Nittany Lion wrestlers head to National Duals
By Andy Elder
CLEVELAND — Penn State wrestling coach Troy Sunderland isn’t one to make or accept excuses. So, when he talks about the injuries that have racked the No. 21 Nittany Lions leading up to today’s 2005 Cliff Keen/ NWCA National Duals, he’s just giving cold, hard facts.
“You do so much projecting of where you will put people and then injuries come and hit us hard again, “he said. “In spite of that, we have to put our toughest lineup out there.”
Those injuries have robbed Penn State of two of four captains (James Woodall and Josh Walker) and three other potential starters (Tim Haas, Jeremy Hart and Aaron Anspach). And the threadbare roster is starting to show the strain.
James Woodall (149 pounds) is lost for the season with an ACL tear. Walker, Sunderland said, will be out for at least two weeks with a herniated disc in his back. Haas had season-ending surgery on a torn ACL on Jan. 6. Anspach underwent season-ending shoulder surgery during fall semester. And Hart is still having trouble with a shoulder he’s twice had operations performed on.
As the Nittany Lions prepare for an 11 a.m. meeting with No. 7 seed Oklahoma in the Cleveland State Convocation Center, they do so with the possibility of having five first-year starters in the lineup. That doesn’t bode well for Penn State as it attempts to improve on last year’s fourth-place finish.
As it stands, Penn State’s starting 10 figure to be: Adam Smith (125), Bryan Heller (133), DeWitt Driscoll (141), Jack Decker (149), No. 9 Nate Galloway, Jarrad Turner or Steve Troup (165), James Yonushonis (174), No. 6 Eric Bradley (184), Phil Davis or Joel Edwards (197) and C.J. Wonsettler (heavyweight).
Not only is Oklahoma, which is ranked No. 10, a tough draw, it is bittersweet. The Nittany Lions defeated the Sooners during last year’s Duals. But Penn State will only have to look across the mat to see what could have been in No. 3 Matt Storniolo, who transferred from Penn State to Oklahoma at the beginning of the fall semester.
“We could have drawn a tougher team (than the No. 7 seed), but Oklahoma is tough. Seeing them last year could work for us and against us. We beat them last year so that could give them some motivation. But the knowledge we have of their lineup will help us.”
No. 1-ranked Oklahoma State drew the top seed. The Cowboys are followed by No. 2 seed Illinois (ranked No. 2), No. 3 seed Michigan (ranked No. 4), No. 4 seed Lehigh (ranked No. 5), No. 5 seed Hofstra (ranked No. 6), No. 6 seed Minnesota (ranked No. 8), No. 7 seed Oklahoma (ranked No. 10) and No. 8 seed Cornell (ranked No. 11). Other teams in the 16-team Div. I-A field include The Citadel, Cleveland State, No. 14 Northern Iowa, Cal Poly, No. 16 Arizona State, No. 12 Central Michigan, No. 21 Penn State and No. 22 West Virginia.
Should Penn State survive its opening-round matchup with Oklahoma, it would likely face No. 2 seed Illinois. The Illini wrestle West Virginia in the first round. A Nittany Lion loss would mean a 3 p.m. first-round consolation bout against the loser of Illini and Mountaineers.
Despite the depleted ranks, Sunderland chose to accentuate the positive and point out the opportunity his young charges have to grow as wrestlers.
“This is another experience for the young guys. And, in this format, it’s a little easier with your teammates beside you to help back you up. At the Big Tens and NCAAs, you’re kind of on your own.”
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