Hipps Toss: Weekly College Wrestling Recap
Nathan Morgan Next Great Cowboy 133 Pounder; Dan Hodge Trophy Thoughts Updated; Milestones and Streaks
By Andrew Hipps – Staff Writer
Please send comments, questions or replies to: [email protected]
Next Great Cowboy 133-Pounder
As I watched Nathan Morgan, Oklahoma State’s talented true freshman, take apart Iowa’s Mario Galanakis on Sunday, I couldn’t help but compare him to Cowboy great Eric Guerrero. The similarities are striking.
-Both grew up in California.
-Both were three-time state champions.
-Both placed in the state tournament as freshmen.
-Both were Asics Tiger First-Team All-Americans.
-Both wrestled as true freshmen for the Cowboys.
-Both competed at 133.
And the comparison doesn’t stop there. Even their wrestling styles are very similar. Neither wrestler has the strength and power of a Johnny Thompson, so they rely much more on their sleek technique. Both are extremely quick, use constant movement, and have great offensive attacks.
Guerrero placed fifth at the 1996 NCAA Tournament as a true freshman, then went on to win three national titles. And I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see Morgan follow a similar path.
Dan Hodge Trophy Revisited
With the NCAA Tournament approximately two months away, let’s revisit the race for the Dan Hodge Trophy, given to the nation’s top collegiate wrestler. Below are my top five candidates at this point in the season.
1. Matt Gentry (Stanford, 157)
Gentry, the 2004 NCAA Champion at 157, is 18-0 this season. He has won tournament titles at the California Open, Reno Tournament of Champions, and Midlands Championships. At the Midlands, Gentry breezed through the toughest weight class of the tournament by beating two former Midlands champions, Trent Paulson of Iowa State and Alex Tirapelle of Illinois, on the way to his title. Gentry will see Paulson again this Friday night when Stanford heads to Ames to take on Iowa State. But aside from Paulson, the only wrestler with a fleeting chance to knock off Gentry before the postseason is sixth-ranked Brian Stith, who he will see on February 5th in a dual against Arizona State. Assuming Gentry runs the table the rest of the season, he should be in line for the Hodge Trophy.
2. Jake Rosholt (Oklahoma State, 197)
Rosholt, a two-time All-American and 2003 NCAA Champion, is 16-0 this season. He has won by fall or technical fall in nine of his 16 matches this season. His biggest win this season was an 8-4 win over second-ranked Chris Skretkowicz at the Kaufman-Brand Open in November. He also pinned 2003 NCAA runner-up Scott Barker of Oregon in the finals of the Reno Tournament of Champions. Rosholt will face a brutal schedule the rest of the season, which might hurt his chances of staying undefeated and winning the Hodge Trophy. This weekend, Rosholt will compete in the National Duals, where he will certainly see some stiff competition – with seven of the top ten teams in the country competing. Rosholt will also face Skretkowicz again on February 13th in a dual against Hofstra. And later that same day, Rosholt will face third-ranked Jon Trenge of Lehigh in a dual.
3. Sam Hazewinkel (Oklahoma, 125)
Hazewinkel, who placed third in the country as a freshman last season, has started his sophomore campaign 17-0 – and has done so in dominating fashion. He has won by fall, technical fall, or major decision in 14 of his 17 matches. He has wins over fifth-ranked Vic Moreno of Cal Poly (5-3), 10th-ranked Jeremy Mendoza of Arizona State (13-1), 16th-ranked Matt Mormile of Cornell (8-2), and 18th-ranked Mark McKnight of Buffalo (6-1). Hazewinkel also defeated second-ranked Nick Simmons of Michigan State at the Marines All-Star Classic, although that match is officially recorded as an exhibition. Hazewinkel’s toughest remaining tests will come at the National Duals this weekend – and on a February 25th in a rematch against Simmons in East Lansing.
4. Greg Jones (West Virginia, 184)
Jones, a two-time NCAA Champion, might be the most talented wrestler in the country, but doesn’t get the recognition he rightfully deserves. And if he hadn’t missed the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and Midlands (two tournaments that he was expected to compete in), he might be the frontrunner for the Hodge. Jones is currently 9-0 this season, but has only faced two wrestlers ranked in the top 10 in the country. He will compete in the National Duals this weekend, which will be his last major test before the EWL Championships and NCAA Tournament.
5. Troy Letters (Lehigh, 165)
Like Jones, Letters is one of top talents in college wrestling today. But the fact that he has wrestled only seven matches this season, all dual meets, significantly hurts his chances of being considered for the Hodge. Letters, who won the national title at 165 last season, has won by pin or major decision in six of his seven matches this season. His most impressive win thus far is a 13-5 major decision victory over second-ranked Ryan Churella of Michigan.
On the radar: Nate Gallick (Iowa State, 141), Zack Esposito (Oklahoma State, 149), Marcus LeVesseur (Augsburg, 157), Steve Mocco (Oklahoma State, HWT).
Milestones and Streaks
Northern Iowa senior 174-pounder Eric Hauan picked up his 100th win for the Panthers, defeating Iowa State’s Nick Passolano on Saturday night, 7-2, in overtime. Neither wrestler scored until the third period of that match, with Passolano choosing down and scoring a reversal at the beginning of the third. Hauan escaped and the Cyclone was called for stalling to force overtime. With 16 seconds remaining in the first overtime, Hauan got a takedown and a two-point near fall. Hauan’s career record improves to 100-30, while on the season he is 22-3.
Coming into last week, Cornell 184-pounder Joe Mazzurco had won 22 straight matches. That streak, however, was snapped on Friday night when he lost a 6-3 decision to Lehigh’s Travis Frick. Mazzurco bounced back in a big way on Sunday by registering six takedowns in a 13-5 major decision victory over Nathaniel Auguston of Ohio State.
Rider took advantage of a pin at 157 pounds by Dave Miller to break open a 7-7 tie with North Dakota State and never gave up the lead again in a 19-16 opening round victory over the Bison at the Virginia Duals on Friday. The fifth-seeded Broncs put an end to NDSU’s school record 23-match winning streak.
On Sunday, at the 16th annual Wendy’s Big Classic, Ashland’s Ray Kowatch became the winningest coach in school history. After dropping their opening dual to Northern Illinois, Ashland bounced back by defeating Slippery Rock. Ashland scored the first 17 points, highlighted by a 23-8 technical fall by Zach Meissner at 133. Major decisions by Tommy Bauer at 174 and Ryan Kirst at 285 helped Ashland wrap up a 28-6 victory. That victory was number 122 of Kowatch’s career at Ashland and made him the all-time school leader in wins. Mark Osgood was the previous leader with 121 victories. Ashland finished its day with another convincing win, 31-6 against Cleveland State. Eric Lakia pinned his opponent at 165 in just 55 seconds while James Phillips improved his record to 20-0 with a 13-5 major decision at 125. Sunday’s action leaves Ashland’s record at 6-1. The Eagles will return to action on Friday when they travel to Cleveland for the all-important NCAA Division II National Duals.
Augsburg 157-pounder Marcus LeVesseur, the two-time defending NCAA Division III national champion and current top-ranked wrestler at 157 pounds, went 4-0 at the Wisconsin-Oshkosh Open on Saturday and surpassed Dan Gable’s mark of 100 straight wins, which was previously the second longest winning streak in college wrestling history. LeVesseur is now 104-0 in his career at Augsburg, but still needs 55 straights wins to tie Iowa State legend Cael Sanderson, who ranks number one on the list with 159 straight victories. LeVesseur completely dominated his four opponents at the Oshkosh Open, picking up three pins and a major decision. He pinned Wisconsin-La Crosse’s Collin McKillip in 3:58, Upper Iowa’s Scott Fisher in 1:45, Purdue’s Jake Murphy in 3:49 and beat Tim Palmer of Wisconsin-La Crosse, 15-2. LeVesseur has recorded 12 pins this season – with nine of those coming in under two minutes.
Illinois senior 184-pounder Brian Glynn won by technical fall over Jeremy Colbert of North Carolina State on Sunday and brought his career win total to 99, just one away from the coveted 100. Glynn will likely reach the landmark this weekend at the National Duals.
This Week
The nation’s top collegiate wrestlers and teams will be in Cleveland, Ohio, this weekend for the 17th annual Cliff Keen/NWCA National Duals.
Action gets underway on Friday morning with the start of Division II and Division III competition and culminates on Sunday with the completion of Division I competition.
Stay tuned to The Wrestling Mall for articles and coverage of the event.
Andrew Hipps also accepts feedback at [email protected]
Wrestling Gear
