MARSHALL, Minn.- The Southwest Minnesota State wrestling team will travel to Northfield, Minn., to take on St. Olaf tonight at 7 p.m. and will head to the Saturday for the Auggie Open at 9 a.m.
Sizing up the competition: St. Olaf was in action on Nov. 6 when they traveled to Rochester for the Yellow Jacket Open. Andrew Rudd won the Open at 184 pounds while Collin Jergenson took second at 174 pounds and Jacob Bohler placed third at 157 pounds. Oles' wrestler, Justin Skillings was ranked seventh in Division III preseason polls.
Augsburg, the defending Division III champion, was ranked no. 1 in preseason polls with five wrestlers ranked in the top three of their weight class. The Auggies will open their season on Saturday.
Last Time Out: The Southwest Minnesota State wrestling team opened the lid on the 2010-11 season Saturday at the 41st Annual Bison Open hosted by North Dakota State University. The Mustangs had 30 wrestlers participate in the open, with six of them placing.
SMSU freshman Zach Coates was the highest place finisher for the Mustangs taking third place at 174 pounds. Coates went 4-1 in the open in his debut for the brown and gold.
Redshirt freshmen
Justin Reinsma and Jake Begin both finished in fifth place in their respective weight classes. Reinsma finished the day 4-2 at 133 pounds. Begin also picked up a 4-2 record on the day finishing fifth at 157 pounds.
CD Johnson and
Samuel Bonsu both picked up sixth place finishes in Fargo. Bonsu carried a 2-3 record to a sixth place finish at 165 pounds while Johnson went 3-3 to finish sixth at 184 pounds. Redshirt freshman Saifemichael Kenea hauled in a sixth place finish after going 3-3 at 125 pounds.
Nationally ranked: Heavyweight
Brian Rodas enters the 2010-11 season ranked No. 8 in the country at 285 pounds in the first edition of national rankings released on Wednesday, Oct. 21 by the National Wrestling Coaches Association. Rodas is the first Mustang wrestler to be ranked this season. He is coming off an NCAA tournament appearance in 2009-10. Rodas qualified for the national tournament last season as a heavyweight.
Veteran presence: The 2010-11 Mustangs return two national qualifiers from last season.
Brian Rodas and
CD Johnson both qualified for the NCAA tournament last season. Johnson earned a spot in the national tournament at 184 pounds.
Experienced returners: Demond Carter and AJ Jenniges will add to the veteran leadership for the Mustangs. Carter just missed out on a national tournament berth last season. Carter spent two weeks in the national rankings last season as well. The 146 pounder spent time ranked sixth and eighth in the country last season. He was the only Mustang Wrestler to earn a national ranking last season. Jenniges compiled a 14-11 record in his freshman season for the Mustangs.
Talented newcomers: The 2010 recruiting class combined for a 1,448-363 career high school record. The class had 29 state tournament appearances last year. 22 of those placed in the state tournament and 10 were finalists.
Mason Young and Zach Coates highlight the incoming freshman and will look to contribute to the Mustangs on the mat in their freshman season. Young was a six-year letterwinner in high school and a four-time All-State selection out of Henry Sibley High School. His high school teammate Coates was also a six-time letterwinner who appeared in three state tournaments and finished his season with a 39-2 record.
According to the coaches: The Mustangs were picked to finish fifth in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll. SMSU earned 14 points and a tie with MSU Moorhead for the fifth place spot in the preseason poll. St. Cloud State earned 67 points and the top spot in the preseason poll.
2010-11 NSIC Wrestling Preseason Coaches' Poll
|
1
|
St. Cloud State
|
67
|
|
2
|
Augustana
|
64
|
|
3
|
Minnesota State
|
37
|
|
4
|
Upper Iowa
|
24
|
|
5
|
MSU Moorhead
|
14
|
|
|
Southwest Minnesota State
|
14
|
|
7
|
Northern State
|
12
|
|
8
|
University of Mary
|
8
|
