The B1G Wrestling Championships are this weekend on Sat. March 5th and Sun. March 6th at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, IA. Every match will be available on BTN Plus and the finals will be on BTN at 3pm on Sun. March 6th.
Gopher Wrestling was up in the air as to who would finish the year at 125 and 133 lbs. Head Asst. Coach Brandon Eggum announced on Thurs. Feb. 25th that Steven Polakowski would get the nod at 125 and Sam Brancale at 133. Skyler Petry had won the most recent wrestleoff at 125, but Polakowski had a better record so the coaches decided that he would have a better chance of qualifying for Nationals at the B1G tournament. And Brancale won the 133 lb. wrestleoff, but Ben Morgan also did not have enough matches to allow him to be ranked/seeded, whereas Brancale has had a couple good wins over ranked wrestlers, so he got the nod.
Based on results to-date and B1G Championships seeding, Gopher Wrestling would only expect to qualify the following wrestlers for Nationals:
- 141 Thorn (seeded 2nd)
- 149 Short (seeded 8th)
- 174 Wanzek (seeded 7th)
- 197 Pfarr (seeded 2nd)
- 285 Kroells (seeded 5th)
Having said that, I think we also have a good chance to qualify:
- 157 Kingsley (needs to finish 7th in B1G);
- 165 Krone (needs to finish 6th in B1G);
and a fair chance at qualifying:
- 125 Polakowski (needs to finish 7th in B1G);
- 133 Brancale (needs to finish 9th in B1G).
It is possible, but unlikely for us to qualify:
- 184 C. Pfarr (needs to finish 7th in B1G)
Here is an article on Pre-seeds for the Championships...the brackets should be out tomorrow or Friday:
Pre-seeds released for Big Ten Championships
Big Ten Conference
2/29/2016
ROSEMONT, Ill. -- The Big Ten Conference announced the preliminary seeds for the 2016 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, which are set for March 5-6 at Iowa. Five schools boast at least one top-seeded wrestler, with Penn State leading the way with four.
Nebraska and Penn State will bring a seeded wrestler in each of the 10 weight classes, while Iowa, Ohio State and Rutgers each boast a seeded grappler in nine classes.
The pre-seeds, as voted on by the conference's coaches, rank the top eight wrestlers in eight weight classes, along with all 14 starters in two weight classes due to the Big Ten receiving nine or more NCAA Championships qualifier allocations in those classes.
To see a full listing of allocations for the NCAA Championships, click here.
Penn State holds four No. 1 seeds, with 149-pounder Zain Retherford, 157-pounder Jason Nolf, 174-pounder Bo Nickal and 197-pounder Morgan McIntosh earning top billing in their weight classes. Michigan boasts two top-seeded grapplers in Dom Abounader (184) and Adam Coon (285), while Ohio State received top seeds in Nathan Tomasello (125) and Micah Jordan (141). The Fighting Illini's Zane Richards (133) and Badgers' Isaac Jordan (165) round out the group of top-ranked grapplers.
Three of this year's top seeds claimed titles at last year's Big Ten Championships, with Tomasello (125), I. Jordan (165) and Abounader (184) earning conference crowns last season. This season, three freshman earned No. 1 seeds entering the championships, including M. Jordan, Nickal and Nolf.
For more information on the 2016 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, visit the Big Ten Championships Central page on Iowa's website here. The complete list of Big Ten Championships pre-seeds can be found below.
125:
1. Nathan Tomasello, OSU
2. Thomas Gilman, IOWA
3. Nico Megaludis, PSU
4. Tim Lambert, NEB
5. Elijah Oliver, IND
6. Johnny Jimenez, WIS
7. Conor Youtsey, MICH
8. Sean McCabe, RU
133:
1. Zane Richards, ILL
2. Cory Clark, IOWA
3. Jordan Conaway, PSU
4. Geoff Alexander, MD
5. Eric Montoya, NEB
6. Ryan Taylor, WIS
7. Johnni DiJulius, OSU
8. Rossi Bruno, MICH
9. Dom Malone, NU
10. Anthony Giraldo, RU
11. Luke Welch, PUR
12. Garth Yenter, MSU
13. Alonzo Shepherd, IND
14. Sam Brancale, MINN
141:
1. Micah Jordan, OSU
2. Tommy Thorn, MINN
3. Anthony Ashnault, RU
4. Jameson Oster, NU
5. Javier Gasca III, MSU
6. Anthony Abidin, NEB
7. Danny Sabatello, PUR
8. Jimmy Gulibon, PSU
149:
1. Zain Retherford, PSU
2. Brandon Sorensen, IOWA
3. Jake Sueflohn, NEB
4. Jason Tsirtsis, NU
5. Alec Pantaleo, MICH
6. Alex Griffin, PUR
7. Andrew Crone, WIS
8. Jake Short, MINN
157:
1. Jason Nolf, PSU
2. Isaiah Martinez, ILL
3. Richie Lewis, RU
4. Jake Ryan, OSU
5. Edwin Cooper, Jr., IOWA
6. Brian Murphy, MICH
7. Tyler Berger, NEB
8. Lou Mascola, MD
165:
1. Isaac Jordan, WIS
2. Bo Jordan, OSU
3. Steven Rodrigues, ILL
4. Anthony Perrotti, RU
5. Chad Welch, PUR
6. Austin Wilson, NEB
7. Geno Morelli, PSU
8. Patrick Rhoads, IOWA
174:
1. Bo Nickal, PSU
2. Alex Meyer, IOWA
3. Zach Brunson, ILL
4. Myles Martin, OSU
5. Nathan Jackson, IND
6. Micah Barnes, NEB
7. Nick Wanzek, MINN
8. Ricky Robertson, WIS
9. Phil Bakuckas, RU
10. Mitch Sliga, NU
11. Aaron Calderon, MICH
12. Josh Snook, MD
13. Shane Shadaia, MSU
14. Andrew Hoselton, PUR
184:
1. Dom Abounader, MICH
2. Matt McCutcheon, PSU
3. Sam Brooks, IOWA
4. TJ Dudley, NEB
5. Nick Gravina, RU
6. Kenny Courts, OSU
7. Jeff Koepke, ILL
8. Ryan Christensen, WIS
197:
1. Morgan McIntosh, PSU
2. Brett Pfarr, MINN
3. Nathan Burak, IOWA
4. Max Huntley, MICH
5. Aaron Studebaker, NEB
6. Mark Martin, OSU
7. Hayden Hrymack, RU
8. Jacob Cooper, MSU
285:
1. Adam Coon, MICH
2. Kyle Snyder, OSU
3. Sam Stoll, IOWA
4. Billy Smith, RU
5. Michael Kroells, MINN
6. Collin Jensen, NEB
7. Brooks Black, ILL
8. Nick Nevills, PSU
It's going to be an exciting weekend of elite level D1 Wrestling...so tune in and enjoy!!
Go Gopher Wrestling!!!
Gopher Wrestling was up in the air as to who would finish the year at 125 and 133 lbs. Head Asst. Coach Brandon Eggum announced on Thurs. Feb. 25th that Steven Polakowski would get the nod at 125 and Sam Brancale at 133. Skyler Petry had won the most recent wrestleoff at 125, but Polakowski had a better record so the coaches decided that he would have a better chance of qualifying for Nationals at the B1G tournament. And Brancale won the 133 lb. wrestleoff, but Ben Morgan also did not have enough matches to allow him to be ranked/seeded, whereas Brancale has had a couple good wins over ranked wrestlers, so he got the nod.
Based on results to-date and B1G Championships seeding, Gopher Wrestling would only expect to qualify the following wrestlers for Nationals:
- 141 Thorn (seeded 2nd)
- 149 Short (seeded 8th)
- 174 Wanzek (seeded 7th)
- 197 Pfarr (seeded 2nd)
- 285 Kroells (seeded 5th)
Having said that, I think we also have a good chance to qualify:
- 157 Kingsley (needs to finish 7th in B1G);
- 165 Krone (needs to finish 6th in B1G);
and a fair chance at qualifying:
- 125 Polakowski (needs to finish 7th in B1G);
- 133 Brancale (needs to finish 9th in B1G).
It is possible, but unlikely for us to qualify:
- 184 C. Pfarr (needs to finish 7th in B1G)
Here is an article on Pre-seeds for the Championships...the brackets should be out tomorrow or Friday:
Pre-seeds released for Big Ten Championships
Big Ten Conference
2/29/2016
ROSEMONT, Ill. -- The Big Ten Conference announced the preliminary seeds for the 2016 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, which are set for March 5-6 at Iowa. Five schools boast at least one top-seeded wrestler, with Penn State leading the way with four.
Nebraska and Penn State will bring a seeded wrestler in each of the 10 weight classes, while Iowa, Ohio State and Rutgers each boast a seeded grappler in nine classes.
The pre-seeds, as voted on by the conference's coaches, rank the top eight wrestlers in eight weight classes, along with all 14 starters in two weight classes due to the Big Ten receiving nine or more NCAA Championships qualifier allocations in those classes.
To see a full listing of allocations for the NCAA Championships, click here.
Penn State holds four No. 1 seeds, with 149-pounder Zain Retherford, 157-pounder Jason Nolf, 174-pounder Bo Nickal and 197-pounder Morgan McIntosh earning top billing in their weight classes. Michigan boasts two top-seeded grapplers in Dom Abounader (184) and Adam Coon (285), while Ohio State received top seeds in Nathan Tomasello (125) and Micah Jordan (141). The Fighting Illini's Zane Richards (133) and Badgers' Isaac Jordan (165) round out the group of top-ranked grapplers.
Three of this year's top seeds claimed titles at last year's Big Ten Championships, with Tomasello (125), I. Jordan (165) and Abounader (184) earning conference crowns last season. This season, three freshman earned No. 1 seeds entering the championships, including M. Jordan, Nickal and Nolf.
For more information on the 2016 Big Ten Wrestling Championships, visit the Big Ten Championships Central page on Iowa's website here. The complete list of Big Ten Championships pre-seeds can be found below.
125:
1. Nathan Tomasello, OSU
2. Thomas Gilman, IOWA
3. Nico Megaludis, PSU
4. Tim Lambert, NEB
5. Elijah Oliver, IND
6. Johnny Jimenez, WIS
7. Conor Youtsey, MICH
8. Sean McCabe, RU
133:
1. Zane Richards, ILL
2. Cory Clark, IOWA
3. Jordan Conaway, PSU
4. Geoff Alexander, MD
5. Eric Montoya, NEB
6. Ryan Taylor, WIS
7. Johnni DiJulius, OSU
8. Rossi Bruno, MICH
9. Dom Malone, NU
10. Anthony Giraldo, RU
11. Luke Welch, PUR
12. Garth Yenter, MSU
13. Alonzo Shepherd, IND
14. Sam Brancale, MINN
141:
1. Micah Jordan, OSU
2. Tommy Thorn, MINN
3. Anthony Ashnault, RU
4. Jameson Oster, NU
5. Javier Gasca III, MSU
6. Anthony Abidin, NEB
7. Danny Sabatello, PUR
8. Jimmy Gulibon, PSU
149:
1. Zain Retherford, PSU
2. Brandon Sorensen, IOWA
3. Jake Sueflohn, NEB
4. Jason Tsirtsis, NU
5. Alec Pantaleo, MICH
6. Alex Griffin, PUR
7. Andrew Crone, WIS
8. Jake Short, MINN
157:
1. Jason Nolf, PSU
2. Isaiah Martinez, ILL
3. Richie Lewis, RU
4. Jake Ryan, OSU
5. Edwin Cooper, Jr., IOWA
6. Brian Murphy, MICH
7. Tyler Berger, NEB
8. Lou Mascola, MD
165:
1. Isaac Jordan, WIS
2. Bo Jordan, OSU
3. Steven Rodrigues, ILL
4. Anthony Perrotti, RU
5. Chad Welch, PUR
6. Austin Wilson, NEB
7. Geno Morelli, PSU
8. Patrick Rhoads, IOWA
174:
1. Bo Nickal, PSU
2. Alex Meyer, IOWA
3. Zach Brunson, ILL
4. Myles Martin, OSU
5. Nathan Jackson, IND
6. Micah Barnes, NEB
7. Nick Wanzek, MINN
8. Ricky Robertson, WIS
9. Phil Bakuckas, RU
10. Mitch Sliga, NU
11. Aaron Calderon, MICH
12. Josh Snook, MD
13. Shane Shadaia, MSU
14. Andrew Hoselton, PUR
184:
1. Dom Abounader, MICH
2. Matt McCutcheon, PSU
3. Sam Brooks, IOWA
4. TJ Dudley, NEB
5. Nick Gravina, RU
6. Kenny Courts, OSU
7. Jeff Koepke, ILL
8. Ryan Christensen, WIS
197:
1. Morgan McIntosh, PSU
2. Brett Pfarr, MINN
3. Nathan Burak, IOWA
4. Max Huntley, MICH
5. Aaron Studebaker, NEB
6. Mark Martin, OSU
7. Hayden Hrymack, RU
8. Jacob Cooper, MSU
285:
1. Adam Coon, MICH
2. Kyle Snyder, OSU
3. Sam Stoll, IOWA
4. Billy Smith, RU
5. Michael Kroells, MINN
6. Collin Jensen, NEB
7. Brooks Black, ILL
8. Nick Nevills, PSU
It's going to be an exciting weekend of elite level D1 Wrestling...so tune in and enjoy!!
Go Gopher Wrestling!!!
