Jan. 7, 2009
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team, under the guidance of head coach Troy Sunderland, has moved to No. 14 in the latest NWCA/USA Today Coaches Poll, as compiled and released by Intermat. The full release can be viewed at www.intermatwrestle.com. The Nittany Lions will face No. 5 Missouri in the first round of the 2009 National Duals on Saturday morning.
The Nittany Lions moved up two spots after last weekend's solid double-dual performance against then No. 9 Lehigh and Lock Haven. Penn State, 5-3 overall, posted a 5-5 split with Lehigh but lost a close 17-16 decision on bonus points and then hammered LHU 36-3.
Iowa continues to hold down the No. 1 spot, followed by Iowa State at No. 2. Cornell checks in at No. 3 and Nebraska is No. 4 while Missouri sits at No. 5. Ohio State (6), Illinois (7), Lehigh (8), Wisconsin (9) and Oklahoma (10) round out the top ten. The Big Ten is well-represented once again with a total of nine teams ranked. Minnesota (11), Penn State (14), Michigan (17), Indiana (19) and Northwestern (20) give the conference nine ranked teams while Purdue is receiving votes.
Junior All-Americans Bubba Jenkins (Virginia Beach, Va.) and Dan Vallimont (Lake Hopatcong, N.J.) lead Penn State's ranked contingent. Jenkins maintains his hold on No. 2 at 149 while Vallimont is ranked No. 8 at 157. All-American Jake Strayer (South Fork, Pa.), returning to the Penn State line-up at 133, has returned to the national rankings as well, checking in at No. 12. True freshman Quentin Wright (Wingate, Pa.) moved up to No. 14 at 174 as well, giving the Nittany Lions four wrestlers ranked by the NWCA. Penn State has two other grapplers ranked in the top 20 in other polls: Sophomore Brad Pataky (Clearfield, Pa.) is ranked No. 18 and red-shirt freshman Frank Molinaro (Barnegat, N.J.) is ranked No. 20 at 141 by W.I.N. Magazine.
The Nittany Lions will face No. 5 Missouri in the first round of the 2009 NWCA National Duals on Saturday at 10 a.m. (Eastern). The other bout in Penn State's portion of the bracket pits No. 4 Nebraska against No. 20 Northwestern. The two winners and two losers will tangle at 1 p.m. on Saturday in the next round. The tournament continues all day Saturday and concludes Sunday afternoon in Cedar Falls, Iowa.
Penn State's next home dual is set for Friday, Jan. 30, when Minnesota comes to town for a 7 p.m. dual in Rec Hall. Single event tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for youth. Penn State students get in FREE with a Penn State ID. All Penn State dual meets and post-season action can be heard live in the Centre Region on WRSC (1390 AM State College), WHUN (1150 AM Huntingdon) and live at www.GoPSUsports.com as part of the All-Access package.