Mid-American Conference Championships set for Saturday at Eastern Michigan University
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Jaimie McNab (TheMat.com)
03/08/2002
The MAC Championships are set for Saturday and Sunday, March 9-10, at Eastern Michigan's Convocation Center in Ypsilanti, Mich. The action begins Saturday, March 9, with the first round at 1:00 p.m. and the second session beginning at 6:00 p.m. The championship rounds will start Sunday at 1:00 p.m. The winners of each weight class and eight wild cards will receive bids to the NCAA Championships March 21-24 at the Pepsi Arena in Albany, N.Y. The field of teams includes defending tourney champion Ohio University plus host Eastern Michigan University, the University at Buffalo and Kent State University. Northern Illinois and Central Michigan round out the teams competing in this weekends championship tournament. Jared Opfer (Sandusky, Ohio/Kent State) looks continue the stronghold on the 125-pound weight class. Opfer went 5-0 in MAC matches this season and is hungry for a birth to the NCAA Championships. The 133-pound weight division will feature Jordan Webster (Washington, Ill./Central Michigan) who is currently ranked 13th in the nation by Amateur Wrestling News. Webster went 5-0 in MAC duals this season and looks to defend his unblemished record. Jason Mester (Mineral Point, Wis./Central Michigan) is the defending MAC champion at 141 pounds. Mester missed half of the season due to knee surgery but has made an impressive comeback and is ranked No. 1 in the MAC. Mester will probably grapple with Darnell Ruffin (Flint, Mich./Central Michigan) in the first-place match. Ruffin is ranked 18th nationally and currently leads his team in number of pins with 6 on the season. At 149 pounds, Jake Percival (Elyria, Ohio/Ohio) is ranked nationally in the eighth spot. Percival capped off an incredible year with 23 consecutive wins and a 31-2 record going 5-0 in the MAC. Percival will likely grapple with Ty Morgan (Huber Heights, Ohio/Central Michigan) who is ranked 20th nationally and is the defending MAC champion. In the 157-pound weight class, No. 1 Scott Owen (Carlsbad, N.M./Northern Illinois) leads the pack. Owen is ranked in the sixth spot nationally and boasts a 26-1 record going into the action. He will likely face Mike Tolar (Parma, Ohio/Kent State), ranked 16th nationally or David Bolyard (Akron, Ohio/Central Michigan), ranked 20th nationally. At 165 pounds, Nick Nemeth (Cleveland, Ohio/Kent State) will be looking to claim his second championship crown in three years. Nemeth is ranked No. 13 nationally and is at the top of the MAC going into the tournament. The 174 pound weight class will probably pit Luke Moore (Springfield, Ohio/Ohio) against Tony Gansen (Belle Plaine, Minn./Central Michigan). Moore is the defending 174 pound MAC champion while Gansen, a transfer from Oklahoma State, will be challenging for the title. Ben Heizer (Arlington, Texas/Northern Illinois) is ranked ninth nationally at 184 pounds and is the man to beat in his weight class. Heizer brings a 22-5 record to the tournament and is unbeaten by anyone in the MAC. At 197 pounds, Kyle Cerminara (Lewiston, N.Y./Buffalo) may face off with Joel Weimer (Waynesville, Ohio/Ohio). Cerminara is the top-ranked 197-pounder in the conference and Weimer is at the No. 2 spot and looking for a ticket to nationals. In the heavyweight division, Jim Swetter (Brunswick, Ohio/Kent State has been dominant this year. Swetter is unbeaten in dual-meets and will probably face Jack Leffler (Morris, Ill./Central Michigan) in the final match. Leffler is the defending champion and has a record of 4-1 in the MAC going into tournament action. This years MAC Championships are sure to be a great battle. With 18 spots in the NCAA event at stake, there promises to be great match ups.