Citadel Wrestling Looks to Rebound Against VMI on Sunday

January 21, 2012

Charleston, S.C. - After dropping their Southern Conference opener to Appalachian State by a razor-thin 21-19 margin Friday night, The Citadel wrestling team returns to action Sunday, Jan. 22, as the Bulldogs host Virginia Military Institute in a dual meet at the McAlister Field House starting at 2:00 p.m.

About The Bulldogs
The Bulldogs enter this afternoon's dual with a 4-7 overall record after dropping their SoCon opener to Appalachian State Friday night by a 21-19 score. No. 18 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj, No. 19 Odie Delaney, Kelby Smith, Kyle Casaletto and Seth Vernon posted victories for The Citadel in the loss.

About Virginia Military Institute
VMI enters today's dual meet with a 4-6 overall record and a 2-1 mark in the Southern Conference. On Friday, after a back-and-forth dual match in the early going, the VMI wrestling team pulled out a 22-15 decision over Gardner-Webb in SoCon action, giving the Keydets a second-straight win for the first time this season.

What To Watch For
With a win in today's dual match, The Citadel head coach Rob Hjerling will record his 100th victory at the helm of the Bulldog program. Hjerling currently has a 99-103-4 overall dual meet mark.

Luvsandorj, Delaney and Smith all have posted seven-match winning streaks coming into today's dual.

All-Time vs. the Keydets
The Citadel leads the all-time series against VMI, 19-12. The Bulldogs have each of the last four meetings, including last season's 27-13 victory in Lexington, Va.

LAST MEETING: January 29, 2011
The Citadel 27, VMI 13
125: Richard Alarcon (CIT) pinned Charles Gray (VMI), 4:14
133: Tyler Sim (CIT) dec. Luke Todd (VMI), 6-2
141: David Yost (VMI) dec. Jordan Dix (CIT), 3-1
149: Derek Royster (CIT) tech fall Jacob Barton (VMI), 6:11
157: Mike Burnett (VMI) dec. Nick LaFevre (CIT), 3-2
165: #6 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (CIT) pinned Ted Gottwald (VMI), 1:24
174: Matt Brock (VMI) dec. #31 J.C. Oddo (CIT), 4-2
184: Justin Sparrow (CIT) dec. John Dommert (VMI), 6-4
197: Kelby Smith (CIT) major dec. Josh Phillips (VMI), 15-5
HWT: #13 Josh Wine (VMI) major dec. Luke Johnson (CIT), 10-2

Delaney Named SoCon Wrestler of the Week
Odie Delaney has been selected as the Southern Conference Wrestler of the Week for all competitions from January 11-17. Wrestling as a heavyweight, Delaney was dominant over the weekend at the Virginia Duals, notching a perfect 5-0 record with pins in three of his matches.

Delaney started the event with a 5-3 upset against No. 16 Brendan Barlow of Kent State. He followed that with a narrow 5-4 decision against Bucknell's Tyler Lyster as the Bulldogs picked up a 21-16 victory. On Saturday, Delaney recorded falls in all three of his matches, dispatching North Carolina's Frank Abbondanza in 1:21 to start the day. The redshirt junior then pinned North Dakota State's Evan Knutson in 1:59 and Buffalo's Jedd Mason in 42 seconds to wrap up the competition.

Delaney's exploits pushed him into all of the major national rankings this week, including a high of No. 17 by D1 College Wrestling.

Nationally Ranked Bulldogs
Turtogtokh Luvsandorj has remained in the national rankings over the last several weeks at No. 14 by W.I.N, No. 18 by Wrestling Report, No. 18 by D1 College Wrestling and No. 18 by InterMat. After his 5-0 performance last weekend, Odie Delaney entered several rankings, including No. 17 by D1 College Wrestling, No. 18 by Wrestling Report, No. 19 by Intermat and No. 20 by W.I.N.

Sunday's Probable Starters (with InterMat rankings)
The Citadel (4-7)
VMI (4-6)
125
Richard Alarcon (11-16)
No Entry
 133
Kyle Casaletto (17-8)
Ryan Goodsell (7-11)
141
Jordan Dix (11-18)
Zeb Stewart (11-13)
149
Seth Vernon (2-4)
David Yost (5-13)
157
Pierre Frazile (13-15)
Mike Burnett (5-12) / Ted Gottwald (7-11)
165
Mike Harper (1-16) / William Connell (0-5)
Carry Joseph (10-12) / Van Grimes (8-9)
174
No. 18 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (21-7)
Matthew Brock (23-8)
184
Josh Tuck (6-6) / Luke Johnson (2-4)
John Dommert (6-10) / Conor Black (7-4)
197
Kelby Smith (24-6)
Urayoan Garcia (1-5)
285
No. 19 Odie Delaney (15-2)
Andrew Embree (16-12)

Citadel Wrestling Drops SoCon Opener to Appalachian State 21-19

January 20, 2012

Charleston, S.C. - No. 19 Odie Delaney picked up his fourth straight victory by fall, but The Citadel wrestling team lost to visiting Appalachian State by a 21-19 score in their Southern Conference opener at McAlister Field House Friday evening. The Bulldogs fall to 4-7 overall, 0-1 in the SoCon, while Appalachian improves to 9-3, 3-0 in the league.

Appalachian opened a 3-0 lead as Mike Kessler captured a 4-1 decision over Jordan Dix at 141 pounds. The Bulldogs evened the match at 149 pounds as Seth Vernon edged Savva Kostis 7-6. The two entered the third period tied 6-6 with Vernon choosing the bottom position. The transfer from Oklahoma escaped just two seconds into the period and held on during furious action over the final minute to earn the victory.

The Mountaineers won the next two matches to open an 11-3 lead on the host Bulldogs. Chip Powell scored a 5-2 decision over Pierre Frazile at 157, while No. 17 Kyle Blevins picked up five points with a 19-3 technical fall over Mike Harper at 165.

The Citadel chipped away at the Appalachian lead, winning three of the next four matches to take a 16-15 advantage. No. 18 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj dominated Carter Downs in the 174-pound match, earning a 13-5 major decision with six takedowns. Appalachian picked up a 16-3 major decision at 184, as No. 12 Austin Troutman defeated Josh Tuck. Kelby Smith ran his winning streak to seven with a 9-4 decision over Paul Weiss at 197 pounds and cut the Bulldogs' deficit to 15-10.

Delaney scored a pinfall victory at the 6:12 mark, putting the shoulders of Joe Cummings to the mat in the third period while ahead 3-0 on the scorecard. The fall gave the Bulldogs a 16-15 lead with two matches remaining.

The lead was short-lived however, as Tony Gravely blitzed Richard Alarcon in the 125 match, stunning the senior with a fall at the 51 second mark to give the Mountaineers a 21-16 lead. The Bulldogs needed a pin in the final bout at 133, but Kyle Casaletto was unable to close out Brett Boston, holding on for an 8-4 decision.

The Bulldogs return to action Sunday afternoon as they host Virginia Military Institute at the McAlister Field House at 2:00 p.m.

Citadel (4-7, 0-1 SoCon) vs. Appalachian State (9-3, 3-0 SoCon)
Match Summary
141 Mike Kessler (ASU) won by decision over Jordan Dix (The Citadel) 4-1; ASU leads 3-0
149 Seth Vernon (The Citadel) won by decision over Savva Kostis (ASU) 7-6; Tied 3-3
157 William Powell (ASU) won by decision over Pierre Frazile (The Citadel) 5-2; ASU leads 6-3
165 Kyle Blevins (ASU) won by tech fall over Michael Harper (The Citadel) 6:04 19-3; ASU leads 11-3
174 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (The Citadel) major decision over Andrew Downs (ASU) 13-5; ASU leads 11-7
184 Austin Trotman (ASU) major decision over Josh Tuck (The Citadel) 16-3; ASU leads 15-7
197 Kelby Smith (The Citadel) won by decision over Paul Weiss (ASU) 9-4; ASU leads 15-10
285 Andrew Delaney (The Citadel) won by pin over Joe Cummings (ASU) 6:12; CIT leads 16-15
125 Antonio Gravely (ASU) won by pin over Richard Alarcon Jr. (The Citadel) 0:51; ASU leads 21-16
133 Kyle Casaletto (The Citadel) won by decision over Brett Boston (ASU) 8-4; ASU leads 21-19

Bulldog Wrestling Hosts Appalachian State Friday to Open SoCon Slate

January 19, 2012

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel Wrestling team returns to action this Friday, Jan. 20, as the Bulldogs host Appalachian State in a dual meet at the McAlister Field House starting at 7:00 p.m. The dual meet is the first Southern Conference contest of the season for The Citadel, while Appalachian State enters the bout at 2-0 in the league.

About The Bulldogs
The Bulldogs return to the McAlister Field House with a 4-6 overall record after going 2-3 at the Virginia Duals and placing eighth out of 14 teams. Turtogtokh Luvsandorj, Kelby Smith and Odie Delaney all went a perfect 5-0 over the weekend to pace the squad. The Bulldogs opened the second day of action with a 22-15 win over North Carolina before dropping a 19-18 heart-breaker on tiebreaker criteria to North Dakota State and losing in the seventh-place bout to the University of Buffalo 24-15.

About Appalachian State
Appalachian enters the McAlister Field House with an 8-3 overall record and a 2-0 mark in the SoCon. Last weekend, the Mountaineers finished 2-1 in three dual matches at the 2012 Hilton Arlington Lone Star Duals. Appalachian began the day with a 41-4 win over Brown, and edged out Harvard, 22-21. No. 12 Oklahoma defeated Appalachian, 41-0, in ASU's final dual. The Mountaineers are led by a pair of nationally-ranked grapplers, No. 12 Austin Trotman (25-4) and No. 17 Kyle Blevins (27-5). Trotman is 25-4 on the season and captured titles at the Hokie Open and Keystone Classic, while Blevins is 27-5 and also captured a title at the Keystone Classic. Both wrestlers notched their 100th career victories earlier this season.

All-Time vs. the Mountaineers
The Citadel trails in the all-time series against Appalachian State, 39-6-2. However, the Bulldogs have gone 4-3-1 in the last eight duals with the Mountaineers, including last season's 26-7 victory.

Last Meeting
Last year, after dropping the opening match, The Citadel wrestling team won eight of the next nine matches to defeat Appalachian State, 26-7 at the Varsity Gym in Boone, N.C.
January 9, 2011 - The Citadel 26, Appalachian State 7
141: Mike Kessler (ASU) dec. Jordan Dix (CIT), 11-5
149: Derek Royster (CIT) major dec. Russell Benner (ASU), 16-3
157: Pierre Frazile (CIT) dec. Travis Puckett (ASU), 7-3
165: #9 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (CIT) dec. #25 Kyle Blevins (ASU), 6-5
174: #32 J.C. Oddo (CIT) dec. Carter Downs (ASU), 5-2
184: #28 Austin Trotman (ASU) major dec. Josh Tuck (CIT), 16-5
197: Kelby Smith (CIT) major dec. Paul Glove (ASU), 13-4
HWT: Luke Johnson (CIT) dec. Marc Tyson (ASU), 9-2
125: Richard Alarcon (CIT) dec. Tony Gravely (ASU), 3-0
133: Tyler Sim (CIT) dec. Chris Johnson (ASU), 10-4

Delaney Named SoCon Wrestler of the Week
Odie Delaney has been selected as the Southern Conference Wrestler of the Week for all competitions from January 11-17. Wrestling as a heavyweight, Delaney was dominant over the weekend at the Virginia Duals, notching a perfect 5-0 record with pins in three of his matches.

Delaney started the event with a 5-3 upset against No. 16 Brendan Barlow of Kent State. He followed that with a narrow 5-4 decision against Bucknell's Tyler Lyster as the Bulldogs picked up a 21-16 victory. On Saturday, Delaney recorded falls in all three of his matches, dispatching North Carolina's Frank Abbondanza in 1:21 to start the day. The redshirt junior then pinned North Dakota State's Evan Knutson in 1:59 and Buffalo's Jedd Mason in 42 seconds to wrap up the competition.

Delaney's exploits pushed him into all of the major national rankings this week, including a high of No. 17 by D1 College Wrestling.

Nationally Ranked Bulldogs
Turtogtokh Luvsandorj has remained in the national rankings over the last several weeks at No. 14 by W.I.N, No. 18 by Wrestling Report, No. 18 by D1 College Wrestling and No. 18 by InterMat. After his 5-0 performance last weekend, Odie Delaney entered several rankings, including No. 17 by D1 College Wrestling, No. 18 by Wrestling Report, No. 19 by Intermat and No. 20 by W.I.N.

What to Watch
None of the nationally-ranked wrestlers will square off against each other as all four wrestlers are in different weight classes.

Kelby Smith and Appalachian's Paul Weiss meet for the second time this month after crossing paths at the Southern Scuffle on Jan.1. Smith scored a 5-2 decision victory over Weiss to eliminate him from the tournament.

Friday's Probable Starters (with InterMat rankings)
The Citadel (4-6) Appalachian State (8-3)
125: Richard Alarcon (11-15)                                  Tony Gravely (13-9) / Weston Haney (4-4)
133: Kyle Casaletto (16-8) Brett Boston (14-14) / Chris Johnson (9-10)
141: Jordan Dix (11-17)                                          Mike Kessler (25-10)
149: Seth Vernon (1-4)                                           Savva Kostis (22-11) / Russ Benner (7-5)
157: Pierre Frazile (13-14)                                      Chip Powell (14-13) / John Blakely (11-10)
165: Mike Harper (1-15) / William Connell (0-5)      No. 17 Kyle Blevins (27-5)
174: No. 18 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (20-7)             Carter Downs (10-12) / Jake Johnson (6-9)
184: Josh Tuck (6-5) / Luke Johnson (2-4)              No. 12 Austin Trotman (25-4) / Jesse Johnson (6-9)
197: Kelby Smith (23-6) Paul Weiss (12-11)
HWT: No. 19 Odie Delaney (14-2)  Joe Cummings (9-9)

Citadel- Delaney Named SoCon Wrestler of the Week

January 18, 2012

SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The Citadel junior Odie Delaney has been selected as the Southern Conference Wrestler of the Week for all competitions from January 11-17.

Wrestling as a heavyweight, Delaney was dominant over the weekend at the Virginia Duals, notching a perfect 5-0 record with pins in three of his matches.

Delaney started the event with a 5-3 upset against No. 16 Brendan Barlow of Kent State. He followed that with a narrow 5-4 decision against Bucknell's Tyler Lyster as the Bulldogs picked up a 21-16 victory.

On Saturday, Delaney recorded falls in all three of his matches, dispatching North Carolina's Frank Abbondanza in 1:21 to start the day. The redshirt junior then pinned North Dakota State's Evan Knutson in 1:59 and Buffalo's Jedd Mason in 42 seconds to wrap up the competition.

Delaney's exploits pushed him into all of the major national rankings this week, including a high of No. 17 by D1 College Wrestling.

Delaney and the Bulldogs open the SoCon portion of the 2011-12 schedule this Friday, Jan. 20, as they host Appalachian State at 7:00 p.m.

Bulldog Wrestling Places Eighth at Virginia Duals

January 14, 2012

Hampton, Va. - Turtogtokh Luvsandorj, Kelby Smith and Odie Delaney all went a perfect 5-0 over the weekend as The Citadel wrestling team placed eighth out of 14 teams at the Virginia Duals held at the Hampton Coliseum. The Bulldogs opened the second day of action with a 22-15 win over North Carolina before dropping a 19-18 heart-breaker on a tiebreaker to North Dakota State and losing in the seventh-place bout to the University of Buffalo 24-15.

Against the Tar Heels, the Bulldogs opened an early 7-0 lead as Richard Alarcon posted a 12-1 major decision at 125 and Kyle Casaletto held on for a 9-8 decision at 133. North Carolina took three out of the next four matches to knot the score at 10-10, but Luvsandorj posted a 3-0 decision at 174 to give the Bulldogs a 13-10 lead. A technical fall victory gave the Tar Heels a 15-13 lead, before Smith and Delaney posted wins in the top two weight classes. Smith scored a 7-5 decision and Delaney picked up his first of three pins on the day at the 1:21 mark.

North Dakota State opened a 15-3 lead, winning five of the first six matches in the following bout. Luvsandorj cut into the deficit with a pin at the 2:51 mark and after a decision loss at 184, Smith picked up a 6-3 decision to make the score 18-12 heading to the heavyweight matchup. Delaney proceeded to pin Evan Knutson at the 1:59 mark to even the score at 18-18. The Bison gained the win on the first tiebreaker criteria, total wins, six to four.

In the seventh-place bout against Buffalo, the Bulldogs fell behind early and could not catch up. Casaletto, Luvsandorj, Smith and Delaney all posted victories, including a pin in just 42 seconds by Delaney to improve to 14-2 on the season.

The Bulldogs return to action Friday, Jan. 20, as they open the Southern Conference portion of the schedule with a dual meet against Appalachian State at 7:00 p.m.

The Citadel 22, North Carolina 15
125 - Richard Alarcon (Citadel) over Brian Bokoski (North Carolina) Major 12-1; 4-0 Citadel
133 - Kyle Casaletto (Citadel) over Brock LiVorio (North Carolina) Dec 9-8; 7-0 Citadel
141 - No. 14 Evan Henderson (North Carolina) over Jordan Dix (Citadel) Dec 10-4; 7-3 Citadel
149 - Seth Vernon (Citadel) over Jon Burns (North Carolina) Dec 4-2; 10-3 Citadel
157 - No. 19 Corey Mock (North Carolina) over Pierre Frazile (Citadel) Dec 1-0; 10-6 Citadel
165 - Kyle Kiss (North Carolina) over Mike Harper (Citadel) Major 12-4; 10-10 Tied
174 - No. 18 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (Citadel) over Alex Utley (North Carolina) Dec 3-0; 13-10 Citadel
184 - Thomas Ferguson (North Carolina) over Josh Tuck (Citadel) TF 18-2; 15-13 UNC
197 - Kelby Smith (Citadel) over Zac Bennett (North Carolina) Dec 7-5; 16-15 Citadel
285 - Odie Delaney (Citadel) over Frank Abbondanza (North Carolina) Pin 1:21; 22-15 Citadel

North Dakota State 18, The Citadel 18 (NDSU advances on total wins tiebreaker, 6-4)
125 - No. 19 Trent Sprenkle (North Dakota State) over Richard Alarcon (Citadel) Dec 10-4; 3-0 NDSU
133 - Justin Solberg (North Dakota State) over Kyle Casaletto (Citadel) Dec 5-2; 6-0 NDSU
141 - Jordan Dix (Citadel) over Tyler Diamond (North Dakota State) Dec 6-4; 6-3 NDSU
149 - Mark Erickson (North Dakota State) over Seth Vernon (Citadel) Dec 3-1; 9-3 NDSU
157 - No. 11 Steven Monk (North Dakota State) over Pierre Frazile (Citadel) Dec 1-0; 12-3 NDSU
165 - Tyler Johnson (North Dakota State) over Mike Harper (Citadel) Dec 8-1; 15-3 NDSU
174 - No. 18 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (Citadel) over Joe Garner (North Dakota State) Pin 2:51; 15-9 NDSU
184 - Mac Stoll (North Dakota State) over Josh Tuck (Citadel) Dec 7-6; 18-9 NDSU
197 - Kelby Smith (Citadel) over John Gusewelle (North Dakota State) Dec 6-3; 18-12 NDSU
285 - Odie Delaney (Citadel) over Evan Knutson (North Dakota State) Pin 1:59; 18-18 Tied

Buffalo 24, The Citadel 15 (Seventh-Place Match)
125 - Max Soria (Buffalo) over Richard Alarcon (Citadel) Dec 2-0; 3-0 Buffalo
133 - Kyle Casaletto (Citadel) over Justin Farmer (Buffalo) Dec 6-4; 3-3 Tied
141 - Kevin Smith (Buffalo) over Jordan Dix (Citadel) Pin 2:59; 9-3 Buffalo
149 - Blake Roulo (Buffalo) over Seth Vernon (Citadel) Dec 3-2; 12-3 Buffalo
157 - Clay Reeb (Buffalo) over Pierre Frazile (Citadel) Dec 3-1; 15-3 Buffalo
165 - Mark Lewandowski (Buffalo) over William Connell (Citadel) TF 16-0; 20-3 Buffalo
174 - No. 18 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (Citadel) over Dom Montesanti (Buffalo) Dec 4-3; 20-6 Buffalo
184 - Jake Waste (Buffalo) over Josh Tuck (Citadel) Major 9-1; 24-6 Buffalo
197 - Kelby Smith (Citadel) over Justin Heiserman (Buffalo) Dec 6-4; 24-9 Buffalo
285 - Odie Delaney (Citadel) over Jedd Mason (Buffalo) Pin 0:42; 24-15 Buffalo 

Bulldogs Rally to Earn Split at Virginia Duals

January 13, 2012

Hampton, Va. - Trailing 16-6 against sixth-seeded Bucknell, The Citadel wrestling team posted victories in the final four matches of the dual meet and overtake the Bison by a 21-16 final to earn a split in the first day of action at the Virginia Duals at the Hampton Coliseum. The Bulldogs return to action Saturday morning against North Carolina at 10 a.m.

After falling to No. 21 Kent State 24-12 in the opening round, the Bulldogs rallied to overcome the 10-point deficit against Bucknell to survive to wrestle another day. No. 18 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj got things rolling with a 3-2 decision victory at 174 to cut the deficit to seven before Josh Tuck scored a pinfall victory over Jamie Westwood at 184 and bring the Bulldogs within a single point. From there, a takedown in overtime by Kelby Smith scored him a 10-8 decision at 197 before Odie Delaney sealed the win with a close 5-4 victory at heavyweight.

Luvsandorj, Smith, Delaney and Kyle Casaletto each won their respective matches in both duals Friday with Delaney capturing a 5-3 victory over No. 16 Brendan Marlow in the loss to Kent State. Smith's two victories increase his record to 20-6 on the season, setting a career-high for wins in a season for the senior.

North Carolina also split a pair of duals on Friday with an 18-15 win over Rider in the first round before falling to No. 9 Edinboro 22-14. The Tar Heels feature a pair of ranked wrestlers with No. 14 Evan Henderson at 141 and No. 19 Corey Mock at 157.

No. 21 Kent State 24, The Citadel 12
125 - No. 4 Nic Bedelyon (Kent State) over Richard Alarcon (Citadel) Dec 6-1; 3-0 Kent State
133 - Kyle Casaletto (Citadel) over Stevie Mitcheff (Kent State) Dec 4-2; Tied 3-3
141 - No. 9 Tyler Small (Kent State) over Jordan Dix (Citadel) Dec 7-1; 6-3 Kent State
149 - No. 14 Ian Miller (Kent State) over Seth Vernon (Citadel) Pin 6:42; 12-3 Kent State
157 - Mallie Shuster (Kent State) over Pierre Frazile (Citadel) Dec 2-0; 15-3 Kent State
165 - Ross Tice (Kent State) over Mike Harper (Citadel) Dec 8-4; 18-3 Kent State
174 - No. 18 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (Citadel) over Brandonn Johnson (Kent State) Dec 4-2; 18-6 Kent State
184 - Casey Newburg (Kent State) over Josh Tuck (Citadel) Pin 0:34; 24-6 Kent State
197 - Kelby Smith (Citadel) over Ryan Buckner (Kent State) Dec 3-2 SV; 24-9 Kent State
285 - Odie Delaney (Citadel) over No. 16 Brendan Barlow (Kent State) Dec 5-3; 24-12 Kent State

The Citadel 21, Bucknell 16
125 - Austin Miller (Bucknell) over Richard Alarcon (Citadel) Dec 10-4; 3-0 Bucknell
133 - Kyle Casaletto (Citadel) over Shawn Armato (Bucknell) Dec 5-2; Tied 3-3
141 - Derrik Russell (Bucknell) over Jordan Dix (Citadel) Dec 6-2; 6-3 Bucknell
149 - John Regan (Bucknell) over Seth Vernon (Citadel) Pin 3:34; 12-3 Bucknell
157 - Pierre Frazile (Citadel) over Alex Pellicciotti (Bucknell) Dec 7-4; 12-6 Bucknell
165 - Corey Lear (Bucknell) over Mike Harper (Citadel) Major 13-3; 16-6 Bucknell
174 - No. 18 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (Citadel) over Stephen McPeek (Bucknell) Dec 3-2; 16-Bucknell
184 - Josh Tuck (Citadel) over Jamie Westwood (Bucknell) Pin 2:43; 16-15 Bucknell
197 - Kelby Smith (Citadel) over Joe McMullan (Bucknell) Dec 10-8 SV; 18-16 Citadel
285 - Odie Delaney (Citadel) over Tyler Lyster (Bucknell) Dec 5-4; 21-16 Citadel 

Bulldog Wrestling Travels to Virginia Duals

January 12, 2012

2012 Virginia Duals Bracket

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel Wrestling team returns to action this Friday and Saturday, Jan. 13-14, as the Bulldogs travel to compete in the Virginia Duals at the Hampton Coliseum. In Friday's opening round, The Citadel will face No. 21 Kent State at 11:00 a.m.

An opening round victory would put The Citadel (2-3) in the 3 p.m. quarterfinal round against the winner of the Buffalo-Bucknell dual. No. 9 Missouri (6-1) is the tournament's top seed, while No. 20 Rutgers is seeded second. No. 23 Edinboro is the fourth seed and one of four NWCA Top 25 squads in the 14-team tournament.

Live video of select dual meets can be seen at www.virginiaduals.org.
Results can be seen on www.trackwrestling.com.

Last Time Out
Odie Delaney and Richard Alarcon each posted wins by fall to lead The Citadel to a 28-14 victory over Duke at McAlister Field House last Friday. The win was the Bulldogs seventh straight victory over the Blue Devils and second dual meet victory over an ACC member this season. Delaney scored a pin over the Blue Devils' Andrew Fulk at the 1:30 mark of the 285-pound bout to improve to 9-2 on the season. The six-point win turned an 8-7 deficit into a 13-8 advantage for the Bulldogs. Alarcon followed suit with a pin on the most exciting contest of the evening, putting the shoulders of Duke's Peter Terrezza to the mat at the 6:27 mark. Terrezza led 4-1 after the first period and 7-3 after two periods, before Alarcon took over in the final stanza. Alarcon started in the bottom position and escaped to cut the deficit to 7-4. Another takedown by Terrezza put the Bulldog down 9-4, but another escape, followed by a takedown of his own gave Alarcon the opportunity to pick up his third pin of the season and put The Citadel up 19-8.

Nationally Ranked Bulldogs

Junior Turtogtokh Luvsandorj has remained in the national rankings over the last several weeks (No. 14 by W.I.N, No. 17 by WrestlingReport.com, No. 17 by D1CollegeWrestling.net and No. 18 by InterMat Wrestling). Redshirt-junior Odie Delaney entered the WrestlingReport.com rankings at No. 26.

Probable Starters

The Citadel
125: Richard Alarcon (10-11)
133: Kyle Casaletto (12-7)
141: Jordan Dix (10-13)
149: David Ivashchenko (3-11)
157: Pierre Frazile (12-10)
165: Mike Harper (1-11)
174: #18 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (15-7)
184: Jack Duane (5-10) or Josh Tuck (5-1)
197: Kelby Smith (18-6)
HWT: Odie Delaney (9-2)

#1 seed - Missouri
125: #3 Alan Waters (14-1)
133: #10 Nathan McCormick (9-1) or Eric Wilson (19-6)
141: Nicholas Hucke (12-5) or Brandon Wiest (7-8)
149: #20 Kyle Bradley (14-5)
157: #17 Drake Houdashelt (16-3)
165: #20 Zach Toal (13-4) or Jordan Gagliano (13-7)
174: #10 Patrick Wright (20-4) or Dorian Henderson (14-4)
184: #15 Mike Larson (14-3) or Clarence Neely (14-8)
197: #11 Brent Haynes (13-3)
285: Devin Mellon (11-6)

#2 seed - Rutgers
125: Vincent Dellefave (9-5) or Joe Langel III (0-1)
133: Michael DeMarco (15-8)
141: Billy Ashnault (13-7)
149: #3 Mario Mason (14-1) or Luke Rigoglioso (7-7)
157: Anthony Volpe (4-8) or Dave Seidenberg (4-7)
165: #10 Scott Winston (13-3) or Doug Hamann (5-7)
174: #14 Greg Zannetti (15-2)
184: Daniel Seidenberg (7-8)
197: Daniel Rinaldi (14-3)
285: Daniel Hopkins (6-7) 

#3 seed - Kent State
125: Nic Bedelyon
133: Steve Mitcheff or Troy Opfer
141: Tyler Small
149: Ian Miller or Marcel Clopton
157: Mallie Shuster
165: Tom Sasfy or Ross Tice
174: Brandon Johnson or Kwan Bailey
184: Casey Newburg
197: Keith Witt or Ryan Buckner
285: Brendan Barlow 

#4 seed - Edinboro
125: Kory Mines (11-9)
133: A.J. Schopp (24-3)
141: Mitchell Port (16-6)
149: Dave Habat (23-5)
157: Casey Fuller (17-11)
165: Jesse Swink (7-3)
174: Chris Hrunka (12-10)
184: Vic Avery (15-8)
197: Chris Honeycutt (25-0)
285: Ernest James (21-6) 

#5 seed - Rider
125: Chuck Zeisloft
133: Jimmy Morris
141: Jimmy Kirchner
149: Conor Brennan
157: Ramon Santiago
165: James Brundage
174: Jim Resnick
184: Brandon Lintner or Clint Morrison
197: Donald McNeil
285: Evan Craig 

#6 seed - Bucknell
125: Austin Miller (11-7)
133: Shawn Armato (2-10) or Bob Hauser (0-5)
141: Derrik Russell (7-8)
149: John Regan (8-7) or Alex Pellicciotti (8-6)
157: Ray Schlitt (2-10)
165: Corey Lear (6-2)
174: Stephen McPeek (11-10)
184: Jamie Westwood (7-9)
197: Joe McMullan (5-2)
285: Tyler Lyster (6-12) 

#7 seed - Old Dominion
125: Jerome Robinson (3-2)
133: Scott Festejo (12-7)
141: #25 Justin LaValle (21-7)
149: Brennan Brumley (6-6)
157: John Nicholson (11-6)
165: Tristan Warner (15-9)
174: #17 Te Edwards (9-3)
184: Billy Curling (12-10)
197: Joe Budi (11-6)
285: Matt Tourdot (13-7) 

#8 seed - North Dakota State
125: #16 Trent Sprenkle (18-7)
133: Justin Solberg (11-12)
141: Tyler Diamond (10-10)
149: Mark Erickson (15-9)
157: #14 Steven Monk (19-6)
165: Tyler Johnson (9-8)
174: Kurtis Julson (15-6)
184: Mac Stoll (12-7)
197: John Gusewelle (12-13)
285: Evan Knutson (16-8) 

Arizona State
125: David Prado (2-9)
133: Shane McGough (12-9) or Kalin Goodsite (4-6)
141: Nathan Hoffer (12-6)
149: Joel Smith (4-6)
157: Victor DeJesus (6-14)
165: Hans Rasmusson (2-11)
174: Eric Starks (6-3) or Jacob Graham (3-7)
184: Kevin Radford (11-8)
197: Tommy Burriel (12-7)
285: #10 Levi Cooper (18-7) 

Buffalo
125: Max Soria or Sean Walton
133: Justin Farmer or Taylor Golba
141: Kevin Smith
149: Chris Conti or Blake Roulo
157: Wally Maziarz or Dom Montesanti
165: Mark Lewandowski
174: Jake Waste
184: Zach Ward
197: Justin Heiserman
285: Jedd Mason

Campbell
125: Josh Fisher (5-6) or Grabiel Soto (1-5)
133: Tanner Bidelspach (3-10) or Joey Rizzolino (7-7)
141: Jordan Tolbert (2-11)
149: Mark Hartenstine (13-7)
157: Nick Rex (14-7)
165: Ryan Krecker (8-7) or Paul Duggan (1-4)
174: James Cook (15-4)
184: TeShaun Johnson (0-14) or John Merickel (1-4)
197: John Weakley (16-7)
285: Joe Nolan (8-7) 

Drexel
125: Michael Gomez (6-9) or Franco Ferraina (1-4)
133: Josh Yurasits (2-3) or Paul Wampler (0-3)
141: Frank Cimato (10-8)
149: Shane Fenningham (5-10) or Nicholas Dragonette (0-0)
157: Austin Sommer (10-8)
165: Joe Booth (13-3)
174: Alex Rinaldi (3-9) or Kevin Matyas (0-0)
184: Nick Becattini (2-4)
197: Brandon Palik (16-9)
285: Kyle Frey (14-4) 

North Carolina
125: Brian Bokoski (14-10)
133: Brock LiVorio (6-9)
141: #14 Evan Henderson (19-5)
149: Jon Burns (9-8) or Nick Heilmann (2-5)
157: #19 Corey Mock (17-8)
165: Kyle Kiss (10-7)
174: Alex Utley (10-8)
184: Thomas Ferguson (10-9)
197: Zac Bennett (3-2) 
285: Frank Abbondanza (2-9)

Citadel- Delaney and Alarcon Pace Wrestling to 28-14 Victory over Duke

January 6, 2012

Charleston, S.C. - Odie Delaney and Richard Alarcon each posted wins by fall to lead The Citadel to a 28-14 victory over Duke at McAlister Field House Friday night. The win was the Bulldogs seventh straight victory over the Blue Devils and second dual meet victory over an ACC member this season.

Delaney scored a pin over the Blue Devils' Andrew Fulk at the 1:30 mark of the 285-pound bout to improve to 9-2 on the season. The six-point win turned an 8-7 deficit into a 13-8 advantage for the Bulldogs.

Alarcon followed suit with a pin on the most exciting contest of the evening, putting the shoulders of Duke's Peter Terrezza to the mat at the 6:27 mark. Terrezza led 4-1 after the first period and 7-3 after two periods, before Alarcon took over in the final stanza. Alarcon started in the bottom position and escaped to cut the deficit to 7-4. Another takedown by Terrezza put the Bulldog down 9-4, but another escape, followed by a takedown of his own gave Alarcon the opportunity to pick up his third pin of the season and put The Citadel up 19-8.

Starting off at 165 pounds, Duke took a 4-0 lead as Ryan Harding scored a 14-2 major decision over Mike Harper. The Bulldogs answered back with a major decision by No. 18 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj at 174 pounds. The junior dominated Randy Roden by a 13-4 score, notching six takedowns in the contest. Duke regained the lead at 8-4 with a 15-6 major decision at 184 pounds by Diego Bencomo. Duke's 2011 NCAA quarterfinalist scored five takedowns in the victory over Jack Duane.

Kelby Smith picked up his 18th win of the season by scoring a 6-2 decision over Brian Self at 197 pounds to cut the deficit to 8-7. Delaney and Alarcon took over at that point, grabbing 12 points before Kyle Casaletto picked up a forfeit at 133 pounds for a 25-8 Bulldog lead.

Duke scored a pair of decision victories at 141 and 149, as Tanner Hough narrowly defeated Jordan Dix 2-1 and AJ Guardado held off David Ivashchenko by a 6-3 score. Pierre Frazile closed out the evening with a 3-2 victory over Immanuel Kerr-Brown at 157, scoring a takedown in the final period to send the Citadel fans in attendance home victorious.

The Bulldogs return to action at the Virginia Duals next weekend, Jan. 13-14.

Citadel (2-3) vs. Duke (0-1)
Match Summary
165 Ryan Harding (Duke) major decision over Mike Harper (Citadel) 14-2
174 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (Citadel) major decision over Randy Roden (Duke) 13-4
184 Diego Bencomo (Duke) major decision over Jack Duane (Citadel) 15-6
197 Kelby Smith (Citadel) decision over Brian Self (Duke) 6-2
285 Odie Delaney (Citadel) won by pin over Andrew Fulk (Duke) at 1:30
125 Richard Alarcon Jr. (Citadel) won by pin over Peter Terrezza (Duke) at 6:27
133 Kyle Casaletto (Citadel) won by forfeit
141 Tanner Hough (Duke) decision over Jordan Dix (Citadel) 2-1
149 AJ Guardado (Duke) decision over David Ivashchenko (Citadel) 6-3
157 Pierre Frazile (Citadel) decision over Immanuel Kerr-Brown (Duke) 3-2
Dual Meet Score 28.0 14.0

Bulldog Wrestling Hosts Duke in Dual Meet Friday Night

January 5, 2012

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel Wrestling team returns to action this Friday, Jan. 6, as the Bulldogs host Duke in a dual meet at the McAlister Field House starting at 7:00 p.m. Both schools return to the mat after competing in the Southern Scuffle last weekend in Chattanooga, Tenn.

ABOUT THE BULLDOGS

The Bulldogs (1-3, 0-0 SoCon) return to the McAlister Field House tonight as they host the Blue Devils of Duke. Tonight's dual meet is the first action for The Citadel since they competed in the Southern Scuffle hosted by the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga on Jan. 1-2. It was the fourth tournament of the season as they also took part in the Hokie Open, the Navy Classic and the Nittany Lion Open. Tonight's matchup with the Blue Devils is The Citadel's second-straight dual against Atlantic Coast Conference competition, as the Bulldogs defeated North Carolina State 19-18 on Dec. 17.

ABOUT DUKE

The Blue Devils kick off their 2011-12 dual match schedule at The Citadel tonight. The senior leadership for Duke will come at 149 pounds and heavyweight from A.J. Guardado and Andrew Fulk, respectively. Guardado is 10-6 overall for the year and took second at the Davidson Open. Fulk returns after an early season injury and is 2-4 overall on the year.

ALL-TIME VS. THE BLUE DEVILS

The Citadel trails in the all-time series against Duke, 10-28-3. However, the Bulldogs have won the last six duals against Duke, including last season's 31-9 victory in Durham, N.C. The last time The Citadel fell to the Blue Devils was Jan. 13, 2001, a 19-15 defeat in Raleigh, N.C.

LAST MEETING

Last year, The Citadel raced out to a 25-0 lead at Duke and never looked back as the Bulldogs won 31-9. The 22-point win over the Blue Devils tied the record for the largest margin of victory over Duke for The Citadel. The Bulldogs also won by 22 points when they earned a 25-3 decision on Feb. 12, 1962 in Durham. The 31 points also tied for the most points scored against the Blue Devils with the squad that won 31-16 on Jan. 24, 2004.

January 11, 2011 - The Citadel 31, Duke 9
125: Richard Alarcon (CIT) wins via forfeit
133: Tyler Sim (CIT) pinned Nick Adamo (DUKE), 2:54
141: Jordan Dix (CIT) dec. Mike Bell (DUKE), 12-9
149: Derek Royster (CIT) dec. Andrew Guardado (DUKE), 8-3
157: Pierre Frazile (CIT) dec. Chris Mullen (DUKE), 11-5
165: #9 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (CIT) major dec. Willy Mello (DUKE), 12-4
174: Brett Klopp (DUKE) dec. #32 J.C. Oddo (CIT), 10-4
184: Justin Sparrow (CIT) pinned Diego Bencomo (DUKE), 1:49
197: Brian Self (DUKE) dec. Kelby Smith (CIT), 2-1 
HWT: Andrew Fulk (DUKE) dec. Luke Johnson (CIT), 10-4

NATIONALLY RANKED BULLDOGS

Junior Turtogtokh Luvsandorj has remained in the national rankings over the last several weeks (No. 15 by W.I.N, No. 16 by WrestlingReport.com, No. 17 by D1CollegeWrestling.net and No. 18 by InterMat Wrestling). Redshirt-junior Odie Delaney entered the WrestlingReport.com rankings at No. 29.

WHAT TO WATCH

At 197 pounds, Kelby Smith and Brian Self will face off in a rematch of their bout at the Southern Scuffle last weekend. Smith captured the opening-round match with a 5-1 overtime victory to send Self into the consolation bracket.

Duke's 2011 NCAA quarterfinalist Diego Bencomo to the returns to the lineup. Bencomo did not compete in the first semester of the season and will line up at 184 pounds in search of his 56th career victory.

Saturday's Probable Starters
The Citadel (1-3) vs. Duke (0-0)
125: Richard Alarcon (9-11) vs. Peter Terrezza (13-8) 
133: Kyle Casaletto (11-7) vs.Brandon Gambucci (15-5) or Nick Adamo (0-0)
141: Jordan Dix (10-12) vs. Tanner Hough (13-4) 
149: David Ivashchenko (3-10) vs. AJ Guardado (10-6) 
157: Pierre Frazile (11-10) vs. Immanuel Kerr-Brown (17-7) 
165: Mike Harper (1-10) vs. Ryan Harding (14-10)
174: #18 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (14-7) vs. Randy Roden (10-9) 
184: Jack Duane (5-9) vs. Diego Bencomo (0-0) 
197: Kelby Smith (17-6) vs. Brian Self (4-6) 
HWT: Odie Delaney (8-2) vs. Andrew Fulk (2-4)

Luvsandorj Places Sixth, Leads Bulldogs to 16th Place Finish at Southern Scuffle

January 2, 2012

Southern Scuffle Final Brackets

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - Turtogtokh Luvsandorj placed sixth in a highly-competitive 174-pound weight class to lead The Citadel wrestling team to a 16th place finish at the annual Southern Scuffle at McKenzie Arena in Chattanooga, Tenn.

Luvsandorj defeated Vinny Waldhauser of Virginia and Austin Gabel of Virginia Tech in the wrestlebacks Monday afternoon before dropping a 4-1 decision to No. 11 Logan Storley of Minnesota in the consolation semifinals. The junior fell in the fifth-place match to No. 7 Dorian Henderson of Missouri, getting pinned at 5:09.

On Sunday, Luvsandorj advanced to the quarterfinals of the championship bracket before Missouri's Patrick Wright handed him a 2-1 defeat. The No. 17-ranked Bulldog knocked off Old Dominion's Adrin Taylor and Oregon State's Ty Vinson to get to the quarterfinal round.

Odie Delaney was the other Bulldog wrestler to see action on Monday afternoon. The heavyweight dropped a 9-0 major decision to Ohio's Jeremy Johnson. Delaney handed Devon Mellon of Missouri a 3-2 decision in his opening bout before falling to Ohio's Andy Hartshorn by a similar 3-2 score. Delaney posted a pair of victories in the consolation bracket to reach the consolation quarterfinals, earning a 10-0 major decision over Cornell's Stryker Lane and pinning Virginia Tech's Bobby Lavelle in 46 seconds.

The Citadel returns to action Friday, Jan. 6, as it hosts ACC-member Duke at McAlister Field House at 7:00 p.m. The Blue Devils placed 19th at the Scuffle, six points behind the Bulldogs.

THE CITADEL PARTICIPANTS:

125: Richard Alarcon (9-11)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: lost to No. 13 Nico Megaludis (Penn State), Tech Fall 3-18
Consolations: def. Nick Simpson (Indiana), Fall 5:00
Consolations: lost to Bricker Dixon (Cornell), Major Decision 3-11

133: Kyle Casaletto (11-7)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: lost to Jacob Wojcik (Ohio), Decision 0-2
Consolations: def. James Roberts (Oregon State), Decision 6-3
Consolations: lost to Garrett Drucker (Oregon State), Fall 2:42

141: Jordan Dix (10-12)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: lost to Nick Nelson (Virginia), Decision 0-7
Consolations: def. Jorge Gavillan (Campbell), Decision 4-0
Consolations: lost to Seth Beitz (Penn State), Decision 4-5

149: David Ivashchenko (3-10)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: lost to Augustus Sako (Unattached-Virginia), Fall 4:25
Consolations: lost to Chris Mecate (Old Dominion), Decision 1-2

157: Pierre Frazile (11-10)
First Round: def. Connor Graves (Indiana), Decision 4-2
Second Round: lost to John Nicholson (Old Dominion), Decision 4-7
Consolations: lost to Alex Hudson (Chattanooga), Decision 2-4

165: Mike Harper (1-10)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: lost to Justin Staudenmayer (North Carolina), Major Decision 0-8
Consolations: lost to Steve Ramos (NC State), Decision 5-10

165: William Connell (0-4)
First Round: lost to Ryan Harding (Duke), Decision 7-10
Consolations: lost to John Lampe (Chattanooga), Decision 5-8

174: #17 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (14-7)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: def. Adrin Taylor (Old Dominion), Decision 7-4
Third Round: def. Ty Vinson (Oregon State), Decision 9-4
Quarterfinals: lost to Patrick Wright (Missouri), Decision 1-2
Consolations: def. Vinny Waldhauser (Virginia), Decision 7-4
Consolations: def. Austin Gabel (Unattached-Virginia Tech), Decision 3-1 OT
Consolations: lost to No. 11 Logan Storley (Minnesota), Decision 1-4
Fifth Place: lost to No. 7 Dorian Henderson (Missouri), Fall 5:09

184: Jack Duane (4-7)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: def. Corbin Boone (Cleveland State), Decision 6-9
Third Round: lost to Kevin Steinhaus (Minnesota), Fall 5:32
Consolations: lost to Luke Sheridan (Indiana), Fall 1:57

184: Luke Johnson (2-4)
First Round: lost to Clarence Neely (Missouri), Major Decision 10-24
Consolations: def. Dylan Ryan (Duke), Decision 4-2
Consolations: lost to Austin Coburn (Old Dominion), Decision 1-8

197: Kelby Smith (17-6)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: def. Brian Self (Duke), Decision 5-1 OT
Third Round: lost to John Weakley (Campbell), Decision 6-12
Consolations: def. Paul Weiss (Appalachian State), Decision 5-2
Consolations: lost to Jace Bennett (Cornell), Decision 2-6

285: Odie Delaney (8-1)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: def. Devon Mellon (Missouri), Decision 3-2
Third Round: lost to Andy Hartshorn (Ohio), Decision 2-3
Consolations: def. Stryker Lane (Cornell), Major Decision 10-0
Consolations: def. Bobby Lavelle (Virginia Tech), Fall 0:46
Consolations: lost to Jeremy Johnson (Ohio), Major Decision 0-9

FINAL TEAM SCORES

1. Penn State 191.5
2. Minnesota 177.5
3. Missouri 136.0
4. Cornell 130.0
5. Oregon State 103.0
6. Virginia 82.0
7. Chattanooga 79.0
8. Appalachian State 63.5
9. Hofstra 58.0
10. Ohio 57.0
11. Navy 49.5
12. North Carolina 49.0
13. Indiana 41.0
14. North Carolina State 35.0
15. Old Dominion 33.5
16. The Citadel 25.0
17. Army 22.5
18. Campbell 21.5
19. Duke 19.0
20. Cleveland State 15.0
21. Virginia Tech 13.5
22. Gardner Webb 0.0

Two Members of Bulldog Wrestling Still Alive at Southern Scuffle

January 2, 2012

Southern Scuffle Day One Brackets

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - A pair of members of The Citadel wrestling team remain in contention after day one of the annual Southern Scuffle at McKenzie Arena in Chattanooga, Tenn.

Turtogtukh Luvsandorj and Odie Delaney will both wrestle on Monday to try and earn a place in each of their respective weight classes through the consolation brackets.

Luvsandorj advanced to the quarterfinals of the championship bracket before Missouri's Patrick Wright handed him a 2-1 defeat. The No. 17-ranked Bulldog knocked off Old Dominion's Adrin Taylor and Oregon State's Ty Vinson to get to the quarterfinal round. Luvsandorj is slated to square off against Virginia's Vinny Waldhauser in the consolation quarterfinals.

Delaney handed Devon Mellon of Missouri a 3-2 decision in his opening bout before falling to Ohio's Andy Hartshorn by a similar 3-2 score. Delaney posted a pair of victories in the consolation bracket to reach the consolation quarterfinals, earning a 10-0 major decision over Cornell's Stryker Lane and pinning Virginia Tech's Bobby Lavelle in 46 seconds. Delaney will face Ohio's Jeremy Johnson on Monday.

THE CITADEL PARTICIPANTS:

125: Richard Alarcon (9-11)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: lost to No. 13 Nico Megaludis (Penn State), Tech Fall 3-18
Consolations: def. Nick Simpson (Indiana), Fall 5:00
Consolations: lost to Bricker Dixon (Cornell), Major Decision 3-11

133: Kyle Casaletto (11-7)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: lost to Jacob Wojcik (Ohio), Decision 0-2
Consolations: def. James Roberts (Oregon State), Decision 6-3
Consolations: lost to Garrett Drucker (Oregon State), Fall 2:42

141: Jordan Dix (10-12)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: lost to Nick Nelson (Virginia), Decision 0-7
Consolations: def. Jorge Gavillan (Campbell), Decision 4-0
Consolations: lost to Seth Beitz (Penn State), Decision 4-5

149: David Ivashchenko (3-10)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: lost to Augustus Sako (Unattached-Virginia), Fall 4:25
Consolations: lost to Chris Mecate (Old Dominion), Decision 1-2

157: Pierre Frazile (11-10)
First Round: def. Connor Graves (Indiana), Decision 4-2
Second Round: lost to John Nicholson (Old Dominion), Decision 4-7
Consolations: lost to Alex Hudson (Chattanooga), Decision 2-4

165: Mike Harper (1-10)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: lost to Justin Staudenmayer (North Carolina), Major Decision 0-8
Consolations: lost to Steve Ramos (NC State), Decision 5-10

165: William Connell (0-4)
First Round: lost to Ryan Harding (Duke), Decision 7-10
Consolations: lost to John Lampe (Chattanooga), Decision 5-8

174: #17 Turtogtukh Luvsandorj (12-5)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: def. Adrin Taylor (Old Dominion), Decision 7-4
Third Round: def. Ty Vinson (Oregon State), Decision 9-4
Quarterfinals: lost to Patrick Wright (Missouri), Decision 1-2
Consolations: vs. Vinny Waldhauser (Virginia) on Monday

184: Jack Duane (4-7)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: def. Corbin Boone (Cleveland State), Decision 6-9
Third Round: lost to Kevin Steinhaus (Minnesota), Fall 5:32
Consolations: lost to Luke Sheridan (Indiana), Fall 1:57

184: Luke Johnson (2-4)
First Round: lost to Clarence Neely (Missouri), Major Decision 10-24
Consolations: def. Dylan Ryan (Duke), Decision 4-2
Consolations: lost to Austin Coburn (Old Dominion), Decision 1-8

197: Kelby Smith (17-6)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: def. Brian Self (Duke), Decision 5-1 OT
Third Round: lost to John Weakley (Campbell), Decision 6-12
Consolations: def. Paul Weiss (Appalachian State), Decision 5-2
Consolations: lost to Jace Bennett (Cornell), Decision 2-6

285: Odie Delaney (8-1)
First Round: Bye
Second Round: def. Devon Mellon (Missouri), Decision 3-2
Third Round: lost to Andy Hartshorn (Ohio), Decision 2-3
Consolations: def. Stryker Lane (Cornell), Major Decision 10-0
Consolations: def. Bobby Lavelle (Virginia Tech), Fall 0:46
Consolations: vs. Jeremy Johnson (Ohio) on Monday

Bulldog Wrestling Kicks Off New Year at Southern Scuffle

December 30, 2011

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel Wrestling team returns to action this weekend as it opens the New Year at the Southern Scuffle, Jan. 1-2, 2012, hosted by the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in the Mocs' McKenzie Arena. One of the largest in-season tournaments in the country, the Southern Scuffle welcomes 22 teams to the mat, with eight squads ranked in the NWCA/USA Today Division I Team Coaches Top-25.

Highlighted by fifth-ranked and defending NCAA Champion Penn State, the field also includes No. 3 Minnesota, No. 4 Cornell and No. 10 Missouri. Individually, 52 wrestlers are ranked in the latest Intermat Top-20, including 25 in the top-10 of their respected weight classes. Five of the 10 classes will have the No.1 ranked wrestler in the field, including Minnesota's Zach Sanders (125), Penn State's Frank Molinaro (149) and David Taylor (165) and Cornell's Kyle Drake (157) and Cam Simaz (197).

TICKETS
Tickets for the event are $15 for adults and $5 for youth under 18 each day. Tickets are on sale now on GoMocs.com and at the UTC Ticket Office. Doors open at 9:00 a.m. to the general public on Sunday, Jan. 1, with action beginning at 10:00 a.m.  Competition begins one hour earlier on the Monday, Jan. 2, with doors opening at 8:00 a.m.

LIVE STATS
Brackets will be updated live online with links available on the wrestling schedule page of CitadelSports.com.  The finals will be streamed live on the UTC athletics website through MocsVision on GoMocs.com.   

LAST TIME OUT
Odie Delaney scored the only fall of the match and four other Citadel wrestlers scored decision victories as the Bulldogs captured their opening home dual meet of the season with 19-18 victory over North Carolina State at McAlister Field House on Dec. 17. Delaney scored a pin over the Wolfpack's Josh Davis at the 1:53 mark of the 285-pound bout to improve to 5-0 on the season. The six-point win turned an 11-9 deficit into a 15-11 advantage for the Bulldogs (1-3) that they would not relinquish. Kelby Smith improved to 4-0 in dual-meet action with a 5-2 decision over KaRonne Jones, while No. 17 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj improved to 10-4 on the season with a 5-2 decision over Quinton Godley in a rematch of their bout at the Nittany Lion Open on Dec. 4.

THE CITADEL PARTICIPANTS:
125: Richard Alarcon (8-9)
Alarcon faces off against Penn State's Nico Megaludis, ranked No. 13 in the country. The 125 bracket includes six ranked wrestlers, highlighted by No. 1 Zach Sanders from Minnesota.
133: Kyle Casaletto (10-5)
Casaletto takes on the winner of Indiana's Joe Duca and North Carolina State's Adam Matthews. Casaletto has rattled off five straight victories, including a 4-2 decision over Matthews in the Bulldogs' 19-18 dual meet victory over NC State. Casaletto will be tested against a group that includes five wrestlers ranked in the top 20.
141: Jordan Dix (9-10)
Dix will meet the winner of the top-seeded Mike Mangrum of Oregon State and Ohio's Darrin Boing. The 141 bracket features five ranked wrestlers, including Mangrum, who is ranked fifth.
149: David Ivashchenko (3-8)
Ivashchenko will square off against the second seed, Missouri's Kyle Bradley in his opening match. No. 1 Frank Molinaro of Penn State is the featured wrestler in the 149 bracket and is joined by four others ranked in the top-20, including Bradley at No. 14.
157: Pierre Frazile (10-8)
Frazile will meet the winner of the top-seeded and No. 1 Kyle Dake of Cornell and Ohio's Spartak Chino. Dake is one of three ranked wrestlers in the 157 bracket.
165: Mike Harper (1-8) and William Connell (0-2)
The Bulldogs send a pair of wrestlers into a 165 field that includes five ranked competitors. Penn State's David Taylor is No. 1 in the country and highlights this bracket. Connell will face the winner of Taylor and Gardner-Webb's Justin Guthrie. Harper is also in the top half of the bracket and will face Justin Staudenmayer of North Carolina.
174: #17 Turtogtukh Luvsandorj (10-4)
Luvsandorj enters a challenging 174 group has six ranked wrestlers, led by No. 2 Ed Ruth from Penn State. The No. 17 Luvsandorj faces Missouri's John Eblen in his opening match.
184: Jack Duane (4-7) and Luke Johnson (1-2)
Johnson and Duane represent the Bulldogs in a bracket that has four of the top-10 wrestlers in the nation and seven of the top-20. Johnson faces Duke's Diego Bencomo, while Duane takes the mat against Corbin Boone of Cleveland State, who defeated Duane in a 4-1 decision at the Wrestle for a Cure Duals on Nov. 12.
197: Kelby Smith (15-4)
Smith has won 11 of his last 13 bouts, including four wins at the Navy Classic to capture the title at 197. Smith will face Duke's Brian Self in his opening match. The 197 group has three of the top four in the nation and six from the top-20 overall.
285: Odie Delaney (5-0)
Delaney puts his perfect mark on the line against Missouri's Devon Mellon in his opening bout. The top-four seeds in the heavyweight bracket are all in the top-10, including No. 4 Clayton Jack (Oregon State), No. 5 Jeremy Johnson (Ohio), No. 7 Tony Nelson (Minnesota) and No. 8 Cameron Wade (Penn State).

Citadel Wrestling Defeats North Carolina State 19-18

Charleston, S.C. - Odie Delaney scored the only fall of the match and four other Citadel wrestlers scored decision victories as the Bulldogs captured their opening home dual meet of the season with 19-18 victory over North Carolina State at McAlister Field House Saturday afternoon.

Delaney scored a pin over the Wolfpack's Josh Davis at the 1:53 mark of the 285-pound bout to improve to 5-0 on the season. The six-point win turned a 11-9 deficit into a 15-11 advantage for the Bulldogs (1-3) that they would not relinquish. Kelby Smith improved to 4-0 in dual-meet action with a 5-2 decision over KaRonne Jones, while No. 17 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj improved to 10-4 on the season with a 5-2 decision over Quinton Godley in a rematch of their bout at the Nittany Lion Open on Dec. 4.

After David Ivashchenko dropped a close 7-6 decision in the opening match at 149 pounds, Pierre Frazile evened the score at 3-3 with a 5-3 decision over Colton Palmer at 157 pounds. A major decision victory by NC State's Nijel Jones at 165 gave the Wolfpack a 7-3 lead, but Luvsandorj cut the deficit to 7-6 with his decision. Another major decision for the Wolfpack at 184 pounds opened an 11-6 lead before Smith and Delaney won back-to-back matches, posting nine points and giving the Bulldogs a 15-11 advantage.

Coltin Fought's 19-6 major decision at 125 pounds for NC State knotted the score at 15-15, but Kyle Casaletto's 4-2 decision at 133 pulled the Cadets ahead 18-15. Darius Little closed out the meet with a 5-1 decision over Jordan Dix at 141, but the Bulldogs emerged victorious on the afternoon with the 19-18 victory.

The Bulldogs return to action at the Southern Scuffle on January 1-2 in Chattanooga, Tenn.

Citadel (1-3) vs North Carolina State (0-1)
Match Summary CIT NCST
149 Matthew Nereim (NCST) over David Ivashchenko (CIT) Decision 7-6
157 Pierre Frazile (CIT) over Colton Palmer (NCST) Decision 5-3
165 Nijel Jones (NCST) over Michael Harper (CIT) Major Decision 12-1
174 #17 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (CIT) over Quinton Godley (NCST) Decision 5-2
184 Robert O`Neill (NCST) over John Duane (CIT) Major Decision 19-8
197 Kelby Smith (CIT) over KaRonne Jones (NCST) Decision 5-2
285 Odie Delaney (CIT) over Joshua Davis (NCST) Fall 1:53
125 Coltin Fought (NCST) over Richard Alarcon Jr. (CIT) Major Decision 19-6
133 Kyle Casaletto (CIT) over Adam Matthews (NCST) Decision 4-2
141 Darius Little (NCST) over Jordan Dix (CIT) Decision 5-1
2nd Tie-breaker Criteria (Total Falls 1-0 CIT)
Final Dual Meet Score 19 18

Citadel-Luvsandorj Places Fourth To Highlight Bulldogs at Nittany Lion Open

December 4, 2011

University Park, Pa. - No. 12 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj posted a fourth-place finish with a 4-2 record to highlight The Citadel Wrestling team in action at the 2011 Nittany Lion Open. 11 Bulldogs competed in  the all-day event, which featured 475 grapplers from around the country.

The Bulldogs return to action with their 2011-12 home opener, a dual meet against North Carolina State on Dec. 17 at 2:00 p.m.

125: Richard Alarcon (0-2)
First Round: lost to Austin Miller (Bucknell), Decision 10-5
Consolations: lost to Nahshon Garrett (FLWC), Decision 11-7
133: None
141: Jordan Dix (4-2)
First Round: def. David Owens (Penn State), Major Decision 12-2
Second Round: def. Anthony Perrotti (Rutgers), Decision 4-3
Third Round: lost to Frank Goodwin (Maryland), Major Decision 10-0
Consolations: def. Joe Bonaldi (Binghamton), Decision 3-2
Consolations: def. Elijah Sullivan (Columbia), Fall 0:42
Consolations: lost to Derek Heyman (Binghamton), Decision 7-1
149: Shane Lee (1-2)
First Round: def. Donald Takagi (George Mason), Fall 6:35
Second Round: lost to Malcolm Martin (Central Michigan), Fall 1:44
Consolations: lost to Eric Filipowicz (Navy), Major Decision 10-0
149: David Ivashchenko (2-2)
First Round: def. Vincent Grella (Binghamton), Major Decision 13-3
Second Round: def. Tre Miller-Scott (West Virginia), Decision 5-4
Third Round: lost to Cameron Moran (Clarion), Major Decision 15-4
Consolations: lost to Josh Houldsworth (Columbia), Decision 8-1 
157: Pierre Frazile (2-2)
First Round: def. Alex Lincoln (Bloomsburg), Fall 2:22
Second Round: def. Ryan Watts (Michigan State), Decision 3-1
Third Round: lost to James Fleming (Clarion), Major Decision 10-0
Consolations: lost to Jaaziah Bethea (George Mason), Decision 9-4 
165: Mike Harper (0-1)
First Round: lost to Clay Wenger (Kent State), Decision 4-2 
165: William Connell (0-1)
First Round: lost to Troy Lamson (Michigan State), Decision 13-6 
174: #12 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (4-2) - FOURTH PLACE
First Round: def. Paul Crutchlow (Pennsylvania College), Major Decision 13-2
Second Round: def. Nick Kaczanowski (Michigan State), Decision 7-6
Third Round: def. Andrew Church (Penn State), Decision 10-5
Quarterfinals: def. Quinton Godley (North Carolina State), Decision 6-2
Semifinals: lost to #17 Jimmy Sheptock (Maryland), Decision 3-1, SV
Third Place: lost to John-Martin Cannon (Buffalo), Decision 7-3 
184: Jack Duane (2-2)
First Round: def. Randall Howard (Cleveland State), Fall 0:49
Second Round: lost to Caleb Gerl (California Baptist), Decision 7-3
Consolations: def. Giovanni Ortiz (Kutztown University), Major Decision 13-2
Consolations: lost to Matthew Snook (Maryland), Technical Fall 19-3; 3:47 
184: Luke Johnson (1-2)
First Round: def. Warren Bosch (Edinboro), Major Decision 14-3
Second Round: lost to #6 Quentin Wright (Penn State), Technical Fall 20-5
Consolations: lost to Wil Brown (Army), Decision 8-1 
197: Kelby Smith (3-2)
First Round: lost to #10 Morgan McIntosh (Penn State), Major Decision 14-4
Consolations: def. Michael Dailey (Maryland), Decision 9-2
Consolations: def. Justin Heisermen (Buffalo), Decision 10-4
Consolations: def. Tyler Lyster (Bucknell), Decision 4-2
Consolations: lost to Cody Reed (Binghamton), Major Decision 12-3 

HWT: Open

Citadel-Wilmington Friends takes 2011 Bulldog Wrestling Invitational

By David A. Willauer-Contributing Editor-Brandywine High School-Wilmington, DE: The Quakers of Wilmington Friends took the 2011 Bulldog Invitational Wrestling Tournament finished with 171 points along with 3 champions 2. Newark 161 points and 1 champion 3. Brandywine 160 points 4 champions 4. St. Andrews 133 points and 2 champions 5. Archmere 98 points 6. Howard 89 points and 1 champion 7. Glasgow 75 points 8. Mt. Pleasant 69 points 9. Sanford 67 points and 1 champion 12. 10. Dickinson 34 points and 1 champion 12. Tatnall 24 points and 1 champion 13. Wilmington Christian 11

106-1. Zach Hindenhoffer, Wilmington Friends 2. Anish Amin, Newark 3. Michael Gun, Glasgow
113-1. Charlie Taylor, Saint Andrews 2. Jesse Miller, Wilmington Friends 3. CJ Hughes, Howard
120-1. Robert Ramsey, Newark 2. Cameron Monroe, Howard 3. Jesse Helmick, Brandywine
126-1. Parker Landau, Sanford 2. Michael McCurnin, Archmere 3. Eric Comegar, Wilmington Friends
132-1. Parker Jones, Brandywine 2. Connor Armstrong, Wilmington Friends 3. Miguel Parades, Glasgow
138-1. Chris Palmer, Wilmington Friends 2. Kevin Dowling, St. Andrews 3. Sean Divine, Archmere
145-1. Berkeley Jones, Brandywine 2. Ethan Robinson, Archmere 3. Will Maguire, Wilmington Friends
152-1. Ian Hathaway, Brandywine 2. Colin Brownlee, Saint Andrews 3. Dan Shaw, Wilmington Friends
160-1. Toru Mihama, Tatnall 2. Harrison Felt, Brandywine 3. Giovanni Cerrano, Newark
170-1. Luke Magness, Wilmington Friends 2. Anthony Cirillo, Newark 3. Foster Graney, Brandywine
182-1. Cliff Sellers, Brandywine 2. Jaylen Bond Edwards, Howard 3. Josh Grimes, Newark
195-1. Jeff Lewis, Howard 2. Chris Griswold, Newark 3. Zach Wilson, Glasgow
220-1. Josh Klein, Saint Andrews 2. Tyler Hugart, Howard 3. Arius Ofum, Brandywine
285-1. Kenneth Henderson, Dickinson, 2. Josh Showalter, Brandywine 3. Jaquan Dollard, Howard

Citadel Wrestling Travels to Penn State for Nittany Lion Open

December 2, 2011

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel Wrestling team returns from a two-week break Sunday as it travels to Penn State to take part in the annual Nittany Lion Open at PSU's Rec Hall beginning at 8:30 am.

The Open, which is not a team scored event, will feature hundreds of wrestlers from around the nation including, potentially, plenty of ranked wrestlers. Teams set to send wrestlers into action at the event include No. 5 Penn State, No. 8 Pittsburgh, No. 10 Lehigh, No. 13 Maryland, No. 14 Virginia Tech, No. 16 Rutgers, No. 19 Central Michigan, No. 20 Kent State, No. 23 Virginia and No. 25 Binghamton.

LAST TIME OUT

Two weeks ago at the Navy Classic, top-seeded Kelby Smith captured the 197-pound title as The Citadel placed fourth at the 34th annual Classic at the United States Naval Academy. Jack Duane finished second in the 184-pound division, falling to top-seeded Luke Rebertus of Navy in the final, while Kyle Casaletto placed third at 133 pounds.

Sunday's Probable Starters

The Citadel (0-3)

125: Richard Alarcon (8-6)
133: Kyle Casaletto (9-5)
141: Jordan Dix (5-7)
149: Shane Lee (1-4)
149: David Ivashchenko (1-5)
157: Pierre Frazile (7-6)
165: Mike Harper (1-6)
165: William Connell (0-1)
174: #12 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (5-2)
184: Jack Duane (2-4)
184: Luke Johnson (3-4)
197: Kelby Smith (7-0)
HWT: Open 

149: Ugi Undrakhbayar - unattached
165: Kenneth Radford - unattached
184: Josh Tuck - unattached
HWT: Odie Delaney - unattached

Citadel- Smith Paces Wrestlers to Fourth-Place Finish at Navy Classic

November 19, 2011

Annapolis, Md. - Top-seeded Kelby Smith captured the 197-pound title as The Citadel Wrestling team placed fourth at the 34th annual Navy Classic Saturday afternoon at the United States Naval Academy. Smith captured four decisions en route to the title after going 3-0 the previous weekend at the Wrestle for a Cure Duals.

Jack Duane finished second in the 184-pound division, falling to top-seeded Luke Rebertus of Navy in the final, while Kyle Casaletto placed third at 133 pounds. Richard Alarcon, Jordan Dix and Pierre Frazile all picked up fourth place finishes for the Bulldogs.

The Bulldogs return to action on Dec. 4 at the Nittany Lion Open, hosted by Penn State in State College, Pa.

125: Richard Alarcon - FOURTH PLACE
First Round: def. David Hershberger III (Franklin & Marshall), Technical Fall 18-0
Quarterfinals: def. Patrick Prada (Navy), Decision 8-1 
Semifinals: lost to Austin Miller (Bucknell), Decision 4-3
Consolations: def. James Kerrick (Navy), Technical Fall 16-0
Third-Place: lost to Michael Slaughter (Gardner Webb), Decision 6-3

133: Kyle Casaletto - THIRD PLACE
First Round: def. Zachary Isenhour (Gardner Webb), Decision 7-4
Quarterfinals: lost to Robert Davis (Navy), Decision 2-1
Consolations: def. Rich Carroll-Lavarato (Gardner Webb), Decision 8-1
Consolations: def. Shawn Armato (Bucknell), Decision 1-0
Consolations: def. Benjamin Creed (Navy), Decision 3-1
Third Place: def. Zachary Isenhour (Gardner Webb), Major Decision 9-0

141: Jordan Dix - FOURTH PLACE
First Round: def. Quentin Leadbeter (Navy), Decision 5-4
Quarterfinals: lost to Alex Pellicciotti (Bucknell), Technicall Fall 18-0
Consolations: def. John Coutoumas (Navy), Decision 5-4
Consolations: def. Richard Durso (Franklin & Marshall), Decision 5-1
Third Place: lost to Alex Pellicciotti (Bucknell), Decision 6-0

149: Shane Lee
First Round: def. Jack Ingram (Bucknell), Fall 4:27
Quarterfinals: lost to Peyton Walsh (Navy), Major Decision 9-0
Consolations: lost to Shohei Takagi (George Mason), Fall 4:23

157: Pierre Frazile - FOURTH PLACE
First Round: def. Eric Norgard (Franklin & Marshall), Decision 4-2
Quarterfinals: def. Terrence Demery (West Virginia), Major Decision 14-2
Semifinals: lost to Alex Medved (Gardner Webb), Decision 3-0
Consolations: def. Matt Jackson (Navy), Decision 3-1
Third Place: lost to Zach Basich (Navy), Decision 6-4

165: Mike Harper
First Round: def. Colin Lahiff (Franklin & Marshall), Decision 3-1
Quarterfinals: lost to Jacob Schalles (Navy), Decision 10-5
Consolations: lost to Justin Guthrie (Gardner Webb), Decision 3-1

174: Open

184: Jack Duane - SECOND PLACE
Quarterfinals: def. Derek Dwyer (George Mason), Technical Fall 20-3
Semifinals: def. James Maxwell (Navy), Decision 9-4
Finals: lost to Luke Rebertus (Navy), Technical Fall 18-2

197: Kelby Smith - CHAMPION
First Round: def. Matt McVay (Navy), Decision 6-2
Quarterfinals: def. Tyler Lyster (Bucknell), Decision 5-1
Semifinals: def. Mac Mancuso (West Virginia), Decision 6-4
Finals: def. Paul Rands (Navy), Decision 5-2

197: Luke Johnson
First Round: def. Alexander Stanley (George Mason), Fall 4:45
Quarterfinals: lost to Paul Rands (Navy), Major Decision 12-1
Consolations: lost to Colynn Cook (Navy), Decision 8-4

HWT: Open

Final Team Scores
1. Navy, 147.5
2. West Virginia, 96
3. Bucknell, 88.5
4. The Citadel, 77.5
5. Gardner-Webb, 62.0
6. George Mason, 50.5
7. Franklin & Marshall, 29.0

Citadel- Five Runnin' Bulldog Wrestlers Place at 2011 Navy Classic


Annapolis, Md. - The Gardner-Webb wrestling team had five different wrestlers in Justin Kozera, Alex Medved, Michael Slaughter, Travis Porter and Justin Guthrie place in their respective weight classes at the 2011 Navy Classic on Saturday afternoon in Annapolis, Maryland.

At the 285-pound weight class, Kozera posted a perfect 3-0 day to take first-place overall. The freshman earned a fall at 2:34 over Alexander Henry of Franklin & Marshall in the first round and then recorded a 7-1 decision over Brendan Kahle of Navy in the semifinals.

In the finals, top-seeded Kozera held on to defeat Chance Rauscher of Navy 3-1 to take first-place overall.

Alex Medved, the top seed at 157-pounds, posted three wins before suffering a fall at 3:50 to the No. 3 seeded John Regan of Bucknell in the finals to take second-place overall. Alex Medved recorded a 13-2 major decision win over Ray Schlitt of Bucknell in the first round and a 3-0 shutout victory over Johnny Watson of Navy in the second round to advance to the semifinals.

In the semifinals, Alex Medved blanked his opponent again, edging the No. 4 seeded Pierre Frazile of The Citadel, 2-0 to move on to the finals where the redshirt-junior suffered a pin to take second-place overall.

After a first-round bye at 125-pounds, Slaughter posted a 12-3 major decision win over Christopher Rodriguez of George Mason to advance to the semifinals where he fell to the No. 1 seed and eventual champion Shane Young of West Virginia 6-3.

In the consolation semifinals, Slaughter got back on the right track, defeating Patrick Prada of Navy 2-1 in the first period of a tie breaker to move on to the consolation finals where the redshirt-senior defeated No. 2 seeded Richard Alarcon, Jr. of The Citadel 6-3 to take third-place overall.

Also placing for Gardner-Webb was Porter at 197 and Guthrie at 165, as both posted multiple wins on the day.

At 197-pounds, Porter, who drew the No. 2 seed overall, recorded a 13-3 first round major decision win over Isaiah Cromwell of Franklin & Marshall and then defeated Benjamin Hatef of Navy 5-2 in the quarterfinals.

In the semifinals, Porter suffered a pin to No. 3 seeded Paul Rands of Navy to fall into the consolation bracket where he went on to earn a 3-1 decision over No. 5 seeded Colin Ely of Franklin & Marshall to advance to the consolation finals.

In the consolation finals, Porter suffered a 4-2 loss to No. 4 seeded Mac Mancuso of West Virginia to take fourth-place overall.

Guthrie, who like Porter was the No. 2 seed overall, bounced back from a quarterfinals major decision loss to Ty Knepp of George Mason, 14-2, to drop Michael Harper of The Citadel 3-1 in the consolation bracket.

In the consolation semifinals, Guthrie suffered a fall at 1:01 in the match to Kyle Eason of West Virginia to fall into the fifth-place bout where he posted an 11-4 decision over Jordan Krulik of Navy.

Also competing at the Navy Classic for GWU was redshirt-junior Ryan Medved and freshman Davante Andujar.

Ryan Medved went 2-2 on the day at 149-pounds, recording a 12-0 major decision win over Andrew Murano of Franklin & Marshall and a 7-3 win over Roman Perryman of West Virginia in the consolation bracket, while Andujar recorded a 1-2 overall record at 141-pounds with his lone win coming by way of a 10-1 major decision win over Brian Benton of George Mason in the first round.

Gardner-Webb (1-1, 0-1 SoCon) will return to action after the Thanksgiving Holiday Break, as the Runnin' Bulldogs will host Appalachian State in a Southern Conference dual match on Monday, December 5th, at 7 p.m. in Paul Porter Arena.

Citadel Wrestling To Compete In Navy Classic This Weekend

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel Wrestling team returns to action Saturday afternoon as it travels to the United States Naval Academy to take part in the annual Navy Classic at Westley Brown Field House beginning at 10:00 am. The Bulldogs will battle six teams - Bucknell, Franklin & Marshall, Gardner Webb, George Mason, West Virginia and the host Midshipmen - for the 2011 Navy Classic crown.

Last weekend, Kelby Smith was a perfect 3-for-3 and Turtogtokh Luvsandorj picked up a pair of victories, but The Citadel dropped all three of its matches at the 2011 Wrestle for a Cure Duals in Harrisburg, Pa. The Bulldogs fell 22-12 to Cleveland State, 33-8 to Lock Haven and 46-3 to #9 Illinois.

2011 Navy Classic

Date:  Saturday, Nov. 19
Venue:  Wesley Brown Field House
Participating teams: Bucknell, The Citadel, Franklin & Marshall, Gardner Webb, George Mason, Navy, West Virginia
Tickets: $7 adults, $5 students (18 years and under) 

Saturday's Probable Starters
The Citadel (0-3)
125: Richard Alarcon (5-4) and Zak Thompson
133: Kyle Casaletto (0-3)
141: Jordan Dix (2-5)
149: Shane Lee (0-2)
157: Pierre Frazile (4-4)
165: Mike Harper (0-4)
174: Open
184: Jack Duane (0-3)
197: Kelby Smith (3-0) and Luke Johnson (2-2)
HWT: Open

Promotions
Giving Thanks - Any fan who brings three can goods will receive a discounted $3 ticket.  

Parks and Rec Day - All Annapolis Park and Rec families are invited to attend the Navy Classic for $3 admission.  

4-H Day - All 4-H members wearing an item with the 4-H logo will receive free admission (up to 4 guests each).

Projected session times
10:00 am - preliminary rounds
1:00 pm - semifinals
4:00 pm - finals
Parking

As a reminder, only those cars that have a Department of Defense sticker will be allowed to drive onto the Naval Academy grounds. Fans have the option of parking at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium and taking the shuttle to Wesley Brown Field House or may also park downtown (there is a parking garage) and walk onto the grounds through the main gain (Gate 1) where they will be asked for a valid photo ID.

Participating ranked wrestlers

125: #20 Shane Young (West Virginia)
133: #16 Colin Johnston (West Virginia), #17 Aaron Kalil (Navy)
141: #19 Nathan Pennessi (West Virginia)
149: None
157: None
165: None
174: #20 Oscar Huntley (Navy)
184: #13 Luke Rebertus (Navy), #17 Matt Ryan (West Virginia)
197: None
285: None
Returning place-winners from the 2011 Navy Classic

125: ---
133: Aaron Kalil (Navy, Champion @ 125)
141: Raymond Borja (Navy, 2nd), Alex Pellicciotti (Bucknell, 2nd @ 133)
149: Eric Filipowicz (Navy, Champion), Zach Johnson (Navy, 3rd), Joe Locksmith (Navy, Champion @ 141), Ben Hunter (Navy, 6th @ 141)|
157: Matt Jackson (Navy, 4th), Zach Basich (Navy, 3rd @ 149), Zach Cerrone (West Virginia, 6th @ 149), Bobby Barnhisel (Navy, 3rd @ 165), Johnny Watson (Navy, 5th @ 165)
165: Mason Bailey (Navy, 2nd), Kyle Eason (West Virginia, 4th)
174: Oscar Huntley (Navy, 5th)
184: Luke Rebertus (Navy, Champion)
197: Matt McVay (Navy, 6th), Mac Mancuso (West Virginia, 3rd @ 184)
HWT: Hunter Manspile (George Washington, 5th), Chance Rauscher (Navy, 5th @ 197)

Citadel Wrestling Drops Three Duals at Wrestle for a Cure

Harrisburg, Pa. - Senior Kelby Smith was a perfect 3-for-3 on the afternoon and junior Turtogtokh Luvsandorj picked up a pair of victories, but The Citadel Wrestling team dropped all three of its duals Saturday afternoon at the 2011 Wrestle for a Cure Duals at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex and Expo Center. The Bulldogs fell 22-12 to Cleveland State, 33-8 to Lock Haven and 46-3 to #9 Illinois.

Against Cleveland State, senior Richard Alarcon picked up an 11-5 decision over the Vikings' Ben Willeford at 125 pounds, while fellow senior Pierre Frazile also scored a victory, a 7-4 decision over Tanner Lemon at 157. Luvsandorj and Smith completed the Bulldogs' scoring against Cleveland State with 4-0 and 7-3 decisions respectively.

Luvsandorj and Smith managed to score the only victories for The Citadel against Lock Haven as Luvsandorj earned a 16-5 major decision at 174 pounds and Smith also received a major decision by a 12-2 score at 197 pounds. Smith's 6-2 decision over Martin Smith gave the Bulldogs their only points against Illinois.

The Bulldogs return to action Saturday, Nov. 19 at the Navy Classic hosted by the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.

Citadel vs Cleveland State Match Summary

125 Richard Alarcon (Citadel) over Ben Willeford (CSU) Dec 11-5   
133 Nick Flannery (CSU) over Kyle Casaletto (Citadel) Pin 2:00   
141 Josh Palivoda (CSU) over Jordan Dix (Citadel) Dec 7-5   
149 Mike Mencini (CSU) over David Ivashchenko (Citadel) Dec 5-4   
157 Pierre Frazile (Citadel) over Tanner Lemon (CSU) Dec 7-4   
165 Corey Carlo (CSU) over Mike Harper (Citadel) Maj 14-4   
174 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (Citadel) over Aric Thurn (CSU) Dec 4-0   
184 Corbin Boone (CSU) over Jack Duane (Citadel) Dec 4-1   
197 Kelby Smith (Citadel) over Nick Anthony (CSU) Dec 7-3   
285 Chris Weber (CSU) over Justin Sparrow (Citadel) Dec 3-2   
Dual Meet Score CIT - 12.0  CSU - 22.0

Citadel vs Lock Haven Match Summary
 
125 John Trumbetti (LHU) over Richard Alarcon (Citadel) Dec 6-1   
133 Evan Kolb (LHU) over Kyle Casaletto (Citadel) Dec 2-0  
141 Matthew Bonson (LHU) over Jordan Dix (Citadel) Pin 6:03  
149 Owen Wilkinson (LHU) over David Ivashchenko (Citadel) Dec 6-4 
157 Jacob Kemerer (LHU) over Pierre Frazile (Citadel) Pin 43:00   
165 Seth Creasy (LHU) over Mike Harper (Citadel) Maj 12-4  
174 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (Citadel) over Aaron McKinney (LHU) Maj 16-5   
184 Fred Garcia (LHU) over Jack Duane (Citadel) TF 19-3  
197 Kelby Smith (Citadel) over Chris White (LHU) Maj 12-2   
285 Henry Turner (LHU) over Justin Sparrow (Citadel) Dec 4-0  
Dual Meet Score  CIT - 8.0  LHU - 33.0 

Citadel vs #9 Illinois Match Summary
 
125 Jesse Delgado (Illinois) over Richard Alarcon (Citadel) Pin 4:57   
133 Bernard Futrell (Illinois) over Kyle Casaletto (Citadel) Pin 2:23  
141 Tucker Armstrong (Illinois) over Jordan Dix (Citadel) Dec 8-6   
149 Eric Terrazas (Illinois) over David Ivashchenko (Citadel) Maj 20-6 
157 Jackson Morse (Illinois) over Pierre Frazile (Citadel) TF 17-2   
165 Conrad Polz (Illinois) over <http://www.citadelsports.com/sports/wrest/2011-12/bios/connell william00>William Connell (Citadel) Maj 16-5  
174 Jordan Blanton (Illinois) over Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (Citadel) Pin 4:35   
184 Tony Dallago (Illinois) over Jack Duane (Citadel) Inj   
197 Kelby Smith (Citadel) over Martin Smith (Illinois) Dec 6-2   
285 Patrick Walker (Illinois) over Justin Sparrow (Citadel) Pin 2:16   
Dual Meet Score  CIT - 3.0  Illinois - 46.0

Citadel Wrestling Heads to 2011 Wrestle for a Cure Duals

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel Wrestling team kicks off their dual slate this weekend with three matches in the 2011 Wrestle for a Cure Duals on Saturday at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex and Expo Center in Harrisburg, Pa. This year's event boasts 28 participating teams, including NCAA Division I, II, and III squads and club programs.

The Bulldogs will face off against Cleveland State, Lock Haven and #9 Illinois. Cleveland State competes out of the Eastern Wrestling League and opened the season at the Eastern Michigan Open last weekend. Joining the Vikings out of the EWL is Lock Haven, who posted a 6-12 mark in the conference last season. The Bald Eagles kick off their 2011-12 season this weekend. A bout against Big Ten-member Illinois wraps up the action Saturday. The Fighting Illini are tied for 9th in the latest Intermat Wrestling Team Rankings and were ranked 8th in the NWCA preseason poll.

"There is a good mixture of teams participating in the duals this weekend and we are definitely wrestling three quality opponents. It will be a great test, but we are excited and our guys are looking forward to it," said Bulldogs Head Coach Rob Hjerling.

The Citadel kicked off their season last weekend by hosting the annual Citadel Open at McAlister Field House and sending several wrestlers to the Hokie Open in Salem, Va. to compete. The Bulldogs placed nine individuals on the weekend. "Last week's competition in both Opens was the perfect type of competition that we needed to start out the year. We did some good things well in some areas and found others where we worked on improving this week," added Hjerling.

Saturday's Probable Starters

The Citadel (0-0)
125: Richard Alarcon
133: Weston Beck or Kyle Casaletto
141: Jordan Dix
149: David Ivashchenko
157: Pierre Frazile
165: Mike Harper
174: #9 Turtogtokh Luvsandorj
184: Josh Tuck
197: Kelby Smith
HWT: Justin Sparrow

Cleveland State (0-0)

125: Ben Willeford
133: Nick Flannery
141: Josh Palivoda
149: Lawrence Cavello or Mike Mencini
157: Tanner Lemon or Sheldon Brandenburg
165: Corey Carlo
174: Aric Thurn
184: Corbin Boone or Robert Blankenship
197: Nick Anthony or Garry Yarborogh
HWT: Chris Weber

Lock Haven (0-0)

125: John Trumbetti 
133: Evan Kolb 
141: #11 Matt Bonson 
149: Owen Wilkenson 
157: Jake Kemerer
165: Seth Creasy 
174: Aaron McKinney 
184: Fred Garcia 
197: Chris White or Matthew Parlier 
HWT: Henry Turner

#9 Illinois (0-0)

125: #17 Jesse Dallago
133: #3 BJ Futrell
141: Tucker Armstrong or Daryl Thomas
149: #10 Eric Terrazas
157: #20 Jackson Morse or Kyle Dooley
165: Conrad Polz
174: #3 Jordan Blanton
184: Tony Dallago
197: #17 Mario Gonzalez
HWT: Pat Walker

Wrestling Hosts The Citadel Open on Sunday

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel wrestling team will open their 2011-2012 season on Sunday at McAlister Field House when they host The Citadel Open. The event starts at 9 a.m. and runs all day. Admission for The Citadel Open is $5.

The tournament will once again feature freshman and sophomores from over 22 schools around the southeast that include Appalachian State, Chattanooga, Duke, Gardner Webb, Limestone and Newberry. Bulldog upperclassmen will be competing at the Hokie Open hosted by Virginia Tech on Sunday.

The Bulldogs will look to build off last season in which they finished with an overall record of 8-12 and a fourth-place finish at the Southern Conference Championships in March. The Citadel returns their seven starters from last season's line-up and welcomes 16 newcomers to the squad this season.

A recap and full results following the day's events will follow at the conclusion of action. For more information on Bulldog Wrestling, visit the official website of The Citadel Athletics at www.CitadelSports.com.

The Citadel Wrestle-off results
Prelim 125 Richard Alarcon Fall over Steven Cox
Prelim 125 Zak Thompson MD 9-1 over Steven Cox
Prelim 125 Aaron Hansen TF over Zak Thompson
Final  125 Richard Alarcon Fall over Aaron Hansen
Final  133 Weston Beck OT 3-1 over Kyle Casaletto
Final  141 Ugi Undrakhbayar  DEC 5-1 over Jordan Dix
Prelim 149 David Ivashchenko DEC 10-6 over Blake Holt
Prelim 149 Sam McCauley DEC 11-7 over Blake Holt
Prelim 149 Shane Lee DEC 11-9 over Sam McCauley
Final  149 David Ivashchenko DEC 2-0 over Shane Lee
Prelim 157 Cory Burres DEC 2-0 over Daniel Bankemper
Final  157 Pierre Frazile Fall over Daniel Bankemper
Prelim 165 Vincent Bellaran DEC 4-2 over Zach Bennett
Prelim 165 Kenneth Radford DEC 7-2 over Vincent Bellaran
Prelim 165 Mike Harper MD 12-4 over Ben Connell
Prelim 165 Ben Connell Fall over Vincent Bellaran
Prelim 165 Ben Connell MD 8-0 over Zach Bennett
Final  165 Mike Harper DEC 6-4 Kenneth Radord
Final  174 Turtogtukh Luvsandorj MD 17-6 over Jared Hemmings
Final  184 Josh Tuck MD 17-6 over Jack Duane
Prelim 197 Luke Johnson MD 12-2 over Scott Edelson
Final  197 Kelby Smith SV 3-1 over Luke Johnson
Hwt No match

Grapplers Set to Host Annual Blue-White "Wrestle-Offs" on Friday at Vandiver Hall

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel Wrestling team will host their annual Blue-White "Wrestle-Offs" on Friday, Oct. 28 at 3 p.m. in the wrestling room of Vandiver Hall. Originally scheduled to be two days, the entire event will now take place on Friday afternoon.

The Bulldogs were tabbed to finish third on Thursday in the Southern Conference Coaches Preseason Poll. Redshirt junior Odie Delaney, a two-time SoCon Champion and NCAA qualifier was picked as the favorite at heavyweight while reigning SoCon Wrestler of the Year Turtogtokh Luvandorj was selected the favorite at 174 pounds.

In 2011-12, the Bulldogs will feature a roster with newcomers battling in the smaller weight classes while several veterans are set to anchor the heavier weight classes. At 125 pounds, seniorRichard Alarcon brings a wealth of experience and will be challenged by freshman Aaron Hansen, a local product out of Summerville High School. Freshmen Kyle Casaletto out of Manahawkin, N.J. and Weston Beck from Rock Hill, S.C. have taken the lead to land the starting spot at 133 pounds while junior Jordan Dix is expected to once again get the nod at 141 pounds.

A few injuries in the preseason and the loss of some veterans in the program who graduated last season have created some intriguing battles in the middle weight classes. Senior David Ivashchenko has not seen a great deal of dual action, but does bring veteran leadership as he will battle against redshirt sophomore Shane Lee and a pair of freshmen in Sam McCauley and Blake Holt for the starting spot at 149 pounds. Senior Pierre Frazile returns as the starter at 157 pounds while 165 looks to be another tight battle with Luvsandorj moving to 174 pounds this season. Redshirt sophomore Mike Harper and sophomore Kenneth Radford each have a year of experience while freshman William Connell also looks to contend.

Luvsandorj bumps up to 174 pounds while redshirt freshman Jack Duane and redshirt sophomoreJosh Tuck and will battle it out at 184 pounds. Meanwhile at 197 pounds, senior Kelby Smith will attempt to hold off sophomore Luke Johnson, who wrestled at heavyweight a year ago, and junior Scott Edelson for the starting position there. After redshirting, Delaney will get the starting spot at heavyweight for the Bulldogs.

The coaches and wrestlers would like to invite all family, friends, fans, students and staff to come get their first glimpse of the 2011-2012 squad that is just a week away from the start of their season.

The 2011-12 season starts on Sunday, Nov. 6 with The Citadel Open at McAlister Field House featuring only freshmen and sophomores. The upperclassmen will take part at the Hokie Open in Salem, Va., that same day. For more information on Bulldog Wrestling, visit CitadelSports.com.

Wrestling Picked to Finish Third, Delaney and Luvsandorj Earn Preseason SoCon Honors

Spartanburg, S.C. - The Citadel Wrestling team was picked to finish third on Thursday as voted on by the Southern Conference's wrestling coaches. The coaches also voted on a 10-member preseason All-Southern Conference wrestling team.

The Citadel secured the third spot in the coaches' voting with 26 points and was represented on the preseason all-conference team by 2011 Wrestler of the Year Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (174) and 2010 SoCon champion Odie Delaney (HWT).

Both Bulldog grapplers are two-time NCAA qualifiers as Delaney (Santa Rosa Beach, Fla.) returns after redshirting in the 2010-11 season. The redshirt junior won the 2009 SoCon Championship at 197 pounds and the 2010 SoCon Championship at heavyweight. Luvsandorj (Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia) moves up to 174 pounds in 2011-12 as a junior after capturing SoCon Wrestler of the Year honors at 165 pounds a season ago in which he went 38-10 and became the highest ranked wrestler in Bulldog history. In his freshman campaign, Luvsandorj captured the 157-pound title at the SoCon Championships.

Chattanooga was projected as the favorite to win the league's wrestling title for the eighth consecutive season. The Mocs, which claimed both the regular season and tournament crowns in 2011, received four of seven first-place votes and 34 points overall, narrowly edging Appalachian State. Chattanooga carries a seven-year, 35-match SoCon duals win streak into the season.

The Mocs also placed four wrestlers on the 10-member preseason all-conference squad, including three who were previous SoCon tournament champions. Demetrius Johnson was the coaches' pick at 125 pounds along with Dean Pavlou at 149. The Mocs' Dan Waddell was the representative at 157 pounds while teammate Niko Brown was chosen at 197.

Appalachian State received the remaining three first-place votes and trailed Chattanooga by a single point in the overall balloting. Three Mountaineers earned distinction from the coaches, including Mike Kessler (141 pounds), Kyle Blevins (165) and Austin Trotman (184). Trotman, the league's wrestler of the year in 2010, is the only two-time SoCon champion returning to the mat this season.

SoCon newcomers Gardner-Webb (17 points) and Campbell (16) were selected for the fourth and fifth positions, respectively, in their first SoCon season. They were followed by VMI (15) and Davidson (6) to complete the poll. VMI's Ryan Goodsell was the final selection to the preseason all-league squad, earning the spot at 133 pounds. SIU-Edwardsville, which was also granted admittance to the Southern Conference as a wrestling member in June, will begin league competition in the 2012-13 after completing its final season of reclassification to NCAA Division I status.

Chattanooga will host the 2012 Southern Conference Wrestling Championship in at the McKenzie Arena on March 3, 2012.

2011-12 SoCon Wrestling Preseason Coaches Poll
School (First-place votes) Points
1. Chattanooga (4) 34
2. Appalachian State (3) 33
3. The Citadel 26
4. Gardner-Webb 17
5. Campbell 16
6. VMI 15
7. Davidson 6

2012-12 SoCon Wrestling Preseason All-Conference Team
125 Demetrius Johnson, Chattanooga @
133 Ryan Goodsell, VMI
141 Mike Kessler, Appalachian State
149 Dean Pavlou, Chattanooga #
157 Dan Waddell, Chattanooga @
165 Kyle Blevins, Appalachian State ^
174 Turtogtokh, Luvsandorj, The Citadel
184 Austin Trotman, Appalachian State # ^
197 Niko Brown, Chattanooga
HWT Odie Delaney, The Citadel #

@ - 2009 SoCon Champion
# - 2010 SoCon Champion
^ - 2011 SoCon Champion

The Citadel Wrestling team will host their annual "Wrestle-Off" competition on Friday, Oct. 28 at Vandiver Hall at 3 p.m. The 2011-12 season starts on Sunday, Nov. 6 with The Citadel Open at McAlister Field House featuring only freshmen and sophomores. The upperclassmen will take part at the Hokie Open in Salem, Va., that same day. For more information on Bulldog Wrestling, visit CitadelSports.com.

Wrestling Picked to Finish Third, Delaney and Luvsandorj Earn Preseason SoCon Honors

Spartanburg, S.C. - The Citadel Wrestling team was picked to finish third on Thursday as voted on by the Southern Conference's wrestling coaches. The coaches also voted on a 10-member preseason All-Southern Conference wrestling team.

The Citadel secured the third spot in the coaches' voting with 26 points and was represented on the preseason all-conference team by 2011 Wrestler of the Year Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (174) and 2010 SoCon champion Odie Delaney (HWT).

Both Bulldog grapplers are two-time NCAA qualifiers as Delaney (Santa Rosa Beach, Fla.) returns after redshirting in the 2010-11 season. The redshirt junior won the 2009 SoCon Championship at 197 pounds and the 2010 SoCon Championship at heavyweight. Luvsandorj (Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia) moves up to 174 pounds in 2011-12 as a junior after capturing SoCon Wrestler of the Year honors at 165 pounds a season ago in which he went 38-10 and became the highest ranked wrestler in Bulldog history. In his freshman campaign, Luvsandorj captured the 157-pound title at the SoCon Championships.

Chattanooga was projected as the favorite to win the league's wrestling title for the eighth consecutive season. The Mocs, which claimed both the regular season and tournament crowns in 2011, received four of seven first-place votes and 34 points overall, narrowly edging Appalachian State. Chattanooga carries a seven-year, 35-match SoCon duals win streak into the season.

The Mocs also placed four wrestlers on the 10-member preseason all-conference squad, including three who were previous SoCon tournament champions. Demetrius Johnson was the coaches' pick at 125 pounds along with Dean Pavlou at 149. The Mocs' Dan Waddell was the representative at 157 pounds while teammate Niko Brown was chosen at 197.

Appalachian State received the remaining three first-place votes and trailed Chattanooga by a single point in the overall balloting. Three Mountaineers earned distinction from the coaches, including Mike Kessler (141 pounds), Kyle Blevins (165) and Austin Trotman (184). Trotman, the league's wrestler of the year in 2010, is the only two-time SoCon champion returning to the mat this season.

SoCon newcomers Gardner-Webb (17 points) and Campbell (16) were selected for the fourth and fifth positions, respectively, in their first SoCon season. They were followed by VMI (15) and Davidson (6) to complete the poll.

VMI's Ryan Goodsell was the final selection to the preseason all-league squad, earning the spot at 133 pounds.

SIU-Edwardsville, which was also granted admittance to the Southern Conference as a wrestling member in June, will begin league competition in the 2012-13 after completing its final season of reclassification to NCAA Division I status.

Chattanooga will host the 2012 Southern Conference Wrestling Championship in at the McKenzie Arena on March 3, 2012.

2011-12 SoCon Wrestling Preseason Coaches Poll

School (First-place votes) Points

1. Chattanooga (4) 34
2. Appalachian State (3) 33
3. The Citadel 26
4. Gardner-Webb 17
5. Campbell 16
6. VMI 15
7. Davidson 6

2012-12 SoCon Wrestling Preseason All-Conference Team

125 Demetrius Johnson, Chattanooga @
133 Ryan Goodsell, VMI
141 Mike Kessler, Appalachian State
149 Dean Pavlou, Chattanooga #
157 Dan Waddell, Chattanooga @
165 Kyle Blevins, Appalachian State ^
174 Turtogtokh, Luvsandorj, The Citadel
184 Austin Trotman, Appalachian State # ^
197 Niko Brown, Chattanooga
HWT Odie Delaney, The Citadel #

@ - 2009 SoCon Champion
# - 2010 SoCon Champion
^ - 2011 SoCon Champion

The Citadel Wrestling team will host their annual "Wrestle-Off" competition on Friday, Oct. 28 at Vandiver Hall at 3 p.m. The 2011-12 season starts on Sunday, Nov. 6 with The Citadel Open at McAlister Field House featuring only freshmen and sophomores. The upperclassmen will take part at the Hokie Open in Salem, Va., that same day. For more information on Bulldog Wrestling, visit CitadelSports.com.

Bulldog Grapplers Take Part in Community Service Project with Courageous Kidz

October 13, 2011

Charleston, S.C. - Several members of The Citadel Wrestling team took time recently to volunteer their services in building a haunted house for the Courageous Kidz non-profit organization that is dedicated to helping families of children with cancer.

Senior captain Pierre Frazile proposed the idea of the Bulldog grapplers getting more involved in the community and he along with sophomore Andrew Dempsey, a cancer survivor, got in contact with the local organization to set up a volunteer opportunity. "I wanted to get the team involved with our community," commented Frazile. "I searched online and found Courageous Kidz. I emailed the local contact and we went out to clean up a horse stable and decorated it for the children. Several of us are returning to the haunted house on Oct. 14 to interact with the children."

Dempsey, who was diagnosed with leukemia when he was 15 years old, recalls his own personal battle with the disease and says, "It was very encouraging to see how many of my teammates wanted to participate in this project. It is always rewarding to go back and help children who have cancer when I had it myself. It reminds me of the hardships and struggle I endured and eventually conquered. When going through the struggle of cancer, it always lifts a child's heart to have a normal and fun experience. I am so glad we got to work with Courageous Kidz. It was a great experience."

Courageous Kidz is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping families of children with cancer as they face their battle. If you would like to become a sponsor or make a donation to Courageous Kidz, please visit www.courageouskidz.org.

The Citadel Wrestling team will host their annual "Wrestle-Off" competition on Friday, Oct. 28 and Saturday, Oct. 29 at Vandiver Hall. The 2011-12 season starts on Sunday, Nov. 6 with The Citadel Open at McAlister Field House featuring only freshmen and sophomores. The upperclassmen will take part at the Hokie Open in Salem, Va., that same day. For more information on Bulldog Wrestling, visit CitadelSports.com.

Two Bulldog Wrestlers Ranked in Preseason Poll

October 11, 2011

Charleston, S.C. - Defending Southern Conference Wrestler of the Year Turtogtokh Luvsandorj and two-time NCAA qualifier Odie Delaney were ranked by WrestlingReport.com's preseason NCAA rankings on Tuesday.

Both wrestlers earned back-to-back bids to the NCAA Championships in their first two years at The Citadel. Luvsandorj will bump up a weight class to 174 pounds in 2011-12 and comes in at No. 13 in the preseason poll nationally. Delaney is listed at No. 22 in the heavyweight division nationally.

Luvsandorj (Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia) is coming off one of the most successful individual seasons in program history in which he went 38-10, defeated eight nationally ranked wrestlers, was named SoCon Wrestler of the Year and became the highest ranked wrestling in school history after cracking the top-10 in all major national wrestling polls in January 2011. The rising junior won the SoCon Tournament title at 157 pounds his freshman year before earning an at-large bid last season at 165 pounds.

Returning to action in 2011-12 after redshirting last season will be Delaney (Santa Rosa Beach, Fla.) at heavyweight. The redshirt junior racked up 29 wins in 2009-10 en route to capturing the heavyweight title at the SoCon Championships and a subsequent bid to the NCAA Championships. In 2008-09, Delaney became only the second true freshman in school history to qualify for the NCAA Championships when he won the 197-pound title at the SoCon Tournament and compiled 25 wins that season.

The Citadel Wrestling team will host their annual "Wrestle-Off" competition on Friday, Oct. 28 and Saturday, Oct. 29 at Vandiver Hall. The 2011-12 season starts on Sunday, Nov. 6 with The Citadel Open at McAlister Field House featuring only freshmen and sophomores. The upperclassmen will take part at the Hokie Open in Salem, Va., that same day. For more information on Bulldog Wrestling, visit CitadelSports.com.

Citadel Wrestling Unveils Slate for 2011-12 Season

Charleston, S.C. - Head Coach Rob Hjerling and The Citadel Wrestling team announced their 2011-2012 schedule on Thursday, which is highlighted by seven home events.

Opening the season will be the annual Citadel Open at McAlister Field House on Nov. 6. This competition includes freshmen and sophomores from around the southeast. Several members of the team will also be taking part in the Hokie Open in Blacksburg, Va., that same weekend for the second consecutive year.

The Bulldogs will host six dual events this season beginning with North Carolina State on Dec. 17 while Duke, Appalachian State, VMI and Chattanooga will also pay visits to Charleston. The regular season concludes with The Citadel Duals on Feb. 19 at McAlister Field House as the Bulldogs host North Carolina and Sacred Heart.

The Citadel will take part in the "Wrestle for a Cure" Duals in Harrisburg, Pa., for the second straight year on Nov. 12 as they face Lock Haven, Cleveland State and Illinois. The duals are designed to help raise awareness and proceeds for cystic fibrosis.

Staying up north for the next two events, the Bulldog grapplers will take part in the Navy Classic in Annapolis, Md., on Nov. 19 and once again return to University Park, Pa., on Dec. 4 for the Nittany Lion Open.

Returning to Charleston, The Citadel hosts their first of three ACC foes on the season in North Carolina State on Dec. 17 before breaking for the Holidays. They will then part in the annual Southern Scuffle on Jan. 1 and 2 as the event moves to Chattanooga, Tenn. this season.

Duke comes to McAlister Field House on Jan. 6 before The Citadel travels to the prestigious Virginia Duals on Jan. 13 and 14 in Hampton, Va., to face teams that will be named at a later date.

The Bulldogs then begin Southern Conference dual action by hosting three consecutive contests with Appalachian State on Jan. 20, VMI on Jan. 22 and Chattanooga, who has won the regular season title for the last seven seasons, on Jan. 29.

The 18th annual All-Academy Championships will take place on Feb. 4 at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.

Returning to the East Coast, the Bulldogs hit the road for three straight conference contests as they travel to Gardner-Webb on Feb. 10, Davidson on Feb. 11 and Campbell on Feb. 17. Gardner-Webb and Campbell enter their first year as members of the Southern Conference in wrestling in 2011-12.

Concluding the regular season, the Cadets host North Carolina and Sacred Heart in The Citadel Duals at McAlister Field House on Feb. 19 where the Bulldog senior class will be honored.

The 2012 SoCon Championships will take place in Chattanooga, Tenn., on March 3 and the NCAA Championships will be in St. Louis, Mo., from March 15-17, 2012.

"I think it is a competitive and well-balanced schedule for our line-up and roster," said Hjerling. "The team should be prepared for the SoCon Championships and the NCAA Championships by March. The addition of the new programs should make the conference tournament, as well as the regular season league schedule, more exciting."

For more information on Bulldog Wrestling, visit the official website of The Citadel Athletics at <http://www.citadelsports.com/>www.CitadelSports.com and on Facebook and Twitter at facebook.com/citadelsports and twitter.com/citadelsports.

Turtogtokh Luvsandorj Wins Mongolian World Team Trials

July 7, 2011

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia - The Citadel's Turtogtokh Luvsandorj went 4-1 en route to capturing the Mongolian World Team Trials last week.

The reigning Southern Conference Wrestler of the Year will be attempting to represent his home country at the World Championships in Turkey in September. Luvsandorj (Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia) will be bumping up to wrestling at 174 pounds in the upcoming season and is not guaranteed a spot on the national team despite winning the trials.

Unlike the American World Team Trials, winning the Mongolian tournament does not automatically earn you a spot on the national team as team officials they will now begin deliberations about who they think is the best representative for the country.

Luvsandorj is coming off a stellar sophomore season at The Citadel in which he went 38-10 and competed at the NCAA Championships for the second consecutive year. He was one win short of tying the single season school record for most victories and became the highest ranked wrestler in school history this season when he came in ranked in the top-10 of all four major wrestling polls in early February.

Stay current on Bulldog Wrestling on all new CitadelSports.com.

Bulldog Wrestling Adds 15 for 2011-2012 Season

July 6, 2011

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel Wrestling program announced the addition of 15 new wrestlers to the program on Wednesday.

The 15 newcomers hail from eight different states and two countries including South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Virginia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Germany. The group has tallied 14 state titles, 31 state placers and four participants at prep nationals, including two placers.

"I feel like as though we have a great class coming in this year," said Bulldogs Head Coach Rob Hjerling, entering his 13th season as the head of The Citadel Wrestling program. "Several of the incoming wrestlers will be able to compete immediately and I feel as though we addressed our recruiting needs in a big way."

2011-2012 Additions

Weston Beck brings three state titles along with a runner-up title to The Citadel from Rock Hill High School at the 4A South Carolina state level at 130 pounds. Beck is a four-time state finalist, three-time team MVP and was the Male Athlete of the Year at his high school to go along with an impressive career record of 235-9. He also earned Most Outstanding Wrestler in the state of South Carolina at the 4A level.

Vincent Bellaran is one of three New Jersey products in this year's class as he comes down from St. Benedict's Prep and was teammates with incoming freshman Chris Dowdy and current Bulldog Turotogtokh Luvsandorj. Bellaran participated in prep nationals and finished with an overall high school record of 101-35 at 171 pounds.

Zachary Bennett comes from Franklin High School in Tennessee as a two-time state placer in Tennessee at 152 pounds.

Francis Boykin is a local product out of Hanahan High School where he was a state champion his senior year and also placed third in the state in South Carolina at 135 pounds. He was named outstanding wrestling in South Carolina at the 2A level his senior season.

Kyle Casaletto heads south from Southern Regional High School in New Jersey where he was a three-time placer in the state championships and finished runner-up on two occasions at 112 pounds and at 125 pounds. He finished with a career record of 123-17 and was named the team MVP three times along with all-district and all-region on three separate occasions.

Will Connell comes in as a three-time state finalist at Lugoff-Elgin High School as he won the state title twice and finished as a runner-up a third time at 171 pounds in South Carolina.

Matt Devine enters out of Sumter High School where he was a state champion his senior year and also a state qualifier in his high school career in South Carolina at 140 pounds.

Chris Dowdy is a three-time prep school All-American out of St. Benedict's Prep in New Jersey, the same school that reigning SoCon Wrestler of the Year Turtogtokh Luvsandorj attended. Dowdy recorded a record of 144-42 in high school at 140 pounds and lettered all four years. He was a three-time prep national placer and a prep national finalist.

Marshal Haas is an overseas transplant coming from Patch American High School in Germany after placing first and second in Europe at 189 pounds.

Jared Hemmings is a two-time state placer, including a runner-up finish, at Greater Christian Academy in Georgia at the 2A level at 171 pounds.

Aaron Hensen is another local product out of Summerville High School who is a four-time state champion at 125 pounds and finished second at NHSCA. His team won the 2007 state title while he was named the most outstanding wrestler at the 4A level and most outstanding wrestler in the state of South Carolina. Hensen compiled a career record of 154-11.

Charles Holt won a state title and also finished runner-up in 3-A at Myrtle Beach High School at 140 pounds in South Carolina.

Sam McCauley is coming off a state title at Croatan High School in North Carolina at 140 pounds. He also placed fifth in the state earlier in his career.

Jared Michael heads south from North Myrtle Beach High School where he was a two-time state placer and a state finalist his junior year in South Carolina at 189 pounds and at the 3-A level.

Thomas Philbrick comes to The Citadel out of Loudon County High School in Virginia where he placed fifth in the state at 135 pounds.

Stay current on Bulldog Wrestling on all new CitadelSports.com.

Bulldog Wrestling Set to Host Camps on July 5-13

June 22, 2011

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel Wrestling team is set to host their annual Bulldog Wrestling Camps from July 5-13 at McAlister Field House and Vandiver Hall.

Seven different camps are available for a variety of ages and will feature instruction from all four coaches at The Citadel along with two-time Olympian Plamen Paskalev, former U.S. Olympic Coach Rob Hermann and two-time NCAA champion Wade Schalles among others.

Group rates are available along with different pricing for commuter and resident campers. The attached form for the 2011 camps can be found here. For more information and to register online, visit: <http://www.bulldogwrestle.com>www.bulldogwrestle.com. All camps are still open for registration, but space is limited.

For more information on the camps, call the wrestling office at (843) 953-5315. Stay current on Bulldog Wrestling on all new CitadelSports.com.

Four Citadel Bulldog Grapplers Compete at ASICS University Nationals

Akron, Ohio - Four Citadel wrestlers competed at the 2011 ASICS University Nationals at the University of Akron over the weekend.

Reigning Southern Conference Wrestler of the Year Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia) led The Citadel at this year's event with a second place finish. Redshirt sophomore Odie Delaney (Santa Rosa Beach, Fla.) made it to the quarterfinals of the heavyweight division while a pair of Bulldog freshmen also competed in Kenneth Radford (Fayetteville, N.C.) and Joaquin Marquez (Las Cruces, N.M.).

Finishing runner-up at 174 pounds, Luvandorj defeated NCAA qualifier Cody Yohn of Minnesota in the quarterfinals, 2-0, 7-0. In the semifinals, the sophomore would avenge a dual loss he suffered in January at the Lone Star Duals to Oklahoma's Tyler Caldwell by downing the Sooner, 2-0, 5-0. Caldwell reached All-America status and finished runner-up in the 2011 NCAA Championships in Philadelphia. The Bulldog eventually fell in the finals to Ohio State's Colt Sponseller, 4-0, 1-1. Sponseller finished fourth at the NCAA Championships last month.

Delaney reached the quarterfinals of the heavyweight bracket after stunning Minnesota's Tony Nelson when he pinned the Golden Golpher at the 1:30 mark. Nelson finished seventh at heavyweight in the NCAA Championships in March. The Bulldog narrowly fell to Ohio's Jeremy Johnson in the quarterfinals, by a 1-0, 1-1 decision. In the consolation bracket, Delaney was eliminated by Michigan States' Mike McClure, 1-0, 2-0.

Radford (Fayetteville, N.C.) at 174 pounds and Joaquin Marquez at 132.25 pounds (Las Cruces, N.M.) also participated in the event over the weekend. The freshmen faced solid competition but were eliminated early in the double-elimination tournament.
The Citadel Bulldog Wrestling Set to Host Fourth Annual Golf Tournament

Charleston, S.C. - The Bulldog Wrestling Club would like to invite alumni, fans and friends of the program out to their fourth annual golf tournament. All proceeds benefit The Citadel Wrestling Program. The captain's choice tournament utilizes a handicap system and will take place at Charleston National Country Club in Mt. Pleasant on Sunday, April 17, 2010, with a 1:30 p.m. shot gun start.

Join The Citadel Wrestling team for an afternoon of golf, prizes, food and fun! Prizes will be awarded to the top three teams as well as to the participants with the longest drive and closest to the hole on several of the holes. Mulligans will be sold Sunday morning at registration. Dinner will be available in the Club House at 5:30 pm followed with awards. If you are not a golfer and would still like to attend the event and dinner you can do so for only $25. The Citadel coaches will be providing the group with an update on the program and what is coming next for the Bulldog grapplers.

All fans are reminded that this is a fundraising event for the Bulldog wrestling program. Sponsorships and donations are both needed and greatly appreciated. Unable to play, become a hole, t-shirt or cart sponsor.

Date: Sunday, April 17, 2010

Time: 1:30 p.m. shotgun start (golfers must arrive no later than 12:30 p.m.)

Place: Miler Country Club
400 Country Club Boulevard
Summerville, SC 29483

Price: Golf and Dinner - $75; Dinner only - $25

Sponsorship: Hole, registration for a four-player team, cart and t-shirts - $500; T-shirt and Cart - $200; Cart only - $25

Registration Deadline: Friday, April 8, 2010

Groups: If you have a four-man group that you wish to compete with please make note of it when registering. The price for a team registration is $280.

For more information and to register for The Bulldog Wrestling Club's fourth annual golf tournament, contact Jim Oddo at 843-654-6093 or 864-420-7054 or send an email to joddo1@gmail.com.
Pair of The Citadel Wrestlers Look to Cap Season with Titles

Luvsandorj Streaking into Conference Championships

Turtogtokh Luvsandorj is not hard to spot during a Bulldog wrestling match. He is the only member of the team that wears gray argyle dress socks while he wrestles. “They are so comfortable, my girlfriend got them for me halfway through the season and I wear them all the time now,” said the young grappler.

            Luvsandorj is 24-10 on the season and has won 10 straight decisions in dual meets. He is 13-1 overall since January 9 with four pins. In his last match, he defeated a nationally ranked opponent in No. 16 Thomas Scotton of North Carolina, 3-0. “My goal is to just keep wrestling and work hard,” said Luvsandorj. “The coaches helped me to fix my early mistakes when I was losing. I don’t ever think about rankings or national implications when I get out on the mat.”

            The Mongolian had never been to the state of South Carolina before he accepted a scholarship offer from head coach Rob Hjerling. He wasn’t sure of his plans after high school and the offer to continue his education and continue to wrestle was enough to bring him to the Palmetto state.

            The true freshman moved to New Jersey and attended St. Benedict’s Prep his sophomore year of high school as he began learning English as his third language. His family all still lives in Mongolia and he played the full gamut of sports growing up. However, he has only been involved in wrestling, one of the most popular sports in the country, for the last seven years.

             “He was a little bit inconsistent in the beginning of the year, but very coachable in terms of where he needed to improve, said Hjerling. “We really worked on the rise in intensity and it is starting to pay off for him as he began winning more matches. He’s got a great style that helps him to compete at a very high level. He just needed to know how to fundamentally transition his style to collegiate wrestling.” Turtogtokh would like to make it the NCAA Championships and eventually become an All-American at The Citadel.

Oddo looks to Maintain Consistency

It has been an up-and-down season for J.C. Oddo. The season didn’t start well for the redshirt sophomore. “I was definitely a little rusty to start out the year, but the wrestling has really picked up since the break,” said Oddo. “We have been working hard in the second half of the season heading towards the SoCon Championships.”

The native of the upstate had high expectations entering the season after placing second last year at the Southern Conference Championships. Since the calendar has turned to 2010, Oddo has wrestled much better, to improve his overall record to 19-10 and 10-4 in dual meets. He is second on the team with eight pins.

 Oddo has wrestled for the last 14 years and is glad to see that the state is making progress nationally in wrestling. “Most people don’t think of wrestling as very strong in the south, but it is a great region, very competitive and has really been making strides in the right direction of late.” 

“He works hard and is coachable and when he is on, he is pretty good,” said wrestling coach Rob Hjerling. “We are working on peaking J.C. at the right time. He wrestles a lot on instinct and we are trying to focus in on that right now. It’s a nice bonus that he is from South Carolina and he is able to represent the state at a Division I level.”

  Eight Athletes Added to The Citadel's Wrestling Team

Charleston, S.C. - Head wrestling coach Rob Hjerling announces the addition of eight athletes to The Citadel's wrestling team.  The new grapplers come to the Bulldog wrestling room with impressive stats and look to make an impact. "I am very excited about this upcoming season.  The new guys we have coming in, combined with our current athletes should make up an impressive squad.  Like last years class of recruits, the new cadet- student-athletes will have an opportunity to make an impact right away.  I am very pleased with the our quality of athletes and the positive attitudes they bring to the team," stated Hjerling. The new crop of wrestlers consist of seven state placers including three state champions and two High School All-Americans spread out over eight weight classes.  These eight athletes include Richard Alarcon, David Ivashchenko, Pierre Frazile, Weston Newton, Alex Croasmum, Kelby Smith, Odie Delaney and Bobby Jones.

Alarcon wrestled 119 in high school where he was a three-time California state qualifier.  He concluded is high school career with a fourth place finish at the state meet and an eighth place finish at NHSCA Senior National, earning him High School All-American honors.  Alarcon is projected to wrestle at the 125-pound weight class for the Bulldogs. Ivanshchenko hails from South Park, Pa. where he wrestled at the 135-pound weight class in high school and look to drop down slightly to be a 133 pounder for the Bulldogs.  He earned All-State honors placing seventh at the state meet. Adding depth to the 141-pound weight class for the Bulldogs is Charlotte, Fla. native, Farzile.  He was a three-time state placer for the sunshine state.  Following Farzile is a projected 149-pound grappler from Eastside, S.C.  Newton was a South Carolina high school State Champion. Croasmum with be providing mid-western talent to the roster for the 2008-09 season.  He is an Ohio state placer that is transferring in to The Citadel from Edinboro.

 Croasmum is expected to contribute at the 157-pound weight class. Kelby Smith and Odie Delaney are the second and third high school state champions respectively to join the Bulldogs this season.  Smith comes to The Citadel from Wesleyan. Ga. and is projected to wrestle at either 184 or 197 pounds for the Bulldogs.  Delaney is slated as a 197 pounder from South Walton, Fla. who earned High School All-American honors. Rounding out the 2008 recruits is The Citadel second grappler from Eastside, S.C., Bobby Jones.  He is expected to add solid depth for the Bulldogs at heavyweight.

Member: Southern Conference NCAA Division I For all the latest news from The Citadel wrestling team and other Bulldog athletics, go to www.CitadelSports.com.