sunday, Jan. 28?2 p.m.

Series History: NU leads, 36-13-3
Last Meeting: Nebraska won, 21-18, on Jan. 29, 2006 in Lincoln, Neb.

Live Streaming Video: mutigers.cstv.com ($6.95/month charge)

 

Huskers Take On Second-Ranked Tigers

The 20th-ranked Nebraska wrestling team continues the toughest stretch of this season’s schedule with a dual at No. 2 Missouri on Sunday, Jan. 28 at 2 p.m. at the HearnesCenter in Columbia, Mo.  This will be the third straight dual in which Nebraska’s opponent has been ranked in the top 10.  Led by 2006 NCAA Championships Outstanding Wrestler Ben Askren, the Tigers are 7-1 and coming off a second-place finish at the National Duals.

 

Nebraska has won the last three duals between the two schools, including last year’s thrilling 21-18 win over Missouri in Lincoln.  The Huskers sprinted to a 15-0 lead after the first four matches, then picked up a pin from Dominick Moyer at 141 pounds to give NU a 21-3 lead with four matches remaining in the dual.  The Tigers won the last four matches in the dual, but couldn’t catch the Huskers.

 

Last Time Out: No. 3 IowaState 25, No. 20 Nebraska 12, Jan. 20, 2007, Lincoln, Neb.

197-pound wrestler Craig Brester came back to defeat fifth-ranked Kurt Backes and win his ninth straight match, but it wasn’t enough as No. 3 Iowa State defeated the 20th-ranked Nebraska wrestling team, 25-12, Saturday at the NU Coliseum.

 

Brester trailed 3-1 at the start of the third period, but after escaping 47 seconds into the final frame, Brester took down Backes with 1:02 to go in the match to seal the 4-3 win for the Huskers and pull NU to within five with two matches to go in the dual.

 

Back-to-back setbacks at heavyweight and 125 pounds to close the dual gave the Cyclones the 25-12 win, their first over Nebraska since defeating the Huskers 25-9 on Feb. 26, 2004.

 

A 4-2 win by ninth-ranked Dominick Moyer at 141 pounds over 10th-ranked Mitch Mueller tied the dual at three two matches into the contest. Moyer led 3-0 after two periods, and, after allowing a takedown with 55 seconds to go in the match, Moyer escaped to secure the two-point victory, his fifth over a ranked opponent this season.

 

Robert Sanders followed with a comeback bid that fell just short at 149 pounds against 16th-ranked Cyler Sanderson in a 12-8 win for Sanderson. Sanders trailed 11-3 with 37 seconds to go in the second period, but outscored Sanderson 5-1 over the last 2:37 of the match to cut Sanderson’s winning margin to four. Wins by Trent and Travis Paulson at 157 and 165 pounds, respectively, would give IowaState a 10-point lead after five matches.

 

Marc Harwood kept the door open for victory for the Huskers with a win by fall over Grant Turner at 174 pounds. Harwood trailed 3-0 early in the second period, but turned a takedown with 1:15 remaining in the second period into a pin 21 seconds later. The win cut the Cyclones’ lead to four, but IowaState went on to win three of the final four matches to clinch the dual victory.

 

Scouting Missouri

No. 2 Missouri is coming off a second-place finish at the NWCA National Duals on Jan. 14 in Cedar Falls, Iowa.  The Tigers fell to No. 1 Minnesota, 20-16, in the championship finals.  Missouri has four wrestlers ranked in the top five and six in the top 10 in their respective weight classes.  Led by top-ranked Ben Askren at 174 pounds and No. 1 Max Askren at 197 pounds, the Tigers won both the Southern Scuffle and the Las Vegas Invitational in the month of December.

 

Last Matchup: Nebraska 21, Missouri 18, Jan. 29, 2006, NU Coliseum, Lincoln, Neb.

The fifth-ranked Nebraska wrestling team won its first four matches and never trailed in a 21-18 dual victory over 11th-ranked Missouri.  The Huskers stretched their winning streak over the Tigers to four.  The win was NU’s 15th over Missouri in the last 17 matchups.

 

184-pound wrestler Vince Jones started Nebraska’s winning streak with a 4-2 win over Raymond Jordan, in a battle between two freshmen.  Jones took a 3-0 lead after an escape six seconds into the second period, and hung on for the victory from there.

Fifth-ranked B.J. Padden defeated Jeff Foust, 8-5, in match that was tied at four after two periods.  Foust started the third period down and was called for stalling 58 seconds into the final frame.  Foust escaped 12 seconds later to tie the match at five, but Padden earned the victory with a takedown with 22 seconds to go.  Padden was also awarded a bonus point for his 2:17 advantage in riding time.

 

After a Missouri forfeit at heavyweight, ninth-ranked Paul Donahoe capped Nebraska’s four-match winning streak with a 4-3 comeback victory over 18th-ranked Austin DeVoe at 125 pounds.  Down 3-0 heading into the third period, Donahoe earned an escape five seconds into the period, then tied the match with a takedown with 1:12 left in the match.  Donahoe earned a bonus point for his 1:34 riding time advantage to give him the one-point edge and give the Huskers a 15-0 lead in the dual with six matches to go.

 

A setback at 133 pounds broke Nebraska’s winning streak, but Dominick Moyer all but put the dual out of reach with his pin of Chris McCormick at 141 pounds.  The 19th-ranked Moyer took control of the match in the final two periods, running off five unanswered points before earning the fall.  Moyer rode McCormick through the second period, earning two points for a near fall, then earned an escape and a takedown before pinning McCormick with 22 seconds to go in the match.  One of two bonus-point victories for Nebraska, Moyer’s pin gave NU a 21-3 lead with four matches to go. 

 

Husker Wrestling Adds Rice to Roster

After the season-ending injury to Jon May, Nebraska was left without a heavyweight on the roster just one month into the season.  Enter Thomas Rice, a Lincoln East graduate who is a defensive end on the Husker football team.  Rice joined the NU wrestling squad soon after the football team returned from the Cotton Bowl, and made his debut as Husker wrestler with a 2-2 showing at the 2007 Dana College Open Jan. 6 in Blair, Neb.  Rice made his dual debut for Nebraska at the National Duals, moving into a heavyweight spot in which the Huskers forfeited at heavyweight for five straight duals. 

     A member of two state championship teams at Lincoln East and a high school All-American after a sixth-place finish at the Greco Roman National Championships, Rice is not the first Husker heavyweight to come over from the football ranks under head coach Mark Manning.  Mitch Manstedt also participated in both sports during his time at Nebraska.  A three-year starter, Manstedt joined the wrestling team his freshman year in mid-January 2001 after the football season, then wrestled full-time for the duration of his college career. 

 

Experienced but Young Huskers Set to Tackle the 2006-07 Season    

Nebraska was in a unique position entering the 2006-07 season.  The Huskers returned eight starters and seven NCAA qualifiers from last year’s team, which ranked among the highest total in those two categories in Mark Manning’s seven years as the Huskers’ head coach.  However, the two seniors on Nebraska’s roster matched the fewest that Manning has had at NU.   

 

Both experience and youth have proven valuable for Manning as Nebraska’s coach.  When the Huskers had only two seniors in 2001-02, they rebounded from an 8-9 regular season to take eighth at the NCAA Championships, the program’s 14th top-10 finish.  The two times that Nebraska returned eight starters (2004 and 2005), the Huskers won 19 duals and, in 2004, took fifth at nationals.

 

Three Accomplished Student-Athletes Join NU Wrestling

Nebraska head wrestling coach Mark Manning announced the signing of three student-athletes during the early signing period that will join the Huskers for the 2007-08 academic year.  The three signees, Andy Pokorny of Bennington, Neb., Tucker Lane of Nucla, Colo., and Chris Hacker of El Reno, Okla., represent Nebraska’s continued success in wrestling both on and off the mat.

 

Pokorny is a two-time state champion, winning last year’s class C crown at 112 pounds after winning in 2005 at 103.  A 2006 Junior Freestyle All-American, Pokorny is the fourth-ranked 112-pound wrestler in the nation by Wrestling USA and is the 52nd ranked high school wrestler overall by Intermat.  His accomplishments are not limited to the mat, however, as he is currently second in his class with at 3.935 GPA and a 30 on his ACT.

 

Lane also comes to Nebraska with glittering athletic and academic credentials.  A two-time state champion, Lane is the nation’s second-ranked 215-pound wrestler by Wrestling USA and is the 40th ranked high school wrestler overall, according to Intermat, which has recognized him as a four-star recruit.  Lane also was a Junior Freestyle All-American in 2006.  Like Pokorny, Lane is also accomplished in the classroom.  He earned a 31 on his ACT and entered his senior year at NuclaHigh School with a 4.25 GPA, tops in his graduating class.

 

A four-time Cadet All-American and two-time Junior All-American, Hacker also joins the Huskers with an impressive resume at both the state and national levels.  Hacker captured the Class 4A championships at 152 pounds last year, and is the No. 6 152-pounder according to Wrestling USA and is the 53rd-best high school wrestler in the nation, according to Intermat.  Hacker also received recruiting attention from Oklahoma State, Oklahoma and Missouri, among others.

 

Tough Road To Detroit Awaits Nebraska

The Nebraska wrestling program has always dealt with a difficult schedule in the Big 12 Conference.  But few years have seen one conference so thoroughly dominate the rankings.  In both major polls, three of the top four teams in the nation are from the Big 12.  After wrestling fifth-ranked Iowa and sixth-ranked Hofstra at the National Duals, the Huskers’ schedule now includes the top six teams in the nation.  The National Duals begin a challenging stretch of the schedule for Nebraska, in which they will face the top six teams in the nation in a month-long stretch between Jan. 13 to Feb. 11.  The Huskers, one of only three teams in the nation to see five of the preseason top six in the nation on their schedule,will have wrestled eight of the top 10 teams in the nation after this month-long stretch.

Non-Varsity Notes

Eight Nebraska non-varsity wrestlers finished in the top four in their respective weight classes at the Glen Brand Open on Saturday, Jan. 20 in Omaha, Neb.  Matt Vacanti won the championship at 125 pounds, while Patrick Aleksanyan finished second at 133 and Andy Johnson took second at 174.  Cody Foust (165) and Casey Roberts (184) earned third-place finishes, while Austin Baier (141), Casey Gubbels (149) and Rob Plambeck (157) took fourth in their respective weight classes.  The Brand Open is the last scheduled non-varsity competition for NU wrestlers this season.

 

In the first weekend of the season, Vacanti was the lone Husker to place at the Harold Nichols Open.  Vacanti took third with a 5-3 win over Robert Struthers of Wartburg at 125 pounds. Baier advanced to the semifinals at 141 pounds before he was defeated by Joey Slaton of Iowa.  Meanwhile, a pair of true freshmen earned gold medals at the Cowboy Open in Laramie, Wyo.  Curtis Salazar was 4-0 in a championship run in the amateur division at 149 pounds, while Stephen Dwyer was 4-0 en route to the 165-pound amateur championship.

 

At the Kaufman-Brand Open on Nov. 18, the Huskers were led by Vacanti, who dominated the field on his way to the championship in the 125-pound amateur bracket.  He won his first three matches in the tournament by fall in a total of 7:12.  Vacanti defeated Terrance Young of Iowa Central by decision, 3-1, before knocking off OklahomaState’s Ben Ashmore, 3-2, in the finals.  In addition to Vacanti’s title, a pair of Nebraska wrestlers earned third-place finishes in their respective amateur brackets, including Salazar at 149 pounds and Dwyer at 165 pounds.  Jordan Burroughs took fourth at 149 pounds, while Gubbels and Cameron Browne finished in fifth place at 141 and 197, respectively.  Alex Ward finished sixth at 165 pounds.  On Dec. 2, Vacanti earned a third-place finish at 125 pounds to lead the Huskers’ effort at the UNI Open.  Salazar finished fourth at 149 pounds at the UNK Loper Open on Dec. 9 in Kearney, Neb.

 

Five Nebraska wrestlers earned top-four finishes at the Dana College Open on Jan. 6 in Blair, Neb.  The Huskers were led by Browne, who won the 197-pound championship. Baier (133) and Robert Sanders (149) finished third in their respective weight classes, while Derek Moyer (149) and Foust (165) earned fouth-place finishes.

 

Next up: Nebraska vs. OklahomaState, Thursday, Feb. 1, 2007, 7 p.m., NU Coliseum

Nebraska returns home to continue its toughest stretch of the season with a home dual against four-time defending national champion OklahomaState on Thursday, Feb. 1, 2007 at the NU Coliseum in Lincoln, Neb.  The last time the Huskers took on the Cowboys, OklahomaState narrowly defeated Nebraska, 19-18, in a hotly-contested dual that came down to the final match.