Sports

Wrestlers expect challenges from Pittsburgh

Mike Dean
November 12, 2004

One down and an entire season still to come. After defeating Upper Iowa 40-6 last Sunday, the fifth-ranked ISU wrestlers will try to continue their winning ways against Pittsburgh.

The Panthers, unranked to start the year, should give a handful of Cyclones their first test of the year at 7 p.m. Friday at Hilton Coliseum.

“Pittsburgh has a majority of Pennsylvania wrestlers so they’re going to be great mat wrestlers,” said ISU head coach Bobby Douglas.

“They have some talent on their team, and [we] don’t expect them to lay down for Iowa State.”

Upper Iowa posed little resistance against the Cyclones, earning its six points by forfeit at 184 pounds. Pleased with his team’s performance, Douglas said there were a few important things to improve on as the season continues.

“I thought we wrestled well against Upper Iowa,” Douglas said. “We looked at the number of attacks we had and the number of points scored and I think we can improve on that.”

Sophomore 174-pounder Grant Turner said the experience and leadership of the upperclassmen, as well as the contributions from freshmen Ben Hanisch and Aron Scott, all factor into the Cyclones early season momentum.

“I think it was a very good first meet for everybody,” Turner said. “We worked out a lot of things like positioning in college matches. It helped the younger guys like Benny [Hanisch] and [Aron] Scott — they learned a lot. Our veterans — [Scott] Coleman, [Nate] Gallick, Trevor [Smith] and everyone else — showed what they were made of.”

Senior 197-pounder Trevor Smith said the youth on the team has already stepped up to the challenge of contributing on a Division I team.

“The young guys went out there [against Upper Iowa] and wrestled tough,” Smith said. “They had some close matches, but it was easy to see where their conditioning came in and that they were mentally tough.”

Douglas said their evaluation process is going very smoothly, but it is still too early to tell where the team is at.

“Until December, we’re doing evaluations. Sometimes it takes until January, but right now we’re just evaluating,” Douglas said. “There’s a lot of intensity in the practices. The guys are on time and they’re staying extra. They’re doing all the things we’re asking them to do, and they’re working hard on their technique and conditioning.”

In comparison to past years, Douglas said this team’s dedication is near the top of the list.

“Their work ethic has been very good, and I’m pleased with the evaluations more than I ever have been at this point in the year,” Douglas said.

Pittsburgh will bring four ranked wrestlers to Ames, led by junior 141-pounder Ron Tarquinio.

Tarquinio is ranked eighth to start the season and will be the first major test for second-ranked Nate Gallick. Gallick lost 6-2 to Tarquinio in 2003 when the two were freshman.

Gallick, the defending Big 12 141-pound champion, is sandwiched between two other Big 12 wrestlers at the top of the rankings.

Senior Nick Passolano will see his first action of the season Friday night. At the last meet, Travis Paulson wrestled at the 165 spot. The two have been splitting time at the weight, and Douglas said Saturday’s Cyclone Open will serve as the wrestle-off for the two. The wrestle-off could not be completed earlier because Paulson was sick. Junior Grant Nakamura will also see his first action of the season. Out with a minor shoulder injury for the Upper Iowa meet, Nakamura will take to the mat against freshman Dave Morgan.

Line-up

Pittsburgh:

125 Dave Morgan

133 Drew Headlee

141 No. 8 Ronald Tarquinio

149 No. 15 Matt Kocher

157 Keith Gavin

165 No. 19 Justin Nestor

174 No. 17 Zachariah Doll

184 Eric Cassidy

197 Michael Heist or Lou Thomas

HWT Zach Sheaffer