Moisey, Smith Appear in Preseason Rankings
October 20, 2017 02:09 PM | Wrestling
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – A pair of West Virginia University wrestlers will start the season nationally ranked, as Zeke Moisey and Jacob A. Smith both appear in the top 10 of their respective weight classes.
Smith, a native of Charleston, West Virginia, is ranked in the top 7 by a trio of media outlets at 197 pounds. He appears at No. 6 according to FloWrestling and is ranked seventh via Intermat and Open Mat. He spent the majority of the 2016-17 season in the top 10 before suffering a season-ending injury in the Big 12 Championship match. Smith still earned an automatic bid to the 2017 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships as the Big 12 runner-up, but did not compete due to injury. Over the course of the season, he posted a 20-5 overall mark to go 14-2 in dual matches and 6-1 in Big 12 action. He also ended the regular season on a 12-match win streak.
"Jake Smith is healthy and is stronger than ever," said fourth-year coach Sammie Henson. "We look for big things from him, and we expect an all-American year from Jake."
Moisey, a native of Northampton, Pennsylvania, is ranked No. 8 at his weight of 125 pounds in both the Intermat and Open Mat preseason polls after taking a medical redshirt last season. He also is seventh according to FloWrestling. He qualified for the 2016 NCAA Championships, but was forced to withdraw due to injury. The highlight of his collegiate career came during his freshman campaign, where he finished second at the 2015 Big 12 Championship to earn an automatic bid to the 2015 NCAA Championships; unseeded Moisey knocked out four seeded foes and finished as the NCAA Runner-Up at 125. He became WVU's first NCAA All-American since 2007 and was the first unseeded wrestler to make the NCAA finals since 2003. Moisey led the team with a 32-14 mark on the year, defeating six ranked opponents over the course of the 2014-15 season.
"Zeke Moisey has been training hard this offseason, and he is more than ready to make his mark this season," Henson said.
Of note, West Virginia enters the season ranked No. 18 in the nation in Open Mat's preseason Tournament Power Index (TPI). The Mountaineers also check in at No. 25 via Intermat's preseason TPI and FloWrestling's team listing.
"We are looking forward to the season and bringing pride to our fans with a hard-nosed brand of wrestling, and we look to build on these rankings throughout the year," Henson said. "Our expectations are to work hard and prove we belong with the elite with our young team and upperclassmen leadership."
West Virginia opens the 2017-18 season on Friday, Nov. 3, as the squad heads to Clarion, Pennsylvania, for a neutral site match with Big 12 foe Utah Valley. The match is set to begin at 4 p.m. ET. The Mountaineers will then remain in Pennsylvania for the Clarion Open on Sunday, Nov. 5, starting at 8 a.m. ET.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUWrestling on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Smith, a native of Charleston, West Virginia, is ranked in the top 7 by a trio of media outlets at 197 pounds. He appears at No. 6 according to FloWrestling and is ranked seventh via Intermat and Open Mat. He spent the majority of the 2016-17 season in the top 10 before suffering a season-ending injury in the Big 12 Championship match. Smith still earned an automatic bid to the 2017 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships as the Big 12 runner-up, but did not compete due to injury. Over the course of the season, he posted a 20-5 overall mark to go 14-2 in dual matches and 6-1 in Big 12 action. He also ended the regular season on a 12-match win streak.
"Jake Smith is healthy and is stronger than ever," said fourth-year coach Sammie Henson. "We look for big things from him, and we expect an all-American year from Jake."
Moisey, a native of Northampton, Pennsylvania, is ranked No. 8 at his weight of 125 pounds in both the Intermat and Open Mat preseason polls after taking a medical redshirt last season. He also is seventh according to FloWrestling. He qualified for the 2016 NCAA Championships, but was forced to withdraw due to injury. The highlight of his collegiate career came during his freshman campaign, where he finished second at the 2015 Big 12 Championship to earn an automatic bid to the 2015 NCAA Championships; unseeded Moisey knocked out four seeded foes and finished as the NCAA Runner-Up at 125. He became WVU's first NCAA All-American since 2007 and was the first unseeded wrestler to make the NCAA finals since 2003. Moisey led the team with a 32-14 mark on the year, defeating six ranked opponents over the course of the 2014-15 season.
"Zeke Moisey has been training hard this offseason, and he is more than ready to make his mark this season," Henson said.
Of note, West Virginia enters the season ranked No. 18 in the nation in Open Mat's preseason Tournament Power Index (TPI). The Mountaineers also check in at No. 25 via Intermat's preseason TPI and FloWrestling's team listing.
"We are looking forward to the season and bringing pride to our fans with a hard-nosed brand of wrestling, and we look to build on these rankings throughout the year," Henson said. "Our expectations are to work hard and prove we belong with the elite with our young team and upperclassmen leadership."
West Virginia opens the 2017-18 season on Friday, Nov. 3, as the squad heads to Clarion, Pennsylvania, for a neutral site match with Big 12 foe Utah Valley. The match is set to begin at 4 p.m. ET. The Mountaineers will then remain in Pennsylvania for the Clarion Open on Sunday, Nov. 5, starting at 8 a.m. ET.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUWrestling on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
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