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Mountaineers Return to WVU Coliseum
February 08, 2017 03:52 PM | Wrestling
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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – In its first home match in three months, the West Virginia University wrestling team will host No. 16 South Dakota State on Thursday in a 7 p.m. dual at the WVU Coliseum.
WVU returns to Coliseum for the first time since the Nov. 6, 2016, when the squad hosted the Mountaineer Quad to open the season.
The Mountaineers (2-11, 0-2) take on the Jackrabbits (12-3, 6-1) in head-to-head action for the second time in program history. The two met last season in Brookings, South Dakota, with the Jackrabbits claiming the win.
“We’re glad to be back at the Coliseum,” WVU coach Sammie Henson said. “SDSU will be a tough test, as they have several ranked wrestlers. This is a great opportunity for our men to rise to the occasion in front of our great fans.”
West Virginia will host its annual Cradles for Cancer event during its match against SDSU. The match was started by Coach Sammie Henson in 2015 in honor of Stephanie Henson, who is a breast cancer survivor, as a way to raise awareness for cancer Fans are encouraged to wear pink at the events, and the official pink t-shirt of the Mountaineers is available to fans who donate $10 or more to WVU Medicine.
“Cradles for Cancer is a special event for my family and our team,” said Henson. “We look forward to a great turnout.”
Tickets for the match are $5 for the general public, $3 for youths and seniors and $2 for groups of 10 or more. Students gain free admission with a valid WVU student ID. Fans may purchase tickets by calling 1-800-WVU-GAME, at WVUGAME.com or by visiting the Mountaineer Ticket Office, located at the Gold Gate at the WVU Coliseum.
Thursday's match also will be a Big 12 battle, as the Jackrabbits are one of six teams added as affiliate wrestling members. North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, Wyoming, Air Force and Utah Valley also joined the league in the summer of 2015 and competed in their first Big 12 Championship in March of 2016.
WVU and SDSU last met on Feb. 12, 2016, in South Dakota, with the Jackrabbits coming away with an 18-15 win. Then-No. 10 Jacob A. Smith defeated then-No. 14 Nate Rotert in a hard-fought, 5-4, decision at 197 pounds. The two will highlight this season's dual with a top-10 battle as Smith enters the matchup ranked No. 5 in the nation while Rotert enters as No. 7 overall.
Smith enters the matchup on an eight-match win streak with a team-best 14-4 overall record. He ranks at No. 5 in the nation at 197 pounds by both InterMat and FloWrestling. Teammate Dylan Cottrell joins him in the top-20, ranking 12th at 165 pounds by InterMat and 20th by FloWrestling. Cory Stainbrook joins the duo in the top-33 of the first Division I Coaches’ Panel Rankings Index.
Probable Lineups
|
Weight
|
West Virginia
|
SDSU
|
|
125
|
Devin Brown
|
Ben Gillette
|
|
133
|
Cory Stainbrook
|
No. 2 Seth Gross
|
|
141
|
Joe Wheeling
|
Henry Pohlmeyer
Isaac Andrade
|
|
149
|
Christian Monserrat
|
No. 16 Alex Kocer
|
|
157
|
Dayton Garrett
|
Logan Peterson
|
|
165
|
No. 13/20 Dylan Cottrell
Ryan Lopez
|
Luke Zilverburg
|
|
174
|
Ty Millward
|
No. 16 David Kocer
|
|
184
|
Parker VonEgidy
|
Martin Mueller
Zac Carlson
|
|
197
|
No. 5 Jacob A. Smith
|
No. 7 Nate Rotert
|
|
HWT
|
Brandon Ngati
|
Alex Macki
|
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