Jordan Oliver named Big 12 Wrestler of the Week By Gavin Lang Oklahoma State Sports Information STILLWATER, Okla. – For the second time this season, Oklahoma State’s Jordan Oliver earned Big 12 honors as the sophomore 133-pounder was tabbed as the Big 12 Wrestler of the Week, it was announced today. The recognition comes on the heels of Oliver earning Outstanding Wrestler distinction at the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals this past weekend. Oliver’s five results at the event were a 20-5 technical fall win over Purdue’s Akif Eren, a 10-2 major decision win over No. 7 Devin Carter of Virginia Tech, a 3:17 pin of Northern Iowa’s Ryan Jauch, a 2:26 pin of Iowa State’s Ben Cash and a 2:41 pin of Missouri’s Nathan McCormick. Despite having three of his matches ended before the 3:20 mark, Oliver still finished with 19 takedowns and six nearfalls in his five bouts at National Duals. The Easton, Pa., native was recognized as the Big 12 Wrestler of the Month this past November. Ranked No. 1 in the nation at his weight class, Oliver sports a 13-0 record this year with 12 of those 13 wins coming with bonus points attached. He has one win by major decision, four wins by technical fall and seven wins by fall. He leads OSU with a staggering 46 dual match takedowns and 13 dual match nearfalls. Oliver and the Cowboys host the reigning NCAA Champion Iowa Hawkeyes at 2 p.m. this Sunday in Gallagher-Iba Arena.
Jeremiason named Northern Sun Wrestler of the Week By Tim Gerszewski Augustana Sports Information The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference announced Monday that Augustana's Jason Jeremiason has been named its Wreslter of the Week for his 4-0 performance at this past weekend's NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Jeremiason and the Vikings earned runner-up honors at the event, topping San Francisco State, No. 6 Minnesota State and No. 2 St. Cloud State before falling to No. 1 Nebraska-Omaha in the finals. Jeremiason, a native of Marshall, Minn., collected a 4-0 record at 133 pounds for Augustana. He opened the weekend with 5-1 decision over SFSU's Brian Tharp as the Vikings topped the Gators 23-9 in the opening round. He followed that by pinning MSU's Skyler Moore in 2:02 to guide Augustana to a 31-6 victory over the Mavericks in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, Jeremiason's 3-1 decision over SCSU's Eric Ellington allowed the Vikings to knock off the Huskies 18-15. The junior beat Nebraska-Omaha's Yasiim Bribieseca 2-0 in the championship dual, but the No. 1 Mavericks managed to rally for a 17-15 victory for their third consecutive NWCA National Duals title. This marks the second time this season Augustana has had a Wrestler of the Week as Cody Lensing picked up the honor on Nov. 29. The Vikings (6-1) host Minnesota State Moorhead (2-3) on Saturday at 7 p.m. to open the NSIC dual season.
Rader named EWL Wrestler of the Week By Daniel Whitehead West Virginia Sports Information The Eastern Wrestling League Wrestler of the Week for the week ended Jan. 9, 2011, is redshirt senior Brandon Rader of West Virginia University. The Parkersburg, W. Va., native gained a huge win last Friday in the Mountaineers’ dual meet against No. 8 Illinois. The dual meet started at 157 pounds, and after completion of the first nine weights, the Fighting Illini led WVU by a score of 15-12. For the final bout, Illinois matted Eric Terrazas, the seventh-ranked 149-pounder in the nation. Thirty-seven seconds into the bout Rader gained a takedown, and at the 0:49 mark, Rader had Terrazas on his back and pinned. With the win, he improved to 6-6 on the year having lost his previous four consecutive bouts and helped the team improve to 4-3 in dual matches this season. Rader is a two-time NCAA All-American. As a true freshman, he earned a sixth-place finish in the 2006 NCAA Tournament, then placed sixth again at the 2007 NCAAs, both times competing at 141 pounds. In January of 2008, Rader suffered a torn ACL, which limited him to only two bouts of competition that season, and also forced him to miss the entire 2009 season and nearly all of 2010. “What an exciting finish it was,†WVU coach Craig Turnbull says.â€It was a great win for us.†The honor is the second EWL weekly award of this season for the Mountaineers as redshirt freshman Nathan Pennesi (133 pounds) earned it on Dec. 20, 2010, following his second-place mark at the Reno Tournament of Champions.
Schmitt named Big Ten Wrestler of the Week By Bob Healy Big Ten Conference Wisconsin sophomore Cole Schmitt earns his first Big Ten Wrestler of the Week award after winning four bouts, including two over ranked opponents, to lead the fourth-ranked Badgers to a third-place finish at the Cliff Keen/NWCA National Duals last weekend. Schmitt opened the tournament with a pin of South Dakota State’s James Hamilton in 5:31 en route to a 42-3 Wisconsin win in the first round. The 10th-ranked 149-pounder followed with a 4-3 decision over eighth-ranked Ganbayar Sanjaa of No. 22 American in the Badgers’ 23-16 win. He then earned a 6-5 decision over ninth-ranked Brian Stephens of Virginia Tech in Wisconsin’s 20-19 loss to the No. 12 Hokies in the semifinals. Schmitt closed out the National Duals by defeating Minnesota’s Danny Zilverberg by a 7-0 decision to help the Badgers down the fifth-ranked Gophers and take third place.
Virginia Tech’s Jesse Dong named ACC Wrestler of the Week By Steve Phillips Atlantic Coast Conference GREENSBORO, N.C. – Virginia Tech junior 157-pounder Jesse Dong has been named the Atlantic Coast Conference Wrestler of the Week after leading the Hokies to a second-place finish in the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals at Cedar Falls, Iowa. Dong won each of his four matches, including two that provided crucial points, as the 12th-ranked Hokies defeated 17th-ranked Central Michigan, 30-10, second-ranked Oklahoma State, 18-16, and fourth-ranked Wisconsin by a 20-19 score en route to the NWCA Duals title match vs. top-ranked Cornell. Virginia Tech suffered a 25-10 loss to Cornell in the final, but the fifth-ranked Dong completed his perfect weekend with a 5-2 win over 10th-ranked D.J. Meagher. Prior to his win over Meagher, Dong won by fall over Central Michigan’s Eric Cubberly in 2:50, and his 5-0 decision versus Oklahoma State’s Robert Erismen loomed huge as the Hokies scored a two-point win over the No. 2 Cowboys. Oklahoma State is the highest opponent Virginia Tech has ever beaten in a dual meet. In Saturday’s one-point win over No. 4 Wisconsin, Dong’s pin of Kalvin York at the 2:05 mark provided six key points for the Hokies. Virginia Tech’s historic team showing capped a strong week for ACC wrestling in which three All-Americans reached individual milestones. Virginia senior Chris Henrich posted five victories in Virginia Duals, giving him 120 career wins and breaking the previous school record set by Mike Krafchick (1991-95). Henrich now owns a career record of 120-17. NC State 149-pound senior Darrion Caldwell returned to action in top form after missing all of last season and the first two months of this season with a shoulder injury. The 2009 national champion scored six wins – five by fall – to give him a 100-12 record for his career. Caldwell is only the second wrestler in school history to win 100 matches, and his 55 pins also rank second on NC State’s all-time list. Forty-six of Caldwell’s 55 career pins are first-period falls. And Virginia Tech 141-pound senior Chris Diaz also hit the century career mark for victories with a pair of wins at the NWCA Duals. Dual action picks up this week for ACC teams, with 10 matches scheduled. The slate includes a pair of ACC openers, as NC State wrestles at Virginia on Saturday, and Virginia Tech visits North Carolina. Both of those matches are scheduled for 1 p.m. starts.
UNI's Loder named WWC Wrestler of the Week By James Warnick Utah Valley Sports Information/Western Wrestling Conference OREM, Utah -- Northern Iowa's Ryan Loder, a 184-pound redshirt freshman from Granite Bay, Calif. (Granite Bay HS), has been named the Western Wrestling Conference Wrestler of the Week as announced Tuesday by the league. Loder finished the weekend with a perfect 3‑0 record, including three wins over ranked opponents, at the 2011 Cliff Keen/NWCA National Duals last weekend. In the Panthers dual against No. 13‑ranked Missouri, Loder upset No. 13 ranked Mike Larson 3‑1. Loder then scored a crucial 6‑4 decision over No.20‑ranked Cody Magrum (Ohio State) to give UNI a 16‑13 team lead with two matches remaining. Against No. 2‑ranked Oklahoma State, Loder upset his third ranked wrestler of the day, scoring a 8‑2 victory over No. 11 Chris Perry. Loder is 16‑8 this season and has won nine of his last 11 matches. This is also Loder's second conference honor of the season.
Radsky named SoCon Wrestler of the Week By Jonathan Caskey Southern Conference Davidson senior Vitaly Radsky has been named Southern Conference Wrestler of the Week for all competitions from January 5-11. Radsky fashioned a perfect 4-0 record last week, including notching the only 3-0 mark among Wildcats wrestlers at the Pitt Duals. The senior earned a major decision against Pittsburgh’s Mike Tully despite Davidson dropping the dual match to the nationally-ranked Panthers. He followed that with a pin versus Drexel and a decision against Millersville. Radsky began the week by being credited with a forfeit victory in a dual win over Franklin & Marshall. Radsky is currently 9-1 on the season with a 1-0 SoCon mark and four pins.
Nicholson named CAA Wrestler of the Week By Eric Bohannon Old Dominion Sports Information James Nicholson was named the Colonial Athletic Association co-wrestler of the week for all matches from Jan. 4-10, the CAA announced on Wednesday. Nicholson, who is ranked No. 4 in the nation at 125 and 17-0 on the season, went 3-0 at the Virginia Duals, picking up wins by major decisions, technical fall and pin. The Des Moines, Iowa native pinned Edinboro’s Bijan Banks in the first period of his first match before dominating VMI’s John Pope in a 19-2 technical fall. In his final match of the tournament, he topped No. 19 Tyler Cox of Wyoming in a 16-8 major decision. It is the third CAA honor of the season for Nicholson, as he was named the conference Wrestler of the Month for November and December. Nicholson and the Monarchs are back in action on Saturday, Jan. 15 when they travel to Fairfax, Va. to compete in the CAA Duals.
Bagheri named RMAC Wrestler of the Week By Jim Solien San Francisco State Sports Information San Francisco State’s Naveed Bagheri (Los Gatos, Calif./Los Gatos HS/West Valley College) has been named the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Wrestler of the Week, the league office announced Tuesday. The Gator junior collected the second weekly conference award of his career after posting a 5-0 record in the 141-pound weight class at the highly competitive NWCA/Cliff Keen NWCA National Duals, Jan 8-9, in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Bagheri's performance also spurred the Gators to an eighth-place finish in the team standings as the Purple and Gold was the lone RMAC team to place at the prestigious event. On Saturday, Bagheri began his undefeated run in style with a 3-1 upset of No. 3 Augustana College’s Jay Sherer, who entered the tournament as the top-ranked wrestler in the 141-pound weight class. Later in the afternoon, the Los Gatos product contributed significantly to SF State’s victories over No. 14 Findlay and sixth-ranked Western State, pinning UF’s Chad Channel in the first period, followed by a 3-1 decision over Jesse Cruz of WSC. Then on Sunday, Bagheri picked up right where he left off with a 6-1 triumph over Ky Corley of No. 7 Central Oklahoma before dispatching Robby Fisher of sixth-ranked Minnesota State, 11-4, to punctuate the weekend. With his performance, Bagheri, who is ranked fifth at 141 in the latest NCAA Division II individual poll, raised his record to 16-4 on the season, including three pins and three victories by technical fall.
Ben Bennett named MAC Wrestler of the Week By Scott Rex Central Michigan Sports Information Central Michigan sophomore 174-pounder Ben Bennett (Rockford, Mich./Rockford HS) has been named Mid-American Conference Wrestler of the Week. Bennett won all four of his matches last week as the Chippewas went 2-2 in four duals, including a 21-13 win at Northern Illinois in the MAC opener. He posted an 18-2 technical fall against NIU's Caleb Busson on Thursday, then swept his three matches at National Duals on Saturday. Among his three wins at National Duals were two decisions against nationally ranked opponents: No. 10 Luke Manuel (Purdue) and No. 20 Dorian Henderson (Missouri). Bennett, ranked fifth nationally at 174 pounds, improved to 19-4 overall including 8-1 in duals. He has won nine of his last 10 bouts and has not surrendered an offensive point in his nine victories. Bennett earns the conference's weekly honor for the second time this season and third time in his career. CMU, ranked 12th in this week's InterMat poll, hosts No. 18 Michigan on Sunday at 2 p.m. in the first wrestling match at McGuirk Arena.