North Carolina State University Athletics
Wrestling At Ohio U. For Sunday Match
1/15/2010 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
RALEIGH, N.C. — With a doubleheader sweep of VMI snd Duke last Saturday still fresh in its memory, the NC State wrestling team hits the road this weekend for a trip to Athns, Ohio, and a match with a formiddable team from Ohio University.
The Bobcats, featuring three wrestlers ranked in the latest NWCA rankings, come into Saturday’s match with an 8-2 overall record following a 29-7 victory over Northern Illinois in their conference opener. Ohio University captured fourth place at the Reno Tournament of Champions on December 20, then took sixth place at the Southern Scuffle on December 29-30. Five Ohio wrestlers placed in the top seven at the Southern Scuffle.
“They’re a really good team,” said Wolfpack coach Carter Jordan, whose team improved to 4-5 with the sweep last Saturday. “We’ll certainly be challenged, but we welcome that. We’re trying to develop a young team, and the schedule we’ve wrestled so far will pay off in the long run. We’ve had our moments and we’ve gotten a lot better since the start of the season.”
The schedule Jordan referred to includes dual matches with numerous powerhouses, including road matches at Oklahoma, Nebraska and Wyoming, plus a home match with a very strong club from Utah Valley. The Wolfpack also competed in both the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and the Southern Scuffle, arguably the two most competitive in-season tournaments in college wrestling.
With five freshmen and three sophomores in the lineup, the Wolfpack has taken its lumps, yet has also been surprisingly competitive at times against some of the stronger teams in the country. As the lineup has solidified itself — with Mike Moreno settling in at 125, Bobby Ward dropping from 157 to 149, and Ray Ward moving in at 165 — the Pack has shown steady improvement.
Bobby Ward has been NC State’s best and most consistent wrestler. He began the year at 157 and went 6-3 before switching spots with Colton Palmer, who went from 149 to 157. Ward has gone 11-3 at the lighter weight, 17-6 overall, and has won 10 of his last 12 bouts. He was the only Wolfpack wrestler to place at the Southern Scuffle, finishing fifth.
While Ward has been strong from the get-go, two heralded freshmen have also had solid, if up-and-down seasons. At 141, Dale Shull began the season winning seven of his first nine bouts before dropping six of 10 bouts beginning at the Las Vegas Invitational. He has recovered to win his last three, however, and enters the Ohio University bout with a 11-8 record. He will face his sternest test of the year in Athens when he meets 13th-ranked Germaine Lindsey, who is 17-4, finished fourth at the Southern Scuffle, and second at the Reno Tournament of Champions. He has won 16 of his last 18 matches.
At heavyweight, Eloheim Palma began the year wrestling unattached in the event that Jordan might redshirt him. When incumbent starter Bobby Isola suffered an ankle injury, though, Palma went into the starting lineup and has been a force there ever since. While Palma has lost three of his last four matches and five of his last seven, he is 16-8 overall. He has won the second most matches ever by an NC State freshman and has the team’s lone victory over a ranked opponent. He worked over then-11th-ranked Benjamin Berhow of Minnesota at the Southern Scuffle, thumping him 10-3.
“Those three guys have been really good for us all season,” Jordan said. “Bobby Ward has been really tough at 149. He was a juco national runner-up, and he knows how to wrestle. Dale and Eloheim are so talented that sometimes we forget they’re freshmen. They don’t wrestle like freshmen, but it’s still a big adjustment.”
The Wolfpack lineup has been a work in progress for much of the season. Ray Ward moved into the starting lineup at 165 during the Southern Scuffle. Moreno took over at 125 right after the Scuffle. The latest lineup change came about when 133-pounder Darrius Little was lost for the season because of knee surgery. Scott Norris moved into the lineup and is 2-3 since then.
The latest lineup change for the Pack will be temporary. Redshirt-sophomore Sean Smith will wrestle at 157 pounds in place of Colton Palmer, who suffered an ankle injury last weekend at Duke. Smith is 2-4 this season, all of it at 141.
In addition Lindsey, the Bobcats also feature 19th-ranked 184-pounder Nick Purdue and 14th-ranked 197-pounder Erik Schuth. Purdue, 22-8 overall, finished sixth at the Southern Scuffle and second at the Reno Tournament of Champions. Schuth took second at the Southern Scuffle and third at the Tournament of Champions. At 18-3, he has yet to lose consecutive bouts this season. He has won his last three, eight of his last nine, and 16 of his last 18.
“I like the way we wrestled last weekend, especially at Duke,” Jordan said. “The guys really showed some toughness. They’re starting to figure that part of it out. There’s a lot of talent in this lineup. It’s a process and it doesn’t happen overnight. But we’re definitely getting there.”
NC State (4-5) vs. Ohio University (8-2)
125 — Mike Moreno (3-2) vs. Kyle Ciccarello (5-6) or Gabe Ramos (5-3)
133 — Scott Norris (2-6) vs. Quentin Keyes (15-9)
141 — Dale Shull (11-8) vs. #13 Germane Lindsey (17-4)
149 — Bobby Ward (17-6) vs. Seth Morton (19-6)
157 — Sean Smith (2-4) vs. Clay Tucker (18-11)
165 — Ray Ward (4-4) vs. Kevin Christensen (10-12)
174 — Quinton Godley (7-12) vs. Steve Wilson (3-8)
184 — Cedric Moore (2-4) or Jonathan Becker (4-9) vs. #19 Nick Purdue (22-8)
197 — Andrew Tumlin (4-10) vs. #13 Erik Schuth (18-3)
Hwt — Eloheim Palma (16-8) vs. Andy Hartshorn (18-9)
The Bobcats, featuring three wrestlers ranked in the latest NWCA rankings, come into Saturday’s match with an 8-2 overall record following a 29-7 victory over Northern Illinois in their conference opener. Ohio University captured fourth place at the Reno Tournament of Champions on December 20, then took sixth place at the Southern Scuffle on December 29-30. Five Ohio wrestlers placed in the top seven at the Southern Scuffle.
“They’re a really good team,” said Wolfpack coach Carter Jordan, whose team improved to 4-5 with the sweep last Saturday. “We’ll certainly be challenged, but we welcome that. We’re trying to develop a young team, and the schedule we’ve wrestled so far will pay off in the long run. We’ve had our moments and we’ve gotten a lot better since the start of the season.”
The schedule Jordan referred to includes dual matches with numerous powerhouses, including road matches at Oklahoma, Nebraska and Wyoming, plus a home match with a very strong club from Utah Valley. The Wolfpack also competed in both the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and the Southern Scuffle, arguably the two most competitive in-season tournaments in college wrestling.
With five freshmen and three sophomores in the lineup, the Wolfpack has taken its lumps, yet has also been surprisingly competitive at times against some of the stronger teams in the country. As the lineup has solidified itself — with Mike Moreno settling in at 125, Bobby Ward dropping from 157 to 149, and Ray Ward moving in at 165 — the Pack has shown steady improvement.
Bobby Ward has been NC State’s best and most consistent wrestler. He began the year at 157 and went 6-3 before switching spots with Colton Palmer, who went from 149 to 157. Ward has gone 11-3 at the lighter weight, 17-6 overall, and has won 10 of his last 12 bouts. He was the only Wolfpack wrestler to place at the Southern Scuffle, finishing fifth.
While Ward has been strong from the get-go, two heralded freshmen have also had solid, if up-and-down seasons. At 141, Dale Shull began the season winning seven of his first nine bouts before dropping six of 10 bouts beginning at the Las Vegas Invitational. He has recovered to win his last three, however, and enters the Ohio University bout with a 11-8 record. He will face his sternest test of the year in Athens when he meets 13th-ranked Germaine Lindsey, who is 17-4, finished fourth at the Southern Scuffle, and second at the Reno Tournament of Champions. He has won 16 of his last 18 matches.
At heavyweight, Eloheim Palma began the year wrestling unattached in the event that Jordan might redshirt him. When incumbent starter Bobby Isola suffered an ankle injury, though, Palma went into the starting lineup and has been a force there ever since. While Palma has lost three of his last four matches and five of his last seven, he is 16-8 overall. He has won the second most matches ever by an NC State freshman and has the team’s lone victory over a ranked opponent. He worked over then-11th-ranked Benjamin Berhow of Minnesota at the Southern Scuffle, thumping him 10-3.
“Those three guys have been really good for us all season,” Jordan said. “Bobby Ward has been really tough at 149. He was a juco national runner-up, and he knows how to wrestle. Dale and Eloheim are so talented that sometimes we forget they’re freshmen. They don’t wrestle like freshmen, but it’s still a big adjustment.”
The Wolfpack lineup has been a work in progress for much of the season. Ray Ward moved into the starting lineup at 165 during the Southern Scuffle. Moreno took over at 125 right after the Scuffle. The latest lineup change came about when 133-pounder Darrius Little was lost for the season because of knee surgery. Scott Norris moved into the lineup and is 2-3 since then.
The latest lineup change for the Pack will be temporary. Redshirt-sophomore Sean Smith will wrestle at 157 pounds in place of Colton Palmer, who suffered an ankle injury last weekend at Duke. Smith is 2-4 this season, all of it at 141.
In addition Lindsey, the Bobcats also feature 19th-ranked 184-pounder Nick Purdue and 14th-ranked 197-pounder Erik Schuth. Purdue, 22-8 overall, finished sixth at the Southern Scuffle and second at the Reno Tournament of Champions. Schuth took second at the Southern Scuffle and third at the Tournament of Champions. At 18-3, he has yet to lose consecutive bouts this season. He has won his last three, eight of his last nine, and 16 of his last 18.
“I like the way we wrestled last weekend, especially at Duke,” Jordan said. “The guys really showed some toughness. They’re starting to figure that part of it out. There’s a lot of talent in this lineup. It’s a process and it doesn’t happen overnight. But we’re definitely getting there.”
NC State (4-5) vs. Ohio University (8-2)
125 — Mike Moreno (3-2) vs. Kyle Ciccarello (5-6) or Gabe Ramos (5-3)
133 — Scott Norris (2-6) vs. Quentin Keyes (15-9)
141 — Dale Shull (11-8) vs. #13 Germane Lindsey (17-4)
149 — Bobby Ward (17-6) vs. Seth Morton (19-6)
157 — Sean Smith (2-4) vs. Clay Tucker (18-11)
165 — Ray Ward (4-4) vs. Kevin Christensen (10-12)
174 — Quinton Godley (7-12) vs. Steve Wilson (3-8)
184 — Cedric Moore (2-4) or Jonathan Becker (4-9) vs. #19 Nick Purdue (22-8)
197 — Andrew Tumlin (4-10) vs. #13 Erik Schuth (18-3)
Hwt — Eloheim Palma (16-8) vs. Andy Hartshorn (18-9)
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