COLLEGE WRESTLERS OF THE WEEK: Tennessee-Chattanooga's Cleveland honored by Southern Conference
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CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wrestler Cody Cleveland has been named the Southern Conference Wrestler of the Week, the SoCon office announced Thursday.
Cleveland brought home a fourth-place finish at 141 pounds from the prestigious Midlands Championships this past weekend in Evanston, Ill.
The unseeded sophomore from Tullahoma, Tenn., wrestled 10 matches over the two-day event and finished with an 8-2 record. After going 1-1 in the championship bracket, Cleveland wrestled his way back into the medal rounds, winning seven of his eight consolation matches. Cleveland recorded two technical falls, two major decisions and a pin. His pin came against eighth-seeded Corey Jantzen of Harvard.
Cleveland's finish helped lead the 10th-ranked Mocs to a seventh-place finish in the team standings at the Midlands. His performance also led to a national ranking in his weight class by the National Wrestling Coaches Association/IntermatWrestle.com. Cleveland broke into the poll at No. 16, earning the ranking by the NWCA for the first time in his career. He remained at No. 17 in the Wrestling International Newsmagazine poll.
Also benefiting from a strong showing at the Midlands was Josh Edmondson. The senior 184-pounder, who placed eighth at the event, is ranked 16th this week by W.I.N.
The Mocs, 5-1, remained 10th in the NWCA/IntermatWrestle.com poll and fell from 14th to 16th in the W.I.N. rankings. Other Mocs included in this week's rankings are Javier Maldonado (125), ninth and 11th in the NWCA and W.I.N. polls respectively, Steve Hromada (133), 19th in W.I.N., Joey Knox (149), 20th by NWCA, Seth Garvin (165), 20th by W.I.N., Lloyd Rogers (174), a season-high 13th in both polls and Matt Koz (197), 13th and 17th.
The Mocs take on Kennesaw State and Northern Iowa Sunday at 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. respectively. The dual matches will take place in Douglasville, Ga., a western suburb of Atlanta.
Central Michigan's Christian Sinnott honored by MAC
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - Central Michigan University senior Christian Sinnott (Allen Park, Mich./Allen Park HS) has been named Mid-American Conference Wrestler of the Week.
Sinnott placed third at 184 pounds at the Midlands Championships last weekend. Seeded third, he advanced to the semifinals before dropping a 2-1 decision to No. 2 seed and eventual champion Jake Varner (Iowa State). Sinnott was 6-1 overall in the tournament, including a 5-3 decision over Iowa's Phil Keddy in the third-place match.
Sinnott was one of three Chippewas to place third at Midlands, where CMU finished third as a team. The third-place finish matches CMU's second-best showing at the event (second in 2005, third in 1998), and the Chippewas are one of just two programs to finish in the top four at the tournament each of the last four years.
Sinnott earns the conference's weekly honor for the first time in his career. He is third CMU wrestler to collect the award this season, joining twin brother Brandon Sinnott (Dec. 27) and Luke Smith (Nov. 29).
CMU, ranked fifth in this week's InterMat/NWCA top 25, returns to dual meet action on Sunday, traveling to Hempstead, N.Y. to face No. 16 Hofstra (11 a.m.) and No. 13 Edinboro (1 p.m.). The Chippewas enter the weekend having won 15 consecutive duals dating back to last season; a win against Hofstra would establish a new school record for consecutive victories.
Maryland's Taylor honored by ACC
GREENSBORO, N.C. - Maryland's Hudson Taylor has been named the Atlantic Coast Conference Wrestler of the Week for his performance at the Southern Scuffle tournament in Greensboro, N.C. last weekend. Taylor, who currently is ranked No. 8 in the nation in his weight class, recorded a perfect 6-0 record at the event en route to winning the championship in his division.
Taylor opened the event with three easy decisions over wrestlers from Davidson, Boston University and Kent State, outscoring the competition 31-5 in the three matches. In round four, the redshirt sophomore from Pennington, N.J., defeated North Carolina's Dennis Drury to advance to the tournament semifinals where he would dominate 12th-ranked Daren Burns of UNC-Greensboro. Taylor then defeated Brent Jones of Virginia in the championship match, recording his 11th pin of the season.
Taylor, who led the Terps to a fifth-place finish at the event, now holds a record of 20-2 this season and has not lost a match since November 17. He and the No. 22 Terps will next be in action on Thursday, January 10, at 7:00 p.m. when the team travels to Annapolis, Md. to take on Navy.
Minnesota's Ness honored by Big Ten
Jayson Ness, Minnesota
So., 125, Bloomington, Minn. / Bloomington Kennedy
Ness dominated the Southern Scuffle in Greensboro, N.C., pinning six opponents on his way to winning the 125-pound title. Ness, ranked third nationally at 125, notched three of his six pins in less than two minutes. He won the championship bout over No. 13 Mike Sees of Bloomsburg University with a fall at the 5:58 mark. The Bloomington, Minn. native, is 19-0 on the season and has earned 15 victories by way of pin fall. This is the third weekly laurel of his career.
Pitt's Gavin honored by Eastern Wrestling League
PITTSBURGH - University of Pittsburgh wrestler Keith Gavin has been named the Eastern Wrestling League's Wrestler of the Week today for his performance at the Midlands Wrestling Championships over the weekend. The plaudit is Gavin's third of the year, with the first two coming in consecutive weeks (Nov. 26 and Dec. 3) earlier in the season.
Gavin (Factoryville, Pa./Lackawanna Trail), the nation's No.1-ranked wrestler, rattled off five victories en route to capturing the 174-pound crown at the prestigious event. The tournament title marked Gavin's second of the season, as he garnered first at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. The fifth-year senior scored a 13-4 major decision victory over the No. 6-seeded Jay Borschel of Iowa in the championship bout to cap a record-setting weekend.
The Panther grappler recorded his 100th career victory with a 3-1 decision over Ryan Smith of Great Falls during the tournament's first day of competition, joining teammate Matt Kocher (State College, Pa./State College) as the only current Panthers to have accomplished the feat. Gavin now boasts a record of 17-0 this season, including 11 victories in tournament competition.
Gavin and the Panthers will look to continue their winning ways this Saturday when they face Duquesne and Franklin and Marshall at Fitzgerald Field House in a three-team affair on Saturday, Jan. 5, at noon.
Cleveland brought home a fourth-place finish at 141 pounds from the prestigious Midlands Championships this past weekend in Evanston, Ill.
The unseeded sophomore from Tullahoma, Tenn., wrestled 10 matches over the two-day event and finished with an 8-2 record. After going 1-1 in the championship bracket, Cleveland wrestled his way back into the medal rounds, winning seven of his eight consolation matches. Cleveland recorded two technical falls, two major decisions and a pin. His pin came against eighth-seeded Corey Jantzen of Harvard.
Cleveland's finish helped lead the 10th-ranked Mocs to a seventh-place finish in the team standings at the Midlands. His performance also led to a national ranking in his weight class by the National Wrestling Coaches Association/IntermatWrestle.com. Cleveland broke into the poll at No. 16, earning the ranking by the NWCA for the first time in his career. He remained at No. 17 in the Wrestling International Newsmagazine poll.
Also benefiting from a strong showing at the Midlands was Josh Edmondson. The senior 184-pounder, who placed eighth at the event, is ranked 16th this week by W.I.N.
The Mocs, 5-1, remained 10th in the NWCA/IntermatWrestle.com poll and fell from 14th to 16th in the W.I.N. rankings. Other Mocs included in this week's rankings are Javier Maldonado (125), ninth and 11th in the NWCA and W.I.N. polls respectively, Steve Hromada (133), 19th in W.I.N., Joey Knox (149), 20th by NWCA, Seth Garvin (165), 20th by W.I.N., Lloyd Rogers (174), a season-high 13th in both polls and Matt Koz (197), 13th and 17th.
The Mocs take on Kennesaw State and Northern Iowa Sunday at 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. respectively. The dual matches will take place in Douglasville, Ga., a western suburb of Atlanta.
Central Michigan's Christian Sinnott honored by MAC
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - Central Michigan University senior Christian Sinnott (Allen Park, Mich./Allen Park HS) has been named Mid-American Conference Wrestler of the Week.
Sinnott placed third at 184 pounds at the Midlands Championships last weekend. Seeded third, he advanced to the semifinals before dropping a 2-1 decision to No. 2 seed and eventual champion Jake Varner (Iowa State). Sinnott was 6-1 overall in the tournament, including a 5-3 decision over Iowa's Phil Keddy in the third-place match.
Sinnott was one of three Chippewas to place third at Midlands, where CMU finished third as a team. The third-place finish matches CMU's second-best showing at the event (second in 2005, third in 1998), and the Chippewas are one of just two programs to finish in the top four at the tournament each of the last four years.
Sinnott earns the conference's weekly honor for the first time in his career. He is third CMU wrestler to collect the award this season, joining twin brother Brandon Sinnott (Dec. 27) and Luke Smith (Nov. 29).
CMU, ranked fifth in this week's InterMat/NWCA top 25, returns to dual meet action on Sunday, traveling to Hempstead, N.Y. to face No. 16 Hofstra (11 a.m.) and No. 13 Edinboro (1 p.m.). The Chippewas enter the weekend having won 15 consecutive duals dating back to last season; a win against Hofstra would establish a new school record for consecutive victories.
Maryland's Taylor honored by ACC
GREENSBORO, N.C. - Maryland's Hudson Taylor has been named the Atlantic Coast Conference Wrestler of the Week for his performance at the Southern Scuffle tournament in Greensboro, N.C. last weekend. Taylor, who currently is ranked No. 8 in the nation in his weight class, recorded a perfect 6-0 record at the event en route to winning the championship in his division.
Taylor opened the event with three easy decisions over wrestlers from Davidson, Boston University and Kent State, outscoring the competition 31-5 in the three matches. In round four, the redshirt sophomore from Pennington, N.J., defeated North Carolina's Dennis Drury to advance to the tournament semifinals where he would dominate 12th-ranked Daren Burns of UNC-Greensboro. Taylor then defeated Brent Jones of Virginia in the championship match, recording his 11th pin of the season.
Taylor, who led the Terps to a fifth-place finish at the event, now holds a record of 20-2 this season and has not lost a match since November 17. He and the No. 22 Terps will next be in action on Thursday, January 10, at 7:00 p.m. when the team travels to Annapolis, Md. to take on Navy.
Minnesota's Ness honored by Big Ten
Jayson Ness, Minnesota
So., 125, Bloomington, Minn. / Bloomington Kennedy
Ness dominated the Southern Scuffle in Greensboro, N.C., pinning six opponents on his way to winning the 125-pound title. Ness, ranked third nationally at 125, notched three of his six pins in less than two minutes. He won the championship bout over No. 13 Mike Sees of Bloomsburg University with a fall at the 5:58 mark. The Bloomington, Minn. native, is 19-0 on the season and has earned 15 victories by way of pin fall. This is the third weekly laurel of his career.
Pitt's Gavin honored by Eastern Wrestling League
PITTSBURGH - University of Pittsburgh wrestler Keith Gavin has been named the Eastern Wrestling League's Wrestler of the Week today for his performance at the Midlands Wrestling Championships over the weekend. The plaudit is Gavin's third of the year, with the first two coming in consecutive weeks (Nov. 26 and Dec. 3) earlier in the season.
Gavin (Factoryville, Pa./Lackawanna Trail), the nation's No.1-ranked wrestler, rattled off five victories en route to capturing the 174-pound crown at the prestigious event. The tournament title marked Gavin's second of the season, as he garnered first at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. The fifth-year senior scored a 13-4 major decision victory over the No. 6-seeded Jay Borschel of Iowa in the championship bout to cap a record-setting weekend.
The Panther grappler recorded his 100th career victory with a 3-1 decision over Ryan Smith of Great Falls during the tournament's first day of competition, joining teammate Matt Kocher (State College, Pa./State College) as the only current Panthers to have accomplished the feat. Gavin now boasts a record of 17-0 this season, including 11 victories in tournament competition.
Gavin and the Panthers will look to continue their winning ways this Saturday when they face Duquesne and Franklin and Marshall at Fitzgerald Field House in a three-team affair on Saturday, Jan. 5, at noon.
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