Live Webcast
This Saturday, February 11, the New York University wrestling team will compete in the University Athletic Association (UAA) Championship in Cleveland, OH.
The Championship will be a tri-meet between NYU, the University of Chicago and host Case Western Reserve University. All three teams will face each other, and at the end of the day the team with the best record will be crowned UAA Champion. One wrestler in each weight class will be named to the All-Association Team, while a Most Outstanding Wrestler and Rookie of the Year will also be chosen.
At the 2011 UAA Championship, NYU finished in second place by splitting its two matches, posting a 30-14 victory over Case and narrowly losing to Chicago 20-19. Chicago won the Championship as they also defeated Case 40-8. Each year dating back to 2005, NYU has finished either first or second at the event.
NYU enters the UAA Championship coming off a 2-2 finish in a Centennial Conference quad meet last weekend. The grapplers recorded big wins against Muhlenberg College and Washington and Lee University, but fell short against Ursinus College and McDaniel College.
Led by seniors
David Rice (165),
Gregg Martino (174) and
Jamie Myers (197), NYU is 8-9 in dual matches this season. Rice is 24-1 on the year and is currently ranked #4 in the country at 165 by both d3wrestle.com and the NWCA. Martino, a two-time NCAA Championship qualifier, has a 23-2 record and is ranked #9 at 174. Myers is 6-1 on the season after returning from injury. His arrival gives the grapplers a huge boost heading into the weekend.
Also making big contributions this season are
Janik Santana-Quintana (125) and
Matt DiGiovanni (141). They are first and second on the team in falls, with eight and seven respectively, while DiGiovanni also leads the team in major decisions with five. Finally,
Jake Pawlowski (184) was named UAA Athlete of the Week for his outstanding 3-0 performance this week at the Centennial Conference quad meet. Pawlowski has been on a tear lately, going 7-1 in his last eight bouts.
Chicago comes in with a record of 7-5 in dual meets this season. The Maroons have won the UAA Wrestling Championship in each of the past three years, and last year they had four wrestlers named All-Association.
Case's squad is highlighted by senior All-American Isaac Dukes. Wrestling in the 157-pound division, Dukes is ranked #6 in the nation by d3wrestle.com. At the 2010 UAA Championships, he was named Most Outstanding Wrestler and in 2011 he was named All-Association.
The Championships will kick off at 11:00 am when NYU takes on Chicago. The loser will then face Case at 12:30 pm, and the winner of the NYU-Chicago match will take on Case at 2:00 pm.
For more information please visit
http://athletics.case.edu/sports/genrel/uaa_wrestling.
