InterMat: Inside info from the N.W.C.A
brought to you byBrute Wrestling
 |
 |
Quick hits2005 National Champion: Ryan Bertin, Michigan This weight closely resembles last year – mainly because it’s too close to call. Each of the top 12 seeds can believe they have a chance to win at 157 pounds because there is no clear-cut dominant wrestler. The only unbeaten, Boise State’s Ben Cherrington, is seeded fourth and has wrestled just half the season. Trent Paulson of Iowa State comes in as the top seed with two losses on his record, one to second-seeded C.P. Schlatter of Minnesota and an injury default in a dual against Nebraska. So if Schlatter has beaten Paulson, how does Paulson get the nod? They split and Schlatter’s got a few extra losses that hurt his stock. Stock up or stock down, Schlatter’s been solid this season, but the losses to Oklahoma State’s Kevin Ward and to Cornell’s Dustin Manotti kept him from the top slot. Alex Tirapelle, the Big 10 runner-up, comes in at #3, while West Virginia’s Matt Lebe comes in at #4. Lebe is a bit of an unknown to many, although he’s only lost to two wrestlers this year. Tirapelle (twice) and Edinboro’s Matt Hill. The Hill loss might make some think Lebe’s beatable, especially after a sub-par EWL tournament, but in this weight, anyone can be beaten at any time. That’s pretty much in the lore of the sport, but looking at the weight, many just scratch their heads and go “well, why not so and so.” Cherrington’s a “why not” pick as well, with only a short season under his belt, he didn’t get beaten up too much and is fresh. His win over Iowa’s Joe Johnston coupled with a fall over Arizona State’s Brian Stith in the Pac 10 final make Cherrington a serious threat. All-Americans Brandon Becker of Indiana and Manotti come in at six and seven, while Wisconsin’s Craig Henning comes in seeded eighth. Johnston, last year’s runner-up, is seeded ninth and Stith, a returning All-American, is a dangerous 10 seed. Lehigh’s Derek Zinck and Michigan’s Steve Luke round out the top 12. With Paulson, Lebe, Cherrington, Henning and Luke up top, it would appear that the bottom bracket has the tougher draw. Stith and Manotti could mix it up in the round of 16, with the winner hitting Schlatter in the quarters. Becker and Tirapelle make a nice quarter as well. The Bad Draw ...Everyone’s a bad draw here. We hate to be cliché, but if you wrestle this weight 10 times, you could come out with 10 different winners. It’s all about who’s on, and if you draw one of these guys, and they’re on, duck. Kevin Ward, Oklahoma State: Up and down wrestler that’s been around the Oklahoma State wrestling room long enough to know how to win. He’ll keep it close and he’s one guy Schlatter will want to stay far away from. Seth Martin, Lock Haven: His win over Lebe was no fluke. Been flying under the radar all season. Andrew Flanagan, Harvard: Rarely does a conference champion draw the darkhorse label, but Flanagan, a true freshman, can’t be overlooked. He’s beaten Manotti during the season, so he can hang. Not an easy obstacle for any seeded wrestlers. Ryan Hluschak, Drexel: He can put you on your back in a hurry. The CAA runner-up is a Pennsylvania native and was the Outstanding Wrestler at the Virginia Duals. Michael Chandler, Missouri: You never want to see an unseeded wrestler coming out of the Big 12 in an early round. Chandler’s resume is speckled with losses, some good, some bad, but again. He’s unseeded from the Big 12 … not a fun draw. Seeds: 2005 Medal Match Results |
Resources:
- Sponsors:
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- Featured Camps:
-
|