North Carolina State University Athletics
Wrestling Resumes Season At Southern Scuffle
12/28/2008 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
GREENSBORO, N.C. Ultimately, college wrestling is a tournament sport. The regular season is played out in dual matches, but the sport’s national champion and final national rankings all are determined by a tournament.
Because of that, NC State’s showing earlier this month at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and at the Southern Scuffle on Monday and Tuesday this week should be a much better indicator of the Wolfpack’s postseason chances than its 1-4 record in dual matches thus far.
The Las Vegas Invitational is easily college wrestling’s biggest and most prestigious in-season tournament. The Wolfpack finished 22nd at Vegas with only six wrestlers in the lineup. The Pack still won’t field a full complement of wrestlers for the Southern Scuffle, but NC State head coach Carter Jordan hopes for another strong showing and should get a better read on where his team stands as it approaches the new year.
“This is always a really good tournament,” Jordan says. “After Vegas, it might be the second best tournament in the country aside from the postseason, and the field is always very strong. There are ranked guys in every weight class, and our guys will be tested.”
Jordan went to Vegas without senior 141-pounder Joe Caramanica, senior 184-pounder Mark Jahad, senior 197-pounder Ryan Goodman and sophomore heavyweight Bobby Isola. Caramanica and Isola will be in the lineup for the Southern Scuffle, which will take place Monday and Tuesday, December 29-30, at the Greensboro Coliseum Special Events Center.
Goodman will be with the Wolfpack football team on Monday as it plays Rutgers in the Papajohns.com Bowl in Birmingham, Ala., but the other three should be available. In particular, the return of Caramanica, a 30-match winner a year ago who suffered a season-ending knee injury at the ACC Championships, bodes well for NC State in 2008-09, if not at the Southern Scuffle.
“This will be Joe’s first action of the season and the first time he’s wrestled since last March, but he looks great,” Jordan says. “He’s managed his weight really well and is ready to go. When healthy Joe is one of the best wrestlers in the country, a legitimate All-America candidate, and having him back in our lineup is huge for us.”
Redshirt-freshman Mike Moreno (5-3) will move into the lineup at 125 pounds for the Wolfpack, replacing redshirt-junior Taylor Cummings (9-5), who is out with a broken wrist, most likely for the remainder of the season. And freshman 165-pounder Quinton Godley (8-11) is battling an illness but is tentatively scheduled to wrestle. His status will be determined before the action starts Monday.
The rest of the lineup will include sophomore Darrius Little (6-6) at 133, junior Darrion Caldwell (15-0) at 149, redshirt-senior Kody Hamrah (11-3) at 157, freshman Jake Burge (6-4) at 174, and Isola (1-4). Caldwell, a 2008 All-American, is ranked No. 3 nationally and is seeded No. 1 at 149 for the Southern Scuffle.
“Right now, we won’t have anyone at 184 and 197 pounds, but the rest of our lineup looks fine,” Jordan says.
A field of 28 teams will compete in this year’s Southern Scuffle, including 24 teams that competed in the Southern Scuffle a year ago. Five teams in the field are ranked in the latest USA Today/InterMat/NWCA Division I Coaches Poll, including third-ranked Cornell, No. 17 Edinboro, No. 19 Hofstra, No. 21 Old Dominion, and No. 24 Virginia.
Following is the field for the 2008 Southern Scuffle:
Appalachian State
Binghamton
Bloomsburg
Boston University
Cal State Bakersfield
Campbell
The Citadel
Cornell
Davidson
Duke
East Stroudsburg
Edinboro
Franklin & Marshall
Gardner-Webb
George Mason
Hofstra
Kent State
Liberty
Lock Haven
Navy
North Carolina
North Carolina State
Ohio
Old Dominion
Princeton
UNC Greensboro
Virginia
Virginia Tech
Following at the pretournament seeds for the Southern Scuffle (individual national rankings in parentheses):
125
1. Paul Donahoe - Edinboro
2. (No. 10) Jarrod Garnett - Virginia Tech
3. (No. 12) Brandon Zoeteway - Cal State-Bakersfield
4. Ian Moser - Bloomsburg
5. Nicholas Bedelyon - Kent State
6. Kyle Fluke - Edinboro
7. Ross Gitomer - Virginia
133
1. Mike Grey - Cornell
2. (No. 7) Joe Baker - Navy
3. (No. 10) Lou Ruggirello - Hofstra
4. (No. 12) Dan Mitcheff - Kent State
5. Ricky Deubel - Edinboro
6. Thomas Kimbrell - Cal State-Bakersfield
7. Jason Guffey - Bloomsburg
8. Christian Smith - Liberty
141
1. (No. 11) Chris Diaz - Virginia Tech
2. Drew Lashaway - Kent State
3. Vincent Ramirez - North Carolina
4. Joe Caramanica - N. C. State
5. Christopher Bencivenga UNC Greensboro
6. Joel Webster - Edinboro
7. Tim Harner - Liberty
149
1. (No. 3) Darrion Caldwell - N. C. State
2. (No. 5) Bryce Saddoris - Navy
3. Mike Roberts - Boston University
4. (No. 15) Torsten Gillespie - Edinboro
5. Nick Stabile - North Carolina
6. (No. 20) Pete Yates - Virginia Tech
7. Kaylen Baxter - Old Dominion
157
1. (No. 1) Gregor Gillespie - Edinboro
2. (No. 9) Matt Moley - Bloomsburg
3. (No. 20) Jedd Moore - Virginia
4. Thomas Scotten - North Carolina
5. Trevor Hall - Cal State-Bakersfield
6. Kody Hamrah - NC State
165
1. (No. 1) Mack Lewnes - Cornell
2. (No. 6) Jarrod King - Edinboro
3. (No. 19) Keegan Mueller - North Carolina
4. (No. 20) Ryan Patrovich - Hofstra
5. Matt Epperly - Virginia Tech
6. Ricky Schmelyun - Bloomsburg
7. Chad Porter - Liberty
174
1. (No. 5) Steve Anceravage - Cornell
2. (No. 7) Alton Lucas - Hofstra
3. (No. 11) Chris Henrich - Virginia
4. (No. 18) Austin Trotman - Appalachian State
5. (No. 16) Luke Rebertus - Navy
6. Hunter Meys - Boston University
7. (No. 19) Jacob Ison - Ohio University
8. Eric Decker - Old Dominion
9. Ben Fiacco - North Carolina
10. Justin Herbert - Franklin and Marshall
184
1. (No. 6) Dustin Kilgore - Kent State
2. (No. 10) Chris Honeycutt - Edinboro
3. (No. 14) Josh Patterson - Binghamton
4. (No. 17) Justin Kerber - Cornell
5. (No. 18) Chris Daggett - Liberty
6. John Barone - Duke
7. Tommy Spellman - Virginia Tech
8. Joe Budi - Old Dominion
197
1. (No. 6) Cayle Byers - George Mason
2. (No. 16) Brandon Halsey - Cal State-Bakersfield
3. Josh Arnone - Cornell
4. (No. 14) Joe Fagiano - Hofstra
5. Riley Orozco - Cal State-Bakersfield
6. (No. 15) Brent Jones - Virginia
7. (No. 20) Patrick Bradshaw - Edinboro
8. (No. 17) Cameron Simaz - Cornell
9. Eric Chine - Kent State
10. Shane Mallory - East Stroudsburg
285
1. (No. 7) Mitch Monteiro - Cal State-Bakersfield
2. (No. 9) Jermail Porter - Kent State
3. (No. 12) Scott Steele - Navy
4. Konrad Dudziak - Duke
5. (No. 8) Joey Fendone - Edinboro
6. (No. 10) Zach Hammond - Cornell
7. (No. 20) Justin Dobies - North Carolina
Tickets for the 2008 UNCG Southern Scuffle can be purchased through the Greensboro Coliseum Box Office beginning Oct. 24. Adult tickets are $12, student tickets are $8 and children under age 5 are free.
The options to purchase through the Coliseum box office include:
The Greensboro Coliseum box office during the normal box office hours of 11 am-6 pm Monday through Saturday.
By calling 336-852-1100
On-line at www.ticketmaster.com
2008 UNCG Southern Scuffle Schedule
Sunday, December 28
12 noon - Workout Area is available (Greensboro Coliseum, Event Center)
7-8 pm - Team and Individual Check in (Greensboro Sheraton - Glass Room)
Monday, December 29
8 am - Weigh-ins & Skin check
10 am - 64-man championship (10 mats - 500 wrestlers)
11:30 am - 32-man championship
1:45 pm - 1st round of wrestlebacks
3:45 pm - 16-man championship & 2nd round of wrestlebacks
6 pm - 3rd round of wrestlebacks
7 pm - Free wrestling clinic (for all high school, middle/youth wrestlers and coaches)
Tuesday, December 30
8 am - Weigh-ins and skin check
9 am - Quarterfinals & 4th round of wrestlebacks
10:30 am - 5th round of wrestlebacks
11:30 am - Semifinals & 6th round of wrestlebacks
1 pm - 7th round of wrestlebacks
2 pm - Medal rounds (3rd-8th)
3 pm - High school dual matches
5:30 pm - Championship finals
