Michigan State University Athletics
Wrestling Set for Weekend Pair Against Ranked Programs
1/11/2008 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Jan. 11, 2008
MICHIGAN STATE vs. #20 PITTSBURGH, #18 OKLAHOMA
Date: Saturday, Jan. 12, 2008
Times: vs. #20 Pittsburgh at 3 p.m.
vs. #18 Oklahoma at 5 p.m.
Location: Norman, Okla.
Arena: Howard McCasland Field House
Video: www.soonersports.com
PDF of Complete Notes and Stats: Click here.
Watch Coach Minkel's Weekly Press Conference: Click here
Listen to John Click here
Listen to Micah Click here
NEXT FOR THE SPARTANS
Coming off a strong 39-0 win over Ohio last week, the Spartans travel to Norman, Okla., to take on No. 18 Oklahoma and No. 20 Pittsburgh on Saturday, Jan. 12. Action begins at 3 p.m.
LAST TIME OUT
Michigan State wrestling defeated Ohio Jan. 4, tallying its first home dual victory of the season in the 39-0 win in Jenison Field House. Two Spartans, Micah Carter and Anthony Jones, Jr., earned their first career starts and dual wins en route to MSU's first shutout since defeating Eastern Michigan 39-0 on Feb. 1, 1998. With the win, Michigan State evens its record to 3-3-0, while Ohio dropped to 4-3-0.
SCOUTING THE SPARTANS
Michigan State is led by a pair of ranked wrestlers, No. 3 Franklin Gomez and No. 18 Joe Williams. Boasting an MSU tournament title, Gomez leads the Spartans with a strong 14-1 overall record and perfect 6-0 dual mark so far this fall as the 133-pound starter. His impressive season includes two technical falls, four major decisions and four wins over ranked opponents.
Senior starter Joe Williams ranks as high as 18th in the 197-pound class. Williams has earned an 18-7 overall record this year, including three wins over ranked opponents as well as seven pins and four major decisions. Additionally, all but one of Williams' losses have come against ranked opponents. Williams is also the only Spartan to record medal finishes in all four tournaments this year, with second-place finishes at the Eastern Michigan Open, MSU Open and Nittany Lion Open, and an eight-place finish at the Midlands Championships.
Adding to the Spartan lineup, sophomore Alan O'Donnell returned to the mat after missing six weeks with a knee injury. O'Donnell closed out the Ohio match with a last minute takedown to earn a 9-8 win at 285 pounds.
MSU's middle weights are becoming consistent as John Fulger, Rex Kendle, John Murphy and Nick Palmieri continues to win for the Spartans. Fulger's win against Ohio at 157 pounds bumped his record to .500 (11-11), while Kendle's victory at 165 halted a two-match skid. Murphy extended his record to 18-9 overall and 3-2 in duals, and Palmieri evened his dual record to 3-3 after besting the Bobcats.
SCOUTING THE SOONERS
Oklahoma picked up three wins last weekend to push its record to 8-1-0 on the season at the 11th Annual Lonestar Duals in Arlington, Texas. The No. 19-ranked Sooners defeated No. 21 Navy, Cal-State Fullerton and North Carolina.
The Sooners boast six ranked wrestlers, No. 11 Zack Bailey (141 pounds), No. 8 Will Rowe (149 pounds), No. 12 Max Dean (165 pounds), No. 7 Joshua Weitzel (184 pounds), No. 5 Joel Flaggert (197 pounds) and No. 14 Nathan Fernandez (285 pounds).
SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
The No. 20-ranked Panthers rolled to two dual match victories over Duquesne and Franklin and Marshall last weekend. Pitt shut out the Dukes 49-0 and toppled the Diplomats by a count of 38-12.
Two of the notable scratches from the Pitt lineup included No. 1-ranked Keith Gavin and All-American Drew Headlee, leaving No. 4 Matt Kocher and No. 11 Zach Sheaffer to fill in the lineups; both Kocher and Sheaffer went 2-0 against Duquesne and Marshall.
QUITE FRANKLIN
Sophomore standout Franklin Gomez has jumped out to an incredible start to the season, going undefeated until dropping his first match in the 133 bracket at the Midlands Championships. The starter ranks third nationally in his weight class, a standing propped up by his MSU Open title, Big Ten Wrestler of the Week accolades, four wins over ranked opponents and his 14-1 record.
Topping off his outstanding performance at the Spartans' home tournament, Gomez defeated Indiana's then-ranked No. 3 Andrae Hernandez 5-2 for the 133-pound title in the MSU Open.
At Nov. 17's ACC-Big Ten Clash, Gomez defeated his second ranked opponent of the season, taking down Virginia's No. 9 Eric Albright in a 7-1 decision. Additionaly, Gomez picked up the Spartans only win in the Central Michigan dual, besting No. 14 Conor Beebe, 10-3. At Midlands, top-seeded Gomez suffered his first defeat of the season in the 133-pound title match, after picking up two wins for an overall 13-1 season mark. In the quarterfinals, Gomez defeated Wyoming's Corey VomBaur in a 16-1 technical fall, and went on to best Iowa State's No. 4 Nick Fanthorpe, a 3-1 decision, to advance to the finals. In the title match, Gomez took on Iowa's No. 2 Joe Slaton, but fell in a tough 6-2 loss, surrendering the bracket title and his first loss of the season.
Gomez remains undefeated in dual action after taking down Ohio's Seth Morton with a 13-3 major decision victory.
NOT YOUR AVERAGE JOE
Senior captain Joe Williams continues to be a driving force for the Spartans, as the fifth-year 197-pounder leads by example for the MSU wrestlers, having defeated three ranked opponents so far this year.
Ranked 18th in the nation, Willams paces the Spartans with a team-high 18 wins, seven pins, four major decisions and three shutouts.
Williams' earned his impressive numbers in the fall's four tournaments as well as in dual action. Williams is the only Spartan to place in each open, earning second at the Eastern Michigan Open, the MSU Open and the Nittany Lion Open, and eighth at the Midlands Championships.
Most recently in dual action against Ohio, Williams helped the Spartans sweep the Bobcats, 39-0, with his 9-2 win over Chris Iammarino.
WELCOME BACK
Alan O'Donnell returned to the MSU starting lineup at 285 pounds for the Ohio dual after missing six weeks with a knee injury. O'Donnell wrestled the last bout of the evening, and his decision came down to the final moments, when he took down Jason Marshall with four second left to claim the 9-8 victory.
DUALING PERFECTION
Micah Carter, Franklin Gomez, Anthony Jones Jr. and Alan O'Donnell remain undefeated in dual action this season. Gomez has chalked up five dual wins, going against Old Dominion, North Carolina, Virginia, North Carolina State and Central Michigan, while O'Donnell picked up victories against Old Dominion and Ohio. Carter and Jones Jr. made their first career starts and earned their first dual wins against Ohio.
MINKEL MEMORIALIZED
Head coach Tom Minkel, along with former Chippewa wrestler John Matthews, will be honored on Jan. 20 with the retirement of their singlets at Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, Mich.
The pair will become the fi rst wrestlers in school history to have their singlets ceremoniously raised to the rafters of Rose Arena. CMU is hosting a special recognition event when the Chippewas host the Michigan Wolverines for a dual meet beginning at 2 p.m.
There will be a pre-meet reception hosted by the Chippewa Club at 1 p.m. in Rose Arena, and the group will reconvene at O'Kelly's Sports Bar and Grille after the match.
Minkel was a three-time All-American, earning both Division I and Division II honors in 1970 and Division II honors in 1971 (Division II athletes were eligible to wrestle in the Division I tournament at the time). Minkel was also a two-time team MVP, earning the honor in 1970 and `71. Additionally, he won a pair of Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference titles in 1969 and `70.
Both wrestlers then went on to earn sports on the USA Greco Roman Olympic team. Matthews represent the USA in 1976 and 1980, and Minkel wrestled for the Red, White and Blue in 1980.
Additionally, both wrestlers were inducted into the Central Michigan University Athletic Hall of Fame, with Matthews going in with the inaugural class of 1984, and Minkel the following year in 1985.
FIRST TIME SINCE...
The Spartans swept the University of Ohio, 39-0, on Jan. 4, 2008 with wins at all 10 weight classes. The last time MSU shutout an opponent was in 1998, when the Spartans defeated Eastern Michigan, 39-0, on Feb. 1.
UP NEXT
The Spartans return home and kick off Big Ten action Friday, Jan. 25, hosting defending national champion Minnesota at 7 p.m., and continue conference play on Sunday, Jan. 27, welcoming Purdue for a 1 p.m. dual.
SIGNING CLASS
MSU signed two nationally ranked recruits, adding Steve Andrus of Manhattan, Kan., and Kirk Tank of Curtice, Ohio, to fill out its fall recruiting class.
"Kirk and Steve are two outstanding young men who I am certain will make a real impact here during their careers as Michigan State Spartans," said head coach Tom Minkel.
Andrus, who ranks seventh nationally by Amateur Wrestling News, won the heavyweight Kansas High School State Championship in 2007, after placing third as a sophomore in 2006. He also excels in Greco-Roman and Freestyle wrestling, earning multiple All-American honors in Fargo, N.D. Additionally, Andrus won the 2006 Cadet Freestyle National Championships. Andrus will continue to wrestle at 285 pounds when he joins Michigan State next fall.
Tank, who is ranked 15th by W.I.N. Magazine, is a two-time all-state wrestler from Oak Harbor High School in Ohio. He placed fourth at the Ohio State High School Championships as a sophomore and second as a junior, both at 145 pounds. Tank is expected to wrestle at 157 or 165 pounds as a freshman for the Spartans.
