Gophers to host Indiana
Feb. 19, 2003
The third-ranked Golden Gophers (16-5, 6-1 Big Ten) host Indiana on Sunday, Feb. 23, at 12:30 p. m. , at the Sports Pavilion. The meet will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Net. Clay Matvick and former Golden Gopher Willy Short will serves as the broadcast team for this weekend 's meet. Live audio will also be available at gophersports. com
Minnesota is in first place in the Big Ten by half a meet with a 6-1 record. Michigan State and Iowa stand at second with a 5-1 mark. Indiana is in ninth with a 1-4 record in the conference and a 16-7 mark overall. With a win over Indiana, Minnesota will likely claim a share of its third consecutive Big Ten Dual Meet Championship.
Last weekend, the Golden Gophers split dual meets against their archrivals, Iowa and Wisconsin. On Friday in Iowa City, the No. 4 Hawkeyes downed No. 2 Minnesota, 22-18, in a thriller of a dual. Iowa 's third win of the season over UM, the loss was Minnesota's first in the Big Ten since Feb. 20, 2000, against Iowa (20-13), and its first road conference meet loss since Feb. 6, 1998, at Penn State (21-13).
In Madison on Sunday, the Golden Gophers rebounded in a big way, pummeling Wisconsin, 40-6. Minnesota won nine of ten matches, including six with bonus points, to post its seventh consecutive win over the Badgers.
Senior Day
Sunday's meet at the Sports Pavilion is not only Minnesota's final dual meet of the season; it's also the final dual meet of the careers of five Golden Gopher seniors -Luke Becker, Jared Lawrence, Ryan Lewis, Derek Phillips and Garrett Lowney. Each of the senior grapplers will be recognized at halftime of the meet.
Combined, the five starters have compiled nine All-America citations, two NCAA individual titles, four Big Ten crowns, an overall record of 378-76 and a career dual meet mark of 202-40. This season, the seniors are 80-12 overall and 66-11 in dual meets with 20 falls.
Becker is a three-time All-American and the defending NCAA Champion at 157 pounds. He currently ranks 10th on Minnesota 's all-time career wins list with a 118-27 record. This season, Becker is 19-3 and ranked No. 2 in the country.
Lawrence, the defending 149-pound NCAA Champion, is also a three-time All- American. He ranks seventh on the all-time wins list with a 121-22 record. In 2002-03,
Lawrence is 23-2, ranked second in the country, and has only lost to top-ranked Eric Larkin of Arizona State.
Lewis finished second at NCAAs last season for his first All-America citation. The top- ranked 133-pounder is 24-2 this season and undefeated in the Big Ten at 7-0. Lewis has won 12 consecutive matches heading into this weekend 's dual meet.
Phillips transferred to Minnesota from Central Michigan midway through this season. He is currently ranked No. 12 in the nation at 141 pounds. The starter at 141, Phillips is 6-1 this season.
Lowney will skip his senior season of eligibility next year in order to train and compete for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. A bronze medal winner in Greco-Roman wrestling at the 2000 Games in Atlanta, Lowney is the reigning U. S. Greco-Roman National Champion at 96 kg. A two-time All-American at Minnesota as a heavyweight, Lowney is ranked seventh in the nation with an 8-4 record.
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Probable Minnesota (16-5, 6-1 Big Ten) starters |
2002-03 overall, dual, Big Ten record (pins) |
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125: Bobbe Lowe (So., Oak Grove, Mo.) |
12-14, 9-11, 3-4 (0) |
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133: 2/1 Ryan Lewis (Sr., Vernal, Utah) |
24-2, 19-2, 7-0 (10) |
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141: 11/13 Derek Phillips (Sr., Grosse Pointe, Mich.) |
6-1, 6-1, 6-1 (0) |
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149: 2/2 Jared Lawrence (Sr., Sandpoint, Idaho) |
23-2, 19-1, 6-0 (7) |
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157: 5/4 Luke Becker (Sr., Cambridge, Minn.) |
19-3, 14-3, 5-2 (1) |
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165: 7/5 Jacob Volkmann (Jr., Henning, Minn.) |
22-5, 17-4, 5-2 (4) |
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174: 20/14 Josh McLay (So., Hastings, Minn.) |
14-13, 10-11, 3-4 (1) |
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184: Matt Nagel (RS Fr., Frazee, Minn.) |
15-14, 5-9, 1-4 (4) |
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197: 10/9 Damion Hahn (Jr., Lakewood, N.J.) |
11-3, 11-3, 4-1 (0) |
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HWT: 7/8 Garrett Lowney (Jr., Freedom, Wis.) |
8-4, 8-4, 5-1 (1) |
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Probable Indiana (16-7, 1-4 Big Ten) starters |
2002-03 overall, Big Ten record |
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125: 15/NR Joe Dubuque (Fr., Bloomfield, Ind.) |
23-4, 1-1 |
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133: Greg Schaefer (Sr., Evansville, Ind.) |
24-6, 3-2 |
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141: 12/9 Coyte Cooper (Jr., Anacortes, Wash.) |
31-2, 4-1 |
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149: Matt Cooper (Fr., Bloomington, Ind.) |
15-16, 0-5 |
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157: Isaac Knable (Fr., Floyd Knovs, Ind.) |
8-10, 0-4 |
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OR J.P.Stanley (So., Barboursville, W.V.) |
3-9, 0-1 |
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165: Alex LaPointe (Jr., Highland, Ind.) |
9-21, 0-4 |
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174: Brady Richardson (Fr., Vincennes, Ind.) |
17-8, 2-2 |
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OR Andrew Wolf (So., Lawrenceburg, Ind.) |
11-11, 0-1 |
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184: 18/NR Ty Matthews (Jr., Jerome, Idaho) |
21-3, 4-0 |
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197: 8/12 Pat DeGain (So., Clarkston, Mich.) |
28-3, 3-1 |
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HWT-Joel Powers (Fr., Rockford, Ill.) |
19-11, 1-4 |
-Rankings from TheWrestlingMall.com (2/18/03)/TheMat.com Coaches Poll (2/19/03)