2001 Cliff Keen/NWCA National Wrestling Duals Team Seedings

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Brian Siegrist (Penn State)
01/17/2001


The following are the team seedings and Saturday opening match times for the top eight teams in this weekend's Cliff Keen/NWCA National Wrestling Duals:     Seed (NWCA rank)    Match time   1. (#1)  Oklahoma State  9 a.m.   2. (#2)  Minnesota  11 a.m.   3. (#3)  Iowa     11 a.m.   4. (#4)  Iowa State  9 a.m.   5. (#6)  Oklahoma  9 a.m.   6. (#7)  Michigan  11 a.m.   7.  (#8)  Nebraska  11 a.m.   8. (#9)  Arizona State  9 a.m.    Unseeded teams - (#15) Edinboro, (#17) Hofstra, (#18) Lehigh, (#20) Virginia Tech, Penn State, Montclair State, Montana State Northern & Nebraska-Omaha    The seeded teams will draw their opponents from the remaining eight teams at the Pre-Championship Press Conference  (NOTE SITE CHANGE)Friday, Jan. 19, at 1:00 p.m. in Bryce Jordan Center MEDIA ROOM (on   event level/1st floor)    Coaches Bobby Douglas (ISU), J Robinson (MINN), John Smith (OSU) and Jim Zalesky (IOWA) as well as host coach Troy Sunderland (PSU) will be available for comment at that time.    Notes  * 8 of the Top 10 teams, 4 of the Top 5 and 12 Top 25 ranked teams overall will be competing.  * Iowa State's Cael Sanderson (184) will likely set a new NCAA record for consecutive victories (101) in his first match of the tournament.  * Iowa State won last year's title, 17-16, over Minnesota. The last three finals matches have been decided by three points or less.  * With five titles to its credit, OSU has won more National Duals titles than any other team.  * Minnesota has reached the final in the last three events, winning in 1998 over Iowa.  * Oklahoma State (5), Penn State (2), Iowa (3), Iowa State (1) and Minnesota (1) are returning former champions.  * Six No. 1 ranked wrestlers will compete in the tournament (AWN Individual rankings).    2001 Cliff Keen/NWCA National Wrestling Duals Preview    Hold on to your seats, because the 2001 Cliff Keen/NWCA National Wrestling Duals are coming back to "Happy Valley" and once again promise a thrilling ride for fans and competitors alike.    Making their second appearance at Penn State's Bryce Jordan Center on Jan. 20-21, the "National Duals" bring a field of 16 teams, which include eight ranked in the Top 10 and 11 overall ranked in the latest NWCA Coaches Poll. They'll go head-to-head for the right to be named the "National Dual Meet Champion."    "It's a great showcase event for college wrestling and to have the top schools in the country come in and compete at Penn State is great for wrestling in the area," Penn State head coach Troy Sunderland said.    Heading the list of those who will take the mat in the double elimination tournament are the top four teams in the country: No. 1 Oklahoma State, No. 2 Minnesota, No. 3 Iowa, and No. 4 Iowa State. Those four teams have claimed the last seven National Duals titles between them dating to 1994 and bring dominant teams into this year's contest.    Oklahoma State is coming off an impressive defeat of Minnesota, 25-12, at the Golden Gophers William's Arena in early January and appear to be the team to beat. But, as has been the case for virtually every proceeding tournament, upsets will arise and teams will rise from the pack to establish a national name for themselves.  "It's just a real neat weekend of college wrestling," Sunderland said. "Some fans I talked too like it much more than the NCAA   Championships. There is a lot of great wrestling and four matches going on at once. At any point in time you can look down and watch one of the top college wrestlers competing."    In fact, six No. 1 ranked wrestlers will take the mat for the National Duals, none with a bigger resume than two-time defending national champion Cael Sanderson of Iowa State who may have the oppurtunity to break the NCAA record for the longest winning streak at this year's event. Sanderson is but one of the top wrestlers in the country that will take the mat. Virtually all of the potential NCAA title contenders and All-America candidates will be on display,   including the top four ranked men at 133 and 141, seven of the top eight at 165, four of the top six at 174 and the top three at 197. Former NCAA champions T.J. Williams, Eric Juergens and Doug Schwab of Iowa and Brad Vering of Nebraska will be among them.    All the high powered teams and individuals on the mat makes for some spectacularly close competition as teams fight tooth and nail for the coveted trophy. The championship matches of the last three tournaments have all been decided by three points or less, including Iowa State's thrilling 17-16 victory over Minnesota last year and Minnesota's 18-17 victory over host Iowa in 1998 that shocked a near capacity Carver-Hawkeye Arena crowd.  "Certainly there is a lot of prestige to go with winning the national dual meet title," Sunderland said. "You do things as a team. The team moves on as a winning team or as a losing team. It's something really brings teams together."  Sunderland should know as he captained Penn State to its last National Duals title in 1993 as the Nittany Lions downed Nebraska, 20-13, in Lincoln, Neb.  "It was a great experience," Sunderland said of that tournament. "The weekend that we had is something I'll never forget. The way the team came together and battled through some real tough matches and each person going out and doing his part to bring home the national title is something that was certainly one of my most memorable experiences at Penn State."    The Nittany Lion have won two titles under the current NWCA format, the other in 1991, and are among five returning teams that have had their name enscribed on the winners trophy. In fact, Penn State, Iowa, Iowa State, Minnesota and Oklahoma State have won all 12 tournament titles since the current tournament began in 1989.Oklahoma State leads the pack with five titles, the last coming in 1999, and once again will enter as the favorite. Will they walk away with number six, or will a team break into the national spotlight, as Minnesota did with its victory in 1998, with an unexpected victory? It's sure to be fun finding out.    Team Tiebreaker Information  When two teams finish in a tie, the following criteria should   be applied, in order to determine advancement.  A) Greater number of victories;  B) Greater number of six-point victories (falls, forfeits or defaults);  C) Greater number of match terminations;  D) Greater number of major decisions;  E) Greater number of decisions;  F) Lesser cumulative time of falls;  G) Lesser cumulative time of match terminations;  H) Greater total number of match points scored  I) Coin toss.