Five Huskers Set for 2010 NCAA Championships in Omaha

2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships
Qwest Center (16,358) • Omaha, Neb. • Thursday-Saturday, March 18-20, 2010
Schedule: Thursday, March 18 (Session I at 11 a.m.; Session II at 6:30 p.m.)
Friday, March 19 (Session III at 9:30 a.m.; Session IV at 6 p.m.)
Saturday, March 20 (Session V at 10 a.m.; Session VI at 6:30 p.m.)
Last Year: Fourth Place (78.5 points)
Television: ESPNU (Sessions III, IV, V); ESPN (Session VI)
Live Video: NCAA.com (Thursday) and ESPN360.com (Friday and Saturday)
Live Stats: Huskers.com (for Nebraska wrestlers)

Five Huskers will represent the Nebraska wrestling program inside state borders when the season culminates at the 2010 NCAA Championships this Thursday-Saturday at Qwest Center Omaha. Two sessions will be held each day, with the semifinals set for Friday at 6 p.m. and the finals Saturday at 6:30 p.m. The ESPN family of networks will provide extensive live coverage of the last two days of action, as Sessions III, IV and V will be boadcast on ESPNU and ESPN360.com. Saturday's Session VI finals will be on ESPN.

This year marks the 25th consecutive season that at least five NU wrestlers have qualified for the NCAA Championships. Set to compete for the Huskers via automatic qualification are All-Americans Craig Brester (197) and Stephen Dwyer (174), 2009 national qualifier Tucker Lane (Hwt) and first-time participant Josh Ihnen (184). Mike Koehnlein (141) joins Ihnen in his NCAA debut after earning an at-large bid to the event last week.

A senior from Howells, Neb., Brester is the highest seeded wrestler among the NU contingent, nabbing the No. 2 spot at 197 pounds following a 26-2 season. Brester is a two-time All-American and reached the 2009 national championship match last March, where he fell by one point to Iowa State's Jake Varner, also the only opponent who has defeated Brester this season. Earlier this year, Brester reached the 100-career win mark, one of only 18 Huskers to do so in school history. He is 105-20 all time and will leave his name in the NU record books in several spots, including all-time career win-loss percentage (currently No. 7) and all-time dual wins (No. 4, 63).

Dwyer is also looking to finish his career on top, entering nationals as the No. 4 seed at 174 pounds. He is 24-3 on the season and is coming off the 2010 Big 12 championship, where he defeated Duke Burk (Iowa State) and Mike Benefiel (Oklahoma State) to claim the conference crown. Dwyer's highest finish at the NCAA Championships was an eighth-place showing in 2008, but he went 2-2 at last season's national tournament to miss out on All-America honors. Dwyer has rebounded with a strong senior season, as he also joined Nebraska's pretigious 100-win club, making him and Brester the first NU duo to hit the century mark in the same season since 2000-01. Both Brester and Dywer have extensive national championship expereince, having qualified for the tournament all four years.

Lane is Nebraska's third returning national qualifier following a 22-10 sophomore season. The Husker heavyweight is not seeded at this week's NCAA Championships, but he has consistently been ranked in the top 15 throughout the year. At the 2009 national tournament, Lane posted a 2-2 mark.

Like Lane a season ago, Ihnen and Koehnlein will be making their inaugural appearances at the NCAA Championships. Ihnen, a redshirt freshman at 184 pounds, is 16-13 this season, while Koehnlein is 18-15.

Nebraska's dual season was partly marred by injuries in its 149- and 157-pound weight classes. However, head coach Mark Manning led a solid group of NU wrestlers to this week's NCAA Championships despite an injury bug that included a season-ending injury to defending 157-pound national champion Jordan Burroughs in December. The Huskers are tabbed at the No. 12 spot by InterMat's pre-NCAA tournament national rankings.

This week marks the fifth time the University of Nebraska has hosted an NCAA Championship at Qwest Center Omaha since it opened in 2003. The Huskers also hosted the 2005 Big 12 Wrestling Championships at the venue.

Husker History at the NCAA Championships
Nebraska has finished in the top 10 at the NCAA Championships 18 times, including back-to-back fourth-place showings in 2008 and 2009. The program's top finish at the NCAA Championships is third in 1993. 126-pound national champion Tony Purler led a six-man contingent of Husker All-Americans in 1993, including eventual Olympic gold medalist Rulon Gardner. The six All-Americans also set a record for most All-America honors by NU in one year. The 1993 team was the third of five teams in a seven-year period that finished in the top 10 at nationals.

Nine of NU's 18 top-10 finishes have come in the last 17 years, including three top-five finishes under head coach Mark Manning. The Huskers have 86 total All-Americans, including 10 national champions and 20 NCAA finalists. Last year, Jordan Burroughs finished the first undefeated season in school history to win the 157-pound national championship with a perfect 35-0 record. Craig Brester (197, 2nd), Brandon Browne (174, 4th) and Vince Jones (184, 6th) also earned All-America honors.

Last Year at the NCAA Championships: Nebraska Claims Fourth-Place Finish
Jordan Burroughs became the 10th national champion in Husker history by capturing the 157-pound title to lead Nebraska to a fourth-place team finish at the 2009 NCAA Championships in St. Louis. With a fourth-place finish in 2008 also, Nebraska claimed back-to-back top-five finishes in consecutive years for the first time ever. For the second season in a row, Iowa captured the team title with 96.5 points while Ohio State finished second (92) and Iowa State claimed third (84.5).

A junior from Sicklerville, N.J., Burroughs topped second-seeded Michael Poeta of Illinois in the final, 5-1. As usual, Burroughs was the aggressor in the first period, and earned a critical takedown with just two seconds left in the period. Burroughs escaped 10 seconds into the second to go up 3-0, but neither wrestler could score the rest of the frame. Poeta escaped with 1:57 left in the third and turned up the intensity looking for an equalizing takedown, nearly catching Burroughs on several occasions in the final period. Another Burroughs' takedown with two seconds left sealed the bout. He went 35-0 during 2008-09 to become the first Husker national champion ever to complete a season undefeated.

Nebraska's Craig Brester also advanced to the finals, but lost to second-seeded Jake Varner of Iowa State, 2-1, at 197 pounds. Brester was hard pressed to generate offense against the three-time NCAA finalist Varner. Neither wrestler scored in the first period, and Varner earned an escape eight seconds into the second. Brester chose down in the third in an attempt to escape and tie the match at one, but Varner earned riding-time advantage to take the win before Brester escaped. Brester went 34-4 in 2008-09 with three of his losses on the season coming to Varner.

Head Coach Mark Manning has coached 27 Huskers to All-America honors during his nine seasons at Nebraska. He has also led NU to five top-10 finishes at the NCAA Championships.

Scouting the NCAA Championships
The Iowa Hawkeyes are looking for a three-peat in the team title race after taking home championships the past two years. This season, Iowa has again qualified nine wrestlers for the NCAA Championships, including four who are top-three seeds. Six Hawkeyes are returing national qualifiers in a group that has earned eight All-America awards but just one individual national championship.

Minnesota is ranked second in InterMat's pre-tournament rankings. The Gophers send nine qualifiers to Omaha to search for their first team title in the past four years (also 2007). Oklahoma State also qualfied nine wrestlers and is ranked third, followed by Cornell and Iowa State.

Last Time Out: Dywer Claims Big 12 Championship
Senior Stephen Dwyer (174) earned the first conference title of his storied Husker career, while senior Craig Brester (197) finished runner-up to lead Nebraska at the 2010 Big 12 Championship on March 6 in Norman, Okla. The Huskers finished the tournament with 32 points and automatically qualified four wrestlers for the 2010 NCAA Championships.

Dwyer is the 18th Big 12 champion in school history and the third consecutive NU conference titlist at the 174-pound weight class following back-to-back first-place finishes by former Husker All-American Brandon Browne.

Oklahoma State edged Iowa State for the team title by 1 1/2 points (70.5-69), followed by Oklahoma (64), Missouri (33) and Nebraska (32).

The third time was the charm for Dwyer, who was coming off back-to-back runner-up finishes at the 2008 and 2009 Big 12 Championships. As a senior, Dwyer did not waste any time claiming top honors, racing to a 4-1 first period lead on Oklahoma State's Mike Benefiel in the finals en route to a 9-5 decision. Dwyer notched his first takedown just 32 seconds into the match and accumulated nearly 2 minutes of riding time following his second takedown with 56 seconds remaining in the first period. Benefiel closed the gap to 5-4 with 1:26 left in the match, but Dwyer closed the door with his last takedown in the final minute. A native of Rockton, Ill., Dwyer won his semifinal match in a defensive 2-1 decision against Iowa State's Duke Burk.

"It feels really good," Dywer said. "I was always coming close (to first), but had that one match that kept it from happening. There's a big difference between winning and taking second. I just came out and wrestled hard right away. I wanted to establish my tempo and set a high pace."

Brester battled top-seeded Jake Varner of Iowa State in the 197-pound finals, falling to the Cyclone by a 5-2 decision. The unanimous No. 1 and No. 2 wrestlers in the nation entered the final period in a 2-2 deadlock, but with Varner's riding time advantage of more than 1 minute, Brester was forced to cut the Cyclone for an escape point. Trailing 3-2, Brester shot for a last-second single-leg takedown that Varner spun around for the match's final points.

Earlier in the day, Nebraska won 4-of-8 first round matches to qualify six wrestlers for semifinals, as Brester and Dwyer earned first round byes.

From there, a pair of underclassmen - redshirt freshman Josh Ihnen (184) and sophomore Tucker Lane - each claimed third-place finishes in corresponding fashion by defeating the same opponent twice and only falling to the No. 1 seed in their respective weight classes.

Ihnen qualified for the 2010 NCAA Championships with his third-place finish at 184 pounds, despite entering the Big 12 tournament as the fourth seed. The Sheldon, Iowa native downed Oklahoma's Erich Schmidtke for the second and third time this season, defeating the Sooner by decision in the first round (8-3) and consolation final (4-0). The only hindrance between Ihnen and the championship round was No. 1 seed Max Askren of Missouri, who escaped with a 2-1 victory over Ihnen in the semifinals.

Following a third-place finish at the 2009 conference meet, Lane repeated his performance against a stacked Heavyweight field with a pair of wins over Oklahoma's Nathan Fernandez. Lane has never lost to Fernandez in his short Husker career (6-0), although he needed an overtime takedown to tally his first victory of the day before an identical 3-1 decision over Fernandez in the consolation final. A native of Redvale, Colo., Lane fell by a 5-3 decision in the semifinals to first-seeded Jared Rosholt of Oklahoma State.

Lane had already qualified for the 2010 NCAA Championships, as the Heavyweight division was one of three weight classes (also 174 and 197) to earn five allocations in those bouts. A total of four Huskers automatically qualified for nationals (Brester, Dwyer, Lane and Ihnen), while junior Mike Koehnlein (141) earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships.

Koehnlein was among the 50 at-large selections announced in the final brackets released Wednesday, March 10. He finished the season with an 18-15 record, including an 11-9 mark in dual action. The 141-pounder cracked the national polls in late February when he earned a No. 20 national ranking from InterMat heading into postseason competition.

Qualifying spots were based on Division I winning percentage, RPI and coaches ranking.

Brester Takes Last Shot at National Title
Senior Craig Brester has already solidified his spot among the best wrestlers in school history, but the 197-pounder is still searching for that elusive national title when he heads to Omaha this week. Brester enters the NCAA Championships with a 26-2 record, losing his only matches of the season to No. 1 Jake Varner (Iowa State). Brester's standout senior season has him climbing the record books, as he currently ranks No. 7 all-time in career win-loss percentage (.840) and recently became the 17th Husker ever to reach 100 wins (currently 105-20).

This season, Brester is winning by domination, pinning 10 opponents to go along with three technical falls and five major decisions. In addition to his 10 pins, he also leads the Huskers in wins (26), dual points (86) and has the second-fastest fall, pinning North Dakota State's Drew Ross in 41 seconds on Jan. 3.

In December, Brester was awarded for his outstanding performance as he was named Big 12 Wrestler of the Week by the league office for matches Dec. 7-Dec. 13. It was the second Big 12 weekly award of his career, earning the honor after pinning Minnesota's Joe Nord (1:10) Dec. 10 in Minneapolis before defeating his fourth ranked opponent in a two-week stretch with an 8-2 decision over No. 9 Tyler Sorenson of South Dakota State on Dec. 12. The week before, Brester claimed the 2009 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational championship and was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler.

Eighteen of Brester's 26 victories in 2009-10 have come in bonus-point fashion. He has eight wins over ranked opponents, including three-straight in Big 12 duals from Jan. 29-Feb. 12.

Currently ranked No. 2 in the nation at 197 pounds, Brester is a two-time All-American and was named Most Outstanding Wrestler of the 2009 Big 12 Championships when he defeated Varner by a 4-3 decision last March.

Dwyer Sets High Goals for Final NCAA Championships
Senior Stephen Dywer put his name in the Husker record books last month when he became the 18th wrestler in NU history to reach 100 career wins. The 174-pounder is 102-33 since joining the Huskers in 2006 and is 24-3 this season with his only losses coming to No. 1 Mack Lewnes (Cornell), No. 2 Jay Borschel (Iowa) and No. 9 Colby Covington (Oregon State). He is fresh off the 2010 Big 12 championship after defeating Duke Burk (Iowa State) and Mike Benefiel (Oklahoma State) at the conference tournament March 6 in Norman.

Dwyer was a 2008 All-American at 165 pounds, where he wrestled his first three seasons. This year, he moved up to 174 pounds and has not skipped up a beat, rising has high as No. 3 in the national rankings. Dywer was 18-2 in duals and is second on the team in dual points behind Craig Brester with 79. He has eight pins this season, including back-to-back falls in January over No. 15 Dorian Henderson (Missouri) and Patrick Prentice (Northern Colorado). Six of Dwyer's pins have come in the first period. Prior to this season, the senior had just three falls in his entire career and none last season.

Dwyer has qualified for the NCAA Championships every year as a Husker. He will aim for All-America honors in Omaha after missing out last season when he was eliminated from the tournament after four matches (2-2).

Although the Rockton, Ill., native is just a few days away from ending his NU career, Stephen's younger brother, Matt Dwyer, is part of Nebraska's incoming recruiting class and will begin his Husker career this August.

Howells, Neb., Boasts Two 100-Win Club Members
Although the small Nebraska community of Howells holds a population of just over 600 people, the town boasts two of Husker wrestling's 100-win club members in Brad Vering and Craig Brester.

Vering is one of Nebraska's 10 national champions, claiming the 2000 title at 197 pounds. He finished his career with an outstanding 124-26 record that included three All-America honors.

Brester is a two-time All-American and reached 100 wins following his victory over Oregon State's Chad Hanke on Jan. 24. His 105-20 record was built on a 34-4 mark last season, when the 197-pounder won the Big 12 title and finished second at the NCAA Championships.

The only other duo in Nebraska's 100-win club to hail from the same city is Bill and Jim Scherr (1981-84) of Mobridge, S.D.

Tough Tasks
Head Coach Mark Manning was not shy as the NU staff put together the 2009-10 schedule. When the preseason rankings were released in October, Nebraska saw nine future opponents in the top 20, including four in the top 10. The Huskers' added more schedule strength at the 2010 NWCA National Duals, drawing No. 1 Iowa in the first round.

Nebraska defeated its first ranked opponent of the season, downing No. 11 Wisconsin, 26-17, on Nov. 15, but struggled to win duals since injuries began to plague the lineup in December. Each of Nebraska's last three opponents were ranked in the top 10 (No. 9 Oklahoma, No. 3 Oklahoma State and No. 2 Iowa State) and a total of 10 ranked opponents were on Nebraska's schedule in the 2009-10 season.

Last year, Nebraska faced 11 ranked opponents in 21 duals, posting a 7-3-1 mark against those teams.

Non-Varsity Notes
Freshman Caleb Kolb (174) was the non-varsity's top performer with a 27-5 overall record that included tournament titles at the UNK Loper Open and Quality Hotel Open.Thirteen of Colb's 27 victories came in bonus-point fashion, including eight major decision wins. A native of Grove City, Pa., Kolb could fill Nebraska's 174-pound spot in 2010- 11 with the departure of senior Stephen Dwyer.

Freshman Kyle Waldo (125) also reached 20 wins this season, as he held a 21-5 record with four pins and four major decisions. Waldo also claimed first at the UNK Loper Open and Quality Hotel Open.

Four Husker Wrestlers Named to 2010 Academic All-Big 12 First Team
The Big 12 Conference announced its 2010 Academic All-Big 12 Wrestling Team two weeks ago, naming four Huskers to the squad, all of which qualified for the 2010 NCAA Championships.

For the fourth consecutive season, senior Craig Brester claimed a first-team selection to lead Nebraska's honorees. A native of Howells, Neb., Brester has been an academic and athletic standout at UNL while pursuing a degree in Mechanized Systems Management. Fellow senior Stephen Dwyer, a business administration major from Rockton, Ill., earned a spot on the team for the third time.

Following a second-team selection in 2009, sophomore Tucker Lane improved his standing to first-team status, while redshirt freshman Josh Ihnen rounded out the cast of talented Huskers.

First team members consist of those who have maintained a 3.20 or better GPA, and the second team are those who have a 3.00 to 3.19 GPA. To qualify, student-athletes must maintain a 3.00 GPA or higher either cumulative or the two previous semesters and must have participated in 60 percent of his team's scheduled contests. Freshmen and transfers are not eligible in their first year of academic residence. Senior student-athletes who have participated for a minimum of two years and meet all the criteria except percent of participation are also eligible.

Huskers Place 17 on Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll
A total of 17 Nebraska wrestlers, including 13 currently on the 2009-10 squad, were named to the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll during the 2009 fall semester. The honor roll recognizes those student-athletes who achieved at least a 3.0 grade-point average during the term.

Nebraska's youngsters showed positive signs of a bright future for the program, as eight freshmen and redshirt freshmen were named to the honor roll. Of that group, three are current varsity starters in David Klingsheim (125), C.J. Napier (133) and Josh Ihnen (184).

Nearing the end of their undergraduate studies, seniors Craig Brester (197) and Stephen Dwyer (174) continued to perform as leaders both on the mat and in the classroom. Each previous members of the NWCA All-Academic Team, Brester was named to the honor roll for the fifth consecutive semester, while Dwyer earned the fourth award of his career.

Sophomore Tucker Lane has claimed a spot on the honor roll every semester at Nebraska, posting his fifth straight appearance. Alex Ward (165) and James Nakashima (165) represented the junior class.

Redshirt freshman Ross Grande posted his third straight appearance on the list, while redshirt freshman Hadley Cookley and true freshmen Michael Klinginsmith, Caleb Kolb and Scott Kwiatkowski all earned their first honors.

A total of 359 Nebraska student-athletes across all 23 varsity sports claimed spots on the honor roll, including 38 with perfect 4.0 GPAs.

Burroughs to Seek Medical Redshirt, Compete in 2010-11
Head Coach Mark Manning and the Nebraska wrestling program announced Dec. 21 that senior 157-pounder Jordan Burroughs will not be able to compete the rest of the 2009-10 season due to a left knee injury suffered Dec. 19 against Central Michigan. An MRI revealed Burroughs had a torn PCL and LCL and he underwent successful surgery on Jan. 2.

"Unfortunately, we have lost Jordan Burroughs for the season, but we're fortunate that we will seek a medical redshirt to get this year back," Manning said. "I believe he will qualify for that due to him not competing more than 30 percent of this season. With successful surgery and good rehab, he'll be back better than ever next year."

Burroughs ends his shortened 2009-10 season with a 7-1 record. The only loss came in his injured match to No. 13 Steve Brown of Central Michigan - a 3-2 overtime defeat. Prior to the setback, Burroughs had won 44 straight matches, including a perfect 38-0 junior season in 2008-09 that took the Sicklerville, N.J., native to the 157-pound national championship and his second straight All-America honor.

"You don't replace a young man like Jordan," Manning said. "On the other hand, it gives other guys on the team an opportunity to step up. It also gives our team great lessons in life that relate to athletics. It shows them you have to protect yourself and make the most of your opportunities because you are not promised anything."

Following Burroughs' surgery, the Huskers also lost 149-pound starter Chris Hacker on Jan. 9 due to an ongoing hip injury. Nebraska eventually filled its lineup with walk-on Dustin Payne, a freshman from Seward, Neb.

Huskers Launch Twitter Page
The Nebraska Wrestling program has a home on Twitter at "www.twitter.com/ HuskerWrestling". Follow everything surrounding the Huskers throughout the season with more news, notes and quotes on one of the world's fastest-growing social networks.

Huskers.com Features NU Wrestling Blog
Huskers.com has added the NU Wrestling Blog, another place to visit when looking to stay up-to-date and follow everything surrounding Husker wrestling. On the blog, you will find some interesting news, notes and tidbits surrounding the team throughout the calendar year. Simply click the "NU Wrestling Blog" link on the right side of the wrestling page on Huskers.com.

E-mail bgries@huskers.com if you have any questions or suggestions.

Next Year: Rider Hosts NCAA Championships in Philadelphia
Rider University and the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference will host the 2011 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships from March 19-21, 2011. The event will be held in Philadelphia at the Wachovia Center, the home of the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers and the NHL's Philadelphia Flyers. It will be the first time the NCAA Wrestling Championships have taken place in the northeast region of the United States since the 2003 nationals were in Albany, N.Y.