University of Minnesota Athletics
Wrestling Fifth in NWCA Poll
2/18/2010 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Manheim, Pa. - The Golden Gopher Wrestling remained at No. 5 in the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) top-25 poll when it was released, Feb 16. Minnesota came in fifth for the sixth straight week.
The Gophers lost to top ranked Iowa last week, giving the Gophers their first lost in the Big Ten. The loss also snapped a six-match winning streak for the Golden Gophers, leaving them in third place in the Big Ten. No. 1 Jayson Ness, No. 2 Dustin Schlatter and No. 12 Sonny Yohn all won in the meet, with Ness defeating No. 3 ranked Daniel Dennis. With the loss, the Gophers are now 11-5 overall and 6-1 in the Big Ten.
The Gophers have been among the top-six all season long, with this week marking their eighth weekoverall at No. 5. Iowa remains No. 1, where they have been all season, garnering all 11 first place votes. The top four all stayed the same, with Iowa State at No. 2, Ohio State at No. 3 and Oklahoma State at No. 4. Minnesota's (11-5) five losses have all come from teams in the top-four, while seven of their wins have come from top-25 teams. Minnesota earned 236 points, edging No. 6 Cornell by 10 points.
Among the Big Ten, Minnesota, Iowa and Ohio State are joined by No. 10 Penn State, No. 13 Indiana, No. 14 Wisconsin, No. 21 Illinois and No. 23 Purdue. With one more match left Minnesota will face off against No. 11 Penn State to wrap up the Big Ten regular season before the Big Ten Tournament in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
In the latest InterMat Individual rankings, seven Gophers landed among the best in the nation. Jayson Ness (Bloomington, Minn.) at 133, was the highest ranked Gopher on the team as he remained at No. 1 for the third straight week. Next in line is No. 2 is Dustin Schlatter (Massillion, Ohio) at 157, followed by No. 6 Zach Sanders (Wabasha, Minn.) at 125. Mike Thorn (St. Michael, Minn.) at 141 and Scott Glasser (Bismarck, N.D.) at 174 are both ranked at No. 8. At 197, Sonny Yohn (Alamosa, Colo.) ranks No. 13, while Mario Mason (Moorestown, N.J.) rounds out the ranked Gophers, at No. 16 at 149.
NWCA Rankings - 02/16/10
No. Team, Rec
1 Iowa, 21-0-0
2 Iowa State, 12-2-0
3 Ohio State, 18-1-0
4 Oklahoma State, 13-2-1
5 Minnesota, 11-5-0
6 Cornell, 7-4-1
7 Lehigh, 14-3-1
8 Oklahoma, 16-2-1
9 Maryland, 18-4-0
10 Penn State, 13-5-1
11 Boise State, 15-3-0
12 Central Michigan, 15-2-0
13 Indiana, 15-3-0
14 Wisconsin, 8-8-0
15 Oregon St., 18-3-0
16 Kent State, 15-3-0
17 Missouri, 7-7-0
18 Pittsburgh, 16-1-1
19 Virginia Tech, 16-5-0
20 Cal Poly, 8-4-0
21 Illinois, 8-7-0
22 Rutgers, 18-4-1
23 Purdue, 10-10-0
24 Virginia, 16-5-0
25 Edinboro, 8-5-0
Others receiving votes: Arizona State, Old Dominion,North Carolina, Wyoming
Players Mentioned
