Nov. 30, 2010
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling team is ranked No. 5 in the latest USA Today/NWCA Coaches Poll. In addition, eight Nittany Lion wrestlers are now ranked individually at their respective weights as two-time All-American Frank Molinaro (Barnegat, N.J.) is now ranked No. 2 at 149 by Intermat.
The Nittany Lions continue to see their point total rise in the weekly coaches voting. Cornell checks in at No. 1 with 275 points while Oklahoma State is a close second with 264. Minnesota is ranked No. 3 with 253 while Wisconsin sits at No. 4 with 238. Penn State is right behind that group in fifth with 232 points. Boise State (T6th, 214 points), Iowa (T6th, 214), Oklahoma (8th, 201), Illinois (9th, 188) and Virginia Tech (10th, 155) round out the top ten.
Ohio State (19), Northwestern (20), Michigan (21) and Purdue (23) are also ranked in the top 25, giving Penn State nine teams on the list with Indiana receiving votes. Penn State, 5-0 on the year, already owns wins over now-12th ranked Lehigh and now-18th ranked Rutgers.
Molinaro is 1-0 on the year and sits at No. 2 at 149, leading the charge of eight ranked Penn State individuals. Freshman David Taylor (St. Paris, Ohio) is 5-0 on the year and ranked No. 5 at 157 while sophomore Quentin Wright (Wingate, Pa.), 4-1 at 184, is ranked No. 6. Junior Cameron Wade (Twinsburg, Ohio) is 3-2 at heavyweight, with each loss being to one of the top three big men, and is ranked No. 7.
Freshman Jake Kemerer (Greensburg, Pa.) is ranked No. 11 at 165 and sports a 4-1 mark while true freshman Andrew Alton (Mill Hall, Pa.) is 5-0 and ranked No. 12 at 141. Freshman Ed Ruth (Harrisburg, Pa.), 5-0 at 174, is ranked No. 14 while true freshman Frank Martellotti (Pittsburgh, Pa.) moved up two spots and is now ranked No. 18 at 125 with a 5-0 mark.
Penn State, now 5-0 this year with head coach Cael Sanderson at the helm, returns to action on this Sunday, Dec. 5, when it takes part in the Nittany Lion Open. Action begins in Rec Hall at 8:30 a.m. The Nittany Lions' next home dual is on Dec. 12 when Lock Haven comes to town for a 2 p.m. dual. Fans wishing to purchase single dual meet tickets for the 2010-11 Penn State Nittany Lion wrestling season can place their orders by calling 814-865-5555 or visit the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office. The box office is open Monday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Ticket pricing is $8 for adults and $5 for youth, and there will be a limit of eight tickets per order. Group sales are also available. The 2010-11 Penn State wrestling season is presented by the Family Clothesline. All Penn State events will once again air live on Forever Broadcasting's WRSC (1390 AM) and WSQV (92.1 FM). All radio broadcasts are streamed live at GoPSUsports.com as part of the All-Access package. The 2010-11 Penn State Wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline.