University of Minnesota Athletics
Wrestling Fifth in NWCA Poll, Ness No. 1
2/3/2010 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 2. Minnesota came in fifth for the fourth straight week, after spending four weeks at No. 6.
The Gophers went 2-0 last week, improving their Big Ten mark to 4-0. Minnesota held off rival and then No. 12 ranked Wisconsin in a close match, 20-18 in their home Big Ten on Jan. 29. Two days later the Gophers dominated then No. 25 ranked Purdue 30-9 to improve to 9-4 and start 4-0 in the Big Ten.
The Gophers have been among the top-six all season long, with this week marking their sixth overall 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 (9-4) four losses have all come from teams in the top-four, while five of their wins have come from top-25 teams. Minnesota earned 231 points, edging No. 6 Cornell by 13 points.
Among the Big Ten, Minnesota, Iowa and Ohio State are joined by No. 11 Penn State, No. 13 Wisconsin, No. 14 Indiana, No. 21 Illinois, and No. 24 Purdue. Already having met Ohio State, With four more matches left Minnesota will face off against four ranked Big Ten teams in the poll, including Illinois, Penn State, Indiana and Iowa for a second time.
With the latest individual ranking released this week, Jayson Ness (Bloomington, Minn.) moves from No. 2 to No. 1 at 133. The previous No. 1 suffered a loss last week, allowing Ness to move up. Ness had spent the entire season at No. 2. Dustin Schlatter (Massillion, Ohio) was ranked No. 2 at 165 in the previous rankings, but moved down a weight class to 157 starting last week. In a new weight class, Schlatter maintains his ranking, coming in at No. 2 at 157. Mike Thorn (St. Michael, Minn.) at 141 and Zach Sanders (Wabasha, Minn.) at 125 are next in line, each ranked sixth. Scott Glasser (Bismarck, N.D.), remained in the top-10 at No. 8 at 174 while Sonny Yohn (Alamosa, Colo.) moves into the top-10, ranked No. 10 at 197. Mario Mason (Moorestown, N.J.) rounds out the ranked Gophers, at No. 18 at 149.
NWCA Rankings - 02/02/10
No. Team, Rec
1 Iowa, 18-0-0
2 Iowa State , 10-2-0
3 Ohio State, 14-1-0
4 Oklahoma State, 10-2-1
5 Minnesota, 9-4-0
6 Cornell, 3-4-1
7 Lehigh, 11-3-1
T8 Boise State, 14-2-0
T8 Oklahoma, 12-2-1
10 Maryland, 16-4-0
11 Penn State, 10-5-1
12 Central Michigan, 12-2-0
13 Wisconsin, 6-7-0
14 Indiana, 13-2-0
15 Missouri, 7-4-0
16 Cal Poly, 6-3-0
17 Kent State, 12-3-0
18 Pittsburgh, 14-1-1
19 Virginia Tech, 14-4-0
20 Oregon St., 16-1-0
21 Illinois, 7-5-0
22 Edinboro, 6-4-0
23 Rutgers, 16-4-1
24 Purdue, 10-7-0
25 Virginia, 14-5-0
Players Mentioned
