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MARSHALL, Minn. - The Southwest Minnesota State wrestling team travels to  Northern State Wednesday to square off with the Wolves in conference action.  Wrestling starts at 7 p.m.

Last time out: No. 11 St. Cloud State posted three wins by fall to hand SMSU a 40-6 conference loss Saturday afternoon in Marshall.  Carter Ash (Milaca, Minn.) and Michal Barrie (Westbrook, Minn.) both picked up wins for the Mustangs

The series:  The Mustangs hold the advantage in the series with the Wolves, leading 19-8-2.  Last season, NSU won the match-up between the two programs 46-0.  The last time SMSU posted a win versus the Wolves was in 2005-06 when the Mustangs picked up a 19-16 victory in Aberdeen S.D.  Head coach Jesse Nelson is 0-1 against NSU.

On the road: SMSU has held up relatively well on the road this season, notching their two 2008-09 victories in enemy waters.  The Mustangs opened the dual season at Sioux Falls, posting a 31-10 victory against the Cougars.  SMSU's other win came in Bismarck, N.D., at Mary.  The Mustangs, however, are still looking for their first home victory.

Gridiron to grappling:  A familiar face from SMSU's football team has joined the wrestling squad.  Brian Rodas (Farmersburg, Iowa) may get the nod at SMSU's heavyweight spot on Wednesday.  The redshirt freshman posted a fifth-place finish at the North Country Open this past weekend in his Mustang debut.

National news:  Tyler Johnson (Harrisburg, S.D.) was ranked No. 7 at 184 pounds in the NCAA Division II national wrestling rankings released Jan. 21 by the NCAA Division II Wrestling Coaches Association.  The spot was a jump up as the senior was ranked No. 8 in the first NWCA Poll released Dec. 2.  He fell out of the top eight in the Jan. 6 poll and has since dropped out again.

Jesse's class:  The 2008-09 squad will be head coach Jesse Nelson's first true recruiting class.  Hired in August 2007, Nelson had virtually no time to recruit for the 2007-08 season.  However, he has brought in 15 freshmen and seven transfers to compliment 10 returners.  The squad is young, but what they lack in experience, they make up for in athleticism.

Fillin' it out:  A full roster this year means the Mustangs will not have to forfeit weights in dual action.  Due to a thinned out roster last season, the Mustangs had to forfeit several weights throughout the year, especially in the heavyweight category where SMSU had no wrestler to fill the spot at any point during the season. The story, however, is a little different in 2008-09.  The Mustangs will not only fill out every weight, they will be three wrestlers deep at some of the weights.

A new face:  Assistant coach Jake Avre begins his first season as Nelson's top assistant in 2008-09.  Avre wrestled for the University of Minnesota during its 2001 and 2002 Big Ten and national championship seasons and brings an impressive resume of coaching experience at the high school and club level to SMSU.

Break it down:  Young might be the best word to describe the 2008-09 SMSU wrestling squad.  The following is a class-by-class breakdown of the team:
    • Seniors: 3    • Juniors: 5
    • Sophomores: 3    • Redshirt Freshmen: 6
    • Freshmen: 15

Take me to your leaders:  The Mustang captains for the 2008-09 campaign are Tyler Johnson, Michal Barrie and C.D. Johnson.

New-look NSIC:  The newly expanded NSIC adds three more dual dates for SMSU this season.  The addition Minnesota State, St. Cloud State and Augustana brings the conference to eight teams.  SMSU was picked to finish seventh in the NSIC wrestling preseason coaches' poll.

Up next:  The Mustangs stay home Saturday to host Minnesota State Moorhead at 3 p.m..   The remainder of SMSU's duals, excluding a postponed contest  with St. John's that has yet to be announced, are conference contests.

SMSU Line-up
125    Jordan Rozeboom
133    Michal Barrie
141    Brandan Schunk
149    David Albrecht
157    Luke Giese
165    Wade Granger
174    Nick Wulf
          Nathan Krekelberg
184    Tyler Johnson
197    Ben Dernyck
           Tyler Reed
HWT    Carter Ash
           Brian Rodas

WOLF NOTES:  A second-place finisher in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference last season, this year's Northern State squad  sports a 3-6 record (0-4 NSIC) and holds the seventh spot in the NSIC standings.  Pat Timm enters his ninth season as the head coach of the Wolves.  Two of NSU's three win this season have come over a pair of NAIA programs in Dakota Wesleyan and Jamestown, while the other victory was an upset of then No. 11-ranked Chadron State back on Dec. 11.

NSU Line-up
125    Corbin Surat   
133    Rick Schiley   
141    Joe Hirt
149    Ryan Larsen
         Jacob Buterous
157    Dustin Bonn   
165    Phillip Downs
         Jordon Larson
174    Donnie Bowden
184    Chad Gibson
197    Brent Fosheim
HWT    Jared Little