Ben Askren Named Big 12 Wrestler of the Week

…Holds Perfect 25-0 Record…

Columbia, Mo. – Missouri sophomore Ben Askren was named Big 12 Wrestler of the Week for his accomplishments on the mat Jan. 11-17. A 2004 NCAA All-American, Askren holds a perfect 25-0 record at 174 pounds, with 18 of his victories coming in the form of a pin.

The Hartland, Wis., native set a new Missouri consecutive wins record while competing in the Virginia Duals Jan. 15-16. Easily pinning John Carrassco of Cal State Bakersfield in 2:10, Askren broke the 22- year-old record of 24 set by 1983 graduate Khris Whelan. With the win by fall, Askren now stands tied with 2003 graduate Kevin Herron for most MU falls in a season (18). Askren recorded five of his six Virginia Dual victories by fall and earned the title of Most Outstanding Wrestler of the 25th annual tournament.

Ranked No. 1/No. 2 in the nation at 174 pounds, Askren is a co-captain of the 12th-ranked Tiger wrestling program and has seen competition from several of the country’s top-ranked 174-pound wrestlers. Overall, Askren is 25-0 with a career record of 56-5. Askren opened his 2004-05 campaign with his quickest fall of his career. The pin over Brett Richardson (Dana College) was clocked at 21 seconds. While competing at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational Dec. 5-6, Askren took the 174-pound title after handing Hofstra’s Paul Siemon a 20-5 technical fall in the championship bout.

The Missouri wrestling team will open Big 12 Conference action against No. 5 Nebraska at home Saturday, Jan. 29, at 7 p.m. in the Hearnes Center. For ticket information, please call the box office at 1-800-CAT-PAWS.