What 2 Watch 4 This Weekend: Opens, Mega-Duals, And Penn State

What 2 Watch 4 This Weekend: Opens, Mega-Duals, And Penn State

What to watch for this weekend in Division I NCAA wrestling.

Nov 18, 2016 by Christian Pyles
null
You don't have to look too awful hard to find ranked matchups and other intriguing bouts this weekend. 

Friday, November 18:


Iowa City Duals
Iowa Central at Iowa

When: 9 AM CT (10 AM ET)
Cornell College at Iowa
When: 10:30 AM CT (11:30 AM ET)
We'll get our first look at Iowa's starters for the year. For the most part, Iowa tends to shut out these duals, but at this point in the season, it's exciting to get eyes on the squad. FloWrestling will be doing live updates throughout the duals.

Wisconsin at Duke
When: 7 PM ET
165: No. 2 Isaac Jordan of Wisconsin will face No. 8 Jake Faust of Duke.
285: No. 2 Connor Medbery of Wisconsin takes on 16th ranked Jacob Kasper of Duke.

Lehigh at Pittsburgh
When: 7 PM ET
133: Super-scorer Dom Forys (No. 9) of Pitt will face No. 17 Scotty Parker of Lehigh.
149: No. 13 Laike Gardner of Lehigh will face Mike Racciato of Pitt.
165: I don't know if we'll see #6 Minotti here or not, if so he'll take on Pitt's No. 17 Te'Shan Campbell.
285: No. 15 Ryan Solomon of Pitt will face No. 9 Doug Vollaro of PItt.

West Virginia at Nebraska
When: 7 PM CT (8 PM ET)
197: No. 10 Jacob Smith of WVU faces seventh-ranked Aaron Studebaker of Nebraska.

Virginia Tech at Northern Iowa
When: 7 PM CT (8 PM ET) 
WATCH LIVE ON FLO
This entire dual will be outstanding. Virginia Tech always brings it for duals, and UNI has one of the best dual atmospheres in the entire country. Don't miss a second! Here's a more in-depth look at the dual.
125: No. 3 Joey Dance (VT) vs. No. 2 Dylan Peters (UNI)
133: Dom Latona (VT) vs. No. 19 Josh Alber (UNI)
141: Dennis Gustafson (VT) vs. Jake Hodges (UNI)
149: No. 7 Solomon Chishko (VT) vs. No. 17 Max Thomsen (UNI)
157: Sal Mastriani (VT) vs. No. 16 Bryce Steiert (UNI)
165: Ryan Blees (VT) vs. Paden Moore (UNI)
174: No. 2 Zach Epperly (VT) vs. Taylor Lujan (UNI)
184: No. 10 Zack Zavatsky (VT) vs. Jacob Holschlag (UNI)
197: No. 3 Jared Haught (VT) vs. Drew Foster (UNI)
285: No. 3 Ty Walz (VT) vs. No. 19 JJ Everard (UNI)

Michigan at Oklahoma
When: 7 PM CT (8 PM ET)
157: SUPER excited for this 157 match. I think No. 13 DaWaylon Barnes is outstanding. His biggest challenge of the year awaits with No. 5 Brian Murphy of Michigan.
165: No. 7 Logan Massa and No. 11 Clark Glass are close in rankings, but I'm not sure the same is true in ability.


Saturday, November 19:


Navy Classic

When: 10 AM ET
Teams: Brown, Bucknell, Campbell, George Mason, Indiana, Kent State, Navy, Ohio, The Citadel
At 125, I think No. 12 Elijah Oliver and No. 16 Nathan Kraisser will likely collide. It should be a great contrast of styles.

Lindenwood Joe Parisi Open
When: 9 AM CT (10 AM ET)
Where: St. Charles, Missouri
Teams: Chattanooga, Illinois, Southern Illinois Edwardsville
WATCH LIVE ON FLO
For me, the story is getting eyes on Alex Marinelli of Iowa and Geo Martinez of Oklahoma State. We'll also get to watch Zane Richards, Zac Brunson, and Brooks Black. Lindenwood is always solid and rife with tough competition. SEE ENTRIES.

Princeton at Rutgers
When: 11 AM ET
Watch: Battle at the Birthplace Promo
The Battle at the Birthplace will be a treat for all wrestling fans. There are some swing matches that could turn this dual for either team.
141: Match up of the weekend? No. 3 Anthony Ashnault of Rutgers vs. No. 10 Matt Kolodzik. These two split last year at Midlands. Kolodzik could enter the top tier with another win in the great outdoors.
149: No. 11 Ken Theobold of Rutgers will take on a tough Jordan Laster of Princeton.
184: No. 14 Nick Gravina of Rutgers takes on No. 15 Ian Baker, who made waves by pinning Jack Dechow this year at the Hokie Open.

Air Force at North Carolina State
When: 11:30 AM ET
Where: Cary, NC
197: No. 13 Parker Hines of Air Force will face Malik McDonald of N.C. State. This one could have some upset potential.

Ohio State at Arizona State
When: 1 PM MT (3 PM ET)
149: No. 6 Micah Jordan of Ohio State could face Arizona State's No. 12 Christian Pagdilao.
174: Yeah, on second thought, this is the biggest match of the weekend. Top-ranked Bo Jordan against super freshman and No. 8 Zahid Valencia.
285: No. 1 Kyle Snyder makes his debut for the season against No. 4 Tanner Hall. It's ancient history, but Tanner is 2-1 against Snyder.

Lehigh at Edinboro
When: 3 PM ET
WATCH LIVE ON FLO
This is a great battle between two outstanding Pennsylvania programs. 149 will obviously be the match of the dual. Laike Gardner is as underrated as anyone at this weight.
125: No. 5 Darian Cruz (LU) vs. No. 17 Sean Russell (EU)
133: No. 17 Scotty Parker (LU) vs. Korbin Meyers (EU)
141: No. 6 Randy Cruz (LU) vs. Ozzy Lugo (EU)
149: No. 13 Laike Gardner (LU) vs. No. 11 Pat Lugo (EU)
157: No. 19 Jordan Kutler (LU) vs. Chase Delande (EU)
165: Gordon Wolf (LU) vs. No. 16 Austin Matthews (EU)
174: No. 17 Ryan Preisch (LU) vs. Ty Schoffstall (EU)
184: Kyle Gentile (LU) vs. Dakota Geer (EU)
197: Ben Haas (LU) vs. Dylan Reynolds (EU)
285: No. 9 Doug Vollaro (LU) vs. No. 17 Billy Miller (EU)

Old Dominion at North Carolina
When: 7 PM ET
184: No. 11 Jack Dechow will be put to the test against UNC's 17th-ranked Chip Ness.

South Dakota State at Minnesota
When: 9 PM CT (8 PM ET)
133: No. 6 Seth Gross of SDSU will take on true freshman Mitch McKee.
197: No. 6 Nathan Rotert of SDSU will look for the upset against second-ranked Brett Pfarr of Minnesota.


Sunday, November 20:


Michigan State Open

When: 9 AM CT (10 AM ET)
Teams: Michigan State, Central Michigan, Northern Illinois
WATCH LIVE ON FLO
You had me at "Mark Hall and Luke Pletcher." Both true freshman will be in action this weekend at MSU. SEE ENTRIES.

NC State Wolfpack Open
Teams: Air Force, American, Davidson, Duke, Gardner-Webb, North Carolina State, ODU, Wisconsin  
WATCH LIVE ON FLO
149: No. 9 Mitch Finesilver could duke it out with ACC rival No. 17 Beau Donahue of NC State.
157: No. 4 Max Rohskopf and true Freshman Hayden Hidlay will be fun to watch in this field.
165: Interesting to see No. 2 Isaac Jordan here this weekend. He could see 12th-ranked Tyler Marinelli of Gardner-Webb.
174: No. 18 Connor Bass of Duke could take on True Freshman Nick Reenan of NC State.
184: No. 17 Chip Ness (UNC), No. 18 Michael Macchiavello, and No. 20 Hunter Gamble are all in the mix.
SEE ENTRIES

Penn Keystone Classic
When: 9 AM ET
Teams: Appalachian State, Drexel, Eastern Michigan, Franklin & Marshall, Harvard, Northwestern, Penn, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Rider, Sacred Heart, VMI  
WATCH LIVE ON FLO
We'll get a great look at PSU in a tournament setting. The Nittany Lions are sending their starters and then some, including Nick Suriano, Jered Cortez, Jimmy Gulibon, Zain Retherford, Jason Nolf, Vincenzo Joseph, Geno Morelli, Bo Nickal, Matt McCutcheon, and Nick Nevills.
125: No. 10 Suriano should have some solid competition, but I doubt we see him tested too much.
133: We'll see No. 8 Jered Cortez and No. 9 Dom Forys challenged by Kevin Devoy and Caleb Richarson.
149: No. 1 Zain Retherford will take on No. 10 Matt Cimato and potentially Mike Racciato.
157: Great weight here with No. 1 Jason Nolf, Bryce Brill, and No. 14 BJ Clagon.
165: Match of the tournament potential with No. 5 Chad Walsh going against Vincenzo Joseph. No. 15 Te'Shan Campbell could also make things interesting.
174: No. 3 Casey Kent of Penn will be the guy to beat against No. 12 Geno Morelli, No. 20 Johnny Sebastian, and Nick Kee.
184: Bo.
197: No. 9 Matt McCutcheon will have a chance to take on yet another ranked 197 against No. 8 Ryan Wolfe.
285: No. 10 Nick Nevills could leave Penn with a much higher ranking if he comes home with a title considering #6 Denzel Dejournette is in the field.

CSU Baskersfield Roadrunner Open
When: 10 AM PT (1 PM ET)
Where: Fresno, California
Teams: Army West Point, Boise State, Cal Poly, CSU Bakersfield, Purdue, Stanford
141: No. 12 Logan Everett of Army could face No. 2 Joey McKenna of Stanford.
197: No. 15 Rocco Caywood of Army may see No. 19 Josh Marchok of Stanford.

Virginia Tech at Missouri
When: 1 PM CT (2 PM ET)
WATCH LIVE ON FLO
Start to finish, this will be an outstanding dual. I don't think Missouri will have a need or use to, but you always have to be wary of MU coach Brian Smith, who will bump around his lineup if he thinks it will help him get a win. 125, 149, 174, and 184 will be some of the most entertaining and high-level bouts.
125: No. 3 Joey Dance (VT) vs. No. 7 Barlow McGhee (MU)
133: Dom Latona (VT) vs. No. 11 Jaydin Eierman (MU) 
141: Dennis Gustafson (VT) vs. No. 5 Matt Manley (MU)
149: No. 7 Solomon Chishko (VT) vs. No. 4 Lavion Mayes (MU)
157: Sal Mastriani (VT) vs. No. 10 Joey Lavallee (MU)
165: Ryan Blees (VT) vs. No. 3 Daniel Lewis (MU)
174: No. 2 Zach Epperly (VT) vs. Dylan Wisman (MU)
184: No. 10 Zack Zavatsky (VT) vs. No. 12 Willie Miklus (MU)
197: No. 3 Jared Haught (VT) vs. No. 1 J'den Cox (MU)
285: No. 3 Ty Walz (VT) vs. Austin Myers (MU)

Nebraska at Wyoming
When: 3:30 PM MT (5:30 PM ET) 
WATCH LIVE ON FLO
We'll have a handful of ranked vs. ranked matches here in Laramie. I'm excited to get my first look at Colton McCrystal in a while.
125: No. 8 Tim Lambert (NU) vs. Gunnar Woodburn (UW)
133: No. 4 Eric Montoya (NU) vs. No. 12 Drew Templeman (UW)
141: No. 14 Colton McCrystal (NU) vs. No. 4 Bryce Meredith (UW)
149: Jordan Shearer (NU) vs. Cole Mendenhall (UW)
157: No. 8 Tyler Berger (NU) vs. Archie Colgan (UW)
165: No. 19 Dustin Williams (NU) vs. Chaz Polson (UW)
174: Micah Barnes (NU) vs. Luke Paine (UW)
184: No. 4 TJ Dudley (NU) vs. Wesley Schultz (UW)
197: No. 7 Aaron Studebaker (NU) vs. Cody Vigoren (UW)
285: No. 14 Collin Jensen (NU) vs. Sam Eagen (UW)

Popular Right Now

FRL 161: PSU's Opener And Columbia's Overkill
Daton Fix Commits To Oklahoma State
Updated Freshman Big Board
Iowa's Vince Turk Likely Out For The Season
#6 Travis Stefanik Commits To Princeton