Takedown Report

40th College News, Results & Reports

NWCA Division II (Regular Season #2) Team and Individual Rankings
Manheim, PA – The NWCA Division II Wrestling Coaches Association rankings committee has released the second installment of their regular-season rankings.  The top five teams remain the same with a few changes in the new year while St. Cloud St. remains in the number top spot.

• Individual Rankings

Rank	Team	Record	Points	Previous Rank
1	St. Cloud St		111	1
2	Pitt-Johnstown		70	4
3	Notre Dame		67	5
4	Nebraska-Kearney		57	2
5	McKendree		56	2
6	Central Oklahoma		49	16
7	Tiffin		45	19
8	Ashland		37	7
8	Upper Iowa		37	6
10	Newberry		35	11
11	Adams State		34	22
12	West Liberty State		33	10
13	Limestone		31	14

Rest of the team and individual rankings at http://www.nwcaonline.com/152211-2/?mc_cid=ece6ffc1ec&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Three of the top storylines from the South Beach Duals
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — There was a moment during last year’s South Beach Duals when Lehigh’s litany of injuries stretched from cruel to absurd.  On the day prior to the event, coach Pat Santoro lamented the worst health stretch in his 16 seasons as a college head coach.  “We had five guys out and we had four non-wrestling-related injuries,” Santoro said. “One guy was hit by a car. One guy (got hurt) moving furniture. Stuff you couldn’t plan. This year, no one did anything stupid to get hurt off the mat, so that helps a lot.”  But bad can usually get worse, and it did for the Mountain Hawks. Two more Lehigh wrestlers went down with injuries in a three-match span and Santoro stood in the center of the mat with a look of stunned disbelief on his face.  “It was out of our hands at that point,” he said. “We just had to move forward and I think it made our team a lot tougher. It was one of those things where you can’t control things, you can only control how you react to it and our guys did a great job after this event last season.”  The Mountain Hawks dropped three straight duals last year at South Beach. They went on to finish 9-9 in duals, marking the first time a Santoro-coached Lehigh team failed to post a winning record.  This year began with a series of razor-tight duals. Lehigh beat Oklahoma State on criteria, lost to Princeton 18-14, dropped a dual to Pittsburgh on criteria and fell 23-10 against Penn State.  Rest of the story at https://www.trackwrestling.com/PortalPost.jsp?TIM=1577936595500&twSessionId=bgkjmghnsg&postId=1996913132&mc_cid=ece6ffc1ec&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Scuffle Brackets Released
Initial brackets for the 2020 Southern Scuffle, presented by Compound Sportswear are available now at the link at the top of the page.  There are links to both the FloArena and PDF brackets. These brackets are still subject to change if there are any scratches tonight or in the morning.  If a seeded wrestler scratches, there will be significant adjustments.  Action begins tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. (E.S.T.) in McKenzie Arena, with doors opening to the public at 9:00 a.m.  Be sure to check back to GoMocs.com or TheSouthernScuffle.com for updates of all the action.
TICKETS & HOSPITALITY PASS
Tickets are on sale now on GoMocs.com, along with VIP passes to the Hospitality Room.  Access to the Hospitality Room includes TVs, full meals each day and a cash bar.  Click the “Tickets” tab at the top of the page for more information.
#LETSSCUFFLE
Be sure to use the hashtag #LetsScuffle when tweeting about the Southern Scuffle.  Follow @LetsScuffle on Twitter and Instagram for the most up-to-date information on the 2020 Southern Scuffle, presented by Compound Sportswear. Rest of the details at https://gomocs.com/news/2019/12/31/wrestling-scuffle-brackets-released.aspx?mc_cid=a7cbe452af&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Wide open team race at Southern Scuffle, as Oklahoma State leads with five semifinalists and North Dakota State in second place
BY ROGER MOORE, SPECIAL TO THEMAT.COM | JAN. 01, 2020
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – With Penn State, winners of the seven of the last eight Southern Scuffle titles staying home, the 2020 trophy is up for grabs. And, for the first time in almost a decade, there is an actual team race. Late into Wednesday’s wrestling, Northern Colorado led the field. North Dakota State moved in front after a 157-pound quarterfinal victory by Luke Weber. But by the time the first day’s marathon ended it was ninth-ranked Oklahoma State who stood on top with 70 points. Seven teams are within 11 points of first after a day with a handful of surprises. Sixth-rated North Carolina State is among those fighting for top honors along with North Dakota State, Rider, Stanford, Northern Colorado, and Pittsburgh. This season’s field is missing the likes of Cornell, Minnesota, Missouri, Virginia Tech, a who’s who of the nation’s elite programs. Rest of the story at https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling/Features/2020/January/01/Southern-Scuffle-Day-One-wrap?mc_cid=ece6ffc1ec&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Iowa State begins grueling month with the Southern Scuffle
When Iowa State opens the new year and new decade at the Southern Scuffle on January 1, the roster it’ll take isn’t one that is tabbed as the 11th best team in Division I. Only three regular starters – Chase Straw, Joel Shapiro and Gannon Gremmel – will make the trip to Chattanooga, Tennessee, for the annual Southern Scuffle held inside McKenzie Arena on Wednesday and Thursday. The reason? Consider it load management. Over the span of 22 days, beginning January 9 and ending January 31, the Cyclones will have eight duals across all four time zones. Hence, why seven starters won’t be participating in the final tournament of the regular season. Rest of the story at https://www.iowastatedaily.com/sports/wrestling/iowa-state-begins-grueling-month-with-the-southern-scuffle-cyclones-dresser-straw-shapiro-gremmel-broderson/article_7f01ba96-2b4e-11ea-af25-1fbb78454560.html?mc_cid=a7cbe452af&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

18 thoughts from the Hawkeyes’ record-breaking Midlands team title
HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — For the seventh straight year, and 29th time in the last 57, the Ken Kraft Midlands Championships ended with the Iowa fight song blaring through the speakers as Hawkeye wrestlers and coaches gathered around the first-place trophy. The Iowa wrestling team dominated its way to another Midlands team title on Monday night here at Sears Centre Arena. The Hawkeyes won with 196.5 points, a new tournament scoring record, outpacing their 2014 mark of 189. In the process, Iowa nearly lapped the field — Northern Iowa scored 101 to take second for the second-straight year, followed by Illinois (94.5), Wisconsin (93) and Princeton (84.5) — thanks to five individual champions and all 12 medalists finishing sixth or better. This was to be expected, of course. The Hawkeyes are the nation’s No. 1-ranked team, and put that talent on display this weekend. Here are 18 thoughts from Iowa’s record-breaking Midlands performance:
1. Iowa set a new tournament scoring record without the services of Michael Kemerer all weekend, and without Spencer Lee wrestling on Monday (he recorded two pins and a technical fall on Sunday).
This team is, like, really good.
2. About Lee: He medically-forfeited out of the tournament after reaching the semifinals at 125 pounds. Iowa called it a “coaches’ decision.” Same with Kemerer. Both were in the arena during Monday’s final two sessions. Both looked fine.
3. Remember: These are guys Iowa wants healthy and fresh in March. Iowa coach Tom Brands has rested guys/held them out of tournaments/duals in recent years, and it has paid dividends when it mattered.  Rest of the list, video and story at https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/sports/college/iowa/wrestling/2019/12/30/18-thoughts-hawkeyes-record-breaking-midlands-title-tom-brands-184-abe-assad-cash-wilcke-nelson/2780991001/?mc_cid=a7cbe452af&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Wolfpack Wrestling Advances Three to Scuffle Semifinals
CHATTANOOGA, TENN. – After the first day of action at the Southern Scuffle, the sixth ranked NC State Wrestling team has 11 entrants still in contention for a medal, highlighted by a trio that will wrestle in tomorrow’s semifinals at noon. As a team, NC State sits in third place. Top seeded Hayden Hidlay breezed to the semifinals with three straight bonus point wins at 157 pounds. Hidlay started with a 16-1 tech fall, followed by a first period pin off a headlock. In the quarterfinals, he scored a 12-2 major decision over No. 8 seed Franek of North Dakota State. The third seed at 165 pounds, Thomas Bullard, also went 3-0 on the day to reach the semifinals. Bullard started with a 10-1 major decision and then 4-2 and 9-4 decisions. Another Hidlay as the top seed at his weight, Trent at 184 pounds, was the third from NC State to advance to the semifinals. Rest of the story at https://gopack.com/news/2020/1/1/wrestling-packwrestle-advances-three-to-southern-scuffle-semifinals.aspx?mc_cid=ece6ffc1ec&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE ANNOUNCES WRESTLERS OF THE WEEK
MAC East Division: Wrestler of the Week
Sa’Derian Perry, Old Dominion—Senior, Lakeland, Fla. (Lake Gibson High School)
Old Dominion senior Sa’Derian Perry at 141 lbs., went 3-1 in the four bouts he wrestled in at the South Beach Duals. Perry’s biggest win came in the first dual of the event, as he earned a 7-3 win by decision victory over 2018 All-American and MAC Champion, No. 8 Grant Leeth of Missouri. In his three wins in two days, Perry outscored his opponents 22-8. The only loss Perry endured in the South Beach Duals was a tight 4-2 decision against No. 2 Mitch McKee of Minnesota. Perry’s performance in the South Beach Duals increases his record to 10-3 this season. Perry is a top-15 wrestler in four national polls (Intermat, FloWrestling, WIN Magazine and TrackWrestling).
MAC West Division: Wrestlers of the Week
Matt Stencel, Central Michigan—Junior, Toledo, Ohio (Clay High School)
Central Michigan junior Matt Stencel at 285 lbs., finished runner-up at the 57th Ken Kraft Midlands Championships in Hoffman Estates, Ill. Stencel, who is 17-4 on the season, went 4-1 in the tournament, posting three victories by pin to bring his season total to 11. He defeated fifth-ranked Trent Hillger of Wisconsin, the No. 2 seed, 6-1, in the semifinals. Stencel, who is ranked eighth nationally and was seeded third in the tournament, opened with a pin in 1:12 of Mark Chaid of North Carolina, … Rest of the story at https://getsomemaction.com/news/2019/12/31/wrestling-mac-announces-wrestlers-of-the-week.aspx?mc_cid=a7cbe452af&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Adams Named Big 12 Wrestler of the Week
IRVING, Texas – West Virginia’s Noah Adams has been named the Big 12 Wrestler of the Week for Week 8. This honor serves as the first Conference award for the sophomore’s career. Adams extended his winning streak to 16 matches after going a perfect 4-0 and helping the Mountaineers to three team victories. The sophomore began his week with a 6-4 decision over Ohio’s Jake Walker, narrowly escaping a takedown in the final seconds to secure the win. Adams closed the week by picking up 12 total team points to help West Virginia to the team title … Rest of the story at https://wvusports.com/news/2019/12/31/wrestling-adams-named-wrestler-of-the-week.aspx?mc_cid=a7cbe452af&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

January 5, 2020 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized