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March 3, 2010

Complete Release in PDF Format

THIS WEEK IN PANTHER WRESTLING

March 6                        NCAA West Regional                             Brookings, S.D.

 

The University of Northern Iowa wrestling team heads to Brookings, S.D. in an attempt to claim its 25th-straight NCAA West Regional Championship Saturday, March 6. The Panthers finished the Western Wrestling Conference season with a dual record of 4-2, finishing third behind Wyoming and Utah Valley. Action will get underway at 10 a.m. from Frost Arena with final matches scheduled to begin at 5 p.m.

 

PANTHER POINTS

PANTHER WRESTLING ON THE RADIO/INTERNET

The University of Northern Iowa wrestling matches will be broadcast this season on KWAY (Y99.3-FM, Waverly). Benjamin Hupke will have the hold-by-hold coverage. The wrestling action can also be heard live on the Internet through UNI Panthers GAMEDAY Online, which can be accessed at www.unipanthers.com for a nominal fee.

 

Fans can also tune into the Brad Penrith Show live from Mulligan's Brick Oven Grill and Pub every Wednesday evening from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. on KWAY (Y99.3-FM).

 

WATCH THE FINALS OF THE WEST REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Can't make it to Brookings, S.D. to watch the Panthers? Visit www.gojacks.com and view the finals of the 2010 NCAA West Regional Championships!

 

A LOOK AT THE WEST REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Last week, 14 automatic qualifier spots were allocated to the NCAA West Regional based on a combination of the final Coaches' Panel Rankings and Rating Percentage Index (RPI). The breakdown per weight class were as follows: 125 pounds (2), 133 (1), 141 (3), 149 (1), 157 (1), 165 (1), 174 (2), 184 (1), 197 (1) and Heavyweight/285 (1). Crowned champions at the event will receive an automatic bid to the national tournament and subsequent places will be handed out to the place equal to the number of allocated spots for a spot at the National Tournament held March 18-20 in Omaha, Neb.

 

PANTHERS LAND FIVE WRESTLERS IN TOP 33 RPI, FOUR RANKED IN FINAL COACHES' PANEL

Jarion Beets was the highest ranked wrestler for the Panthers, coming in at No. 24 at 174 pounds. Tyson Reiner finds himself ranked at No. 29 in the 157-pound slot while Trent Washington (149 pounds) and Christian Brantley (Hwt.) both come in at No. 30 in their respective classes.

 

In the final RPI, the Panthers had five wrestlers ranked in the top 33, including Ryan Jauch (133 lbs.) at No. 31, Reiner at No. 21, David Bonin (157 lbs.) at No. 32, Beets at No. 14 and Brantley at No. 33.

 

THE QUEST FOR No. 25

The Panthers head into this weekend's NCAA West Regional with a huge target on their backs. The Panthers, winners of 24-straight West Regional titles, will attempt to claim their 25th-straight title in Brookings. The Panthers began their streak in 1986 and just narrowly beat Wyoming a season ago as the Panthers finished 1.5 points ahead of the Cowboys.

 

BRANTLEY REACHES 20-WIN PLATEAU

Sophomore Christian Brantley reached the 20-win plateau against North Dakota State, pinning Joe Arthur in 6:11. Brantley is currently 21-9 this season and 16-6 in dual matches.

 

THREE PANTHERS RANKED IN SECOND COACHES' PANEL

Three University of Northern Iowa wrestlers found themselves ranked in the NCAA's second of three coaches' panel rankings while five Panthers were listed in the top 33 in the first Rating Percentage Index (RPI). The final rankings and RPI will be two of the tools used as part of the selection process to determine the qualifiers for the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships.

 

In the coaches' panel, Tyson Reiner ranks 32nd at the 157-pound slot while Jarion Beets sits in 28th at 174 pounds and Christian Brantley is ranked No. 28 at 285 pounds.

 

In the RPI, the Panthers found five wrestlers in the top 33 with Ryan Jauch (133 lbs.) coming in at 31, Reiner (157 lbs.) at 32, Beets (174 lbs.) in the No. 8 slot, Andy O'Loughlin (184 lbs.) at 30 and Brantley (285 lbs.) at 28.  

To be eligible for an RPI ranking, a wrestler must have a minimum of 15 Division I matches at a given weight class. The top 33 wrestlers in the RPI are listed for each weight class.

 

PERFECT WEEKEND

Panther 149-pounder Trent Washington recorded a perfect weekend, earning wins over Oklahoma State's Jake Peck, a major decision over Appalachian State's Savva Kostis and a 10-3 decision over Chattanooga's Dean Pavlou.

 

LODER HITS 30 WINS

Freshman Ryan Loder hit the 30-win mark last weekend at the Duhawk Open en route to taking third place. The freshman from Granite Bay, Calif. has wrestled in open tournaments this season for the Panthers compiling an overall record of 32-5, including eight major decision wins, three technical falls and ten wins by fall.

 

ETTELSON GETS BACK IN THE GROOVE

Senior Charlie Ettelson returned to full form for the Panthers against Utah Valley and Wyoming, being the only Panther to notch victories over both his opponents. Ettelson notched a 3-1 victory over Utah Valley's Jeffery Newby before claiming a 4-1 decision over Wyoming's Cody VomBaur.

 

NO WALK IN THE PARK

Tyson Reiner's hasn't faced an easy opponent yet this season. Of Reiner's 11 dual losses, eight of them have came at the hands of ranked wrestlers, including three wrestlers ranked in the top 10 in the latest NCAA coaches' panel rankings. Reiner faced the No. 1-ranked wrestler at the 157-pound slot in J.P. O'Connor (Harvard) as well as the No. 3-ranked wrestler, Adam Hall (Boise State) in addition to Bloomsburg's Matt Moley (No.9). However, Reiner has registered wins of his own over ranked opponents, topping No. 18 Lucas Espericueta (Stanford) and No. 19 Justin Gaethje (Northern Colorado). Reiner is currently ranked No. 29 in the latest coaches' panel.

 

REINER NAMED WWC WRESTLER OF THE WEEK

Reiner finished last weekend 2-0 in WWC action, notching wins over Northern Colorado's Justin Gaethje and South Dakota State's Nick Flynn. Gaethje came into the match against Reiner ranked No. 19 in the latest coaches' panel rankings while Reiner was ranked 33rd.  Reiner secured a 5-3 victory over Gaethje, allowing Gaethje no takedowns in the match.  The following evening Reiner recorded an 18-5 major decision win over SDSU's Flynn to finish the weekend 2-0.

 

FIVE PANTHERS RANKED IN COACHES' PANEL

The University of Northern Iowa found five Panthers ranked in the top 33 with Terrance Young (125 pounds) coming in at No. 31, Brett Robbins (149 pounds) at No. 19, Tyson Reiner (157 pounds) at No. 33,  Jarion Beets (174 pounds) at No.29, and Christian Brantley (285 pounds) at No. 29.

 

Wrestlers in each weight class will be measured by winning percentage, rating percentage index (RPI) and coaches' rankings to earn spots for the 2010 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships. The coaches' rankings are compiled by a vote of coaches across the nation. Each qualifying tournament has five coaches rank the top 33 wrestlers in two weight classes. For ranking purposes, coaches must select a wrestler as a starter at a designated weight class. In addition, coaches may only select one wrestler per weight class.

 

ROBBINS JUMPS INTO THE RANKINGS

After finishing with a 2-0 record at the NWCA National Duals, Brett Robbins jumped into Intermat's top 25 at the 149-pound slot. Robbins currently boasts a record of 18-4 this season.

 

O'LOUGHLIN REVENGES

Junior Andy O'Loughlin revenged an early season loss to Purdue's Nick Corpe at the Midlands Championships (Dec. 29-30). O'Loughlin topped Corpe 7-0 in the second round of the tournament. At the Northwestern Duals (Nov. 14) Corpe topped O'Loughlin in a 7-5 decision.

 

SIX PANTHERS PLACE AT JIM FOX OPEN

Cruse Aarhus (125 pounds), Grant Sutter (133 pounds), Brett Robbins (149 pounds) and Ryan Loder (184 pounds) all took home first-place finishes at the Jim Fox Open in Dubuque, Iowa while Brice Wolf (174 pounds) and Cole Zempel (149 pounds) took home runner-up honors.

 

NO REST FOR THE WICKED

The month of December is no cakewalk for the UNI wrestling team, facing three ranked opponents in three consecutive dual matches. The Panthers kicked-off their December schedule taking on top-ranked Iowa and two days later hosted No. 22-ranked Wisconsin. A week later, the Panthers played host to the No. 2 ranked team, Iowa State. UNI wrapped-up December at the Midlands Championships, which is known to be one of the most prestigious tournaments in college wrestling.

 

YOUNG MAKES HIS DEBUT

Junior Terrance Young jumped into the Panther starting line-up against Wisconsin at the 125-pound slot and did so in an impressive fashion. Young scored a 6-0 decision win over Wisconsin's Drew Hammen. It marked the junior's first career dual match.

 

BIG WINS

Tyson Reiner (157 pounds) and Jarion Beets (174 pounds) both recorded big wins for the Panthers against Wisconsin. Beets secured a 17-6 major decision win over Jimmy Duffy to give the Panthers an early 4-0 lead to start the meet. Reiner also secured a major decision win, a 16-5 victory of UW's Greg Burke. Beets has recorded three major decision wins this season while Reiner has two.

 

FOUR PANTHERS PLACE AT HUSKY OPEN

Trevor Kittleson (149 pounds), Brice Wolf (174 pounds), Ryan Loder (184 pounds) and Blayne Beale (hwt) all placed for the Panthers at the Husky Open hosted by St. Cloud State. Kittleson and Loder each earned first-place honors in addition to Wolf taking the runner-up spot at 174 pounds and Beale finishing fifth at the heavyweight slot.

 

UNBLEMISHED DAY

Both Andy O'Loughlin and Jarion Beets finished the day at the Sprawl and Brawl with unblemished 3-0 records, helping the Panthers to a 2-1 record. Ryan Jauch also finished the day with a 1-0 record, pinning Harvard's Fermin Mendez in the Panthers second dual of the day.

 

PANTHERS SECURE THREE PLACEWINNERS AT KAUFMAN-BRAND OPEN

Freshman Ryan Loder secured a third-place finish at the 184-pound slot at the Kaufman-Brand Open to highlight the Panther placewinners. Brett Robbins finished in fourth place at 157 pounds while Brice Wolf took fifth place at 174 pounds.

 

NOT SO FAMILIAR OPPONENTS

The Panthers opened the dual portion of the season with some unfamiliar opponents in 2009. The Panthers took on both Harvard and Rutgers for the first time in 85 years of Panther wrestling. UNI topped Harvard 26-10 before falling 25-10 to Rutgers. The week before, the Panthers recorded the first dual match against Stanford and just the fifth meeting with Eastern Michigan. 

STAYIN' PERFECT AGAINST EMU

The Panthers are a perfect 5-0 in the all-time series against Eastern Michigan. The series began in 1967 when UNI claimed a 21-11 win over the Eagles.  Prior to last Saturday the Panthers and Eagles had not met since 1971.

 

HANGIN' TOUGH

A quartet of Panthers finished the weekend at the Northwestern Duals with a 2-1 dual record. Christian Brantley (hwt) rebounded after opening the dual season with a loss to come away with two wins against Purdue and Stanford while Tyson Reiner notched wins over Eastern Michigan and Stanford. Redshirt freshman David Bonin finished the day 2-1, securing wins over EMU and Purdue. Dustin Bauman also walked away with two wins including wins over EMU and Stanford.

 

THREE PANTHERS PLACE AT CYCLONE OPEN

Brett Robbins, Ryan Loder and Terrance Young each placed at the Cyclone Open hosted by Iowa State (Nov. 14). Young took home third place honors at 125 pounds while Robbins finished second at the 157-pound slot. True freshman Ryan Loder took home a third-place finish at 184 pounds.

 

PANTHERS INK FOUR

University of Northern Iowa head wrestling coach Brad Penrith announced the signing of four student-athletes to National Letters-of-Intent today. Penrith inked Levi Wolfensperger (Waverly, Iowa/Denver HS), Brock Weatherman (Cambridge, Iowa/Ballard-Huxley HS), Seth Noble (Mount Union, Iowa/Columbus Junction HS) and Joe Latham (Bismark, N.D./Bismark HS).

 

"We're excited with all four of these guys," Penrith said. "They are all very academically sound and excellent students. Each of them posses great character and they can all wrestle very well. This is probably our best class we've signed in the early signing period since I've been here. We're excited to get some of the top talent in the state. With the mixture of the recruits we had last year and these new guys; we're providing some great depth for our program."

 

Levi Wolfensperger -Waverly, Iowa/ Denver HS

Wolfensperger captured the 2009 Iowa Class 2A state title at 119 pounds, capping off his junior season with an overall record of 51-1. Wolfensperger took runner-up honors his freshman and sophomore seasons, finishing second at 112 pounds as a sophomore with an overall record of 44-2 and second at 103 pounds his freshman year with a record of 43-1. Amateur Wrestling News ranks Wolfensperger at No. 9 in their 2009-10 pre-season rankings at 125 pounds.  Wolfensperger captured the National High School Coaches Association Junior Nationals title at 125 pounds while also being named the meets Outstanding Wrestler. Wolfensperger also captured the USA Wrestling Pre-Season Nationals crown. He currently holds a 3.2 high school GPA.

Brock Weatherman - Cambridge, Iowa /Ballard-Huxley HS

Weatherman currently holds a record of 117-9 heading into his senior season at Ballard-Huxley High School. Weatherman has captured two state titles at 171 pounds in addition to capturing the 171-pound title at the Fargo Junior Nationals Tournament. Weatherman has been a three-time all-conference honoree as well earning all-state track honors. Weatherman is currently ranked No. 8 by the Amateur Wrestling News in their 2009-10 pre-season rankings. He currently holds a high school GPA of 3.25.

Seth Noble - Mount Union, Iowa/ Columbus Junction HS

Noble enters his senior season with an overall record of 135-6 after capturing the state title at 135 pounds his sophomore season. Noble finished fifth his freshman season and second as a junior. Noble holds a high school GPA of 3.56. He comes from the same high school as All-American Jason Payne and current assistant coach and former All-American Randy Pugh.

Joe Latham - Bismark, ND/Bismark HS

Latham captured the 2009 state title at 160 pounds in 2009 while finishing as runner-up in his sophomore campaign. Latham was also crowned champion at the USA Wrestling Pre-Nationals tournament at 160 pounds. He has recorded 108 wins in his high school career entering his senior season. Latham also holds a GPA of 3.9.

 

PANTHERS OPEN SEASON AT LORAS OPEN

UNI crowned four champions and recorded eighteen place winners at the Loras Open (Nov.7).

UNI's champions included Grant Sutter (125 lbs.), Jamal Lawrence (149 lbs.), Brett Robbins (157 lbs.) and Ryan Loder (184 lbs.).

The Panthers showed their depth at the lower weight classes taking first, second and sixth place at 125 pounds, first and second place honors at 133 pounds and the top four places at 149 pounds.  UNI also had multiple place winners at 174 pounds as well as 184 pounds.

UNI's second place finishers included Cruse Aarhus (125 lbs.), Joey Lazor (133 lbs.) and Trevor Kittleson (149 lbs.).

The Panthers notched three third-place finishers in Charlie Ettelson (149 lbs.), Andy O'Loughlin (184 lbs.) and Christian Brantley (285 lbs.).

Cole Zempel (149 lbs.), Scott Hazen (149 lbs.) and Dustin Bauman (197 lbs.) each recorded fourth-place finishes while Ryan Jauch (133 lbs.), Alec Hoffman (141 lbs.) and David Bonin (165 lbs.) took home fifth-place honors. Terrance Young (125 lbs.) and Brice Wolf (174 lbs.) rounded out the place winners for UNI, both taking home sixth-place.

 

LAWRENCE SHINES AT LORAS OPEN

Sophomore Jamal Lawrence made a strong case in his quest for a spot in the Panthers starting lineup at the Loras Open, topping fellow teammate and 2009 NCAA qualifier Trevor Kittleson in the championship match. Lawrence recorded two major decisions in the tournament, including a 12-3 win over Kittleson. Lawrence finished the day with an unblemished 4-0 record.

 

NO FRESHMAN JITTERS HERE

True freshmen Joey Lazor and Ryan Loder showed they seem to have made a smooth transition from high school to college wrestling. Lazor took home second place honors at the Loras Open in the 133-pound slot while Loder took home the 184-pound title.

 

WRESTLE-OFF RESULTS

The University of Northern Iowa opened the 2009-10 wrestling season with the annual intra-squad wrestle-offs Saturday in the West Gym.

"We wrestled very well today," UNI head coach Brad Penrith said. "This is our first time competing this year and I'm very happy with our guy's performance. They were very aggressive and competitive.

Our freshmen wrestled very well. They are a group of guys that compete. Those guys aren't afraid to wrestle, and we definitely saw that today."

Caleb Flores won a 13-6 decision over Grant Sutter at the 125-pound weight class.

"Caleb really performed well today," Penrith said. "He was attacking late into the third period which I was very happy to see."

Freshman Joey Lazor topped Jake Demmon 9-3 and then came back to pin sophomore Steven Fitzgerald in 6:41 at the 133-pound weight class.

Jamal Lawrence topped Aaron Senzee 8-2 and then returned to the mat to top Charlie Ettelson 15-13 in an action-packed match at the 149-pound class.

"Jamal also had a very good day," Penrith said. "He kept wrestling and didn't stop moving. Charlie came back at him and gave him a big challenge but he came out of it and then came out with the win."

True freshman Brice Wolf topped senior Scott Hazen 9-5, but later fell to Jarion Beets 11-6 at 165 pounds.

Trent Washington scored an 11-5 decision over Alec Hoffman at 141 pounds.

"Trent scored 10 points in two periods," Penrith said. "We need him to wrestle like that. He attacked and was very aggressive, which is what I like to see."

Another true freshman, Ryan Loder, scored a big win over an upperclassman as Loder topped Andy O'Loughlin 7-2 at 184 pounds.

At the heavyweight slot, Christian Brantley topped Blayne Beale 9-5.

"Christian continued to attack throughout the match," Penrith said. "That was good to see."

"Overall I'm very pleased with our performance," Penrith said. "We still need to work on some things and stay concentrated and keep doing the right things. We're just excited to get rolling."

 

PLEDGES FOR PINS

An initiative by University of Northern Iowa wrestling fans could make the slap of the mat ring like a cash register for the Panther wrestling program.

      "Pledges for Pins" invites supporters to promise a donation for every pin the team scores in the 2009-10 regular season. Last year the Panthers tallied 102 pins.

      Sandy Stevens, UNI graduate and announcer at national and international wrestling events, has kicked off the campaign.

      "UNI has an unparalleled legacy of wrestling excellence," she said. "This is our chance to help bring the program back into the top five nationally, and all Panther wrestling fans can be involved.

      UNI head coach Brad Penrith said "Pledges for Pins" is a great opportunity to give back to the UNI wrestling program.

      "The UNI wrestling program would like to thank Sandy Stevens for stepping up and encouraging others to financially help the Panthers," Penrith said. "This is a great way to help support the program and assist us in getting UNI wrestling back to the top of collegiate wrestling."

      Donors may specify a maximum number of pins for their contribution, Stevens said. Outright donations are also welcome. Contributors will be sent a statement at the end of the season.

      Pledges or donations may be sent to Send to: Pledges for Pins, UNI Accounting, 1221 W. 23rd St., Cedar Falls, IA 50614-0239.  Please include name, address, phone number, signature and amount of pledge per pin. All contributions are tax-deductible.

      These funds will be used to make improvements to the University of Northern Iowa program and return UNI to its former stature as one of the top wrestling schools in the country.