447 items found for your search. If no results were found please broaden your search.
(11/12/10 5:19am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The IU wrestling team opens its season Saturday at the Michigan State Open, and IU coach Duane Goldman said he believes his squad is ready.“It’s time to wrestle,” Goldman said. “We’ve practiced long enough. At this point, it doesn’t matter if we’re good or bad (in practice). I’m sure some of them are just sick of practicing.”Unlike in dual meets, every wrestler can compete Saturday, and no team scores are kept. No wrestler is out with an injury as of now, Goldman said, but several may miss the event as a precautionary measure to prevent minor injuries from worsening.“There’s no irreparable injuries,” Goldman said. “A few guys are beat up. They’re up in the air. (With) nagging injuries, we don’t want to send them out there if they’re going to get worse.”By having multiple wrestlers competing at each weight, head-to-head matches between teammates are possible. Such situations, as well as wrestlers’ overall performances Saturday, will help determine the lineup for upcoming matches against Wabash, Columbia and The Citadel.“It’s a kickoff tournament to see where we’re at,” Goldman said. “We’re probably anticipating a few head-to-head matchups as well. It gives us a chance to see the dynamic within our team.”Despite having yet to see the wrestlers in real competition, Goldman is confident about his team entering the year.“They’re a good group,” Goldman said. “They work hard. They’ve done everything we’ve asked of them so far.”Still, Goldman added, some things cannot be known until the season kicks off this weekend.“We really just need to see where we’re at and how these guys react to real competition and try to make out what our team might look like this year,” Goldman said. “That will create and answer a lot of questions for us.”
(10/29/10 5:03am)
Intermat launched their preseason wrestling rankings (the most widely used rankings in the country) this morning, and Hoosiers are ranked in the top 20 in five of the 10 weight classes. They are:
(10/28/10 5:01am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>An overtime clash at heavyweight capped a number of close matches as the Hoosier wrestlers debuted to the public Wednesday in their annual intrasquad scrimmage.“Mainly I just wanted them to be aggressive,” IU coach Duane Goldman said. “It’s very difficult to wrestle your teammates in this kind of a setting. I wanted them to try to overlook that and be aggressive. It was good to finally get some competition so we know what to work on.”Most of the matches were fairly close, with only two major decisions by senior Paul Young and junior Matt Powless, a technical fall by senior Eric Cameron and the rest of the matches ending in decisions.None, though, were closer than the evening’s final match at heavyweight between senior Ricky Alcala, in his first appearance since transferring from California-Davis, and junior Joe Fagiano, making his debut at heavyweight after previously wrestling at 197 pounds. After ending regulation tied 1-1, Alcala broke the tie with an escape and needed only to keep Fagiano down for 30 seconds to prevail. However, he intentionally let Fagiano up and looked for a takedown. It was Fagiano, however, who got a subsequent takedown before time expired and emerged the victor.Other highlights included Young’s debut at 157 pounds and wins by freshmen Zach Zimmer at 125 pounds and Mitchell Richey at 141 pounds against more experienced competition.“I think I did well,” Young said. “I cut weight right. It felt good. I was a little nervous for my first time being down at that weight, but recouped well. I was content, never satisfied.”The team officially opens its season Nov. 13 in the Michigan State Open.
(10/28/10 4:12am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>An overtime clash at heavyweight capped a number of close matches as the Hoosier wrestlers debuted to the public Wednesday in their annual intrasquad scrimmage.“Mainly I just wanted them to be aggressive,” IU coach Duane Goldman said. “It’s very difficult to wrestle your teammates in this kind of a setting. I wanted them to try to overlook that and be aggressive. It was good to finally get some competition so we know what to work on.”Most of the matches were fairly close affairs, with only two major decisions by senior Paul Young and junior Matt Powless, a technical fall by senior Eric Cameron and the rest of the matches ending in decisions.None, though, were closer than the evening’s final match at heavyweight between senior Ricky Alcala, in his first appearance since transferring from California-Davis, and junior Joe Fagiano, making his debut at heavyweight after previously wrestling at 197 pounds. After ending regulation tied 1-1, Alcala broke the tie with an escape and needed only to keep Fagiano down for 30 seconds to prevail. However, he intentionally let Fagiano up and looked for a takedown. It was Fagiano, however, who got a subsequent takedown before time expired and emerged the victor.Other highlights included Young’s debut at 157 pounds and wins by true freshmen Zach Zimmer at 125 pounds and Mitchell Richey at 141 pounds against more experienced competition.“I think I did well,” Young said. “I cut weight right. It felt good. I was a little nervous for my first time being down at that weight, but recouped well. I was content, never satisfied.”The team officially opens its season Nov. 13 in the Michigan State Open.
(10/27/10 5:16am)
Wednesday night at 7 pm in Assembly Hall, we'll get our first look at the 2010-2011 IU Wrestling team with the annual intrasquad scrimmage. Last season's stars, Angel Escobedo and Nate Everhart are gone, but the Hoosiers are likely to field a well-balanced senior-heavy squad this season that could surprise if a few youngsters make an instant impact. Parts of the lineup are still up in the air, which you can read about in my piece in Wednesday's IDS. Here are the probable matchups for the scrimmage, and what to watch for with the wrestlers involved:
(10/27/10 1:48am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>With the season rapidly approaching, many Hoosier wrestlers said they have high hopes of landing a spot in next spring’s NCAA tournament.First though, they must clinch a spot on their own team.“Pretty much all of our classes are pretty open,” IU wrestling coach Duane Goldman said. “We have some favorites. We have some NCAA qualifiers back that should feel as if they have ownership to their weight, but we’ll probably have a wrestle-off at virtually every weight with some decent guys — some young guys coming up and some guys looking to make the starting lineup for the first time.”There will be a new name at 125 pounds for the Hoosiers where, for the first time in five years, former national champion Angel Escobedo will not be taking the mat. The struggle to replace him appears to be a three-man race between redshirt freshman Justin Brooks and true freshmen Zach Zimmer and Joe Duca.Brooks and Zimmer will compete against each other in today’s intrasquad scrimmage at 7 p.m. in Assembly Hall.“(I have been) doing a lot of work outside the room and not letting a whole lot of people know about it, not letting other guys know that I‘m trying to get a step ahead of them,” Brooks said. “I think I’m capable of becoming an All-American.”While the outcome might factor into who starts for dual matches, Goldman said he chooses his lineups based primarily on real match results as opposed to wrestle-offs.“The way we conduct our wrestle-offs, honestly, they don’t determine our starting lineup,” Goldman said. “Our wrestle-offs are basically just a match to establish a little bit of a pecking order and get them in a competitive mode. We really gauge our lineup by how they do in actual competition. The final lineup is not going to be determined in the intrasquad by any means.”More important in determining the dual lineup will be early-season tournaments where the Hoosiers can enter their entire team to better compare one wrestler to another through common opponents or matchups with their teammates.“Typically by the time you go through all of those things, it gets to be pretty clear-cut,” Goldman said. “When we start getting into our dual meets, you want to know what your lineup is going to be, so you can put your best guys out there.”Sophomore Geno Capezio said he hopes to be among that group. He began last season at 133 pounds before moving up to 141 pounds for the Big Ten tournament.“There’s tough guys at my weight,” Capezio said. “I got a little taste of what it is like to start and feel like I got an advantage over these guys. I want to be the starter at this weight. Once you get to be in the big tournament, you want to be there again. I didn’t do very well last year, so I feel like I’ve got some unfinished business.”Capezio is competing with senior Alex Warren and freshmen Mitchell Richey and Ryan Niemann for the starting spot at 141 pounds this season. Capezio will wrestle Richey in the scrimmage.“I feel like I’m always in good condition, and I work hard to get better at some of my skills,” Capezio said. “I stayed here all summer to try to work on that, to make sure this year I’m more prepared. I want to work to get that qualifying spot for nationals. It’s a tough road. You’ve got to beat a lot of people.”Wrestlers will get a three-pound allowance for the scrimmage tonight, as many are still working their way down to their weights for the season. There will be one match at each weight. Preliminary matches were conducted over the past week to determine the two wrestlers in each weight for tonight.“We put everyone in the wrestle-off situation,” Goldman said. “Even if they win, it’s not really a determination that they’ll be our guy. We’ll go through some of those early-season tournaments and see how they do in actual competition and see how they do against guys on the national level and make the decision there.”
(08/11/10 7:34pm)
Per IU:
(07/02/10 9:23pm)
Per IU:
(06/04/10 2:44am)
Both Nate Everhart (Wrestling) and Sarah Pease (Cross Country) have been named the Big Ten's Outstanding Sportsmanship Award winners for the 2009-2010 year. Twenty-two athletes in the Big Ten were selected, out of a pool of 276 student-athletes.
(05/15/10 3:13am)
The IU wrestling team has the 7th best recruiting class in the country, according to Intermat's recruiting rankings. Five of the 11 wrestlers are ranked in the top 100 individual rankings including two ranked under #50.
(05/05/10 3:59pm)
Sophomore Matt Powless has been named to the All-Academic Team for the second year in a row. The award is presented by the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA). This is the 13th time a Hoosiers has received this award since 2001, including Powerless' selection last year. Powless is the 5th wrestler in school history to win this award multiple times.
(03/22/10 2:49am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Angel Escobedo will go down as one of the greatest wrestlers in IU history. The senior wanted nothing more than to establish that with a second national title to cap off his IU career. Unfortunately for Escobedo, that was not in the cards at the NCAA Championships in Omaha, Neb., last weekend.A third-place finish at the 125-pounds weight class makes Escobedo the first four-time All-American in school history. Saturday closed Escobedo’s final season at IU at a place that he is all too familiar with — the podium.“I was happy that I was able to come back and win at wrestle backs, but at the same time, it’s sad to know that my college career is over,” Escobedo said.Since Escobedo underwent shoulder surgery in the offseason, another national title has been the driving force behind his impeccable work ethic. Simply winning a match was not enough to satisfy Escobedo. The Griffith, Ind., native has earned the reputation of a gym rat throughout his time at IU.Most wrestlers usually throw on some warmups after a match and join their teammates on the bench for the rest of the meet. Escobedo is not one of those guys.Because Escobedo was usually wrestling in the first match of the night, he would throw on his warmups and jump rope to get another workout in. And if he was not doing that, he was just another assistant coach on the bench, engaged in every match. The passion for excellence that Escobedo has exemplified during his time at IU is something that will be hard to replace for this program.Division-I sports have increasingly struggled with the loyalty of coaches and players in the past few years, but Escobedo has been the poster child for a student-athlete maintaining loyalty to a school. As a four-time high school state champion in Indiana, Escobedo could have wrestled at Iowa, where wrestling national champions are seemingly grown in the cornfields. But Escobedo decided to stay in state and try and bring IU back to the top of the Big Ten. It is a decision Escobedo is constantly asked about by reporters. And it is answered the same way every time.“I don’t regret my decision to come to IU,” Escobedo said. “Wrestling for IU has helped me grow as a wrestler and it has helped me grow as a person, which is why I don’t think I’d be the person I am today if I had went to Iowa.”Escobedo’s resume from his five years at IU is nothing short of historic. He is the first Hoosier to win three Big Ten titles, one of 10 Hoosiers to win a national championship and now an All-American for the most times in school history. While he fell short of his main goal last weekend, Escobedo leaves IU with a legacy that will live on for future generations.“Angel’s season, to me, is not defined by that one match,” IU coach Duane Goldman said. “He has been so special to our program and has been such an ambassador for us. Student athletes like Angel don’t come around often. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever had one as talented as Angel in my career.”
(03/12/10 2:35am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The IU wrestling team will come into the NCAA Championships on March 18 in Omaha, Neb., with six of its own looking to make their mark on the national stage.Improving on last year’s 24th-place finish has been the goal of this experienced team all season.As the No. 1 seed at 125 pounds, senior Angel Escobedo will attempt to repeat his run that landed him a national title two years ago. With a record-breaking third Big Ten title and perfect 33-0 record under his belt, Escobedo is once again the favorite to win.The first round has Escobedo grappling with Princeton’s Garrett Frey to kick off his final weekend donning the cream and crimson.Senior heavyweight Nate Everhart is another Hoosier wrestling in his final match next week. After going undefeated in the regular season, Everhart suffered his first loss in the heavyweight final of the Big Ten Championships to Iowa’s Daniel Erekson.The 35-1 Everhart now comes into next weekend’s action with a No. 6 seed in the heavyweight bracket where he will face Boise State‘s Samuel Zylstra. Everhart has yet to lose as underdog this year, as he displayed best in his impressive run to the heavyweight title at the Cliff Keen Invitational in December.Joining the two seniors next weekend will be the former Bloomington High School South duo, juniors Paul Young and Kurt Kinser.Young’s fifth-place finish at 165 pounds in the Big Ten tournament was enough to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships, placing him at the No. 12 seed.Kinser had to wait until Wednesday night to find out his NCAA Championships fate. But Kinser’s fifth-place showing at 157 pounds at the Big Ten Championship and battle-tested body of work was enough to convince the committee of his worthiness for an at-large bid.Junior Eric Cameron also received an at-large bid at 184 pounds on Wednesday, which will mark his second-straight trip to the NCAA tournament.Sophomore Matt Powless, who earned an automatic bid with a seventh-place finish in the 197-pound division at the Big Ten Championships, rounds out the IU qualifiers. This will be Powless’ first trip to the NCAA Championships.
(03/08/10 5:04am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The Big Ten Championships did not go the way the Hoosiers envisioned this weekend in Ann Arbor, Mich. An eighth-place finish was an improvement from last year’s ninth-place result, but it was not the strong finish to the season many had predicted. However, coming home with the 125-pound title and having four guys earn automatic trips to the NCAA Championships is not a bad consolation prize for the cream and crimson.The brightest moment of the weekend came when senior Angel Escobedo etched his name into the IU record books, becoming the first Hoosier ever to win three Big Ten titles.“It was definitely a challenge that I haven’t faced all year, but I knew that I needed to battle through adversity and find other ways to win,” Escobedo said.Waiting for Escobedo at Sunday afternoon’s 125-pound championship was Iowa’s No. 3 Matt McDonough, who came in at a perfect 32-0. In a battle of two undefeated lightweights, something had to give — luckily for Escobedo, it was McDonough’s undefeated season.After a series of stalemates, Escobedo found himself in an extremely rare position. The former national champion was down in riding time by more than one minute, which also meant he was technically losing the match.But Escobedo was not about to let a freshman keep him from making more Hoosier history. A couple of takedowns were all Escobedo needed to close out McDonough by a 6-4 final score. While he got Sunday started off with a bang for the Hoosiers, it would be the only time they would stand atop the podium.The Bloomington South duo of juniors Kurt Kinser and Paul Young both notched fifth-place finishes in their respective weight classes. The finish propelled Young to an automatic NCAA qualifier.Sophomore Matt Powless will be making his first trip to the NCAAs thanks to his seventh-place finish at 197 pounds.Rounding out the weekend for the Hoosiers was senior heavyweight Nate Everhart, who dropped his first match of the year to Iowa’s Daniel Erickson 9-6 in the final round. While Everhart had hopes of an undefeated senior campaign, he is still in position as one of the favorites to take home the heavyweight crown at the NCAAs.“Obviously, we could have done a lot better with all of the talent that we have,” Escobedo said. “But it’s a lot better that this happened in the Big Tens rather than at Nationals, because now we have two weeks to focus on what we did wrong.”
(03/05/10 3:48am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Forty-seven nationally ranked wrestlers, eight teams in the top 25, and 21 out of the last 30 National Championship teams are just a few reasons why the Big Ten is the best wrestling conference in the country. It is no secret the Big Ten Championships have more talent on display than any other conference tournament.This historic trend will continue as every Big Ten wrestler will look to punch a ticket to the National Championships this weekend at Michigan’s Crisler Arena.The event has plagued the No. 13 Hoosiers (16-3, 5-3), even in the years they showed national promise. They haven’t won a team title since the 1942-43 season and have placed in the top half only twice in the past decade. In 1996, when the Hoosiers went 6-1 in Big Ten play, they finished last. Even two-time 125-pound national champion and current IU assistant coach Joe Dubuque could never bring home a Big Ten title. IU coach Duane Goldman put it bluntly.“This tournament is a killer,” he said.Fortunately for the cream and crimson, this year is a different story.With the amount of upperclassmen and experience in the starting lineup, the Hoosiers enter Saturday with as good a chance as ever to prove they are among the nation’s elite.This year marks the first time the Hoosiers have finished above .500 in the Big Ten since 1996, which helps explain why half of the Hoosiers’ lineup is ranked in the top 14 nationally.Senior Angel Escobedo will look to bolster his impeccable resume this weekend, trying to become the first IU wrestler to ever win three Big Ten Championships. As the No. 1 wrestler nationally at 125 pounds, Escobedo will be tagged with the No. 1 seed and a target on his back.“This is when I do my best because guys come at me attacking, and it allows me to open my offense up and take them down,” Escobedo said.While Escobedo has already stood atop the Big Ten podium twice, coming in undefeated is uncharted territory. Not only did the former national champion tally his first 8-0 Big Ten season, he also has yet to record a mark in the loss column at an unblemished 30-0. Giving the favorite his first loss of the season will be the goal for all Big Ten wrestlers this weekend, but Escobedo is not about to let anyone get in the way of him stamping his name into the Hoosier record books one more time.“This is a program that has had such a rich history of great wrestlers, and to be the first one to ever win three Big Ten titles would mean a lot to me,” Escobedo said.But Escobedo’s repeated success in the Big Ten Championships has not resulted in top finishes for the Hoosiers in the past few years. The Griffith, Ind., native is the only one on this active roster to have captured the coveted Big Ten title. But undefeated senior heavyweight Nate Everhart hopes to change that soon.To fully understand how dominant Everhart has been, one must look at the work he did in the nonconference schedule.Everhart took down the top two seeds to earn the heavyweight crown at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational in the beginning of December. Later that month, Everhart came back to Bloomington with the heavyweight title at the Southern Scuffle. The senior who started the year ranked No. 16 nationally has climbed his way to the No. 2 spot and is determined to bring home some more hardware this weekend.Powered by the perennially-winning seniors, the Hoosiers feel they are a team built for big tournament success. They finished sixth out of 44 teams at the Vegas Invitational and third out of 35 in the Southern Scuffle.But they aren’t alone. Junior Kurt Kinser, No. 8 at 157 pounds, has also risen through the ranks, giving the team hopes of a high finish. Kinser, a Bloomington native, was just a questionable takedown away from winning the 157-pound title at the Southern Scuffle. He has a quick pin ability that makes him a legitimate threat and gives the Hoosiers a chance to get some big team points. In a season that started with him sidelined because of injury, Kinser believes he is just hitting his stride going into this weekend.“I’ve been feeling really good, and I feel like I’m peaking at the right time,” Kinser said. “I feel like this is as strong as we’ve been since I’ve been here, and I think we’re ready to make a lot of big moves this weekend.”Two No. 1 seeds and five nationally ranked wrestlers could be the recipe for the Hoosiers’ success this weekend. They have not forgotten about their ninth-place finish last year, and they are poised in the face of redemption. “In the past, we’ve had the talent but we haven’t really had the depth to back it up,” Escobedo said. “This year, every guy up and down the starting lineup can make it to Nationals.”
(02/15/10 5:53am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Angel Escobedo is lucky that his family and friends were not late for Senior Night at University Gym. Donning white shirts with a winged letter “A,” Escobedo’s entourage did not get to see him on the mat for long.The No. 1 senior pinned Michigan’s Sean Boyle just a little more than one minute into the first period, sending the Hoosiers (15-3, 4-3) on their way to a 22-13 victory against Michigan (4-12, 0-5).Escobedo’s 39th pin was the appropriate way for him to finish. The former national champion did not want to mess around when he stepped onto the mat.“I wanted to feed into the crowd and get them on their feet with some type of big move,” Escobedo said. “I wanted to show fans some excitement and leave off on a spectacular note.”Senior Matt Coughlin, who had yet to register a Big Ten win at 149 pounds,was determined to break into the winning column.In typical Coughlin fashion, the senior was able to grind out a 3-2 win against Michigan’s Mark Boyer. His victory broke a 6-6 tie the Hoosiers would not look back on.With senior Trevor Perry still on the shelf with an injured back, No. 2 heavyweight Nate Everhart was the only other senior on display Friday, and he had a 12-4 victory against Ben Apland.Juniors No. 6 Kurt Kinser (157 pounds), No. 12 Paul Young (165 pounds) and Eric Cameron (184 pounds), also notched wins.“Guys fought hard for our seniors tonight,” Escobedo said. “The time flew by and to think that I’m never going to wrestle here again is kind of sad.”PURDUEThe No. 13 Hoosiers got a pin for the win from No. 12 Paul Young at 165 pounds to take down Purdue (10-9, 1-5), 22-17.A rare come-from-behind win was necessary for the Hoosiers to put them in an early 8-0 hole after they dropped the first two matches at 174 and 185 pounds.But an upset win from sophomore Matt Powless at 197 pounds got the Hoosiers right back in it. The No. 15 ranked Powless allowed only an escape point in his 4-1 win against Purdue’s No. 13 Logan Brown. The senior bookend duo of Everhart and Escobedo wrestled back-to-back matches. Just as Everhart has been doing all year, he came through with a clutch pin to give the Hoosiers a 9-8 lead.Escobedo was wrestling one of his first ranked opponents in the Big Ten this season in Purdue’s No. 17 Cashe Quiroga. A series of takedowns and a couple of near pins was all Escobedo needed to for the win, 19-5. But the 13-8 lead would not last long for the Hoosiers.The Hoosiers dropped three out of the next four matches, putting the Hoosiers behind 16-17 with just one match remaining.Luckily for the Hoosiers, Young was determined to give his team a victory against the bitter rivals. The junior delivered the move of the day, pinning his opponent to give the Hoosiers the comeback win.The 22-17 win puts the Hoosiers above .500 in the Big Ten heading into their showdown at Michigan State next Friday. IU has not finished a season above .500 since 1996, including when they finished 12th at the NCAA Championships two years ago.“We’ve wrestled really well this season and I think that coming in, these guys knew that this was going to be a special season for us,” IU coach Duane Goldman said.
(02/12/10 3:46am)
Besides senior night, the IU wrestling team will have its sights set on
taking care of a Michigan team that has yet to register a Big Ten win.
(02/12/10 3:44am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Friday night will be the last time the Hoosier faithful will see Angel Escobedo get the Hoosiers off to an early lead at 125 pounds.It will be the last time they will see Matt Coughlin compete in a grind-it-out match at 149 pounds.It will be the last time fans can get on their feet for a Trevor Perry pin at 175 pounds.And it will be the last time they will get a chance to witness Nate Everhart secure a Hoosier victory at heavyweight.These four starting seniors, as well as Justin Kuhn and Wesley Fike, will be honored on senior night at 7 p.m. Friday when the No. 13 Hoosiers (13-3, 2-3) take on Michigan (4-12, 0-5) at University Gym.Every college coach, especially one with 17 seasons under his belt, deals with senior night on an annual basis. But for IU coach Duane Goldman, this group of seniors is different from any he has had before. Besides combining for 10 trips to the NCAA Championships, this group has brought leadership that will be hard to replace.“They all have been a huge part of this team their entire careers,” Goldman said. “You can never replace an individual and what they bring to the table.”For Escobedo, his successful ride to glory has been a fast one at IU. He was at the highest of highs when he won the 125-pound National Championship his sophomore year, but he has also dealt with his share of setbacks, including a shoulder injury that kept him from regaining his crown. After surgery this past offseason, many questioned whether Escobedo could be the wrestler he was a year ago.But he never doubted he would be atop the 125-pound world again.“After I got my shoulder surgery, I felt that I would get back on top of the podium,” Escobedo said. “I’m not surprised that I’m undefeated right now.”Escobedo’s record might not be a surprise to the wrestling community, but Everhart’s is.At No. 2 and with a 29-0 record, Everhart has reached his potential as a senior heavyweight. He has also faced his share of ups and downs, but he admits he did not expect to be this dominant going into senior night.“I always knew that I had the ability, but I definitely had my doubts,” Everhart said. “If you had asked me last year, I would have never thought that I would be undefeated at this point of the season, but I‘ve put in the work and I think I deserve it.”Everhart and Escobedo are not the only senior rocks of the IU wrestling program. Perry has been a regular at the NCAA Championships every year as a starter for the Hoosiers, and his 31 career pins have established him on the short list for career pins at IU.Perry sat out last week against Minnesota, and his status for senior night is still up in the air. If Perry is healthy, he will look to start a run to punch his fourth-straight ticket to the NCAA Championships.Like the other three senior starters, Coughlin is a regular at the NCAA Championships. After getting his career off to an impressive start, placing seventh at the NCAA championships as a freshman, the Evansville native has failed to repeat that success. After not wrestling in the Big Ten last year because of the emergence of junior Kurt Kinser at 157 pounds, Coughlin moved down to 149 pounds to get back in the starting lineup. At 15-12, he will look to repeat his earlier days and make his third run to the NCAA Championships.The bond these seniors have developed has paid dividends in the Hoosiers’ success this year. A variety of emotions are sure to be going through their minds as they try to give the Hoosiers their first winning record in the Big Ten since 1996.“When you put five years into a program, you become attached to it,” Escobedo said. “We’ve been guys that have gone through thick and thin together.”Everhart is surprised at how fast his four years as an IU wrestler have flown by. “It’s gone by quick, especially when you think of how long a wrestling season is with meets and practices,” Everhart said. “It’s hard to believe that it’s my last match at home.”Goldman said he knows the Hoosiers will be facing some major changes next year when these wrestlers are not in the starting lineup. Getting wins at the bookends every match will be difficult to replace.“This team is going to have a whole new face next year, and it’s going to be strange at first,” Goldman said. “There are some really big shoes to fill.”
(02/01/10 3:40am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>IU coach Duane Goldman has repeatedly stressed the need for upset victories in Big Ten play. On Friday night, Goldman got exactly what he was asking for, in dramatic fashion.IU sophomore Matt Powless defeated Illinois’ No. 9 ranked Patrick Bond on a buzzer beater takedown to propel the No. 14 Hoosiers (13-1, 2-1) over No. 24 Illinois (6-5, 1-2) 22-13.The battle at 197 lbs. between Powless and Bond was to decide who would have the lead heading into the heavyweight match.The Hoosiers had an advantage of 15-13 at that point, due to victories from senior Angel Escobedo at 125 lbs., sophomore Matt Ortega at 133 lbs., junior Kurt Kinser at 157 lbs., and junior Paul Young at 165 lbs.Last weekend, Powless suffered an 11-1 loss to Wisconsin’s No. 8 ranked Trevor Brandvold. Powless admits that the loss was tough to swallow.“Losing to (Brandvold) last week brought my confidence way down,” Powless said.But the Newburgh, Ind., native knew he had to get back to work to face another top ten opponent in Bond. Powless showed no lack in confidence throughout the entire match.With the riding time advantage secured and the score at 2-1, the match was virtually a tie late in the third period. Overtime was the furthest thing from Powless’ mind.“I knew that I wanted to attack right then and not send it into overtime,” Powless said.Then Powless delivered the move of his young career, dropping Bond to the mat at the buzzer to get the two point takedown. The dramatic win sent the Hoosier crowd at University Gym into a frenzy.The buzzer beater takedown improved Powless’ record to 23-9 and could move him back into the national rankings. The underclassman knew that he had something to prove and rose to the occasion.“I wanted to show that I can hang with the guys in the Big Ten and that I belong here,” Powless said.But while IU fared well against the Illini, they could not overcome the balanced attack of No. 4 Ohio State (14-1, 4-0) at University Gym on Sunday.The 22-13 defeat marks the first home loss for the Hoosiers in Big Ten play.As usual, the Hoosiers started off the match with a lead because of a 15-5 major win from Escobedo. The lead would not last for long, as the Hoosiers suffered losses at 133 lbs., 141 lbs. and 149 lbs.A comeback win for the hometown Kinser at 157 lbs., got the team and crowd back into the match at the halfway point. Unfortunately for the Hoosiers, they would not bite into the four point deficit for the rest of the day.The marquee match-up of the day was at 165 lbs., between Young and OSU’s Colt Sponseller. Coming into the match, No. 7 Sponseller had taken care of all his opponents not in the top four at 165 lbs. Sunday was no different. Young failed to record a takedown and suffered a 5-1 defeat.While the Hoosiers failed to come back, there were some positives to end the day. Powless recorded a 4-0 shutout to improve his bid to get back in the national rankings. Hoosier heavyweight Nate Everhart continued his undefeated senior year with a 2-0 victory to close out the day. Goldman knows that while it would have been nice to notch the upset win, a loss to a No. 4 team is certainly not a letdown.“It was just a tough match,” Goldman said. “I thought they were patient and when opportunities presented themselves (OSU) went after those opportunities.”
(01/27/10 4:51am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>As the wrestlers shuffle along their practice room’s mat-covered floor, IU coach Duane Goldman barks out orders.“Keep your head up,” he implores them. “Touch the ground.”Assistant coach Joe Dubuque, who wrestled for Goldman for two national championships at IU, works with team members, bending low at the knee, lifting his head and showing them proper technique.“Gotta get better today,” he shouts.From this form drill to running sprints up inclines to a 40-minute live wrestling drill, this team has embraced whatever Goldman and his staff have implemented.And it shows.The No. 14 Hoosiers (12-1, 1-1) have finished in the top 10 of every scored tournament this season and have four top-15 wrestlers on its squad.And those four, Goldman said, are the four that work the hardest in practice.Seniors Angel Escobedo (No. 1 at 125 pounds) and Nate Everheart (No. 2 at heavyweight) and juniors Kurt Kinser (No. 6 at 157) and Paul Young (No. 13 at 165) exemplify athletes buying into a system and benefitting from it. Although they might not enjoy it sometimes, they know the workouts have immense benefits.“The goal in every practice is to push yourself physically and mentally,” Young said. “I think that’s something Duane’s really done through lifts, through running, through drills, through wrestling live.”They also trust their coach, who has been around the wrestling and coaching block. An 18-year veteran at IU, he was also a four-time All-American at Iowa during his collegiate wrestling days, compiling a 132-10 record at 190 pounds and earning an NCAA Championship in his senior year.“He’s been doing it his whole life,” Young said of the team’s rigorous practice schedule. “He was trained that way growing up as a wrestler himself. He knows exactly what he’s doing. What we do on a daily basis – it all has a purpose for later on.”It’s not just running until they vomit or doing leg lifts until the room becomes blurry that has this team among the top groups in the country. It’s also based in technique and mental toughness generated by drilling and getting through the daily grind, Kinser said.“It makes you improve everywhere,” he said. “Of course, athletically, you get better, but the mental building is just a really, really big key in college ... Mentally, I’m the best I’ve been ever since I’ve been here at Indiana.”A more physically imposing wrestler, Kinser said he is not so much a technician as others in his weight class. That has forced him to work harder every day so he can outwork every opponent on the mat. From there, it’s a matter of what the coaches see from their team that determines what they’ll do in practice during the next week.“If they feel like we need conditioning, we’ll do a lot more running and stuff,” Kinser said. “If it’s a matter of we’re getting out-techniqued on the mat, we’ll definitely put a lot more into drilling and situations. All that stuff translates directly to our matches.”With their top four men totaling 94 wins and eight losses this season, it’s clear that the “stuff” Kinser speaks of is getting through to some.And as they sit at practice’s end, shirts drenched in sweat and eyes glazed, Goldman talks about instilling it in every team member.He tells them to make the most of each day, that people compete harder when Big Ten season comes and everyone, even the non-starters, has to step up their wrestling to push the varsity wrestlers to a higher level.In the end, it’s about doing the little things right. And when you’re in a conference that made up nearly half of the NCAA tournament last year, those are what matter most.“Sometimes the things that you hate the worst are the best things for you,” Young said.And that’s not just a lesson for this team.