Flashes to Collide with Purdue and Campbell at Wendy's Duals
Coming off a third place showing at the Virginia Duals, Kent State (7-5) will take on No. 21 Purdue Saturday (Jan. 15), at the Wendy's Duals inside Ashland University's Kates Gymnasium. Now ranked No. 17 by the NWCA, the Golden Flashes have won five of its last six duals. KSU will also take on Campbell at 2 p.m.
SCHEDULE CHANGE
Kent State was originally scheduled to take on Newberry at 10 a.m., but recent weather conditions prevented the Wolves from traveling.
VIDEO & LIVE STATS
Video of Saturday's duals will be posted on Gohiocasts.com Saturday evening. Live stats can be viewed at nwcaonline.com beginning with the Purdue dual at noon.
A LOOK AT PURDUE
During the first two weekends of December, the Boilermakers (3-3-1) finished eighth at the prestigious Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and defeated No. 13 Missouri 18-15 in a home dual. All three of Purdue's losses have come against Top 20 opponents. Four Boilermakers are ranked in the Top 15 of their respective weight classes. Senior 197-pounder Logan Brown (12-2) placed second at Las Vegas and was recently ranked No. 9 by InterMat. Junior 184-pounder A.J. Kissel (14-3) went 2-0 last week at the NWCA National Duals and is ranked No. 12. Senior 157-pounder Colton Salazar (9-4) finished seventh at Las Vegas and is ranked No. 12. Senior 174-pounder Luke Manuel (7-5) placed eighth in Las Vegas and was ranked as high as 10th.
SCOUTING CAMPBELL
Campbell defeated Anderson 21-18 this past Saturday, capturing six bouts. Senior heavyweight and 2010 NCAA qualifier Parker Burns won his fifth consecutive match against Anderson. The Fighting Camels are coached by Kent State alumnus Joe Boardwine, who took over the program this past July. Boardwine was a three-time placewinner at the MAC Championships and a two-year captain with the Flashes.
LAST YEAR AT WENDY'S DUALS
After starting their day with a 47-0 blowout of host Ashland, the Golden Flashes fell to both Purdue (26-17) and Maryland (24-16) last season at the Wendy's Duals. Brendan Barlow and Dustin Kilgore each went 3-0 on the day with a pin. Mallie Shuster and Keith Witt each went 2-1. Witt notched a pair of falls, while Shuster had one.
In previous trips to Ashland, the Flashes went 2-0 at the Wendy's Duals in both 2006 and 2007.
OPPONENT HISTORY
Purdue took a 6-2 all-time series lead against Kent State last season at the Wendy's Duals. Since 1998, the Boilermakers have defeated the Flashes four straight times, all at the Wendy's Duals. KSU last beat Purdue in 1977. The teams first met in 1930.
The Golden Flashes hold a 2-0 all-time series lead against Campbell, but have not faced the Fighting Camels since 2003.
LAST ACTION
Kent State knocked off a pair of ranked opponents in a 3-1 third place weekend (Jan. 7-8) at the Viginia Duals inside the Hampton Coliseum. The Golden Flashes won eight matches, including four major decisions in a 31-7 downing of No. 25 Arizona State in the quarterfinals and captured four victories in a 27-15 loss to No. 2 Penn State in the semifinals. In an 18-16 victory against No. 9 Lehigh, KSU got bonus points from Matt Cathell and Ross Tice to make the difference in a split of 10 matches. Dustin Kilgore went 4-0 on the weekend, while Tice, Brendan Barlow and Casey Newburg all went 3-1.
KILGORE MOVES UP TO FOURTH IN CAREER WINS
On Nov. 7 at the Hokie Open, Dustin Kilgore became the first Kent State wrestler to reach 100 career victories during his junior year. Saturday at the Virginia Duals, Kilgore passed former teammate Jermail Porter for fourth place on KSU's list of career win leaders with 120. He is now 23-2 on the season and needs just two more victories to pass three-time MAC champion Nick Nemeth (1998-2003) for third place. His .916 career winning percentage is the second highest in school history.
UP NEXT
The Golden Flashes open Mid-American Conference dual competition Friday, Jan. 21, hosting Northern Illinois at the M.A.C. Center.
KSU REMAINS AHEAD OF CMU IN MAC POLL
Kent State was represented in the top four of all 10 weight classes in the Dec. 17 Mid-American Conference Coaches Poll. With five wrestlers ranked in the top two spots, the Flashes earned 26 total points, just ahead of Central Michigan, who earned 24 points.
DUAL SUCCESS
Since the 2005-06 season, the Golden Flashes have gone 78-25-1 in dual meets.
WEIGHT-BY-WEIGHT BREAKDOWN
125- Junior Nic Bedelyon (12-3) is ranked No. 10 by D1CW and WrestlingReport.com. Last weekend, he recorded his second tech fall of the season against Rider's Alex Moritz. His first came at the Hershey Duals, tearing apart No. 10 Jarrod Garnett of Virginia Tech 15-0. Seven of his 12 wins have come by way of major decision, pin or tech fall. Bedelyon won his first nine matches of the season, after sitting out all of 2010-11. He earned a key 7-4 win over No. 24 Anthony Zanetta of Pitt, helping the Flashes to a road victory. The 2009 All-American won an individual title at the Body Bar, going 4-0 with two major decisions. In the finals, he blanked No. 13 Frank Perrelli (Cornell) 4-0. All three of Bedelyon's losses have come to opponents ranked in the Top 11 spots.
Also making the trip at 125 will be sophomore Stevie Mitcheff (18-6), who earned his first career dual win, an 8-2 decision, at Cleveland State. On Dec. 12 at the Cleveland State Open, Mitcheff recorded a pin and a tech fall in his 5-0 championship day. Mitcheff placed sixth at the Hokie Open, going 6-2 on the day and fourth at the Body Bar, making his way into the semifinals. He went 4-2 at the Southern Scuffle, with his losses coming to No. 4 James Nicholson (Old Dominion) and No. 16 Frank Martellotti (Penn State).
133- True freshman Tyler Small (12-10) is back in the WrestlingReport.com rankings at No. 29, after topping David Prado (Arizona State) 4-2 last week in Virginia. Small is ranked third in the MAC Coaches Poll. He earned his first dual win of the year at Missouri with an 8-6 upset over No. 17 Nathan McCormick. Small claimed a fourth place finish at the Body Bar and a convincing 15-8 victory over then No. 17 Kevin Smith of Buffalo in the quarterfinals. Small made a memorable collegiate debut at the Hokie Open with a third place finish and a 4-1 mark. He went 2-2 at the Southern Scuffle.
141- Sophomore Chase Skonieczny (14-13) recently made his way into WrestlingReport.com's rankings for the first time at No. 29. He upset No. 24 Stephen Dutton of Lehigh 7-4 and scored an 8-0 major decision over Arizona State's Kalin Goodsite. Skonieczny has suffered 10 losses against Top 20 competition this season. He went 3-2 at the Southern Scuffle, earning two technical falls and a major decision. At Pitt, Skonieczny led No. 7 Tyler Nauman 3-2 after two periods, before falling 5-4. Skonieczny placed fourth at the Body Bar with a 2-1 victory over top-seeded Hicks Manson of Cornell and later dropped his consolation final bout in overtime. Skonieczny also went 5-1 with two major decisions in a fifth place finish at the Hokie Open.
149- Junior Marcel Clopton (13-10) had won 8-of-10 matches prior to the Virginia Duals and is 5-3 in dual meets this season. Clopton won five matches at the Southern Scuffle and was just one win shy of placing in the top eight. Clopton is currently ranked No. 2 in the MAC. He went 2-2 at the Body Bar.
Sophomore Tommy Sasfy (13-10) went 3-2 at the Southern Scuffle, also coming up one win shy of placing in the top eight. Sasfy placed fourth at the Cleveland State Open and made his way into the semifinals on a 4-2 day. He also went 4-2 at the Hokie Open, coming up one win short of placing in the top six.
157- Senior Matt Cathell (9-5) is No. 16 according to D1CW and No. 2 according to MAC coaches. His 9-0 major decision against Lehigh's Brian Tannen provided a crucial extra point in the Flashes dual win over the Mountain Hawks. Cathell tallied his fifth pin of the season against North Carolina at the Hershey Duals, before sitting out the Body Bar with an injury. He nearly recorded another pin last weekend against No. 4 Bubba Jenkins of Arizona State. Cathell racked up four falls and a major decision in his opening weekend and placed third at the Hokie Open. This year, Cathell is competing at 157 for the first time in his career. Two of his losses have come at the hands of Pete Yates (Virginia Tech), who is now ranked at 165.
Sophomore Mallie Shuster (5-5) has won each of his last two duals, including a convincing 8-3 win over CSU's Matt Donahoe. Shuster went 2-2 at the Southern Scuffle. He sat out the Body Bar with illness after going 1-1 at the Hokie Open.
165- Junior Ross Tice (18-9) improved to 7-4 in dual meets following a 3-1 weekend and a pivtotal 17-2 tech fall over Lehigh's Josh Fitch. Tice placed seventh at the Southern Scuffle with a 5-2 record. He knocked off eighth-seeded Nicholas Sulzer (Virginia) before falling to top-seeded Justin Kerber (Cornell) in the quarterfinals. Tice is currently ranked No. 26 by WrestlingReport.com. He is also No. 3 in the MAC according to conference coaches. In what was expected to be a close match at Pitt, Tice scored a 10-1 major decision over Adam Counterman, resulting in the only bonus points for either team in Kent State's 16-15 win over the Panthers. Tice went 3-1 with a major decision in his third place finish at the Body Bar. He went 1-1 at the Hershey Duals with a 7-3 win over Virginia's Charles Miller. Tice finished sixth at the Hokie Open with a technical fall and a major decision.
174- Redshirt freshman Brandonn Johnson (16-13) is No. 28 according to WrestlingReport.com, after an 8-0 major decison against No. 29 Eric Starks (Arizona State). He is currently No. 3 in the MAC. All three of his weekend losses came against ranked opponents, including an 11-8 battle with No. 2 Ed Ruth of Penn State. Johnson won five matches at the Southern Scuffle on the way to an eighth place. He defeated seventh-seeded Byron Sigmon of UNC-Greensboro 7-1 on day two of the Scuffle and started his tournament with a tech fall and a major decision. Johnson won four straight bouts in his fifth place finish at the Body Bar. Johnson's only setback there came against No. 1 Mack Lewnes of Cornell, whom he also lost to at the Scuffle. Johnson has dropped back-to-back, one-point decisions in duals fagainst Missouri and Pitt. Five of Johnson's losses have come against Top 4 opponents. Johnson already has 13 career pins. He placed sixth at the Hokie Open with two pins. In his first career dual this year vs. Chattanooga, he won by major decision.
184- Sophomore Casey Newburg (16-11) has won four of his last five duals, including a 6-2 win over Penn State's Nick Fischer. Newburg tallied his fourth major decision of the year last weekend against Rider and is now ranked No. 32 according to WrestlingReport.com. He went 4-2 in his seventh place finish at the Southern Scuffle, which included an 8-7 victory over No. 18 Nate Graham (Bloomsburg). Newburg is No. 3 according to MAC Coaches. He jumped out to early leads in dual meet lossess against Pitt and Missouri. Newburg went 4-1 with a pair of pins and a major decision at the Body Bar. His only loss came to No. 4 Steve Bosak of Cornell, whom he also lost to at the Southern Scuffle. Seven of Newburg's setbacks have come against Top 20 opponents. He went 3-2 at the Hokie Open with a major decision. Newburg earned a decisive 8-2 win in his dual against Iowa State, but fell in an overtime tiebreaker to No. 19 Jason McCroskey of Chattanooga.
Sophomore Keith Witt (14-8) recently earned a major decision win at Cleveland State, competing at 197 for the first time in his career. Witt came up one win shy of placing in the 184-pound bracket at the Southern Scuffle last week. He also defeated eighth-seeded Bagna Tovuujav 10-9, before falling to No. 2 Chris Honeycutt. Witt had a strong performance at the Cleveland State Open winning five matches in his fifth place finish that included three pins. He currently leads the team with six falls on the year.
197- Junior All-American Dustin Kilgore (23-2) is ranked No. 4 by Amateur Wrestling News in his first season at 197 pounds. Since January of 2009, Kilgore has won in 41 straight dual meets, including a 9-5 decision over No. 8 Zac Thomusseit of Pitt and a 6-2 victory over No. 13 Joe Kennedy (Lehigh) in the last month. He suffered his first losses of the season in his fifth place finish at the Southern Scuffle, where he totaled three pins and a major decision. Following a 10-9 win over then No. 1, Cam Simaz of Cornell in the finals of the Body Bar, Kilgore became the first Kent State wrestler to earn a No. 1 national ranking since 1985 (Don Horning). Kilgore held the No. 1 spot in five polls and was named MAC Wrestler of the Week on Nov. 24 after going 4-0 at the Body Bar with a pin, a tech fall and a major decision. Kilgore also tallied a pair of major decisions and a convincing 11-4 win at the Hershey Duals. One of those majors came against No. 11 Mike Salopek of Virginia. Kilgore had a pair of tech falls in a 4-0 day at the Hokie Open, concluded by a win over No. 10 Jerome Ward of Iowa State in the finals. Seventeen of Kilgore's 23 wins have come via tech. fall, pin or major decision.
285- Junior Brendan Barlow (15-8) moved up to No. 8 in most polls, following a 10-5 upset of Penn State's Cameron Wade. Barlow has gone toe-to-toe with three Top five opponents in the last month. He fell to No. 5 Dom Bradley (Missouri) in overtime, before No. 2 Ryan Tomei of Pitt edged him 6-5. Last weekend, he was edged by No. Zach Rey (Lehigh) 5-3. Barlow tallied a pin and a major decision at the Virginia Duals. He went 4-0 with a major decision and did not surrender a takedown in his repeat title performance at the Body Bar. Barlow won three matches at the Southern Scuffle, coming up one win shy of placing. He defeated a pair of Top 20 opponents in his 3-0 day at the Hershey Duals. Barlow won 33 matches last year, including three at the NCAA Tournament.
After starting the season at 197 pounds, senior Joe Tymoszczuk (9-9) has moved up to heavyweight, where he is 7-3. Tymoszczuk placed sixth at the Southern Scuffle in a bracket that included 11 Top 20 wrestlers. Tymoszczuk won six matches over two days and recorded three pins. On day two, Tymoszczuk topped 11th seeded Ben Berhow of Minnesota 4-3 and seventh seeded Jeremy Johnson of Ohio 3-1 in overtime. His three pins all came on the opening day, coming against UNC-Greensboro's James Payne, Army's Christian Botero and NC State's Robert Isola. He scored an 11-2 major decision win Tuesday at Cleveland State.
