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Alex Meade transfers to West Virginia

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by Daniel Whitehead

West Virginia University wrestling coach Craig Turnbull today announced the signing of 157/165-pound wrestler Alex Meade, a former No. 1 recruit in the country.

Meade, a Camden, Del., native, comes to WVU from Oklahoma State where he redshirted the 2008-09 season before competing last season at 165 pounds for the Cowboys. He will wrestle at 157 pounds for the Mountaineers and is eligible to compete immediately as a redshirt sophomore.

"Out of high school, Alex was one of the top recruits in the country" Turnbull says. "He visited many schools, including West Virginia, and received attention nationwide. He and his father felt that Coach (Greg) Jones would be an outstanding mentor both from a wrestling and personal perspective. They were very impressed with everything that they saw. Coach Jones and Alex share the same athletic background and style of wrestling."

At Caesar Rodney High, Meade compiled an impressive 125-4 record throughout his career, including 39-0 as a junior and 44-0 as a senior. A three-time state champion, Meade was also a member of the Junior World team, a two-time Beast of the East champion and two-time FILA cadet freestyle national champion. He was recruited by some of the nation's top programs, including Iowa State, Ohio State and Nebraska.

Last season at Oklahoma State, he earned a 29-10 record, including a 15-3 mark in dual meets. He defeated four eventual All-Americans during the year, including three wins over Oklahoma's Tyler Caldwell. He also defeated No. 2 Dustin Schlatter of Minnesota, No. 4 Ryan Morningstar of Iowa and Wyoming's No. 11 Shane Onufer.

Meade placed fourth at the Big 12 Championships last year and earned a spot at the NCAA Championships. Before redshirting in 2008, he compiled a 19-2 record, which included a string of 12 straight victories. His 19 wins tied for the lead among OSU's redshirts.

"He has a lot of potential and we hope to provide him with an environment that he can reach all of his goals and come out with a degree that's useful to him" Turnbull says.

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