North Carolina State University Athletics
NC State Wrestling To Compete In Navy Classic This Weekend
11/19/2004 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Nov. 19, 2004
RALEIGH, N.C. - With two dual matches in the books, the NC State wrestling team travels to Annapolis, Md., this weekend to participate in Saturday's Navy Classic at the United States Naval Academy. The nine-team tournament will feature 10th-ranked West Virginia, plus strong teams from Navy and Atlantic Coast Conference rival Virginia Tech. George Mason, Rutgers, Campbell, Dusquesne and McDaniel round out the field.
The tournament, which will last all day on Saturday, features 12 nationally ranked individual wrestlers, including top-ranked 184-pounder Greg Jones, No. 6 heavyweight Brent Miller, and seventh-ranked Matt Lebe of West Virginia.
NC State will take 16 wrestlers to the Navy Classic, most of whom have very limited collegiate experience. The Wolfpack's starting lineup in its two dual matches included eight freshmen or sophomores, and the six non-starters traveling to Navy have either never wrestled collegiately or have only appeared in a handful of bouts.
"This is a good, solid test for us," NC State head wrestling coach Carter Jordan said. "With West Virginia, Virginia Tech and Navy in the field, the competition will be tough, and the rest of the field will provide us with plenty of challenges. We have several kids who haven't really wrestled before, and this will be a good opportunity for our kids to get some valuable experience."
Redshirt-sophomore 125-pounder Garrett Cummings, 2-0 on the season, leads the Wolfpack's starting lineup, which also includes redshirt-sophomore 133-pounder Jeff Breese, freshman 141-pounder Travis Varner, junior 149-pounder Chris DeLuca, freshman 157-pounder Kody Hamrah, redshirt-freshman 165-pounder Ryan Nowicki, redshirt-junior 174-pounder Kevin Gabrielson, freshman 184-pounder Jeremy Colbert, sophomore 197-pounder Zach Garren, and sophomore heavyweight Jainor Palma.
In addition to the 10 starters, redshirt-junior 157-pounder Eric Heath, sophomore heavyweight Dave Iobst, redshirt-sophomore 141-pounder Rod McCollum, redshirt-sophomore Javon Powell, junior 157-pounder Bryant Reams, sophomore 165-pounder Cameron Reeves, and redshirt-freshman Matt Spengler will make the trip for the Pack.
Following the Navy Classic, the Wolfpack will have a two-week wait before heading west December 3-4 to compete in the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitiational, arguably the toughest in-season tournament of the entire college wrestling season.
